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Round 4 WorldSBK Catalunya, Spain, Race 1

Early May here in Barcelona, and already the temperatures were scorching, nearing 30 degrees Celsius air temperature, and 50 degrees on track.

WorldSBK Catalunya, Spain Round 4. Picture courtesy of WorldSBK

With news earlier in the week that reigning champion, Alvaro Bautista would be extending his contact with Aruba Ducati for at least another season, it all meant there would be no easing off of the gas. His rivals would need to step up the game if they had eyes on his world championship crown, or indeed stopping him in Catalunya this weekend.

Lights out then for Race 1, and it was Bautista (Aruba.it Racing Ducati) with the hole shot into turn 1, followed by his team mate Rinaldi behind in 2nd. Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 3rd, Toprak (Pata Yamaha Prometeon WorldSBK) 4th, and Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) in 5th.

Next lap and with Toprak mounting pressure on his team mate Locatelli, he did eventually make the move into turn 3, moving into 4th. Redding (Rokit BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) had been penalised grid positions for irresponsible riding and had to start from 16th, although he had made a great start and was now up to 11th. Drama for Oliver Konig (Orelac Racing Movisio) who went down into turn 4, and his race was over. At the front Bautista had a gap of 0.5s to Rinaldi behind in 2nd.

Next lap and positions were as follows: 1. Bautista 2. Rinaldi 3. Rea 4. Toprak 5. Locatelli 6. Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) 7. Aegerter 8. Vierge (Honda HRC) 9. Gardner (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) 10. Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK).

Then, with 17 laps remaining, the race is red flagged due to a crash by Eric Granado (Petronas MIE Racing Honda Team) into turn 12. He was conscious as they stretchered him off the track and taken to the medical centre. The race would be restarted with 17 laps still remaining.

Lights out then for the second time, and once again it was Bautista with the hole shot into turn 1, followed by Rinaldi 2nd, Bassani 3rd, Rea 4th, Locatelli 5th, and Toprak in 6th. Drama then for Redding as he seemed to slam into the back of Baldassarri (GMT94 Yamaha) into turn 10, both riders plunged into the gravel with bits of fairing everywhere, and their respective races were over. Meanwhile at the front, things were getting spicy between fellow Italians, Rinaldi and Bassani in the battle for 2nd, with Rea behind in 4th.

Next lap and Rinaldi barged up the inside of Bassani after the latter had briefly taken 2nd to retake the position, gloves were definitely off at this stage. As the ‘red mist’ descended, Bassani then stuffed it up the inside of Rinaldi into turn 10, although he caught the back of the Ducati in the process sending a helpless Rinaldi flying off into the gravel. Rinaldi was not at all happy, giving a sarcastic ’round of applause’ to his fellow countryman after that incident. Positions were as follows: 1. Bautista 2. Bassani 3. Rea 4. Toprak 5. Locatelli 6. Aegerter 7. Lowes 8. Vierge 9. Lecuona 10. Gardner.

With 14 laps left Bautista put in the new fastest lap, a 1:41.747, and held a gap of 1.8s to Bassani.

WorldSBK Catalunya, Spain Round 4. Picture courtesy of WorldSBK

Next lap and Bautista extended his lead to 2.3s. Meanwhile further behind Toprak was right on the back of Rea, and you sensed a pass was coming. The Kawasaki had previously struggled in very hot conditions. Meanwhile Bassani was given a long lap penalty for his contact with Rinaldi, which he immediately took and rejoined in 5th.

With 12 laps to go Bautista had now extended his lead to 4.1s to Rea who was now in 2nd, with Toprak behind in 3rd who had a gap of 1.2s to his team mate behind in 4th, Locatelli. Meanwhile further back it was, Aegerter 6th, Lowes 7th,  Vierge 8th, Gardner 9th, Petrucci (Barni Spark Racing) 10th, and Brad Ray (MotoxRacing Yamaha) 15th.

With just over half race distance covered, Bassani got back through on Locatelli into turn 10 to take 4th. Meanwhile further back there was a battle for 7th between Lecuona and Lowes. Further back again and there was a 3 way  battle for 9th between Vierge 9th, Gardner 10th, and Gerloff (Bonovo Action BMW) 11th. The young Aussie, Gardner, then got through on Vierge to take 9th.

With 7 laps to go, Vinales crashed out into turn 10 his race was over. Meanwhile at the front and clear out in the lead, Bautista had now ramped his lead up to 8.6s, and looked comfortable, and was nearly out of sight of the chasers behind. Toprak was still right on the back of Rea, although the Kawasaki was looking much better in the hot conditions, and Rea was holding his own. Disappointment then for Lowes who went down into the downhill turn 7 losing the front end, he had been looking good up until that point. Toprak held a gap of 1.9s to Bassani behind in 4th.

With only 5 laps remaining Bautista now extended his lead to 9.5s and was making it look easy. Rea continued to hold off Toprak and held a gap of 0.3s.

Next lap and Locatelli retook 4th, getting through on Bassani. Bassani paying for his earlier fight with Rinaldi no doubt, as he was struggling with grip. Bassani was 5th, Aegerter 6th, Lecuona 7th, Vierge 8th, Gardner 9th, Gerloff 10th, with British rider Brad Ray in 14th.

