Archive für 1.8.2009
Corinthians handed Donington “Pole” as Qualifying abandoned
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
SC Corinthians will start the opening Superleague Formula by Sonangol race at Donington Park tomorrow from pole-position (2 Aug) after qualifying was abandoned due to a flooded track this afternoon.
The Brazilian club’s Antônio Pizzonia (BRA) headed the time trials in the opening Group A session staged on a dry track but rain midway through the session sent all cars in to the pits.
The following Group B qualifiers, now fitted with wet tyres as conditions quickly deteriorated, was headed by Olympiacos’ Davide Rigon (IT) – the defending SLF champion and a winner of the corresponding Donington race last August.
Quarter-final 1 was held in heavy rain and poor visibility forcing the organisers to suspend then ultimately abandon the following time trials due to the dangerous conditions on the 2.5 miles (4.02 km) parkland track.
The 18-car grid will line-up for tomorrow’s opening 44min plus one lap race in the order cars achieved in the opening 15-minute, Group A and B time trials. The nine GpA cars will take the “pole” side of the grid behind Pizzonia with Rigon alongside on the front row heading the GpB runners down the other side.
Three British soccer clubs, Glasgow Rangers, Liverpool FC and Tottenham Hotspur, plus two British drivers, Jonathan Kennard and Scott Mansell, aim for “home rule” at Donington – the only British venue in the series.
The Rangers car of John Martin (AUS) starts from fifth place, Tottenham Hotspur’s Craig Dolby – who lives in nearby Leicestershire – from sixth alongside on the third row and championship leading Liverpool FC’s Adrian Vallés (SP), from 10th position.
AS Roma’s Jonathan Kennard and Galatasaray’s Scott Mansell are placed seventh and 17th respectively on the colourful grid.
The drivers of PSV Eindhoven and FC Porto, along with the British club trio, wore black armbands in respect of Sir Robert William "Bobby" Robson CBE, who died yesterday (31 Jul) aged 76 after a long battle with cancer. He managed the Dutch (1990-92/98-99) and Portuguese (1994-6) league clubs as well as the England “national” soccer team (1982-90).
QUALIFYING QUOTES:
Corinthians: Antônio Pizzonia (BRA)
“It has been a very good day for us. It’s my second ‘pole’ in three races. We were strong in our dry qualifying session but the car was also good in the wet practice earlier in the day. So, rain or shine, I am very positive for tomorrow.”
Olympiacos CFP: Davide Rigon (ITA)
“I was on the limit – the conditions were bad but honestly I hope the rain stays. I will be happier for a wet race. I won here last year – I like this track a lot – and starting from the front row I have a very good chance of scoring my second podium of the season.”
FC Basel: Max Wissel (D)
“I was just 0.039secs slower than Antônio so I know I have the pace in the dry while I was fourth fastest in a wet practice so it seems that whatever the conditions we have a well-balanced car so things are looking good for FC Basel.”
Basso takes victory in Madeira by 3.5 seconds
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
Giandomenico Basso has won his third Rali Vinho Madeira for Abarth after a thrilling duel with local hero Bruno Magalhaes, which ended with just 3.5s between them after 21 stages. Basso joins two other men – Americo da Silva Nunes and Pierro Liatti – in the record books of three-time winners, and puts himself into contention for the 2009 Intercontinental Rally Challenge title.
"It was fast, nervous and exciting," said a clearly delighted Basso. "The team has been working hard and the car was strong. This event is very special to me, and to make my third win here after losing on the last stage last year is fantastic."
No less delighted to be runner-up against the IRC front-runners, Magalhaes was equally effusive. "It’s a great honour for me to be able to perform so strongly among such great drivers," he said. "It was a long rally, very tense at the finish but second place really feels like a win to me."
It was championship leader Kris Meeke who took first blood in Madeira with a storming drive through the streets of Funchal to claim Thursday evening’s superspecial by 0.9 seconds. Yet when the rally headed out into the green and mountainous roads around the island, Basso’s experience paid off and he delivered a string of eight fastest stage times to go clear by the end of Leg 1.
