Updates from the Rest of the Racing World
Atlas F1 Magazine Writers
Advice: The points tables for most series covered by Elsewhere In Racing are available here. Individual series are linked to their corresponding points table after each report.
Unser Jr Announces Retirement After Legendary Open-Wheel Career
By Paul Kelly, IMS Press Office
Al Unser Jr. announced his retirement June 30, ending his legendary driving career as one of the greatest and most popular competitors in the history of open-wheel racing.
Unser, 42, made the announcement during a press conference at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the site of the two greatest triumphs of his 22-year driving career, victories in the 1992 and 1994 Indianapolis 500.
"I have always said that I would get out of the race car if driving stopped being fun for me and if I felt that I was no longer competitive on the track," Unser said. "After careful thought, I came to this conclusion just after the Richmond race and knew that it was time for me to retire. So, true to my word, I am stepping out of the car.
"My decision is purely based on my feelings as a race car driver. It is no reflection whatsoever on the Patrick Racing team. Patrick Racing is a great team with a great owner in Pat Patrick and, without a doubt, the team will continue its winning tradition in the IRL. Certainly, I want to thank Pat Patrick, the entire Patrick Racing organization, Chevrolet, Firestone, Stacker 2 and everybody in the IRL for giving me the opportunity to compete this year. While I will not be behind the wheel, my intentions are to remain very active in racing in some capacity with Patrick Racing in the IRL and, of course, in support of my son Al's racing activities.
"As I make this transition in my career, I wish to thank my family and all the fans that have supported me and my racing career since my childhood. The accomplishments, rewards, friendships and memories that I take with me today are so meaningful because of you."
Unser, a native of Albuquerque, N.M., earned 34 career victories in 327 combined starts in the Indy Racing League and CART from 1982-2004. He won the CART championship in 1990 with Galles Racing and in 1994 with Penske Racing.
"Very few race drivers will ever accomplish as much on the race track as Al has during his career," said Tony George, president and CEO of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Indy Racing League. "As a competitor he has upheld the Unser tradition and added balance to their legacy during the last 20-plus years. But more importantly, I have considered him one of my very best friends.
"Only he would know when the time was right to call it a career, and he has my support and best wishes, and I am sure he has the same from his fans."
Unser will remain with Patrick Racing as an advisor. The team will name a new driver shortly. Unser joined Patrick Racing this year at the Indianapolis 500 as the team made its IndyCar Series debut. He also raced at Texas and Richmond with the team.
"It has been an honor to have Al Unser Jr. drive the No. 20 Patrick Racing car," team owner U.E. "Pat" Patrick said. "Al Jr. is one of the greatest drivers and competitors in racing history.
"Over the years, I have developed a tremendous respect for Al Jr.; so much so that when he informed me that he wanted to retire, I requested, and he agreed, to remain with the team as an advisor. He and I will be defining this role further in the weeks to come.
"So the good news is that Al will continue to be a very important part of our race team."
The Indianapolis 500 was the centerpiece and showcase of Unser's driving career, as he continued a family legacy at the Speedway that started with his late uncle Jerry Unser in 1958 and continued with his father, four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser, and his uncle Bobby Unser, a three-time winner of the Indianapolis 500. Al Unser Jr.'s cousins, Robby and Johnny, also are Indy 500 veterans.
Unser made 17 Indianapolis 500 starts, with nine top-10 and seven top-five finishes. He won his only Indy 500 pole in 1994 for Penske Racing, also winning the race that year.
Known by his legions of fans as "Little Al," Unser was a sensation at Indianapolis from the moment he first arrived at the historic 2.5-mile oval. He qualified fifth – becoming the youngest driver to break the 200-mph barrier at Indianapolis – and finished 10th in his Indianapolis 500 debut in 1983 with Galles Racing. Unser and his father became the first father-son tandem to race in the Indianapolis 500 in the same year.
Unser recorded top-five finishes at Indianapolis five out of six years between 1986-91 with Shierson Racing and Galles Racing.
The most famous of those finishes came in 1989, when Unser and two-time Formula One World Champion Emerson Fittipaldi were locked in a wheel-to-wheel duel for the lead with less than two laps remaining. The pair touched wheels in Turn 3 on Lap 199, with Unser crashing out of the race and being credited with second place as Fittipaldi went on to win.
Unser earned even more respect from his fans and driving peers for applauding Fittipaldi and giving the "thumbs up" signal from the track as Fittipaldi cruised behind the Pace Car past the wreckage of Unser's car en route to his first Indy 500 victory.
The long-awaited breakthrough victory at Indianapolis finally came for Unser in 1992 in a Galles Racing entry, as he prevailed in arguably the most stirring finish in Indianapolis 500 history.
