Author: brfcjordan95

Starworks Motorsport Preview

The build up to the Rolex 24 at Daytona is always a stressful time for both the teams and the drivers competing. The opening round of the revamped WeatherTech Sportscar Championship always brings questions for the longest race of the year, and this year will be no different.

With this in mind, the Florida based Starworks Motorsport team were kind enough to give me an insight into their thoughts and preparations for the race. The team have two entries in the Prototype Challenge class and have a good chance of winning the class this year. They let me ask their drivers Renger Van Der Zande of the #8 car and newcomer Felix Rosenqvist of the #88 about their preparations for this race and their future plans. Here are there responses, starting with Van Der Zande first.

Q1)First of all, how have your and the team’s preparations for this race been going so far?

Its better than the other two years before. I am at the track now and the car is ready, the plan is sorted and we can start thinking about the details already now. It’s good.

Q2)What do you think are your chances of claiming the class victory going into the race?

The line up on our car is great–actually the best in the field. Jack and I have both been very fast in this class compared to the other pro’s and for the silver rated drivers Alex and Chris are literally the fastest guys. This gives confidence but we still need quite a bit of luck too, as a 24h race is very very long.

Q3)Now, you’ve made the American sportscar racing scene your home for the last few years, how was the transition from the European single seater/racing scene to the American sportscar scene and are their any similarities/differences between them?

Endurance racing is much different than formula cars. Here we can damage the car and start repairing and get out again. As the races are long you can still grab valuable points or good end results. There is a lot of strategy to think about. I like that part a lot more over sprint racing where the short races can be over because of very small details.

Q4)Your signed up for the full WeatherTech Sportscar season, but who do you think are your closest rivals for the class championship?

Core is always fast and their car is always reliable. Speed-wise we are on top, and we now have to raise the reliability to win the championship.

Q5)Your going to be competing in the Dubai 24 Hours, Rolex 24 hours and Bathurst 12 Hours within the same month, what are the challenges of competing in three very tough races within the space of a month?

It’s just an awesome preparation for the rest of the season. And very nice to kill the cold wintertime is Florida, the emirates and Oz.

imsa-daytona-24-2016-8-starworks-motorsports-oreca-flm09-jack-hawskworth-chris-cumming-ren The #8 Starworks Motorsport entry of Renger Van Der Zande in action during practice.

And here are Rosenqvist’s responses also.

Q1)How have both your and the team’s preparations been going for the race this weekend?

It’s all quite busy and you have to use every minute you can to jump in the car and get comfortable with all the buttons and tools etc. I think you’re always abit nervous going into something new like this, but I’m sure once you get your first stint out of the way it will be much more clear!

Q2)Now, how has your transition been coming from European F3 to the Prototype challenge class, especially learning the Daytona circuit also?

It’s a very different car, but I think I benefit from having formula experience since the car has a fair bit of downforce. In the end it’s just another car with 4 wheels, and you get used to it after you get some laps in.

imsa-daytona-24-2016-88-starworks-motorsport-oreca-flm09-mark-kvamme-sean-johnston-maro-en The Florida’s team second entry is Prototype Challenge is this #88 car. Both have a good chance of class victory come Sunday afternoon.

Q3)With your next career move unclear at this present time, would a move into sportscar racing be something that is appealing to you?

It’s for sure something I’m looking at. There are many good options out there, I just have to sort of find out what would be the best move for me!

Q4)What do you think your car’s chances are of claiming a good result this weekend?

I think we have a very good shot at the win and it’s just all about keeping cool until the last hour, if you can be on the lead lap then with an undamaged car – there you go!

Q5)At the moment, is this a one-off race for you or could we see you returning to the WeatherTech Sportscar Championship later in the season?

There’s definitely a possibility. The Petit Le Mans has always been one race I wanted to get off the list.

Both drivers appear to be quietly confident going into the race, but are also respectful of this long distance race where anything can happen. We will have to see this weekend if the Rolex 24 hours is going to be cruel or kind to the two drivers and their respective cars.

I would like to thank everyone at Starworks Motorsport for their co-operation and their drivers Renger Van Der Zande and Felix Rosenqvist for taking the time to answer these questions. Finally I would like to thank first of all Kelly Brouillet at KBru Communications for her help in setting up these interviews and to motorsport.com for the high quality photos you see in this article.

What are your thoughts on the chances for the Starworks Motorsport team going into the 2016 edition of the Rolex 24 hours? Please feel free to comment below and thank you for reading.