With 3 laps to go, Aegerter was having a great race for a rookie, and took 5th getting through on Bassani, with a nice clean move up the inside of the Ducati. Meanwhile out of sight in the lead, Bautista was entering turn 1, as Rea and Toprak were entering the final corner onto the straight, such was his sizeable lead of 11s. Further back Petrucci was battling Gardner for 10th.

Last lap and Toprak eventually made his move on Rea down the straight and into turn 1, out braking the Kawasaki and getting his bike stopped as only Toprak can do, Rea had no answer and dropped into 3rd.

WorldSBK Catalunya, Spain Round 4. Picture courtesy of WorldSBK

Taking his first win of the weekend, and making an ominous statement with the dominance of it, Bautista crossed the line in 1st, followed by Toprak in 2nd, Rea 3rd, Locatelli 4th, Aegerter 5th, Lecuona 6th, Bassani 7th, Vierge 8th, Gerloff 9th, Petrucci 10th.

Result top 5:

  1. Bautista (Aruba.it Racing Ducati)
  2. Razgatlioglu (Pata Prometeon Yamaha WorldSBK)
  3. Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK)
  4. Locatelli (Pata Prometeon Yamaha WorldSBK)
  5. Aegerter (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorlsSBK)

Championship top 3:

  1. Bautista – 199 pts
  2. Razgatlioglu – 138
  3. Locatelli – 117

 

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Patrick Gruszka At Olympus Rally

Patrick Gruszka would race the Olympus Rally for the first time in his career two weeks ago. He would come out of the event third overall and first in the RC2 class. Find out about Gruszka’s time at the event below. 

What Was Gruszka’s Favourite Moment At Olympus?

Patrick Gruszka would say his favourite moment of the Olympus Rally would be the railroad crossing on SS11 and SS12. 

What Was Gruszka’s Biggest Challenge?

The length of the stages at Olympus would be Gruszka’s biggest challenge. As the stages were more of a marathon than what he has gotten used to. 

Does Gruszka Have Any Regrets?

Patrick Gruszka would say he regrets not being brave enough at Olympus. He feels like he held back on some of the stages just to get the finish. 

Did Gruszka Follow His Strategy?

Gruszka would follow his strategy pretty well. As the main goal at Olympus was to finish and get points for the RC2 and National championships. 

Was Gruszka Happy With His Final Position?

Gruszka would be happy with his final position of third. Although he feels he could’ve gotten second if he was a little less cautious. 

Gruszka’s Favourite Stage?

Patrick Gruszka’s favourite stages at Olympus would be SS8 and SS10 Dayton. 

What Can We Expect From Gruszka For The Rest Of The Season?

He hopes to have more good finishes. As well as trying to maintain the points lead in the RC2 championship with the hope of winning the championship. 

A Valley Of First Times

Patrick Gruszka’s first time competing at Olympus wasn’t the only first for him this weekend. As he would also break out the back window without touching anything, drove a 30km stage, and drove a stage with rain, mud and fog on one stage. 

Launching A Protest

Patrick Gruszka would receive 3 minutes and 30 seconds in penalties at Olympus for speeding during transit. Gruszka would ultimately decide to protest this. As the speed limit wasn’t posted on the advanced event packet given to the drivers and a truck was parked in front of the speed limit sign. Normally if Gruszka doesn’t know the speed limit he sticks to recce speeds of about 30 mph. Gruszka alongside Michael Hooper and Lucy Block would win their protests for these penalties. Even with 3 minutes and 30 seconds removed from Gruszka’s time, he would still remain in third behind Jeff Seehorn. 

Photography Credits:

Hunter Courtin, Coachworksphoto: Instagram

Travis Gallatin, Gallatin Images: Instagram

Jacob Worrall Photo: Instagram

Aj Barker, PurpleCynMedia: Instagram

Mike Boyd, Quad Time Media: Instagram

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Olympus Rally Recap: Stories

The Olympus Rally has ended, marking the end of the third round of the 2023 Green APU American Rally Association season. Brandon Semenuk would take a dominant win once again. 

Semenuk Wins His Third Straight

Brandon Semenuk would take home his third straight win of the 2023 Green APU American Rally Association season at Olympus. Semenuk now leads the championship by a 35-point lead. Now this may seem like a large points lead, and you’d be correct, but this is rally and anything is possible. Brandon Semenuk knows that better than anybody else, as he has had it happen to him in the past. If Semenuk continues to drive at this pace he should have the championship clinched by the end of the New England Forest Rally.

Lia Wins Her First

Lia Block would take her first O2WD class win at Olympus. This will likely be the first of many wins for the 16-year-old Block. This is only Lia’s second year of rallying and only her second event in the Subaru BRZ she’s running this season. She’s gonna have a fight on her hands the rest of the season if she wants to take the O2WD Championship home. As Lia will have to fend off more experienced drivers such as David Clark and Micah Nickelson to achieve this. 

Two Blocks In The Top 10

Both Lia and Lucy Block would finish in the top 10 at Olympus. With Lia finishing seventh overall and Lucy finishing ninth. This is the first time this has happened this season and it likely won’t be the last. As both drivers have what it takes to consistently finish in the top 10 at every event in which they attend. 

Bailey Came To Play

Jason Bailey would put on a show at the Olympus Rally. With the Canadian finishing fourth overall and first in the L4WD class. Bailey will be one to keep an eye on for the LN4 Drivers Championship, as he currently sits second, 10 points back from Matthew Dickinson who leads the championship. Although Bailey isn’t actively chasing the title as the ARA isn’t his primary focus. 