Unser took the lead from archrival and friend Michael Andretti on Lap 190 of the 200-lap race. Unser then held off the hard-charging Scott Goodyear by .043 of a second in the closest finish in Indianapolis 500 history, joining his father and uncle Bobby on the Borg-Warner Trophy.
Unser and the entire Penske Racing team failed to qualify for the 1995 Indianapolis 500, and he didn't compete in the race from 1996-99. But Unser signed with Galles ECR Racing to compete in the IRL IndyCar Series starting in 2000 and returned to Indy, where he raced every year since then.
His best finish since 2000 in the race was ninth in 2003 with Kelley Racing.
Sustained excellence at all tracks, not just Indianapolis, was a hallmark of Unser's career.
He finished fifth in his CART debut in 1982 at Riverside, Calif., and earned his first career victory in 1984 at Portland, Ore., while driving for Galles Racing. He then earned at least one victory in 10 of the next 11 seasons, including a career-high eight victories for Penske Racing, including the Indianapolis 500, en route to the CART title in 1994.
Unser's final victory came in the Bombardier 500 in June 2003 at Texas Motor Speedway, where he edged Tony Kanaan by .081 of a second in a thrilling finish. He also won IndyCar Series races in 2000 at Las Vegas and 2001 at Gateway near St. Louis.
"Al and I enjoyed a lot of success together in early 1990s, including winning the Indy 500 twice, and that working relationship blossomed into a close personal friendship," said Brian Barnhart, senior vice president of racing operations for the Indy Racing League, who was a top mechanic for Galles and Penske during Unser's Indy victories with those teams. "It has been great to have him in the IRL, and I always greatly appreciated Al's love for the Speedway and our shared interest and love of both the Speedway and the Indianapolis 500.
"He carried on a great tradition with the Unser family name with his success at the Speedway. I have never heard any other competitor say a cross word about Al's on-track performance. He was always trusted by his fellow drivers.
"Congratulations to Al. I wish him the best and look forward to a continued relationship as he takes up his next challenge."
Unser also produced strong season-long performances during his career. He finished in the top 10 of the CART standings every year from 1983-96, including titles in 1990 and 1994. He lost the 1985 title by one point, 151-150, to his father.
In 1994, Unser was named "ABC Wide World of Sports" Athlete of the Year, Driver of the Year by a national media panel and earned the ESPY Award for Auto Racing Performer of the Year after his dominant season.
Strong championship finishes also continued during Unser's IndyCar Series career. He finished ninth in 2000, seventh in 2001 and 2002 and sixth in 2003.
Success also wasn't limited to open-wheel cars for Unser. He was a "throwback" racer, excelling in a variety of different machines.
Unser won the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona in 1986 with legendary sports car drivers Al Holbert and Derek Bell as teammates. He repeated that victory in 1987. Unser also won the International Race of Champions all-star series in a stock car in 1986 and 1988. He recorded 11 career IROC victories, tied for first on the all-time series list with the late Dale Earnhardt and Mark Martin.
Unser, who lives in Henderson, Nev., started his career in sprint cars, competing in the World of Outlaws series in 1979-80 before moving to Super Vee competition in 1981 and Can-Am racing in 1982.
Loeb Extends Lead With Turkey Victory
He heads the drivers' standings with 53 points, nine more than Norwegian Solberg with Estonia's Markko Martin third on 34. Loeb had briefly lost the lead to Finland's Gronholm on Saturday, but recovered to start the final day with an advantage of 25.9 seconds over the Peugeot driver after a 10 second time penalty for jumping the start of stage nine was rescinded.
The Frenchman said he was lucky to finish after his Citroen had a seized rear wheel bearing on the final stage, which resulted in a small wheel fire. He finished the race on three wheels after removing the tyre.
"We got to the end of the stage and everyone was congratulating us, but we knew that things were far from being over," Loeb told the World Rally Championship website.
"Luckily we managed to sort out the problem. It has been a tough rally and, although we've now got a good lead in the drivers' championship, we can't relax," he added. "There's a long way to go before the end of the season."
Twice World Champion Gronholm said he was fortunate to finish second after a problem with his gearbox on the penultimate stage. "Generally it has not been too bad a rally, but the gearbox problem was a bit of a drama," said the Finn. "Thanks to the advice of the engineers, we were able to fix it rapidly but we had to work hard for our second place here." Gronholm remains fourth in the standings on 32 points.
He had led the championship in May but was stripped of victory in the Rally of Cyprus for using an illegal engine part. His hopes of a fightback in the Acropolis Rally were then thwarted when he was forced to retire with a broken suspension.
