Archive für 22.3.2010
THE 2010 FIA EUROPEAN TOURING CAR CUP STARTS AT BRAGA IN A NEW FORMAT
22.3.2010 von Wolfgang.
The 2010 FIA European Touring Car Cup starts this week in Braga for the first of its three events.
After being held at a single event for the past five years, the ETCC will visit Austria and Italy after Portugal for the 2010 season.
The original schedule included an event in Oschersleben, Germany, on September 5th, but this was cancelled to avoid clashes with the national touring car series.
2010 FIA European Touring Car Cup - calendar
28th March - Braga, Portugal
25th July - Salzburgring, Austria
14th October - Franciacorta, Italy
SHORT STORY OF THE EUROPEAN CUP
The FIA European Touring Car Cup is reserved for cars complying with the FIA Super 2000, Super Production and Super 1600 technical regulations. Drivers’ titles are awarded for each of the three categories.
The first event, held in Valellunga, Italy, on 16th October 2005 was won by Richard Göransson from Sweden in a BMW 320i (S2000) and Lorenzo Falessi from Italy in an Alfa Romeo 147 (SP).
The second event took place in Estoril, Portugal, on 22nd October 2006 and saw victories for Ryan Sharp from Scotland in a SEAT León (S2000) and Alexander Lvov from Russia in a Honda Civic (SP).
The third event, hosted by the Italian Adria Raceway, on 28th October 2007, Denmark’s Michel Nykjær (SEAT León) and Russia’s Aleksey Basov (Honda Civic) claimed the S2000 and SP titles respectively.
Nykjær (Chevrolet Lacetti) encored his S2000 victory at the Austrian Salzburgring, on 29th October 2008. Italian Fabio Fabiani (BMW 320i) was sacred champion in SP. S1600 cars made their first appearance and the title went to Ralf Martin from Germany in a Ford Fiesta ST.
Last year the ETCC visited Braga’s Circuito Vasco Samerio on October 25th. In rainy race conditions, James Thompson (Honda Acccord) won the S2000 Cup, while Marcis Birkens (Honda Civic) and Carsten Seifert (Ford Fiesta) were crowned in the SP and S1600 classes respectively.
A THREE-MANUFACTURER BATTLE FOR S2000
Although the number of cars has shrunk considerably compared to the previous years, especially because the smaller teams could not find the budget to afford to take part in the event, the level of the Super 2000 12-car field promises exciting and close competition.
In the major class, local drivers César Campaniço (BMW) and Francisco Caravalho (BMW) will face a strong international representation headed by the Honda cars of James Thompson and Tomas Engström that also includes a few FIA WTCC independents such as Kristian Poulsen (BMW) from Denmark, Marin Colak (SEAT) from Croatia and Ibrahim Okyay (BMW) from Turkey.
The strong Spanish team SUNRED Engineering will run petrol-powered SEAT cars for a couple of young and promising drivers, the 19-year old Russian Timur Sadredinov and the 21-year old Michaël Rossi from France.
A whole family will make the long trip from the far Ukraine: Leonid Protasov leads a trio of BMW cars, alongside his son Yuriy and his daughter Irina.
Drivers of three different manufacturers - BMW, Honda and SEAT - will be fighting on equal ground for the European crown.
2009 CHAMPIONS DEFEND THEIR TITLES
All three winners of the 2009 FIA ETCC titles are eager to defend their crowns.
In the Super 2000 class James Thompson is back at the wheel of the Honda Accord run by the Denmak-based Hartmann Honda Racing. The Briton, who will drive the same car in this year’s Scandinavian Touring Car Cup, is joined by the experienced Swede Tomas Engström, the only driver who has taken part in all the ETCC events from 2005 onwards. The pair is also due to make occasional appearances in the FIA World Touring Car Championship.
Latvian driver Marcis Birkens, who clinched the Super Production Cup last year in his SC Papa’s Racing Team Honda Civic, will be challenged by the BMW 320i of the previous winner Fabio Fabiani, who won the class in 2008.
In the Super 1600 class three Ford Fiesta cars will fight for victory, with reigning champion Carsten Seifert facing his German countrymen Jens Lhönig and Florian Heitmeier.
NATIONS CUP AWARDED FOR THE FOURTH TIME
In addition to the three FIA European Touring Car Cups for Super 2000, Super Production and Super 1600 drivers, the FIA Touring Car Nations Cup will be awarded for the fourth time. This title goes to the National Sporting Authority (ASN) whose drivers have scored the highest number of points in the two races.
The best two cars entered by competitors belonging to the same ASN will be taken into consideration for the Nations Cup’s classification.
The Nations Cup was awarded to the British Motor Sports Association in 2006 and 2009 and to the Dansk Automobil Sports Union in 2007 in 2008.
