Toyota enters British GT with new GT86 GT4

The GT86 - Quite possibly one of the best looking Toyotas - nay even cars - seen this decade

 

The GT86 has already seen racing action in the Britcar 24 Hours

The first GT4 racing version of the Toyota GT86 will hit the track later this month following completion of the first chassis by Buckingham-based motorsport engineering pioneer GPRM.

The new car is powered by a 2.0-litre direct injection turbocharged four-cylinder ‘Boxer’ engine which has been developed in conjunction with Nicholson McLaren Engines. The GT86 will be shaken down at a UK circuit ahead of a schedule of European tests and the pre-season ‘balance of performance’ sessions organised by GT4 series organiser SRO.

GPRM and its directors Gary Blackham and Roger King believe the new Toyota will be a serious GT4 contender: “The new engine from Nicholson McLaren will be capable of between 360 and 400 bhp,” said Blackham, “although of course the definitive output figure will be determined by the balance of performance testing.

Inside the Office

“We have gone all out to engineer quality and reliability into the GT86 as well as competitiveness, and the result has provoked a lot of interest from all around Europe.” GPRM has already taken one GT86 order and is in advanced talks with a team keen to race one in the AvonTyres British GT Championship. “The Toyota GT86 will make an ideal GT4 contender in British GT, as well as in the many GT4 series growing in strength and popularity around Europe.”

GPRM’s Toyota GT86 is a cost-efficient entry-level endurance car. The company embarked on the GT4 project immediately after the Britcar24 last September, where the new Toyota sports car made a successful UK race debut. Although not a works effort, the GT4 project has the blessing of Toyota GB, which is providing technical support. 

Autosport International 2013 : Johnny Herbert Celebrity Karting Challenge

Join Kart Force as they take on celebrity drivers with the help of former Stig Ben Collins in a 3 hour endurance race at Autosport International. Featuring interviews with Johnny Herbert, Ben Collins and former Premiership Footballer, Robbie Savage.

More Johnny Herbert coming soon.

Autosport International 2013 : Britcar announces plans for 2013 and beyond

Britcar Boss James Tucker talks to Chris Lucas about the plans for the 2013 British Endurance championship, the replacement for the 2013 Britcar 24 hours and the future of the around the clock racing event at Silverstone

Autosport International 2013 on Overdrive-uk.com

Autosport International 2013 is set to be just as popular as last year's show

It's that time of year again - our annual trip to Birmingham's glittering National Exhibition Centre for the now traditional kick off to the new motorsport year. As usual, we'll be taking our cameras along to bring you the best video features from the world of British Club and National motorsports. Whilst our regular presenter Rosemary John takes some time off due to injury, Chris Lucas takes over the reins and the microphone and will be catching up with some familiar faces and new innovations alike.

Highlights this year will include

• Ariel's new Atom Cup car and championship
• Karting action from the Johnny Herbert Celebrity Karting Challenge featuring Kart Force and Ben Collins
• BARC and BRSCC's plans for the new season
• Highlights from the Live Action Arena
• And some familiar faces from years gone by.

To keep up with our latest videos, keep watching this website - you may like to google+ or bookmark it - follow us on Twitter and Like us on Facebook. You can also subscribe to our Youtube Channel, or just hit the link marked Overdrive-TV up there on the top.

This is Overdrive!

Here are our videos from the 2013 show so far

Tora! Tora! Online racers warm up for 2013

With winter testing well underway for TORA's GT Championship which kicks off on the 20th January, now seemed the perfect time to release the TORA 2013 Promo video.
Featuring the core series from The Online Racing Association's well established racing organisation, the video should certainly whet the appetite for the season ahead!
TORA's core championships for 2013 are;

TORA GT World Championship
TORA International Sports Car Championship (ISCC)
TORA Touring Car Championship
TORA Endurance Championship
TASCAR
TORA Rally

The TORA GT Championship enters its 10th season in 2013 and as usual the TORA staff have pulled out all the stops to make this the biggest and best online championship in the world.
With three titles up for grabs (Sprint, Endurance and World Championship) the pressure is on to see who can be competitive over a range of distances and with different technical challenges. A number of works teams have entered the series and with backing from SRT, Aston Martin Racing, Marc VDS and many other well known sports car teams, there really is no better virtual championship on Earth.
TORA, along with Turn 10 and GT Omega Racing are proud to have the following prizes for the 2013 season;

Main prize: 1 x GT Omega Racing seat chosen at random to anyone who races in the series. Each race entered will give you a "ticket", and the more tickets you have, the better chance you have at winning! So if you take part in all 10 races, that's 10 chances to win!

1 x DLC code chosen at random for a racer, for each Sprint series race - Standard Car Pack of their choice
1 x DLC code chosen at random for a racer in each class, for each Endurance series race - Standard Car Pack of their choice
1 x DLC Expansion Pack (Porsche / Rally) code for a racer chosen at random, who competes in 8 out of 10 races in the World Championship
1 x TORA T-Shirt for a racer chosen at random, who competes in 8 out of 10 races in the World Championship

The winner of the World Championship will win a Forza Horizon T-shirt, TORA T-Shirt and a signed Forza Horizon poster.

Toughest LeJog ever

A BMW 2002 makes it's way through a winter wonderland

More than 60 classic cars battled their way between Land’s End and John O’Groats on this year LeJog endurance rally, which is being described as the toughest ever.

