Random Thoughts... (Motorsports Edition)

Race 3 was epic, I was on my feet for Plato. Turkington is a great champion, but it has left me thinking what could have been for Plato had it not been so bad at the start of the year...
 
^Thank you sir :) +1
 
@BSenna is a verified account on Twitter now. Damn, these Brazilian racing drivers really like the idea of Twitter...

I don?t know about other countries, but Twitter is HUGE in Brazil. They are just keeping up with the hype.
 
Since Bathurst is about to start this week :)mrgreen:) i thought i should show you why animals and motorsport don't mix.

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsBL51yj7ys[/YOUTUBE]

Don't watch this if you have a weak stomach. :|
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmGEvRFQcqU[/YOUTUBE]
 
I see your Australian Supercars and raise you a DTM:
[YOUTUBE]VLXgTX55kUE[/YOUTUBE]
 
:|
 
After karting practice today I met one of my racing driver friends and we went around Infineon in his E46 M3. We passed a Lambo LP560. :D Jim Russell racing school! Pass rich talentless people!
 
^ Ford also does the pink "Warriors" scheme on the Mustang IIRC.


I just raced the two final races in the Jim Russell championship. I ended up 3rd in the championship standings out of 24 drivers. Didn't win any F3 seat time unfortunately. Though, in the final race, race 10, I faced off against a Formula 3 racer and kept him pretty busy while duking it out for first. I messed up my passes by getting too anxious about carrying exit speed and not parking it at the apex like I should've. I crossed the line 1 second behind him unfortunately, but in so doing I impressed the director of the Allan McNish Future Driver program. Film at 11.

I also passed my 1 thousandth mile in the kart today. That's well over one-thousand five-hundred laps. 23 hours in the kart...

EDIT: Hey look, it's 11 already.

[vimeo]7003940[/vimeo]


[vimeo]7004052[/vimeo]
 
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You can never kill the fire burning inside a great racing driver. :)

Alesi set to join AF Corse Ferrari

By Matt Beer Wednesday, October 14th 2009, 09:32 GMT

Jean Alesi is set to race in Ferrari colours again next season after impressing the AF Corse GT team when he tested its GT2 Ferrari at Fiorano yesterday.

The test was Alesi's first outing for Ferrari since he drove for its Formula 1 team between 1991 and 1995, and was undertaken with a view to the Frenchman racing for AF Corse in the Le Mans Series and possibly also the Le Mans 24 Hours in 2010.

Team boss Amato Ferrari was delighted with Alesi's performance, which saw him complete 65 laps and get down to a best time of 1m15.80s.

"We didn't need to use a slot in the afternoon's programme thanks to Jean's exceptional performance in a test where we just had to adjust the driver's position in the car and refuel; no mechanical modifications were necessary," said Ferrari.

"That's why we are extremely optimistic as far as a possible involvement of Jean in our 2010 programme is concerned."

Alesi said he thoroughly enjoyed the test and that returning to Fiorano had been an emotional experience.

"I feel as if I was young again, like at the start of my career, when I still had to demonstrate my ability," said the 45-year-old "It was an unbelievable emotion to get back on the track and I immediately gained confidence with the car, really phenomenal."

Since retiring from F1, Alesi has competed in the DTM and more recently the Speedcar Series, where he was a multiple race winner before the championship folded earlier this year.

And if he races at Le Mans next year, he will achieve an astounding 21-year gap between consecutive appearances.
 
So, A1GP can't afford to come to the Gold Coast this weekend for the Australian Round. Alan Jones is talking about pulling Team Australia out of the series. Apparently A1GP is struggling financial and it could die soon, I can see why, the bits I've seen of it was rather dull.

So, now that Champ Car/Indy and A1GP have pulled out of the Gold Coast, will we see Qld put in a bid to lure F1 to the streets of Surfers Paradise? After all Melbourne posted another loss this year, bigger then last year.
 
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^ I don't see it happening - I doubt the Qld govt would be interested in the GP given it makes a loss (on paper). The rumblings about A1GP have been going on for a while now, so it's no surprise they've pulled out of Surfers. On the upside, we're getting 4 x 150kms V8 races now instead of 2 x 200kms.
 
Fairly disappointing A1GP won't make it to the coast. V8s are good but it would have been nice to see the A1 cars trundling round. I was thinking of going but don't think I'll bother now, just watch on TV and throw open the windows. I've also been out and ran the track a few times both on foot and car, seems pretty good with a few new surfaces having gone down. Had to laugh when I went through the pits though, didn't realise the garages were basically tents, zippered flaps on the front and all.
By the way, the Queensland government wouldn't know a good idea if it had 100% support, so don't hold your breath for any big series to replace A1, let alone F1.
 
