Category: Motorsports

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Ferrari Formula 1

Fisi to Ferrari

Giancarlo Fisichella to drive for Ferrari

It now seems an eternity ago that Felipe Massa paraded the F60 Ferrari F1 car with such optimism. But, with the injured Massa now ruled out for the rest of 2009, it only seems a few moments ago that Force India boss Dr Vijay Mallya denied F1’s worst kept secret. That is, Giancarlo Fisichella will take Massa’s seat at Ferrari for the rest of the season.

Mallya confirmed on the Force India website, “Giancarlo and his management team approached me yesterday with the proposal from Ferrari. For any Italian driver, a Ferrari race seat is a long-held dream and for Giancarlo it was no exception. No one should stand in the way of this.”

Fisi replied with gratitude, “I am very grateful to Vijay Mallya for allowing me this opportunity to drive for the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro team. It is true that it has always been an ambition to do this, and for Vijay to have allowed it to become a reality is very generous.”

Fisichella showed strong form at the Belgian Grand Prix last weekend, claiming pole position and finishing the race in second, behind his new teammate Kimi Raikonnen. It was the first ever podium finish for Force India F1.

Fisi’s first race for Ferrari will be just under two weeks away at the Italian Grand Prix. Nice timing! Naturally, Giancarlo is quite excited about this.

“I’m in seventh heaven,” Fisichella told the Ferrari website. “I still can’t believe it that the dream of my life comes true and I want to thank Ferrari and Chairman Luca di Montezemolo. Over the last week some really incredible things happened to me: the pole position and then second place at Spa and now I’m called by Ferrari to race the last five races of the season for them.”

It is understood that Fisichella will remain with Ferrari in a test driver role next year. But with the rumour mill suggesting Raikonnen could be returning to McLaren in 2010, is Fisichella about to give his 14 year career the most amazing of second winds?

[Source: Force India F1]

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Motorsports Volkswagen

rennenhaus ready for Australian Tarmac Challenge

rennenhaus ready for ATC

The NSW round of the Australian Tarmac Challenge starts at Eastern Creek tomorrow morning. Formerly known as the Dutton Rally, the ATC is a fun way to experience motorsport. Relatively speaking the costs are low and pretty much any road legal car is able to enter.

The Challenge runs over three days and each driver will test themselves against the clock in a variety of events, such as laps around Eastern Creek, 400m and 1000m drags, skid pan activities, hill climbs and more. Activities start in Sydney and end up in Tweed Heads. Along the way the cars will also form part of the support cast for Repco Rally Australia, which also takes place this weekend.

Ian Cudmore from aftermarket tuner rennenhaus has the two things required for the event; 1. an eligible car, in the form of his Mk5 Volkswagen Golf R32 and, 2. the required enthusiasm to take the event on. You can see pics of his car above and below and you’d have to agree his R32 certainly looks the goods.

Ian also took part in Motor magazine’s “Hot Tuner” challenge last month and you will be able to read all about that in the next issue of Motor, due on newsstands around the middle of September.

If you’d like to find out more on how Ian can help you customise your Audi, BMW, Honda, MINI or, of course, Volkswagen then take a peek at the rennenhaus website. To keep up to date with his progress in the ATC you can follow him on twitter.

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Motorsports News

Frank Gardner 1930-2009

AUSmotive pays its respects to Australian motorsport great Frank Gardner OAM who passed away on Saturday. Gardner was active in the motor racing industry for more than half of his life. He was 78.

A successful racer and team manager, Gardner was also passionate about road safety. A sample of this is given in the clip above after the jump. Filmed in 1973, Gardner talks about keeping respect for his 550bhp Chevrolet Camaro on the Oulton Park circuit in England.

His book Drive to Survive was published in 1980 and is still available today.

Gardner drove in Formula One during the mid 1960s, started Le Mans 14 times and won overseas titles in open wheeler and tin top categories. After returning home the driving success continued with the Australian Sports Sedan Championship in 1975.

He was also well known for his team management prowess, most notably guiding Tony Longhurst and Tomas Mezera to a Bathurst 1000 victory in 1988. He also oversaw Australian Touring Car Championships with Jim Richards in 1985 and 1987. Gardner’s most recent success was to direct Paul Morris to the 1995 Australian Super Touring Championship.

Geoff Brabham, who drove for Gardner in the 1990s, said, “He was one of the legends because he was very successful overseas and to me that stands people apart from those who only succeed locally.

“He had a big influence with Ford at Le Mans and his managing skills were legendary. He was pretty tough but one of those guys that if you met him head on and argued it out he respected you.”

More about Gardner’s legacy can be read at Wheels.

The bloke in the white terry towelling hat has passed on. May he rest in peace.

[Source: Courier-Mail]

UPDATE 31 August: A brief tribute to Frank Gardner, originally broadcast on One HD last night, has been added above.

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Formula 1

Will Bahrain bump Melbourne from F1 premiere?

Australian Grand Prix

A preliminary calendar posted on James Allan’s F1 blog has Bahrain, not Melbourne, hosting the opening race of the 2010 Formula One season.

