A Record BTCC Grid: Our day at Silverstone on 16 October 2011...

Now in 2013, the British Touring Car Championship announced a record 32 car entry for the 2013 season. In fact its possible at one of the next few rounds of this season there could be 30 cars on the grid...

So it got me thinking to back in 2011 when my partner Nik, Stepson Aaron and I were lucky enough to be at the last BTCC event that had a record number of cars on the grid...

16th October 2011 at Silverstone...

Let me tell you about that day... Better put that Kettle on...

2011 was a season of many highlights for the BTCC. Turbo engines, performance balancing, Jason Plato bitching on TV, Fully NGTC Cars and the first season for Team ES Racing & Chris James and a certain Tony Gilham in BTCC. Now I've already explained about Aaron sponsoring Tony in another post, so you already know we were there supporting Mr Gilham...

But this time he wasn't in a 888 Vauxhall Vectra. After the Croft meeting, Tony and 888 parted ways and we were left crestfallen. Aaron even refused to watch the Knockhill meeting on ITV4, purely for the reason Tony wasn't there. It was that simple.

Although he did miss a great 2 wheel moment from Chris James during qualifying in the Team ES Racing Chevrolet Lacetti...

However that changed when it was announced that Tony would return to the BTCC in the next round at Rockingham with Geoff Steel Racing in their normally aspirated BMW 320si that Dave Newsham had driven at Brands Hatch and Donington Park earlier in the season.

So we made a huge effort to get to Rockingham to support our man with his new team and steed "Clarence".

Yes, the Green and Pink BMW was called Clarence...

Seriously!!!

The Pink and Green BMW image on this blog was called Matilda...

Anyway, we made our way to Rockingham with my friend Kane in tow. He is a close friend of mine who was into photography at the time and having a tryout for Team ES Racing, taking photos of the team in action. So we were there supporting 2 normally aspirated cars amongst a field of turbo powered cars of various weights and boosts to keep things equal.

We met up with Gary, his manager along with the beautiful Sammi, Big Tony, Deb, Deb, the lovely Ben (The Rock of the Tony Gilham operation...) and the man himself. They were so happy we had come to support Tony and the team. Before long we were treated to hospitality and Aaron was shown around the garage and the BMW that Tony would drive in all three races. Aaron was in his element while myself and Nik watched the 3 races from on top of the Pit Garages.

I recommend it for the good viewing...

What we didn't know until later was that Tony's family had stayed on site at Billing Aquadrome for the weekend, where we live. How we missed each other isn't a mystery as the place is so huge, but it didn't stop Aaron challenging Tony to a race on the Go Kart track on site next time they stayed there. Cant wait for that day...

Anyway we spent the day cheering on Tony from the rooftops as he fought bravely against the other 28 S2000/Turbo's, S2000 N/A, NGTC and BTC regulation cars in the field, taking finishes in the top 15 in all 3 races. At the Rockingham meeting there were 29 BTCC cars entered and at the season finale meeting at Silverstone, a record 30 cars were entered.

I will point out that Aaron's high point was Tony showing him around the car. This high point beats the on the spot  photo he had taken with Lewis Hamilton (who was there supporting his brother Nick in Renault Clio support races) and asking who James Thompson was and why so many people wanted to talk to him... To be fair, Aaron didn't know who James was, but that didn't stop him asking him for a photo with "That Johnny Depp looking bloke..."

Anyway, again we gathered the funds together and headed to Silverstone for the Season Finale. Another of my friends Jon Mason from work met up with us there to see what this "Touring Car Malarky" was all about and why it got me as excited as F1 did. Jon and I love Motorsport and love chatting about it every second we can get...until they seperate us...

Even to this day I am still unsure as to how Jon and his brother in law made it onto the actual grid for one of the races. One minute he is in the RML Chevrolet Team garage, the next he is being ushered onto the grid! I reckon he traded in on his rockstar looks...

This time, Tony was armed with a TOCA supplied Turbo engine for his Geoff Steel Racing BMW and hopes were high in Camp Gilham that he could end the season on a high note. However Race 1 spelled a bad start to the race day.

Nik, Aaron, Sammi and I watched with a few of Tony's staff between Copse and Maggotts hoping to get a good view of the field on the first few laps. We cheered as he went past on the warm up lap. At the start of Race 1, Tony was turned around and fired off into the barrier on the start/finish straight after contact with Ollie Jackson in the 888 Vectra, damaging the BMW. Our hearts were in our mouths as we prayed for him to be ok.

Aaron sprinted from the hospitality tent to the pits, whilst Sammi grabbed Nik and Big Tony in a golf cart to see if Tony was ok. Aaron beat them to the garage to make sure his hero was ok. Tony was battered and bruised but ready to carry on. The cheer that roared through the hospitality tent drowned out the noise of the racing outside as Tony made it back, giving a thumbs up that he was ok.

For Race 2, Tony would start at the back of the grid with the BMW repaired and ready to race. This time Aaron, Nik, Sammi and I took up seats in the massive grandstand that was erected at Maggotts corner, where the cars turned onto the National Circuit. Whilst Matt Neal and Gordon Shedden were fighting for the title, our interest was focused on the comeback drive of the Pink and Green BMW. As the cars circulated, I couldn't help myself counting positions and calling out drivers names as they raced past.

Seeing as it wasn't clear who had a turbo engine and who didn't, who was in an NGTC car and who wasn't, I was happily pointing out who had a normally aspirated engined car to Nik and Sammi, so that they knew who Tony was up against and if he had a fair chance at passing them. A cheer went up each time he made a position on track and we happily told other spectators "We're cheering for the Pink & Green Beemer!!" when asked.

After the final race of the day, all of Tonys friends, family and fans were treated to a great performance by topline Elvis impersonator Scott Elvis (yes thats his name and he's bloody good too!). However at one stage the whole tent was clapping and singing when suddenly it all went quiet...

Why? I hear you ask...

Aaron did it again...

Not content with the tyre he got from 888 at Thruxton earlier in the season (signed by Tony and James Nash), Aaron was happily wheeling in the front wheel and tyre that was detached in the Race 1 retirement after being given permission to take it home but none other than Geoff Steel himself!!! He had the biggest smile on his face as he declared to Nik... "Mum, look what I got!!!"