Bad Luck Continues For Williams

Tom Williams would, unfortunately, be forced to retire from his second straight event. As Williams would be forced to retire from The Rally In The 100 Acre Wood due to a turbo issue. This would ultimately cost him what would’ve probably been a RC2 class win. At Olympus, Williams would be forced to retire on the final stage of the event. This would come as a result of Williams rolling his car after a 11G impact. Williams car would end up blocking the road causing both Patrick Gruszka and Jeff Seehorn to transit the rest of the stage, causing both drivers to get the same time as Brandon Semenuk. Therefore causing a three-way tie for first on the stage, meaning all three drivers would get the 5 extra championship points. 

Living Up To Its Reputation 

The Olympus Rally has gained a reputation for being one of the harder events on the American Rally Association calendar. As the event takes place through mostly forest and logging roads and are very technical in nature. It’s an event that can reward those willing to take a risk, but some risks may end your rally early. Olympus is an unforgiving event, as one wrong move could spell the end of your event. We saw this a few times this weekend, as 34 drivers would retire at the event at some point. With retirement reasons varying from a little mechanical failure to their car burning to the ground. Stage DNFs would cause 30 out of the total 38 retirements. The remaining 9 would be caused by 7 mechanical retirements and 1 MPL retirement. It’s worth noting a DNF retirement can mean basically anything, as it just means the driver didn’t finish the stage. In some cases, this could mean the DNF is due to an off while in other cases it could be caused by a mechanical issue, or in rare cases the car burning to the ground. 

Photography Credits

© Trevor Lyden, Subaru.com/motorsports, 2023

Hunter Courtin, Coachworksphoto: Instagram

Travis Gallatin, Gallatin Images: Instagram

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Formula 2-Bearman Tops All Sessions On The Streets of Baku

Ollie Bearman Sprint and Feature race winner at Baku 2023. Image courtesy of Ferrari

The Ferrari Junior Driver had his best weekend in Formula 2 yet with the 17 year old finishing every single session across round 4 of the FIA Formula 2 World Championship around the streets of Baku.

Bearman first of all topped the one and only Free Practice Session of the weekend with a 1:54.063. Hadjar and Maini followed behind in second and third respectfully.  Qualifying was very tight with the 17 year old setting a lap time just 0.012 ahead of Red Bull Junior Enzo Fittipaldi.

Sprint Race:

The sprint race got underway in Baku with the ART of Victor Martins immediatel cutting across the Red Bull Junior of Zane Maloney. The reverse pole sitter Richard Verschoor nearly lost the rear end, tapped the wall and got both front and rear damage. Maloney lead from Hauger and Martins in P3. The Boy from Barbados Maloney got a puncture and went from 1st to last on lap 1 of the sprint. Boschung tapped the wall by the castle section and had to retire which brought out the safety car. We went 2 laps under the SC and when the safety car was brought in,  Hauger lead the way from Martins and daruvala. Bearman managed to make a chagre up to P4 by lap 11 out of 21.

The PHM of Roy Nissany then crashed on lap 14 which brought out a safety car and saw the pack bunch up again. The drivers spent 5 laps under the safety car and from then, a 3 lap shootout for the win resulted in a huge crash into turn 1. Hauger and Martins locked up and went into the wall, Daruvala hit Martins due to him also locking up and Leclerc and Pourchaire tapped the wall and the engine stalled. Vesti and Martins were then battling for the lead which saw Bearman take the lead just before the safety car was deployed and the race was then over due to the amount of cleanup required. Bearman took home his first victory of his F2 career ahead of Vesti and Crawford finishing the top 3. Maini, Fittipaldi, Correa and Novalak finished off the top 7. Hadjar did finish P8 but got a penalty post race so Stanek got the final points position.

The Formula 2 2023 Baku Sprint Podium with a Prema 1-2 and Crawford in P3. Image Credit: Prema Racing Photos and Videos

Feature Race:

The feature race saw a very clean getaway from everyone and a clean first lap from everyone. Pourchaire got up to P2 on Lap 2 after overtaking Fittipaldi but he wasn’t finished there. Pourchaire got past bearman on lap 3 for the lead of the race and both Premas of Vesti and Bearman were attacking Fittipaldi and Pourchaire respectfully. Bearman wasn’t finished as he got up to P1 on lap 4 with the assist of the DRS system. Hauger and Crawford went wheel to wheel with Hauger getting the advantage. the top 2 pitted on lap 9 due to yellow flags and Bearman managed to hold the lead ahead of Pourchaire.

Brad Benevides stopped on an escape road after a touch with the barriers and brought out a VSC as he was recovered. Daruvala ried to get past Maloney on lap 14 but ended up getting a 10s time penalty for rejoining unsafely.  Fittipaldi was challenging Pourchaire on lap 24 for P2 and he eventually got the moce done in turn 3. Bearman crossed the line to take the feature race victory in Baku and make it a perfect weekend. Fittipaldi finished P2 and Pourchaire in P3. Martins was P4 but got disqualified due to a technical infringement. This pushed Vest, Maini, Hauger, Hadjer, Verschoor, Crawford and Leclerc up to P4-P10 respectfully after Daruvala’s penalty pushed him down to P13, originally P14.

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Olympus Rally Recap: Championships

The Olympus Rally has ended, marking the end of the third round of the 2023 Green APU American Rally Association season. Brandon Semenuk would take a dominant win once again. 