Tomas de Vargas Machuca, joint Managing Director of the Historic Endurance Rallying Organisation (H.E.R.O.), said: “This year’s LeJog was probably the toughest we have ever had, with new routes and fewer but longer special tests.”

“The weather gave enough challenges to the competitors but without being too appalling – it was slippery but road conditions were good enough to allow us to carry on with the tests and trials without having to cancel any section”.

Drivers set off from Land’s End on Saturday 1^st December on an epic 1,400 mile route across Britain, travelling through Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Wales, Shropshire, Cheshire, Lancashire, North Yorkshire, Northumbria, Northumberland, East Lothian, West Lothian, North Lanarkshire, and across Scotland to arrive in John O’Groats after a four day period of tough rallying.

Porsche 911races towards the sunrise

Tomas added: “As expected, crews were very competitive and top positions kept changing during the first days of competition. There were a few retirees due to mechanical problems but overall we had a very successful event.”

The winners of the elusive gold medal of this year’s LeJog were Andy Lane from Saddleworth and FIA Champion Navigator Iain Tullie from Cumbria, who came first in their 1973 BMW 2002 Tii.

Andy Lane said: “It was a very hard event this year. We were only able to come first because car eleven, who was leading, got hit by another vehicle on the road se we were able to take over the first place and win.”

The “Team Triumph”, formed by driver Tony Sheach from Fleet, Hampshire, and navigator Richard Lambley from Slough, Berkshire, finished in second place in their 1964 Triumph TR4. Tony Sheach also won the Test Pilot Award as he had the best overall performance on the tests.

Roger Bricknell from Bodmin, Cornwall, and Ryan Pickering, from Totton, Southampton, finished third in their 1966 Triumph TR4A

LeJog served as the fourth and final qualifying round of the much coveted HERO Cup, which went to father and son team from Bolton, Michael Baker and Simon Baker. During the year, the Bakers were the crew with the overall highest score, having driven their 1978 Porsche 911 SC to 3rd place in the Scottish Malts and 2nd in the Summer Trial.

Peter Nedin, Hero’s Event Director and Clerk of the Course for LeJog, said: “LeJog is one of the toughest events of its kind in Europe, possibly the world, and we constantly strive to maintain this enviable reputation. As expected, we had freezing temperatures, rain, snow, black ice, but that certainly didn’t stop the drivers who wanted to finish the course no matter what the conditions were.”

A variety, built before 1984, took part including a 1957 MGA coupe driven by Curt Wagner and Horst Pokroppa, a 1965 Mercedes-Benz 230 SL driven by Jochen Gabriel and Onder Turker and a 1974 Datzun 240 Z driven by Riccardo Moraldi and Pietro Turrinelli, amongst others including BMWs, Alfa Romeos, Triumphs and Porsches.

Patrick Burke, joint Managing Director of the Historic Endurance Rallying Organisation (HERO), said: "LeJog is one of the most testing events that we have ever run. It continues to attract crews from all over Europe which is a testament to the event and all those who worked so hard to make it happen.”

He added: “We were delighted with the welcome LeJog received around the country with people being more than willing to allow use of their land and to let controls be sited in appropriate places. For many people, LeJog is the only competitive motor sport event that comes past their door and they were keen to turn out and see the cars go through their area.”

Come rain, wind and weatther, Le Jog continues south

HERO supported the Whyte Sisters, Seren (23) and Elise (21), who tackled LeJog to raise funds for the Pink Ribbon Foundation in a 1964 Mini Cooper S provided by HERO Arrive & Drive. The Sisters were also the youngest female crew to compete ever.

LeJog was supported by AVIS, exclusive support vehicle partners of HERO Events and Orianda (www.orianda1937.com), who sponsor the first prize of the HERO Cup by offering a week sailing in the Mediterranean on board this splendid yacht.

Every competitor dreamed of collecting one of the elusive gold medals, but crossing the finishing line was the main aim of many, particularly novices. The sense of achievement is immense and most crews passed under the finish banner with huge smiles on their faces. 

Toyota GT86 scores success at Britcar 24 Hours

The Toyota Drivers collect their rewards!

Team Toyota GB is celebrating a remarkable UK racing debut for its GT86 sports car , which claimed eighth place overall and third in its class in Britain’s toughest race, the Britcar 24 Hours on its conclusion Last Sunday at Silverstone.

Toyota GB's distinctive Livery getting stuck into the start of the race

Crewed by a four-man team led by Chris Hodgetts,Toyota’s double BTCC champion of the 1980s, the near standard GT86 ran faultlessly throughout its 512 laps and 1874 miles around the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit. Hodgetts was joined on the driving strength by his son, Stefan, evo journalist Richard Meaden and Travis drummer Neil Primrose.

“It is an absolutely fantastic result,” said Gary Blackham, whose team GPRM prepared the car for the event. “We harboured ambitions of finishing in the top 10 and we are more than delighted with eighth overall. Given the differential in horsepower between our car and the other rather more modified racing cars in the division, third in class is a great result also.

“The GT86 ran faultlessly throughout; I think the only work we had to do was to add about half a litre of oil during the whole race. All the pit stops went smoothly, the technicians - a mixture of seasoned GPRM regulars and staff from Toyota GB's head office - worked very well together and the drivers were fantastic; they did everything they needed to and everything that was asked of them.”

The Sun sets on a fine achievement for Toyota's New Car

The drivers took three-hour turns at the wheel and each put in two stints. Stefan Hodgetts started the race and set theToyota’s fastest lap towards the end of his first stint, and his 61-year-old father enjoyed the honour of taking the chequered flag. Said Chris: “We drove the wheels off it for 24 hours. We literally ragged the poor little car throughout, and as you would expect from a Toyota it responded with fantastic reliability.”

