On its debut at this year’s Targa Tasmania, amid a field of powerful and expensive rally exotica, the turbocharged Mazda Motorsport RX-8 SP finished an impressive 10th outright at the hands of expert racing driver and 2008 Targa Champion Steve Glenney.

Mazda has retained Glenney’s expertise and the South Australian driver will return to next year’s event from April 27-May 2 with his two greatest weapons in-tow; long-time co-driver Bernie Webb and the experience gained from his 2009 Targa Tasmania campaign.

“We had a few problems to sort through during this year’s rally which probably held us back from a top three finish,” says Glenney. “But I am confident that thanks to time and lessons learned, the Mazda team has made the car stronger and faster for 2010.”

Mazda Motorsport boss and the brains behind the RX-8 SP, Allan Horsley, also has high hopes for the rotary-spun rally car which he says already out-handles the world’s most expensive rally-bred machines on the market.

“I’ll be honest and say we had teething problems this year – but that was always going to be the case given that so little racing development had gone into it. But to finish 10th outright on debut is just incredible.

“Six months on and what we have now is a handling package to outperform the Porsches and Lamborghinis that dominate the pointy end of the Targa field. Now all we need to do is try and extract a little more power.”

Glenney, a horse trainer by day, was impressed by the RX-8 SP’s incredible rally potential.

“The RX-8 SP is a very easy car to drive at racing speeds, really suiting endurance events like Targa.

Its 50/50 chassis balance is the best I’ve driven; it’s comfortable on the tight and twisty sections as well as being very stable and fast on the open flowing corners.

“Next year’s Targa will be another huge challenge up against the very powerful and expensive Porsche’s, Lamborghini’s and Nissan GTR’s, but with some more testing under our belts I’m confident the RX-8 SP can sneak under the radar and steal a few stage wins and hopefully unsettle the heavyweight favourites.”

While refining the recipe is one thing, Horsley is realistic about the challenge ahead.

“By the time next year’s Targa starts we will have had 12 months of development under our belts, so there’s definitely more potential for us to do better. That said, Targa Tasmania is notoriously a car breaker, so we always go into this event knowing anything can happen.”

The 2010 Targa Tasmania, the world’s toughest tarmac rally, will be held from April 27-May 2. The 2000km event is made up of around 40 special closed road stages and regularly attracts more than 250 entries.

To make the move as cheaply as possible Mercedes is buying this year’s winner of the both world titles Brawn and from next year the team will race as Mercedes Gran Prix.

Drivers are yet to be announced but Mercedes Grand Prix could be going with an all German line up of Nico Rosberg with either Nich Heidfeld or Timo Glock as second driver … although at this point in time there’s a possibility that Jenson Button could also be a possibility.

When you think about all the years and dollars of development 888 Racing have put into their Ford engines you begin to realise that someone must have paid them a huge amount to turn their back on all that development and start all over again with Holden.

I wonder what that says about the top teams that are currently racing Commodores?

 

This ends the company’s 19 year involvement in the World Rally Championship that saw it take out three titles in the manufacturers and drivers’ categories.

Apart from winning the 1995 World Rally Championship McRae was the runner-up in 1996, 1997 and 2001 and was a part of the 2007 Subaru rally team.

Image courtesy of Newscom

Financial pressures on the struggling Betta Electrical group will mean that Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup will be racing at at Phillip Island without the Betta Electrical brand appearing on their cars or uniforms.

Lowndes and his team had already signed a major sponsorship deal with Vodafone for next year and it’s been reported that the team’s cars will be wearing a livery at Phillip Island that hints of that coming sponsorship.

While it is unclear what his role will be Schumacher has announced that he will remain with Ferrari despite retiring from Formula One.

Williams would have loved him to stay but there was really very little chance of that happening and finally they were forced to announce the signing of his replacement last week. From then on it was only a matter of time before his next F1 seat was confirmed.

Both Renault and Red Bull were said to be in the running but little was being said until just a few hours ago. It has now been announced that Mark Webber will be driving for Red Bull next year where he will be partnering David Coulthard.

In many ways the move to Red Bull will be a return to an old team because the Red Bull team was originally the Jaguar team that Webber left in 2004.

Ferrari team cars will feature prominent Case IH decals during the Grand Prix of Canada in Montreal, June 25; and the U.S. Grand Prix in Indianapolis, July 2.

“This is a great opportunity for Case IH to share the global stage with world-renowned Ferrari,” says Mario Ferla, president, Case IH. “Both are readily identified by their powerful products and with their signature red color, as well as for setting the standard of excellence in their respective industries.”

“We are elated that Fiat, Ferrari’s majority owner, has for the first time allowed its logo to be replaced on the Prancing Horse’s Formula 1 cars. This sends a strong message about the importance of Case IH, also a member of Fiat Group,” Ferla notes.

The Formula 1 Ferrari team is led by Michael Schumacher, the seven-time world drivers’ champion, and Felipe Massa. The Ferrari Formula 1 team has won a record 14 Constructors’ Championships, including six consecutive titles during 1999-2004.

“Since the Ferrari brand and Formula 1 race team have long traditions of distinction, it’s fitting that Case IH — with its own proud heritage — will be a part of the 2006 racing season,” Ferla says.

Let’s hope that Mark Webber’s car can hold together for the full race because he certainly has the ability to win.

The foundation of this type of rallying is the rule that covers the car itself.

The vehicle must cost no more than £100. Not £135, not £200. £100. If you did not purchase the car you must provide a signed witness statement from someone stating that they feel £100 is on the expensive side as a valuation for your car. It must also state that they wouldn’t buy it for £101.

