Motorsport eNews Issue 118 - August 18-24, 2009

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Issue No. 118 August 18 - 24 2009

: L L E R B DUM

D E R R O F Y D REA PD gets enduro o t n o i t promo factory squad

Endurance season which drivers are in, Which team may be out

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

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Contributing Writers F1: Will Buxton, Mark Glendenning, Paolo Filisetti Europe: Quentin Spurring, David Addison US: Martin D. Clark, Phil Morris Speedway: Greg Boscato, Geoff Rounds, Darren Sutton, Tony Millard (UK) Drag Racing: Dave Ostaszewski (USA), Ken Ferguson, John Bosher, Luke Nieuwhof National: Lachlan Mansell, Mark Jones, Aaron Shaw.

Photographers Sutton Motorsport Images, Dirk Klynsmith, Marshall Cass, John Morris/Mpix, AF1 Images, James Smith, Peter Bury, Neil Blackbourn, Chris Carter, Coopers Photography, Geoff Gracie, Paris Charles, Neil Hammond, Joel Strickland, Ash Budd, Mike Patrick (UK) Motorsport eNews is published by Australasian Motorsport News ABN 55 125 120 702 Publisher: C Lambden

Issue No. 118 | 18 - 24 August 2009

news 4 Reddumbrell 6 SBR grabs Gaunt 8 Little Story 12 JDub’s SCAR 19 Gosford Park?

chat 20 5 minutes with ... opinion 22 Richo, Whincup

PD joins HRT for enduros Enduro lineup nearly there More change at V8SA An early run in a VE A Central Coast circuit?

Paul Dumbrell V8 stars’ Musical Chairs

race 24 Michigan NASCAR

Red Bull = Mileage 28 Watkins Glen NASCAR Ambrose shoulda won it ...

30 Aussies OS Erickson on pole 32 DTM Hear the TomToms 34 City of Melbourne Sushisational

trade 36 Classifieds Peeking: It was a quiet weekend in motor racing – so here is a file photo of the famed Fernando the Duck, at Jerez

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.

Freelance contributions are welcome, and while all care will be taken, Motorsport eNews does not accept responsibility for damage or loss of material submitted.

Opinions expressed in Motorsport eNews are not necessarily those of Australasian Motorsport News or its staff.

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

Dumbrell’s chance in red And PD’s switch to HRT reveals the rest of the Walkinshaw Racing enduro line-up too ...

V8 SUPERCARS

P

AUL Dumbrell’s 11th Bathurst 1000 will be at the wheel of a Holden Racing team Commodore.

The Melbourne driver, who will race his Autobarn Commodore this weekend at Queensland Raceway, will move into the Holden factory team and share car #22 with Craig Baird at Phillip Island and the Mountain classic.

It will mark the first time that the 27year-old has raced in the colours of the esteemed team.

“The Holden factory team is something that is synonymous with V8 Supercars, probably even more so than any other factory team,” he told eNews. “HRT is what everyone really associates with the title of being the number one racing team in the country.

“To be involved in that, from the outside over the last 18 months, and now to be able to pull on the red uniform, it’s a real privilege.”

As expected, Garth Tander and Will Davison will team up in the other HRT Commodore, while Steve Owen and Shane Price will team up to race in Dumbrell’s regular ride (the Autobarn Commodore).

Rookie David Reynolds will team up with three-time World Touring Car champion Andy Priaulx, who has previously driven in the endurance races with Kmart Racing.

FOR FORMULA 1, MOTOGP AND WRC NEWS, OPINION AND ANALYSIS CLICK HERE TO ACCES

news

Nash to turn blue?

V8 SUPERCARS

ROD Nash Racing could race under a different, blue, flag in 2010.

Nash, the owner of the #55 V8 Supercar REC (Racing Entitlements Contract), currently has his future options up in the air.

For the past two seasons, Nash has run his REC with Tony D’Alberto Racing, which has supplied a Walkinshaw Racing Commodore VE for D’Alberto to race.

But with their current agreement due to expire, there’s a chance that Nash, and longterm sponsor Bottle-O, could be on the move.

Well-placed industry sources have suggested that RNR and Bottle-O are speaking to Ford Performance Racing. It’s no secret that the factory Ford team has a longheld desire to expand its Broadmeadowsbased racing operations, but locking in a suitable partner/driver combination has proved difficult in recent times.

A Nash/FPR deal could make sense on a number of levels. Nash posses a REC, has a long-term sponsor (Bottle-O is signed as his backer until 2011), and might even have an available driver ... Nash has secured Andrew Thompson to replace Glenn Seton as D’Alberto’s endurance driver for Phillip Island and Bathurst. Thompson tested with D’Alberto at Winton and will get more laps in the green Commodore at Queensland Raceway this Friday as part of the endurance driver session.

Thompson, who last drove in the main V8 series with PWR Racing, was close to a deal to drive a third FPR car this year and is believed to be highly-rated by FPR chiefs. It’s early days, but could Thompson pilot a Bottle-O Falcon FG in 2010?

When contacted by eNews on Monday, Nash claimed such a scenario to be wide of the mark, stating that, first and foremost, he wants to discuss his team’s future with TDR: “We need to talk about that next week,” Nash said.

“I’ve put options forward to them (TDR) to let them know where they stand, and that’s where we are at.

“We’ve still got a few months to sort our what we are doing. My sponsorship is all pretty good at the moment “[But] I’ve been a pretty loyal Holden guy …”

If RNR was to move, it would mean that Tony D’Alberto Racing would need to find a new REC for next season.

Available RECs should not be a real issue, with a number of them likely to crop up on the market later in the season – if not earlier.

The only issue that may hinder the Victorian team’s bid to source a REC is V8 Supercar Australia’s desire to reduce the number of entries from 30 to 28. That number has yoyoed in recent times, but with the Team IntaRacing entry looking shaky, V8SA may get closer to that number sooner rather than later.

– GRANT ROWLEY

SS GPWEEK – THE WORLD’S FIRST ‘VIRTUAL’ INTERNATIONAL MOTORSPORT MAGAZINE ...

Unofficial endurance driver line-up TRIPLE EIGHT RACE ENGINEERING #888 Craig Lowndes Jamie Whincup #88 James Thompson Allan Simonsen HOLDEN RACING TEAM #2 Garth Tander #22 Paul Dumbrell

Will Davison Craig Baird

TASMAN MOTORSPORT #3 Jason Bargwanna #51 Greg Murphy

Mark Noske Mark Skaife

STONE BROTHERS RACING #4 John McIntyre Daniel Gaunt #9 Alex Davison Shane van Gisbergen FORD PERFORMANCE RACING #5 Dean Canto Luke Youlden #6 Mark Winterbottom Steven Richards KELLY RACING #7 Todd Kelly #15 Ben Collins #11 Jack Perkins #16 Mark McNally

Rick Kelly Nathan Pretty Dale Wood Tony Riccardello

BRAD JONES RACING #8 Jason Richards #14 Max Wilson

Cam McConville Andrew Jones

WALKINSHAW RACING #10 Steve Owen #24 David Reynolds

Shane Price Andy Priaulx

TRIPLE F RACING #12 Dean Fiore

Marcus Marshall

DICK JOHNSON RACING #17 Steve Johnson #18 Jonathon Webb

James Courtney Warren Luff

BRITEK MOTORSPORT #25 Jason Bright

Karl Reindler

GARRY ROGERS MOTORSPORT #33 Lee Holdsworth Michael Caruso #34 Greg Ritter David Besnard SUPERCHEAP AUTO RACING #39 Russell Ingall Paul Morris #67 Tim Slade Owen Kelly ROD NASH RACING #55 Tony D’Alberto

Andrew Thompson

PAUL CRUICKSHANK RACING #111 Fabian Coulthard David Wall #333 Michael Patrizi Leanne Tander SIEDERS RACING TEAM #13 Colin Sieders

David Sieders

MATTHEW WHITE MOTORSPORT #21 Damian Assaillit Brad Lowe GREG MURPHY RACING #?