Not content on letting an A1GP-no show spoil the party at next week?s Nikon SuperGP on the Gold Coast, Queensland Minister for Sport, Phil Reeves, has headed a task force to create what will be an amazing celebration of Australian motorsport.

Some of Australia?s motorsport greats and the owners of some of Australia?s most prized motoring possessions have agreed to come together to mark the next phase of one of the world?s most spectacular motorsport festivals.

Some of the great names will include Dick Johnson, Kevin Bartlett, John ?Rusty? French, Glenn Seton and Colin Bond and more will be announced in the coming days.

They will thrill the crowd at close to race speeds in machines that have been a part of Australian motorsport folklore for generations ? loud, fast and sideways!

They will be driving a host of former championship and Bathurst-winning cars including Allan Moffat?s famous Coca-Cola Mustang, Norm Beechey?s Monaro, Ian ?Pete? Geoghegan?s Super Falcon, Bartlett?s famous Channel 9 Camaro, Peter Brock?s A9X Torana, Iim Richard?s JPS 635 BMW, Glenn and Bo Seton?s Ford Capri and Johnson?s Tru Blue Falcon XD ? all valued well in excess of $1 million each.

Johnson will be joined by his son Steve, who will also be competing in the four 150km V8 Supercar events on the streets of the Gold Coast, and will get the chance to have a drive of a couple of the cars that made his dad a household name in Australia.

On top of the new Muscle Car line-up, the event will also celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first of Sir Jack Brabham?s three Formula 1 world titles.

Brabham, his Le Mans-winning son Geoff and talented grandson Matthew, who are the number 1-2-3 ticket holders for the event, will join the group of legend drivers for special Saturday and Sunday afternoon parade laps.

A couple of Sir Jack?s open-wheel racers will cut a few laps and Matthew will be involved in a special re-enactment of his grandfathers inaugural 1959 championship victory in which he pushed his car over the line at Sebring in Florida to clinch the title.

The group of legendary touring cars and drivers will be on constant display in a free public pit area and there will be at least two autograph sessions during the weekend.

The entire group will share stories and swap tales during the gala ball at Conrad Jupiters on Friday night.

?We need to put the A1GP situation behind us, re-group and put on the best show possible for the fans and television viewers,? said Minister Reeves.

?In a very short period of time we have managed to secure some of the greatest names and cars in Australian motorsport history to compete on the streets of the Gold Coast next weekend.

?With some of these legendary cars and the magical V8 Supercars we have an amazing celebration of Australian motorsport.

?To have names like Johnson, Bartlett, Seton and Bond sitting in pit lane beside modern day heroes like Whincup, Tander, Lowndes and Ingall is going to be fantastic and more than a suitable replacement for the former category.

?When you add the tribute to Sir Jack and the involvement of the Brabham family you have something pretty special.?

Queensland motorsport legend Dick Johnson, said the ?party must go on? and he could not think of a better way to add to his ?home? event.
Johnson and his V8 Supercar driving son, Steve, have also been named joint grand marshals as part of today?s announcement.

?It is un-Australian to sit back and ***** and moan, we need to get on with it,? said Johnson.

?I think the Minister and his group needs to be congratulated for acting so fast to pull this fantastic group together after A1GP left the event in a very difficult situation.

?So many fans will have only seen pictures of some of these cars. For them to be able to see them in action and get up close to them will be something special and I cannot wait to get out there and have a blast around.?

The program has been put in place with the help of well-known Queensland-based car collector David Bowden and his sons Dan and Chris from Bowden?s own Car Care products, who will supply 10 of the proposed 12-car field.

?The Muscle Car era of Australian motorsport is something that runs deep with every Australian motorsport fan and we are delighted that the crowd on the Gold Coast will have the opportunity to get up close to some of these cars,? said David Bowden.

?As a Queensland family we are delighted to be in a position where we can work with the Minister and the event organisers to pull this together at short notice.

?They say everything is meant for a reason and hopefully this is the beginning of something special at the Gold Coast.?

Nikon SuperGP General Manager, Greg Hooton, said the newly announced four 150km V8 Supercar race format and the injection of the Australian Legends category would see the Gold Coast event keep its status as one of the world?s great celebrations of motorsport.

Sounds like they've got a worthy replacement for A1GP. :mrgreen:
 
I think the V8s were a suitable replacement (even though they were going to be there originally), if I was going to the "SuperGP" it wouldn't have been for A1GP that's for sure.
 
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