P1 Issue 4 by P1 Magazine

Issue 4 • 2011

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e d itor’s notes

elcome to our new world. Well, new for us anyway... Yes, we have taken the giant step of going digital for the P1 magazine. It seems to be the way of the world as we surround ourselves with digital information. Within seconds we can read about the exploits of our motorsport heroes, and we get the news of our chosen favourite categories. Now, we can sit back and relax while reading a magazine. Sure, this may be difficult for some to come to grips with, given the fact that you can’t roll up a tablet computer and swat flies with it later, but the big picture is that while the magazine won’t be sitting on the coffee table at the local dentist anymore, it will certainly be spread to an audience further and wider than ever before. This means that motorsport will be getting the attention it deserves. Speaking of deserving – how good is it to see the GP2 and GP3 series’ taking off so well? “Outstandingly good” is my best answer. We’ve got two categories that show off some real talent, and the game to play is spot the next F1 superstar. It’s a difficult game due to their being so much good talent on show, but I have a couple of personal picks early on in the season – I won’t say who yet, it’s much easier to do the “I knew he’d make it” at the end of the season ;) I was a bit worried about the Formula One season to be quite honest. This is due to what I see as the strange factor. The adjustable spoiler on the rear, the quaint rules that surround it, and then the KERS as well – I, just like the teams seem to be – am still struggling to come to grips with it. Forgive me for being simplistic but why not just have a button on the steering wheel that electronically gives you a few more geegees of grunt for a limited amount of time with a maximum amount of uses per race. Hmmm let me think... oh yes A1GP... I know, due to the unknown entity of the engine manufacturers actual horsepower you can’t do the push button – but there must be a way? It is something I will ponder a lot and although you can’t be seen to copy someone else’s clever idea, it sure did work well. Maybe when F1 goes the 1.6 Turbo engines they could also put an HP limit on it, then the button idea would work. Hey, don’t lynch me; I’m just throwing some ideas out there... In saying all that, the position changes on track sure do seem to be occurring more than in recent years past, so maybe it’s a sweet thing and I’m barking up the wrong tree. Who knows, the fact is the racing itself is extremely watchable and that’s all we ask for as the chequered flag waves by.

the team editor in chief Ned Dawson Project Manager Cathy Horton Editor Craig Lord Deputy Editor Jacki Warnock Sub Editors Leigh Neil F1 Editor David Tremayne INDY CARS Jeremy Shaw CONTRIBUTING editor Elysia Pratt CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Ross Gibb Dirk Klynsmith Paul Carruthers Mark Horsborough Columnists Mitch Evans Alex Tagliani Proofreading Barbara McIntosh Graphic Design Dot Design Digital Edition Zinio Web Design Fuel Design

I do hope you enjoy our first fully digital issue of P1, please do drop by our forum p1forums.net or our Facebook page P1 Digital and take the time to share your thoughts. They are always appreciated. Till next time, Enjoy. And remember, Motor Racing is sport... everything else is just a game... Enjoy.

Sooty

EDITORIAL Kia Kaha Media PO Box 37 978, Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand PHONE +64 21 757 747 • FAX +64 9 528 3172 EMAIL info@kiakahamedia.com

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R egulars 8 Fresh with gp3 11 Behind the visor

contents 12 schumacher - pye juxtaposed forces

While Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button and Mark Webber have the sole focus of unseating World Champion Sebastian Vettel this year, the oldest and youngest members of the Mercedes family are on their mettle to deliver the goods.

22 F1 Check-up

Are things where they should be in the Formula One results to date? DT takes us through the season so far...

32 donington park dream

If anyone tries to create the argument that motorsport is boring, that it is simply a bunch of cars going round and round in circles, then in all honesty there is probably not a lot you can do to counteract that. Not because they are right, but because they probably don’t have an emotional nerve in their entire body...

40 down under traditions

Single Seater racing remains strong in New Zealand with the Toyota Racing Series at the top of the pile – however this is only due to the deep roots that were planted many decades ago...

50 Lucky seven

As we begin the 2011 GP2 Series Championship, back for its seventh running this year, we can reflect and learn from the previous Championships.

58 stepping up

After a very successful first season, the second year of the GP3 Series was always going to be highly anticipated.

72 A river runs through it

With the catastrophic events that recently took place in the northeast of the country still freshly etched in people’s minds, one could be forgiven for thinking the Golden Week season-opening SUPER GT race at Fuji Speedway, one of the fixtures on the Japanese racing calendar, would be a subdued affair.

92 down to the wire

The stakes were high but by holding his nerve Daniel Gaunt finally broke Craig Baird’s stranglehold on New Zealand’s Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge championship this season.

104 open for business

Winning a series title is usually no small feat. But taking out the just past 2010-11 GP2 Asia Series was a touch on the small side after the recent troubles in the Middle East saw the series shortened.

120 making his marque

The return of Carrera Cup down under has provided the best of international class – in engineering and driving – with Briton Ben Barker emerging as one of the stars.

Join the one forum that keeps you up to date with everything motor racing related. From the top level F1, NASCAR, Indy Cars and V8 Supercars to the Porsche GT3 series, German DTM, GP2 and GP3, Kiwi Toyota Racing Series and Pirelli Cup in California. The P1 Forum is the one stop networking forum that should be on your â&#x20AC;&#x153;Must Doâ&#x20AC;? list.

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s on Find u ok ! o b e c Fa

s on find u n! DI e k Lin

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Fresh with GP3 Mitch Evans is one of the fresher faces in the GP3 scene. He brings us his thoughts as he battles for motorsport glory.

ith Red Bull Formula One Driver Mark Webber being my mentor and manager I have been given the opportunity to compete in this year’s GP3 championship with MW Arden. MW Arden is a new team alliance between Red Bull Racing, Arden boss Christian Horner and Mark Webber. This opportunity is huge for my career and I can’t thank Mark enough for giving me this chance to see if I’ve got what it takes against the world best. The GP3 series is a young championship and started in 2010 as a support category of the European Formula 1 rounds. GP3 is two steps under Formula 1 and a feeder class to GP2. The Championship goes to 8 of the best tracks in Europe and with 30 of the best raising talents around the world competing against each other; it’s shaping up to be one of the most competitive classes in the world. Every car is identical, with the Engine development by Renault F1. The 4 cylinder 2 litre turbocharged beast punches out 280 hp @ 6500 rpm with acceleration figures of 0-100 km/h in 2.41 seconds and 0-200 km/h in 7.40 seconds. 10 teams were selected to supply 3 cars for each race so there are always 30 cars on the grid. GP3 had a spectacular first year and that has attracted more drivers to the series making it tougher for the drivers and the teams for 2011.

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Pre-season testing started in March at Paul Ricard in France. I was 4th fastest on day one - a great start! On the second and final day of testing we continued improving the car and my driving, and also I was coming to grips with the circuit, as I had never seen it before. We managed to secure some really good laps and finished up 2nd overall. I was not expecting this, as it was only the second time I had been in the car. We then headed to Silverstone where we had a 3-day test and we ended up 7th in day 1, 9th in day 2 and on day 3 we were 4th. For our last pre-season test we headed to Barcelona for another 3-day test. Day 1 we ended up 4th, day 2 10th and finished the last day 6th. Overall I was really happy with how testing went, but I soon realised how tough the competition is. I wasn’t expecting too much result wise from Round 1 in Turkey because I knew most of the other drivers – unlike myself - had been there before, and we only get two practice sessions before qualifying. Free Practice 1 was wet which is always interesting when trying to learn a track! I managed to end my first official test session in 5th. The sun decided to peak out for our second Free Practice and we got some dry track running. I put a decent lap together at the end of the session and finished 3rd fastest. I wasn’t

getting too excited, as we still had to put it together for qualifying for when it counted. With two sets of new tyres for qualifying, I made a mistake with my first set. After setting the fastest first and second sectors I got a lot of dead rubber on my tyres which generally takes at least 5 laps to fully scrub off. I was around P10 at this stage when I pitted for my second set. On my first flying lap I went to 3rd but I wasn’t happy with the tyres as the balance of the car had changed a lot without changing anything on the car. I could only manage 9th but then 7th as two competitors received penalties. I was hoping to have a clean race as points only go down to 8th position. I got a good start and made up a position. I was in 6th pressuring 5th but he was defending heavily. I made mistakes after a safety car and lost a position but got it back and finished my first race in 6th. I was pretty happy with that result. I started the second race from 3rd because it’s a reverse top 8 race. To be completely honest I wasn’t too confident heading in because I had a feeling there wasn’t something right with the tyres. I lost a position at the start but then got it back before we completed lap 1. About 5 laps into the race I started to get a lot

of over-steer, which means the rear end of the car becomes slippery/nervous and very hard to drive. This was the same feeling I had during qualifying. I started to lose a few positions, as the cars handling got worse. I had a massive vibration on the last lap and finished 7th. I was disappointed with the result for a few reasons, and I believe there was a massive amount of inconsistency within each set of tyres. Also I finished just out of the points because they only go down to 6th for race 2 instead of the normal 8th. I think we had a pretty solid first round, and it has given me a lot of confidence heading into the rest of the championship. The team did a great job and it was great to have some Kiwi supporters up there! It’s going to be an exciting year that’s for sure! I would like to thank Mark and Ann Neal for this opportunity they are giving me, the Giltrap family, Banklink and all the Club 5000 members for the amazing support. P1

Mitch To follow Mitch’s journey join his Facebook or Twitter pages and check mitchevans.com

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By Alex Tagliani

Behind the Visor

don’t want to presume that the readers of P1 know me, so as this will be my initial column, I feel a short selfintroduction is fitting.

Where better to begin than at the beginning… I started racing at the young age of 8 years whilst on an extended stay with my grandfather in Italy. Thanks to my grandfather, who at almost 90 years old was recently touted as the “the fastest grandfather in Italy” and although he is almost 90 years old is still competing and winning races in his home country! It began in Italy with go-karts at 8 years old and progressed eventually to formula ford and formula 2000, then Atlantics to CART and Champcar. For now, I have found my home in Indycar and this year will be my 3rd attempt at winning the Indy 500. At that event in 2009 I won the prestigious rookie of the year title with a 10th place finish and last year narrowly missed starting from pole position and again finished 10th. Let’s hope that this year, 3rd time is a charm!

started the weekend with some difficulties and struggled to find a good set up. A slow start is not a good thing as you lose valuable time that you just can’t afford to lose. But luckily the team rebounded and finally achieved a top 10 in qualifying. Times were close, but we were all just happy to have the car in the range of teams that had been fast from the start. Again in the warm up session on Sunday morning before the race, we were still making improvements and the car was getting faster. There’s never a dull moment on a race weekend; between time in the car and team meetings and appearances, we don’t have much downtime. This weekend was certainly no exception, but Bronte and I took time out after the busy day at the track on Friday to watch the Tampa Bay Lighting NHL home game. It was fitting as my friend Vinnie Lecavalier, captain of the Lightning and his wife Caroline came to watch the race on Sunday. We exchanged #4 jersey for my Indy 500 race suit, and

