The final round of qualifying for the 2010 IFMAR 200mm World Championship has been interrupted by a power failure at the Gulf Coast Raceway here in Houston with the flood lights going out as the drivers in Group 7 were just finishing their run. The black out has resulted in a 45 minute delay to the schedule but the lights are back on and qualifying has just resumed.
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He was the Top Qualifier at the 1:8 World Championship last year and now Robert Pietsch is on target to repeat that achievement in 1:10 having just set the fastest run in the penultimate round of qualifying here at Gulf Coast Raceway. The factory Mugen driver ran 35 laps in 10:14.072 to move into provisional pole from factory Kyosho driver Takaaki Shimo who also broke into the 35 laps for the first time. The German, who was on a TQ run in the third qualifier until he stripped second gear, said his MTX-4R was again really good but at the start of the run he didn’t feel the track conditions were good enough for a TQ run until he heard his lap times. Pietsch said while his car is not the fastest in terms of lap times it is very consistent and unlike many of his rivals, run time with his factory Novarossi is no problem. Finding tyre wear had increased slightly today he started the heat with a larger set of Matrix tyres which he said had also helped. Asked about this evening’s fifth and final qualifier, the 1:8 European Champion said running under the flood lights could prove difficult but in terms of his car he doesn’t plan to make any changes.
Depite setting his best 10-minute run, Shimo said his Kyosho didn’t feel good, with the updated V-One RRR suffering from understeer. Unsure what changes he will make for tonight’s Q5, the friendly Japanese ace doesn’t know what to expect having never raced under flood lights before.
The round saw a number of drivers run out of fuel while on a TQ pace. Factory Mugen driver Takehiro Terauchi, who was the only driver to record a 16 second lap, was on to take provisional pole when his Novarossi powered MTX-4R ran out of fuel. This left Xray’s Alexander Hagberg, who was running in the same heat as the 18-year-old Japanese ace, on a TQ pace but one lap later the Swede’s Max powered NT1 also ran dry. Despite failing to complete the run Hagberg’s time was still good enough to move him into the all important Top 4.
Having TQ’d the opening three rounds of qualifying Yokoyama was unable to maintain his domination, a problem with a chunked front tyre making his Xray difficult to drive. Despite the tyre problem the 17-year-old still recorded the fourth fastest time for the round just behind Hagberg but drops to third in the overall ranking.
The biggest mover for the round was Team Serpent’s Tadahiko Sahashi. Having failed to finish the opening three qualifiers, the younger of the two Sahashi brothers, finally recorded a full run to go fastest Serpent with the fifth fastest overall time. The 21-year-old, who runs Picco engines, said he made a large number of changes to his 733 which had greatly improved the car but he plans to adjust his clutch for the final qualifier. Running in the next heat up his brother Yuya was on a potential TQ run when his Mega powered 733 ran out of fuel.
Two other drivers to improve their times were Team Shepherd’s Marc Rheinard and Serpent driver Scott Kimbrow. Setting the seventh fastest time for the round Rheinard moves into 8th overall but the 3 times Electric Touring Car World Champion is still far from happy with the set-up of his Novarossi powered Velox V10. American Kimbrow said his car was working well since the start of practice but this was the first time he managed a trouble free round. A crash put an end to his first qualifier, trouble in the pits messed up Q2, and in Q3 his Novarossi powered 733 ran out of fuel. Taking a more conservative approach to his driving style in the final part of his run so as to make sure he didnt have a repeat of Q3, Kimbrow said he was very happy to get a good run in and break into the Top 10.
Elsewhere Paul Lemieux was on a strong run but his fuel stop was to go terribly wrong. As pit man Fabio Domanin grabbed his Xray the body shell crumpled, pushing the fuel gun away from the tank. All the fuel didn’t made it into the tank, as captured by our camera, and the American Champion’s car stopped 8 lap later.
