Motorsport eNews Issue 151 - April 20-26, 2010

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Issue No. 151 April 20 -26 2010

SUPERLEAGUE ON THE GOLD COAST? It’s on the cards, and it could be as soon as 2011

WAY TOO GOOD! www.mnews.com.au

Whincup dominates in Hamilton. Full coverage inside

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Editorial Editor: Andrew van Leeuwen Executive Editor: Phil Branagan National Editor: Mitchell Adam Publisher: Chris Lambden

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Photographers Sutton Motorsport Images, Dirk Klynsmith, Marshall Cass, John Morris/Mpix, James Smith, Peter Bury, Geoff Gracie, Joel Strickland, Andrew Hall, Rob Lang

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Issue No. 151 | 20-26 Apr 2010

news 4 Wil GC kick a goal ... and secure the Superleague?

7 As good as a Halliday!

BJR sign speedy Kiwi 8 Brakes were Broke Cars excluded from NZ 15 Golden Oldies in Hamilton Masters for street race 16 Diesel Fitter Hyundai diesel in the ARC

chat 22 Five Minutes With ...

Michael Caruso

comment 24 Martin D Clark 25 van Leeuwen

race 26 V8 Supercars – Hamilton 36 ARC 40 Drag Racing

trade 52 Classifieds

Superleague Formula

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SUPERLEAGUE SHOWS GOLD COAST INTEREST

I

INTERNATIONAL

NTERNATIONAL openwheeler racing could be back on the Gold Coast as soon as next year, with the soccer-based Superleague Formula indicating an interest in racing on the streets of Surfers Paradise.

Superleague Formula is currently in its third season, and currently features a Queensland driver (John Martin), and a former Gold Coast Indy winner in Sebastien Bourdais. eNews first heard that Superleague might have www.mnews.com.au

been Gold Coast-bound last week, and contacted the series’ UK base for comment.

“Superleague Formula has identified a number of countries, including Australia, outside of Europe which would be suitable for its continued expansion,” read an official, and exclusive, statement provided by press officer Tom Hornsby.

“The obvious choice for such a race would be the Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise, event, which has a rich history of hosting international single seater series alongside the traditional V8 Supercar round.

“And while it is unlikely the championship will be able to attend this season owing to a date clash with an existing Superleague Formula round in Spain, we are flattered to be linked with the race and would be interested in pursuing the matter further for 2011, should the event’s organisers wish to.”

Should Superleague Formula race on the Gold Coast in 2011, It would allow V8 Supercars to return to a more traditional format, and negate the need for the international ‘substitute’ drivers who will race this year to keep the event’s international flavour.

It would also satisfy the Queensland government’s criteria of an international component for the event.

Superleague Formula started in 2008, with the cars running in the colours of football – or soccer, depending on who you ask – teams from around the world. The ’08 champions were Beijing Guoan, run by Zakspeed with Davide Rigon doing the driving, while Liverpool won last year’s title with Adrian Valles in a Hitech-run car.

The cars are built by Panoz, and are powered by 750 horsepower V12 engines.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

WHERE’S DAVO’S CAR? Date of SBR’s latest Falcon still unknown, as Alex continues to struggle V8 SUPERCARS

NEWS OPINION with ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

O

Dirk Klynsmith

N Thursday, the speculation will come to an end. The Gold Coast V8 SuperCarnivale will be officially launched.

As far as we know, the international drivers and the teams they drive for will be fully disclosed. And it better be good, because the lengths we’ve had to go to in order to break the cover of as many of the drivers as we’ve done has been extraordinary! The veil of secrecy has been thick and people believed to be eNews sources on the matter have, apparently, copped agitated phone calls from the powers at V8SA. The problem is, the people copping the phone calls are generally the obvious source, and we’re better than that. So sorry to anyone we’ve got into trouble, because it’s mostly been people who haven’t breathed a word to eNews.

I’ll admit that I’m still not sold on this Gold Coast concept. I think its pretty micky mouse for what’s meant to be the best Touring Car Championship in the world. But from a selfish point of view, its given us an excellent news feeding-ground over the last eight or nine weeks!

Hopefully, it’s a stop-gap. Hopefully, by 2011, either our exclusive cover story regarding Superleague Formula will have become a reality, or the ‘international’ mandate will have been dropped and the Gold Coast will become a Clipsal-spec V8only zone. Either situation works for me. We’ll miss the news cycle of the SuperCarnivale, but the sport will be better for it.

WHEN Alex Davison will get his hands on a new FG Falcon remains a mystery.

The Stone Brother’s Racing driver is currently still in a 2009spec SBR Falcon, while Shane van Gisbergen is in a car that was built for the start of this season.

Davison was meant to debut

his new car at Clipsal, but the date has now been pushed back.

“I’m not exactly sure [when I’ll get the new car],” said Davison.

“It will be sometime mid-year, I’d imagine.”

Davison was part of SBR’s horror weekend in Hamilton, finishing the two races with a 17th and a DNF, and slipping to 19th in the standings.

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Dirk Klynsmith

Dirk Klynsmith

Giz Stays Put V8 SUPERCARS

SHANE van Gisbergen has put the early silly season rumours to bed by signing with Stone Brother’s Racing for the next two years.

SP Tools followed suit, announcing they would remain the title sponsor of the #9 SBR Falcon for the duration of van Gisbergen’s contract.

The young Kiwi was reported to be the lynch pin on the 2011 silly season, and had been linked to every team from HRT to FPR. But in the end, loyalty to the Stones won out.

“This year’s been going pretty good, and the car has been getting better through the back half of last year and the start of this year,” van Gisbergen told eNews.

“We’ve had our first podium, and things are looking good. There were some pretty good offers, but we’re happy where we are and we’ve decided to stay.”

According to van Gisbergen, stability was a big part of the decision.

“I’ve had the same engineer for a few years in a row, and the same guys on the car, and it’s good to have that continuity. It’s taken two or three years to get fully up to speed, and this year we seem to be a whole lot more consistent.”

And, by re-signing, van Gisbergen has told the world he expects SBR to be the team to help him win the title.

“That’s our goal. We had other good offers from other teams, offers worth a whole lot, but I see this as my best chance. This is the best way to do it.”

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

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BRIGHTY’S BATHURST HALLIDAY V8 SUPERCARS MATT Halliday will be back in a V8 Supercar later this year, having done a deal to partner Jason Bright in the Trading Post Commodore at the 2010 endurance races.

The Kiwi has signed with Brad Jones Racing, and with Andrew Jones expected to partner Jason Richards, Halliday is very likely to be teamed with Bright.

Halliday and Bright have an existing link. Halliday’s last enduro outing was in a Britek car back in 2008, where he shared with Marcus Marshall. eNews understands that the deal may well be extended to a three-race contract, with Halliday racing at Phillip Island, Bathurst and the Gold Coast. That would depend on who BJR’s yet-to-benamed international driver is, and whether he would be

partnered with Richards, or Bright.

Halliday has most recently been racing in New Zealand’s Battery Town GT3 Cup Challenge, but he does have plenty of Bathurst starts under his belt. He debuted in The Great Race back in 2004 with Orrcon Racing, returning for a second outing with that team in 2005. He then had a two-year stint with Ford Performance Racing in 2006 and 2007, before running with Britek in 2008.

In the third BJR entry, expect David Wall to partner regular driver Karl Reindler.

The pair have a link through Wilson Security, making the reigning Australian GT Champion an obvious choice to team up with Reindler. Wall raced at Bathurst last year with Wilson Security Racing, sharing with Leanne Tander in the second car.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

Moffat gets to work V8 SUPERCARS

FPR and Johnson DQ’d over brake rotor SNAFU V8 SUPERCARS A MINOR assembly error became a big, and embarrassing, problem for two of Ford’s V8 Supercar teams in New Zealand when three Falcon drivers were disqualified from Sunday’s V8 Supercar race.

Jim Beam Racing’s Steven Johnson and the Ford Performance Racing pair of Mark Winterbottom and Steven Richards all lost their Race 8 placings, as a result of having their rear brake rotors fitted to the incorrect side of the cars.

The V8 Supercars Operations Manual details the eligibility of four different Alcon disc rotors for all four corners of

the car, and the rear rotors have different part numbers; DIV2202X595C12L for the left and DIV2202X595C12R for the right.

Johnson lost fifth place, while the FPR cars, which ironically struggled with brake problems, were 14th (Winterbottom) and 15th (Richards).

It was a blow to the team, according to Team Principal, Tim Edwards.

“They are the correct discs listed in the table (of regulations) but unfortunately they were fitted to the wrong side of the car, meaning the groves on the rotors were facing the wrong way,” he explained.

“This in no way gave us

Dirk Klynsmith

JAMES Moffat will head to Winton today (Tuesday) for a preQueensland Raceway test with Ford Performance Racing.

Moffat is currently sitting second in the Fujitsu Series standings after one round, and is hopeful that the test in his FPR development series car will help overhaul early leader Steve Owen in Ipswich.

“We just want to have another run before QR,” he told eNews.

“I’m still getting my head around this car, so another day in the car should give us a good start heading into the round.”

Moffat added that the test was all part of his transition from a Triple Eight-built car, which he raced last year, to an FPR-built car.

“It’s quite a bit different. Overall, it’s much stiffer, so it requires a different approach to get a lap time.

“I actually think this car suits my natural style better, although there was obviously nothing wrong with what I had last year.

Having said that, I followed Jono Webb in his FPR-built car at Queensland last year, and it looked like a jet!”

In other FV8 testing news, Todd Fiore will have a run in the Triple F VE Commodore today at Queensland Raceway, ahead of his FV8 debut at the track next week.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

BRAKING POINT

any performance advantage, which was demonstrated with both FPR Falcons experiencing overheating in the rear brakes during the race. But unfortunately it contravenes the regulations and the mandatory minimum penalty is exclusion. We’ll cop it on the chin and make sure we have better processes in place next time to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”

The exclusions mean that Winterbottom loses second in the championship, and is relegated to third behind Jamie Whincup and James Courtney. Johnson drops to 11th (ironically, promoting FPR driver Paul Dumbrell one position) while Richards drops down to 22nd position.

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REID: BACK IN BLACK V8 SUPERCARS NEW Zealander Jonny Reid is in the box seat for a program with Kelly Racing this season.

Reid tested with the team recently as part of a driver evaluation, and impressed with his pace, given his relative experience in V8 Supercars.

He is now being considered for the two regular endurance races, and may be on the Fujitsu Series grid, in a Kelly Racing-run car, as soon as

Queensland Raceway in two weeks.