Tony signed the wheel that evening "To Aaron, My Number 1 fan" and it sits proudly with his other touring car parts. We sung and danced to Elvis as the night came in, celebrating an exciting season as supporters of Tony Gilham and the first season where Nik, Aaron and Myself visited Silverstone, Donington Park, Thruxton, Snetterton and Rockingham for the first time in one season.

Tony would go on to setup Team HARD. for 2012 and take his first Indie win at Donington Park in the Honda Civic (yup we were there too) and lead Race 3 in the wet at Thruxton.

So thats the story of how we enjoyed the day that the BTCC last had a record number of entries...

Anyway, go and make that cup of tea... You've earned it.

Cheers

Phil.

Two of our WTCC drivers are missing...

There are 2 of the worlds best Touring Cars drivers missing from the 2013 World Touring Car Championship grid and they have a few things in common.

Before I carry on, I want to make it clear that these are my own thoughts and opinions on this subject.

In 2012, both drivers drove an RML built Chevrolet Cruze each, arguably the best S2000 Touring Car in action at this time...

They competed against each other in 2 races of the 2012 WTCC...In equal cars.

One was in contention for the 2012 World Touring Car Championship, while the other was in the hunt for the 2012 Swedish Touring Car Championship...

Both drivers have won the British Touring Car Championship in the Super Touring Era...one of them a double champion...

And both are missing from the 2013 WTCC season.

I refer of course to Swiss driver Alain Menu and Swedish driver Rickard Rydell. Both legends in the history of Touring Car Racing.

Menu was a staple part of the Chevrolet Works WTCC Team when they entered 3 Lacetti's for Menu, Rob Huff and ex F1 and ex DTM Alfa Romeo driver Nicola Larini in 2005. He took wins in the Lacetti and was a formidable force in the Cruze when it replaced the Lacetti in 2009. In fact he was in the hunt to win either the 2011 or 2012 WTCC Titles but bad luck would sideline both attempts. He was a fast driver in his BTCC days, winning races and titles for the Williams F1 led Renault team in 1997 and the Prodrive run Ford team in 2000.

Rydell is a formidable force in a Touring Car as well. He shot to fame in the BTCC in 1994, making his debut in the TWR Volvo team with the iconic 850 Estate and winning the 1998 BTCC Title in the S40. He was a works SEAT driver in the WTCC for several years before taking a break and returning as a Chevrolet Motorsport Sweden driver in the Swedish Touring Car Championship, winning the 2011 title in a Chevrolet Cruze.

However the off season between the end of 2012 to the start of 2013 was cruel for both drivers. Chevrolet announced that they were withdrawing their Works support at the end of 2012 in the WTCC, leaving RML as an independent team for 2013 needing money and their trio of drivers Huff, Muller and Menu looking for drives.

While RML found sponsorship from Lukoil and Aon to keep Muller signed on and Tom Chilton as his team mate, Huff signed up with Munnich Motorsport to drive a SEAT Leon.

Menu was unsure of where he would drive...

Now the shame is that there were efforts to get Menu into a 3rd drive at RML alongside Muller and Chilton and there a backup plan that could've seen him in a Bamboo Chevy had the RML drive fallen through. Alain has explained in recent interviews on various touring car news websites that there was a 3rd team with a Chevrolet Cruze that again needed a budget from Menu for him to race. I'm guessing that was NIKA Racing...and it is a guess.

There was even a rumoured attempt that Menu could've have been in a Works Ford Focus with Fabrizio Giovanardi as a team mate had Arena International/Team Aon become a Works Ford Team...

I just want to make it clear, the Ford Rumour was just that... A Rumour.

But Alain has made one thing clear. When it comes to Touring Car racing, he was well aware that he couldn't raise the budget needed for him to pay for a drive and that he has always been a Works driver. Whether it was Renault/Ford in the BTCC, Opel in the DTM or Chevrolet in the WTCC, he makes no bones that he cant raise a budget and has always been a successful works driver and his honesty is refreshing.

Alain has admitted to testing the prototype car Citroen may base its WTCC Car on should they confirm they will enter the Championship. That alone will get the rumour mongers started that he will be Sebastian Loeb's team mate in a Works Citroen WTCC Team. Just to make it clear, Citroen havent decided yet if they will enter at the writing of this blog.

Its not a bad idea either...

However for 2013, Alain has a full season drive in the F1 supporting series that is the Porsche Supercup. He has said he is open to a return to Touring Cars and his experience in turning cars into title winners is highly regarded. He will be in high demand for 2014...

For Rickard, his missing from a potential WTCC/STCC appearance is a different matter.

In 2011, the Touring Car scene in Sweden has a disagreement over the next set of regulations to replace the highly expensive S2000 regulations. Normally Sweden follows the lead of the UK and its BTCC Series. This has been the case since 1996 when the STCC was formed.

Two options were available. The organisers wanted to use the BTCC's newly announced Next Generation Touring Car egs where the cars are built from spec parts and use 2.0 litre Turbo engines supplied by TOCA. The 2nd option was favoured by the 4 biggest teams in the series who wanted to follow the Silouhette regs and have all cars built to the same regs, same shape and more powerful engines that include a Push to Pass system. This gives the driver a boost to the engine when overtaking another driver for position.

The STCC split and for one year the teams created the Touring car Teams Association League. It was obvious as the STCC and TTA competed for crowds and against each other that only one set of rules could be used for a safe future. One year later in 2012, everyone agreed to follow the TTA regs.

Now Rydell had competed in the S2000 STCC, winning the title against Johan Kristofferson in the biogas powered turbo VW Scirocco in 2011, only for Kristofferson to win it in 2012. It should be noted that the STCC has always suffered with competitors running several types of engine over the years and performance balancing of turbo's and car weights being adjusted to make the racing as equal as possible on track.

However Rydell made his intentions clear in early 2013 that he would not be taking part in the new 2013 combined STCC as he was unhappy with the Silhouette cars. Instead Rydell is commentating on Formula 1 and DTM races for Swedish TV.

Now personally, I think that Rickard should be in the WTCC with NIKA Racing this year as team mate to Michel Nykjaer. Before he joined the team in 2011, in 2007 Rydell drove a 4th works Chevrolet Lacetti in the Swedish WTCC round at Anderstorp. He drove well in Race 1 and he won Race 2 ahead of Menu and Larini...much to Larini's upset...