Added Meaden: “The car is mega through the corners. Considering the short space of time the team had to do the preparation this result is testimony to them and to the performance of the car. Eighth place overall is a fantastic achievement.”

Thirty-three cars took the start of the Britcar 24 Hours, and the class for modified production cars featured 14 entries, of which 12 made it to the chequered flag.

The Britcar Toyota GT86 was powered by the standard 16-valve double overhead cam horizontally opposed ‘boxer’ engine of the road-going model, delivering 197bhp. GPRM now plans to develop a more powerful version for customers looking to buy track Toyotas of their own - although there are currently no plans to run the car again this year.

The Toyota GB Team with their appropriately numbered GT86

TEAM TOYOTA GB RETURNS TO RACING WITH GT86

Toyota's GT86 Artists impression looks fantastic!

A famous name from British motorsport history is to return to the track in September with an entry
from Team Toyota GB in the UK’s toughest race, the Britcar 24 Hours. The newly reformed squad will field a Toyota GT86 in the Production Class of the Silverstone enduro. The livery on the new coupe will echo that of the double British Touring Car Championship winning AE86 from the mid-1980s.

Work on the first British racing GT86 is well underway at the Buckinghamshire technical centre of
GPRM, the race preparation firm behind the successful BTCC Toyota Avensis prototype. The emphasis is on turning the potent 2.0-litre sports car into a competitive track machine while retaining as much of the standard road car’s specification as possible.

GPRM’s Gary Blackham and Roger King will oversee Team Toyota GB, and Blackham believes the GT86 will be a strong contender: “The new Toyota has all the makings of a great production class racer. We are concentrating our efforts on stripping back the chassis, lightening and strengthening it and of course equipping it with a roll cage and all the other safety gear required, as well as quick-refuelling equipment. Other than that, the GT86 will remain essentially in road car form.”

An announcement on who will drive the GT86 in the 24 Hours will be made in coming weeks.
Powered by a 16-valve double overhead cam horizontally opposed ‘boxer’ engine delivering 197bhp,
the Toyota GT86 captures some of the best elements of three models from Toyota’s rich sporting
heritage: the Sports 800, 2000GT and AE86. It went on to sale in the UK to critical acclaim at the
beginning of July.

The Britcar 24 Hours is the only round-the-clock race held in Britain for sports and GT cars and last
year attracted a 55-car field. The action takes place on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit over the
weekend of 22 and 23 September.

Team Toyota GB earned fame in the 1980s and ’90s thanks to championship victories with the Corolla in the British Touring Car Championship and UK rallying. The team’s last appearance was in the BTCC in 1995 with the Carina Es raced by Julian Bailey and Tim Sugden.

Porsche Carrera Cup GB hits Donington Park

Michael Meadows continued to underline his 2012 Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship bid with victory in rounds three and four at Donington Park on Sunday 15 April. A packed grid of 450 hp 911 GT3 Cup race cars thrilled spectators at the Leicestershire circuit, with the first race seeing just one second covering the top four drivers after 26 minutes of flat-out racing.

In the Pro-Am1 category Ahmad Al Harthy (Redline/Oman Air) remains the current category pace-setter, and Tania Mann (SIBSport) took home maximum points in Pro-Am2.

Round three

Meadows (Banbury) got just the start he wanted to lead the pack into Redgate and edged clear in the opening laps as a fierce battle developed for second between Sam Tordoff (Leeds), Richard Plant (Sheffield), Ben Barker (Cambridge) and Jonas Gelzinis (Lithuania). Gelzinis struggled with his start, the team having fitted a new clutch after qualifying and he got too much wheelspin and he dropped from second place to fifth.

On lap three, Tordoff missed a gear at the chicane and instantly dropped back to fifth, which helped Meadows build his lead to nearly three seconds. But as the race progressed all was not entirely well with the lead car. “Mid-way through the race I was locking the rear brakes,” said Meadows as Plant inexorably closed the gap. But it all went wrong for Plant when a front tyre deflated as he dived down to the Old Hairpin on lap 13.

This saw Barker chasing Meadows while also trying to defend from the challenge of the resurgent Gelzinis and Tordoff. With three laps to go, Meadows had barely half a second in hand as Barker came under intense pressure from Gelzinis and Tordoff. Into the final lap, the four cars were nose-to-tail and a relieved Meadows took the flag just a quarter of a second ahead of Barker with Gelzinis and Tordoff in their wheel tracks.

“I was struggling a bit and had to push harder than I wanted,” said Meadows. “I was just counting the laps down to the finish.”

“It was so tight at the front, ridiculously close,” said Barker. “Michael got a gap when we were fighting, but we got up to him at the end.” Gelzinis completed the podium despite losing time at the start. “I just got my head down and drove very quickly,” he said, after smashing the lap record by half a second. “But I didn’t want to take any big risks,” he added. For Tordoff, fourth place was scant reward for his pace.

Al Harthy always set the pace in Pro-Am1, and had one or two Pro category drivers between him and the rest of the Pro-Am1 field as he claimed a stylish victory. “That was a perfect race for me,” he said afterwards. “I kept my head down and concentrated the whole race.”