“We’re talking about it,” confirmed Todd Kelly.

“He hasn’t got a lot of experience in our cars. I’d like to stick him in a Fujitsu Series car and see how he comes along. We’ve got a few options for the enduros at this points, but Jonny did show plenty of promise at the driver evaluation.”

Kelly also confirmed that with or without Reid, the plan

was for KR to have a Fujitsu Series present at QR. “We’ve got to get it going, because there are only a few rounds left before Bathurst. We want to get our enduro driver in a car at Queensland.”

While Reid has signed to race in the newly created Auto GP series in Europe (see separate story), he told eNews that V8 Supercars is still his main goal. “[Auto GP] was a last minute thing that I took because I didn’t have a lot of racing going

on for this year,” said Reid.

“I’m still focussed on getting a V8 Supercar endurance drive this year, and I’m still focussed on being a main series driver in 2011. That’s my goal in motorsport.”

There is only one clash between the Fujitsu Series and Auto GP – Townsville in Queensland and Magny Cours in France. None of the Auto GP rounds clash with Phillip Island or Bathurst.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

... AND A RETURN TO SON-OF-A1GP AUTO GP NEW ZEALANDER Jonny Reid will be Australasia’s great hope in the newly created Auto GP series in Europe this year.

The young Kiwi will race for Super Nova in Auto GP, which replaces Euroseries 3000 in 2010.

It will be somewhat of a homecoming for Reid; Auto GP

will use the same Lola chassis and Zytek engines that the first generation A1GP cars used, but with an updated aero package and Michelin tyres. And Reid raced very successfully in these cars for A1 Team New Zealand, which was run by Super Nova.

“It’s very exciting,” Reid told eNews.

“Our first round is at Brno in the Czech Republic, where I won two races in these cars

as part of A1GP. It’s a great opportunity, and it has great prize money.”

The prize money Reid alludes to is 200,000 Euros, which form the prize pool at each of the six rounds.

Reid will be teamed with former F1 driver and GP2 champion Giorgio Pantano, which he says is another reason to be excited about the season.

“I’m sure we’ll push each other, and that’s what it’s all about. He’s very fast, but I’m sure there will be rounds where I can lead the way.”

The 2010 Auto GP season kicks off at Brno this weekend, before rounds at Imola (May 23), Spa-Francorchamps (June 27), Magny Cours (July 11), Navarra (September 26) and Monza (October 3).

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

A1GP

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Eyjafjallajoekull-fragilistic Volcanic airport closures delay F1 teams’ return; All aboard the Polar Express!

FORMULA 1 DON’T be surprised if you bump into a Formula 1 driver, or prominent team member, at Woollies this week.

The European airport shutdown, prompted by the eruption of the Eyjafjallajoekull volcano in Iceland, has caused all manner of solutions of how to get the cars, drivers and team members back to Europe and turn the cars around in time for the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona on May 9.

Normally, a three-week turnaround between a race in Asia and one in Europe would not present the teams with any difficulties – indeed, up until

No Prodrive F1 in 2011

the test bans were brought into play, teams would be testing their cars this week. But now, there is a possibility that some team staff, after having four flyaway races to open the season, may not get home in time to prepare for Spain.

The worst-case scenario being worked on is to fly the cars straight to Barcelona, and treat the next race as a ‘flyaway’ event. All 17 international standard airports in Spain were closed during the worst of the volcano’s emissions, but all reopened on Sunday morning.

The problem is the backlog of passengers stranded, some for five days already, in various parts of the world, and

accommodating the inbound passengers. Some teams in China were investigating going the ‘other’ way, and flying east to the USA and waiting for a flight to Europe, and there are some returning to Australia for some R&R before contemplating the next leg of the journey.

Reports indicate that a plane carrying many F1 folk landed in Dubai and that some planned flights through eastern Europe and north Africa, in order to head for the south of France.

From there, passengers can catch trains to Paris, from where there are trains to London.

As for Chinese GP and new

championship leader Jenson Button, he and Japanese girlfriend Jessica Michibata were planning on staying in the region anyway. Button had delayed a holiday the couple had planned between the Malaysian and Chinese races, to return to England to practice on McLaren’s race simulator. It obviously paid off ...

The Red Bull drivers have their own plans.

“I will rent a car and drive back,” Sebastian Vettel chirped after taking pole position.

“I’m in the same car as Seb, we’re going back together,” added Mark Webber.

“Or I go to Australia, I keep going this way.”

DRIVERS REPRIMANDED

FORMULA 1

10

sutton-images.com

FORMULA 1 will go into 2011 without an entry from Prodrive.

The company’s Chairman David Richards said in a statement last week that his company would focus on its return to the World Rally Championship for 2011 and on its Aston Martin Sportscar racing programme.

“I have always made it very clear that the timing for a Prodrive entry would be judged on two criteria,” he said in a statement, “that we could be competitive and that the business case would make it a financially viable proposition.

“Today, if we were to adopt the strategy of starting a new team, I don’t believe it is possible to meet these two conditions.”

NO further action will be taken over a near-miss in Shanghai’s pitlane between Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton.

The Red Bull and McLaren drivers ran side-by-side down the Chinese circuit’s pitlane when they pitted together for slick tyres. Hamilton slid out of his pit box alongside the German’s car which, he claimed, edge towards him. The race stewards, including former driver Alex Wurz, reviewed the video of the incident and reprimanded both drivers for

driving ‘in a dangerous manner’.

“I had battle with Lewis in the pit-lane,” said Vettel.

“At the stop I was ahead; I don’t know why he pulled to the left and was keen to touch me. I hoped I didn’t get a puncture from that – I don’t really understand why he did it as I was a bit ahead of him and had the advantage anyway.”

Immediately after finishing second in the race, Hamilton did not recall the incident, but his memory was better later on.

“As far as I am concerned I thought it was okay,” he said.

“The team were waiting for quite some time and they waited until it was the right time.

“As I came out I noticed Sebastian was there and he was pushing me a little bit to the right and we pushed wheels. Otherwise it was fair.”

It was a tough weekend for the 2008 World champion, who was taken to task during the drivers’ briefing, particularly

by Rubens Barrichello, over his excessive weaving tactics during the previous GP in Malaysia.

For full F1/MotoGP/WRC coverage/news, CLICK HERE to get to GPWeek magazine – www.gpweek.com motorsport news

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Actually Nando, you’re down to six Another blown Ferrari V8, but no worries ... yet FORMULA 1

sutton-images.com

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TWO blown engines in two race weekends will not change Ferrari’s 2010 plans for Fernando Alonso.

The Spaniard suffered an engine failure in China and now has six engines remaining with which to compete in the upcoming 15 GPs. But, according to the team, the scenario does not present any problems.

“Today, we had various new components on the car, including a new type of rear wing and other aerodynamic parts, which required a

specific work schedule.

“Clearly we could have done without the problem we had with Fernando's engine,” admitted Team Principal Stefano Domenicali, “but, overall, this did not lead to any specific consequences, apart from time lost in this morning's first session, as our management programme relating to available engine use remains substantially unchanged.”

Engineering Director Chris Dyer said that the failure prompted the team to bring forward a planned engine swap “by one session”.

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Simona Says INDYCARS sutton-images.com

OF the female IndyCar drivers, you could expect that Simona De Silvestro would be pleased with her season so far.

After all, she started 11th in her first race, in Brazil, and has been a steady 13th on the grid since. But, after repeating the effort at Long Beach, the rookie was hard on herself.

“I made a mistake on my final lap, on the hairpin,” the rookie admitted, “but it was only because I was pushing and I think that that kind of mistake is okay because I’m really pushing and trying to figure out what my limits are. I’m hopeful that tomorrow we can put everything together and have a great result.”

For the record, Danica Patrick started her 85th IndyCar race from 20th and Milka Duno, in her 31st start, started 25th and last.

Shootout for Indy pole INDYCARS A QUALIFYING Shootout will be the highlight of a number of changes in the buildup to the 2010 Indianapolis 500.

The nine fastest drivers will take part in an afternoon, 90minute Shootout session to determine the pole winner, and first three rows of the 33car grid. The Shootout, set to start at 4:30pm on Saturday, May 22, will offer substantially increased prizemoney, with US$175,000 for pole, and all 33 drivers who make the race will

earn IndyCar Series points for the first time.

“This new format for Indianapolis 500 qualifying will deliver even more action and intensity for fans,” said Jeff Belskus, president and chief executive officer of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation.

“Drivers will go all out during the first session on Pole Day to get a chance to make a run for the pole. Then they’ll need to dig even deeper to find the speed for the pole in the last 90 minutes. Plus there still will

be plenty of spots up for grabs on Bump Day, with all of the dramatic, last-minute bumping that generations of fans have loved about Indy.

If wet weather prevents the 90-minute shootout for the ‘Fast Nine’, times from the opening session will determine starting positions.

Bump Day will continue on Sunday, May 23, the final nine spots in the field will be earned through traditional four-lap qualifying from midday to 6pm.

Bumping will begin once 33 cars have qualified. sutton-images.com

PT Returns INDYCARS PAUL Tracy has another chance to win his first Indy 500 next month.

The Canadian will join the KV Racing Technology, which will run four cars in the race, with sponsorship from Geico Insurance.

“I want to thank Kevin 12

Kalkhoven and Jimmy Vasser of KVRT and GEICO for the opportunity to return to the world’s biggest auto race,” Tracy, 41, said last week.

“I have won races and championships at the top level during my racing career, but what I’m missing is a win at Indy. I feel I have some unfinished business at the

Brickyard.”

Tracy’s “unfinished business” involves his pass of Helio Castroneves for the lead in the final few laps of the 2002 Indy 500 when an accident occurred in Turn 2.

The starter waved the yellow flag at the Start/Finish Line but failed to flip the switch turning the yellow track warning lights

on around the track.

Castroneves, who would have run out of fuel had it not been for that caution, was credited the win and Tracy was demoted to second place, in spite of an official protest filed

by Team Kool Green with video evidence the pass was made under green light conditions.

– MARY MENDEZ motorsport news

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Texas Cup, NW races delayed by Rain NASCAR SPRINT CUP

NASCAR Media

RAIN has caused the postponement of a NASCAR Sprint Cup race for the second time this season.

Heavy rain in the Dallas/ Fort Worth area on Sunday forced NASCAR officials to postpone the Samsung Mobile 500, which was set to run on Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway. The race is now due to run on Monday at midday, local time.

It is the second time in three races that NASCAR has had to postpone a Cup race, after having delayed the Martinsville race to Monday.

