Motorsport News Issue 408 - June 2011

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SOLD: inside VS's Saie of the Century Australian

Incorporating MOTOR RACING AUSTRALIA

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V8's Kiwi superstars tell it like it is!

No. 408 June 2011

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From Worst to First: f How BJR turned it around Formuia 1: What's gone wrong at Williams?

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Steering wheels have become so complicated in motorsport that this example from a Formula Renault 3.5 car is positively simple. Still, as the photo proves - along with the map of Monza Renault Sport Media simple can really be beautiful.

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THIS MONTH’S FEATURES Unusual Suspects

The Grid

With four Bathurst wins to his name,it's no surprise many young drivers from New Zealand list Greg Murphy as a racing hero. Even to one ofhis rivals, Shane van Gisbergen...

I Kim Jones and shares a special bond and a race team with his younger brother Brad. Now, after 11 years in the series, they've got a V8 Supercar win to their name.

As MNews'man on the ground in the United Kingdom, David Addison caught up with some of the young Aussie drivers trying to forge an international career in 2011.

1 U: Richard Craill wears many hats in the Australian motorsport media;commentator,PR man and longtime MNews contributor. A Torana fan, he checked out Tony Edwards' SUR5000from the TCM for us.

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For almost20 years, Paul Tracy has been one ofthe biggest names in American open-wheel racing. And he's as hungry as ever.

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NATIONAL FEATURES U

NEWS

Editorial Executive Editor Phil Branagan editor@mnews.com.au Assistant Editor Andrew van Leeuwen andrew@mnews.com.au Speciai Projects Editor Steve Normoyle snormoyle@chevron.com.au National Editor Mitchell Adam mitchell@mnews.com.au

The Grid 1

Victorian Publisher Chris Lambden publisher@mnews.com.au

Editorial Enquiries

357 Nepean Highway, Brighton East, VIC, 3187 (PO Box 7072, Brighton, VIC, 3186) P 03 9596 5555 F 03 9596 5030 admin@mnews.com.au

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Landing on his feet after a torrid 2010,Andrew Thompson has picked up,arguably, the best nonMain Game gig in the country, joining Triple Eightfor the enduros and the Fujitsu Series.

Contributing Writers

Mark Glendenning, David Addison, Richard Craill, Bruce Moxon,Geoff Rounds, Luke Nieuwhof

Photography

Sutton Motorsport Images, Dirk Klynsmith, John Morris, Andrew Hail,James Smith, Peter Bury, Phil Williams, Rob Lang, Geoff Grade

J 46

Germany vs. France On the eve ofthe 2011 Le Mans 24 Hours, we look at Audi and Peugeot's challengers

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So, I sit on this sicie? \Ne touch base with three Porsche rookies in the reborn Carrera Cup Australia

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Don’t mention The Ashes In 2011,a fresh batch ofyoung Aussie drivers have headed to Europe

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Formula SLVR5000 Get beneath the skin of Touring Car Masters driver Tony Edwards'new Torana SL/R5000

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The Blue Bullet Jake Camilleri has made a habit ofpunching above his weight in Production Cars

Cover Design: Chris Currie

Advertising National Sales Manager Oriana Ruffini oriana@mnews.com.au P 03 9596 5555 F 03 9596 5030 Advertising Sales(Sydney) Luke Finn lfinn@chevron.com.au Director, Advertising Sales Jon Van Daal jvandaal@chevron.com.au P02 9901 6100 Chairman,Chevron: Ray Berghouse Circulation Director: Carole Jones

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Motor Mouth with Phil Branagan

Chief Executive Officer, David Gardiner Commercial Director, Bruce Duncan

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On The Limiter with Chris Lambden

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Bits & Pieces

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Winding Back

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Box Seat

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Model Behaviour

94

Trade

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Classifieds

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The Final Word with Paul Cruickshank

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THE FRONT ROW since we last met

FORMULA 1 As quickly as chinks started to appear in Sebastian Vettel's armour, he hit back hard with a stunning win in Turkey.

In China,for the final flyaway race of the season-starting swing, Vettel couldn't replicate the stunning form he showed in the opening two races. He was caught out by Lewis Hamilton, who was on a superior strategy, with Vettel having to settle for second place behind the Brit.

Then, in Free Practice 1 in Turkey, Vettel caused some wry smiles up pit-lane by binning his Red Bull Racer in the soggy conditions.

The crash ruled him out of FP2,and seemingly put him on the back foot.

But 12 hours later he was on pole by a whopping 0.4s, and by Sunday afternoon Vettel had cruised his way to a third win from four races.

"We have to really go step-by-step, see every race on its own and try to maximise our points,"said Vettel after the win In Turkey.

"But a good start to the season always helps, but it is a long, long way to go. Four out of 19, so you can work out how many points there are still to get so we have to keep focused."

Mark Webber was second in Turkey, having passed Fernando Alonso late in the race, but it was his drive in China that was really impressive. Having failed to get out of Q1 due to a hard tyre gamble, Webber was forced to start from 18th. But, with some clever strategy that involved saving the soft tyres for the end, Webber barged his way to third at the finish, behind Vettel and Hamilton.

WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP Tactics play a big part in the World Rally Championship, but in Sardinia, Sebastien Loeb put it all aside to take a straightforward win.

Loeb took over the lead of the rally on Friday afternoon, resigning himself to running first on the road for the remainder of the event. But the

INDYCAR Will Power has moved into the lead of the IndyCar Series with a wet and wild win on the streets of Sao Paulo.

The Brazilian race was delayed by a day due to the weather, and even when it did get underway,the conditions were less than ideal. With a time limit in place, some opted

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disadvantage wasn't enough to stop the World Champ, with Loeb leading home Ford's Mikko Hirvonen by 11 s.

Petter Solberg was third, having won the event's opening stage.

MINI made its WRC debut, with Dani Sordo coming home a credible sixth after a problem-free rally. Kris Meeke was slightly quicker in the other MINI, going third fastest on SS2 behind Loeb and Hirvonen, but was held back by a throttle problem after running fourth early on.

for a no-stop strategy, banking on Safety Cars.Takuma Sato was one such driver, leading a portion of the race, but when not enough yellows came along. Power was able to sweep into the lead and take the win.

Graham Rahal ended up second, while Ryan Briscoe took third.

The next IndyCar race is the Indy 500.

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motorsport news

eNews of the Month REINDLER ESCAPES FIREBALL

V8 SUPERCARS It's been a big month for new winners in V8 Supercars.

It all started in New Zealand, with Rick Kelly taking Kelly Racing's first win on the soaking wet streets of Hamilton.To make matters even better for Kelly Racing,Todd Kelly survived the carnage to come home third, with Craig Lowndes splitting the pair.

The very next day, Rick backed it up by taking Kelly Racing's first pole position - with Todd right alongside. But neither Kelly could take the team's second win, with Shane van Gisbergen storming through for his first ever win.'The Giz'celebrated the emotional home win with a spectacular series of burnouts.

A fortnight later, at Barbagallo Raceway in WA,it was Jason Bright's turn to take a first win. It wasn't his first win (although it was his first in almost five years), but it was the first for Brad Jones Racing in a points-paying V8 Supercar race.

Jamie Whincup won the other two races in WA,cementing his place on top of the standings despite a shocker of a weekend in New Zealand.

Karl Reindler was lucky to escape serious injury during a frightening start-line crash at the recent Barbagallo Raceway round oftheVS Supercar Championship.

Having stalled on the grid, Reindler was hit hard from behind

by Steve Owen,who struck him unsighted, in third gear.The result was a fiery impact, with both Commodores going up in flames.

While Owen was out of the car very quickly, Reindler took slightly longer to remove himself, and was quickly admitted to hospital with burns to his hands and face. He has since had successful skin graft surgery.

"I loaded the clutch up and it stalled,"said Reindler.

"I had my foot all the way down; I didn't even release the clutch. I couldn't get it going at all. There was nothing I could do. Before I knew it I saw flames inside the car. I guess I panicked and tried to get out as quick as 1 could."

SUPERCARS SEARCH FOR A SUPERSTAR A young driver will get the chance to make their Bathurst debut,and be a TV star, when a reality program called 'Supercar Showdown'hits Australian screens in June. eNews has learned that a Masterchef-style reality show will pit young drivers from Australian and around the world against each other, with the winner earning a Bathurst drive in a Kelly Racing-prepped Commodore, backed by KFC.The host and second driver of the car is expected to be Grant Denyer.

INDIAN ON THE V8 MENU V8 Supercars is eyeing a move to India - and it may be as soon as 2012.

The plan is to have two rounds in India, one at the yet-tobe-completed Formula 1 circuit in New Dehli,and one at an existing circuit near Chennai. While V8 Supercar officials have signaled that 2012 is an option,2013 is the likely start time for the Indian races.

"There's a considerable amount of interest from there in us going there,"confirmed V8's CEO Martin Whitaker,"which I think echoes how we're increasingly viewed worldwide."

BURNOUTS COME,GO, AND COME AGAIN V8 Supercars officials have been forced to backflip on the issue of post-race burnouts.

After burnouts performed by Jamie Whincup at Albert Park and Shane van Gisbergen in Hamilton,the V8 drivers were told in WA that burnouts would no longer be tolerated at the end of races.

But following backlash from drivers and fans, V8 Supercar officials reversed the decision straight after Perth, with drivers now allowed to smoke the tyres following a win.

MOTOGP Casey Stoner has put Jorge Lorenzo on notice with a stunning win in France.

Stoner dominated the entire weekend at Le Mans, moving to within 12 points of Lorenzo in the standings. But it wasn't such a great weekend for Stoner's team-mate Dani Pedrosa, who broke his collarbone after a nasty crash with young gun Marco Simoncelli.

www.mnews.com.au

NO ENDURO SEATS LEFT Enduro seats are officially sold out, with Wilson Security Racing signing Dale Wood to partner Tony D'Alberto Racing at Phillip Island and Bathurst later this year. Wood Joins the team having raced for Kelly Racing in 2010.

Motorsport eNews available 8pm Mondays. www.mnews.com.au

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JPHIL

BRANAGAN

HO do you think is currently more happy with their current situation Formula 1 team owners or V8

pledged to"play hardball"when it came time to negotiate the next contract for a GP at Albert Park.

Hands up all those who believe that CVC will instruct Bernie to

ball rolling by suggesting that Formula 1 is not for sale - surely a novel concept for something owned by a Private Equity company. On the other side, the startlingly well-dressed Luca di Montezemelo is exercising the power of the Ferrari brand in the media, and making it clear that the teams want a rather

Supercar team owners?

I write this column a day after V8 Supercars Chairman Tony Cochrane announced that the

be meek and generous when it comes to dealing with Ms Asher?]

As detailed elsewhere in this

larger slice of the financial pie in the future than they might have now.

edition,the AMRP deal promises to plop somewhere in the neighbourhood of $4m into the laps of those who own one Racing Entitlements Contract, and multiples thereof to those who own more than one. For a

To paraphrase one commentator writing about the ongoing players'lockout in America's NFL,there is something unseemly about a bunch of millionaires fighting with a bunch of billionaires over money.

V8 Supercar fans probably have the better of this. Every time the FI war of words comes to a head, there are threats of a breakaway series.That never quite comes to pass but tends to steal the headlines in the widely-read media, which must be unsettling for fans.To date, the threats have never quite been seen to their logical conclusion - and the last time, the teams had a bunch of manufacturers in their corner

MOTOR MOUTH

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future of the self-proclaimed Greatest Show on Wheels was in the hands of Archer Capital - well, one hand, plus one finger on the other hand. Australian Motor Racing Partners(owned by the Private Equity company) will be 60 percent shareholders while the teams,and V8 Supercars management, will control the other 40 percent.

That is not unlike the situation in which Formula 1 finds itself.

The commercial aspects of the sport, controlled by the Formula One Group of companies,are majority owned by a similar organisation. In this case, CVC Capital owns a 75 percent stake.

Ecclestone holds the reins, but he does not own them.

[To digress,the day before the announcement,Victoria's Minister for Major Events Louise Asher

bunch of blokes who just want to have fun with racing cars, that is a pretty good return. Of course, that is an over-simplification; some of the group may have somewhat modestly described themselves as motor mechanics in the past, but there are a few businessmen in the game these days, with notably clean fingernails...

On the other side of the world, gentlemen who might be described asThe Usual Suspects are clearing their throats for the next round of negotiations over the Concorde Agreement.

Ecclestone has started the

that are now noticeably absent but that does not mean that they never will.

In shorthand, we know that there will be teams on

the grid, and roughly which ones,for the 2013 V8 Supercar Championship. Right now, we cannot be absolutely certain the same scenario exists for the 2013 Formula 1 World Championship.

Across my desk this week came VSSupercars The Whole Story, a 339-page colour book written by my pal Gordon Lomas and with much of the photography by our own Dirk Klynsmith. While it does not quite live up to its billing and deliver the whole story - and it is not the first motor racing-related book in that category - it does well illustratejust where the sport was 14 years ago when this adventure, if not began,then changed course dramatically.

The yarn starts in late-1996, and gives some detail on what has been an era of huge evolution for the sport. People might disagree with the manner in which some changes happened,some of the events that have come and gone and brand events like Shanghai and Canberra as failures, but it would be fanciful to suggest Cochrane did not do what he said he would do.

If the Formula 1 team owners are serious about change, I think that they would do much worse than to find someone like Tony Cochrane,and have him fighting from their corner...

Ecclestone has started the ball rolling by suggesting that Formula 1 is not for sale // - surely a novel concept for something owned by a Private Equity company H :i .1 'Wiirussa

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CHRIS

LAMBDEN I ON THE LIMITER

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VENTS ofthe past week or two brought the name Bertrand Gachot to mind.

Gachot was a promising young Belgian FI driver who, after driving for minnows Onyx and Colon! FI teams in 1989 and 1990,appeared to be headed in the right direction in 1991 when he signed for Jordan Grand Prix.

With Gachot paired with Andrea de Cesaris, Jordan was on the up and finished fifth in the Constructors Championship that year - though that wasn't what earned Jordan worldwide headlines.

Gachot missed the final five races of the year. Why? Fie got involved in a bit of a fracas with a London taxi driver after a minor road altercation, during which he sprayed the cabbie with CS gas. After a court case, Bertrand was sentenced to two months in Jail.

All this happened mid-season.

At what would turn out to be Gachot's final race for Jordan, the Flungarian Grand Prix, he finished out of the points but set the fastest lap. Fie then went to Jail. He would never drive for the team again and saw out what remained of his FI career back among the also-ran teams, Larrousse and Pacific.

What happened next had a profound effect on both FI

and Jordan. With a bit of help (reputedly US$150,000)from Mercedes (for whom he was driving in sportscars), Jordan ran an FI debutant at the next race.

Spa. It was Michael Schumacher.

The events ofthat weekend are legend: Michael qualified seventh,ahead t)f team-leader de Cesaris, havirig never driven at the track before.The car failed on the first lap, but the potential was obvious.

Eddie Jordan thought he had an'in principle'agreement for Schumacher to drive the rest of the year, but there were obvious loopholes, not to mention no formal contract.

The result? Schumacher was snapped up before the next race by Benetton.The rest is history.

This all comes to mind because of the news this week that Force India driver Adrian Sutil is facing a criminal complaint from the CEO of Genii Capital, Eric Lux,after an incident at a nightclub in Shanghai following the recent GP. Details are sketchy, but Lux was seen leaving the club in a very-bloodied state. While Sutil has confirmed his involvement in an incident, claimed there was no intent to injure anyone and apologised, he faces a tricky immediate future.

a Sydney-based private equity firm.

It is discussed in more detail elsewhere in this issue, but links, pointfout that Jordan was on-sold to become Midland FI/ regardless of your views on Spyker, and then on-sold again private ownership in sport to become ... Force India. And (pretty much a fact of life in the 21 St century), it looks like a that waiting in the wings at Force India is another talented big win for those most directly involved - SEL and the teams. young German,reserve driver Nico Hulkenberg... Spooky.

There was always a view that, one day,25 percent shareholder The actual point to all SEL would 'cash in'and move on, this, though, is that for all its high profile, FI - and locally and that's fair enough - in order V8 Supercars - has been to cash-in you have to have remarkably free of unsavoury off built up something of value to track scandals when compared start with. No-one can argue their success in that endeavour to many professional sports.

Okay, Kimi Raikkonen - the result speaks for itself. was renowned as a bit of a By comparison with the 'ownership'of FI,this stacks drinker(and we'll ignore Max up particularly well in that the Mosley's infamy - he wasn't a direct competitor after all) but, participating teams too are the beneficiaries of a sizeable cash compared to the various brawls, girl-friend beatings, pub fights injection for the approximately and on-line photo-scandals half of their equity in the business which has been pumped out by the various handed over. football codes on a regular basis, The other interesting element top level motorsport has,for the past decade or so, appeared is that it signals the departure pretty clean. ofTony Cochrane from SEL,to stay on as Chairman of the That could say many things, newly restructured V8 Supercar including a view on the general professionalism and IQ of company and thus continue to plant his unique fingerprint motorsport people, or maybe on the ongoing fortunes of V8 their ability to successfully Supercar racing. separate public and private lives, but in the modern fish-bowl It’s been a helter-skelter and occasionally controversial ride world of professional sport, it's a notable and valuable plus. so far, but there is no doubting the end result, soTC's decision to divest himself of other(SEL) he other major event of interests to concentrate on V8s the month has been the announcement of the sale of is pretty good news for the new broom.

60 percent of V8 Supercars to As an aside, Editor Branagan, who has an insane head for weird facts and coincidental

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BITS & PIECES

The Big Deal

How does V8 Supercars’ new ownership deal stack up?

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investors would want to see continue.