2016 Rolex 24 Prototype Challenge Race Preview

The Prototype Challenge class has been a mainstay of first the previous American Le Mans Series and now the WeatherTech Sportscar Championship since 2010. The series will introduce some subtle tweaks for this year, although the full impact of these will not come in to play until the Sebring 12 Hours in a few months time.

This years Rolex 24 will see eight identical Oreca FLM09-Chevrolet cars take to the grid, with their class battle always providing intrigue with such evenly matched teams and cars. This class is a good introduction to American prototype racing, and it’s down to the drivers and teams to find the advantage they need to secure victory.

For the past few years it has been the CORE Autosport team which have effectively dominated this class, although as they showed in last years Rolex 24, anything can happen in this race and these cars seem to struggle with the demanding nature of the Daytona International Speedway.

#8 Starworks Motorsport ORECA FLM09-Chevrolet: Jack Hawksworth/Renger Van Der Zande/Alex Popow/Chris Cumming

The Florida based Starworks motorsport have decided to fully focus on their Prototype Challenge campaign this year after some successful years running Daytona Prototypes. They are running two entries in this class and have assembled driver line up’s that can both easily win this class.

In this #8 entry the team have partnered full season line up Renger Van Der Zande and Alex Popow with Jack Hawksworth and Chris Cumming for the Rolex 24. Van Der Zande is one of the quickest drivers in this class and has been for the past few seasons, whilst Popow is also a very quick driver who has been loyal to the Starworks team for a long time now.

Hawksworth is a very talented British racer who is taking time out of his preparation for the upcoming Indycar season with this drive for Starworks. Finally Cumming joins the team as an experienced and very good amateur racer who is preparing to make the jump from the WeatherTech series to join the Tequila Patron ESM team for the full World Endurance Championship season.

With the talent behind the wheel and this team’s long history with both the series and this race, this entry will likely go into the race as one of the main contenders and favourites for victory.

#20 BAR1 Motorsport ORECA FLM09-Chevrolet: Johnny Mowlem/Marc Drumwright/Tomy Drissi

The BAR1 Motorsport team are the other two car entry in this class this year, and will be hoping to show their pace from last year was not a fluke. The team secured the class pole last year, and ran strongly to a second place overall before being disqualified for one of their amateur drivers not meeting the minimum driving time.

This error cost the team in a huge manner and will not be something they will likely repeat this year. From last years driver line up the experienced Brit Johnny Mowlem returns to the team along with Tomy Drissi, who rejoins the driver line up for this car after a good race last year.

Marc Drumwright is an experienced amateur racer who competed in the series last year so will provide some experience for this team. Whilst the Mercedes DTM driver Lucas Auer produced the car’s best time at the pre-race test, during race week it will likely be either Mowlem or Drissi that are setting this car’s fastest times.

This BAR1 team showed last year they can compete in this closely fought class, and this year will be hoping they can turn their good work into a strong result to start off their season. A repeat of last year’s no-score will put them on the back foot for the championship from the get go, along with continuing their bad luck at one of the premier races in the season. A class podium will be a good result and a class win an outstanding one for this ambitious young team.

#26 BAR1 Motorsport ORECA FLM09-Chevrolet: Adam Merzon/Ryan Eversley/Don Yount/John Falb/Ryan Lewis

The second of the BAR1 entries is this #26 car, which much like the sister #20 entry has a great chance for a good result for this team. Adam Merzon is a good solid driver the only drawback for him is his lack of track time in recent year. He has plenty of both prototype and GT racing experience although his last full season in a top line series such as this was over ten years ago.

Ryan Eversley is a well known name in American sportscar racing, and joins the BAR1 team after spending 2015 in the supporting Pirelli World Challenge series as an Acura factory driver. Eversley has plenty of experience in this race and will be hoping he can lead this team to at least a class podium come the final hour of the race.

Don Yount is a racer who is making the step up to the Prototype Challenge class on a more permanent basis after he dipped into the class at the tail end of last year. Yount is a solid racer who has progressed from Radical’s through the supporting Cooper Tires Prototype Lights category, placing second in the Masters class in 2014. Although his relative lack of experience in this class will hamper him, he is a good enough driver to still run competitive times in this car throughout his stints behind the wheel.

Ryan Lewis is a good driver who has plenty of experience at this level, combined with an impressive junior racing record from series such as British Formula Three in the past. He will likely provide some good solid stints behind the wheel, which will be what this car needs if it is to achieve a good result come the end.