Derek Pierce (West Kilbride) was a strong second, following a fierce battle between Glynn Geddie (Aberdeen) and Rory Butcher (Kirkcaldy) for many laps. Pierce then worked ahead of Geddie to take seventh overall. “The car was really good and I’m pleased to have gone from eleventh to seventh,” he said.

Victor Jimenez (Spain) completed the Pro-Am1 podium with a strong run. “That was fantastic,” said the Spanish racer. “Now my start is good.” Meanwhile Mann ran alone in Pro-Am2, but drove well to chase the Pro-Am1 pack for many laps before a quick spin at the chicane.

Round three results:

Pro category: 1 Michael Meadows; 2 Ben Barker; 3 Jonas Gelzinis

Pro-Am1 category: 1 Ahmad Al Harthy; 2 Derek Pierce; 3 Victor Jimenez

Pro-Am2 category: 1 Tania Mann

Round four

While Meadows stayed ahead of Gelzinis to make it three wins from four races this season, Porsche Carrera Cup GB Scholar Daniel Lloyd (Huddersfield) starred with a fighting drive to grab third place on the final lap from Tordoff. Despite constant pressure from Pierce, Al Harthy won Pro-Am1 for the second time, while Mann took Pro-Am2 with another strong performance.

Meadows dived ahead at the start from pole position as Gelzinis forged through to second at the expense of Team Parker Racing team-mates Tordoff and Plant. This quartet soon started to edge clear and their escape was aided when Barker spun off into the tyre wall at Schwantz Curve when battling with Lloyd for fifth.

Gelzinis stalked Meadows for a dozen laps but the decisive moment in the lead battle came when the Lithuanian had a big moment under braking for the chicane and lost nearly two seconds to Meadows. “Maybe there was coolant down on the track,” he said afterwards. “I didn’t want to push Meadows too hard at the beginning.” With two such evenly-matched cars, the gap was now too big for Gelzinis to narrow it down and Meadows was able to carry a two-second advantage to the flag. “We were really quick in that race and I was able to edge out the gap,” said Meadows. “We made quite a few changes to the car for the second race and they worked.”

The action now centred on the contest for third as the trio of young Yorkshire racers from Team Parker provided the fireworks. Tordoff lost third position with a moment on the grass on the exit of Coppice and then set about closing back up to Plant as Lloyd chased them both. By lap 20, they were nose-to-tail and into Redgate with two laps to go Plant locked a wheel and ran wide, instantly losing two places. Now it was Lloyd attacking Tordoff and they ran side-by-side into Redgate for the final time. Lloyd edged ahead on the exit and they raced side-by-side through Hollywood in a display of fine racing.

“Sam went defensive into Redgate and I got a bit of a cut back,” said Lloyd after a great contest. Plant deserved more than fifth for his efforts, and only just held off the charging Butcher on the dash to the finish line.

In Pro-Am1, Al Harthy led all the way but was kept under constant pressure by Pierce and was still less than two seconds ahead at the flag. “It was a very hard race from start to finish,” said Al Harthy. “That’s the first time we’ve had a perfect weekend with two wins.” Meanwhile, Pierce had driven a great pursuit. “I chased and chased and never gave up, but it was his weekend this time.” Jimenez completed the Pro-Am1 podium.

Round four results:

Pro category: 1 Michael Meadows; 2 Jonas Gelzinis; 3 Daniel Lloyd

Pro-Am1 category: 1 Ahmad Al Harthy; 2 Derek Pierce; 3 Victor Jimenez

Pro-Am2 category: 1 Tania Mann

The next round of the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship takes place at Thruxton, Hampshire, on April 28/29.

Porsche Carrera Cup GB hits Donington

One of the sweetest names in Motorsport - See the Porsches roar into action at Donington Park this weekend.

The glorious sweeps of the Donington Park circuit in Leicestershire are the setting for rounds three and four of the 2012 Porsche Carrera Cup GB. Another fine entry of 450bhp 911 GT3 Cup cars should deliver two more absorbing contests at a track that most drivers rate as one of their favourites.

Right now, the early championship momentum is with Michael Meadows (Redline Racing). He was unfortunate to be denied a double win at Brands Hatch by a penalty and then set a blistering pace in testing at Thruxton last week. Now, Meadows heads to Donington with a five-point lead and he will be determined to press home his advantage.

However, as the Carrera Cup celebrates 10 years with its youngest ever driver line-up in the Pro category, a gaggle of drivers will all fancy their chances to stopping Meadows taking all the glory. Second in the points is Jonas Gelzinis (Juta Racing) and he will fly at Donington. So too, will the Yorkshire youth squad from Team Parker Racing of Richard Plant (Sheffield), Sam Tordoff (Leeds) and Daniel Lloyd (Huddersfield). Plant scored a fine debut win at Brands, while Tordoff led a race at Donington a year ago and will surely shine. Then, Carrera Cup Scholarship driver Lloyd will also be a strong contender after a massively impressive start to his season.

Ben Barker (Parr Motorsport) is another major title contender and showed his pace with a feisty recovery drive in the second race at Brands Hatch. He will expect to be challenging for the podium at Donington, while Glynn Geddie (Redline Racing) will also be eager to step up the order after, by his own high standards, a modest weekend at Brands. Rory Butcher (Celtic Speed) and Chris Dymond (Parr Motorsport) pack out an incredibly strong Pro category.

Heading Pro-Am1 after two races is Ahmad Al Harthy (Redline/Oman Air) and he is set to be the benchmark once more at Donington Park. However, the Oman racer faces some tough opposition, including Oly Mortimer (GT Marques) who won the second race at Brands to show his potential despite very limited seat time to date. Derek Pierce and Michael Leonard race with Team Parker Racing and both are potential winners, with Pierce aiming to repeat his opening round victory.