HE sale of a stake in V8 Supercars to Cochrane has described the deal as a'WinArcher Capital marks a turning point for Win'for the sport, and there appear to be a lot V8 Supercars - indeed,a turning point for the sport in Australia. of people who agree. Details of the financial A number of media outlets described the sale dealings of V8 Supercars'team owners are a little as a "$300 million"sale or deal, but that is not difficult to verify but in the process of having a quite accurate, and is a bit of lazy journalism. number of discussions with some of the prime What V8 Supercars said in its media release figures in pit lane, we have come up with what was that the deal"values the enterprise in excess we believe are some accurate numbers for comparisons. of $300 million.'This is not far from the figure that has been mentioned since rumours of a sale The most recent sale of RECs - and recent buyers have included Lucas Dumbrell,James started to emerge about a year ago. But the sale Rosenberg and Steve Webb - have taken place was not for the whole enterprise; based on that $300m total, Archer's 60 percent stake is worth with the figure attached to a REC is in the'high $180m,and that is a more accurate description million dollar'range.That is, with the various of the value of this particular transaction. legal costs associated with the transfer of And that leads to another part of the deal ownership of such a valuable asset as a REC, plus GST, it would have cost getting close to $2m to that needs analysis.The V8 release said "the 18 buy a REC in the last two years. teams and V8 Supercars management w\\\ own But, there would hardly be a bank in the world the other approximately 40 per cent share". We queried V8 Supercars as to whether that means that would not loan you the money to buy one, that Tony Cochrane will take a stake, or that provided you have the level of infrastructure necessary, and that it is not overloaded with some equity might be assigned to other key debt,to field a V8 Supercar as required. A REC management within the organisation - perhaps CEO Martin Whitaker, or V8 Supercar Events pays its owner well - our sources say that the payments were in the order of $750,000 for the boss Shane Howard. MN sought but received no 2010 season, and that this year it was to be over clarification on that prior to this issue going to press. $500,000 - based on the 75 percent ownership What has been suggested as a possible by the teams. Provided that your sponsors scenario during the period in which the paid their way, you could be well on the way to paying off a REC within a couple of seasons. negotiations were progressing was that a'29th But with the stake that the teams held now REC'- that is, a slice of the 40 percent that the diluted by almost half, to 40 percent, that teams will own under the new arrangements could be assigned as equity either to Cochrane income will drop once the transfer of ownership is completed - unless (or until) the income alone or to be shared among V8 Supercars stream from future TV contracts, new series management.The difference is that while a 'real' sponsors and, potentially,from new events, REC comes with obligations, like wheeling out ramps up to cover the lower income that will be a race-ready V8 Supercarat each event, what felt by owners in the short-term. has been described by one V8 Supercar insider One more thing.The forerunner of V8 as a "phantom REC" would have no such strings Supercars, AVESCO, was formed not with attached. It would appear to be simply an two constituent owners but three. The teams, efficient way of distributing a similar payment that will go to the teams to the management. through TEGA, owned 67.5 percent of the cake and SEL {which was formed in 1997 and which So, the teams have sold nearly half of their 75 percent stake in the business to Archer, took over IMG's initial stake) owned 22.5 percent. maintaining a 40 percent stake. Based on that The other 10 percent was owned by CAMS $300m number,that would be worth $105m; through the Australian Motor Sport Commission if 29 RECs {28 plus a'phantom') share that. It - and CAMS later relinquished its stake as part of comes to approximately $3.6m per REC. a deal between the parties, for what was seen Of course, Cochrane will also share in the even at the time as a relatively modest payment.

CAMS has since been paid fees as part of proceeds of the sale of SEL's 25 percent stake in V8 Supercars to Archer. Based on these numbers, its ongoing role in the sport, and provides V8 that would be worth around $75m. For an Supercars with a conduit to the FIA, as befits its role as Australia's ASN. organisation that Cochrane has said in the past turned over a bit less than a million dollars In But some will have noticed by now, surely, that by the measure of this deal, CAMS's 10 its first year, that is a pretty substantial level of percent stake would today be worth $30m ... growth - and one which, obviously, Archer's -PHILBRANAGAN management and the company's institutional 14

motorsport news

MOTORSPORTS CALENDAR

rW? I think taxpayers could get a better deal if the contract had less in it for my good friend Mr Ecclestone and more in it for Victorian taxpayers.

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JURR June 5

FIA GT1 Silverstone Raceway Silverstone, England

June 5

NASCAR Kansas 400 Kansas Speedway, Kansas, USA

June 5

Moto GP Gran Premi Aperol De Catalunya Circuit de Catalunya, Catalunya, Spain

Jun 10-12

Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada Montreal, Canada

June 12

Moto GP Airasia British Grand Prix Silverstone, England

June 10-13

ANDRA WInternationals

Victorian Major Events Minister Louise Asher lays down the law

sydney.com

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Willowbank Raceway, OLD June 12

NASCAR Pocono 500. Pocono Raceway Long Pond, PA. USA

June 16-19

Acropolis Rally of Greece Loutraki, Greece

June 19

NASCAR Heluva Good Sour Cream Dips 500 Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Ml

Jun 17-19

V8 Supercars Skycity Triple Crown Hidden Valley Raceway, NT

Jun 24-26

Formula 1 Grand Prix of Europe Valencia, Spain

June 25

MotoGP Iveco TT Assen Assen, Netherlands

June 26

NASCAR Toyota/Save Mart 350 Infineon Raceway, Sonoma, Calif, USA n

Sponsor THE AUSSIE DOLLAR SKYROCKETS You couldn’t pick a better time to travel overseas with the Australian dollar firming solidly against most of the major currencies.

With the northern Summer upon us, why not contact us about organising your next trip to any of the above events or for later in the season.

GO AHEAD - GIVE US A CALL AUSTRALIA

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WINDING BACK the year that was...

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r ITH the manufacturers in MotoGP hard at work,splitting their time between trying to win the 2011 title with their SOOcc bikes and developing new lOOOcc models for the 2012 season, you could be forgiven for looking back fondly to an older, simpler era.

Back in the Swingin'Sixties, the biggest brands in motorcycle racing were changing from the previously dominant Italian and British marques to those from Japan. It may have taken them a decade to do it, but the bikes from the Land of the Rising Sun, led by Honda, gradually took over the high ground at the top end of the sport. In GP racing, that meant the 500cc class, and in the 1960s,the great event was

I

the Isle of Man TT. Honda's'first'era in motorcycle racing came to an end in 1967.

Its last 500 racer,the RCl 81, was at the time perhaps not considered its finest work of the era - Honda's six-cylinder racers were held in far more reverence but with time,the four is coming into its own, and finding its place in history.

Ironically, the bike did not win a riders'title, despite some of the best efforts of Mike Hailwood and Jim Redman. IN 1966 and'67, Giacomo Agostini lifted the 500 crown for MV Agusta, leaving the Honda men to pick up the pieces.

But in the 19 500cc GPs in those two years, more than half, 10, fell to Honda's four-cylinder, 151kg rocketship.

The heart of the bike was a straight-four motor, with 57mm

r bores and 52mm stroke, giving 489cc (though later versions had their capacity listed as 499.6cc).

The air-cooled motor revved to a modest(by today's standards) 12,500rpm, and produced about 90 horsepower - less than the power of the last of the 250cc GP bikes before they were retired two years ago.The components that made up the bike were a curious mix of Japanese and British - the team regularly changed between Girling and Showa suspension units, for instance - but it was competitive from the get-go.

Having left MV after winning four 500 titles, Hailwood was determined to win for Honda.

He did - in the 250cc class (after winning the first eight GPs of the'66 season) and the 350s, previously the domain of

Redman.The Rhodesian was Honda's team leader on the 500s, but after winning the first two races of the season, a broken wrist in a wet crash in Belgium ended his title hopes. Hailwood stepped up, winning the final three GPs of the year, but Ago prevailed in a close-fought battle.

As he did a year later. Again, Hailwood bottled up the 250 and 350 crowns, but the fight for the title ended in a points tie. In fact, it was a super tie; both men scored five wins so Agostini lifted the title on the basis that he scored more second places than did Hailwood, three to two. It could not have been closer.

The 1966TThad seen Hailwood in classic form. Held later than usual, in September because of a seamen's strike, he won the 250cc Lightweight motorsport news

race by almost six minutes, but . when his Honda stopped and Bishopscourt on the last lap of the Junior race, Agostini swept by and won his first TT.The SeniorTT for 500s promised much,and the two men swapped the lap record in the opening laps until Hailwood opened a 13s gap. He pulled away to win his ninth TT. But if the '66 SeniorTT was an appetiser, the piece de resistance was the '67 race. It was a classic; the Honda had the power,the three-cylinder MV the handling.

Starting 30s behind Hailwood on the road, Agostini dismantled the Briton's lap record with a first up 108.38mph lap (sorry, metrics just don't work at the lOM).

Hailwood took it back on lap 2 with 108.77mph but during his fuel stop, needed to straighten a twist grip with a hammer, allowing the Italian to stretch to an 15s lead.

Hailwood took off in pursuit and, remarkably,the gap between the two at the end of the fifth lap was 0.0s. It was looking like the final lap would decide the race and it did - but not in the way many thought it would. Agostini broke a chain as he approached Windy Corner and Hailwood was able to cruise, relatively speaking,to victory.

"I was lucky," he said with great modesty after the race.

"If Ago's chain hadn't broken, I don't think I could have won.

That second lap was just about as fast as I could go. I made up quite a bit of time, but lost it at the pit stop when I had to fix the throttle.

"It started to work loose again on the fifth lap, and on the last lap I was riding virtually one handed. In fact I almost had to stop once to push it back on again and was holding it for most of the lap."

Hailwood's average for the race was 105.62mph and his lap record would stand for eight years - beaten by Mick Grant on a 750 Kawasaki in 1975. It was a performance befitting the 60th anniversary meeting of the event.

That week, Mike the Bike also won the 250 and 350 races at the track, giving him 12 TT wins - a record at the time, though one later surpassed by Joey Dunlop. www.mnews.com.au

Look Mum,one hand!Mike the Bike guides the Honda RC18! to victory in the 1967Senior TT, main pic.

Compared to the bikes 1966 it was a picture of mechanical simplicity, above. Hailwood took three TTs in one week twice, for the first time as a 21-year-old In 1961, below.

won the Formula One TT. What At the end of the season, Honda withdrew from Grand Prix Is less-well known is that the motorcycle racing. It would not following year he won his 14th return for more than a decade.

TT, the Senior, on a Suzuki 500 Of course, it is now a part of - at the age of 39.That was his motorcycle racing folklore that final TT victory.

Hailwood returned to theTT after The few RCl 81 that remain anil -year absence in 1978 - and are now becoming admired

exhibits in motorcycle museums around the world. In fact, there are a number of replicas made and some of those - most notably those made by Ronald Agoston in Hungary - are now fast becoming appreciating collectables in their own right.

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j^ERE'S a question for you.What do you r get if you corh'bine 1 ●V8Suphrcars,PTMr SuperGT,and NASCAR?I don't knovv either, but whatever it is representsflA , President Jean Todt's aspirations -'vision'is too precise a word at the momenta for FIA World Championship-level Touring Cars. There already is an FIA World Championship for Touring Cars of course, but the fact that virtually ho-6ne on the planet pays attention to it indicates that it has some way to go before it even reaches the level of the World Rally Championship; a championship that itself is a shadow of what it once was.

Todt was at Monza for last weekend's WTCG round. T happened to be there too.

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“'#rCC is not SOTethingTattend with any kind OT regularityr but Monza was fh;^sec6nd.visit to. the paddock this season after a three-year absence, arid it's very difficult to shake the sertse of a GhampionsHip with its back pressed hard against the wall, Todt was OH a charm offensive and wouldn'pay anything about the CC's obvious problems. But they Vvere plain to see.The ntfassive Chevrolet hospitality unit is several times bigger thanJthe old One, but it was made to seem all the^Tnore conspicuous by the fact that not too long ago there were BMW and SEAT ones standing nearby.

There's also a lack of marquee names in the cockpit,Yvan 'Muller and Alain Menu are mostly known In Australia as drivers that Europeans get excited about, who occasionally

visit ttie<sdutbern,tie™isphere ,: If the drivers are not going To to bendfjguiteas duick as the . l ’get*^^tuning in,then it's lpcals.i|j\® Super(:afs.|o,thare up to the cars. An incident a few outstanding talents ifftheir field years ago neatly highlights the (and better than some Aussies ‘ ' ptQblem here.^l,wasatBfanlJs give thern credit for), but one , Hatch,being strapped into is47tandthe othetis 4itNot’‘ the passenger seat Alongside exactlyjnvestments in the future a how-fprmer WTGC driver for as far as developing afan base' a passenger ride, He started is coneprned.The championship chatting as we were rolling hasafome-grown stariift, down towards the pit exit, current points leader Rob Huff, "So, have you been in anything like this before?" he asked. but npt even people in his native Errgland would recognise "A few times,"j replied: Llke what?" him in the street. !

Il^where op the ~%G®uple ofV8 Supercars.' ex-Fl drivers, although Gabriele ■ "Oh,f...,"he said. "You're going to hate this."

Tarquini's careefwas rhostly ineseapable fact #43: When notable for how many terrible teams ofthe late-1980s and you've watched a field full of VR-Supercars - Or DTM for that . early-i 990s he managed to race matter, even though their DNA for, while Tiago Monteiro's main claim to fame was finishing third js closer to a GT - a productionbased thing, probably with a ' in the notorious 2005 .yS Grand Prix. After that, there's not much. ' ' dtesel engine, is hardly going

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to make the hairs on your neck stand up..

Still, Todt believes that there is potential for the WTGC to become a thing of genuine prestige and prominence.

"Wheni'l was jn Australia at the beginning of the year, I met Tony Cochrane," he said.

"I attended a NASCAR race last year.,1 had some meetings with the DTM promOters.!l(; had some meetings with the Japanese [Super GT] people when I: was in Japan. I would like to take the best Of each to make our FIA World Touring Car Championship."

The follow-up questions were all essentially derivatives of'how?'Todt doesn't have the answers yet, but he has charged Australian Alan Gow, Who wears the hat of FIA-Touring Car

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commissioner amongst h|s many others, with waking out Whether this is even vaguely feasible; There could be a case for arguing that the current form of the WTCC is'fundamentally engineered for failure.

Production cars are too -different frorr^ne region to another to offer the recognition levels neede(|to create a real global fan base (how many SEAT Leons did you see when you left home this morning?), and the constant fiddling with equalisation devices like penalty weights adds a layer of complication that most fans can't be bothered with.

There is a reason that the most successful touring car ' charnpionships in the world - V8s, DTM, the'BTCC - have achieved the status that they

p^ U. have. It's because they are perfect for their home markets.

And thole are precisely the same reasons why none would flourish,to the same extent elsewlfere.

Perhips the only viable startiri^ point is a Touring Car versioh of what IndyCar is doing.

Create a 'WTCC' car from scratch.

Forget the production basis most people care about that a lot less than the manufacturers would like to think they do. Start with a distinctive, common chassis, open it up for car makers to develop their own bodykits, keep the aero in check, and secure a couple of engine suppliers. Even that won't solve

things completely, because for the WTCC to reach the level that Todt dreams of, it still needs a grid Of drivers that captures and more importantly, sustains the public's imagination.

Todt admits that his ambition for the WTCC could remain unrealised, and he could hardly have someone more pragmatic than Gow looking into whether it is feasible or not. But it's hard not to wonder whether the motorsport world has already spoken.

The key questions are not about the best set of technical regulations, they are about whether anyone will care at the end of iti

Inescapable fact #43: When you've watched a ffeld full of V8 Supercars, a production-based thing, probably with a diesel engine, is hardly going to make the hairs on your neck stand up

don’t even know how to put it into words.

It’s spectacular.

The feeling inside is phenomenal.

Every year, the New Zealanders in the V8 Supercar Championship get one weekend to try and win on home soil. So far, only two have done it.

ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN sat down with Greg Murphy and Shane van Gisbergen to find out exactly what it means to be a Kiwi, and to win in New Zealand.

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HEN it comes to sport, New Zealanders typically excel in two fields - rugby and motorsport.

Quite odd, really, because the physical attributes required to be world class at either sport are very different. For instance, I don't think you'll find a Velo racing seat designed for an All-Black Prop - or an All-Black Prop that would fit in an open-wheeler.

But, despite this physical anomaly,there is no doubt that the Kiwis have, and continue to, punch well above their weight when it comes to racing drivers. For instance, in the history of Formula 1, there have been eight New Zealand drivers make it all the way to the top.There have been 14 Aussies make it to GP racing, but given that Australia's population is over five times larger than that of NZ,they are winning the battle.

Out of this eight, there are some very big names - names like Chris Amon, Denny Hulme, MikeThackwell and, of course, Bruce McLaren. And Grand Prix statistics don't count the likes of Scott Dixon in IndyCar, Possum Bourne in rallying, or even Mitch Evans, who seems to be on the fast-track to taking the country's list of GP racers to nine.

Those stats also don't recognise the NZ talent that has chosen to flourish right here in Australia. There have been hoards of Kiwis who have jumped the ditch and plied their trade, often very successfully, in V8 Supercars and the Australian Touring Car Championship.

So far, none have quite been able to earn the superstar status of Greg Murphy. For so long he has been the country's go-to guy when it comes to motorsport, and even now, in a period of lean success for the man from Hastings, his garage is the hardest to walk past during the Hamilton race weekend purely because of the crowd that gathers faithfully around It. But there is some competition in town.

Recently, Shane van Gisbergen became the latest Kiwi to win on home soil with an emotional victory in Hamilton. In fact, he was the first Kiwi to win in Hamilton, with Murphy's home-town dominance seemingly left at Pukekohe.

So, who better to talk to us about Kiwi racers than the Kiwi legend himself, and the young pretender who seems poised to join him as a New Zealand star? We got Murphy and van Gisbergen together and asked the question - why are Kiwis so good?

"I don't know why it is," says Murphy.

"Maybe it's got something to do with our local roads! We get our licenses at a

You’re talking about people like McL paved the way, and put New Zealand 22

motorsport news

ridiculously early age! But I started karting when I was eight years old, so age had nothing to do with it.

"I don't know, but I think it's simply because it's a popular sport in New Zealand.

It's been a popular sport since way back, when you were talking about people like McLaren, Amon and Hulme,and they really paved the way, and put New Zealand on the map. It seems to have continued from there.

"Per capita, we have a lot of race tracks. It's a culture. And we have a lot of talent - a lot like Australia. You also have to remember how much talent goes unchecked, because this is a sport that's very hard to get ahead in, especially in this part of the world.

"Shane and I have been bloody lucky to get to where we have. We come from similar backgrounds, in a lot of respects, and we're not from wealthy families.That's the usual issue; that's why only a few get through the cracks and up to this level. Shane's got his story, and I've got mine,and in some ways they are pretty similar. It's about making the right turns at the right times, and finding yourself with an opportunity."

These days, both Murphy and van Gisbergen have found their opportunities.

They both have happy homes on the Aussie side of the Tasman, and while they are unarguably at different ends of their respective careers, the pair share a very similar view on the Aussie/Kiwi rivalry.

"It's great to get out there and beat you bloody Aussies!"says Murphy through a cheeky grin.

"This is the biggest Touring Car Championship in the world, so when I was growing up, and Shane was growing up, you looked at Australia and dreamed about racing here. You'd dream about Bathurst.

This is the epitome of the sport in this part of the world."

