Mem June Issue

ISSUE 07 JUN - JUL 2009

TWO SEASON’S YOUNG, TWO WINS FOR AL KHAN

A VISION OF F1 2010

MUSTAFA AL KHAN WINS THE BATELCO 2000CC CHAMPIONSHIP

THE FUTURE OF THE WORLD’S RICHEST MOTORSPORT

ALI ARYAN TAKES THE BAHRAIN DRAG RACING

CHAMPIONSHIP IN STYLE!

THE CHAMP IS

CROWNED

THE CHAMP IS

CROWNED

RACE REPORTBUTTON TASTES TURKISH

DELIGHT AS BRAWN DOMINATE F1

FREEPOSTER

INSIDE

RTTT

f1 burgers nitrous grilled chicken grand prix steak pit stop pasta synthetic fresh juices racing fuel shishas

west bound on budaiya hwy before saar roundabout open daily: 1pm to 1am +973 17 592-583

How would youeat the BIGGESTburger in town

Where hungry people go.

BAHRAIN

2

CONTENTS

54Bahrain Drag Racing Championship 2009

60 JENSON BUTTONThe star of Formula 1 2009

DRIVER PROFILE

3

72

RACE REPORTDavid Hyatt’s analysis of the Turkish GP

VOLUME 1 / ISSUE 7 / JUN-JUL 2009

38

64

42

QATAR MARINE FESTIVALMEM covers Qatar’s

Powerboat challenge

NIGHT OF CHAMPIONSEnd of season awards ceremony for the Champions of the Middle East

BATELCO 2000CCThe Season review of the Challenge with controversy surrounding the final round

Editor-in-ChiefSAMEER [email protected]

Group EditorMOHD [email protected]

Layout DesignersSACHAN K.C.SHAJI THOMAS

PhotographerMANI.T

Production ManagerSACHAN K.C.

Sales ExecutiveADEL AKRAM

Distribution ControllerSANDEEP

YAS MARINADUBAI AUTODROME

BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT

Published and produced by MAXMEDIA CO. W.L.L. P.O Box 108, Manama Bahrain. Tel: 973 17 402482 Fax: 973 17 402483, E-mail: [email protected] website: www.maxmediaco.com. M.E MOTORSPORT is published bi-monthly (6 issues) and has a GCC circulation of 10,000 copies. It is available in all supermarkets and book stores in Bahrain and across the GCC. If you cannot find our magazine in your area, please call +973 17402482. Annual Subscription to M.E MOTOR SPORT Bahrain BD5 ($15), GCC Subscription BD10 ($30.00) for 1 year, or BD15 ($40.00) for 2 years. Foreign Subscription BD20 ($50.00) for 1 year, or BD30 ($80.00) for 2 years.E-mail us all and any kind of motoring news to: [email protected] Ministry Of information printing License # ISSN 1985-8248. Copyright 433\04 ME MOTOR SPORT Magazine all rights reserved. Reproduction in any form is prohibited without our written permission. The content of this publication is the exclusive property of MAXMEDIA CO. W.L.L. and must not be reproduced in any form without written permission. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication. However, MAXMEDIA CO. W.L.L. and all its publications cannot accept any legal responsibility for any error or omission. Magazine is printed at Awal Printing Press Bahrain and is distributed in Bahrain by Al Hilal Corp. Tel: 39677709, 17534559

PRODUCTION TEAM

CONTRIBUTORS

Deputy EditorPARITOSH [email protected]

Staff WriterVARUN [email protected]

Feature EditorALI [email protected]

email: [email protected]

EDITORIAL TEAM

WelcomeDear Readers,

Sh. Salman Ave., P.O. Box : 308, Manama, Bahrain, Tel: 17 404044, Fax: 17 401333Email: [email protected], Website:www.biljeek.com

SINGLE CYLINDER, 4 STROKE, SPARK IGNITION, AIR COOLED, OHV, 499cc

6

Motor racing fans can look forward to an exciting summer of karting action at Bahrain International Circuit. The

award-winning Sakhir track announced that the Kart Zone will be open on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays between 5 p.m. and 11 p.m.

Karting is the cradle of the world’s greatest driving talents, and is where the hard work begins in order to fulfil dreams of one day becoming a Formula One world champion. But above all, karting – as the purest form of motor sport – is fun, accessible and affordable, and Kart Zone is the leading venue for both aspiring racers to hone their skills or for those simply looking for a thrill.

There are two tracks at the facility – one for senior drivers and another for juniors. Prices range from 5 BD to 25 BD for seniors and from 4 BD to 22 BD for juniors, depending on the duration of the desired drive. Participants must be at least 1.4 metres in height and up to 15 years old to be able to take part as a junior driver.

Helmets and race suits will be provided to all, and a mandatory safety briefing will be conducted. Then, you will be free to race – all under the safe supervision of the first-rate

organisation at BIC and with the world-famous main grandstand, Sakhir Tower and Grand Prix circuit as your backdrop.

Kart Zone is open to all, including corporate clients who are looking for an opportunity to experience some raw energy and a heightened sense of speed. For more information or for bookings, call the BIC Hotline on +973-17-450000.

A field lined up for the opening round of the 2009 DAMC Sprint Challenge.

7

BIC host the seventh Karting Championship.

8ROTAX CHAMPIONSHIP SET FOR ULTIMATE ROUND

SYRIAN INTERNATIONAL RALLY Misfer Al-Marri and Ulster Chris Patterson lead a 19-strong international field.

10NEWSREGIONAL

MOTORSPORT

ALL THE NEWS FROM

IN AND AROUND THE

GULF

AL KHAN DISQUALIFIED FROM FINAL RACENewly-crowned Batelco 2000CC champion Mustafa Al Khan has been stripped of his final round race win following a technical infringement, but has retained his title.

Following a complaint, Al Khan’s car was found to have contravened the technical regulations after running with a non-standard part on his car.

The exclusion means the new champion loses his race one win and victory is handed to Shaikh Jaber with Mohammed Saleh in second and Tim Birkin in third.

However, the change in results does not affect the final standings with Al Kahn having done enough to clinch the championship with 130 points, 12 points clear of Jaber.

KART ZONE SET FOR ACTION-PACKED SUMMER

NEW FACES ON THE PODIUM

7

NEW FACES ON THE PODIUM AFTER OPENING NIGHT

A small but formidable field lined up for the opening round of the 2009 DAMC Sprint Challenge held under

floodlights at Dubai Autodrome Circuit.UAE Touring Car regular Julian Griffin

(DXB Racing Porsche GT3 RS) was the class of the car field and ended fastest by

almost two seconds. He took overall top honours, Class B victory and also won the inaugural Sprint Shootout at the end of the evening, which pitted the top three runners in the car class for a winner takes all one lap challenge. Second place went to Red Line Challenge Champion Aref Ramli (Mitsubishi

Evo), with third place going to debutant Murat Binici (Corvette Z06).

Other winners in the car classes on the night included: Class B Abdul Hamid Al Awadi (Honda Civic), Class C Keith Alderson (Lotus Exige) and Class F Geoff Forster (Caterham 7SV).

The much anticipated two wheel battle between current Stock 600 UAE Sportbike Class Champion Hussein Al Kooheji and reigning DAMC Sprint Challenge Champion Hennie Sauerman did not materialize. Al Kooheji entered to ride a Yamaha R1 but due to unavailability arrived on a brand new Suzuki (GSXR 1000) which he subsequently dropped on his warm up lap, rendering him out of contention.

Sauerman on the Liberty Kawasaki XZ10R had his hands full with Rob Nicholas (Honda CBR 1000RR) who snatched the win in the premier 1000 Stock Class by a mere 0.056 seconds. Sauerman went on to make amends in the newly introduced Shootout, at the end of the evening, setting a scorching pace and bagging the fastest lap.

In the Stock 600 Class there was no one to touch Omran Al Sayed (Kawasaki ZX6R) who beat UAE Sportbike regular Steve Blackney (Honda CBR 600RR) by just over half a second with Peter Devlin (Yamaha R6) taking third.

FAIRYTALE START FOR YAMAHAAfter the first eight minutes of the free practice in Catalunya, nobody other than Fiat Yamaha team-mates Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo sat on top of the timesheets.

The pair alternated the top spot frequently during the hour; home hero Lorenzo making three P1 appearances and leading most of the session, but Rossi set the fastest lap on seven occasions, the last of

which saw him bump Lorenzo from the top with five minutes to go.

Rossi and his crew had made a slight change to their base setting before they got started and the reigning six time MotoGP world champion, who starts round six behind both Casey Stoner and Lorenzo in the points, was pleased with the results.

Bahrain International Circuit calls on all petrolheads and adventure junkies to take advantage of one of the most

exciting offers available in the Kingdom this summer. The award-winning Sakhir track is opening its doors for ‘The Ultimate Hummer Experience’, which offers a unique opportunity for guests to test their nerves and show off their driving skills at one of the most challenging off-road courses in the world.

In the event, a personal instructor will guide you as you take on each of the 32 intense obstacles one by one. Along the course, you will be performing gravity-defying maneuvers in a Hummer H2 or H3 vehicle, and the sheer amazement of tackling such hurdles will get your heart racing.

Following the drive, you will be taken to enjoy the pleasures of a more serene and

relaxing environment at Royal Golf Club, with a chance to play the 9-hole ‘Wee Monty’ academy course designed by legendary Scottish golfer Colin Montgomerie.

You will also be able to get behind the wheel of a Mini Hummer during your round, and all the top-of-the-line golfing equipment will be provided. Further, the experience includes a lavish pick-up and drop-off on a chauffer-driven Hummer from and to anywhere in Bahrain, ensuring that you travel in style for a most unforgettable experience.

This unique and never-before-seen offer, available through to September, can be purchased for the unbelievable price of 99 BD.

A truly memorable and thrilling time waits, so hurry and secure your seat today for ‘The Ultimate Hummer Experience’, available only at Bahrain International Circuit.

TEST YOUR SKILLS AT THE HUMMER ACADEMY

NEWSREGIONAL

MOTORSPORT

8

NEWSREGIONAL

MOTORSPORT

Tom Onslow-Cole will make a surprise return to the HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship at Croft after being named as a late replacement for Alan Morrison in the Team Aon line-up.

The former Team RAC and Vauxhall driver was due to be in action in the North East at the wheel of the doctor’s car but was given the opportunity to return to racing

action when Morrison was ruled out.Onslow-Cole proved to be a ready-

made replacement for the Ford team and will now join Tom Chilton on track at the wheel of a Focus ST. Team boss Mike Earle admitted Onslow-Cole was a ‘great replacement’ although he played down expectations for the youngster given his lack of seat time in recent months.

AL-ATTIYAH FORCED TO MISS SYRIAN RALLY

Defending FIA Middle East rally champion, Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah, will not be able to become the first

driver in history to claim four outright wins in the Syrian International Rally, when the third round of the regional series gets underway in Sednaya. The Qatari is also tackling the FIA Production World Rally Championship (PWRC) and the recent date change for the Syrian event has caused a direct date clash with the Acropolis Rally in Greece. Al-Attiyah would be penalised for missing the crucial Greek round of the production series and that has left the door wide open for a potential new winner of the Syrian event. Of the registered championship contenders, only Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi has won the event in the past and the date clash has enabled the UAE driver and several of Al-Attiyah’s other closest challengers to move back into title contention.

The Qatari would have been bidding for a third successive victory in the newest round of the regional series, which ran for the first

time as a candidate event in 2000 and joined the championship in 2001. Al-Attiyah and the retired multiple regional champion Mohammed Bin Sulayem currently have three wins apiece in the all-desert rally, which is being organised by the Syrian Automobile Club and will be based at the Sheraton Ma’aret Sednaya for the fifth time. Bin Sulayem is now the vice-president of the FIA and the president of the Automobile & Touring Club of the UAE. He won the candidate round in 2000 with Irish co-driver Ronan Morgan and went on to claim two further wins in 2001 and 2002 with Jordan’s Khaled Zakaria and England’s John Spiller reading the notes. Al-Attiyah’s winning streak began in 2005 and he repeated the feat with Ulster co-driver Chris Patterson in 2007 and 2008. The event was cancelled in 2006. “It’s always a nice rally and one which I enjoy very much,” enthused Al-Attiyah, who has claimed a maximum 20 championship points from the two rounds of the series so far in Qatar and Kuwait.

The UAE’s Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi has an excellent opportunity to win the Syrian International Rally for a second time.

NATIONAL ROTAX CHAMPIONSHIP SET FOR PENULTIMATE ROUND

Bahrain International Circuit will host the seventh penultimate round of the National Rotax Karting

Championship at Kart Zone. The season is headed for an exciting climax as the battle for both the seniors and juniors titles heat up. The championship is quickly gaining in popularity and more drivers enter each round.

Ali Dadi will be looking to maintain his position at the top of the seniors division, which he currently occupies with 351 points. Dadi is followed closely by Lee Stones in second place with 332 points. Mohammed Al Alawi is third with 301, and Darren Di Mattia in fourth with 300 points. Bader Haider comes in fifth on the table with 293 points in the championship but still in reach of the leaders.

Graham Pervis is sixth on 280, while Yahya Mohammed Ali is in seventh place with 273 points and Wesley Carr eighth on 270. In the juniors championship standings, up to three drivers are in tight competition for the crown. Omar Fareed tops all competitors’ with353 points in first. He holds a slim lead ahead of Vishesh Mahtre, who has 344 points. Christian Yarwood is in third place with 326 points, while Ryan Hesp is within striking distance on 288 points in fourth place. Dadi and Fareed were both victorious in their respective groups during the previous round of racing. They hope to extend their fine showing with another victory.

ONSLOW-COLE RETURNS

10

NEWSREGIONAL

MOTORSPORT

SEDNAYA (Syria): Qatar’s Misfer Al-Marri and Ulster co-driver Chris Patterson lead a 19-strong

international field into the Syrian International Rally, round three of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship.

In the absence of Qatar’s Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and the UAE’s Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi – who are both tackling the Acropolis Rally in Greece – a new winner of the newest round of the regional series is guaranteed.

Saudi Arabia’s Yazeed Al-Rajhi and the UAE’s Sheikh Abdullah Al-Qassimi should be Al-Marri’s closest challengers over the 13 desert special stages in the area around Deir Atiyah. Of the entered drivers, only Al-Qassimi and Lebanon’s Michel Saleh have won a round of the regional series before and a new winner is highly likely on the 151st event in the history of the championship.

Al-Marri will catapult himself into the outright championship lead if he can secure 10 points for victory and his chance of taking the regional title for the first time will be further bolstered by the news

that Volkswagen cross-country rallying commitments in Brazil may well force Al-Attiyah to miss the forthcoming Rally of Lebanon as well.

Mechanical problems cost Al-Rajhi crucial points in Kuwait back in March, but the Saudi driver collected eight for second position in Qatar and is also eyeing a bid for the crown, in what could develop into the most open title race for years. Al-Qassimi finished second overall in Syria last season and had the measure of Al-Marri, so a fascinating three-way battle is in prospect for the podium places.

Haitham Al-Yousefi and Ahmad Hamsho head the Syrian Rally Team and there is a strong presence from the Qatar Motor & Motorcycle Federation (QMMF). Joining Al-Marri on the entry list are Mubarak Al-Hajri, veteran Jaber Al-Marri, Khalid Al-Suwaidi, Abdulaziz Al-Kuwari and the 1993 regional champion, Sheikh Hamed Bin Eid Al-Thani.

Nick Georgiou will be chasing regional championship and Pirelli ‘Star Driver’ points. The Lebanese driver missed out on the coveted Pirelli prize on a technicality last season and needs to finish in Syria

to stake his claim on the West Zone championship and qualification for the Pirelli final in Dubai in December.

Kuwait’s Meshari Al-Thafiri has already qualified for that final - courtesy of his performance in Kuwait in March - and he heads the Kuwaiti contingent, which also includes Meshari Al-Sabti, Meshal Al-Nejadi, Mufeed Mubarak and Essam Al-Nejadi.

Also in need of a useful finish is Saudi Arabia’s Ahmed Al-Sabban. The Toyota S2000 driver arrived in Syria with numerous spare parts for his two-wheel drive car and has recruited the UAE’s Wael Marjan to read the pace notes.

QATAR’S MISFER AL-MARRI LEADS FIELD INTO SYRIAN INTERNATIONAL RALLY

Saudi Arabia’s Yazeed Al-Rajhi will be aiming for his first

full MERC win in Syria.

MAT CONFIDENT OF STRONG RUNMat Jackson says he is confident of a strong run at Croft as the HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship heads to North Yorkshire for the fifth round of the campaign.

