Motorsport eNews Issue 13 - July 17-23, 2007

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Issue No. 013 17 – 23 July 2007

SBR LIFELINE for TEAM KIWI

... AND WE REVEAL WHO IS SET TO DRIVE THE ‘NEW’ TKR FALCON

investigation THReATENS F1 WORLD TITLE THIS ISSUE OF MOTORSPORT eNEWS BOUGHT TO BY THE ALL-NEW HONDA

Editorial Editor: Grant Rowley grant@mnews.com.au Deputy Editor: Aaron Noonan noonz@mnews.com.au National Editor: Andrew van Leeuwen andrew@mnews.com.au Executive Editor: Phil Branagan editor@mnews.com.au

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The ‘A’ Team

Issue No. 013 | 17 – 23 July 2007

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chat 16 5 minutes with ... opinion 18 Mezera 19 Branagan 35 The Punter

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Contributing Writers F1: Joe Saward, Mark Glendenning, Adam Cooper, Paolo Filisetti Europe: Quentin Spurring, David Addison US: Martin D. Clark, Phil Morris Speedway: Greg Boscato, Geoff Rounds, Darren Sutton, Tony Millard (UK) Rally: Ryan Lahiff Drag Racing: Dave Ostaszewski (USA), Ken Ferguson, John Bosher National: Mark Wicks, Mark Jones, Richard Craill, Aaron Shaw, Daniel Powell.

race 24 Remember us?

30 Charlie’s Creek

Motorsport eNews is published by Australasian Motorsport News ABN 55 125 120 702 Publisher: C Lambden Copyright: Material published in Motorsport eNews is copyright and may not be reproduced in full or in part without the written permission of the publisher.

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International photos supplied by Sutton Images, www.sutton-images.com – click here to check out their exclusive poster deals

Roger Penske Bumps and lumps at QR F1’s circuit clean-out Keep the good guys apart Honda and Pedrosa win Hollings takes F3 title lead

trade 32 Trade and Industry / Raceshop 34 Classifieds

Photographers Sutton Motorsport Images, Dirk Klynsmith, Marshall Cass, John Morris/Mpix, AF1 Images, James Smith, Peter Bury, Neil Blackbourn, Chris Carter, Coopers Photography, Paris Charles, Bob Potts, Neil Hammond, Joel Strickland, Mike Patrick (UK)

SBR and TKR get cosy?

Ford 4 WPS Klein turns orange Youlden gets a BA

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Could Stepneygate rule McLar

FORMULA 1 World Championship leader McLaren potentially faces a range of sanctions over the ongoing ‘Stepneygate’ Saga.

The team, which has been summoned to appear before the FIA, faces a number of possible punishments, should it be found that the team breached Formula 1 regulations as a part of the complex and ongoing revelations over Grand Prix racing’s latest espionage saga.

Should the FIA find that the team has breached the regulations, fines, penalties and, in an extreme case, exclusion from the championships could

be applied to the Woking team – although the latter is most unlikely (see Joe Saward’s opinion breakout, right).

Last week, Ferrari won the opening round of its legal action with suspended McLaren engineer Mike Coughlan (and his wife Trudy), forcing the couple to agree to make a sworn statement giving full details of their involvement in the scandal. As part of the agreement, Ferrari said that it will not press to make the statement available to the Italian prosecutors in charge of the case against engineer Nigel Stepney.

It is believed that the deal did,

however, allow for a copy of the Coughlan affidavit to go to the FIA. This appears to be what has triggered the announcement that the FIA World Motor Sport Council has “requested” McLaren to appear before an extraordinary meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport Council in Paris on July 26 to answer a charge that the team has breached the International Sporting Code, between March and July, by having unauthorised possession of documents and confidential information belonging to Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro.

McLaren has said that it will

How it all happened ...

ONE of the most important factors in the whole McLaren-Ferrari technical saga is not quite so much what information was leaked to whom but when it was leaked.

To this point, it has been reported that Coughlan received information of Ferrari’s technical details in late-April. But the FIA’s statement has widened the timeframe to March to April.

In light of McLaren’s recent statements that no changes have been made to its cars in light of Coughlan’s access to the Ferrari information, this would appear to make little or no difference. But there is more to the matter than just what did or didn’t happen to the McLarens …

Following March’s Australian Grand Prix, McLaren requested a clarification from FIA Technical Delegate Charlie Whiting over the wording of the regulation regarding flexible floors – which were part of the technical package Ferrari included in its F2007.

As a result of the enquiry (which came from McLaren’s Managing Director, Martin Whitmarsh) the rule was ‘tidied’ up and flexible floors are now, in a sense, forbidden.

That is not to suggest that the information was available to McLaren in March, nor that Whitmarsh’s actions were prompted by information obtained by improper means. But it does underline why ‘when’ is so important …

provide whatever is needed by the FIA to demonstrate that none of the information that was in the possession of Coughlan was used in any way on the McLaren. This does not really help the team because, under Article 153 of the Formula 1 Sporting Regulations, the team is responsible for Coughlan’s behaviour, even if it had no control over what he was doing.

At the same time, Stepney is insisting that he did not give the documents to Coughlan and claims that Ferrari is trying to discredit him because he knows “where the bodies are buried.”

news sutton-images.com

SBR + GIZ = TKR

ren out?

Dirk Klynsmith

Rumours in Italy suggest that Coughlan’s evidence does not implicate Stepney. This suggests that there may be more to this story than meets the eye and it will be interesting to hear more about the ‘bodies’ to which Stepney is referring.

A week after the FIA hearing, Stepney’s role may be further clarified when the results of test conducted on a mysterious white powder, said to be found in on near one of Ferrari’s cars at Monaco, to be handed down in Modena on August 3 or 4.

Stepneygate could well be the biggest off-track scandal in F1 for years …

– JOE SAWARD/STAFF

Queensland Kiwis set to run TKR Falcon from Oran Park onwards

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TEAM Kiwi Racing could find itself with a lifeline if reports from New Zealand come to fruition.

The embattled New Zealand team is understood to be on the verge of returning to the V8 Supercar Championship at Oran Park, courtesy of a deal with Stone Brothers Racing.

Although no formal statement had been issued, it is understood that a deal was agreed in NZ yesterday (Monday) which will see SBR run a third car for the remainder of the year in TKR colours. Ross Stone, along with other key SBR staff, were believed to be in NZ as eNews went to press, signing off on the deal.

While there is yet to be any confirmation of the man who will steer the reborn Kiwi entry, we believe that young NZ star Shane van Gisbergen is the man most likely. Apart from possessing the correct passport, the teenager, who is part of SBR’s long-term plans, tested for the team at Queensland Raceway in May, and is expected to compete in this summer’s NZ V8 Series as part of his ongoing development.

The commitment to run a third car will mean that SBR will need to roll out its all-new Falcon for Russell Ingall at Oran Park, in order to free up a car for TKR’s use. Ingall was meant to debut the new car at Queensland Raceway this weekend, but the damage sustained to both SBR cars at Hidden Valley has meant that Ingall will hold his car for one Dirk Klynsmith more round.

Chat about a possible SBR/ TKR alliance has been rumbling for over a month, and it now seems that the Kiwis have been rescued after their split with Ford Performance Racing in early June. As yet, there is no news of sponsorship, or of the involvement or otherwise of Ford NZ, which largely funded TKR’s FPR alliance.

TKR will not be at Queensland Raceway this weekend, making it three rounds in a row that they have not competed. Under TEGA’s Teams Licence Agreement, the #021 entry must be at every round for the remainder of the year to avoid any fines or penalties.

– GRANT ROWLEY

BRIEFLY...

Tasman Motorsport will throw open its doors for V8 Supercar fans on August 4 and 5. Open from 10am to 2pm on both days at 98 Bell Street in the Melbourne suburb of Preston, Kiwi aces Greg Murphy and Jason Richards will be on hand as well as the Tasman crew taking part in full-blown pit stop practice. n

Well-known massage therapist John Curran has set up a new high-tech practice.

Curran, who has worked with both HRT and FPR, has established Phoenix Business Health at Melbourne’s Southgate, with the latest computer-controlled thermal treatment equipment to treat drivers – and others.

