07.19.07
Posted in General Category at 3:41 pm by admin
Spectre Development, the property company that wants to develop Silverstone, is pushing the British Racing Drivers Club board to allow it to make a presentation to the club members.
Spectre chairman Oliver Speight, whose association with the BRDC dates back to the 1960s, says that there is interest in his bid at the highest levels of motor sport. Speight says that he has a sustainable 15-year plan with ongoing funding coming from profits.
“Our proposals have been well-received by BRDC members and a recent overture from one BRDC board member clearly demonstrated that the true value of Spectre’s offer far exceeded the board’s perception of the proposal. Our offer would make the BRDC the richest club of its type in the world and reflects our passion for, and commitment to, the long-term future of Silverstone, as well as our affection for the BRDC. The club’s own presence at Silverstone would be preserved in perpetuity and its members’ rights and interests fully protected.
“Spectre’s vision is to create a 365-day prime leisure venue with motorsport as a core activity. This formula will not only enhance footfall to the circuit but will also provide the necessary financial requirement to fund the British Grand Prix.”
Speight says that time is now important as Spectre has plans to complete improvements to the track, infrastructure, pit lane and media centre in time to save the British Grand Prix before Silverstone’s current contract with the Formula One group expires in 2010.
“Between now and 2010, the F1 contract renewal date, an estimated £200 million ($400m) of investment including the site acquisition, is a more realistic consideration than the recent forecast of the BRDC board. The need to act quickly is obvious. Income producing development is key to the future success of Silverstone and that is Spectre’s priority. The granting of the new F1 contract lies in the hands of Bernie Ecclestone, and he has stated he needs a professional promoter to stage the British Grand Prix from 2010 onwards.
“He needs a promoter with the showbusiness presentation and ability to provide vital reinvestment over the next 10-15 years to make Silverstone the best motor racing venue in the world. Spectre is ready, and is capable of delivering that requirement.”
Speight warned BRDC members against the board’s current plan of disposing of land in “key parcels” which he claims would result in “a non-income producing, patchwork quilt of development with a host of ownerships”.
“We are ready to unveil our vision and passion for Silverstone,” he said, “And we look forward to presenting our case to the BRDC members so they can compare Spectre’s offer with the board’s self-development policy and all the potential risk it poses for the club and its members.”
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07.14.07
Posted in General Category at 3:39 am by admin
LEWIS HAMILTON’s drive towards the most remarkable triumph in Formula One history could be halted in a Paris court.
The Briton faces being suspended from the championship if his McLaren Mercedes team cannot answer allegations of spying levelled at it by the sport’s governing body.
The investigation into how a 780-page dossier belonging to Ferrari, containing secret details of the Italian team’s inner workings and the designs of its cars, found its way into the hands of Mike Coughlan, McLaren’s chief designer, had previously left Hamilton unscathed.
But the FIA’s decision to charge McLaren yesterday could have devastating consequences for the 22-year-old who is attempting to win the world championship in his rookie season.
The FIA’s record on punishing cheating is not encouraging for Hamilton, as Jenson Button discovered two years ago. Britain’s rising star of motor racing at the time, he was disqualified from third place at the San Marino Grand Prix and suspended for two grands prix, including the Monaco showpiece, after his Honda team was found guilty of racing underweight cars.
Hamilton is threatened with the same fate unless McLaren can convince what amounts to motor racing’s High Court - sitting in Paris on July 26, four days after the European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring in Germany - of its innocence. The FIA has charged McLaren with being in “unauthorised possession of documents and confidential information” belonging to Ferrari.
McLaren last night expressed disappointment at the FIA’s decision and emphasised that the document was held by a single, now suspended, employee, while no information was used in the building of the cars driven by Hamilton, who leads the championship by 12 points after nine successive podium finishes, and Fernando Alonso, his team-mate.
However, the World Motor Sport Council is bound to consider article 123 of its sporting code - the disciplinary bible for Formula One - which states every team bears a responsibility for the actions of its members.
If found guilty, punishments range from fines to suspension and even exclusion from the championship.
Coughlan has already brokered a deal for Ferrari to end its High Court action against him in return for a full affidavit explaining how he got the document. That is thought to be because Ferrari wants to concentrate its attention on Nigel Stepney, a former chief engineer with the team, who is accused of providing the dossier. Stepney denies any wrongdoing.
But it is believed that the FIA will also see the affidavit, which should explain whether Jonathan Neale, managing director of McLaren Racing, also saw the document. The charges are as serious as they could be in a sport driven to paranoia about industrial espionage. Teams spend hundreds of millions of dollars developing sophisticated technologies to make their cars go faster and any suggestion that their technology has been copied invokes a harsh response.
Ferrari and McLaren are among the biggest spenders, investing about pound stg. 400million ($942m) a year between them.
The casualties of a heavy punishment, if the FIA is not convinced by McLaren’s mitigating evidence that the case involves a single rogue employee, will include some of the biggest sponsors in sport.
