BWRDC Award for Cassey

SAXMAX & Junior Ginetta driver Cassey Watson, 16, was at the BWRDC Awards Night last Saturday to receive her championship trophey after retaining her title of Junior Champion in 2007.

For the second year running Cassey more than doubled the score of the second placed driver. More astounding though is that Cassey would have placed 4th in the Senior Championship, had she been eligible by age, a championship which is open to every female racing driver in the country.

Cassey will now try and defend her championship title in 2008 in her last year as a Junior.

[Source]

Shelley seeks Rallye Sunseeker success

Bentham’s Shelley Rogerson will contest her second rally of 2008 when she heads to Bournemouth on Friday (22nd February) to compete on the Rallye Sunseeker. The rally is the opening round of the MSA Gravel Rally championship.Shelley, 22, will be partnering Kington’s Andrew Burton in his Peugeot Cosworth. After taking victory on the Wyedean Forest Rally recently the pairing are hoping for another good result on the Sunseeker although with several top crews in World Rally Cars also contesting the event the competition will be tough.”It’s going to be hard to repeat our Wyedean victory, we know from last year how close the competition can be in the Gravel Rally championship,” said Shelley.

“We’ll do our best to be on the pace though and hopefully get a good haul of points to kick-off the championship. I’d like to thank my sponsors Co-ordSport, Legend Fires, AMG TV, Nicky Grist and Songasport and my friends Gary, Tim and Jason for their support.”

The rally starts on Friday night with a short stage in Bournemouth town centre. The bulk of the competitive mileage is on Saturday with 70 miles of gravel tracks in Wareham and Ringwood forests and the grounds of Somerley Park.

[Source]

Video: The Rusty Movie Trailer

30sec Trailer from a 74 min documentary about a 16 year old girl that goes stock car racing.

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=7n7fzA9BAsI]

Deborah Lopez is Red Bull’s Young Star

24 year old female drifter Deborah Lopez (Drift Angel) recently collected the prestigious Red Bull Young Star trophy at the international Racing Show Liege, Belgium.

Following a successful 2007 whch saw Deborah compete in numerous countries at high profile events and demonstrations, the Red Bull Young Star trophy was awarded to Spanish Drift Angel because of her dedication to drifting in the past and her commitment to improvement in the future. Furthermore, the commitment of Red Bull to top level motorsport adds credibility and stature to this award; a prize that no other Prodrift competitor has ever received.

Also on displsay at Liege was the first look at the new Xtreme Racing Parts Nissan that Deborah will once agaain compete in for 2008. With a new colour scheme, some cosmetic modifications and a very special engine en route from the USA, Deborah’s 2008 machine will be a completely different setup to what she has competed in previously.

Speaking about her new award Deborah said :
“I’m really happy to receive this trophy as a RedBull young star. The past 2 years where very rough and getting a trophy like this is a great feeling and great reward for all the hard work.
RedBull is so respected in Xtreme sports and Drifting that I have to say this really is the best start that I can have for the 2008 season. With my new car being built like I want it, I will try and really battle hard this year. I’ll be pushing 110% for a high finish to the 2008 season, for my team Xtreme Racing Parts and also for all the female drivers and supporters“.

Deborah remains as Europes only female competitor in Prodrift and will be competing as part of the 2008 Prodrift European Series. With just two months to go before the season kicks off, drift fans can follow all of Drift Angels progress right here or alternatively check out: www.driftangel.eu or www.xrp.be

[Source: ProDriftSeries.com & WreckedMagazine]
Drift Angel’s Official Site

Leanne Tander signs to race Formula V6 Asia in 2008

Leanne Tander will earn some serious frequent flyer miles this year after confirming today that she will drive for Opes Prime Team Meritus for the entire 2008 Formula V6 Aisa championship.

It will give Tander the chance to win two of the toughest Open Wheel series in the region in the same year, as she will dovetail her Asian racing with an attack on the Australian Formula 3 Championship with TanderSport.

Whilst neither calendar is completely confirmed, it looks likely that there will be no schedule clashes, allowing Leanne to contest both series in full.

Tander tested the Opes Prime car successfully in December last year, completing two days at Sepang (Malaysia) in her first drive of the 400hp, V6-powered cars – a step up in performance from her regular TanderSport Dallara F3 car.

In her only dry run of the two-day test Tander lapped within a second of the pole time set earlier in the year, doing enough to impress the right people to secure the full season drive.

Formula V6 Asia cars – formerly used in the World Series by Renault championship - lap at a similar pace to A1GP Cars, Matt Halliday and GP2 star Karun Chandhok having already used the category to progress their careers despite it only having been established for a short time.