So it’s the start of the 2011 Indy car season, it’s been a really long winter and there is a buzz of excitement between everyone in our industry as the Indy 500 fast approaches. It has been nothing but blood, sweat and tears, sleepless nights and long hours at the office as everyone in our team has been working toward the common goal of improving everything we had last season. Amidst the rush of preparation for this current season, the team changed hands and Sam Schmidt Motorsports became the name above the door, though essentially its business as usual out in the race shop. This weekend we were in St Petersburg, Florida for the first race of the Indycar season. It’s the 3 days that so many of us in racing have been waiting over 6 long and arduous months for. Since the waving of the checkered flag in the final race of the 2010 season, the pressure and excitement of new challenges has built to this weekend. It’s a 3-day festival of speed at the Indycar race track, with two practices on Friday, a practice on Saturday morning, followed by qualifying in the afternoon and finally 100 laps of wheel-bumping, heart pumping adrenalin for the race on Sunday. Our team displayed real character in St Petersburg, as we

he took on the role of Grand Marshall making the “Gentlemen and Ladies start your engines” call. He also experienced what we do as a day job when he took a 2-seater Indycar ride with Mario Andretti at the wheel. As drivers starting a new season, we had a few new rules to get used to; the doublewide restarts being the most challenging, as it was evident during the race. I was involved in a collision on the second restart and although the car sustained suspension damage and I had injuries to my left hand, we continued to fight through to the finish in a race that became survival of the fittest. Overall the weekend ended on a good note, there were a lot of Bowers and Wilkins and Magnolia people in town to enjoy the race and the 6th place finish ahead of so many of the bigger teams was a positive way to end the first race of the season. P1

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ast year Michael Schumacher took some of the glitter off winning 92 Grands Prix and seven World Championships with a lacklustre and sometimes embarrassing return to F1 that the cynics, looking at the 42 year-old, dismissed as the midlife crisis of a man at a personal crossroads. That stung, however aloof Michael might have appeared, and he knows that a repeat of that form in 2011 will spell the end of his topline career. “My feeling is a good one,” he said before the opening race, following the highly promising final test in Barcelona. “The team has been working very hard over the winter to shape our car in all of the areas which had been identified by us as needing improvement. The data I had seen over the winter had been quite encouraging, but then we all know that the realities of data and the race track can be quite different. As a driver, you obviously hope for a good step forward and I think this is what we have achieved. “I am confident that we can compete for podium finishes, and I am hopeful we can fight for victories at some of the races. Saying that, we will only see the truth once the season gets underway, so I can hardly wait to go to Melbourne to finally see what the real picture is.” Meanwhile, a fan of Schumacher’s who was told at the age of 13 that he might never walk again, is preparing to follow in his wheeltracks, racing for Mercedes in Formula 3. Adelaide-born Scott Pye had won seven Australian kart titles, in Cadets and Juniors, when the car in which

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a friend was taking him home from a race meeting in 2003 hit a tree when the driver fell asleep at the wheel. He lapsed into a coma and awoke four days later. “I asked Dad if we could still race that weekend. It was Tuesday, but my mind still thought it was Friday. That was when the doctors started talking about amputating my left leg. Eventually they reconstructed 20 bones, but they said I would never race again. But that never sank in. I never took any notice, and that paid off for me. I became a lot more determined, after spending six months in a wheelchair and another four on crutches. “I guess it was a state of mind, like lots of things. Maybe I was naïve; I figured it was easy to walk before, so I’d just do it again.” Last year, aided by former F1 driver Perry McCarthy, 20 year-old Pye won the British Formula Ford

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Last year, aided by former F1 driver Perry McCarthy, 20 year-old Pye won the British Formula Ford Championship, after a recovery from that confounded those who underestimated his inner steel.

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Championship, after a recovery from that confounded those who underestimated his inner steel. McCarthy always sells hard, but Pye, a quiet but very impressive young man, lives up to his manager’s hype. A friend of Pye’s in Adelaide, Dave Hepworth, had been sent a copy of McCarthy’s hilarious and uplifting autobiography, Flat Out, Flat Broke, depicting the sort of adventures that make you laugh out loud on aeroplanes, by Briton Martin Hines, of Zip Karts fame. “He thought it would pick up my spirits, another story of a battle against the odds. It took me six months to read, because after the head injury it took me a long time to get my focus back. But Perry became the biggest inspiration. Hines heard about me and got in touch with Perry, who called me late in 2003 to wish me luck, and to tell me to stay in touch. We kept up the contact.” Pye was in a wheelchair for six months, on crutches

for four, but when he returned to karts in 2005 he won two more titles before showing strong promise in Australian Formula Ford. Eventually McCarthy helped him to do the Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch in October 2009, which is when they finally first met. It should have been a great moment, but it was still tinged with tragedy after Pye’s father Robert, the kingpin of his world, succumbed to lung cancer. “Racing was a passion I shared with my Dad, he was my foundation. It was a big step, just turned 19, to start looking after myself in racing. But Perry was there to talk to. When you meet your favourite celebrities they aren’t always what you expected. But when I did finally meet Perry, he was exactly like he was in the book, and a big help. He got me racing in the UK with Jamun, found me the budget, helped to make the switch a lot easier and taught me how to network. But it was a big jump.” Pye crashed at Brands with another upcomer, Josh Hill, son and grandson of world champions Damon and Graham, but it was a key event that paved the way to last year’s success and his subsequent graduation to the prestigious Cooper Tyres British F3 Championship which

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spawned famous racers such as Ayrton Senna, Johnny Herbert and Jan Magnussen, and in which McCarthy and Hill once raced. So far he’s looked fast in F3 testing with the Double R team formerly owned by World Champion Kimi Raikkonen, though he admits: “Ninety percent of the field are very quick, so it’s going to be a tough year. But the cars are fantastic to drive. Very different to Formula Fords.” He’s stoked that he’ll be racing at tracks such as Monza and Spa, but for practical rather than romantic reasons. He has his eyes set firmly on Formula One, so they’re tracks he’s keen to learn. “Formula One has always been my goal,” he says without preamble. “I think I can finish third in my first year in F3 as the first step towards that, but I want to do that by winning races not just on consistency.” McCarthy believes his protégé can go all the way, following Mark Webber in the big league. “It was a great compliment to be contacted by a young boy in hospital halfway across the world who was inspired by stories of what Damon, Martin Donnelly, myself and other members of the F3 Rat Pack got up to, as we struggled to get to F1. For a 13 year-old to have the nous to contact me from his hospital bed showed that he had sheer guts and determination to get back up. That really engaged me.

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am confident that we can compete for podium finishes, and I am hopeful we can fight for victories at some of the races.â&#x20AC;?

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“There’s something special about Scott, and I think that he has a really good chance to get to F1.” Coincidentally, given the juxtaposition of his and Schumacher’s careers this year, Pye has always been a big fan of the German. “I used to watch his battles with Damon, so it was strange to see Damon around in Formula Ford last year. I admire what Sir Jack Brabham achieved for Australia, but I’ve always really admired Michael.” Like the multiple World Champion, the 21 year-old has conquered adversity. “There’s nothing I’d change now,” he says philosophically. “Things happen for a reason and you need to prepare yourself for opportunities that come up. There are two ways to face situations: you can let yourself get down, or you can fight back. People ask me if I’m doing this for my Dad and I say no, but I am doing it with him.” Some of that sounds like Schumacher himself talking. But here’s what the legendary German actually says of his crucial hopes this year. “It feels very different. Last year everything was new again; the testing situation, the car, the team, the structures. It was very exciting but it was still something you had to find your way through. Now, one year later, I know much better which areas to work in. I am much more familiar with the team and we have a great group of very skilled and dedicated people. I enjoy what I do, I enjoy working with Mercedes, and I have never regretted my decision to return...” So which of them is more likely to achieve their goals in 2011, the megastar seeking rehabilitation, or the courageous kid seasoned beyond his tender years yet still only half his hero’s age? It’s hard to say, but you wouldn’t bet against either of them. P1

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Are things where they should be in the Formula One results to date? DT takes us through the season so far... story by David Tremayne Images courtesy McLaren, Red Bull Racing, Ferrari, Renault, Force India, AT&T Williams

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o what happened to everyone’s pre-season aspirations? What happened to the air of confidence that Fernando Alonso and Ferrari exuded going down to Melbourne for the opening race back in March? To Christian Horner’s quiet determination not to be complacent at Red Bull? Mercedes’ high expectation after what looked like a late-test breakthrough? And the cloud of despair over McLaren, after what could only be described as a dire winter test season? This disparity in technical performance highlighted the appeal of the sport and set the scene for another fascinating year of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship, in which five World Champions have been going at it head to head – Alonso, reigning title holder Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, and evergreen Michael Schumacher who was determined to exorcise the ghosts of an unconvincing comeback in 2010 by recapturing past glories.

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Nico Rosberg went Down Under determined to keep Schumacher under his thumb at Mercedes as he was throughout 2010, and seeking his first victory; Nick Heidfeld was likewise looking for the top step of the podium for the first time in a long career after Robert Kubica’s horrible rallying accident catapulted him from obscurity to the Pole’s vacated seat in the Renault team. Felipe Massa, bruised and battered in 2010, was determined to regain the form that took him so close to winning the 2008 title. Mark Webber, dead set on making amends for that Korean mistake which, arguably, cost him his title shot last year, envisaged giving Vettel a hard time all over again. And rookie Paul di Resta, carrying the hopes of Scotland, spoke quietly of challenging Force India team-mate Adrian Sutil from the start. As these words were written, Sebastian Vettel had won three of the first four races with insouciant ease, and finished second

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in the other after the team opted for a strategy that didn’t quite work. He had 93 points to Lewis Hamilton’s 59, and Red Bull had 148 to McLaren’s 105. Only the greatest optimist (or ostrich) in other teams would not admit that Adrian Newey’s RB7 is the class of the field yet again, with so much downforce that even when its KERS doesn’t work properly it can still win and set fastest laps. Webber was third, four points adrift of Hamilton, after a less happy time in a car that doesn’t fully suit his style in qualifying, though his race pace has been excellent as his fight from 18th to third in China demonstrated. Going to Melbourne, Button said that McLaren would be pleased if it left Australia as the third best team behind Red Bull and Ferrari, which shows you how much trouble it was in over the winter. But reversion to standard exhausts and floor wrought a dramatic turnaround that enabled Hamilton to grab a strong second place there. Ever since the McLarens have been

strong, with the 2008 World Champion taking a brilliant victory in China and Button running strongly there and in Malaysia, where he was second to Vettel. They dipped slightly in Turkey when planned upgrades could not be added due to problems in the production process, but they look like remaining Red Bull’s biggest threat in the immediate future. Ferrari fell flat on its face in Australia, and stayed there until a minor bodywork upgrade enabled Alonso to reach the final podium step behind the Red Bulls in Turkey. The 150th Italia lacks downforce and has never reproduced its testing form, and that result was the best as the Spaniard qualified fifth for all four races but was outraced by Massa in two of them. The Brazilian has regained his form but not his luck, and he and Alonso are desperately awaiting a big upgrade for Spain and another for Canada. But they have a long way to go to challenge Red Bull. So does Mercedes. The silver arrows made a jump in race pace in China, where

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Rosberg led twice before his tyres went off, and in qualifying in Turkey, where the race pace dipped. Rosberg is again the quicker runner there, and Schumacher’s race-craft has come in for further criticism, most notably in Turkey. Where Ferrari had 65 points, Mercedes had only 42. But that was better than Renault, on 28. The Anglo-French team began the year full of hope, even after Kubica’s accident. And Vitaly Petrov delivered with third place in Melbourne. When

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Heidfeld repeated that result in Malaysia, where the R31 proved to be a demon starter, the spirit was very high. But neither China nor Turkey enabled them to repeat that form, and thus far a car that some observers believed could have been a winner in Kubica’s hands early in the season is currently already in need of an update. In the midfield, Sauber, Force India and Toro Rosso have had moments of glory. The Swiss team had a brilliant start