National Championship Standings

Brandon Semenuk would take his third event at win of the season at Olympus. This would allow Semenuk to extend his points lead over Patrick Gruszka from 27 to a comfortable 35-point lead. If Semenuk continues this pace he should have his second ARA championship in the bag by the end of the New England Forest Rally. Matthew Dickinson would remain third in the championship, although he would retire from Olympus meaning he took 0 points home from the event. Jeff Seehorn would move into a tie for fourth with Barry McKenna. With both drivers having 22 points under their belts. Tom Williams would get pushed out of the top five after once again retiring from the rally, therefore not taking home any points. 

National Championship Points After Olympus

  1. B. Semenuk, 80
  2. P. Gruszka, 45
  3. M. Dickinson, 23
  4. J. Seehorn, 22
  5. B. McKenna, 22

RC2 Championship 

The RC2 class would see Patrick Gruszka take his second class win of the season. Gruszka now sits 39 points above Tom Williams in the championship standings. It won’t be easy for Williams to regain those championship points, but it is possible, as anything is possible in rally. For Williams to regain those points he would need a shift in luck from bad to good. 

RC2 Championship Points

  1. P. Gruszka, 64
  2. T. Williams, 25
  3. K. Tilley, 17
  4. M. Georgakopoulos, 17
  5. R. Cordero, 12

O2WD Championship 

Lia Block would take a hard-fought O2WD class win at Olympus. This would allow Lia to both move into second place in the O2WD championship. As well as close the 30-point gap between her and leader Micah Nickelson down to just 5 points. With Nickelson not attending the Oregon Trail Rally next month it shouldn’t be hard for Lia to move into first overall in the championship. Lia will have to fight off more experienced drivers first, however. As Nick Allen who sits third in the championship, just 10 points back from Block will also be in Oregon next month. Other notable names attending the Oregon Trail Rally next month include Dave Clark, Michael Hooper and Tim O’Neil 

O2WD Championship Points 

  1. M. Nickelson, 47
  2. L. Block, 42
  3. N. Allen, 32
  4. D. Clark, 17
  5. M. Hooper, 14
  6. T. O’Neil, 14

LN4 Drivers Championship 

Matthew Dickinson will remain first in the LN4 Drivers Championship although the wouldn’t take home any points from Olympus. This would allow Jason Bailey to take the class win and move into second overall in the championship. Bailey now sits just 10 points back from Dickinson. With both the top two drivers attending Oregon Trail next month, it should be a fun battle to keep an eye on. Javier Olivares would technically fall to third overall, as the driver would sit tied for second in the championship heading into Olympus. Olivares would take second in the class at the event. Ele Bardha would move himself and his 2000 Subaru Prodrive GC8 into fourth place in the championship at Olympus.

LN4 Drivers Championship Points

  1. M. Dickinson, 47
  2. J. Bailey, 37
  3. J. Olivares, 34
  4. E. Bardha, 26
  5. V. Trudel, 17

Photography Credit

© Trevor Lyden, Subaru.com/motorsports, 2023

Hunter Courtin, Coachworksphoto: Instagram

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British Superbikes Oulton Park 2023 – Brookes, Bridewell and Irwin share the Bank Holiday spoils.

Bank Holiday weekend played host to British Superbikes for Round 2, Oulton Park.

Oulton Park – Image Official BSB

Known for it’s changing weather conditions, Oulton didn’t buck the trend for three seasons in one weekend when it rained solid for the Sunday sessions, dried up for Race 2 on the Monday and finally allowed the sun out for Race 3.

The rain finally abated for the Sunday ebay Sprint race long enough for the track to dry out and allow the Superbike riders to get out on their slick tyres.

After an eventful start to the race, which saw the Curse of Oulton Park strike again for Jason O’Halloran when a crash saw the McAMS rider slip off, a somewhat linear Race 1 ensued, with the top 6 riders braking away. Brookes, a resurgent Leon Haslam, G Irwin, Hickman, Bridewell and A Irwin ticking off the laps at a steady pace, while pulling somewhere around a 8-10 second gap to chasing riders Christian Iddon, Storm Stacey, Lee Jackson and Charlie Nesbit.

Counting down the laps and revving up for a last lap push, the typical North-West weather robbed the fans of any last lap shenanigan’s when a sudden downpour brought out the red flag handing another well deserved race victory to Josh Brookes. While Brookes openly admitted he doesn’t like to win under such circumstances, he’ll gladly take them where he can. The FHO BMW rider gladly banking another race win in the 2023 season.

Josh Brookes – Image FHO BMW Racing Team

Race 1 Top 10 – Brookes, Haslam, G Irwin, Hickman, Bridewell, A Irwin, Ryde, Iddon, Stacey, Jackson.

Race 2

Bank Holiday Monday, in front of a packed crowd, kicked off in Oulton Park style with Peter Hickman sliding off his FHO BMW at Turn 1 and saw him retire from the race. Hicky later mentioning a change in the tarmac surface potentially leading to a loss of grip whilst admitting he was clutching at straws for an answer as to what happened.

Another rider having a disastrous lap one was Jason O’Halloran once again. A slide on his Yamaha R1 while dropping down Cascades ended his race there and then, unfortunately collecting Josh Owens on the Crendon Hawk Honda.  Owens’ Honda was so badly damaged, he was unable to contest Race 3 later on in the afternoon.