In 2011 Rydell drove a standard S2000 normally aspirated RML built Chevrolet Cruze with Vicktor Hallrup as his team mate. He won the 2011 title after some controversy in the finale that year. In 2012, Nykjaer replaced Hallrup and NIKA Racing was evaluating an full season entry into the WTCC. Rydell drove his STCC Title winning Cruze at the opening weekend in Monza with a 1.6 litre turbo. He ran in the top 6 of both races and traded fastest laps with the Works WTCC Chevrolet drivers of Menu, Muller and Huff. Rydell and Nykjaer would go on to drive WTCC spec Chevys in the 2012 STCC season with dispensation from the organisers.

Now this year in WTCC, Nykjaer has won 2 races in his NIKA Racing Cruze and it shows that were Rydell able to race, he would be up there too. Consider the facts that he would be in a team that delivered him a car capable of winning a title, a car he has driven for 3 seasons to wins and podiums and is very familiar with and a possible shot at a title against triple WTCC Champion Yvan Muller in the same machinery.

Both Huff and Menu proved that in equal cars, Muller can be beaten...

So as far as I'm concerned, there should be 7 Chevrolet Cruze's on the WTCC grid with Menu in a 3rd RML Car hasseling Muller for a title  that Menu deserves whilst Rydell is pushing them both in a 2nd NIKA Racing Cruze.

And the WTCC would be an even better prospect.

However I will again make it clear that these are my own thoughts and opinions about these 2 drivers and that I am happy that they are both still involved in motorsport in 2013.

I do hope that both Menu and Rydell are able to compete in the 2014 WTCC with its new regulations and cars expected to take place. James Thompson has proved that he can make a WTCC Comeback, so fingers crossed that Menu and Rydell can.

Anyway, enjoy the Bank Holiday...and the sun!!

Cheers

Phil.

WTCC Austria...Fast and Furious...

The latest weekend from the FIA World Touring Car Championship was an interesting one. The fast Salzburgring in Austria was the scene for the latest 2 races in what is proving to be a close and interesting 2013 season, but also it was a weekend of note for many reasons...

First of all the weekend began with Honda being penalised for the rear wing on all 3 Civics being illegal by fractions of measurement. That meant that all 3 cars were to start from the back in Race 1. It would put a dent in Tarquini's aspirations to catch Muller in the title hunt but they would soldier on.

Next came qualifying. Now this is a much more simpler affair than in recent seasons of WTCC. Q1 sets the grid for positions 13 to 24 for both races, so if you qualify 14th, you start 14th for both races. This session is normally 20 - 30 minutes long, depending on if the track is a circuit or street circuit.

Q2 sets the top 10 positions for Race 1 and Race 2. However the top 12 cars from Q1 go through to Q2. Drivers that qualify in 11th and 12th positions start in those positions for both races. However the top 10 cars start as they qualify for Race 1 but for Race 2, the top 10 is reversed. So if you qualify on Pole Position for Race 1, you start 10th for Race 2.

Still with me? Good. You've earned yourself a cup of tea...

In WTCC, when the series goes to tracks with long straights, cars slipstream or tow each other to get a quicker laptime in Qualifying. This backfired in Austria. With Q1 set, the top 11 cars went out for their first runs in Q2 with Tom Coronel choosing to save tyres and go out at the end of the session.

For the second run, RML Driver Tom Chilton led the train of cars out of the pits. But as he had no partner infront to tow him to a faster laptime, Tom slowed up, hoping to allow the others behind him to go past and set faster times.

But no one did.

In fact at one stage all 12 cars slowed to an officially recorded speed of 32 kmh. As a result, althought Coronel and Nash sped up to try and set times, all 12 cars crossed the line after the time ran out.

Cue 14 drivers getting called to the stewards office with their Team Managers in tow and the Race 1 grid left in tatters. On track Muller was on pole with Chilton beside him in an RML AON/Lukoil 1-2. The outcome would be much different and announced on Sunday Morning after Warm Up.

Cue Michel Nykjaer on Pole Position for Race 1 and Muller down in 13th. A very much topsy turvey grid that led to a great Race 1 and a 2nd WTCC win for danish driver Nykjaer and swedish team NIKA Racing. (I have a thought about this which I will share in another post...)

Now while Nykjaer had a race long defence against James Nash in the Bamboo Chevrolet Cruze (and by god did James push him hard!) the other drivers that were misplaced due to penalties went to work. First of all Yvan Muller who managed to go from 13th to 3rd in Race 1, not giving or asking any quarter from any of his opponents. Yvan is mighty at any track against any of the current crop of WTCC drivers and this was another display from the triple world champion.

However Yvan wasnt alone in his charge. Alex MacDowall towed the Frenchman with him and brought Rob Huff in the SEAT along too. However MacDowall's day was halted when he found the BMW's of Barth & Bennani tough competition. He would pass Barth however finish 5th behind Bennani with Muller 3rd.

Huff followed both Chevy drivers through but his progress was hampered by Chilton and then contact with Thompson. Rob was easily the fasest SEAT again and his racecraft showed as he carved his way through the field. Chilton, Huff, Thompson and Coronel completed the top 10. The Honda's would finish 11th, 12th and 13th making progress from the back of the field but complaining of a lack of power.

Race 2 was a more normal affair. The original Race 1 grid had Muller on Pole, so he would start 10th while James Nash would be on Pole with Michelisz on the front row with him.

Norbert powered passed Nash at the standing start  however by the end of lap 1, James had powered back passed the black and orange Honda and stayed there to take his first outright win in WTCC and the first for Silverstone based team Bamboo Engineering. He's the 3rd first time winner this season...

Meanwhile Muller did what he does best.

Pass everyone...

Again...

He started 10th, however by the end of the 12 lap race he finished 2nd having overtaken Huff, Tarquini, Race 1 winner Nykjaer, Oriola, Monteiro, MacDowall and Michelisz. Theres no stopping this guy when he's fired up and he's proven time and again that he can start 10th and take a podium or even a win in his trusty Chevrolet Cruze.

While the Honda's showed that they are still down on power compared to the Cruze, the Lada's showed that running at their lightest weight so far, they can fight with the others. Thommo took 9th in Race 1 and 12th in Race 2. Koslovskiy finished behind him in both races but the young Russian is improving.