Result of World Rally Championship, Round 7 of 16, Rally of Turkey:
Standings: Sebastien Loeb 53, Petter Solberg 44, Markko Martin 34, Marcus Gronholm 32, Carlos Sainz 24, Francois Duval 23, Mikko Hirvonen 13, Janne Tuohino 12, Harri Rovanpera 10, Daniel Carlsson 6 etc.
Report provided by Reuters
Rossi Beats Gibernau To Win Dutch GP
By Karel Luimes
World Champion Valentino Rossi sealed his third MotoGP victory in a row on Saturday after overtaking Sete Gibernau on the final lap to win the Dutch Grand Prix. The Italian Yamaha rider also took over from Honda's Gibernau as leader in the overall standings. Both have 126 points but Rossi has won four races compared to Spaniard Gibernau's two.
"It was a great battle. I tried not to give up and made a very good time before the last lap and had a hard battle of braking with Sete as I tried to overtake," said Rossi. "After I got him, I almost lost the front and I thought I would crash," he added.
Rossi's achievement of three consecutive wins was the first for Yamaha since Eddie Lawson in 1986. The Italian set a new lap record in 1:58.758 during the penultimate lap, beating his own record of 2:00.973 set in 2002.
Gibernau, who won at Assen last year, has been on the podium in all six races this season and stretched his streak of scoring points to 19 races. "Once again I tried to win and I did not, we were pushing hard," Gibernau said.
Biaggi, riding in his 100th Grand Prix and celebrating his 33rd birthday, fought hard after starting 12th on the grid but just missed out on a podium finish. His Honda teammate, Brazilian Alex Barros, made his 200th start in the premier class but crashed out on the 10th lap. He escaped unhurt.
"I think that a podium was a reality. I don't know what happened in the crash, the back let go and the next thing I know I'm hitting the ground. Nothing is broken, but I feel pretty sore. Just really disappointed," Barros said.
In the 125cc class Jorge Lorenzo steered his Derbi to victory, despite running off the track for a moment in the final lap of the race. In a close finish with four contenders fighting for the podium, Italian Roberto Locatelli on an Aprilia finished second and polesitter Casey Stoner on a KTM was third, just ahead of championship leader Andrea Dovizioso.
Dovizioso remained leader with 109 points. Locatelli, in second, is 16 points further back and Hector Barbera of Spain on an Aprilia shares third place on 84 points with Stoner.
Result of World Motorcycle Championship, Round 6 of 16, Assen, The Netherlands:
Standings: Valentino Rossi and Sete Gibernau 126, Max Biaggi 93, Carlos Checa 56, Marco Melandri and Colin Edwards 54, Alex Barros 48, Loris Capirossi 42, Nicky Hayden 38, Norick Abe 33 etc.
Report provided by Reuters
Jeff Gordon King Of The Road
Probably the biggest drama of the day came after the race, when there was an incident between Tony Stewart and Brian Vickers. Stewart, who was involved in contact with Sterling Marlin, Brendan Gaughan, PJ Jones and Vickers during the race, and was probably to blame in each case, was unhappy with Vickers and came over to speak to him. Vickers laughed as he had no idea why Stewart would be mad with him considering Stewart was the driver at fault in the contact between them. Vickers' laughing irritated Stewart, so much so that Stewart grabbed Vickers inside his car and tried to drag him out of his car, before Vickers' crew removed Stewart. Stewart has since been fined US $50 000, penalized 25 points and placed on probation until August 18.
Jeff Gordon and Rusty Wallace were on the front row, and they led away at the start, bumping against each other. They continued to battle side by side through the following uphill esses, Wallace passing Gordon as Kurt Busch snuck past both of them into the lead! Gordon retook second from Wallace at turn four on lap one, before taking the lead from Busch one lap later at the final corner hairpin. The first caution of the day followed soon after on lap four when Tony Stewart clipped the rear of Ward Burton near the pits, both cars sent spinning.
The next caution came out on lap 17 after Robby Gordon lost his left front wheel and then went off into the tyres in the esses as he drove back to the pits. As it was too early for cars to make it to the end on two pit stops, most of the field stayed out. Racing resumed on lap 19, Jeff Gordon leading Pruett, Wallace, Jamie McMurray and Bobby Labonte. Gordon opened a small gap at the front, only to see it wound back in as the field made pit stops around laps 30 to 35. During these stops Pruett moved ahead of Gordon, but Gordon took the place back a couple of laps later. A few cars who had pitted at the last caution stayed out hoping for a caution to come out, but most were forced to pit before the lap 46 caution for oil on the track. Those that had stayed out didn't end up gaining anyway.