The Racing Silverline driver heads North following a tough outing at Oulton Park, where he qualified on the front row but suffered a disastrous race day that yielded just four points.

Eager to put it firmly behind him, the 2008 title runner-up said he was hopeful of a strong run at Croft, with the circuit being one where his Chevrolet Lacetti should be strong. Jackson added that he was keen to add to the single win achieved so far this season, and said he was sure that good results were just around the corner.

Qatar’s Misfer Al-Marri starts as the top seed to win the Syrian International Rally. Whatever the outcome, a new winner of the event is guaranteed in the absence of Nasser Saleh Al-Attiyah and Sheikh Khalid Al-Qassimi.

12

BUTTON GETS BIG MONEY OFFERBrawn GP is ready to rewrite Jenson Button’s three-year contract.

16TIE AT THE TOP IN SPA PRACTICEOreca drivers Olivier Panis and Nicolas Lapierre recorded the same time as the Peugeot trio.

20F1 TEAMS SEEKING SOLUTIONF1’s current teams remain wholly committed to finding a solution to their dispute with the FIA

30NEWSINTERNATIONALMOTORSPORT

AROUND THE WORLD

AL-ATTIYAH WINS PLACE ON DAKAR DREAM TEAM

Fresh from his first victory in the Production WRC in Argentina, Qatari driver

Nasser Al-Attiyah has gained selection for Volkswagen’s crack squad to tackle the 2010 Dakar Rally.

Al-Attiyah’s background in Middle East competition is understood to have placed him in as strong a position for the drive with the 2009 winners as his current form in the P-WRC. Having previously won the FIA Middle East Rally Championship, FIA International Cup for Cross Country Bajas and the UAE

Desert Challenge, the 38-year-old believes he can deliver on the opportunity handed to him by the German giant.

Partnered with German co-driver Timo Gottschalk, Al-Attiyah joins this year’s 1-2 finishers Giniel de Villiers and Mark Miller, with double WRC champion Carlos Sainz also retaining his place in the team. Volkswagen boss Kris Nissen said: “With his

Cross-Country World Cup title and stage wins at the Dakar, Nasser Al-Attiyah proved that he ranks among the best drivers in this sport.”

Williams CEO Adam Parr says the British squad is not trying to split up the teams with its decision to submit

its entry for the 2010 championship. The team became the first to confirm its present in next year’s championship, a decision that caused the Formula One Teams’ Association to suspend Williams from the organization. FOTA is still at loggerheads with the FIA over the 2010 regulations, and the teams’ body wrote to President Max Mosley saying they

remained united. However, Williams confirmed it had submitted its entry for next season, but Parr made it clear that the decision had nothing to do with a hidden agenda to destabilize FOTA. Parr added that the other members of FOTA have not expressed any hard feelings against Williams. FOTA met in London as it continues working in trying to reach a deal with the FIA. Parr said the organization also discussed Williams’s continued participation in the group.

GORDON PENALIZED FOR RULES VIOLATION

Robby Gordon has been penalized by NASCAR for a technical rule violation following his third place in the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. NASCAR confiscated the rear axle of Gordon’s car after the conclusion of the rain-delayed event. Further checks at its research and development center in Concord, North Carolina found that the part exceeded the maximum specified toe of plus or minus one degree.

As a result, Gordon has been docked 50 points in the drivers’ and owners’ standings, in which he ranks 34th. Gordon’s crew chief Kirk Almquist has also been fined $50,000 and placed on probation until the end of the year. During the race, Gordon was one of three drivers who gambled on staying out while most in the field stopped for fuel and tires during the final caution of the day, shortly before officials red-flagged the event for the final time due to rain.

WILLIAMS NOT TRYING TO SPLIT FOTA

13

LOEB RECEIVES FRENCH KNIGHTHOOD

HENNING: I GAVE IT MY ALLHenning Solberg admitted he was ‘pushing like mad’ on the final day in Sardinia, despite being

unable to secure seventh place in the event from Mads Ostberg.

The Stobart VK M-Sport driver struggled to get into his rhythm on the opening day but managed to hold sixth place going into the second day.

However, a puncture on SS9 was followed by broken suspension in the afternoon and left the Norwegian to SupeRally on the final day.

Starting the day in tenth place, Solberg posted two quickest stage times and climbed up into the top eight although he fell just under a second shy of overhauling Mads Ostberg for seventh place.

“We were pushing like mad on the last stage but unfortunately it just wasn’t enough to gain another place,” he said. “I feel really positive though as we made big improvements on the car and it felt the best that it has ever felt on the stages today. I think that my two fastest times showed that.

“It has been a really hard rally and our championship hopes took a bit of a knock but I just wanted to go out and get a good time and that’s what I did.”

Five-time World Rally Champion Sebastien Loeb has received a knighthood for his services to France.

Loeb was knighted by French president Nicolas Sarkozy, who awarded him the Legion d’honneur, at Elysee Palace in Paris.

The Legion d’honneur is the highest award given to a private individual in France, recognizing an outstanding achievement.

Following the ceremony, Loeb said: “I am extremely honored to have been recognized in this way by the president of the Republic. This award is given to an individual, but I would like to share it with each and every member of the Citroen team. I hope now that I can continue to worthily represent my country by claiming a sixth consecutive World Rally Championship title at the end of this year.”

NEWSINTERNATIONALMOTORSPORT

The IndyCar Series team owners have expressed their support for Tony George following reports suggesting his future as CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was in doubt. It was reported earlier that George, founder of the Indy Racing League, had been voted out of his position at a board meeting. IMS issued a statement denying this, but did suggest that future restructuring was possible, and that the board had asked George

to “to devise a plan for management of Hulman & Company, the Indy Racing League, Clabber Girl and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that would allow him to focus on the business which requires the greatest attention.” IMS runs both the Indianapolis track and the IndyCar and Indy Lights championships, among other businesses, while George is also the head of his own Vision Racing team.

Tony George

INDYCAR TEAMS BACK UP GEORGE

14


MIXED FORTUNES FOR LEBANON’S BASIL SHAABAN AT THE LAUSITZRING

LAUSITZRING (Germany): The Arab world’s leading Formula 3 racing driver, Basil Shaaban, endured

mixed fortunes in the third and fourth rounds of the 2009 F3 Euro Series at the 3.478km Lausitzring, near Brandenburg in Germany.

The Lebanese driver was forced to start the opening race from the rear of the grid, after sliding into a gravel trap, and eventually improved to take 20th position in his Shell-backed Prema Powerteam-run Dallara Mercedes-Benz F308/9. He went on to finish 21st overall in the fourth round of the world’s most competitive single-seater racing series.

Shaaban admitted that his car was difficult to drive in the first race and starting from the back of the grid did not help at all. He has been classified 15th in the final practice session a mere 0.78 seconds off the fastest driver, with one second separating the top 20 runners, such is the competitiveness of this year’s F3 Euro Series.

But he was forced to start the opening 24-lap race from the rear of the grid after sliding off a drying track in qualifying. The Shell-backed Dallara got stuck in the gravel and

not just that but everyone else improved their qualifying times on the dry track. “It was one of those things,” said Shaaban. “I had to make the best of it after that.”

Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas claimed pole position for the ART Grand Prix team with a fastest lap of 1m 31.308s. French team-mate Jules Bianchi was second, with Finland’s Atte Mustonen and Jean-Karl Vernay of the Signature Team lining up on the second row of the grid.

Shaaban’s championship-leading team-mate Stefano Coletti lined up in 16th position and finished the first race in 15th overall. Bianchi eventually secured victory in the opening race from Bottas, with Vernay finishing third overall.

Christian Vietoris claimed victory in the second race for the German Mücke Motorsport team. Spaniard Roberto Merhi finished second and Britain’s Sam Bird claimed third place. Bird and Merhi now hold joint second places in the 20-race series behind new leader Bianchi. Coletti slipped to sixth position in the rankings after failing to score points. He finished 23rd in the second race.

Fernando Alonso is confident his Renault team will be in a position to fight for victories late in the season, despite a slow start to the campaign. The French squad has been unable to fight near the top of the field, with Alonso having two fifth places as his best results after six races. Teammate Nelson Piquet is yet to score a point.

Alonso admitted Renault needs a

significant improvement to be able to fight at the top, but the two-time champion is convinced his team will be able to achieve that later in the season.

Renault’s chief of engineering Pat Symonds insisted the team is fully motivated to keep on pushing to get better results.

RENAULT FIGHTS FOR WIN

16


EARNHARDT JR. SPLITS WITH CREW CHIEF

BRAWN TO MAKE BUTTON BIG MONEY OFFER

FOYT HOPES TRACY WILL STAY ON

A.J. Foyt says he is keen for Paul Tracy to stay on with his team if the Milwaukee race goes well. The former Champ Car champion – who returned to the IndyCar Series for a one-off with KV Racing at Indianapolis and finished ninth – is deputizing for Foyt’s regular driver Vitor Meira after the Brazilian sustained two fractured vertebrae in a crash during the Indy 500. At present the deal is for Milwaukee only, but both parties are keen to extend it if this weekend is a success. The Canadian has already committed to returning to KV for the Toronto and Edmonton events, and Foyt accepted that he might have to find a temporary substitute.

Brawn GP is ready to rewrite Jenson Button’s three-year contract in a bid to see off attempts by rival teams to lure

him away. Button agreed to a substantial pay-cut, to continue with the team this year after signing a new contract with Honda worth in the region of $13 million a season shortly before the marque decided to quit Formula 1 last year. Although he is committed to Brawn until the end of the 2011 season, team bosses are concerned that a big-money offer from a rival team could encourage the World Championship leader to activate exit options that are in his contract.

Team CEO Nick Fry admitted that discussions will be opened up with Button later in the season with a view to offering a compensation package that rewards his status as World Championship leader. How much the team is able to pay Button could depend on what commercial deals it is able to put together. But Fry is confident that the team has the resources not only to keep Button, but also to keep developing the Brawn BGP 001 that has won five out of six races this year.

recently led rookie Brad Keselowski to a seventh place finish at Darlington.

Earnhardt and Eury Jr had a dream debut with Hendrick Motorsports last year when they won the pre-season Budweiser Shootout at Daytona, taking another win in one of the qualifying races for the Daytona 500. Earnhardt Jr made the Chase for the Sprint Cup in 2008, but his form took a dip during the series and he finished the year in 12th position in the drivers’ ranking. This season they have a second place at Talladega as their only top five finish and Earnhardt Jr ranks 17th in the drivers’ standings, while all other three Hendrick drivers have all won at least once and are all among the top 12 in the championship, one-third into the season.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his long-time crew chief Tony Eury Jr. will part ways with immediate effect

as Hendrick Motorsports announced changes to the No. 88 team lineup. Following a poor start to his season, NASCAR’s most popular driver will have a new crew chief for the race at Dover. Team manager Brian Whitesell will fill in the role, while Lance McGrew will take up the position as interim crew chief at Pocono Raceway. Whitesell won two of seven races he did alongside Jeff Gordon as his interim crew chief in 1999, while McGrew claimed the 2003 NASCAR Nationwide Series championship with driver Brian Vickers. He also won a Sprint Cup race with Vickers at Talladega in the autumn of 2006, and most

LACONI RECOVERY CONTINUESRegis Laconi is now back home in France and continuing to recover from the injuries sustained at the Kyalami round of the 2009 World Superbike Championship. Laconi was placed in an induced coma after falling in the opening minutes of free practice, an accident that also left the DFX rider with two fractured vertebrae. Brought out of his coma several days later, Laconi then had a metal plate inserted to

stabilize the fractures. A fragment of bone that had lodged close to the spinal cord was also removed and plastic surgery carried out on the relevant area with a skin graft from the hip.

It will naturally take a considerable amount of time for the 2004 WSBK title runner-up to make a full recovery. While he recovers, Laconi’s place at DFX has been taken by Lorenzo Lanzi.

17

Valentino Rossi will start his home Italian Grand Prix from outside of the front row for the first time since the

1999 250cc event, after being bumped back to fourth in the qualifying session.

The Fiat Yamaha star, chasing his eighth consecutive Mugello victory, had been on pole with less than two minutes to go, but

narrowly lost out to Suzuki’s Loris Capirossi, Ducati’s Casey Stoner and his own team-mate Jorge Lorenzo.

“Sincerely I am quite disappointed to miss out on the first row!” said Valentino. “Usually I don’t mind so much but here, in Mugello, it’s special so I am sorry for this. It was a great fight today and we had good

ROSSI ‘SINCERELY DISAPPOINTED’

FIFTH PLACE FOR KTM’S MARQUEZ

potential for the pole position but in the end we lost the front row to Loris, who did a great lap.”

Rossi will start round five level with Stoner in the world championship and just one point behind pole sitter Lorenzo, who appears to be the only rider with a race pace better than Rossi.

“Our setting is good, we have some small details to check but our race pace with the harder tyre is very good so I am not too worried,” confirmed The Doctor. “Of course starting from the second row makes life a little more difficult but we don’t think about this. The weather situation is very important because if it’s like this then we know we are fast but if it changes, which seems possible from the forecast, then it will be a bit more difficult.”

“As far as race preparation goes that was a good session, because we were always fast,” stated team manager Davide Brivio. “In the hot laps with the soft tyres at the end we just missed out on the front row but this is not the end of the world. Our race set-up is very good and, although starting from fourth makes our job a little harder, we know that Valentino will be in the fight tomorrow. We’re looking forward to a great race.”

Red Bull KTM Moto Sport’s Marc Marquez, just 16-year-old, delivered the promise of a future

champion on the Mugello circuit in the 125cc GP by drawing high praises from the team’s technical director Harald Bartol. “Now from KTM’s side we have to ensure that our motorcycle is as good as our rider. This was an impressive performance from Marc!”, commented Bartol. The talented young Spaniard finished fifth after being one of the most impressive protagonists of a five-rider dogfight contesting fourth place right through the second half of what was a nail-biting race.

“The weekend was very difficult as we didn’t have such a good set up so I really had to ride on the limit, but the time was never very good. We made a big change in the set

up which was really working out in the right direction. I was able to make a good time in the qualifying and I had a good position for the race”, explained Marquez. “Then in the middle of the race, when Simon started pulling away I wasn’t able to go at the speed of the front group and I stayed on to battle it out with the second group. Then in the last corner I bet everything on one tactic. I opened the gas earlier and I was finally able to slip past two guys.” Factory teammate 16-year-old American Cameron Beaubier did not contest the race. He did ride four laps in qualifying but then withdrew to return to his home base in Barcelona. The team decided he should rest his injured wrist until the next race in Catalunya, Spain. Beaubier damaged his wrist during a fall at the last race in Le Mans, France.

LEADING NOW MEANS NOTHINGCasey Stoner, who returned to the head of the MotoGP World Championship with victory last time out at Mugello, insists leading the standings at this stage in the season means ‘absolutely nothing’. The Australian took his first victory since the Qatar season opener with a one-second win over Jorge Lorenzo in the wet/dry Italian Grand Prix. The win was Stoner’s 18th in

the premier-class, matching countryman and fellow world champion Wayne Gardner. Not just that but Stoner and Nicky Hayden will be honoured by the Circuit de Catalunya with the unveiling of their own plaques on “Champions Avenue” - adding their names to those of Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton and Dani Pedrosa, amongst others - in celebration of their MotoGP titles.


18


PREZIOSI HAILS STONER’S MUGELLO WIN

SETE GIBERNAU CONFIRMS CATALUNYA RETURN

Ducati Corse general manager Filippo Preziosi, architect of the factory’s Desmosedici MotoGP machine,

has hailed Casey Stoner’s Italian Grand Prix triumph as one of his top three moments.

Stoner finally handed Ducati its first home Mugello victory at its seventh attempt, breaking Valentino Rossi’s seven-year reign in the process.

“Mugello is Valentino’s track,” Preziosi wrote on Ducati’s ‘Desmoblog’. “Mugello is Valentino’s track... no other racer in the history of motorcycle racing has ever won so many times on the same track.

“The gift Casey gave all of us Ducatisti is something that will stay with us forever, like the first MotoGP victory in 2003 at Barcelona with Loris Capirossi and the 2007 world title.”

Stoner’s second win of the season means he is now back on top of the MotoGP World Championship standings after five of 17 rounds, and Preziosi admits Ducati’s success against the Japanese factories since joining MotoGP in 2003 has been ‘almost inconceivable’. Ducati has won 19 grands prix - all but one with Stoner - since the switch to 800cc engines in 2007. That number is two more than nearest rival Yamaha, 15 more than Honda and 18 more than Suzuki. Kawasaki is yet to win a race.

