VELOCITY
ISSUE 11 - AUGUST 2015
MOTORSPORT MAGAZINE
T A E R H T E L P I TR S G N I K R AN S ’ E N A D ROLAND
M R E T D MI F1’S HEROS AND ZEROS R A T S G N I S I PLUS: R P’S U C 3 T G E H PORSC FE F E E K ’ O N A DYL
Image: Sutton’s
Jules Bianchi 1989 - 2015
COLUMN / FEATURE / REPORT
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TRIPLE THREAT
Since 2008 Triple 8 Race Engineering has been the benchmark in V8 Supercars. We sat down with team boss Roland Dane to find out the secret to the team’s success and its plans for the future.
MID-TERM REPORT CARD
Half-way through the Formula One season, who has impressed and who has disappointed? Our expects dissect the season so far to come up with the top ten drivers with surprising results.
MARCHING ON
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It’s one of the most iconic cars in Formula One history, one which found its way to Australia almost by accident. We caught up with its owner and find out how the car went from being crashed in Monaco four decades ago to be campaigned by John Bowe today.
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VELOCITY
COLUMN / FEATURE / REPORT
DYLAN O’KEEFFE
EDITORIAL
At just 17, O’Keeffe is working towards a career in the drivers seat. We sat down for a chat about where Dylan is going and how he plans to get there.
THE REGULARS
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MAT COCH
Jules Bianchi was a popular man in the Formula One paddock. Editor Mat Coch interviewed the Frenchman a number of times, and shares his most endearing memory.
MIKE LAWRENCE
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Motor sport hasn’t always been a fossil burning past time. Mike Lawrence looks back at the sports early days and how petrol trumped electric and steam powered racers.
RACE COVERAGE
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FORMULA ONE
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STATE RACING
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From the tight and twisty Hungaroring, we run down all the F1 action.
Victorian State Championship racing from Sandown Park.
VELOCITY
Photographer John Morris EDITORIAL CONTACTS Telephone 0414 197 588 Website www.vmag.com.au Email editor@velocityemag.com PRODUCTION Publisher Grand Prix Media SOCIAL MEDIA
@VelocityEmag
facebook.com/ velocitymagazine
V8 SUPERCARS
Analysis from both Queensland Raceway and Townsville rounds.
Editor Mat Coch
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS John Bowe, Joe Calleja, Jess Dane, Roland Dane, Mike Lawrence, Liam Meeghan, Dylan O’Keefe, Dean Perkins, William Reid, Robyn Schmidt, Rhys Vandersyde COPYRIGHT All rights are reserved to Grand Prix Media and associated entities. Reproduction in whole or in part of any photograph, text or illustration without written permission from the publisher is prohibited.
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COLUMN / FEATURE / REPORT
#FORZAJULES
Image: Sutton’s
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VELOCITY
COLUMN / FEATURE / REPORT
OPINION
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MAT COCH
hen news of Jules Bianchi’s death broke I am unashamed to say I cried. Jules was a star. Quiet, confident and immensely talented. His career was on an upward tragectory only to be cut short before he reached his prime. My endearing memory of Jules will be sitting in the Force India hospitality suite. As the world buzzed around us Jules and I sat talking, about his future mostly. At that point he hadn’t started a grand prix. He was just another hopeful learning the pressures of motor racing at the highest level. His soft voice was VELOCITY
almost lost in the hubbub that surrounded us. I don’t remember exactly what he said but I do recall coming away with a sense of his single minded determination. I remember being impressed by his confidence and self belief. Ever since that conversation I’d held a soft spot for Jules. It made Monaco last year all the more exciting to watch, to see someone you rate so highly do something great, something that will live on even though he does not. I shed a tear for Jules, and I offer my thoughts to his friends, family and of course his colleagues at Manor. 7
COLUMN / FEATURE / REPORT
FUEL FOR THOUGHT
OPINION
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MIKE LAWRENCE
uel has always been an integral part of motoring and motor sport. Even Formula E, which uses battery-powered cars, needs a fuel source. People who bang on about ‘green’ cars forget the power stations, just as they forget about the carbon footprint to 8
make an electric car. In the pioneer days of motoring, electric and steam motors were at a far more advanced state than the internal combustion engine. The first vehicle to exceed 60 mph, in 1899, was electric, and the first to exceed 120 mph, in 1906, was a steamer. Petrol won through on convenience. A steam-powered car took time to prepare, to get up steam. Thus people employed a ‘chauffeur’, or stoker. Electric cars suffered
from a short range. Neither was seen as an insurmountable problem as the wealthy adapted from horses. They were used to having their servants prepare their carriages and tended not to go long distances in their personal vehicles. Count Vicenzo Florio, founder of the Targa Florio road race, visited Paris in the early days of the last century and was so taken with the new automobiles that he bought one. When he returned to his native VELOCITY
COLUMN / FEATURE / REPORT
Sicily, it dawned on him that nobody on the island sold petrol so he had to send for some, in cans. In the early days, petrol was sold in cans from drug stores and hardware shops. Florio was also keen on the new sport of motor racing, but since he had the only car in Sicily, he had a problem. He solved it by running a handicap race against a horseman and a cyclist. Fast forward a few years and out and out racing cars used VELOCITY
special fuel. It was usually based on industrial alcohol plus whatever new additives came along. In the 1950s, for example, there was nitro-methane. Sports cars stuck to petrol, they were often driven to circuits. In the 1950s the organisers at Le Mans and Reims (which ran at 12 Hour race, starting at midnight) insisted that everyone should use petrol they supplied. Since the petrol was sometimes not to a standard, it is likely that some competitors were disadvantaged. We are used to going to a filling station and pumping a standard product. In Britain, until 1953, everyone had to use ‘pool’ petrol, regardless what it said on the pumps. This was of such low quality that sharp racers used basic aviation fuel which was of 80 octane. Once fuel companies were allowed to compete again, so the standard of their product improved. In the 1950s, companies like Jaguar sold cars with high compression pistons, for increased performance, and low compression pistons for markets where the fuel quality was not great.