That advantage was much-needed however, because Portuguese driver Bruno Magalhaes was within striking distance throughout in second place. When Basso hit gearbox problems he was forced to go slow, fearing a spin would prove costly without reverse gear, it allowed both Magalhaes and Meeke to take stage victories from him.
At the start of Day 2 Basso had a fresh gearbox on board his Grande Punto but it was his teammate Luca Rossetti who set the pace, running in fifth position and taking two stage wins. Then on SS16 Rossetti’s run came to a dramatic halt as he crashed out, promoting Meeke to fifth.
Basso and Magalhaes then traded fastest stage times, although defending IRC champion Nicolas Vouilloz won SS18 to close up on third-place runner Alex Camacho after Basso lost 10 seconds with a spin. Nevertheless the positions were static even though the speed advantage ebbed and flowed from driver to driver.
"We started a little slow, though we were trying to go fast," said Vouilloz. "I’m not really happy about the weekend but the car was good today and we were able to drive to the maximum."
Thanks to a huge number of privately-entered 207 S2000s, Peugeot managed to fill eight of the top 10 positions. A rally-long duel between Meeke and Freddy Loix was one of the most entertaining battles that raged throughout the event for fifth place – and may well prove pivotal for the championship.
Going in to Madeira, Meeke held a six point advantage over Loix. The single point at stake in such a hard-fought series spurred a fantastic competition for fifth place, which Meeke ultimately won. Now the Briton has 34 points, Jan Kopecky has 29 and both Loix and Basso have 27.
"This is a very, very special rally," Meeke said. "To come here for the first time and win would be impossible, the top four guys were incredible and to be just over a minute behind after three hours is amazing. The points you win on a bad weekend are the ones that count the most."
For Loix, however, there was clear disappointment: "We hadn’t made all our preparations before we came here so Day 1 was spent on the setup – and by the time we got that right everyone had gone!" he said. "We had to keep the pressure on Meeke but he did a great rally and that’s another point to him."
Behind them came three more Peugeots – Miguel Nunes, Corrado Fontana and Michal Solowow respectively. The all-new Proton Satria Neo of Guy Wilks finished the event in 10th place overall, the team electing to focus on developing the car once it became clear that a points scoring result was not achievable.
Skoda also failed to increase its score in Madeira, despite the presence of Maurin in a Skoda Italia-prepared Fabia S2000. His challenge was thwarted on the road section to SS13 when, having lost his brakes, Maurin was powerless to avoid an accident which forced major repairs to be made overnight and restarting under superrally regulations well outside the points.
In the 2WD Cup Manuel Villa scored his second win of the season for Abarth in his Punto S1600. The Spaniard was able to contain the threat from his biggest rival in the series, Denis Millet’s turbochared Peugeot 207, to take a resounding win.
Top Ten Finishers
1 Giandomenico Basso (I) Abarth Grande Punto S2000 3hrs 9m 55.4s
2 Bruno Magalhaes (P) Peugeot 207 S2000 +3.5s
3 Alex Camacho (P) Peugeot 207 S2000 +41.7s
4 Nicolas Vouilloz (F) Peugeot 207 S2000 +49.4s
5 Kris Meeke (GB) Peugeot 207 S2000 +1m 21.9s
6 Freddy Loix (B) Peugeot 207 S2000 +1m 28.4s
7 Miguel Nunes (P) Peugeot 207 S2000 +4m 57.9s
8 Corrado Fontana (I) Peugeot 207 S2000 +5m 50.6s
9 Michal Solowow (PL) Peugeot 207 S2000 +7m 29.9s
10 Guy Wilks (GB) Proton Satria Neo S2000 +10m 40.8s
IRC Drivers’ positions after 7 of 11 Rounds
1 Kris Meeke (GB) 34 points
2 Jan Kopecky (CZ) 29
3 Giandomenico Basso (I) 27
= Freddy Loix (B) 27
5 Nicolas Vouilloz (F) 19
6 Juho Hanninen (F) 14
7 Sebastien Ogier (F) 10
= Carl Tundo (EAK) 10
9 Alistair Cavanagh (GB) 8
= Bruno Magalhaes (P) 8
etc.