Lap 49 and it was back to racing, Gordon still leading Pruett, Wallace, McMurray and Joe Nemechek, the leading trio forming a breakaway. Lap 52 and Earnhardt Jr was spinning again, though this time it was as a result of PJ Jones optimism rather than Jr's error. Soon after Robby Gordon was pit bound, this time after losing his right front tyre, the wheel remaining on the car. A few laps later Marlin was spinning again, this time after an extremely optimistic passing attempt by Matt Kenseth at turn seven went wrong.
The race restarted on lap 70, Kahne dropping to fourth as Gordon and Wallace moved past. The next lap Kahne was outside the top 30 after spinning in the uphill esses. Meanwhile lap 72 saw the caution out for debris from Scott Riggs's crash in the downhill esses at the other end of the track. Back to green on lap 74, Mears still leading the way until Gordon dived through to take the lead at turn seven. Wallace tried to follow through but Mears held on as Gordon began to skip away. Lap 78 saw Wallace run off track in the uphill esses, losing a place to McMurray and bouncing into Pruett, who lost a place to Michael Waltrip, Pruett reclaiming the place from Waltrip at turn seven later that same lap.
It was caution time again on lap 81 however, for debris from another right front flat tyre for Robby Gordon. Despite everyone's fears over fuel, everyone was hoping these caution laps would sway the balance enough as the penalty for pitting would be huge. Racing resumed on lap 83, Gordon leading McMurray, Mears, Wallace and Pruett, one Chevy followed by four Dodges in the top five. Pruett was ready to race, and took fourth from Wallace at turn seven before the lap was over, moving into third ahead of teammate Casey Mears on lap 91 as Mears began to slide down the order, losing fourth to Wallace a lap later.
As they began the last lap, we discovered there was one driver who didn't - Rusty Wallace. Fourth at the beginning of the lap, Wallace ended the race in 28th place. At the front everyone else had enough fuel, Jeff Gordon winning ahead of Jamie McMurray, Scott Pruett, Michael Waltrip and Jimmie Johnson, the latter two charging through throughout the day after starting well down the field.
Result of NASCAR Nextel Cup, Round 16 of 36, Infineon Raceway, Sears Point, California, United States:
Standings: Jimmie Johnson 2375, Dale Earnhardt Jr 2348, Matt Kenseth 2143, Jeff Gordon 2123, Tony Stewart 2068, Elliott Sadler 2067, Bobby Labonte 2018, Kurt Busch 1993, Ryan Newman 1980, Kevin Harvick 1974 etc.
Calculated Risk
On the grid, Wheldon was buried, 20th no less. Helio Castroneves was on the pole with Indy 500 champ Buddy Rice alongside. Mark Taylor would start third beside Sam Hornish Jr ahead of Tomas Scheckter and Scott Dixon. Castroneves took the best start to lead Rice in the early running. A yellow appeared after only 10 laps after Kosuke Matsuura clashed with Alex Barron. Barron struck the wall and was out. Matsuura was adjudged a drivethrough penalty under greens.
When the pits opened on lap 13 Wheldon dived in for a top up with only Greg Ray for company. It put the Brit out of synch with the field. Castroneves led at the green from Rice who was soon passed by Hornish who was on a charge and quickly on the back of the Brazilian race leader. Castroneves fought hard but lost the lead 37 laps into the race. A brief debris yellow on lap 67 bunched up the field.
There would be another debris yellow fifty laps later which tightened the field back up again. When rain briefly fell it became a long yellow. Darren Manning crashed shortly after the restart for another yellow. Dario Franchitti found himself in the lead after the yellows which he held until the definitive yellow on lap 188 after a clash between Hornish and Scheckter.
Only three cars did not pit from the lead lap and those three now led the race. Wheldon picked up the lead from Rahal-Letterman pair Meira and Rice as the race went green. Wheldon inched slowly away from Vitor Meira who had to defend from the presence of his senior teammate only to find Castroneves pushing forward again with Franchitti pacing just behind. Castroneves moved into third and started closing on Meira while Wheldon ran away until another yellow for Franchitti and Mark Taylor, with the younger of the two Brits spinning backwards into the wall. Elsewhere Scheckter was retiring after damage in an incident with Adrian Fernandez.
Castroneves would be stripped of second because of the error, similarly a team swap by Bryan Herta and series leader Tony Kanaan would be swapped back. Behind Kanaan was the fading Rice with Adrian Fernandez having his best result since making the switch to the IRL. Reigning champion Scott Dixon could only manage eighth as Honda stretch their winning streak to five victories.