The BMW's suffered as expected on the high speed circuit with their power deficit hurting them. In Race 1 Engstler and Ng tangled taking Darryl O'Young with them whilst Coronel salvaged 2 10th places. Barth and Bennani scored well in Race 1 but this could be attributed to the topsy turvy grid.

A quick mention of Tom Boardman and Special Tuning Racing who have sat out Austria and will also miss Moscow while they try to sort the issues they've suffered since his huge crash in Narrakech. All being well they will return for Porto.

Next up is the Moscow Raceway as the WTCC makes its first appearence in Russia. This will be new territory to everyone as none of the current grid have raced there before...however you can bet on one thing...

Muller will be leading the pack...While the pack squabble hard behind.

Cheers

Phil.

The 2011 European Touring Car Cup... What Could have been...

This year Danish driver Michel Nykjaer races in the WTCC in a NIKA Racing Chevrolet Cruze 1.6 turbo. He's been a double ETCC champion but there was almost a 3rd title, against big touring car opposition...

Just to keep this simple, I'll concentrate on the faster S2000 runners...

Now in the 1980's the ETCC stood for the European Touring Car Championship with the races being around 3 hours long and driver changes.

However in 2005 when it was ressurected as the European Touring Car Cup. It followed the setup of the regulations of the modern WTCC. In Race 1 the grid has a rolling start and the top 8 finishers in Race 1 are swapped for the standing start in Race 2. Points are scored in both races and naturally the driver with the most points wins the title.

There is a difference with the cars that take part. From 2005 to 2011, the cars eligible in both the ETCC and WTCC run to S2000 regulations. However for the 2011 season the WTCC engine regulations were changed from 2.0 litre normally aspirated to 1.6 litre turbo petrol only. The cars eligible from 2005 to 2011 are now known as S2000 Appendix J as per the FIA regulations.

Also, the ETCC is a Multi-Class series with other classes included such as Super 1600, Super Production and the Single Make Trophy for Renault Clio's and SEAT Leon Supercopa cars. So there's plenty of variety.

Now normally the grids aren't too big for the races but in 2012 the FIA increased the amount of races from 2 rounds on Sunday to 10 rounds over 5 weekends with 3 of those weekends being on the support bill of the WTCC. So its a good step up for those looking to attempt the World Championship.

Now in 2011 the ETCC took place at the Salzburgring in Austria, part owned by Red Bull. The main contenders for the Cup that year were European Touring Car Ace Fabrizio Giovanardi driving for the dutch Hartmann Honda Team in a Honda Accord Euro R, a young Pepe Oriola in the SEAT Leon TDI run by SEAT Customer team SUNRED, Michel Nykjaer in the NIKA Racing Chevrolet Cruze and Tomas Engstrom in a Honda Team Sweden Accord Euro R.

Now Giovanardi has many european touring car titles to his name from the early 1990's up until 2008. Nykjaer and Engstrom were front runners in the Swedish Touring Car Championship however Oriola was in his first WTCC season and was in the ETCC that weekend to gain experience.

During the dry conditions of the two practice sessions on Saturday Giovanardi and Nykjaer traded fastest laps with Oriola and Engstrom always in close company. In Qualifying, the track was drenched with heavy rain and Giovanardi took Pole Position from Oriola.

Nykjaer however had issues in the rain with the Chevrolet Cruze not wanting to start. When he did set a time, it was 10 seconds down on Pole. It was the start of many issues for him and the team.

In the first race the field started behind the safety car for the rolling start and it was Giovanardi who led from Oriola and Engstrom in terrible conditions with the rain lashing down. Bennani and Okyay squabbled in their BMW 320si's in the conditions but were never a formidable force. Nykjaer never featured in the race. He left the pits several laps down, retiring with a puncture and electrical problems.

Giovanardi managed hold Oriola at bay for the majority of the race. It was like seeing David taking on Goliath in the pouring rain. However David didn't win this one. Giovanardi held the young spaniard at bay to take the win, but was impressed at Oriola's race craft and the race long pressure he applied.

In Race 2, the top 8 finishers from Race 1 were reversed leaving Giovanardi 8th, Oriola 7th and Engstrom 6th. With the standing start being the preferred Race 2 beginning, the three of them made easy work of the field of cars ahead. However this time Oriola led from Giovanardi and Engstrom.

Giovanardi did all he could, however he couldn't stop Oriola winning his first ETCC race. But the title would go to Giovanardi, due to the points he took for Pole Position. Nykjaer had another DNF which sealed a bad weekend for him.

So it was a weekend of differing tales for the favoured drivers. Where are they now you ask?

Oriola is in his 3rd season of WTCC, having taken his first win a few weeks back. Nykjaer has raced in STCC taking race wins and being team mate to BTCC Legend Rickard Rydell and also racing in the WTCC, taking his 2nd win today. Engstrom has raced in Sweden with Honda and remains doing that to this day

Giovanardi, however, has had worse luck. After his 2011 ETCC Title, the Italian has struggled to find a works touring car drive or even a regular drive. This reflects the sorry state of Touring Car racing in these days but thats another matter to be discussed another day.

Anyway, I'll leave you with that thought until next time.

Cheers

Phil.

A legendary name returns to F1...

Mclaren confirmed this morning that they will have Honda engines for the 2015 Formula One season.

For the fans, this news brings back memories of the 1988 - 1992 seasons where the Marlboro sponsored Mclarens ruled the roost in F1. Whether it was Prost, Senna or Berger behind the wheel of the red and white cars, they were often the cars to beat on track.

At one stage, any driver due to be lapped in a Grand Prix would near enough jump off the track when they saw a red and white car driven by a man in a yellow helmet come up behind them...

Myself, I was always a fan of the Yellow, Blue and White Williams Renault cars and the Mclarens were always the enemy. But in 2015 I'll be cheering them on.

This is great for F1 as Honda's decision means the new engine regulations were acceptable for their return and it also gives Mclaren a shot at being a front running team against the might of the Renault, Ferrari and Mercedes powered cars.

Suddenly it seems F1 is worth getting excited about again...

Cheers

Phil.

The day I did a "Murray Walker"...In Malta...

I know that in recent blog posts from myself I have written about various memories and thoughts on Touring Car racing from my many years of watching motor sport.

Well this one is about my love of Formula One and the time I got to do a "Murray Walker." In other words, the time I commentated on a Formulla One Grand Prix. The 2002 French Grand Prix to be exact...

