v8 supercar latest

[Rob]

10 days to the Sydney Telstra 500
Wednesday 25/11/2009 09:30

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: BigPond Sport - copyright


Only 10 days to go!
The New South Wales Treasurer and State Development Minister, Eric Roozendall, today (Wednesday) gave the economic green light for the Sydney Telstra 500 as the official countdown has begun.

There are only 10 days to go and the Treasurer attended the official countdown for the Sydney Telstra 500 held at Bondi Beach this morning with the event’s official charity partner, Surf Life Saving Australia.

V8 Supercar drivers Will Davison, Mark Winterbottom, Tony D’Alberto and Lee Holdsworth were put through their paces by some of Bondi’s finest lifesavers, who took on the drivers in a special test of endurance in preparation for the forthcoming intense three-day racing action.

The New South Wales State and Regional Development Department estimates the Sydney Telstra 500 will generate more than $100 million for the state’s economy over the next five years.

It will be televised live throughout Australia and New Zealand, as well as distributed to more than 110 countries around the world on a live, delayed and packaged basis.

Roozendaal said the NSW Government remains committed to supporting the event for the next five years.

“My priority is jobs and supporting the $360 billion NSW economy and this event does both,” he said.

“We’re starting to see the green shoots of economic recovery grow, and events like the V8s support growth in the state economy.”

Roozendaal described New South Wales as Australia’s events capital and said hosting the V8 Supercars’ grand final event further strengthens that reputation.

“The Sydney Telstra 500 will not only be a showcase motoring event but an entertainment spectacle, using the entire Sydney Olympic Park precinct for the first time since the 2000 Olympics,” he said.

“This event is of international standing and is expected to bring considerable economic benefit to NSW, with more than $100 million anticipated to be generated over the next five years and 110 full-time jobs.

“This is an outstanding opportunity to promote Sydney as a tourism destination, while reinforcing our reputation for hosting significant major events.”

V8 Supercars Australia Executive Chairman, Tony Cochrane, said he was delighted that Sydneysiders have embraced the Sydney Telstra 500 and was confident the event would easily break the projected 150,000 crowd.

“With only 10 days to go we have experienced extremely strong ticket sales across the three day event, which has far exceeded our initial expectations,” he said.

“Most importantly, there has been solid interest both nationally and internationally, with an anticipated 15,000 tourists expected to visit Sydney specifically to attend the Sydney Telstra 500.

“Not only will the Sydney Telstra 500 be the biggest sporting event Sydney has seen in years but it will also offer world-class entertainment with some of Australia’s hottest music acts performing at the Friday and Saturday evening concerts.”

Friday night’s concert will feature the Presets, the Potbelleez and Sneaky Sound System, while Saturday will include a special one-off reunion performance from Australian rock legends Cold Chisel, The Living End and Grinspoon.

The event will feature something for the whole family, including a kid’s carnival arena, an indoor exhibition offering a unique behind-the-scenes experience, as well as an international food village.

Tickets are available through Ticketek, with prices starting from $48, which includes a day of racing action, concert entry and free public transport to and from the event.

V8 Supercars' massive US coup
Wednesday 25/11/2009 10:30

Author: Press Release | Source: V8 Supercars Australia


SPEED broadcasts the V8 action
V8 Supercars Australia, in association with FOX Sports USA, today (Wednesday) announced an exciting new partnership for the next three seasons where SPEED, a member of the FOX Cable Networks with more than 79 million subscribers in North America, will televise the Series to all North American subscribers the weekend after each event.

SPEED is the motorsports authority for NASCAR, Formula One MotoGP, AMA Supercross, the American Le Mans Series, the Rolex Grand American Sports Car Series and many other motorcycle and auto racing series.

SPEED is the exclusive United States broadcaster of the Rolex 24 at Daytona, the 24 hours of Le Mans, Petit Le Mans, the NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star Race, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and the Gatorade Duel at Daytona.

“V8 Supercars is one of the most exciting forms of auto racing in the world today,” FOX Sports Chairman, David Hill, said.

“It is fabulous to watch and I’m happy that we’ve been able to develop this new partnership with SPEED.”

V8 Supercars Australia Executive Chairman, Tony Cochrane, said the deal was a huge milestone in the ongoing and rapid success of V8 Supercars and its international recognition.

“This is a fantastic and exciting relationship for V8 Supercars,” he said.

“There is no question that SPEED in North America is the foremost network with regards to motorsport coverage and is the pinnacle platform in our sport; to be held in such regard by this highly professional organisation is a great testament to the quality of our television coverage and our racing.

“Each year we build our international presence and our TV reach next season will go to in excess of 135 customer countries in varied forms of live, delayed and packaged highlights.

“We are delighted to announce that the coverage will commence with next week’s Sydney Telstra 500 being shown on SPEED over the weekend of December 12 and 13 in North America as a taste of what North American fans can view all of next season.

“I would like to thank David Hill personally and the entire FOX Sports and SPEED teams for showing their great faith in V8 Supercars.

“This is the first of many new international TV announcements that will be rolled out between now and our opening event at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi next year.”

Hill was a guest of V8 Supercars Australia at this year’s Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and he declared the sport amongst the best racing he had seen in the world.

He believes the category will warm to the hearts of Americans who have made NASCAR the second biggest sport in the US.

Bright may be last puzzle piece to 2010
Wednesday 25/11/2009 15:00

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: BigPond Sport - copyright


Jason Bright in-car
Jason Bright’s two Racing Entitlement Contracts (RECs) are still up in the air for the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship.

A question mark remains over the driver and sponsor combination for the REC he has leased to Paul Cruickshank Racing (PCR).

And the REC Bright runs in Fujitsu colours this year is understood to have been approved for sale but not for lease to the Webb family. Bright’s preference is to lease it out for two years rather than selling it.

Bright has listed his options as joining Brad Jones Racing or Walkinshaw Racing, retaining the REC for his #25 entry and running it himself or taking up the driver’s spot for the licence leased to Cruickshank with the possibility of Wilson Security sponsorship on board.

“It’s still up in the air because I’ve got a licence leased to PCR at the moment and I’m negotiating on either leasing or selling (the other one),” he said.

“It depends what happens with that because I could sell either one or run the PCR one again or I could end up letting that one stay leased out.

“That will all sort itself out in the next week I imagine. There’s still a fair bit of toing and froing from everyone but my tip is it will all fall how I expect it to fall.”

Bright raised the possibility of running the REC he leases to PCR as a Britek car in 2010.

“I’d like to see it come back and run it as a Britek car first and foremost but the dollars have to be right to do that,” he said.

“If it can run as a Britek car and be done properly then it would be good.”

Another option that may eventuate is both of Bright’s RECs end up being run with Jim Beam Racing and Bright and Jonathon Webb driving.

But that would probably not involve the sale of those licences to Jim Beam Racing because Bright is keen to keep both RECs in his ownership to carry out his plans for the future.

“I’m trying to make a decision on what’s best for down the road too, to end up with two licences again and think about 2012 and beyond when we have got the Car of the Future with much cheaper running costs,” he said.

“I want to try and get back to the point where we’re running two Britek cars again.”

Bright believes that all the right “ingredients” were coming together so that he could run two cars again after 2011.

“I went through such a big change at the end of last year going from where we were doing everything in-house to now being a customer team (with Stone Brothers Racing) that I’ve got to try and recover from that,” he said.

“And then with Fujitsu moving on it’s put the pressure on a bit as well so I wanted to buy myself the two years to be able to pull it all back together and so I was basically going to lease it for two years.

“The other interesting thing is there’s a lot of other things happening at the moment where you’d think there wasn’t anyone else out there looking for licences but there are through other movements.

“Drivers are starting to realise the seat they were interested in isn’t there anymore or the contract they had isn’t there anymore and so the market for licences is still there, that’s for sure, over and above the Webb option.”

[Rob]

Castrol names where its cash goes
Friday 27/11/2009 14:00

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: BigPond Sport - copyright


Castrol
Castrol will partner teams on both sides of the V8 Supercar fence in 2010 with the announcement it will sponsor Paul Morris Motorsport in a larger capacity in 2010.

The motor oil and lubricant company has announced it will continue its partnership Ford Performance Racing (FPR) and that its new deal with PMM will see a full Castrol liveried Triple Eight-prepared Commodore in next year’s V8 Supercar Championship.