Sam Walter

Taz Douglas

SONIC MOTOR RACING #99 James Moffat

?

Gaunt locked DANIEL Gaunt has secured Stone Brothers Racing’s final V8 Supercar endurance race seat.

The Kiwi, above, contender in the Fujitsu V8 Series is likely to team-up with countryman Johnny McIntyre in the #4 SBR Falcon, with regular team drivers Alex Davison and Shane van Gisbergen set to pair in a ‘shared livery’ SP Tools/Irwin Tools entry.

Confirmation of final driver lineups is expected soon, but for Gaunt, the chance to secure a seat with the former championship and Bathurst winning team is the fulfillment of a dream.

“I was fortunate to be given an evaluation test in October last year with SBR and that got the ball rolling,” Gaunt says.

“Ever since that evaluation test, I’ve always wanted and always dreamed of racing an SBR car.”

The Kiwi has kept his expectations low for Phillip Island and Bathurst, but knows that he’ll have fast equipment.

“I’d like to finish both races,” he says.

“We’re going to have a pretty competitive package there. SBR is one the move as far as development goes.

Horsepower-wise, its looking good and its chassis are getting better and better every weekend.“ – GRANT ROWLEY

news

Fujitsu racers secure debut roles V8 SUPERCARS

Will Sonic race?

Doubt surrounds Sonic Motor Racing’s Main Series endurance debut

Dirk Klynsmith

Washed up: Bryce Washington, above, pulled out of the Fujitsu V8 Series after Winton, putting a dent in the team’s aspirations.

Dirk Klynsmith

MATTHEW White Motorsport has sorted its endurance driver line-up for its Wildcard entry for Phillip Island and Bathurst.

Damian Assaillat and Brad Lowe will team together in Lowe’s regular Falcon BF, running under #21.

The car will appear in Fujitsu Racing hues, similar to his regular FV8 entry, pictured.

Team owner Matthew White says that competing in the endurance races will be a whole new experience for

most of his team.

“I think the whole thing is going to be an education for all involved,” he said.

“We ‘re putting the best preparation possible. The team will be wanting for nothing.

“We are going to treat Phillip Island as practice to keep good miles, improve the pace, but the main focus for the boys will be to get laps under their belt and get the experience that they need for Bathurst.

In terms of expectations, White is being realistic.

“You’d be silly to go in and say that we want to be finish in the top 10,” he says.

“They need to press on as hard as they can, but priority number one is to keep out of mischief.”

V8 SUPERCARS SONIC Motor Racing’s ‘Wildcard’ entry into the V8 Supercar endurance races may not go ahead.

The versatile Victorian team is struggling to put together a viable deal for the Phillip Island/Bathurst races and may have to forfeit its role in the enduros. eNews understands that if Sonic does not fulfill its place in the dual-driver races, its entry will not be replaced by another team.

Ritter told eNews that a decision will be made in the coming days.

“It’s getting pretty late in the day now,” he said.

“A decision will be made this week. There’s a few things

Both Assaillat and Lowe will compete in the Fujitsu V8 round at Bathurst. Assaillat will drive his regular rig, while Lowe will drive on of MWM’s older Falcons.

– GRANT ROWLEY associated with it that I’m waiting to fall one way or another.”

Ritter says that he’s not holding high hopes for Sonic to make its Main Series debut this year.

“It’s not looking good,” he acknowledged.

“It’s frustrating, but for us, we’ve been put on the back foot with what transpired with Bryce (Washington). He was a big part of those plans, so to put something together, to fund it and to get it right … we’ve given ourselves as much time as we can – right now, it’s just not there.

“And there’s no way that we’re going to turn up half cocked just for the sake of doing it.”

– GRANT ROWLEY

TEAM JOB LIKELY FOR LITTLE V8 Technical man moves on, again: which team will gain his services?

V8 SUPERCARS

Dirk Klynsmith

V8 SUPERCARS Australia’s former Category Technical Officer Campbell Little has formally departed the organization – and is most likely to pop up back in a V8 race team environment.

Despite resigning from the position a few weeks ago, in the wake of the Triple Eight splitter controversy, Little remained at the organization undertaking some specific (cost-cutting) research initiatives while talk remained that there might be some form of re-think over his departure.

Although originally scheduled to leave at the end of the month, taking leave and over-time allowances into consideration, the former T8 engineer left the building for the final time on Friday, and appears unlikely to return.

Indeed, when eNews caught up with him on Monday, Little was, literally, gardening, while potential job offers back in pit lane were being considered.

With a wealth of race-winning experience from his time with Triple Eight and, previously, Stone Brothers Racing, it would not be surprising to see Little pop up at any one of a number of Ford teams: “There are options,” Little told us, “and we’ll just see where it all goes over the next week or two …”

Supercar Trek: The Next Generation V8 SUPERCARS

Dirk Klynsmith

JACK Perkins has secured a new sponsor and a new engineer for this weekend’s round of the V8 Supercar Championship Series at Queensland Raceway.

Perkins will run with Corporate Security Solutions adorning the bonnet of his #11 Dodo Holden Commodore, and will also have highly-rated race engineer James Small behind the wall.

Small recently left the

Paul Morris Motorsport team after one and a half years, returning to his hometown of Melbourne from where he will be working with the Perkins team for the rest of the season.

Small joins David Swenson, Barry Ryan, Oscar Fiorinotto and Peter Craik in the Kelly Racing engineering department.

Car 11 now boasts a second-generation engineer (Small, son of Les) and a second-generation driver (Perkins, son of Larry).

BRIEFLY... n Barbagallo Raceway has added another local category on the support bill for the Bigpond 300 in November – Formula Classic.

Pending approval from V8SA, the historic openwheel class will join Formula Ford 1600 and Saloon Cars as WA-based categories on card. MINI Challenge will be the only national series to make the trek west. n The voice of the Biante Touring Car Masters Barry Oliver will be notably absent from this weekend’s event at Queensland Raceway as he recuperates from a heartrelated issue.

“I underwent a quadruple bypass in ‘93 and, after some recent chest pains, have found that there was a problem with one of those grafts,” the 64 year old said.

“It ought to have been a relatively easy fix, but complications arose in the surgery which has slowed me down for the moment.”

Oliver is unsure when he’ll be allowed to return to microphone duties. All at eNews wish him a speedy recovery. n Oran Park is giving fans a chance to send off the circuit in style. Anyone who pre-purchases tickets to its last national-level race meeting - Round Eight of the Shannons Nationals on 29-30 August - will save $5 and go into the draw to win a hotlap in a V8 Touring Car. More details at www. oranpark.com.au n Australian Formula 3 has announced a new partnership with AmPro Tools. AmPro will sponsor the ‘AmPro Tools Mechanic of the year’ award that will reward hard working F3 team members

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No #1 at Bathurst V8 SUPERCARS TEAMVODAFONE will not use Jamie Whincup’s Number 1 in the endurance races.

The championship-winning team will instead revert back to its tried and trusted #888 and #88 entries for Craig Lowndes/ Whincup and Allan Simonsen/James Thompson respectively.

Team boss Roland Dane says that it’s more about commercial considerations, rather than superstitions.

“For us, it’s important for our lead car to run #888 at the enduros, and therefore, I don’t think it’s appropriate for the other car to run #1,” Dane said.

“We’ll just revert to using #88 for the other car. It’s not sensible to run #1 on a car that doesn’t contain the Champion.”

– GRANT ROWLEY

Wanna get busy? Quit racing V8 SUPERCARS THE busy post-HRT life of Mark Skaife is getting busier.

On top of his commentary role at V8 Supercars Television, his membership (as an independent) on the V8 Supercar Board – including heading up the Car of the Future project, a two race deal for the endurance races with Sprint Gas Racing, and driver management (Lee Holdsworth), Skaife is also co-hosting (with Neil Crompton) a Saturday morning motorsport show on radio for Triple M and affiliated stations.