The number to ring is 03 9654 0044. n

Marshall joins JDR V8 SUPERCARS CARRERA Cup racer Marcus Marshall has sorted a V8 Supercar endurance drive with Jack Daniel’s Racing.

The Gold Coaster will team up with Fujitsu Series regular Kayne Scott in the team’s second VE Commodore while regulars Jack Perkins and Shane Price share the other car.

Marshall, who tested for the team at Winton last Monday, also turned some laps in a Matthew White Fujitsu Series Falcon, which he will race again at Queensland Raceway this weekend in addition to his regular ‘gig’ driving for Peter Fitzgerald in Carrera Cup. He isn’t a stranger to White’s Falcons, having driven one to second overall in round two of

Dirk Klynsmith

n New Zealander Johnny McIntyre will drive the second Prodigy Ford Falcon alongside Jose Fernandez at Queensland Raceway.

McIntyre has limited V8 Supercar experience, having driven with WPS Racing in 2004. The reigning NZV8 Champ will drive the #61 Falcon, and becomes the fourth different driver of the car this year. Jack Elsegood was the favourite to get the drive at QR, but is likely to join the team later in the year.

the Fujitsu Series earlier in the year at Wakefield Park.

“For me, it’s a dream come true driving for a legend like Larry Perkins,” Marshall said.

“With another test day up our sleeves with the car we’ll be able to get the driving position a bit more towards my liking, which will make a difference.

Champ Car on Seven – You Gotta Love that!

CHAMP CAR THE Seven Network has confirmed that it will broadcast the remaining rounds of the Champ Car World Series to Australian viewers.

Beginning next weekend with Edmonton, Aussie fans will now be able to view the progress of Team Australia's driver Will

Power, who is currently second in the championship, just two points adrift of the outright lead.

The announcement gives Seven total broadcast rights of the Lexmark Indy 300 which will enjoy up to 12 hours of coverage of the race weekend.

Seven will schedule full race coverage of each round late Monday night – early Tuesday morning.

“I’ve got to do ‘double duty’ at Sandown and Bathurst so I’ll be able to get my head around switching from a V8 to Porsche and back this weekend.”

NZ V8 Champ John McIntyre also tested for JDR at Winton last week, however Marshall proved to be the team’s choice.

– AARON NOONAN

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WPS/WOW opts for TV star V8 SUPERCARS GRANT Denyer has been signed as WPS/WOW Racing’s fourth driver for the V8 Supercar endurance races.

The television star joins Michael Caruso, along with regular drivers Max Wilson and Jason Bargwanna.

The driver pairings for the races are still undecided.

As reported by eNews last week, Frenchman Nelson Philippe remained a chance to drive with WPS/WOW Racing, but was ultimately beaten to the seat by Denyer.

The Queensland-based team tested at Queensland Raceway last Wednesday, where Denyer drove car #10, while Caruso did stints in both #8 and #10.

Denyer said he is looking forward to improving on his ninth place debut at Bathurst last year.

“Driving at Bathurst last year was one of the highlights of my life,” said Denyer.

“Now with one Bathurst under my belt, I have an idea

of what it is really like and how amazing that day is when you are a part of it as a driver. I cannot wait to get back there with WPS/WOW Racing and aim for another strong finish.“ Denyer has driven in the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series

for the past three years, but has only competed in one of the three rounds so far this year for Ford Rising Star Racing. The Seven Network star will do the compete in the remainder of this year’s Fujitsu Series, starting at QR this week.

... as Gore and Ford make truce THE appointment of both of Ford Rising Star Racing drivers to Craig Gore’s V8 Supercar team for the endurance races signals a new era for the WPS Racing and the Ford Motor Company.

WPS/WOW Racing has endured the past three seasons without factory support from Ford, and Gore has been publicly critical of

the blue oval’s treatment of his team. While no financial assistance will be forthcoming in the near future, the bridge has clearly been mended between the two camps.

“There has (been resolution),” said Ford Motorsport manager Ray Price.

“Craig and I have had many discussions and we’ve got a common goal. His cars are

competitive, he works hard and from Fords point of view he’s getting good results.

“There have been issues spoken about with Craig in the past, I don’t need to comment on those, they’re in the past.”

The absence of ‘Ford’ windscreen stickers from the WPS/WOW cars has been the public face of the two

company’s past war, but with budget cutbacks continuing across the board, expect to see more teams abandoning the windscreen signage.

“I think that’s up for negotiations between us and the teams,” Price said.

“As times evolve, that area could certainly change in the future.”

– GRANT ROWLEY

V8 SUPERCARS MANAGEMENT changes are coming at Ford Performance Racing, with the imminent departure of Rod Barrett.

The team’s Commercial Director will leave at the end of the month to take over the General Manager’s position at Ford Performance Vehicles, starting August 1. Motorsport Director Tim Edwards remains in his current role.

Barrett, who joined FPR two years ago, has extensive marketing experience, with roles at Coca Cola and Fosters Group before joining the racing team.

Davo goes GT Jim Beam V8 pilot to take over Aston Martin at Phillip Island AUSTRALIAN GT WILL Davison will trade his V8 Supercar for a supercar of different proportions later this year, becoming the latest driver to take part in the Australian GT Championship.

The Jim Beam Ford pilot will make his debut in the series by driving John Kaias’ Aston Martin DBRS9 at Phillip Island on August 11-12, with car owner Kaias to step aside due to commitments overseas. The former open-wheeler international has also agreed to join Kaias in the car for the recently-announced Sandown GT Classic 500kilometre race in December.

“I am very excited to get behind the wheel of the Aston Martin, I’m sure it will be an absolute weapon to drive especially at Phillip Island, and

I look forward to going hard for the win,” said Davison.

“GT is something I have always been interested in, and it will be great to get a taste of what it's all about.”

Kaias is equally excited to have signed up the V8 Supercar youngster.

“Will’s perfect for the job. I am thrilled about having a driver of his stature in the car and I am sure he will rattle quite a few cages among the top guys in the category. It will be invaluable for the championship and for Aston Martin having Will involved.”

Davison took part in a Jim Beam/DJR test at Queensland Raceway last Wednesday as preparation for this weekend’s seventh round of the V8 Supercar Series.

Dirk Klynsmith

Changing R for a V

news

Ellery back in a V8 Sirromet benches Coulthard for QLD to give enduro driver time V8 SUPERCARS STEVE Ellery will make his return to V8 Supercars at Queensland Raceway in the second Sirromet Wines Commodore, replacing Kiwi Fabian Coulthard for the weekend.

The same scenario occurred last year for the Queensland round, the move giving Ellery a chance to race a V8 prior to re-uniting with team owner

Paul Morris for the endurance events.

Ellery will combine his Carrera Cup commitments for Sherrin Motorsport with the Sirromet team for the weekend, however it’s yet to be decided if we will again steer the Holden at Oran Park or whether Coulthard is recalled.

“We will see how Steve goes at Queensland Raceway and if

BRITEK Motorsport will have the backing of Fujitsu General through to the end of the 2009 V8 Supercar Series, the extension announcement coming late last week in Melbourne.

The deal is a two-year extension of the existing three-year deal that was signed when Jason Bright first launched his team for the 2005 championship.

Bright will also step back into the team’s primary Falcon for this weekend’s Queensland Raceway round, fully repaired after its practice accident in Perth in late March. He tested the car at Winton last week and reported himself happy enough for it to return to racing duties.

“We worked very hard on this car in the off-season and it was extremely disappointing to have it sidelined since March,” he said.

“It’s like getting a star player back on the footy field as we head towards the business end of the season.”

Ash Budd

Two more for Fujitsu

he needs more time in the car he may do Oran Park as well,” said Morris.

“Last year Steve was in the same situation so we gave him a drive for two rounds and he did a great job at Sandown and Bathurst. We are hoping the same formula works just as well this year.”