Vodafone, the mobile phone company, Santander, the Spanish bank, and Johnnie Walker, one of the world’s best-known drink brands, appear on the McLaren cars and they will not want them parked in garages while the Formula One circus goes on. Even the gambling industry has been spooked by the spy row, with British firm William Hill suspending all betting on the world championship. Hamilton had been 8-13 to win the title.
* Indianapolis, the venue last month for Hamilton’s second victory, will not feature on next year’s Formula One schedule, raising the possibility there will be no US Grand Prix next season.
Tony George, chief executive of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway circuit, said he had been unable to agree to a new contract with Bernie Ecclestone, the sport’s impresario.
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07.11.07
Posted in General Category at 4:37 pm by admin
IT’S been deemed a ‘mission impossible’ by some. But Edinburgh Scotwaste Monarchs believe they can turn the form book upside down against Somerset Rebels in tonight’s KO Cup quarter-final second-leg tie at the Oak Tree Arena.
It would indeed be one of the shock results of the speedway season if the team ousted the current league leaders from the competition. Monarchs, whose form recently has been topsy turvy to say the least, know they have a mountain to climb after only winning the first leg at Armadale by 48-41.
With skipper Ronnie Correy and Theo Pijper failing to show leadership at the top end, it’s been left to some of Monarchs’ lesser lights to save the team’s blushes. Monarchs’ experienced duo, along with heat leader team-mate Henrik Moller need to show their points-scoring credentials soon, because relying on the efforts of lower-order riders places an unfair burden on the individuals concerned.
One man who has risen to the challenge is second-string ace Derek Sneddon. Despite some unwarranted criticism, the Falkirk rider has done a sterling job from the difficult No.2 position and has scored more points on occasions than some of his more illustrious colleagues.
Sneddon who bagged five points in the first match, conceded the odds are now stacked in Somerset’s favour.
“We would have liked a far bigger lead to give ourselves a fighting chance,” he said. “But Somerset rode very well at Armadale, and they are on something of a roll right now, having gone to the top of the league after beating Birmingham on Friday.
“All we can do is go down there and try our best. We haven’t got the best record at Somerset and much will depend on what shape the track surface is in.
“Their Swedish pair Magnus Zetterstrom and Emil Kramer got 26 points between them in the first leg, and will be extremely difficult to beat on their own track.
“But we all need to get stuck in, from top to bottom, and chip in with something. After all a semi-final place is at stake.”
Monarchs will give Aussie teenager Aaron Summers a try-out at reserve and he will partner fellow countryman Matthew Wethers.
Summers, who has a British passport and an average of three points, was given a second-half outing after the Redcar match three weeks ago. And he could be a contender for one of the tail-end berths at Armadale in 2008.
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07.06.07
Posted in General Category at 8:23 am by admin
Centurion Racing are keen to announce that at round eight of the Maxxis British Supersport Championship at Oulton Park, Cheshire, riders Dan Cooper and James Westmoreland will be riding 07 Honda’s as opposed to the 06 bikes which they have ridden up to this point in the season.
The two riders will undertake a testing session before the next round next weekend, 13th – 15th July and the pairing also enjoyed a day at Croft on one of the machines to get a feel for the bike. Despite the wet conditions both riders achieved a number of successful laps on it and found a good set up.
General Manager Paul Rees commented “After some minor problems with wiring in the last couple of rounds on Westy’s bike, being able to use and run the new bikes will be like a ‘breath of fresh air’ for everyone concerned. We are not looking for immediate results with the new bikes but a gradual improvement for the remaining part of the season. Our riders are very mature and very professional on and off the track and really welcome the opportunity to ride the 07 Honda’s.”
Harvey Beltram and Neil Tuxworth from Honda have been in close liaison with Centurion regarding these new bikes offering invaluable advice and sorting out spares. “The back up, experience and advice from Harvey and Neil is very much appreciated” added Race Manager, Gary Stubbington.
It is planned that Centurion Racing will take delivery of another two 07 Honda’s before the close of the 2006 season, which will allow each rider to have a spare bike if they so require one.
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07.03.07
Posted in General Category at 6:34 am by admin
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd, has opened a new Field Quality Centre (FQC) based at the Nissan Technical Centre in Japan, to focus on vehicle quality enhancement processes. The centre will conduct Field Quality Investigation Analysis (FQIA) to identify the root cause of and solutions to vehicle problems. A similar facility is in operation at Cranfield in the UK.
The FQC serves as a central collection base for incident parts received directly from the dealerships, where the parts are then subjected to detailed analysis. The FQC is equipped with testing equipment and measuring instruments that can replicate actual field conditions in order to define the root cause of the problem. The FQC works jointly with product development and manufacturing engineer teams to facilitate a continuous “quality improvement” process, and its findings are fed back to the Nissan Technical Centre (NTC), where future generation vehicles are developed.
Nissan has invested 900 million yen (£3.6m) in the FQC. Approximately 210 employees will be based there. Globally, Nissan has three other FQC facilities in operation since 2006, two located in the US at Smyrna and Farmington Hills and another in Cranfield in the UK.
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