On top of that come suggestions that Skaife is involved – in track design consultancy – at a proposed new circuit up near Gosford (see other story).

Skaife’s diplomacy skills also look set to be tested if latest (unconfirmed) rumours concerning his forthcoming PI/Bathurst drive are correct. Word this week is that former personal sponsor VB is stepping up and will take a prominent position on the Sprint Gas car Skaife will share with Greg Murphy – which has reportedly not gone down that well with V8 Supercars platform sponsor XXXX. Whether XXXX has any formal grounds on which to object remains to be seen – it should be remembered, though, that not that long ago, the Shell Australian Touring Car Championship had teams competing with Mobil and Caltex prime sponsorship.

news

Marshall, Bayliss in line for Triple F Pair fight for last Holden enduro seat V8 SUPERCARS MARCUS Marshall or Troy Bayliss will drive with Dean Fiore at Phillip Island and Bathurst.

The pair is vying for the ride in the Triple F Racing Commodore VZ, with former potential co-drivers Aaron Caratti and David Russell being ruled out of the running.

Marshall tested the Paul Morris Motorsport-prepared Commodore VZ at Queensland Raceway last Thursday, while Bayliss tested the #12 car a couple of weeks ago.

Fiore is waiting on the finalisation of various sponsorship deals before finalising a decision.

“Marcus is in the process of trying to generate some sponsorship money,” Fiore said.

“After Queensland Raceway, he should be able to tell us

if he can come up with the dollars. Bayliss is still in the frame as well. We’re half way through a deal of our own that revolves around him being in the car, so the race for the seat is pretty much between those two.

“It should all be finalised in a couple of weeks.”

Fiore accepts that having either Marshall or Bayliss would be a coup for his new team.

“Either one would be a good experience for me,” he said.

“Ideally, I would have liked to lock this in sooner, but because of the way the world is and because I haven’t been able to lock anything in myself, it’s taken longer than we’d like.

But they’ve both driven the car at least. They know how it turns left and how it turns right, so hopefully we’ll lock it away next week.”

– GRANT ROWLEY

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Dirk Klynsmith

Whincup’s Cheap Thrills V8 SUPERCARS

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Dirk Klynsmith

JAMIE Whincup surprised many in the V8 Supercar pit lane last Thursday at Queensland Raceway when he tested a Holden Commodore.

The defending V8 Supercar Champion had the drive in Super Cheap Auto Racing’s VE, which is usually raced by Russell Ingall. It was his first drive in a Holden since he left Tasman Motorsport at the end of the 2005 season.

The drive came about after discussions between the team principals, Roland Dane and Paul Morris. SCAR is believed to be a likely customer for Triple Eight when it builds Holdens to race next season.

According to Whincup, the main change he had to deal with was the different cockpit set-up of the Commodore.

“There were goods and bads about the car, but nothing as important as the ergonomics” said the three-time Bathurst winner. “Basically, the set-up was a lot different; they get a lap time out of a car a lot differently to how we get a lap time out of a car. Set-up-wise, it was very different.”

Whincup did 10 laps in the Holden, with adjustments between five-lap runs, and reported set a 1m11.7s best time, which was comparable with that set by Ingall earlier in the day.

For more on Whincup’s Holden drive, see Comment, page 21.

IT’S TOOL TIME FOR RICHO V8 SUPERCARS STEVEN Richards is the latest Ford driver to swap teams for a day.

Richards drove the Stone Brothers Racing Falcon FG usually raced by Alex Davison, as part of the program that sees SBR and Ford Performance Racing share information. Earlier this year, mark Winterbottom tested an SBR car, while Shane van Gisbergen drove an FPR Falcon at Winton.

“The cars are different. That is definitely the case,” said Richards, who completed about 10 laps in the Stone Ford.

“Most people out there in V8 Supercarland will probably think that there is nothing different between a Ford and a Ford but both teams have different views on how a V8 Supercar works, and what is the best approach is to get the most out of them. That was clearly evident.”

For more on Richo’s SBR drive, see Comment, page 20.

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Honda Racing

Honda

Andretti-Green split likely

Partners looks set to go their separate ways – but who gets what?

INDYCAR DIVORCE may be in the air at Andretti Green Racing.

Rumours persist of dissent among the three owners, Michael Andretti, Kim Green and Kevin Savoree. The team, which won the 2004 (Tony Kanaan), 2005 (Dan Wheldon) and 2007 (Dario Franchitti) IndyCar championships, is having a tough season achieving results with its four drivers. Although the team qualifies much below their normal standard, excellent

team strategy has salvaged their race results, ranking Danica Patrick in fifth since early in the season. Tony Kanaan is sixth, Marco Andretti seventh, and sophomore Hideki Mutoh 11th.

Andretti may be forming a new team with AGR’s Indy Lights team partner, Gary Peterson, and taking son Marco and Kanaan with him. Peterson has been prominent in the AGR pits during IndyCar sessions all season.

“The economy has affected our sponsors’ involvement this year

It’s a Tag Team!

INDYCAR

ALEX Tagliani is starting his own IndyCar team.

Tagliani, who drove a financially limited IndyCar schedule for Conquest Racing with a best showing at Toronto where he led until an ill-timed caution negated his hard fought race strategy, has found a Canadian sponsor for 2010.

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but it will be even more critical in 2010 when our contracts are up for renewal,” said Michael Andretti, inset with Kanaan.

If the split is true, there could be a very bitter and ugly divorce fighting over any remaining sponsors – not to mention the rumour that Patrick may leave for Chip Ganassi to continue in IndyCars and have an opportunity to run some NASCAR Nationwide races. And, Formula Dream, the Japanese sponsorship currently for Mutoh, is rumored to be moving to Gil

Joining his new team is Jim Freudenberg in business development and Rob Edwards, team manager and engineer from Walker Racing.

Although Tagliani plans a one-car team, having purchased cars and equipment from Marty Roth, he plans to create opportunities for young Canadian drivers.

– MARY MENDEZ

de Ferran’s new IndyCar team to support Takuma Sato in 2010.

To throw another curveball into the mix, Franck Montagny will drive a fifth AGR entry at the upcoming Infineon IndyCar race (Sonoma, California). In 2008, Montagny drove in seven ALMS events in the LMP2 class for AGR’s Acura powered team.

The Frenchman, sponsored by Automatic Fire Sprinklers, Inc., may be auditioning and gaining experience to fill a future vacancy at AGR. – MARY MENDEZ

news

Honda Racing

DORAN, DORAN Martin D Clark

Returning Conqueror

Ambrose, Edwards in GrandAm test – and Montreal race?

SPORTSCARS

INDYCAR

MARCOS Ambrose may yet race in a GrandAm round this season.

Along with Roush Yates star Carl Edwards, the JTG Daugherty Racing driver will join Doran Racing at Virginia International Raceway, two hours north of the Charlotte area, tomorrow (Tuesday) to test the team’s Daytona Prototype.

The NASCAR regulars will get behind the wheel of Kevin Doran’s McDonalds-sponsored Dallara chassis powered by a Roush Yates Ford engine around the shorter 2.25 mile north course in preparation for the pair to possibly race at the

NELSON Philippe has returned to Conquest Racing.

The 2006 Indy 300 winner will race for Conquest in two IndyCar events, Infineon and Homestead.

Along with competing only in the Indy 500 this year, Philippe will maintain his rookie status for 2010 by only competing in three 2009 events. The Frenchman is sponsored by ‘I Drive Green’. “‘I Drive Green’ is committed to using motorsports as a means of education and excitement in the move toward environmentally conscious, sustainable auto technologies,” Philippe explained.

– MARY MENDEZ

Montreal Circuit Gilles Villeneuve road course on August 29.

Edwards and Ambrose will be at the track for the Nationwide Series race so jumping behind the wheel of a Rolex Series car on the last off weekend for Cup is doable. It will be the first time either driver has been behind the wheel of a mid-engined DP car.