In 2007 the championship featured rounds in Indonesia, China, Japan and Malaysia.

Leanne will be the first female driver to race in the growing series after setting several records in Australia in 2007, winning two races and finishing second in the Australian Formula 3 Championship.

She became the first female to win a race in the 51-year history of the Australian Drivers Championship.

Leanne will test the car further before the championship begins to ensure the Opes Prime car is competitive from the first round.

”It’s very exciting and I’m looking forward to the chance to race internationally in 2008,” Leanne enthused.

”The test itself was a great opportunity so to be able to commit for the fulls season and have a chance to race for the championship is even better, I’m very thankful to Anthony Blumberg and Opes Prime for their support.

”The team were great and have proven success as one of the top operations in Asian Motorsport. The series is growing quickly and there are already several strong drivers looking set to compete this year that will make it a very demanding championship.

”It will be a busy year,” she added. “Racing in two championships across several countries will not be easy but its every drivers dream to race as often as possible in lots of fantastic different cars, so this is a huge opportunity for my career and one I intend to take as best I possibly can.”

The Formula V6 Asia championship schedule is yet to be confirmed, whilst Leanne will next be in action between February 1 – 3 for the opening round of the Kumho Tyres Australian Formula 3 Championship with TanderSport, the team she co-owns with Australian V8 Supercar champion Garth Tander.

About Formula V6 Asia:

Formula V6 Asia is the most technologically advanced car in its category and has one objective: to train drivers, engineers, mechanics and team managers on their way up to Formula 1. The car with 370bhp, 3.5i 24 valve V6 engine with speeds reaching up to 275kph aims to increase performance while limiting costs, enhance safety and make the Formula V6 Asia as the choice series for all serious single-seater drivers in Asia.

[Source: GirlRacer.co.uk]

Mishael Abbott Moves to Formula Atlantic for 2008

Mishael Abbott is back on track and for the 2008 racing season she will be driving a Formula Atlantic with goals set for the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) Runoffs and a National Championship with K-Hill Motorsports.

Last August Mishael had the opportunity to drive a Formula Atlantic (Ralt RT-41) at Virginia International Raceway with K-Hill Motorsports; qualifying fifth and finishing third at the Oak Tree Nationals. She then decided to make the switch from the C Sports Racer and Formula Mazda she had been driving in 2007 to Formula Atlantic. Her next race had to wait a few months since plans for a December 9 wedding were taking up a majority of her weekends.

Mishael exchanged vows with Tyler Neier on the beach in Jupiter, FL and even before taking their honeymoon trip, took her husband and headed to a familiar track, Sebring International Raceway, for the Winter Vacation Nationals, January 3-6, 2008.

Unofficial practice was Thursday and Friday and Mishael used the time to shake-down her Formula Atlantic and get comfortable with the car both on the track and her positioning in the cockpit. Saturday qualifying was divided into two sessions on the 3.7-mile long course. During the morning session she only completed a couple laps when the throttle stuck open. Mishael hit the “kill switch” and kept from wrecking. She restarted the car and proceeded, but a few turns later the accelerator stuck again. This time she pulled the car off the track and had it towed back to the paddock. The problem turned out to be a heel stop in the footwell that came loose and rolled onto the accelerator.

The afternoon qualifying session started out better when she posted a quick lap of 2:06.942 (104.93 mph) on her second lap but going into turn 17 on her very next time around, the back end locked up and the car came to a halt. A shifting locknut had backed off resulting in the gearbox being completely destroyed. Unfortunately the gearbox couldn’t be repaired and a replacement wasn’t available before Sunday’s race so Mishael was looking at an early trip home. Her time would have started her sixth on the grid of twelve Formula Atlantics.

Mishael’s father, Paul Abbott, was racing her old Formula Mazda but amidst all the distractions with Mishael’s car, his times were slower than hoped and he was to start near the back of the pack. They decided to have Mishael step into the car for Sunday’s 15-minute morning warm-up session and afternoon race. During the warm-up session she was nearly 10 seconds faster than her father had been and upon climbing out, immediately started making adjustments to the car including gear selection and suspension setup.

The driver switch necessitated that Mishael start at the very back of the combined race group of Formula Atlantic, C Sports Racer, Formula Continental, Formula Enterprise, Formula B, and Formula Mazda race cars. Right at the drop of the green flag she started making her move through the field. She passed twenty-seven drivers in total, including cars in all race classes, before the end of the thirteen-lap race. Mishael finished fourth in the class of thirteen starting Formula Mazda’s.

