IndyCar heads to Phoenix for the second round of the season after it kicked off with a bang in the opening round at St Petersburg. This will be the first oval of the season which means that there will be some driver changes which we’ll come to shortly.
Race 1 at St Petersburg was massively unpredictable, going down to a penultimate lap duel which ended in heartbreak for Robert Wickens after he was assisted into the wall by Alexander Rossi. This lead to Sebastien Bourdais taking his first win since his horror Indy 500 crash, repeating his stellar start to the season that he enjoyed last year. Honda locked out the top 6 while Penske and the rest of the Chevrolet’s seemed at a loss to explain their lack of pace, something that they’ll be hoping to reverse for Phoenix.
The rookies did well over the weekend as a whole; most lacked the final decent finishing result, Wickens and Matheus Leist for example, but they showed credible pace throughout practice and qualifying. However, Phoenix is going to be a whole different kettle of fish because, for the majority of the rookies, it will be their first experience of an oval weekend.
Phoenix was the fourth race of the season last year so is a bit earlier this year, meaning we have even less of an idea of the running order than when we were here last. The last running of Phoenix was won, in dominant fashion, by Simon Pagenaud in what was a Chevrolet whitewash while Honda struggled for pace and were unfortunate enough to have nearly half their runners wiped out in incidents. The main one of those incidents came on the first lap when Mikhail Aleshin, now in LMP1 with SMP, spun mid-corner and took out Marco Andretti, Bourdais, Max Chilton and Graham Rahal. Rossi and Takuma Sato also eliminated themselves in separate incidents to amount to a disaster weekend for Honda.
Ovals have a slightly different format to street courses, there are only two practice sessions for Phoenix and qualifying is done on a solo basis, the race itself will be run over 250 laps.
The driver changes between St Petersburg and Phoenix are as follows… Pietro Fittipaldi will take his first turn in the #19 Dale Coyne after Zachary Claman De Melo started off the season in their pre-agreed car share. Ed Carpenter will take the wheel of the #20 Ed Carpenter Racing car from Jordan King, he will also do this for all the remaining oval rounds. Kyle Kaiser will get his first taste of IndyCar in the solo Juncos car, taking over from Rene Binder who kicked the team’s first season off.
Trying to predict who’s going to be strong this weekend isn’t an easy task but you can be fairly sure that the more experienced oval drivers will be stronger than those who are seeing an oval for the first time. Penske and Chevrolet are expected to make an improvement on their substandard weekend at St Petersburg while Honda will be hoping to avoid a repeat of their awful Phoenix GP last year. Realistically, we won’t have a clue about the race until well, the race but qualifying on Saturday should give some sort of idea about the order, even if it is distorted by mistakes or crashes.
You can catch practice and qualifying on any of IndyCar’s streaming channels while the race itself will be shown on the BT Sport/ESPN channel in the UK. The timings, in UK time, are as follows:
Practice 1 – 10:00pm
Qualifying – 1:00am
Final Practice – 4:00am
Race – 2:30am
Given the rather unreasonable times, there will be no Twitter commentary from us for either qualifying or the race but there will be a race report and various follow up articles as usual.
The Argentinian Termas de Rio Hondo circuit plays host to the second round of the 2018 Moto3 World Championship, after an opener in Qatar which was far from your average lightweight class race.
Moto3 2018: Round 01: Losail, Qatar curtsey of hondanews.eu
One of the main reasons for this was the gap between the leading pair and the chasing pack, which grew from the start and reached nearly seven seconds by the end of the race.
copyright: redbull contentpool
The duo who led the race, and ultimately took the top two spots on the podium, were Jorge Martin and Aron Canet, the Spaniards engaging in the first battle of what could well prove to be another Spanish civil war in the lightweight category. Finally it was Jorge Martin who took the victory, with Canet failing in his attempts to slipstream his compatriot to the line. It was Martin’s second consecutive victory, after coming out on top in the final round of the 2017 season in Valencia, and that put him level with Canet on two career victories. The pair will no doubt be fighting it out at the front again this weekend, but it would be a surprise if they weren’t joined by some other riders.
The prime candidate for a rider who will interrupt Martin and Canet’s private battle is Enea Bastianini, who has looked sharp and confident ever since he left Estrella Galicia for Leopard, and also should have been in the fight for the win three weeks ago but for a crash early in the race whilst sitting in third spot. La Bestia has failed to make the podium in the four times he has previously visited Termas, but that fact fits well with his tradition for subpar beginnings to seasons. Of course, so far this season has not started any better than his previous efforts but the signs are there that Bastianini can fight for victories this season, and after the Qatar result a win might be something of a necessity.
The Beast’s teammate at Leopard, Lorenzo Dalla Porta, took what should have been Enea’s spot on the podium in Qatar with third place, coming out on top in a battle between ten riders. The 2016 Moto3 Junior World Champion will be looking to make it two out of two podiums this weekend, and has the potential to do so. Would such a result paint the Italian out as an outsider for the title?