As reported exclusively last week, Ambrose was in the frame to race in the Watkins Glen GrandAm event, but plans to pair him with current Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson were sidelined then a deadline was not met.

– MARTIN D CLARK

PT 1, Gals 0 INDYCAR

Honda Racing

Honda Racing

PAUL Tracy has never been one to be shy about his opinions, but his latest comments are bound to gather attention.

When he returned to Mid-Ohio to race in place of Mario Moraes for KV Racing Technology, the Canadian had some choice comments for the female drivers he raced against.

Talking about Milka Duno, Tracy said, “She’s a disaster out there and it’s beyond even funny. Why do they give her a license? She’s what … seven seconds off me, so eight seconds off of (Ryan) Briscoe (pole sitter). That means Ryan’s gonna be lapping her every nine or ten laps if we’re green all the way! Why do they let her drive? Why does she want to embarrass herself?”

And regarding the incident at Mid-Ohio where Mike Conway T-boned Danica Patrick, sending her into the gravel trap, Tracy said, “Conway will get a bad rap for that. He picked the wrong bird to mess with. That bird will peck his eyes out!”

– MARY MENDEZ

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news

Colin makes FV8 comeback FUJITSU V8s

COLIN Corkery will make a return to the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series at Queensland Raceway this weekend.

The New Zealander tested the #72 Paul Morris Motorsport Commodore VE at the Queensland circuit last Thursday and will compete with sponsorship from SuperCharge Batteries Corkery says he is looking forward to getting back into the racing environment having been out of the seat since the

first round of the season at Adelaide.

“The test went really good,” he said.

“There were quite a few cars out there, and I did plenty of laps.”

Corkery’s debut at Adelaide was hampered by two incidents, but he says this newer PMM Commodore (Hercules) will suit him better.

“This car has more options for seat position. I’m a little vertically challenged and when I drove it last week, the car has better provisions to move me around and make me comfortable.

“I don’t really have any expectations, though. Once we head out of Friday, we’ll see where we’re out, I have to prove myself a bit after the last effort at Adelaide!”

Fellow Kiwi Andrew Anderson also tested the PMM Commodore in his firstever drive of a V8 Supercar.

Also confirmed for the Fujitsu Series round is Mark Howard. The veteran will make a return to the series after pulling out of racing at the end of 2007.

– GRANT ROWLEY

Moffat secures ongoing sponsorship FUJITSU V8s

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John Morris/Mpix

JAMES Moffat has become a Norton commando.

Following a one-race deal for Sandown – where Norton 360 was the event sponsor – the company has extended its sponsorship of the Fujitsu V8 Series standout through the remaining three rounds of the series. At Queensland Raceway this weekend, at

Bathurst and Homebush, the second-generation racer will drive in the familiar yellow on his ex- Triple Eight Sonic Racing Falcon.

Norton also supports TeamVodafone and Craig Lowndes, so Moffat will be hoping that his current position of third in the FV8 pointscore will improve over the final three rounds of the series.

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Speedway scores TV coup SPEEDWAY WORLD Series Sprintcar has announced a significant television package for the 2009/10 season.

Australia’ premier Sprintcar class will return to free-to-air TV on One HD after a threeyear absence from regular programming.

WSS’s inclusion in

the summer line up of sports programs on One HD is a major coup for the series, as renewed interest at all levels takes hold of the elite Sprintcar Championship Series. The series has undergone a major restructure behind the scenes in the past few months, with a new management team, a streamlined calendar and all

12 available racing contracts quickly snapped up – double the team commitment from last year. Organisers expect full fields of over 35 cars are expected at all 14 rounds.

World Series Sprintcar Chairman Geoff Kendrick announced the One HD deal in Perth last week.

“A major priority was to return the WSS to a high

profile TV package and this is the jewel in the crown for Sprintcars,” Kendrick said.

“It is a great achievement by the WSS Management Group and vindicates our decision to join the various interest groups to focus on one goal. Sprintcar Racing’s Dale Rodgers has driven the project and today we really kick the WSS into overdrive.”

John Morris/Mpix

Commodore Cup looks to new format COMMODORE CUP

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Dirk Klynsmith

COMMODORE Cup will feature a new race format at its final two rounds of the year at Oran Park and Sandown Raceway, supporting the Shannons Nationals.

At Oran Park August (29-30), the all-Holden class runs a pair of 30minute races with one driver per car, but a compulsory pitstop for a wheel change in each race. Pit window is open from 5-25 minutes.

The class is also planning to run a shootout at Sandown’s season finale in late November. Rather than combined results from two qualifying sessions setting the grid for Race 1, the Top 10 from Q1 will contest a shootout in place of the regular Q2.

“We’re looking to mix things up a bit more for competitors,” Commodore

Cup’s David Stevenson said.

“Following the successful introduction of the Top 10 reverse grid in Race 2 and the Endurance Challenge last year, we sat down and looked at race formats for 2009.

“The racing is already pretty unpredictable, but by running these new formats we can make it even more interesting for the drivers, and bring the teams into the races with pitstops and strategy.

“Oran Park’s format is a bit of a trial as we look towards 2010. The Endurance Challenge will be run at Winton again and we’ll probably use the format with two, 30-minute races at the round before as a warm-up, pending how well it’s received at Oran Park.”

Entering Round 5 at Oran Park, Brett Holdsworth leads the series over Tony Bates and Nick Parker.

Extension for MP New GENERAL

MORGAN Park Raceway will be extended by 900 metres in the near future.

The Queensland circuit is currently 2.1km in length, but a new addition to the track, set to be approved next month, will see the track reach 3km in total.

President of the Warwick District Sporting Car Club Bill Campbell told eNews that the proposed lengthening of the circuit will cost the club towards a $1 million.

The only issue that they face is the removal of a handful of trees. The club is currently waiting for approval from the Department of Natural Resources and Mines.

“We’re working on the extension with the assumption that the trees will be able to come down, but if we can’t take them down, we’ll redesign the track to accommodate the trees,” Campbell said.

Approval on the circuit extension is hoped for by the end of September, and

circuit in NSW?

Campbell says that he expects a three to fourth month construction period.

“The extensions won’t affect the racing.

It might halt racing for a couple of days when we join the old track and the new track,” he said.

The Sporting Car Club also has plans to build more garages, increasing the undercover accomodation from 88 cars to 130.

This news comes off the back of Morgan Park’s first major race meeting two weeks ago where the Shannons Nationals hosted its seventh round.

Campbell was ecstatic with the feedback and is already making plans for the return of the Championships in 2010.

“We had no negative feedback for our first Shannons round – everything was positive,” Campbell said.

“Obviously, the existing layout favours the smaller cars rather than the big cars that like to stretch their legs, but the addition to our track will help even that out.”

– GRANT ROWLEY

GENERAL

Dirk Klynsmith

THERE could be a new racing circuit built in New South Wales in the near future.

Motorsport eNews has learned of a feasibility study based on a new, multi-purpose track, to be built near Warnervale, close to the Wyong-Gosford area on the state’s Central Coast.

We have been told that an area of land previously used as the Buttonderry Tip, and which has been filled-in and reclaimed, is being evaluated as to its suitability to host a permanent road racing and driver training facility.

We understand that Mark Skaife, who grew up in the region, has been involved with the project.

The recently-retired V8 Supercar champion has had extensive experience in circuit design, with roles in the development of the current street circuits in Townsville and Homebush, as well as in the past with Canberra.

The area would seem ideally located for a new circuit, with freeway access to both Sydney (95km south) and Newcastle close by.

Warnervale was the subject of an extensive planning strategy study at the start of the decade, and a new town centre is being planned in a 114-hectare precinct north of Sparks Road.

A Wyong Shire Council spokeswoman would not comment on the plans for the circuit, other than to clarify that “no plans are currently before the council, and we do not comment on any matters prior to their submission [to council]”.