When the World Championship began in 1950, the entire rule book was that engines shall be 4,500cc, or 1,500cc supercharged, and the car shall be presented in the national livery of the entrant. Fuel dominated the early days of F1 which is why Ferrari switched from 1500cc supercharged to 4.5-litre normally aspirated. 1951 Alfa Romeo T159 did 1.5 miles per gallon and refuelling was by churns and funnels. Apart from engine capacity, the only change in F1 regs came in 1958 when petrol was stipulated. Mind you, it was top Av-gas with 130 octanes. Fuel continued to play its part, we all know what a heavy right foot does to economy. Now the FIA has decided that as well as maximum capacity, there is a fuel flow rate. I am sure I need not remind Australians that this robbed Danny Ricciardo of a podium finish at Melbourne last year. The FIA has its reasons which I, for one, do not understand. I do know that F1 is going to Hades in a handcart and daft ideas like ‘fuel flow’ are powering it. 9
Image: William Reid
TRIPLE THREAT FROM MINNOWS TO LEADERS OF THE PACK, ROLAND DANE REVALS THE SECRET TO TRIPLE 8’S SUCCESS AND WHAT THE FUTURE HAS IN STORE
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itting in the team truck chatting quietly, Roland Dane is nothing like his public persona. He speaks openly and honestly, happy to speak and reminisce. Dane is an old school racer, a man willing to battle to the bitter end. He calls a spade a spade and, to an extent, wears his heart on his sleeve. He also divides opinion.
Dane’s motorsport career began back in his native England where for years he ran a successful British Touring Car team. It gave him a solid grounding and an understanding of how a team needs to be run in order to be successful, lessons that proved crucial when he moved to Australia 12 years ago. After stepping off the plane Dane purchased the Briggs Motorsport outfit, a team he says was filled with good people but lacked structure and resources. “It took probably 18 months or so, a year to 18 months, of hard initial work to get our ducks in a row over that to give oursevles a budget that was going to work,” he explains. One of those ducks was Craig Lowndes who signed for the burgeoning team at the peak of his powers. Triple 8’s first V8 Supercars win came in 2005 courtesy of Lowndes, just over two years after taking control of the team. That year Lowndes only narrowly missed out on the championship glory. It was a season that laid the foundations for the years to come, which saw Triple 8 emerge as a potent force in V8 Supercar racing and endearing it to Dane. The Tiple 8 boss makes no secret of his fondness for V8 14
Supercar series, believing it to be the most competitive in the world. “The structure here is far better than DTM and BTCC by miles,” he claims. “We can build a championship around an iconic event in Bathurst. What’s BTCC going to do? Round 12 at Snetterton or something? It doesn’t have the same ring to it and it certainly doesn’t pull the audience.” “This championship is very, very 16
different from BTCC,” he continues. “It’s different from any national touring car championship. We’ve got this huge combination of sprint races, of long distance races, of strategy, of pitstops and everything which really is unique and part of the strength. “That was an initial learning curve for me and for Ludo [Lacroix] especially to get our heads around the requirements to win here; whether it’s strategy, whether it’s car build, how
strong they had to be, what tracks they had to put up with because we’ve got a huge variation of tracks, much bigger than the UK. “Going from Winton at one end to Bathurst at the other end with Phillip Island and Darwin with big extremes in temperature, big extremes in speed, and the forces on the cars as well as the different formats - two driver races as well... It’s enormous variation, so there’s an enormous amount to get
one’s head around coming from, to be hoenst, a relatively simple championship in BTCC.” With a new structure and resources success followed. Jamie Whincup took the team’s first championship in 2008 with another five following since. It’s an unprecidented run which Dane puts down to the squad’s commercial stability. The team has relationships that span 17
Image: Race Shots
more than a decade and has had longterm title sponsor relationships. That, according to Dane, is the secret to success.
strength here in proper commercial sponsorship than there is in BTCC or even DTM frankly in terms of real commercial dollars.”
“You can can have a big budget and not win, but you can’t win without a big budget because you need to have the resources to go with it. So we needed to put ourselves into that place,” he reasons.
But while commercial stability has been the base for Triple 8’s success, it’s been the growth in V8 Supercars which has underpinned it all. According to Dane the sport enjoys an 80% recognition of Bathurst within the general population, something which sponsors see as enticing. The level of competition is also key, he adds, with manufacturer support critical.
“We’ve got a sponsorship roster that I think is the envy of any motor racing team outside of the top four or five in Formula One and the top four or five NASCAR teams, frankly. So from a national touring car persective we’re much better off, as are quite a few of the other teams. There’s much more
The series’ strengths have allowed Dane to expand his operation and next season the team will welcome Shane Van Gisbergen into its ranks. 19
Image: Rhys Vandersyde
The decision to run a third car was not one made lightly. “I’ve always waivered about the value of running more cars,” Dane explains. “The impetus really for running another car now is really about trying to give Craig the best opportunity for the latter part of his career,” says Dane. “Only an idiot would say he’s half way though - he’s in the later stages. “He’s still very competitive, he’s still capable of winnig races,” he adds, “but he’s in his 40s now and we want to give him an environment which allows him to make his own choices going forward and reward the loyalty he’s shown to us.” Financially running a third car is not a major risk. Much of the structure and infrastructure exists, thanks to the days when Triple 8 ran a Development Series car while in terms of staffing it’s simply a case of ramping back up to what the team ran during the Car of the Future transition. Dane believes a third car will also give the team some technical advantages, something that may well come in useful following a more difficult than expected 2015. With the highly rated Van Gisbergen it also gives Triple 8 one of the strongest driver lineups on the grid at a time when the sport looks to take its next step. “Generation 2, for us, almost certainly 21
depends on the direction given to us by [General Motors]. We know in outline what they’d like to do, we don’t know in detail yet and so it’s difficult to quantify until I actually know 100 per cent what they wish to do and then what time scale. “Whilst the Gen2 is being rolled out for 2017 it doesn’t mean you have to change at that point,” he adds. “It will depend on what their marketing plans are for 17/18, that period, as to when we make a change as a team. As a team I’m sure we will [change] at some point [but] when it is and exactly what form that takes is still open in our case. “Other people may have already formed their, other teams, manufactuers, 22
teams, may have already made a call on when and how and what it will look like, but we’re not quite there yet.” Dane is a fan of the new regulations, believing they’ll entice new manufacturers into the sport, adding both strength and depth. It will also present challenges, both for the series and the team, but sitting down with Dane one gets the impression it’s overcoming obstacles that drives him as much as victory on Sunday afternoon. While 2015 may have been comparatively disappointing in light of its sucess in recent years you write off Red Bull and Roland Dane at your own peril.