"Murph is exactly right,"adds van Gisbergen.

"I think the Kiwi/Aussie thing is bigger over in New Zealand than it is in Australia.

There is so much support for the local drivers over there. On the Sunday in Hamilton, I could see Holden supporters clapping and cheering, it didn't seem to matter that i was driving a Ford, they were just happy to see a Kiwi do weii.

"It goes for drivers as well. We're all competitive, but we get along, too. If Murph or Fabian [Coulthard] are doing well, I'm always happy for them.To have Fabian on the side of the track cheering for me [in Hamilton] was really cool.

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aren, Amon and Hulme; they really 59 ri the map. www.mnews.com.au

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and then Murph was one of the first people to come and say'well done'. That's pretty awesome."

"I've never struck an issue over here where someone's been hard on me because I'm a Kiwi, because as long as you're getting the job done, it doesn't matter," says Murphy.

"Jeff Grech rang me and asked me if I wanted to drive - I'd only been in Australia for a year. He didn't give a toss where I was from. We've got a strong rivalry, but it doesn't go as far as making two lists."

For van Gisbergen,the link to New Zealand goes beyond his family's home in Auckland. He drives for Stone Brothers Racing, a team that couldn't be more Kiwi unless it was actually based in New Zealand.

Of course,for logistical purposes, SBR is based in Queensland, but Ross and Jimmy Stone are hardcore Kiwi racers, through and through.

"Ross and Jimmy are always following the racing in New Zealand - and they do that because they've been around it for so long, and they know Just how strong it is," says van Gisbergen.

"All of the classes that I have raced in have had so many strong competitors, so it's very hard to stand out over there, but if you do, people will take notice."

24

While Murphy has never driven for the Stones, their place in the folklore of New Zealand motorsport is not lost on him.

"Ross and Jim have been around for so long, and I'm sure they always want to do something with a strong talent from New Zealand," he says.

"They've found the right guy with Shane now, because they really take notice of everything that's going on.They are stalwarts of the sport."

Before Hamilton this year, Greg Murphy was the only local driver to have won a V8 Supercar round in New Zealand. It took four visits to Pukekohe for Murphy to be beaten there, Jason Bright finally breaking through in 2004- only to have Murphy return serve again in '05.

But before this year, and van Gisbergen's fairytale win,the move to Hamilton had been unkind to the Kiwis. While Aussies have a whole bunch of chances to win on home soil, the Kiwis only get one (technically two under the new'race/round'rules)- and the boys reckon it's pretty special.

"It first happened for me in 1996, when Pukekohe still wasn't part of the championship,"says Murphy,."Were you still in nappies, Shane? ("I was seven,"answers van Gisbergen). Seven!Thanks for that!

"Anyway, in 2001, when it was the first V8 Supercar championship round in NZ, winning at Pukekohe was just... amazing.

It's like if Mark Webber won the Australian Grand Prix. I don't even know how to put it into words. It's spectacular.The feeling inside is phenomenal."

"To add to that, the last few laps, you can see everyone cheering,"adds van Gisbergen.

"I remember at Puke we used to call people'Murph Clappers'.(Murph breaks down laughing). I was one of them! Every lap when Murph went past we'd all clap. I was a Murph fan my whole life.

"For the last 10 laps or so in Hamilton, I could see people starting to do the same.

Everyone was on their feet and I could actually hear them cheering. On the cool down lap it was even better. Being on the podium, with Ross and Jim up there, that's something I'll remember for ever."

"It means a lot," says Murphy."It means a lot to Kiwis. It means a huge amount. It will have a massive effect on the future of the sport in New Zealand too, because it's important to have a local winner."

The future of V8 Supercars was a hot topic over the Hamilton weekend this year. While V8 Supercars are motorsport news

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quick to point out that the future of V8 Supercars in New Zealand is not in danger, it seems the Hamilton event itself is. There was plenty of bad local press across the weekend, pointing fingers at rising costs and falling crowds, and it all seems to have stemmed from comments made by Hamilton's mayor Julie Hardaker, who said she was"horrified" with the amount of money the city was spending on V8s when she was elected in late 2010.

"You're in the media, you know you need to look for negatives,"says Murphy.

"It's always the very small minority that create the big stories. If everyone agrees on something, it's not news. It is a real shame, because you don't realise what you've got, or what you had, until it's gone. It's the same as the Melbourne Grand Prix, if that disappears people will really feel it.

"All of us Kiwis are super-proud to be able to race at home,and it comes with a lot of pressure. There's pressure to succeed in front of the home crowd. It's devastating when you're unable to achieve what you want to achieve."

Murphy doesn't have to tell van Gisbergen about that. In 2010, after a few podium finishes early in the season, many had earmarked Hamilton as the weekend that van Gisbergen might break through and take his first win. He never even went close, struggling under the weight of 26

expectation and having a terrible weekend.

Fast forward 12 months and van Gisbergen and Stone Brothers took a very different approach to the New Zealand round.The Stones limited van Gisbergen's media and promotional duties to a bare minimum and kept him well shielded from the spotlight. It paid off, with the break through win finally coming.

"After the first few rounds [in 2010], we were going alright," he says.

"I had a lot of expectation on myself for Hamilton, and the wheels just fell off. This year I stripped it back a lot. I just treated it like any other race, and it worked."

Since van Gisbergen's win,the term 'passing the mantle'has been bandied around. With Murphy heading towards the twilight of his brilliant career, and van Gisbergen seemingly hitting his straps, there were those that suggested the Hamilton win was the moment where the younger Kiwi became the'New Murph'.

But there's a flaw in the argument.

During Sunday's race at Hamilton, Murphy looked very speedy in his Pepsi-backed machine, running in the Top 10 before being sidelined with a gearbox problem.

Maybe it's not the passing of the mantle, but the dawn of a Kiwi rivalry.

"Imagine how amazing it would have been if both of us were up there at the end!' says Murphy.

"But you have to be in the zone to be able to do that. I've said before that it's all about finding a good home,and Shane has a great little team working around him, with a great relationship with Paul (Forgie, van Gisbergen's engineer) and the Stones.The confidence is massive, and that's what I need to find. Where I'm at now, I feel like that can happen. As you can see, with Shane, it's taken a few years and now it's starting to work.That's the kind of longevity that it takes, with a small, tight knit group of people,to really get benefits out of driving in this championship. I haven't had that for a long time."

Not winning in New Zealand was a new test for Murphy. It would have been easy to have been jealous that it wasn't him becoming the first Kiwi to win a V8 Supercar race in Hamilton,just like he did at Pukekohe all those years before. But, in a testament to his character, Murphy was rapt for van Gisbergen.

"You definitely want to be a winner,"says Murphy.

"I just knew what Shane would be feeling, and on top of that, it was his first win - so to get your first win on home soil, that's just a fairytale! The win was coming; I've said I don't know how many times that the first one was coming - it just happened to show up on the doorstep in Hamilton.

"I had shivers going down my spine." motorsport news

Shane has a great little team working around him. The confidence is massive, and that’s what I need to find. Where I’m at now,I feel like that can happen.”

E

^ arlier in this story, Greg Murphy spoke about how comfortable .Shane van Gisbergen now looks ^ within the Stone Brothers Racing fold, and how he hasn't been able to find that himself for some time.

Since leaving K-Mart Racing at the end of 2004, Murphy has struggled to really get comfortable with a team.There have been aborted starts with PWR Racing,Tasman Motorsport and, most recently, Paul Morris Motorsport. Now, Murphy is in the process of starting again, this time back with John and Margaret Kelly, in the guise of Kelly Racing. And,finally, he can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

"I have the time to work with the team, I think we can get there," he says.

"It's not a five-minute job, it takes time."

One massive positive to Murphy's Kelly Racing deal is the association with Pepsi Max, a brand that seems intent on maximising its involvement in V8 Supercar racing.

"It's a great relationship," he adds.

"Pepsi are stoked with the reception that we're getting with their marketing and their product.The polarisation of the fans when we changed the livery for Barbagallo Raceway was incredible.There were people saying'we hate this one, we love the other one,change back'and vice versa, you know, which means it's a fantastic marketing idea."

For Murphy, it's just nice to be involved in something different after so many years in the sport.

"Yeah, I do feel a bit freshened up. I think the years at Tasman did a lot of damage, unfortunately, which obviously wasn't the plan. It hurt me a lot, and then last year was supposed to be a lot better, but that didn't help. I was wondering where it was all going.

"I'm very fortunate that I've got what I've got now, because I feel like I can really work to achieve something now, but it's not something that can happen in five minutes.

"Look at Rick [Kelly]. We all know how

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competitive he is, but it's taken a long time, in this environment,to get there. That's the issue, and it depends on how patient people are. I'm not patient, there's no doubt about thatl" As for van Gisbergen, his year has become about managing expectations.

He's finally won that first race, the one that is supposed to cause the floodgates to open. But he's trying not to get carried away thinking about win number two, three, four,five ... or even title number one.

"I have a lot more confidence after the win, but I have to keep approaching each weekend separately," he says.

"Hopefully we can get some more balance as the championship goes on, because our cars have been a bit inconsistent race-to-race.

"If we can nail that, we're looking good.

Last year, we'd be good at Darwin,then go to Townsville and be next to nowhere,so we just need to find that window."

- ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

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Jones brother. Doing two at once can be impossible. /T'STo sometimes difficult tofrom interview onea start off with... apart running race team together, Kim (fouryears older) and Brad(who quickly points out how young he is) are brothers - and you know how brothers cars be. There are plenty of moments in the interview that do not make it past the editing process;"You can't say that; he didn't say that", or, "He is asking me the question, not you". So you have to have your wits about you more than on other occasions.

So, getting the two in the same frame of mind can take some doing. But this interview looks like being different; they are both willing and happy to talk. Then,just as I press the Record button. Brad has to leave the room to take a phone call...

MOTORSPORT NEWS: Bradley is out of the room. What do you want to say about him while he is away?

KIM JONES: He wouldn't be half the person he is, if not for me!

Maybe so. But, if either of you were to leave the team, would it go on?

30

KJ: I might suggest to him that he could be coming into a windfall, and could buy me out.

Let me take you back to a conversation we had more than a decade ago. You were teasing me about having a new, big-name sponsor, which turned out to be OzeMail.

You said you were willing to bet me that the team would have qualified in the top 10 in your first year. You didn't; far from it, in fact. Was V8 Supercars harder than you thought it was going to be?

KJ:Of course it is hard!

No; was it /lorc/erthan you thought it was going to be?

KJ:[After a pause] Yes. But look at where we were. We were running a works Audi team.

We had been to Macau and beaten Schnitzer [Ed: which was running a factory BMW Super Touring team]. You could say that, to that point, we had been reasonably successful at everything we did.

So, being a quiet country boy, and looking at it from the outside, you would think that going into V8 Supercars, it would not be too difficult. In hindsight, it was much more difficult than we had perceived.

So, how long did it take for you to feel like you had come to grips with it?

KJ: Ask me that question in about 10 years' time.

It is very, very competitive.The game has just changed.

When we first came in, if you had a good day and a little bit of luck, you would be on the podium - maybe you could even win a race. Now, you need to have all the luck in the world, and everyone else has to have bad luck. You need to do everything exceptionally well, to get onto the podium.

The game has changed and it is very, very tight.

Brad comes back in the room.

BRAD JONES: What are we talking about?

What is the question? What did you say?

KJ: I said that when you take into account where we had come from, what we had done to that point, yes, we were probably cocky.

BJ: I don't disagree with what he is saying. I think we underestimated it, and how hard it would be.

But by the same token, in all the other categories that we competed in, we had as good a budget as anyone.That has never motorsport news

really been the case in this category. So we have had things that have probably held us back a little. We have probably experienced things that we did not in the past.

The other thing is, a couple of times we have been close to getting our breakthrough win. We didn't quite get there, and then something has happened, or people changed, and we lost our way a little bit. To be fair, all those things contribute.

The other thing that has changed substantially is that the business model of a V8 Supercar team in 2000 was not the same as it is now. In 2000, it was, largely, build your own V8 Supercar and go race it.

Now,for many teams, it is not like that at all; they source their cars from a supplier and go race it.

BJ: I don't know that I totally agree with that.

You have to have good people,to make the car work properly.They have to understand the program.

We did not have the correct depth, right at the start. We could not run on what we had run on, when we were In SuperTouring. So, it is more complex than that. www.mnews.com.au

You have had a foot in both 'camps'; BJR built and developed its own Fords, but when you switched to Holdens, you ran Walkinshaw Commodores as a customer.

Where are you now - somewhere in the middle?

BJ:That's a fair comment. We are in the middle; we have a good relationship with Walkinshaw, we use their cars and we have a bit of a tinker around with them.

Why? Why do you 'tinker'with them?

BJ:To back up a little bit...

When we were the worst-performing team in pitlane, I don't think that it was totally due to the fact that the cars were that bad. So,to get us back on the straight and narrow, we ended up doing a deal with Walkinshaw, and we ran their cars.

We just rebuilt the business, and we are doing things properly again. We benefited from that, and we are more competitive.

So, is it the best of both worlds, so to speak?

KJ: As an economic model,that is what works for us.

BJ: That would be fair to say.

Is the offshoot of that economic model that you can race, and on occasion beat,the Holden Racing Team - and they are still Walkinshaw's'headline'team?That must be somewhat satisfying.

KJ; If I take you back to Wanneroo, it was not just HRT [that BJR beat].

Yes, a well made point. But, you are giving HRT a bit of a lashing.

KJrThat is not quite fair. It Is so difficult to get everything right...

BJ: If you take a bit of a look at how DJR worked with Triple Eight last year, I would like to think that we are in a similar circumstance.They [Walkinshaw Racing] have supplied us with really good cars, but the difference is, we are a little team and we can change things quickly. They are bigger than that.

I would not say that they are doing a bad Job, not at all. They have built some cars and won some races this year, and they have a very good record. It took us 11 years to win a race...

KJ: And we have only won one.

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]lia\v(e irceaiMy ]li(e]l]p)(ecd MS te hawce a Ibllcolkce Hkce JJasein IRficdhaurcds m\ t\hm (c®ur -Btaid JcoMces True. But you did not sneak into that win. It was not like, say, Sebastian Vettel at Monza [in 2008] when he won and everyone thought,'That was a shock'. You have been coming towards this for some time.

BJ: We have. And this all started when I retired. Kim and I sat down and had a talk about it, and I said,'Jesus, we are the worst team. We need to improve things'. So we put things in place, we changed and we hired people,to get to where we are now.

Was it that frank? You actually said that you were the worst team?

BJ:Yeah.

KJ: If you don't get the results, you have to analyse your position.

BJ: What I said was, we were the worstperforming team. I don't think that we had the worst people,and I don't think that we had the worst cars. But the combination was not working. So we set about recovering; it was about the key people, and it still is.

It was the circumstances at the time and the combination. We needed to know where we were.

Do you take a lot of responsibility for that Brad? You were the guy in the car and it is your name on the team.

BJ: For being the worst team?

Yep. BJ: I don't know. I see your point, and I take a fair bit of the responsibility. I was the guy in the car. I was doing my best but we had to change things. But there were other factors.

KJ;The thing is, it was not just one thing. It is the interaction of a number of things. It is unfair to ask that question.

BJ: No it's not.

32

KJ: There is not one driver out there who controls the whole package. It's the commercial package,the engineering package, and yes, a driver's feedback is a part of that engineering package. But that's is not the whole story. My uncle always said,'You can put a great jockey on a good horse and he can win, but put him on a donkey and he will go nowhere.'

I take that point. But, number one. Brad was the driver,the driver is the most visible person to the fans - and they are the ones reading this interview, I hope. Number two, the name of the team is Brad Jones Racing.

BJ; I stand by what I said.The worse you go, the more focused you are on the results.

I can remember the first meeting at which I was not driving the car. I wandered up and down pitlane, and when I got back to Kim, I said,'We are the second-worst presented team here'. Presentation has always been the cornerstone of our business, and we had been so focused on trying to get the cars better, that was something that we had let slip. So we started hiring people and making changes to the business.

When I wasn't driving it was easier to be more objective about the business, and look at what was going on outside the cars.

Since you mentioned driving, are you yet at the stage where you do not miss that part of the sport?

BJ: No. I think that drivers will always miss driving the cars. I would be lying if I said that.

When I used to exercise, or go ride a bike, all I used to think about was driving a racecar.

That is not something that has changed significantly. But I don't miss losing. I have the opportunity to drive, sometimes, when we do a drive day, and I find that a little bit

frustrating. I am not doing as good a job as i would like to do.

Any driver worth his salt would always missing driving the car.

If you are going to put your hand up and take some of that responsibility, I should point out that if you had weaknesses, there were also strengths.You were nearly always good on tracks with long corners, like Bathurst, you usually made strong starts and we did not often see a BJR car buried in a fence.

BJ: Yeah.That is nice of you to say that, but from there, we are making gains.

In a category where everyone is putting their best foot forward all the time, we have managed to sneak past a lot of them as get to the front - which is where we want to be.

Has the arrival of Jason Bright and Phil Keed, and integrating them into the team, almost been the last piece of the puzzle?

KJ: I think that we were heading in that direction but that it has sped it up a little bit.

BJ: I think that it has helped that process. A strong driver/engineer combination makes a lot of difference. Brighty is really, really good with his feedback.

Certainly, looking at JR [Jason Richards] and his sickness, it would have really helped us to have a bloke like him in the other car.

So yes, that could have been the last piece of the puzzle, provided we had JR and the other blokes running the other car. That is an important part of the puzzle.

Quite apart from the personal aspect of Jason's illness, if I can put it like that because many people in the sport are feeling that, the continuity of the team must have taken a hit. motorsport news

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He is an integral part of the team,the relationship between he and [engineer] Wally [Storey] in particular is very strong.

BJ: It is very difficult, and it is very tough on Bargs [Jason Bargwanna].

KJ: He has stepped into the car and everyone's heart goes out to Jase. We needed to replace him and that was and is difficult. Jason [Richards] is a part of the family. He was comfortable in the team.

BJ: It is difficult for everyone. It takes a while for things to fit properly - it took Brighty a little while to fit properly. Towards the end of last year, when we started to get results, I was really looking forward to this year, because the drivers could push each other so hard.Then, of course, Jase got sick.

We ended up with Bargs here, and he is really stepping up quickly.To get a podium in what was his fourth race with us is a sensational result. A, it is a difficult role for him to fill and B, yes, it has knocked our continuity around a little bit. But there is not much you can do about any of that.

What is Brad good at?

KR: Nothing! Grief! Stress!