Bridewell got on with the job and led from the front for the race, while 2-6th was battled for between G Irwin, A Irwin, Brookes, Ryde and Haslam. With Ryde dropping back in the early laps, but fighting his way back into the battle, Brookes bemoaning a lack of feel on the bike after opting for a stiffer rear spring for Race 2, both were unable to join in the position swapping with Glenn, Leon and Andy. It was ultimately Glenn Irwin whom made his way forward to try and challenge team mate Tommy Bridewell for the win. As we have seen before, when Bridewell gets in the groove at Outlon Park, generally no one can lay a glove on him. In the end a comfortable 1-2 for the Beermonster Ducati riders.

Beermonster Ducati – Image Courtesy PBM Double Red Photo

Race 2 Top 10 – Bridewell, G Irwin, Haslam, A Irwin, Ryde, Brookes, Iddon, Jackson, Kennedy, Dean Harrison. 

Race 3

This felt like the most action packed race of the day. Perhaps from where I watched, on the inside of Lodge Corner it’s probably true. Most overtakes of the race would no doubt go to McAMS Yamaha rider Jason O’Halloran who managed to put some of his demons to bed and see the chequered flag. Starting from near the back of the grid saw the Yamaha rider school many competitor on how to slip underneath someone on the brakes into the final corner on the lap. So a special mention to Jason for a gritty performance in the 3rd and final Superbike race of the day.

A strong start from Andy Irwin saw the Honda Racing UK rider lead off the start, chased down by brother, Glenn. Closely followed as expected, based on weekend form, Brookes and Haslam. After a hand ful of laps, the aparent lack of race winning pace from the Honda began to show as Glenn made his move for the race lead.

With the laps ticking down, the front 8 riders of G Irwin, A Irwin, Haslam, Bridewell, Brookes, Hickman and Iddon broke away from the chasing pack of Jackson, Stacey and Kennedy, pushing on to the flag.

The mainstay of the action came from Leon Haslam on the Rokit BMW, Glenn Irwin and Tommy Bridewell on the Beermonster Ducati. The pair swapping positions multiple times throughout the race, all looking for victory in the final race if the day. As usual though, there can be only one and resisting the pressure, and it was Glenn Irwin’s turn to take the spoils followed by Leon Haslam. A resurgent Kyle Ryde was able to get his head down and catch Bridewell, ultimately fending off the Ducati rider for the final place on the podium.

Glenn Irwin – Beermonster Ducati – Image Courtesy PBM Double Red Photo

Race 3 Top 10 – G Irwin, Haslam, Ryde, Bridewell, Brookes, Hickman, Iddon, Jackson, A Irwin, Jason O’Halloran. 

The current standings after Round 2 are :-

Standings after Round 2, Oulton Park

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Olympus Rally Recap: Stages

The Olympus Rally has ended, marking the end of the third round of the 2023 Green APU American Rally Association season. Brandon Semenuk would take home all 12 stage wins. 




SS1, Nahwatzel 1

Stage one would see Brandon Semenuk take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 24.1 seconds. Patrick Gruszka would finish third on the stage, 44.2 seconds back from Williams. Alejandro Perusina would finish fourth on the stage, 2.1 seconds back from Gruszka. Jeff Seehorn would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 13.6 seconds back from Perusina. 

 

SS1 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 15:31.1 
  2. Williams, 15:33.2 (+24.1)
  3. Gruszka, 16:39.4 (+1:08.3)
  4. Perusina, 16:41.5 (+1:10.4)
  5. Seehorn, 16:55.1 (+1:24.0)
  6. Bailey, 17:25.0, (+1:53.9)
  7. Plsek, 17:28.9 (+1:57.8)
  8. Olivares, 17:43.5 (+2:12.4)
  9. Miller, 17:47.2 (+2:16.1)
  10. Bardha, 17:48.4 (+2:17.3)



SS2, Cougar Meadow 1

Stage two saw Brandon Semenuk win the stage once again, beating Tom Williams by 10.6 seconds. Jeff Seehorn would finish third on the stage, 7.5 seconds back from Williams. Patrick Gruszka would finish fourth on the stage, 1.8 seconds back from Seehorn. Alejandro Perusina would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 5.8 seconds back from Gruszka. 

 

SS2 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 4:21.5 
  2. Williams, 4:32.1 (+10.6)
  3. Seehorn, 4:39.6 (+18.1)
  4. Gruszka, 4:41.4 (+19.9)
  5. Perusina, 4:47.2 (+25.7)
  6. Olivares, 4:57.6 (+36.1)
  7. Dickinson, 5:01.0 (+39.5)
  8. Bailey, 5:01.9 (+40.4)
  9. Block, 5:05.6 (+44.1)
  10. Bardha,  5:05.9 (+44.4)



SS3, Nahwatzel 2

Stage three would see Brandon Semenuk once again take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 22.7 seconds. Patrick Gruszka would finish third on the stage, 30.3 seconds behind Williams. Jeff Seehorn would finish fourth on the stage, 26.5 seconds behind Gruszka. Alejandro Perusina would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 19.8 seconds behind Seehorn. 