John McPhee joined Jorge Martin and eventual World Champion Joan Mir on the 2017 Argentinian podium, and in the build up to this weekend’s race has set out his ambitions to take his second Grand Prix victory. Fighting talk is not something we are used to from the Scot, but he seems to have gotten on quite well with the KTM – he certainly made a better switch to it from the Honda than Niccolo Antonelli managed twelve months ago. McPhee will be looking to make up for his crash in Losail at round one where he crashed on the final lap, and so is rightly fired up for the second round of the championship.
It was well covered by many after Qatar that one of the biggest trends from 2018 appears to have transferred itself into 2018, and that is the dominance of Honda over KTM. It is perhaps no surprise, considering the relative size of HRC compared to KTM and also the fact that a lot of KTM’s old Moto3 people who engineered them to so much success in the lightweight class have moved onto the MotoGP or Moto2 projects. Either way, they will not be looking to repeat the baron season they had in 2017, and there are a few riders who will be anticipating an opportunity to take a win this weekend aboard an Austrian bike – the aforementioned McPhee being one of them.
Marco Bezzecchi chasing the pack. copyright hondanews.eu
One of these riders will be one of the standouts from Qatar and he is Marco Bezzecchi. The VR46 Academy rider was in the battle for the podium all race long until a crash at turn six on the final lap ended his charge. He was still able to pick up fourteenth place, but would have been disappointed nonetheless. With that in mind, perhaps Bezzecchi is one to watch for this weekend, especially if it rains (which looks possible), as last year on the Mahindra the tall Italian expressed his prowess on many occasions when the conditions became difficult.
Bezzecchi’s teammate, Jakub Kornfeil, also shone in the race three weeks ago, remaining with Marco in the podium battle until the final lap. It’s certainly fair to say that the Czech rider is getting on better with the KTM than he ever did with the Honda which he rode in the last two seasons, and so could again be one to keep an eye out for this weekend.
Niccolo Antonelli could be another rider to watch out for this weekend. The Italian took pole position in Qatar and seems at home in the SIC58 Squadra Corse. He took fourth position in Losail, but is without a win since the opening round of 2016, and will be keen to change that this weekend considering his good form at the moment. Also, his teammate, Tatsuki Suzuki remains injued from his free practice one crash three weeks ago, so the hopes of the team rest very much with Niccolo this weekend once more.
Nicolo Bulega had a disappointing Qatar which was hampered by his ongoing recovery from the ankle injury he sustained in the Valencia race weekend at the end of last year, which was limiting the mobility of his foot, and was no doubt also still quite painful. Since Qatar, though, Bulega has been to Valentino Rossi’s MotoRanch for the first time in five months, and also went with the rest of the VR46 Riders Academy to Mugello for some training at the home of the Italian Grand Prix. With this in mind, and also considering that the Italian took second on the grid in Termas last year, he could be worth keeping an eye on over the course of the weekend.
If Bulega’s pace is a significant improvement over Qatar, and he is able to run a pace similar to the front runners, that could also benefit Dennis Foggia who, arguably, suffered in Losail due to a lack of track knowledge; and the lack of meaningful data that his more experienced teammate was able to provide perhaps meant that the reigning Moto3 Junior World Champion found himself in a bit of a hole – it is notable that when around other riders in the race he was able to make up positions and finished sixteenth after qualifying twenty-sixth. If Bulega is fast, expect Foggia to become fast too.
Of course, this being Moto3, there are about twenty riders who could be in contention come the final lap on Sunday and the likes of Kaito Toba, who experienced his best weekend of 2017 at Termas and also scored his best finish of his short Grand Prix career three weeks ago; Ayumu Sasaki, who was battling in the top five in Qatar; and Fabio Di Giannantonio are also worth recognising ahead of this weekend. And, of course, the weather is typically South American and therefore very subject to change over the course of the next three days, so whilst there are definitely some favourites ahead of this weekend, the result will remain very much undecided until the chequered flag on Sunday afternoon.
Josh Cook makes his return to Power Maxed Racing for 2018, Aaron Irwin spoke to the 2015 Jack Sears Trophy winner to get his thoughts for the coming season.
AI: So you’re back at Power Maxed Racing!
JC: “Yeah, Obviously I raced with them in 2015, and as soon as I got the chance to, I jumped back in with them. The only reason I left them was for commercial reasons, as soon as the opportunity arose for me to jump back here then I took it. They’re a great team, a great bunch, and they’ve put together a really good car.”
Obviously with your deal being announced quite early you must have had a nice winter to prepare and get ready?
“Yeah, a lot of the time everything’s rushed, and a bit panicky at the end because that’s just how it works. Everyone’s trying to decide what they’re doing and getting everything aligned. So having everything done a little bit earlier was good for us. But then I just wanted to get in the car and get going. I had a few test days which have really helped us but yeah, looking forward to hitting the ground running.”
Cook (right), with PMR team mate Senna Proctor (left).
Power Maxed Racing had a great year last year, it must fill you with a bit of confidence coming in to the team?
“I think you can’t go in with any expectations, it’s going to be really really tough. We’ve just got to give it 100% the whole time. We have to work hard to develop the car and move forwards because everyone is going to move forwards. We’ve got Euro Repar Car Service who’ve come on board this year which made all of this possible. It allowed us to get the deal done so early and now we can really try to deliver those results and reward everybody for their efforts.”