After winning the 2007 world championship, Stoner finished second to Rossi last season.

Sete Gibernau has confirmed that he will return to MotoGP action at his home Catalunya after breaking

his left collarbone. The Grupo Francesco Hernando rider fractured his left collarbone in a practice accident at Le Mans and the injury also forced him to miss the entire Italian Grand Prix.

However the 36-year-old, returning to MotoGP after two years in retirement, will be back on track for round six.

Gibernau’s last MotoGP appearance at Barcelona saw him tangle with Ducati Marlboro team-mate Loris Capirossi into turn one, sending the Spaniard into a somersault that brought down Capirossi, Marco Melandri, Dani Pedrosa, Randy de Puniet and John Hopkins.

PEDROSA’S 349KPH TOP SPEED RECORD CONFIRMEDDani Pedrosa’s astonishing 349.3kph top speed during the Italian Grand Prix weekend has now been officially confirmed, making it a new MotoGP record.

Pedrosa’s 800cc RC212V set the speed during the free practice session, but was subject to official confirmation by timing specialists at Dorna after differences were found in the results produced by the telemetric systems on some bikes.

However, the official MotoGP website states that Pedrosa’s top speed has now been confirmed.

The previous official top speed record for a motorcycle grand prix machine was 343.7km/h set by Makoto Tamada, on a 990cc Honda, during qualifying at Shanghai in 2006.

The Chinese circuit is no longer on the world championship calendar, but the previous highest official top speed at Mugello was 343kph set by Alex Barros on a 990cc factory Honda during the 2004 race.

Pedrosa crashed out of Sunday’s wet/dry grand prix, which was won by Ducati’s Casey Stoner.

VALENTINO ROSSI ENJOYS ISLE OF MAN TT VISITReigning six time MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi enjoyed his weather-delayed visit to the Isle of Man TT.

The Italian superstar and countryman Giacomo Agostini were invited to the event by Dainese, and the two most successful premier-class grand prix riders in history

watched trackside as John McGuinness won the Superbike TT at an average speed of over 130mph.

Rossi presented McGuinness with his prize before he and Agostini took to the track for a parade lap of the world-famous 37.73 mile (60.7 km) circuit.

CALL +973 17402482, MOBILE: 39216641A N Y M A G A Z I N E & W I N

N O W T O

$1000

$1000 CASH40 INCH LCD +

PLAYSTATION 3

You also get a BD5 food and beverages voucher when subscribing to any Maxmedia magazines.

BD5 BD5MOTOROX BD5 VOUCHER

MAXMEDIA CO. W.L.L P.O. Box 108 Manama Bahrain Call +973 17402482, Fax +973 17402483

CALL +973 17402482 for detailsFill form below and send payment. We will mail you your first copy of the magazine along with your Raffle ticket

44Subscribe & WIN

Call 39216641

Bahrain’s official Business magazine

subscribe

to Any

magazine

BD10subscrib

e

to Any

magazine

BD10subscrib

e

to Any

magazine

BD10

The Gulf’s 1st Motor Sports magazine

CA

subscribe

to Any

magazine

BD10

❏ BD10 ARABIA MOTORS ❏ BD10 B-I-G ❏ BD10 CO-EDS ❏ BD10 ARABIAN HOMES ❏ BD10 M.E MOTORSPORT

❏ GCC Countries BD20. All other foreign countries BD30

Select your 1 year subscription magazines choice below and fax back to +973 17402483.

Your detailsFull Name: Villa: Road: Block:

Area: P.O. Box: City: Country:

Tel Number: Mobile: Email address:

Customer Signature:

Payment Details

Expiry Date:Cardholder Signature:Cardholder Name:

Please find enclosed my cheque payable to MAXMEDIA company for or cash for or charge my

Card Number:

Fill & Fax to +973 17402483

College l i festyle magazine for youth

Most popular car magazine

#1 Real Estate magazine

20

NEWSINTERNATIONALMOTORSPORT GAVIN PREPARES FOR

END OF AN ERAOliver Gavin admits it will be the end of an era when he lines up for Corvette in the Le Mans 24 Hours in France. Gavin will team up with regular team-mate Olivier Beretta and Marcel Fassler as part of the Corvette Racing line-up in what will be the final race for the GT1-spec C6R before the team turns

its focus to GT2 back in the American Le Mans Series. With Aston Martin having turned its focus to LMP1, Corvette will start as red hot favorite for the class honors against the privateer entries from Luc Alphand Aventures, Jetalliance and JLOC with Gavin chasing a fifth victory.

SOLBERG TO TEST LE MANS SERIES CAR

TIE AT THE TOP IN SPA PRACTICE

While one Le Mans Series Courage-Oreca Team car will be running a new V10 AIM engine

during its upcoming test run, a second car appearing on track is sure to attract attention as well since former Subaru World Rally Team driver Petter Solberg will be at the wheel!

The 2003 WRC champion will be switching from the rally car environment to the endurance racing scene during this test at the controls of the Courage-Oreca LC70E. Team principal Hugues de Chaunac offered the opportunity, to which the Norwegian responded very favorably.

“As for what comes next, we will see

Petter’s and the team’s impressions. First comes the test,” stated the Courage-Oreca Team boss. “We’re impatient to have a World Champion in the seat of the LC70E!”

With such power at his disposal, Solberg will surely be impressed when he takes to the track. Two team drivers will be there to assist and guide him, including Nicolas Lapierre and F1 veteran Olivier Panis. The date of the test was not disclosed.

In regards to Petter Solberg’s rally programme this year, he indicated that “there are still some issues to sort out regarding which car I will be driving this season, but a decision will be made soon.”

Oreca drivers Olivier Panis and Nicolas Lapierre recorded the same time as the Peugeot trio of Marc

Gene, Alexander Wurz and David Brabham in free practice for the Le Mans series race at Spa Francorchamps in Belgium.

Both posted quickest times of exactly two minutes 6.740 seconds in a session

that was disrupted by both rain and a pair of red flag incidents.

In the first, the Aston Martin 007 car stopped on the track with Darren Turner at the wheel; then, Jose Ibanez went off the track in his Courage LC75 Ibanez Racing Service car.

Peter Solberg

KARTHIKEYAN TO JOIN LE MANS SERIESIndian driver Narain Karthikeyan has signed with Team Kolles to drive in the European Le Mans Series for the rest of the season. Karthikeyan, who became India’s first Formula One driver when he raced for the Jordan team in 2005, will also be competing in the popular Le Mans 24 Hours endurance race, but his first LMS outing will be in Belgium. Team head Colin Kolles stated that he is happy to have Narain on board.

Narain Karthikeyan

21


AUDI ANNOUNCE LE MANS LINE-UP

JETALLIANCE TARGETS DEBUT PODIUM

PEUGEOT 1-2 IN QUALIFYING

Audi have announced their driver line-up for their three entries at the June 24 Hours of Le Mans.

The number one Audi R15 TDI will be driven by last year’s winners Italian Dindo Capello, Danish legend Tom Kristensen and Scotsman Allan McNish.

The trio recently won the 12-hour race at Sebring in the USA.

The number two R15 also features the same line-up which ran at Sebring: Germans Lucas Luhr, Mike Rockenfeller and Marco Werner.

The third R15 will be shared by German Timo Bernhard and Frenchmen Romain Dumas and Alexandre Premat.

The new additions to the team, Bernhard and Dumas, have thoroughly

familiarized themselves with the Audi R15 TDI in test runs.

The first second-generation diesel-powered race sports car has undergone further development since its victorious debut at Sebring, with an aerodynamics package optimized for the Le Mans high-speed track.

Team Peugeot took a one-two ahead of the Le Mans series race at Spa Francorchamps in Belgium after qualifying amid overcast weather conditions. Both posted quickest times of exactly two minutes 6.740 seconds in a session that was disrupted by both rain and a pair of red flag incidents.

In the first, the Aston Martin 007 car stopped on the track with Darren Turner at the wheel; then, Jose Ibanez went off the track in his Courage LC75 Ibanez Racing Service car.

Jetalliance Racing will look to secure a podium finish on its debut in the Le Mans 24 Hours – in what will

be the final race at La Sarthe for the current GT1-spec cars. The team will field the only Aston Martin DBR9 entered into the race, with team boss Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer joined at the wheel by Alex Muller and Thomas Gruber. Set to become the first Austrian outfit at La Sarthe

since 1972, the team will face the challenge of taking the fight to the factory Corvette team and the privateer Corvettes entered by Luc Alphand Aventures – a challenge Muller admits will be far from easy. The team has already competed in the Spa 1000km as a pre-cursor to Le Mans, and Lichtner-Hoyer said that finally taking his place on the La Sarthe grid would be the realization of a dream.

YOU NEVER KNOW AT LE MANSAston Martin Racing ace Darren Turner admits that it will be a challenge for the team to try and secure a podium finish at Le Mans, although the Briton conceded that the French classic is a race where ‘you never know what will happen next’.

Having turned his focus back to sportscar racing, Turner will form part of the #008 crew for Aston Martin as it seeks to challenge for

outright honours with a trio of Lola-Aston Martin LMP1 machines, with the former SEAT touring car racer joined at the wheel by Anthony Davidson and Jos Verstappen.

Preparations for the #008 crew have been far from ideal after Verstappen suffered a high-speed testing accident at Monza, but with the trio now heading to La Sarthe, Turner said he was confident they would be a strong line-up.

22


CARROLL DOUBLES UP AS IRELAND CROWNED

FAUZY JOINS BRDC

PALMER HAILS FORMULA 2’S FIRST EVENT

Adam Carroll became the first driver this season to secure wins in both races to help Ireland to lift the A1GP

title at Brands Hatch.Following his success in the Sprint Race,

Carroll stormed to victory in the Feature Race ahead of Jeroen Bleekemolen for the Netherlands and Switzerland’s Neel Jani to give Ireland the championship crown and leave Switzerland to settle for second.

From pole position, Carroll dominated the race and led from start to finish – pit stops aside – to come home more than ten seconds clear of Bleekemolen, while Jani took third for Switzerland despite a damaged exhaust on his car to ensure the runner-up slot in the standings for the outgoing champions.

Clivio Piccione was fourth for Monaco, having run second in the early stages,

Formula 2 promoter Jonathan Palmer says he was pleased with the outcome of the first round of the new championship last weekend in Valencia. Palmer admitted he was relieved that the championship got underway in a successful manner following months of hard work to get it ready in time. Despite rating the event a success, Palmer admitted there are still a lot of things that can be improved.

while fifth place for Filipe Albuquerque was good enough to secure third in the standings for Portugal – who had been the third team in with a chance of the title going into the weekend.

Mexico took sixth in the race ahead of Britain’s Dan Clarke, who had to contend with a damaged exhaust and a late trip off track to take seventh from John Martin. Eight for Martin wasn’t enough to put Australia ahead of New Zealand in the championship standings with the pair level in points but Black Beauty having a superior finishing record. Tonio Liuzzi and Nicolas Prost rounded out the top ten for Italy and France.

The final race of the season featured early drama when China, India and the USA clashed at Paddock Hill Bend on the opening lap.

While JR Hildebrand was able to continue and ultimately finished 14th for the USA, both India and China were out on the spot with Narain Karthikeyan lucky not to roll when his car when sideways into the gravel after being tagged by a spinning Frankie Cheng.

A1 Team Malaysia driver, Fairuz Fauzy, has been elected to the elite British Racing

Drivers’ Club, making him part of a select group to hold the honour.

Fauzy has bases in Malaysia and the UK. He is only a stone’s throw away from the BRDC Clubhouse when he is at his UK home. The BRDC headquarter is located close to the Silverstone circuit in Northamptonshire.

BRDC membership is only available to racing drivers who are born within the UK or a Commonwealth country, and the entry criteria to the Club remain very strict with Full Membership offered only to those who have attained international success over a number of seasons.

“It is an honour to be a member of such a prestigious and elite organisation,” Fauzy said. “The BRDC is a unique motor racing club, which only top racing drivers are invited to join. I am very proud to have been elected as a member and to represent such a historic club. I am really looking forward to taking my family and friends into the Clubhouse to watch the races and to be involved with the club and its important activities in motor racing.”

Mooresville, N.C.-based Red Horse Racing has announced it is ceasing operations with its No. 1 Toyota Tundra driven by Johnny Benson in NASCAR’s Camping World Truck Series, effective immediately. The team cited lack of sponsorship as the reason for its closure. Sponsorship for Benson was thought to be secure before the season began, but the economic downturn kept that

sponsor from being able to participate.Benson has competed in eight events

behind the wheel of the team’s truck this year. He earned four top-10 finishes, including a fourth-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway.

Red Horse Racing will continue to field the No. 11 Toyota Tundra, driven by TJ Bell, as that truck does have some support.

BENSON’S TRUCK SERIES SHUT DOWN

23


Team Switzerland has vowed to battle hard to reclaim its title after seeing Ireland secure the A1GP

crown at Brands Hatch.The Swiss had gone into the season

finale as one of three teams in with a chance of lifting the crown, with Ireland and Portugal also hoping to secure championship glory.

While Adam Carroll duly took a double pole and double win to give Ireland the crown. Having qualified eighth and fourth for the two races, Jani finished eighth and third – despite a broken exhaust in the feature race – and he conceded that the pace just hadn’t been there to try and defend the title.

“In the sprint race, there wasn’t much I could do with the car that still didn’t handle properly,” he said. “In the afternoon, it all went significantly better. Unfortunately, an exhaust pipe broke after a few laps, which had a noticeable effect on the engine power. I am sure that otherwise, I could have finished ahead of the Dutchman and maybe even put Ireland under pressure.”

Despite missing out on the title, team boss Max Welti refused to be too despondent and conceded that his outfit could still be happy with the way it had performed during the year.

Opting to stay on the track and forego fresh tires before a 10-lap run to the finish, Brian Scott won his

first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race in his 39th start at Dover International Speedway. Though blown right-front tires plagued almost the entire field in the AAA Insurance 200 and deprived Kyle Busch of a chance to win Scott, Dennis Setzer, Stacy Compton and Jason White stayed out after Busch and Colin Braun each blew right fronts and hit the outside wall in the same corner on Lap 184 of 200.

Scott, 21, stayed out front for the final 10 laps and held off a closing Setzer on the final circuit. David Starr ran third, followed by White and Johnny Sauter. Busch charged from the back in the final laps to finish ninth.

Busch led 133 laps but fell victim to hard luck in the closing stages of the race. He had suffered a similar fate approximately three hours earlier when he lost the Nationwide Series race at Dover with a tire problem before a restart two laps from the finish.

Ron Hornaday Jr. slammed the Turn 1 wall after blowing his right front tire on Lap 34. Though Hornaday finished 26th, 157 laps down, he retained the series points lead over eighth-place finisher Mike Skinner, who trimmed Ron’s advantage from 84 to 27 points.The final 14 laps were the only laps Scott led. In six previous truck series races this season, he had led a total of eight laps. His best previous finish in the series was second last November at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

SWITZERLAND VOWS TO BOUNCE BACK

SCOTT SCORES FIRSTTRUCK SERIES WIN AT DOVER

FIA CAN’T JUST ENTER FERRARIFerrari team boss Stefano Domenicali has made clear that the FIA can’t include the Scuderia on the entry list for the 2010 Formula One season unless demands made by the Formula One Teams Association are met. As thing stands, the current teams – Williams and Force India aside – have only lodged conditional entries which are largely dependent on the FIA dropping the proposed

budget cap it is keen to implement next year.With the clock ticking down to the

announcement of those teams to have been selected for the new season, rumors have suggested that the eight FOTA teams would be classed as ‘automatic’ entries for 2010 but Domenicali again insisted that Ferrari wouldn’t be on the list unless the FIA agreed to the demands made by the teams.

24


Former Formula 1 driver Alex Wurz has lodged an entry in the 2010 Formula 1 World Championship

with a new start-up operation called Team Superfund.

The former Williams, McLaren and Benetton racer, will become team principal of the new outfit, which is set to be funded by Austrian business tycoon Christian Baha — the founder and owner of the investment company Superfund. The team’s cars will be powered by the standard-specification Cosworth engine.

Superfund joins Prodrive, Lola, Campos Meta1 and Team US F1 as one of several new ventures seeking to enter the sport following the FIA’s plan to introduce budget caps to F1 for 2010.

Superfund has been in serious discussions with the FIA already, that planning for the project is at an advanced stage, and that it has been in contact with key personnel. The team is waiting until it has secured its entry before it begins acquiring assets and staff however.