COMING THIS WEEK

International German F1GP– Hockenheim Champ Car – Edmonton MotoGP – Laguna Seca, USA IRL – Mid Ohio ALMS – Lexington SBK – Brno

Australia

V8 Supercars - Qld R/way includes: Formula Ford, FujitsuV8 Supercars and Carrera Cup NexT Week (JULY 28 -29)

International Champcar – San Jose WTCC – Istanbul NASCAR – Indianapolis Next ROUNd v8 SUPERCAR SERIES

V8 Supercars - Oran Park – August 18/19

NEED A CAR? CLICK HERE

The American Dream is Over FORMULA 1 THERE will be no 2008 US Formula 1 Grand Prix – and, while Bernie Ecclestone and Indy boss Tony George have said they will continue to talk, it is unlikely to return to Indianapolis.

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Honda rings changes FORMULA 1 BMW Sauber engineer Jorg Zander has been named as the new deputy technical director of Honda Racing F1 in Brackley.

It is the 43-year-old German’s third move in just two years, having moved from BAR to Williams in 2005 and then from Williams to BMW Sauber in 2006.

Zander will hook up with aerodynamicist Lois Bigois again, having worked with him briefly at Williams.

The new Honda structure is thus established with Shuhei Nakamoto as senior technical director, overseeing all technical matters and doing the necessary liaison work with Japan.

Zander joins Professor

Gary Savage as deputy technical director: Savage will continue to run all production and Zander will head design and research.

If this structure fails to produce a good car, Honda will need to have a serious rethink about the way it runs its operations but there is much optimism that with Zander and Bigois there will be the chance to get back to the same kind of level that the team enjoyed in the latter days of Geoff Willis’s period as technical director.

– JOE SAWARD

sutton-images.com

– JOE SAWARD

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In the end, Ecclestone – in order to retain the F1 ‘rate card’ – wanted twice what George was prepared to pay.

At the same time, it seems F1 sponsors have concluded that the race in Indy hasn’t made much of an impact on the US market – and those who have visited the race are suggesting that Indianapolis itself doesn’t really have a lot in the way of outside attractions to bring people to the race.

They want more glitz and glamour.

In the 1990s, the US hosted an F1 double, at Long Beach and Watkins Glen. The race in California was a huge loss to F1 – again down to money – and there are many who believe that losing the race in 1983 was probably Bernie Ecclestone’s biggest mistake.

The problem for F1 remains the same as ever it was: the competition for big events in the United States is such that promoters can find a much better deal from other sports, many of which do not require the same kind of investment as is demanded by F1.

Ecclestone must now go back to studying potential new venues. He has long held the dream of making it in Las Vegas, despite the failure back in the early 1980s, but Champ Car got only a lukewarm reception this year when it raced on the streets of Vegas and F1 would want to be bigger and better than that.

Ecclestone, George fail to make deal and Formula 1 drops Indianapolis

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FORMULA 1 HONDA test driver Christian Klien looks set to drive for Spyker at this weekend’s European GP, following the dumping of Christijan Albers.

The Dutchman has had little confidence in the car this year, has struggled to be competitive and been out-paced by rookie team-mate Adrian Sutil. The team used the fact that one of Albers’s sponsors was late to pay as an excuse to pull the plug on the relationship, but the major concern appears to have been performance.

“The decision to replace Christijan is one of the hardest I have had to take since becoming involved in the team,” said Michiel Mol, trying to

BRITAIN’S Trademark Registry has rejected an attempt by the Formula One group to secure exclusive rights to the ‘F1’ abbreviation. sutton-images.com

KEEPING IT KLIEN

F1 to The People

avoid criticism in the Dutch media.

The word in F1 circles was that Klien would be brought in as the replacement and at the end of last week, the Austrian was released by Honda in order to test for the team at the Spa test, above.

Klien is not the only driver in with a chance but he was the only one to test and it is logical for him to take the role. The other names that have been mentioned include the team's test driver Markus Winkelhock, Williams's test driver Narain Karthikeyan and Renault test driver Nelson Piquet Jr, who Flavio Briatore wants to place with another team in order to get some F1 racing experience.

Registry Official David Landau ruled that the public recognises F1 as a type of sport rather than a brand name. The fact that the Formula One group organises F1 races does not mean that the public perceives F1 as being a trademark.

“It just means that currently it enjoys a monopoly on the races. However, if private owners of F1 cars race them on a friendly basis is that not an F1 race, if not on a commercial basis?” said Landau.

– JOE SAWARD

– JOE SAWARD

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BRIEFLY... n The NEC Australian Rally Championship will continue to stage rounds in Victoria and South Australia.

Rallycorp has secured multiyear deals with the promoters of both the NGK Rally of Melbourne and the Toyota Kluger Rally SA. “The agreements that have been reached with the event promoters will ensure the continued growth of this dynamic national championship,” said Rallycorp Chairman Steve Ashton.

n Television viewing figures for Formula One have shot up in the UK, thanks to Lewis Hamilton. No surprise there then! At the start of the British GP, broadcaster ITV1 held a 50 per cent audience share with the audience peaking at 5.1 million viewers. ITV has defended itself against criticism for the coverage being The Lewis Hamilton Show by saying that it has to tell the story and Hamilton is the story of the moment. n UK cinemas are showing the remaining Grands Prix of the season in an FOM-blessed deal. A ticket costs £15 and viewers receive a free drink, free pop corn and a free official programme plus they get the coverage without ad breaks. The deal began with the British GP and continues for the European where commentary is provided by MNews contributor David Addison and former F1 racer Jonathan Palmer.

– DAVID ADDISON/STAFF

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Marshall Cass

n Van Diemen’s Australian distributor has announced that it will be run a lease program in 2008 for its new DP07 chassis. Formula Ford competitors will be able to lease a chassis (with or without engine) instead of going to the expense of purchasing the car.

F3 test for FFordsters

CAMS Rising Stars Ash Walsh and Josh Scott will get a taste of British Formula 3 later this year when they test for Alan Docking Racing.

The Formula Forders are headed to the UK to run the famous Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch, and will take some time out to pedal one of ADR’s National Class cars.

“I can’t wait,” Walsh told eNews. “I’ve never driven a wings and slicks car before so it’ll be

interesting. But it’s just a taste so we’ll see how we go. If it goes well, hopefully someone is watching.”

The test further highlights the relationship between the CAMS Rising Star program and ADR, with former Rising Star John Martin running in this year’s British Formula 3 Championship with the team.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

Slade shade of White V8 SUPERCARS FUJITSU V8 Series racer Tim Slade will drive for Matthew White Racing for the remainder of 2007 and has signed a deal to drive one of the team’s Falcons in 2008.

The runner-up in last year’s Formula Ford title, Slade began the season with the Dexion team before departing and driving one of White’s cars in a one-off at the last round at Winton.

He tested with the team at Winton last Monday and will be joined in this weekend’s round at Queensland Raceway

by Marcus Marshall, making another one-off appearance with the team to build his experience pre-endurance events.

“I am very pleased to be driving with Matthew’s team

and having some certainty to my driving future in V8 Supercars,” said Slade.

“While we had some ups and downs at Winton, with so little time to prepare it wasn’t a real surprise. The

team are dedicated to the task and we have made some real improvements now that we have had some time to prepare.”

– AARON NOONAN

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Youlden gets a BA for QR V8 SUPERCARS LUKE Youlden will drive a Ford Falcon BA in this weekend’s round of the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series at Queensland Raceway.

Youlden’s team, HPM Racing, has entered into a lease/ preparation deal with ANT Racing (formerly supported by Dexion). The BA (ex-FPR) will be engineered by Youlden’s regular spanner man Bruce Price.

To date, Youlden has toiled in an under performing AU Falcon, despite taking a race win in the last round at Winton.

“It’s a newer car and the chassis is a lot better,” Youlden said.

“It has an FPR engine which is quite strong. We are confident it should be good. There may be some small things that we’ll have to overcome, but come Saturday everything should be sorted.

“We need to be pushing for podiums. As long as we are competitive, we’ll be happy.

But it will just be a matter of how long it takes everyone to gel in the new environment.”

Youlden will team up with Russell Ingall for the V8 Supercar endurance races at Sandown and Bathurst.