That event was won by Denny Hamlin.

The weather also forced a second delay for the

Nationwide Series race, the O’Reilly 300, which originally was scheduled to run Saturday afternoon. That will now take place after the end of the Cup race, with the green tentatively set for about 5pm ET. One of the problems for organisers is that ticket holders for both races will be given entry to the Monday doubleheader, and that drivers who are entered in both races – like Carl Edwards, NW poleman Joey Logano and Kyle Busch – face 800 miles of racing in less than seven hours ...

Tony Stewart will start the Cup race from pole, his first since 2008, alongside Sam Hornish. Both have won races at Texas Motor Speedway, but those wins came in IndyCars, not Stock Cars.

Kasey has them Guessing

Kahne to Hendrick in 2012 – but where to for next year?

NASCAR SPRINT CUP

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that Dale Earnhardt Jr could leave Hendrick and return to DEI for 2011. Whatever the case, by signing a driver in the prime of his career, Rick Hendrick has warned the opposition that he has no plans to end his team’s dynasty any time soon.

Ford Media

KASEY Kahne will leave Richard Petty Motorsports at the end of the year, and join Hendrick Motorsports in 2012. It’s what he will do in 2011 that is causing observers of the sport to scratch their heads.

While many expected the 30-year-old to split with RPM when his contract runs out at the end of the season, Kahne shocked the NASCAR with the news that he would be one of Rick Hendrick’s four-man team in just over 18 months.

“In Kasey, we saw an opportunity to cement a big piece of our future,” said Hendrick. “He possesses incredible talent and a tremendous dedication to his craft, and we know he’ll be a great fit within our company.”

“For me, it’s the right fit

on every level, and I think it gives me a great chance to win races and compete for championships,” said Kahne.

But, it appears, there are options. Kahne’s own team competes in the World of Outlaws series and in USAC’s Sprint and Midget championships and it is possible that it could step up to run a customer Cup effort, with hardware supplied by Hendrick.

But it is also possible that Stewart Haas Motorsport, which races Hendrick cars, may expand to a three-car squad and that Kahne could join Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman for 2011, before taking over Hendrick’s #5 Chevy, currently driven by Mark Martin, for his four-year contract.

What is unknown is the fate of Kahne’s sponsor Budweiser, or whether it is even possible

13

BRIEFLY n Formula Fords might race on something other than Avon Tyres next year.

The class has called for expressions of interest to supply control tyres for the Genuine Ford Parts Australian Formula Ford Championship and state competition for three years from 2011, following the expiration of Avon’s current six-year deal.

Applications close in midMay and will be followed by testing at Winton in August. n Dick Smith has expanded its sponsorship role within V8 Supercars, signing on as the official retail sponsor of the Championship.

The technology retail giant had a toe-in-the-water presence at Bathurst and Homebush last year, and has stepped up for 2010 and 2011. After appearances at the Clipsal 500 and in Hamilton on the weekend, Dick Smith will also have trackside stores at Townsville, Bathurst and Homebush.

“Dick Smith customers are really into their technology and with V8 Supercars packed full of the latest technology, they are a real hit with our customer base,” Debra Singh, Dick Smith General Manager, said. n “MEET CONROD THE V8” Roary DVD, staring Craig Lowndes, was #1 Boys Preschool DVD in March! It beat Chuggington, Thomas the Tank Engine, Shaun The Sheep, In the Night Garden, Hi-5 and lots more! n Larry Dixon is now #13 on the all-time winners list in the NHRA, having won the Tope Fuel round in Las Vegas over the weekend. John Force won in Funny Cars, while Mike Edwards was too good in Pro Stock.

14

Been wondering why Lee Holdsworth and Michael Caruso were so fast at the weekend? According to the GRM boys, it was the pair of brand new helmets, and helmet designs. Nice.

Bowe lends Reindler a hand V8 SUPERCARS JOHN Bowe has further expanded his driver-coaching portfolio.

The former Bathurst winner was in New Zealand last weekend lending a hand to rookie Karl Reindler, who was debuting on the streets of Hamilton in the third Brad Jones Racing entry.

According to Reindler, Bowe’s help was highly beneficial.

“It’s great to have John here this weekend,” he told eNews.

“He’s obviously got a wealth of knowledge; he’s one of the most experienced drivers in Australia, particularly in these cars.

“He hasn’t been to Hamilton before, but he’s overseeing things this weekend, and he’s here for me to bounce ideas off. He’s been a huge help.”

Reindler added that Bowe’s intimate knowledge of car set-up was his

greatest attribute.

“I’m still getting my head around these cars. I know what I want from the car, and John knows how to achieve it, and how to change the car to get what I want. It’s all about making the connection between knowing what I want and getting what I want.

“He’s also very good at knowing what to compromise on corners, and where to attack and where not to attack. It’s just great to have a second opinion.”

Reindler is expecting his professional relationship with Bowe to continue throughout the season “I’d like to think so. We’re just seeing how this weekend goes, but it’s been all positive, so it could be on the cards for other rounds.”

Earlier this year, Bowe was hired by TeamVodafone to act as a driver-coach during the shakedown of the squad’s new Commodores.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN motorsport news

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AUTOBARN TCM

EXPECT to see the Autobarn Touring Car Masters on the support bill for next year’s Hamilton 400.

Reigning Champion Gavin Bullas and Autobarn’s Paul Burfett were in Hamilton over the weekend, on a fact finding mission ahead of an expected debut across the Tasman in 2011.

“The promoters asked us to come and have a look at running at this round for the next couple of years,” confirmed Bullas.

“We were looking at going to California, but after speaking with Autobarn and our major sponsors, they are keen for us to be running here.

“We’re always looking to see where we are at in the totem pole of support categories, and this would be a great track for us. We love street circuits; we go well at Clipsal, and we’re already looking forward to Homebush. It would be good for us to venture out of the waters a little bit, and see how we go.”

While New Zealand has its own booming Historic Touring Car series, Bullas denied that there would be any cross pollination if the TCM cars went over for Hamilton. “ We’ve got plenty of guys that want to come over. With our cars and the way they sit, we’d rather run it on our own. It’ll be part of the series, and we’ll be on with the V8s.We’re a V8 Supercar

BATHURST 12H

d

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

RESULTS from February’s Armor All Bathurst 12 Hour are now final.

After finishing second, the Alan East Motorsport Evo of David and Des Wall and Trevor Symonds faced investigation from stewards on two aspects.

The team was cleared of one charge, but was deemed to have been in breach of NCR183ii, which eNews understands was linked to tyre usage.

An appeal has now been withdrawn, with the car excluded from results. It elevates the Evo X of Neil Crompton, Glenn Seton and Mark King to second, and Cameron McConville, Nathan Pretty and Andrew Jones’ HSV R8 Wagon to the final position on the outright podium – quite remarkable for a Class D car.

– MITCHELL ADAM

Dirk Klynsmith

TCM HEADED TO NZ

support category, and that’s where we need to be.”

Burfett reiterated Bullas’ thoughts on running at Hamilton, saying there are benefits for both Autobarn and the Touring Car Masters.

“We don’t have any stores here, however it is obviously a close market for us,” he told eNews.

“A lot of our suppliers operate in New Zealand, as well.

“I think the way the guys are running the series now is very professional. The category is stepping up dramatically, and it’s a full-blown category in its own right on a national level now. The next step is to go international.”

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

WALLS FLUNG FROM 12H

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CHARLIE AND UTES V8 UTES

CHARLIE O’Brien will start a fulltime return to racing in Round 2 of the Yokohama V8 Ute Racing Series at Winton next month.

The racing stalwart, who was the youngest-ever winner of an ATCC round until Rick Kelly’s first win in 2003, will join the Utes field after buying Layton Crambrook’s 2008 title-winning Falcon Ute. The Falcon was raced at the Clipsal

500 season opener by Pedro Marusic and Tony Alford, while O’Brien lined up with Steve McFadden in the two-driver, Legend format.

It was O’Brien’s first outing since the 2005 Australian Grand Prix, when his stint in Carrera Cup concluded.

“It’s hard to give driving away after 35 years,” O’Brien told eNews.

“I’ll drive it for the rest of the year and see how it goes “I enjoyed the drive in Adelaide, I found

the Utes alright to drive; they’re not the fastest cars, but the close competition is really enjoyable.”

Another of the Adelaide Ute Legends, Cameron McConville, has been involved in testing. McConville tested the Falcon and Commodore Utes back-to-back at Winton recently, evaluating a revised suspension package. Eastern Creek hosted another test last Friday, focused on the Commodore’s braking package.

– MITCHELL ADAM

Dirk Klynsmith

HYUNDAI BACK IN AUSTRALIAN RALLYING AUS RALLYING TEAM Hyundai Rallye will join the Australian Rally Championship in Round 3 of the 2010 season at Coffs Harbour next month.

With backing from Hyundai Genuine Parts, Mick Gillett will get behind the wheel of a turbodiesel Hyundai i30, in the ARC’s Showroom Class. The i30 originally had a petrol engine and automatic gearbox, and was used in a game of soccer in Top Gear Live in February, but has undergone a major transformation to become a rally car.

“It’s taken a long time to get the i30 ready to rally,” Gillett said.

“We did it the hard way, not only starting with a pre-loved vehicle but having to do the drive train swap as well, but the i30 is ready and so are we.”

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motorsport news

news James Smith

Tweedie likes it Old Skool FORMULA 3

CHAMPIONSHIP leader Tom Tweedie is likely to remain in his older-model car for the remainder of the Formula 3 Australian Drivers Championship.

Tweedie took his F304 Dallara to National Class honours last year, and a

change to the points format in 2010 means the F304model cars can score outright points and compete with the F307s for the Gold Star.

The Sydneysider’s original plan was to do the first two rounds, at Wakefield Park and Symmons Plains, in the ’04 and assess options for stepping into an ’07. But after

taking the championship lead in Tasmania, he’s elected to remain in it for Phillip Island onwards, with his primary Renault Sodemo engine now back in Australia after a full rebuild in France.

“We’re sticking with it until the end of the year at this stage and try to win the championship with it,” he said.

“We’re happy with how it’s going and with the development we’ve done on it. We knew Symmons would suit the ’04 more, but it went better than expected. We hit a sweetspot, and to win two races and leave with the championship lead was an unbelievable result.”

– MITCHELL ADAM

WORLD CHAMPIONS FOR SUPERKARTS Marshall Cass

SUPERKARTS A PAIR of World Champions will join the Australian Superkart Championship’s opening round at Phillip Island on the first weekend in May. Among over 50 pre-registrations for the May 1-2 event with the Shannons Nationals are 1985 and ’88 World Champion Poul Petersen from Denmark, and UK driver Trevor Roberts, who won www.mnews.com.au

the last-ever titles in 1995.