“It was disappointing to not make the Formula Atlantic race,” said Mishael afterward. “We really learned a lot in the time I had in the car and were making steady improvements. I was glad to be able to get in my old Formula Mazda and make a run through the field. It was a lot of fun but at the same time I was running very cautious since there was no reason to risk anything.”

The move to a Formula Atlantic race car provides both new challenges and opportunities for Mishael. The car is faster, more nimble and brakes quicker than other cars she has driven, allowing her to further enhance her driving skills. Racing a Formula Atlantic provides for an ideal return to professional racing and poises her for one of the world’s premier open-wheel racing series.

“There is much more for me to learn about the Formula Atlantic,” Mishael said. “I can improve my braking and gain confidence in the car’s handling. I am looking forward to the rest of the season with K-Hill Motorsports and our sights are set on the SCCA Runoffs this year.”

Mishael Abbott’s next race is at Road Atlanta, March 23-24. Before then she will go to the K-Hill Motorsports shop facility in Abbottstown , Pennsylvania to pour a specially fitted bead seat and will schedule at least one full test session in the Formula Atlantic.

[Source: GirlRacer.co.uk]

Pippa Mann re-signs with P1 motorsport

British racing driver Pippa Mann has re-signed with P1 Motorsport for her second year in the World Series by Renault, opting to continue her relationship with Team Director, Roly Vincini. Following an impressive debut season in the series which saw the 23 year-old score points in her first race and start from pole position in her second, Mann is set to return with the P1 squad for what promises to be her best year yet.

Speaking about her decision to stay at P1 Motorsport, Mann said: “I’m thrilled to be confirmed for my second year with P1 - they are a fantastic team and it was an absolute pleasure working with them last year. 2007 was very much a learning curve for me, and the team supported me amazingly throughout my first season in WSR 3.5. I’m looking forward to working with Roly again, as he did a fantastic job of guiding me through my debut year, and I’m happy to be continuing this partnership.”

“I’m under no illusion that it’s going to be easy, but as long as I can continue in the same way that I finished 2007, then I should be able to achieve the goals of regularly getting into the new super-pole and scoring points. There are some changes - a new car, and I have a new team mate in Giedo van der Garde, but I’m excited about everything and basically cannot wait to get back out onto the circuit!”

Although 2007 began well for Mann, the second half of the year proved difficult and challenging, with Mann struggling for consistency despite some notably strong performances. However, Mann openly documented her year as being one of learning, and worked hard and closely with Vincini and the entire team to make solid and steady progress.
Vincini commented: “I’m pleased that Pippa will be staying with P1 for 2008 - the progress she made last year was superb, especially the pace shown over the last few race weekends of 2007. We set goals at the beginning of last season and Pippa was achieving those by the end of the year, so we can expect the same of her in 2008. Expectations will of course be higher and it won’t be easy by any means, but Pippa has a lot of determination and I see no reason why we shouldn’t be able to score points consistently moving forward. I think with Pippa and Giedo on board, P1 Motorsport has a strong driver line-up, and I’m looking forward to the year ahead.”

[Source: GirlRacer.co.uk]

Autosport International 2008

The Autosport Show, the motorsport world’s annual season opener returned to the NEC last weekend. Open for four days from Thursday to Sunday, the first two days are trade only with the final two days over the weekend open to everyone.

2008 has seen the show become even bigger with the addition of the sister Pistonheads show, an exhibition of everything to do with performance road cars with all sorts of cars on display including most of the currently available supercars. Many companies that supply performance or appearance enhancing modifications had stands and the show was perfect for anyone who expects a bit more from a car than just transport.

There are over 850 stands this year representing every aspect of motor sport with everything from model cars to the latest high tech race car components. Girlracer had a small stand over the public days of the show. The stand did a huge amount of business selling out of the new bags and pit jackets on the first day!

On of the highlights of the exhibition was a large Display of BTCC cars from past and present gathered to together to celebrate the BTCC’s 50th anniversary this year. Although the BTCC’s female racers were a notable omission including GR’s very own Fiona Leggate. Fiona is the most successful female driver in the BTCC’s entire history as well as being the only person ever to be both BTCC Grid girl and driver. (She was Anthony Reid’s MG Grid girl at Mondello Park in 2004, a car she went onto drive in 2007.)