With Kanaan home in fifth, Wheldon is now making real inroads into the Brazilian's once dominant championship lead, the gap now just 15 points. Castroneves is flying the flag for Toyota, third in the series standings having gained a little breathing space from Rice, but is now 59 points from Kanaan. While still early days, there can't be too many frowns down at Michael Andretti's workshop.
Result of Indy Racing League, Round 6 of 16, Richmond International Raceway, United States:
Standings: Tony Kanaan 240, Dan Wheldon 225, Helio Castroneves 181, Buddy Rice 172, Scott Dixon 146, Sam Hornish Jr and Darren Manning 136, Bryan Herta 135, Alex Barron and Dario Franchitti 129 etc.
Paffett's Revenge
Last time the DTM fronted the starters, a post-race faux paus by British sensation Gary Paffett saw the Mercedes driver disqualified from race victory. In front of the huge stands of the Norisring tribunes, packed with over 130,000 spectators, Paffett made no such error.
Kristensen's run near the front would not last, spun downfield by Abt on the third lap, while further back a clash between Marcel Fassler and Heinz-Harald Frentzen would see the F1 refugee into retirement. Scheider was sitting in a comfortable fourth place when mechancial failure struck the Vectra.
As the pitstops progressed and a shower of rain briefly flashed across the circuit the four Mercedes drivers (Schneider moved up to replace Scheider) took up positions ahead of the field with Mattias Ekstrom best of the rest in the Audi. Laurent Aiello would retire around mid-distance as the Audi stopped out on the track during the brief rain squall.
Movers in the pack were Peter Dumbreck and Tom Kristensen, a spin late in the race focused the former Mercedes GT racer Dumbreck and saw him climb back rapidly through the spread pack, while the Dane was recovering from his early race spin. They took Frank Biela, Stefan Mucke, Christian Abt, before catching onto the tail of the leading Abt Sportsline cars of Martin Tomczyk and Ekstrom.
Albers moved back into the outright points lead but Ekstrom was quite happy to keep it to only three points on a Mercedes-friendly circuit. Paffett's win pulls him clear of the squabbling over best of the rest but is still 17 points from Albers. Having taken the chequer first three times this suggests that the gap is far from insurmountable.
Result of Deutsch Tourenwagen Masters, Round 5 of 10, Norisring, Germany:
Standings: Christijan Albers 42, Mattias Ekstrom 39, Gary Paffett 25, Bernd Schneider 16, Martin Tomczyk 15, Tom Kristensen 13, Jean Alesi 12, Laurent Aiello 9, Timo Scheider 8, Emanuele Pirro and Peter Dumbreck 5 etc.
True Brits
The first race saw Thompson scream away from an Alfa Romeo front row into a lead he would never lose with Jorg Muller coming from the clouds to be second, launching past no less than three scarlet 156s. Tarquini and Giovanardi chased hard but would not regain the positions lost and took the minors ahead of junior teammate Augusto Farfus and the BMW GB car of Priaulx. Series leader Dirk Muller slipped back through the field as the race progressed, eventually slipping beyond the top eight positions, thus missing the advantage given to the top eight grid reverse for the second race. Jordi Gene was seventh for SEAT ahead of Kurt Mollekens and a recovering Dirk Muller.
Jorg Muller's good race one result was largely cancelled when his race ended in a lap 1 clash with Jordi Gene and Giovanardi. Priaulx made the best start to lead away poleman Kurt Mollekens under pressure from Farfus and Tarquini. Under pressure from the cream of the field, Mollekens' Luxembourg car could not keep up, as first Farfus, then Tarquini, and then the flying Thompson, Dirk Muller and Garcia all came past.
Priaulx now holds a four point lead over Dirk Muller with a further three points back to Jorg Muller. The best of the Alfa Romeos, Tarquini is now fifteen points adrift of Priaulx and eleven ahead of Giovanardi.
Result of European Touring Car Championship, Round 6 of 11, Donington Park, Great Britain:
Standings: Andy Priaulx 72, Dirk Muller 68, Jorg Muller 65, Gabriele Tarquini 57, Fabrizio Giovanardi 46, Antonio Garcia 34, Augusto Farfus 28, Jordi Gene and Frank Diefenbacher 17, Tom Coronel and James Thompson 16 etc.
Champion Win
Fresh from the Le Mans 24 Hours, Champion Racing set off on the championship chase for the American Le Mans Series, JJ Lehto and Marco Werner taking victory at Mid-Ohio by a lap over the Dyson Racing Lola-MG of Andy Wallace and Chris Dyson.