Media speculation that current Sprint Gas Racing driver Greg Murphy will drive the PMM Castrol car is intense but BigPond Sport has been advised that this is still not finalised.

Both the new PMM Castrol livery and the driver will be named after the Sydney Telstra 500.

The company said the PMM Commodore features Castrol Edge heavily in the design and “the unmistakable colours of Castrol” which are red and green.

By sponsoring both FPR and PMM Castrol hopes to engage both blue and red fans.

Team owner Paul Morris said his relationship with Castrol goes back to his early days of racing.

“I’m very proud that the long term relationship I have had with Castrol has grown to the point that we are now ‘Castrol Racing’,” he said.

“They have supported teams I have driven for since 1991 and have supported me since I started my own team 10 years ago.”

Castrol Lubricants Marketing Director, Andrew Johnson, said the company was excited about its new partnership with PMM.

“They are a long standing, professional team and we will field a highly competitive car and driver, plus their team facilities in Queensland are first class,” he said.

Besides the PMM Castrol-liveried Commodore, Castrol will also have bonnet signage with FPR.

Johnson said that Castrol has been involved with FPR from the very beginning.

“And the partnership continues to deliver both on and off the track,” he said.

“Steven Richards and Mark Winterbottom are top level drivers and great ambassadors for our brand.”

FPR Team Principal, Tim Edwards, said it was good news that one of the team’s foundation sponsors had re-signed.

“Castrol complements our other sponsors, what we do as a business with FPV road cars and we’ve always had a great working relationship with them,” he said.

Castrol has had more than 100 years of international motorsport involvement.

[Rob]

It’s evolution, not revolution
Monday 30/11/2009 15:00

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: BigPond Sport - copyright


The current V8 Supercars
V8 Supercar team owners have been brought up to speed on how the Car of the Future (CotF) is progressing.

A meeting was held last Thursday to engage team owners in the project, which is in its early stages.

The CotF, likely to be introduced in 2012, will still have V8 powerplants but cost only $250,000 to build compared to the $500,000 it roughly costs to build a current V8 Supercar.

Actual designs are still some way off but V8 Supercars Australia (V8SA) has stated many times that the CotF will still look like Commodores and Falcons with working headlights and swinging panels.

V8SA Board member Mark Skaife, who has been tasked with chairing the CotF committee, described the meeting as productive but did not want to reveal too much because it is still early days for the project.

“The meeting went well and brought stakeholders up to speed,” he said.

Skaife confirmed that part of the CotF investigation included the way other motorsport categories have undergone changes for safeguarding their future, including NASCAR and its Car of Tomorrow.

“We would be delinquent if we didn’t look at how other categories have sought to act for the future,” he said.

Skaife said he will now seek to get items ratified with the V8SA Board to move forward on the project.

Fellow Board member and Ford Performance Racing principle, Tim Edwards, said the presentation made to team owners was the same one given at the last Board meeting.

“And at the time we said you should do this with the teams so they know what’s going on,” he said.

“There is no mention on the design at the moment; it’s just conceptually about how we’re going.

“It raised more questions than it answered, that’s for sure, but it was just to reassure the teams that we’re not heading off into another direction.

“The Car of the Future is about evolution not revolution and hopefully now the teams have got some ideas on the direction of where we’re heading.

“I suspect we’ll start seeing something more concrete in the next few months.”

Edwards said it was imperative that the CotF was implemented correctly rather than as quickly as possible.

“We have got to make sure we’ve got authentic looking cars, which is one of our key principles (compared to other motorsport categories),” he said.

“It’s one of the characteristics of our Championship.”

Jack Daniel’s Racing driver Todd Kelly attended the meeting and echoed Edwards’ comments that the job must not be rushed.

“Anything that you do that’s too major in the short term will cost teams a lot of money but they’re (V8SA) doing a good job of implementing these things at the right time with minimum impact,” he said.

“You can’t rush into these changes, that’s why this has been well thought out.”

Kelly referred to a recent announcement that V8SA will introduce a new control wheel in 2010, which costs half the price of the current wheel.

“Part of it is making the category cheaper with bulk buying, which is what the category is doing with the control wheels; it’s going to save money,” he said.

“I think we’ve (Kelly Racing) got a pretty good model right from the start where 99 per cent is manufactured in-house and we only buy consumable items like wheels and things.

“To have those consumable items available from a bulk buy saves the teams money.”

[Rob]

Bargs test Kelly Commodore
Tuesday 15/12/2009 13:00

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: BigPond Sport - copyright


Bargs
New Kelly Racing recruit Jason Bargwanna got a head start on his 2010 V8 Supercar Championship campaign with a ride day at Winton yesterday (Monday).

Bargs completed 100 laps in at the circuit in country Victoria in a white liveried Commodore (chassis PE047) with Kelly Racing decals.

The livery for the Bargs’ 2010 car is yet to be unveiled however it is understood he has brought sponsor Fuchs across from Sprint Gas Racing, which closes on Friday (December 18).

“I was very excited to actually get a taste for the car, how it drives and just see how it is that they go about getting the cars right and being competitive and I was very impressed with package so far,” Bargwanna said.

“Obviously it’s hard to evaluate the cars with a passenger on board but my initial impression is that they’re impressive and that they’ll be competitive.

“The engine impresses me and there are a couple of different little things with the front geometry which seem to make the car work quite well so I’m really looking forward to having a proper attack at it.”

Brothers Todd and Rick Kelly shared Chassis PE045 – the one Todd used for the Sydney Telstra 500 after his old Commodore was ruined at Barbagallo Raceway last month, ironically an accident that Bargs played a part in – so that their new driver could get the most out of his first drive with Kelly Racing.

Rick said that it was great for the team to start working with Bargwanna now as Kelly Racing prepares for next season.

“It's good on a number of levels,” he said.

“Firstly, just for all the guys to get to know Bargs and to have a chat to him and experience what it's like to work with him at a track is good.

“It allows us to hit the ground running next year.

“Also, to get Jason in the car and to feel what it’s like to steer one of our rockets around on a typical Winton in greasy conditions, it’s been good for all of us.

“We’ve all bonded quite well and we’re all pretty excited about next year. We already feel like we’re a team that’s worked together for a while.”

Kelly Racing might have only debuted at the start of the 2009 Championship but by the end of the season the team displayed that it will be a force to be reckoned with next year.

Rick finished on the podium both days at The Island 300 while Todd finished second on the Saturday at Barbagallo Raceway.

Bargs said he was impressed with the team and its ability to communicate.

“It’s fantastic and I really think that this is certainly a team that’s got the credibility to do the job,” he said.

[Rob]

Bargs test Kelly Commodore
Tuesday 15/12/2009 13:00

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: BigPond Sport - copyright


Bargs
New Kelly Racing recruit Jason Bargwanna got a head start on his 2010 V8 Supercar Championship campaign with a ride day at Winton yesterday (Monday).

Bargs completed 100 laps in at the circuit in country Victoria in a white liveried Commodore (chassis PE047) with Kelly Racing decals.

The livery for the Bargs’ 2010 car is yet to be unveiled however it is understood he has brought sponsor Fuchs across from Sprint Gas Racing, which closes on Friday (December 18).

“I was very excited to actually get a taste for the car, how it drives and just see how it is that they go about getting the cars right and being competitive and I was very impressed with package so far,” Bargwanna said.

“Obviously it’s hard to evaluate the cars with a passenger on board but my initial impression is that they’re impressive and that they’ll be competitive.

“The engine impresses me and there are a couple of different little things with the front geometry which seem to make the car work quite well so I’m really looking forward to having a proper attack at it.”

Brothers Todd and Rick Kelly shared Chassis PE045 – the one Todd used for the Sydney Telstra 500 after his old Commodore was ruined at Barbagallo Raceway last month, ironically an accident that Bargs played a part in – so that their new driver could get the most out of his first drive with Kelly Racing.

Rick said that it was great for the team to start working with Bargwanna now as Kelly Racing prepares for next season.

“It's good on a number of levels,” he said.

“Firstly, just for all the guys to get to know Bargs and to have a chat to him and experience what it's like to work with him at a track is good.

“It allows us to hit the ground running next year.

“Also, to get Jason in the car and to feel what it’s like to steer one of our rockets around on a typical Winton in greasy conditions, it’s been good for all of us.

“We’ve all bonded quite well and we’re all pretty excited about next year. We already feel like we’re a team that’s worked together for a while.”