We complement each other in almost everything that we do. In the last 15 or so years, we have realised that instead of one trying to control the other one, we let that go a little bit and focus on the things that we need to. It is a partnership that works really

well.

I am trying to think of other things...[both laugh].

He is good with the strategy, and thinking out of the car. He works with the engineers on that and has input into that part of the business. I remember watching in Western Australia and Phil Keed was having a bit of panic over when to stop Brighty. Brad kept saying,'Not yet, not yet', and in hindsight.

34

that was the right call. He is good at that.

[This leads to one ofthe more telling points about the brothers. Later, Brad rings me, to ask that I make sure that Kim's comment does not come out looking like he. Brad, is the one getting all the credit for the team's strategy.

He wants to make sure that Keed gets his due recognition, because ofhis role in notjust that race, but all the races.]

The other thing is, he is becoming a lot more compassionate about how he goes about doing things. At the end of the day, he is my brother and we are lucky, in that we see each other each day, we work together and we achieve great goals.

Bradley, if you need to take a long time to think about this, that's OK. What is Kim good at?

BJ: I actually know the answer to this.

Kim's great strength is his determination.

Finding money to go racing is the most difficult part, because if you do not have the resources, you can't go [racing]. In his role here, he is on the commercial side of things, and has to be able to continuously get back up and ring people, and not take all that as personally as some others do. Some people, and I am one, handle rejection badly.

He looks after that side of the business well.That has been a major factor in our lives; we have had fantastic lives, anyone who has been able to turn their passion into their business and go racing their whole lives, even the bad times don't seem that bad.

The other thing is, when we were younger, he was the one who used to build the cars for me to race. The relationship we had, when he was engineering the car and I was driving it, was as good as I have had with anyone. I can remember times when the car had been so bad to drive that I could not talk to him and I had to write down what I

was thinking, because I was so angry. But no matter what was wrong with it, he always fixed it. He had that determination when he was working on the car and that is one of the reasons that we won so often.

We would be the last ones going home and he would put in much more work than anyone else on the day,to make sure I had the best equipment to win the races.

I often ask people in these interviews where they will be in 10 years. In your case, I have the feeling that the answer will be somewhere similar to where you are now.

KJ: Ten years time? I don't really know.You don't think that far ahead.

I would like to think that we will not be working as hard as we are at the moment.

Probably a bit more travel.

BJ: Ask me now!

Bradley, where will you be in 10 years' time?

BJ: I will definitely be in racing.

I love coming to work at the moment. I bounce out of bed, and I think about it all the time. I am as committed a racer now as I have ever been in my life. But my percentages go into different parts of it now, and I am experiencing some of the best times of my life right now,and some of the most enjoyable times.

My whole role is different from being the driver, which is a very selfish and selfcentred part of the business, to having to think about other people, within the business.That has been a big change for me. But I love it and I can't see anything changing in a rush.

KR:The synopsis of that is, while he was driving, he did not do anything and I did everything. So I am old and worn out and he is just starting to get his breath! motorsport news

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IVIN: What would a Bathurst win mean to you two guys?

KR: You know,someone said to me the other day,'I bet you guys had a great celebration after the win in Perth'. The business, the way that it is, you do not have time to consume things like that. You need to take it in, there and then.

If you go back to when we were winning AUSCAR races and NASCAR races, and some of that stuff with the SuperTouring cars, as soon as you won, you would think that you had a big achievement.

But, we haven't won Bathurst. It would certainly mean a lot. It is something that we have been very close to it, and we probably should have achieved before now.

BJ: I guess for me, I am at the opposite end of the spectrum to Kim. I get quite caught up in the excitement of the success at the 36

circuit, i am always down at the podium,and so is Kim, but we look at it differently. We have a different balance and that is one of the reasons why we have been able to work, as brothers as well as business partners. In some ways, we are very different; in other ways, extremely close.

I was very excited in Perth. I was almost in tears.

For me, winning Bathurst would mean a lot. Winning Bathurst is something I have aspired to do since... it is one of my earliest memories as a little boy.You take a Bathurst win any way you can get it; I don't care whether I am the janitor, a driver or the owner. A win at Bathurst is a win at Bathurst.

1 will be beside myself if we pull that off extremely proud, and I will feel like we have ticked that box.This is the first time we have been chasing for a long, long time.

Bathurst is a special place. You need to be brave and smart, and strategic. You need to be complete as a driver. It is the most important race of the year and we want to win it, bad.

I have been there so many times, and on Wednesday morning in the old days or Thursday morning these days, I would think,'Those two knuckleheads are not going to do any good this week'.

And whether it was in an Audi or in a Falcon, and no matter what had happened in previous races, you would damn near win it.

BJ: We have been close a lot. Last year, we were a little unlucky. We missed the set-up in Brighty's car and we had a little problem with JR's car - he hit the wall, pretty hard.

You need a tiny bit of luck... motorsport news

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motorsport news

WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON AT WILLIAMS? Once upon a time, Williams were the major force in Grand Prix racing. It wasn’t even that long ago that they were capable of winning races. Now,it’s hard to even call Williams a mid-field team,such is their lack of performance.

MARK GLENDENNING looks at why the team has fallen from grace, and ponders if there will ever be a way back to the top www.mnews.com.au

39

WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON AT WILLIAMS?

T

HERE'S a story, possibly apocryphal, from the 1997 Formula 1 season.

The setting was the Williams garage during a race weekend,and qualifying had Just ended. Heinz-Harald Frentzen was in the process of explaining to his engineers why he'd Just put his FW19 a few grid places south of where it was capable of being."The problem is ..."the German began,and he launched into a list of the handling characteristics that were conspiring against him.

Patrick Head,then technical director and a man not shy about speaking his mind, interrupted.

"The problem, Heinz-Harald, is that you're too slow!" he bellowed.

That Williams was in a situation where its Number 2 driver could achieve a win and six podiums in a single year and still be considered an immense disappointment shows Just how far things at Grove have changed since.

This year's Turkish Grand Prix was the 112th since Montoya Jinked past Kimi Raikkonen at the end of the Interlagos back straight in the 2004 season-finale and delivered Williams its most recent win. It was his last race with the team before he decamped to McLaren, where he would suit up alongside the man he had Just beaten.

At the time,that success was considered a drought-breaker,ending a winless streak

that had followed the Colombian's triumph at Hockenheim midway through 2003.Safe to say that Head's expectations - along^with those0everyone else at Williams - ha|e been somewhat realigned since. ^ Last season, which was by most standards a disappointment,Williams had nevertheless managed to score points in three of the first four races. At the same point in 2011,the team was still yet to get off the mark. Even for a team going through an extended lean patch,this is new and uncomfortable ♦ territory.

Technical director Sam Michael hintbd in Mafaysia that changes were being ‘ considered at the highest levels, and it was only a few short weeks later that the ramifications of the in-house soul-searching were announced. Frank Williams had accepted letters of resignation from Michael and chief aerodynamicist Jon Tomlinson, and rejected a similar letter from chairman Adam Parr, who is responsible for the day-today running of the team. Coming into the fold would be Mike Coughlan,the former McLaren chief designer whose wife Trudy's lack of discretion in a Surrey printing shop triggered the 2007 Formula 1 spy scandal.

Problem solved? If only it were that simple.

If you were following FI when Jacques Villeneuve became Williams'most recent World Champion, you'll also remember the final swansong of Tyrrell.The parallels are

obvious enough that the comparison was wearing thin in the paddock even before Williams's most recent plight.

A former multiple championship-winning powerhouse, run by a leader of forceful charisma whose very existence seemed inextricably entwined with that of the team,Tyrrell without Ken Tyrrell was about as unthinkable as Williams without Frank Williams is now.The team had been in decline for some time when Tyrrell finally sold to British American Tobacco in a coup spearheaded by Craig Pollock - who,co incidentally, was Villeneuve's manager - in the same season that the Canadian was on his way to winning the world title.

The Tyrrell banner existed for one more season but its founder was no longer a part of the set-up; Ken reportedly having decided that he'd rather turn away from his life's work than see new signing Ricardo Rosset,a Brazilian whose budget polyfilled the gaps in his ability, driving a car bearing his name.

The Tyrrell name was finally erased from the grid after 31 years when Pollock renamed his acquisition British American Racing for the 1999 season.

The notion of Williams slipping towards the fate of the last great British FI team to fade into the mist was put to Frank Williams in an interview with Autosport magazine last year, and he was having none of it.

"So, we're going the same way as Tyrrell?"

The same two men,Patrick Head and Frank Williams, have been at the helm ofthe team for decades -but has the sport passed them by?

Williams replied."If it was Just me and Patrick, we might well be in decline because my energy has certainly reduced. But forwardthinking people say, what's next?"

At that time,the core of the succession plan was Parr and Michael - a plan that is presumably now being extensively revised in light of recent developments.

Despite Williams'protestations though, you'll still find someone ready to argue that some of the parallels with Tyrrell ring true; not least the accusation that the team has not moved with the times.

Head steered the ship at a time where the technical director was a far more handson role than is the case with virtually all successful teams now, which have an entirely new layer of management between

the technical director and the various departments.When Michael was first Installed, it seemed only natural, at least to Head,to shape him in a similar mould.

T^ichael's tenure as technical dirlctor didn't get off to the most auspicious of starts.

Promoted to the role as a 33-year-bld in May of 2004, he flew off to Canada for his first race in charge a couple of weeks later only to have both of his cars(along with the two Tpyotas) disqualified due to irregularities with their brake ducts.

-That the Michael era has coincided with aiperiod of such dramatic decline has inevitably led to conclusions that he's not up to the Job. Inevitably, but unfairly.

Rubens Barrichello was one of the first to express his displeasure at Michael's

Williams was all but forced to sign cashed-up Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado,exposing a commercialfragility.

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impending exit. As a guy who has either 310 or 311 starts under his belt(depending who you ask)and experience with championship winning teams like Ferrari and Brawn,it's fair to say that the Brazilian is a decentjudge of who is worth their place on the payroll. His claims that Michael was"overloaded - he's doing the Job of five or six people right now" were backed by Mark Webber, who raced with Williams in 2005 and 2006.

"Working with Sam, he was clearly a guy that did shoulder a lot of the responsibility," Webber said."He is incredibly passionate, he has a big desire to do the Job and he , shouldered a lot of the big decisions about the car going forward. I think in certain areas, he might have been able to have some more substance around

WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON AT WILLIAMS?

nil

him,and people to support him in that -:jidt"been penalised for crossing the whife line at the pit exit, and Nakajima wasg't ready to deliver role.That might have been something which could have helped him get more out ,^e points that a more seasoned driver might of himself. But.he is a talented guy for surOi 1^' is" fhave been able to scavenge, t A return to Cosworths from 2010 coincided l just he wasjn a difficult situation at Williams and it was.diffiGuIt td see the wb'bd ffgm the trees for vvith a encouraging move on th@|djifer[frpnt with the arrivals of Barrichello and promising '. ialJ oftheni-thWe.". ' ,"** l fookie'N'ici? Hlilkenberg, althpugh.thejatter fell 1 Webber is skeptical,that theplanned changes' victim to the team's commercial situation at , will be enough b'n thejr ovvn to reverse the slide, the end ofthe year and was replaced by Pastor "Williams is a team that sets the bar very high Maldonado - the driver that Hulkenberg had and they have operilV admitted,themselves' demolished when the pair were team-mates in .that they have been disappointed with their performance in the iast.few years,"Webber said, ■GP2‘, but vvho has significant support frgm the goyerhmenrbatk home in Venezuela. ,"J think, as we know, in any team it is . .

Against such backgrounds, it's not difficult impossible to put'it all on one giiy's shoulders. to.see how Michael has struggled to make, the There(haye been some’key position changes and' time wili tell if that wili be beneficial to them." T dramatic kinds of step forward that is needed, , As-,wellas an inadequate support structure, JHis reputation within the paddock is one of Michael "had the misfortune to be at the helm a highly intelligent, driven, well-respected when'the entire Williams landscape was redrawn ; individual whose laid-back manner belies a due to the loss of a major manufacturer partner ● . brutal work ethiCj and it's for this reason that iri the shape of BMW, and reinvented as a ‘ he's not likely to,have many sleepless nights worrying about his employment prospects for customer team with a far smaller budget. The 2012. team openly admits that it never really managed Williams'expectations for the same sort of to capitalise oh its relationship with BMW, when happy ending depend largely on what happens it struggled to build a strong enough aero over the next couple of months. Barrichello's package to do Justice to the best engine on the pace, experience and knowledge have rapidly grid, in fairness, though, the difficulty of that established him as one of the key assets in the particular task was illustrated even more vividly current team set-up, and his recent threats by the fact that BMW itself won substantially to walk at the end of the season unless more fewer races with its own car than it did with Williams. significant changes are made will not have escaped the notice of Parr.

Following the departure of BMW, Williams Williams must improve a lot for us to reach an endured a frustrating gap year with highagreement for next year," he said. revving Cosworths before landing a deal for free 'Things are standing still. It's not worth going Toyota engines in exchange for running young on this way. We need changes at the top to Japanese driver Kazuki Nakajima alongside Nied make things run smoother.

Rosberg in 2007. Opportunities went begging We need a leader. Right now, it's - Rosberg could have won In Singapore had he

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PERFORMANCE

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not enough.A lot of people are trying to say something but in the end that's hot the point.They need to focus on what they are doing." indeed, Barrichello is already taking action himself, "lean possibly recruit more people,"he said."I am a Top guy in the paddock who has been around the longest. I know a few peopie and j am calling them."

Making changes at the top is easier said than done, particularly when you're ultimately talking about Head arjd Williams. Raw skiils, experience and talent can all be found> but it's the intangibles that make Williams what it is.The team's founders command a level of respect both within the paddock and within the team itself that will not be easily replicated.To the extent that it is possibie in a sporting organisation,Williams and Head's main duties are as custodians of the team's soul.

Williams himself hinted as much last year when he said of Head:"j wish he were 35 or 40 again"..

For all of this,there are reasons for optimism. Wiliiams is no longer the pure racing machine that it once was, having diversified into all sorts of high-end external engineering projects, ranging from adapting its patented hybrid technology to work in Brazilian buses,to designing the Formula 2 cars,to a new Jaguar hybrid supercar.These, and similar endeavours will help contribute towards the future of the recently-listed Williams as a company.

And as steep as the hill ahead appears to be on the racing side, even Barrichello can see the potential for a happy ending provided that those at the top start singirig from the same songsheet.

"I am possibly the most positive guy in the paddock,"he said. '^1 will always dream of a change. Right now what I said in the team,in the briefing - it is like a message that people send out to the world; everybody needs to do their individual thing to get Out of this.

"It is too easy to say that Williams has gone,that it is in the past. If each member does their little bit On their way of working; they are going to make it better. And we need it[to be] better."

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m TITflftS HE Le Mans 24 Hours on 11-12 June promises to

Gentlemen,start your engines:The field for the 2011 Le Mans 24 Hour made an imposing sight *1 when they gridded up for press pics at the Test Day last month. The privateers may play a role, particularly ORECA's older Peugeot, below left, and Rebellion's Toyota-powered Lola, below. ..N. '

www.mn

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IP be an absolute classic.

It will have a very different feel to it from the last three years. Each time, Peugeot had the markedly faster car, although in two of the three years, Audi didn't let such an inconvenient detail stand between it and defeating the French marque on home soil.

This time,every indication is that the two cars are very evenly matched on speed: at both the test day,and the Spa 1000km,it was clear that Audi had at the very least made up its speed deficit, and perhaps was now even slightly faster than the Peugeot.

Such an even contest has turned out very fortuitously for race organisers, the ACO.When announcing its 2011 engine regulations, it said that all available powerplants (diesel, petrol or turbo petrol) should be running within two percent about four seconds a lap - of each other. It hasn't worked out like that: at the test day,the petrol cars were nearly Wseconds adrift of the diesels. It is just as well that the two heavies chose the same engine route, or else a very uneven contest could have ensued.

1..^

Having said that, it's hardly surprising that the petrol cars are well behind. Audi and Peugeot are well-funded, top-quality outfits, whereas the petrol teams are either newto PI (ie, theToyota engine part of the Rebellion Lolas) or are products of a relative cottage industry (Aston Martin and Pescarolo) when compared to the industrial giants they are facing. Putting it another way, if the factory Audis and Peugeots were running petrol engines, who doubts that they would be approximately as dominant as their diesels appear to be with diesels?

So a win for the petrol cars is very improbable,though it is likely, by the time this is read, that the ACO will have given them some concessions. After all, with FI refugees Toyota both now involved in petrol PI prototypes, the ACO will be mindful that the bigger picture - that the manufacturers are moving towards sportscar racing at the expense of Formula 1 - simply cannot be ignored.

So the fight between the diesels will all come down to the drivers, and who spends the least time in the pits. Both marques have retained exactly the same nine drivers they used in 2010, Audi's with a predominantly sports/GT background, and Peugeot's with a >i..>

48

distinct open-wheeler heritage.

Peugeot probably has slightly more depth to its attack,fielding three top crews, whereas the third Audi crew is not quite of the standard of their illustrious colleagues in the other two R18s, who have won the race a startling 16 times between them.

Meanwhile, although the anticipated engine war has not really developed, aerodynamics remain a key contest.The 2011-spec cars must wear a rear fin, designed to lessen the chances of the cars taking off when they get sideways at high speed, which has always been a rather character building aspect of prototypes.

But Peugeot has already lost two of its 2011 cars in violent airborne accidents, such that an understandably concerned ACO issued a polite invitation to come and have a chat. Equally politely, Peugeot declined only to be greeted by a command to do so, this time with Audi also along for the ride to hear why the Pugs were flying. Must have been an uncomfortable meeting for the Peugeot boffins...

Behind the two big works teams,there is a remarkable story of generosity at Pescarolo.

With the team disintegrating in debt and acrimony in 2009-10, a fellow competitor

stepped in, bought the remnants - and promptly handed it back to the French legend to enable the team to be revived.The car is right on the'petrol'pace, but just being there is a triumph for the four-times winner.

As this edition closed for press came the news that Duncan Dayton's Highcroft team had notjust withdrawn from the race but had ended its five-year relationship with Honda/Acura. Such is life, and it is a pity; the HPD crew had a great run to second at Sebring and the news has, we hope temporarily, left David Brabham without a ride in the race.

The return to Le Mans of a major Japanese manufacturer,Toyota, has been heralded for years, although not many people would have tipped that it would come back only as an engine supplier. The 24 Hours is notoriously hard for the first year of any campaign, but Toyota has joined up with a good,strong team in Rebellion, and it will be interesting to see what level of commitment unfolds after the 2011 race ends.