– GRANT ROWLEY

Kelly rejoins Fujitsu Series OWEN Kelly will return to the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series this weekend at Queensland Raceway – and he’ll have the help of former SBR crew chief Paul Forgie.

Kelly, fresh back from competing on the short oval scene in the United States, will take over the ex-SBR AU Falcon from regular pilot Terry Wyhoon for this round and the next at Oran Park. Forgie, who was also in the States at

the same time as Kelly, will be on hand to assist the FPR endurance signing on his return to the category.

The car isn’t one completely familiar to Forgie given it was a Caltex car rather than a Pirtek chassis, with QR being his first V8 appearance since parting ways with SBR before the Winton round in May. – AARON NOONAN

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BRIEFLY... n The promoter of the Speedcar Series, the new races for US-built V8 stock cars in Asia and the Middle East which will start in Dubai on 10 November, has confirmed plans to lease 18 cars to professional teams, while running six itself. The first to sign up to operating two cars is GPC Squadra Corse, Giampaolo Coppi’s team which is best known for successful FIA GT campaigns with Ferraris. The top prize in the new Speedcar Series, which will share the bill with GP2 Asia, will be US$600,000. n Volvo will become the first automobile manufacturer to race in the World Touring Car Championship with the E85 biofuel when the works-backed Polestar team contests the races at Anderstorp, Sweden, on July 28-29. n The BTCC looks set to return to Silverstone next year after the Home of British Motor Racing was missed off this year’s calendar. Paddock insiders claimed there was a deep rift between TOCA and Silverstone but BTCC boss Alan Gow has pledged to discuss a date for the venue for 2008. n But the iconic Northamptonshire track may lose its licence to hold a round of the World Superbike Championship for next year.

This year’s Silverstone round was blighted by rain and the cancellation of some races due to the poor track drainage. With Brands Hatch and Donington also hosting well-attended WSBK rounds, and an American round now likely, it appears unlikely that Britain can’t sustain three events and something has to give.

– SPURRING/ADDISON

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Rally Oz Shake Up Queensland is go – but only every other year WORLD RALLY ORGANISERS of the new Rally Australia aren’t concerned about the event’s future, despite the likelihood that it will only be a round of the World Rally Championship every second year.

A radical shake-up of the WRC calendar will see 24 events on rotation from 2009 onwards, meaning Rally Australia run as nonchampionship every other year. But chairman of the event’s organising committee Garry Connelly says it’s not a big problem.

“There’ll definitely be some challenges regarding staffing and infrastructure, but if your event is associated with other events, then it’s not a big issue,” Connelly told eNews.

“The Queensland event is feasible because of the new complex.

“There will be ramifications, but the challenge will be finding something for the off-year.”

One option may be an FIAbased substitute series for Super 2000-spec cars, while events such as the Monte Carlo rally are looking at running historic events every second year.

There have also been some updates on the new-for-2012 technical regulations, with the biggest news involving each manufacturer being required to have a satellite team similar to Ford’s Stobart squad.

“The idea is that if we have six manufacturers fielding four cars each, we’ve got a great championship,” said Connelly, who is part of the FIA’s ‘Vision 2012’ working group.

– ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

IRL hands out fines IRL INDYCAR THE Indy Racing League has slapped both Andretti Green Racing and Penske Racing with US$25,000 fines each for the altercation following the recent Watkins Glen round of the IRL IndyCar Series.

Both Tony Kanaan and Sam Hornish Jr were also fined, however the amounts were not disclosed by the league.

Brian Barnhardt, the IRL’s president of racing and competition, has ruled that Sam Hornish Snr, who shoved Kanaan post-race, woudn’t be allowed on pit road for last weekend’s race in Nashville.

He also revoked indefinitely the credentials of Anthony Fedele, a friend of AGR co-

sutton-images.com

owner Michael Andretti who had wrestled Hornish Snr to the ground.

Both drivers and teams have been placed on probation until December 31.

“We definitely learned from our mistakes,” said Kanaan.

“It's like in my house; when I'm trying to get in an argument with my wife, I always lose it because I raise my voice first, so I guess I've got to learn that.”

news

Hopper Green with Envy MOTOGP THE race is on to join John Hopkins aboard Kawasakis next season – and Anthony West is in contention to stay in green.

The 24-year-old American was confirmed as part of the squad’s lineup last weekend in Germany and will end his five-year association with Suzuki at this year’s final race at Valencia in November.

Despite being the last of the manufacturers to roll out an 800cc bike, Kawasaki has become a sought-after seat after recent MotoGPs, with Randy de Puniet, not below, qualifying his ZX-RR on the

front row for the second time this season at the Sachsenring.

One possibility to join Hopper could be Loris Capirossi, whose management confirmed last week that the veteran Italian had “several” options with other makes for 2008.

His decision may depend on how quickly Ducati settles its 2008 lineup, with Marco Melandri in the frame to join Casey Stoner on the Italian bikes – though rumours continue that World Champion Nicky Hayden is attempting to escape his Honda commitments to join Ducati.

West could stay with Kawasaki though, as the team may run three bikes next

AKA goes

FULLY CIK KARTING

season. It will run a wildcard entry at Laguna Seca next weekend, with Roger Lee Hayden on board, and West is believed to have impressed the team’s management with his speed and commitment since he replaced the injured Olivier Jacque in June.

Hopkins’s move leaves a vacancy at Suzuki, with former World champion Kevin Schwantz encouraging Suzuki to allow current AMA Superbike Champion Ben Spies to run a wildcard entry this season.

THE Australian Karting Association is calling for expressions of interest from teams to revive a national CIK Championship series for 2008.

Kawasaki Racing Team

Jorge, Jorge, Jorge of The Jungle ...

MOTOGP JORGE Lorenzo looks sure to race in MotoGP on a Yamaha next season – but not for the factory team.

The mercurial 250 World Champion, who leads this year’s pointscore as well, is believed to have signed a multi-year deal that will see him, initially, race for a satellite team, staffed

by Yamaha technicians and backed by Spanish tobacco brand Fortuna.

This is believed to be prompted by Yamaha management’s realisation that they owe a huge debt to Valentino Rossi and team manager Jeremy Burgess, but are pragmatic enough to

recognise that the Italian is committed to stay with the team only until the end of next season.

At 20, Lorenzo is clearly viewed as the long-term future of the team.

Rossi, who is believed to have approval rights of his team-mate, has also expressed a preference to keep Colin Edwards in the team for one more year, leaving Yamaha with the option of Rossi-Lorenzo or Edwards-Lorenzo for 2009.

Lorenzo’s manager, Dani Amatriain said on the weekend that he expected the youngster to race – and win – for Yamaha next season. Nothing like being confident …

The governing body is proposing to run the series for the new generation KF2 class.

However, the twist is that the AKA will purchase the engines, then lease them to competitors. Tenders will be called to supply engines, tyres and engine servicing for a full field of 32 starters, plus provisions for spares and wildcard entries.

Apart from the chassis, it will effectively be a spec category where motors will be balloted to competitors at each round and returned to the AKA’s engine service contractor at the end of each meeting.

Under the proposal, there will be 16 two-kart teams that have to pay a series fee and meet certain criteria – very much like the KartPrix National Series that the AKA rejected some months ago.

It will run over five to six rounds in the eastern states.

The AKA expects the venture will cost around $160,000 and as such, will only go ahead if the series attracts sufficient subscriptions to make a viable business case.

If successful, KF3 (Juniors) will be added to the 2009 series.

– MARK WICKS

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5 Minutes with ...

ROGER PENSKE

Roger Penske heads a corporation with an annual turnover of US$18 billion. He also runs NASCAR, IRL and ALMS Sportscar teams. And he’s Ryan Briscoe’s employer ...

CHRIS LAMBDEN MOTORSPORT NEWS: A year ago, Ryan’s career was in a dip – why did you take him on? How would you rate his performance to date?

ROGER PENSKE: He’d come out of that big accident the previous year, recovered well, but was without what you’d call a regular drive. His management approached us, we had a spot available in the Porsche programme … it seemed an obvious fit.

In the ALMS, you’ve got to run fast, but above all you’ve got to run smart. He’s a quick driver – over in Utah, after four to five laps on a track he’d never been to, he was quicker than anyone. And he’s only going to get better.