ONE QUALIFYING AND TWO 50-KM RACES
The format of the FIA European Touring Car Cup is based on the FIA World Touring Car Championship’s.
After three one-hour private test sessions on Friday, the actual event will start on Saturday with one 30-minute practice and one 30-minute qualifying session.
On Sunday two back-to-back 50-km races (17 laps) will take place, featuring a rolling start and a standing start respectively.
The grid for the second race will be determined by the results of the first race, with the first eight drivers classified placed in reverse order.
YOKOHAMA AWARDS 100,000-EURO PRIZE MONEY
At each of the three events, Yokohama, sole supplier of the control tyres for the FIA European Touring Car Cup, will award the competitors prize money of 100,000 euros.
Prize money will be split among the three categories: ? 70,000 to Super 2000, ? 20,000 to Super 1600 and ? 10,000 to Super Production.
www.fiaetcc.com
Motorsport Salon Ljubljana 2010
22.3.2010 von Wolfgang.
Nasvidenje do prihodnjega leta
2. MotorSport Salon Ljubljana je danes ob 18. uri na Gospodarskem razstavišču počasi zaprl vrata. Organizator Samo Čede je že napovedal tretjo izvedbo salona, ki bo v vseh pogledih še večji in boljši. Točen termin še ni določen, vendar bo vsekakor potekal v marcu 2011. Letošnji salon je nedvomno dokazal, da imamo na sončni strani Alp veliko bencinskih navdušencev, ki si želijo avto-moto šport spoznati izza volana. Več kot 60 voženj so v dveh dneh odpeljali obiskovalci z dirkalnikoma fiat seicento in toyoto yaris. Nekaj čez 30 se jih je odločilo popeljati na sovozniškem sedežu pokalnega renault clia RS, medtem ko je za volan mercedes-benza CLC sedlo nekaj čez 120 obiskovalcev in se preizkusilo na podlagi SportDrifta.
Vse to jasno nakazuje, da Ljubljana, kot slovenska prestolnica, potrebuje takšen dogodek s še več neposrednimi aktivnostmi za obiskovalce. Formula 1 Red Bull in Ford Focus RS WRC pa sta k zadovoljivemu obisku zagotovo veliko pripomogla.
Samo Čede: »Zadovoljni smo z izvedbo salona. Lahko pa bi slovenski dirkači pokazali malo več volje in se pokazali, svoje dosežke in dirkalnike, kakor je to v navadi v tujini. Le tako bodo lahko našli pokrovitelje in pravilno predstavili avto-moto šport javnosti.«
Drago Božič: »Bilo je dobro, vendar ne dovolj, da bi bilo lahko še boljše.«
Pripravil: Iztok Franko, odnosi z javnostmi e-naslov: press@motorsport-salon.si
mob. tel.: +386/31/235 503 www.motorsport-salon.si
HANNINEN TAKES DOMINANT RALLY ARGENTINA WIN
22.3.2010 von Wolfgang.
Third consecutive podium for IRC leader
Skoda secures one-two-three finish
Juho Hanninen and Skoda have made it three different winners from three rounds of this year’s Intercontinental Rally Challenge following a dominant victory on Rally Argentina, which finished with a spectacular superspecial stage through the streets of host town Carlos Paz earlier today (Sunday).
The Finn, who drives for the factory Skoda Motorsport team, builds his overall title lead to five points after claiming his first win of the season. Proof of the 28-year-old’s impressive performance on the challenging gravel event was underlined by the fact he won 11 of the 15 special stages, despite having to run first on the road on the final day of the rally.
Hanninen’s win also marked Skoda’s maiden victory of the 2010 IRC and has given the Czech firm a 22-point lead in the IRC manufacturers’ standings after three rounds.
Briton Guy Wilks finished runner-up after a strong drive, which helped him to cement his second place in the drivers’ table. Wilks started Sunday’s final leg intent on closing on overnight leader Hanninen but a minor brake problem on his Fabia S2000 cost him valuable time and meant he had to settle for second.
Kris Meeke, in a Peugeot 207, was also hamstrung by mechanical problems, an electronic issue contributing to an intermittent throttle glitch, which led to a fraught midday service while his Peugeot UK mechanics worked to rectify the problem. He looked set to hold on to third place until disaster struck on the penultimate stage of the event when a steering bolt broke and forced him to retire. Meeke’s misfortune let in Jan Kopecky for third place to complete a one-two-three for Skoda.
Gabriel Pozzo finished as the top Argentine driver in fourth overall after edging ahead of countryman Federico Villagra on Sunday’s fourth stage to secure the first IRC manufacturer championship points for Subaru. Pozzo’s performance meant he also secured his second win in a row in the Argentinean championship, which ran alongside the main IRC event.