Petersen is the constructor of PVP Karts and will utilise a local chassis, but bring his own engine in his – hand luggage – for the event. Roberts will drive a Stockman MR2, alongside ’09 Champion Sam Zavaglia.

“I only race to win, anything else is a failure of varying degrees,” Roberts said.

“Of course we have to be realistic, a strange kart, a reed valve motor instead

of the disc valve motor that I’m used to, and of course there are some fantastic Australian drivers with intimate circuit knowledge to compete with.

“To win will be a tall order, but if I didn’t believe I could win, we wouldn’t be coming.

“I know Sam and Brian Stockman will provide me with a top quality piece of equipment with which to get the job done.”

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Two Wheels a hit

Forest Rally gets Safari-style bike competition, a hit with competitors and fans AUSTRALIAN RALLY

Vale

Peter Evans

TWO-WHEEL competition made a splash in last weekend’s QUIT Forest Rally.

A two-day Moto component of the rally for motorcycles, in a similar style to the Australian Safari, was held alongside Round 2 of the Australian Rally Championship. In a field of 13, Sean Williamson took the win ahead of Michael Heuchan and Andrew Coaker.

With a successful trial completed, the concept is expected to become a fixture in the future.

“It was really good, the track was fantastic and it was really well organised,” Williamson said.

“It would be good if there were a few more people next year, hopefully now that people can see what it’s all about they’ll come back next year and we’ll have a few more numbers.

“I think the concept is great and it will take off for sure.”

Heuchan is another fan of the setup.

“It’s not an if, they just have to, they have to, it’s too good a thing to not do,” said Heuchan on the prospect of running a series alongside the ARC. “I’ve done all of the national series, we’ve done safaris and this is easily the best supported event I’ve ever done as far as spectators go. “

Tim Crouch

Paris Charles

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THE South Australian Speedway community has been saddened by the untimely passing of one of the true nice guys.

At just 31 years of age, Speedcar driver Tim Crouch was killed in a road accident in the early hours of Monday April 12, when his car hit a tree as he travelled to work.

The day prior to the tragedy Tim was present at the end of season Speedway City Sponsors and Mechanics fun day, where he spent an enjoyable afternoon with his family, friends and Speedway acquaintances.

On the track, Tim was a fearless competitor who could mix it with the best, and over the years ‘the man in black’ also raced Dirt Karts and V6 Sprints, winning the South Australian Championship before moving into the Speedcar ranks.

Away from the track, he was a gifted welder and his skills are responsible for the construction of many go karts and race cars in the Motorsport industry.

Motorsport eNews wishes to extend their deepest sympathy to Shelley, Rob, Heather, Jamie, Melissa and the extended family.

– PARIS CHARLES motorsport news

www.mnews.com.au

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DRAG RACING WHILE not seeing a championship lead change, Pro Stock’s chase in the ANDRA Pro Series certainly became a lot more interesting after the latest round at Willowbank.

John Barbagallo was the early favourite, after going into top qualifying position

Ken Ferguson

Pro Stock closes up with a 7.11s pass.

“It’s good to be on top of the time sheets tonight and to have the top speed for the bracket at this point as well,” he said after qualifying.

“The car definitely has more in it so we expect to be stronger tomorrow and hopefully we can get back to running in the seven-second region like we did the last

time we raced, when we ran a 7.03 second pass in Perth.”

Race day proved to Barbagallo’s liking, and he ran through to the final to meet with Dave Newcombe, pictured, who was running an engine built by Barbagallo.

The race showed Barbagallo holds little back for his customers with Newcombe taking a win with a 7.16s

while Barbagallo got loose and shut off early.

“We sat out in Perth and had a look at what we needed to do and that has paid off this weekend, I am happy with the car and we will look at the data and see if there is anything to tinker with before the next round,” Newcombe said.

– LUKE NIEUWHOF

Badcock does good DRAG RACING

Luke Nieuwhof

ANDREW Badcock rode to a win at Willowbank Raceway for team owner Trevor Birrell, on the Dutch Master Suzuki.

Badcock ended up as a lone finalist after his opponent Ross Lemberg, a first time entrant in Pro Stock Bike, could not fire his machine for the final.

It was a near-perfect weekend for Badcock who

also top qualified and secured bonus points, which helped him overtake Phil Howard, who had his time disallowed in qualifying and did not make it into the race day field.

It was a return to form for the field as a whole, with the bad memories of the last round in Perth being banished with plenty of close racing throughout eliminations.

– LUKE NIEUWHOF

ANDRA Pro Series news is proudly presented by:

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motorsport news

news

Ken Ferguson

Top Fuel tussle DRAG RACING THE Top Fuel championship is quickly becoming one of the most intriguing in the ANDRA Pro Series with Martin Stamatis stealing back the lead at Willowbank Raceway’s ENZED Top Fuel Championships on Sunday from Phil Lamattina.

Stamatis made it to the final but had to settle for runner up against team-mate Phil Read, pictured. He still gained enough points to take a vital five-point lead over Lamattina, while Read himself also edged closer to championship contention at just 40 points down, or two rounds of racing.

Lamattina gained the early edge for the weekend by topping qualifying in the Fuchs dragster. Lamattina laid

down a 4.69s at 325mph to be just ahead of a solid 4.71s from Stamatis and a 4.75 from Darren Morgan’s dragster, carrying AEG Powertools livery.

“It is of course only qualifying but it is obviously great to have the top spot and due to that the bye into the semi final, so we can head on track for round one knowing we are safe into the semis,” said Lamattina after qualifying.

“Everyone had the same track today, and (crew chief ) Theo from Pavtek just read the conditions better for the Fuchs Top Fuel dragster and I think the pressure is on everyone else.

“I am really happy and comfortable with the car, this is the first time we have run

the new car in anger here at Willowbank and we came out in the first pass and ran a big speed.”

This gave Lamattina the bye run while leaving the rest of the field to duke it out.

In the first round, Read overcame tyre smoke and pedalled to a slow, but winning five-second time while opponent Mark Mariani struck the tyres shortly after launching.

Morgan won a close race with WA’s Allan Dobson in a 4.77s to 4.93s contest, Dobson scorching through the finish line with a 306mph top speed.

Steve Read was another victim to early tyre smoke, which left Stamatis to take a 5.26s win despite popping the supercharger down the track.

The semi-finals pitted

Lamattina against Read, two teams who are keen to get the better of one another.

Lamattina dropped cylinders early and his 5.86s was never in the running against a 4.77s at 301mph from Read, who drove it through with fire and all. The Fuchs team later found a broken throttle bracket to add to their woes.

Stamatis raced Morgan and it was another close contest, with a 4.62s by Stamatis setting low ET of the weekend and defeating a valiant 4.70s at 314mph by Morgan.

All that was left was the final between the two Jim Read Racing team mates and when Stamatis’s dragster threw a blower belt, a recurring issue for the team, Read was able to take a 4.77s win.

– LUKE NIEUWHOF

Next ANDRA Pro Series Round: 2010 Nitro Champs, Western Sydney International Dragway, April 30 - May 2 www.mnews.com.au

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Five Minutes with ...

MICHAEL CARUSO

‘Robbo’ was best of the rest in Hamilton, out-pacing his team-mate Lee Holdsworth to take third in Race 8. He spoke to ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN about a great weekend in NZ MOTORSPORT NEWS: Michael Caruso, what a weekend! That must be the best weekend of your motor racing career so far.

MICHAEL CARUSO: In terms of points and consistency throughout a weekend, it was great. Like you said, it’s the best we’ve had.

We touched on it in Adelaide on the Sunday, in terms of finding a lot of speed, but in the race my cool suit failed. But we knew we had a lot of speed. We’re always quick on street circuits, and I’ve gone quite well at Hamilton in the past. So, yeah, to finish up third I was stoked. The two guys in front of me are obviously ahead of everybody, and we had the pace for third on everyone else.

Now we have to make that next step from third to the leaders.

Lee Holdsworth’s ability goes without saying, so it must mean something when you can out-pace him for the duration of a weekend.

No doubt. It’s great to represent your team and fly the flag, and show everyone that we have great speed. It shows our car is, without doubt, a contender.

I want to back up last year with another win, and I think it is definitely possible, although it doesn’t look that way with Jamie [Whincup] dominating at the moment. It is only early stages of the season, and there’s a long way to go.

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Dirk Klynsmith

It certainly wasn’t a case of lucking in to results, because you qualified third for both races. What is it about that place that you love so much?

I’m not sure, to tell you the truth. I just seem to be able to get the most out of the car there, and the cars do work well on street circuits – and that helps as well.

When we go to other circuits, like Queensland Raceway or Phillip Island, our car lacks performance, and it makes it hard. But we knew this was going to be a round where we had to make the most of it, and we did a fantastic effort as a team to make it count for the championship.

You had a good chance to watch Garth Tander and Whincup’s cars work over the course of the weekend in Hamilton; what is it that has them so far ahead of the game at the moment?

They’re both driving really well. At the moment their cars work really well for them personally, and you can see that in the way they are out-performing their team-mates. They are just getting the most out of their cars.

Their cars also held on to their tyres a lot longer than mine did, and that makes a difference in a 200 kilometre race.

As you said, Queensland Raceway hasn’t been a traditionally strong track for GRM. But you guys are good on the Sprint tyres, as proven in Darwin last year. Will the fact that it is a Sprint-only round help you in a fortnight?

I think it will definitely be a better weekend because of that. I ran sixth there last year on the Sprint tyres, so we’ll

have more speed. But you’ve got the Queensland teams who have done a lot of testing there on the Sprint tyre, and they will be armed with more knowledge which will give them an advantage.

Finally, in the scheme of experience you’re still pretty new to this. Are weekends like you’ve just had important in validating not only your place on the grid, but your place near the front of the field?

Look, I hadn’t really thought about that.

I think that after last year, I’ve made it pretty clear that I’m here to stay in the championship. And I’d like to think that I’m one of the up-and-comers, and that I can take more race wins and fight for the championship one day.

In this sport reputation counts for a lot, and you have to earn that. But the way that the last year or so has gone, I’m getting there. I couldn’t be happier with my progress. motorsport news

chat

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

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Hendrick strikes a Blow Opinion

M

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now races chassis supplied by Richard Childress Racing.