To me, he has a good future with us – he’s young, bright, and works well with the media and the sponsors.

Technically … you should read one of his race reports – I’ve never seen a more thorough report from a driver than what we get from Briscoe!

Should Sam Hornish move on to NASCAR, as has been rumoured, would you move Ryan to the IRL team?

We haven’t made the decision on Sam yet. Obviously, Ryan had IndyCar experience when we signed him and, as part of bringing him on, we ran him at Indy in May, just to see how he would ‘fit’ in those cars and in that team. And, as you know, he did an excellent job for us there.

He would be one of our first choices to go to Indy racing.

On the other hand, with his background in road racing, he’s

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done a very good job for us in ALMS ...

Once we know what we’re doing with Hornish, then we’ve got to decide what we’re doing with Briscoe – but he’d be one of our key candidates, for sure.

There are suggestions that the ACO is going to look seriously at adjusting the relative competitiveness of petrol engines as against diesel in LMP1 – would you push for Porsche to have a go at LMP1 under those circumstances?

If we could have parity with diesel and petrol cars in LMP1, I’d love to see Porsche move on up and compete at that level. I think you’d see Honda come in as well, joining Peugeot, so you could end up with at least four or five manufacturers, which would make it a tremendous series on a world-wide basis.

The IRL/Champ Car split – it got close to resolution 18 months ago. Is there any chance?

I’ve been asked that question a lot. Mario (Andretti) came out in the past two weeks to say he’s been trying to set up some meetings, but it seems that the two parties just can’t agree on some of the main issues. I’m not privy to those discussions … I think it’s going to take some time.

would it be that?

Yeah, absolutely. I really would like to see the two open wheel series get together.

When the 12th F1 licence came up for grabs last year, your name popped up in discussions – were you seriously interested in that? Is F1 an attraction?

Not really. We are so involved in what we do over here now.

To do F1 properly, I’d have to give up my business and I’m not prepared to do that. I’m envious from afar of what goes on in Formula 1, but here I’m getting the benefit of the racing integrated with my business.

You’ve been around racing a long time – you had a working relationship with Bruce McLaren back in the 60s, the ‘good old days’. Were they the good old days? Do you subscribe to that, or are you comfortable with the premise that motorsport is predominantly a business today?

Without the business aspect to racing, it would never be where it is today, because the costs have escalated because of the technology.

To succeed, there still has to be the same kind of drive – you look at guys like Bruce, Frank Williams, through to Ron Dennis at McLaren today, at the amount of commitment they had or have. You lose more than you win, but you come out with some value and some incentive to go on. That’s really helped me – it’s a common thread through my business.

We’re victims of communication and transportation today – information is immediately available; you can fly the world.

When my parents grew up, if they went on a once-a-year trip 200 miles from home, it was a big thing.

Motor racing is our advertising and promotion.

We try to finance it through sponsorship and support from manufacturers, so that we run a zero budget. Anything we have left over, we put back in – like we have with this facility, the wind tunnel, the seven-post rig and so on.

For more on Penske Racing’s US base, don’t miss the August issue of Motorsport News, on sale July 25.

If you had the power to change one thing in US racing,

He would be one of our first choices to go Indy racing ROGER PENSKE SPEAKS HIGHLY OF RYAN BRISCOE

chat

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QR: Suspension, brakes and controlled egos the key opinion Tomas Mezera Bathurst champion

Dirk Klynsmith

SUSPENSION packages and brakes will be the key to success at this weekend’s Queensland Raceway V8 round – because the bumps going into Turns 1 and 3 haven’t got any better!

I’ve read the criticisms of the track over the past week and I’d have to agree. The bumps are getting worse and the problem is that no-one wants – or rather wants to pay – to fix it. The Council owns it, John Tetley runs it, and each wants the other to pay to fix it …

It’s the bumps which will contribute to the results.

It makes the opening lap very dodgy, and someone, sometime will cause a Turn1/3 shunt.

I still reckon, despite being interstate visitors, that HRT/

HSV has the package to cope with the bumps best and, along with good horsepower, that will again make them the favourites. Some of the ‘locals’ might qualify well, but I’d be surprised if a local team wins – I think Clayton will deliver the goods by Sunday night.

The less well-funded and organised visiting teams will struggle to get to grips with it.

Coping with the bumps isn’t just about suspension – although that does contribute to the other factor, brakes.

The key is to stop well on the bumps without locking up and flat-spotting tyres.

The other factor which will produce the usual QR incidents is that the track is very dirty off line, so passing is very difficult unless you have

a big speed advantage. There are a handful of drivers out there who don’t know when enough is enough, when to concede, when to give way, and in the end frustration will lead to common sense going out the window. It’s the team manager’s job to keep those egos under control, or they could well have an expensive day!

Letters

Have your say, email us at mail@mnews.com.au. Keep letters to the point.

Fujitsu the Feeder?

Is the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series really a feeder category?

The reality is at present we do not have the best 32 drivers in the ‘main’ V8 Supercar Series, so what hope does the Fujitsu Series have?

I race go karts in NSW, but if I decided to arrive with a large cheque, I could find myself in the Fujitsu Series next year … possibly next round!

It could be argued that A.Macrow, T.D’Alberto and A.Thompson deserve a spot

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in the main series before I do – but not if they don’t pay. I think that’s dumb!

V8SC should be buying a drive in the main series for the winner of the Fujitsu V8 Series.

Now that’s ‘Developing’ the driver talent.

Martin Black Kiama, NSW

Will Power won his first race.

In fact, it is even better news than Power’s second win. This may seem selfish, but I love Champ Car so much that I’d give up another Power win just to have Champ Car broadcast in Australia!

Greame Deary Hampton Park, VIC

Power TV Finally, Champ Car is going to be on free-to-air television.

Thank god!

That is the best news since

Ron’s Daylight Spendings I read with great interest Ron Walker’s comments in last week’s eNews regarding the dusk race for the Australian

Grand Prix.

Ron suggested that if the race started at 4pm, then it would finish in the dark. Now having lived in Melbourne my whole life, and being fairly across the concept of daylight savings AND the length of your average F1 race, I’m a little confused ...

So the race finishes at about 5:30pm and it’s dark? I must turn my watch the wrong way during March.

Al Greene St Kilda, VIC

opinion

I WAS doodling on the weekend and started to wonder about what Phil Branagan the Formula 1 World Executive Editor Championship would look like in 2009, so I pulled out this year’s calendar.

Australia looks safe, particularly so, given that AGP Chairman Ron Walker has been in the UK of late, discussing the future of the race. Okay, Ron’s comments last issue indicate that he may not have Daylight Saving absolutely sorted (dark at 5:30? Really?) but we look pretty good, for now.

Malaysia, ditto. Same for Bahrain, Barcelona and Monaco (ever notice no one ever bags the facilities at Monaco, but Silverstone is fair game?) Canada stays, Germany and Hungary look good, while Italy, Japan (Fuji this year, remember) and China all look rock steady before the end of year race-around-the-garbage-dump in Brazil.

This year’s Boned List includes such low-rent venues as Imola, Indianapolis and Magny Cours, and Silverstone cannot keep up the Freddie Kruger routine forever. Into the fray comes Valencia and Singapore, and such motor racing heartlands as India and Korea are on the horizon.

My point? Nothing lasts forever. I am a great believer that this is the World Championship we are talking about, and not the European F1 Series. Having races closer to our time zone makes my life a hell of a lot easier, but, in a way, I would like to see a place for some tradition, as well.

I am not ready to complain yet. But if the Le Mans 24 Hours moved to Indonesia, I might …

opinion

sutton-images.com

F1: The New World Game

Precedents – conflicting tales OPINION Joe Saward Formula 1 Correspondent Given the FIA rules about fraudulent conduct or acts prejudicial to the interests of the sport, it is hard to see why a complaint is necessary.

This may not seem to be a significant point but if McLaren ends up facing serious FIA sanction, which may have an effect on the commercial value of the McLaren company, there exists the possibility of legal action and perhaps claims that McLaren has not been treated in the same manner as Toyota.

