NEWS No.437 November 2013 Australia $8.95 NZ $10.99 inc GST
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Mark Glendenning, David Greenhaigh, Edward, Krause,Chris Lambden, Andrew van Leeuwen, Bruce Moxon, Geoff Rounds,Jon Thomson
Bathurst
Hardly any triechanical failures, crashes or Safety Cars, but plenty of top performances out on the track - the 2013 Great Race was one of the best Bathursts ever.
Graphic Design and Production Art Director Chris Currie
Junior Designer Melissa Karatzas
Photography
Sutton Motorsport Images, Dirk Klynsmith, John Morris, Paul Cross, James Smith, Andrew Hall, Geoff Grade, Sportspics, Michael Vettas, Daniel Beard Cover photos: Paul Cross (main), Mpix, Andrew Hall
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the monkey on his back that has slowly grown into a gorilla is now gone, because Mark Winterbottom is now a Bathurst winner.
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Level 6,207 Pacific Highway, St Leonards, NSW 2065 Locked Bag 5555, St Leonards, NSW 1590 Chief Executive Officer, David Gardiner Commercial Director, Bruce Duncan Motorsport News is published by nextmedia Pty Ltd ACN: 128 805 970, Level 6,207 PaciHc Highway, St Leonards NSW 2065 © 2013. All rights reserved. Motorsport News is printed by Webstar, Sydney, distributed by Network Distribution. No part of this magazine may be reproduced, in whole or in part, without the prior permission of the publisher. The publisher will not accept responsibility or any liability for the correctness of information or opinions expressed in the publication. All material submitted is at the owner's risk and, while every care will be taken nextmedia does not accept liability for loss or damage. Privacy Policy We value the integrity of your personal information, if you provide personal information through your participation in any competitions, surveys or offers featured in this issue of Motorsport News, this will be used to provide the products or services that you have requested and to improve the content of our magazines. Your details may be provided to third parties who assist us in this purpose. In the event of organisations providing prizes or offers to our readers, we may pass your details on to them. From time to time, we may use the information you provide us to inform you of other products, services and events our company has to offer. We may also give your information to other organisations which may use it to inform you about their products, services and events, unless you tell us not to do so. You are welcome to access the information that we hold about you by getting in touch with our privacy officer, who can be contacted at nextmedia. Locked Bag 5555, St Leonards, NSW 1590.
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Ekstrorri and Priaulx weren't the only international names racing at Bathurst in 2013.
motorsport news
Unusual Suspects
Vettel's new team-mate
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Daniel Ricciardo speaks about getting the thumbs up from Red Bull Racing as Webber's successor. Mattias Ekstrom It was known before Ekstrom arrived in Bathurst that he was good - he is, after all, a two time DTM champion. But few realised just how good the Swede really is.
is
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COTA WEC and ALMS World Endurance Championship and American Le Mans Series sports cars from Texas, in pictures.
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Raymond returns
Veteran TV broadcaster/promoter Mike Raymond is the new chief at the former Parramatta City Raceway/Sydney Speedway venue, now known as Valvoline Raceway
Mark Winterbottom He's the man of the moment right now, the guy who just won Bathurst for the fi rst time. Any driver's fi rst Bathurst win is a huge deal, but this one, after so many disappointments, was absolutely massive.
Down to the wire The ANDRATop Doorslammer title has been the domain of John Zappia for a very long time but he is under severe threat as the 2012/13 season nears its conclusion.
REGULARS SU^^F
Motor Mouth with Phil Branagan The Scoop with Steve Normoyle On The Limiter with Chris Lambden Box Seat United States of Origin Model Behaviour Retro Vision Trade Classifieds Parting Shot
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Mike Raymond He is a legend of motor racing commentary and the voice behind those speedway TV ads. After a spell away from the sport, now Mike Raymond is back, returning to his oval track roots as the new manager at Sydney Speedway.
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ne of the occupational hazards of writing about motor racing is the questions one gets when standing about in social groups, sipping drinks and chewing canapes or hors d'ouvres (whichever is larger). Inevitably, one of the common queries is, "Who is the best racing driver you ever saw?" Depending on the day, my mood and, possibly, how many cocktails have been consumed, the answers often involve some of the most recognisable names in the sport, even to those who may not follow it closely. But one name that I sometimes mention often causes raised eyebrows. Not all casual followers of the sport know who Ian Geoghegan was. I only saw 'Pete' drive in the waning years of his career but it was still obvious what a towering talent he was. in a variety of cars, some user-friendly and some far less so, he danced around racetracks at improbable speed, bending the machinery to his will with a combination of touch and force. Pete's reputation was moulded in cars as diverse as a variety of Mustangs, the 'Super' Falcon, proddie racers, Lotus 23Bs and the famed Craven Mild Monaro. All went fast in Pete's hands. And Pete had big hands. Pete had big everything. He was a large unit. By today’s standards, he was huge. He was not what you would call athletic, but Pete was not the bloke who looked like he was about to fall over when he went to the podium, regardless of how long and hard was the race. Pete would probably
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I would far prefer to see cars built to regulations that will accommodate the best drivers, notjust the ones who will fit. not get a ride today. He would not be what sponsors are looking for. Talent sometimes get overridden by other factors. Which brings me to Nico Hulkenberg. As I write this, one of the sport’s brightest talents is struggling to get a Formula 1 seat worthy of his talents for 2014 because he is on the big side. Not the big side of the real world, in which he is average; he is on the big side for grand prix drivers, a crazy world in which Jenson Button has recently switched to a new racesuit that saves - get this -just over 100 grams in weight. Button is a triathlete of such capability that he is close in physiology to that sport's elite, which means by any standards, he is a skinny bugger. The coming generation of FI cars will feature more bells and more whistles than the current examples. Phrases such as 'Power Unit' will replace 'Engine' because of the proliferation of compound turbocharging, multiple Energy Recovery Systems and others toys attached to the 1.6-litre V6 engines. The weight of the technical package, inevitably, will be higher than that of the current 2.4-litre normally aspirated V8s. But the current FI cars are not heavier than the minimum weight limit. All of the cars are ballasted, some carrying more than 100kg of
ballast in optimum locations. The recent show of sparks from Nico Rosberg's Mercedes-Benz in Korea, when his nosecone was damaged, came not from the front wings scraping on the ground but the ballast mounted on the bottom of those wings doing just that. Mark Webber's Red Bull is not heavier than that of Sebastian Vettel but the Aussie's higher body weight means that his car can carry less ballast-therefore, Vettel's car can often have a slight edge in set-up. And that is what is mitigating against Hulkenberg, a driver who once put a Williams on pole in Brazil. Not a Williams like that of Pastor Maldonado, who took pole and then held out Fernando Alonso for the whole race to take his first GP win in Barcelona. The Hulk's Williams was so slow it was lapped in the race and he finished eighth. Yet in qualifying, he beat Vettel and Webber to pole by a second. That takes talent. The last thing I want is grand prix racing evolving into a sport only for jockey-sized drivers. I can put up with that in MotoGP but, in FI, I would far prefer to see cars built to regulations that will accommodate the best drivers, not just the ones who will fit. And I reckon that is what Pete Geoghegan would want to see too. motorsport news
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