In Malta.

Yes, I said Malta.

Now, pop the kettle on because this one will need a bit of explaining...

Back in 2002, my mother got married for the second time in her life. It turns out her in laws lived in the beautiful land of Malta and the wedding ceremony was to take place in Malta's capital city Valetta.

Now I should point out that I had never been abroad before, so this gave me the oppurtunity to apply for my passport for the first time and prepare for my first visit to a hot country. Now at the time I shared a 5th floor flat in Bedford with my friend Colin. It was "The Odd Couple" all over again to our friends with myself being toted as Jack Lemmon and Colin being tagged with being Walther Matthau.

He was 45 and I was 24. We were both nuts on SciFi and he enjoyed watching The Discovery Channel.

Trust me, that will make sense in a minute...

Anyway, Mum invited Colin and I out to Malta for a week to celebrate in the week after the wedding and meet the new additions to the family. So we booked a weeks holiday through a travel agent, setting up a hotel and all the arrangements. Our flight would be on an Airbus A320, at the time the most sophisticated airline jet out there.

It had a PC Gaming Joystick as a control stick...not good...

Now I have never been good on planes. I have only flown to 3 countries abroad and each flight was eventful in different ways. But I wont bore you with the details. So, one evening in the run up to the holiday Colin is watching a documentary on The Discovery Channel about Airbus A320's that had problems. One A320 overrode the pilot at a german airshow on a preview flight and landed itself in a forrest at the end of the runway...and not on the runway.

Another model in the same class did a loop-the-loop with full passenger compliment on board. A 3rd Airbus again over-rode its pilot and crashed in the Alps...

There's a pattern forming here...

So, Phil, in his infinite wisdom decides to check the plane tickets to see what plane we were getting on...

An Airbus A320.

It took Colin 7 hours and 5 pints of Cider in The Flowerpot pub to convince me that I was still going on holiday...and watching the Cleveland Indycar Grand Prix the weekend before helped. For those that dont know, the Indycar race used to be run on the runways of Burke Lakefront Airport.

Anyway, we flew out to Malta and got acclimated to the local area and high dry temperature. We both stood out like sore thumbs each time we went out though, dressed in T-Shirt, Shorts, Cap and BumBags.

We screamed TOURIST and that almost got us both stuck in a timeshare scam (Colin broke the nose of the little shit that tried to sign us up...after 3 days of being hounded round the Island by him...he drove away in a brand new Vauxhall Astra too...) However what made the holiday even better for us both were the vintage 1970's and 1980's cars parked on the side of each road.

With such high temperatures, little or no rain and no snow, it was heaven seeing so many Ford Cortina's, Sierra's and Fiesta's along with many Vauxhall Viva's, Cavalier's, Nova's and plenty of Austin Allegro's, Princesses and many more british cars you can think of beimg driven up and down the many roads in the local area. However the lack of a highway code was another matter...

Anyway, I have digressed and I apologise. I have so many good memories from the holiday and they are topped by the best memory of all...

My mother's In-laws were scottish and were very traditional. They wanted to meet me and Colin and thanks to good old mum, her Father in Law explained he was a big fan of Formula One and was very happy to hear of my enthusiasm and love of Motorsport. In Malta at the time there was no English TV Feed for F1. Spanish and Italian TV Channels showed all of the practice sessions, qualifying and the race but no english commentary from ITV or Sky.

A problem I would soon rectify.

So I was asked if we'd like to watch the 2002 French GP at their place. The fact that they sweetened the request with the offer of Cheese & Pickle sandwiches and plenty of Ice Cold Coca-Cola was perfect...but the condition to us agreeing was that I would commentate to the household during the race.

The answer was yes naturally.

So in the year that Michael Schumacher won his 5th F1 title with 6 races left to run in the 17 race season (another of his many records) I happily and energetically commentated on the whole race. Juan Pablo Montoya started the race on Pole Position in his Williams-BMW with Schumacher on the front row with him. It wasn't the most exciting race but with my enthusiastic and exciting commentary, I livened it up. Schumacher won the race in the end from the McLaren drivers of David Coulthard and Kimi Raikonnen and won the World Title.

Since I was a kid Murray Walker commentated on all the F1 races until his retirement in 2001. I met the man himself at the 1992 Birmingham Motor Show and all I wanted to do was commentate on motor racing, making it as exciting and enthralling as he did.

Well, in an air conditioned apartment in Malta on 21st July 2002, I got my chance...and my family and friends loved every minute of it. I loved every minute of it and to this day I cant help but fall into that habit and commentate away whether its Formula One, WTCC or BTCC.

I did something similar in 2008 for The Monaco GP at a different flat in Bedford for my mum and my best mate "Wallace." On that day Lewis Hamilton won that race and then we went to see the 4th Indiana Jones film at the cinema. Another great memory where plenty of coffee upped the ante and I made an exciting race even better.

So in a way, I acheived my dream of doing a "Murray Walker".

The best part is...I did it really well...

Anyway, you've earned that cup of tea after this post as it was quite a long but cherished memory.

This weekend the World Touring Car Championship races at the Salzburgring in Austria. Last year they had 2 awesome races there and I'm hoping this year will be no exception.

Cheers

Phil.

BTCC: Fortune favours the Bold...and The Cautious ones too...

Matt Neal hit the nail right on the head when he said to Steve Rider after his Race 1 win...

"Thruxton always throws in a curveball"

By god did it throw a curve ball on Sunday!!!

First of all, Thruxton proved that it was a track that favoured a good chassis and Honda proved the Civic has the best chassis. In Qualifying on Saturday the pole position fight was between Neal, Shedden and Jordan. No one else could get close. The MG's were down by half a second and were the closest challengers to the Honda's.

Tom Onslow-Cole proved to be the revelation on the weekend. He made a good start by qualifying 7th on the grid behind the ever impressive Jeff Smith. Not bad for an NGTC Car that was in its 3rd weekend of racing. But that was just the beginning. The Toyota's were close behind in quali with Wrathall, Newsham and  Morgan again showing they have top 10 pace to run in Qualification trim. Turkington took 10th in the improving BMW, despite losing his windscreen in quali... Foster and Collard qualified behind the Airwaves Ford's.

The Airwaves Ford's were hoping for a better showing at Thruxton and they qualified just short of the top ten. The Audi's and Welch's Proton had a nightmare weekend, both teams suffering mechanical issues and a lack of pace.