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PERFECT 10
FORMULA ONE’S BEST PERFORMING DRIVERS OF 2015.
Image: Sutton’s
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ollowing the Hungarian Grand Prix the Velocity team sat down intent on deciding the ten best performing drivers from the first half of 2015. What actually happened was an argument as the crew disagreed over almost every driver on the grid. To settle matters we gave each driver a rating out of ten for every race, with that score averaged out to give a final rating. The results surprised even the team itself.
10. KIMI RAIKKONEN
Image: Sutton’s
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nder pressure to retain his drive, Kimi Raikkonen’s season can be described as solid but unspectacular. There have been strong performances in Hungary and Bahrain but they serve only to counterbalance races where he’s under perofrmed, suc as his spectacular opening lap crash in Austria. Kimi’s best is certainly behind him but the trouble for Ferrari is that he’s still a front line driver and every so often, like in Malaysia, puts in a performance worthy of a world champion. The question is whether that promise is enough, or if at 36 the Scuderia is looking for someone a little younger and more consistent. 27
9. FELIPE MASSA
Image: Sutton’s
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C
harging through the field in Canada, Felipe Massa looked like the man who came within a whisker of the 2008 world championship.
There have been notable performances elsewhere too, he was strong at Austria – as he always is – and Bahrain was also a good drive. Elsewhere his season has been consistent without major highs or lows with the exception of the British Grand Prix. While his performance that day was solid he could have done more to help the team, and in our view contributed to the squad finishing the day off the podium. 29
8. MAX VERSTAPPEN
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he young Dutchman burst onto the scenes in the opening race of the season and has continued to grow his reputation ever since.
In Malaysia he became the youngest man ever to score points in Formula One, backing that up with a superb performance in Hungary to finish fourth. There have been blips on the radar too with silly mistakes in Monaco and Silverstone, but in his first season they shouldn’t be held against him too harshly. On current form there is little doubt that Verstappen is one for the future and has potentially 20 years of Formula One ahead of him.
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7. VALTTERI BOTTAS
Image: Sutton’s
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e’s the next Ferrari driver, if you choose to believe the reports coming from Italy, and despite what turned into quite a poor British Grand Prix he’s had a strong season.
He was on the podium in Bahrain after driving a defensive final stint against the much faster Sebastian Vettel and even without starting the Australian Grand Prix has done enough to firmly establish his credentials at the front of the F1 pack. The only black mark is that he’s not comprehensively beaten Felipe Massa, something many observers would have expected from a man believed to be a future world champion. 33
6. FERNANDO ALONSO
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he most controversial entry in our top ten, Fernando Alonso’s inclusion owes much to his performance in Hungary and his ability to rise above his machinery.
In a carnage filled Hungarian race, one which had comparatively few retirements, Alonso managed to finish well into the points with a car slower than many of those who finished behind him. He was strong in Bahrain and has typically out-shone his McLaren, his lack of results no reflection his own performance. The biggest question though is how much he now regrets leaving Ferrari, and if he’ll remain in the sport beyond 2015. 34
Image: Sutton’s
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5. FELIPE NASR
Image: Sutton’s
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auber’s pace has fallen away as the season has worn on but in the early races Felipe Nasr made the most of his equipment.
A surprise points finish in Australia – arguably the performance of the race - was backed up by a similarly good drive in China. The failure to start in Britain can’t be held against Nasr and aside from an average performance in Canada he’s been a surprisingly strong signing for Sauber.
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4. CARLOS SAINZ
Image: Sutton’s
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T
he third rookie in the top ten, Carlos Sainz has put in a string of solid performances. Since his first race in Melbourne he’s been a picture of consistency and has rarely looked like a rookie. Australia, Malaysia, Spain and Monaco were his best performances, and China his worst but really there have been no peaks or troughs in a season filled with mature drives that bely his lack of experience. Statistically he might be the most overtaken driver of the season but that owes more to the fact he gets more out of his car than he should in qualifying. His team-mate might get all the headlines, but of the two it’s been Sainz who’s impressed the most.
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3. NICO ROSBERG
Image: Sutton’s
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here have been races where he’s been brilliant, and others were he’s been merely very good. He’s typically been a contender for race wins all season, and has begun to step out of his team-mate’s shadow. Rosberg was the class of the field in Spain and Austria (his qualifying mistake excused) but he seemed out of sorts in Malaysia and China. Aside from Hungary, Rosberg’s performances have been solid. The problem is on the other side of the garage is Lewis Hamilton, who has only gone from strength to strength since taking the title last season. Rosberg’s own performance are nothing to be ashamed of, he’s finished off the podium just once and has three wins already, but he needs to find another level if he’s to move up this list by season’s end. 41
2. SEBASTIAN VETTEL
Image: Sutton’s
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e may not have the fastest car on the grid but his performance in 2015 so far has laid to rest any suggestions he was only as good as his Adrian Newey designed Red Bull.
Clever strategy in Malaysia saw him win there while a strong and consistent performance in Hungary allowed him to rack up his second win for the Scuderia. The only blemish was the Bahrain Grand Prix when he threw away a potential win after running wide and damaging his front wing. Otherwise his performances have been first class and will probably spell the end of Kimi Raikkonen’s Formula One career as a result.
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1. LEWIS HAMILTON
Image: Sutton’s
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ith five wins to his name this season, there can be little doubt Lewis Hamilton has been the strongest performer throughout the first half of the season.
There could have been another victory at Monaco too but for a bungled strategy. Hamilton’s Mercedes is unquestionably the fastest car on the grid and up to Hungary his worst finish was third at that race in Monaco. Hungary was the outlier, a dismal performance which was anything but typical form the double world champion. He was clumsy in traffic and made an unusual mistake on the opening lap. But everyone has a bad day, and looking to the second half of the season we should expect to see Hamilton gradually ease his way clear of his team-mate at the top of the championship. Without double points at the end of the season this year it’s likely we’ll see Lewis Hamilton crowned for a third time somewhere around the Brazilian Grand Prix. 45
PLANNING AHEA DETERMIND, REALISTIC AND TALENTED, DYLAN O’KEEFFE’S FUTURE IS BRIGHT.