Superfund is also understood to be awaiting for the outcome of talks between the governing body and the Formula One Teams’ Association over proposals of existing teams to assist new outfits before it decides on how to structure the operation.

Investment company Superfund is poised to go from being a backer of support series like Euro F3000 to a member of the F1 club.

It is believed that Wurz would prefer to align the team with an existing constructor based in the UK, perhaps renting space, facilities and staff from its factory, while Superfund takes time to build-up its own headquarters, possibly based on existing resources in Austria. This would also give the new team an opportunity to gain essential experience from existing expertise.

It is understood however that finances are already in place for Superfund to create a team from the ground up if necessary.

Baha, who is known to be a huge motorsport fan, has sponsored F1 teams and junior series in the past and came close to setting up a Superfund category of his own earlier in the decade.

Wurz retired from Formula 1 racing at the end of 2007 with Williams, though he spent last year as test and reserve driver for Honda and has stayed on the team’s roster since it became Brawn. The 34-year-old Austrian is expected to continue racing for Peugeot in sportscars and will compete in the Le Mans 24 Hours next month.

Ryan Briscoe moved out from under the magical shadow of his teammate by winning the pole

position for the ABC Supply/A.J. Foyt 225 at The Milwaukee Mile. Briscoe recorded a record four-lap time of 1:26.7966 seconds – 168.394 mph – around the historic oval in the No. 6 Team Penske Dallara-Honda shortly before his teammate, Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves, crashed during his qualifying run. That put Briscoe, who started second at Indy and ran second behind Castroneves before being forced to pit late in the race, 0.14 second ahead

of the next-fastest qualifier, Graham Rahal. Briscoe won the race last year, giving Roger Penske his 300th victory as a car owner.

Rahal, who also started second last year at Milwaukee, was clocked at 168.117 mph in the No. 02 Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing Dallara-Honda. Tony Kanaan, driving despite bruised ribs and other injuries, qualified third-best, followed by Scott Dixon, Mario Moraes and Hideki Mutoh. Kanaan, who crashed hard during the Indy 500, had X-rays on his ribs that proved

negative. Instead, doctors have treated the deep bruising with pain killers and rest. Danica Patrick qualified seventh, followed by Dario Franchitti, Raphael Matos and Tomas Scheckter in the No. 23 Dreyer & Reinbold entry.

Castroneves says he was pressing hard when the No. 3 Penske Dallara-Honda spun. He will start 20th in the 21-car field. So Briscoe, who won the IndyCar season opener at St. Petersburg and stands third in points, is the one getting the attention after qualifying at Milwaukee’s tricky flat oval.

WURZ SET TO LEAD SUPERFUND INTO F1

BRISCOE TAKES MILWAUKEE POLE

Group Lotus plc has hinted that it could take action to protect the Lotus brand name after the Litespeed team revealed it has lodged its entry for the 2010 Formula One season under the Team Lotus banner.

The British F3 runners are one of a number of new teams to be chasing a slot on the F1 grid for next season, and revealed over the course that it had secured

rights to use the Lotus name from rights-holder David Hunt.

However, in much the same way that the Brabham family has announced that it will challenge plans by the Formtech company to enter under the Brabham Grand Prix moniker, Group Lotus has moved to distance itself from the Litespeed plans and said it will take steps to protect its name if needed.

Alex Wurz

LOTUS DISTANCES FROM LITESPEED

25


Brad Keselowski claimed an unexpected victory in the Heluva Good! 200 (yes, that was the actual

name!) NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Dover International Speedway. He was running third when the green flag waved for the last time with two laps remaining, following the last of nine caution periods. Keselowski suddenly found himself leading into Turn 2 when Joey Logano tapped the rear of his teammate Kyle Busch as the leading duo entered Turn 1. The pair slid up the track after they made contact, leaving the door open for Keselowski and others to get past, and losing Joe Gibbs Racing a certain victory as between Busch and Logano, they had led 195 out of the 200 scheduled laps. While Logano was able to recover and finish second, Busch ended up down in 17th place with a flat right-front tire.

The victory was also the first for JR Motorsports this year, putting a smile on the face of team owner Dale Earnhardt Jr. Not just that but Logano felt devasted at having ruined the end of the race for both Gibbs cars. His battle with Busch had been race-long and they had swapped the lead between them three times. The 19-year-old had started from pole, then lost the lead on lap 57 when he caught traffic, then regained it in the pits on lap 77 and

once again lost out to Busch on lap 109. He said he had a good final restart and was simply caught out by Busch’s slower entry speed into Turn 1. Busch, who has led nearly half the laps ran during the Nationwide season, was left with yet another near miss after looking to be on his way to what would have been his fourth victory of the season. Clint Bowyer ran consistently in the top five and finished third without challenging the leading Gibbs’ pair. Brian Vickers finished fourth for Braun Racing, while Carl Edwards had a quiet day and rounded out the top five. Behind them Scott Speed made a great charge from the back of the grid, following an engine change, to score his best result of the season with seventh, and Penske’s Justin Allgaier finished 10th as the best rookie of the day. While Keselowski celebrated his third career victory in the Nationwide series, it was not a good day for the second JR Motorsports car driven by Ryan Newman, who was involved in two separate incidents, the last one putting an early end to his race on lap 126. Other Cup notables facing trouble were David Ragan and Kevin Harvick, who ended up against the barrier when the Roush Fenway racer lost control of his car ahead of Harvick.

Robert Wickens completed a perfect round at the Formula 2 championship by winning the

second race at Valencia.The 20-year-old Canadian, who had

already taken victory in the first race, put in another faultless drive from to take away two pole positions and two wins from the first event of the season.

For the second race in succession, Wickens’ fellow front row starter made a terrible getaway. This time Andy Soucek bogged down off the line and dropped to fourth, leaving Wickens with an unchallenged run to the first corner.

His fellow Red Bull-backed driver Mirko Bortolotti looked capable of threatening Wickens in the early laps and began to close on the race leader at one point, but

Wickens was able to maintain a much stronger pace once the tyres started to wear. By half distance he was building his lead at half a second per lap to earn himself a comfortable run to the finish.

Bortolotti was always clear in second, leaving Philipp Eng to keep Soucek at bay for third. Soucek had reclaimed third from Nicola de Marco half way round the first lap, but he couldn’t catch Eng to take back his starting spot.

It was fairly eventless further down the order with Mikhail Aleshin and Edoardo Piscopo having quiet runs to sixth and seventh, and Carlos Iaconelli and Tobias Hegewald climbing to eighth and ninth by overtaking Julien Jousse, who slipped back to 10th.

KESELOWSKI SNATCHES NATIONWIDE WIN

WICKENS DOMINATES FIRST F2 RACE

JOHN CELEBRATES TT TRIUMPHJohn McGuinness was delighted to overcome the ‘pressure’ of winning for Honda on their 50th anniversary of road racing by claiming an outstanding 15th career Isle of Man TT victory. The TT legend was in dominant form throughout as he smashed both the race and the lap record, McGuinness recording three laps that would average more than 130mph.

Overcoming a lack of grip at the start, McGuinness says he settled into a good pace by the fifth lap as he attempted to make a break away from HM Plant Honda team-mate Steve Plater. Leading a historic 1-2-3 for the Honda brand, McGuinness was proud to have won for a 15th time, particularly given the pressure he felt by representing the manufacturer.

26


Mario Romancini, the polesitter in the No. 5 Revita/Win Brazil/Allied/RLR Andersen Racing car, led every lap

of the Husar’s House of Fine Diamonds 100 Presented by Charter and won by .0907 seconds over J.R. Hildebrand at the Milwaukee Mile.

It was the second victory in the series for RLR/Andersen Racing – the other coming at Kansas Speedway in 2008 with Hildebrand behind the wheel. Alex Lloyd in 2007 is the only other winner to lead from flag to flag at The Milwaukee Mile.

Romancini was able to keep Hildebrand at bay on a Lap 91 restart (a caution flag thrown when Daniel Herrington’s No. 28 LeBleu/Bryan Herta Autosport car made contact with the inside retaining wall at the pit lane entrance). He led by 0.7677 of a second on Lap 95 and 0.8986 of a second on the white flag lap. He’s the fifth different winner in six races.

Hildebrand’s AFS Racing/Andretti Green Racing teammate, Sebastian Saavedra, overtook Gustavo Yacaman on Lap 99 to claim third place. Yacaman, driving the No. 44 Crepes & Waffles/Sam Schmidt Motorsports car, posted a season-high fourth.

James Davison, who started seventh in the No. 21 People’s Liberation Vision Racing car, finished a season-high fifth and Wade Cunningham was sixth in the No. 11 Lucas Oil/Sam Schmidt Motorsports car.

James Hinchcliffe advanced from 10th to finish seventh in the No. 7 Hinchtown/Sam Schmidt Motorsports car. Andrew Prendeville, driving the No. 2 TMR-Xtreme Coil Drilling entry, was eighth and Pippa Mann scored her first top 10 in the No. 16 Panther Racing car.

CAPPS ROLLS ON WITH TOPEKA NHRA WIN

ROMANCINI CLAIMS FIRST INDY LIGHTS WIN

Ron Capps continued his dominance over the Funny Car field with his win at the 21st

annual O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka.

Larry Dixon and Allen Johnson also visited winner’s circle after dominating their respective classes at the race that marks the halfway point of the regular season for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing series.

Capps showed why he’s the car to beat this season in Funny Car, driving his NAPA Dodge Charger R/T to a 4.265-second run at 286.07 mph; enough to push the driver past runner-up and No. 1 qualifier Ashley Force Hood and give Capps his third win of the season.

The win helped strengthen Capps’ lead over second-place Del Worsham in the point standings.

Larry Dixon was dominate over the Top Fuel class the entire day and picked up his second win of the season with a 3.971 run at 301.74 in the final round. The run in his Alan Johnson Al-Anabi Racing dragster was just enough to push Dixon past Clay Millican, who was making his first final round appearance in over five years.

The win pushed Dixon from sixth into the fourth spot, just 141 points behind first-place driver and defending world champion Tony Schumacher.

In Pro Stock, Allen Johnson grabbed his first win in almost three years, driving his Team Mopar / J&J Racing Dodge Stratus to a holeshot win at 6.726 at 204.94 over Mike Edwards.

The runner-up finish for Edwards closed the gap between he and current points leader and defending world champion Jeg Coughlin to just 75 points.

Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn thinks that the FIA is not the only organization in F1 that needs to compromise in the row over future costs cuts – as he called on the sport’s owners to start delivering more revenue to the teams.

With the FIA due to announce the list of entrants that have been accepted for the 2010 championship, Ghosn thinks it is time that a bigger share of commercial rights income is

handed to the sport’s competitors. Speaking to France’s National Assembly, Ghosn was in feisty mood as he urged F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone and owners CVC to reform the payment structure. Renault’s wholehearted commitment to reducing costs was made clear in letters leaked earlier confirming the team was to shut its factory down and was serious about its threat to quit.

GHOSN CALLS FOR MORE REVENUE

28

NEWSINTERNATIONALMOTORSPORT AWARD TO ENCOURAGE LMP1

A new award to encourage LMP1 teams to contest events in more than one sports car championship is set to be launched by Le Mans organizing club, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest.

The Intercontinental Trophy will combine events in the American Le Mans Series, the European-based LMS, and the Asian LMS. The trophy, which is set to

launch next season, will encompass between six and eight races, though these have yet to be selected.

ACO general manager Remy Brouard said: “The 24 Hours will not be part of it, but the trophy will be for the major manufacturers or big teams. If there is a problem it’ll happen in 2011.”

March is among the teams to have lodged an entry for the 2010 Formula 1 World Championship. March

Racing Organization still exists as a non-trading registered company despite not having any involvement in motorsport since the F1 team collapsed in the build-up to the 1993 season. The company is owned by British businessman and chairman of English Football League 1 club Swindon Town Andrew Fitton, who acquired March in 1993. Although the team is unwilling to make any further comment on its plans until the FIA announces its 2010 entry list.

March has nominated Cosworth as its engine supplier on its application and would have to start up its operation from scratch should it be granted an entry. March

Engineering was, with FIA president Max Mosley, one of the co-founders along with Alan Rees, Robin Herd and Graham Coaker. In 1970, it made its first foray into F1 as both a works team and a customer car supplier, with the Ken Tyrrell-run March 701 of Jackie Stewart taking a debut pole.

In all, March started 197 grands prix, winning the 1970 Spanish, 1975 Austrian and 1976 Italian Grand Prix before dropping out of F1 for good after the 1992 season, during which it scored just three points.

March is one of a number of teams that have lodged entries for F1. Among its rivals for entries are Prodrive, Lola, Team Superfund, Team USF1, Litespeed, Epsilon Euskadi and Campos Meta1.

The Epsilon Euskadi team has officially confirmed that it has submitted its entry to compete in

Formula 1 next season.Epsilon boss Joan Villadelprat said the

team wanted to be silent until the necessary

budget was in place, but the former Tyrrell and Benetton team manager has revealed he has now secured the finances for the next four years if the Spanish squad is chosen by the FIA, when the entry list for 2010 will be announced.

Villadelprat, whose team has raced in the Le Mans 24 Hours with its own LMP1 car, said Epsilon has submitted its entry with the new budget cap rules in mind. But the team boss admitted he was not too worried about the possibility that the cap could be increased, as he reckons he has the necessary budget to do a good job.

Villadelprat feels his team deserves the chance to compete in grand prix racing, and he reckons Epsilon is in a strong position thanks to its infrastructure and its philosophy.

Toyota F1 president John Howett believes Formula 1 will emerge from the dispute between the teams and the FIA as a much stronger sport provided the governing body accepts the conditions attached to the FOTA teams’ entries for 2010.

Every F1 team has submitted an entry for next year’s World Championship, but all those apart from Williams have entered under the condition that FOTA’s terms are met. The terms include scrapping the proposed budget cap and two-tier system, and ensuring the regulations remain largely the same as those in use this year.

Howett, who is also vice chairman of FOTA, insists that the unity shown wby the teams will make F1 stronger in the long run.

He reaffirmed Toyota’s desire to commit to F1, but says the manufacturer will stick by FOTA’s call for its conditions to be met.

Howett also confirmed that FOTA has proposed its own cost-cutting measures and will not accept a budget cap for 2010, but still welcomes the addition of new teams into F1.

MARCH AIMING TO RETURN TO F1

EPSILON CONFIRMS 2010 F1 ENTRY ATTEMPTUNITY WILL MAKE F1 STRONGER

John Howett

29


Argentina has been confirmed as the host of the 2010 Dakar Rally, following the event’s success

earlier this year.Next year’s 32nd running of the event

will start and finish in Buenos Aires on January 1 and 17, and will hold stages throughout Argentina and Chile.

Dakar Rally director Etienne Lavigne said: “Following a really successful 2009 Dakar Rally, hosted jointly by Argentina and Chile, we are pleased to announce that the 2010 Dakar Rally will once again be returning to South America.”

Leonardo Boto of the Argentine tourist authority added: “This is a major success for Argentina; it will be a boost for our tourism industry and for our international prestige.

Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner is adamant the title battle is far from over despite Brawn’s significant

lead in both the drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship.

Brawn’s Jenson Button claimed his fifth win in six races at the Monaco Grand Prix, extending his lead in the drivers’ championship to 16 points over teammate Rubens Barrichello and 28 points over Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel.

Although Horner concedes that the gap is “huge,” he is confident that the pace of the Red Bull, which has been as quick or quicker than the Brawn for much of the season, will allow them to close the gap.

Horner believes that circumstances have favored Brawn’s drivers so far this season, and feels that bad luck has denied the Milton Keynes-based team several more wins.

In both the Bahrain and Spanish Grands Prix, Vettel became caught behind the KERS cars of Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa respectively, costing him the chance of challenging Button for victory.

DAKAR RALLY TO RETURN TO SOUTH AMERICA

RED BULL CHAMPIONSHIP FIGHT NOT OVER

Le Mans organizer the ACO has ruled the bodywork on Audi’s R15 legal after dismissing the protest lodged by Peugeot before the practice session.

The French manufacturer called for a clarification of the regulations after claiming that flaps and appendages fixed to the R15’s front wings are in violation of the rule that parts of the bodywork cannot be fitted with

the sole purpose of generating downforce.Peugeot will now appeal to the FIA, as

the team stated it would if the protest was not upheld by the stewards. The ACO also announced that it will, at the request of the manufacturers, hold a meeting for technical directors and design engineers to discuss the regulations for 2010 and 2011.