IRC Manufacturers’ positions after 7 of 11 rounds
1 Peugeot 82 points
2 Skoda 43
3 Ralliart 41
4 Abarth 34
5 Proton 5
6 Honda 1
Rali Vinho Madeira Stage winners:
SS1 Meeke
SS2-7 Basso
SS8 Magalhaes
SS9-10 Basso
SS11 Magalhaes
SS12 Meeke
SS13 Magalhaes
SS14-15 Rossetti
SS16-17 Basso
SS18 Vouilloz
SS19-21 Malaghaes
Next event: Barum Czech Rally Zlin, August 21-23
For further information please visit www.ircseries.com
Giandomenico Basso and co-driver Mitia Dotta celebrate in Madeira
Endurance is definitely a team sport
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
Motor racing, and especially Endurance racing, is absolutely not, as could be expected, an individual sport. Opposite, the crew members rely on each other and the links are so strong between them that we often speak about some family relationships.
www.lemans-series.com
Audi dominiert Qualifying in Oschersleben
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
Oschersleben. Audi-Pilot Tom Kristensen fuhr im Qualifying zum fünften Saisonlauf der DTM in Oschersleben auf Startplatz eins. Der 42-jährige Däne setzte sich in der letzten Session des vierstufigen Zeittrainings gegen drei Markenkollegen durch. Somit startet am Sonntag Vorjahres-Champion Timo Scheider hinter Kristensen ebenfalls aus der ersten Startreihe. Martin Tomczyk und Mattias Ekström gehen von den Plätzen drei und vier ins Rennen. Auf Position fünf folgt Oliver Jarvis in einem Audi A4 des Jahrgangs 2008 vor dem besten Mercedes-Benz-Piloten Bruno Spengler.
Beeindruckende Erfolgsbilanz für Audi im Qualifikationstraining: Sieben Mal hintereinander errang Audi mittlerweile die Pole-Position. „Das Auto ist wieder stark wie in der Vergangenheit auch. Oschersleben ist eine technisch sehr anspruchsvolle Rennstrecke, die deshalb gut zu unseren DTM-Autos passt. Zudem war ich hier immer schnell. Ich hoffe, dass ich einen guten Start erwische. Dann kann ich auch gewinnen“, sagte Kristensen über seine Bestzeit von 1:21,352 Minuten.
Die Marke aus Ingolstadt hat mit sieben Fahrzeugen unter den besten Acht eine gute Chance, in Oschersleben den 50. Sieg in der DTM zu feiern. Bester Mercedes-Benz-Fahrer war Spengler in seiner AMG Mercedes C-Klasse. Der Kanadier startet auf der 3,696 Kilometer langen Strecke in der Magdeburger Börde von Position sechs: „Wir haben ein schwieriges Qualifying erwartet, allerdings nicht in diesem Ausmaß. Es ist immer schwer mit Zusatzgewicht, vor allem hier in Oschersleben. Im Rennen werde ich alles geben, um so viele Punkte wie möglich mit nach Hause zu nehmen.“
Bei 30 Grad Lufttemperatur gelang dem Gesamtführenden Gary Paffett (GB/Mercedes-Benz) nur ein mäßiges Qualifying-Ergebnis. Er muss sich im Rennen vom zwölften Startplatz aus durchsetzen. Kein glückliches Händchen bei der Fahrzeugabstimmung für den engen und kurvigen Kurs hatte der ehemalige Formel-1-Pilot Ralf Schumacher. Der Wahl-Österreicher geht als Vierzehnter in den fünften Lauf der populärsten internationalen Tourenwagenserie.
