A1GP Canada and Switzerland on Pole in Durban

21 May 2013

South Africa - A1 Team Canada's Robert Wickens put in a stunning effort to qualify in pole position for tomorrow morning's Sprint race at the A1GP Durban, South Africa, becoming the youngest ever pole-sitter in the series, while the Feature race will be led off the grid by Switzerland's Neel Jani.

Sprint race qualifying
Eighteen-year-old rookie Robert Wickens set the fastest lap during the second 15-minute qualifying segment to take pole position for A1 Team Canada for tomorrow morning's Sprint race, claiming the team's first ever pole position and the first of his A1GP career.

Brazil's Bruno Junqueira, who was 12th quickest in practice this morning, leapt up the time sheets to qualify in second position alongside Canada while New Zealand's Jonny Reid and GBR's Oliver Jarvis will start the race from third and fourth place on row two. Switzerland's Neel Jani and Germany's Michael Ammermüller will line up on the third row of the grid in fifth and sixth place respectively.

Ireland's Adam Carroll cruised to a halt early on in the first qualifying segment with a fuel pump problem and only six nations managed to set a time as the session was red-flagged with three minutes remaining, when the New Zealand car spun off the track. The start of the second qualifying segment was delayed slightly while the track was cleared.

South Africa's Adrian Zaugg will start the Sprint race from the back of the grid in 22nd place as he pushed hard and spun out at turn three, failing to set a flying lap time.

Feature race qualifying
Switzerland's Neel Jani, who just pipped GBR to take provisional pole in the third qualifying segment, bettered his time in the final qualifying segment to secure pole position for tomorrow's Feature race. Sprint race pole-sitter Canada's Robert Wickens, who is having a superb weekend, will start the race from second place alongside the Swiss car on the front row.

New Zealand's Jonny Reid, who has never raced on a street circuit before, qualified in third position while Great Britain's Oliver Jarvis, the first driver to break the lap record around the streets of Durban this weekend, will line up in fourth place on the second row.

Brazil's Bruno Junqueira took the fifth spot ahead of the Netherlands' Jeroen Bleekemolen who will start from sixth place. Germany's Michael Ammermüller and France's Loic Duval qualified seventh and eighth while Portugal's Filipe Albuquerque and Australia's John Martin will line up on the fifth row in ninth and 10th position respectively.

Home nation A1 Team South Africa's Adrian Zaugg will start the Feature race from a disappointing 15th position, after taking to the track early on in the session and getting stuck in traffic.

Canada's Robert Wickens is having a great weekend in Durban and was pleased to achieve his nation's first pole position and the team's best combined qualifying performance to date:

'We had a really good run in qualifying, the car was really solid underneath me and I was able to put in a pretty good lap. It's Canada's best qualifying ever so I'm excited to get them their first pole and their second front row start.'

Feature race pole-sitter Neel Jani, who has now notched up four pole positions for the Swiss team this season, said: 'It was a tough qualifying session, especially missing the first segment because of the red flags so I really had to push in the second one for the Sprint grid. Adrian spun in front of me and I didn't know where to so I had to break to avoid him which cost me a lot of time but I'm still fifth so I'm happy with that. Then in segments three and fourth I was quickest and we improved the car a little bit but I had to really push a lot and it was still very close at the end.'

Adrian Zaugg endured a difficult qualifying session in the South African car this afternoon and will start the Sprint race from 22nd and the Feature race from 15th:

'We were one of the teams to get caught out at the third turn in the second segment - I don't know what changed but for sure it was more slippery out there than it was in free practice - and then in the third segment I got held up by New Zealand I think. I wanted to push for it in the last segment but we had a problem with the pick up of the engine so we didn't even go for a lap. I think it will be difficult to improve or even get points in the Sprint race but definitely in the Feature I think we should be able to get some points.'

Tomorrow's Sprint race in Durban, South Africa will start at 11.00 local time and the 70-minute Feature race will start at 15.00.

Sprint race qualifying results - A1GP Durban, South Africa (round 7 of 10)

Feature race qualifying results - A1GP Durban, South Africa (round 7 of 10)

Aussie Whitewash at Phillip Island

21 May 2013

   Australian riders took all the honours in the second round of the Superbike World Championship at PhillipIsland on the weekend. Troy Bayliss scored comfortable wins in both Superbike races, while Andrew Pitt took out the Supersport race from fellow Aussie Josh Brookes. Troy Corser took a fine second place in the first Superbike race but crashed out of the lead in the second heat.

   It was a disastrous weekend for Max Biaggi (Sterilgarda Ducati), who started from 16th on the grid and then had two crashes in two races, the second of which left him nursing a broken wrist.