ACO DECLARES AUDI BODYWORK

30

Formula 1’s current teams remain wholly committed to finding a solution to their dispute with the FIA over the

future of the sport, despite suggestions from FIA president Max Mosley that they should go off and do their own series.

With no solution yet in sight in the row over a £40 million ($60m) budget cap for next year, the nine members of the Formula One Teams’ Association (FOTA) are awaiting a response from the FIA about the conditions

they laid down for them to enter next year’s championship. They want a Concorde Agreement signed, plus the current plans for 2010 regulation changes to be abandoned, in favor of their own proposals.

Although the teams have not yet had an official response from the FIA about the conditions of their entry, Mosley suggested that if FOTA was unhappy with the proposed rules it should form a breakaway championship. BMW motorsport director Mario Theissen made it clear in Turkey that FOTA was far more interested in reaching a deal with the FIA than going off and doing its own series.

Theissen said that FOTA did not have any plans to meet to discuss the situation, although it would do so if the FIA responded. Although there have been some causes for optimism that the teams and the FIA were heading for a solution, Theissen was more cautious about the chances of the matter getting sorted out and revealed that the decisions made by FOTA to lodge conditional entries was suggested to them by Mosley.

FIA president Max Mosley is confident that the revived Formula 2 championship will be a successful feeder series to F1 following his visit to the opening round at Valencia.

Mosley hosted the podium ceremony for the first race of the season, which was won by Robert Wickens, and praised the championship for delivering on the aims the FIA set out with.

Williams director of engineering Patrick Head, who led the design team that created the new F2 car, hosted the podium for the second race – also won by Wickens – and believes that F1 teams will look seriously at testing the leading F2 drivers at the end of the season.

Vijay Mallya has asked the Formula One Teams’ Association (FOTA) to reconsider his team’s

suspension from the organization, following its decision to lodge an unconditional entry to next year’s championship.

Force India was officially informed by FOTA that it had been suspended alongside Williams for breaking away from the block conditional entries lodged

by the other eight teams. Mallya made it clear that he had no choice but to lodge an unconditional entry because of banking covenants.

“I have only been told by John [Howett], who is vice-chairman of FOTA executive committee, today for the very first time that the executive committee, when they had a teleconference call last week, that they decided to suspend us when we changed our entry to an unconditional entry. Mallya said it was too early to judge if his request to get back in FOTA would be accepted. He also stated that if they appreciate it, well and good, if they don’t appreciate it then why should I lose sleep over it? I am doing what is good for Force India, first because I have a duty to comply with my legal obligations, I have a duty to the team and the company, and at the end of the day if it stops racing there is no business.


F1 TEAMS SEEKING SOLUTION, NOT NEW SERIES

MALLYA WANTS FOTA SUSPENSION REVERSED

MOSLEY: F2 CAN BE AN F1 FEEDER

PEDROSA TO FIGHT ON Dani Pedrosa has vowed to fight on despite a painful start to the Grand Prix of Catalunya, his second home event of the year.

The 23-year-old Spaniard received a pain-killing injection prior to this afternoon’s session to try and make his cracked thigh bone more manageable, but remained in considerable discomfort throughout the

hour, which he finished in just 14th place.Due to his physical condition, Pedrosa

only got a brief chance to try a modified chassis design, aimed at improving stability under braking.

As was planned, team-mate Andrea Dovizioso only used the standard chassis, with which he set the fourth fastest lap time.

32

Jenson Button was unstoppable again, this time at the Turkish Grand Prix. Making it six wins out of seven 7 races in 2009.

Sebastian Vettel who started from pole lost the lead on the opening lap after a mistake and due to a very strange pit stop strategy. He also lost second place to team mate Mark Webber by the end of the race.

Vettel, Button and Webber all had good starts. It was third on the grid Rubens Barrichello who was in trouble. After nearly stalling at the start he fell back to 13th place, as he tried to make up ground he crashed into Heikki Kovalainen then Adrian Sutil. Before he had time to damage more cars his gearbox gave way sending him into retirement.

Vettel lead the race from the start with button close behind, then at turn 9/10 Vettel ran wide allowing Button to take the lead. With this, Button set fastest lap… after fastest… lap pulling away with ease.

Button started the race on a 2 stop pitstop strategy with Vettel on a 3 stop. Vettel needed to stay ahead of button for this to work. This did not happen.

At this point Redbull should have changed Vettel to a 2 stop strategy (for some reason they did not). With this Vettel had no chance of racing Button because he had to make one more pit stop. This also gave Vettels team mate

BUTTON’ S TURKISH DELIGHTJenson Button continued his domination of the current Formula One season with his sixth victory in seven races to move a step closer to clinching his maiden world championship.

RACE REPORT

33

RACE REPORT

Mark Webber the chance to slip past him because he was only making 2 stops. As you would understand Vettel was a little upset with his team about this (Oopps).

With all this Button cruised to seal win number 6, while Webber came 2nd and his upset team mate Vettle 3rd. Webber said after the race Button was on another planet. (I have to say I agree as there seems to be no stopping him).

Jarno Trulli took fourth for Toyota, a very good result after such a bad result at Monaco.

Nico Rosberg came 5th which sure was a good result after some frustrating earlier races.

RACE REPORT

34

Ferrari never looked like they had the speed to fight at the front. Felipe Massa had to settle for a distant 6th with Kimi Raikkonen struggling after he damaged his front wing due to running into Fernando Alonso. Raikkonen ended the race 9th.

BMW’s Robert Kubica finally opened his 2009 points account coming 7th.

Timo Glock raced from the back end of the grid to 8th. After a bad qualifying his team filled his car with fuel and hoped for the best. This time it worked.

Kazuki Nakajima was in the hunt for points but fell back to 12th after a problem with his left front wheel in his last stop. Anyone who thinks pit stops are easy, are very, very wrong.

Alonso, who finished 10th admitted his Renault is simply too slow and amongst the slowest cars in the field. (What does that make his team mates car, he must be in a GP2 car or more likely the driver is no good).

McLaren’s season seems to get worse with Lewis Hamilton coming 13th and Kovalainen 14th. Hamilton is already starting to say this season is over for them. (I agree with him, the 2009 McLaren is really bad).

TURKISH GP RESULTS

1. Button Brawn GP

2. Webber Red Bull

3. Vettel Red Bull

4. Trulli Toyota

5. Rosberg Williams

6. Massa Ferrari

7. Kubica BMW

8. Glock Toyota

9. Raikkonen Ferrari

10. Alonso Renault

Drivers Championship

1. Button 61 points

2. Barrichello 35

3. Vettel 29

4. Webber 27.5

5. Trulli 19.5

6. Glock 13

7. Rosberg 11.5

8. Massa 11

9. Alonso 11

10. Raikkonen 9

Constructors Championship

1. Brawn 96

2. Red-bull 56.5

3. Toyota 32.5

4. Ferrari 20

5. McLaren 13

6. Williams 11.5

7. Renault 11

8. Bmw 8

9. Torro-Rosso 5

RACE REPORT

35

36

Journalists, photographers and other

members of the media were guests

of Bahrain International Circuit

at Motorox Café, where they all

witnessed Jenson Button take yet another

victory with an unbelievable drive at the

Formula One Turkish Grand Prix in Istanbul.

As the Brawn GP victory signalled

Button’s sixth win out of seven races, PR

Executive at Bahrain International Circuit,

Jamal Al Sayed, thanked the members of the

media for joining in watching the gripping

seventh round of the 2009 F1 World

Championship.He added that the superb attendance to

the screening was a clear indicator of the

growing motorsport culture in the region. Al

Sayed later presented prizes to the winners

of a raffle held for all those in attendance.

King of the Road

growing motorsp

Sayed later presented prizes to the winners

of a raffle held for all those in attendance.

ISTANBUL,A WIN FOR BUTTON AND MEDIA MEMBERS

SCREENING

37

Sanjaya Sadakalum Jayarathne took

home the grand prize of a return ticket to

Dubai with national carriers Gulf Air.

Among other winners who came

away with valuable BIC gifts were Jassim

Mohammed, Hamed Al Mahari, Mohammed

Faker Aldeen and Ali Falah.

The next official F1 screening will be held

on the 21st of June, as the eighth round

of the season takes place at the Santander

British Grand Prix.

SCREENING

The Green Community Courtyard Marriott hosted the cream of the UAE’s racing drivers, team principals, officials and media

gathered for an awards ceremony to honour the 2008/2009 season UAE National Champions - the evening was billed as the “Dubai Autodrome Motorsport Club Night of Champions”.

Dubai Autodrome Chairman Saeed Khalfan opened proceedings with a speech that praised all involved in making 2008/2009 the finest motorsport season to date. He said, “In the short space of four years track racing has grown in leaps and bounds. In the early days we were lucky to attract 20 entries on a National Race Day. This year we often had over 60 entries on each of the eight National Race Days. Our sport is growing from strength to strength and today we are here to honor the Champions, but in truth everyone who competed this past season on our circuit is a Champion.”

On the night it was Emirati Mohammed Al Owais who, to a massive ovation, collected two titles for winning the Class 4 and Overall Yellow Hat UAE Touring Car Championship with House of Portier. Bahraini rider Hussein Al Kooheji received a standing ovation when called upon to collect his trophies for winning the UAE Sportbike Championship 600 Class and the Overall title. Dubai based Indian Juzar

UAE NATIONAL RACING:NIGHT OFCHAMPIONSOF THE 2008/2009 SEASON HONOURED

Motiwala was another popular recipient of the UAE Sportbike Championship trophy for the premier 1000 Class.

The biggest cheer of the night was reserved for the UAE’s Mohammed Al Falasi who was bestowed with the prestigious, and most impressive trophy presented by Glenn Portier, for the House of Portier UAE Touring Car Driver of the

Year Award. A visibly emotional Al Falasi accepted his honour graciously amidst thunderous applause, “I am speechless. This is a great and totally unexpected honour. I congratulate all the Champions here tonight and thank my family, my team, UAE Corvette Club and Dubai Autodrome for making this possible. I believe this award will serve to inspire other Emirati’s to take up our great sport.”

38

YELLOW HAT UAE TOURING CAR CHAMPIONSHIP WITH HOUSE OF PORTIER

Mohammed Al Owais Overall Winner

Karim Al Azhari Class 1 Winner

Raed Hassan Class 2 Winner

Costas Papantonis Class 3 Winner

Mohammed Al Owais Class 4 Winner

Abdulhamid Al Awadhi Class 5 Winner

UAE SPORTBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP

Hussain Al Kooheji Overall Winner

Juzar Motiwala Stock 1000 Class Winner

Hussain Al Kooheji 600 Stock Class Winner

Pascal Grosjean Superstock Class Winner

GULF RADICAL CUP

Bassam Kronfli Overall Winner

DAMC RED LINE CHALLENGE

Aref Ramli RLC Overall Winner

Raoul Dice Montano 1M Class Winner

Jenniever Verana 1S Class Winner

Imad Mrad 2M Class Winner

Weaam Abdou 2S Class Winner

Bashar Mousa 4M Class Winner

Fadi Bikawi 5M Class Winner

Samer Abdel Malak 5S Class Winner

Aref Ramli VM Class Winner

TRACK TALK DAMC KARTING CHAMPIONSHIP

Thomas Bale Cadet Class Winner

Edward Jones Junior Max Class Winner

Scott Latham Rotax Max Class Winner

Damian Knott Max Masters Class Winner

Maurits Knopjes DD2 Class Winner

Warren Christie TAG Class Winner

Our sport is growing from strength to strength and today we are here to honor the Champions, but in truth everyone who competed this past season on our circuit is a Champion.”

”

FEATURE

All the Champions with their trophies after the Dubai Autodrome Night of Champions Awards ceremony.

Mohammed Al Falasi (middle) receives his House of Portier trophy for the UAE Touring Car Driver of the Year from Dubai Autodrome Chairman Saeed Khalfan (right) and Glenn Portier (left)

39

FEATURE

RENAULT EXPERIENCES

DUBAIFEATURE

40

Entering its seventh year, the ING

Renault F1 Roadshow kicked off

its 2009 campaign with a unique

format which saw last year's

Renault F1 car, the R28, demonstrated at

various venues across Dubai, including the

desert and Dubai Autodrome. However, the

main venue for the spectator events was

Downtown Barj Dubai in front of the world's

tallest building with the demonstrations

staged on a giant floating platform built on

the Dubai Mall lagoon.

The climax of the Roadshow on Sunday

saw Nelson Piquet demonstrate the R28 at

'Ski Dubai', an indoor ski slope. Fitted with

specially-adapted Bridgestone studded

snow tyres, Nelson completed a series of

donuts in the snow at the bottom of the

slope. It took the Bridgestone engineers 16

hours to manually insert all 2,016 studs, but

the end result was well worth the effort!

Speaking at the end of the event, Nelson

Piquet said: “Coming to Dubai has been

a great experience and a real success for

Renault. We packed a lot into this event and

did some unusual things that I hope the fans

enjoyed. Driving on the snow in an F1 car is

something I never thought I would have the

chance to do and it was a lot of fun.”

The ING Renault F1 Team completed a successful

Roadshow in Dubai as race driver Nelson Piquet

led the demonstrations along with third driver

Romain Grosjean and demo driver Adam Khan.

FEATURE

41

QATAR

FAZZA 333342

REGIONAL EVENT

Victory for Fazza 3 in the opening round of the UIM/WPPA Class 1 World Powerboat Championship was sealed by Arif Al Zafeen and Nadir Bin Hendi.

Second place went to home favourites Sheikh Hassan Bin Jabor Al-Thani and Steve Curtis, with Class 1 debutant Mohammad Al Mehairi and Jean-Marc Sanchez claiming third place in a sun-kissed Qatar Marine Festival Grand Prix.

The reunited pairing of Al Zafeen and Bin Hendi powered through to a comfortable victory in the end, but they did not have it all their own way. A fantastic start by Qatar 95 saw the Edox Pole Position winner's storm away with the early lead, but engine troubles forced them to retire on lap nine while leading the race. This cleared the way for Fazza 3 to take the first win of the season. With the experience of two world champions in the raceboat, they never looked in doubt of getting the season of to the perfect start. "I'm very happy with the

43

REGIONAL EVENT

win, but this season is much tougher, 95 and 96 are really strong and so are our team-mates in Victory 1," said the returning Al Zafeen. A delighted Bin Hendi added: "We went neck-and- neck at the start, but they had the greater speed. Once they got in front, we had to push to the max. I am very happy to have won here for the second year in a row."

LOCAL TALENT SHINESSheikh Hassan and Steve Curtis, in Qatar 96, grabbed second place in the team’s home grand prix. Having been happy to just finish on the podium in the run up to the race, the second place will be welcomed by the team although there were mixed reactions as it came at the expense of their team-mates, Qatar 95. Sheikh Hassan said: "We would have settled for third, it is unfortunate what happened to 95. We really wanted them to finish first." Whilst Steve Curtis said: "The start here is so important, we had a good one, but we will be happier in the rough."

The final podium place went to newcomer Al Mehairi and Sanchez. The new pairing were overjoyed with their first race together and the instant success they have achieved. Al Mehairi, who had set his sights on a podium finish prior to the race, said: "I'm very happy with my first race, the aim for the Victory team is always

to finish on the podium." While Sanchez, guiding a rookie driver to the podium for the third successive season in Doha, added: "I'm delighted with my new driver, this was our first time together and there is more to come."

The early leaders Abdullah Al-Sulaiti and Matteo Nicolini had got off to a perfect start

44

REGIONAL EVENT

and pulled away from the chasing pack only to see all their hard work from the weekend come to a miserable end as an engine failure brought their challenge of claiming a win to a sudden halt. Despite their early retirement, Al-Sulaiti was upbeat: "Before it stopped, the gap was over 15 seconds. It was an excellent performance by the boat. It is a good sign, we were strong and fast."

Aurantium, with Giovanni Carpitella and Christian Rivolta racing for the first time together in Class 1, turned their qualifying promise into an excellent performance in the race. They were delighted with their fourth place which sets them up nicely for their home grand prix in Alicante, where the rougher conditions will suit them better. "It was a very good performance; the boat is running very well. The boat is fast, we prepared this morning and we were with the leaders at the first mark, but the Victory boat was too close for us to get to the corner first."

Giorgioffshore also had a good start to the season finishing in fifth. The new pairing of Nicola Giorgi and Riccardo Calugi showed good speed and reliability as they look to build their partnership. Foresti & Suardi - Roscioli Hotels' Giampaolo Montavoci and Francesco Pansini came through in sixth place, despite gearing problems hampering their efforts at the start and end of the race.