Pro-Am2 seems to be wide open at this stage and three drivers will head to Donington vying for a place on the top step of the podium. Will Goff (Goff Racing) and Tautvydas Barstys (Juta Racing) shared the wins at Brands, but Tania Mann (SIBSport) made a superb Carrera Cup debut and should build on that as her experience in the car grows.
 

Lloyd tops Carrera Cup GB test at Donington

Daniel Lloyd continued his hugely impressive start to the 2012 Porsche Carrera Cup GB when he set the pace during testing at Donington Park Yesterday (Thursday 12th April) ahead of rounds three and four of the championship.

Once again, the incredibly strong field set a fearsome pace at the East Midlands track and the top eight drivers ended the day covered by less than four-tenths of a second. While Ahmad Al Harthy (Redline/Oman Air) and Tania Mann (SIBSport) headed Pro-Am1 and Pro-Am2, Carrera Cup Scholarship racer Lloyd (JD Pierce with Team Parker) lapped three-tenths of a second under the lap record to head the overall times.

For Lloyd it was the first time in his short Carrera Cup career to date that he had ended the day with the best lap, having run two laps in the 1m07.2s bracket in the afternoon session. “It’s been a mega day,” said Lloyd. “I’m over the moon to be P1 but I think there is a bit more to come.” Sam Tordoff made it a good day for Team Parker Racing by setting the pace in the morning test and he ended the day only six-hundredths of a second behind his team mate. “We had a good set-up from testing before the start of the season and I seem to go well here,” said Tordoff, who believes that a lap beneath the 1m07s mark could be the pole time in Saturday’s qualifying session.

Ben Barker (Parr Motorsport) and Rory Butcher (Celtic Speed) both ran very strongly to wrap up the top four and mark themselves as major contenders, while Michael Meadows (Redline Racing) and Jonas Gelzinis (Juta Racing) made it five teams in the top six places. Meadows, the man who has generally set the pace to date this season, reported that he didn’t get a proper run on new tyres but he will surely be in the battle for pole position when qualifying starts on Saturday afternoon.

Right in among the Pro drivers was Al Harthy, who topped Pro-Am1 with eighth best time overall. “The car was perfect and I’m happy with that,” said the Omani racer. “I’ll try and fight the Pros in the races,” he added. However, the strength of the Pro-Am1 pack was amply illustrated as less than a second covered the other six drivers in the category with Derek Pierce (JD Pierce with Team Parker) heading the pursuit of Al Harthy.

“The car is fantastic,” said Pierce. “I was pleased to be only eight-tenths off the overall best time, but disappointed to be down in tenth place overall,” he added. Third in Pro-Am1 came from a strong performance by Victor Jimenez (Redline/Oman Air) with series returnee Karl Leonard (Parr Motorsport) well in touch in fourth. “That’s blown the cobwebs away,” said Leonard after his first proper day of running since the end of the 2011 season.

In Pro-Am2, Mann worked away to find nearly a second between the two sessions and come within an ace of breaking the 1m10s mark. With Will Goff (Goff Racing) likely to miss the weekend due to business commitments and Tautvydas Barstys (Juta Racing) missing testing, Mann had the Pro-Am2 category to herself for testing.

After qualifying at 14.40 on Saturday, round three will start at 10.00 on Sunday, with round four at 15.40 on Sunday. Round four will be broadcast live on ITV4 during the extensive BTCC programme.

British GT : Lotus takes 3 Podium finishes from 2 Races

The Lotus Evora in the trying conditions at Oulton Park

Lotus Sport UK opened their 2012 Avon Tyres British GT Championship account with three podium finishes from two races at the picturesque Oulton Park circuit.


In challenging weather conditions Sailesh Bolisetti took to the wheel of the #48 Lotus Evora for the first stint in race one despite only having driven the car briefly in the wet. Promising lap times kept the car in the running for a good finish in GT4 before Phil Glew took over. Setting a stunning pace he reeled in the Ginetta of Hughes and Fannin who had a 1m37s gap at the start of his stint, by the end of the race he had closed that gap down to 37 seconds.


Marco Attard started in the #49 Lotus and following a great start kept 3rd place. With a solid pace throughout the race and improving lap times Alistair MacKinnion took over to keep the car in a podium scoring position.


Race two saw the #48 car star from pole position with Glew leading the way throughout his stint, he matched the pace of Hughes in the Ginetta and would pull out a 6 second lead by the time he came in for the driver change. Unfortunately for Bolisseti the pace of Jody Fannin in the Ginetta would prove too strong and would lose a place; despite this he would keep his head as others slid off the circuit and bring home the car in a brilliant second place.


Alistair Mackinnon started in the #49 car from third place but would lose out as the back end of the Lotus stepped out and dropped him down to fourth place. Attard would put in a solid drive to bring the car home in one piece finishing fourth in class.


Quotes from the weekend:


Sailesh Bolisetti #48: “I had a great weekend with Lotus Sport UK, big learning curve, and horrible conditions that I am not used too!! My team mate Phil helped me no end so that was great. Two second places is a great start to my British GT experience so I’m really happy!"


Phil Glew #48: “It’s great to be back with the Lotus Sport UK guys, they do a great job. It was really enjoyable this weekend racing alongside the likes of Warren Hughes and Jody Fannin in such tricky conditions. Sailesh did a great job, lots for him to take on, and in these very wet conditions, he did a great job."