Completing the line up is John Falb, who much like Yount has progressed through junior categories to reach the Rolex 24 in this #26 entry. Falb was the Radical Cup USA champion in 2014 and in his rookie year of the Cooper Tires Prototype Lights class he finished a very respectable 4th overall. Although this will be a step up for Falb, his record shows he is a very good amateur driver who has the potential to become one of the best in this class.

This entry may struggle to match the ultimate pace that it’s sister entry may have for the entire 24 hours, although by no means count this entry out for a class podium as a clean run for them will put them in the hunt. Whilst the #20 car may get a lot of pre-race attention, the #26 team can spring a surprise in this race and with the attrition that usually engulfs this class anything is possible for this team.

#38 Performance Tech Motorsport ORECA FLM09-Chevrolet: James French/Jim Norman/Josh Norman/Brandon Gdovic

The Performance Tech team return for yet another season in the Prototype Challenge class this year. The Florida based team have been running in the class almost since it’s inception, and this experience will prove to be a great help for the team during the race.

James French returns to the team after doing the full season for the team last year, and will provide some experience and pace to this entry. Joining French is the father-son duo Jim and Josh Norman. Jim is an experienced racer and doctor, and can count a class win in the GX class of the 2013 Rolex 24. He has extensive experience in GT racing and is now stepping up to the prototype ranks.

His son Josh joins him in the car after they shared a car in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo USA category last year. Norman is combing his racing with his biology studies at the University of Florida, but his inexperience at this level may hinder the team slightly in the race, although likely not by much.

Completing the line up is Brandon Gdovic, who is a young racer with good potential. Gdovic exceeded expectations in 2015 and became the Lamborghini Gallardo world champion at the Italian marque’s end of year finals race meeting. Gdovic has also shown promise in the Nascar Xfinity series, and this adaptability will help him get up to speed with the ORECA prototype. Although this is his first foray into the prototype ranks, he could end up impressing the class paddock with his performance.

Although this team will likely not be considered amongst the absolute elite of this class, should anything unforeseen happen to these contenders this #38 entry will be right there to pick up the pieces and claim a good result to start their season. Watch out for this team as an outside contender to spring a surprise.

#52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsport ORECA FLM09-Chevrolet: Robert Alon/Tom Kimber-Smith/Jose Gutierrez/Nicholas Boulle

The reigning class winners at this race return eager for more success in 2016. Whilst this team benefited from the misfortune of the CORE Autosport last year, the team will want to show they can win this race again in a straight fight.

Leading the line up once again is the expat Brit Tom Kimber-Smith, whose vast experience and pace will likely be the driving force for this team in the race. Partnering Kimber-Smith will be Robert Alon, Jose Gutierrez and Nicholas Boulle. Alon is another driver stepping up from the feeder IMSA Prototype Lights series, with a string of podiums showing his talent despite only having raced cars for two years. If he can get up to speed with both the car and the circuit quickly he could prove a revelation for the team.

Jose Gutierrez is a young up and coming Mexican racer who has shown promise in the Pro Mazda junior category for the past two years. This year see’s him switch from single seaters to sportscars with a Tequila Patron North American Endurance Cup campaign with this #52 entry. His pace will be known but will he be able to keep his nose clean and produce consistently quick stints in the race? If he can do this watch out for him.

Completing the line up is Nicholas Boulle, an accomplished racer who is a good amateur driver. His racing commitments fit around his business and his cycling, of which he is a Texas criterium champion. Although Boulle hasn’t got a lot of experience at this level, he may be able to post competitive times if he is able to fully get comfortable with the powerful ORECA racer.

This team as defending class winners is one of several contenders for victory, although the driver line up is lacking something from last year and this may hurt the team over the course of the race. If their young line up can prove itself they have a great chance at back to back victories in this class.

#54 CORE Autosport ORECA FLM09-Chevrolet: Jon Bennett/Colin Braun/Mark Wilkins/Martin Plowman

The CORE Autosport team have dominated this class for the past several years, and will be hoping they can put last year’s accident in the final hours behind them to claim another class victory in this race.

The class benchmarks have returned even stronger in 2016, with the addition of very quick Indycar racer Martin Plowman to their regular line up. Team principal Jon Bennett is a very quick and experienced amateur, and is supported by the charger Colin Braun, who has shown himself as one of the best drivers in this class for the past few years.

Mark Wilkins completes the line up and knows exactly what to do to keep the car competitive and trouble free. This team has the perfect blend of young pace in Braun and Plowman, and experience with Bennett and Wilkins.

