Maxxis British Drift Championship to begin at Donington
This Easter weekend (22-23 April) sees the 2011 Maxxis British Drift Championship get underway at Donington Park, with new regulations in place designed to make racing more competitive. Teams competing this year on Maxxis’ MA-Z1 Drift tyre will include Paul Cheshire’s 650bhp G35 Skyline and the tyre brand’s own sponsored SATS Cosworth Supra, driven by Mark Luney.
Continue ReadingMaxxis reviews British Motocross Championship third leg
Tyre brand Maxxis is the current title sponsor of the ACU British Motocross Championship – in addition to sponsoring several teams individually – and has pronounced itself delighted to see more close racing when the third round of the Championship took place at the sandy Cadders Hill circuit in in Lyng, Norfolk on 17 April. Maxxis also said its sponsored teams put in “a strong showing to deliver some solid top ten finishes”.
Continue ReadingYokohama to support Toshi Arai and Fumio Nutahara in IRC Europe
The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd. will provide its Advan A006T (for tarmac) and ADVAN A053 (for gravel) rally tyres in support of Toshi Arai and Fumio Nutahara in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC), which has been underway in Europe since January. Yokohama Rubber is endeavouring to improve recognition of its Advan rally tyres in Europe by supporting proven drivers in highly popular rallies.
Continue ReadingPirelli-shod drivers secure podium lock-out in Granite City rally
MSA Scottish Rally Championship contenders driving on Pirelli tyres secured the top three positions at the Granite City Rally in Aberdeen on Saturday, 16 April. Dave Weston, the 2006 champion, claimed victory in his Ford Focus WRC by a slender margin of one second over current title-holder David Bogie, who continues to lead the championship standings, following wins on the opening two rounds of the season in his Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX. Rising star David Wilson, in another Mitsubishi, completed the podium to underline the control and durability of its Scorpion tyres on the punishing gravel stages of Aberdeenshire.
Continue ReadingCooper begins 30th season of British F3 tyre supply
This weekend Cooper Tire enters its 30th season as exclusive tyre supplier to the Cooper Tires British Formula Three International Series, as the formula begins its 60th anniversary season this weekend. The series’ more international flavour of recent years will be represented by its first round taking place at Monza, Italy: one of four held outside the UK. Britain will see six events.
Continue ReadingShane O’Sullivan drives Maxxis-shod Japspeed S15 in Ireland
Maxxis reports that Ireland’s Shane O’Sullivan has joined the Team Japspeed drifting team the brand sponsors. He will compete full time in the ProDrift Series in the RB25-powered S15 using the MA-Z1 Drift tyre. Shane Finn, who will be running the team in conjunction with the Japspeed Ireland division, said: “Paul McCallum and the Japspeed UK team have built a truly fantastic machine which we’ve seen compete successfully in Ireland in the past.
Continue ReadingHankook begins DTM tyre supply
Hankook got underway as exclusive tyre supplier to the DTM championship at the series’ 2011 season launch in Wiesbaden, Germany on April 10. The tyre maker says the start of its season as partner to the popular international touring car championship “marks the beginning of a new era in the company's dedication to international motor sport.” Prior to its DTM involvement, Hankook was primarily engaged in endurance racing.
Continue ReadingOpen tender for WSBK tyre supply announced
The promoter of the World Superbike Championship has launched a tender process for the championship’s tyre suppler in the 2013 to 2015 seasons, a role that is currently undertaken by Pirelli. Infront Motor Sports first announced the tender for the FIM Superbike and Supersport World Championships, the Superstock FIM Cup 1000 and the UEM Superstock 600 European Championship at the end of March.
Continue ReadingCooper marks F3 diamond anniversary with diamond, crystal tyre
Cooper Tire has created a set of jewel-encrusted tyres to mark the diamond anniversary of Formula 3 racing in Britain, a series for which it is the current title sponsor. The tyres were made by London jeweller Freddie Keeble at FK Diamonds using both diamonds for the 60th anniversary and Swarovski crystals. They were unveiled at Silverstone during the launch of the 2011 Cooper Tires British F3 International Series, where they were bolted on to the race car of Carlin driver, Rupert Svendsen–Cook.
Continue ReadingMaxxis-sponsored British Motocross completes second round
The results in round two of the Maxxis ACU British Motocross Championship at Canada Heights on 27 March turned out to be a repeat of the season opener, reports the brand and title-sponsor. Shaun Simpson (LS Honda) and Arnaud Tonus (Bike It Cosworth Wild Wolf Yamaha) took victory in the MX1 and MX2 classes respectively, while other Maxxis-sponsored teams also posted top ten finishes.
Continue ReadingYokohama outlines 2011 motorsport activities
Motorsport is viewed by Yokohama Rubber as a “key aspect its efforts to develop its global tyre business,” and with this in mind the Japanese tyre maker says it will “strive to increase the degree of recognition of the Yokohama tyre brand through a wide range of motor sports activities in Japan and around the world.” On March 24 the company announced its global motorsport plans for 2011.
Continue ReadingVipal sponsors European truck racing team
Having sponsored teams in several Brazilian motorsport categories, Brazil-based retreader Vipal has begun sponsorship of the Buggyra team in the 2011 European Truck Racing Championship. “Vipal and Car and Truck Racing have been shoulder in shoulder since the company´s foundation. For thirteen years we have sponsored the Formula Truck in Brazil, contributing to the success of the category in the country. Now, due to Vipal´s expansion in Europe, we have decided for this sponsorship. Furthermore, what’s even better is that we get started in this new phase together with the current champion of the category”, explains Maria Locatelli, Vipal sales and marketing director.
Continue ReadingMotor Club competition-winning Land Rover using Cooper tyres in domestic rally
A Land Rover Defender shod with standard 255/55R18 Cooper 4XS tyres has topped the Kirkby Lonsdale Motor Club drivers and co-drivers competition at the start of the UK’s domestic rally season. Mike Dawn and Jane Clarke, from Windermere, chose the biodiesel-powered 4x4 to compete in a series of national rally events during the 2011 season. In their first rally on the North West Stages, they completed 24 stages and 75 competitive miles of asphalt routes to finish 41st out of 105 competitors.
Continue ReadingFirestone to continue with IndyCar until end of 2013
Following Bridgestone Americas’ announcement that its Firestone brand would exit the IndyCar series at the end of the 2011 season, race teams met and confirmed their resolve to remain loyal to Firestone and seek a means of retaining the tyre maker’s involvement. This determination has paid off – Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations and IndyCar have announced that Firestone will continue to serve as the sole tire supplier to the IZOD IndyCar Series through the 2013 race season.
Continue ReadingMaxxis British Motocross Championship opens 2011 season
Title-sponsor Maxxis reports that the 2011 Maxxis ACU British Motocross Championship got underway in Exeter on Sunday 6 March with five different winners from six races, leaving both the MX1 and MX2 classes “wide open”. Despite the cold weather, Maxxis says the season opener drew a large gallery of spectators who watched Shaun Simpson on the LS Racing Honda CRF450 take victory in the MX1 Class ahead of Buildbase CCM-Racing’s Tom Church and Jason Dougan of the Bike It Cosworth Wild Wolf Yamaha team. Despite a win in race three, the fact that pre-event favourite Stephen Sword did not finish the first two motos means he is lying in 14th position with some catching up to do.
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