Is the target to be on the podium? Challenging for wins?
“Of course, I’m actually here to win races, win the championship, if you’re not here to do that then you need to be somewhere else! There’s 31 other drivers on the grid who are here to win so we just need to make sure we work that little bit harder than them.”
Plus the field is getting ever more competitive, people like Sam Tordoff coming back to race, does that make your job that little bit harder?
“The calibre of driver in the British Touring Car Championship is so high. The level of engineering that goes into setting up these cars is at the top level in the country. I want to beat the best, so I’m not too fussed about who’s there as long as everybody’s at the top of their game and if we come out on top fairly then that’s how I want to win.”
The 2018 Moto2 World Championship heads to Argentina and the Termas de Rio Hondo circuit for round two of the season, after what was a bit of a chess dual between Sky Racing Team VR46’s Francesco ‘Pecco’ Bagnaia and Pons HP40’s Lorenzo Baldassarri three weeks ago for the season opener.
It was an interesting dynamic in the battle for the win in Qatar, not just because both riders were Italian, or even that they both ride for the same academy, but because they used to share a flat together (and they may still do). It would have been an interesting Monday dinner if Baldassarri overcooked his last minute move at the penultimate corner, but as it was the race stayed clean and it was Bagnaia who came out on top.
Perhaps that was not a surprise. Everyone’s preseason favourite was Bagnaia, and all of the other agreed championship contenders picked Bagnaia as the main threat. But it was certainly somewhat of a surprise to see Balda as his main threat in the race. The pick of the bunch outside of Pecco was Miguel Oliveira (KTM Ajo Motorsport), mostly because of the form of both him and teammate Brad Binder in the last three races of last season, all of which were won by the Portuguese.
For Oliveira though, only fifth place was possible in Qatar. The start was not ideal and perhaps that was what cost him the race, but it was still surprising to see him fail to cut through the pack to arrive on the podium. This weekend the riders will be dealing with a new track surface in Argentina, and maybe it will be that which plays into the hands of the KTM Moto2 chassis, which is known for being generous to the rear tyre. Of course, it was at Termas last season that the Portuguese rider claimed KTM’s first podium in Moto2 in just their second intermediate class race, even then showing strong pace at the end of the race to being to close down the leading pair of Franco Morbidelli and Alex Marquez who crashed on the last lap. Miguel might be the favourite for this one.
If Oliveira is the favourite, then surely Brad Binder will not be too far away – if his qualifying doesn’t let him down. Throughout the 2017 season Binder was hampered compared to his teammate, not just by his broken arm, but by average-at-best qualifying performances which left him a way down the order in the initial part of the race. Sure, he would fight through, and after re-breaking his arm at Termas last year Binder fought through from 17th to 9th in the race, but the time loss at the beginning of the race meant that his podium pace could only get him a top eight at best. That changed in the last three races, where he made the podium on each occasion, but in Qatar the poor qualifying returned and it limited him to P6. If he can make the front two rows on Saturday then he can be in contention for the victory just as much as his teammate. A first Moto2 win for the South African?
Of course, after second place in Losail it would be foolish to discount Baldassarri from victory contention this weekend, and in conjunction with current form, Lorenzo made his best result of the season in 2017 at Termas de Rio Hondo with a fourth place. Another podium could ease the one-time Moto2 winner into the championship picture, and of course if there is a team with Kalex bikes who can make the rear tyre last, it is the Pons team.
The final rider on the podium in Qatar was the aforementioned Alex Marquez. It was not a straightforward race for the Spaniard, who began to suffer with a severely overheating rear brake towards the end of the race. He managed it well, though, and hung onto third from Mattia Pasini to get his season off to a good start, which could be crucial come the end of the season. Marquez had a very nearly fantastic race at Argentina last season, but high sided whilst fighting for the win on the final lap. For certain, Marquez will hope to repeat a lot of last season’s race this Sunday but for sure he will hope to change the final lap, and maybe that change will have him atop the podium.
As mentioned, it was Pasini who was chasing Marquez down at the end of the race in Losail but had to settle for fourth in the end. It was a positive start to the season for the Italian, who came into this year once again with the ItalTrans team as a slight dark horse for a title shot this season, and he will be aiming to continue that for this weekend.
As is the state of the Moto2 field this season, there are plenty of riders who could be in with a shout this weekend who have not been mentioned thus far, such as Sam Lowes, Xavi Vierge, Luca Marini, Joan Mir and a variety of others, but ultimately Bagnaia and Oliveira would be where the smart money goes. The fifth Moto2 Grand Prix in Argentina is looking about as unpredictable as you would expect, and the weather forecast only adds to that, with the weather being far from stable. Rain in the air and many potential winners are setting this up to be a pretty spectacular Argentinian Moto2 Grand Prix.
Well, well, well, what an opening weekend Australia gave us.
From Mercedes’ ‘software bug’ which afforded Sebastian Vettel to sneak in for the win to Williams’ somewhat shocking showing towards the rear of the pack, the Melbourne Grand Prix served up a scintillating few days.