For this professional team anything less than a victory will be considered a relative failure, although a class podium and a decent haul of points for their championship campaign would be a welcome consolation.This team has become the benchmark in this class that has set them apart from the rest. Expect to see this team running at the front of the class for the majority of the 24 hours.

#85 JDC/Miller Motorsports ORECA FLM09-Chevrolet: Mikhail Goikhberg/Chris Miller/Stephen Simpson/Kenton Koch

The JDC/Miller motorsport team are another mainstay of this class, although they have struggled to find success in the past few years. With the high quality of this class that is no huge bad reflection on the team, it simply reflects the quality of the class.

Stephen Simpson will be the ace professional driver in this entry, and his pace will likely lead the team throughout the race. Mikhail Goikhberg will be another hotshoe in this car, as he has experience in this class now after stepping up to the category last year on the back of his championship year in the IMSA Prototype Lights class in 2014.

Completing the line up are the young driver Kenton Koch and American Chris Miller. Koch replaced Goikhberg as the IMSA Prototype Lights champion and now follows him into this class as his team mate. Miller is an experienced racer who will help this team secure a good result.

For this team their race result will likely be factored on how Goikhberg and Koch perform in their stints. If they can run consistently quick times whilst managing to keep something in reserve this team has a chance of a class podium come the end of the 24 hours, although a lot depends on the reliability of the car and the team’s ability to stay out of trouble.

#88 Starworks Motorsport ORECA FLM09-Chevrolet: Sean Johnston/Mark Kvamme/Maro Engel/Felix Rosenqvist

The second Starworks entry is another that is one of the pre-race contenders for victory, thanks to the team and the high quality driver line up they have assembled for this #88 car.

After being drafted into the line up late on, it was Swede Felix Rosenqvist who produced the fastest time for this car in the pre-race test. This will be an ominous sign for the rest of the field, as his pace may set this car apart from the rest except from possibly the #54 entry. Could a good performance here create some sportscar opportunities for the reigning FIA European F3 champion?

Equally talented is the German Mercedes GT ace Maro Engel, who adds to the quality of this line up. Engel has years of sportscar experience and will likely use his single seater experience to help adjust to the Oreca chassis.

Completing the line up are young American Sean Johnston and the experienced Mark Kvamme. Johnston is one of many racers who started through the Nissan GT academy, and has developed into an accomplished GT racer. He should be a dark horse in this car and may well end up surprising a lot of people with his performance. Completing the line up is Kvamme, who has raced for fun in several GT series over the past few years. He has raced at this level before and will likely only need to adjust to the car rather than learn the circuit.

For this team they have a great chance to claim class victory, although they will likely need to be at their best to beat the CORE Autosport team. Both Starworks entries are contenders and could spring a surprise in the race.

In this class there are several pre-race favourites, although theoretically three quarters of this class could claim the victory if they have a clean race. Of the top contenders the class victory is most likely to be fought out between the #54 CORE Autosport entry and the two Starworks entries. The #52 PR1 entry is another who will be right up there throughout the race, although if I was a betting person it would be hard to bet against the #54 entry. But the great thing about sportscar and 24 hour racing is that anything can happen.

Finally I have to give credit to Motorsport.com for their amazing high quality pictures which are featured in this article. Please go and visit their website Motorsport.com for all the latest news and pictures from around the motorsport world. I hope you enjoyed the article and I would love to hear your thoughts on both the article and the upcoming race. Thank you for reading.

2016 Rolex 24 Prototype Preview

The Rolex 24 at Daytona is always the traditional starting point for the international motorsport season. The grueling 24 hour sprint has been noted to be a bigger challenge than the Le Mans 24 hours, and is this year is the curtain raiser for the renamed WeatherTech Sportscar Championship. This year also is the first of the newly GT3 spec GTD class, along with the high profile debut for the Ford GT programme in the GTLM class.

All four classes are very hotly contested, and based on the times from the recent pre-race Roar before the 24 test, this race to set to be a thrilling encounter across all classes for the entirety of the 24 hours. The opening race preview looks at the contenders in the top Prototype class.

#0 DeltaWing Racing DeltaWing DWC13 Elan: Sean Rayhall/Katherine Legge/Andreas Wirth/Andy Meyrick

After being the subject of much speculation this winter, the unique DeltaWing returns for another full season in the Prototype class. After a up and down year in 2015 the team returns with Sean Rayhall now replacing Andy Meyrick as the full season partner for the returning Katherine Legge.

For the longer North American Endurance Cup events Meyrick returns, with the line up completed for Daytona by the German Andreas Wirth. With both Legge and Meyrick they will bring consistently quick times and experience with this unique car.