The season premiere is pencilled in for 14 March, when the eastern states of Australia will still be on daylight savings time. Once the clocks revert to regular time, two weeks later, the time difference will better suit European television audiences. Therefore, Melbourne is scheduled to hose the second race of the year on 28 March.

At this stage there is no comment about the provisional calendar on the official Australian Grand Prix website. Although, the main banner does indicate the Grand Prix weekend is planned for 25-28 March.

In the 18 race program Montreal looks set for a return to F1 (6 June), coming in at the expense of the French Grand Prix. Of course, the British Grand Prix will be returning to Donington in 2010, as well (11 June).

This year’s calendar wasn’t confirmed until early October 2008, so expect speculation to continue for a few more weeks until the FIA signs off on next year’s schedule.

[Source: jamesallanon f1.com | Thanks to Wes for the tip]

Categories
Formula 1

Woo hoo, Belgian Grand Prix this weekend!

Belgian Grand Prix 1965

Spa-Francorchamps, the legendary Formula One circuit, is the site for this weekend’s Beligian Grand Prix. It is, and always has been, a favourite of Formula One drivers.

The image above, taken near the famous and great Eau Rouge corner, shows Graham Hill leading the pack in his BRM at the start of the 1965 Belgian Grand Prix. Jim Clark, driving a Lotus-Climax, eventually won the race by almost 45 seconds from Jackie Stewart (BRM) and Bruce McLaren (Cooper-Climax).

If you’d like a wallpaper-sized aerial photo of this exhilarating race track, just click here.

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McLaren Motorsports

Pursuit of perfection

Spotted on BimmerFile and autoblog are this fantastic series of YouTube clips featuring the most awesome of supercars, the McLaren F1. The four clips complete the documentary Pursuit of perfection.

The doco begins with Gordon Murray briefly talking about the creation of the McLaren F1, before focusing on the transformation from road car to LeMans racer. The McLaren F1 GTR made its LeMans debut in 1995 with stunning results.

Ahead of you there is about 40 minutes of perfect Sunday viewing. Enjoy!

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MINI WRC

MINI to join WRC in 2011?

MINI to join WRC in 2011?

Here is one rumour that AUSmotive fully supports! MINI to join the World Rally Championship in 2011 with a Countryman. With all-wheel drive running gear and the 154kW 1.6 litre turbo four cylinder from the JCW model, the Countryman will tick all the right boxes for future WRC entry. Surely the might of MINI’s marketing machine would be a great boost for the WRC.

Speaking to Autocar, Mini rallying legend Paddy Hopkirk said, “People love the Mini and actually love the new MINI as well. It would be terrific to see MINI in the WRC. I’ve got the highest respect for the company and it would be magnificent for the glory days of rallying to return and for MINI to be a part of that.”

The speculation does get debunked by a MINI official later in the Autocar article, but, c’mon, you know it makes sense!

[Source: via MotoringFile | Pic: Road & Track]

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Bathurst 12 Hour

Bathurst 12 hour searching for sponsor

Bathurst 12 hour

Word on the streets says the worst of the GFC is over and I reckon the organisers of the Bathurst 12 hour hope that news is on the money. They’re searching for a new naming rights sponsor and they say they’ve got a great product to offer.

Event Promoter James O’Brien said, “The package offers exceptional brand impact domestically and brand awareness internationally. A broad range of benefits are included in the package including some genuine ‘money can’t buy experiences’ essentially offering a unique marketing solution.”

The 2010 race will be held from 12-14 February. National TV coverage will be provided by Channel 7 with a three hour post-race broadcast. Replays will be available across Australia via Fox Sports. The highlights package will also be sent across the ditch to New Zealand, as well as reaching European and North American audiences.

[Pic: Spherix]

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Categories
Formula 1

He works hard for the money

Mark Webber

Australia’s most recent Grand Prix winner, Mark Webber, says it’s damn hard work being a Formula One driver these days. The Red Bull racer is not surprised that Michael Schumacher’s F1 return was thwarted by a neck injury.

“Your neck is designed only to keep your head on your shoulders,” he said. “If you throw a different challenge at it, such as handling massive G loads, the body responds, because it’s a clever thing, but the only way to keep your neck in condition is to drive.

“The muscles you require to complete a grand prix distance probably start to fade within five or six weeks of inactivity – you feel it once you’ve been away for a time.”

Webber knows a thing or two about returning to F1 from injury after breaking his leg during the Australian summer. Widely acknowledged as one of the sport’s fittest drivers, it has been said that Webber has only just returned to full fitness.

No surprise, then, that with a reliable and consistently competitive RB5 at his disposal, he now finds himself in the hunt for world driver’s title. The Australian currently sits second, behind Jenson Button, in the title race.

But don’t go thinking that having a good car makes this F1 game easy, no, Mark won’t be having any of that.

“Ours is not an easy working environment. It can be hard to breathe when you’re cornering at high speeds, with your rib cage cramped and big G forces pulling you around.