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with seventh and eighth places in Australia until a rear wing infringement led to disqualification, but since then it has recovered strongly with points finishes in the other three races in a car that is clearly pretty handy. At Force India, di Resta has been sensational, outqualifying and outracing Sutil in the first three races and scoring points in the first two. He qualified eighth in China, where ironically he slipped out of the points in sight of the finish when his tyres were through, but his form has already led to suggestions that he could replace Schumacher at Mercedes in 2013. Toro Rosso also qualified well in China, only to fade in the race, but in Turkey Sebastien Buemi drove very forcefully and only lost seventh or eighth places to the Renaults in the closing stages when he was slowed by serious tyre vibrations. All three have done an awful lot better than Williams, which is a team in turmoil. The FW33 has been uncompetitive from the outset, and after the teams worst-ever start to a season technical director Sam Michael and aerodynamicist Jon Tomlinson tendered their resignations prior to Turkey. At the same time, to pacify shareholders after its recent flotation, the team announced that disgraced former McLaren designer 30

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Mike Coughlan, one of the two men at the heart of the 2007 ‘Spygate’ scandal, will take the role of chief designer. Results are expected. Lotus has closed the gap to the midfield teams with its T128, leaving Virgin to scrap with HRT at the back. The former was still in trouble in Turkey despite a major upgrade, while the latter has quietly impressed with a new look and a solid Geoff Willis/ Paul White-created car. Three significant factors have led to some spectacular racing: the deliberately short duration of Pirelli’s tyres, KERS, and the controversial Drag Reduction System (DRS) rear wings. The nature of Albert Park disguised the effect of the changes, but in Malaysia, China and Turkey we saw countless overtaking moves and multiple pit stops. Opinions are divided as to whether these are ‘Mickey Mouse’ manipulations, but they have certainly helped to spice up the action and to improve ‘The Show’. Like 2010, we are in for another bumper year. Right now, Red Bull will win unless they strike trouble or botch the strategy, but it’s still impossible to predict whether it will be McLaren, Ferrari or Mercedes following them home. And all three of them are doing everything they can to catch Vettel and Webber… P1

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Photos BY Mark Waller

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Defending champion Plato lived up to his historical namesake by having what you could call a philosophical weekend...

ometimes you could be forgiven for thinking that the anti-motorsport fraternity is correct. Ouch. But that is because there are races that will pass in and out of your motorsport conscious with not much affect on you. Races that are void of any overtaking or action, and subsequently become void of emotion. Races where you are sat trackside or at home, watching or reading about it later in the week, taking the results in as quickly as they will then leave your mind in place of what you are going to eat for dinner. Unfortunately race one for the second round of the British Touring Car Championship at Donington Park was like this. It is a shame that the only real noteworthy thing to happen was that the pole sitter, Honda Racing’s Matt Neal, was beaten off the line by Triple Eight Racing’s young gun James Nash. Neal soon regained his position and led for the remainder of the 16 lap race. Sigh, it was simple, clean, easy racing, nothing out of the

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ordinary to have you talking about the race at any stage in the future. Oh one shouldn’t forget that Andrew Jordan claimed second in his TOCA-engined Vauxhall Vectra for the independent Pirtek Racing, with Neal’s team mate Gorden Sheddon taking third before receiving a technical infringement penalty, relegating him to the back of the field for the next race, moving Nash up a position. So by now you have a few thoughts in your head. Maybe one of those thoughts is along the line of “Ok, so far this story teller has managed to make this round a miserable experience....” but please wait, because that so-so racing account needed to be told so that the next race could be put into better context. You see the second race of the weekend could not have been more different, and it lets you realise that those anti-racers are only right for a miniscule amount of time – such a small amount in fact that you can push them back under their rocks for another few months. This second outing was the type of race that had the trackside motorsport faithful standing up from their vantage

points, craning their necks in desperation to see more of the action. And it all started from the opening lap of what was going to be a race weekend to remember. Defending British Touring Car Champion, Jason Plato was sent flying off of the circuit at approximately 120mph before he made contact with the barrier and rolled three times. His Silverline Chevrolet Cruze appeared to be a right-off and it looked as if his weekend was easily done. While the round had taken a turn for the worse for the 43 year old two-time BTCC champion, things could not have been more different for Jordan, who took the victory in race two; his first win coming from a non reverse grid start, and it was this win that added to the racing spectacle overall. The emotion of the situation was not lost on 21 year old Jordan, who was overwhelmed by the excitement of the moment. Come podium time he picked up his trophy and jumped onto the top step – before the silverware could even be presented to him.

To understand the enormity of this result for Jordan and the Pirtek Racing crew, you need to understand where they are coming from. In an industry where money talks, where the backing of a major car manufacturer can usually guarantee consistently good results, it is the independently run teams and the family organisations that are usually relegated to the back or middle of the field. This of course is not because they don’t match in terms of driver talent or passion, but because their cheque books aren’t quite as large. Jordan’s team fits this description perfectly as it is owned by his father Mike. Before Donington Park, Andrew had only managed two wins in the 2010 season, both from reverse grid races. While no one in motorsport will turn their noses up at a win, winning from a reverse grid where you start from a position you may not feel has been 100% earned, is always a little tainted. The fans and other teams in the field will always have a doubt that you could achieve a win for real, that you couldn’t get up there off of your own bat.

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A win is a win no matter what transpires to get it.

p1 magazine

BTCC like every other code has its ‘on’ moments and ‘off’ moments.

Jordan’s first win is something he shall never forget.

Well this time he did – no, they did – together as a team. Not only did he manage to win race two, Jordan also secured second from race three, making him the highest point scorer of the weekend and giving Pirtek Racing the Team Trophy for the first time. The icing on the cake for the 21 year old is that he is now in the championship hunt for 2011; it’s an opportunity that a father and son could have only once dreamed about but is now their reality. Race three wasn’t just the culmination of an outstanding weekend for Pirtek Racing, but also the proof that even the larger, more financially flushed and well established teams can show a bit of heart and emotion when it comes to racing in the British Touring Car Championship. By this I am talking about one of the big names in the game, Jason Plato, who after thinking his weekend was over, that his hopes of a back to back title grab had taken a beating and that his Silverline Chevrolet Cruze was a £250,000 write off, had gridded up with the rest of the field. Now, this may not sound like anything sort of spectacular or out of the ordinary, but when the two time BTCC champion found out he was going to be able to take part in the final race of the

day he shed a tear or two. A man who has had more than his fair share of success, who flies to the races by helicopter, drives for a team with BTCC and WTCC crowns and is arguably the best outfit in the paddock. Yet he still loves this sport so much, and appreciates the efforts of his team to such an extent that he was emotionally moved by the situation. This shows that even behind all the money and success, there is still a passionate, emotional and grateful human being. That said it would have been difficult to not be moved by what his team had accomplished. The RML squad put his Cruze back together in a matter of hours between races, which on its own would have been an amazing show of solidarity and hard work. On top of that, this feat was with the help of two of the teams mechanics who were at the track simply to watch the racing but after witnessing the crash first hand and seeing their champion driver roll through the air and walk away uninjured, ran to the teams garage to roll their sleeves up and pitch in any way they could. This shows that they aren’t all there for the pay cheque alone, that they aren’t just turning up and going through the

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Platoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s crew were nothing short of sensational.

BTCC has a great fan base.

Typical saloon car paint trade.

p1 magazine

Collard in surprisingly one of only three BMW’s in the field.

Gilham is part of the 888 Racing clan.

motions while completing the minimum required of them to keep their job. It proves that this sport is more than the business deals and silverware. It is about the people, about belonging to and working as a team, in sharing in successes and pulling together even tighter in the hard times, regardless of which end of the field you are coming from. Inside the independent teams no one would ever doubt that they have soul and that everyone involved is doing it for almost righteous reasons. These reasons of course are not money and success but the passion of racing and the want to be competitive. When it comes to the larger teams the assumption often is that the soul may be missing, that those working there are only there for the money and success. And yes, while business may have a hand in creating that scenario, it doesn’t mean that the racing doesn’t transcend into something deeper for them all. Independent teams may not be seen to be as a big threat to the well backed teams, but if anything the BTCC round at Donington Park disproved that. What it also did was prove that the ‘little guy’ can come up and snatch the wins when you least expect it, flexing their championship muscle while the most successful and wealthy of the teams can show emotion and spirit to rival anyone. The trick is never to assume you know what is going to happen, because as soon as you do, something will happen to turn everything you thought you knew on its head.

That is the beauty of this game, just when you expect the racing is going to be a procession with the same winners round after round, or the opening race kicks off as a yawn fest, a complete race weekend like Donington happens. It gives you faith that you are right in buying that ticket to the next round, to picking up that piece of merchandise for your mates’ birthday or sitting back on the lounger to relive the moment over and over again from the archived pages of the magazine. P1

this sport is more than the business deals and silverware. It is about the people, about belonging to and working as a team, in sharing in successes and pulling together even tighter in the hard times.

issue 4

Single Seater racing remains strong in New Zealand with the Toyota Racing Series at the top of the pile â&#x20AC;&#x201C; however this is only due to the deep roots that were planted many decades ago... story by Brian Kelly & Lindsay Kerr photos by Bruce Jenkins

Scott Pye from Australia kitting up for yet another motorsport challenge

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Nick Cassidy is one of the local stars.

hile Saloon Car racing is alive and well in New Zealand, it is a nation where the Open Wheel fraternity has had a heavy presence for many, many years. Over the last seven seasons there has been a new boy on the block called the Toyota Racing Series (TRS), and it has, to be fair, struggled to find its own path. But things have now changed for the better, because the recently completed season has been the best so far from its short history. In stark contrast, Australia, which is the closest motorsport neighbour to NZ, has a major point in difference. It has a much stronger force in saloon car racing – particularly with the V8 Supercar Series that certainly reigns supreme. They too, like all motorsport nations, do have the open wheelers – yet while Formula 3 and Formula Ford are relatively strong in numbers, they are in reality for the most, only a stepping stone for a V8 Supercar career. There are of course exceptions with names like Mark Webber and IRL drivers Will Power and Ryan Briscoe pursuing the single seater vision, but for the majority of the graduates of open wheelers in Australia, V8 Supercars tend to be their advancement. This is where the TRS category is somewhat different and it gives the small nation of New Zealand a bite of the big international motorsport pie. Not only has it become a series that has worldwide recognition as a serious entry level to the big international codes, it has something extra that none of the other classes from either side of the Tasman Sea offers – saloon or open wheeler – and that is the calibre of drivers that come from overseas to compete, and not just for one-off races but a whole season. This fact was really brought to the forefront over the 2011

p1 magazine

season, as it was the best line up ever seen – In fact it was reminiscent of the Formula Atlantic days of the 1980’s. The foundation of New Zealand motor racing is based on single seater’s and in the 1950’s when all was quiet in European Winters; drivers were attracted to New Zealand (and also Australia) for the summer competitions. The 50’s saw names like Peter Whitehead, Reg Parnell, Stuart Lewis Evans and Ron Flockhart arrive from Great Britain. In the latter years Australian Jack Brabham also put his stamp on proceedings. In the 60’s this momentum gathered pace and a formalised Tasman series bringing the best from Europe like Stirling Moss, John Surtees, Innes Ireland, Jackie Stewart, Jim Clark, Jochen Rindt and Graham Hill joining the party at various times. Brabham was around, along with local New Zealand heroes Bruce McLaren, Denny Hulme and Chris Amon. By the 70’s racing in Europe and Formula One was becoming serious business and the stars were forced to stay closer to home to prepare for the season ahead. This resulted in the advent of the thundering and also extremely popular Formula 5000’s. While an accepted category in both the United Kingdom and the USA, the fields down under mainly consisted of New Zealanders and Australians. The formula’s life span was only seven years with unreliability and costs overwhelming many. (Ironically the revival series which started some five years ago is seeing fields bigger than in the 70’s.) Formula Atlantic (1600 Ford and Toyota engines) took over the premier billing and with this came the start of a scenario that exists and is promoted with the Toyota Racing Series. This involves the attraction of the overseas competitors, all of

Equality in cars ensures itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the driver and team on show.