The implied threat of legal action is believed to have been what caused the FIA to think twice in the Benetton case in 1994 – the presence in the Benetton legal team of celebrated lawyer George Carmen being seen as having been a message that the FIA apparently took on board.

sutton-images.com

IT’LL be a brave FIA that sanctions the McLaren team – if they are found guilty in any way in relation to ‘Stepneygate.’

Back in 1994 Benetton F1 escaped punishment for illegally tampering with its refuelling equipment, by admitting the charge and throwing itself on the mercy of the court.

The FIA agreed to let the team off because the changes had been made by “a junior employee.”

A year later Toyota tried the same defence when its rally team admitted using illegal turbo restrictors at the Catalunya Rally. In that case, however, the FIA ruled that the team had to take responsibility and excluded the team from the World Rally Championship for a year.

On the other hand, the FIA has not taken any action against Toyota resulting from the recent espionage case with Ferrari. Two former Ferrari employees, Angelo Santini and Mauro Iacconi, have been found guilty of industrial espionage and have been given suspended jail sentences but the FIA says it is not involved because noone made a complaint.

19

BUSCH TELEGRAPH Marcos Ambrose NASCAR Busch driver

AMBROSE: Preparing for lift-off

He’s done the apprenticeship, earned the respect of his peers; now it’s time to turn up the wick, as MARCOS AMBROSE explains to CHRIS LAMBDEN

IT’S a hot, humid, 37-degree summer’s day, a Tuesday, at Wood Brothers Racing, a couple of kilometres from the famous Charlotte, North Carolina, oval.

Marcos Ambrose is showing a small group of Aussies around Wood Brothers’ race shop. As he goes through the full ‘techo’ explanation of just how a NASCAR works (you can throw any V8 Supercar knowledge right out of the window!), it’s clear that the former V8 champ is now deeply immersed in his US career; that he’s assimilated a lot of information in a category of racing which is deceptively technical – but a million miles

20

away from his road racing roots.

“I’m still reprogramming my brain,” Marcos admits.

“When I first came here, I could turn a lap pretty quick – we qualified third at Charlotte in my fourth race – and I turned good laps in the first test to get the ride in the first place.

But could I put three together – absolutely no way! Could I lead a team forward? No way.

“It’s only now that we’re getting ourselves in a position where the team can use me more than they have.

“I’ve left some results out there, like at Daytona (two weeks ago) – a mistake I made,

IT'S LIKE A GAME OF CHESS. MAKE THE WRONG MOVE AND IT ENDS IN DISASTER ...

MARCOS AMBROSE thinking the tyre was down. It did have a hole, it was leaking, but it was still some 30lbs, so it was probably okay to finish the race on.

“On the lap around to the restart I made a call to the spotter, asked the guy behind me to let us know if the tyre was down, he said he thought it was … You have to come in … any other time, or place, it would have been a different story, but at such speed, you just have a

little wobble, and you’re going to cause a 30-car pile-up – and I don’t want to be responsible for that ...”

Ambrose’s approach has been clear. Rather than blaze away in an attempt to jag a result, at the risk of tearing up cars (did anyone mention Juan Pablo Montoya?), Marcos has deliberately – with the support of the team – concentrated on getting the basics right, finishing races, learning

Ambrose is getting the basics right. Now it's time for the Major League: Left, Ambrose poses with his Aussie tour mates. Right, MNews Publisher Chris Lambden visited Marcos's office, and tried it on for size!

strategy. At the bigger, wellfunded teams, a number of young drivers have got a start, but the pressure is enormous: “There are young guys jumping into Cup operations that are running at the front, good rides. All they’re asked to do is jump in and drive the shit out of it. If they do well, they keep their job; if they do well and crash, they get a lifeline; if they do bad, they’re out! Four guys have already been kicked out in the Busch series already this year. Doing it that way, it’s tough! It’s a competitive world.”

Ambrose’s modus operandi has, to his benefit as an outsider, been more measured:

“The agenda early on here was that I just wanted to hang around. I wanted to be able to say ‘I’m still here’ after 12 months. That’s how it was for the first six months last year.

“Then I’ve got picked up by Kingsford, to go in their Busch program. This year, we’re in the top 10 points, they want to renew, I’ve got a job for next year. So, looking at the big picture, I’ve had a successful season so far.

“But it’s only now, since Charlotte four weeks ago, that I really feel I belong.

“Up until then, you feel a bit like a pimple, you know. Then there’s a moment, when you

think ‘I’m here doing driver intros, I’m here talking to Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jnr, we’re qualifying in the top 10, and I know what I’m doing when I start the race.’

“It’s like a game of chess. Make the wrong move and it ends in disaster. You have to make the right move at the right time, but you have to have the confidence to know you can do it.

“It’s taken a lot longer than I’d thought it would to get that level of comfort, and it’s only since then that I’ve refocussed everybody, to say ‘okay, let’s just not worry about just turning up, let’s not do a strategy that’s

about not causing a potential drama. Let’s not do that. Let’s go for results, let’s go for performance.

“I think I’m good enough now to stay out of trouble and do it without looking ridiculous.”

Part of that process has involved acceptance that some times – be it Busch or Trucks or Nextel Cup – it’s not your day.

And sometimes, as part of the process of gaining the respect of the regulars, you just have to cop it: “It’s a discipline thing. If it’s not my day, not my race, and I’m going to go a lap down, don’t continued next page

21

I DON'T EXPECT TO GIVE THEM ANYTHING – IF THEY'RE IN THE WAY, I'LL GET THEM OUT OF THE WAY ...

MARCOS AMBROSE

continued from previous page

make it tough on them. It’s happening for good reason – I’m driving like shit; they’re driving really well!

“I make a point of doing the right thing – sometimes at the cost of our own result. But that’s what gives you longevity, and respect, in this sport.

“But when it is my day, then I don’t expect to give them anything – if they’re in the way, I’ll get them out of the way ...”

Certainly the measure of a driver’s worth in the hurlyburly of the NASCAR/Busch Series world is not quite as simple as wins and losses: “It’s not as results-driven here as it is back in Australia, for good reason – everything can

22

change in the last five minutes of a race, can break your day.

For example, a fortnight ago (Daytona) was Kurt Busch’s first ever win on a super speedway ... and he’s already an acknowledged star. It’s all about how you can run, on a consistent basis.

“We’ve been running consistently outside the top 10 – now we need to run inside the top 10. We ran top 10 at Daytona, so I’m happy with that. It’s the overall package that counts – practice, qualifying, early in the run, and so on.”

That approach seems to be working for Ambrose – certainly the vibe in and around Wood Brothers is a positive one. In contrast, it

seems, to public reaction to his more famous Colombian rookie rival JPM. Is Montoya’s welcome-mat wearing thin?

Marcos is reluctant to be overtly critical, but makes a valid observation: “You can often judge by the response from the crowd, at the driver presentations. If you’re a race fan and you’re gunning for your particular driver, and he gets wiped out, you boo the guy that knocked him out ...”

Back to Marcos, and the message is becoming clear.

Ambrose and his team have concluded that the apprenticeship is just about over. From here, expect a more aggressive approach.

“I’ve been fortunate to

be in the position where it hasn’t been about instant performance – the team as well weren’t in a position to ask it of me; they weren’t in the position to give me the gear week-in and week-out.

“But now we’re looking for an upswing over the next few weeks. Fortunately, I haven’t crashed cars, so we’ve been able to devote resources to making things better. We’ve started to do some R&D and got some new people in who wanted to come and join us.

“That’s how you build momentum ... and suddenly it becomes a snow ball. I think, now, the snowball’s just starting to roll a bit – not too much speed yet, but with the potential to take off ...”

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MOTO GP SACHSENRING – ROUND 10

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race

Remembrance Day

Amid all the fever about Stoner versus Rossi, the Sachsenring served as a reminder of three important facts – Honda can build missiles, Michelin can make fast tyres and Dani Pedrosa can take advantage of both

Honda Pro Images

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D

ANI Pedrosa is a hell of a rider. After three World titles on the way to MotoGP, he hit The Show like a cyclone – even if he did occasionally ruffle feathers, even Nicky Hayden’s.