Earnhardt Jr’s JR Motorsports team fields NASCAR Nationwide Series cars with engines, chassis and some parts supplied by HMS. Could it be possible that JR will run a Hendrick-spec Chevy for Kahne next season? Or, could Dale Jr move back to his ‘own’ team (Hendrick is a co-owner) to make room for Kahne to drive what is now Earnhardt’s car at Hendrick in 2011?

“If this opportunity was going to happen I knew having some unanswered questions would be part of the scenario at this stage,” remarked Kahne last week.

“Hendrick Motorsports has a commitment to Mark Martin that they want to fulfill, and that’s important. It’s part of what attracts me to the team.

They made the commitment to me, and Rick said he’ll make sure it’s right, and I took that as I think it’ll be a pretty good opportunity, a pretty good situation I’ll be in next year.”

Sponsorship remains a question. In all likelihood, Budweiser would have to up its sponsorship spend to stay with their man, but the attraction of having Kahne, who has just turned 30 and is in his prime, in NASCAR’s premier team would surely justify the expenditure.

On the other side of

the equation, Kasey’s crew chief Kenny Francis will probably follow his driver to Hendrick’s, which would weaken Petty’s team to the point that any value the brewing giant might get by staying put, with an unknown driver/crew chief combination, would surely be diminished.

Even if Bud stays put, Kahne’s likeable personality and smooth looks would surely be more appreciated by Martin’s current sponsor, Go Daddy. It’s a no-brainer that Kahne and Go Daddy would be a good match for the company’s ‘other’ driver, Danica Patrick, in the company’s TV advertisements.

It may be possible that Rick Hendrick has not yet worked all this out. But, having had the nous, the smarts and balls to pull off this massive coup, I would not like to bet on it.

Ford Racing

ANY people in NASCAR knew that Kasey Kahne has been unhappy at Richard Petty Motorsport – which used to be Gillett Evernham Motorsports and, before 2007, Evernham Motorsports.

Kahne is a model NASCAR driver, if ever there was one.

He is a proven winner with driving talent, personality and marketability. So it’s no wonder Rick Hendrick chose him to drive the number 5 Chevrolet, replacing Mark Martin, in 2012, alongside Champions Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon and, perhaps, the most popular – if not best performing – driver in the sport, Dale Earnhardt Jr. But if 2012 is a lock, where will Kahne land in 2011? There are many possibilities, starting with the most obvious choice.

Stewart Haas Racing has a strong alliance with Hendrick, from which it sources its chassis and engines, along with some engineering assistance, and a third entry has been talked about since the team started winning midlast season.

Another possibility could be Furniture Row Racing, the team based in Denver, Colorado, half a country away from the NASCAR mainstream of North Carolina. FRR leases engines from Hendrick and had wanted to purchase chassis as well, but due to Stewart Haas’s exclusive agreement with Hendrick, FRR

Martin D Clark – NASCAR Editor

motorsport news

comment

Should Oz get in

The Suzi Queue?

Suzuki NZ

T

HE Suzuki Swift Sport Cup was one of the highlights of the Hamilton weekend.

It was a weekend where support categories were, in a way, a hot topic of conversation. There wasn’t a lack of supports – however the absence of the Toyota Racing Series and the GT3 Cup Challenge raised some eyebrows. There were plenty of stories as to why NZ’s two biggest support categories weren’t there, but its fair to say that money had something (read; everything) to do with it.

So, with just the Utes and the NZV8s remaining on the bill, the Swifts were a late addition. And what an addition.

One-make series have a bad name in Australia, and rightly so, given their history, but this one seems to work like a charm across the ditch. The cars are full roadworthy Suzuki Swifts, on road-rated tyres, and they are hardly rocketships – but these guys race, and race hard.

For instance, to make the most of racing in front of a bolstered V8 Supercar crowd, NZV8 regular Angus Fogg jumped in a www.mnews.com.au

Suzuki for the weekend. And it became a battle royale between 42-year-old Fogg, and 09/10 Swift Champion William Bamber, weighing in at a minute 16 years of age.

The crowd loved it, and I found myself sitting there mesmerised by the races. It was Formula Ford with a roofs.

The back story of the Swift Sport Cup goes something like this; Paul Burborough, who owns a dealership called Winger Suzuki across the Tasman, recognised that the Swift Sport was a good little rig, and approached Suzuki about a one-make series. They were hesitant, so Burborough had a prototype built by a local technical college, and it went down well.

At the time New Zealand still had a MINI Challenge series running, so powers that be were a little hesitant about another series. But after a couple of seasons at arm’s length, they had no option but to incorporate the Swifts into the Tier 1 frame as a full national championship for the 09/10 season … and it was a massive success.

With Bamber looking like he’ll go onto

Opinion Andrew van Leeuwen – eNews Editor bigger and better things, the Swifts are set to become a Formula Ford-esque entry from karts to cars.

Having made these judgements off watching a few races in Hamitlon, I figured I should ask NZ motorsport expert Ross Mackay if the series was as good as it looks.

“My feeling is that it will be the success story of the 2010/11 season,” he said. “They got to Tier 1 because they just couldn’t be ignored.”

With the brainchild behind MINI Challenge in Australia, Justin Hocevar, now gone from MINI, there are big question marks over the series’ future. If we need a back-up, I’ll be suggesting we follow the Kiwi’s lead and get some Suzukis up and racing.

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V8 SUPERCARS RACES 7-8, HAMILTON

PROFESSIONAL PERFEC

If you hadn’t realised already, Jamie Whincup already has one hand on the 2010 championsh putting on a great contest – for second – but realistically, for the crown, it’s over. His performa exemplary. A man at his professional peak. CHRIS LAMBDEN and ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN wa

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motorsport news

race

PERFECTION

hip. The rest are ance in NZ was atched in awe

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

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C

HAMPIONSHIP leader Jamie Whincup saved his best for when it mattered to – in the end – comfortably take the points and his fifth race win of the year.

Having pulled a super third sector Top 10 time out of thin air, to take pole, Whincup led early, got passed by co-front row man Garth Tander (who had genuine early pace) but regained the lead thanks to stopping two laps earlier than his rival and, guess what, putting in a couple of great cold-tyre laps.

From there, despite a couple of Safety Car interventions, the lead TeamVodafone car never looked seriously challenged.

Tander never quite had the pace to match him in the second and third stints (a broken exhaust header cost power later in the race) and, for a while, the challenge looked to be coming from a charging James Courtney’s Jim Beam Falcon.

JC had slid wide in Sector 1 and blown his own Top Ten time but, starting from ninth, was soon on the move.

Up to sixth in the early running, Courtney was the first to stop (lap 15) and thereafter made brilliant progress. Once Whincup (lap 19) and Tander (lap 21) had stopped, and the order once again became clear, Courtney had, seemingly from nowhere, leapt to second – and was looking racy.

Tander initiated the second stops early – lap 35 – and Whincup and Courtney followed on the next lap, the latter not by choice. His car had picked up a plastic bag in the radiator intake: “It caused the engine to overheat massively and we were forced to take an early pit stop”, he reported.

“We lost time getting it out and the car stalled twice in the pits which meant Garth 28

was able to grab second spot.”

And by quite a distance. The lap 44 Safety Car got the DJR car back within range, but there was never a realistic chance of having a lunge.

For his part, Whincup had simply raced away after the SC, twice setting new lap records. It was a familiar tune.

Of the rest, Craig Lowndes played a ‘watching brief’ role, in and around fourth all day, getting the better of an impressive Michael Caruso in the end. The GRM/Fujitsu

youngster was the star oif the Top 10 shootout, plonking the car on grid 3, just not quite able to hold his ground over the distance – although prevailing over Steve Johnson, a surprisingly subdued Mark Winterbottom, Rick Kelly, Paul Dumbrell and team-mate Holdsworth, who rounded out the top 10 in an otherwise uneventful race.

It wasn’t a great day for the Kiwi home heroes: right on the pace in practice, van Giz, and SBR team-mate Alex

Davison, blew qualifying. It was simply a case of ‘misreading’ the track. With no warm-up to evaluate changes, they’d gone the wrong way.

Van Giz started 22nd and, in one of his unhappiest days, bounced off the wall on the opening lap. At least he would have tyres galore for Sunday.

Murph and Fab Coulthard too couldn’t match practice form and then went backwards, leaving Jason Richards to soldier through for 11th, first home-towner home. motorsport news

race

Race 7

Dirk Klynsmith Dirk Klynsmith

Dirk Klynsmith

Best and Rest: Jamie Whincup was way, way too good in Race 7 at Hamilton, left. James Courtney came from nowhere to pluck a result, top, while Shane van Gisbergen’s failings, above, left Jason Richards, below, the best of the Kiwis.

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

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H

E might have just missed pole – thanks to getting held up on his hot lap – but it didn’t take Whincup long to utterly put his stamp on the second race of the weekend.

It was one of those stunning, crushing wins, for which Garth Tander, who led early, had no answer.

As if that wasn’t enough, mechanical (Courtney) and pace (Winterbottom) problems hammered his closest championship rivals, allowing the runaway championship leader to leave NZ with a 30

massively increased points lead.

Eight races in, six wins: the fat lady is already in fine voice!

Tander actually got the jump, and retained the lead through the early Safety Car, but on lap 10 the Vodafone car sliced down the inside into Turn 1. Garth offered no real resistance – it would have been futile – and it was O-V-E-R. Jamie rattled out to a seven second buffer, which he ‘managed’ to the end.

Comprehensive. Frighteningly so.

It may have been overshadowed by the front pair, but Michael Caruso’s weekend –

highlighted by third in this race – was every bit as impressive as Whincup’s in its own way. It was as solid a weekend as anyone else could hope for. His delight was matched this day by teammate Lee Holdsworth, who made solid ground, past Steve Johnson and Rick Kelly, to finish fourth – a great GRM day.

Will Davison made up for his sad Saturday by also working his way forward, to an eventual sixth finish.

Unfortunately, for a healthily above-expectation Sunday crowd, there was little by way of fireworks – the primary dramas

being mechanical: Lowndes a lengthy stop with brake problems; Courtney delayed with a broken rear trailing arm.

In the local hero contest, van Giz made up for Saturday’s early demise to qualify just outside the 10, and take a solid ‘firstKiwi’ eighth. Murph had another downer, not quite on the pace, then copping front damage as the entire field pitted under yellow.

Not a spectacular race, then, but if you enjoy seeing a professional at his very peak, the almost perfect performance, then watching Jamie Whincup motorsport news

race

Race 8

Dirk Klynsmith

Frosty Reception: Winterbottom was slow, and then got excluded, above. Tander was fast, but not fast enough, below. And Murphy just struggled to get a result on home soil, bottom.