Alistair Mackinnon #49: "It was great to be back racing in GT's, the conditions were awful, but I think that myself and Marco did a good job, a podium in the first race was brilliant! The team are a great bunch, and the little Evora was a pleasure to race!"


Marco Attard #49: "The conditions here today were terrible, but the we managed to bring back two unscathed cars, and with a couple of podiums too, so all in all, a great weekend!”


Gary Ayles, Team Manager: "All the drivers drove fantastic races over the weekend in very testing conditions, and also the fact we had no major offs, or damage proves what a professional job the guys did. Our rookie Sailesh coped with all the new things to learn extremely well, and the fact he has only ever raced in the wet a handful of times proved that he will be one to watch in GT's in the future."


You can follow the team on twitter at @LotusSportUKGT and on facebook at www.facebook.com/LotusSportUK.

New Aston Martin GT4 unveiled.

Speaking personally, I can't wait to see the new Aston Martin on track - it's a great looking machine, and the engineers at Prodrive have clearly pulled off one of their famous efforts to produce the car. What's more, apparently it can be made Road Legal ... although Aston Martin point out that "it's a track car through and through", so whilst it would make a great, if somewhat expensive track day car, it's probably best to have it driven to the venue rather than drive it there!

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With the latest Aston Martin Vantage road car set to debut at next week’s Geneva Motor Show, a revised version of its closest circuit-racing sibling made a debut appearance of its own at Silverstone on Friday (2 March). The 2012 Aston Martin Vantage GT4 features an all-new aerodynamic package plus further improvements to the rollcage and fuel tank.

Showing off the new rear wing

 For the first time, the Vantage GT4 gets a carbon fibre rear wing, working in conjunction with a larger front splitter to increase downforce for greater dynamic performance, while also adding visual tension to the muscular Vantage bodywork. The re-designed rollcage conforms to the latest FIA regulations and improves access and legroom, while the mid-mounted, 115-litre fuel tank lowers the centre of gravity for better weight distribution. The fuel tank’s twin quick-fill entries in the rear quarter-lights are directly carried over from the recently launched Vantage GT3.

John Gaw, Managing Director of Aston Martin Racing said: “We have taken the opportunity to make some quite dramatic aerodynamic enhancements to the Vantage GT4, which will close the performance gap between this entry level GT car and the GT3. We have also fitted the car with the same roll cage and fuel tank configuration that’s found in the Vantage GT3 and GTE. We are about to sell our 100^th Vantage GT4 and since its launch it has been one of the most successful cars in its class; the Vantage GT4 and its predecessor, the Vantage N24, scored many 24 Hour race class victories, the 2010 European GT4 Cup title and also back-to-back championship victories in the Nürburgring VLN series in 2010 and 2011.

The front end has had a splitter added to it 

“The revised version has very large boots to fill, but given the effort we’ve put into developing the upgrades and following a successful first outing, we’re very confident that the 2012 Vantage GT4 will pick up where its predecessor left off.”

David King, Head of Motorsport at Aston Martin Lagonda, added: “The launch of the 2012 Vantage GT4 completes the comprehensive overhaul of Aston Martin’s race car line up. Late last year we revealed the V12-powered Vantage GT3 and last month our new Vantage GTE – which Aston Martin Racing will run in the FIA World Endurance Championship and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – made its debut in London.

“All three models benefit from Aston Martin Racing’s seven years of experience in international motorsport, during which time we scored back-to-back GT1 victories at Le Mans. Not only have all of our racing cars been revised or completely overhauled for the 2012 season, they are all now based on Aston Martin’s sportiest road car, the Vantage.”

The road-going Vantage will show off its most comprehensive raft of improvements since 2008 at the Geneva Motor Show, including aerodynamic enhancements that draw inspiration from Aston Martin Racing’s GT motorsport programmes. The Vantage GT4 benefits from the road car’s exceptionally rigid bonded aluminium chassis, basic suspension design and 4.7-litre V8 engine while the compact dimensions lend themselves perfectly to circuit racing.

Unmistakably an Aston Martin! See it race in British GT and Britcar British Endurance Championship.

Costing from £119,500, the 2012 Vantage GT4 will be officially presented at the GT4 balancing test at Zandvoort, the Netherlands, on 6-7 March and will be eligible to race in all GT4 series including the European GT4 Championship, Blancpain Endurance Championship, the VLN series, British GT, Britcar, Brazilian GT, Belgian Endurance Championship, Dutch GT Championship, GT Asia series and most national series with a GT4 category. 

Minshaw and Harvey take on British GT 2012

A very colourful entry - No surprises over the sponsor of course! (Jon Minshaw owns Demon Tweeks)

Jon Minshaw will mount a major programme in the 2012 British GT Championship with a Porsche 911 GT3R from the Trackspeed team. For his graduation into British GT, the experienced racer of historic machinery will be partnered by Tim Harvey. The entry will be backed by Tweeks Cycles and Demon Tweeks.

Minshaw has enjoyed extensive success in historic racing over the last decade and won the 2011 E-type Challenge, marking the 50th anniversary of the classic model. Now, he is taking on the new challenge of the British GT Championship.

“I had such a good season in historic racing last year that it was difficult to see where to go next,” said Minshaw. “I’ve decided to have a crack at some modern racing. It will be a new challenge and I don’t underestimate the task. I want to try and finish every race and then see where we are at the end of the season.” In recent times, Minshaw has contested the 24-hour races at Silverstone and Dubai.