In Race 1, Andy Jordan ran off into the distance and led the field with a gap, again showing that Pirtek seemed to have improved their Civic's better than Team Dynamics. But his luck ran out on the last lap when he suffered a fron puncture, handing the lead to Neal and Neal's win would be his 50th in BTCC. Jordan would cross the line to finish 11th...

However at the Start, it was Plato who nearly led the race. As He, Jordan, Neal and Shedden battled into the complex, Plato gave Shedden two small touches, the second touch sending Shedden into the barrier. Needless to say Gordon wasn't a happy bunny...

Onslow-Cole was on a mission and his 7th place starting position became 4th and led to a race long battle with Plato. Now it should be noted that Plato had 45kgs ballast on board. However the Team Hard VW Passat is still 30kgs overweight, even with no ballast on board. Tom pushed Jason hard but he couldn't pass the MG. With Jordan's puncture, Plato was promoted to 2nd and TOC to 3rd. Taking that first podium was only the start of a good day....

By the way, Myself and the family, being Team HARD fans, cheered Tom Onslow-Cole on all the way in Race 1 and we raised the roof as Tom came home 3rd. Did I tell you before we're Team HARD fans...

Tordoff kept pace in the 2nd MG to finish ahead of Pirtek's Jeff Smith as Wrathall went backwards down the field, leaving Turkington, Newsham, Jackson, Aron Smith and Morgan to fight it out for top ten honours. Shedden was lapped and would start race 2 from the back.

In Race 2, Neal led to the finish while TOC passed Plato as he suffered issues with tyre wear and the slightly light MG, again showing the Passat has pace at Thruxton for the 2nd time that day. Plato would finish 5th. Jordan and Shedden, both devoid of success ballast, made impressive comeback drives through the field and after a last lap attempt on TOC, Jordan finished 4th behind Shedden. Once again the Civic proved to be the car to have.

Jeff Smith, Tordoff, Morgan, Jack Goff and Aron Smith would complete the top ten as Newsham, Turkington and Jackson would fall out of the top ten. Goff was chosen for race 3 pole and this added to the 2 podiums already acheived by TOC.

Goff was beaten off the line in Race 3 and would take some roughing up by the rest of the field before retiring with damage. It was a shame as Jack seems to have gelled with the Team Hard Vauxhall Insignia as his results are improving.

Morgan took the lead as Goff fell back, but he too had an off track excursion and had to pit to have his air intake cleared of grass. Soon a battle developed on track for the lead between Jeff Smith and Plato. Now all credit to Smith as he rebuffed all of Plato's efforts to pass him lap after lap. However it became obvious that he was having trouble controlling the Honda coming into the last chicane and several laps later he was passed by Plato.

Shedden drove like a man posessed and it can be argued that had he not been helped off in Race 1, he could have challenged Jordan for the win. Well his rewards came in Race 3. He passed TOC, who would finish fourth in the end, while Plato would suffer a puncture and Tordoff would fall back. Shedden led Neal and Jordan over the line in a Honda 1-2-3 with TOC 4th and Aron Smith coming home 5th in a better performance for the Ford Focus.

Plato started Sunday leading the championship from Jordan. However after the final race, he now lies 3rd behind Matt Neal and Andy Jordan. But with the series now taking a month off until 5th of June for the next three BTCC races at Oulton Park, MG wont rest to make that gap up.

Team HARD have shown that they are making leaps and bounds with the VW Passat and if they can shed "the weight off her hips" as so politely put by TOC, then he will be hasseling the top teams again during the season. With Goff and James Cole both improving in the Insignia's and Howard Fuller due to appear in the 2nd Passat, things are looking up for the team that is firmly the Fan Favourite at the moment in the BTCC.

For me, I'm going to stick my neck out and say that Tom and the Passat will take a win this year...thats a fact.

But for me the team to watch is Team Pirtek. Andrew Jordan is driving extremely well this year and taking no prisoners in his fight with the works Honda's and works MG's. They have the Civic setup well and with Andy being a regular bet for Pole Position in Race 1, he is looking good for his aim to take the overall BTCC Title. Jeff Smith has improved in his driving and taking the fight with Plato in Race 3 showed that he's no longer afraid of the big guns and that Pirtek have two drivers who are capable of top 5 finishes, podiums and wins in every BTCC race.

Anyway, looking ahead, Andy Neate has announced his NGTC Chevrolet Cruze will race at Oulton Park, taking the number of Chevrolet Cruzes on the grid up to 2. We'll see how the car goes over the weekend and it will be good to see how the Team Club 44 Chevrolet Cruze looks in NGTC Trim.

We'll also have to hope that all the other teams on the grid have plenty of spare parts on the way... Just in case...

Between now and 5th June, I'll compile my thoughts as there are a few DTM and WTCC rounds to enjoy. I may even do a post about the time I commentated on an F1 race...

Seriously!

Anyway, go and grab that cuppa. You've earned it.

Cheers

Phil.

WTCC: All smiles and Sunny in Hungary...

After all the fun of the WTCC Racing from the Slovakiaring, the WTCC Circus  headed to Hungary and the Hungaroring, home of Norbert Michelisz. Now its a given that while the championship title race is on, 70,000 Hungarians will be cheering for  only one car: the Black and Orange Honda Civic of Michelisz...

And Cheer they did...

While Michelisz didn't win a WTCC race this year, it didnt stop him showing an improved performance. He qualified 2nd for race 1 and finished there. However while Muller won the race, Michelisz chased him down to the final lap after preserving his tyres to make sure it wasnt an easy win for the frenchman. During the final laps, Michelisz closed the lead to Muller down from 1.2 seconds to 0.2 seconds but it wasnt enough. However both Norbert and the Crowd were happy with 2nd place on the podium.

The Honda's showed fast pace again, despite having 30kgs added to the Civic. However while Tarquini took 3rd in race 1, Monteiro suffered retirements in both races. His bad luck continues but his pace in the Honda is not to be doubted. Tarquini suffered a big accident in Race 2, spending the night in hospital due to neck pains but he was cleared and will race again at the Salzburgring in Austria in 2 weeks time. However Tarquini's 3rd place in Race 1 showed that with the added weight in the car, it was still competitive. Norbert's Honda also had the extra 30kgs as the weight ballast applies to all cars of the same make and model specified.