With only the troubled Intersport Lola-Judd finishing in LMP1 well down field, third would be fought over by the GTS brigade and the Le Mans champions Corvette Racing stormed home to finish third and fourth outright with superior pit strategy handing the class win to Ron Fellows and Johnny O'Connell over Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta. Third in class was taken by the Saleen entered by ACEMCO Motorsports with a promising debut for the Krohn-Barbour Lamborghini team, Peter Kox and David Brabham placing their Murcielogo fourth in class and ninth outright.
Porsche dominated the GTS class with the new Flying Lizard team taking their debut victory, Johannes van Overbeek and Darren Law placing their 996 RSR sixth outright, just behind the class-winning LMP2 prototype. Defending ALMS class champion Alex Job Racing were second for Timo Bernhard and Jorg Bergmeister while third in class went to new Le Mans champions, White Lightning Motorsport.
While their LMP1 car failed, their older Lola B2K/40 took the class win with a strong sixth outright in a class not known for its strength. Another Lola B2K/40 took second in class for Andy Lally and Ryan Eversley while fastest qualifier, the Pilbeam-Nissan, had an engine failure before the first lap was over.
Result of American Le Mans Series, Round 2 of 9, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Ohio, United States:
IRL
The final race of his illustrious career came in a Patrick Racing entry June 26 in the SunTrust Indy Challenge, an Indy Racing League IndyCar Series event at Richmond International Raceway.
Two years later, Unser won the pole and race for Penske Racing, which he joined that season and raced for through 1999.
Rally
Citroen's Sebastien Loeb extended his lead in the World Championship standings with victory in the Rally of Turkey on Sunday. The Frenchman finished 26.2 seconds ahead of Marcus Gronholm and 36.7 in front of World Champion Petter Solberg for his fourth win of the season and his second ever on gravel.
Subaru's Solberg finished the rally strongly, tying with Loeb for stage 15 and winning the last two stages. "I was pushing very hard," said the Norwegian. "We tried everything we could to catch the guys ahead but, with an 18-second gap, it was always going to be unlikely that I would get higher unless one of the cars ahead had a serious problem."
Pos Driver/Co-driver Car
1. Sebastien Loeb/Daniel Elena Citroen Xsara WRC
2. Marcus Gronholm/Timo Rautiainen Peugeot 307 WRC
3. Petter Solberg/Phillip Mills Subaru Impreza WRC 2004
4. Carlos Sainz/Marc Marti Citroen Xsara WRC
5. Francois Duval/Stephane Prevot Ford Focus RS WRC 04
6. Mikko Hirvonen/Jarmo Lehtinen Subaru Impreza WRC 2004
7. Janne Tuohino/Jukka Aho Ford Focus RS WRC 02
8. Antony Warmbold/Gemma Price Ford Focus RS WRC 02
9. Serkan Yazici/Can Okan Ford Focus RS WRC
10. Gigi Galli/Guido D'Amore Mitsubishi Lancer WRC 04
MotoGP
Yamaha rider Marco Melandri of Italy finished third, with Max Biaggi, on a Honda, fourth. Biaggi is third overall with 93 points. Rossi, who started from pole, trailed Gibernau until the closing stages of the final lap when he reeled in the Spaniard.
In the 250cc class Argentine Sebastian Porto on an Aprilia powered to victory after starting from pole. Spaniards Daniel Pedrosa and Toni Elias, both on Hondas, were second and third. French Aprilia rider Randy de Puniet, who finished fourth, maintained his overall leadership with 111 points, but Pedrosa closed the gap to one point. Porto is third on 88 points.
Pos Rider Motorcycle
1. Valentino Rossi Yamaha M1
2. Sete Gibernau Honda RC211V
3. Marco Melandri Yamaha M1
4. Max Biaggi Honda RC211V
5. Nicky Hayden Honda RC211V
6. Colin Edwards Honda RC211V
7. Ruben Xaus Ducati Desmosedici
8. Loris Capirossi Ducati Desmosedici
9. Carlos Checa Yamaha M1
10. Neil Hodgson Ducati Desmosedici
NASCAR
Road courses haven't been quite as kind to Jeff Gordon as they used to be. His last road course win was in 2001. But a dominating weekend at Infineon Raceway, where Gordon led the practices, set a pole with a track record lap despite a minor error and then led almost the whole race from green to chequer saw him return to being road course king. His day wasn't easy though, with Ganassi's three drivers Jamie McMurray, Casey Mears and 'ringer' Scott Pruett all pushing Gordon for the win at various stages. In the points standings, a good drive by Jimmie Johnson sees him extend his lead over Dale Earnhardt Jr to 27 points, while Jeff Gordon moves back to fourth just behind Matt Kenseth.