 

SS3 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 15:27.8
  2. Williams, 15:50.5 (+22.7)
  3. Gruszka, 16:20.8 (+53.0)
  4. Seehorn, 16:47.3 (+1:19.5)
  5. Perusina, 17:07.1 (+1:39.3)
  6. Bailey, 17:10.9 (+1:43.1)
  7. Olivares, 17:16.6 (+1:48.8)
  8. Miller, 17:36.3 (+2:08.5)
  9. Bardha, 17:40.6 (+2:12.8)
  10. Trudel, 17:52.0 (+2:24.2)



SS4, Cougar Meadow 2

Stage four saw Brandon Semenuk once again take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 9.1 seconds. Jeff Seehorn would finish third on the stage, eight seconds back from Williams. Patrick Gruszka would finish fourth on the stage, 5.8 seconds back from Seehorn. Javier Olivares would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 10.6 seconds back from Gruszka. 

 

SS4 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 4:21.3
  2. Williams, 4:30.4 (+9.1)
  3. Seehorn, 4:38.4 (+17.1)
  4. Gruszka, 4:44.2 (+22.9)
  5. Olivares, 4:54.8 (+33.5)
  6. Perusina, 4:54.9 (+33.6)
  7. Bailey, 4:57.5 (+36.2)
  8. Block, 4:59.4 (+38.1)
  9. Hooper, 5:00.5 (+39.2)
  10. Block, 5:01.8 (+40.5)



SS5, Stillwater 1

Stage five would see Brandon Semenuk take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 28.4 seconds. Patrick Gruszka and Jeff Seehorn would tie for third on the stage, with both finishing 44.8 seconds back from Williams. Jason Bailey would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 48.1 seconds back from Gruszka and Seehorn. 

 

SS5 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 13:12.9
  2. Williams, 13:41.3 (+28.4)
  3. Gruszka, 14:26.1 (+1:13.2)
  4. Seehorn, 14:26.1 (+1:13.2)
  5. Bailey, 15:14.2 (+2:01.3)
  6. Olivares, 15:17.4 (+2:04.5)
  7. Block, 15:40.3 (+2:27.4)
  8. Bardha, 15:42.0 (+2:29.1)
  9. Honn, 15:44.3 (+2:31.4)
  10. Miller, 15:48.1 (+2:35.2)



SS6, Stillwater 2

Stage six saw Brandon Semenuk once again take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 25.9 seconds. Jeff Seehorn would finish third on the stage, one minute and 55.1 seconds back from Williams. Patrick Gruszka would finish fourth on the stage, finishing 7.5 seconds back from Seehorn. Jason Bailey would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 19.1 seconds back from Gruszka. 

 

SS6 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 13:34.4
  2. Williams, 14:00.3 (+25.9)
  3. Seehorn, 15:55.4 (+2:21.0)
  4. Gruszka, 16:02.9 (+2:28.5)
  5. Bailey, 16:22.0 (+2:47.6)
  6. Clark, 16:49.3 (+3:14.9)
  7. Olivares, 17:08.1 (+3:33.7)
  8. Hooper, 17:17.6 (+3:43.2)
  9. Sperry, 17:20.3 (+3:46.0)
  10. Allen, 17:21.0 (+3:46.6)



SS7, Wildcat

Stage seven would see Brandon Semenuk take another stage win, beating Tom Williams by 32.6 seconds. Jeff Seehorn would finish third on the stage, 1 minute and 15.5 seconds back from Williams. Javier Olivares would finish fourth on the stage, 33.3 seconds back from Seehorn. Patrick Gruszka would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 21.6 seconds back from Olivares. 



SS7 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 20:40.5
  2. Williams, 21:13.1 (+32.6)
  3. Seehorn, 22:28.6 (+1:48.1)
  4. Olivares, 23:01.9 (+2:21.4)
  5. Gruszka, 23:23.5 (+2:43.0)
  6. Bailey, 23:37.9 (+2:57.4)
  7. Trudel, 23:55.5 (+3:15.0)
  8. Miller, 24:00.0 (+3:19.5)
  9. Bardha, 24:11.8 (+3:31.3)
  10. Brassfeild, 24:18.1 (+3:37.6)



SS8, Dayton

Stage eight saw Brandon Semenuk take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 13.7 seconds. Patrick Gruszka and Jeff Seehorn would tie for third on the stage, with both drivers finishing 19 seconds back from Williams. Jason Bailey would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 13.7 seconds back from Gruszka and Seehorn. 



SS8 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 5:47.3
  2. Williams, 6:01.0 (+[13.7)
  3. Gruszka, 6:20.0 (+32.7)
  4. Seehorn, 6:20.0 (+32.7)
  5. Bailey, 6:33.7 (+46.4)
  6. Olivares, 6:34.6 (+47.3)
  7. Hartmann, 6:41.8 (+54.5)
  8. Miller, 6:43.0 (+55.7
  9. Block, 6:45.2 (+57.9)
  10. Trudel, 6:46.5 (+59.2)



SS9, Wildcat

Stage nine would see Brandon Semenuk once again take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 21.7 seconds. Patrick Gruszka would finish third on the stage 1 minute and 22.9 seconds back from Williams. Jeff Seehorn would finish fourth on the stage, 8 seconds back from Gruszka. Javier Olivares would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 27.4 seconds back from Seehorn. 