Harvey, meanwhile, is delighted to be returning to the British GT Championship. “It’s the perfect place for me to race in 2012,” said Harvey. “I wanted to be in a Porsche and with a driver I’d enjoy working with. Jon is a seriously committed racer and Trackspeed has done a very good job with the Porsche.”

While British GT will be the main focus of his season, Minshaw will retain an involvement in historic racing and hopes to fit in several high-profile events with his Jaguar E-type and Lister Jaguar.

Mazda races to success in Britcar Production

The sun sets on a successful season for the MX5 GT

Brilliantly unfussy and distinctive livery makes the MX5 stand out

Mazda’s MX-5 GT car finished the Britcar Production GTN Championship season on a high this weekend at Brands Hatch with a race pace that placed it ahead of rivals Porsche, Ferrari, Lotus, Ginetta and Marcos.

Finishing fifth overall and second in class from 21 competitors, the MX-5 GT car was only beaten in its class by a 400bhp BMW M3 and ran at a competitive GT4 pace around the Brands Hatch Indy circuit.

Regular drivers Mark Ticehurst and Owen Mildenhall qualified in damp conditions with a mid 50 second lap which put them second in class on the grid, during the two hour race they completed 129 laps, averaging 77.82mph.

Slick pit work is essential to all endurance racing.

The MX-5 GT car at Brands Hatch was the new 2012 development version, complete with a new lightweight chassis and gearbox, lower roll cage, new front splitter and rear diffuser for improved aerodynamics. The weight has been reduced by 50kg over the previous car and lowered by 20mm to give it better aerodynamic performance, better grip and more stability through the corners, which combined with the car’s legendary handling, fuel economy and light tyre usage, makes this an ideal endurance car.

Mazda finishes the race season with the lightweight Mazda MX-5 GT car ranking fourth overall in the championship and second in class, while the Mazda MX-5 production race car is fourth in class and seventh overall.

The Mazda MX-5 production race car - driven by Mike Wilds, Former F1 Driver and Major James Cameron of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment who raced with Mazda at the Britcar 24hr Race in October - finished second in class at Brands Hatch this weekend.

Britcar Production always has varied grids - the MX5 fits right in!

“Throughout this year’s race season the MX-5 GT car has been subject to ongoing developments which has made the MX-5 GT an ideal GT4 endurance car which is competitive against Porsche, Lotus, Ginetta and Marcos. In just a year we have achieved fourth overall in the championship, three podiums and second in class overall. This is testament to professional motorsport company, Jota Sport - who designed and developed the MX-5 GT car - and the MX-5’s agility, reliability and handling,” comments Graeme Fudge, PR Director, Mazda UK.

Computer gamers get a reality check at Silverstone

Whilst it's true that you can learn track layouts and racing lines from computer simulations, actual race pressures - particularly in a 24 hour race - can't be simulated at all. This team of playstation gamers seem to have found this out the hard way; when your car breaks down in a game you can just hit reset and carry on, in real life it's not that easy! Still, the gamers do have talent. Heitkotter and Mardenborough recently took part in a round of the Welsh Sports and Saloon championship at Pembrey and came away with podium finishes up against some much more powerful machinery (Including the returning Alvin Powell in his ex BTCC Ford Mondeo Super Tourer, and David Krayem's Ginetta G50). Admittedly the WSSC is not quite the same league as Britcar, but still the talent is there. It's doubly unfortunate that the talent of the drivers has been hobbled by a rare mechanical failure on the well prepared Nissans. Still, Here's how they got on at the Britcar 24 hours last weekend.

The Nissan PlayStation® GT Academy endured a challenging time at the Britcar 24 Hours (1/2 October 2011). After qualifying a strong seventh overall , second in class, for the Silverstone endurance event the RJN Motorsport run 420bhp Nissan 370Z GT4 race car was running in a competitive fourth place early on.

Experienced Nissan driver Alex Buncombe handed over to latest European GT Academy winner Jann Mardenborough who was quickly recording competitive lap times. But as the 20-year-old started his fifth lap, the car lost all oil pressure and coasted to a halt. It was disappointing for Chris Ward and American GT Academy winner Bryan Heitkotter who despite showing impressive practice pace didn’t get to race.

The 370Z was recovered to the pits where the RJN Motorsport mechanics elected to retire the car. “We were looking good for a strong finish,” said team principal Bob Neville. “This is only our second retirement in 26 races this season so we’re not used to this kind of disappointment, especially as the car was so competitive during qualifying and the start of the race.”

Jann Mardenborough added: “It’s disappointing but you have to take the rough with the smooth and I have been lucky enough to experience many highs since winning GT Academy. I can also take encouragement from today, having put in some good lap times both in the heat of the day and in the dark.”

The weekend did end up being a celebration for GT Academy. The first gamer-to-racer champion Lucas Ordoñez and his Signatech Nissan teammates won the 2011 Intercontinental Le Mans Cup LMP2 title after a strong finish in the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, USA. The result continues the fairytale story for the Spaniard who has proved the full potential of the GT Academy programme.

Having already qualified for their ‘International C race licence’, the latest GT Academy graduates Jann and Bryan are hoping to follow in the footsteps of Ordoñez. The pair will start preparing for their next race in Zandvoort, Holland, on 15/16 October, as they continue their driver development programme for their main prize – entry into the Dubai 24 Hours in January 2012.