Back to green on lap six, Gordon leading the field as Boris Said makes almost identical contact to Sterling Marlin as Stewart did to Burton, Marlin spinning but Said continuing almost undamaged as the race stayed green. Lap seven saw 'ringer' Scott Pruett move up to third at turn four past Wallace. Drama followed two laps later when Dale Earnhardt Jr spun at turn four after taking too much inside kerb, recovering in 40th place, while one lap later second place runner Kurt Busch lost several places with a problem which eventually saw him pit soon after for repairs, Busch's problem moving Pruett up to second place.
Austin Cameron's stationary car brought out the next caution on lap 68. With just over 40 laps remaining in the 110 lap race, everyone pitted, hoping to stretch their fuel to the end possibly with the help of some more caution laps. Gordon led the stoppers out of the pits ahead of Wallace, McMurray and Pruett. But Casey Mears and Kasey Kahne had pitted just before the caution came out as they anticipated the caution being thrown. So the order was now Mears, Kahne, Gordon, Wallace and McMurray.
After passing Mears, Pruett continued to move forward, closing in on fellow teammate McMurray as Gordon led McMurray by about two seconds. Pruett was right with McMurray with less than ten laps remaining but then appeared to hold station to help maximise McMurray's points, though he did have a look to pass with three laps remaining. Now the big question was whether everyone had enough fuel, and if so, who did?
Pos Driver Car
1. Jeff Gordon Chevrolet Monte Carlo
2. Jamie McMurray Dodge Intrepid
3. Scott Pruett Dodge Intrepid
4. Michael Waltrip Chevrolet Monte Carlo
5. Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Monte Carlo
6. Boris Said Chevrolet Monte Carlo
7. Casey Mears Dodge Intrepid
8. Mark Martin Ford Taurus
9. Jeff Burton Ford Taurus
10. Elliott Sadler Ford Taurus
IRL
Dan Wheldon stayed out when the rest of the leaders pitted at a yellow flag caution. At that stage there was still over 120 laps to go. The Andretti Green team knew their consumption figures and knew where Wheldon was. He could go to the finish. And he did, to record his second and AGR's second consecutive victory. After being lapped in early proceedings, it was a remarkable, if planned comeback.
Now with just 18 laps to go the race went green with Wheldon scooting away from Meira and Castroneves. With four laps to go Carpenter and Ray clashed bringing out the yellows once more. There would be one flying lap to the finish and Castroneves launched at the green and white flags but yellow lights were still on as Castroneves rumbled Meira who was watching the lights.
Pos Driver Team
1. Dan Wheldon Andretti Green Racing Dallara IR2 Honda
2. Vitor Meira Rahal-Letterman Racing GForce-Honda
3. Helio Castroneves Team Penske Dallara IR2 Toyota
4. Bryan Herta Andretti Green Racing Dallara IR2 Honda
5. Tony Kanaan Andretti Green Racing Dallara IR2 Honda
6. Buddy Rice Rahal-Letterman Racing GForce-Honda
7. Adrian Fernandez Fernandez Racing GForce-Honda
8. Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing GForce-Toyota
9. Scott Sharp Kelley Racing Dallara IR2 Toyota
10. Felipe Giaffone Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Dallara IR2 Chevrolet
DTM
The meeting had looked as though it might belong to the series biggest draw driver, long time Ferrari star Jean Alesi. The Sicilian driver topped qualifying and stamped his authority on Super Pole, but Sunday would go all wrong for him. Christijan Albers beat Alesi away from the start, taking Paffett with him to quickly establish the rule for the day. Tom Kristensen, fresh from his success at Le Mans was pressing claims for Audi, taking fourth from Timo Scheider with Bernd Schneider leading the pursuit.
By now mechanical dramas had claimed Abt and Mucke and sensationally Alesi was into the barriers, crashing out of a certain podium postion. The French veteran resumed at the bottom end of the top ten. The presence of Schneider still placed a lock on the podium for the three-pointed star and Paffett raced to a two second victory over Albers. Schneider led home a trio of Abt Sportsline cars, well spread as Kristensen won his battle with Dumbreck with just five laps to go. Manuel Reuter picked up the final point for Opel.
