June 4, 2009

Rain returns and calls end to Day 1

The flood lights have been turned on at Bumod but unfortunately the pits are empty after the rain returned to Bursa bringing to an end the opening day of Turkey’s inaugural international nitro event.  With the track wet the drivers have called it a day and made their way to what has to be the most plush r/c restaurant in the world, for dinner compliments of the race organisers. Drivers did however manage to get some partially dry running on the track, with two corners falling to develop a dry line.

The big interest here is the new prototype Serpent 7XX with two cars present for Jilles Groskamp and DJ Apolaro. Groskamp has been testing the car at the MACH in the Netherlands but Apolaro only saw the car for the first time when it arrived last night with designer Michael Salven.  The American ace was full of praise for the design of the new car saying it was very open and felt like more like working on his 1:8 car. Asked about the handling he said that it was difficult to judge with today’s conditions but the car has lots more steering than the 720.  Groskamp said the track will be totally different tomorrow, if the weather forecast proves correct, and that the track will be more than a second faster than today.  Salven described himself as being quite happy with the first public outing of his latest creation.  The two time 200mm European Champion said finding set-up is not so easy due to their lack of knowledge with the 7XX.  The team are also trying a number of prototype diffs in the car but changing oils is proving a messy affair as no seals have being produced yet and they are having to use silicone sealant. Commenting on his own 966 which he is racing here this weekend, Salven said the car is good and feels when the track fully dries it will be faster than Lostallo.

Surikarn C., who is better known for his electric touring car exploits at which he was the 2002 World Champion, was happier with his Xray after getting some further mileage. The Thai driver is finding the track huge saying it is double the size of what he is used to back home. Surikarn ran both an OS and a Max engine today finding the Japanese unit to have the edge but his Max is still very fresh and needs more running to open it up. Dirk Wischnewski said his Novarossi powered Xray was working OK but the conditions made it hard to really feel how the car is handling. The 2008 European B Champion has Bertram Kessler, the man behind SMI Motorsport, pitting for him this weekend and tried the company’s new Audi A5 bodyshell.  The damp track made it hard to judge the difference between it and his Protoform DNA so he will do a back to back test again tomorrow.  Austrian driver Gerhard Kandlehardt, who is also driving an Xray, but with Max Power, said his combination was running well but feels the track is a little big for 1:10.

Focusing on running in two new engines today, factory Mugen and Novarossi driver Robert Pietsch shares the same view of Salven about the track. The German 1:8 National Champion thinks once dry Bumod will be much faster than Lostallo which in August hosts the 2009 IFMAR 1:8 Onroad World Championship. So one day down and three more to go at the the inaugural Bumod Grand Prix and the drivers are retiring to their hotel with fingers crossed that the sunshine, which makes Turkey a popular holiday spot, will greet them in the morning.

View our full event image gallery here.

June 4, 2009

Inaugural Bumod GP is GO!

The early silence caused by rain and a wet Bumod track has been broken with Jilles Goskamp and his Max powered prototype Serpent 7XX taking to the drying track to officially get the inaugural Bumod Grand Prix in Bursa, Turkey underway.  Sliding around for the first few laps, the 2008 World Championship Top Qualifier quickly built up to speed as others joined him on this very fast flowing track.  Running under the watchful eye of the car’s designer Michael Salven, Groskamp looked impressive.  Fresh from victory at last weekend’s Euro Touring Series electric touring car race in Holland the Dutch ace said, ‘The track is still slippy but the initial feeling is the car’s balance is very good’.

Others to join Groskamp early on where 2002 Electric Touring Car World Champion Surikarn C. at the controls of his Xay NT1.  After his run the Thai driver said some of the corners are still slippy but he liked the layout of the track.  As more and more drivers take to the track it shouldn’t be long before we have a fully dry track.

In 1:8 top female racer Sabrina Lechner and factory Mugen driver Robert Pietsch used the slow track to run in new engines.  Lechner has switched to Max Power engines in her Serpent 966 while Pietsch has a fresh Novarossi in for the weekend. After watching his new 1:10 200mm creation go around the track in the hands of Groskamp, Michael Salven made a dash for the rostrum to get his first laps of the Bumod track with his Mega powered 966. Looking fast from the off, the German later commented ‘1:8 is going to be a full throttle festival’.