Dirk Klynsmith Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

Dirk Klynsmith

going about his business was worth the price of admission.

It is, seriously, about second place already, and the big mover – rocketing back from his Middle Eastern madness – is Tander, up three spots this weekend to fifth in the championship.

Questions to be answered next time: Are there any flaws in Whincup’s armoury (I think we know the answer to that); what happened to FPR (Winterbottom) – was this a one-week form slump?

And what is it that’s stopping Murph and Ingall, in pukka T8 cars, getting it together?

Next stop, Queensland.

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Dirk Klynsmith

WINNERS JAMIE WHINCUP: As the race report says, the fat lady has already sung. He can afford to cruise for the rest of the year, but he won’t.

GARTH TANDER: Yes, he was only second – but compared to the Middle East, these results look awesome for Tander. Now he needs to turn quali speed into race speed.

MICHAEL CARUSO: A simply awesome drive from ‘Robbo’. He loves this circuit, and it showed.

TONY D’ALBERTO: Drove well on Saturday, really well. Starting to look like he really belongs near the front of the field.

JAMES COURTNEY: His Race 7 appearing act was awesome. Pity about Race 8.

LOSERS TONY D’ALBERTO: A winner and a loser; On Saturday he qualified well, started great, and got a black flag for a loose undertray. Bummer.

ANDREW THOMPSON: Had a career best qualifying position on Sunday (16th), but damaged his car too badly to start the race after setting his time.

CRAIG LOWNDES: CL wins races these days by being the master of tyre degredation, but when the tyres last as well as they did in Hamilton, his strength doesn’t exist.

STEVEN RICHARDS: Does it need to be said?

Going to be a long year.

32

TYRE TALK

With Dunlop’s V8 Operations Manager KEVIN FITZIMMONS HAMILTON is very easy on tyres.

The two different surfaces changes and an actual change in the asphalt mean the tyres come off pretty clean here. It’s very much like Adelaide in that respect. Wear just isn’t really a problem. It’s a flowing circuit, and that makes it kind on the tyres, front and rear.

If you’re in the ballpark with your set-up, tyres just aren’t an issue in New Zealand.

It’s so consistent. On Saturday we saw something like 17 cars under the lap record, and that’s probably got a lot to do with the changes over the back of the circuit and the pushing back of the wall at the chicane, but the times were very consistent. Even after the Safety Car at the end of Race 7, there were a lot of cars

punching out quick times. That shows that the tyre degradation wasn’t that bad.

It would possibly change the way teams approach the race. I was talking to Craig Lowndes after Saturday’s race, and he said he was expecting Garth Tander and Jamie Whincup to bolt into the distance.

He thought he’d cruise along and wait for them to fall back, but it just didn’t happen.

They just kept going along, and along, and along.

The teams are really getting a handle on the tyre at Hamilton now, because they’ve been around here a few times, but still there were a few guys surprised by the tyre’s consistency. Weather would have helped, with the cloud cover, but still, the tyre did very well.

SMASHING EFFORT

THE existing lap records were smashed in Hamilton, thanks to revisions to the circuit.

Both the practice and race lap records were blown away over the race weekend, with the race lap record dropping from 1:24.4701s to 1:23.2780s by Jamie Whincup, and the practice record dipping from a 1:23.5620s to a 1:23.0349s set by Garth Tander.

The reason for the turn of speed was the widening of the entry to Turn 7, and the exit of the tricky chicane on the back straight.

“It’s just wider, and they’ve moved the walls

back,” confirmed Fabian Coulthard.

“As a driver, if you’re given an inch you take a mile. Any bit of road there we will use. It’s better to drive, and the times have dropped, which is good.

“I’m not sure how the change came about, but I think it’s been a positive move.”

The changes didn’t stop the aerobatics on the exit of the chicane, particularly from the Suzuki Swifts, which kept the highlight reels full of two-wheeling action.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN motorsport news

race

Which Bank?

www.mnews.com.au

Dirk Klynsmith

THE importance of the ‘banker’ lap was highlighted in qualifying at Hamilton.

In the first session of the weekend, the 20-minute dash for the Top 10 was punctuated with red flags. First it was Tony Ricciardello windscreen-deep in the tyre barrier at Bigpond Corner, followed by Will Davison’s similar, although slightly less dramatic, effort.

The two red flag sessions left a scramble for a clear lap or two at the death of the session, and greatly rewarded the likes of Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes who had banked a competitive time. And it cost the likes of Steven Richards and Shane van Gisbergen big.

Tony D’Alberto was the surprise package of Q1, spending some time on top of the sheets late in the session before being bumped back to third Garth Tander and James Courtney.

“I think a ‘banker’ lap is important on street circuits,” he said, “We were in a situation where we only had one set of greens left for the session, so we did a lap early to get a time down, and warm the car up for a good lap on the greens.”

On the flipside was van Gisbergen, who didn’t do a lap early in the session, and couldn’t find the space or pace to get in the Top 10 at the death.

“We had nothing,” was all a dejected van Gisbergen would say.

On Sunday, it was the same old story. A red flag first stopped the session just six minutes in, and Jamie Whincup was already on top of the time sheets with a 1:23.1238s – just a tenth off the fastest ever lap at Hamilton. Even Andrew Thompson, who caused the red flag, set a 1:23.7785s immediately before finding the wall, and ended up 16th. It was insurance for his own mistake. Too bad his car was too damaged to take part in the race.

In the end it was a clear run of green for the remaining 14 minutes of the session, allowing Tander to overcome Whincup’s ‘banker’ lap, but had Whincup not even bothered to go back out on the circuit, he would have still started second.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

FROM THE COUCH with MITCHELL ADAM SO, V8 Supercars in Hamilton.

I didn’t see Saturday’s telecast and, after seeing Sunday’s race, I feel pretty fortunate that it clashed with a wedding I attended. There wasn’t anything wrong with the telecast, it’s just that the race itself wasn’t much chop.

Actually, now that I think of it, I can’t really remember seeing a good V8 race there.

There are some tracks that just don’t lend themselves to good V8 Supercar racing.

Hamilton falls into that category, and on the weekend it wasn’t helped by Jamie Whincup’s rich vein of form.

What he’s doing is ultra impressive, he’s a man at the top of his game with a team at the top of their game, but it has the potential to make telecasts a tad tiresome.

Also on the box, V8 Supercars and Channel 7 copped a bit of e-flack on the weekend from internet forum and social networking site users, with the way Sunday’s telecast was structured. In Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide, the telecast was broken into two, with an AFL match shown in between qualifying and the race. It’s not a great look, and understandably frustrating for V8 Supercar fans, but it’s a reality of the situation – AFL is bigger, gets higher ratings and is, therefore, more commercially valuable than V8 Supercars.

I’m in Melbourne where, ironically, the V8s got a clean run. But with the way the racing was, I almost would’ve taken the Melbourne versus Richmond match ...

33

Results :: Race 7 – Hamilton, New Zealand

34

Pos

#

Driver

Team/Car

Qual

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 DNF DNF DNF DNF DNF

1 2 18 888 34 17 5 15 55 33 8 3 19 10 11 21 4 51 30 7 14 24 16 6 22 47 12 39 9

Jamie Whincup Garth Tander James Courtney Craig Lowndes Michael Caruso Steven Johnson Mark Winterbottom Rick Kelly Paul Dumbrell Lee Holdsworth Jason Richards Tony D’Alberto Jonathon Webb Andrew Thompson Jason Bargwanna Karl Reindler Alex Davison Greg Murphy Daniel Gaunt Todd Kelly Jason Bright Fabian Coulthard Tony Ricciardello Steven Richards Will Davison Tim Slade Dean Fiore Russell Ingall Shane Van Gisbergen

TeamVodafone Commodore VE Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE Jim Beam Racing Falcon FG TeamVodafone Commodore VE Fujitsu Racing/GRM Commodore VE Jim Beam Racing Falcon FG Orrcon Steel FPR Falcon FG Jack Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE The Bottle-O Racing Team Falcon FG Fujitsu Racing/GRM Commodore VE Team BOC Commodore VE Centaur Racing Commodore VE Dick Johnson Racing Falcon FG Bundaberg Red Racing Team Commodore VE Rock Racing Commodore VE Fair Dinkum Sheds Racing Commodore VE Irwin Racing Falcon FG Castrol Edge Racing Commodore VE Gulf Western Oil Racing Commodore VE Jack Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE Trading Post Racing Commodore VE Bundaberg Red Racing Team Commodore VE Stratco Racing Commodore VE Dunlop Super Dealer FPR Falcon FG Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE Wilson Security Racing Falcon FG Triple F Racing Falcon FG Supercheap Auto Racing Commodore VE SP Tools Racing Falcon FG

1 2 9 4 3 5 10 7 12 14 15 8 11 17 22 28 26 13 27 19 18 6 29 16 24 25 23 20 21 motorsport news

race

Dirk Klynsmith

Top 10 Points: Points: Whincup 1071, Courtney 867, Winterbottom 810, Holdsworth 771, van Gisbergen 726, Tander 723, R Kelly 722, Lowndes 720, Caruso 702, Dumbrell 618.

Results :: Race 8 – Hamilton, New Zealand

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

Pos

#

Driver

Team/Car

Qual

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 DNF DNF DNF DNF EXC EXC EXC DNS

1 2 34 33 22 15 9 7 11 19 8 39 14 12 51 47 30 21 888 55 18 24 4 3 16 5 6 17 10

Jamie Whincup Garth Tander Michael Caruso Lee Holdsworth Will Davison Rick Kelly Shane Van Gisbergen Todd Kelly Jason Bargwanna Jonathon Webb Jason Richards Russell Ingall Jason Bright Dean Fiore Greg Murphy Tim Slade Daniel Gaunt Karl Reindler Craig Lowndes Paul Dumbrell James Courtney Fabian Coulthard Alex Davison Tony D’Alberto Tony Ricciardello Mark Winterbottom Steven Richards Steven Johnson Andrew Thompson

TeamVodafone Commodore VE Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE Fujitsu Racing/GRM Commodore VE Fujitsu Racing/GRM Commodore VE Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE Jack Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE SP Tools Racing Falcon FG Jack Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE Rock Racing Commodore VE Dick Johnson Racing Falcon FG Team BOC Commodore VE Supercheap Auto Racing Commodore VE Trading Post Racing Commodore VE Triple F Racing Falcon FG Castrol Edge Racing Commodore VE Wilson Security Racing Falcon FG Gulf Western Oil Racing Commodore VE Fair Dinkum Sheds Racing Commodore VE TeamVodafone Commodore VE The Bottle-O Racing Team Falcon FG Jim Beam Racing Falcon FG Bundaberg Red Racing Team Commodore VE Irwin Racing Falcon FG Centaur Racing Commodore VE Stratco Racing Commodore VE Orrcon Steel FPR Falcon FG Dunlop Super Dealer FPR Falcon FG Jim Beam Racing Falcon FG Bundy Red Racing Team Commodore VE

2 1 3 11 8 4 12 9 23 15 26 22 14 24 18 21 29 28 5 13 6 19 20 17 27 10 25 7 16 35

AUSTRALIAN RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 2, QUIT FOREST RALLY, WA

Two from two Scott Pedder and Jon Mortimer are enjoying a super return to the Australian Rally Championship, claiming their second win from as many starts in the West on the weekend 36

motorsport news

race

Peter Evans

www.mnews.com.au

37

Peter Evans

THE first gravel round of the 2010 Australian Rally Championship, Quit Forest Rally, proved to be every bit as exciting as anticipated.