   Race 1 - Bayliss led from start to finish to dominate from Corser and Fabrizio. Ruben Xaus took fourth from Nieto in fifth, Checa and Neukirchner, while Noriyuki Haga had tyre problems and could only finish eighth. Biaggi was catching leader Bayliss but the Italian crashed out from second place on lap 16 at the slow right-hander. The race had two starts after Fabrizio stalled on the grid and was hit by Iannuzzo. The factory Ducati rider managed to finish third with muscular contusions to his right leg, while Iannuzzo was taken to hospital with a wrist fracture.

Results

1. Bayliss T. (Ducati) 22 laps;
2. Corser T. (Yamaha) at 4.221;
3. Fabrizio M. (Ducati) at 4.738;
4. Xaus R. (Ducati) at 5.171;
5. Nieto F. (Suzuki) at 5.543;
6. Checa C. (Honda) at 5.895;
7. Neukirchner M. (Suzuki) at 5.964;
8. Haga N. (Yamaha) at 14.826;
9. Kiyonari R. (Honda) at 18.899;
10. Rolfo R. (Honda) at 20.633.

  Race 2 - Corser led the first four laps of the second race before crashing out, leaving Bayliss with a commanding lead. Behind the leader an all-Spanish battle raged between Nieto, Xaus and Checa for second, and the runner-up slot eventually went to the Honda rider, who is making his WSBK debut this year. Nieto took the final podium place, ahead of Xaus, Neukirchner and Kiyonari, another WSBK rookie. Biaggi had a nasty high-speed crash at Turn 1 on lap 7 while battling for second, suffering a broken wrist in the process, but he should be back for the next round at Valencia in one month's time.

Results

1.      Bayliss T. (Ducati) 22 laps;
2. Checa C. (Honda) at 1.127;
3. Nieto F. (Suzuki) at 4.395;
4. Xaus R. (Ducati) at 6.621;
5. Neukirchner M. (Suzuki) at 11.550;
6. Kiyonari R. (Honda) at 11.620;
7. Haga N. (Yamaha) at 12.049;
8. Lavilla G. (Honda) at 12.134;
9. Holland R. (Honda) at 13.462;
10. Muggeridge K. (Honda) at 15.519.

 "It's something you dream of, to have a double win on your last time here" declared Bayliss. "I knew this weekend was going to be very difficult, everybody's riding well and there's a lot of good bikes out there. I have a great team behind me and I'm happy with the result. After the first race I was struggling the last few laps and was worried it was going to be a duel with Max, but he managed to crash and then he did so again in the second race. The times were a little bit slower in race 2 but I felt better on the bike, it was more consistent throughout and a pleasure to ride". 

Riders points: 1. Bayliss 88; 2. Nieto 61; 3. Xaus 59; 4. Corser 45; 5. Checa 45; 6. Neukirchner 39; etc.

Manufacturers points: 1. Ducati 95; 2. Suzuki 63; 3. Yamaha 54; 4. Honda 46; 5. Kawasaki 7.

World Supersport Five riders scrapped for the win right down to the last lap of the 21-lap race, but victory eventually went to former champion Andrew Pitt. The 32 year-old Australian kept a cool head in the final laps to take his first points of the year ahead of  Joshua Brookes and Robbin Harms. Fabien Foret  caught up with the leading group to lead with two laps remaining, but finished fourth, Jonathan Rea (Honda) and Garry McCoy (Triumph) had good races to finish fifth and sixth, while round 1 winner Broc Parkes (Yamaha) crashed out. 

SUPERBIKES Corser on pole in Qatar

21 May 2013

  Troy Corser powered his Motor Italia Yamaha to the 41^st pole position of his career

at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar, the opening round of this years Superbike World Championship Corser had to work hard to hold off the challenge of Ruben Xaus and Max Biaggi, second and third respectively. Corser's time of 1'58.053 was four-tenths of a second quicker than the circuit's best lap, which the 36-year-old Australian set for Yamaha last year. Xaus and Biaggi, both on Ducati 1098 RS08 machines from the private Sterilgarda Go Eleven squad, were heading for a sensational 1-2 before Corser put in his quick lap. Alongside them on the grid for the two races tomorrow will be Alstare Suzuki's young German rider Max Neukirchner.

"I really like this track and the Yamaha seems to work well round here" declared Corser."Last year was a good result but now I feel more relaxed and at ease with the team. I've got to thank all the guys, they worked really hard in the tests which helped us a lot but now I've got to keep my head down and be consistent. We actually struggled a bit in the last free practice after making a few small changes but we went back to we know what works well and hopefully now we can go for the win tomorrow". 

"The team is working very well, I was here testing and was really focused on this race" said Xaus. "The bike worked perfect, the team is incredible, Max Biaggi next to me has given me really more motivation and also more focus so what can I say? Second and third and front row for the team is fantastic!" 