There was frustration for European Champion Jorn Tandberg and Christian Zaborowski in Welmax 90, the quietly confident Norwegians snapped a prop shaft on lap three and a bitterly disappointing weekend for Maritimo Australia concluded when engine trouble saw Maritimo 11 retire on lap five.

45

REGIONAL EVENT

56

King of the Road

COMES TO EXCITING END AS CHAMPIONS CROWNED

DRAG SEASON

46

SEASON REVIEW

57

Another explosive & sweat drenching season of drag racing has ended at the Gulf's premier drag strip in Bahrain's BIC. The final round of the ALBA Bahrain National Drag Racing Championship came to a close with local favourites Bahrain1 clenching the title.MEM brings in depth coverage with an exclusive interview of champion Ali Aryan.

47

SEASON REVIEW

Street Fwd : Fadhel Saleh ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Al Sham Team ) Moh’d Saleh ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Al Sham Team ) Adel Hassan ( BRN ) [email protected] ( KFH Team ) Street Rwd : Ali Radhi ( BRN ) [email protected] Jameel Ebrahim ( BRN ) [email protected] Moh’d Ebrahom ( BRN ) [email protected] Street V8 : Khalid Saif ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Sniper Team ) Adel Khameri ( BRN ) [email protected] Ali Haji ( BRN ) [email protected] Super Street Fwd : A.Rahman Mubark ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Team Bin Hasher ) Ebrahim Mubark ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Team Bin Hasher ) Ali Moosa ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Master Exhaust ) Super Street Rwd : Saad Al Mooran ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Top Speed Team ) Ebrahim Kanoo ( BRN ) [email protected] Moh’d Ali ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Team Get Boost ) Super Street V8 : Moh’d Qassim ( KWT ) [email protected] ( Q8 Racing Team ) Mizher Al Tanak ( KWT ) [email protected] ( STS Racing ) Sulayman Alqurashi ( KSA ) [email protected] ( Team SLR ) Competition 7.5 : Hisham Al Mulla ( KSA ) [email protected] ( Team SPG ) Muslim Al Qalaf ( KSA ) [email protected] Rashid Bin Tammim ( UAE ) Broke the 7.5sec ( 7.48 ) Outlaw Fwd : Bader Janahi ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Team KFH ) Ebrahim Mubark ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Team Bin Hasher ) Wassem Agha ( QTR ) [email protected] Outlaw Rwd : Moh’d Haji ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Get Boost ) Moh’d Saeed ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Al Kunazi Team ) Yousof Al Zayani ( BRN ) [email protected]

ROUND SIX RESULTS

48

SEASON REVIEW

This year hosted record-breakers of the highest standards with unforgettable performances, near death crashes and heated rivalries of the standard of international drag events! With competition still heated

to the last round, there was plenty to endure during the final round of proceedings.

COMPETITIONClose to 100 cars and bikes competed in the sixth and final meeting, which witnessed the coronation of some of the region’s top drag racers in their respective competition categories. Among those celebrating were Bahrain1 Racing owned by Shaikh Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa and SPG Team. Both were among the top performers in the Pro Mod category.

While SPG ace Ali Al Kaabi won the season’s final race, Bahrain1 drivers Ali Aryan and Khalid Mohammed did enough to claim first and second overall on the season’s final standings.

Al Kaabi was a comfortable winner over Mohammed in the Pro Mod final. He won after clocking a mark of 6.359 seconds with a speed of 359.12 kph, while Mohammed suffered some problems in his car and finished in

Outlaw 10.5 : Salah Salahuddin (BRN ) [email protected] ( Team QRT )

Nasser Saadudin ( KSA ) [email protected] Pro Mod : Ali Al Kaabi (UAE ) [email protected] ( Team SPG )

Khalid Moh’d ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Team Bahrain 1 Racing )

Ali Aryan ( BRN ) [email protected] ( Team Bahrain 1 Racing ) Street Bike : Khalid Al Dooseri ( KSA ) [email protected]

Bader Bin Edan ( KWT ) [email protected] ( Team STS )

Khalid Al Foozan ( KWT ) [email protected] Super Street Bike : Mishari Al Turki ( KSA ) [email protected]

Rafet Alshareef ( KSA ) [email protected]

Khadim Alali ( KWT ) [email protected] Pro Bike : Moh’d bu Rashid ( KWT ) [email protected]

Nawaf Al Dooseri ( KSA ) [email protected]

Khalid Al Foozan ( KWT ) [email protected]

FINAL CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS Street Fwd : 1. Moh’d Saleh 2200pts 2. Fadhel Saleh 1900pts ( Took 2nd on best Qualify runs )

3. Adel Hassan 1900pts Street Rwd : 1. Sayed Nader 2200pts 2. Jameel Ebrahim 2000pts 3. Ali Radhi 1300pts

49

SEASON REVIEW

15.863 seconds while running with a speed of 84.14 kph. Aryan finished third, but it was well enough to clinch him

the Pro Mod crown with 1900 points. Mohammed had 1600 points, while Robert Von Smith of Al Anabi Team from Qatar came third overall with 1300 points.

Plenty of other action was seen elsewhere, with plenty of Bahrain’s top drivers emerging victorious. Al Sham team members Fadhel Saleh (11.620 seconds) and Mohammed Saleh (11.633 seconds) claimed a one-two in the Street Fwd class, with the former taking the victory by a narrow margin.

Saad Al Mooran of Top Speed Team (8.409 seconds) was also a close winner. He claimed the Super Street Rwd win over Ebrahim Kanoo (8.455 seconds).

Salah Salahuddin claimed the Outlaw 10.5 category in 7.215 seconds. He beat Saudi Arabia’s Nasser Saadudin, who had a 8.624 seconds time. In the Pro Bike class, it was Kuwait’s Mohammed bu Rashid who finished first in 7.333 seconds, convincingly ahead of Nawaf Al Dooseri from Saudi, who had a mark of 9.506 seconds.

FINAL STANDINGSSuch results played their role on the final championship standings. Among the winners on the season were Mohammed Saleh in the Street Fwd, Sayed Nader in the Street Rwd, Ahmed Al Zaabi in Street V8, Bader Janahi in the Super Street Fwd, Saad Almooran in the Super Street Rwd, Mohammed Qassim in the Super Street V8, Hisham Al Mulla in the Competition 7.5, Bader Janahi once again in the Outlaw Fwd, Mohammed Saeed in the Outlaw Rwd,

50

SEASON REVIEW

Street V8 : 1. Ahmed Al Zaabi 1850pts

2. Ali Haji 1500pts 3. Moh’d Suliyman 1250pts Super Street Fwd : 1. Bader Janahi 1700pts 2. A.rahman Mubark 1600pts

3. Ahmed Faisal 1500pts Super Street Rwd : 1. Saad Almooran 2400pts

2. Moh’d Ali 200pts 3. Ebrahim Kanoo 1350pts

Super Street V8 : 1. Moh’d Qassim 1750pts

2. Mizher Altanak 1150pts

3. Ebrahim Ahmed 700pts Competition 7.5 : 1. Hisham Al Mulla 2200pts

2. Tariq Hadi 1400pts 3. Ali Hamza 1000pts Outlaw Fwd : 1. Bader Janahi 2000pts 2. Ebrahim Mubark 1900pts

3. Moh’d Redha 1700pts

51

SEASON REVIEW

Salahuddin in the Outlaw 10.5, Khalid Al Dooseri in the Street Bike, Mishal Al Turki in the Super Street Bike, and Mishal Al Saaber in the Pro Bike.

Hundreds of fans braved the heat and humidity and gathered at the award-winning circuit to witness all the action along the drag strip. They were also treated to plenty of entertainment outside of the ALBA championship, with performances from stunt bikers and non-stop music played by a top-class DJ and Bahrain’s cheering band. At the end of the evening, drivers from across all 14 categories thanked officials and the organizers for their efforts in making the ALBA Bahrain National Drag Racing Championship a phenomenal success, and added that they are already looking forward to next season. The championship was organised by the Bahrain Drag Racing Club, sanctioned by the Bahrain Motor Federation and sponsored by ALBA.

52

SEASON REVIEW

53

Outlaw Rwd : 1. Moh’d Saeed 2200pts 2. Ahmed Altayeb 1700pts 3. Ali Abdulla 900pts Outlaw 10.5 : 1. Salah Salahuddin 2100pts 2. Sultan Al Zaabi 1400pts 3. Hussain Alshumeri 1050pts Pro Mod : 1. Ali Aryan 1900pts 2. Khalid Moh’d 1600pts 3. Robert Von Smith 1300pts Street Bike : 1. Khalid Al Dooseri 2300pts 2. Khalid Al Foozan 1700pts 3. Bader Bin Edan 1600pts Super Street Bike : 1. Mishari Al Turki 2200pts 2. Hatan Al Abadi 1000pts 3. Rufat Alshareef 950pts Pro Bike : 1. Mishal Al Saaber 2150pts 2. Khalid Al Foozan 1900pts 3. Moh’d Bu Rashid 1500pts

SEASON REVIEW

54

BAHRAIN 1

54

55

RACINGTHE WINNING FORMULA

COVER STORY

55

56

CAN YOU GIVE US A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF WHO BAHRAIN 1 IS AND WHO YOU ARE IN PARTICULAR?Bahrain1 is owned by H.H. Shaikh Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa and run by 12t local Bahrainis plus 3 Americans. The team manager is Amir Akhterdzadah. Chief crew is Khalil Toorani. Khalid Mohammed and myself are the team drivers. Khalid is running Nitros Promod Car. I am running Camaro Pro Street 1967 model.

HOW DID YOU FIRST GET INVOLVED IN DRAG RACING?We started officially in 2005 at the BIC when we bought our 1969 Popeye Camaro and won the championship our very first year!

WHY DID THE TEAM DECIDE TO CHANGE THE NAME FROM POPEYE RACING TO BAHRAIN 1 RACING?We are representing Bahrain so we have to use Bahrain’s name to promote our country while racing internationally.

BAHRAIN 1’S MAIN COMPETITION IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP IS AL ANABI RACING. IS THIS A PERSONAL RIVALRY OR ARE YOU ALL FRIENDS?They are a big team. They have done a good job. They deserve to be one of the top teams around the world. We understand that we have done our job as well. We work hard. The two teams’ members are good friends. It’s a kind of normal competition between the two teams, nothing personal.

CAN YOU GIVE US A LITTLE MORE DETAIL ON THE CAR YOU ARE USING IN THE COMPETITION?My car is a 1967 Camaro. I’m running with an Anderson Blower Engine. My best time so far this season is 5.82 seconds doing 397km. We are very confident that the car can do better than that. It’s only a matter of time. We’re just waiting for the right time to come with the right weather.

IN YOUR OPINION WHAT DISTINGUISHES YOU FROM OTHER TEAMS COMPETING?I think we are almost the same. I probably focus more and take it more seriously more than the others but other than that there isn’t much between us.

So with Bahrain 1 Racing taking the Bahrain Drag

Racing Championship, we caight up with Ali Aryan who secured the most points to find out how the green machines really work.

56

“If I have the opportunity to do a circuit race then I would”

57

COVER STORY

57

59

HAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT ABOUT VENTURING INTO OTHER MOTORSPORT RACES SUCH AS THE NEW LUMINA CHAMPIONSHIP THAT WILL BEGIN SHORTLY?I used to take part in the Mini Challenges in 2003 and 2004. I used to race the Lumina Circuit Race as well. I like circuit racing as well. If I have the opportunity to do a tarmac race, I would.

WE KNOW YOU RECENTLY CAME BACK FROM QATAR, WHERE ELSE HAVE YOU COMPETED?I’ve competed in Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait.

OUT OF ALL OF THESE PLACES, WHICH COUNTRY IN YOUR OPINION IS YOUR FAVORITE TO RACE?I would have to say the USA because it is the home of drag racing.

HOW DO YOU PREPARE YOURSELF BEFORE EACH RUN?First of all, I make sure I have enough sleep the night before. Then, eating well. Drinking as much water as I can and relaxing away from mechanics and motoring issues so that I can focus as much as possible during the race.

THERE ARE MANY PEOPLE WHO ATTEND THE TEST TUNE WHO ARE LOOKING FOR FUNDING AND SPONSORSHIP TO COMPETE MORE SERIOUSLY, WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR THESE PEOPLE?It’s not that easy. They have to think of putting a nice package proposal together. Then, they should try to get a company that is into motoorsport. I’m sure they’ll be able to get a sponsorship if they have a good history.

ANY FINAL WORDS FOR ALL YOUR FANS IN BAHRAIN AND ACROSS THE GCC?I’d like to thank them all for supporting me whether they were inside or outside Bahrain. I’ll try make sure to provide whatever makes them happy wither in Bahrain or outside Bahrain. Final words go to my teammates for supporting me from day one. Special thanks to H.H. Shaikh Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa and our sponsors, Zain, GB CORP, CEBARCO, and BIC.

COVER STORY

“Final words go to my teammates for supporting me from day one”

60

Jenson Alexander Lyons Button (born 19 January 1980 in Frome, Somerset) is a British Formula One racing driver from England currently driving for the Brawn GP team. He first drove in Formula One in the 2000 Season with the

Williams team, and won his first Grand Prix in Hungary, on 6 August 2006 after 113 races. Following the withdrawal of Honda from the sport in December 2008, he was left without a drive for the 2009 season until Ross Brawn led a management buyout of the team in late February 2009 and Button suddenly found himself in a highly competitive, Mercedes-engined car. He has gone on to win six of the first seven races so far this season (2009), equalling a record achieved by only two other drivers, Michael Schumacher and Jim Clark.

PERSONAL LIFEButton attended Selwood Middle School and then Frome Community College. He is the son of Simone Lyons and former Rallycross driver John Button from London (during the 1970s well-known in the UK for his so-called Colorado beetle Volkswagen, whose best overall results were to become the runner-up in both the Embassy/RAC-MSA British Rallycross and TEAC/Lydden Rallycross championships of the year 1976) and named after the car marque Jensen. Jenson Button's parents are divorced, and he has three older sisters, Tania Katrina (born 1967), Samantha Chantal (born 1970) and Natasha Michelle (born 1973).

KARTINGButton began karting at age eight after his father bought him his first kart, and he made an extraordinarily successful start. He won all 34 races of the 1991 British Cadet Kart Championship along with the title.

Further successes followed, including three triumphs in the British Open Kart Championship. In 1997 he became the youngest driver ever to win the European Super A Championship and won the Ayrton Senna Memorial Cup as well, precipitating a move into car racing.

FORMULA FORDBy the age of 18, he contested the British Formula Ford Championship with Haywood Racing and won the title with nine race wins. He also triumphed in the Formula Ford Festival at Brands

JENSON BUTTON

DRIVER PROFILE

History In The Making

Hatch, ahead of future Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon. At the end of 1998 he won the annual McLaren Autosport BRDC Young Driver Award. His prize included a test in a McLaren Formula One car, which he received at the end of the following year.

FORMULA THREEButton entered Formula Three in 1999 with the Promatecme team. He won three times - at Thruxton, Pembrey and Silverstone - and finished the season as top rookie driver.

He was third overall in the championship, behind Marc Hynes and Luciano Burti, and finished fifth and second respectively in the Marlboro Masters and Macau Grand Prix (0.035s behind winner Darren Manning in the latter).

WILLIAMS F1 TEAMAt the end of 1999 Button had his McLaren test prize at Silverstone, and also tested for the Prost team. A vacant race seat became available at the Williams team following the departure of Alex Zanardi, and team boss Frank Williams arranged a 'shoot-out' between Button and Formula 3000 racer Bruno Junqueira. Button won the seat. He finished eighth in the 2000 Drivers' Championship. At the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, he qualified 3rd and finished 4th. However, he made a number of rookie mistakes during the season, including crashing while under safety car conditions at Monza. He was outscored by his more experienced teammate, Ralf Schumacher.

BUTTON DROVE FOR BENETTON IN THE 2001 SEASONIn 2001, although still under contract with Williams, Button drove for Benetton, which had just been purchased by Renault. He had a dismal season; the car, which was constantly under development that year, was never fast, nor was Button. He did, however, place fifth at the German Grand Prix, but finished a disappointing seventeenth in the drivers' championship.

RENAULTIn 2002 Renault renamed Benetton as Renault F1. Though his teammate Jarno Trulli routinely outpaced him in qualifying, Button occasionally had the superior race pace. He narrowly missed third place (and his first podium) at the Malaysian Grand Prix, being passed by Michael Schumacher in the last lap due to a suspension failure in his Renault, and ultimately finished the race in fourth. The Brazilian Grand Prix gave him another fourth place, and he finished seventh in that year's drivers championship.