Villagra reported that his M-Sport Ford Fiesta S2000, which he was using in competition for the first time, lacked outright pace on the sandy stages although he conceded he was still getting to grips with his car.
Bruno Magalhaes scored points for the third time this season in his Peugeot Portugal 207. He reported his car had struggled for power on the higher altitude stages but said he was satisfied at the progression he had made throughout the weekend.
Argentine Nicolas Madero held onto his overnight seventh place at the wheel of his Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X. Paraguay’s Diego Dominguez claimed the final point in eighth place in a similar Lancer with Alejandro Cancio and Juan Marchetto rounding out the top 10 in ninth and 10th respectively.
Claudio Menzi started the final day in ninth but incurred a 50-second penalty for leaving first service late after he missed his alarm call and failed to wake up in time. A front-right puncture, caused by hitting a rock on stage 11, added to his woes and dropped him to 11th.
Nasser Al-Attiyah’s IRC debut ended in retirement when his Skoda Fabia ingested too much water going over a river crossing and triggered a misfire. Daniel Oliveira retired his Peugeot 207 with suspension damage after going off on stage 11.
Brazilian Rafael Tulio took the IRC 2WD Cup laurels in his Peugeot 206. He had trailed Argentine Pablo Pelaez initially but moved in front on stage five on Saturday when Pelaez damaged the front of his Honda Civic going through a water splash, which caused the engine to overheat.
Juho Hanninen was fastest on 11 of the 15 stages in Argentina
DRIVER QUOTES
Juho Hanninen (Finland), Skoda Fabia S2000, first overall: "I’m very happy but a little bit surprised how good everything has been for me on this rally. There was a lot of fog on the first stage but I knew I didn’t need to push. I took it easy to avoid the rocks but I also had to keep my rhythm to avoid making any mistakes. It’s been safe and fast you could say and I have had a very good feeling. I would like to have the same feeling on every rally."
Guy Wilks (United Kingdom), Skoda Fabia S2000, second overall: "We’ve had a fantastic two rallies in South America with two second places and Skoda UK Motorsport has done a magnificent job. Juho drove very well and we maintained a fast and safe pace. I’m looking forward to fine tuning the set-up and challenging for victory on our next event."
Jan Kopecky (Czech Republic), Skoda Fabia S2000, third overall: "I’m very happy to be on the podium after quite a difficult rally but I think without Kris having the problem it would not have been possible. It was bad luck for him but good for me."
Co-driver Mikko Markkula and Juho Hanninen celebrate victory
TOP TEN IRC POSITIONS AFTER LEG TWO
1 Juho Hanninen/Mikko Markkula Skoda Fabia S2000 2h30m38.1s
2 Guy Wilks/Phil Pugh Skoda Fabia S2000 +51.0s
3 Jan Kopecky/Petr Stary Skoda Fabia S2000 +2m20.1s
4 Gabriel Pozzo/Daniel Stillo Subaru Impreza STI +5m03.9s
5 Federico Villagra/Jorge Perez Companc Ford Fiesta S2000 +5m14.2s
6 Bruno Magalhaes/Carlos Magalhaes Peugeot 207 S2000 +6m11.0s
7 Nicolas Madero/Guillermo Piazzano Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X +6m47.5s
8 Diego Dominguez/Edgardo Galindo Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X +7m39.3s
9 Alejandro Cancio/Santiago Garcia Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X +8m38.3s
10 Juan Marchetto/Gustavo Franchello Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X +9m17.6s
Leading IRC 2WD Cup finishers: Rafael Tulio/Cesar Valandro (Peugeot 206)
IRC STANDINGS
Drivers after round three of 12
1 Juho Hanninen (Finland) 24pts
2 Guy Wilks (United Kingdom) 19pts
3 Jan Kopecky (Czech Republic) 15pts
4 Kris Meeke (United Kingdom) 10pts
= Mikko Hirvonen (Finland) 10pts
6 Bruno Magalhaes (Portugal) 9pts
7 Nicolas Vouilloz (France) 6pts
8 Gabriel Pozzo (Argentina) 5pts
= Stephane Sarrazin (France) 5pts
10 Federico Villagra (Argentina) 4pts etc
Manufacturers after round three of 12
1 Skoda 46pts
2 Peugeot 24pts