With more and more drivers taking to the track we should start to see grip levels increase allowing the visiting international drivers to tune in their cars to a track which until now have never driven on before. With flood lights all round the track and no noise restrictions there is a strong possibility that testing will continue well into the night here. We will bring you a final update later with news from some of the other big names making the trip to Turkey including America ace DJ Apolaro, who is also debuting Serpent’s 7XX prototype this weekend, and Shepherd headman Patrick Shafer.

View our full event image gallery here.

June 4, 2009

Rain delays start of Bumod GP

Open practice for this weekend’s Bumod GP in Bursa, Turkey is scheduled to get underway today, however wet weather in a part of the World that isn’t really used to it, has stopped all action so far today. Some drivers got laps in last night under flood lights, but today has seen very little cars venture on to the track, with light rain falling almost as soon as the track gets dry enough to run on. This has given drivers present the time to get their cars ready and bodies cut out. The weather is expected to improve later on today and the racers will likely take to the track this evening.

Our hosts for this event have offered a warm welcome to all drivers and the amazing facilities here could stand as an example for tracks around the world, with a large driver stand, well laid out pits, a permanent covered grandstand and a completely newly resurfaced track, not to mention the great restaurant on the opposite side of the track to the pits.

Present at this race are a number of top international racers, with some still having to arrive later today. Serpent are here with 2 of their new 7XX cars driven by Jilles Groskamp and DJ Apolaro, and having had a close look at the new chassis I can tell you it looks awesome, we will see later on in the weekend if it performs as well. While no one is allowed photograph the new car, we have been allowed a sneak shot of the cars radio tray to give everyone an example of the consideration and thought put into this car. Also expect more pictures next week.

Orcan, the brand of SMI Motorsport in Germany are showing off their new prototype Audi A5 shell, which in its 3rd iteration, offers good steering in both fast and slow corners and also looks great. The shell is to be released in about a months time and is expected to be EFRA homologated for the 2010 season.

View our full event image gallery here.

August 16, 2008

Daniele Ielasi is World Champion

World Championship podium

At the end of qualifying he was delighted to make his first ever 1:10 200mm World Championship Final but now Daniele Ielasi has gone one better and won a thrilling one hour Main Final here in Portugal to become the 2008 World Champion. Having suffered cruel luck at the 1:8 European Championship last month, Ielasi was clearly emotional after claiming his first ever World title which was greeted by huge applause from the large crowd who witnessed the race.

Starting from 3rd on the grid, Ielasi made the same tactical decision that brought him victory in the World’s Warm Up race, opting to run his own race and conserve his ATS tyres while his rivals drove at 110% up front. The tactic was to play out perfectly for the Picco driver as most of the early pace setters encountered problems along the way. Running at the back of the field for much of the race Ielasi started to shine through in the second half as he caught up to race leader Martin Hudy. Eventually Hudy’s great drive from the final spot on the grid started to take its toll on the Xray driver’s tyres allowing Ielasi to take the lead from where he stretched out a comfort zone for himself.

Daniele Ielasi

After the race the new World Champion said, ‘For me this result is most important to end my back luck and for sure it is great to win the World Championship’. He continued, ‘The race is the World Championship and its very hard and for me it was more hard because it was my first 1:10 World final. I started in the 3rd position but after the first lap I prefer to let the others go because I think the life of the tyres for one hour is very hard. I made the same tactical decision in the Warm Up and here in the World Championship it was good too. In the finish I have tyres and car was good allowing me to take Hudy and when I have one lap in front I think this is a good race.’

Finishing second Tosolini was clearly upset with how his race went. The American described the race as ‘the same old shit’ and continued that he was ‘tired of these guys’. The Sirio driver was referring to his team-mate Jilles Groskamp and former double World Champion Adrien Bertin who he felt drove over aggressively. Tosolini said he made a good start but his team-mate ran him off the track on the opening lap. Tosolini spun coming onto the straight on lap one which dropped him back to last. Later in the race as he came back through the field he was to get a Stop & Go penalty for running in to the back of Bertin claiming the Frenchman had brake tested him. Tosolini, who praised the new World Champion after he allowed him to pass the Italian three times during the final, said as always if he had had a clean race he would have finished one place higher! The Kyosho driver who ran out of fuel just before his second pit stop said his car felt really good although on a few occassions when he clipped the curbs his engine momentarily ran rough. Adding to Tosolini’s tough day in the office he dropped and smashed his glass trophy during the podium presentation.