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ost people don’t have a clue what they want to do after school. We’ll do as best we can and see how we go from there, after a year of travelling or something. Yeah. That’s sounds good. Let’s do that.. Not Dylan O’Keeffe. At just 17 O’Keeffe has his future mapped out in meticulous detail. Not only does he know what he wants to be but he also has a plan on how to get it. “The ultimate goal is to race for Porsche and possibly to SuperCup,” O’Keeffe explains. “Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge has been a good stepping stone,” he agrees. “In Porsche it’s a little bit in the setup but not as much, it’s more driver orientated. “Porsche do a lot of programmes, junior programms and things. Sam Power’s doing that at the moment - he is running SuperCup through it.” O’Keeffe is aiming for a career in motorsport,
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but unlike so many others his head isn’t in the clouds. He wants first and foremost to turn his passion into a career, with anything beyond that a bonus. It’s a refreshingly down to earth approach. After an early career spent karting with some success a chance test of Tony Bates’ Porsche at the end of 2013 changed the shape of O’Keeffe’s prospective career. “After that we decided to purchase a 50
car,” O’Keeffe recalls but rather than ploughing head first into racing a GT3 Cup car he instead spent a season honing his crash. “Last year would have been too early to go to GT3 Cup,” admits O’Keeffe. “I did 944 and then at the end of the year we did a bit of testing and then GT3 Cup challenge this year, which has played out well.” The decision to delay his GT3 Cup debut was designed to give the youngster
time to learn and develop his craft at lower levels. It showed patience and a willingness to learn, key abilities in developing a young careeer. His progress is helped by Steven Richards whose advice has been integral in O’Keefe’s success in 2015. The former Bathurst winner acts as driver coach, helping work through the data and understand car setup to get more out of both the car and himself. “From the first round in Sandown
I’ve leanred so much off,” confesses O’Keeffe. “You just feed off him as much as you can because you don’t come across those guys everyday. I think that’s been the key to get me where I am now.” GT3 Cup Challenge is just the first part of O’Keeffe’s grand plan. Next season he plans to step up to the Carrera Cup and in years to come hopes to compete in Europe. But while racing is his priority, O’Keeffe 51
realises he can’t allow his education to suffer.
are against him and remains realistic about his future.
“It’s a hard one isn’t it because racing you want to have a career and then also school is the backup plan for me at the moment,” he admits when asked where his priorities sit.
“You see it constantly - people who’ve half made it. If I get to the age, midtwenties, and it’s not working out I might pull the pin and focus on work and maybe I can come back later and do Carrera Cup later in my life.”
“I want to be a race car driver now because that’s what’s going for me,” he adds. “But obviously you’ve got to have a backup plan because racing you can’t be donig that for ever and the other thing is you might not make it so you’ve got to keep your options open.” O’Keeffe is all too aware that the odds
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A career in the automotive industry appeals but admits he’s given little thought to anything other than racing. Instead he’s busy working to progress his career in the driving seat and juggles his schooling around that. Moving into Carrera Cup is his current focus as he works with his sponsors to put together a programme for 2016
and is eyeing off other opportunities such as a start at the Bathurst 12 Hour. Currently racing against experienced and highly credentialed drivers like Ryan Simpson it’s provided the perfect benchmark for O’Keeffe, who has more than held his own with a number of podium finishes. O’Keeffe’s future is bright. He is realistic and disinterested in the glitz and glamour of motor racing. Instead he is simply looking to pursue it as a career, which comes as a refreshing change from those who believe they’re destined for greatness. Talented and determind, O’Keeffe’s approach is far more down to earth and for that reason his chances of success are higher than most. 54
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MARCH OF TIME HOW AN F1 CLASSIC LIVES ON A WHIM AND A PRAYER
Image: Sutton’s
Joe Calleja owns a piece of motor racing history. He tells Mat Coch how he came to own a Formula One classic almost by accident.
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n the early 1970s customer racing cars were all the rage. Lotus, Brabham, and McLaren had all got in on the game during but by the mid 70s it was March that was emerging as the leading contender. Founded by Robin Herd, Alan Rees, Graham Coaker and Max Mosley - yes, that Max Mosley - March set up shop at the end of the 60s building cars from F1 to Can-Am. It ran factory teams to showcase its products and in 1970 received the unexpected bonus of supplying Ken Tyrrell with a car for reigning world champion Jackie Stewart to race in Formula One. For the most part, March’s Formula One programme was a drain on resources. It rarely operated on anything but a shoestring budget as the company focussed on its profitable Formula 2 and Formula 3 operations. Still, needing to sell cars meant each year there was a new model, even if it was only an evolution of the previous year’s design. In Formula One for 1974 that was the 741, a car developed on a budget as the works instead focussed on its class leading position in Formula 2.