Kelly Racing might have only debuted at the start of the 2009 Championship but by the end of the season the team displayed that it will be a force to be reckoned with next year.

Rick finished on the podium both days at The Island 300 while Todd finished second on the Saturday at Barbagallo Raceway.

Bargs said he was impressed with the team and its ability to communicate.

“It’s fantastic and I really think that this is certainly a team that’s got the credibility to do the job,” he said.

[Rob]

Changes on the horizon
Thursday 17/12/2009 16:00

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: BigPond Sport - copyright


BigPond Sport - copyright
Following the success of the all-in Sunday qualifying session at V8 Supercar events this year, the category has implemented the session for the Saturday in 2010.

Qualifying on Saturdays will now consist of a 20-minute all-in session followed by the Top 10 Shootout to determine the grid order for the 10 fastest cars from the earlier 20-minute session.

Practice at the endurance events will no longer be time certain, while an extra practice session has been added for sprint events.

In 2010 there will be four 30-minute practice sessions for each sprint event with the first two sessions allocated for rookies and drivers who are outside the top 15 in the Championship.

These changes are only a few of those that make up a summary of rule changes distributed to teams yesterday (Wednesday) afternoon.

Windscreen tear-offs, introduced at this year’s L&H 500, will continue to be used in 2010 and the left-hand front door on the VE and FG V8 Supercars are now able to be made up of a composite material.

And the definition of composite material has been updated to allow the use of technological advancements such as Innegra (reputedly half the weight of carbon fibre), E Glass and Twin Tex.

In terms of safety upgrades, V8 Supercars Australia (V8SA) has updated the 2010 Operations Manual to include a FIA-approved carbon fibre racing seat, although many teams were already using the seat this year following a recommendation from V8SA.

According to FIA documentation, the new seat improves strength and support during rear impacts and provides more support to the pelvis, shoulder and head during side impacts.

[Rob]

V8 Supercars TOTAL POINTS
1 Jamie Whincup 3349
2 Will Davison 3044
3 Garth Tander 2916
4 Craig Lowndes 2592
5 Mark Winterbottom 2414
6 Steven Johnson 2255
7 James Courtney 2192
8 Rick Kelly 2162

[Rob]

First T8 Commodore ride

The first T8 Commodore

A momentous occasion in V8 Supercar history took place at Queensland Raceway yesterday (Thursday) when Jamie Whincup gave the first ever Commodore built by Triple Eight Race Engineering a shakedown.

Triple Eight has become an expert in building Falcon V8 Supercars, but this initial car marks a new era for the outfit as it starts preparing Holden Commodores for TeamVodafone and Paul Morris Motorsport to use in the 2010 V8 Supercar Series Championship.

While the Commodore – which was yesterday covered in stickers to disguise TeamVodafone’s 2010 livery – will only be used as a ride car next year, it is the first in a fleet of eight Commodores the outfit has in production.

Whincup said it felt good to finally get behind the wheel of the Commodore after the team first made the announcement of their switch to Holden last July.

“The team has been working day and night to get the cars ready in time for the start of the 2010 season and yesterday was a big occasion for us,” the back-to-back V8 champ said.

His teammate, Craig Lowndes, did not attend the ride day because of his personal contract with Ford, which does not finish until December 31.

Team Principal, Roland Dane said the day provided the team with a chance to check over everything before proceeding with their preparations for 2010.

“I was happy to have our first run in the Holden,” Dane said.

“The car is the first of eight cars that are currently in production and the day was purely a shakedown and an opportunity to do a systems check.”

Triple Eight also handed over Chassis #15 FG Falcon to Johnson Racing, which Lowndes used for the first four events of this year before he switched to Chassis #20 for the V8 event in Tasmania.

The photo does not indicate any Hog’s Breath Café signage on the somewhat covered car although BigPond Sport understands the restaurant chain will continue its sponsorship with TeamVodafone into 2010.

However, unlike this year, where the Ford badges were replaced with ‘Hogster’ ones, the TeamVodafone Commodores will feature the Holden badge.

[Rob]

Deadline looms on QR

Queensland Raceway has been issued with a Christmas deadline to accept an offer from V8 Supercars to return to the circuit in 2010.

Next year’s event has been scheduled to take place from April 30 to May 2, but that date still remains provisional because of ongoing negotiations.

Ipswich City Council owns the circuit and the V8 event is usually promoted by John Tetley.

The agreement with V8 Supercars is year-to-year at the request of Tetley, but he has advised V8 Supercars he will no longer run the event.

V8 Supercars Australia interim Chief Executive Officer, Shane Howard, said V8 Supercar Events has made an offer to hire the facility to promote the 2010 event.

“He’s come back with an offer that is not commercially viable; we’ve gone back with another offer and he has until Christmas to get back to us on whether he accepts it or not and if not then we will deal with the decision,” Howard said.

“But we need a decision from Queensland Raceway prior to Christmas for us to move forward.

“We’re hopeful that it will be resolved before then so we can give a clear indication to the public on that event.

“If those negotiations are unsuccessful we won’t of course be running at that venue.”

Ipswich City Council Mayor, Paul Pisasale, will meet with Queensland Raceway’s management tomorrow (Wednesday) to continue negotiations.

Pisasale hopes that a deal can be made which will see the V8s return next year.

“I’ll (also) be working with the Minister (Queensland Sports Minister Phil Reeves) to try to resolve it,” he said.

“It’s driving me crazy; I just want to sort this out so the fans can enjoy some racing.

“But at the end of the day I am going to get to the bottom of it and do my best to sort it out.”

Tetley gave a contradicting version of events, saying he had contacted V8 Supercars Australia in November but had heard nothing back.

“We won’t be running it next year, but whether or not they will hasn’t been decided in my mind,” he said.

[Rob]

Slade runner

Tuesday 29/12/2009 08:00

Tim Slade has already got some miles in a Stone Brothers Racing (SBR) Falcon under his belt in preparation for the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship Series.

The former Supercheap Auto Racing driver, who will drive an SBR-prepared FG under the James Rosenberg Racing licence, described his first few outings in a Ford as successful.

Slade took part in two ride days in the BF SBR Falcon which Jason Bright ran earlier in 2009 before stepping into the Alex Davison and Shane van Gisbergen’s FG Falcons at a test day at Queensland Raceway.

“Shane being the behemoth he is, it was hard to get into his car and reach for the peddles and everything,” Slade laughed.

“Alex is reasonably big as well so I had a lot of seat cushioning behind me.

“The cars are quite different to what I’ve been used to this year but it’s good to have done that before Christmas and know what you are in for at the first test session of the year.”

Slade said the aim of the test day was to do as many laps as possible in an FG.

“The day went pretty well and all the guys there are a really good bunch of guys,” he said.

“Ross and Jimmy (Stone) are awesome to work with. They’ve won races and championships before and they are very hungry to do it again.”

Slade believes he will inherit the FG Falcon which Bright ran in the latter half of 2009.

“I know that all of the cars have got their little differences so the guys will work on that after the break and make sure they are exactly the same specifications,” he said.

“I don’t have a problem with Brighty’s car; he’s shown pace in the second half on the year.”

And Slade also doesn’t mind that he will switch from a Commodore to a Falcon in 2010.

“To be honest it doesn’t bother me,” he said.

“I’m not tied down to any one manufacturer or anything like that.

“A race car’s a race car and either one, it doesn’t bother me. It’s better than sitting on a couch.

“I would have liked to have continued with Paul Morris Motorsport, but it couldn’t happen for obvious reasons.”

But Slade, whose backer James Rosenberg from Gawler Farm Machinery worked out the deal following The Island 300 in November, is excited at the next chapter in his V8 career.

“We spoke to a few people and the Stones were some the people we spoke to and that was the best deal we could have ended up with,” he said.

“They are one of the top teams there so it is a privilege to be there with them.”

It might be a year away, but Slade has already set a goal of finishing around 15th position in the 2010 Championship.

“It would be nice to be in the top 15 in the Championship come the end of the year,” the 2009 rookie said.

“You’ve got to look at it realistically and if you don’t look at it realistically you can fall into the trap like I did this year and make mistakes.”

Slade thanked Paul Morris, Morris’ crew and Supercheap Auto for giving him the opportunity to join the main game.

He also thanked Rosenberg along with DSG at Home, which he confirmed will have minor sponsorship on his FG Falcon.