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5 Minutes with ...

PAUL DUMBRELL

After a decade of racing at Bathurst, what could get PD excited? A drive with the PHIL BRANAGAN Holden Racing Team, with Craig Baird, is a good start MOTORSPORT NEWS: Heading towards the endurance season is always good, but heading there as an HRT driver is special, isn’t it?

PAUL DUMBRELL: It really is a very good opportunity to do well in a factory team. . I have been associated with Walkinshaw Racing for 18 months now, and to have the opportunity to drive with HRT is tremendous.

As a kid growing up, I dreamed of being able to do something like this, and I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to do it.

Even after a few years in V8 Supercars, is there a special aura about the Holden Racing Team?

Definitely. The Holden factory team is something that is synonymous with V8 Supercars, probably even more so than any other factory team. HRT is what everyone really associates with the title of being the number one racing team in the country. To be involved in that, having looked on from the outside over the last 18 months, and now to be able to pull on the red uniform, it’s a real privilege.

To this point, what interaction have you had between your team and HRT and, for that matter, Bundaberg Red [Racing]?

We work very closely together already.

All four drivers generally get together every Tuesday morning and we train

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together. In terms of the driving side of things, we work closely. The engineers work closely as well and, as a team, as a group, we work hard to forge ahead. We learn from everything that we all do.

So, from that point of view, it will be similar to what we are doing already. It is just that pulling on the red overalls and going out there and driving an HRT car in a V8 Supercar race will be really something

strong pairing and will be able to back Garth [Tander] and Will [Davison] up. At the end of the day, the plan is to have both HRT Commodores in a position to win those two races. We are under no illusions that is what we are preparing to do.

We are not a backstop. We are there to do the same job as the other drivers in the other HRT car will be there to do.

How does it work on the engineering side? Will you be taking your own engineer with you, or will there be an HRT engineer running the car?

That is still being worked out now.

There are a few scenarios which the team will work through in due time. I have been working with Krusty [Richard Hollway] for the last 18 months, and we have a great association. I would like to continue with that, but we need to sort that in due course.

Everybody always says the same things before these races; they are going there to get a podium or, if they can, win. But being in red, and being in with Baird, who has done so well of late, is this year a special opportunity?

It is. The pressure? You put that on yourself every year.

You are always under pressure at Bathurst.

This year will be the 40th year that Holden have had a team at Bathurst and that adds another layer to that.

It gives a lot of prestige to this opportunity. There is no doubt about the expectations of being in a factory team; a factory team is there to win Bathurst.

I have been there a fair bit now, I have been fourth and I have gone well over the last … three years. This is an opportune time to go there and be successful. This is the premier race in Australia; it is the Grand Final. It has not been won by anyone on the Holden side of the fence for a number of years. From a Holden point of view, the

You will be driving with Craig Baird. He already has experience with HRT, so do you know if there are similarities in driving styles?

I personally have not gone through that side of things yet but I have no doubt that the team has.

Bairdo has done a great job. I think that he and Glenn Seton were running in fourth last year, with a few laps to go and someone took him out.

From a speed point of view, I think that we will be a very

factory team is the one that they want to take it away from them [Ford].

Do you know whether you get to keep one of the racesuits?

[Laughs] I am planning on it! I don’t know whether they know it yet, but I am taking one!

You must have a few in the closet by now.

Yes, I have been around but there is definitely room for one extra.

You have become a young veteran in the series.

Yes. Last year was my 10th year at Bathurst. I am looking at start number 11 this year, and I have had my share of humbling starts. I have been around a while and I guess that makes it doubly fortunate that late in my career – though I still feel young – it is fortunate for sure.

And people may forget that HRT is defending a race win at Phillip Island.

They absolutely are.

There is no reason why the team cannot get the same result.

They showed at Sandown that with Garth and Will winning both races, and a 1-2 on the Sunday, the team is getting on top of the speed now.

We have been more consistent than we ever have been; we have been in the top five or six in 50 percent of the rounds this year. There is a way to go but, hopefully, when I pull on the red uniform, and give it my best, it will fall into place.

chat

Dirk Klynsmith

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O

BVIOUSLY, the one thing you have in mind when you drive someone else’s car is that it is handed back in the same condition that it was given to you.

It was a case of getting in a Stone Brothers car and having a bit of a drive. Shane van Gisbergen has been down to Winton to have s steer of our car, Frosty has had a steer of theirs, so it was my turn!

The cars are different. That is definitely the case. Most people out there in V8 Supercar-land will probably think that there is nothing different between a Ford and a Ford but both teams have different views on how a V8 Supercar works, and what the best approach is to get the most out of them. That was clearly evident.

If they are different, that does make it difficult to exchange information but what you do get is to say, “Well, your car was better here and our car was better there.” There is some potential for getting together and analysing the bits of the equation, and working out what effectively makes those differences. That has been the biggest thing we have got out of the relationship so far. If we can put the best of both worlds together, we can come up with something better.

With V8 Supercars, and the nature of the sport, such as it is, being so competitive and so close, it is incredibly difficult to effect a change of significance in a couple of days.

COMMENT Steve Richards Ford Performance Racing But what it does do is either confirms your feeling of the directions in which the cars need to improve, or it doesn’t. I think that having transparency between the teams is definitely a good thing for both parties.

With me coming from a different team into FPR, their philosophy was already firmly in place. They had the runs on the board which proved that they did not need to change their cars and it was more down to me to adapt to that style of car. Frosty has, probably, played more of a part in the development of that. But as time goes on, the category moves forward and as a team, you need to move forward with that. Sometimes you have to effect change in different areas.

There are things that we can start to implement before the end of the year. It is about looking at strengths and weaknesses, and likewise, Stone Brothers. It is working out whose widget does the best job, and it is a matter of Ross and Jimmy Stone, and Tim Edwards and our guys, getting together and discussing those issues.

From a performance perspective, we have an idea of where they are good and where we are good – and then the process starts, on working out how to get the best out of both.

How the Ot

Last Thursday at QR, Jamie Whin teams’ V8 Supercars for size. Her

Letters

Have your say – email us at mail@mnews.com.au.

Number 1, with a bullet If Jamie Whincup wins this year’s championship, surely he will not be allowed to use the Number 1 on his car next year. Number 1 on a Holden when a Ford has won the championship would be criminal. If that happened, it would be the final straw for a lot of Ford supporters.

Paul Winter Loxton SA ED: There are quite a few precedents in drivers jumping ship and taking #1 with them. Michael Schumacher did it, so did

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Damon Hill, so if it happens, JDub will be in good company.

is there any chance that Toyota might be offering him an F1 test soon?

An Idea I was reading last week’s eNews, and I have a question about Toyota.

Last year, there was plenty of chat around that Kyle Busch was going to test a Toyota Formula 1 car. He won both NASCAR road course races, and he was clearly the best road racer in the Sprint Cup Series.

This year, Marcos Ambrose is clearly the best road course racer in the Sprint Cup, so

Name withheld by request ED: Tony Stewart might argue with your theory about Ambrose’s road course crown.

As for the F1 thing, it’s a good question, but we cannot see it happening. A Busch test would have attracted a bunch of publicity in the USA, and Marcos’s may not.

On the other hand, Ambrose does not deliberately run into people on the slowdown lap, and he treats the media like people, not idiots. So, never say never.

opinion

ther Half Lives

ncup and Steve Richards both tried other re is what they had to say about it

COMMENT

I

Jamie Whincup TeamVodafone

T was a good experience to drive a different V8 Supercar – a Super Cheap Auto Racing car – at Queensland Raceway last week.

How it came about was that Roland Dane rang me up and said that he wanted me to test Russell Ingall’s car for 10 laps. Basically, my V8 Supercar deal is with Roland, so if he tells me to go out to QR …

It was not a case of being sneaky out there. We cruised out to the track, and while we did not let the media know that we were going to be out there, we were not being sneaky.

We were just doing as we were instructed!