Image: Sutton’s
Image: Sutton’s
Officially, only two 741s were built, driven at the start of the year by Hans Stuck and Howden Ganley. With the team needing sponsorship Ganley’s place wasn’t certain - he was kept on without a retainer - and it wasn’t long before the New Zealander jumped ship and was replaced by Vittorio Brambilla. It proved to be a tough season. Though March scored six points and finished ninth in the championship both Stuck and Brambilla crashed their cars frequently, each needing multiple new tubs; Brambilla three and Stuck two. Perhaps most notable of these was Stuck’s crash at Monaco. Driving chassis 741/1, the first built by the team,
Stuck tangled with James Hunt early in the race. Launched into the air, Stuck crashed out at Mirabeau and though physically unharmed was never quite the same driver again. The incident saw 741/1 retired and repalced with a partially-completed chassis the team was already building. It was designated 741/1-2 in order to sidestep the cost of having to pay for a new customs carnet, a process the team used time and again with chassis 741/1-2 being replaced with 741/1-3 by season’s end. According to our own Mike Lawrence’s book on the subject (March - The rise and fall of a motor racing legend) the otherside of the garage reached 741/2-4. The original 741/1 chassis is now 59
owned by businessman Joe Calleja and is seen regularly in the hands of John Bowe. Following Monaco, March repaired the damaged car and sold it to American Gus Hutchinson who raced the car in Formula 5000. He dubbed it a March 73A and fitted a Chevy 5-litre engine and DG 300 gearbox. It continued competition in that form until 1976 before then owner Geoff Davie sat out the 1977 through lack of funds. After being sold on again it underwent heavy modifications with a view to running in the 1979 Indianapolis 500 by O’Hanlon Racing for Larry McCoy. But McCoy failed ot qualify, and a subsequent attempt at the Milwaukee Mile by Bruce Hill netted the same result. The car then all but disappared for two decades before finally re-emerging in 2000, restored to its original Formula One configuration. It was painted in the orange Jagermeister livery which Stuck raced at the German Grand Prix in chassis 741/1-3 and remained in the US until Calleja bought the car on a whim in 2012 and shipped it home to Melbourne. As much of the field did in the early 1970s, the 741 ran a Cosworth DFV which revved to 11,500rpm and produced 500bhp. That was originally coupled to DG gearbox but was soon replaced with a Hewland FGA which improved the car immensley. Hewland gearboxes were common place in Formula One at the time, used even by the likes of Ferrari, and were designed to be easily removed to make changing ratios simpler. The car has an aluminium 60
Image: Sutton’s
Image: Sutton’s
monocoque over the top of which aluminium panels are glued and rivetted in place. The 741 was slightly longer in the wheelbase that the car it replaced (the 731, which was just a rebuilt 721G from 1972) with the rear wing placed further back. At the rear two massive 16 inch wide tyres fitted to 13 inch rims gave the car an aggressive stance. Throughout the year there were three revised airboxes, progressing from an 62
anvil shaped design to a much larger, squarer design by season’s end. The rear wing on the 741 was unique. Designed by Robin Herd, who’d worked on the Concorde before moving into Formula One with McLaren, it sported much larger end fences than were the norm at the time. Currently, the car features a different rear wing, which is not uncommon since the Formula One and Formula Two cars from the time were near
identical. In its current form the bodywork hails from a March 751 from 1975, but Calleja is working on putting that right, but under the skin the DFV - with original paint - and Hewland gearbox remain.
American racers - he owns a 1966 Corvette in which he competes and will take to the Goodwood Revival next month - but when he saw the March decided on an impulse to buy it.
Although a motor racing fan, Calleja’s interest in the car had more to do with its aesthetic value than racing pedigree. He’d looked at historic Formula One cars in the past but had never bought anything because he wasn’t really in the market. Calleja’s interest is
Since then Calleja has entered the car in a host of historic events, primarily with John Bowe at the wheel though taking the controls himself at times, though freely admits he can scarecely bring himself to take it to 8000rpm, let alone the redline. 63
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Bowe and Calleja raced the car to the US in 2013 where they competed in a race for historic cars at Laguna Seca, an event eventually won by the sister 741 car. Frustratingly, Bowe rolled to a halt when the driveshafts didn’t have enough plunge clearance and the car lost drive. There were problems too recently when chasing down Alex Davison at Sydney Motorsport part when a newly reconditioned upright had the thread pull out of it. It’s all part of owning a piece of history for Calleja, who has recently sent the DFV engine off to the US to be rebuilt. Around Winton, Bowe is capable of lapping four seconds faster than a current V8 Supercar, even with the engine 64
de-tuned from full racing spec. Not bad for a car which last year celebrated its fortieth birthday. The car which tugged at Calleja’s heart-strings, not to mention to wallet, continues to be raced. Despite the thousands he’s poured into the car Calleja reasons racing cars are designed to be raced, not wrapped up in cotton wool but admits he’s spent the cost of the car again restoring it, with more to come. Together with his Corvette, Calleja has also added a March Can-Am car to his growing collection. There might even be another Formula One car in his stable in future too, he suggests, maybe something in black and gold.
Book covers not contractual
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V8 SUPERCARS
IPSWICH SUPERSPRINT
LEADER OF THE PACK
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ublicly, Mark Winterbottom is playing down his championship chances. Privately he has to realise this is the best opportunity he’s had in his V8 Supercars career. The Prodrive Falcon is the class of the field. In the hands of Chaz Mostert it’s the fastest car over a single lap while in Winterbottom’s hands 66
it’s a super strong and consistent race car. For Winterbottom, the key is qualifying. It’s currently the biggest weakness in his armoury though one that is largely masked by the fact that he’s typically started towards. His ability to get off the line so cleanly has also given Frosty an advantge, but with
Mostert beginning to show he too can get the car off the line well that edge may be taken away. The biggest hurdle in terms of championship glory now is not Mostert or Craig Lowndes but his endurance co-driver Steve Owen. In the sister car Mostert will be joined by Cam Waters, who has VELOCITY
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dominated the Development Series, while Lowndes will have Steven Richards joining him. Richards has been keeping himself sharp running in Carrera Cup. Owen has been keeping himself busy driving a Porsche GT3 car in the Australian GT championship and while he’s a solid racing pedigree behind him a co-driver VELOCITY
V8 SUPERCARS
is be default is the weak link in the chain. The great unknown for Winterbottom is how strong Owen is against Waters and Richards. That makes rounds like Ipswich so important to Winterbottom’s championship campaign. With the endurance races likely to throw up more than the odd surprise it’s critical to maximise
the return when things are more predictable. Two wins and a third place were an ideal way to do that at Queensland Raceway. Winterbottom gathered a hefty haul of points and did everything he could to maximise his return. It was as close to a perfect weekend for the Prodrive man as makes no difference. 67
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The only problem was Lowndes was also competitive, meaning Winterbottom’s points gain was minimised. The Red Bull driver was on the podium in each of the three races with two second places and a third. More worrying for Prodrive was the fact both Lowndes and Jamie Whincup showed pace and with Whincup’s championship challenge is all but over that hands an advantage of sorts to Triple 8. With both Mostert and Winterbottom very much in contention Prodrive can’t afford to favour one drier over another. That means Mostert and Winterbottom will likely take points from one another, reducing their championship threat to a degree. By contrast Red Bull is now in a position where it can justifiably have Whincup work for Lowndes, using him as a foil or moving him out of the way (as happened in Queensland) to maximise Lowndes’ return. If Whincup’s championship hopes have faded so too have Shane Van Gisbergen’s after a dismal weekend. After a fourth place in the opening race things fell apart for the Tekno driver as a drivetrain issue ended 68
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his race two early and he finished just 21st in Sunday’s race - the last man on the lead lap. For a championship contender, when the points leader is standing on the podium, it’s simply not good enough, even if the team was good enough to take the blame.