Former F1 Champion Damon Hill with Jnr.

The 2011 International TRS Tribe. Australiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Nick Foster works hard to control the #13.

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European Superstar â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Russiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Daniil Kvyat.

While saloon car racing is also strong in New Zealand, the Toyota Racing Series is the latest championship of its kind to attract serious international competition to the country.

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Young line-up yes, but incapable no... Mitch Evans has quickly become one of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s newest stars.

whom use the series to expand and build their skills for higher competition in Europe and the USA. Keke Rosberg was one of the first European drivers to taste competition down under. Those from the American continent came in healthy numbers with the first being Bobby Rahal. Others of note included Davy Jones, Roberto Moreno, Paul Tracy, Ross Cheever, and Dean Hall. Life for the Atlantics came to an end in the late 1980â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and

was replaced by the Australian Formula Brabham category utilising the Holden V6 3 litre engine. The Formula was taken on in New Zealand with costs again one of the biggest considerations. The championship format for the Brabhamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s was essentially the same, but the fields in the main were confined to New Zealanders and Australians. By 1995 though saloon car racing in Australia was making big yards with both sponsors and spectators, so the class began

issue 4

Kvyat has pressure as a Junior Red Bull driver to consistently place.

A moment of concentration for Damon Leitch.

Even for the highly capable things can go awry.

p1 magazine

Sakurai from Japan learnt plenty

Scott Dixon used the development classes downunder to get where he is today – this is the level that many of the TRS graduates will strive to achieve.

to die. For New Zealand that meant only Formula Ford and Formula First were to be the single seater categories in New Zealand to have a national championship. In spite of only offering Formula Ford racing, the attraction of racing in New Zealand in its summer months still bought a string of overseas competitors. This included American journalist Jeremy Shaw who bought his scholarship winners to New Zealand for three years as opposed to Europe. Formula Ford racing remained strong and its days as the premier class lasted until 2005 when a former local Formula Atlantic driver Barrie Thomlinson introduced the Toyota Racing Series category. Single seater racing in New Zealand like everywhere else can be compared to a schooling system. You start your school days at kindergarten and as a youngster in Motorsport you start with Karting. You then graduate to Formula First or maybe Formula Ford which you compare with Primary and Intermediate School and then finish off with the TRS and that’s Secondary School. Some drivers do take the same course as many Australians and change tack by seeking out a saloon car drive, whether it is in the New Zealand V8 championship or the Porsche GT3 series, or even the internationally acclaimed Australian V8 Supercars. The most notable of the NZ drivers to do so are Greg Murphy, Craig Baird and Shane Van Gisbergen. In recent years the New Zealanders who have made big strides in a single seater include Scott Dixon the 2009 Indy 500 winner and 2003 and 09 IRL champion, Ritchie Stanaway – German F3 championship, Mitch Cunningham – Indy Lights,

and Brendon Hartley, Red Bull development. All but Dixon used the TRS to take them to the next level while Dixon left New Zealand for the USA after winning the international Formula Brabham series. So, with such a rich background in single seater development racing in NZ, it was inevitable that the TRS category would be able to grow as a suitable stomping ground for those from overseas that have star potential. The just completed TRS season fostered five nations including New Zealand, with the other four made up from the United Kingdom, Russia, Japan and Australia. Heading the New Zealand contingent was defending TRS champion 16 year old Mitch Evans from Auckland. For Evans the season was a benchmark to see if he could match it with the hotshots from Europe, a contingent that had another 16 year old in Russian Danil Kyvatt, who is the current Red Bull Junior driver and ex European Karting star. Another of the flying pace setters was 17 year old Alex Lynn from Essex in England, who came as the new Renault English Winter Cup series champion. Then, out to show the Kiwis and the Europeans that the Aussies had talent too was the 2009 TRS winner 20 year old Scott Pye – who had also won the 2010 British Formula Ford Championship. Adding much to the international flavour this year was Josh Hill, the son of 1996 Formula One World Champion Damon Hill and Grandson of 1962 and 1968 Formula One World champion Graham Hill. The youngest Hill was an unknown package although he apparently had recorded some impressive results in the UK.

issue 4

The foundation of New Zealand motor racing is based on single seater’s and in the 1950’s when all was quiet in European Winters; drivers were attracted to New Zealand for the Summer competition.

The proudly displayed British flag reminds all of the international flavour that TRS provides.

Having him here with his father gave the series a fair bit of extra media attention and naturally, many were expecting big things from someone with the DNA lineage that Josh carries. Unfortunately his early performances did little to create any excitement although his results did improve over the latter rounds. Along with the internationals were of course the homegrown New Zealanders. Apart from Evans there was Jamie McNee, Nick Cassidy, Alistair Wootten and a young rookie Damon Leitch. All of the drivers had backgrounds in the smaller 48

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step-up classes of motorsport, and while the TRS series might also be classed as a step-up series, it is an almighty powerful one. Arguably TRS could be classed as the strongest Australasian testing ground for the bigger international games that these drivers wish to head too. The two South Island Rounds at the beginning of January (Teretonga and Timaru) are the first dates on the FIA’s new year calendar so there was a great deal of interest in just how the young Kiwis would stack up against the overseas contingent. For the record the 2011 TRS over its 5 Rounds turned

out to be a battle of the Kiwi stars. Defending TRS Champion Mitch Evans was determined to show the impressive overseas line up that he was the man to beat, and at Teretonga he came out the winner. At the end of the 5 Round series that took the TRS Cars from the South Island to Manfeild, Hampton Downs and Taupo in the North Island, it was Evans that proved too good by winning his second Toyota Racing Series title finishing ahead of fellow Kiwis Nick Cassidy and Jamie McNee. The top overseas driver was Australian Scott Pye who finished 4th overall.

It seems though, that TRS has finally made its play on the international motorsport calendar. The overseas competitors had seat time during their off-season, and combined, all the drivers had the rare chance to face-off against other drivers from other nations, something that is rare in a development capacity until you reach the levels of GP3 and GP2. That face-off is what will allow the TRS system to continue as drivers from around the world start to see the potential of travelling around the globe to become part of the downunder traditions. P1

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Mikhail Aleshin had a shocking start to the season crashing out in qualifying at Turkeyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s GP season opener.

As we begin the 2011 GP2 Series Championship, back for its seventh running this year, we can reflect and learn from the previous Championships. More recently, the much shortened 2010-11 GP2 Asia series and testing has helped to understand and predict what we may see on track this season from the talented field assembled. story by Jacki Warnock photos by ned dawson

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52 Gonzalez p1 magazine Rodolfo at the Asia Series round of Abu Dhabi Yas Marina.

Lotus ART is a team with high F1 expectations.

ith the addition of two new teams in Carlin and Team Air Asia, the field now sees 13 teams taking part in the 18 race championship, spanning from Istanbul to Monza supporting its big brother Formula One through most of their European races. At the front of the field you have the teams everyone wants to beat, and Lotus ART are more than likely the first one at the top of that list. With a long history of current F1 racers on their books, the team is touted by some as an “F1 team in waiting”. Jules Bianchi joins them for his second season, looking to establish himself towards the top of the results on a more regular basis. With his mixture of talent, the management of Nicholas Todt and having the honour of being a Ferrari protégé he will be one to watch. Current GP3 Champion and rookie Esteban Gutierrez joins Bianchi and should be mixing it up well with those who have a season or two of experience on him. French outfit DAMS are hoping to see the results they are capable of but have so far eluded them, with the current 2010-11 GP2 Asia Series Champion Romain Grosjean joining them full time for the season, who has also previously won the Auto GP title for the team. Joining him will be Paul Varhaug, making the logical move from the GP3 stepper series. He experienced some glory at the beginning of the 2010 GP3 season last year, winning in Spain, but has been off the pace of his much more experienced team mate in Grosjean in testing and in GP2 Asia this year. Next on the list are Barwa Addax who have produced the previous two runners-up in the drivers’ championship, Vitaly Petrov in 2009 and Sergio Perez in 2010, both of whom have now moved into Formula One. This year sees Giedo van der Garde return for what could be his last chance at proving himself in GP2, with Charles Pic joining him for his second season after beginning in 2010 which saw him achieve a win in Spain. With what would be perhaps its strongest line up in recent years, iSport is looking to make 2011 their most successful year to date. Sam Bird is joined by Marcus Ericsson who both left other

GP2 teams, ART and Super Nova respectively, to join iSport for their second season in the series. Ericsson is the 2009 Japanese Formula 3 champion, achieving this title after just one season in the championship, while Bird, who tested for Mercedes F1 last winter, showed incredible speed in 2010 despite being besieged by more than his fair share of bad luck. Breathing down the necks of these big guys are the likes of Italian outfit Rapax, who took the title last year with Pastor Maldonado at the wheel. With a new driver line-up for 2011 they are sure to still be strong, albeit, not as unbeatable as they have been in the past. Fabio Leimer joins them for his second year in GP2, while rookie, Columbian Julian Leal will buckle up beside him. A former Formula Masters champion, Leimer won the first sprint race in 2010 but was unable to capitalise on that success for the remainder of the season. Leimer also has a title under his belt, grabbing the 2008 Italian Formula 3000 crown albeit not under ideal circumstances after his main rival failed to finish the final two races and never winning a race himself. This showed

issue 4

The DAMS team has vast experience.

Like all controlled classes GP2 is a close contest.

Fabio Leimer, part of the RAPAX team.

p1 magazine

Team ARDEN and Jolyon Palmer.

that consistency is sometimes the key to a championship win, perhaps not the most glamorous or respected way to do it, but a way none the less. He will be hoping some consistency in the 2011 GP2 series will help deliver the team the stellar results they are used too. Closely behind in the middle of the field is Arden International. Started by current Red Bull Racing team Principal Christian Horner, Arden is now looking to gain back some of the success they experienced when the team first started back in the Formula 3000 days. While they are yet to win a GP2 championship, the team has enjoyed some success, with Heikki Kovalainen winning five rounds for them back in 2005, and Sebastien Buemi finishing sixth overall in the 2008 series, their new driver line up of Josef Kral and Jolyon Palmer are hoping to improve on these. Palmer, the son of former F1 racer Jonathon Palmer and runner up in F2 last year, has racing in his blood, while Kral, who missed half of the 2010 season after a bad accident in Valencia, should be the stronger of the two. Consistency will be the key for Racing Engineering who will be the only team to grid up in 2011 with the same driver pairing as last year; a move that they are hoping will pay off. Knowledge of

how a driver prefers the car to be set up and how everyone works together as a team is invaluable in a category where the cars are so evenly matched, the people are the ones who will really make all the difference. Dani Clos and Christian Vietoris have both won races and are regarded as two of the most promising drivers in the category. Clos had an incredible start to 2010 with a win in Turkey followed by three podiums at the next three races, ending the season in fourth overall, a result that could have been better had his success not dropped off mid season. As if GP2 wasn’t a big enough commitment in itself, teammate Vietoris will also be taking part in the DTM championship while looking to continue his winning momentum, which saw him take the final sprint race in Monza last year. With one of Renault’s test drivers behind the wheel in Fairuz Fauzy, Super Nova are looking to get back some of the success, like Arden, that they enjoyed in the Formula 3000 days. It won’t be an easy year for Fauzy however, after a year out of the driving seat, he will need to get back on his game as quickly as possible and translate his skill demonstrated in the2009 World Series by Renault season, where he finished runner up in the driver’s championship.

Spaniard Dani Clos drives for his home country RACING ENGINEERING team.