However, there’s no time to let the dust settle, as this weekend sees F1 hit the desert. This, of course, means it’s time for Joe’s Track Preview.
The Bahrain International Circuit played host to Formula 1’s first Middle Eastern venture in 2004, and bar 2011, it has welcomed the Grand Prix world to its door every year since.
The 15-turn, 5.4km ribbon of tarmac is built on an old camel farm, and offers a tasty mixture of long straights and slow corners; meaning the opportunity to overtake is never too far away – particularly at Turns 1, 3 and 11.
However, if you are into your high-speed barrier collisions, you probably won’t want to tune in on Sunday, as the tyre walls are about as close to the track as the Qatari state.
The excessive run-off areas bring a different obstacle, however; the infamous track limits. Cue some interesting in-race radio chatter and most likely a deflating ending as the anoraks rule supreme.
But, despite the structurally forgiving circuit, a lack of grip is expected to be a significant issue this weekend; more so in Friday practice. And although by Sunday’s race the rubber will have well a truly bedded in, the drop in temperatures as twilight hits and the lights go out could provoke some rather spectacular mistakes.
Due to the expected lack of traction, Pirelli has nominated the same tyre choices for that of last season; medium, soft and supersoft – although each compound is one step softer this year.
“Bahrain provides a very different challenge to Australia, but one of the things it has in common is that is quite a stop-start circuit characterised by longitudinal rather than lateral loads, which also means that it is rear-limited in particular”, Pirelli’s Head of Car Racing, Mario Isola, told F1’s official website.
“Because of the abrasive surface and also thermal degradation we would expect more than one pit stop for most drivers, especially as the entire tyre range is softer this year and Bahrain has produced a variety of interesting strategies in the past.
“The race schedule, with track temperatures that fall considerably during the evening, means that teams need to maximise their learning from the sessions that are most representative and draw the most effective conclusions from the unusual track conditions in the evening.”
The British Touring Car Championship is back with a vengeance this weekend as the teams make the annual pilgrimage to Brands Hatch for the season opener.
With a whopping 32 drivers on the grid, the BTCC promises to be a rip roaring affair as the third oldest racing championship in the world celebrates its 60th anniversary. Behind only NASCAR and Formula One in age, the BTCC has always promised door to door action, and 2018 won’t be any different.
Season Calendar
Circuit
Date
Brands Hatch Indy
7-8 April
Donington Park
28-29 April
Thruxton
19-20 May
Oulton Park
9-10 June
Croft
23-24 June
Snetterton
28-29 July
Rockingham
11-12 August
Knockhill
25-26 August
Silverstone
15-16 September
Brands Hatch GP
29-30 September
2017 – Sutton’s Incredible Transformation
2017 saw Adrian Flux Racing’s Ash Sutton take the championship, driving his Subaru Levorg to glory at the expense of series veteran Colin Turkington. Sutton came almost out of nowhere in only his second season in the championship, and his first with the Subaru team. It was an intense battle all the way to the final round at Brands Hatch, with Sutton and Turkington the only ones in with a shout of the prestigious trophy.
It was heartbreak for the BMW driver though, as a collision in the final race of the season broke his rear suspension, leaving Sutton to take his maiden championship in what was a somewhat fairy-tale story.
With it being the 60th anniversary of the championship, there are some special events being lined up to mark the occasion. The main one is a special endurance race at Snetterton on 29 July. The third race of the weekend will be contested over 60 miles, with no success ballast and double points on offer.
Series veteran Jason Plato remains with Subaru for 2018. (Credit: BTCC media)
The Stars and their Cars
The 2018 season sees the return of some old faces, while some big names have departed for pastures new. The main face leaving the grid is triple champion Gordon Shedden, who is now racing in the World Touring Car Cup. Other notable names leaving the series are Mat Jackson, formerly of the Shredded Wheat Ford team. Aron Taylor-Smith, who raced for MG in 2017, and Jeff Smith, who continues to recover from injuries sustained in a horror crash at Croft last season.
Meanwhile 2016 series runner up Sam Tordoff returns to the grid, driving a Gard-X sponsored Ford Focus RS. Replacing Shedden at Team Dynamics is Porsche Supercup double champion Dan Cammish. A range of rookies are also joining the championship, with Sam Smelt (from British F4), Tom Oliphant (from Porsche Middle-East Supercup), and Bobby Thompson (from VW Racing Cup) all making their debuts.
Alfa Romeo are back in the BTCC with Rob Austin at the wheel. (Credit: BTCC Media)
But what will these drivers be racing in? Well some teams have opted to keep the same cars for this season, while a few teams have decided to completely change theirs. Perhaps the most notable addition is the return of a famous name. Alfa Romeo are back on the grid with Rob Austin’s Handy Motorsport team. He’ll be driving a Giulietta. Team Dynamics have brought in the newer Honda Civic model, with the FK8, replacing the old FK2.
2018 Entry List
Teams highlighted green are independent entries. Drivers indicated in bold are eligible for the Jack Sears Trophy.