Continuing to quietly chip away at things was David Reynolds. Two fourth places and a seventh in the opener were the sort of results expected of him as the team considers whether he’ll remain in that seat for next season. Fabian Coulthard, the man tipped as most VELOCITY
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likely to repalce Reynolds in the satellite Prodrive car, had a poor weekend in which he was beaten by teammate Jason Bright and fell to sixth in the championship hunt. More than 400 points down on Winterbottom his hopes aren’t entirely over but they VELOCITY
V8 SUPERCARS
are certainly being read their last rites. If Red Bull had an encouraging weekend so too did Volvo. Though Scott McLaughlin faded to mid-pack in the 200km race on Sunday he was a feature at the front of both races on Saturday, and that’s something that hasn’t
been the case for much of 2015. Indeed in race one he recorded the squad’s first podium of the year and didn’t fall far off the back of Winterbottom, which must be seen as a positive. What’s more the car was reliable throughout, something that hasn’t always been the case 69
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this year. The same couldn’t be said at Nissan with Todd Kelly losing oil pressure in the final stages of Sunday’s race. There was also the inescapable fact that the team dropped the ball on Saturday which saw James Moffat disqualified from the opening two races through no fault of his own. What made matters worse is that Moffat was Nissan’s leading performer on Saturday and the mistake was one totally within the team’s control. It made a simple administrative mistake and paid a high price as a result, and it can only blame itself. In recent races the Nissan has been more competitive, Todd Kelly was sixth in race two at Ipswich to record his best finish since the opening race at Winton. With developments in the works that gradual march forward should continue but the team simply has to lift its game in the garage and eliminate silly errors and reliability concerns. It’s not to say those problems are rife for the team but with momentum so important in V8 Supercars it can’t afford the disruption they cause - just ask Garry Rogers. 70
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Elsewhere there was a strong performance from Andre Heimgartner in qualifying for race two, though the Kiwi needs to learn to get his elbows out more as he was shuffled back in the pack in quick time. Penske’s performances also continue to improve. Scott Pye was inside the top ten in Saturday’s second race and just a handful of seconds outside of it on Sunday. There’s much more that needs to be found but at least the team has begun to move forward. With one more SuperSprint round before the championship switches into enduro mode a solid performance at Sydney Motorsport Park is critical for all championship contenders. Winterbottom’s title ambitions all but died at Sydney Motorsport Park last season, so he’ll be looking to make amends for that disappointment and further extend his points advantage this time around. The problem is he has an in form Mostert to contend with in an equally comeptitive car and a seemingly revistalised Red Bull. Sydney Motorsport Park will provide a glimpse into how the remainder of the season will play out. VELOCITY
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V8 SUPERCARS
Image: Rhys Vandersyde
VELOCITY
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V8 SUPERCARS
TOWNSVILLE SUPERSTREET
TRUE BLUE
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here is something Mark Winterbottom is doing in his car that Chaz Mostert is not. It’s the only logical explanation for why Winterbottom sits atop the championship standings with an ever increasing margin despite the fact that Mostert is the faster driver. At times over the 72
Townsville weekend Winterbottom was only the third fastest Falcon driver, but this season he’s managing to string together the results to keep his championship charge ticking over. And that’s the secret. Capitalise on the good days but maxmise your chances on the bad ones. Of course the race pace has to be there, just as
it needs to be in qualifying, as no strategy is any good without the speed to pull it off. Winterbottom has been close enough to the pointy end to make that happen, and has shown excellent cold-tyre pace in the opening laps of a race to claw back any ground he may give up in qualifying. But while Frosty doesn’t have the VELOCITY
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outright pace in qualifying he’s only being beaten by his teammate. Mostert isn’t a serious title contender, not yet, and so there is no real threat. David Reynolds understands his position well enough as was demonstrated during the opening race in Townsville - he could have challenged but he didn’t. Reynolds VELOCITY
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afforded Winterbottom an unmolested run to the flag. It was a drive for the best interests of the team, and given his position on the outer that was a wise move. In the last two rounds Reynolds has shown the sort of form he should have been demonstrating all season. It is not a surprise nor particularly praiseworthy as the argument runs that he’s
had the machinery to do the job all this while but hasn’t. He’s improved his performances, certainly, but he’s now simply doing what is expected of him. Fabian Coulthard on the other hand is surpassing expectations. His team doesn’t have the resources of some of those he’s racing with and yet he’s consistently inside the top five. 73
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He’s proved the leading Holden contender as often as not. While Shane Van Gisbergen and Craig Lowndes come and go from the very pointy end, sitting just in behind them is typically Coulthard whose bad weekends haven’t been particularly devestating, so long as one turns a blind eye to the Hidden Valley round. 74
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Part of Coulthard’s success in Townsville was a result of sound strategy calls, a point his team is especially strong at. Willing to take a calculated risk it saw him gain track position in the opening race and hang on for a hefty haul of points. But if Coulthard is exceeding expectations there’s no hiding from the fact that Red
Bull fell well short of even their own. Neither Craig Lowndes nor Jamie Whincup featured at the front all weekend, something which is unfamiliar to the team which has dominated in recent years. It prompted changes on Whincup’s side of the garage, a sign of the growing desperation the team has to claw back its lost ground. VELOCITY
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There were suggestions in some corners that Red Bull’s downturn in pace was because the Falcon’s aero package had given them the parity edge, though those comments didn’t come from Red Bull and should be taken with a grain of salt. The simple fact is Red Bull has let its advantage slip and that is nobody’s fault but their own. VELOCITY
V8 SUPERCARS
Elsewhere it was a better weekend for Volvo though the team is still without the sparkle it showed in 2014. Reliability problems have plagued the team so simply getting a trouble free weekend is a positive at GRM at the moment. There is speed still to be unlocked in the car but for the moment focus has to be on sorting out the