Overall Qualification standing after 4 rounds
1. Robert Pietsch – 35 Laps in 10:14.072
Mugen/Novarossi/Matrix/Sanwa/SRC Cruzer
2. Takaaki Shimo – 35 Laps in 10:15.817
Kyosho/O.S/Active/Futaba/SRC Cruzer
3. Shinnosuke Yokoyama – 35 Laps in 10:17.209
Xray/O.S/Xceed/Sanwa/Xceed Cruzer
4. Alexander Hagberg – 34 Laps in 09:56.577
Xray/Max/Matrix/KO/SRC Cruzer
5. Tadahiko Sahashi – 34 Laps in 10:00.595
Serpent/Picco/Xceed/Sanwa/Protoform P56
6. Dirk Wischnewski – 34 Laps in 10:00.624
Xray/Orcan/Matrix/Sanwa/SRC Cruzer
7. Takehiro Terauchi – 34 Laps in 10:01.139
Mugen/Novarossi/ZAC Project/Sanwa/Blitz
8. Marc Rheinard – 34 Laps in 10:02.076
Shepherd/Novarossi/Contact/Sanwa/Protoform P56
9. Ralph Burch – 34 Laps in 10:02.135
Xray/Max/Capricorn/KO/SRC Cruzer
10.Scott Kimbrow – 34 Laps in 10:02.519
Serpent/Novarossi/Matrix/Spektrum/Xceed Cruzerchassis/engine/tyres/radio/bodyshell
Complete listing after 4 rounds can be found here (PDF)
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Having lost two of the six scheduled rounds of qualifying due to rain, the International Jury have just announced that agreement has been reach among the four blocks to add an extra round of heats to today’s schedule. This will mean drivers get five chances to set a time for the finals however its going to mean a late night for the top teams. Running in order from Group 1 to 14, the fifth round of qualifying will start at 19:00 and will finish around 23:00 under flood lights. Defending Champion Daniele Ielasi was very happy with the announcement but elsewhere drivers like Jilles Groskamp feel it could be very costly for some of the big names. Due to the cool conditions the track is expected to be considerably faster in Q5 meaning if a driver currently in the Top 10 hits any problems they could drop right down the order. Ielasi’s pitman Eduardo Picco is not impressed by the additional round of heats as he is normally in bed at that time of night!
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Young Japanese sensation Shinnosuke Yokoyama has upped the pace at the World Championship this morning becoming the first and only driver to record 35 laps around the Gulf Coast Raceway here in Houston, Texas. The 17-year-old, who is making his Worlds debut, achieved a time of 35 laps in 10:17.208 despite getting hit from behind on laps 2 & 4 which cost him over 3 seconds and left him last on the timing screens. Describing the set-up on his OS powered Xray as ‘perfect’, the 2006 Japanese Sport Class National Champion was able to put in a spectacular recovery recording the fastest lap of the round enroute to the new TQ time. Being referred to as the ‘super fast Japanese kid’, Yokoyama was unheard of before this event and even he is surprised by his pace against the sport’s established drivers. Racing since the age of 9 the smiley teenager said he was a little anxious coming to the event but now he is really enjoying the experience.
Making it a Japanese 1-2, factory Kyosho driver Takaaki Shimo managed to shave almost 3/10ths of his Q1 time to jump ahead of European Champion Dirk Wischnewski who failed to improve. Shimo said the track was not so good this morning but small changes to his OS powered V-One RRR chassis had helped and he is confident it is good enough to challenge for the TQ later today. Dropping to third, 28-year-old Xray driver Wischnewski said his Orcan powered NT1 was really good but he ran out of tyres in the second half of the 10-minute run.
Another young Japanese driver making a name for himself here is Takehiro Terauchi. Having raced rather unsuccessfully at the last World Championships in Portugal, driving then for Serpent, the factory Mugen driver put in a run that sees him jump from 9th fastest into the elusive Top 4 which if he can stay there will see him directly qualify for the final. Racing since the age of 12, the now 18-year-old has TQ’d the Japanese 1:8 Nationals so while his pace is a surprise to many here its no real surprise to him.
Pushed out of the Top 4 Robert Pietsch, who is running in the same heat as Yokoyama, was on a 35 lap TQ run until his Mugen stripped second gear. The Top Qualifier at last years 1:8 Worlds, the German said he came to Texas expecting to make the 1/4 Final but as he gets more track time with the 1:10 his confidence is growing. Running factory Novarossi engines the European 1:8 Champion is very happy with the set-up on his MTX-4R.