The worrying part is that Gabriele Tarquini took a hefty whack as the Civic hit the barrier head on. He is over 50 and while he is very fit for his age, he wont cope with too many more like that. The Civic showed again its impressive safety by protecting Gabriele from the crash, where the Civic hit the wall on the drivers side. It could've been much worse.

However the revelations of the weekend were Tom Coronel and Mehdi Bennani in their BMW's. In Race 1 both of them hassled first Tom Chilton in the Aon Chevrolet Cruze and then Rob Huff for 4th place in his Munnich Motorsport SEAT Leon. The addition of the carbon fibre doors to the BMW to lower their weight is helping to allow them to be more competitive and to fight with the others and not just be also rans on the track.

Please BMW, can we have a works team back in WTCC??? What was evident during both races is the speed disadvantage that the BMW suffers against the Honda, Chevrolet and the SEAT. While it was brilliant in the tight and twisty sections of the track, all of Coronel's work was undone down the start finish straight. Its well known there have been few updates to the WTCC BMW 320TC, however if the engine had more grunt, Coronel and Bennani could have done more damage...

For Bennani it turned out to be his best weekend to date, taking 2 independent victories and also starting Race 2 on pole due to the reverse 10 grid setup. He didnt get the best start and Rob Huff stormed past to take the lead. However he couldn't break away from the Morrocan and Huff's victory was hard earned but well deserved.

There will be more to come from Huffy and the Munnich Motorsport squad...

For Muller and Chilton, it was a weekend of differing fortunes. Muller took Pole for Race 1 and won it after closing pressure from Michelisz. However Chilton lost out during Race 1 to the flying BMW's of Coronel and Bennani. He stayed with them after that, but in Race 2 Chilton had a worse time.

On the first lap, prior to Tarquini's crash, Muller started behind Chilton and manage to muscle his way past him. At the restart Chilton was hassled by Michelisz as Muller progressed forward. But due to the close tight and twisty nature of the track, Chilton couldn't repass the Honda. Muller,  however, found his Race 2 progress hampered by the "Customer" Chevrolet drivers from Bamboo of James Nash and Alex MacDowall.

A little while back I mentioned how Yvan Muller's status as the Big Scary Driver in WTCC was diminishing and we saw another glimpse of this on Sunday.
Try as he might, Muller couldnt get past the Bamboo Chevrolets and they were fair and clean in their defense on track. It showed Muller that while he maybe a 3 World Champion, the other drivers are not willing to let him idly by in race conditions. In the past Independent drivers would jump off track when they saw the Blue Works Chevy's coming, The same way drivers in the 1990's would jump off the track when they saw a certain yellow helmeted driver in a Mclaren coming in a Formula 1 race...

But Muller had to settle for 5th in the end. Not a big dent in his title hopes, but with Tarquini scoring less he has extended that championship lead... Hopefully Gabriele can make inroads in 2 weeks time at the Salzburgring and try to close that points gap.

In regards to the Lada's, it was a nightmare and their run of bad luck continued. Thompson started 17th for both races after suffering issues in Qualifying While his team mate staryed from the back. In Race 1 he was thumped off track and in Race 2 finished outside the points. But the Lada Granta has pace and it has showed this in every WTCC weekend so far. Thommo finished 4th in Sunday Morning WarmUp after testing new parts. They just need some good luck to come their way and the Thommo will be hasseling the front runners.

My fear is that if the team cant get into the top 10 for Qualifying soon, then this could end up being a 1 season wonder return for Lada before leaving again. But I hope not. I know that Lukoil and Thompson signed a 3 year deal for WTCC but stranger things have happened. Big James Thompson fan here and I love the fact that Lada, the laughing stock of the car industry, is going up against the best in the world championship of Touring Cars. Their time will come.

I have another fear...and it regards Tom Chilton. Now don't get me wrong, Tom is a top class driver and capable of both taking wins and racing door to door with the best. But it seems that when Muller arrives behind him, Tom doesn't seem to defend against him. Now while Lukoil is Muller's primary sponsor, Aon is Tom's and their name is on both cars. And I want to see the car with just Aon sponsored on the bonnet ahead of the car with Lukoil and Aon written on its bonnet...

Now I would expect Chilton to fall in line behind Muller if RML request it if they were running 1st and 2nd on track before the race finishes but we've just had our 4th WTCC Weekend. Surely its too early for team orders? Isnt it...?

Lets hope so.

What I hope is that Tom learns the ways of the Chevrolet Cruze soon so that we can see him on an equal footing with Yvan and it would be great to see them going door handle to door handle with each other. Yvan isn't easy to pass but Tom isnt a pushover either...

I'm overjoyed at the race win Rob Huff took in Race 2. It shows the progress that the Munnich Motorsport team have made with their SEAT Leon's. Rob signed late with the team, who last year won the FIA World GT1 in sportscars. The team knows how to win and it was a matter of time before they learnt the ways of how to race, compete and win in FIA WTCC races. Although Rob didn't have it easy in the race being hunted by the fast BMW of Race 2 Poleman Bennani, he knows how to win and control the race to make sure he stays in front fairly.

The Leon isnt a new car either. It was introduced in 2005 and has been a mainstay of the championship since then both in works teams and in customer teams. This Its taken 2 wins with Oriola winning Race 2 at Marrakech. There is life in the old dog yet...

So, there is a 2 week gap to the next round at the Salzburgring in Austria. Its a long fast circuit that should suit the Chevrolet's as did Monza and Marrakech due to its long straights and long fast 180 degree turns.

But in 2012 it also showed another issue. Tyres. In Race 1 there was a safety car period as Darryl O'Young had pulled off the circuit after hitting a barrier. But in Race 2 both heat and camber on the tyres caused punctures for MacDowall and Menu, who both retired at the same spot, Muller who finished 8th after suffering a puncture 3 corners from home and Huff, who suffered a puncture 2 corners from home and finished 2nd behind D'Aste and ahead of Coronel.

Hopefully Yokohama, Tyre supplier of the WTCC will have a stronger tyre this time and the teams will head their warnings...

Anyway, got out and enjoy the sun!

Cheers

Phil.

My Group A Touring Car Favourites...Part 2

Following on from my last blogpost, here is the 2nd part of my Group A tribute. With the Ford Sierra RS500 being my first love, my second love of the Group A rules was the BMW M3.