"I don't know if the factory is happy or not but we made an amazing job to be second and third" said Biaggi. "We have a kind of OK set-up for tomorrow, it all depends on the conditions. I more or less made an endurance run for the tyre and I know what it is doing. We will see tomorrow but it looks like it's going to be tough here as always".

"Today was not so bad for us, I was not testing here unlike my team-mates and I think we have now a good set-up" said Neukirchner. "For one lap we are really fast but I think we must try and do a good race to score some points tomorrow". 

Lorenzo Lanzi (RG Team) will line up on the outside of the second row in fifth place on another Ducati 1098 customer machine, a fraction ahead of Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia WSB). Troy Bayliss could only manage seventh on the factory Ducati Xerox 1098, ahead of Yukio Kagayama (Alstare Suzuki) and Carlos Checa (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda), taking part in his first-ever Superpole, while Michel Fabrizio (Ducati Xerox) rounded out the top 10.

 Final qualifying times were; 

1          11 T. CORSER                        1'58.053  

2          111 R. XAUS                          1'58.689

3          3 M. BIAGGI                          1'58.767

4          76 M. NEUKIRCHNER          1'58.964

5          57 L. LANZI                           1'58.975

6          41 N. HAGA                           1'59.017  

7          21 T. BAYLISS                       1'59.224  

8         4 Y. KAGAYAMA                 1'59.285  

9          7 C. CHECA                           1'59.417  

10        84 M. FABRIZIO                    1'59.450  

11        10 F. NIETO                           1'59.921  

12        96 J. SMRZ                             1'59.984  

13        36 G. LAVILLA                      2'00.095  

14        54 K. SOFUOGLU                 2'00.313  

15        44 R. ROLFO                          2'01.208  

16        86 A. BADOVINI ITA            2'01.238  

17        194 S. GIMBERT FRA           2'00.554  

18        31 K. MUGGERIDGE             2'00.607  

19        94 D. CHECA                         2'00.643  

20        23 R. KIYONARI                   2'00.698  

21        13 V. IANNUZZO                  2'00.854  

22        83 R. HOLLAND                   2'00.971  

23        100 M.TAMADA                    2'01.303  

24        22 L. MORELLI ITA               2'01.396  

25        55 R. LACONI                        2'01.429  

26        38 S. NAKATOMI                 2'01.675  

27        88 S. AOYAMA JPN              2'02.059  

28        77 L. NAPOLEONE               2'05.516      

Sam Snape23/02/2008

Champ Car & the IRL Finally Merge

21 May 2013

  After 12 years of damaging rivalry Champ Car and the Indy Racing League have signed a deal to merge their series effective immediately Some details, such as which races will go into the unified series, are still to be finalized but after many abortive attempts, the deal is done. This will result in a much stronger US open wheel racing scene and hopefully return the series to the heights it enjoyed in the late 80’s and early 90’s.

  The owners of the two series issued a short statement on Friday night which read; “Owners of Champ Car and the Indy Racing League completed an agreement in principle Friday that will unify the sport for 2008. Gerald Forsythe, co-owner of Champ Car, signed an agreement in principle in Chicago, joining his partner Kevin Kalkhoven and Indy Racing League founder and CEO Tony George who had signed late Thursday in Indianapolis.”

Just how many Champ Car teams will join the IRL is still to be confirmed but most of the large teams, Newman Haas, Forsythe & Team Australia/Walker Motorsports will be sure to join.

  Team Australia chief, Derrick Walker, was at the announcement and had this to say; “It's been a long road, but it has finally come together. One open-wheel racing series in the United States has long been recognized as what fans and sponsors want to have, and I'm happy to say that Walker Racing embraces the decision. I also want to give a special thanks to all the past and present CART/Champ Car officials for all their hard work in giving us some great seasons."

  IRL team bosses, Bobby Rahal and Michael Andretti also expressed their delight at the merger. "This is a great day for open-wheel racing and one that I and my Rahal Letterman Racing team have looked forward to for a long time," Rahal said in a statement.  Michael Andretti said "This is a huge day for the IRL and for our sport as a whole. Over the years as a driver, team owner, and promoter, I've always wanted a unified sport.”

Sam Snape

23/02/2008 

A1GP South Africa Wins in Sydney Ahead of Home Event

21 May 2013

Australia - A1 Team South Africa secured its second A1GP race win of the season in this afternoon's action-packed Feature race at Sydney's Eastern Creek Raceway, closing the gap to third-placed Switzerland in the championship standings. The weekend brought the championship battle even closer together with leaders New Zealand and France both heading to the next race in Durban, South Africa on 96 points.

Adrian Zaugg drove a sensational race in treacherous conditions as the heavy rain continued to pour down, to cross the line almost 20 seconds ahead of Switzerland's Neel Jani in second. The result is a huge boost for the South African team as it gears up for its home event in three weeks time.