Honda Pro Images

New-look podium: Dani Pedrosa, above, led Loris Capirossi, below, and Nicky Hayden, below left, at a sweltering Sachsenring.

Ducati Corse Press

26

made a mistake and lost the front. I’m so disappointed because today our package was working very well and we missed the chance to make up a lot of points on Stoner.”

Nicky Hayden put a qualifying nightmare (again)

Honda Pro Images

After a frustrating year without a win, things were looking little better as his old quarter-litre rival Casey Stoner dominated practice, qualifying and the warm-up. But Pedrosa won the start, peered over his shoulder and left the Ducati ace – and the rest of the pack – for dead around the twisting Sachsenring.

“I made a good start, pushed hard from the beginning and was able to open up a gap and control things from the front,” he said after winning by 13s.

“The tyres were really good today and Michelin did a very good job, especially as some riders were having difficulties.

Towards the end of the race the gap was big so I could take it relatively easy, which I was grateful for because it was very hot out there.”

As if to underline that 2006 was not that long ago, a Ducati chased the Repsol Honda home – but it was not Stoner’s.

Loris Capirossi took his time to find his rhythm but once he had it, he motored through to second, at the same time as Stoner’s tyres faded, dropping him from second to fifth.

The Aussie has all kinds of tyre dramas and it could have been worse, as Casey finished the race with Marco Melandri and John Hopkins all over him.

But even as Stoner returned to his team, all realised that there was a silver lining.

Valentino Rossi made a slow start, even by his standards, and was chasing Randy de Puniet for sixth when he hit the deck.

“Getting past de Puniet was hard because in the part of the track where it’s best to overtake he was very fast,” said The Doctor.

“Finally I made my move and I made a great pass but I

behind him when he rode through to a brilliant third, perhaps silencing any rumours that he will break his Honda contract and suit up in red next season, while Colin Edwards was fourth, his Michelins in fine shape at the end of 30 blistering laps.

Anthony West was eighth and the sole Kawasaki finisher after chasing down teammate de Puniet, while Chris Vermeulen was 11th, having all but jumped the start and having to claw his way back through the field from last.

What all this means, for now, is an extended lead for Stoner as the riders and teams head for this weekend’s US race.

No matter what happens in California, Stoner will head into the summer break leading the championship.

But everyone else knows that too, and now, the Hondas look like they have some speed – and power – to join the Ducati-Yamaha war. And Nicky Hayden will be shooting for a home hat trick at Laguna Seca …

MOTO GP | RIDer’s points Points: Stoner 196, Rossi 164, Pedrosa 144, Hopkins 103, Melandri 97, Vermeulen 93, Edwards 88, Capirossi 77, Hayden 73, Barros 69.

race

Before the Silly Season starts We know where Hopper will ride in 2008 – but the rest of the jigsaw puzzle is far from sorted Red Bull KTM

The Orange People KTM was the marque to beat at the Sachsenring, Hiroshi Aoyama coming from sixth on the grid to beat team-mate and poleman Mika Kallio for his first 250 win of the season.

This goes with this: John Hopkins, above, continues to impress at Suzuki, despite his recent announcement that he is off to Kawasaki next season. Randy de Puniet, fought off Valentino Rossi, left, until the Italian fell on lap 6, leaving Colin Edwards, below left, to fly the flag for Yamaha.

Casey Stoner, below, dropped through the field to fifth once his Bridgestones started to feel the heat mid-race.

Alex de Angelis was third, while points leader Jorge Lorenzo chased the lead trio and even closed over the final laps. He finished fourth to increase his points lead over Honda’s Andrea Dovizioso, who was fifth.

Points: Lorenzo 191, de Angelia 171, Dovizioso 166, Bautista 116, Barbera 90, Aoyama and Kallio 73, Luthi 63, Simon 61.

Kawasaki Racing Team

GABOR Talmasci could hardly have had a better week in Germany.

He credited setting up his brother’s Supersport bike during the week with helping him to take the 125 pole position, then he beat the field by 3s to take back the points lead from fellow Aprilia pilot Hector Faubel. Tommy Koyama split them in second, while the talking point of the race was Mattia Pasini’s shocker, hit by Raffaele de Rosa at the start.

Ducati Corse Press

Yamaha Racing

Points: Talmasci 156, Faubel 154, Koyama 118, Pesek 113, Corsi 110, Gadea 105, Smith 71, Olive 69.

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GLOBE TROTTER NHRA THE NHRA POWERade Drag Racing series kicked off the three-race western swing at Denver’s Bandimere Speedway last weekend.

Current point leader Rod Fuller stopped his team-mate Whit Bazemore in an allDavid Powers Motorsports final round in Top Fuel.

Meanwhile, Jack Beckman defeated his team-mate Ron Capps in an all-Don Schumacher Racing final round in Funny Car. – DAVID OSTASZEWSKI

BRITISH F3

IRL INDYCAR

SCOTT Dixon is back in the hunt for the IRL IndyCar title after taking his second win on the trot in Nashville last weekend.

In fact, it was also Dixon’s second consecutive win at Nashville, the Kiwi becoming the first repeat winner in seven years.

“It’s exactly what we need,” said Dixon.

“It’s been a tough season, especially the start of it. This is what we need for the championship chase against Dario [Franchitti]. He had a strong day and was very competitive out there.”

Franchitti led the first 88 laps of the race and finished second, while Danica Patrick equalled her career best with third.

Neither Penske cars were on the frontrunning pace, Sam Hornish Jr and Helio Castroneves finishing fourth and sixth respectively.

F3 EUROSERIES

ALEXANDER Sims and Dean Smith were the class of the Formula Renault UK field at Donington on the weekend, sharing the race wins. Nathan Caratti finished up with an 18th place and a DNF.

FORMULA BMW UK

Lucky for Hak DTM HE may have started a lowly 15th on the grid, but come the chequered flag Mika Hakkinen was out front at last weekend’s DTM race at Mugello.

The two-time World Champion was the main beneficiary from a mid-race Safety Car period, before

which he was the only driver to have pitted and wound up with track position.

Mattias Ekstrom, who had dominated the race before the Safety Car, pressured Hakkinen late in the race but couldn’t find a way past.

Paul di Resta finished third.

Points: Ekstrom 32, Bernd Schneider 25.5, Bruno Spengler 22, di Resta 22, Hakkinen.

JASON Plato took two wins from three races at last weekend’s BTCC meeting at Donington Park.

The SEAT driver braved the wet conditions to win the second and third races, coming from ninth in the final. The results handed him the championship lead.

Points: Plato 188, Fabrizio Giovanardi 163, Matt Neal 129, Goordon Sheddon 115.

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SAM Abay had a good weekend at Donington, scoring pole position and finishing with a weekend best of seventh.

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Two out of three ain’t bad BTCC

ROMAIN Grosjean braved the heat at Mugello to win Race 1 of the F3 Euroseries round last weekend.

Franck Mailleux won the second race while Aussie Michael Patrizi’s weekend best was 11th in Race 1.

FORMULA RENAULT

IRL Media

Points: Franchitti 434, Dixon 400, Dan Wheldon 337, Tony Kanaan 331, Hornish Jr 329. sutton-images.com

SEBASTIEN Hohenthal took his first British F3 win at Brands Hatch on the weekend.

The Fortec driver held off series leader Marko Asmer in the second race, after Asmer won the first.

Aussie John Martin failed to finish the first race and finished 13th in the second.

Dixon’s Double

race

Smoking!

NASCAR TONY Stewart took his first win of the year and the 30th of his career at Chicagoland Speedway last Sunday.

He had to hold off the dueling pair of Roush-Fenway drivers Matt Kenseth and Carl Edwards, with Kevin Harvick fourth and pole-sitter Casey Mears good for fifth.

“Our pit crew won us the race today,” said Stewart. “They got us off pit road first in the final stops giving us track position and that was so important at the end for us to run the line we needed and stay in clean air.”