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Team SUPER NOVA cringe as their drivers become too close for comfort.

p1 magazine

Stefano Coletti from Monaco has ambition to drive the home track in F1.

Everyone loves a good under-dog and the GP2 field isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t short of those either. Trident, Ocean Racing and Coloni will struggle to mix it with the bigger guys in the category but donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t discount them for lack of trying. Trident driver Stefano Coletti managed to win a sprint race Abu Dhabi during the recent GP2 Asia series before finishing fourth overall. Ocean Racing suffered the fate that no team wishes to endure, finishing last in the 2010 championship. Johnny Cecotto Jnr and Kevin Mirocha will be teaming up to try and lift the team in the standings. If Cecotto Jnr, son of motorcycle champion and F1 racer Cecotto Snr, can keep himself out of trouble and improve on his showing in Monaco last year, the season could be positive. Mirocha on the other hand has a lot to learn and a lot to prove after having only really competed in a part Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup last year. To make things even more interesting there is the addition of the two new teams in Carlin and Team Air Asia. While they may be new to GP2, Carlin is no stranger to success, having dominated in British F3 and winning the Formula Renault 3.5 title recently. It is only a matter of time, perhaps a season or two, and with the likes of Max Chilton on board teamed with solid knowledge of the circuits, they will start to achieve similar results in GP2. Team Air Asia, though also new, have two of the more experienced drivers in the GP2 paddock with Davide Valsecchi and Luiz Razia joining them for their 2011 assault on the

championship. The former having 55 starts and the 2009-10 GP2 Asia series title under his belt, the latter having the ability to place himself on pole and to win from there. It could go either way for the team but they are certainly one to watch. Where they each come from, and where they each could head is the wonderful unknown that keeps motorsport as a great spectacle. P1

Team OCEAN RACING TECHNOLOGY will do everything to not finish last again.

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After a very successful first season, the second year of the GP3 Series was always going to be highly anticipated. story by Jacki Warnock photos by Ned Dawson & GP3 Media

issue 4 59 the Nigel Melker on starting grid.

Matias60 Lainep1contemplates magazine the laps ahead.

Tamas Pal Kiss in front of Jenzer Motorsport’s Vittorio Ghirelli

fter the pre season testing everyone was eager to get on the track for real and see how the drivers, old and new, would go, what the racing would be like and if it would continue to be a strong support to its ‘big brother’ category, the GP2 Series. If the first round in Istanbul, Turkey is anything to go by, we are in for an exciting and action packed year. To allow the new drivers and teams more time to get on track experience, some never having driven at Istanbul Park before, there were two practice sessions held on Friday, one early in the morning, the other, much later in the afternoon. This meant the teams had a lot of down time between the two sessions but also allowed them to gather information and test their strategies with different set ups to suit the changing track conditions from a wet and windy morning to a fine but cool afternoon. Drivers swapped fastest times during the session as quickly as school boys’ trade cards. With the advantage of having competed in the series last year, Rio Haryanto from Marussia Manor Racing was first out and on top of the times early. Despite the difficult conditions, it was a GP3 rookie in Valtteri Bottas who ended the session with the quickest time. Joining him in the top five were fellow rookies Luciano Bachetta who was third quickest and MW Ardens Mitch Evans in fifth. The 16 year old Kiwi later said he felt he could have gone even better than top five in his debut at the circuit: “Once I got to grips with the track I was able to find the limits and started to push a bit harder. I finished the session 5th which I was really happy with. My next lap I was 0.6 up on my best but a yellow flag in the last sector meant I had to slow down and that was the end of the session.” The second practice session saw results that would have kept the management at MW Arden very happy with their drivers, as Lewis Williamson and Evans both finished in the top three, second and third quickest respectively. Both were unable to catch RSC Mucke’s Nigel Melker, who, upon returning to GP3 for the second year, stayed on top for much of the session. A red flag caused by Marlon Stockinger spinning disrupted the session which saw one single second separate the top 22 at the end of the 30 minutes. Evans was again happy

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Kiwi Dominic Storey ducks up the inside of MW Ardenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lewis Williamson.

Mitch Evanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s father Owen walks to the starting grid with Scottish racer Lewis Williamson. Willi Steindl and Nick Yelloly battle on the track at Istanbul.

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Ivan Lukashevich and team mates waiting to head out for the start of Race 1.

If the first round in Istanbul, Turkey is anything to go by, we are in for an exciting and action packed year. Kiwi GP3 Rookie Mitch Evans

with his progress at Istanbul Park. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I managed to make the most of the available grip I had to move myself from 12th or 3rd only 0.05 from 1st. This I was really happy with since the other drivers did their time when their tyres were better at the start of the session. I will have to make sure I get some clear air in qualifying because it seems to be a vital to get clear laps to get the maximum out of everything.â&#x20AC;? It was yet another rookies turn to impress in the qualifying session for race one. Carlinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tom Dillmann came out on top of what was a hard fought and nail bitingly close session under the sunny blue skies at Istanbul Park. The quickest times were constantly bettered and when the field changed to new tyres half way through the 30 minute session it all went into overdrive. Melker looked to be in fine form, taking the quickest time with ten minutes to go, following on from his strong showing in practice on Friday. For a few minutes it looked like MW Arden were going to have a top three for two of their drivers again, as Williamson went quickest and Evans slipped into third. Sims soon spoiled the party going even quicker, before Dillmann nabbed pole from his clutches in the dying seconds. For a while it looked as if the top three were going to

issue 4

p1 magazine

MW Arden has fielded a good team in 2011 including kiwi sensation Mitch Evans.

Andrea Caldarelli, (ITA, Tech 1 Racing). leads Valtteri Bottas, (FIN, Lotus ART).

If the first round in Istanbul, Turkey is anything to go by, we are in for an exciting and action packed year. Heikki Kovalainen, Lotus T128 Renault watches Valtteri Bottas, (FIN, Lotus ART) in the pits.

be the Frenchman followed by Sims and Williamson but that all soon changed when penalties were handed out. Sims went outside of track limits on his quickest lap and his punishment saw him sent back to 12th, while Williamson was penalised twice for crossing the white line at pit exit, relegating him back to 9th. The mood may have been a little disappointed in their garages but it couldn’t have been more different for Dillmann who was very happy with his performance. “I am very happy. We struggled a little bit in the second practice session yesterday, but we made a few changes overnight and this morning I adapted my driving style slightly. I tried not to push too hard and stress the tyres, but I was really surprised when I went quicker. I did the same again on the next lap and that was as quick again. I am very happy. We haven’t always been at the top in testing, but it’s qualifying that matters.” The scene was set for a stellar race one. The penalised drivers eager to gain their positions back and rookies wanting to prove they had what it takes to impress their team managers while those who had been at Istanbul Park last year in GP3 ready to show what they had learned. Things didn’t go quite to plan for pole sitter Dillmann who had a start he would

issue 4

Rio Haryanto on the starting grid

The GP3 field gets underway at the start of Race 2 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Dominic Storey joined the Addax team for the 2011 season.

p1 magazine

James Calantoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s distinctive looking GP3 ride.

issue 4

速

PERFORMANCE COOLANTS

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rather forget, allowing Andrea Caldarelli and Melker to gain position off the line. He narrowly hung onto third while being challenged by Bottas of Lotus ART. Melkerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s consistent pace over the weekend again shone, the Dutchman had taken the lead by the end of lap one, a position that was still his by race end, seeing him take his first GP3 Series win. Williamson dropped down the order, spinning after an attempted overtaking move which later saw him having to battle with Leonardo Cordeiro down the order. This ended in the two touching wheels, spinning and the former rolling upon hitting the gravel trap and landing on his roof, deploying the safety car. The bad luck continued when Adrian Quaife-Hobbs was handed a drive through penalty for having personnel on the grid at the beginning of the race. Once the race restarted, Melker stayed in control of his lead despite the best efforts of Caldarelli trying to rein him in to get past. A similar battle between Bottas and Dillmann took place but positions remained unchanged while with one and half laps left, Sims locked up allowing Evans to eventually pass and secure sixth in his first Alexander Sims had a good weekend in Turkey.

The second 15 lap race of the weekend on Sunday had Sims leading from pole and making the race his own from the get go, even setting the fastest time on lap six.

Each team fields three cars with RSC Mucke Motorsport shown here.

Lewis Williamson clambers out of his upturned car after a moment on the Istanbul Park circuit.

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race, pleased with his maiden effort. “The aim was to get a clean start and first lap. We managed to do this which was good and moved up to 6th off the start... I was really happy with how my first race went as I didn’t know what to expect. I now start Race 2 off 3rd because of the reverse top 8 format” Smith looked certain to start on pole for the reverse grid for the top 8 in Race 2 but running wide on the final lap cost him the chance, keeping him in ninth and handing Sims pole for the second 15 lap race of the weekend on Sunday. It was a position that Sims relished, leading from pole and making the race his own from the get go, even setting the fastest time on lap six. Felix Da Costa also enjoyed an incredible start, shooting from fourth to second, while Melker started a charge through the field. The 20 year old made it past Tech 1 Racing’s Caldarelli after a short battle for sixth and was soon handed fifth as Bottas began to struggle and lost three places in a matter of minutes as Smith also made his way through. For a while it looked as if Status Grand Prix were going to enjoy a much coveted one two finish in Race 2 but it was not meant to be when Da Costa ran wide and allowed the Mucke twins of Christensen and Melker through for second and third respectively. With his double podium Melker will lead the championship going into the second round at Istanbul, 3 points ahead of Caldarelli. P1

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With the catastrophic events that recently took place in the northeast of the country still freshly etched in peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s minds, one could be forgiven for thinking the Golden Week season-opening SUPER GT race at Fuji Speedway, one of the fixtures on the Japanese racing calendar, would be a subdued affair. story & photos by Len Clarke

Benoit Treluyer muscles Joao issue 4 past73 Paolo de Oliveira for the lead at Turn 1.

Triple GT300 champion Tetsuya Yamano moved from 10th up to 4th in the opening stages.

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he Japanese, as we have all seen through broadcasts beamed around the globe, are a stoic and resilient bunch. While there is a time for grieving, for loss and sorrow, there is also a time to put the past behind and to focus on the present and the future. The country has experienced a horrible loss, one that is, even now, still being calculated – and something that will remain at the forefront of the national consciousness for many years. The Great East Japan Earthquake, as it is officially known, has affected the lives of everyone on these islands, both Japanese and foreign. Series’ organizers the GT-A and the teams are to be commended for their efforts to contribute to those in the affected areas, bringing truckloads of food, blankets and other vital goods to the stricken towns on the coast. In addition, all rounds this season, renamed “Great East Japan Earthquake Reconstruction Aid Event” will donate part of

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Slick track conditions meant contact was inevitable as rain pounded the circuit.

their revenues to helping those in need, while all participating cars will have Gambaro! Nippon (Let’s Stay Strong, Japan!) adorned across their windshields. Against this somber backdrop, the nation’s most popular motorsport series got off to a late start due to its scheduled opening round at Okayama being postponed. The FUJI GT 400KM RACE was therefore the first chance since the disasters for the teams, drivers, cars and fans to congregate. As can be expected with any new season, there was a raft of changes to be scrutinized: new cars, new teams, new drivers and new rules. One of the major developments for 2011 was the number of new machines contesting the series. More than ever, FIA 76

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GT3-spec cars are making their presence felt in the GT300 class, with entries from Ferrari (458GTC), BMW (Z4 GT3), and General Motors’ Chevrolet Corvette Z06R GT3 running alongside the more familiar GT3 R and GT3 RSR offerings from Porsche. For the privateer teams, the GT3 option is becoming ever more popular. This is a trend that is set to continue in 2012 when stalwarts that include the British-built Vemac 320R and 350R, and Japanese specials from Shiden and Garaiya will no longer be allowed. The owner of the Mooncraft Shiden is rumoured to have already ordered his McLaren 12C GT3 in expectation of this move. Can we expect one or more of Mercedes-Benz’s SLS AMG GT3 entries as well? Other machines currently in the GT300 category include the

The campaign girls create a lot of attention wherever they go. Pole-sitter Hiroaki Ishiura greets a young fan during the immensely popular Kidsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Pit Walk.