[Rob]

Bowe overwhelmed at honour

Wednesday 30/12/2009 08:00

John Bowe has described being inducted into the V8 Supercars Hall of Fame as overwhelming.

Bowe was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the V8 Supercar 2009 Gala Awards Dinner in December.

“I love this sport; I love the people,” he said in his speech.

“Many, many people in this room have contributed to the things I have experienced and done.

“I’ve had a wonderful career although sometimes I haven’t thought of it that way, but I think V8 Supercar racing is just the best and if I could wind back my speedo just a little bit I would be back there in a heartbeat.”

Bowe, who retired from V8 racing in 2007, also offered some words of wisdom to current V8 Supercar drivers.

“All you young guys, make the most of it while you’re there because it’s the best,” he said.

“I think it’s pretty overwhelming for me to be honoured this way and I honestly thank (V8SA Executive Chairman) Tony Cochrane and the Board for the honour.

“When I was racing in V8 Supercars and touring car racing I didn’t take the time perhaps to enjoy the moment as much as I should, so I love this and it’s fantastic… thank you.”

Bowe was born in Devonport, Tasmania and has a record 225 touring car/V8 starts spanning 22 seasons.

During that time he won 31 races and scored 52 podiums and 25 pole positions.

He has competed in 23 Bathurst 1000 races and won it in 1989 and 1994, both times with Johnson who back in the day described Bowe as “harder to pass than a kidney stone”.

Bowe is a two-time Australian Drivers’ Championship winner, won the 1986 Australian Sports Car Championship in the Australian-built Veskanda and won the Australian Touring Car Championship in 1995.

For the last two years he has competed in the Biante Touring Car Masters series and has recently bought a 1969 Ford Mustang Trans Am to drive for the 2010 season.

[Rob]

[Rob]

2009 best year yet: Cochrane

Thursday 31/12/2009 08:00

On the grid at Sydney
V8 Supercars Australia (V8SA) Executive Chairman, Tony Cochrane, has declared the 2009 Championship as the most successful.

Cochrane listed three reasons why he believed this year’s season was the best since the category was re-named V8 Supercars and V8SA (then called AVESCO) took control of the administration of it in 1997.

“One, the enormous success of the inaugural Sydney Telstra 500, two the enormous success of the inaugural Dunlop 400 in Townsville and three, the fact that in one of the most difficult economic climates for 75 years we’ve had sponsorship growth, crowd growth, ratings growth and we have just had a remarkably solid, strong year for all our teams and the entire championship,” he said.

Cochrane said the introduction of the Dunlop SP Sport Maxx Sprint tyres at the start of the year was one example where V8SA had taken on fan feedback.

“And the fans have voted with their feet,” he said.

“We’ve had something like 1.9 million fans this year that have come and watched us live, so we’ve got just a massive bunch of new fans new to the sport, new to motorsport.

“It’s very, very important that we widen our fan base all the time and particularly widen it in terms of young people and female fans so I think all of those things are on the up and if they are on the up it means overall the sport must be doing a lot of things right.”

Cochrane said it will be tough to better the category in 2010, but is confident it can be done.

“Obviously we get away to a wonderful start with the tremendous double-header in the Middle East, but 2010 will present a whole heap of new challenges,” he said.

“We’ll have a new CEO in hand and I’m sure it will be an incredibly exciting year; lots of changes in team land and lots of driver changes so I look forward to it all rolling out again late next February.”

And Cochrane said he was not in the slightest bit concerned about the 2010 field being made up of two thirds Holden Commodores.

“Because there’ll be some teams that will change from Holdens to Fords that will become apparent in the next few weeks,” he said.

“Look, these things go on all the time.

“The Ford teams that are there will step up to the plate; we saw a great victory from a Ford team (at the Sydney Telstra 500) that is going on next year as a Ford representative team in Johnson Racing so this sport has been evolving and changing over a lot of years and it will keep evolving and changing because it’s got such a massive, massive base now.”

[Rob]

Driver line-up almost confirmed
Monday 04/01/2010 11:00

BigPond Sport - copyright

One of the silliest silly seasons in V8 Supercars is almost over with most of the driver seats locked away.

A raft of driver changes has occurred while a number of teams have folded with new ones ready to take their place.

One of the most important and contentious changes is that of TeamVodafone, which joins the red side in 2010 and will run Commodores.

What remains to be seen is whether the Commodores will be quick out of the box, but considering they are Triple Eight-prepared cars it would not be presumptuous to believe they will be.

Paul Cruickshank Racing will not field an entry in 2010 and former driver Fabian Coulthard is another driver who is following TeamVodafone to Holden.

Coulthard will drive a Walkinshaw Racing Commodore while Bundaberg has extended its sponsorship of the team to cover both Coulthard’s car along with fellow Walkinshaw recruit Andrew Thompson, who returns as a fulltime driver after a year-long hiatus from the main game.

Two new teams – Tony D’Alberto Racing and Lucas Dumbrell Racing – have been born out of the closure of Tasman Motorsport and drivers Greg Murphy and Jason Bargwanna have found new homes.

Bargs has joined Todd and Rick Kelly at Kelly Racing although the team’s fourth driver is yet to be confirmed while Murph will join Paul Morris Motorsport driving a Castrol-liveried Commodore.

Jason Bright is another Ford defector, joining Brad Jones Racing alongside Jason Richards although Paul Dumbrell has defected the other way, leaving Walkinshaw to drive the Ford Performance Racing-prepared Bottle-O Falcon under the Rod Nash Racing entry.

Holdens make up two-thirds of the 2010 V8 Supercar field, meaning the remaining Ford teams have their work cut out for them.

Ford has indicated it will pump more money into supporting more teams than it did in 2009, but to date its exact plans have not been forthcoming.

2010 driver line-up:

Brad Jones Racing: Jason Richards, Jason Bright and Karl Reindler (TBC)
Ford Performance Racing: Steve Richards and Mark Winterbottom
Garry Rogers Motorsport: Michael Caruso and Lee Holdsworth
James Rosenberg Racing: Tim Slade
Johnson Racing: James Courtney, Steve Johnson and Jonathon Webb
Kelly Racing: Rick Kelly, Todd Kelly, Jason Bargwanna and a fourth driver TBA
Lucas Dumbrell Racing: TBA
Paul Morris Motorsport: Russell Ingall and Greg Murphy
Rod Nash Racing: Paul Dumbrell
Stone Brothers Racing: Alex Davison and Shane van Gisbergen
TeamVodafone: Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup
Toll Holden Racing Team: Garth Tander and Will Davison
Tony D’Alberto Racing: Tony D’Alberto
Walkinshaw Racing: Fabian Coulthard and Andrew Thompson
Triple F Racing: Dean Fiore

[Rob]

V8s must take next step
Monday 04/01/2010 12:47

V8s need mainstream brands

V8 Supercar racing must break out form its dependence on automotive and alcohol sponsorship and into mainstream brands if it is to succeed in the long-term.

That’s the view of three of the sport’s leading driver managers, who believe the commercial side of the sport needs special attention.

In an exclusive interview in the latest edition of V8X Supercar magazine, driver managers Dale Rodgers (Steven Johnson), David Segal (Craig Lowndes, Will Davison and James Moffat) and Paul Marinelli (Mark Winterbottom) spoke candidly about the challenges facing the sport.

With no team currently carrying major sponsorship from fast-moving consumer good – such as fast foods, soft drink and household goods – the managers believe V8 Supercars could be in danger commercially.

In contrast, the American NASCAR Sprint Cup has teams supported by a diverse range of brands including McDonalds, Subway, Kelloggs, Old Spice, M&Ms, Pedigree pet food, Target, Pepsi/Mountain Dew and Red Bull.

Former V8 Supercar champion Marcos Ambrose is sponsored by a host of fast-moving consumer goods, including: Little Debbie’s snack foods, Bush’s Baked Beans, Clorox cleaning products, Kingsford BBQ supplies and Kleenex Cottonelle.

While agreeing that V8 Supercars Australia has done a fantastic job to grow the sport to its 2010 level, the managers believe that V8s must take the next step if it is to challenge the likes of the Australian Football League in the commercial world.

“I think V8 Supercar has done a marvellous job in packaging this sport to the point where it’s a major sport, it gets major TV rights so it’s established itself in the biggest arena and done very well,” Rodgers said in the V8X interview.

“The biggest challenge now is the sport marketing itself properly.