SS9 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 20:40.7
  2. Williams, 21:02.4 (+21.7)
  3. Gruszka, 22:25.3 (+1:44.6)
  4. Seehorn, 22:33.3 (+1:52.6)
  5. Olivares, 23:00.7 (+2:20.0)
  6. Bailey, 23:10.7 (+2:30.0)
  7. Block, 23:43.9 (+3:03.2)
  8. Miller, 24:03.9 (+3:23.2)
  9. Trudel, 14:16.3 (+3:35.6)
  10. Reavis, 24:16.4 (+3:35.7)



SS10, Dayton

Stage 10 saw Brandon Semenuk once again take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 8.1 seconds. Jeff Seehorn would finish third on the stage, 11.7 seconds back from Williams. Patrick Gruszka would finish fourth on the stage, 2.1 seconds back from Seehorn. Jason Bailey would round out the top five on the stage, 17 seconds back from Gruszka.



SS10 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 5:47.4 
  2. Williams, 5:55.5 (+8.1)
  3. Seehorn, 6:07.2 (+19.8)
  4. Gruszka, 6:09.3 (+21.9)
  5. Bailey, 6:28.3 (+38.9)
  6. Olivares, 6:33.5 (+46.1)
  7. Block, 6:35.0 (+47.6)
  8. A Miller, 6:43.0 (+55.6)
  9. Hartmann, 6:45.2 (+57.8)
  10. Redd, 6:45.7 (+58.3)



SS11, SIP SuperSpecial 

Stage 11 would see Brandon Semenuk take the stage win, beating Tom Williams by 3.7 seconds. Patrick Gruszka would finish third on the stage, 7.4 seconds back from Williams. Jeff Seehorn would finish fourth on the stage, 10.1 seconds back from Gruszka. Jason Bailey would out the top five on the stage, finishing 2.4 seconds back from Seehorn. 



SS11 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 4:42.6
  2. Williams, 4:46.3 (+3.7)
  3. Gruszka, 4:53.7 (+11.1)
  4. Seehorn, 5:03.8 (+21.2)
  5. Bailey, 5:06.2 (+23.6)
  6. Block, 5:16.9 (+34.3)
  7. Olivares, 5:19.4 (+36.8)
  8. Block, 5:20.2 (+37.6)
  9. Bardha, 5:21.3 (+38.7)
  10. Redd, 5:27.1 (+44.5)




SS12, SIP SuperSpecial

Stage twelve would see somebody finally match Brandon Semenuk, technically. As a stoppage would force both Patrick Gruszka and Jeff Seehorn to transit the entirety of the stage. This came in accordance with ARA RCR 5.31. All three drivers would finish the stage with a time of 4:43.8. Jason Bailey would finish fourth on the stage, 27.2 seconds back from Semenuk, Gruszka and Seehorn. Lucy Block would round out the top five on the stage, finishing 7.3 seconds behind Bailey. 



SS12 Top 10 Times

  1. Semenuk, 4:43.8
  2. Gruszka, 4:43.8
  3. Seehorn, 4:43.8
  4. Bailey, 5:11.0 (+27.2)
  5. Block, 5:18.3 (+34.5)
  6. Olivares, 5:27.2 (+43.4)
  7. Block, 5:29.3 (+45.5)
  8. Brassfeild, 5:31.9 (+48.1)
  9. Bardha, 5:35.9 (+52.1)
  10. Clark, 5:41.3 (+57.5)




 

Stage One Cancelled

SS1 would be cancelled due to a car catching fire. That car would be car 282 driven by Mark Tabor. The cause of the fire is said to be because of a mechanical issue. Mark will not restart the rally, as well, he doesn’t have a car.

 

Stage Two Cancelled

SS2 would also be cancelled much like SS1. This time it was due to a time issue. As the stage was delayed due to a crash involving car number 307 driven by Spencer Crabb. This delay would ultimately take too long and too many drivers were backed up for the stage to run in enough time to be ready for SS4. 

Photography Credit

© Trevor Lyden, Subaru.com/motorsports, 2023

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Azerbaijan GP: Sergio Perez takes yet another street circuit win

BAKU, AZERBAIJAN – APRIL 30: Race winner Sergio Perez of Mexico and Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrates after the F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan at Baku City Circuit on April 30, 2023 in Baku, Azerbaijan. (Photo by Francois Nel/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202304300912 // Usage for editorial use only //

Sergio Perez took yet another street circuit win in Baku on Sunday afternoon after an excellent drive to beat his world champion teammate. A timely safety car ensured that Perez took the lead in the early stages of the race and the Mexican driver did not have to look back for the rest of the race.

Charles Leclerc started the race on pole after setting the fastest lap on Friday qualifying in the new format that kicked off this weekend. The pace of the Ferrari was simply no match for the Redbulls as both Verstappen and Perez picked off Leclerc one after the other once DRS was activated at the beginning of lap 3. The fight for victory from here on was largely between the Redbulls as they left the rest of the pack behind very swiftly.

Verstappen was just ahead of Perez around lap 8 when Nick De Vries crashed, bringing about a Safety Car. The Redbull pitwall called in Verstappen ahead of Perez while there was no safety car yet but the safety car was called in moments after Verstappen completed his pitstop and Perez gained full advantage of this. Verstappen was relegated to P3 in the aftermath and spent the rest of the race catching up to his teammate.

Ferrari had a decent outing with Leclerc getting his first podium of the season, albeit not after huge pressure from Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin, who was chasing Leclerc until the finish line. Carlos Sainz in the other Ferrari had to fend off Lewis Hamilton to scramble to a P5 finish.

For Mercedes, it was yet another weekend of being too far away from the top while struggling to be in the battle for the 2nd best team on the grid. Hamilton tried his best after an untimely pitstop before the safety car and ended up P6 while his teammate George Russell spent the large part of the race behind Lance Stroll in the Aston martin. Although, a late pitstop at the end meant that the Englishman had the point in the bag for the fastest lap.