Das Rennen am Sonntag ist über 48 Runden und insgesamt 177,408 Kilometer angesetzt. Start ist um 14:00 Uhr (ARD live ab 13:45 Uhr).
www.dtm.com
Fünfter Saisonsieg für Jules Bianchi
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
Lufttemperatur: 28,4 °C
Streckentemperatur: 32,7 °C
Bei der Rückkehr der Formel 3 Euro Serie auf die 3,696 Kilometer lange Rennstrecke in der Motorsport Arena Oschersleben siegte Jules Bianchi (ART Grand Prix) in seinem Dallara-Mercedes erneut. Der 19-jährige hatte im Ziel einen Vorsprung von über zehn Sekunden auf den Zweitplatzierten Valtteri Bottas (ART Grand Prix). Roberto Merhi (Manor Motorsport) überquerte die Ziellinie als Dritter. Mit seinem fünften Triumph in der Saison 2009 baute Bianchi sein Punktekonto auf 60 Zähler aus. Er hat damit 23 Punkte mehr als Christian Vietoris (Mücke Motorsport), der das Rennen als Vierter beendete und in der Gesamtwertung weiterhin Zweiter ist.
Das neunte Saisonrennen war schon nach dem Start entschieden. Von der Pole-Position gewann Bianchi den Sprint zur ersten Kurve und konnte sich vom Feld absetzen. Hinter ihm gewann Bottas das Duell gegen Merhi um den zweiten Platz. Der Finne, der in der Gesamtwertung auf Platz vier klettert, war in Oschersleben bester Rookie vor dem Fünftplatzierten Alexander Sims (Mücke Motorsport). Als schnellster Volkswagen-Pilot sah der Franzose Jean Karl Vernay (Signature) auf Rang sechs das Ziel.
Jules Bianchi (ART Grand Prix): „Das Rennen war phantastisch: Pole-Position, schnellste Rennrunde und Sieg, mehr geht nicht. Dennoch war es nicht einfach. Man muss bis zum Ziel konzentriert sein, sonst passiert es hier schnell, dass man neben der Piste landet. Ich bin froh, dass ich meinen Vorsprung in der Gesamtwertung weiter vergrößern konnte.“
Valtteri Bottas (ART Grand Prix): „Jules war verdammt schnell, ich hatte keine Chance. Er hatte im Gegensatz zu mir zwar neue Reifen, aber das macht keine zehn Sekunden aus. Ich muss mit meinem zweiten Platz zufrieden sein. Ich bin immer noch Rookie und verbessere mich von Rennen zu Rennen.“
Roberto Merhi (Manor Motorsport): „Mein Start war gut, ich konnte mit Valtteri Bottas um Platz zwei kämpfen. Leider setzte er sich durch. Ich habe dann versucht, ihm zu folgen, bis mir ungefähr in der zehnten Runde ein Fehler unterlief und ich kurz neben der Strecke war. Danach habe ich mich darauf konzentriert, Rang drei ins Ziel zu bringen.“
www.f3euroseries.com
Basso leads into final day in Madeira
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
The 50th Rali Vinho Madeira, Round 7 of the 2009 Intercontinental Rally Challenge, restarts today for the second and final leg after an engrossing 13 special stages so far.
On Thursday night’s superspecial stage through the streets of host city Funchal, championship leader Kris Meeke stole a march on the rest of the field at the wheel of his Peugeot UK-entered 207 S2000. However, unlike his previous three appearances, the British driver wasn’t able to capitalize on that early advantage and throughout Friday’s action it was Giandomenico Basso in the works Abarth Grande Punto who held sway.
Basso claimed eight fastest stage times through the course of the day, and although he was forced to adopt a more conservative approach through the final four stages due to losing reverse gear and fearing the consequences of a spin, he maintained his advantage.
In pursuit were two more Peugeots, those of Bruno Magalhaes and Alex Camacho, who are contesting the Portuguese championship as well as making their bids for IRC glory. Magalhaes capitalized on Basso’s conservative run through the later stages, having himself grown accustomed to the latest compound of BF Goodrich tyres and gained confidence enough to push his car to three stage wins.
Defending IRC champion Nicolas Vouilloz lies fourth for Peugeot, ahead of the second Abarth of Luca Rossetti. Meeke, meanwhile, holds sixth place in what has become a titanic battle with championship rival Freddy Loix. With just six points between them and four rounds remaining after Madeira, the importance of this result to the overall championship hopes of both men is vita - producing a thrilling competition that has seen both men at their best.