Within the final 60 laps of a rather mundane race, three of the front-runners suffered issues; Dale Earnhardt Jr lost his power steering belt while third, his team mate Martin Truex Jr suffered engine woes and, while running second, and Jimmie Johnson cut a right rear tyre and hit the wall hard.

– MARTIN D CLARK Points: J Gordon 2911, Denny Hamlin 2608, Kenseth 2565, Jeff Burton 2491, Edwards 2473.

NASCAR Media

Champ hits back BUSCH SERIES

Points: Carl Edwards 3074, Harvick 2358, David Reutimann 2207, Dave Blaney 2194, David Ragan 2116, (Marcos Ambrose 1939).

NASCAR Media

REIGNING Busch Series Champ Kevin Harvick held off Matt Kenseth to win the USG Durock 300 at Chicagoland last Saturday.

Harvick got past his teammate Jeff Burton with less than 30 laps to run and stayed out front until the chequered flag.

Kyle Busch had dominated the early part of the race, but was shuffled back during a late caution thanks to a spin

from Aric Almirola. Busch elected to pit while Burton didn’t, handing Burton the lead and dropping Busch to eighth. He recovered to finish fifth.

Marcose Ambrose had a tough day in the office, making contact with Clint Bowyer leaving the pits after the first round of stops. He finished 37th.

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SHANNONS NATIONALS

Dirk Klynsmith

Winners are grinners: Steve Briffa, top, Geoff Emery, above, and Tony Ricciardello, below, all had smiles going at Eastern Creek.

John Morris/Mpix

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John Morris/Mpix

A CHANGE at the top of the Kumho Tyres Australian Formula 3 Championship was the biggest news to emerge from the fifth round of the Shannons Nationals at Eastern Creek last weekend.

Yorkshireman Charlie Hollings won the first Formula 3 race and finished on the podium in the second to move himself to the top of the table after five of eight rounds.

Hollings led home his team-mate Michael Trimble in the first race, a four-car battle between the Astuti drivers, Tim Macrow and Macro Mapelli fought from lights-to-flag.

“Seconds and thirds are good for the points, but the win was what we wanted,” Hollings said after Race 2.

In Race 2 Italian youngster Mapelli became the sixth different race winner this season with a commanding win over pole-sitter Leanne Tander.

Former championship leader Macrow finished fifth and now trails Hollings by six points after leading since Round 1.

An upset was on the cards in the Shannons Production Car Championship, the SS Commodore of Steve Briffa beating the supposedly quicker outright cars of Leigh Mertens and Garry Holt – not

once, but twice.

Briffa won the scratch race on Saturday and the first points event on Sunday before Holt overpowered him to win a competitive finale later in the day.

Three different winners highlighted competitive Commodore Cup racing, Geoff Emery, Danny Richert and Michael Graham splitting the glory.

Emery leads the series with Richert in close company.

The usual suspects dominated in the Saloon Cars, Bruce Henrich winning his second round in three weeks in his Ford Falcon.

Kris Walton won pole (with a subrecord lap) and the first race but had no answer to the reigning Champ in Races 2 and 3.

West Australian Tony Ricciardello dominated the Sports Sedans while Warren McIlveen added yet another national Superkart title to his resume with a consistent performance throughout their final round.

Sam Zvaglia won the round whilst the event was halted for nearly two hours following a massive crash involving Anton Stevens in the third Superkart race.

After initial fears to the contrary, Stevens was taken to hospital to be treated for very minor injuries.

– RICHARD CRAILL

Dirk Klynsmith

Charlie takes the lead

race

Loadsman still the one AMRS

John Morris/Mpix

SCOTT Loadsman claimed top honours in the Australian Touring Car Challenge at Wakefield Park Raceway over the weekend, as part of Round 5 of the Australian Motor Racing Series.

Loadsman topped the time sheets in qualifying, then continued his front running form by taking out the opening race. He then followed it up with a second and a fourth place in the two handicap races.

Second and third respectively for the round were surprises, with David Gardner (VK Holden Commodore Group A) and Paul Leabeater (Hyundai Lantra Super Tourer) filling the top three.

In the other AMRS events, Luke Searle (BMW 130) regained control of the

Production Touring Car Championship by taking out the round, after leader Natalie Willmington (XR8 Ford Falcon) didn’t have the best of weekends.

Tom Drewer proved too strong for his opposition in

the Thunder Sports by taking two out of the three races, with fellow West WR1000 driver Graeme Cook claiming the Race 2 honours ahead of Drewer.

Derek Hocking was the most consistent in the Super TT / 3.3 Litre Holden class and

was rewarded with the overall round honours driving his SS Holden Commodore V8 Ute, while Ian McLean capped off his successful weekend with a dominant victory in the annual Hopwood 100.

– DANIEL POWELL

James Smith

John Morris/Mpix

Go West: Tom Drewer dominated Thunder Sports in the West racer, left, while Ian McLean won the Hopwood 100, right.

Chapman’s weekend at Sandown VIC STATE SAFTEY Car interventions in all three Formula Ford races could not prevent youngster Jake Chapman claiming Round 3 in the Victorian State Circuit Racing Championships at Sandown Raceway last weekend.

Chapman won the shortened opening race then

followed up with second in Race 2. In the final Chapman pulled off a spectacular last lap move to clinch victory from Trent Harrison and Andrew Hugen.

David Frith and George Panagiotidis scored two Formula Vee race wins apiece while Robert Lange recovered well to dominant Porsche 944s with two race victories

and a second.

Jervis Ward and Andrew Williams shared Historic Touring Car spoils with Ward winning two of the three races. The Saloon Cars had four hotly contested races, seeing three different race winners in Ryan Miller, Corey Ludeman and Andrew Nowland. In HQs Gavin Ross won the last three races with

Rodney Earsman scoring the opener.

Improved Production produced three different race winners in a weekend of attrition, with Anthony Wallis, Gary McKay and Paul Rule all getting up. In Sports Cars Brett Bedggood was back to his best, scoring all three wins in front of Kane Rose.

– AARON SHAW

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rear of grid

Keep the stars apart

I

punter@mnews.com.au

EVEN IF THE RULES DO ALLOW TANDER AND KELLY TO SHARE A CAR, STICK THE RAT WITH GARTH

Dirk Klynsmith

HOPE that Paul Radisich ends up partnering one of the regular Toll/HSV drivers at Sandown and Bathurst.

Why? Confirmation of the Motorsport eNews story (July 3) that The Rat had stepped out of the fire back into a hot seat (at Toll/HSV), and which car he might co-drive, reignited the discussion at our place about the whole codriver thing.

For what it is worth, the concensus view in The Punter’s circle is that drivers should stick with their own cars – ie teams shouldn’t pair their regular drivers in a lead car.

I remember it being discussed last year a lot when HRT and Toll started moving drivers around big-time (much to Garth Tander’s eventual sorrow) and there was even talk of making it a rule that drivers stay with their own car – it didn’t happen, but it would have been a good thing.

It’s just a simple thing – various drivers become associated with various car numbers. And if you have the two stars in one car and it crashes out early, you’ve got two regular racers out of the picture – it’s not like the (good?) old days when Brockie could waste a car then hop into the second car and still win Bathurst, which he did twice, was it (’83 and ’87?).

Committing every car to having to have a genuine codriver ensures that more young hopefuls get genuine seat time, and get to contribute to a potentially winning car.

I remember when Ambrose and Ingall shared an SBR car at Sandown and Bathurst, a sort-of half Pirtek/Caltex shimozzle. Didn’t work for me.

So, even if the rules do allow Tander and Kelly to share a car, stick The Rat with Garth – it will be one of those little and large combinations which could provide a few laughs at pit stop time (although the Rickster is hardly any shorter is he – either way it’ll need a seat insert and pedal blocks).

Odd Spot OKAY, maybe we’re partly to blame.

But we didn’t really think Jason Richards would take his rant about Queensland Raceway in last week’s eNews as far as this.

JR has decided that he could really ‘dig’ QR, especially from the cockpit of this 20-tonne digger.

One could make a joke about JR needing an excavator as he spends so much time in the sand, but that’d be taking the low road and eNews is the thinking motorsport fan’s magazine ...

JR really ’digs’ QR

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