McLaren’s upgrades meant that Norris was in the running for the points throughout the race and the English driver finished P9 while his teammate just missed out after finishing at P11. It was a fantastic effort from the Australian despite battling illness throughout the weekend to achieve a high finish, especially after losing around 3kg in weight as informed by Mark Webber.

It was a mixed day for Alpha Tauri after Yuki Tsunoda finished in the last of the points position while his teammate Nick DeVries crashed out in the opening stages of the race. Alfa Romeo had both the cars finish out of the top 10 with Bottas at P12 and Zhou at P15, with Bottas being involved in a first lap incident and pitting three times during the course of the race.

Hulkenberg in the Haas and Ocon in the Alpine went on a bold strategy as they started the race from the pitlane. The drivers put on a set of hard tyres and drove almost until the end of the race and only pitted at the end to avoid disqualification. It was not without an incident of course when during Ocon’s pitstop on the last lap of the race, the pit lane was swarming with photographers and mechanics. The safety protocols were grossly thrown out of the window and a massive disaster was narrowly avoided and thankfully no one was hurt. Hulkenberg finished P17 while his teammate Magnussen in the other Haas finished P13. Ocon finished P15 after the whole fiasco while his teammate Gasly in the other Alpine finished P14.

The Williams of Alexander Albon finished P12 while his teammate Sargeant finished P16. They will be hoping for a change of fortunes come the Miami GP which is going to be the second one in the triple header we have going on.

Sergio Perez yet again proved that he is the king of the streets as he fended off an in form world champion teammate to take win and close the gap to 6 points to him. The Mexican driver will be fancying his chances again next Sunday as it is another street circuit with a marina in Miami.

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2023 Azerbaijan Sprint Race

Sergio Perez is posing for a picture in Milton Keynes on February 24th, 2021 // Markus Berger / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202110180128 // Usage for editorial use only //

Sergio Perez has won the first sprint race of the season, winning by almost four and a half seconds from Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen completed the podium in the second RedBull. It was a dominant performance from the Mexican who overtook pole sitter Leclerc as soon as the DRS was activated and never looked back from then on.

The action started straight from lights out with Max Verstappen and George Russell battering for the first four corners with the young Brit coming out on top.

At the front it was Leclerc leading from Perez, At the end of lap one Tsunoda lost his right rear tyre after a brush with the wall causing a Virtual Safety Car. The Alpha Tauri driver seemed to just understeer straight into the wall. After 2 laps of VSC a full safety car was needed to clear the debris. Strangely the team sent Tsunoda back out with the right rear suspension broken and left him to crab round for a whole lap before retiring the car.

At the restart both Mercedes drivers lost positions falling to 4th and 7th.  Verstappen getting back ahead of Russell and Alonso moving un front of Lewis Hamilton.

Leclerc again lead away from Perez and Verstappen.

At the start of lap 8 Perez used the DRS to cruise past Leclerc and take the lead. Behind them Verstappen was stalking the pair with Russell, Sainz and Hamilton all falling back from the leaders.

Further back in the field Oscar Piastri overtook his team mate Lando Norris to move up to P10. McLaren had fitted Norris with soft tyres, a gamble that didn’t seem to work with Norris struggling at just over half distance and having to pit, In a sprint race that’s a disaster.

With 5 laps left Charles Leclerc was wringing the neck of his Ferrari and making a fight of the sprint race, getting back within DRS range of the lead RedBull. As soon as he did this Perez suddenly upped his pace and increased his lead to 2 seconds with just 3 laps remaining.

The rest of the field looked fairly settled as usually happens in the sprint races.

In fact the last 3 laps went by with very little action. Perez took the chequered flag after 17 laps of the Sprint Race. Leclerc was second with Max Verstappen third. Behind them was Russell who after his first lap battle had a quiet race, then came Sainz, Alonso, Hamilton, Stroll, Albon and Piastri finishing off the top ten.

The Grand Prix takes place tomorrow and hopefully will bring the usual Baku style craziness.

 

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Leclerc takes pole for Azerbaijan sprint race despite last minute crash

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc has taken pole position for today’s sprint race in Azerbaijan despite hitting the wall in the closing moments of the session.

It was the first outing of the new sprint weekend format, with an extra qualifying session to determine the starting order of the sprint race. The twelve-minute long SQ1 and ten-minute long SQ2 required the drivers to use the medium tyres, while the final eight-minute SQ3 mandated the use of a new set of soft tyres.

SQ1 ended with a bang when Logan Sargeant crashed at Turn 17, possibly distracted by the two slow Ferraris on the inside of the corner. With only 25 seconds left on the clock, the session wasn’t restarted.

In SQ2, Oscar Piastri narrowly missed out on advancing to the next stage by only +0.0032. His team-mate Lando Norris did scrape through, despite not having a new set of soft tyres available to him and therefore not being able to take part in SQ3!

Leclerc set the pace in the first runs of SQ3 and took provisional pole. On his second run, however, he hit the wall at Turn 5 and damaged his front wing. He was able to back out and continue round to the pits, but compromised his team-mate Sainz’s lap in the process.

Both Verstappen and Perez improved on their times in the closing moments, but it wasn’t enough to usurp Leclerc. It’s the Monegasque driver’s second pole of the weekend.

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