If he crosses the line first this evening, Basso will join an elite group of three-time winners on Madeira, alongside Americo da Silva Nunes and Pierro Liatti. Eight special stages will be run on today’s second and final leg, with the victory celebrations to take place in central Funchal.
Basso leads in the 50th Rali Vinho Madeira
www.rally-irc.com
Before the night…
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
Unlike Spa, the qualifying result was much harder to predict in the LMP1 class. Nevertheless, it is not so astonishing that Oreca-Matmut AIM made the grade and will start from the front and the second row in the LMP1 class. The French team will try to continue to forge ahead after its fifth place at Le Mans. “I am not really surprised”, confirmed Nicolas Lapierre. “We have been competitive till the beginning of the weekend. It was a tough fight, but we are on the pole. Our car is well adapted to the track because of its good mechanical grip. The main job is for tomorrow.”
But Aston Martin Racing is right behind and should put its life on the line tomorrow. After a victory at Barcelona and a third place at Spa, Aston Martin Racing demonstrated again that it is a great pretender to the title at the end of the season and fought hard but failed for the pole.
www.lemans-series.com
A giant concert in the Le Mans Series paddocks on Saturday night
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
As you were told before, the third round of the season, which will take place at night, is above all an endurance race, of course, but this is also a way to celebrate motorsport and a good opportunity to expand the Le Mans spirit beyond borders.
This is the reason why The Fingertips will play live tomorrow from 10 pm. This band of four genious musicians and one singer is one of the most famous ones in Portugal, thanks to its Coldplay’s style pop-music.
The spectators will so have the opportunity to combine their passion for sport and their love of music, in a warm-hearted atmosphere and a georgeous background: the Algarve.
www.lemans-series.com
Jules Bianchi holt zweite Pole Position der Saison
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
Lufttemperatur: 25,5 °C
Streckentemperatur: 26,8 °C
Jules Bianchi (ART Grand Prix, 1:20,706 Minuten) sicherte sich in der Motorsport Arena Oschersleben seine zweite Pole Position der Saison 2009. Der Gesamt-Führende der Formel 3 Euro Serie verwies seinen finnischen Teamkollegen Valtteri Bottas (ART Grand Prix, 1:20,838 Minuten) auf den zweiten Rang. Christian Vietoris (Mücke Motorsport, 1:20,847 Minuten), Zweitplatzierter der Gesamtwertung der Formel 3 Euro Serie, brauchte für seine schnellste Runde nur 0,009 Sekunden länger als Bottas und war damit Dritter des Qualifyings. Als Vierter reihte sich der Spanier Roberto Merhi (Manor Motorsport, 1:21,116 Minuten) ein.
Jules Bianchi eroberte die Spitze vier Minuten vor Ende der Session, als er Valtteri Bottas von der ersten Position verdrängte. Am Ende des 30-minütigen Qualifyings hatten 13 Fahrer weniger als eine Sekunde Rückstand auf die Bestzeit des Franzosen, unter ihnen auch Rückkehrer Renger van der Zande (Motopark Academy, 1:21,328 Minuten). Tom Dillmann (HBR Motorsport, 1:21,957 Minuten), zweiter Rückkehrer in die stärkste Nachwuchsserie der Welt, belegte in seinem ersten Qualifying dieses Jahres Position 17.