Great Britain's Robbie Kerr, who briefly fell back a place after making a good start from third on the grid alongside China in fourth, took the third and final podium position after a strong race in difficult conditions.

The on-track action began before the lights went out to signal the start of the 42-lap race with pole-sitter New Zealand's Jonny Reid grinding to a halt just after leaving the pits to form up on the grid. The marshals were not able to push start the stalled car uphill and as a result Black Beauty started from pit lane. Moments later Sprint race winner Loic Duval stalled the French car on the formation lap and was forced to start the race from the back of the grid, potentially putting both title rivals out of contention.

Brazil's Sergio Jimenez was on brilliant form this afternoon, racing from ninth on the grid to a solid fourth place, the nation's second best result of the season. The Brazilian team, who now lie ninth in the championship standings, was joined at Eastern Creek by 2002 FIFA World Cup winning Brazilian midfielder Juninho, who is currently playing for Sydney FC.

Having started from the back of the grid due to a clutch problem that caused him to stall, France's Loic Duval made steady progress and by lap 16 he had caught USA's Jonathan Summerton and Canada's Robert Wickens and the trio commenced a three-way fight for sixth place. In an ambitious move four laps later, Duval snuck down the inside of the American car, forcing Summerton to run off the track and ultimately ending his race.

The French team, still hampered by its clutch problem, received a drive through penalty for causing the avoidable collision and Duval's race was finally over when he failed to get the car going after his second compulsory pit stop on lap 31.

Home nation Australia's John Martin wowed the crowds as his impressive form continued, carving his way through the field from 14th to bring Jackaroo home in a superb fifth place, the nation's best ever result on home soil.

Germany's Michael Ammermüller just managed to fend off the Netherlands's Jeroen Bleekemolen across the line, the pair taking seventh and eighth place respectively. New Zealand's Jonny Reid, who started from pit lane and China's Congfu Cheng, who was hit with a drive through penalty for making a false start, took the final two point-scoring positions.

Just outside the points was India's Narain Karthikeyan who crossed the line in 11th position, closely followed by Pakistan's Adam Khan in 12th, who drove a solid race to secure the team's best result of the season.

Feature race winner South Africa's Adrian Zaugg praised his team's good tactical call in difficult conditions before the first round of pit stops:

'I have to thank Humphrey my engineer and the whole team for that call. I could see I was able to go at a better pace than at least Robbie and Neel, so I thought we had a good chance. We stayed out and put in some good laps and then pitted and got out ahead. It was very very hard in these conditions. Each time I was trying to get a move or to pass someone but when you come so close the visibility gets so bad you can't see anything. It was just safer to wait until we got a chance for some clear laps and that's all we did. The track conditions stayed pretty consistent but there was maybe a little less rain right at the end.'

Commenting on winning the Sydney Feature race ahead of his nation's home event in three weeks time, Zaugg said:

'The win gives you lots of confidence but each time it's a new race and a new day and I always give it my best, but definitely we have a great motivation coming to Durban.'

Second-placed Switzerland's Neel Jani, who benefited from his title rivals New Zealand and France starting from the back of the grid, said:

'I had a bad take off but the second part of my start was good. As the cars were rolling down I had to have my foot on the brake as I didn't want to have the same mistake I had at the last race when I was penalised for making a false start. It was still enough to be P1 into the first lap and I could just keep that position with more or less the same pace as the guys behind me. Then we came in on the first lap possible for the first pit stop. South Africa stayed out which was the better call but I think their pace certainly was pretty quick and it would have been hard to keep them behind us.'

GBR's Robbie Kerr, who endured a difficult weekend last time out in New Zealand, raced to a solid third place and was pleased to notch up some more championship points for the team:

'After the disappointment of Taupo where we didn't score any points, GBR had to get a good result and the podium is a nice way to do it. Unfortunately it wasn't two places higher, I'm sure I would have a bigger smile on my face if it was! The initial take off was good, but unfortunately as I ran over the start finish line where New Zealand would have been, the rear wheels just span up a little bit and we just lost traction from that point on. I just had to slow the car to regain traction and then try to accelerate again and by that point Brazil and South Africa had gone past. We had to get a good result here and it wasn't worth taking a big risk.'

New Zealand and France both leave Sydney with 96 championship points, but the Kiwis hold the title lead due to number of race wins. Switzerland lies just three points behind in third place ahead of South Africa in fourth on 76 points, as the series heads to Durban, South Africa for round seven on 22-24 February 2008.

Feature race results

2007/08 A1GP World Cup of Motorsport points standings

Fastest lap: A1 Team South Africa set the fastest lap in the Feature race, lapping the Eastern Creek circuit in 1m.39.034s with a speed of 142.9 kph on lap 33 of the 42 lap race.

Next race: A1GP Durban, South Africa, 22-24 February 2008