Many fans showed their support for the victims of the recent events up north with banners and flags.

Despite the soggy conditions, 36,000 fans gathered for the belated start to the SUPER GT season.

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The Japanese, as we have all seen through broadcasts beamed around the globe, are a stoic and resilient bunch.

GT3 rising. BMW Z4 GT3 of Nobuteru Taniguchi about to head up the hill from Dunlop Corner.

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PETRONAS TOMâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S star Andre Lotterer keeps the identical LEXUS SC430 of Yuji Tachikawa (ZENT CERUMO) at bay.

Ferrari 458 Italia had a fairly spectacular debut. Despite spinning behind the Safety Car and getting penalized, the red machine finished in a very strong in 2nd place.

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While there is a time for grieving, for loss and sorrow, there is also a time to put the past behind and to focus on the present and the future.

GT500 machines (white lenses, sunstrips and competition number backgrounds) are typically 10 seconds quicker per lap at Fuji. Here Bjorn Wirdheim (Nissan GT-R) closes in on the GT300 Mosler issue 4 81 MT900M of Hiroki Yoshida.

Crowd favourite. One of the trio of JLOC (Japan Lamborghini Ownersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Club) Gallardo entries heads towards Coca Cola.

Typical Treluyer. Benoit makes his intentions known, always taking his own line.

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The winners’ circle: GT500 victors Benoit Treluyer and Satoshi Motoyama (MOTUL AUTECH GT-R) stand beside GT300 race winners Masami Kageyama and Tomonobu Fujii (HANKOOK Porsche 911GT3 R). Honda HSV-010 GT makes its way up through the new 13th Corner complex.

Aston Martin V8 Vantage, which proved its mettle with some inspired performances in its debut season last year. In 2011, driver Hiroki Yoshimoto is joined by Kazuki Hoshino in what is sure to be one of the strongest pairings in the category. The brace of a trio of Lamborghini Gallardo is back, as is another crowd favourite, the Subaru Legacy B4, now in its second full season. Other Japanese machines include the pair of Toyota Corolla AXIO machines and a Lexus IS350 for the new Singaporean SG CHANGI squad. They’re not the first overseas team in the series as ThunderAsia Racing, who made their SUPER GT debut in 2010, and also from the city state, are back with their Judd-powered Mosler MT900M. While GT300 is the class favoured by the privateers, and as such, has always featured the greatest number of makes and models battling each other on track, this season sees the graduation of two of those squads to the prestigious GT500 class. MOLA International, winners of GT300 in 2008 with a Z33 Fairlady Z (Nissan 350Z), has made the jump in what is the fourth NISSAN GT-R contesting the top class this season. They are joined by

another former GT300 class-winning squad, Racing Project BANDOH, who themselves have switched from a Lexus IS350 (with which they won the category in 2009) to the make’s SC430 challenger. With this pair of entries added to the GT500 class, the category now boasts 15 cars. A couple of teams have decided to sit out this season. Re: Amemiya Racing, who fielded an RX-7 since the infancy of the series in the mid-nineties has decided to focus its attention on the Time Attack series, while GT500 mainstays Hasemi Motorsport are also absent in 2011. The GT500 class is, as one can expect, the focus of many (but not all) fans’ adoration. It consists of half a dozen Lexus SC430 entries, five Honda HSV-010GTs and four R35 GT-Rs from Nissan in 2011, and has seen a huge number of driver changes, particularly at the Lexus teams, over the winter. The arrival of Kazuki Nakajima at TOM’S set the musical chairs in motion, with former triple champion Juichi Wakisaka going to Team Kraft, joined by ex-Team SARD ace Andre Couto. The SARD entry has

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two new signings in Hiroaki Ishiura and GT300 graduate Takuto Iguchi. Returning to Japan from the FIA GT1 World Championship, Seiji Ara is another new signing for the Lexus brand at BANDOH, while former GP2 driver Kohei Hirate teams up with veteran Yuji Tachikawa at Cerumo. The Nissan-equipped teams have had driver switches too, though only one newcomer to their overall ranks in the form of Bjorn Wirdheim, who’s moved over from Lexus to the KONDO RACING squad. Defending champions Loic Duval and Takeshi Kogure remain in the #1 Weider Honda Racing machine, while the return to SUPER GT of IndyCar driver Hideki Mutoh is the big news at ARTA. SUPER GT is known for a number of superlatives, among them having the greatest number of tyre suppliers in a GT series, with Bridgestone, Michelin, Yokohama and Dunlop all represented in the sport’s premier class. The less-fancied Dunlops remain on the Honda of Nakajima Racing, though have been replaced by

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Bridgestone units at Denso Team SARD, while Yokohama’s ADVAN brand is now featured on the BANDOH entry alongside longtime partners KONDO RACING. Bridgestone are also back at the factory NISMO squad, replacing Michelin after two years. With no pre-season testing or tyre tests (due to the earthquake/tsunami/nuclear incident), the season-opening round at Fuji had an added sense of unpredictability; the chance for things to go haywire. For one of the teams, that’s exactly how things turned out. New for this season is the muchanticipated Direction Racing, a mainstay of the Porsche Carrera Cup Japan series over the past decade. Armed with a brand new 997 GT3 R and Dutch hotshoe Carlo van Dam, a lot was expected of the freshmen. Unfortunately, an exploding engine before official practice even got underway meant they had to sit the weekend out. Once Saturday’s sessions did get underway, the big news was the pace of the MOLA Nissan GT-R, the GT500 debutants taking

Hankook Porsche 911GT3 R leads brace of top marques in GT300 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Ferrari, Aston Martin, BMW, followed by Japanese specials from Mooncraft (Shiden) and Garaiya.

Pair of Lamborghinis leading equally exotic machinery into Turn 1.

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the top spot in practice and then again in the first qualifying session. It was almost a fairytale debut, the silver and black GT-R only just getting pipped in Super Lap, and ending up two tenths off pole in 2nd place. GT-Rs seemed to have the measure of the slick and chilly track conditions as all four netted top-six grid spots. The real surprise however, was seeing the DENSO SARD SC430 on pole, the team’s first in 16 years, and attributed largely to tyres from their new supplier Michelin. In fact, the French rubber locked out the front row for the race. Behind the top positions, the steadily high winds meant a lack of grip, spelling disaster for the reigning champions, Duval spinning off at Turn 1 on his flying lap. He wasn’t the only one however as a total of four machines left the tarmac in their efforts to secure top ten grid positions across the two classes. Come Sunday morning the weather had taken a turn for the worse, spitting rain and even colder temperatures forecasting a wet race. By the time the race was set to get underway at 14:00, a major downpour had already begun. The throng of race fans was joined by a large contingent of people from the disaster-struck Tohoku area, brought to the race by the organizers to bring them some respite from the evacuation shelters that have become their homes and the constant lining up for food – something that continues to this day. It was one of many heartwarming examples illustrating how the Japanese look after their own – understated and without fanfare but resolute. There was also a minute’s silence before the cars set off, and among the 36,000 gathered 86

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at the circuit, you could have heard a pin drop. Quite moving. Because the rain had reached torrential levels, the first five laps of the 66-lap event had to be run behind the Safety Car. When Fuji weeps… Even behind the SC, the water spray made it impossible for the fans to see the cars running behind the leaders. Remember F1 at the same venue in 2006 when the first 20 laps were run in similar fashion? It was that wet. Once the race finally did get going on lap 6, the amount of standing water at various locations around the circuit saw cars spinning off like tops. Among them was the pole-sitting DENSO SARD SC430, promoting the KONDO RACING GT-R of Bjorn Wirdheim into the lead. Conditions continued to worsen throughout the early stages and the Swede was in on lap 12 for a set of full wets, handing the lead over to another GT-R, the CALSONIC IMPUL entry of Joao Paolo de Oliveira. The reigning Formula Nippon champion stayed in front for an equal number of tours until a trademark move by the assertive Benoit Treluyer on lap 18 saw the MOTUL AUTECH GT-R advance to the top spot. Meanwhile in GT300, a brace of GT3 machines ran out front. The pole-sitting Hankook Porsche GT3 R of former champion Masami Kageyama led the BMW Z4 and 997 GT3 RSR entries while one of the early advancers in the category was the Subaru Legacy B4, having moved up from 10th on the grid to 4th in just a couple of laps in the expert hands of triple class champion Tetsuya Yamano.

The GT500 class, where the majority of the international drivers in SUPER GT ply their trade. Across both classes, there are a total of 77 full-time drivers.

One of the favourites in GT300, the sole 458GTC Ferrari entry, which had qualified sixth, spun off behind the Safety Car and was now making its way back up through the field. This progress was stunted somewhat when on lap 11, the car was given a 10-second stop-and-go penalty for the earlier infringement. The conditions created a variety of headaches for the teams; the Aston Martin Vantage V8 spearing off track on the downhill section from Turn 1 towards Coca-Cola. This brought out the rescue cars, but no yellow flags – a move later criticized by a number of the drivers. Another hampering factor was clouding windshields – something particularly problematic for the Honda HSV-010GT of reigning GT500 champions Duval and Kogure. The battle between the GT-Rs of Treluyer and Oliveira continued unabated up front, until lap 20 when the latter spun into a GT300 machine at Dunlop while trying to make up ground. All the while the rain continued to worsen. Damage to the iconic blue GT-R was significant, the left rear quarter of the car heavily stoved in, with the left door also hanging open. A lengthy visit to the pits ensued, the car venturing back out on track in 23rd place after losing two laps – and any chance at a decent points-haul. Treluyer meanwhile, was building up a gap over the chasing pack (led by a gang of five Lexus SC430s) at a remarkable rate. The Lexus entries are a genuine threat at this, their home circuit, where virtually all of the cars’ testing is carried out. Making his GT500 debut, former Williams F1 driver Kazuki Nakajima took the wheel of the TOM’S Lexus from

Andre Lotterer on lap 27, bringing the car back out in a creditable ninth. He ran a faultless stint, steadily moving up the order to eventually finish fourth. After the mandatory driver switches had been completed, the running order once again settled down, with Lexus entries filling the next five positions behind the leader. Most impressive was the new BANDOH car of Kataoka and Ara, which ran to a podium finish after starting in 14th. They were beaten to 2nd place by the Team LeMans entry of Ito and Oshima, who also put in a memorable drive from 5th on the grid. Treluyer was the last driver to make his stop, coming in very late on lap 45 and handing over to Satoshi Motoyama. The gap (over 17 seconds) was such that the Japanese had the car back in the top spot on his out-lap, and was unheeded from there on. Dominance also in the GT300 class as the Hankook Porsche stayed out front, followed by the other GT3 997 machine. Their only threat was the Legacy B4 of Tetsuya Yamano and Kouta Sasaki, but that faded in the later stages when, with Sasaki at the wheel, the car ground to a halt just 10 laps from the finish. It was the resurgent Ferrari 458GTC that most impressed however. The car made a total of three pit stops, yet eventually snatched the 2nd step on the podium after an almighty fightback. Despite its earlier delays, the car was clearly the quickest machine in GT300 in what were treacherous conditions. In the end, it was a trio of GT3-spec cars that filled the podium in GT300, boding well for the cars going forward.

