MOTORSPORT
Dmack driver Nicolas Fuchs raced to a commanding victory in the Production World Rally Championship (PWRC) category at Rally Italia Sardegna. The result marked the Peruvian’s first ever win in the feeder series and Dmack’s first PWRC victory this year on what was the penultimate round of the FIA World Rally Championship.
Dmack has unveiled a new environmentally-friendly rally tyre whose tread is designed to reduce damage to roads and help cut costs and improve sustainability in motorsport. The Dmack Surface Saver has a low impact and less aggressive tread pattern which results in reduced abrasion and damage to gravel roads, the Anglo-Chinese manufacturer says. The E-marked tyre exhibits a symmetrical D-block design with reduced edges and 3mm less tread, measures it says give the tyre enhanced durability.
Falken continued its programmes in the German VLN championship and Nürburgring 24 Hours, UK and Europe drifting championships as well as the American Le Mans Series, while a major development project for the Japanese tyre maker was its return to Pikes Peak with tyres for an electric car. At the Nürburgring Falken returned its Porsche 997 GT3 R with a new 2013 tyre compound and construction. Pole in an early round suggested the team had pace but the car went off in the rain, forced to retire. In the ALMS, Falken’s Porsche faired better, scoring a victory at Baltimore.
Metzeler tyres have had a successful year both around the World and in the UK in Enduro. In the World Enduro Championship, Metzeler’s Six Days Extreme tyres proved a stand out choice for successful competitors with podiums across four classes. Meanwhile in the UK long time Metzeler rider David Knight powered his way to an unsurpassed tenth British Enduro Championship. The Manx resident is now 34 years old, but was able to show his young competitors controlled aggression and pace as he took a double victory in the final round in Hampshire.
Yokohama’s Advan range of tyres acquired a new fitment this year. In addition to the brand’s continued supply of the FIA World Touring Car Championship, Advans were also seen fitted to another big FIA Championship, Formula Two. Yokohama HPT, the UK distributor for the Japanese brand, provided wet and dry tyres to the entire field and declared itself delighted the performance of the tyres, the feedback from the organisers and drivers, and the exceptional quality of the racing action. Richard Gates, F2 Race Operations manager, said the organisers had been “impressed” with both tyre performance and technical support. He also hinted at a relationship between the series and Yokohama that could extend beyond the current deal, which ends in 2013: "The new partnership has also been commercially viable which is imperative in today's climate and we're looking forward to continuing this relationship in the future."
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Infinity Tyres has supplied its INF-05 tyre to the Acorn Motorsport Division team it sponsors in the Maxxis British Drift Championship this year. Its drivers, Ian Waddington and Mark Lappage achieved third and second positions in the Semi Professional and Professional classes respectively, both of which comprised 40 competitors in 2012, while AMD finished fourth in the Constructors Championship. Infinity is pleased with this “creditable” performance, especially considering it was achieved with two cars rather than the three most competitors enter. The concluding fifth and final rounds of the BDC at Knockhill Race Circuit saw Lappage climb into second place overall in the Pro Class, while Waddington held off challengers to claim the third podium position in the Semi-Pro final standings.
Tyre manufacturer Maxxis will be completing a programme of activities at this year’s Top Gear Live, at Birmingham’s NEC from October 25-28, where Jeremy Clarkson, James May, Richard Hammond and their racing driver colleague, The Stig, will be joined by guest drivers and awe inspiring vehicles in the Live Action Arena and Track. Maxxis will seek to raise its profile with a stand in the automotive exhibition. The company says the stand is designed to highlight its strength in depth in car and motorcycle tyres. Also, the ubiquitous Maxxis Babes will be on hand to mingle with fans and pose for photos.
The Maxxis-sponsored and -supplied Team Japspeed won an emphatic victory in the 2012 Maxxis British Drift Championship, clinching both the drivers’ and constructors’ titles. The six-round series, which attracted drivers from all the home nations as well as Ireland, Holland, Germany, Portugal, Belgium and Norway, reached a thrilling climax at Knockhill in Dunfermline, as Paul “Smokey” Smith was crowned British Drift Champion 2012. With all four Maxxis-sponsored Team Japspeed drivers finishing in the top ten – Shane O’Sullivan was third while Stephen “Baggsy” Biagioni and Shane Lynch ended their campaigns in fifth and seventh place respectively – it came as no surprise that Team Japspeed were convincing winners of the constructors title.
Maxxis International UK managing director, Derek McMartin has declared the company “impressed” at its sponsored rider, Tommy Hill’s 2012 season in the 2012 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship, in which he finished third. McMartin said that the Swan Yamaha team, which is sponsored by Maxxis, has helped to increase the awareness of its brand through fans attending the championship and watching television coverage. Defending champion Hill recorded a double podium finish at Brands Hatch to end the season on a high note for Swan Yamaha, leapfrogging Alex Lowes (WFR Honda) to finish on the third step of the overall podium behind Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) and Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki).
Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena secured the 2012 Drivers’ World Rally Championship title at the Rallye de France Alsace on 7 October, making it their ninth consecutive victory and Citroen Racing’s eighth Manufacturers’ title since 2003. Their victory marks a significant moment for Michelin motorsport, since it is the 20th Drivers’ WRC championship to be won using the company’s tyres – as well as being the 22nd time the Manufacturers’ title winner has used Michelin rubber since the introduction of the series by the FIA in 1973. Michelin’s oft-stated desire for competition between tyre manufacturers in motorsport is also satisfied by this statistic, since all of these 42 victories were claimed within a framework that allowed open competition between tyre companies.
Good news for owners of McLaren's MP4-12C production car – Pirelli has developed bespoke versions of the P Zero and P Zero Corsa tyres, for road and track use, respectively, for the supercar. The tyres are the result of collaboration between Pirelli researchers and McLaren engineers at Woking.
Lotus GP2 driver Esteban Gutierrez has won the inaugural Pirelli Trophy for tyre management, which was presented to him by Pirelli's racing manager Mario Isola at the GP2 prize-giving ceremony in Paris recently.
Gutierrez, who also won the 2010 GP3 title – the first year that Pirelli returned to single-seater racing – was judged to have used his tyres in the best way all year by a panel of 50 international Formula One and GP2 journalists, who were tasked with voting for a winner.
Pirelli will take its hard and soft tyre compounds to India when Formula One visits the Buddh circuit for the second time this weekend, just like in 2011, though this year the P Zero Silver and P Zero Yellow tyres are softer compared to their equivalents last year. The tyre supplier says a better knowledge of the circuit and some real data have allowed Pirelli to be less conservative this time, and the brand is confident that these tyres should lead to even closer racing. Last year, the performance gap between compounds was around 2 seconds. Another factor affecting tyre strategy is the 600m pit lane – the longest in F1 – which adds considerable time to pit stops.
Pirelli takes its P Zero and Cinturato branded Formula One tyres to the USA Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas between 16 and 18 November, and has been preparing for its first visit to Austin, Texas using simulation work. The data for its preparation was obtained from a visit to the track during its construction; the track will only be opened officially this weekend 20-21 October. While practically every circuit was new to Pirelli last season, the circuit is one of only two – and since the other was the thoroughly established Hockenheim, the Circuit of the Americas could be seen as the brand’s biggest challenge of the year. (While it had not raced at Bahrain before, the Italian firm had tested there in the past, and had plenty of information to fall back on.)
Brityrex 2012 provided Infinity Tyres with the great opportunity to meet with industry figures from the UK and beyond, as well as allowing the company to catch up with many UK Infinity tyre dealers to discuss current business topics. It also gave the firm the chance to give its latest truck and passenger car tyres their UK debut.
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