Pos Driver Team
1. Gary Paffett AMG Mercedes-Benz C Class
2. Christijan Albers Vodafone AMG Mercedes-Benz C Class
3. Bernd Schneider Vodafone AMG Mercedes-Benz C Class
4. Mattias Ekstrom Abt Sportsline Audi A4 DTM
5. Martin Tomczyk Abt Sportsline Audi A4 DTM
6. Tom Kristensen Abt Sportsline Audi A4 DTM
7. Peter Dumbreck Team Phoenix Opel Vectra GTS V8
8. Manuel Reuter Team Holzer Opel Vectra GTS V8
9. Emanuele Pirro Team Joest Audi A4 DTM
10. Jean Alesi AMG Mercedes-Benz C Class
ETCC
British drivers stood up to be counted for their home race as the European Touring Car Championship visited Donington Park. As series leader Dirk Muller faltered, Guernsey Islander Andy Priaulx picked up a win in race two, whilst Alfa Romeo returned to the top of the rostrum for the first time since Valencia as Autodelta's guest driver, Vauxhall BTCC racer James Thompson did his best to deny the BMW drivers points, intercepting the field in an unweighted Alfa 156. The race two victory for Priaulx put the young BMW Team GB driver into the championship lead for the first time as the series reached half distance.
Tarquini was soon up to second position as Farfus blew his engine but Priaulx was gone, taking his third win of the season. Thompson climbed onto the podium while Dirk Muller made the best of a bad lot to be fourth ahead of Garcia. Mollekens was next ahead of Alex Zanardi, the Italian climbing into the points for the second time this season with Tom Coronel taking the final point.
Race One
Pos Driver Car
1. James Thompson AutoDelta Alfa Romeo 156 S2000
2. Jorg Muller BMW Team Deutschland BMW 320i
3. Gabriele Tarquini AutoDelta Alfa Romeo 156 S2000
4. Fabrizio Giovanardi AutoDelta Alfa Romeo 156 S2000
5. Augusto Farfus AutoDelta Alfa Romeo 156 S2000
6. Andy Priaulx BMW Team Great Britain BMW 320i
7. Jordi Gene SEAT Sport SEAT Toledo Cupra
8. Kurt Mollekens BMW Team Belgium-Luxembourg BMW 320i
9. Dirk Muller BMW Team Deutschland BMW 320i
10. Antonio Garcia BMW Team Italy-Spain BMW 320i
Race Two
Pos Driver Car
1. Andy Priaulx BMW Team Great Britain BMW 320i
2. Gabriele Tarquini AutoDelta Alfa Romeo 156 S2000
3. James Thompson AutoDelta Alfa Romeo 156 S2000
4. Dirk Muller BMW Team Deutschland BMW 320i
5. Antonio Garcia BMW Team Italy-Spain BMW 320i
6. Kurt Mollekens BMW Team Belgium-Luxembourg BMW 320i
7. Alex Zanardi BMW Team Italy-Spain BMW 320i
8. Tom Coronel Carly Motors BMW 320i
9. Rickard Rydell SEAT Sport SEAT Toledo Cupra
10. Salvatore Tavano Oregon Team Alfa Romeo 156 GTA
ALMS
The Lola led early in the race only to lose the lead after mid-race pitstops. Wallace kept the Lola close to the Audi during the middle part of the race, but the Audi inched gradually away until the Lola spun, sealing its fate. It was a disappointing day for Dyson Racing as their faster car lost an engine on the opening lap of the race after James Weaver and Butch Leitzinger put the Lola-MG on pole position.
Pos Drivers Car
1. JJ Lehto/Marco Werner Audi R8
2. Andy Wallace/Chris Dyson Lola B160 MG
3. Ron Fellows/Johnny O'Connell Chevrolet Corvette C5-R
(1st GTS)
4. Oliver Gavin/Olivier Beretta Chevrolet Corvette C5-R
(2nd GTS)
5. Clint Field/Robin Liddell Lola B2K/40 Judd
(1st LMP2)
6. Darren Law/Johannes van Overbeek Porsche 996 GT3-RSR
(1st GT)
7. Timo Bernhard/Jorg Bergmeister Porsche 996 GT3-RSR
(2nd GT)
8. Terry Borcheller/Johnny Mowlem Saleen S7-R
(3rd GTS)
9. Peter Kox/David Brabham Lamborghini Murcielago R-GT
(4th GTS)
10. David Murry/Craig Stanton Porsche 996 GT3-RSR
(3rd GT)
Upcoming Events Calendar
 |
Contact the Author Contact the Editor |
Please Contact Us for permission to republish this or any other material from Atlas F1.
 Email to Friend
Volume 10, Issue 26
Atlas F1 Exclusive
Interview with Otmar Szafnauer
Bjorn Wirdheim: Going Places
Atlas F1 Special
2004 Half-Term Technical Report
2004 French GP Preview
2004 French GP Preview
French GP Facts & Stats
The F1 Trivia Quiz
Columns
Rear View Mirror
Bookworm Critique
Elsewhere in Racing
> Homepage |