It was the first car I have driven in three-and-a-half years that was not prepared by TeamVodafone. The first thing you notice is the ergonomics; the way that the cockpit is set up, and so on. It was completely different; in the years I have been with TeamVodafone, I have slowly refined where the instruments and the buttons are, so that was a big thing to get my head around.

After that, it was just another V8 Supercar. You put on the same tyres, it does the same sort of things, and there was not a huge amount of difference.

There were goods and bads about the car, but nothing as important as the ergonomics. Basically, the set-up was a lot different; they get a lap time out of a car a lot differently to how we get a lap time out of a car. Set-up-wise, it was very different.

I did 10 laps in all; two five-lap runs, so three fliers, with a couple of tweaks in between. It was pretty easy, and it is a good experience to drive someone else’s car. It is quick on its day, and it is good to see how someone else gets time out of a car.

Back to work this week. I might be kind – I owe them, and maybe Russell can have a crack in my car one day. At the end of the day, if we understand a bit about the other guy and his car, it produces better racing, and that’s good for all of us.

eLETTER OF THE WEEK It is probably too late, but a two-thirds field of Holdens, including the best Ford team, will kill V8SCs. Will Jamie’s title chase continue to falter?

Especially as they will all be working against Ford.

Like will Slade and Fiore be used as pawns to get safety cars as required?

Now is possibly a good time for a third Manufacturer to make it a one-third of each make, but who could be committed enough (Toyota already pulled their Aussie pin) in the big dollars game?

As I say, it may be too late but maybe Top Cat should backdate a regulation

specifying an even playing field. Otherwise I won’t have an excuse to get out of mowing the lawn.

PS. I feel streamlining bonnets (for more down grip) is interfering with the Parity Tests, but what do I know?

John Gray Wollongong

John Gray is this week’s winner of the DVD Transporter 3, starring Jason Statham, compliments of Icon Film Distribution Australia.

Send yours to mail@mnews.com.au, or Motorsport News PO Box 7072, Brighton, Vic 3186 23

NASCAR SPRINT CUP ROUND 23 – CARFAX 400, BROOKLYN, MICHIGAN

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race

TOP FUEL Brian Vickers was the best at managing his fuel consumtion at Michigan, giving Red Bull its first Sprint Cup win.

By MARTIN D CLARK

Toyota Motorsports

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B

NASCAR Media

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all pitted under the sixth caution with 51 laps to run, while third placed Junior gave up the lead to stop under caution seven with 43 laps remaining and raced hard at the end for just his second top five of the season.

The Richard Childress owned Chevrolets had their best day in a long while, with Casey Mears sixth, Clint Bowyer eighth and Kevin Harvick 12th. Bowyer moved to 14th in points, passing Kyle Busch who started 39th (his worst qualifying result since 2005) and finished 23rd.

Juan Pablo Montoya had a lucky escape when Kasey Kahne moved up the track and cut his left rear tyre. Montoya pitted and went a lap down, but was able to get the free pass, finishing 19th and retaining seventh in points.

June Michigan winner Mark Martin ran dry of fuel on the final lap and came home 31st, dropping him to 12th in the standings. With just three races left before the 10-race Chase, the veteran has Vickers breathing down his neck.

Marcos Ambrose started 26th and finished a lap down in 35th and the last car running.

He retains the 17th position in points that he moved into at Watkins Glen, just 15 markers ahead of Jeff Burton.

NASCAR Media

RIAN Vickers has broken through to give Red Bull Racing its first win and Toyota its first victory at Michigan Speedway on Sunday.

Vickers held off the Hendrick Chevrolets of Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr in an edge-ofyour-seat fuel mileage race as leader Jimmie Johnson ran dry with three laps remaining.

Vickers started on pole for the third straight race at Michigan and moved to within 12 points of the all-important top 12 Chase for The Championship, it was his second career win the first coming 87 races ago at Talladega in October of 2006.

“Nail biting was not the word for it,” said Vickers, who won his first race with Hendrick in 2006.

“We’ve gone through a lot of things and this one feels really good. In the closing laps trying to save fuel and race Jimmie.

When I saw him run out, a part of me was terrified because I knew there was a chance we would run out, but there was a part of me that was kind of excited. I felt like we had the fuel to get to the end, but you just never know. The last thing I wanted to do trying to get into the Chase was to run this thing out of fuel.”

Vickers, Gordon and Johnson

SPRINT CUP | CARFAX 400, MICHIGAN 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

83 24 88 99 77 07 20 33 00 11

Brian Vickers Toyota Jeff Gordon Chevy Dale Earnhardt Chevy Carl Edwards Ford Sam Hornish Jr Dodge Casey Mears Chevy Joey Logano Toyota Clint Bowyer Chevy David Reutimann Toyota Denny Hamlin Toyota

Red Bull Racing Hendrick/National Guard Hendrick/Amp Energy Roush Fenway/Aflac Penske/Mobil1 Childress/Jack Daniels Joe Gibbs/Home Depot Childress/Cheerios Waltrip/Aaron’s Joe Gibbs/FedEx

Q1 21 15 32 14 42 8 23 31 16

NASCAR | DRIVER’S points Stewart 3500, J Gordon 3216, Johnson 3197, Edwards 2995, Hamlin 2986, Kurt Busch 2957, Montoya 2887, Kahne 2884, Newman 2845, Biffle, 2821, Kenseth 2811, Martin 2791 (Ambrose 17th 2474).

NASCAR Media

NASCAR Media

NASCAR Media

Toyota Motorsports

Times Change: Three years ago, Brian Vickers took his first Cup win when he bumped teammate Jimmie Johnson out of the lead at Talladega.

This time, Johnson ran dry, allowing Vickers to give Red Bull its first Cup win. Dale Earnhardt Jr gave his fans something to smile about with third. Marcos Ambrose struggled on his return to ovals, while Denny Hamlin took 10th in his Joe Gibbs Toyota, here seen fighting with Ryan Newman.

Kes wins Not The Kyle Busch Show NATIONWIDE HOME Town hero Brad Keselowski took his third win of the year on Saturday at Michigan Speedway taking the lead in a surprise move on the last lap, as race dominators Brian Vickers and Kyle Busch battled for the lead.

Pole sitter Vickers, who finished second, and an unhappy Busch, who came home third, led 110 of the 125 laps and were fighting hard for the win after a late race caution. Vickers, who had an extremely loose Braun Racing

Toyota, forced Busch to the very inside of the front stretch approaching the white flag.

While the pair was almost in the grass Keselowski – who opted for just two tyres on the final stop versus the leaders four – blasted by on the outside to take the win.

“Unfortunately you’ll race with idiots,” said Busch of Vickers, “he gave the win to Keselowski.”

Vickers apologised sarcastically; “I’m so sorry I forgot it was The Kyle Busch show. Hell, I thought we were racing for a win.”

– MARTIN D CLARK

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NASCAR SPRINT CUP ROUND 22 – HELUVA GOOD! AT THE GLEN, WATKINS GLEN, NY

Smoked

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Tony of Ambros

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W

y Stewart is NASCAR’s new King f the road courses – but Marcos se should have won at Watkins Glen.

By MARTIN D CLARK

Toyota Motorsports

HILE Tony Stewart ran away with his fifth Watkins Glen victory in eight attempts, Marcos Ambrose scored his best Cup result to date with a fine second placing last Monday, following a 22 hour rain delay of the 90 lapper in upstate New York.

Ambrose qualified fourth and hit the front for the first time on lap 20. But when all but three cars pitted, Ambrose’s crew chief Frankie Kerr kept him out, despite his driver wanting changes made to the car. All his stops came under green and those changes never happened.

The Aussie was the last driver to stop for tyres and fuel on lap 31 pitting again on lap 42 and taking fuel only on lap 56, a strategy that almost worked, but Stewart on fresher tyres didn’t put a wheel wrong all race and Ambrose had to back off in the closing laps to conserve fuel.