Finally, and sadly, the Aston Martin prototype campaign is in severe disarray, and they will do well if they simply manage to avoid embarrassing themselves.

The LMP2 category has some excellent motorsport news

a 1 Audi Sport Team Joest AudiRlSTDI 2 AudiSport Team Joest AudiRISTDi 3 AudiSport North America Audi R18TDI 5 Hope Racing Oreca 01-Swiss HyTech 7 PeugeotSport Total Peugeot 908 8 PeugeotSport Total Peugeot 908 9 Team Peugeot Total Peugeot 908 10 Team Oreca-Matmut Peugeot908 HDiFAP 12 Rebellion Racing Lola 810/60-Toyota 13 Rebellion Racing Lola 810/60-Toyota 15 OAK Racing OAK Pescarolo 01-Judd 16 Pescarolo Team PescaroloOI-Judd 20 Quifel-ASM Team Zytek09SC Lola 809/60-Aston Martin 22 Kronos Racing OAK Pescarolo 01-Judd 24 OAK Racing Aston Martin AMR-One 007 Aston Martin Racing Aston Martin AMR-One 009 Asto^Marti^Racing

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On the same page: For the first time both Audi and Peugeot both head to Le Mans with diesei-powered coupes. Audi's new R18, seen in testing black, and Peugeot revised 908 both have smaiier engines than their predeccessors - but were right on the pace in testing. Aston Martin's AMR-One, right, has had a troubled buildup to the race. With Highcroft out, Honda will be hoping for another LMP2 win from the 2010winning Strakka team, below right. runners, especially the defending winners Strakka, but most attention away from the outright win will be directed to the GTE Pro category. Porsche have had a disastrous start to the year, not helped by the fact that the new Ferrari 458 has proved to be a very useful weapon.The Schnitzer BMWs and the perennial Chev Corvettes will also be in the thick of what promises to be a ferocious battle.

And what's more, the GTE runners will get a tremendous view of the diesels as they come whispering past, two famous marques going toe to toe on sheer speed, for one of the greatest prizes in the sport.

It hasn't been seen at Le Mans for many years. It's a fascinating prospect. www.mnews.com.au

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i^^"WH'EECERST“HE’S^STITa?CR7aY*«OR«ZT^ 'i^ ABOUT RACING, CRAZY ABOUT WINNING AND CRAZY ABOUT THE INDY 500

BY PHIL BRANAGAN

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BROKE the rules on this one.

Normally, when I get an SMS at 1:30am, I do not read it. My wife, who shows a great deal of patience in many things, does not much care for me waking up and responding to texts in the middle of the night. Not that she is a suspicious type (which is more of a realistic assessment of the taste of women than a comment on marital fidelity or otherwise) but because motor racing steals a fair bit of time around my house. You have to draw the line somewhere, and late-night texting is somewhere close to where it is drawn.

But this one was different.

"Give me a call today," said the message (in language commendably close to English, rather than SMS shorthand.)

The bit that got an immediate reply was that the sender was 'PT'.

Paul Tracy gets that kind of attention. No matter where you are, and what your opinion of any particular IndyCar driver, he is a man that is difficult to ignore. Many people are Tracy fans; many are just the opposite.

For 25 years, he has been one of US racing's greatest stories. The precociouslytalented teenager has matured into the grey haired veteran, along the way clocking up as many controversies as wins.

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He has crossed generations. When he burst into what was then CART in the early 1990s, he was racing against Mario Andretti. Now, he races IndyCars against Andretti's grandson, Marco. Along the way, Tracy has clocked 31 wins, a total second on the all-time victors' list. Only the'middle'Andretti, Michael, has won more.

At 17, he was already racing big, fast cars.

In fact, at that age, he won a Can Am race.

That was not the mega-competitive Can Am, about which Warwick Brown talked in last month's edition, but they were fast racecars, and a win is a win.

Tracy misses the era somewhat.

"For sure, the cars are a lot different now," he says.

"I drove a Can Am when I was 17 years old and it was a big car - very powerful, heavy and hard to stop and turn. That time was a lot different to what we have now; now we have spec chassis, spec tyres, spec engines.

Everything is a little bit of a comedown, and there is a much greater technology base than the way it was back then."

Tracy's career in open-wheelers sounds familiar. After a breakthrough with a small team, in his case Dale Coyne's, Roger Penske came calling. The Captain spotted his talent, and rather than throw him into deep end.

gave him a few races to find his feet before dragging Tracy into the bosom of Team Penske.

If that sounds like the same blueprint Will Power has followed, there are good reasons why. It pretty much is the same.

Now, all these years later, Tracy finds himself in an interesting position, driving for Penske's son. Jay, in selected IndyCar events, but has joined Dreyer & Reinbold at Indianapolis.

Reports suggest that Penske Sr responded to the news by saying, "Great.The two people who have caused me the most trouble in life are teaming up," - presumably, tongue-in-cheek.

A win at The Brickyard would mean the world to Tracy.

"It would be great," he says.

"The 500 is the biggest race of the year on the IndyCar circuit, and I am switching teams and entries for it.The team I was driving for. Jay Penske's Dragon Racing, with sponsorship from Ralph's grocery store and Motegi wheels, to D&R Racing. I am really excited, it is going to be very close.There are 42 confirmed entries for the 33 spots, so you definitely can't afford to make any mistakes during practice or qualifying." illl But, here's the thing. Tracy is no

I DON’T THINK THAT EITHER OF US ARE GETTING THE RESULTS THAT WE WOULD WANT!

'I

TRACY COMPARES SEASONS WITH MDCHAEL SCHUMACHER 52

motorsport news

■' BudfveJser

A Man of Many Colours: Tracy's career can be plotted through his cars and liveries.

From top left, he enjoyed success in the Penske era; almost won a title with Newman-Haas; formed a strong partnership with the Green brothers at Team Kool Green; and, finaiiy, lifted the Champ Car crown driving for Gerry Forsythe. At right, he is now preparing for another Indy 500 with Dreyer & Reinbold.

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VCHCOHAMA MOTORSPORT 53

nil spring chicken; in fact, he is 42, and was born just over two weeks before Michael Schumacher.

"I don't think that either of us are getting the results that we would want!"says PT when the comparison is made.

"But you gotta keep trying."

At the age he is, after almost 25 years at the top end of the sport, and his successes when leading CART and Champ Car drivers can, and did, make considerable money,surelyTracy is at the point in his life where he could retire.

But he is the opposite of that; he is running around, doing sponsorship deals, training as hard as ever in the Arizona sunshine, with one goal in mind; winning races.

"I still enjoy driving," he explains, matter-of-factly.

"I want to continue to drive for as long as I can. I can see that my time is going to come to an end, in open-wheel racing, but I would like to, maybe,continue doing other stuff. I just want to make the most of it. We have brought some new sponsors to the sport, and I am working with a couple of different teams in the last season or so.

"I enjoy driving the cars. I enjoy getting out there and racing."

If the split that struck US open-wheeler racing racing more than a decade ago is now over, its effects are still being felt but, says Tracy, the signs are that things are moving in the right direction.

54

Two decades on: "I think that it is getting there," he says.

"It is as competitive as it has been, it just When Ayrton Senna wanted to test a CART really lacks the corporate support. I think car in late 1992,a young Tracy was there that it is somewhere short of where it needs to help out. He turned Masked Avenger in to be. If you look at NASCAR - if you look Montreal and finally got to lift the Champ at V8 Supercars - they have evolved with Car trophy in Australia in 2003. Racing on very corporate backing,from right across home soil, particularly in Toronto, still gets Australia and America. Indycar has not Tracy's fires burning. yet got the TV package and the corporate victory snatched away by officialdom when credibility to get back with corporate America. But that does not mean that it is not he raced there with Barry Green in 2002,and the pair joining forces again last year only competitive, or that it lacks very hard racing. to miss the qualifying cut, have not dimmed It's tough, competitive racing but it is, right his enthusiasm for what locals refer to as The now, very hard to find the money to do it."

Greatest Spectacle in Racing So, with deals in place with two different "It is one of those places where I have had teams to race this year, and a 43rd birthday my share of disappointments," he admits, coming at the end of the season, he knows "from having the win and having it taken the number of races he has left in US openwheelers are limited. But that does not mean away from us, to not qualifying last year. I have got to go back and to prove to myself that he wants to quit. that I can be competitive there."

"I am interested in doing all forms of There is plenty of life in Paul Tracy yet. Yes, racing. Obviously, Indycar is what I know, he has had his share of run-ins, even physical and I can generate the sponsorship to do altercations, with other drivers over the years, it. There is still quite a bit of interest, there and crowds may cheer and boo him in equal are still people out there interested in me amounts. being in an Indycar, and I still enjoy doing it. I continue to do it because of the races in But you cannot fault a driver for being passionate and committed to his cause.Tracy, Canada, but I know that the time is coming to an end - probably in the next year or two." a man who once won over a hostile crowd in Montreal by wearing a wrestling mask And the prospect of racing again on the hallowed 2.5 miles of bitumen, and one during a drivers' parade, is all that and more - and there is no sign of him slowing down yard of bricks, keeps him coming back to anytime soon.

Indianapolis. Even having had, he feels. motorsport news

PAUL TRACY HAS DRIVEN FOR SOME OF THE GREAT TEAM OWNERS IN AMERICAN RACING. SO, WE NAMED THE NAMES, AND PT GAVE US A BRIEF COMMENT ON SOME OF THE MEN FOR WHOM HE HAS RACED r

ROGER PENSKE

'What can you say? The best of the best. He i%tough to work for - you j have to do everything exactly the way that hk wants. I did not always > I fall into that category! i

PAUL NEWMAN & CARL HAAS 'Great guys. Paul was a passionate supporter of open-wheeler racing, and it was a much different environment to Penske."

BARRY GREEN 'A great Australian, I had a lot of success with him.One of the most productive periods of my career, particularly when I was partnered with Dario [Franchitti] and we backed up with that Indy drive in 2002.Then we tried to run the 500 together again but we didn't qualify."

GERRY FORSYTHE 'Gerry was different to all of them. He was really just a straight businessman who enjoyed racing as a hobby. He was one of those guys who did not know terribly much about racing but he didn't have any problem spending the money that was needed."

DALE COYNE 'A great guy. He always had a small team,and it was always a smallbudget operation. But he has been around for so long,as long as anybody. It's pretty amazing,the staying power he has had for all those years."

AJ FOYT 'I only had the privilege of driving for AJ ohce. I have to say that he was harder on himself than he was on anyone,or than I was on the team!"

www.mnews.com.au

55

AFTER A TOUQH 20W (N THE MA/W GAME, V] m HAS LAMOEO ON HIS FEET IN 2011 HE'S EEEN SIGNEO BY TRfPl-E EIGHT TO PARTNER JAMIE WHINCUF IN THE ENOUROS, AND HE LEADS THE FUJITSU SERiES FOR THE^ kWfk g SFOKE TO HIM TEAM.

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OTORSPORT NEWS:This is the sort of the game that can chew up and spit out drivers pretty quickly, after the kind of year you had last year, did you expect to be in this position?

ANDREW THOMPSON: No. It does chew up and spit drivers out very quickly, and one minute it's looking all good and the next you're on the sidelines and no-one will even take your phone call.

One day is a long time in motorsport, and it came down to that. I was pretty much looking at what was available for this year and i was thinking 'it's probably better to sit out this year', instead of going through another thing that I didn't think was quite right.Then,a couple of hours later, I got a phone call from (Triple Eight's) Adrian [Burgess] and Roland [Dane].The thing I had at the top of my list for enduro drives looked like a real possibility, but suddenly, a couple of days later, it was all signed and done with Triple Eight for an enduro drive and DVS. It was a massive turnaround and it took a while for it to sink it. It still hasn't quite sunk in, because I'd hoped to be in this position at some point, but with the results I'd had and how everything had panned out, it just didn't look like it was ever going to happen.

Everything lined up for me, I've been given a massive opportunity and I'm just trying to make the most of it.

How long after Homebush last year did ail of that happen?

Dm,it was basically the week before Christmas, when it all happened, So probably a couple of weeks after Homebush,I'd just gotten back to the Gold Coast, and got the phone call and it was all done and sorted.

It was a pretty straightforward thing and something I III really couldn't say no to.(Laughs)

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Was it something that was put on the table all in one hit, enduros and Fujitsu Series?

Yeah, it was all together, in one.The enduro drive, obviously they wanted me to do DVS as well, so it's a complete package.

Potentially I wasn't going to do the DVS as early as I have done, it was probably going to be later in the year that I'd come into it, but how it all evolved we've been able to start earlier. Hopefully we'll keep chipping away and we'll get through the rest of the rounds of the series, permitting obviously with the other cars having no dramas,that we can continue to use this car.

Jamie and Dutto(Mark Dutton), and Craig and his engineer JJ (Jeromy Moore),everyone's working together, helping me and making my life a shitload easier, I can focus on what I need to do. I've got full confidence in them,so if they say'right, try this', we try that and it makes it better.

It makes my life a lot easier and I can focus on what I need to do and not worry about all of the other little bits and pieces.These guys Just take care of it and they know what they need to do, and they do it perfectly every time.The organisation and the team, it's second to none.

So the plan at this stage is to do the whole season,even after the enduros?

Yeah, it'd be silly not to. Obviously there are budget constraints and bits and pieces, the Vodafone cars are intense and are what keep the show going, but we do have another spare car there.

We should be there for the rest of it, we've just got to see how it all pans out, but we're race-by-race and a lot can change In one race.

With the Fujitsu Series as it is, being able to jump in the same spec car that you'll be sharing with Jamie in September and October, it's got to be a massive boost in the preparation for later in the year.

It is. To have the same spec car as what Jamie and Craig are running around in and my seat and everything is the same as what Jamie's running,so that's all a big help and benefit to me.Come Phillip Island and Bathurst, I can jump in and there are no differences in seating and all of that sort of stuff.

Speaking of the team. Obviously Triple Eight is the benchmark team in the series at the moment,everyone knows how good they are, how well Roland has run the ship and now it's been handed over to Adrian.You would've gone in there knowing it was going to be a good operation, was there anything that stood out?

Urn ... nah. I'd been looking in for a few years, I get along well with Jamie,so you see how they do things. Hanging around Jamie, you see little things along the way,so there haven't been any massive surprises, it's what I expected.

There were probably a few little things that surprised me, with what they do and how they go about things, but they're just really good on so many things and they keep on striving for excellence.

And they've got Adrian running the main two cars right now and RD is technically my team manager on this side.

Obviously I've got to be on the best behaviour, otherwise he might give me the sack!(Laughs)

Over the course of a weekend, how closely do you work with Jamie and Craig [Lowndes]?

I work pretty closely with them. We talk a lot, obviously I ask them questions and they pass on little things that they've noticed,for example in their race yesterday (Ed: Saturday's Barbagallo race), Craig told me something he did in the race that was a benefit to him,so I gave it a crack in mine.

These cars have got to be a handy piece of kit to get behind the wheel of, everything just looks right about them.

For me,they suit me,as a driver, a lot better than past cars I've had.

They do what I'm looking for and any set-up changes we make improves that as well.

Some people have the perception that you just jump in and drive them and you go quick, but that's not really the case, you nil

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still have to drive them and I've had to make some changes to my driving and work pretty hard to get back to where I am in the very short period of time I've had with the car.

They don't just put them in cruise control so you can just go around and around and around, you do have to work them and still drive them hard.

For me,these suit me and what I've been looking for and it's a better package.You still have to work hard with them, I've still got a lot more speed to find out of this thing,so I've got a lot more work to do to improve myself and maximise what this thing can do. nil

Let's talk about 2010- obviously that didn't go the way you would've hoped when you signed on with Walkinshaw Racing in late 2009.

No, it didn't really go to plan at all. To be honest, I probably should've sat out last year, but it was hard to pick that from the outside.

In the end, how it's all worked out, it's probably worked out for the better,sometimes it gets pretty dark before it starts to get light again.

I think that's what happened, it got pretty dark and I'm starting to see some light again. It was a tough year, had a lot of issues.

We had a good bunch of guys working on the car, but unfortunately things just didn't really go right for us, and there were a few issues with some other people in there. But that's the way it is.

That's life, so I've just picked up my pieces and running with them as best as I can.

I think we're showing that I can drive, and I have some ability in a car. People can forget that really quickly, sometimes you don't have the dream run and you get written off really quickly.

Last year's obviously something you'll keep on board if future full time opportunities come up, weighing up whether to take them rather than,say,this sort of program with Triple Eight.

To be honest, right now - it's not going to always be the case, and you don't want to limit yourself to one opportunity - but if there's no opportunities within here [as a full-time driver] and if they're happy to keep me, I'll probably just sign up again for the enduros and run around like that again, rather than going through the other stuff again.

I'm quite happy here, it's been a few years since I've settled in and have been as happy as I am with a team; not bagging other teams,a lot of the guys don't have a choice in what happens,they get told what they've got to do. But here, I'd be happy to stay, even if it's just the enduros,that's fine. I want to get back to the Main Game and get going, but I've had two strikes in there that have gone really shit.

Obviously I'm not really interested in going through all of the crap again,just a half-arsed attempt or year where it's shit; you're back to square one again and you've got to go and rebuild. I'd probably rather just rebuild and write it off as'had some potential but for whatever reason didn't happen'and move on with life. I'm happy to stay here and see what goes on here.

And head to races like Phillip Island and Bathurst with Jamie and a major shot at coming home with some trophies...

It's all a good opportunity. I get along with everyone here really well, I'm getting more and more comfortable every day and every time I get in the car, it just keeps on improving. I've just got to keep my head down, keep chipping away and hopefully keep getting the results and proving that I'm capable of doing it.

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n-IE RiETURN (>F CARRtERA CUP TO AUSTRAUA HAS BROIK PORSCHE RACERS DOWN UNDER. AND SEEN A GROUP OF CATEGORX AS THER DRIVERS. MITCHELL ADAM SPOKE T<

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LOT changes in motorsport in 30 months.

So, comparing the grids from the final event of Carrera Cup's maiden run in Australia, in October 2008, and the start of its new chapter in March 2011,the two look quite different. From the class of 2008,James Moffat and Dean Fiore have progressed to the V8 Supercar Championship Series, David Russell, Rodney Jane and David Wall - the latter via Australian GT to the Fujitsu Series and others no longer have fulltime motorsport programs.

Some,though, have returned, and eight of the drivers contesting the 2011 series have previous experience in Carrera Cup Australia, namely dual champion Craig Baird and Elite Class front-runners like MaxTwigg and James andTheo Koundouris.That,though, leaves 14 drivers getting their first taste of the category in 2011, many from different backgrounds,the usual mix of professional and non professional racers seen in Carrera Cup in Australia ...