Team
Drivers
Car
Adrian Flux Racing
Ash Sutton & Jason Plato
Subaru Levorg GT
Autoglym Academy
Josh Price
Subaru Levorg GT
Team BMW
Colin Turkington & Rob Collard
BMW 125 i M Sport
BMW Pirtek Racing
Andrew Jordan
BMW 125i M Sport
Power Maxed TAG Racing
Senna Proctor & Josh Cook
Vauxhall Astra
Honda Yuasa Racing
Matt Neal & Dan Cammish
Honda Civic Type-R (FK8)
Team Shredded Wheat with Gallagher
Tom Chilton & James Cole
Ford Focus RS
GardX Racing with Motorbase
Sam Tordoff
Ford Focus RS
AmD with AutoAid/RCIB Insurance Racing
Rory Butcher & Tom Boardman
MG6 GT
AmD with Cobra Exhausts
Ollie Jackson & Sam Smelt
Audi S3 Saloon
Duo Motorsport with HMS Racing
Rob Austin
Alfa Romeo Giulietta
BTC Norlin Racing
Chris Smiley & James Nash
Honda Civic Type-R (FK2)
Ciceley Motorsport
Tom Oliphant
Mercedes Benz A-Class
MAC Tools with Ciceley
Adam Morgan
Mercedes Benz A-Class
Laser Tools Racing
Aiden Moffat
Mercedes Benz A-Class
Team HARD with Trade Price
Bobby Thompson& Michael Caine
Volkswagen CC
Team HARD with Brisky Racing
Mike Bushell & Jake Hill
Volkswagen CC
Wix Racing with Eurotech
Jack Goff & Brett Smith
Honda Civic Type-R (FK2)
Simpson Racing
Matt Simpson
Honda Civic Type-R (FK2)
Team Parker Racing
Stephen Jelley
BMW 125i M Sport
Speedworks Motorsport
Tom Ingram
Toyota Avensis
Who’s The Favourite?
So the question is; who’s the favourite for the title this season? The usual suspects, Colin Turkington, Rob Collard, Matt Neal, Jason Plato, and Ash Sutton are all fancied for the championship. However some dark horses are emerging after some impressive testing. Speedworks’ Tom Ingram, who came third in last season’s title race and took home the Independent’s trophy, is being considered by many to have an outside chance of glory.
Some are even considering teams such as Power Maxed Racing as potential race winners. Josh Cook and Senna Proctor showed their pace in the changing conditions at the second pre-season test at Brands, finishing first and sixth respectively. Motorbase look fast too with the new Ford Focus RS, being driven by Tom Chilton, James Cole, with Sam Tordoff.
Whoever comes out on top, it promises to be a diamond of an anniversary season.
The 2018 FIA Formula 2 season begins this weekend under much anticipation and featuring one of the most exiting grids in recent years. A few of the more experienced drivers remain, but with a host of highly rated rookies joining the field, it is expected to be a closely fought championship. This year will also see the introduction of the new Formula 2 car, complete with the halo cockpit protection device, which should shake up the playing field a little more. Teams who have been on top of set up in recent years might find themselves struggling to adjust.
Many are billing this season as the battle of the Brits, with 2017 Formula 3 champion Lando Norris and 2017 GP3 champion George Russell going head to head for the title. But in all likelihood, in a series as unpredictable as Formula 2, it won’t be as simple as just two drivers fighting it out. Although Norris and Russell will likely be at the sharp end of the field, this prediction overlooks a number of other highly capable drivers on the grid.
Though Formula 2 is a series which in the past was considered hard for rookies to adapt to, especially the high degradation Pirelli tyres that are run, Leclerc’s dominant rookie title win in 2017 has dispensed those expectations somewhat. And now any driver with the talent and the form is expected to deliver.
Credit: Malcom Griffiths/FIA Formula 2
Norris and Russell are naturally two names that will come up when discussing potential title contenders, both coming off the back of convincing championship wins and both attached to Formula 1 teams (with Norris a McLaren junior driver and Russell part of the Mercedes Junior team). Driving for ART Grand Prix, Russell will benefit from staying with the team he clinched the GP3 title with, and the French outfit seem to be making a good start to the season already after completing the most laps in pre-season testing. Norris meanwhile will drive for Carlin, a new entry into Formula 2 for 2018, but a team with a rich history in motorsport and a reputation for bringing home trophies. Still, Carlin represents far more of an unknown quantity, and some consider Norris’ choice to join the team a bit of a gamble. Both drivers have made their intentions clear however, if their teams are capable of delivering them the title, then that is exactly what they will set out to do.
Fellow British rookie and ART teammate of Russell, Jack Aitken is another driver aiming for the top prize in 2018. Perhaps slightly overlooked after he lost the GP3 title to Russell in 2017, as Renault test and reserve driver Aitken also has the advantage of being affiliated with a Formula 1 team. As we saw in GP3, Aitken is more than capable of taking the fight to Russell, but his success will probably hang on how well he manages to adapt to the new series, an area in which he lagged behind his teammate last year.