3 M-Sport 14pts
4 Ralliart 6pts
5 Subaru 5pts
IRC 2WD Drivers after round three of 12
1 Kris Princen 10pts
= Marcos Tokarski 10pts
= Rafael Tulio 10pts
4 Pierre Campana 8pts
= Luis Gius 8pts
= Pablo Pelaez 8pts
= Luis Tedesco 8pts
8 Thomas Barral 6pts
= Ulysses Bertholdo 6pts
= Alicia Reina 6pts etc
IRC 2WD Manufacturers after round three of 12
1 Peugeot 36pts
2 M-Sport 22pts
3 Abarth 19pts
4 Honda 8pts
5 Skoda 5pts
STAGE WINNERS
Friday 19 March
SS1: Super Special Stage Carlos Paz 1 (3.30kms): Kris Meeke
Saturday 20 March
SS2: Las Bajadas-Villa del Dique 1 (16.57kms): Juho Hanninen
SS3: Amboy-Santa Monica 1 (20.43kms): Juho Hanninen
SS4: Santa Rosa-San Agustin 1 (21.53kms): Guy Wilks
SS5: San Agustin-Villa General Belgrano 1 (16.46kms): Juho Hanninen
SS6: Las Bajadas-Villa del Dique 2 (16.57kms): Juho Hanninen
SS7: Amboy-Santa Monica 2 (20.43kms): Juho Hanninen
SS8: Santa Rosa-San Agustin 2 (21.53kms): Juho Hanninen
Sunday 21 March
SS9: La Cumbre-Agua de Oro (15.06kms): Juho Hanninen
SS10: Ascochinga-La Cumbre (22.40kms): Juho Hanninen
SS11: Valle Hermoso-Casa Grande 1 (11.34kms): Juho Hanninen
SS12: Cosquin-Villa Allende 1 (19.18kms): Juho Hanninen
SS13: Valle Hermoso-Casa Grande 2 (11.34kms): Jan Kopecky
SS14: Cosquin-Villa Allende 2 (19.18kms): Juho Hanninen
SS15: Super Special Stage Carlos Paz 2 (3.30kms): Jan Kopecky
Stage winners in 2010
Juho Hanninen: 19
Kris Meeke: 7
Sebastien Ogier: 7
Mikko Hirvonen: 3
Jan Kopecky: 2
Stephane Sarrazin: 2
Nicolas Vouilloz: 1
Guy Wilks: 1
TV TIMES
Eurosport, Europe’s largest television channel, will show highlights of each day of the rally. Highlights will also be available at www.rally-irc.com
Monday 22 March
06:30-07:00: Day two highlights repeated (Eurosport Asia-Pacific)
08:30-09:00: Day two highlights repeated (Eurosport)
Tuesday 23 March
23:30-24:00: Magazine (Eurosport and Eurosport Asia-Pacific)
Wednesday 24 March
03:30-04:00: Day two highlights repeated (Eurosport Asia-Pacific)
09:00-09:30: Magazine repeated (Eurosport)
All times are CET
www.rally-irc.com
FBM - Trial Base Maria de la Salut
22.3.2010 von Wolfgang.
La lluvia hizo acto de presencia en Maria de la Salut, convirtiendo las cuatro zonas (que se habían que pasar tres veces) que se habían marcado, muy adecuadas para los pilotos del trial base, en pistas de patinaje. Aún así, y gracias a los miembros de la FBM, que se hizo cargo de las categorías Base 80, Base 50 y Escolar, la competición se desarrolló de forma impecable.
Base 80
Sergi Mesquida fue el que mejor se adaptó a las circunstacias de la prueba, colocándose líder desde el primer giro, que completó con 6 puntos. Mucha igualdad para la segunda plaza, con Adolfo Caballero que penalizó 10 puntos por los 12 de Augusto Fernández y Jordi Crespí, que no estuvo tan acertado como en otras ocasiones.
En la segunda vuelta Mesquida entregó su tarjeta con 0 puntos, que sumado al solitario punto de la tercera vuelta le dio el triunfo final con 7 puntos. Adolfo realizó un segundo giro muy bueno, con 1 punto, que le permitió separarse definitivamente de Fernández y Crespí, que empataron en las dos vueltas finales, a 7 y 8 puntos. Segunda posición pues de Adolfo Caballero con 16 puntos, siendo tercero Augusto Fernández con 27, los mismos que Jordi Crespí, que fue cuarto.
Base 50
Jordi Torres terminó imponiéndose en esta categoría, a pesar que en la primera vuelta iba segundo, ya que Joan Cerdá (10p) penalizó un punto menos que él, gracias a la segunda y tercera vuelta, en la que marcó 7 y 6 puntos respectivamente. Joan Cerdá mantuvo su nivel, pero fue insuficiente para mentenerse en la primera posición, consiguiendo la segunda con 29 puntos. Con 35 puntos Jordi Font subió al tercer escalón del podio, mientras que Daniel Urrutia (38p) fue cuarto, seguido de José Luis Pérez (40p), Jorge López (41p), Gabriel Riutort (40p) y Alejandro Fernández (43p)
Base Escolar
Pep Salleras fue el mejor en esta categoría destinada a pilotos que se inician en el trial, con 7 puntos, mientras que Jorge Hernández era segundo con 31 puntos y Tomás López tercero con 2 puntos más.
FBM