Fiona along with some other Girl racers including Formula Ford ace Sarah Playfair and Tiffany Chittenden, took part in the racing4charity.com celebrity kart race on Friday afternoon. Using the Kart track which is open to the public over the weekend, a chaotic race raised over £40,000 for charity with everyone involved having huge fun. The race win was taken by a team from Formula Renault. The race is due to be shown on both the ITV Network and motors tv with dates still to be announced.

Other highlights were a tribute to Colin McRae, featuring all the significant cars of his career and a display of some of Lewis Hamilton’s cars and karts from earlier in his career. F1 racing had their usual display, this year taking the form of a pit lane with all the cars parked outside a painted mock up of their garages.

As is now traditional at Autosport a live action arena show took place. Races by all sorts of cars were held, including everything from world rally cars to hugely powerful dragsters. The arena also saw more girl racers taking staring roles. Anna Walewska’s British GT Viper was suspended from the ceiling and ace stock car driver Kelly-Jayne Wells took many race victories over the weekend in her stock Pickup.

Lots more stockcars from many classes were on display in the oval and grass track show which was in hall 18 over the two public days. This show within in a show had its own stage and even included dodgems.

The Main Autosport Stage as usual had interviews from many important people from the world of motorsport, including F1’s David Coulthard, Jenson Button and Mark Webber. From the BTCC there were interviews with Tom Chilton, Darren Turner and Tom Onslow Cole. Newly retired World rally star Marcus Gronholm gave an interview on Saturday saying how shocked he still felt about the sad death of Colin McRae. The much loved Scottish rally champion’s presence was felt all around the show. As well as the previously mentioned tribute display, there was also a tribute feature in the live action show and many racers displayed Scottish Saltires on their cars as a mark of respect.

The 2008 Autosport and Pistonheads show was one of the best yet, with fans able to see all aspects of motorsport and performance motoring. If the rest of the season is as good as the show, 2008 could be an amazing season for motorsport.
By: Marc Waller

[Source: GirlRacer.co.uk]

Shelley set for Wyedean season opener

Rally co-driver Shelley Rogerson, 22, will kick off her 2008 rally season next weekend (9th February) when she contests the Wyedean Forest Rally with Andrew Burton.

After a successful 2007, which saw her take three overall victories, Bentham-based Shelley is aiming for a good result on the event in Burton’s Peugeot Cosworth, although they will face tough competition with a high number of World Rally Cars taking part in the event. The pairing previously contested the event in 2006 when gearbox gremlins halted their rally early.

“Last time we did the Wyedean it was very disappointing to retire not far into the rally, hopefully we can build on the results we achieved in 2007 and get a good finish to start the year well. It will be great to be out in the Peugeot Cosworth once more, I’m grateful to Andrew for asking me to sit with him again and also to my sponsors, Co-ordSport, Nicky Grist, Legend Fires, AMG TV, Songasport and friends Gary, Tim and Jason for their support.”

The Wyedean Forest Rally is the first round of the BTRDA championship and takes place mainly in the Forest of Dean with around 45 miles of gravel stages. Over 150 crews are expected to start the event, which is based at Chepstow racecourse. More information on the rally can be found at www.wyedeanrally.co.uk

Shelley is hoping to contest most rounds of the MSA Gravel Rally championship in 2008 with Burton, starting with the Sunseeker Rally at the end of February.

[Source: GirlRacer.co.uk]

Danica’s “Beaver” ad get the thumbs down for Super Bowl

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=2H-CeS8FT7k]

Way back when, Primus had a song called “Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver,” and, well, it got a lot of attention. Web site service provider GoDaddy.com is getting attention for the same unlikely use of the little brown castor canadensis. What do beavers have to do with web sites? That’s exactly what Fox TV wanted to know when it rejected GoDaddy’s Super Bowl ad titled “Exposure.”

GoDaddy, which is making a yearly habit of getting more press because of its “edgy” ads than it does with the actual ads, employs racer Danica Patrick that featuers “supermodels with short skirts and furry creatures emerging from vehicles” for the spot. At some point, somebody calls the beaver a beaver in the commercial. Fox told GoDaddy if it wanted the commercial run, it would need to omit the reference to nature’s most skilled gnawers because of that certain part of the female anatomy to which the ad was referring. Adhering to its strict principles, GoDaddy told Fox something along the lines of ‘no beaver, no deal’.

Instead, GoDaddy’s Super Bowl ad won’t actually feature Danica Patrick nor advertise GoDaddy. It will feature GoDaddy characters Jack and Dougie and advertise the uncut version of the Danica Patrick commercial that will be available to view on the company’s website. Hey, you got a hundred million people on your doorstep, might as well give them a reason to come in.

[Source: AutoBlog/Winding Road]

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