“We didn’t quite have enough for Tony,” said Ambrose.

“We were on a different strategy on tyres, we did more laps than anyone else on them out there. Tony drove awesome, I just threw everything at him and you can tell why he’s one of the best in the world, he’s just a brilliant driver. It was a fantastic day for us, never got the double, we pulled up one short.”

Points leader Stewart appears to have unseated pole sitter Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon as the new king of road course racing, it would seem.

Gordon took a horrific hit (and more pain to his ailing back) when Sam Hornish was moved wide by a loose Kasey Kahne and sent into the turn nine Armco. Hornish’s Penske Dodge ricocheted back onto the track and was hit in the rear

by Gordon at full pelt and then slammed by Jeff Burton.

Amazingly all three drivers emerged unscathed from a scary looking incident that literally removed the whole rear of Hornish’s car behind the ‘C’ pillar.

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Erickson’s Silverstone weekend of high, lows and everything in between

Pole, frustration, but points FORMULA FORD

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AUSTRALIAN racer Daniel Erickson has endured an up and down weekend, racing in the British Formula Ford Championship at Silverstone.

The 21 year old new South Welshman started the weekend at the top, qualifying on pole position for what turned out to be an incident-packed event – the 16th, 17th and 18th rounds of the championship.

Driving the Australian-built Spectrum 011c, Erickson dropped to ninth place after being forced to drive off the circuit to avoid an opening lap skirmish.

Some smart driving (and a little bit of good fortune when

other drivers clashed) saw Erickson finish fifth. The race was won by Briton Chrissy Palmer.

“It was a very eventful race – a bit of a shambles really!”

Erickson said afterwards.

The 17th round of the title saw an improvement in Erickson’s fortune. In a nail-biting finish, he placed an excellent second.

Erickson had to fight tooth and nail to maintain the place as he was under pressure all the way through the race. American Josef Newgarden eventually won.

The final race of the weekend was another crash-strewn round.

While several frontrunners crashed out of contention,

Erickson kept his nose clean to finish sixth – his third top 10 result for the meeting.

“It was a hectic race, to say the least,” Erickson said.

“On the second lap, Josef Newgarden spun and then Garry Findlay ran into him – cars were going everywhere!”

The CAMS International Rising Star had problems of his

own early in the race, when a change to his car’s set-up didn’t quite go according to plan.

“We made a change that we thought would make the car faster at the beginning of the race, but it actually went faster towards the end!” he said.

The next rounds of the prestigious graduate championship will be held at

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Win No.5 for Riccardo

Two podiums puts the West Australian in a commanding position in the series FORMULA 3

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DANIEL Ricciardo has extended his lead in the Cooper Tires British Formula 3 International Series with a win and a third place in the two rounds last weekend at Silverstone.

After dominating qualifying for the first race, Ricciardo repeated the feat, leading all the way from pole to chequered flag to record his fifth race win of the season.

The 20-year-old Australian and his Red Bull-backed Carlin Motorsport DallaraVolkswagen made an impeccable start to build a one-second lead over his closest pursuer, Hitech’s Renger van der Zande, on the opening lap. That was as close as anyone would come to the West Aussie for the remainder of the race.

“It was pretty straightforward,” said Ricciardo.

“I got the start I needed to get. I saw that (team-mate) Max Chilton didn’t get away well and let the Hitech boys

through, but that was out of my control so I had just to focus on my race, setting the fastest lap and taking the win. After a few laps I saw the cars in my mirrors getting a bit smaller, and that’s what I wanted to see.”

In the second race, Renger van der Zande claimed a brilliant win –his third for the season.

Pole-sitter Daisuke Nakajima led at the start but at mid-distance, van der Zande

Wootton’s woes FORMULA BMW

AUSTRALIAN Formula BMW Junior driver Chris Wootton completed another character building the weekend’s round at Sentul in Indoneisa.

Wootton recorded two mechanical DNFs in Rounds 7 and 8 before finishing Rounds 9 and 10 in seventh and sixth respectively.

The weekend started well for the 20-year-old – right on the pace in practice and qualifying, the top five were within half a second.

Race 1 ended on lap nine when the motor let go in the last corner, Wooton coasting to a halt in pit lane.

It was discovered the engine had lost all compression.

In Race 2, Wootton was looking very good for a strong result before he went off circuit on lap six. It was later diagnosed he’d suffered a brake

line failure.

Having to start the final two races from the rear of the grid, Wootton charged through the field to finish seventh in Round 9, having raced hard to work his way through the field.

In the final race, he was able to force his way forward to sixth placing.

“What a weekend. Once again, it’s just unbelievable the series of failures that I’ve had this year,” Wootton said.

“The fight through the field in the two races (Sunday) has energised me a lot and I leave feeling far happier than I was after Saturday’s events.”

Wootton is hoping his luck turns around at the next event – the Formula 1™ Singtel Singapore Grand Prix over the weekend of September 25-27.

Despite the two DNFs, Wootton retained seventh placing in the overall Driver’s Classification.

took the lead romped to an 11s victory.

Ricciardo placed third to enhance his points advantage.

Riccardo’s team owner Trevor Carlin congratulated the Australian.

“Daniel did another sterling job, avoided any incidents and increased his championship lead further,” he said.

“The next race at Portimao will be a new experience for everyone but we’re looking forward to the challenge.”

Crocker closes on title APRC SUBARU rally driver Cody Crocker scored maximum points at Rally Malaysia to take a stranglehold on the race for the 2009 AsiaPacific Rally Championship.

The three-time APRC Champion was the outright winner and also set the fastest time on both days to score 16 points, taking his total from the four events contested to 63 points from a possible 64 points. Crocker and co-driver Ben Atkinson now have a 27-point buffer over Japan’s Katsu Taguchi.

The Mitsubishi driver failed to add to his 36point tally in Malaysia, after failing to finish the opening day and then crashing heavily on the second day.

Crocker’s MotorImage team-mate, Emma Gilmour, is third in the series, two behind Taguchi on 34 points, She collected 11 points for her work on the weekend, finishing in second place outright.

It means that Crocker needs only a further five points from the remaining two events – in Indonesia and China – to secure a fourthstraight APRC title. He will be the first driver to achieve that feat.

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DTM Title Fight: It’s on!

Tomczyk wins at Nurburgring and springs into the championship lead DTM

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AUDI driver Martin Tomczyk kept his cool in searing German heat in the sixth DTM round of the season, taking last weekend’s victory at the Nurburgring.

After 48 laps, Tomczyk scored an undisputed lights-to-flag victory – the fourth DTM race victory of his career.

“The car was just fantastic; I didn’t have one single problem this weekend,” he said.

“Moreover, it was a comfortable race for me with two Audis behind me. However, winning a race is always the most beautiful thing. I had been lacking the speed I had this weekend for a long time, but now, I am back.”

Second-placed Timo Scheider

(Audi) finished second, whi meant that the reigning Champion took over the lead in the championship standings again. His closest rival in the title, Swede Mattias Ekström, ended up third in the race and is only one point down on Scheider in the battle for the title.

Former title leader Gary Paffett had a shocker. After starting 16th place on the grid, British Mercedes-Benz driver finished eighth and lost his lead in the points’ standings. In the battle for the title, Paffett is now third behind Ekström and Scheider with 29 points.

Driving a 2008-spec Audi A4 DTM to fourth place, Markus Winkelhock impressed, as did British driver Jamie Green with his year-old AMG Mercedes C-

Class in fifth position.

“I was surprised being the best-placed Mercedes-Benz driver at the finish,” said Green.

“But I had good speed, I was consistent and the tyres were good, too. These were the keys to success. Today, we have seen once again that competition in the DTM is very close. But with three victories for Mercedes-

Benz from six races, we are looking ahead in a positive way.”