Start of A-main

Having originally been classified 4 in the Semi Final B and looking like he would play no further part in the event, Martin Hudy got promoted to the Main Final after an error was discovered in the results and would claim a podium finish. Getting the place of Swede Roland Strom, the Slovak driver was to shine in his first ever World’s Final and only his second nitro race of the year. ‘I didn’t have enough time to prepare everything because it was late when I found out I would be in the final so it was really busy at the beginning. It was a one hour final and starting from 10th I had nothing to lose so I took it easy. Suddenly I heard I was leading. The only problem was that we wanted to make it safe so I refuelled after four and half minutes but Ielasi was running five, so I had to do one more stop. I saw Ielasi was really fast behind me so I didn’t battle with him as I didn’t want to break my car. I am very happy with this result and want to thank my sponsors Xray and Max for a really good engine.”

Daniele Ielasi Action

Unfortunately for Hudy’s Xray/Max team-mate Paul Lemieux an amazing drive in the first half of the race was to be in vain after his engine cut during a scheduled tyre stop costing him around four laps before it would restart. The young American star who started from 8th on the grid was on fire in the race heading the entire field at one point by 2 full laps but it all went wrong at 28 minutes. Rejoining at the back of the pack once his engine kicked back into life, the US Electric Touring Car National Champion put in a stunning recovery drive and such was his pace he was able to claw back an entire lap which he had lost to the field recording the fastest lap of the event in the process.

For Top Qualifier Jilles Groskamp, who led the opening seven minutes of the race, fifth was the best he could achieve. The Dutch racer lost his lead to Lemieux after a small mistake but three engine stops ended any chance of achieving the perfect result. The first engine cut came after Groskamp missed the call from his pit crew and although the car made the extra lap his Sirio ran dry just as he reached his pitman.

Winning Kyosho of Daniele Ielasi

The races other direct qualifier Francesco Tironi completed the Top 6 having run as high as fourth. The fourth Sirio powered car in the final which was driven by Dane Martin Christensen ran with the leaders throughout the race but hit trouble when his car came to stop in the last 3 minutes. Making an engine change during the final, Double World Champion Adrien Bertin claimed eigth while Teemu Leino and Dario Balestri finished 9th and 10th respectively after both broke their cars forcing early retirement.

Final Standings
1. Daniele Ielasi (IT) – 184L 60:17.246 [Kyosho/Picco/ATS]
2. Chris Tosolini (US) – 183L 60:05.849 [Kyosho/Sirio/Matrix]
3. Martin Hudy (SK) – 183L 60:08.242 [Xray/Max/Xray]
4. Paul Lemieux (US) – 183L 60:15.271 [Xray/Max/Jaco]
5. Jilles Groskamp (NL) – 182L 60:06.295 [Kyosho/Sirio/Matrix]
6. Tironi Francesco (IT) – 182L 60:18.076 [Kyosho/Sirio/Matrix]
7. Martin Christensen (DK) – 173L 57:18.047 [Xray/Sirio/Matrix]
8. Adrien Bertin (LUX) – 139L 52:43.743 [Kyosho/Orion/Matrix]
9. Teemu Leino (FI) – 112L 37:27.985 [Xray/Orion/Xray]
10. Balestri Dario (IT) – 52L 25:17.506 [Team Magic/NR/ATS]

Complete overall standings can be downloaded here.

The curtain has closed on another World Championships which will go down in history maybe not for all the right reasons but Daniele Ielasi’s name will deservedly go into the IFMAR record books as the 2008 Champion. For the rest of the competitors they now have 2 years to reflect on what could have been. Red RC enjoyed bringing you coverage from the Lisbon event and look forward to the next exciting chapter in the 1:10 World Championships which will take competitors to the US in 2010. A special thanks to the race organisers for their assistance and to our sponsors Kyosho, Xceed and Serpent without whom our coverage would not have been possible.

View our image gallery here.

August 16, 2008

Worlds Final is GO – Live Coverage

Ielasi World Champion

Warmup has begun, 4 minutes to race start.