It is unusual for such high expectations to be placed on a group of rookies, but that just goes to show how high the level of talent entering the series is. But Formula 2 is a championship that ordinarily favours experience. With this in mind last year’s runner-up Artem Markelov is a clear favourite. Staying with last year’s team champions Russian Time and entering his fifth year at this level, he has the experience and the credentials to win. And the twenty-three-year-old Russian needs to as well, although he has found himself a role within the Renault F1 team, he is reaching the upper limit of the acceptable number of years to spend in second-tier single seaters before he has to start looking at building his senior career.
Credit: Malcom Griffiths/FIA Formula 2
Many have also placed their bets on Nyck de Vries as a likely title contender. The Dutch McLaren junior driver is entering his second season of Formula 2 with a move to the Italian team Prema who have been consistently fighting for wins and podiums since they entered GP2 in 2016. He will also have the extra motivation of getting to go up against his fellow McLaren junior driver Lando Norris, who has recently been putting him in the shade with his successful run of form. 2018 represents an opportunity for the two drivers to finally go head to head. He has thus far failed to deliver any big results since his Formula Renault 2.0 win in 2014 and hasn’t quite matched the potential he showed in his karting career. But backed by a strong team, 2018 could turn out to be his year.
These may be the likely title contenders, but it would not be surprising to see a few more unexpected names up the top of the leader board. Some of the other newcomers are capable of fighting for podiums, such as BWT Arden pair Maximilian Günther and Nirei Fukuzumi. Günther is following his 2017 title rival Lando Norris from Formula 3 where he finished third last year, and Fukuzumi is another GP3 graduate coming third last year behind his teammates; Russell and Aitken. A number of those staying on for a second or third year were race winners and podium finishers last year, drivers such as Ghiotto, Câmara, Fuoco, Latifi and Albon (the latter two unconfirmed as of yet, but widely speculated to be filling in the vacant DAMS seats) should be capable of repeating those exploits this year.
Credit: Malcolm Griffiths/LAT Images
As ever, it will be hard to determine the standings until a few races have been run and the frontrunners emerge. But expect it to be a closely fought battle this year. Even in 2017, when Charles Leclerc seemingly dominated the competition we saw ten different race winners. If things are as close as they are predicted to be this year, then expect to see even more drivers standing atop the podium.
Bahrain will be a tricky first round too. Formula 2 doesn’t have the luxury of running of running in the evening as Formula 1 does, leaving the drivers to fight against the typical searing heat as well as each other. This usually leaves the rookies at a slight disadvantage, as it makes the already difficult to manage tyres even harder to get a handle on. There will also be further question marks to see how the new cars perform and how to teams and drivers adapt.
Power Maxed Racing driver Senna Proctor stormed to the Jack Sears Trophy title in his debut season in 2017, but what is in store for him in 2018? Aaron Irwin had a chat with him to see how his Vauxhall Astra has changed, and what his aspirations are for the coming season.
AI: So we’re back, have you been itching to get back into the car?
SP: “Yeah I’ve been looking forward to it. Excited to get going again and we’re back with Power Maxed Racing this year so we’ll have to see what happens.”
Has there been many changes to the car? Apart from the new livery obviously?
“Yeah we’ve changed the livery, we’ve changed a lot of stuff. Just a few bits and bobs, a bit of weight saving here and there and moving it about to where we want it.
It’s been a good winter, it’s been productive. We’ve found out a bit about what works and what doesn’t work, we have a bit more of a back-up plan this year shall we say if anything does go wrong. But yeah we’re confident going into this year.”
Proctor at the pre-season test at Brands. (Credit: Matt Pigg – Photopigg.)
When Rob Huff came in for one meeting last season he changed a lot about the setup. Have you taken his advice on board?
“Yeah he gave us the bulk principle of what will and won’t work. Some of it we’ve put to good practice and some of it didn’t work on our car so I’d say he was a big help.
Obviously with myself not being too experienced in how a touring car should feel it was always hard for me to do that. We’re ready to get going this year and do our best for the team and for Vauxhall and to thank all our sponsors.”
At the back end of last season you were pushing for top ten’s, is that the target again this season?
“At the last meeting at Brands Hatch we had our best result of sixth, and we were getting there towards the end of the year to be honest with you.
We made some big steps forward and some quite chunky set up changes and we found out what did and what didn’t work again.
That’s half the battle, going into a qualifying session and putting on something and you don’t have a clue what’s going on, it’s not ideal. But this year going forward we have a little more experience with the car and also the team have more experience with the car, it’s all gone well so yeah we’re looking forward to it.”
As the reigning Jack Sears Trophy winner your stock continues to rise, some are saying you’re the ‘rising star’, does that cross your mind going into a race?
“I just go out there and do the best job I can. Like I say it’s been a good winter so there’s been a lot of confidence carried over from where we finished off last year. If we hit the ground running this year getting the same sort of finishes then it’s going to be a successful year.”
Our thanks to Senna for the interview and we wish him and Power Maxed Racing the best of luck for 2018.
It’s time for round four, and just four points separate Seb Ogier and Thierry Neuville at the top of the points table!
This year’s edition of this classic event has twelve stages totalling 333.48km over the three days, the longest stage being the 55.17 km for Vero – Sarrola – Carcopino run on Sunday and the shortest being the Piedigriggio – Pont de Castirla 2 13,55 km on Friday afternoon.