Top American after Q3 is Ralph Burch who together with RC America team-mate Paul Lemieux both broke into the Top 10 for the first time setting the 7th & 8th fastest times respectively to demote fellow countryman Paolo Morganti who failed to better his Q1 time. Burch said a change of roll centres on his Max powered Xray had improved the car and the set-up suited the track conditions at the time but he plans to change the front diff for today’s second round. US National Champion Lemieux said he had a clean run but is struggling to get set-up changes to translate to the track conditions. Morganti described his Serpent 733 as terrible in Q3 and believes a bad set of tyres were to blame. He plans no set-up changes for Q4 saying he just needs to find a well matched set of tyres.
Elsewhere Electric World Champion Marc Rheinard put his Shepherd in the wall coming on to the main straight as did 2008 World Finalist and factory Team Magic driver Dario Balestri. Jilles Groskamp who got no running yesterday due to the rain and his lower heat seeding lasted just eight laps as his Shepherd wouldn’t change into second gear but his Tuesday time still keeps him in the Top 10. Defending Champion Daniele Ielasi was on a good run until his Picco powered Shepherd keep stepping out on the rear, something that was later discovered to be due to part of the rear tyre parting company with the wheel.
Overall Qualification standing after 3 rounds
1. Shinnosuke Yokoyama – 35 Laps in 10:17.208
Xray/O.S/Xceed/Sanwa/Xceed Cruzer
2. Takaaki Shimo – 34 Laps in 10:00.557
Kyosho/O.S/Active/Futaba/SRC Cruzer
3. Dirk Wischnewski – 34 Laps in 10:00.624
Xray/Orcan/Matrix/Sanwa/SRC Cruzer
4. Takehiro Terauchi – 34 Laps in 10:01.139
Mugen/Novarossi/ZAC Project/Sanwa/Blitz
5. Robert Pietsch – 34 Laps in 10:01.144
Mugen/Novarossi/Matrix/Sanwa/SRC Cruzer
6. Alexander Hagberg – 34 Laps in 10:01.457
Xray/Max/Matrix/KO/SRC Cruzer
7. Ralph Burch – 34 Laps in 10:02.134
Xray/Max/Capricorn/KO/SRC Cruzer
8. Paul Lemieux – 34 Laps in 10:03.806
Xray/Max/Contact/Futaba/Protoform P56
9. Paolo Morganti – 34 Laps in 10:03.945
Serpent/Novarossi/Matrix/KO/Xceed Cruzer
10.Jilles Groskamp – 34 Laps in 10:05.530
Shepherd/Team Orion/Capricorn/KO/Protoform P56chassis/engine/tyres/radio/bodyshell
Complete listing after 3 rounds can be found here (PDF)
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Reds Racing are here with their latest ZR12T touring car engine. Released earlier in the year, this Mario Rossi tuned engine features an updated porting designed specifically for this track and conditions. Reds Racing have also presented their all new glow plug that uses an INOX pin, new plug body material and a platinum coil that all makes for a plug that performs better t in hotter temperatures.
Kyosho are present with team drivers Adrien Bertin and Takaaki Shimo who are using an updated version of the V-One RRR chassis. The new parts consist of a new two-piece radio plate, separated at the front for more flex as well as a new rear shock tower with the holes moved 1mm more towards the centre for more roll. The result is a car that has more steering in the corners and Japanese driver Shimo has put the parts to good use as he currently lies 3rd overall in qualifying.
Seen before in CAD form on our site, Sirio have their new .12 Power Clutch System V in action here. The new clutch system features ‘reversed’ clutch fly weights that increases the performance and acceleration of the engine and is in use by factory Sirio driver Francesco Tironi and Reds Racing’s Giuseppe D’Angelo.
Factory Team Magic driver Mario Spiniello is here using the latest wheels from Hot Race Tires. The only driver using the Italian brand here in Texas, they feature an all new spoked wheel design that comes in soft white material or the harder carbon reinforced black material.
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