In the end it was Scott Pedder and Jon Mortimer who took the outright honours, Pedder’s first Quit Forest Rally victory after coming close on several occasions.

It was tough weekend and a seesawing battle, between not only the two teams at the top of the time sheets but the crews chasing them down.

“This was one of the closest rallies we’ve ever had; it seems this rally always produces pretty close results,” Pedder said.

“It’s fantastic, I’ve always wanted to win the Forest Rally; I’ve got close a few times and never got there so it’s just great. Ross Tapper and the guys run an absolutely tremendous event and it’s just 38

fantastic to be here.”

Pedder and Mortimer took Heat One ahead of Simon and Sue Evans, but the Evans’ fought back, taking the opening five stages of Heat Two before yet another mechanical drama threatened to end their third Quit Forest Rally in a row.

A broken gearbox on SS17 saw the current national champions drop more than 15 seconds to Pedder and Mortimer and even Simon Evans conceded “it’s over” at that point.

However, in true rally style, on the very next stage Pedder hit a rock resulting a flat 4km from the end of the stage and causing them to drop 19.8s.

The Evans’ – whose gearbox had been patched up during service – were back in the lead.

“I’ve never nursed a car in my life; we’re here to race, so if the car couldn’t keep up we were

out,” Simon Evans said at the end of the rally, highlighting the fighting quality that has made him so dominant over the past five years.

Another lead change on SS19 saw Pedder back in front, and within one stage of victory and, in the end, it was all he needed; taking the heat by 2.1s and winning the rally.

While Pedder and Evans lead the field by a considerable margin across the entire weekend, the battle for third was fought out between as many as five teams.

In the end it was Darren Windus who took the last place on the podium, awarded his position on an overall time countback, after he and codriver John Allen tied with Ryan and Rebecca Smart for third on points.

“It’s my first rally back since this event last year and we

had a fairly big accident on the second day last year ... it takes a while to get your confidence back,” Windus said.

“These guys (Pedder and Evans) were going off their heads, there’s no way we could have caught them, but we’ve given it everything we’ve got and it’s come out well for us over the weekend.”

The series now heads to Coffs Harbour for Round 3 in one months time. Asked what it will take to beat Pedder, Evans was realistic but confident.

“I definitely think I can beat him, but we’ve got a lot of work to do still,” he said.

“The pace is hot, we finished pretty well clear of third place but Scotty still has our measure a little bit at the moment.

“We’ll go back to the drawing board and try and make it a bit better.” motorsport news

race

Peter Evans

Scott Pedder and Jon Mortimer celebrated, left, after a long battle with Simon and Sue Evans, above.

The Honda of Eli Evans and Glen Weston, right, was speedy in its first run on gravel, but ended up 13th overall after engine issues on Saturday.

In a one-off outing, Darren Windus and John Allen, below, took a Neal Bates Motorsport S2000 Corolla to third.

Peter Evans

www.mnews.com.au

39

ENZED TOP FUEL CHAMPIONSHIPS WILLOWBANK RACEWAY

Top form Jim Read Racing had a tip top weekend in the ENZED Top Fuel Championships at Willowbank, with Phil Read scoring the win and Martin Stamatis claiming the points lead.

KEN FERGUSON was there

40

motorsport news

race

Ken Ferguson

www.mnews.com.au

41

42

shy of the lead in third position, following his great win.

“It is great to take the win for our sponsors including McDonalds, Auto One, Snap On, Wynns, especially for the first win for McDonalds since they came on board as a sponsor,” he said.

“As far as the championship goes we aren’t giving up yet, we didn’t win three championships by giving up and the win today has given us a great start in chasing that back – to be honest I am most worried about catching Marty (Stamatis) as he is running the good gear with me!”

Dave Newcombe shook up the field in Pro Stock, with a win over his own engine builder, John Barbagallo, in the final. Barbagallo claimed the bonus points for low ET and top speed at the event, and now draws to within 15 points of the championship leader, Lee Bektash. ”To have two Australian built pro stock engines in the final is just great, and it’s always better running against your mate, it’s a lot less stressful I think,” Newcombe said.

Andrew Badcock claimed all the glory in Pro Stock Bike, taking bonus points for low ET, top speed and the final round win, to inherit the championship lead on board Trevor Birrell’s Suzuki.

Winners in all the support categories included Justin Walshe in Lifestyle Floorcoverings Competition, Paul Beauchamp (Lifestyle Floorcoverings Super Stock), David Rundmann (Custom Central Competition Bike), Chris Loy (Wheelboyz.com.au Supercharged Outlaws), Phil Bellert (Knijff Earthmoving Modified), Tony Whyatt (Powercruise Super Sedan), Tony Wallace (Speed Elec/ Prime Signs Super Street), Brian Vernon (Modified Bike), Simone Paine (Qld Diesel Spares Junior Dragster), and Darryl Stephen (Super Gas).

Ken Ferguson

AN outstanding performance

by Jim Read Racing at the 2010 ENZED Top Fuel Championships at Willowbank Raceway has seen Martin Stamatis take the championship lead from Phil Lamattina, while teammate Phil Read moved to within striking distance of the lead with only two rounds remaining in the ANDRA Pro Series. The pair met in an all JRR final, with Phil Read taking his first win in over a year.

Having finally come to grips with his John Barbagallo powerplant in his Pontiac, GTO, Dave Newcombe claimed victory in the Pro Stock final, while Andrew Badcock took the win in Pro Stock Motorcycle and, in doing so, claimed the lead in the championship.

Read started the weekend slowly in Top Fuel, but improved more and more throughout the weekend to reach the final against Stamatis. Championship leader Lamattina claimed the low ET and top speed marks earlier, but Stamatis took the low ET bonus points from him with his 4.62s pass in the semis. With his runnerup finish to Read in the final, Stamatis has a slender five-point lead with only the Nitro Champs in Sydney and the Winternationals at Willowbank remaining in the season.

“To draw into the lead of the championship is good, and with two rounds to go and both at killer tracks, it’s going to be an exciting rest of the championship,” Stamatis said.

“The track was just outstanding today and we were able to show that with our 4.62-second pass that gave us the low ET bonus points, and it’s just great to have a good result for Billview, Valvoline, Auto One and of course the entire team of Jim Read Racing.”

Read is now only 40 points

Phil Read, previous spread, took out the Top Fuel round, while team-mate Martin Stamatis, above right, moved into the points lead with two rounds remaining.

Andrew Badcock, above, won Pro Stock Motorcycle and Dave Newcombe, right, was too good in Pro Stock. motorsport news

race

Ken Ferguson

Ken Ferguson

43

www.mnews.com.au

INDYCAR ROUND 4 – LONG BEACH

Power Beached

44

motorsport news

race

A faulty gearbox ended Penske’s 2010 winning streak as Ryan Hunter-Reay and Andretti Autosport broke through to spoil Will Power’s afternoon at Long Beach

T

HE key to success is starting up front, Will Power observed after he claimed pole position for the Grand Prix of Long Beach – his third consecutive pole in the 2010 IndyCar Series.

Indeed, it did look very much like the recipe for a third victory for Power in the fourth race of the series as the Team Penske driver comfortably led fellow frontrow starter Ryan Hunter-Reay through the opening 17 laps. That was, however, until Will’s gearbox became momentarily stuck in gear.

Hunter-Reay took that as an opportunity to pounce, the Andretti Autosport driver taking the lead. Justin Wilson also moved ahead of the Australian to grab second place.

With a qualifying pace margin over Hunter-Reay of nearly half a second, Power might have been expected to recover with more than 60 laps to go and fight for the win later in the race. The Penske team opted to delay Power’s first pitstop in an attempt to recover some of the lost ground, and while the gearbox gremlin thankfully did not recur, Hunter-Reay would always remain clear of Power’s reach.

“Man, that was awesome!” a jubilant Hunter-Reay exclaimed after what was the first victory in close to two years for both himself and Andretti Autosport.

“The car was just so much fun to drive today, it was some of the most fun I’ve ever had in a race car. I was just in a great zone all day long and I truly think

Powering on: At the start, at least, but at quarter race distance a gearbox problem would cost Will Power the victory at Long Beach, main.

Ryan Hunter-Reay, right, was there to pounce when Power faltered.

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45

we were the fastest car out there, so we deserved this win.

“I have to thank Michael Andretti and Izod for putting me out there. I’ve been living here in California for most of the last six years, so this is like a home race for me. Over the last couple of laps, I started thinking a bit about my mum [who passed away late last year]. This one’s for her.”

The Long Beach victory was timely for Hunter-Reay, whose position at Andretti Autosport for the much of the remainder of the year is dependent on the securing

of additional financial backing.

Justin Wilson had an eventful run into second place, recovering from a pitstop to fit a new nose section after tangling with the lapped Alex Lloyd. The latter was a frequent obstruction during the 85-lap journey, badly delaying Hunter-Reay at one point and later clashing with Takuma Sato.

Wilson’s episode with Lloyd dropped the Dreyer & Reinbold entry to third place behind Power, but Wilson was able to dive under the Australian at Turn 1 during a late-race restart to regain second place.

Scott Dixon was a brief leader during the final round of pit stops but the Target Ganassi driver was shuffled back to fourth by the end, ahead of Andretti Autosport’s Tony Kanaan. Mario Moraes put in a great performance for KV Racing to move from 15th on the grid to an eventual sixth place, heading home Helio Castroneves, Ryan Briscoe and Dan Wheldon.