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OT for the first time,a Richards leads the series. But it's not Jim; it's his son,Steven. Stepping out of life as a fulltime V8 Supercar driver, Steven has joined the Porsche ranks, in the series his father won in 2003.

Richards Jnr has set up his own team. Laser Racing, based near his home on the outskirts of Melbourne. Having spent the last 15 seasons as a fulltimer in V8 Supercars, it's a change of pace for Richards. He's now much more than an employed driver, with his own car to prepare and show to organise, but is free of many of the commercial duties that have been part of his life.

"It's different," he says.

"Commercially, I don't have as many obligations between race meetings, but then again I've got a car to prepare and a team to organise. I've still been very busy,Just in a different way. I suppose this is the start of maybe something bigger, eventually, down the track.

"And going from being, I suppose,just a driver to, as I said, working on the car, working out how we're going to get the sponsorship, putting the proposals together and all of that stuff- it's stuff I've done over the years, but putting it together in a more fulltime process."

That process reached a head in the lead-up to the 2011 season opener, at the Australian Grand Prix in late March. With Porsche's newest fleet of CupCars arriving in Australia in late January and Richards'own program only locked in in late February, it meant there was much to do.

"Just getting the car, getting all of the infrastructure to run the car, that was probably a little bit of an interruption to being able to drive the car before the Grand Prix," Richards explains.

"I took it to the Grand Prix with the stickers on it and drove it. We've had a bit of time between to have more of a look at it, and see what nil

64

things you can actually do to them.

"There's not much you can do with the cars, but it's been good just to come to terms with these new cars.They're great fun to drive."

After finishing third in all three races at Albert Park, Richards won his maiden race in the series in Round 2 at Barbagallo Raceway. He eventually finished second for the weekend to Kiwi Jonny Reid,to take the lead of the series. Despite his father's famously-successful and ongoing - tenure in Porsches, Steven's experience in the German marque's cars is limited.

"I've driven road Porsches, but never a racecar," he said.

"I leased Dad's car off him to do a drive day for some sponsors back in 2005 or 2006, out at Calder on used tyres. So that wasn't really driving it, to be honest.

"I'm just enjoying being amongst it, having a bit offun, driving these fantastic cars, and being involved in, probably,the secondbest championship in the country, in terms of the promotion and infrastructure.There's a great group of guys in the championship, all very competitive, we've got four,five or six guys at the front that'll be a good challenge."

Richards hopes 2011 won't be the only year of the program, and whether he's driving or not, he's looking to have an ongoing involvement.

"I don't know," he said of driving in the class beyond 2011.

"I suppose I'll see where we are at the middle of the year, see how things are travelling. It'd be great to continue it on, even if I wasn't driving it; I haven't built this up just to see it only happen for 12 months, "I can see myself doing this for the next couple of years, which is what I'd like to do." motorsport news

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ICFlARDS'time in V8 Supercars is something young English racer Ben Barker hopes to replicate.

With just one season of car racing under his belt, in British Formula Ford in 2009, Barker headed to Australia in 2010 to contest the Formula 3 Australian Drivers Championship. By the end of the year, he'd won the title, narrowly edging out Team BRM team-mate Mitch Evans.

Keen to forge a career in Australia, he's opted to remain down under and despite making a start in the Fujitsu Series last year at Bathurst and looking at the second-tier V8 seriesfor 2011, has gone down the Porsche path.

"I ended up going Carrera Cup just because the opportunity was there, with Total Oils backing and CARS Europe as well and the team (Team BRM) wanted to get involved, so they could help me out there as well," he said.

"Personally, I wanted to go to Carrera Cup as well, because all of the cars are the same, and It really is just down to driver ability, more than anything.There are slight changes ^/ou can do.

"But I just thought it was a better route than the Fujitsu Series - we couldn't afford the Fujitsu Series as we didn't have the backers who wanted to do it in the first place - but I'm definitely 100 percent happy with the route we've taken."

Like Richards, Barker has taken to the cars and series like a duck to water, showing impressive pace at Albert Park and Barbagallo. Barker took pole position in WA, and recovered well after a slow start and later incident with Daniel Gaunt left him down the order in Race 1.

"I was kind of surprised, myself," he admits of his Albert Park form.

"The team and I had no idea - and probably everyone else, being a no-name, really - where we were going to be. I was very relaxed that weekend, getting used to the track. It didn't help that the first www.mnews.com.au

session was wet, but we just pounded around, latched onto a few guys, learned the circuit pretty quickly and then knuckled down on new tyres and the car, which is where we found the speed.

"It's just getting used to the car, you know. That's the main thing, because I'm new to the series, and the team are new to the series as well. It's really about both of us getting used to working with the car and going from there."

Getting up to speed in a 1200kg, 450hp Porsche means a transition from the 550kg, 220hp Formula 3 open-wheeler he raced in 2010. But Barker has found it closer to an F3 car than the Supercar was.

"I've adjusted quite well from Formula 3, and 1 feel comfortable, which is the main thing," Barker says.

"The Porsche is a little bit more similar than a V8 Supercar, just purely because it's a little bit more stiffly sprung. The brakes are very responsive, a little more responsive than the V8, and of course you've got the splitters and back wing, a little bit of aero there as well, probably slightly more than the V8s.

"It's still very different, just the size and the weight of it is different to an F3, but the main thing is the brakes, and a little bit of aero.

"I'm probably attacking the corners a lot more in the Porsche, just because all of the weight's at the rear, with the engine at the back.

You've really got to put some weight on the front to get some grip, because they are prone to a little bit of understeer."

While cracking V8 Supercars remains Barker's main objective, he's keen to capitalise on his Porsche experience and build a profile in European sportscar racing. In the gap between Round 3 of the series at Townsville in July and Round 4 at Phillip Island in September, he's set to head back to the UK, to contest some races on home soil in the Britcar Series.

"I want to go back to Europe and crack GTs over there as well, and get a name for myself over there," Barker said, "but Australia's definitely on the top of the list [long term], asfar asVBs go.

"I'm planning on going back to Europe midway through the year, actually, to have a race.

"I'm looking at a GT race, it's not 100 percent confirmed, but we'd be in a Lamborghini Gallardo, which would be getting another car on my CV which is good. We're getting the interest out there with owners in Europe, which is good. I've just got to try and make the most of it.'

65

B

UT not all of the drivers, let alone the newcomers,are professional aces or aspiring young guns.Carrera Cup has always catered for the"weekend warriors, who have got a bit of spare change,"as Andy Barlow describes himself.

Barlow is a newcomer to fulltime, top-level racir.g, and a relative newcomer to racing itself. Joining Carrera Cup in 2011 marks a major step up from his previous activities.

Tve done a lot of Club Racing, I won the Victorian Championship in '09 in a standard Porsche 996 GTS," he explains.

'And the same year I was running a Ferrari in the Challenge Class of Australian GT. But I only did three rounds of that, so I've only really done three rounds of racing before I bought this and went to the GP. It's a lot to get used to this year. I've only really driven road cars. before the Ferrari in GT and now this, which is very different, obviously.

With no ABS,there's a lot happening in the cockpit under brakes. I'm still getting used to the car and it's a very different drive, obviously,to a Ferrari, where it's all about being smooth.

'These cars seem to like being thrown around and treated badly.'

Barlow is typical of the drivers in Carrera Cup's'Elite'Class,for those who spend more time in a suit and tie than a racesuit.The Melbournebased businessman is one of 15 in the class, and said that getting involved in Carrera Cup was an easy decision, with the incentives put in place by Porsche Cars Australia to ensure its successful return.

'It was really a no brainer," he said.

'I was looking around and thinking about doing something in Australian GT again. But you're looking at, for a decent outright car. you'd want to spend half a million dollars getting something out of Europe and running it then costs a lot of money.

'Then these cars came up.They'd discounted them, removed the contract fee that they used to have. You used to have to buy a franchise, now you don't, the car's your franchise, so it was 220 grand for the car and 30 grand for the entry fees or whatever it was - that's pretty cheap racing!

It's a good value package and for guys like me, who are just weekend warriors, who have got a bit of spare change, it's a good way to go racing and get into it."

For his maiden run in a full national series, Barlow has enlisted Paul Cruickshank to run his Porsche. Cruickshank isn't the only experienced hand involved, with Baird taking a keen interest in helping the progression of the Elite Class drivers.

"It's fantastic having Paul's experience," Barlow said.

"Porsche Cars Australia recommended him, he lives just around the corner from me in Brighton (Victoria) and has got a workshop down there, so I went and had a chat. Fle's a well-credentialed kind of guy, so to have him available to run your car's a pretty good opportunity. I've got four other cars down there that he works on in his shop as well.

"Craig Baird is a wonderful ambassador for the whole series. Fle's taken all of the Elite drivers under his wing and really, genuinely wants to help them. With that kind of support from guys like him, who's probably the best driver of these things in the world, it's a pretty rare opportunity."

After two rounds, Barlow is sixth in the Elite Class standings, right behind the best Carrera Cup rookie, Shane Smollen in fifth. Flaving been in the mid-to-high teens on debut at Albert Park, Barlow made progress at Barbagallo, knocking on the door of the outright Top 10 in all three races, as he continues to find speed. Fle's excited about the balance of the season.

"A lot of those guys in the Elite Class have done a hundred Carrera Cup races, and have got a lot of experience," he said.

"It's a great class to be in, because they're really experienced so you can learn a lot from them, and obviously having Pros in the class is fantastic, too.

"But we're still getting used to the car, everything's a conscious effort, on the downshifts, thinking about everything, rather than it coming naturally. It's just starting to come a little bit more naturally now.

"Flopefully by the end of the year, my goal is to have some fun, first and foremost, but secondly to try and move up a little bit, just improve, and hopefully move up the field a little bit later in the year." nil

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67

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FUJITSU SERIES Andrew Thompson dominated the Fujitsu Series'maiden visit to Western Australia.

In hisTriple Eight Commodore,Thompson qualified on pole by four tenths of a second,and scored a pair of comfortable victories, despite early challenges. After a frustrating season opener in Adelaide, it was Just what Thompson needed,and he moved to the top of the standings.

Falcon drivers Jack Perkins(Race 1) and David Russell (Race 2)each grabbed a second and looked like they'd fill the round podium in that order. But Scott McLaughlin passed Perkins late in Race 2 to put the trio level on points. On Race 2 results, Russell got second for the weekend,ahead of McLaughlin and Perkins, while consistent performances saw Daniel Jilesen, Chaz Mostert and Robert Cregan complete the top seven.

The big talking point was the running battle between Paul Morris and Nick Percat.The pair crossed paths in the opener, with Morris spat out at Turn 1, while Percat was later given a mechanical black flag for a gearbox oil leak, after the casing was broken over a kerb.

It continued in Race 2. Morris pitted at the end of Lap 1, rejoining a lap down,several cars ahead of Percat.The Walkinshaw Racing junior made his way past on Lap 19, before Morris escorted him from the circuit atTurn 1 on Lap 25. Percat finished 16th, and drops to eighth in the points.

CARRERA CUP It was a weekend of firsts as Carrera Cup headed West to Barbagallo Raceway, with Steven Richards grabbing his maiden race win in a Porsche and New Zealander Jonny Reid scoring his first round victory in the Australian series.

Richards took out the opening race ahead of Reid, before Reid claimed the upper hand in Race 2, winning ahead of Craig Baird and Richards. Baird led the way in the final, before starting to struggle for grip. Reid moved into the lead with half-a-dozen laps remaining and went on to win the race and round.

The pass opened the floodgates, with Richards the next to pounce on Baird, going on to finish second for the race and round, and move into the lead of the points. In the end, Baird fell to sixth, but had done enough to claim third for the round, ahead of a consistent Michael Patrizi.

Ben Barker took pole position, but missed the start in Race 1.

Fie then clashed with Daniel Gaunt at Kolb Corner, when Gaunt locked a brake on the way into the corner and ran wide, into the path of Barker, who had looked to capitalise around the outside.

The pair were then in recovery mode for the rest of the weekend, with Barker fifth and Gaunt seventh in Race 2, before they finished third and fourth in the final.

V8 SUPERCAR SUPPORTS When you stall on the grid in Race 1, it generally signals the start of a long weekend. Not so for John Bowe in the Touring Car Masters at Barbagallo Raceway...

On pole, Bowe failed to get away and fortunately wasn't collected before he got his Mustang fired up and got going. Fie recovered to fourth and won the remaining two races and the round,ahead of Andrew Miedecke, who edged out Gavin Bullas to win Race 1.

While Bowe had drama,consistency was the story of Grant Johnson's hometown V8 Ute round win. Johnson was second to Chris Pither in Race 1, but a storming drive from 21 st to third in the partial Reverse Grid Race 2 set up his weekend.

In the final, he battled with Pither for the lead, but did enough to grab the win. He now trails Pither in the standings by one point.

68

motorsport news

AUSTRALIAN RALLY C’SHIP Ryan Smart only led one stage in Queensland's second round of the ARC, but it was the one that counted.

After a troubled opening day,Smart fought back into contention and by the start of the final stage,just two seconds covered the top three drivers - Justin Dowel, Mark Redder and Smart. But Smart blitzed it, winning the stage by 15s to make it two from two in 2011, having claimed the season opener in WA in April. Dowel and Redder were left tied in second place after dominating most of the rally.

It was a similar story in the Asia Racific Rally Championship component of the rally, with Mark Higgins coming from 1.5s down at the start of the final stage to beat team-mate Gaurav Gill by 15s.

Chris Atkinson set the early pace, before his Rroton stopped on SS4, having taken in too much waterat a splash.Team-mate Alistair McRae led late in the rally, but dropped to fourth with an alternator problem.

SHANNONS NATIONALS Tony Ricciardello made a winning return to the Kerrick Sports Sedan Series atMallala.

In his potent Alfa, Ricciardello won the opener and backed It up in Race 2 to claim the Clem Smith Cup - Sports Sedans'marquee race of the year, named after the circuit owner. Scott Butler prevented a Ricciardello clean sweep,though, winning the final as Ricciardello slipped to third on worn tyres.

Chris Smerdon scored a hometown victory in the Kumho V8 Touring Car Series, after vyinning two of the three races.Terry Wyhoon won the other. Race 2, but stalled on the grid in the final and had to fight back to sixth.

Honours from a dramatic Rorsche GT3 Cup Challenge weekend went to Roger Lago. Lago was second to Jeff Bobik In the opener, which was marred by a heavy crash Involving Jon Trende, Matt Kingsley and Rob Knight.Trende lost control of his Rorsche after the sweeper and cannoned over the grass into Kingsley and Knight.

Bobik and Lago clashed In Race 2, with Lago recovering to second behind Keith Wong and Bobik penalised down to ninth.

But Bobik regrouped, winning the final while second was enough for Lago to claim the round.

Kiwi Rex McCutcheon won the maiden round of the Australian Swift Series. McCutcheon claimed two of the three races, with Jesse Dixon winning the other to be second for the weekend.

BATHURST MOTOR FEST Mount Ranorama hosted the return of the Bathurst Motor Festival at Easter, with a mix of National and State-based racing categories.

Two raced as a round of their National Series', with Commodore Cup contesting a pair of 45-minute races with two drivers per car.

Ross McGregor and co-driver Drew Russell, pictured, secured the weekend honours with third in Race 2 - which was won by Geoff Emery and Steve Owen - after Russell stormed to victory in Race 1.

With three wins from four starts, Reter Carr claimed Round 2 of the Aussie Racing Cars Super Series ahead of Kyle Clews, who grabbed a victory in Race 3.

Andrew Miedecke and Jamie Augustine teamed up to win the one-hour Rroduction Sports enduro in a Daytona Coupe, Rob Storey and Luke Ellery split the Formula Ford honours, while Shawn Jamieson won all three Saloon Car races.

www.mnews.com.au

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Have helmet, passport, will race: Spike Goddard,left, has had a tough initiation to racing overseas in British Formula Ford, but Geoff Uhrhane,above and right, has found himselfright on the pace.

OU may not have noticed it, but there is a smali piece of Australia that has relocated - and it is alive and well in the United Kingdom ... in open-wheeler, racing to be precise.

In recent months,the Poms have had to deal with an influx of drivers following the trail set by Mark Webber over a decade ago, and followed more recently by the likes of Wills Davison and Power, James Courtney and Scott Pye - who kicked British arse in Formula Ford last year.

But there are more.Jordan Skinner moved to the UK to win Formula Ford 1600 championships last season for the older Kent-powered cars, and is eyeing a move to Formula 3 and, perhaps, the DTM, budget permitting.

Mitchell Gilbert, a Kuala Lumpur-born Aussie, is in the Formula Renault UK Championship this season, while Nick McBride, Geoff Uhrhane and Spike Goddard

I

72

are all in the cut-throat Formula Ford Championship. Why? Uhrhane is clear:"It's the next step up for me from racing in Australia. There are more career paths over here [in Europe]for a driver, and there are more places for a driver to go.The competition is better over here, so it is the best place to prove your talent."

Uhrhane is one of the front-runners in Formula Ford and, like Mark Webber before him, is eyeing a rise to Formula J. Nick McBride, a more consistent scorer in Formula Ford, is really battling against himself.

"I've deferred my university course at uni to come and race over here. I'm doing a law degree but I've put that on hold to come and prove myself here against the toughest competition. If my results are good enough,then I can think about a career in motorsport; if not, I'm back to my studies and the law."

Gilbert is a level ahead, already in the

slicks-and-wings Formula Renault class from which Kimi Raikkonen made his leap to a Sauber FI ride back in 2001. Elis motives for racing in the UK are clear: "If you look over the last few years, all of the guys in most of the major championships around the world have raced in the UK.The tracks, teams and series that you race on, with and in give you the very best foundation to step into Europe and the rest of the world later in your career."

But there is a common thread that unites the Aussies overseas - budget, or more specifically, a lack of it.

"Sponsorship is really hard to get,"says Uhrhane,"but more so as we are racing on the other side of the world. It is hard to get a budget to do anything at home, but here is really tough as we aren't in the spotlight.

I need sponsorship, but at the moment it is the Bank of Dad." IIBI It's the same for McBride. motorsport news

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\^ro are sucre e fcr a driver to gq.

- Geoff Uhrhane

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For further information on racing a Formuia Ford at your iocai state racing event contact the Formula Ford Association on (02)4773 9494 or email admin@formulaford.org.au.

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"I’ve taken Ictfr m e h and I’m definitely goiiig to be I the end of the sea n.”