“We don’t have a major fast-moving consumer good in the field; NASCAR does.

“We don’t have a major financial player in the field; NASCAR does.

“The sport now, to really capitalise on what’s been done, needs a very, very smart marketing plan to break it out of the Castrols and all the other [traditional automotive based sponsors] to appeal as a mainstream sport to the marketing community. And until it does we’ll still be fishing in the same ponds.”

To see what else the driver managers believe is the future direction of the sport pick up your copy of the latest edition of V8X Supercar magazine, which goes on sale this Wednesday (January 6).

[Rob]

Holden: we want to dominate 2010!
Tuesday 05/01/2010 11:00

Simon McNamara

Holden will settle for nothing less than complete domination of the 2010 season as it prepares to usher TeamVodafone into the red juggernaut's family.

Holden Motorsport Manager, Simon McNamara, does not mince words when talking with V8X Supercar magazine when he says that he expects absolute supremacy for the manufacturer in 2010.

"I like domination and I like crushing," McNamara declared.

"In my mind we have got the best teams and the best looking cars.

"I just don't want to win, I want to fill the entire podium with Commodores."

Holden will field 19 Commodores in 2010 compared to 10 from Ford.

McNamara has been particularly scathing of Ford's handling of its motorsport plans since the Blue Oval’s axing of TeamVodafone and the Jim Beam-backed Johnson Racing from its factory program.

"I think their (Fords) business plans when they came back into it a few years ago were emotional and not business driven," McNamara commented.

"They looked at a short-term gain, but we looked at the future.

"Ford dropped the ball and I honestly can't see them winning anything in 2010.

"It's a matter of teams not the numbers.”

The General Motors Holden motorsport division has spread its support to more teams, adding to its spearhead of the two best teams in V8 Supercars - Walkinshaw Racing and TeamVodafone.

"We now have the two best teams in the country and we want to win, win and win,” McNamara added.

To see the full story on McNamara’s pledge to dominate the sport in 2010, pick up your copy of the latest edition of V8X Supercar magazine, which goes on sale tomorrow (Wednesday, January 6).

[Rob]

Bundy bares all
Tuesday 06/01/2009 14:00

Author: Allan Edwards | BigPond Sport

The drivers unveil the livery
Bundaberg Red Racing opened the 2010 V8 Supercar launch season this morning with its two new drivers – Fabian Coulthard and Andrew Thompson – pulling the covers off one of the team’s newly liveried VE Commodores on the Elwood beach foreshore in Melbourne.

Click here to see more photos of the Bundaberg Red Racing Livery

Coulthard, who is the team’s lead driver for 2010, told the assembled media, sponsors and team personnel that he can’t wait for the season to get underway in just five weeks time at Abu Dhabi.

“It’s great to be here today unveiling my new Commodore,” he said.

“With the new year now underway and coming back from a refreshing break, we will now be able to get down to business so we can hit the ground running for the event in Abu Dhabi next month.”

Coulthard, who switches to the Bundaberg Red Racing Commodore from one of the now defunct Wilson Security Racing Falcons, said he is looking to improve in 2010 on his impressive results from 2009, which included a podium at Tasmania’s Symmons Plains.

“We have some of the best equipment in pitlane and I can’t wait to get to the first event and show how strong we can be this year,” the 27-year-old said.

“The team at Walkinshaw Racing has been very accommodating so far.

“I had a drive in one of the Walkinshaw Commodores at the ride day in December so everything is falling into place nicely.”

After starting his V8 Supercar career in a Paul Morris Motorsport Commodore, Coulthard said he can’t wait to get back to racing a Holden.

“It is great to be back in a Holden and I am ecstatic to be driving a Walkinshaw Racing Commodore for Bundaberg Red Racing,” he said.

Thompson, meanwhile, will drive Bundaberg Red Racing’s second VE Commodore in 2010 as the team has expended its operation to two cars for this season.

The 22-year-old, who was without a drive in 2009, last drove a V8 Supercar fulltime for Paul Weel Racing in 2008 but got plenty of miles in last year’s endurance races with Bottle-O Racing.

“I couldn’t be happier to be back in the ‘main game’,” he said.

“It was great to get everything locked away before the Christmas break and now that I have made the move to Melbourne I am ready to get the year underway.

“I have been given an incredible break with one of the best teams in pitlane and I plan to make the most of the opportunity.”

It will be the first time that Thompson has raced in a two-car team since joining the V8 Supercar ranks.

“I haven’t had a teammate before so I am looking forward to working closely with Fabian and getting the Bundaberg Red Racing team as close to the front of the grid as possible,” Thompson said.

He has signed a one-year deal with Walkinshaw Racing with performance-related options for at least two more

[Rob]

Adelaide ups the ante
Thursday 07/01/2010 10:30

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: V8 Supercar


Adelaide Clipsal 500
Improvements to general admission and the return of shaded grandstands and a pyrotechnic show are slated for the Clipsal 500 in March.

Adelaide is upping the ante for the event, which for the first time since its inception in 1999 will not be the first event in the V8 Supercar Championship.

The two Middle East events precede next year’s Clipsal 500, but the South Australian races will remain as the first domestic ones for 2010.

Improvements to facilities in the general admission section, which has been renamed as the ‘Trackside’ area, shading all grandstands and a new entertainment and catering area called the Parking Lot are some of the recent announcements made for the event.

The support categories include the Fujitsu Series, Australian GT Championship, Biante Touring Car Masters, V8 Utes, Aussie Racing Cars, Mini Challenge and the introduction of the new category called Supersports.

The Clipsal 500’s Murray Walker’s Extreme Machines Car display will feature the new Ferrari Californian, the new Lamborghini Murcielago LP670-4 SuperVeloce, and a new Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Corvette.

And South Aussies rejoice because one of the state’s most loved events, the SAFM Skyshow, will be part of the 2010 Clipsal 500.

South Australian Motor Sport Board Chief Executive Jason Allen described it as a huge coup for the event.

“We believe the inclusion of the Stratco SAFM Skyshow will make the 2010 event the biggest Clipsal 500 Adelaide ever,” he said.

Peter Maynard, the General Manager for the SAFM radio station, said the show would take Clipsal to a new level.

“SAFM Skyshow, with its firework display synchronised to a soundtrack on SAFM, was a South Australian institution and we have been searching for a way to bring it back for three years,” he said.

“Now with the Clipsal 500 Adelaide and major partner Stratco, that’s happening.”

Artists to appear at the four free Jim Beam TrackSounds on-circuit concert series include Eskimo Joe, British India, Jessica Mauboy, Wes Carr, Tom Williams, Stan Walker, Status Quo and Noiseworks, Cold Chisel’s Ian Moss and Mental as Anything.

Deputy Premier Kevin Foley has announced that ticket sales to the 2010 event had already reached $3.94m with about 74 per cent of grandstand seats already sold through a price cap offer.

The 2010 Clipsal 500 Adelaide takes place from March 11-14. For tickets phone Ticketek on 132 849 or book online at www.ticketek.com.au

[Rob]

QR off 2010 V8 calendar
Thursday 07/01/2010 15:00

Author: Press Release | Source: V8 Supercars Australia


Queensland Raceway
V8 Supercars Australia has been unable to reach satisfactory hire and commercial terms with the operator of Queensland Raceway for a proposed 2010 May date.

This date on the 2010 Championship Series calendar had been listed until now as provisional, pending the outcome of talks between the two parties.

V8SA was totally prepared to become the promoter of the Ipswich event in May to keep the event alive, but unfortunately this is not possible due to a long list of unrealistic demands set by the Queensland Raceway operator.

QR demanded a near record hire fee for the hire of the venue despite its ageing facilities, and also insisted the venue would not be responsible for obtaining the very necessary CAMS licence that is required under the FIA’s sanctioning of V8 Supercars as an International Series, amongst many other things.

This, coupled with the fact that fans and corporates have dropped off from attending QR because of the lack of decent facilities, means that QR at Ipswich is no longer a viable venue for Australia’s premier motorsport Championship.

Shane Howard, acting CEO for V8SA, said: “This is extremely disappointing for all our fans but we had given QR a very reasonable offer and we have to be responsible to our teams when we hire venues and conduct events.

“The unrealistic hire fees and un-commercial terms demanded by QR, when compared with other permanent venues, are absurd given the standard of the QR infrastructure for fans and teams alike.