Friday sees the crews tackle stages that are in the middle of the island, with four stages, but a mammoth 126 km’s. On Saturday, they head to the northern park of the island and tackle the coastal roads, totalling a huge almost 140km’s of stages and then Sunday sees them head south west and the longest stage run and then the power stage.
Last year Kris led until he suffered a mechanical failure with his engine on Saturday afternoon and Thierry came through to take the win.
Seb Loeb is driving again for Citroen, with the second of his outings for this year, but bigger than that is the news that Elfyn Evans’ co-driver Dan Barritt is sitting out this one as he’s still recovering from the high-speed roll that happened in Mexico. Phil Mills’ will be stepping into co-driver seat. Yes, world rally champion co-driver to Mr Hollywood, Petter Solberg. He has been part of Elfyns’ gravel crew for the past five years, which makes him the ideal man for the job!
Tour de Corse Map 2018- Credit to Tour de Corse
TOUR DE CORSE SCHEDULE (GMT+2)
THURSDAY 5 APRIL
8.00am: Shakedown (Sorbo Ocagnano)
6.30pm: Ceremonial start Bastia – Place Saint Nicolas
FRIDAY 6 APRIL
8.00am: Start in Bastia – Place Saint Nicolas
8.40am: Service A (Bastia airport – 15′)
9.50am: SS 1 – La Porta – Valle di Rostino 1 (49,03 km)
11.09am: SS 2 – Piedigriggio – Pont de Castirla 1 (13,55 km)
1.47pm: Service B (Bastia airport – 30′)
3.12pm: SS 3 – La Porta – Valle di Rostino 2 (49,03 km)
4.31pm: SS 4 – Piedigriggio – Pont de Castirla 2 (13,55 km)
7.01pm: Flexi service C (Bastia airport – 45′)
SATURDAY 7 APRIL
6.10am: Start of day 2 and service D (Bastia airport – 15′)
7.37am: SS 5 – Cagnano – Pino – Canari 1 (35,61 km)
9.18am: SS 6 – Désert des Agriates 1 (15,45 km)
11.08am: SS 7 – Novella 1 (17,39 km)
1.31pm: Service E (Bastia airport – 30′)
3.21pm: SS 8 – Cagnano – Pino – Canari 2 (35,61 km)
5.02pm: SS 9 – Désert des Agriates 2 (15,45 km)
6.39pm: SS 10 – Novella 2 (17,39 km)
8.10pm: Flexi service F (Bastia airport – 45′)
SUNDAY 8 APRIL
7.00am: Start of day 3 and service G (Bastia airport – 15′)
9.23am: SS 11 – Vero – Sarrola – Carcopino (55,17 km)
12.18pm: SS 12 – Pénitencier de Coti-Chiavari (16,25 km)
“We’ve had a really positive start to the season – three events and two victories already under our belts. It’s great to see the progress we’ve made, and we’re keen to see that continue with the return to asphalt next week.
“With a lot of mixed conditions in Monte-Carlo, the Tour de Corse is the first proper Tarmac event of the year, and it’s nice to be back. We all know that the competition will be strong, but we completed a good test last week – finding a good feeling and discovering the optimum set-ups to deliver a strong performance
“As a Frenchman, there is always added motivation to do well at the Tour de Corse. Known as the Rally of 10,000 Corners, the name alone says it all and many sections of this island are made for rallying. A lot of the route is new this year, but the stages remain very technical with corner after corner demanding total focus and precision.
“It’s a beautiful island that I always look forward to visiting, and it would be fantastic to secure another strong result on French soil.”
FIA WORLD RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP 2018 -WRC Monte Carlo (FRA) – WRC 24/01/2018 to 28/01/2018 – PHOTO : @World
Elfyn Evans
“This is an event that I really enjoy, and we’ll be looking to maximise that next week. The speed is there, but I’ve not had the best start to the year and that’s something I’m determined to put right in Corsica.
“It won’t be easy without Dan, but his fitness comes first and it’s important that he has the time to make a full recovery for the rest of the season. Phil has stepped in, and I hope that we can push for a good result.
“Phil certainly knows his stuff. Other than Dan, he knows my pacenotes better than anyone and he’s certainly no stranger when it comes to winning rallies.
“This year’s route has a lot of new sections, but it’s still a technical challenge which is one of the things I really enjoy here. There’s quite a lot of variation amongst the stages – some are surprisingly smooth, but then there are those which are typically Corsican with abrasive Tarmac that twists through the mountains.
“It’s all about adapting to the conditions, and that will be the case even more so for us next week. We’ll have a fairly late running order which won’t be ideal, and we’ll need some time to get used to one another in the car as well.
“We’ll just have to see how it goes and do the best we can. I’ve had some good results here in the past, and I’m keen to see what we can do this year.”
Bryan Bouffier
“The Tour de Corse has long been one of my favourite events. The roads are amazing, but so is the island and so are the people who live there. It’s a fantastic rally and one that I look forward to every year.
“We had a good test last week where I found a good feeling with the balance of the car. Working together with the team, we were able to find some good solutions with the set-up, and I hope that hard work will show on the stages next week.