For the 2003 season Renault team principal Flavio Briatore replaced Button with Fernando Alonso, previously test driver for the team. Despite a "huge outcry" Briatore stated "Time will tell if I am wrong." In 2005 Alonso won the Drivers' Championship with Renault, while Button had yet to win a race and was involved in his second contract dispute in two years. The Times quoted Briatore as saying "Jenson is a fine driver but there were too many

contracts, too many things in the background."After his replacement at Renault, in early

2003 Button joined the BAR team, alongside former World Champion Jacques Villeneuve. As the season progressed, Button gained the upper hand in qualifying and also enjoyed better races. Button's best result of the season was fourth place in Austria. However, he crashed heavily during Saturday practice in Monaco, causing him to miss both the race and the following testing session at Monza. By the end of the season, though, things were looking up, and at the 2003 United States Grand Prix Button led a lap for the first time. He finished ninth in the Drivers' Championship that year with 17 points.

In 2004, Button and BAR-Honda made significant progress and BAR finished the season second in the Constructors' Championship. Button scored his first ever podium finish with a third place in the Malaysian Grand Prix, and added 9 more throughout that season.

Button and BAR's first pole position came in April at the 2004 San Marino Grand Prix, in which he finished second. He ended the season third overall, behind the two dominant Ferrari drivers, with 85 points.

61

DRIVER PROFILE

Button was one of the first to offer support of the cost cutting for 2010

BRAWN GPOn fifth of March 2009, it was announced that the former Honda team would become Brawn GP, following a buy-out by Ross Brawn, the previous team principal of Honda Racing. Button and Rubens Barrichello were confirmed as the team's drivers for 2009.

Button took pole position at the 2009 Australian Grand Prix, his first for the team and fourth ever, with his team mate Barrichello in second place. Button led the race from start to finish to win the race ahead of his team-mate, the first time a team had scored a 1-2 finish on their debut since 1954.

One week later, he made it two poles and two wins in a row at the Malaysian Grand Prix, setting the fastest lap in order to jump ahead of Trulli and Rosberg during the first pit stops. The race was stopped due to heavy rain with less than 75% completed meaning only half points were awarded. In this race Button scored his first hat trick (pole, win and fastest lap) and his first fastest lap.

At the Chinese Grand Prix Button finished third behind Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber. Button won the 4th race of the

season, the 2009 Bahrain Grand Prix, from fourth on the grid, finishing ahead of Sebastian Vettel and Jarno Trulli, who had set pole position. This was the first time he had taken the chequered flag at racing speed this season.

After the first improvements of 2009, at Barcelona, Button took pole after complaining of balance problems for the Spanish Grand Prix. He went on to win his fourth race of the season after his teammate stayed on a three-stop strategy as Rubens suffered from huge amounts of oversteer in his middle stints dropping him back behind Button.

DRIVER PROFILE

On fifth of March 2009, it was announced that the former Honda team would become Brawn GP

62

BUTTON AT THE 2009 TURKISH GRAND PRIX.At the Monaco Grand Prix Button got his fourth pole position of the season and his first at the Principality, after a last gasp lap, which was also his fastest in the entire qualifying session. He had been complaining of balance issues the whole weekend and set his fastest lap of his weekend as his pole time. He was also the heaviest car out of the top eight apart from Barrichello, in a similar situation to Australia. He went on to take the win from his teammate to take his first hat trick of wins and lead Brawn's third 1-2. Button made a good start to the race and built a lead during the first stint by handling the soft tires better than Barrichello.

At the Turkish Grand Prix Button qualified in second place behind Vettel, but in front of team-mate Barrichello. After being somewhat uncompetitive during Friday's Practice sessions, he came alive in qualifying and certainly came alive for the race. During the first lap, Button took the lead after Vettel ran wide allowing the Brit through. Vettel, by virtue of a light fuel load after his first stop, was able to close right up on Button but was unable to overtake. His two-stop worked perfectly leaving Vettel's three stop strategy uncompetitive. Button won the race ahead of Mark Webber and Sebastien Vettel with Barrichello giving Brawn their first retirement.

Jenson's lead has now been extended to 61 points over team mate Barrichello's 35 and Vettel's 29.

After the World Council meeting, which confirmed the cost cutting plan for 2010, Button was one of the first to offer support of the cost cutting for 2010.

DRIVER PROFILE

63

64

TWO SEASON’S TWO WINS FOR

SEASON REVIEW

65

YOUNG, AL KHAN

Mustafa Al Khan wins the Batelco 2000CC Championship once again as controversy plagues the final round

The final weekend of racing witnessed 15 drivers step up their game to compete one last time in the Batelco 2000CC Challenge which is sponsored by leading telecommunications company, Batelco, organized by the Circuit Racing Club, sanctioned by the Bahrain Motor Federation and promoted by Bahrain International Circuit.

During the first practice session, Shaikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa scored the fastest lap time of 1:20.170 minutes as Stephen Kellogg followed closely behind with a 1.220 second gap, whilst Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa took third just 2.621 seconds from the lead.

SEASON REVIEW

Mustafa Al Khan face technical problems with his car as Shaikh Jaber bin Ali Al Khalifa faced some misfortune and came in 14th place.

The qualifiers witnessed a similar result as Shaikh Hamad once again took first place as Mustafa Al Khan stepped up the competition to take second place, whilst Mohammed Saleh followed behind in third and Shaikh Salman stood in fourth place. Shaikh Jaber continued to struggle with some mechanical problems that drove him to qualifying in last place. Al Khan showed his superb sportsmanship by lending Shaikh Jaber some parts to enable him to compete and joined the back of the grid for the first race having failed to score any timed laps during the practice sessions.

Meanwhile, race one saw competition intensify one last time this season as Al Khan

and Shaikh Jaber made a clean start from the back of the grid whilst Shaikh Hamad and Shaikh Salman faced mechanical problems forcing them to retire early from the race. Shaikh Jaber and Al Khan continued their battle for the last time which led to Al Khan taking first position, Shaikh Jaber in second and Mohammed Saleh in third, so it seemed.

SEASON REVIEW

Al Khan was using a non-standard cosmetic part on his car which violated the technical rules and regulations

66

FINAL DAY CONTROVERSYA turn of events following the final round of the Batelco 2000CC Challenge, as a protest was lodged against Mustafa Al Khan, led to his exclusion from the final results of Round 8.

Following a complaint, race stewards investigated a protest submitted against Mustafa Al Khan, driver of car number 2, which revealed that Al Khan was using a non-standard cosmetic part on his car which violated the technical rules and regulations of the Batelco 2000CC Challenge.

As a result, the 2008/2009 champion was excluded from the final round putting Shaikh Jaber in first place, Mohammed Saleh in second and Tim Birkin in third place at the end of the first race. However, Al Khan still stands as the overall winner with a clear win of 130 points, 12 points ahead of Shaikh Jaber who holds 118 points at the end of the season.

During the final round this weekend, top officials including the newly-appointed CEO of Batelco Bahrain, Gert Riedar, BIC Chief Executive Officer, Martin Whitaker, Chief Operating Officer, Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa and Bahrain Motor Federation President Shaikh Abdulla bin Isa Al Khalifa were present to watch the final round and present the winners with their trophies.

SEASON REVIEW

67

68

FEATURES

69

This season the F1 world looked forward to the famous Turkish Grand Prix, but with apprehension about what the future would hold exactly.

With precisely a few days till the expiry of the 2010 entry deadline, a stand-off is still going on. But what would happen if neither manufacturers nor the FIA climbed down? What would F1 2010 look like?

The first would be to survey the damage. Only hypotheses can be made about who would remain, as it is near-impossible to gauge the climate if one or more major manufacturer leaves. But most probably Ferrari would be gone, along with Toyota and Renault. The last two have always been temporary players, and so Ferrari’s loss would be the most seismic. Red Bull has said they would go, but as the best-funded team not beholden to a manufacturer, there is a feeling in the paddock that they could stay.

THE NEWCOMERSWe can reasonably assume at least one of McLaren Mercedes or BMW would remain, subject to boardroom approval. Williams would be there, as would Brawn, and Force India. The future of Toro Rosso would depend on Red Bull, but let us assume that they remain too. Then the new teams: Lola, USGPE, iSport or Campos for the most likely, but also Prodrive. According to Max Mosley, the £40million cap will tempt more investors into the sport as

well. Additional incentives would be that any sponsor or company could effectively adopt or steal from one of the abandoned teams, using its experience, personnel and infrastructure.

So there are ten teams or so that are likely to be racing in 2010, supposedly replacing the ones that had gone. On the track, an F1 preened of some of its excess but with an emphasis on engineering excellence and innovation would hold substantial appeal for a vast number of fans. Equally, the leveling of the playing field might produce interesting results; fans would go to a race truly not knowing if a McLaren or a Williams or a Prodrive would win.

EVOLUTION OF FORMULA 1Paul Jackson of iSport made an interesting point in an interview. He said he believed that by their nature, big car manufacturers were unsuited to the specific environment of F1. ‘Running a Formula 1 team, or a racing team of any sort, doesn’t fit with a big corporate structure. That moves too slowly; this has to move very quickly. You need quick decision-making and adaptability, and big corporations don’t fit with that philosophy. In the past it hasn’t worked, and it’s got to the point now where it’s not working.” The logical conclusion of this argument is that the exodus of car manufacturers is part of the natural evolution of the sport.

The other likely scenario if this all comes to pass is the resurrection of the Grand Prix World

his season the F1 world lookedforward to the famous Turkish GrandPrix, but with apprehension about what the future would hold exactly

well. Additional incentives would be that any sponsor or company could effectively adopt or steal from one of the abandoned teams, using its experience personnel and infrastructure

A VISION OF F1 2010A VISION OF F1 2010

FEATURES

70

The FIA has always been the unifyingly detested, patriarchal, teacher-like figure. The question is whether the pupils can run an interesting class themselves.

FEATURES

Championship, formed by the breakaway group. Ferrari, Renault and Toyota, possibly joined by Mercedes and BMW and other car giants waiting in the wings, would hold their own series, flushed with money (as long as that lasts). This series would have to be sanctioned by the FIA, which Mosley says it would happily do, and run on its own circuits around the world. One of the positives for fans would be that some old great circuits might be resurrected – others, like Spa and Monaco, would be lost to that group.

FIA’S NEW APPROACHOne important point for any breakaway series is that FOTA unity is a relatively recent thing. Is there any guarantee that a group of manufacturers, with different economic models, markets, objectives and interests, could run a series themselves? As any historian will tell you it is one thing to form an alliance against an oppressor, but it is quite another to form a governing coalition with your allies. The FIA has always been the unifyingly detested, patriarchal, teacher-like figure. The question is whether the pupils can run an interesting class themselves.

Where would the fans go? One of Ferrari’s strongest cards in this saga has been that approximately a quarter of all the world’s F1 fans are first and foremost Ferrari fans. So they could count on them following them to a manufacturers’ series. If the racing was good, more fans would defect from F1 to watch the manufacturers. But a sizeable proportion would remain with the genuine article, at least at first, simply because of TV rights. For example, the BBC will continue to show real F1, because it has an agreement to do so for the next few years. Of course, viewing figures would desert it in droves if the racing was bad, but dull racing has never killed F1 before…

THE CONTENDERSAnother key point is where the drivers would go. Fernando Alonso said that he feared for his F1 future if the big manufacturers left. But many drivers would be attracted by the

possibility of racing on a more level playing field and away from the big-money, political and public relations world the manufacturers have introduced to F1. An added incentive would be the apparent fairytale story of Jenson Button – career at death’s door at Christmas and top of the world by the spring. If you’re thinking its all because of talent and engineering innovation, well sorry to say but it’s because of money.

But some drivers have contracts with big teams, and would continue to work in that big money world. At present, drivers’ salaries are included in the budget cap and so, on a practical level, staying in F1 rather than defecting to a manufacturers’ series might represent a big pay cut for drivers. It is a fair bet that roughly half the drivers would opt to stay, and half to go.

THE DARWINIAN EVOLUTIONWhat this cannot be compared to is the split of the IndyCar Championship into IRL and ChampCar in the US a few years back. The split there was a disaster, as audiences plummeted and the two were forced to re-unite last season to save their collective skins. But F1 has a much larger support base than the open-wheel scene in the US and could definitely withstand a defection from Ferrari and two or three other manufacturers.

The doomsday scenario is also a possibility. Both series could turn out to be lacklustre affairs, with an over-regulated and sanitized F1 on one hand and a corporate demonstration GPWC exercise on the other. But that situation is still relatively unlikely at this point.

Most serious F1 fans watch the sport because it is a unique mix of history, speed, romance, excitement, danger and personality. If two series emerge from this, there will be nothing the fans can do to stop it. Whichever series manifests those qualities better will be the one that survives – a Darwinian evolution. So F1 fans just have to wait, and not fear the future, because it might be better than the present.

71

FEATURES

After watching Vettel and Webber make history in Shanghai, Button was back to his winning ways in Bahrain to take his third victory out of four races this season. The 29-year-old Englishman’s pace ended Toyota’s hopes of a first victory in Formula 1 after a very fast qualifying time, and Sebastian Vettel in his Red Bull-Renault added to Toyota’s

woes as he fought his way to second, leaving Jarno Trulli to settle for third place, despite having set pole position. As the Formula 1 circus heads back to Europe, the Brawn team and Button have big leads in the two World Championships. The big question now is whether they can stay ahead as everyone rushes out new parts in an effort to close the gap...

RACE REPORT: BAHRAIN GPBUTTON’S WINNING STREAK RESUMES

BACK IN BAHRAINAfter qualifying Button was slightly alarmed. The car was not as competitive as it had been at the earlier races and the team was worried that the opposition was already getting close. As the teams lined up on the grid, there were rumors that the Brawns would have to detune the engines because of worries about over-heating the engine, but it did not turn out that way. Timo Glock took the lead from the start when Trulli’s engine bogged down a little. At the same time Button was slightly slow away but he knew that he needed to get ahead of Sebastian Vettel, if he was going to have

any hope of victory.“I knew when I got to Turn One that I really

had to make my move to get past Sebastian,” he explained. “Otherwise I would just get stuck behind him. Lewis (Hamilton) had come barreling past on the right, so I went round the outside of Sebastian and made it through to fourth place. Lewis is always very difficult to pass and he was blocking very well and using his KERS, but I knew those first laps were going to be so important that I had to make it work. He was making a few little mistakes and I knew when we got to the start/finish line that he’d press his KERS button and get away just

as I was getting alongside, and he did, but I got him going into Turn One and that was the key to my race.”

With Hamilton and Vettel taken care of, Button began closing the gap on the two Toyotas. He knew that all he had to do was to wait because the Toyotas were lighter and would pit earlier.

“Chasing down the two Toyotas was very exciting,” Button said. “I was surprised by their pace and not sure how it was going to work out.” Behind him Vettel was stuck behind Hamilton. Button was in the perfect place.

TOYOTA’S FAILED STRATEGYGlock pitted first having built up only a small lead. It was lap 11. Trulli pitted a lap later. Jenson then took the lead and with no-one ahead he was able to lower his lap times.

72

RACE REPORT

73

RACE REPORT

74

RACE REPORT

When he stopped on lap 15, Vettel moved into the lead, Hamilton had already gone into the pits by then. This was Vettel’s chance but he had lost too much time. When he went into the pits Kimi Raikkonen had a moment of glory and led the race for two laps. But then Jenson was back ahead once more and there he stayed. He stopped again on lap 37 and at that point switched to the harder tires. For the next three laps Vettel was in the lead once more but the German had to pit. When he emerged from the pits he found himself behind Raikkonen, who was due to pit again. Unable to deal with the Ferrari, Vettel had to wait. His tires lost the edge and by the time he was able to get past Raikkonen, Button was gone, leaving Vettel to spend the last laps of the race with Trulli right behind him, the Toyota driver now on the good soft tires.

“He was very close in my mirrors,” said Vettel. “But I didn’t make any mistakes.”

Trulli was disappointed with third and he reckoned that the strategy of using the harder tires in the mid-race was the wrong thing to do.

“I’m a little disappointed,” Jarno said. “I thought we had a chance to take Toyota’s first

Ferrari had a KERS advantage and used it, leaving Glock behind him

win this weekend but it was a hard race. I was slightly slower into the first corner than Timo so I spent the first stint following him. I knew I was going longer than him but it was still difficult. Then we went for a very long second stint on the hard tires. It was really hard fighting with the other cars. After that Vettel was on the hard tires and I was on the soft. I was pushing him but there was no way to overtake.”