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Settling In: Mitchell Gilbert, above and right, is getting closer to the pace in Formula Renault, while Nick McBride has been consistent in British Formula Ford, left.

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Tve got a few friends on board but really it is family money. I'm in the top team (Jamun Racing), but I have to deliver, so there is plenty of pressure on me, but the results we've had so far are encouraging."

The other Aussie in Formula Ford is Richard 'Spike'Goddard, who is racing at this level for the first time. Fle's struggled, despite a plum seat at Jamun in Formula Ford, and has endured a confidence-sapping start to his campaign.

Gilbert can also feel frustrated, as he is up against a field of drivers in their second year in Formula Renault and, as a result, is playing catch up.

"I think what we've done so far is good," he says.

"We had a strong start at Brands FJatch, and then had to come back from a tough weekend at Donington. We had plenty of speed last time out atThruxton, but wasted it with a problem In qualifying. I've taken a lot from each round so far this year and I'm definitely going to be looking for race wins by the end of the season." >i..i

74

Uhrhane has been a race winner and a pole-sitter in Formula Ford, and McBride has been a regular podium finisher as well, but despite the problems of living on the other side of the world and the dramas over finance, they are the lucky ones.

Meanwhile, Skinner is on the sidelines. Flis aspirations for single-seaters ran out over the English winter, and he started his season racing in the one-make Ginetta sportscar series. That wasn't a success, and it sapped his budget. As a result, he has lost career momentum, despite having ability to spare.

The tragedy would be if he were a lost talent, as his racecraft is impressive, but, as he's done the bulk of his racing overseas, he has no profile in his home country.

That's another problem facing all the Aussies overseas. Flow do you grab the attention of the Australian motorsport community when you race on the other side of the world in junior ranks? It Is a tough one to answer, and more difficult for teenagers racing on a tight budget without the means to pay for a PR service.

Gilbert has his sights on Formula 1, Uhrhane the same, although he also likes the sound of racing in the USA. McBride wants a career in motorsport and is realistic: he's a late starter at 18, and has done just a season and a half of Australian Formula Ford. For him, a Fujitsu V8 drive, and perhaps a jump into the Main Game, would be an ideal way to earn a living out of motorsport.

Look back through the decades, and UK racing has had an important part to play In the careers of any of Australia's star drivers: Mark Webber, Alan Jones, Larry Perkins, James Courtney, Will Power, Will Davison and Tim Blanchard to take a random selection.

Some made it to Formula 1, others didn't, and went back home to race successfully In Australia. But the one thing unites them is that racing in Europe made them stronger and better, and the lessons learnt made them more successful on home soil.

England isn't a bad classroom after all.

Cold and wet, maybe, but a great teaching environment. motorsport news

J

MOTORSPORT IMAGES THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE ACCESSIBLE PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY OF AUSTRALIAN MOTORSPORT Autopics.com.au is a photograhic history of Australian motor racing from the early 1950’s to the current day. Log on and explore!

Based on the archives of Lance J. Ruting, Peter D’Abbs, David Blanch and many more photographers, our website allows you to view over 9,000 images from our collection of over 500,000.

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ORANA THE GREAT'was the advertising campaign used by Holden to trumpet the racing success of their now iconic mid-sized^ars in the early to mid 1970s.

And white you can regularly spotTorana's of all models in Historic Touring Gar racing around Australian circuits these days.

Autobarn Touring Car Masters driver Tony Edwards is determined to bring theTorana brand back to the national limelight,following the recent debut of his'brand new'LH SLR/5000.

He welcomed Motorsport News into his Melbourne workshop to get an exclusive inside look at creation of the iatestTorana. t

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Edwards,weli used to muscling high-powered Hoidens around after severai successful seasons racing a 350-Chev powered HQ Monaro, says the decision to goTorana was based on history.

It really was a revolutionary car when they turned up in 1974 to repiace the earlier cars with a V8 and the same reasons they went to the LH in '74 is the same reason why we've done it in 2011.

It's a smaller car with a big engine which means it's still going to very quick but should look after its tyres a bit better across a race meeting,compared to the heavier cars. It should be a lot like what Jimmy [Richards] has got with the Faicon Sprint.'

THEBUIUi:

Who better to enlist to help build a new car than the man who built the very first one, more than 35 years ago? Weil-known engineer Les Smail was the first person on Edwards'iist to cail when the project began more than 16 months ago.

From the moment we first started the roil cage, we had Les on board," Edwards explained."He built the very first LH Torana's back in the day for the iikes of[Aiian] Grice and [Peter] Brock and has probabiy built a bucket load of them since, so as far as building Toranas go, he was the obvious guy to get involved.

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Model: 1974 Holden Torana SLR/5000 Fl Engine: 308ci(5047cc) Holden V8 Power:600BHP Maximum RPM:7800 Weight:1480kg

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point where we could start it and drive it, and then another six months of sorting it - which will be an ongoing process.

"Probably 95 percent of the car has been fabricated inhouse," Edwards added.

"Take the engine, which really is the heart of the thing.There's just nothing available that's high performance for Holden 308s these days,so we had to make and manufacture most of the parts ourself.

The last 308 that raced seriously was Larry Perkins'in the mid-90's, and even that was fuel-injected so we didn't even had a manifold that suited. We ended up finding one in Geelong that has been brilliant but almost everything else, aside from an AUSCAR crank from theThunderdome and off-the-shelf conrods, has been done by us.

"It turns out there hasn't been much new made for Toranas in the last 30 years!"

THE DBUf AND THE FUTURE;

As far as new car debuts go,the Torana's maiden race weekend at the Clipsal 500 in March was about as bad as they come.The car badly bent a lower control arm in testing on Wednesday,and then a series

of niggling difficulties left Edwards frustrated with iess than six laps under his belt for the entire weekend.

"This thing is just evil with theamountof power it makes, how stiff it is and how much mechanical grip it has," Edwards explained, hesitant to relive what he describes as'The worst weekend in my life'.

"There are no parts available for them -the Group C guys are still running around with them but they've only got 350 horsepower.

This thing has got over 600 so it's light years over where the Group C cars were - and it's copping the loads accordingly. It's just a different animal but we're getting there."

Despite the teething dramas,the long term prognosis is good.

Very good,in fact.

"We were lucky to get through all three races in Perth because we ran out of parts,so to get a top five was very, very satisfying and it could have been even better.

"It can be a front running car, no doubt. It can annoy the Mustangs and Camaros and it's way better than the HQ,so I think it's an animal that can annoy Bowe regularly."

Edwards pauses briefly, grinning."The three'usual suspects'(Ed: John Bowe,Gavin Bullas and Richards) better look out."

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his team built their car from scratch, a ^™HILETony Edwards and ■■ fellowTorana pilotTrevorTalbot was re-building his 1972 LJ that was all but destroyed in a massive start-line crash at Bathurst last October.

The cage itself was undamaged, but everything forward and back of that we threw in the bin, it's been a massive job to get it fixed,"Talbot told MNews Just prior to his return to the track at Barbagallo Raceway.

'We put a new back end on and fixed the front and it's come out pretty well, certainly it's better now than it's ever been. Unfortunately fixing this has meant the other projects have had to be put in the corner for a while, but now the LJ is back on the track we can start looking at it again.'

That 'other project' happens to be another LH, which Talbot commenced building Just prior to last October's Bathurst shunt. He says work will continue on the newer Torana now the LJ is back on the circuit - even if it is with slightly mixed feelings.

'I had to fix the LJ because, basically, I need to sell it to fund the new car," he explained.

But I've spent so much time with it in the last six months that selling it now would be like selling a brother! It would be very hard to do.

I think it's good for the category to have the smaller cars in there and mixing it up with the V8s and this car is great at doing that so hopefully it can stay in the category and keep running.'

- RICHARD CRAILL

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RODUCTION Car racing in Australia has always had its underdogs.Go back to when it was the format for the nation's Touring Car racing,and in 1966, Bob Hdiden and Rauno Aaltonen famously drove a Mini CoopepS to victory in the seventh running of what's nov.r the Bathurst 1000.'

Over the years,through the various ups and downs of Australian Production Car racing, variety has been a constant.Cars of all shapes and sizes can get involved through a class structure,and sometimes, David takes it right up to Goliath.

Since 2008,Jake Camilleri has been that'David'in the Australian Manufacturers Championship. Running a mid-range Mazda 3 MPS, Camilleri has punched above his weight,dominating onihis way to class titles, but he's made a habit out of beating theoretifelly faster cars, grabbing a couple of outright race wins along the way.

In Phillip Island's 2011 season opener in April, he gave the team's new Class C MPS- built over the off season -a strong debut.Camilleri qualified second to reigning Champion Stuart Kostera in a Team Mitsubishi Ralliart Evo X Lancer,and recovered from a tyre cut on a kerb in the opening race to finish fifth, and was second to Kostera in Race 2 after a quiet race. Despite limited pre-event testing and Camilleri himself being under the weather,the gains over the old car were obvious.

"It was pretty awesome,actually,"Camilleri says ofthe debut.

"We'd only had one little test run it before we ran that first round,and it was pretty impressive in the little test; not that we had much time to do much set-up, it was basically about making sure we didn't have any bugs in it.

"We put it on the track in the first practice session at Phillip Island and it was third quickest, and easily fastest in my class. We were about a second-and-a-half quicker than the old car,straight up. We were pretty limited with what we took down there, with set-up and the rest of it, so it didn't give us much of an opportunity to try and go into too much adjustment down there.

"And I wasn't feeling that good,either, I had some vomiting bug,on the Friday I was as sick as a dog, but we still got some good results.

We've come back with plenty of stuffto work on,so the car's going to be quicker again."

Camilleri made his debut in Production Cars in 2008, making the switch from Saloon Cars as an opportunity to leverage the family's Mazda dealership - Grand Prix Mazda in Queensland - through motorsport. Lessons learnt from the last three years with their original MPS have been applied to the build of the all-new 2011 racer,even within the constraints of Production Car racing.

"We've got the development out of the old car into the new car," he explained,"it's mostly in the chassis, obviously we've got to run the engine and drivetrain virtually, exactly the same.

"I think the big gains are Just in the balance of the car, I think we've made a couple of little improvements on that, with things we'd improved on the old car and brought across.

"Being able to build a car ourselves and knowing how the old car was, we've been able to look at things like the positioning ofthe fuel tank and the way we've done our suspension set-up's totally different to what we've done before.

"It's all worked even better. And there's plenty to come."

Coming from outright competition in HQs and Saloon Cars into a class-based category, and being in one of the classes for smaller cars.

has meant a shift in Camilleri's mindset. Despite his best efforts,there are some cars he'll Just never be able to match for sheer pace. But he pushes on,ancte change in format for 2011 - doing away with classbased grids ana handicap starts- has provided added incentive and opportunities "It's frustrating in the way that I know on certain tracks. I'll never be as quick [as some the Class A cars], but there's so much satisfaction when I am close and I am beating cars that have way more in performance than I know the MPS has," he said.

"It gives us a^ig boost when we know we're running way above where the carjshould be.The old car was fantastic, but it always frustrated ma’that it was a Class C car, I always wanted to be outright.

But being abife to qualify second outright in this car's first round impressed me,that was enjoyable being on the front row of the grid.

"They're just doing the handicap through the pitstops this year,the compulsory pitstop side. I prefer it that way,to be honest, because it gives me more of a challenge to try and go out and qualify as hard as I can, rather than Just worry about being first in class.

"For me,I'm not too concerned about being first in class, I Just want to try and get the outright positions now."

Another shift in Production Car racing in recent years has been towards longer races. In a move sparked by the return of the Bathurst 12 Hour in 2007,Production Car enduros are returning,and three are on the 2011 Australian Manufacturers Championship calendar; Phillip Island's upcoming six hour on May 29,a 500km race over two legs at Sandown in September,and the season-ending Eastern Creek 8 Hour in December.

Having originally recruited fellow Queenslander Scott Nicholas as his co-driver in 2007,the pair have formed a strong combination, which continues this year.

"I love these enduros,"Camilleri said.

"In one race meeting,say a six hour, you can be out there for four hours driving. In one race you can pretty much do more racing than you would all year in sprint formats,so I absolutely love it.

"And I've got a good co-driver in Scott Nicholas,so he's looking forward to it. We Just love getting out there and Just driving."

Longer races outside Australia are also on Camilleri's agenda for coming years. In January,Camilleri contested the Dubai 24 Hour race, alongside Nicholas, Brett Hoidsworth and Ryan McLeod,in McLeod's Astra VX-R.The Astra is a very different animal to how it was debuted in Production Car racing in 2007,and the team finished 26th outright from 84 competitors,and fourth in class.

Additional overseas races could still be added to their card for the balance of 2011.

"That was unreal at Dubai,Just running with GT cars, huge fields and good drivers, at an international event. It was a great experience," Camilleri enthused.

"They've specced the Astra up,so it's close to 380 horsepower. It's been lightened right out,they're running a Motec and everything on it, so it's a fast little car. It's pretty impressive sitting on the grid in-front of Aston Martins and that sort of thing in a Holden Astra!

"We're considering running Spain at the end of this year, and Silverstone,so that's something we may be doing later on in the year.

We want to try and run the Nurburgring at some stage,too,everyone says you've got to do it, so that's something we'll probably want to do eventually."

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UEENSLANDER Cian Fothergill continues to ride the wave of e top of Australian

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karting.

The 22-year-old captured both the highly prestigious Clubman Light and Leopard Light titles at the recent AKA Nationals in dominant fashion. However, it's when these titles are added to his Pro Light(KF1) victory in the CIK Stars of Karting Series that they become even more impressive.

Fothergill became only the second driver in Australian karting'history to hold both the Pro Light(KF1) and Clubman Light titles at the same time.

The only other driver to achieve this feat is current V8 Supercar driver MarkWinterbottom.

"Last year, when I won the James Courtney Trophy (the perpetual trophy for the Pro Light category), I looked at the names who had won the title previously and it was pretty cool, but the Clubman Light win now takes it to another level," says Fothergill. "[The Clubman Light title] is something that we've been working at for many years, and to finally come away with it is an amazing feeling. I honestly don't think that it has really sunk in yet.

"Already it has opened up a lot of doors that I never thought would get opened and now that I've achieved my goals, it has probably taken some pressure off my shoulders. In saying that, though, it's now time to reassess my goals and aim higher again."

Fothergill started his karting career in 1999, and prior to this year had competed at the National Sprint Kart Championships on six occasions.

His best finish at the event came in the Senior National Light category in 2005 at Bolivar Raceway in South Australia. motoi sport news

4 AS MUSTARD

(PRONOUNCED LIKE IAN WITH A K)IS THE FIRST MAN SINCE iTTOM TO HOLD BOTH THE KF1 AND CLUBMAN LIGHT TITLES AT ND THERE’S PLENTY MORE WHERE THAT CAME FROM nnn

Despite setting the fastest time in the Clubman Light category in three of the previous four events, Fothergill's best finish was fourth place at Townsville in 2009.

"I've always known that I've had the pace to mix it with the front guys, as shown by qualifying fastest in three of the past four years, but things just haven't fallen my way when the finals rolled around,"says Fothergill.

"I'm Just so relieved that I was able to finish the job off this year in Perth."

While he may be at the highest point of his career so far, Fothergill still finds himself with another new challenge in the CIK Stars of Karting Series presented by Castrol EDGE. For

the first time since he made his debut in the series at the start of 2010, he is not leading in the points standings.

Fie now has the challenge ahead of him if he is going to claim back-to-back titles.

"While it is a bit disappointing not to be leading the points, I know that I've got the speed to be able to get back in front," he adds.

"It was an engine issue that put me out of final one at Bolivar and then I came in 200 grams too light in the second final after I'd come from 20th to third - that was pretty heartbreaking. Flowever, it has all just made me more determined.

"The next round in Melbourne is going to be

vital in the outcome of the championship, because the guys in first, second and fourth are all from Victoria and know the track like the back of their hand.

"If I can get through there with a good swag of points, I know I'll be in good shape because I should have the upper hand at the final two rounds."

His main focus remains on staying on top of his own game, but with the pressure on having to prove himself now released, he is also sharing his talent and knowledge with some youngsters throughout Queensland.

"I feel as though the pressure that was previously on me to prove I had what it takes to

succeed has probably been released a bit now,and I think with that off I'll probably enjoy my racing more," he says.

"I also want to help some of the youngsters out and be able to pass some of my knowledge on to some of the kids coming through the ranks."

As a part of this initiative Fothergill recently acted as mechanic for youngster Josh Rogers at the Supercheap Kart Series in Ipswich, where Rogers proved victorious in the Rookies category.

"It's my way of giving something back to the sport that has provided me with so many great memories and opportunities,"says Fothergill, regarding his involvement with the younger generation.

REMO ON FOTHERGILL WITH seven national and 53 state championships to his name, Remo Luciani is one of Austraiia's most accomplished karters.

He has also worked with some of the best kart racers during his 30 years in the sport. He was Jamie Whincup's mentor during his time at the top of the sport in the late 1990s.

Over the past 12 months has had a big

involvement in Cian Fothergill's racing, with Fothergill campaigning both the Remo Racing-designed Monaco chassis and Remo Racing imported-Kosmic chassis.

"The most impressive part about Cian is that over and above anyone else I've worked with he knows what he requires from the kart - he doesn't just tell me what it is doing,"says Luciani.

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"He spent a lot of time last year learning about what changes affected the way the kart handles to work out what he required in different situations. While his feedback is good, it is his understanding of how to fix the issues he is having that puts him in front of the pack.

"He does everything for himself and to have that mechanical knowledge is something very special."

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WA DRIVER DANIEL GREGORINI IS AMONG THE GRC DOORSLAMMER PRIVATEERS MAKING THEIR MARK 2010/2011 SEASON. LUKE NIEUWHOF CAUGHT UP 1

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NDRA Pro Series Top Doorslammer is a cut-throat category where only the strongest survive. Just qualifying is an ordeal, with 20 cars vying for just eight spots on race day.

But, in a way, this season has been opened up somewhat to the privateers. As the relentless pace of low elapsed times at the front has slowed down, it has allowed some racers to catch up and prove that consistency can still be a winning formula for success.

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Along with championship second place-sitter Mark Belleri, the other standout this season in terms of making it to race day has been Daniel Gregorini.

He currently sits fifth in the points, despite the recent Nitro Champs in Sydney being the first event he has ventured out of his home state, Western Australia, for.

At just 27 years of age, Gregorini is the youngest regular driver in the ANDRA Pro Series Top Doorslammer ranks.

Like many, he smelt his first engine fumes and tyre smoke

at just the toddler stage when his father Peter began racing in Super Street at the now defunct Ravenswood Raceway.