Jules Bianchi (ART Grand Prix): „Beim Pre-Event-Test heute Mittag hatte ich noch Probleme mit einem übersteuernden Auto, aber wir haben gut gearbeitet und ich habe meinen Fahrstil angepasst. Im Qualifying ist mir in meiner schnellsten Runde ein kleiner Fehler unterlaufen, der sicher 1,5 Zehntelsekunden gekostet hat. Es hat aber zur Pole gereicht und darüber bin ich glücklich.“
Valtteri Bottas (ART Grand Prix): „Das war nicht so wie ich es mir nach dem Pre-Event-Test vorgestellt hatte. In einer meiner schnellen Runden bin ich in der Hotel-Kurve ins Kiesbett gerutscht und habe mir dabei den Frontflügel beschädigt. Aber der zweite Startplatz ist auch noch keine Katastrophe für mich, noch ist alles möglich.“
Christian Vietoris (Mücke Motorsport): „Wieder einmal hat mein Qualifying nicht nach Plan funktioniert. In meiner letzten schnellen Runde, als die Reifen gerade die richtige Temperatur erreicht hatten, hat sich Stefano Coletti vor mir gedreht und ich musste den Versuch abbrechen.“
Sportkommissare beschließen Strafen wegen Stallorder in Zandvoort
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
Die Sportkommissare des DMSB (Deutscher Motor Sport Bund) haben Audi-Pilot Mattias Ekström aufgrund der Ereignisse im letzten Renndrittel des DTM-Laufs im niederländischen Zandvoort nachträglich mit einer Zeitstrafe von fünf Sekunden belegt. Er verliert damit seinen zweiten Platz an Oliver Jarvis. Seine Markenkollegen Oliver Jarvis und Alexandre Prémat wurden in diesem Zusammenhang verwarnt.
Die Teams Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline und Audi Sport Team Phoenix wurden ebenfalls wegen einer nach Artikel 20.2 des DTM-Reglements verbotenen Stallregie mit einer Geldbuße von 25.000,- Euro bestraft.
20.000,- Euro davon wurden bis zum Saisonende zur Bewährung ausgesetzt.
Nach dem Studium der Rundenzeiten, der TV-Bilder und der Fahrzeug-daten waren die Sportkommissare zu der Auffassung gekommen, dass die Überholmanöver Ekström / Jarvis und Ekström / Prémat nicht unter regulären Rennbedingungen erfolgt sind. Die Beteiligten konnten bei einer zweiten Befragung allerdings in Einzelfällen Begründungen anführen, warum die Fahrzeuge von Jarvis und Prémat gegen Rennende deutlich langsamer wurden.
Die Sportkommissare hielten den Fahrern und den betroffenen Teams außerdem zugute, dass einige der untersuchten Details zur Entlastung der Betroffenen beitrugen und dass eine grobe Unsportlichkeit nicht nachgewiesen werden konnte.
Alle Betroffenen haben das Urteil akzeptiert und werden keine Berufung einlegen. Damit sind die Ergebnisse des DTM-Laufs in Zandvoort offiziell.
www.dtm.com
Jenson Wows Motorists at Bridgestone Driving Nation Event
1.8.2009 von Wolfgang.
Jenson Button wows Midlands’ motorists Formula One Championship leader Jenson Button motored into Birmingham, UK, yesterday to launch Bridgestone’s Driving Nation roadshow. Despite the showers, people from Birmingham, Warwickshire, the Black Country and Coventry turned out in force to welcome the world’s current Formula One Championship leader and catch up with his views on all things motoring. Bridgestone’s Driving Nation Roadshow got up close and personal with motorists, finding out what pressures they are currently facing on the roads, what is driving them mad about motoring today and what they believe the future holds for motoring in the UK. Brawn GP’s Jenson Button did a live question and answer session in front of the crowd with Bridgestone Motorsport’s, Andy Stobart. They spoke about how the Driving Nation Roadshow will travel the UK spreading the word about greener motoring and canvas motorists’ views on the pressures of driving today. Andy Dingley, advertising and promotions manager of Bridgestone said: “It was fantastic to see so many people from all over the West Midlands turn out to visit Bridgestone’s Driving Nation Roadshow. What better way to kick off our campaign than with the driver who quite simply has kept us glued to our TV sets over the last five months and has truly come into his own over this F1 season. “Bridgestone was very proud that Jenson could come up to Birmingham to launch the Driving Nation Roadshow.” Members of the public were asked to share their views on various motoring topics, such as the cost of fuel, the condition of the nation’s roads, traffic congestion and car maintenance; as well as divulge their driving confessions. They also got the chance to test their driving skills against Jenson in the Bridgestone F1 simulator.
As sole tyre supplier to this season’s Formula One Championship, Bridgestone is in a unique position, bridging the gap between the racetrack and the road. Next stop for the Driving Nation is Weymouth on August 4th. For more information on Bridgestone please visit www.bridgestone.co.uk