News and views on GT Academy 2011 and the progress of Jann and Bryan’s training can be followed on various platforms including: www.facebook.com/GTAcademy | http://eu.gran-turismo.com / | www.twitter.com/GTAcademy

Live from the Britcar 24 hours at Silverstone

Please note, this is the official Britcar video stream - as such it's not under the control of us here at Overdrive

Live video from your Android device on Ustream

LIVE TIMING HERE

Ginetta Dominates Silverstone 24 hours

Ginetta boasts one of the largest numbers of same-marque entries, ahead of Porsche and second only to BMW, as the Brits prepare to take on the Germans at Silverstone - the home of British motor sport. The small volume manufacturer -famed for building successful endurance racers- will be out in force offering factory support for teams taking part in the Silverstone Britcar 24hr -Oct 1^st-2^nd as they combine to take on the formidable moneymen of BMW and Porsche with 2 x G40 - class 4, 5 xG50/GT4- class 3 and 1 x G55 - Class 2.

Ginetta Boss Lawrence Tomlinson will also be making a return to 24hr racing in a prototype laden G55 with Rollcentre Racing, alongside drivers Martin Short - famed LMP1 driver and Rollcentre Racing Team Principal, BTCC ace Colin Turkington, 2008 British GT4 champion Matt Nicoll-Jones and former British Karting Champion/Ginetta factory driver Mike Simpson. The Britcar 24hrs G55 mule is part of a continual testing programme for Ginetta’s newest machine, the G55 GT3, which will be released later this year.

The new G55 GT3 £147,000, 3.7lt machine – which will be on display in the Britcar 24hrs Silverstone paddock for the first time - boasts 58 carbon fibre panels, a wider track making maximum use of the GT3 permitted dimensions, a new aero packcreating impressive down force (designed with the aid of an F1 design team) and 10”/12” rims for increased traction and handling, along with a striking 1.8m curved swan neck rear wing assembly. 

Tomlinson said: “I’m excited to be back at Britcar this year following the amazing success of our G40 last year. We listen to what our customers want and Ginetta is all about producing competitive, cost effective machines. The G55 GT3 is no exception. Our G55 Britcar 24hr entry features elements of the GT3 machine as part of factory testing ahead of its release later in the year. I am yet to drive this car but having seen the work that’s gone into the development and the standard ofengineering it excites me. With the new design and continued engine development programme we expect the G55 GT3 car to be every bit as competitive as the GT3 Ferrari’s, Audi’s and Porsche’s. Our G50 GT4 model has become a proven race winner beating the competition at every stage since its launch back on 2008; we hope our G55 GT3 car will mirror that success in GT3”

Rollcentre Racing have 2 Ginettas entered for the Britcar 24hr at Silverstone, the G55 #30 and  ‘2010 Britcar hero’ the G40 #94. Tomlinson went on the say: “There is no bigger test for a race car than a 24hr endurance race, Martin Short and the Rollcentre Racing team are experienced endurance racers and I’m confident both cars will perform well. We have an excellent team of drivers and in between my own driving stints I will obviously be keeping a close eye on the other teams running Ginettas and wish them all the very best of luck.”

Toyota MR2 takes on Silverstone 24 hours

Rogue Racing is a familiar sight at the 24 hours

 A four-man team of Toyota enthusiasts is planning to mount a giant-killing assault on the UK’s toughest race, the Britcar 24 Hours, using a supercharged Toyota MR2 Roadster. Not only are they hoping for top honours in their class, but also have their sights set on a top-20 overall finish in the 1/2 October Silverstone enduro.

It’s the third time that Team Rogue Racing has entered an MR2 in the Britcar 24 Hours; last year the squad’s tenacity was underlined by an against-the-odds race finish. Now Patrick Mortell, Simon Aris, Alric Kitson and Lee McKee are hoping that substantial performance modifications and support from Toyota GB will help bring success.

The view the team hope that most of it's competitors will be seeing!

“The MR2 is fitted with a 3.5-litre V6 engine, a unit which is more used to delivering sufficient power to pull along a Lexus, so it’s quite a proposition in an MR2 weighing around 1100 kg – particularly when we add a supercharger to boost power output to 350-400 bhp,” said team leader Mortell.

In Class 3 of the race, the Toyota is up against some race-proven performance models, including GT4 cars from Aston Martin, Ginetta and Lotus, as well as several BMW M3s and a GT3 Porsche.

Nonetheless, Mortell is “quietly confident” that a good finish is on the cards: “I would like to think that so long as we don’t have any unforeseen problems the overall top 20 is a realistic opportunity, and with it a good finish in class.”

The MR2 bosts a 3.5l Lexus sourced V6. With a supercharger.

The four drivers all started their competitive careers in the MR2 Championship; two of them are flying from their homes at opposite ends of the globe to compete – Aris from Texas and McKee from Kuala Lumpur.

In addition to support from Toyota, as part of their campaign to support British Motorsport, Team Rogue Racing has several other blue-chip backers, including Microsoft, which is using the event to publicise its forthcoming Forza Motorsport 4 Xbox game, and Alpinestars.

The car looks perfectly at home at the race track!

“Our Alpinestars race suits will carry Forza branding,” adds Mortell, “and Microsoft will be demonstrating the new game to spectators in the paddock.” Emagine Productions will be filming a documentary about the team’s campaign.

Following daylight and night qualifying sessions, the 24-hour race will get underway at Silverstone at 4pm on Saturday 1 October. A field of around 70 cars is anticipated.