There was a stage when the family stepped back from racing, with Peter going to crew for another team, with Daniel also copping the unlucky break of having to battle cancer at just eight years old. It took three years of treatment for him to shake the disease, but he said it has made him focus on having fun while he can - perhaps a reason he has entered the category so young.

"You could be dead tomorrow, so just do it," he said. "Take every day as it comes and have fun."

While Gregorini was undergoing his fight, the Make A Wish Foundation granted his wish of a go-kart to race, furthering his revhead ambitions. It Is a favour he has since returned, becoming involved with fundraising opportunities at the track to give back to the organisation.

Towards the end of the Ravenswood era, Peter began racing again with a Torana

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UP OF TOP

in Super Sedan. Gregorini was able to take the seat of that racecar once he was old enough to gain his licence, and raced for several seasons, winning a state championship in the process. And it was from there that things progressed.

"The plan was to step up into Supercharged Outlaws but it went a bit far from there," he said.

It was around this time that Gregorini had started his own panel beating business. Scratch and Match Autocolour, and as that grew successfully it gave

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him the funds to look at a Top Doorslammer.

"Brendan McSweeney was first going to builcfme a car, but he was getting out of drag racing, , so he put me on to Adam Croker, he had the contacts so we went with that,"Gregorini explained.

The link was made with GForce Race Cas,a New Yorkbased business that produces dozens of racecars and has extensive knowledge for data and tuning. Gfegorini felt that this knowledgebase was the main advantage of going for a USA-built car.

"They have a lot more lap time,they race their own cars and they are all the same car, same chassis they must have thousands of laps of data," he said.

While the team makes its own tuning calls, the experience has proved invaluable as they learn about reading tracks and adapting the car to the strip.

"They're still helping me tune it now by phone and internet, that all comes as part of the package,they help us out about 50 percent now. I wouldn't do it any other way,"Gregorini said.

The Camaro Gregorini drives is powered by a 521 cubic inch, billet aluminium Brad Anderson Hemi. It uses a 10.7 inch Grower clutch (Gregorini is yet to make the move to a lock up clutch) and B&J Transmission.The most unique part of the car in the Doorslammer field is that it is boosted by a Rootes supercharger, as opposed to the more popular PSI screw-style.

The Rootes superchargers typically allow for a better launch (Gregorini's car has recorded 60 foot times in the .96s region, while most other teams struggle to get under 1.00s) but as they do not produce as much top end power, will suffer about a 10mph difference to their PSI rivals.

"I've been tempted by a PSI a few times but every time I talk to the guys in the USA they tell me to be patient," he said.

Taking time to refine the tune up has been the key to making Gregorini's car consistent.

"We don't have all the money in the world to make it run super quick, so we are trying to

be more consistent and taking small steps," he said.

But there are some secret weapons gregorini has in order to improv# the pace.

"We are 120 pounds overweight at thejnoment for Top Doorslammer so we might go to a carbon body," he said.

"We are looking for a naming rights spbnsor to get on the tour next^ season, hopefully some sponsors come on board."

Remarkably,the car is also still legajfor the AA/AP class in Competition,a Group Two category.This allows Gregorini to get in more competitive laps at Perth Motorplex's local series.

"The car is still in AP trim, it's under the overdrive limits and doesn't run a lock up clutch,the more laps we can do the more data we get," he said.

"We will still keep it within AP rules for next season,so we will have some more time in our sleeves."

It has been consistency and knowledge that has allowed Gregorini to regularly make it into Top Doorslammer fields, and even make the semi finals at one of the Perth rounds.

"I think we have just got the right guys behind us in the US," he said.

"They show you and teach you at the same time, we are onto how the track works.

"We have learned to read tracks and change gearbox ratios,fuel systems and our clutch weights to suit, along with the timing on the six shooter (ignition). You change one, you have to change something else with it to balance."

Joining the full Top Doorslammer tour is Gregorini's ambition for next season. He currently has the support of Scratch and Match Autocolour, Kerb Doctor, Metalux Paints, Maxus Construction, West Coast Siteworks, Vinsam Contracting, Subiaco Print, G-Force Race Cars, MSR Performance and Resolution Racing Service.The racers in Top Doorslammer are a group Gregorini feels honoured to be among.

"Going back six years ago, we used to watch and idolise all these guys and now we are in the pits racing against them and, in some cases, going

quicker than them," he said.

The Nitro Champs in Sydney was the first step for that, with Gregorini wanting to establish in his own mind that the team could tune to different tracks and wouldn't be a one-track pony.

"It was pretty good, we were taking it as a knowledge base for different surfaces before we get on the tour for next season," he said.

"With Just three laps we went 6.08s, so we proved to ourselves we could do it."

It wasn't the easiest event to get a baseline for, either, with Saturday's qualifying shot in cold and damp conditions, while Sunday presented an entirely different race track with sun and clear skies.

"There was a lot of things going on, whether another lap was happening on Sunday, but we got the chance," he said.

"We had a decent tune-up for the first qualifying session but when we hit top gear it spun the tyres and swapped lanes.

The early increments showed it would have been in the teens, so we were fairly confident we just had to slow the car down in the gear changes and it worked."

It Is just the Castrol EDGE Winternationals left now on the current ANDRA Pro Series agenda. A race event that occurs mostly in ideal conditions, it will provide the right opportunity for Gregorini to really hit the start line and see if he can get a five second run from the current combination.

"I figure if we can qualify again for the Winternationals, that proves to us we can race on all the ANDRA Pro Series tracks and proves we can qualify out of the top 20 cars against guys who have been doing it for years," he said.

The team anticipates a tight track with plenty of grip on offer.

"We have just gone off what we have heard, and what we have watched over the last five years spectating there," he said.

"We have made a few gear ratio changes. I don't see why it wouldn't go into the .950 second,60 foot region, if we have enough power to keep that going down the track it will be good."

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Geoff Grade

BETUIEEH THE LIHES

UIHEH HE’S HOT WinNIHG SOME OF AUSTRALIAN SPEEDWAY'S IS JUST A REGULAR GUV. PLAVIKG BIOGEST EUEHTS. FOOTV WITH HIS MATES AHD PAVIHG THE BILLS WITH A 9-5 JOB. SPOKE TO HIM AFTER A BREAKOUT SUMMER m

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URING this current off-season of Sprintcar racing in Australia,Steven Lines is chasing a Sherrin football in the backline for the Robe Roosters.

It's a far cry from winging it around a dirt Speedway at 160kmh.

The shining star of the national Speedway scene says he's played local footy with mates for years,and plays for fun, not for fitness.

"Do I look like footy makes me get fit?" Lines says, laughing.

"It's just a sport I enjoy away from racing the Sprintcar for six months of the year. I've always played with Robe. I usually defend, mainly across the half-back line. I try and hit the ball in a pack,sometimes I miss and get a bloke's head, not on purpose though."

It's that dogged aggression that saw Lines challenge for and ultimately finish second in the World Series Sprintcars title tight, and has him right up there as perhaps as the best driver in the Australian Sprintcar ranks after the 2010-11 season. Right up there with BrookeTatnell and the bloke who beat him to the WSS title, Robbie Farr.

Clearly,for Lines, who hails from Mount Gambler in South Australia, it was a season of racing that had him finally rise to the upper echelon, and standing on podiums around the country more often than not.

"I can't thank everybody enough for the season I've had. I had a bit of luck but you need that to win," Lines said.

"For me it's a real team effort. I really just have to my bit and drive the Sprintcar as fast as I can."

Fie can drive fast, very fast. In fact he was that fast and that good he won the 39th Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic back in January at his favourite racetrack, Warrnambool's Premier Speedway, knocking off some of the world's best to clinch victory and pocket $30,000.

It was a stunning win at a venue Lines has travelled to for many years with his family,to watch the best in Australia take on America's best. Lines burst through at a restart with 12 laps to go,to race away from polesitter and three-time winner Brooke Tatnell and American Jason Johnson to win his first Classic.

"To be a Classic Champion is a dream come true," he said.

"It's always been a dream of mine.This race means so much to me, being so close to home.

"It really was a dream come true. I got the car into a good position in the feature and just wanted to hang in there. If you can be there in the last 10 laps then things can happen. We've raced a fair bit at Warrnambool and it's my favourite track to race at.

"It's a good fun place and it widens up on most nights, which also makes it fun to run on.To have fun in this sport takes two things; you have to be quick and competitive and we were that at the Classic."

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TO BE A CLASSIC CHAMPION IS A DREAM COME TRUE

LINES. ABOUE WITH MONTE. BUSUIELL AND THE SPOILS OF lUINHIHG JAHUARV'S CLASSIC

Lines, 26, is a welder at the family business in Mount Gambler and cut his teeth racing motocross at nearby Lake Gillear,just out the back of Premier Speedway. He said the move from two wheels to four was an easy one.

"I raced bikes for a bit," he said.

"I raced when I was younger and Dad was into cars. It was when a few of the riders at the Mount Gambler bike club where I raced as youngster decided to go into the junior sedan speedway class, then one thing led to another and here we are. I know I am very fortunate to be driving a top-class Sprintcar for one of the best teams in the pits."

The successful season of racing for Lines is due to the major support of his'new'car owner. Western Australian vegetable grower Luch Monte. Lines and Monte signed a deal for the past season and the successful combination looks set to continue into the future.

"It was great to have Luch pick me out to drive for him. We're all pretty happy with the way the season's finished and I'm pretty confident we'll all team up next year again," Lines said.

"Luch and (crew chief) Kim Buswell give me everything.They put us all on the road and I try to take it all from there.They are well organised and a pleasure to be around, they've got there stuff sorted out. At the Classic we had a plan to run a local Sprintcar Racing Association (SRA)show beforehand

and the plan worked; it was like it was meant to happen at the end of the day."

While the racing season is a long and tough one,time offfrom Lines'family's business allows him to provide the throttle-stomping thrills to his quickly adoring growing list of fans.

"They give me time off and that helps quite a lot," Lines says of his parents.

"The first race for me was over in Perth with Geoff Kendrick and that was way back in October.There's a couple of weekends where you have off and reboot and I think this has been a pretty good year for us all."

Lines says he has no plans to go to the United States in the off-season, preferring to focus on the 2011-12 Australian sprintcar season.

"I've got nothing set up to go to and drive at this stage," he explains."So I'll be giving it a miss.

"It takes a lot of preparation to go and race over there, I really just want to stay home and get ready for next season. It comes around quicker than people think. Besides, I've got footy."

Yes indeed.There's the Robe Roosters, who will be looking to Lines to keep opposition teams and their determined forwards from scoring goals, while the Australian speedway public will be ready to applaud all the goals Lines is likely to score again next season around the country.

8a

MODEL BEHAVIOUR Mustang Silly: Nice pair oflegendary Australian Touring Car Champion Mustangs in 1/43 from Apex Replicas- Bob Jane's'65 car(7) and Ian Geoghegan's'66 title winner, below.

Retro IS m this month m the world ofmodelcars, with 1960ssports car and touring car offerings,some 1990s touring cars andsome2010 touring cars thatlookjustlike 1990 cars... By BRUCE MOXON

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HE Holden Racing Team's retrolook VE Commodores looked the goods at last year's Bathurst 1000.

The livery recreated that of the 1990 winner in the hands of Allan Grice and Win Percy. First of all, the 1990 win was very popular (coming against the run of play, as it did) and HRT continues to be very popular as a team,so this model was eagerly-awaited.

The model features (in 1/18 scale) the usual list of opening and shutting parts, detailed inside, under and in the

88

bonnet and boot. Set for release this month, get down to your favourite shop (or online at HRT's website) and place an order.The car is also set for release in 1/43 and 1/64, if you're short of space.

We had a quick mention of this upcoming release from Automodelli Studio (www.automodellistudio.com. au) a while back.The Bill Brown Ferrari P3 was,for a very long time,the fastest car ever down Conrod Straight at Mount Panorama (somewhere iini in the region of 290kmh). Well, motorsport news

www.mnews.com.au

89

I

Holden Racing Team iOth Anniversary 2010 Bathurst 1000 BE Commodore

CLASSIC

CARI tcmiti I 5

'^iii we've now seen pictures of the finished model, and it looks great.The Scuderia Veloce green stripe across the nose will set this car apart from other P3s.

From Apex Replicas comes a brace of 1/43 Nissan Skyline GT-Rs and another pair of 1965 Ford Mustangs. Not types of car new to modelling, and indeed, all these cars have been modelled already, in one way or another.The Skylines are the 1991 ATCC winner and the 1992 Bathurst winner.The Mustangs are Bob Jane's 1965 Catalina Park car and Pete Geoghegan's 1966 ATCC winner.

Fabian Coulthard is just one of the nicest guys in V8 Supercar racing, and (in my opinion), a bloke who deserves better results than he gets - certainly he and Paul Cruickshank were able to do some great things with limited resources.

Anyway, Fabian is probably best-known now for last year's Most Spectacular Crash award. Flis opening lap multiple roll at Bathurst made TV news around the world, as the Bundy Commodore flung itself to the four winds.

Biante's 1/18 scale model is of the car before this happened. Biante told me that nil making an 'after' model would have

ILASSIC PLCCTABLCS

The early'70s Brock Torana is a fantastic contrastfrom today's purpose-built V8Supercars

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Olden Holden:Biante has released a 1/43 model ofPeter Brock's 1971 Bathurst 500 Holden Dealer Team Torana, above, while Classic Carlectables has modeled last year's HRT Bathurst Commodore,resplendent in special commemorative '1990'livery, top.

90

motorsport news

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Le Mans legend:Automodelli has released a 1/43 model of the Bill Brown Ferrari P3 sports car, below. The royal wedding has created a frenzy of model making activity, centre. We preview them a while ago but the production ex Replica's Group 5, bottom.

been just too hard (a challenge to diorama-makers there, methinks - Peter Kranjc, are you up to this challenge?).

I reckon the Bundy cars looked great last year(and the product is pretty nice too) and these would look great in the cabinet.

Also from Biante, a 1/43 scale model of Peter Brock's 1971 Holden DealerTeam LC Torana XU-1, as raced that year at Bathurst. A must for Brock fans, and for all Holden fans really.The production base of the cars of the early'70s is a fantastic contrast from today's purposebuilt V8 Supercars.

Was there a wedding recently?

Royalists might like commemorate the joining of Wills and Kate by getting hold of a Corgi model.There's a three-part set comprising a Mini, a very old bus and a Model T Ford.They're all liveried in keeping with Royal-ness and are in matching blue and white.They're not a patch on the model ofWills'granny's Coronation Coach I saw once.

The Olympic Games also lead to a proliferation of collectables. Corgi has jumped on this bandwagon, with, apart from anything else, a range of London Taxis that each represent a different sporting discipline. Will the Long Jump out-sell the Rhythmic Gymnastics? See for yourself at www.corgi.co.uk.

It's with sadness I learned of the passing of Garry Smith some time back.

Garry was a great supporter of motor sport and model collecting, and had been a long-time official at the ARDC. Garry leaves behind his collection of over 8000 models, over which he expected his two sons to squabble. I had the pleasure of spending a day looking over his extensive collection a few years back and we profiled Garry and his collection in Motor Racing Australia some years ago. iiti

92

The Bill Brown FerrariP3 was,for a very long time,the fastestcar ever down ConrodStraightatMountPanorama

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$295*

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NO.1 RACECAR CLASSIFIEDS SELL your parts, motorsport vehicle or anything to do with motorsport via our internet classified partners myl05.com -for as little as $29.50!* myl05.com will also run your ad til it's SOLD! *formy105.toinad only

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97

PAUL %*.

THE FINAL WORD

T

wo major events have happened to V8 Supercars in the last few weeks - fires and dollars, so let's run through them.

Karl Reindler, Steve Owen and all of us got a harsh reminder of how things can change in a fraction of a second. I was standing right in front of Karl's car and you just knew something was going to happen when a car so far up the grid stalled. The noise and heat was horrendous, and a few seconds seems like an eternity when you are watching and waiting for a driver to appear from a burning car.

Thankfully Karl and Steve both emerged relatively okay, with only minor injuries. Once again we have had a major incident and a good outcome, apart from some very damaged hardware.

The thing that amazed me was there was five team members over the wall before any officials got there, which speaks volumes for the team members and

their courage and also of the regulations introduced by V8 Supercars.They were properly dressed for the occasion with fireproof suits and head and eye protection, all of which is compulsory in pit lane.

Now is the time to have a full time fire and accident crew in the series. V8 Supercars and CAMS could easily fund such a unit, and there should be several vehicles that are specific first intervention units.They would be equipped with professional full-time firemen who would be the same guys or a rotation team at all the events.These guys would be strapped onto a vehicle and have all the equipment needed to put out a major fire in seconds.

The cost need not be that expensive. One vehicle would be always behind the cars at the start and, on the larger circuits such as Bathurst, you would have one somewhere around the circuit so if there was a major incident, help is nearby.

V8 Supercars have ticked all

the boxes in recent years with car, pit lane and circuit safety.

Each time there is a major incident the technical team have been very proactive in learning and introducing new measures from these incidents.

You just need to have a look at an early 2000s car and a current car; they are a world apart,for the better!

The second and biggest news is the sale of a major stake in V8 Supercars.

There has been much talk and scuttlebutt over the last few months, but it was finally announced and it seems to be a logical progression. One of the positives for this is that it is still Australian owned,and this will keep the product predominately on Australian shores. Who knows what would have happened if it became foreign-owned, as eventually big organisations who do major takeovers implement change and even things like the Gold Coast headquarters could be relocated overseas. It would be hard to manage an Australian domestic series from Singapore.

Former team ownerTim Miles has done a great job in getting a local investor of this calibre

into the ownership of the series.

The team owners will all be receiving a nice big payday in the coming weeks - the talk is $4m per REC. While that seems a lot of money,there will be plenty of things to spend that on over the coming months as the category prepares for some major changes.

The new Car of the Future will be a major drain on teams' funds next year, as there will be not many if any carryover items from the current car. Also, the latest talk is there will be up to 18 rounds - that will require a lot more infrastructure than most of the teams currently have. Just the spare parts inventory alone will be have to be increased significantly, particularly if there are more overseas races. More staff will be required as well to relieve the'away'team of normal factory duties.

The team revenue will also be down,as they now own less of the business.The new TV deal will have a huge bearing on team income over the next 12 months.

All in all, V8 Supercars keeps evolving well, and with a new business approach it looks set to go to new heights again!

^^ Now is the time to have a full-time fire and accident crew in the series. V8 Supercars mm and CAMS could easily fund such a unit, and there should be several vehicles that are specific first intervention units

98

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