“QR’s reluctance to be a CAMS sanctioned venue further compounds a very difficult position for us as we are a fully fledged FIA Championship. Almost no money has been spent on fan facilities at QR in the last eight years despite our ongoing requests and it is now looking very tired from a fan and corporate point of view."

The positive news is that V8SA will still be conducting 15 events in season 2010 including offering two events to fans in Queensland with the Dunlop Townsville 400 in July and the Gold Coast event in October. The 2010 season opener kicks off in Abu Dhabi at the world class Yas Marina Circuit from February 18-20th.

“We do question how a venue which was built with significant State Government funds and is leased on Ipswich Council land can manipulate groups such as ours with ridiculous hire figures and non compliance with the Government recognised sanctioning body is surely got to be questioned?” V8 Supercars Australia Chairman Tony Cochrane said.

“Every year dealing with John Tetley turns into a greater nightmare for all of us in the Championship and I totally understand V8SA getting to this very frustrating point. With so many V8 Supercar teams headquartered in SE Queensland we now need to focus on what we can do for the future.

“Maybe the time has come for us to work with the Queensland Government and jointly build our own permanent facility to ensure the nearly 1000 jobs in our great industry are keep here in SE Queensland.”

[Rob]

V8s in the pits at AGP
Friday 08/01/2010 11:30

Author: Briar Gunther | Source: V8 Supercar


With V8's get a pitlane at the AGP?
V8 Supercars Australia Executive Chairman, Tony Cochrane, has ruled out holding a street event in Melbourne outside of the Australian Grand Prix.

Cochrane said he had no intention of starting a second street race in Melbourne because of the category’s strong ties to organisers of the Formula One race.

The Australian Grand Prix event is currently a non-Championship exhibition event for the V8 Supercars.

“We’ve got a really fantastic relationship firstly with the Grand Prix people in Melbourne… and we’ve got a fantastic working relationship with Bernie (Ecclestone) and the FIA and I’m not about to do anything to upset any of those relationships,” he said.

“I’m far too sensible to go into that pond.”

Instead, Cochrane is working on a long-term plan which will give more importance to the races at Albert Park.

“We are at the moment working on a new five-year deal at F1 and I think what we’ll see happen out of that is we’ve designed this pit building here (at the Sydney Telstra 500) to be portable,” he said.

“And I’m hopeful that even as early as this year that we’ll have our own pit area at the Formula One event and we will do a set of major races in association with that event and we’ll get out of, for want of a better word, the exhibition phase of that event.

“But we are very much committed in Australia to supporting Formula One coming to Australia; it’s the pinnacle of world motorsport.

“As I said before we’ve got an outstanding working relationship with them and I’m all for trying as best as I humanly can to get a sensible deal up in Melbourne and I expect I will get a sensible deal up in Melbourne.”

Meanwhile, the pitlane order for V8 Supercar teams has already been confirmed, with 2009 Teams’ Champion Toll Holden Racing Team heading the list.

The order after HRT is TeamVodafone, Garry Rogers Motorsport. Walkinshaw Racing, Paul Morris Motorsport, Tony D’Alberto Racing, Lucas Dumbrell Racing, Jim Beam Racing, Brad Jones Racing, Kelly Racing, Stone Brothers Racing, Ford Performance Racing and Triple F Racing.

[coysht]

F1 and V8 supercars in the same weekend - Now thats sounds like a show and a half....anyone want to fly me to Aus and buy me a 3-day pass?.......anyone?

[Rob]

QR feud simmers
Monday 11/01/2010 10:52

Source: BigPond Sport

Queensland Raceway turn one
As the fallout continues in the wake of the Queensland Raceway cancellation there could be a glimmer of hope with Ipswich mayor Paul Pisasale willing to act as a peacemaker.

QR operator John Tetley and V8 Supercars chairman Tony Cochrane were unable to sort out several differences after months of negotiations soured last week.

Pisasale has vowed to fight to revive the QR round that was slated as round five of 15 events from April 30-May 2.

The popular mayor is trying to strike a deal for his council to lease the venue off Tetley and hire it out to Cochrane under a different set of terms.

However, Cochrane has indicated that the decision to walk away from QR, in 2010, at least is final.

Both QR and V8SA listed demands either side were apparently unwilling to agree to as the tenuous year-to-year deal to race at the Ipswich circuit broke down last week.

Tetley was after a longer commitment from V8SA, believed to be a five-year agreement, but several hurdles prevented both parties from going forward.

Among them was the apparent refusal by V8SA not to recognise the 500 lifetime memberships that were struck when the circuit fell on tough times in its early years a decade ago.

"They (V8SA) wouldn't accept the lifetime members," Tetley claimed.

"If they didn't tip in (back then) there wouldn't be a track."

"Yet we have to honour 4500 passholders issued by V8s each year."

Tetley said he was disappointed common ground could not be reached.

"I'm very disappointed but I can't take the chance of loosing $200,000 again - it just doesn't make business sense."

Cochrane defended V8SA's position over the feud and says while it is most unlikely there can be any form of reconciliation for 2010, the door remains open for the future.

"We absolutely want to run at QR," Cochrane said.

"(But) he (Tetley) is full of mystery and intrigue and his idea of hire/leases - we've never seen anything like it in the world."

Cochrane said he acknowledges that a portion of hardened V8 fans have been alienated by the decision to not race at QR.

"Yes of course I understand them being upset about it," Cochrane said.

"It's too late to plan another Event for 2010 but our door remains open in regards to QR in the future."

Cochrane pointed out that the QR cancellation was not linked to the on-going cloud over the former Gold Coast Indy with that Event's future on slippery ground after the A1GP no-show last year.

Two Queensland Government reports are still to be made public into the fiasco, which saw V8 Supercars fill the breach left by the debt-riddled open wheeler series in 2009 at short notice.

"We are waiting patiently to see what they have to say or what they don't have to say," Cochrane said.

"But I want to make it clear that this decision (QR breakdown) has nothing to do with the Gold Coast Event."

As it stands the cancellation of QR has left a yawning gap in the calendar that already has a two-month break from mid-year between the Dunlop Townsville 400 from July 9-11 until the L&H 500 at Phillip Island from September 10-12.

[Rob]

Sydney 500 to incorporate Motor Show?
Tuesday 12/01/2010 11:00

Source: BigPond Sport - copyright

V8 Supercars Australia and the New South Wales Government are believed to be considering the idea of combining the Australian International Motor Show and the Sydney Telstra 500 at the Olympic Games site for race week.

The capacity to host the Motor Show, traditionally held at Darling Harbour in October, is part of a hit list officials are targeting to beef up the entertainment package.

Other ideas being explored include major automotive launches as the V8 Supercars grand finale seeks to expand the event into a week-long festival.

The magnitude of success following the whopping three-day crowd of almost 185,000 overwhelmed the government and the V8 Supercar administration.

“We are just blown away by the response,” V8 Executive Chairman, Tony Cochrane, told V8X Supercar magazine.

As big as the Olympic site is, there remained about 20 per cent that was untouched by the V8 race.

It opens up huge possibilities given the venue has unprecedented levels of transport infrastructure unique to a motor racing venue.

The free train system was well utilised by the crowds and the venue largely went off without a hitch apart from some teething problems which will be addressed for next year.

“We are now going to sit down with the government and have some discussions about how we can add other components to the event,” Cochrane said.

“We've got some great ideas for the future and we are going to build on this now.

“We've made one small step and we are going to make lots more now.”

NSW Events is also expected to review its perplexing policy of putting a 70,000-a-day cap on the Olympic Site for the V8 event.

V8X Supercar magazine is available at your local newsagent today.

[Rob]

QR axing: soft tyres to blame?

Wednesday 13/01/2010 09:50

Source: BigPond Sport

The super soft Dunlop tyres introduced last year were a central issue in the axing of the Queensland Raceway round because they allegedly caused damage to the track surface.

Tracks including Queensland Raceway suffered surface damage following the debut of the sticky tyres last year.

Officials at Perth’s Barbagallo circuit confirmed they had to repair the track following the November V8 round in 2009.

The initial repair bill at Barbagallo was $14,000 but that figure is expected to increase with associated costs.

QR operator John Tetley had demanded V8 Supercars pay for any damage if the meeting was to go ahead in 2010, something which category organisers were not willing to be held accountable for.

The soft tyre issue could now open up a can of worms if more track operators stand their ground and demand payment for any tyre-related damage to their tracks.

