19 December 2011
Circuit Showdown's ready to hit the track with 2012 race schedule
Not all race series are created equal, but Circuit Showdown is racing ahead of the pack as the country's fastest-growing track day event. Combining the Touring Car series and Time Attack competition, this is the new breeding ground for the future racing champions of the Philippines. Now on its third year, Circuit Showdown is gearing up with the 2012 championship race schedule.
2012 Race Schedule
| 1st leg | March 3, 2012 | Batangas Racing Circuit |
| 2nd leg | April 14, 2012 | Clark International Speedway |
| 3rd leg | May 5, 2012 | Batangas Racing Circuit |
| 4th leg | June 2, 2012 | Clark International Speedway |
| 5th leg | July 7, 2012 | Batangas Racing Circuit |
| 6th leg | August 4, 2012 | TBA |
| 7th leg | September 1, 2012 | Batangas Racing Circuit |
| 8th leg | October 6, 2012 | Clark International Speedway |
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Motorsports
25 November 2011
Yvan Muller takes the Cruze to the 2011 WTCC Championship
Photos courtesy of Chevrolet Europe
With the 2011 WTCC manufacturer's title in the bag, it was left to Chevrolet's top two drivers to duel it out for the driver’s championship. Yvan Muller went to the historic street circuit of Macau with a mere 20-point lead over teammate Rob Huff. And with a total of 50 points up for grabs over the weekend, this would prove to be a fight to the finish in the WTCC's season finale.
In a fierce battle, Huff kept the charging two-time WTCC champion at bay to win both races. Starting from pole in race one, Huff tried to pull away from the aggressive Muller, but was unable to shake off the Frenchman, who stuck by his bumper until the chequered flag. In race two, Huff hustled to the lead from P3, while Muller, who started from P8, managed to sneak past up to P3 to keep his championship hopes alive.
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Motorsports
24 November 2011
Gary Thompson to make Formula Nippon test debut
After a successful outing in a two-seater Formula 1 car last October, Gary Thompson is stepping up the ranks when he tests for Formula Nippon at the Fuji International Speedway next week. Gary will be driving a category Swift FN09 chassis powered by a 3.4-liter Toyota V8, which is faster than GP2, and only a shy slower than the modern day Formula 1 equipment.
The 19-year-old Dubliner, who competed in the Japanese Formula 3 Championship for the past two seasons, will get behind the wheel of the powerful single-seater on November 28 and 29. Gary will once again be driving for SGC by KCMG, the same team whom he ran with for the 2010 and 2011 Formula 3 season.
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Motorsports
08 November 2011
Misano World Circuit renamed in memory of Marco Simoncelli
The 4.180-kilometer Misano World Circuit in Santamonica, Italy was completed in 1972 and has been host to Moto GP's San Marino Grand Prix since 2007. But beginning this month, the track will now be known as the Misano Simoncelli World Circuit, named after the late Italian Moto GP rider Marco Simoncelli.
Simoncelli was born and raised in Cattolica on the Adriatic coast of Italy, which is situated less than eight kilometers from the Misano World Circuit. Sadly, the young 24-year old lost his life in a tragic accident at the Malaysian Moto GP last October 23, 2011. The fallen Italian rider might not have passed away in Misano, but he considered the circuit as his home track. Thus, the circuit's Board of Directors voted unanimously to change the track's name as a tribute to Simoncelli.
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Motorsports
08 November 2011
Total hoons dominance in 2011 Formula 1 and WRC season
Once again, Total demonstrates its dominance in motorsports as the proud parter of two of the world's most successful racing teams. Even before the 2011 Formula 1 and World Rally Championship (WRC) season has ended, both the Red Bull Racing Team and Citroën Total World Rally Team have already won the constructor's title. On top of those victories, Sebastian Vettel took home his second Formula 1 driver's world championship with four races to spare, while seven-time WRC champion Sebastien Loeb is on his way to an eighth title with only one round left in this year's calendar.
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Motorsports
04 November 2011
Mika Hakkinen returns behind the wheel in a Mercedes SLS AMG GT3
Words by Jose Carlo R. Sapera | Photos courtesy of Mercedes-Benz
After a four-year absence in motorsports, Double Formula One World Champion and Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) driver Mika Hakkinen is set to return behind the wheel as a guest driver for the season finale of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup on November 13, 2011 in Zuhai, China. The Flying Finn will be driving a Mercedes Benz SLS AMG GT3 in the six-hour race together with Mercedes Benz DTM drivers Cong Fu Cheng and Lance David Arnold. Entered by the independent squad Customer AMG Sports Team China, this will be the first time that the race-tuned SLS AMG GT3 will be racing on Chinese soil.
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Motorsports
01 November 2011
Audi captures 2011 DTM driver's and team's championship
On its 84th and last outing, the Audi A4 ended its eight-year career in DTM the best way possible it knows how: capturing both the driver's and team's championship for Martin Tomczyk and the Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline in Hockenheim Ring, Germany. Since 2004, the A4 has clinched five out of eight championship titles, 44 pole positions, 31 fastest laps, and 34 race victories - a record that the A5 DTM will have to step up to in 2012. "You can’t really wish for more than this,” commented Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, Head of Audi Motorsport. "It’s truly been a perfect year for Audi.”
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Motorsports
25 October 2011
Thompson makes first Formula 1 outing in Taiwan
Days after our interview with Gary Thompson, the 19-year old Dubliner flew to Taiwan and got behind the wheel of a two-seater Formula 1 car for the grand opening of all-new Penbay International Circuit. The outing was not a full-on test, but rather served as a demonstration run where distinguished guests got a piggyback ride around the 3.5 km circuit.
Despite the wet conditions, Thompson enjoyed his time behind the wheel of the Minardi Formula 1 two-seater which produced in excess of 700hp from its race-derived 3L Cosworth V10 engine.
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Motorsports