“Also, people tend not to realise how much muscular effort our arms and legs endure during a race – braking can require a force of 80-90kg, for instance. You’re wearing a crash helmet, there’s a radio jammed against your lips and it can be fiercely hot.”

I almost feel sorry for him!

Here’s hoping Webber’s great recent form can continue at Valencia in a bit over a week.

[Source: Telegraph.co.uk]

Categories
Ferrari Formula 1

Schumacher’s dream F1 return is over

Michael Schumacher

Like a big old tease Michael Schumacher has called off his much hyped return to Formula One. The F1 world has been whipped up into a frenzy with news the seven-time world champ would be back out on the track, standing in for the injured Felipe Massa, but it’s not to be.

It’s that dreaded pain in the neck that is behind Schumacher’s decision to withdraw. In a statement on his website Schumacher says, “Unfortunately we did not manage to get a grip on the pain in the neck which occurred after the private F1-day in Mugello, even if medically or therapeutically we tried everything possible.”

He continues, “The consequences of the injuries caused by the bike-accident in February, fractures in the area of head and neck, unfortunately have turned out to be still too severe.

“I am disappointed to the core. I am awfully sorry for the guys of Ferrari and for all the fans which crossed fingers for me. I can only repeat that I tried everything that was within my power.”

So, that’s that then. Perhaps the only followers of Formula One to be overjoyed with this news will be Ferrari test drivers Marc Gené and Luca Badoer, who will most likely settle the question of who will race Felipe’s car with a game of rock, paper, scissors. The seat is vacant for the next Grand Prix at least, which takes place in Valencia in a couple of weeks.

UPDATE: Ferrari have announced that Luca Badoer will race for the F1 team until Massa is fit to resume his place.

[Source: MichaelSchumacher.de | Thanks to Wes for the tip]

Categories
MINI Challenge

Australian MINI Challenge secure until 2011

Australian MINI Challenge

When the MINI Challenge first launched in Australia it was always supposed to be a five-year plan. But, the recent financial woes of the world have already claimed one major Australian series in 2009, with the demise of the Porsche Carrera Cup. So, it is welcome news to learn that the local MINI Challenge series has been secured until at least 2011.

The management rights of the MINI Challenge have already changed hands once, and the extension of the current partnership between MINI Australia and Toleman Motorsport should see the series continue to gather momentum.

Confirmation of this news was made by Justin Hocevar, National Manager for MINI Australia, at a press conference during the Sandown event last weekend.

“We’re pleased to announce our continued support of MINI Challenge into the 2011 season, and that includes maintaining all our current relationships that we have in place, including the one with our category management agency Toleman Motorsport.”

Ted Toleman, principal of Toleman Motorsport, is also happy to that the status quo will remain in place, “MINI Challenge offers highly competitive skills based racing with the backing of a global auto brand on the highest profile Championship motor racing series in the southern hemisphere, and with a comprehensive TV package that captures all of the excitement for fans. It’s got a lot going for it.”

In further good news for the category, Pizza Capers have extended their sponsorship deal for the rest of the 2009 season.

The relationship began at the Townsville round last month and Pizza Capers Marketing Manager, Adrian Burton, says his company is a good fir for the MINI brand, “Pizza Capers are a gourmet product at the upper end of the pizza market, and MINI are at the premium end of small car market, so the synergies between the two products are spot on.

“We are a company that is growing nationally and very quickly, just like the popularity of the MINI Challenge Series, plus it receives fantastic television coverage around Australia on Network 7.”

The series is now formally known as the MINI Challenge—delivered by Pizza Capers.

[Source: MINI.com.au]

Categories
MINI Challenge

MINI CHALLENGE 2009 – Round 4 TV highlights

Round 4 of the 2009 MINI Challenge is best known for Chris Alajajian’s spectacular crash in Race 1. In the clip above Chris speaks about the incident and thankfully he was not injured. Although, he did describe the accident as a “painful experience” and “very upsetting”.

But that wasn’t the only drama at this round, held at Melbourne’s Sandown International Raceway.  After Alajajian’s crash, Race 1 was red flagged and declared a no result. In the remaining two races of the weekend Glory Team Racing’s Nathan Caratti showed the field a clean pair of heels to win both races. However, he was disqualified from Race 3 due to a “breached a component regulation” relating to his brake pads. Caratti’s win in Race 2 still stands. Nathan’s team is able to appeal the disqualification, but it is not clear if they will exercise that right.

Caratti’s misfortune left Grant Denyer, from DecoRug Racing, to inherit the race and round win. “Nobody likes to win that way but I’m happy for Bill Gremos and the DecoRug team to get the Championship points and the win,” grinned Denyer.

DecoRug’s Paul Stokell maintains his Championship lead, but Alajajian was the big loser in the standings dropping from second down to fourth. Denyer is second, while Scott Bargwanna, from ROCK Energy Drinks, moves into third place.

Full television highlights can be seen after the jump. The MINI Challenge returns next month, with live race coverage from Phillip Island (11-13 September).

[Source: MINI.com.au]

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