gremlins. One team which looks to have made progress on its own problems is Penske, with Scott Pye beginning to edge his way towards the pace of the Prodrive Falcons. At the start of the season the car and the team was nowhere but of late Pye has been quietly moving his way forward. There is more that needs to be done but there are poitive signs coming out of the team where at the start of the season things seemed overwhelmingly negative. The Holden Racing Team remains an enigma. At times it has the pace, at times it doesn’t. At times it has proved it’s own worst enemy. An exchange between Garth Tander and James Courtney towards the end of race two in Townsville left hearts in mouths in the HRT garage following recent events but ultimately the two raced hard, fair and clean. The problem is the team has been nowhere near consistent enough to really be considered genuine contenders. They may snare a race win or two before the end of the race but on current form the championship is beyond it. 75
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FORMULA ONE
HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX
JEKYLL & HYDE
Image: Sutton’s
T
he Hungarian Grand Prix was a Jekyll and Hyde affair. On one hand there were some stunning performances but on the other there were some which fell well short of what’s expected. The race was also a tale of two halves, only coming to life following the retirement of Nico Hulkenberg. 76
Hulkenberg’s retirement capped off a difficult weekend for Force India which started in opening practice when Sergio Perez ended the session upside down. A rear suspension component had failed, pitching him into a wall and forcing the team to sit out second practice as it looked to understand the cause of the failure. Add to
that the fact Hulkenberg’s front wing failed for no discernible reason and you’re left with some serious concerns for the engineering department which will do well to have a good look at its quality control procedures. Hulkenberg’s front wing failure was similar to that of Kimi Raikkonen’s in practice. The saw-toothed kerbs of VELOCITY
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FORMULA ONE
Image: Sutton’s
the Hungaroring circuit, plus more stringent flexibility tests on front wings, put extra strain on the mounting points of the wings. That’s what failed in Raikkonen’s case, caused by a frequency resonance as the car drove over the rough kerbing. After brake failure and a stuck throttle, a failed front wing is the third worst failure a Formula VELOCITY
One car can have as it often becomes trapped under the car, turning it into a toboggan, exactly as happened to Hulkenberg. But while the incident is bad news for Force India it turned out to be the shot in the arm the race needed. Following the start, which saw both Ferrari’s hit the front and Lewis Hamilton throw his Mercedes
at the scenery, the race had settled down into a dull and predictable pattern. Barring the safety car Sebastian Vettel would have eased to a comfortable victory, likely ahead of Raikkonen were it not for his hybrid system failure. Nico Rosberg by rights would have been third following a confusing race from the German who seemingly had 77
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no answer to the two Ferrari’s, which should by rights have been much slower than his Mercedes. The safety car however changed all that. It should have given Mercedes the upper hand, only they botched the strategy call (not for the first time) and sent its two drivers out on medium tyres for the final stint when softs would have been a better choice. During practice Mercedes had shown it had a strong advantage over the field on medium compound tyre, but tucked up behind another car that was mitigated around the twisty Hungaroring. In fifth place at the safety car restart, Daniel Ricciardo showed the potential of fresh soft tyres as he was able to attack Lewis Hamilton despite driving an inferior car. Had Mercedes gone for that option there is little doubt both cars had the pace to race to the front. Instead neither Hamilton nor Rosberg were able to move forward (ignoring the fact Raikkonen retired soon after the restart with a sick Prancing Horse) and instead were forced to work hard simply to maintain their positions. 78
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It put both drivers under pressure and both made silly mistakes. Hamilton’s race was disastrous. Following a poor start he ran off the road mid-way around the opening lap to sit just 13th at the end of the first tour. He’d done well to claw his way back into contention for a podium by the time the safety car came out but thereafter his race fell apart once again. His penalty for contact with Daniel Ricciardo was harsh, but the tone of the day had been set much earlier by Pastor Maldonado. Having penalised the Lotus driver for a similar incident with Sergio Perez earlier the stewards were left with little choice but to penalise Hamilton. Still, the damage to his front wing and the ensuing pit stop was probably penalty enough, that he got a drive through is evidence of the overpolicing Formula One now suffers from. Ricciardo was not blameless either, and was far from perfect. His move on Hamilton to trigger their contact was clumsy at best as he missed his braking maker and slid well passed the apex. He could have done more to avoid contact, though
Image: Sutton’s
Image: Sutton’s
VELOCITY
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FORMULA ONE
Image: Sutton’s
VELOCITY
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FORMULA ONE
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he can be forgiven for being unwilling to in the heat of battle. The same can be said of his later contact with Nico Rosberg, an incident that robbed Ricciardo of second place and a shot at victory. Correctly, stewards ruled their contact a racing incident though both Rosberg and Ricciardo could have 80
afforded each other more space and thus avoided contact and thus enjoy better results than they ended the day with. In Ricciardo’s case the risk was worth the reward since he has nothing to lose in terms of the championship but for Rosberg it was a needless move that could cost him dearly, especially with Hamilton
having already dropped back down the order following a wing change. From a team’s perspective, Ricciardo’s contact probably cost it nothing aside from the repair bill. Behind Ricciardo was Daniil Kvyat who was able to move up to second while Ricciardo fell only to third when he stopped to replace his VELOCITY
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FORMULA ONE
Image: Sutton’s
Image: Sutton’s
front wing. There’s no doubt the team would have gladly accepted second and third at the start of the day, and Ricciardo’s chances of victory were slim but still, the order could have been reversed and Ricciardo put his car at risk without great need on multiple occasions. It may have been a combative drive, but it was VELOCITY
unnecessarily so. The same can be said for Pastor Maldonado, who must have a seat permanently reserved outside of the stewards office. Following contact with Perez early, for which he was given a drive-through, he was subsequently caught speeding in the pit lane and overtaking before the safety car line. It