The undisputed highlight was the race on Sunday. In the phase right after the start, Ekström and Scheider, who had started third and fourth respectively, overtook Mercedes-Benz driver Bruno Spengler. In the heat of the action, Spengler and Ekström damaged their cars, but they were able to continue. Ekström lost one place and dropped back to third behind Scheider.

In the course of the race, Canadian Spengler lost two more positions and ended up sixth behind Green.

Ex-Formula 1 driver Ralf Schumacher made up a total of eight positions during the race and again scored championship points for finishing seventh.

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Winners galore at Knockhill BTCC

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JASON Plato, Fabrizio Giovanardi and Mat Jackson shared the wins in last weekend’s highly-charged HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship races Knockhill circuit in Scotland.

But despite the mixed weekend, it is still Northern Ireland’s Colin Turkington who leads the drivers’ standings, albeit by the reduced margin of just nine points from reigning champion Giovanardi.

Plato dominated the day’s first race in his Racing Silverline

Chevrolet Lacetti, right. And the day just got better for the team as Jackson then went and won Race 3, followed home by Plato after what will stand as one of the BTCC’s alltime classic drives from the back of the grid. A retirement for Plato in Race 2, though, has severely dented his title hopes. But Jackson, who’d previously suffered a miserable run of results at Knockhill, was ecstatic, having taken third and second places finishes in Races 1 and 2.

Vauxhall driver Giovanardi’s win came in Race 2 following

some world-class overtaking moves. Fifth in the day’s first race, he then followed up his Race 2 win and third in Race 3.

Compared to Turkington’s results of fourth, third and fifth,

it means the Italian has cut what was a 17-point gap to just nine points as the title race – surely now between these two – moves south to Silverstone for the showdown.

South Australia’s ‘other’ two-leg motor race SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Paris Charles

THE HQ Holdens took to the Mallala Motorsport Park for the classes annual HQ Holden Enduro staged over separate one hour events and with over 20 competitors entered.

Neil Corey showed his fellow competitors the quickest way around the track in the opening leg, edging out the pole-sitter Graham Mason by less than a second after 40 laps. Rounding out the top six was Andrew Schultz, Darren Jenkins, Ryan Crosbie and Tony Bobridge.

The opening hour had taken its toll with only 14 drivers going the distance.

With 18 cars on the grid for the final, all eyes were focused on the battle between the front running duo, however this dice only lasted two and a bit

laps before Corey was forced to retire, allowing Mason to race away and take a dominating 30 second victory over Wayne King and Darren Jenkins to take the final step on the podium. Bobridge advanced two placings over the experienced Graham Boulter while Crosbie dropped one position from the opening leg.

In other South Australian state racing at Mallala last weekend, Shaun Duns proved the dominant force in the Improved Production category to score an

unbeaten hat-trick of victories from pole position aboard his Mazda RX7. Adam Allen was a worthy opponent taking two seconds in the opening events but a DNS in the final event ended any chances of an overall win.

The Formula Vee battled proved to be a two horse race as Asher Johnston and Bo Jensen took it down to the wire. Johnston eventually taking the upper hand to claim two of the three wins.

– PARIS CHARLES

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CITY OF MELBOURNE VACC PARK, MELBOURNE

Aussie karters turning Japane CITY OF MELBOURNE

D

ual Australian Champion James Sera and rising Victorian youngster Bradley Jenner will be turning Japanese over the coming months to prepare for the 33rd Toyota All-Japan Kart SL event in October.

The pair won the right to represent Australia in this year’s event by taking out the Clubman Light and

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Junior National Light classes respectively at last weekend’s City of Melbourne Titles held at VACC Park.

Like many of his fellow competitors Sera was caught up in an incident during the opening heat race, however, he bounced back to claim the win in Heat 2 before finishing fifth in the pre-final, which was held in wet conditions.

Leigh Nicolaou led the way during the opening lap of the final but it wasn’t long before

the Sera family began to assert its dominance of the final with David Sera taking over the front running on lap two. Zeke Edwards led briefly on lap three before James Sera made his way to the front one lap later and wouldn’t be headed on his way to victory.

Melbourne Kart Centre’s Adam Hughes made a lastlap pass on Edwards for the runner-up spot. Aaron Ivermee finished in fourth spot ahead of Ryan Sanderson who charged

his way from 30th place on the grid in the 18-lap final.

Like Sera did in Clubman Light, Jenner led the majority of the final in the Junior National Light category, however, the CC Racing pilot didn’t have it all his own way at the front.

Jenner was joined in the lead pack by New South Wales driver Joseph Mawson, Jordan Nicolaou, early race leader Liam Morey and South Australian Todd Hazelwood.

race

Braining the field NHRA

In the end it was Jenner who proved to have the pace and held on for the win ahead of Morey and Hazelwood to secure his plane ticket to Japan and earn the right to become Australia’s first Junior representative at the prestigious event.

While unable to topple Sera in Clubman Light Edwards took on and defeated a star-studded field in the Clubman Heavy category. Edwards mastered the slippery conditions the

Ash Budd

nese

MORGAN Lucas and Hector Arana scored victories in Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle respectively at the 28th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd Raceway in Minnesota.

Tony Pedregon scored in Funny Car and Greg Anderson ended a long winless drought in Pro Stock.

In a final round, Lucas, below, won his second Top Fuel event of the year by edging Larry Dixon in a thrilling 3.81/309 to 3.81/314 final round. Lucas’ Jimmy Walsh-tuned GEICO Powersports dragster defeated Chris Karamesines with a 3.84 in round one then recorded a pair of 3.83s to defeat Brandon Bernstein and Cory McClenathan.

The Funny Car final not only pitted the top two drivers in points but also a true battle for

first place. Pedregon held onto his lead despite competing without crew chief Dickie Venables and assistant crew chief Kurt Elliott, both of whom left the team just before the event. Pedregon won all four rounds Sunday, capping it with an easy 4.14/295 victory when Ron Capps lost traction. The win was Pedregon’s third this season.

The Pro Stock final featured a rematch from the most recent event in Sonoma as Summit Racing team-mates Anderson and Jason Line squared off again, but this time it was Anderson edging Line by just .002-seconds in a 6.64/207 to 6.65/207 win.

Arana went wire to wire in Pro Stock Motorcycle with his Lucas Oil Buell, capping his day with an easy 6.98/190 win when first-time finalist Junior Pippin fouled in the final round.

– DAVID OSTAZSEWSKI

best to cross the line over six seconds clear of Jace Lindstrom in second place. Australian Champion Matthew Wall finished third ahead of Jason Pringle and Remo Luciani.

Jack Wynack won Junior Clubman while Josh DeMaio claimed the win in the Junior Max category. David Sera continued his winning ways in Leopard Light as did Paul Rodgers on his way to victory over Kel Treseder in Rotax Heavy.

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rear of grid

Odd Spot

Great Howard’s Ghost!

Formula Two

THOSE of a sensitive disposition might want to look away.

We would all be familiar with the value of a Ford Falcon GTHO which, some guy in the insurance ads advises us, was the fastest fourdoor proddie car in the world for its time. Suffice to say, there are cattle stations of slightly lower value.

So, when Steve Oswald was standing on the last corner at Barbgallo on the weekend and Geoff Stenton arrived in a state of uncontrol, he put his finger on the button and kept firing.

Over the HO went, pausing temporarily on its lid, before the rubber side crashed back down to earth. The good news, of course, is that the driver was fine.

The other good news is the state of the car. Apart from the fact that the car needs a wash, have you ever seen a just-rolled racecar looking so good? Me neither. They built ‘em tough in the early 1970s …

WE thought it appropriate to run this photo from Donington from the weekend.

The fifth round of the FIA Formula 2 championship took to the curves and sweeps of the Midland track and as it did, all the competitors paid tribute to Henry Surtees. It was the first time that the series

had gathered since the 18-year-old was killed in a freakish accident at Brands Hatch.

In the seemingly relentlessly competitive world of motorsport, it was good to see that all the drivers and teams were united and that, in such a short time, Surtees made such a positive impression on the sport.

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