Third place for Power was ultimately a disappointment after such a dominant qualifying effort, but it does continue his

consistent run of high-scoring results: two wins, one fourth place and now a third from the first four races.

In fact, with Castroneves ending up seventh, Power left Long Beach with his already-commanding points lead increased even further.

The oval leg of the IndyCar Series kicks off with the fifth round at the 1.5-mile high banked Kansas Speedway on May 1.

Breakthrough: Hunter-Reay and Andretti Autosport stopped Penske’s winning run, main.

Justin Wilson was second, below left, while Brazilian Mario Moraes came from 15th on the grid to finish sixth, left.

46

motorsport news

race

Results :: Grand Prix of Long Beach Pos Driver

Team

1. Ryan Hunter-Reay 2. Justin Wilson 3. Will Power 4. Scott Dixon 5. Tony Kanaan 6. Mario Moraes 7. Helio Castroneves 8. Ryan Briscoe 9. Dan Wheldon 10. Mike Conway

Andretti Dreyer & Reinbold Penske Ganassi Andretti KV Penske Penske Panther Dreyer & Reinbold

Gap

+ 5.6031s + 8.5864s + 10.6287s + 11.7732s + 16.5171s + 16.8928s + 18.2214s + 19.4575s + 19.9307s

Top 10 Points: Power 172, Castroneves 130, Hunter-Reay 129, Wilson 125, Franchitti 112, Dixon 112, Briscoe 103, Kanaan 94, Matos 84, Wheldon 83.

www.mnews.com.au

47

Dirk Klynsmith

Kiwis win Utes, Aussies talk about cricket results HAMILTON SUPPORTS

48

Dirk Klynsmith

CHRIS Pither led New Zealand to victory in the V8 Utes Trans Tasman Test Match at Hamilton last weekend.

Eight Australians headed to New Zealand to take on the locals, with Aussie Kim Jane taking out the opening race.

Pither won Race 2, squaring the ledger, and then scored win in the final to secure the trophy for the Kiwis.

“I went in with the mindset to conserve when I could,” Pither said after the final.

“It was very consistent. My first eight or nine laps were all within .4 of a second every lap.

It did drop off a bit but I chose to push on for a buffer.

“I was ready for the tyres and brakes to start fading. It was

a great weekend and it was good for the Ute category to be at the country’s highest profile event putting on a good show.”

Jane ended Race 3 five seconds behind Pither.

“I buggered my start in today’s race,” Jane admitted.

“I tried hanging on the back of him (Pither) but I didn’t have enough. He was a bit better here and there. I was quicker yesterday. These cars are sensitive to tyre pressure and ride height changes.

“Apart from the Albert Park GP track this is one of the best street circuits. There are enough different types of corners to make it a challenge.”

Locals Simon Beirne and Colin Corkery were the next in line, leading home Australians Colin Jarvis and Charlie

Kovacs in the final.

John McIntyre was too good in the NZ V8 Touring Car races.

McIntyre took his Falcon to victory in all three starts.

Kayne Scott was his closest challenger in the opening two races, but was caught up in first-lap carnage in the final.

That paved the way for

Andy Knight to take second, ahead of Andrew Anderson, Eddie Bell and Angus Fogg.

Fogg had a busy weekend, making a cameo in the Suzuki Swift Sport Cup. He won two of the three races, with new Champ William Bamber taking out the other. Matt Gibson was third each time.

motorsport news

race

RobKlynsmith Lang Dirk Dirk Klynsmith

Super Simon DRIFTING

Vics get started VICTORIA

www.mnews.com.au

Twigg, meanwhile, had the weekend to himself driving his Porsche GT3 Cup S in the Sports Cars, while Rod Raatjes continued his impressive HQ pace to take the first step.

A consistent Luke Chambers won the Sports Sedans, as did Bob Nordlinger and Tom Hutchinson in the MG and Invited British Sports Cars.

– CALLUM BRANAGAN

Max Dumsney took home $10,000 after winning the East Coast Sprintcar Naitonals at Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway on Saturday night.

John Morris / Mpix

ROUND 1 of the Victorian State Circuit Racing Championships kicked off at Phillip Island last weekend with yet another impressive turnout of cars and competitors.

In Formula Ford, Matthew Brabham took the weekend spoils, with a well-deserved win in the final race of the weekend. Brabham, who was driving the CAMS Rising Stars Spectrum, had good speed all weekend, and was never far from the front running pack.

Scott McLaughlin, meanwhile, took the Kent honours in his Van Dieman RF94, after his main rival Luke Ellery battled a weekend of misfortune. The Formula Vees managed to remain incident-free as they put on a spectacular example close racing. Jack Flood emerged

triumphant, as his win in Race 1 gave him a slight advantage over his adversaries early on.

The slipstreaming pack was as big as seven cars at one stage, with Flood playing a smart card on the final lap, taking the win in the big points haul race.

Perhaps the most dominant performance of the weekend was Kane Vereker, in his green Mazda RX7, who took all three race wins in Improved Production. Mark Ruta, who was also sporting an RX7, took the second step on the podium, with Phil Dunkin in third. Historic Touring Cars was dominated by Gary Edwards, who won three from three in his Torana XU1 GTR, after Ray Challis was penalised for jumping the start.

After a red flag in Race 1, Robert Lange went onto win the next two races of the Porsche 944 Series, ahead of a charging John Morriss. Max

SIMON Podlewski led a local 1-2, taking out the second annual Drift Supercup at Mallala Motorsport Park last weekend.

Podlewski defeated Tom Monkhouse in the final to take the cash, having initially been in doubt to compete with his wife due to give birth.

Stewart Furze beat Luke Broadbent in the third-place battle to grab the final spot on the podium.

Last year’s runner-up, Adam May was knocked out in the Round of 16, along with 2008 Australian Drift Champion Leighton Fine and Christian Pickering.

49

Strong start for Ricciardo

FRENAULT 3.5 DANIEL RICCIARDO has finished his maiden Formula Renault 3.5 round in the lead of the series.

Motorland Circuit in Aragon, Spain, hosted the 2010 season opener, where the West Aussie scored a pair of podium finishes.

In wet conditions on

50

Saturday, Ricciardo took pole position, and was among the leading pack before running wide on Lap 3. He recovered to finish third, behind Mikhail Aleshin and Daniel Zampieri, while fellow Red Bull pilot Brendan Hartley was sixth.

Ricciardo grabbed another pole on Sunday and settled in behind Jan Charouz and Stan Pentus.

Pentus went on to take the win ahead of Charouz and Ricciardo, before Charouz was excluded for being underweight, elevating Ricciardo to second.

The results has given Ricciardo the early lead in the standings, seven points clear of Aleshin and Pentus.

“It was a good weekend for championship points, but

it could have been better,” Ricciardo said.

“I think we showed that we have good pace following two pole positions, but I need to work on my starts and capitalise on my grid positions.

“All in all it was a solid weekend, and I look forward to building on this in two weeks when we race at Spa.”

motorsport news

race Patron Highcroft Racing

Flying High(croft) ALMS DAVID Brabham and Simon Pagenaud have scored a dramatic, last-lap victory in Round 2 of the American Le Mans Series at Long Beach.

Adrian Fernandez edged out the pair to take pole position, with his LMP1 Aston Martin just 0.072s ahead of Brabham and Pagenaud’s Highcroft LMP2-spec Acura, in the first event of the new performancebalanced single LMP class

www.mnews.com.au

format.

Fernandez’ team-mate Harold Primat led early, with Brabham settling into third. The Aston started to encounter brake problems and Brabham went for a move on Primat about half an hour in, which resulted in contact and penalty for Brabham.

Through slick pitwork and amidst cautions, the Acura regained the lead, with Pagenaud in for the second half of the race. He held a

comfortable lead, before Fernandez closed the gap to the Highcroft entry and eventually claimed the lead with around 10 laps remaining.

However, he was unable to build a lead and made a mistake on the final tour of the 100-minute race, which allowed Pagenaud to sneak through and record the victory.

“I could see Adrian was having some issues in the final laps and I thought I could just

play it smart and settle for second,” the Frenchman said.

“But I’m a real racer and I know everybody in the team wants to win and that’s what they deserve. I said to myself I would keep pressuring him to the end and maybe he would make a mistake.

“That’s really what happened at the fountain on the last lap. I saw the opportunity to get close in Turn 5 and he slid wide and I was able to get underneath him.”

51

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enclosed kart/aussie racing car trailer Dual Axle Enclosed Trailer suitable for Go Karts or Aussie Racing cars.

Mechanical overrider brakes. Capable of carrying 1150Kgs. 3-4 Kart trailer, engine rack to carry upto 6 engines. 240volt Lighting and powerpoint. Full LED 12v internal and brake/ hazrd etc. Sidedoor access and workbench. $14,000 Or Best Offer. adam pisula 0408246244.

Group A BMW M3 Group A BMW E30 M3. CAMS CofD. Ex '87 JPS, '88 Brock Richards. '90 2ltr Tourer. '93 Bathurst winner. Original log books. New tyres. rebuilt crack tested rims suspension & hubs.

New FIA Fuel Cell. 1st outright 2010 Phillip Island Classic.

Ready to race. Call 0409 137 629 for more info. $295,000 Neg. Jervis Ward 0409137629 / 0409137629.

Complete Sprintcar

Current Spec HQ

SPRINTCAR READY TO RACE. 2008 Cool Chassis complete with a fresh 372 Wesmar engine and race tech seat. Comes with a spare complete front end, 2 spare left rear rims and tires, 1 spare right rear rim and tire.

Also spare set of radius rods and nerf bars. $29000. Gerry Hoekstra 0417 511 186.

Race Ready HQ, multiple race winner, as driven by Jamie Furness in 2008. Comes complete current 2010 HQRA spec engine & spares. Engine only done 1 race meeting! Very reliable car. $7500 Not Neg. Russell Brunker 0412375742.

www.my105.com/58754

www.my105.com/63352

www.my105.com/25238

www.my105.com/24891

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motorsport news

rear of grid

THINGS YOU ONLY SEE IN NEW ZEALAND

t o p S d Od

Dirk Klynsmith

Dirk Klynsmith

Clockwise from top left: Fabian Coulthard masks, being worn by Shane van Gisbergen’s grid girls; Fast food outlets called ‘Mussel Madness’ trackside, selling Whitebait Fritters, among other things; a huge digital speedo at the end of pit straight – the best speed eNews saw was a 243kmh from Greg Murphy; and V8 Supercars PR guru Dan Jordan modelling the complex art of wearing a photographer’s vest on a sign in pit-lane. www.mnews.com.au

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