“As hirers they (V8 Supercars) had to take responsibility for any damage to the track but they wouldn’t,” Tetley said.

In the initial V8 Supercar press release last week, it claimed a list of issues where the category managers were at odds with QR included ageing facilities, non responsibility of QR to obtain a CAMS licence among other things.

V8 Supercars Executive Chairman, Tony Cochrane, has accused Tetley of becoming a greater nightmare to deal with each year.

As lessor of QR, Tetley has come up with an increasing list of demands which, in the end, V8 Supercars was not able to agree to including the potential for damage to the track surface.

Ipswich Mayor Paul Pisasale has now become the chief negotiator in trying to strike a deal to put QR back on the 2010 V8 calendar.

Pisasale and Cochrane were scheduled to meet today in a last ditch attempt to save the QR round, originally scheduled for April 30-May 2.

Barbagallo promoter Peter Thornell confirmed the 2.42km Perth track had suffered several areas of damage following the November meeting.

“We have had to absorb the cost of about $14,000 and we’ve also had to relocate some hirers following the repairs to allow the track to cure,” Thornell said.

“On top of that there will be some on-going costs.

“I put it (the damage) down to the soft tyres and the fact that we raced in the warmer month of November.

“If the damage was happening every year then we would have to ask for V8 Supercars to take responsibility but up until last year we didn’t have a problem.”

[Rob]

V8SA appoints new CEO
Wednesday 13/01/2010 10:00

Source: V8 Supercars Australia

In two highly significant announcements made today, V8 Supercars Australia has appointed a new Chief Executive Officer for the next four years.

Martin Whitaker, currently Chief Executive Officer of the Bahrain International Circuit, will assume the role of CEO of V8 Supercars Australia from April. Whitaker boasts an extensive background in the sport covering some 25 years.

His former significant positions include Director of Motorsport at Ford Motor Company, working for two Presidents of the FIA, Formula 1 Management (FOM) and McLaren International.

Whitaker was appointed General Manager and then Chief Executive Officer of the Bahrain International Circuit shortly after its opening in 2004 by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa and now heads a team of more than 130 personal at the Sakhir track.

During his time at BIC, Whitaker has been responsible for the organisation and development of a diverse range of activities at the circuit including local, regional and international motorsport events as well as a growing corporate entertainment business. The 2010 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix will be the Kingdom’s seventh Formula One race and the sixth under his leadership.

Whitaker is highly regarded as one of motorsports leading businessmen and brings a wealth of international knowledge to V8 Supercars Australia.

His appointment concludes an extensive six month, world-wide search that included three continents with applicants of the very highest level, experience and qualifications in motorsport management.

Chairman of V8 Supercars Australia Tony Cochrane said: "enticing someone of Martin’s expertise to the CEO position is an outstanding testimony to the size and quality of our business and our sport.

“The fact that we are so well positioned on the world motorsports stage means that we can now attract and afford the best people as we move forward in our next five year phase.

“Martin will join an excellent management team and help build the sport throughout Australia, the Pacific, Asia and the Indian sub continents.”

Whitaker will move to the Gold Coast, V8SA’s headquarters, and take up the appointment following the opening round of the FIA Formula One World Championship in Bahrain. As previously announced, Shane Howard (the Chief Operating Officer of V8 Supercars Australia) will be acting CEO until that time.

"This is a magnificent opportunity for me and one that I am very much looking forward to" said Whitaker.

"It is difficult to imagine a better time to be involved with V8 Supercars as its reputation and widening global appeal is going through a significant increase.

“V8 Supercars Australia is now one of the foremost series in global motorsport with a vibrant business platform and a growing fan base not only in Australasia but throughout the world.

“Since my involvement with the Championship began some four years ago I have continued to be impressed by the power of the brand, its unique competitiveness and the professionalism of the organisation. I look forward with immense enthusiasm to being part of V8 Supercars at a time when the sport has so much to offer."

Whitaker’s appointment follows a unanimous Board decision to re-elect Cochrane for a further two years as Chairman of the sport.

This will take Cochrane’s reign as Chairman to 15 years at the helm. During this time the sport has gone from being a fringe player to a significant sport throughout the region and in the world of motorsport.

V8SA Board member and 2009 Drivers Championship winning team owner Roland Dane said: “Without Tony’s drive and dedication to V8 Supercars over the last 15 years this sport would quite simply not be even 10% of the size it is today.

“Therefore, despite the fact that we have enjoyed more than the odd “healthy debate” over the years, for me and my fellow Board members it was simply a no-brainer to ask Tony to continue as Chairman.

“And with the appointment of a consummate professional in Martin as our new CEO, hopefully the Chairman can continue to be our Rainmaker. I know that I can speak for all the Board in thanking Tony for taking on such a huge workload last year and also in welcoming Martin into the fold.”

Cochrane said as he continues the Chairmanship he looked forward to working with the Board and Whitaker in continuing to grow the sport.

"It is a tremendous honour to be Chairman of this sport for such an extended period, as I look back over the terrific progress made over the past thirteen years with V8 Supercars,” he said.

“However, with big plans to be unveiled in the coming months, the car of the future on our door step and the appointment of Martin to the CEO role, I believe the next five years will be even greater than the substantial achievements to date.

"We have big plans, exciting plans and we intend to double the size of our sport and our business in the next growth phase.”

The next two months will herald the significant roll out of major new media and TV deals, a new marketing campaign headed up by one of the world’s hottest female artists of today, new major sponsorship signings and the inaugural Abu Dhabi season opening round in late February.

[Rob]

Tyres not to blame
Thursday 14/01/2010 16:01


Another circuit manager has weighed into what is becoming a great debate over whether the new Dunlop SP Sports Maxx Sprint tyre is to blame for track break ups.

Winton Motor Raceway Chief Executive Officer, Mick Ronke, agrees the soft tyre is tougher on track surfaces than the V8 control tyre, but explains that there is a range of reasons why ultimately it is not to blame.

Earlier this week, management from Queensland Raceway and Barbagallo Raceway said they believed the soft tyre was at least partly the reason for track break-ups during their respective 2009 V8 events.

But Ronke said it was the surface underneath the tyres that was the real problem.

“What happens at one circuit does not mean it will happen to another and the circuits that have had work done on the bitumen over the last couple of years are having the most trouble,” he said.

“The bitumen companies are producing these days is softer and softer to compensate for ground movement and stop it from cracking.

“But with some of these soft bitumens, when you have a tyre that puts extreme pressure in warm weather it can unravel the bitumen.”

Ronke said the bitumen is generally laid at about 95 degrees Celcius but the temperature generated from race tyres was up to 130 degree Celcius – 30 degrees more than the bitumen’s melting point.

And any weakness in the surface in the bitumen, which could be as little as a stone that has not been properly covered when the bitumen was laid, can start breaking up the track especially if the tyre is stickier.

Ronke also attributed viscosity, which he described as the flow rate and ‘clinginess’ of the bitumen, as another issue.

“Bitumen has a wide range of viscosity and the oil companies have discovered if they move the viscosity to the lower end of the range they get more barrels out of it but it loses its tenacity,” he said.

Ronke said the Supercars are particularly brutal on track surfaces because of the large down forces, but he accepts that track break-ups are part and parcel of hosting a V8 event and running a circuit in general.

“We understand it’s racing and we’ve got to try to live with it and solve the problem.”

However even bitumen experts have been unable to advise Winton Raceway on how to fix the issue.

“We’re going to have to resurface in the next few years and I’m not looking forward to doing that because the quality of the bitumen I think will be much worse,” he said.

“We’re just hanging in there with our bitumen surface because we discovered these problems (of not being able to source a higher quality bitumen) a couple of years ago, but it is difficult to keep it in a usable state and we are trying to find a bitumen that is a bit more hardy.

“I’ve had the bitumen people complaining where they did a job in this area about 12 months ago and on Christmas Eve they had to attend to it because the bitumen was melting and running down the gutter.

“It was absolutely melting and these are the sorts of problems we are faced with in running a race track.”

Ironically, the V8 event at Darwin’s Hidden Valley Raceway is run under the most extreme heat conditions yet the track suffers from no major break-ups.

A spokesman from the raceway understands that a special formula was made when the track was laid to better bond the surface.

Winton Motor Raceway will host the test day for the Victorian V8 Supercar teams on Monday, February 8 while the test day for Queensland teams takes place a day later at Queensland Raceway.