Glock disappeared down the order because his stop was really too early. He went straight to ninth, while a couple of laps later Trulli lost only six places.

Later, after Raikkonen’s second stop on lap 44 Glock managed to scramble ahead of the Finn but the Ferrari had a KERS advantage and used it, leaving Glock behind him. After that Timo was on Kimi’s tail but he could not get ahead.

HAMILTON STILL POSITIVE WITH MCLARENWhile this was going on, Lewis Hamilton was left to chase after the top three. “I’m delighted with fourth,” he said after the race. “The Toyotas, Red Bulls and Brawns were so fast in the high-speed corners that it was just impossible to keep up. But this is another encouraging step for the team, we just need to keep working on the car because we’re not really fighting back quite yet, we are collecting points. And the gap will be bigger when we go to Barcelona because it’s a high- downforce circuit.”

Rubens Barrichello tried a three-stop

75

RACE REPORT

strategy to get clean air and managed to get up to fifth by the finish. It was a lot of work for just one position.

“We brought home some valuable points today,” he said. “But it was a tough race for me. I lost a lot of time behind Piquet after my first stop, which was a real shame as it compromised my race plan. We went for a three-stop strategy and then took the decision to come in slightly early for my second stop as I was being held up behind Hamilton. It was so hot out there this afternoon and the car was burning my waist on the right-hand side which made it very difficult for me. It seems that luck is on Jenson’s side at the moment and well done to him and to the team for winning the

race today. I hope that my turn comes soon!”

FERRARI’S MISERY CONTINUESBehind the second Brawn, Kimi Raikkonen brought Ferrari its first points of the season - three to be precise. But they came at a price. As Kimi and his team-mate Felipe Massa clashed in the first corner. It was good to score points but Ferrari was still well off the pace.

“I am happy to have picked up a few points,” said Kimi, “but I can’t be that pleased with our level of performance. I’ve been around long enough not to get very excited about a sixth place.”

For Massa it was another dreadful day.“I was sandwiched between Kimi and

Rubens Barrichello and the front wing got broken after making contact with my team-mate’s rear wheel,” he said. “It was a shame because once again we lost an opportunity to score points.” He ended the day 14th, a lap down.

SUMMARYThe final point of the day went to Fernando Alonso in his Renault. He proved once and for all that Flavio Briatore’s protestations about the team having the third best car were utterly misplaced.

“We did our maximum today,” he said. “The start of the race was not perfect and we lost a position which put me down to eighth. After that nothing unusual happened and there were no retirements so we were eighth fastest and we finished eighth.”

He lost his drinks bottle in the course of the race and was exhausted by the end of the race.

Team-mate Nelson Piquet was 10th and had a better than usual run but it was worth

Alonso proved once and for all that Flavio Briatore’s protestations about the team having the third best car were utterly misplaced

76

RACE REPORT

nothing, then at one point Rubens Barrichello showed himself to be very angry with Nelson, assuming, one must suppose that his fellow countryman was a lap down and not getting out of his way. In fact Nelson was perfectly entitled to fight for position.

Nico Rosberg failed to score points again, losing the benefit of his ninth place on the grid as his KERS-equipped rivals overtook him at the start. Team-mate Kazuki Nakajima was the sole retirement in the race, damaging yet another front wing early on and requiring a replacement. That dropped him to the tail of the field and he eventually stopped when oil pressure problems hit his engine.

Mark Webber drove a solid race after his disappointment in qualifying and was up to 12th when he got caught behind Piquet. The

Mark Webber drove a solid race after his disappointment in qualifying

Red Bull team decided to switch him to a two-stop strategy (he had been planning three) but the car was not good on the harder tires and so 11th was the best he could do. And so it ended with Button and the Brawn team celebrating once again. Button added that there had been one more problem. He had burned his bottom on an electrical box in the cockpit... But it had been worth it. Button said it was his finest hour in F1 to date and no-one disagreed!

Button makes his way down the Paddock area

77

RACE REPORT

Q: Jenson, the dream start to the year continues. And this was a dry race, this was a race all the way.

Jenson BUTTON: It was indeed. This was a tough race for us. You might say I was leading for most of it but this race we had not the pace we had in the first three races. I don’t know where it has gone. I guess these guys have just caught up and maybe passed us. But the first lap of the race I knew was very important because Sebastian was going longer, so I made it work and I came out of the first corner in third. From then on it was a tough race but very enjoyable.

Q: Sebastian, a great result for you too. A hard race and in a lot of traffic. A tyre defined race in many ways but in the end you are on the podium again.

Sebastian VETTEL: Yeah, a very good result for us. Good points, but as you said we will keep pushing. It was a difficult race. The start was quite okay but then I was surprised as all of a sudden there was Lewis (Hamilton) next to me. When I first looked

in the mirrors he was not there but then I guess he pressed his special button and that gave him a bit of an advantage. At the first corner there were three, me in the middle and Jenson on the outside, so I had to give way and lost two positions in the first lap and then unfortunately I got stuck behind Lewis. I mean you might have a chance immediately to pass someone but then when you follow a car your tyres just go down. There is a lot of degradation. You start to slide and then you never really come back. It is quite difficult here as it is always hard braking, so you need the tyres, you need the stability, so therefore it is difficult to pass. I knew I had a longer first stint which put me just behind Jarno, so that was a bit of a shame as I was on soft tyres and I could have gone a bit quicker. Then I got stuck behind him again but then I was able to overshoot, staying out a little bit longer, which put me in front of him. But then it was the other way around and I had to defend from him. The whole last sting he was very close in my mirrors. I think he was pushing hard but I made no mistakes,

so in the end we came second.

Q: Jarno, a relatively early pit stop and unlike most runners a switch to the hard tyre for the middle stint.

Jarno TRULLI: Yeah, I am a little bit disappointed because I was waiting for the first win for Toyota. Unfortunately at the start I think I had oil spillage which cost me the first position. From then on it was a hard race as I was following my team-mate. I was going longer and then during the second stint we used a very long stint on the hard tyres, so I was trying to fight and it was really hard fighting with a lot of cars. I was not extremely quick but competitive being on the hard tyres and then eventually Sebastian took the position after my last stop. He was on the hard tyres and I was on the soft and I was pushing him. I was quicker but there was no way to overtake him, so that was how the race was. I want to thank the team as they have done a very good job, so let’s wait to fight again for the next race.

Post Race Interviewce InterviewPP

78

RACE REPORT

RESULTSGP2 ASIA SERIESBAHRAIN

1 D.Nunes 59.59.025

2 R.Rodriguez 4.906

3 J.D'Ambrosio 7.905

4 K.Kobayashi 15.282

5 G.Van Der Garde 20.774

6 S. Yamamoto 31.624

7 D.Rigon 48.01

8 L.Razia 50.923

9 K.Chandhok 55.684

10 J.Jakes 55.853

11 G.Ricci 57.571

12 S.Perez 57.875

13 M.Herck 58.122

14 M.Bonanomi 65.328

15 J.Villa 75.745

16 D.Valsecchi 78.479

17 R.Teixeira 88.508

18 F.Crestani 1Lap

19 V.Petrov 2Lap

POS DRIVER TIME

SPEEDCAR SERIS BAHRAIN

1 V. Liuzzi 41.02.174

2 T.Biagi 3.453

3 H.Al Maktoun 4.936

4 N.Navarro 10.227

5 G.Morbidelli 12.117

6 J.Herbert 12.464

7 C.Buncombe 19.899

8 C.Zoechlino 22.644

9 M.Lee 29.144

10 J.Alesi 35.642

11 M.Cioci 44.595

12 H.Frentzen 52.811

POS DRIVER TIME

CHEVEROLET SUPERCARS

1 K.Al Faisal 19.20.222

2 A.Al Yaeeshi 3.579

3 A. Al Harthy 5.985

4 P. Redolfi 12.384

5 S. Salahuddin 18.644

6 F.Rafii 45.417

7 H.Al Khalifa 45.699

8 B. Al Silmy 72.052

9 A. Hamidaddin 73.648

10 C. Mariot 74.888

11 A.Raymond 81.385

12 H.Al Saleh 82.137

13 T.Elgammal DNF

14 F.Al Musalam DNF

15 J. Vaandrager DNF

POS DRIVER TIME

MOBIL 1 SUPERCUP BAHRAIN

1 J.Bleekemolen 25.38.878

2 R.Rast 2.497

3 R.Westbrook 6.786

4 P.Huisman 13.206

5 R.Williams 14.678

6 D.Faulkner 14.712

7 N.Siedler 16.773

8 M.Halliday 19.417

9 L.Ferrara 22.237

10 S.Rosina 24.378

11 J.Janak 24.574

12 W.Langhorne 26.134

13 A.Al Faisal 33.463

POS DRIVER TIME

CHAMPIONSHIP 2008

1 Kamui Kobayashi 9 13 12 5 8 9 56

2 Jerome D'Ambrosio 2 2 13 4 2 13 36

3 Roldan Rodriguez 13 6 3 - 5 8 35

4 Davide Valsecchi 7 8 9 5 5 - 34

5 Vitaly Petrov 4 4 - 11 9 - 28

6 Nico Hulkenberg - - 10 17 - - 27

7 Sergio Perez - 3 7 15 1 - 26

8 Diego Nunes - - - - 13 11 24

9 Sakon Yamamoto 6 1 - - - 6 13

10 Javier Villa 10 - 2 - - - 12

11 Edoardo Mortara - - 6 5 - - 11

12 Giedo Van Der Garde - 5 2 - - 4 11

13 Luiz Razia - - - 2 - 7 9

14 Earl Bamber 8 - - - - - 8

15 James Jakes - - - - 7 - 7

16 Pastor Maldonado - - - - 7 - 7

17 Davide Rigon - - - - - 6 6

18 Chris Van Der Drift 5 - - - - - 5

19 Yelmer Buurman - - - - 4 - 4

20 Hamad Al Fardan - - - - 2 - 2

POSITION DRIVERS TOTAL

SPEEDCAR SERIES BAHRAIN

RESULTS

ROUND 5

BAHRAIN DRAG RACING CHAMPIONSHIP

Street Fwd: 0. 1. Fadhel Saleh (BRN) [email protected] (Al Sham Team) 0. 2. Adel Hassan (BRN) [email protected] (Team KFH) 0. 3. Moh’d Saleh (BRN) [email protected] (Al Sham Team) _Street Rwd: 0. 1. Sayed Nader (BRN) [email protected] 0. 2. Jameel Ebrahim (BRN) [email protected] 0. 3. Jaffar Al Qassab (BRN) [email protected] _Street V8: 0. 1. Mishal Suliyman (KWT) [email protected] (Q8 Racing Team) 0. 2. Ahmed al Zaabi (KWT) [email protected] (Team STS) 0. 3. Ali Haji (BRN) [email protected] _Super Street Fwd: 0. 1. Moh’d A.Redha (BRN) [email protected] 0. 2. A.Rahman Mubarak (BRN) [email protected] (Team Bin Hasher) 0. 3. Ebrahim Mubarak (BRN) [email protected] (Team Bin Hasher) _Super Street Rwd: 0. 1. Moh’d Haji (BRN) [email protected] (Team Get Boost) 0. 2. Saad Al Muran (BRN) [email protected] (Team Top Speed) 0. 3. Yousif Abdulla (BRN) [email protected] _Super Street V8: 0. 1. Yasser Shams (BRN) [email protected] (Team Sniper) 0. 2. Mizher Al Tanak (KWT) [email protected] (Team STS) 0. 3. Moh’d Ghanim (KSA) [email protected] _Competition 7.5: 0. 1. Rashid Bin Tammem (UAE) [email protected] (Team Top Speed) 0. 2. Hisham AL Mulla (KSA) [email protected] (Team SPG) 0. 3. Tariq Hadi (BRN) [email protected] (Team TRT) _Outlaw Fwd: 0. 1. Bader Janahi (BRN) [email protected] (Team KFH) 0. 2. Ebrahim Mubark (BRN) [email protected] (Team Bin Hasher) 0. 3. Ali Asalim (BRN) [email protected] _Outlaw Rwd: 0. 1. Ahmed Al Tayeb (KSA) [email protected] (Team Mobile) 0. 2. Moh’d AlJazeeri (BRN) [email protected] 0. 3. Ali Abdulla (BRN) [email protected] _ _ _Outlaw 10.5: 0. 1. Salah Salahuddin (BRN) [email protected] (Team QRT) 0. 2. Hussain Alshumeri (KWT) [email protected] (Team Q8 Racing) 0. 3. Khalid Yousif (BRN) [email protected] _Pro Mod: 0. 1. Khalid Moh’d (BRN) [email protected] (Team Bahrain 1 Racing) 0. 2. Ali Aryan (BRN) [email protected] (Team Bahrain 1 Racing) 0. 3. Ali Al Kaabi (UAE) [email protected] (Team SPG) _Street Bike: 0. 1. Khalid Al Dooseri (KSA) [email protected] 0. 2. Bader Bin Edan (KWT) [email protected] (Team STS) 0. 3. Waleed Al Bdeen (KSA) [email protected] _Super Street Bike: 0. 1. Mishari Al Turki (KSA) [email protected] 0. 2. Hatan Al abadi (KSA) [email protected] 0. 3. Raffat Alshareef (KSA) [email protected] _Pro Bike: 0. 1. Mishal Al Saber (KWT) [email protected] (Team STS) 0. 2. Moh’d Bu Rashid (KWT) [email protected] 0. 3. Khalid Al Foozan (KWT) [email protected] _Personal Best: 0. . Fadhel Saleh (BRN) [email protected] (Al Sham Team) 0. . Moh’d A.Redha (BRN) [email protected] 0. . Moh’d Haji (BRN) [email protected] (Team Get Boost). New Record in the 7.5 Competition Rashid Bin Tammem (UAE) [email protected] (Team Top Speed)

RACE 1 CLASSIFICATION

1 J. Herbert (JMB) 40 minutes 59.350 seconds

2009 Speedcar Bahrain - Action

2 H. Frentzen (Continental Circus) -10.339 seconds

3 V. Liuzzi (UP Team) -12.545

4 C. Zoechling (Continental Circus) -20.396

5 G. Morbidelli (Palm Racing) -23.398

6 H. Al Maktoum (UP Team) -25.168

7 D. Pasini (JMB) -26.539

8 T. Biagi (Palm Racing) -34.563

9 N. Navarro (Durango) -39.483

10 R. Azzam (Scuderia Giudici ) -46.854

11 M. Cioci (Durango) -61.776

12 M. Lee (HPR) - 1 LAP

DNF

D. Terrien (West Tec)

G. Giudici (Scuderia Giudici)

C. Buncombe (West Tec)

J. Alesi (HPR)

Fastest Lap

V. Liuzzi (UP Team) 2 minutes 07.791 seconds on lap 2

RACE 2 CLASSIFICATION

2009 Speedcar Bahrain - Herbert spins

1 V. Liuzzi (UP Team) 41 minutes 02.174 seconds

2 T. Biagi (Palm Racing) -3.453 seconds

3 H. Al Maktoum (UP Team) -4.936

4 N. Navarro (Durango) -10.277

5 G. Morbidelli (Palm Racing) -12.117

6 J. Herbert (JMB) -12.464

7 C. Buncombe (West Tec) -19.899

8 C. Zoechling (Continental Circus) -22.644

9 M. Lee (HPR) -29.194

10 J. Alesi (HPR) -35.642

11 M. Cioci (Durango) -44.595

12 H. Frentzen (Continental Circus) -52.811

DNF

D.Pasini (JMB)

D. Terrien (West Tec)

R. Azzam (Scuderia Giudici)

G. Giudici (Scuderia Giudici)

Fastest Lap

V. Liuzzi (UP Team) 2 minutes 07.487 seconds on lap 4

With the amount of interest the racing scene has generated be it drag, circuit or kart, it was imperative for us at Max Media (publishers of the G.C.C. Re-known Arabia Motors magazine) to produce a magazine that would chronicle motorsport events from all over the world, with a special emphasis on the Middle East.Middle East Motorsport (M.E.M) is on a mission to not only highlight the region’s achievements in the Motorsport world, but to also introduce the industry’s pioneers to the racing community in the region. It’s all about bridging the gaps and bringing together an industry that has long been in the making.

Subscribe NOW BD10 for 1 year

MAXMEDIAP U B L I C A T I O N S

Subscribe online www.maxmediaco.com Or call Bahrain +973 17402482

Strap yourself in and get ready to read!

MIDDLE EAST MOTORSPORT (M.E.M)

Mem June Issue

Documents

Transcript of Mem June Issue