The £100 Rule is the foundation of the event and the first and biggest challenge is to find such a vehicle and get through the Rally with it. If you don’t appreciate the concept, then maybe you’re better off taking a guided bus tour across Europe. But you wouldn’t have nearly as much fun.

It’s called Banger Rallying and only the Poms could think of it. They even have an official website and you can find that by following the link.

CzechWrecks, from the organisers of Banger Rallying’s leading events Staples2Naples and Home2Rome, is the next adventure in the hugely popular banger rally calendar. The event takes a new route through Switzerland and northern Italy and includes scaling the infamous Stelvio Pass, crossing into Austria and then the Czech Republic for the final descent upon Prague.

Teams must enter cars that cost less than £100 and still be road legal. As teams will cross the highest pass in Europe they will also need to prepare their brakes and clutches before the event to make sure that they don’t get stranded on an Alpine Pass.

As with all Street Safari events, there is more to it than merely driving the car to the finish. As if this weren’t challenge enough, teams are encouraged, though not required, to compete in quirky activities over the four day event.

Points mean prizes and there is a £1000 cash prize for the team that makes it to Prague with the most points. There are also additional distinctions for the “Biggest Pile of Rubbish” as well as for the team who “Hitchhike the Farthest” in recognition of the team who break down terminally the earliest in the event and still make it to the end.

Justin Clements, lead organiser said “We love doing these events and when the opportunity came up to put a third event on this year we decided to go for it. We are being asked all the time by people to join Staples2Naples and Home2Rome despite them selling out months ago. So there has been a huge pressure on us to do a third European event this year, as well as the first of its kind in the United States, which is scheduled for May.

“As our two other leading European events go to Italy, we decided that this event should go somewhere else, and Prague sounded like fun. We have many ideas for new events for 2007 and are constantly amused by the amount of imitators out there since we began this concept three years ago.

“Obviously, there’s something about dragging a decrepit vehicle off the beaten path that strikes a chord with people. Staples2Naples sold out in just over four minutes this year and has a waiting list two years long.”

CzechWrecks takes in Annecy, a beautiful town in the foothills of the French Alps before crossing Simplon Pass in Switzerland, renowned as one of the more beautiful passes in the Alps.

“The event even takes in Stelvio Pass which has to be one of the best passes ever and is a real treat,” Clements said. “One of the things about our events that we pride is that we search out and include some of the best driving roads in Europe and some of the most scenic parts that Europe can offer. It’s just an incredible experience all the way around.”

CzechWrecks takes to the road September 1, 2006. Registration is now open. For more information, visit http://www.czechwrecks.com

Somehow it seems like more fun than having a goanna run up your leg.

The race was no kinder to Australia’s Mark Webber who was leading the race on lap 23 when a gear box failure forced him to withdraw.

The race was ultimately won by Fernando Alonso in a Renault.

1. Fisichella/Renault

2. Alonso/Renault

3. Button/Honda

4. Montoya/McLaren-Mercedes

5. Massa/Ferrari

6. M Schumacher/Ferrari

Australian Mark Webber retired on lap 17 and his Williams-Cosworth team mate, Nico Rosberg retired on lap 8.

Kimi Raikkonen was involved in an accident on the first lap and did not continue.

Mark Webber is now in 8th position in the 2006 Driver’s Championsip with three points

The next Formula 1 Grand Prix will be in Melbourne on April 2

If Mark Webber doesn’t get much mention in the local press then Chris Atkinson gets none even though he is performing well in the World Ralley Championship. Chris currently drives for Subaru and is currently sitting in 9th spot in the drivers after three WRC rounds.

1. Fisichella/Renault

2. Button/Honda

3. Rosberg/Williams-Cosworth

4. Webber/Williams-Cosworth

Other grid positions are will not be announced till Sunday morning due to the new rules. A number of drivers, including Schumacher/Ferrari have opted for engine changes and this can affect their position on the starting grid by up to 10 places.

Racing begins at 5pm AEDT

New engines – 2.4 litre V8′s in place of the 3 litre V10′s and a whole new raft of rules governing qualifying and tyres have also been introduced. You can read more about the new rules here

For the first time a diesel powered car gained a podium finish in the world’s toughest rally event and you can read the full story here of how the VW Touareg did it.

Kia Rio driver, Yvan Muller, has taken sufficient points in the final round of what is regarded as the World Championship for the unique motorsport of ice racing, the Andros Trophy, to beat former F1 Grand Prix World Champion Alain Prost and win the championship title for the third successive year.

The domination of the series, which is held in freezing conditions on specially-built race tracks on the top of mountains in the Alps, by Muller and the Rio was achieved despite Muller carrying more weight-penalty ballast as the twice-previous championship winner. Muller comprehensively fought off last minute challenges from former F1 Grand Prix World Champion Alain Prost in a Toyota, Jean-Phillipe Dayraut in a BMW and Franck Lagorce in a Fiat.

The Kia team wrapped up the title with a superb tactical performance in Super-Besse, high in the Alps, recording solid placings in both races that were sufficient to secure enough points for Muller to win his tenth ice racing title.

According to Muller, “It was the hardest ice racing season in my career, and surely the most beautiful victory, even if I had to play a game I’m not used to. During the last three seasons, the team proved we could beat everybody, dominating in 2004 and 2005, or playing tactics and nerve breaking games this season.”

“In racing we are used to hearing about ‘fastest times,’ but this year we had our ‘fastest’ time even with 490 kilos of ballast,” commented Paul Bourion, Kmotorsport team principal. “We did three seasons with the Kia Rio and we won three championships, thanks to Yvan, while this year and in 2005 we also won the constructor’s championship. And we are very proud of that record,” he added.

Muller and the Kmotorsport team now go to Paris and the Stade de France for the final event of the season — a non-championship round on a specially created ice-track at the country’s national stadium on 18 March.