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EPSON HSV from Nakajima Racing tackles the hairpin during Saturdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first qualifying session.

CALSONIC IMPUL GT-R sweeps up the inside of Taisan F430 at Dunlop.

Two new entries for 2011. The #19 WedsSport LEXUS SC430 leads the GT3-spec RUNNUP SPORTS Corvette Z06 during the latter stages of the race.

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For more information on the new GT3 contact your OfďŹ cial Porsche Centre or visit www.porsche.co.nz

Life is not a spectator sport. The new 911 GT3. Every idea, every part, every line that went into the design of the new 3.8 litre, 435 hp 911 GT3 was dedicated to the purest expression of Porsche performance. And as is the case with every 911 GT3, the rest of the world will just have to chase it.

GILTRAP PRESTIGE Auckland Ph 09 92 00 911 CONTINENTAL CAR SERVICES Auckland Ph 09 52 68 991 ARMSTRONG PRESTIGE Wellington Ph 04 38 48 779 ARCHIBALDS Christchurch Ph 03 37 75 200

M13602/P1

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It’s all about the fans. This youngster supports multiple GT500 champion Juichi Wakisaka, the ‘L’ standing for LEXUS. Despite it being the day before the opening race, he’s fully kitted out in his hero’s current livery. Only in Japan!

As the race reached its final 15 laps the rain became progressively worse, so much so that 7 laps before the s cheduled finish, the event was red-flagged. There had been a number of high-speed offs in the latter stages, and with half a dozen cars littering the side of the track, it was deemed too dangerous to continue. The order at the front in both classes hadn’t changed dramatically in the closing stages, the worsening weather ensuring that everybody treaded gingerly through the deluge. And so it was the strongest driver pairing took victory in 90

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GT500, albeit at a truncated distance already shortened in an effort to save energy after the events of late. For the fans, soaked to the skin but still standing enmasse at the finish, it was a glorious, if sodden, return to normalcy – something so deeply needed as everyone in Japan emerges from dark days of uncertainty and fear. And like the river, the healing flows ever stronger as more time passes. The people and their lives are forever changed, but those differences are what shape the present, and guide us toward the future. Together. P1

1939 - 2009

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The stakes were high but by holding his nerve Daniel Gaunt finally broke Craig Bairdâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stranglehold on New Zealandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge championship this season. story by Ross MacKay photos by Lee Howell / kaptured.com

The GT3 Cup field lines up on the grid at Timau.

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p1 magazine The 94 Kiwi Champion for 2010/2011 was Daniel Gaunt.

istory, or so an old saying goes, is written by the winners. So this, by definition, is Daniel Gaunt’s story. Having made the move from single-seaters in 2008 the New Zealand Grand Prix winner and two-time Toyota Racing Series title-holder has been contesting the now Crown Lift Trucks-sponsored New Zealand Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge championship for the past three years. His debut season in the category was 2008/09 where he finished second overall and won the Rookie of The Year award, and then proceeded to finish third in his second season. This last season therefore, it was a case of third-time-lucky when the 25 year old Aucklander won the title ahead of six-time and defending champion Craig Baird and driving rival Jonny Reid. Before we get to Daniel Gaunt and the dramatic down-to-thewire nature of his 2010/11 series victory, tribute must be paid to his Triple X Motorsport teammate Craig Baird. A three-time winner of the New Zealand Grand Prix title as well as the Jim Clark Trophy and with 25 different series championship titles to his name, the 40 year old Gold Coast, Queensland-based expat Baird literally owned the New Zealand Porsche GT3 Challenge title between 2004 and 2010. In his first year contesting what was then called the TransTasman GT3 Cup he finished second to fellow Kiwi expat ‘Gentleman’ Jim Richards. From that point on, however, he won the annual series title with metronomic regularity, taking on and beating all comers including perennial rival Matt Halliday, as well as fellow Carrera Cup Australia series winners (and now V8 Supercar regulars) Fabian Coulthard and David Reynolds, Carrera Cup Asia front-runner Daryl O’Young, Carrera Cup UK fast man Phil Quaife and latterly Gaunt and fellow single-seater series graduate Jonny Reid. Some – notably Halliday – got close, but up until the opening round of the 2010/11 series no-one seemed able to match – let alone better – Baird’s seemingly unique ability to combine blinding qualifying and race-winning pace with championshipwinning consistency. So the question is - what happened this season?

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In short, a lot. At the opening series round at Pukekohe Park Raceway, Daniel Gaunt completed only two full laps of the high speed 2.8 km circuit before hitting the barriers hard enough to see him complete the weekend in a borrowed car from mentor Michael Morton. Not the best way to kick off any campaign, yet less than 24 hours later it was Gaunt not pole sitter Craig Baird who won the first 100km mini-enduro race of the season. In typical swash-buckling fashion Baird had pipped Jonny Reid, Gaunt and Mitch Cunningham for pole position in qualifying, and after a slick pit stop had a commanding 24 second lead in the opening race when a tyre blew as he braked for the first corner. Cat-like reflexes and world-class wheel skill kept the bucking, kicking 997 on the track, but by the time Baird had limped back to the pits for his second unscheduled stop to have the wheel replaced, he had lost a lap, eventually crossing the finish line in a hard-won sixth place. A win in the second race – after long-time leader Mitch Cunningham outbraked himself with two laps to go – went some way to making up for the lost opportunity the day before. However Gaunt was back in front in the reverse top six grid final after Baird

copped a drive-through penalty for contact with Cunningham and eventually finished a lowly ninth. That gave Gaunt both the round win – over Reid, Cunningham and new-face Scott Harrison – as well as an early lead in the series points standings with Baird languishing in fifth. And that – as it turned out – was only the start of a fascinating to-and-fro battle which saw Gaunt forge an impressive early season lead over International Motorsport team mates Jonny Reid and Mitch Cunningham...only to have Baird chip away at it until it was all gone. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Christchurch’s Raceway at Ruapuna Park is a track you either like or loath. It’s a track you have to work at to get right, one which rewards precision and patience, qualities Daniel Gaunt is obviously not short of. The South Island track hosted the second round of the GT3 series and there Gaunt was - literally – a cut above everyone else. Back in his own, now repaired car he qualified quickest – besting Baird, Reid and the highly-rated class debutant Earl Bamber – before winning all three races very much as he liked, underlining his superiority with the fastest lap in each.

Baird, on the other hand had another weekend to forget, the series points standings telling another sorry story. Having pitted to replace a punctured tyre in the second race, then failing to finish the third after damaging a radiator on the first lap, he slipped back to sixth place in the series point’s standings, 357 points behind runaway leader Gaunt. At that point it was almost inconceivable that he would catch up, let alone run Gaunt so close at Taupo. Yet catch up Baird did, finally getting his season back on track at the third series round at Invercargill’s Teretonga Park, then leaving Timaru International Motor Raceway a week later third in the series standings, still 118 points adrift of Gaunt, but only 23 behind second placed Jonny Reid. Gaunt again pipped Baird and Reid in qualifying at Teretonga but lost valuable points (and track position for the reverse top six grid final race) thanks to a time penalty for contact with Mitch Cunningham as the pair disputed second place in the second. Reid, meanwhile, had to watch the race from the sidelines after breaking a half shaft on the warm-up lap. And if Gaunt was worried that some of Baird’s luck had rubbed off on him at Teretonga he had every right to be.

In the reverse top six grid final at Timaru he, Baird and Triple X Motorsport team boss Shane McKillen tangled, leaving Jonny Reid to win the race, with junior Triple X Motorsport team member Scott Harrison the round. Gaunt, the only member of the trio able to continue, was initially called into the pits to serve a drive-through penalty for his part in the incident. Later, however, MotorSport NZ officials disqualified him from the race altogether. Not what you want to hear when there’s a title at stake. And as if that wasn’t enough to dent his confidence, it didn’t stop with that issue alone. At the penultimate series round at Manfeild a month later Gaunt was in the wars again, this time having nowhere to go when new teammate Ant Pedersen spun in front of him early in the second race; a race won by Craig Baird. In what, in retrospect, turned out to be a dress rehearsal for the Taupo season finale, Gaunt stormed back to win the reverse top six grid final from Pedersen, Reid and Baird. But as he was to find out at Taupo, the battle for the title was far from over…. After the Manfeild round Gaunt still had a 25-point advantage

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Bairdo leads the field around a wet Teretonga circuit.

Everything came down to the final race at Taupo.

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Jonny Reid in the Rayglass sponsored GT3.

Triple Xâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Scott Harrison.

Simon Evans was a consistent front runner in the 996 section.

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over the quick and consistent Jonny Reid with danger man Baird a further 13 points adrift. However, by beating Gaunt and Reid to the chequered flag in the first race at Taupo Baird went into the second ahead of Reid on points. Then by winning the second – from Reid and young gun Ant Pedersen – the wily series veteran finally managed to wrest the series lead off Gaunt. As he explained afterwards, Gaunt was playing a percentages game. By finishing fifth in that race he guaranteed himself pole position for the reverse top-six grid final. Then by winning that race in emphatic fashion – crossing the finish line just over eight seconds ahead of Baird - he finally made the 2010/11 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge championship title his. Though the look on his face afterwards was more one of relief than euphoria. “It’s been a bit of a roller-coaster of a season, alright,” he told reporters as the reality of his historic Baird-beating win set in. “Three laps into it my car was in the wall at Pukekohe. But each time something has happened we’ve been able to respond.” Indeed. At the end of the day the difference was minimal, Gaunt reclaiming the series lead that had been his up until the second race at Taupo to become only the third winner of a New Zealand Porsche GT3 Cup series. Baird, meanwhile, leapfrogged longtime points runner-up Jonny Reid for second place, ending up five points shy of Gaunt but 37 ahead of Reid. After a season of ups and downs former kart and Toyota Racing Series champion Mitch Cunningham ended up fourth ahead of impressive newcomer and deserving Rookie of The Year Scott Harrison, with runaway 996 Cup winner Simon McLennan capping off a stand-out season of giant-killing performances sixth overall. In stark contrast to Gaunt and Baird, Wellingtonian McLennan had a dream run, regularly mixing it with the mid-field 997s in the 996 Cup category-within-a-category, the highlight pole for the reverse top-six grid final at Timaru. Namesake Simon Evans had the pace to run with him, out qualifying McLennan at Pukekohe, and Christchurch. However it was McLennan in his Motorsport Services-run 996 who was the more consistent race finisher. And so. Another year, another New Zealand Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge championship title is decided. This time, though, it is Daniel Gaunt’s name on the trophy. Does this signal the beginning of a new era? Or will normal service be resumed next season? There could well be a clue in the revived Carrera Cup Australia series across the Tasman. Daniel Gaunt, Craig Baird and Jonny Reid are all contesting this year’s series and after two rounds the order amongst the Kiwis is Reid, Baird and Gaunt… P1

The undisputed champ issue 4 101 of Kiwi Porsche racing – Craig Baird.

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Sam Bird in a congratulatory hug with Romain Grosjean after Race 1.