Now this car was the car to have in the Class B or Class 2 of either the BTCC or WTCC/ETCC. One man who proved this was BMW Stalwart Roberto Ravaglia. He is the man who won the 1987 World Touring Car Championship and the 1986 and 1988 European Touring Car Championships. He also won the 1989 DTM Championship again in the BMW M3.

Back in those days, the races of the ETCC and WTCC were 3 hour multi driver change races. Ravaglia's co-drivers were often Emanuele Pirro and Olivier Grouillard and the three of them proved a potent force. They drove for the Bigazzi BMW team and were often a match for the Works Schnitzer BMW Team on the World Stage.

While Ravaglia couldn't compete for outright race wins with the mighty Ford Sierra's on the world stage, this didnt deter him. Like the multi-class BTCC in the late 1980's, a Class Win was scored the same as the outright win. However when the Class A cars ran into trouble, the super reliable BMW was there to pick up the pieces.

The best example of this being the Donington Park 500 round of the 1988 ETCC. In the beginning the Class A Sierra's disappeared into the lead. The expected challenge from the Group A Nissan Skyline with Win Percy at the wheel faltered with engine issues and finally Brake problems. However, so did the Fords...leaving BMW to take a 1-2-3 finish on the podium. Ravaglia was joined by his regular co-drivers by one Mark Thatcher, son of the late Prime Minister Margaret...

His sense of direction or lack of it is legendary...

In the BTCC, The M3 became famous in the hands of Frank Sytner. Driving for the Prodrive Team and sponsored by Mobil and BMW Finance, Sytner was the man to beat in Class B. While he couldnt compete for the overall race wins, he was always battling hard at the front of his class, which was dominated by the M3.

Due to the class wins system, Sytner won the 1988 BTCC Title while Andy Rouse was in the quicker car in Class A winning races outright. Like today, there is a point for setting the fastest race lap. Famously at Snetterton, after the race had finished, Sytner was questioning his team to see if he had gotten fastest lap on a track that started wet and dried up.

However Sytner was furious to hear that his team mate at Prodrive BMW that year, a certain radio DJ Mike Smith, had been in to change to slick tyres and taken the fastest lap point. Sytner's temper was infamous and during every race encounter would demand either Smith fall behind him in 2nd place or he would "take him off" the track. Mike Smith joined Robb Gravett at his TrackStar Team for 1989, driving a Group A Sierra...

In 1989, Frank was joined at Prodrive by James Weaver, who was a specialist driver in Sportscars. Weaver immediately made it clear he was here to race and the two drivers had an exciting race long scrap at the Silverstone BTCC round. With Sytner losing his front bumper at Copse on lap one, he fought for the class B lead for the whole distance with both cars swapping positions many times each lap...until Weaver was blocked by Sytner going into the chicane and then later almost crashed at Abbey after contact by Sytner...

John Cleland won the 1989 BTCC Title in his Class C 1.6 litre Vauxhall Astra and both he and Sytner would have many races where they would clash. In 1990 the BTCC scaled to a 2 Class system. Class B became a battle between the 2 litre machines of the BMW M3 and the new Vauxhall Cavalier. Both drivers both clashed at the 1990 Birmingham Super Prix, again in controversial circumstances...

Sytner's team mate Kurt Luby was leading Class B in his M3. Sytner was hunting down Cleland in the Vauxhall in the late stages of the race due to the fact that his tyres were going off on the street circuit. Andy Rouse won the race overall, however Sytner and Cleland clashed on the last lap. Cleland locked going into the turn and Sytner was committed to a pass that would end up retiring both cars.

Needless to say the tempers flared as Cleland blamed Sytner as he had taken the racing line after locking his tyres and Sytner blamed Cleland for not yeilding the place...

Whats that saying? Birds of a feathers flock together...

The last BTCC Title the M3 would claim would be in 1991. Will Hoy drove in the BMW M3 during endurance races and one off appearances between 1988 and 1990. At times he was team mate to Sytner at Prodrive when they competed in the British ETCC rounds so he learn the car well. In '91 both he and Ray Bellm were signed up by Vic Lee Motorsport and was able to make a full on assault for the title. His rival was Cleland in the Vauxhall Cavalier.

How the BTCC Changed in 1991. Gone were the Group A rules and the Multi Class system. Now every car was a production car powered by a 2 litre normally aspirated engine, based on the road going cars Joe Public drove. A much simpler championship for a new era of close equal racing. Andy Rouse moved to Toyota and developed the Carina while Nissan joined the fray thanks to the new regulations.

Cleland was considered favourite but he and Hoy fought it out at the front with Hoy beating Cleland and winning the title. Sytner had a much quieter season than previous seasons, never really troubling the front runners and 1990 Champ Gravett also had a quiet year in a Ford Sierra Sapphire that scored one podium. However Sytners team mate at Pyramid Motorsport during the second half of the season would be a certain Matt Neal...

Other british drivers of note who ran the BMW M3 were Godfrey Hall and Alan Minshaw in the famous red Demon Tweeks car. Minshaw was joined by Roland Ratzenberger for the Endurance BTCC rounds in the late 1980's before the Austrians step up to F1 in 1994...

The M3 also was the car to have in the DTM. After leaving Ford, Steve Soper joined the likes of Ravaglia, Jo Winkelhock and Johnny Cecotto at BMW as part of their various DTM squads and the M3 was a match for the Mercedes 190E and the Audi 80 Quattro. The racing was just as close as in the BTCC as it took part on legendary tracks such as Hockenheim and the Nurburgring (both on the GP Circuit and the Nordschleife circuit). The M3 was also infamous on the endurance touring car races such as the Spa 24 hours and at Macau.

So as you can tell, there's an enormous sense of pride in me as either a Ford Sierra Cosworth or a BMW M3 goes past on the road. Such legendary touring cars and cars that helped cement my love of Touring Car racing as a child.

Now normally I would suggest you go get a cuppa after reading this. But as the warmer weather has arrived, go and get a nice cold glass of juice with Ice Cubes in.

Otherwise enjoy the varied form of Touring car racing that is on this weekend: BTCC from Thruxton, WTCC from Hungaroring, DTM from Hockenheimring, V8 Supercars from Barbagello and STCC from Knutstorp...

Enjoy

Phil.