Cars have been called to the grid.

Final is GO!

Lap 1 – Groskamp leads from Tironi. Tosolini spins out and last
1 minute – Balestri gets Stop & Go for hitting Leino
2 minutes – Groskamp clear lead from Lemieux
3 minutes – Top 4 – Groskamp, Lemieux, Leino and Tironi. Tosolini up to 6th.
3:30 minutes – Tosolini hits Bertin. Gets Stop & Go.
4:30 minutes – Groskamp still leads from Lemieux.
5:30 minutes – After first Pitstops. Groskamp extends lead.
6 minutes – Balestri out. Front corner off after getting collected following a spin.
7 minutes – Order is Groskamp, Lemieux, Leino, Tironi
7:30 minutes – Groskamp makes mistake, Lemieux leads.
9 minutes – Lemieux has comfortable lead from Groskamp and Leino.
10 minutes – Tosolini and Groskamp run out of fuel.
11 minutes – After second pit stops – Lemieux, Leino, Groskamp and Bertin. Top 8 on lead lap.
12 minutes – Order is Lemieux, Leino, Groskamp, Bertin, Tironi, Hudy, Ielasi, Christensen, Tosolini & Balestri (out).
13:30 minutes – Balestri rejoins race.
15 minutes – Bertin stalls during pitstop
16 minutes – Leino’s car stops on track
17 minutes – Leader Lemieux about to lap Groskamp who is second!
18 minutes – Order is Lemieux, Groskamp, Hudy, Tironi, Ielasi, Christensen, Bertin, Tosolini, Leino & Balestri.
19:30 minutes – Groskamp stalls after his pit stop.
20 minutes – Lemieux has lapped entire field. Hudy second. Groskamp back running – now 6th.
22 minutes – Lemieux about to pass Hudy who is second 2 laps down!
24:30 minutes – Order is Lemieux, Hudy, Ielasi, Tironi, Christensen, Groskamp, Bertin, Tosolini, Leino & Balestri.
26 minutes – Lemieux 2 laps up on the entire field! Balestri crashes again.
27 minutes – Groskamp closing on Tironi for fifth.
28 minutes – Lemieux doing tyre change.
29 minutes – Lemieux’s car stalls – trouble restarting but he is back on track
30 minutes – Half way and Hudy leads from Ielasi and Christensen. Lemieux 9th.
32 minutes – Order Hudy, Ielasi, Christensen, Groskamp, Tironi, Tosolini, Bertin, Leino, Lemieux and Balestri (out).
34 minutes – Groskamp stalls again after pit stop. Pit crew adjust ideal.
35 minutes – Order is Ielasi, Hudy, Christensen, Tironi, Tosolini, Leino, Groskamp, Bertin, Lemieux.
36 minutes – Lemieux running super fast laps but 2 laps down running 8th but he has fresh tyres.
38 minutes – Leino crashes and damages car.
39 minutes – Bertin stops on track.
42 minutes – Bertin changing engine!
44 minutes – Ielasi leading from Hudy and Christensen. Lemieux is 7th now one lap down.
48 minutes – Hudy back in lead from Ielasi. Lemieux storming through the field and 6th.
52 minutes – Hudy leads from Ielasi
53 minutes – Tironi rolls
55 minutes – Tosolini passes Hudy for second
57 minutes – Ielasi leads by almost a full lap
57:30 minutes – Christensen stops on track
58 minutes – Order Ielasi, Tosolini, Hudy, Lemieux, Groskamp, Tironi, Christensen, Bertin
60 minutes – Ielasi is World Champion

Worlds Finalists

August 16, 2008

Worlds Final grid finalised

Martin Hudy through

The grid for the 2008 1:10 200mm World Championships has been finalised with Swede Roland Strom loosing his place to Slovak driver Martin Hudy after an error in the combined result of the Semi B was discovered.

Final Starting order
1. Jilles Groskamp (NL)
2. Chris Tosolini (USA)
3. Daniele Ielasi (IT)
4. Francesco Tironi (IT)
5. Martin Christensen (DNK)
6. Teemu Leino (FIN)
7. Balestri Dario (IT)
8. Paul Lemieux (USA)
9. Adrien Bertin (LUX)
10. Martin Hudy (SK)