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ventual winner of the Asia Series Romain Grosjean would have been happy with his achievements, but in the back of his, and everyone else’s minds would be the nagging question, could he back it up in a full series? Could he achieve the results DAMS wants when it really counts in the main game? After Race One at Istanbul Park the answer appears to be yes. It all began on a Friday morning for the first and only GP2 practice session of the opening round – because Mother Nature had turned on the wet weather. This was something that was not normally experienced by this particular motorsport fraternity who are more used to sweltering in the conditions during their stay in Istanbul, rather than losing the feeling in their fingers and toes... not this year. While it may have caused the team members and crowd to freeze, the slippery conditions translated to plenty of action on the track. Grosjean was fast from the beginning, only beaten to the top of the times by Racing Engineering’s Christian Vietoris. Things weren’t going anywhere near as well in the practice session for the rest of the field. Mexican Esteban Gutierrez stopped any momentum the field were gathering when he hit the inside wall before stopping in the middle of the track causing the session to be red flagged to clear away his damaged car. The action didn’t stop there as drivers continued to spin around on the track, the circuit looking more like an ice skating rink then a motor racing circuit. Much to the delight of the punters, conditions fined up for the qualifying session on Friday afternoon but remained cold. The teams may have had mixed emotions, half happy that improved weather may mean less chance of carnage, but not so happy that any data gathered in the morning’s wet conditions was not going to be very helpful for a dry qualifying. French outfit DAMS didn’t seem to mind as Grosjean set a slick time to take out pole position for the first feature race of the GP2 2011 season, adding two points to his championship tally. From there the Frenchman and closest rival Sam Bird were in a league of their own, fighting for position throughout the race before finishing only 0.3s apart in first and second, all while lapping 3 seconds quicker that anyone else in the field for the entire race duration. Showing just how quick they were, their

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Pal Varhaug in full flight.

#9 Sam Bird ready on the starting grid. Romain Grosjean fights his way through the battle pack.

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Mother Nature had turned on the wet weather, something that was not normally experienced by this particular motorsport fraternity who are more used to sweltering in the conditions during their stay in Istanbul, rather than losing the feeling in their fingers and toes... not this year. Van der Gardeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s car waiting to get onto the grid. Davide Valsecchi after the results of a close encounter.

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#17 Luca Fillipi leads Fabio Leimer through the turn.

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nearest competitor, Jules Bianchi, finished a huge 35 seconds behind them in third. Once again while things went smoothly up the front of the field as Grosjean made a clean, quick start, the same could not be said for those behind. The first safety car of the race appeared on the first lap after Gutierrez and Kevin Mirocha came together, chaos ensuing which forced Fabio Leimer over the top of Max Chilton and into a roll that had the hardest of motorsport aficionadosâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; stomachs turning at the site. More drama continued after the pit stops began when Johnny Cecotto ran wide and spun into the Supa Nova Racing car of Luca Fillipi, taking them both out of contention for the remainder of the race. With a reverse grid of the top eight for Race Two, the weekend was no longer Grosjeanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s alone, his only real glory from the second race setting the quickest lap of the day on lap six after making contact with Bianchi at the end of the first lap and having to pit for a new front wing. Bianchi was sent back into 23rd, leaving Bird the only podium getter of the first race to back it up in race two with a third position finish.

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Arden Internationalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Josef Kral has had a mixed season to date.

The promising Stefano Coletti.

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Turning their weekend around were Arden Internationals Josef Kral and Jolyon Palmer who both managed to finish in the top ten with a sixth and ninth respectively. The race, however, belonged to the Trident Racing team and driver Stefano Coletti. Wins had been few and far between for the team, having last tasted the winning champagne in Monaco back in 2008. It seemed to be Colettiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s race from the start, flying up two places, shocking the rest of the field as he slid into second behind Clos. An exciting battle broke out between the two drivers and then on lap five he positioned his Trident on the inside of the

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Feature race podium left to right: Sam Bird, winner Romain Grosjean and Jules Bianchi.

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The Trident Racing Garage.

Racing Engineeringâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s car undergoing balancing.

Team engineer checks the laptop for diagnositcs.

The GP2 paddock at Istanbul Park.

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The Sprint race podium on Sunday â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Left to right: Van der Garde, Coletti and Bird.

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Racing Engineeringâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Dani Clos.

RAPAXâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Julian Leal after a spot of bother on the start straight.

Spaniard, running side by side before nabbing the lead from then until the end of the race. That is where things started to slip for Clos, who, after losing the lead, continued to fall back through the field, suffering badly from tyre wear, as Charles Pic and Giedo Van der Garde got past, followed by a determined Bird who was clawing his way back. As things were coming to a close for Race Two, more carnage ensued as Rapax driver Julian Leal and Scuderia Coloni came together on the front straight, destroying both of their cars and their races, bringing the safety car out to clear the carnage. It appeared as though the race may finish under yellow, with many media packing up to start lunch early, but when the race went live with one lap remaining their attention was once again on the action. Colletti remained in control, taking the win. Through all of the action He now sits third in the championship tally, equal with Van der Garde behind race one winner Grosjean and Bird. P1 118

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The return of Carrera Cup down under has provided the best of international class â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in engineering and driving â&#x20AC;&#x201C; with Briton Ben Barker emerging as one of the stars. story by Ken Powers photos by James Smith

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Ben Barker leads Mark Skaife, Max Twigg, Matt Coleman and Peter Hill.

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Jonny Reid took victory in Round 2 at Barbagallo Raceway in Perth.

he return of Porsche Carrera Cup Australia has added a distinctly international flavour to the Aussie motorsport scene. After two years on the sidelines, the all-Porsche championship returned Down Under with full fields from its maiden event at the Australia Grand Prix, bumping the global Carrera Cup count back to eight separate series. For its renaissance, 22 brand new Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (Type 997) cars were shipped into Australia at the start of the season, adding a welcomed international ingredient to the bump and grind of Aussie V8s. But the mix of foreign flavours didn’t end there, with the championship attracting an eclectic array of front-running racers that were distinctly… un-Australian, with ‘internationals’ filling to top five spots in the standings. Now, two rounds into the season, Kiwi-born drivers fill the top four positions in the championship after two rounds – Steven Richards leading the way after a celebrated V8 Supercar career, ahead of Porsche stalwart Craig Baird and determined young pilots Jonny Reid and Daniel Gaunt. And then, there’s Ben Barker - a British youngster who, at 20, has turned heads down pitlane. Barker is a phenomenon of the sport. He made his car racing debuted in 2009, where he took part in the competitive British Formula Ford Championship. After a year cutting his motorsport teeth in the UK open-wheel formula, an aspiration for a Formula 3 crown and a friendship with former Aussie F3 champ James Winslow saw Barker travel across the globe to test a Formula 3 car for South Australian squad Team BRM. A deal was signed and the towering Brit powered his F3 home for the 2010 title (in his second year of racing!), and subsequently moved into the re-born Carrera Cup series this year, taking Team BRM with him. Barker has now spent much of the 2011 season defying the odds – setting blistering speed and outpacing his (much) more experienced rivals in only his third year of racing, highlighted by two fastest laps, pole position at Barbagallo Raceway and a lap record at Albert Park in what was his second-ever Porsche race. “It’s been a steep learning curve stepping up into a bigger car with more weight,” said Barker, seemingly unfazed of his remarkable rise to form.

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Matt Coleman returned to Carrera Cup after being a series regular in previous seasons.

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Craig Baird leads the field at the seasons opening event at Albert Park in Melbourne.

“We’ve had really good pace since Albert Park where we got the lap record and secured pole position at Perth and grabbing a podium at the end of the weekend. We’ve had a few mishaps just due to bad luck and a few hiccups from myself through inexperience that we hope to sort out for the rest of the season. It’s been good so far and it should only get better.” The Porsche GT3 Cup car is a unique beast. More powerful, improved aero and increased grip to its 2010 predecessor makes the 2011 version quicker with a tweaked driving style required. And it seems Barker’s open-wheel experience has put him in good stead to steer the car to success. “The car’s really good. You can carry a lot of mid-corner speed so they’re a bit like open-wheelers – it’s just the size and weight factor I’ve got to get used to. As far as feel, they’re quite stiffly sprung so you feel quite a lot through the chassis, whereas the V8s are a bit softer so you can’t feel as much. It’s still another car to get used to, but not too dissimilar to F3.” Sportcar racing has always been on the Barker’s racing radar. After following several other countryman to the affordable Australian F3 category (James Winslow, Ben Clucas

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Ben Barker contemplates the next race.

Steve Richards swapped V8 Supercar for GT3. Ross Lilley on the charge.

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Ray Angus had this striking paint scheme on his Carrera Cup car.

The return of Porsche Carrera Cup Australia has added a distinctly international flavour to the Aussie motorsport scene.

Mark Skaife enjoyed his first sojourn into the Carrera Cup.

Peter Hill.

and Joey Foster), it seems the return of Carrera Cup in Australia was timed perfectly. “I always wanted to get Formula 3 on my CV and Australia was the only affordable route. I tested the Team BRM car and sorted out a deal. I was there racing F3 which obviously went really well – started to get lots of race wins in the second half of the season and managed to wrap up the championship at the end of the year. “Through Team BRM, we’re now racing Porsche Carrera Cup this year. That’s how my short career has panned out so far. I never expected to be racing Carrera Cup in Australia in my third year of racing. I didn’t know where I’d be to be honest. We looked back in Europe at F3 and GP3 but it’s just too much money. It’s the same old story. “We set some realistic goals and looked at GTs back home, then started to think about Carrera Cup in Australia. It’s ultimately where I want to go anyway so it’s worked out for the better.” And now Barker is getting itchy feet to snare his first race win and has set his sights on the coming round of Porsche Carrera Cup Australia at the Sucrogen Townsville 400 in July.

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128 Cup p1 magazine Kiwi GT3 ace Craig Baird at home in the Carrera Cup.

Barker leads Daniel Gaunt and Michael Patrizi in Perth.

“We know we’ve got good car speed and, like any other time, we’ll just go out there and drive the best we can,” said Barker. “I’m hoping I can wrap up a win there; that’s the main aim. It feels a bit overdue after getting lap records and a pole. I’m now hoping Townsville can bring a win. That’s the plan. “I actually raced there in a Formula Ford last year with Team BRM so I know the track. Townsville was an experience - definitely an Australian experience. It was very hot, humid and tropical and I liked it – but I’m very British and found it very overwhelming. The heat, the atmosphere the palm trees, the people – it was very Australian. It’s such a cool country town on the coast of Australia. And it’s a nice little track to drive so I’m looking forward to doing it in a Porsche.” While only fifth in the championship standings after two rounds, Barker’s blistering pace has added to surreal spectacle to the championship. And with some of Australia’s greatest motorsport events on Carrera Cup’s horizon, this category will continue to add a welcomed international flavour to the already amazing local motorsport scene.

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Bruno Senna, Eric Boullier (Lotus Renault GP Team Principle) Ben Barker and Vitaly Petrov.

Jonny Reid swapped single seaters and Kiwi GT3 for the Aussie Carrera Cup.

Carrera Comeback Porsche Carrera Cup Australia’s return has come with great public interest in Australia. After leaving the motorsport scene at the end of 2008, Carrera Cup’s comeback to Australian race tracks has come in true Porsche fashion. Starting at the Australian Grand Prix, the category hit a capacity 22 cars from its outset, luring V8 great Mark Skaife to join the comeback event as a guest driver among an already impressively talented field. Among the frontrunners, Skaife was joined by Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge New Zealand’s top trio Daniel Gaunt, Craig Baird and Jonny Reid, former V8 racers Steven Richards and Michael Patrizi, young gun Barker and former Carrera Cup pacesetter Matt Coleman. The series’ return now bumps the global Carrera Cup count back to eight championships. With the return of the category, the Australian series joins seven other regions worldwide to boast the Carrera Cup name - Asia, Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan and Scandinavia. P1 130

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ToyotaRacingSeries

2012

Five Rounds, Five circuits, 2,500 km’s includes testing and 15 FIA Sanctioned Races Round 1

12-15 Jan 2012

Round 2

19-22 Jan 2012

Round 3

26-29 Jan 2012

Round 4

2-5 Feb 2012

Round 5

9-12 Feb 2012

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