“Every time I return the FIA World Rally Championship the level is extremely high, but this year the competition is stronger than ever and there are so many drivers able to push for the top results.
“The specific challenge in Corsica is to be consistent through the long stages and to avoid mistakes. That is our goal and we hope to deliver some strong times so that I have the chance to do even more kilometres in this amazing car!”
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville
“Tour de Corse is one of my personal highlights of the season. We have some good memories from this rally across the years; we have won twice, including last year’s WRC victory so I am hoping for another competitive weekend. We had an accident towards the end of the pre-event test but that won’t change our approach to this rally. We know it will be a close contest again, as there are many quick drivers. The long stages that are a particular characteristic of Corsica mean we have to keep focused at all times. It is a really demanding event for crews and teams but we’re determined to strengthen our position in both championships.”
2017 FIA World Rally Championship Round 04, Tour de Corse – Rallye de France 06-09 April 2017 Thierry Neuville, Nicolas Gilsoul, Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC Photographer: Sarah Vessely Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Andreas Mikkelsen
“Corsica is a very special event, and our first true tarmac rally of the season. As a crew, you never really get any break during the stages; it’s a continuous corner-to-corner challenge that requires utmost concentration. It’s equally tough on the car as it is for the driver and co-driver. It is easy for the brakes to get warm so we have to adapt our driving style to save them for the really long stages. Tour de Corse is a beautiful rally and one I really enjoy.”
Dani Sordo
“I was pleased with our result in Mexico and I hope we can continue with this level of performance as we move onto the tarmac challenge of Tour de Corse. It is a rally I always enjoy, and which requires a very specific approach. With long stages held in the mountains, Corsica really is a classic tarmac event. It’s corner after corner, so we are always turning the steering wheel during the stages, which makes it a very physical event. Precise pace notes are crucial for a good performance. I can’t wait to get started!”
Toyota Gazoo WRT
Jari-Matti Latvala
“I have some good memories of Corsica from my win there in 2015. It is certainly an asphalt rally that I like. There’s a reason they call it the Rally of 10,000 Corners: if you find any straight that is longer than 100 metres, you know you are on the wrong island! You cannot really cut the corners so much and there is not so much gravel on the road, which makes it really enjoyable as you can just focus on the corners and the lines. We had a very, very positive pre-event test. The feeling was extremely good and I am very confident with the car. All of the teams should be quick in Corsica, but I really hope we are up there fighting for the podium places.”
Jari-Matti Latvala finished fourth last year on the roads around Corsica. Photo credit Toyota Gazoo WRT.
Ott Tänak
“We have been competitive on every surface so far this season. The team is working really hard to make sure that we can be reliable too. Now we just need to start taking some points back from our rivals. Last year my feeling in Corsica was quite good, so I want to have a strong result this time. The conditions on Rallye Monte-Carlo were very specific so it was difficult to take a lot, but we still went into our pre-Corsica test with some kind of idea which way we want to go. We had a proper two-day test and I think we went in the right direction: It feels like the car is performing well.”
Esapekka Lappi
“I have done Corsica a couple of times in the past in other categories, and I would say that it is completely different to any other rally. It is just corner after corner, without many straights to give us a rest. The schedule is also unique as we don’t have as many stages, but they are quite long. This will be my first time in Corsica in a World Rally Car, but I take confidence from the speed we showed in Monte Carlo. In fact, I am actually more confident this time because we managed to find a better set-up in the pre-event test. We tested in both damp and fully dry conditions so we should be ready whatever the weather.”
Citroen Abu Dhabi WRT
Kris Meeke
“The Tour de Corse is one hell of a challenge, with many difficulties, but I’ve always enjoyed racing here. We were very competitive here last year, although we have seen since the start of the season that everyone has made progress, but I hope we can still get among the frontrunners. Our pre-event tests, held on a wide variety of roads, were very productive. I get the feeling that we have progressed further on the dirty and bumpy sections. In any case, I came away from my test sessions pleased with the work done and I can’t wait now to get started!”
Kris Meeke and Paul Nagle led last year until Saturday afternoon. They’ll want to make the finish this year. Photo credit, Citroen Racing
Sébastien Loeb
“Having recently driven the C3 WRC on gravel, I got my bearings very quickly during our tests in Corsica, even though the road surface was different. I started with Kris’ basic set-up and settled upon something very close to his settings pretty quickly, but which suited me. The feeling was pretty good at the end of my testing days. We’ll have to wait and see where we stand in relation to everyone else. After our performance in Mexico, I hope we will be on the pace again, especially as I’ve always been comfortable on tarmac, not least in Corsica. In any case, it’s a place and an event that I have always enjoyed, even if it’s certainly not the easiest rally. The roads are apparently faster than when I last competed here, although there are still plenty of narrow, technical and bumpy stages, but they are all going to be new for me so it won’t be easy to make pace notes for the entire route.”
As a nice tribute to Henry Hope-Frost, the M-Sport team will be running with the hashtag #Fever and also the names of his sons on their cars.
Just a few days now then to the start of this iconic event. Who will win this year? Enjoy!