was a truly awful performance from a driver who can do much better, and should do much better. All three penalties were the result of driver errors and worse is that post-race the Venezuelan didn’t seem to understand the error of his ways. It’s little wonder he’s gained the reputation he has. Conversely Max 81
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VICTORIA
Image: Sutton’s
Verstappen drove a quiet and unassuming race to claim a strong fourth place. He’s had an up and down season but his Hungarian result more than making up for the disappointment of spinning out of the British Grand Prix. In time he will become 82
more consistent and, on evidence of his Hungarian Grand Prix, will be a solid feature at the front of the grid. Also flying under the radar were the two McLaren drivers. Fernando Alonso finished well inside the top ten while Jenson Button
also managed a couple of points in what was the first double points finish for McLaren this season. Alonso’s performance in particular was noteworthy because he raced his way ahead of a number of cars which should have been in front of VELOCITY
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VICTORIA
Image: Sutton’s
Image: Sutton’s
him. The definiciencies of the Honda engine were masked around the Hungaroring which no doubt played its part in McLaren’s pace – and Red Bull’s, for that matter – but to be so far inside the points in a race that didn’t have especially high attrition VELOCITY
is commendable. There is still plenty of work for the Woking squad to do, and it will suffer badly when the circus reaches Spa-Francorchamps and Monza where power is king, but to make the most of what was on the table is all that can be asked of
its drivers. Alonso did that perfectly in Hungary in a weekend when so many, including the championship leader, didn’t. The championship now moves onto Spa and Monza, where power will reign supreme; Mercedes territory. 83
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VICTORIA
VIC STATE CHAMPIONSHIP
MCLEOD HEADS HQ PACK
Image: William Reid
T
wo wins and a second place for Andrew McLeod saw him take out the HQ Racing weekend during round three of the Victorian State Championship at Sandown Park. The opening race proved processional, McLeod and Perry Bekkers heading the pack throughout with Bruce 84
Heinrich third, before racing came alive in race two. A leading train of seven cars diced for top spot before the pace proved too much for Joel Heinrich and Jordan Symes who were popped off the back to leave just five cars at the front. Of those it was Bekkers who held track position at the flag despite
McLeod monstering the rear of his car. David Tessari rounded out the top three, with the first five covered by just 1.02s at the flag. A five second penalty for Bekkers at the start of the final race, when he was caught rolling at the start, allowed McLeod to take his second win of the weekend. Bekkers had VELOCITY
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led the opening stages before McLeod found a way through and pulled clear while Bruce Heinrich also found a way through. Rodney Earnsman completed the podium while Bekker’s penalty demoted him to sixth in the final results. In the Excels two winners in three races ensured a competitive weekend of racing. VELOCITY
VICTORIA
Jarrod Tonks took the first race from Brendan Avard and Kaide Lehmann with the order repeated in race two. Avard however got the better in the final race to win, only to be handed a five second penalty and fall to third, promoting Lehmann to first and Dean Brooking to second – Tonks could do no better than sixth.
The pattern repeated in Formnula Vee with James Dean taking the first two races only for Heath Collinson to win the final. Daniel Reinhardt was second behind Dean on both occasions and dropped to third behind Drew Beachan in the finale. Collinson had finished third in the opening with Shane Purvis on 85
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the bottom step in race two. Glen Wood, Robin Bailey and Phillip Chester all tasked glory in the MG and Invited Sports Cars. Chester won the third race of the weekend from Bailey and Richard Milligan after finishing second in race two. That had been won by Bailey with Milligan third, Bailey having been second in the opener behind Glen Wood and James Holmes third. Darren Colliins won the opening Historic Touring Car race but the battle for second between Darren Smith and Les Walmsley dominated the weekend. The pair were split by little more than a second in the opening race, the largest gap between them all weekend. Smith held on for a narrow victory in race two, just 0.2s over Walmsley as the pair raced clear of Daniel Van Stokrom in third. The podium for the final race remained unchanged, Walmsley missing out on top spot by just 0.3s. Tony Defelice won two of the three Sports Car races, heading the first by more than ten seconds to Jamie Augustine and Michael Vati. Augustine went on to win the second 86
VICTORIA
Image: William Reid
Image: William Reid
VELOCITY
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VICTORIA
Image: William Reid
VELOCITY
87
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VICTORIA
Image: William Reid
race by more than 16 seconds over Vati, who narrowly held off Richard Mensa. Defelice was back on form in the finale to head Augustine across the line by a comfortable 9.8 seconds with Brenton Grove third, 16 seconds off the back of Augustine. Consistency paid off for William Brown in the three Formula Ford races to take out the overall round without winning a race. Caleb Rayner won the opener from Brown with Leanne Tander third and went on to take the spoils again in race two where he was followed across the line by Justin Cotter and Damon 88
Strongman . Thomas Randle headed Brown in race three with Paul Zsidy third. A dominant Damian Milano won all three Improved Production races comfortably. David Cocks was a distant second throughout the weekend with Mario Caligari in third for race one before Troy Lloyd claimed third for races two and three. The shared Porsche 944 and Saloon Cars races were won by Cameron Beller and Adam Mills in the 944s and Simon Tabinor in the Saloon cars. Bellor narrowly won the opening 944 race over Chris LewisWilliams and John
Goddard before technical problems ended Lewis-Williams’ weekend in race two. That allowed Bellor to win with ease over Goodard and Tony Westaway before Mills took the flag in the final race of the weekend. Bellor was second and Goddard third. Tabinor took the honours in all three Saloon car races, beating Aaron Paterson and Andrew Nowland in race one. Nowland and Paterson swapped positions for race two before Paterson claimed second in the final race of the weekend ahead of David Wright. VELOCITY
COMING ATTRACTIONS AUGUST 8 & 9 SHANNONS NATIONALS Queensland Raceway
AUGUST 22 & 23 NSW STATE CHAMPIONSHIP Wakefield Park
AUGUST 9 MOTOGP Indianapolis
AUGUST 22 NASCAR Bristol
NASCAR Watkins Glen
AUGUST 23 INDYCAR Pocono
AUGUST 16 MOTOGP Brno NASCAR Michigan AUGUST 20 - 23 WRC Germany AUGUST 21 - 23 FORMULA ONE Spa-Francorchamps V8 SUPERCARS Sydney Motorsport Park
AUGUST 39 & 30 QLD STATE CHAMPIONSHIP Queensland Raceway AUGUST 30 INDYCAR Infineon Raceway MOTOGP Silverstone WEC Nurburgring