The V8 Supercar official launch for 2010 will take place in Sydney on February 10, with more information to follow.

[Rob]

Geoff Jones joins SEL
Thursday 14/01/2010 16:00

Author: Press Release | Source: V8 Supercars Australia

In the first major partnership change in the 13 year history of Sports and Entertainment Limited, Geoff Jones, the current CEO of Ticketek, will be joining SEL as both a Partner and Director from April 1, 2010.

Geoff brings with him a wealth of experience and expertise, having worked for IMG in senior roles for five years and then the Foster’s Group for a further five years in a range of senior executive appointments, culminating in several years as National Sales Director.

Since that time Geoff has been the leading force in Ticketek’s impressive business growth and diversification over the last few years.

During this period Geoff has evolved Ticketek into an innovative and market leading live entertainment and digital business.

Geoff is a dynamic leader who is well respected throughout the entertainment and sports industries in both Australia and New Zealand.

“This is an exciting development for SEL. We are in a significant expansive stage and Geoff will be a valuable asset and partner in our business going forward. He is the first new partner to join our business in our history and we are very much looking forward to Geoff coming on board,” said James Erskine, Chief Executive Officer of SEL.

“I have long admired the way SEL has gone about their business and the market position and success they have created. I look forward to joining with my new Partners and the team at SEL to help grow the business even further” Jones said.

SEL has become the premier sports and entertainment company in Australia since its inception in 1997. In addition to its significant involvement as a shareholder of V8 Supercars, SEL represents sporting associations such as Cricket Australia, The Australian Rugby Union, Netball Australia, The International Cricket Council, Rugby World Cup and the Rugby League International Federation and individuals such as Sir Michael Parkinson, Shane Warne, Matt Giteau and Zara Phillips.

SEL in its short history has created some of the biggest entertainment success stories this country has ever seen. It is a highly innovative organisation that has set amazing trends and results with a raft of entertainment and sports projects since its start.

[Rob]

We’re on our way
Friday 15/01/2010 10:00

Reigning Champion Jamie Whincup will next week become the first V8 Supercar driver to cut a lap at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit.

The TeamVodafone driver will be the first of four V8 drivers to experience the circuit as Yas Marina Circuit and V8 Supercars throws their arsenal of resources into ensuring the inaugural Abu Dhabi event – the Yas V8 400 - is a success.

Whincup, along with Toll Holden Racing Team’s Will Davison, Ford Performance Racing’s Mark Winterbottom and The Bottle-O Racing’s Paul Dumbrell will take part in a four-day whirlwind promotional tour.

They leave next Wednesday, January 20 and their promotional tour involves a full track day at Yas Marina Circuit.

“As the 2009 V8 Supercar Champion, Jamie Whincup will be given the great honour of driving the first lap of the circuit that includes the corkscrew component, which we will be the first to race on next month,” V8 Supercars Australia Media Manager, Cole Hitchcock, said.

“The boys will drive a whole array of the cars that Abu Dhabi have in their stable including GT2 cars and will also give passenger rides to key people in the UAE. We are also hoping they may have a drive of the F1 two-seater.”

Besides the track day at Yas Marina Circuit, the drivers will take part in activities including waterskiing and wakeboarding for media companies to film lifestyle segments, meet a contingent of ex-pats known as Aussies Abroad, give road safety talks at schools, head off on a desert trip to immerse themselves the local culture and they might even meet the royal family.

Whincup was still on holidays and not available for comment but Davison said he was looking forward to the visit.

“I said yes pretty quickly to support the event and it will be a great chance to have a good look at the circuit and prepare for the race and just have a bit of fun,” he said.

“It’s certainly a big ask to get out there now because it’s a key preparation time given we are only a few weeks out from the first event of the year, but we are willing to do it to make this event a success.

“I’m looking forward to it; there’s going to be some pretty special cars we’re going to drive so it will be awesome.

“We’re all pumped about going to such an awesome facility and no doubt like at Bahrain we will be looked after pretty well.”

Hitchcock said organisers of the Yas V8 400 were keen to promote that the V8 Supercar drivers are the best in the world.

“The visit is designed to get the word out to the Middle East and specifically Abu Dhabi that we are coming,” he said.

“And the drivers clearly know how important this event is to our Championship. We really appreciate the four drivers have been able to work it around their heavy commitments at this time of year. It is the season opener and it is the first time we are racing in Abu Dhabi.”

Media powerhouse CNN will be one of the organisations filming the V8 Supercar drivers during their visit while V8 Supercars Australia will send over TV crews for Australian coverage.

[Rob]

V8s race F1 Bahrain track
Friday 15/01/2010 10:45


V8 Supercar drivers are thrilled at the prospect of being able to race the full 5.41km Hermann Tilke-designed Formula One track at the Bahrain International Circuit.

V8 Supercars Australia today (Friday) announced that as part of the double-header opener in the Middle East for the 2010 Championship, V8 Supercars will race the full length of the Bahrain track for the first time at the Desert 400 next month.

Teams were advised yesterday that the V8s will no longer use the 3.6km circuit but the longer F1 example, which includes the north-eastern corner of the track.

The move will push a V8 lap time out to just over two minutes at this year’s Desert 400, which takes place a week after the first ever V8 event at Abu Dhabi, the Yas V8 400.

Jim Beam Racing’s James Courtney said he had been taunted at past Bahrain events when he passed the unused section of track.

“It’s been a bit of a tease the last few years where you could see this awesome circuit and you were not allowed to race on it so this is fantastic news,” he said.

“I think it’s going to be really quite good and open up a few more passing opportunities, which will produce better racing.

“It’s like racing on a brand new circuit and is likely to need new car set ups and I enjoy new challenges.”

Toll Holden Racing Team driver Will Davison said he was pumped at the prospect of racing the full Formula One circuit at Bahrain.

“We go all that way and race on such incredible tracks and facilities, not that it hasn’t been exciting to race there, but you see the part of the track you pass and think you’re missing out on something,” he said.

“I think a lot of the best corners are in that section of the track we didn’t use in the past and it’s a very technical and fun part of the circuit.

“We saw what exciting racing we had last time in Bahrain and I think this is just going to open that up more.

“It has been disappointing not to be able to use the best part and now that we are the racing will be fantastic.”

[Rob]

Tickets now on sale for Yas V8 400
Friday 15/01/2010 15:30


Tickets have gone on sale for the eagerly anticipated season opener of the V8 Supercars Australia Championship Series opener, held at Yas Marina Circuit on February 19 – 20.

The YAS V8 400 weekend will provide great entertainment for families and friends with tickets starting from just 325 AED ($AUD 95).

Children 12 and under are free when accompanied by a paying adult in general admission.

The Australian V8 Supercars will race at night under lights for the first time in history.

They will also be the first to use an exciting feature of Yas Marina Circuit - a high speed off-camber left, right, left turn sequence - known as 'the Corkscrew', which drops 15 metres in elevation across 100 metres in distance – a feature that is sure to pose big challenges to the drivers.

Four additional support races will complete the entertainment: Chevrolet Supercars Middle East Challenge, Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge, UAE GT Championship, and the Gulf Sport Radical Cup.

Richard Cregan, CEO of Yas Marina Circuit, said, “Having the first event of the 2010 V8 Supercars Australia Championship Series is great for Yas Marina Circuit".

"On top of that, to run this series’ first ever night race and use a special circuit configuration designed to emphasise the specific performance characteristics of these cars, will make these races unforgettable.

“We look forward to welcoming the organisers, teams, drivers, sponsors and fans to the UAE for the YAS V8 400.

"When you add four regional support races, spectator access to the pit and paddock areas, plus all the family friendly entertainment that will be staged in our Oasis, this is a great opportunity to enjoy another great weekend of motorsport.”

Tony Cochrane, Chairman of the V8 Supercars Australia Championship Series, said “we could not have asked for a better way to start the 2010 season: the first V8 Supercar race at Yas Marina Circuit, the first V8 Supercar race under lights".

"Fans and spectators are going to get a fantastic show at this amazing new world class circuit.

“The phenomenal facilities at Yas Marina Circuit are absolutely mind-blowing and the lighting is out of this world,” Mr Cochrane said, “Utilising the ‘corkscrew’ section of the track for the first time of any race category is also a huge honour for our sport and will provide some of the best racing imaginable.”

To book tickets for the Yas V8 400 visit www.yasmarinacircuit.ae