Wirth is an established name and has shown his pace in his domestic ADAC GT Masters series. The only question mark surrounding him will be the length of time it will take him to adapt to both Prototypes and the DeltaWing.

Sean Rayhall has shown his pace both in this series and Indy Lights in the past few years, and is now being rewarded with a full time step up to the Prototype class. He will likely be the teams young charger in the race, and despite the late announcement of this programme he will likely be up to speed with the car by the time of the race.

Reliability has always been a crucial factor in endurance racing, and this entry will be looking to improve on their retirement last year after only 90 minutes thanks to transmission problems. The car showed impressive pace in the recent Roar before the 24, and if they can finally match reliability with the car’s pace this car could be in the hunt for a podium come the final hours of the race.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-0-panoz-deltawing-racing-dwc13-katherine-legge-andy-meyr

#2 Tequila Patron Extreme Speed Motorsport Ligier JS P2-Honda: Scott Sharp/Ed Brown/Johannes Van Overbeek/Pipo Derani

The Extreme Speed Motorsport team are using these early season WeatherTech Sportscar Championship as a precursor for their 2016 World Endurance Championship campaign. They return to the Rolex 24 with a tweaked driver line up this year. Team sponsor Tequila Patron CEO Ed Brown is the team’s amateur driver, and long term team mates Scott Sharp and Johannes Van Overbeek returning. Both are very experienced and quick prototype racers, and are well bedded into the team helping amateur driver Ed Brown. For this season the team have been joined by the very quick young Brazilian Pipo Derani.

He made the transition to sportscars last year, and has joined the ESM team after they switched to Ligier chassis for this year. In his debut at Daytona Derani posted the fastest time in the pre-race roar before the 24 test. His 1m39.249 time is a big statement of intent from him and the ESM team that they are looking to win this Rolex 24 race.

The Ligier JS P2 has fast become one of the premier LMP2 chassis, and as such with a hugely competitive field such as the Prototype the deciding factor will be down to unreliability and the ability to stay out of any drama’s and accidents over the first 20 hours. From there any subtle differences in car set up could be the deciding factor between victory and a place outside the top three.

Whilst the ESM team will be primarily focusing on the WEC this year, the freedom of not racing for a championship can allow them to take some chances in this race that some of the other championship contenders may not wish to do. This is a strong team with a high quality driver line up. Whilst predicting the favorites is an impossible task across all four classes, this entry is one of many who can challenge for victory come the end of the 24 hour sprint that this race undoubtedly will be.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-2-extreme-speed-motorsports-honda-hpd-ligier-js-p2-scott

#5 Mustang Sampling Action Express Racing Corvette DP: Joao Barbosa/Christian Fittipaldi/Filipe Albuquerque/Scott Pruett

The Action Express team return in 2016 with a largely similar line up that has yielded two championship years in 2014 and 2015. The team have established themselves as the team to beat in American sportscar racing, and have only grown stronger this year.

The full season line up of Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi remains, and for this Rolex 24 they have signed two very quick drivers. Audi Sport driver Filipe Albuquerque joins the team and is a good addition, as any Audi sport prototype driver will be both very quick and consistent throughout the race. The headline signing for this team was American sportscar racing legend Scott Pruett.

The very experienced Pruett is a legend of this race and jointly holds the record for most victories with five. At age 55 he is still a very fast and experienced racer, and his decades of knowledge of this race will be invaluable to the Action Express team. The team has a habit of always being in the running for victory late on, and will hope they this year they can avenge their defeat by the tiny margin of 1.3 seconds and repeat their 2014 victory.

This team has all the tools and capability to win this race, only misfortune or unreliability will see them out of contention in the final hours.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-5-action-express-racing-corvette-dp-joao-barbosa-christi

#10 Konica Minolta Wayne Taylor Racing Corvette DP: Ricky Taylor/Jordan Taylor/Max Angelelli

The Wayne Taylor racing team return for yet another crack at the Rolex 24, after near misses in the last few years. The team is unchanged last year with South African team boss Taylor retaining the dynamic partnership of his long time team mate “Max the Ax” Angelelli and his two sons Ricky and Jordan Taylor.

This partnership has been unlucky multiple times and arguably should have a Rolex 24 victory of their CV if luck had gone their way. The team is one of the most competitive in the new WeatherTech Sportscar series, and much like Action Express can be counted on to be at the front in the final hours barring any misfortune.

The Corvette Daytona Prototype is a proven package that is both reliable and fast, and with former winner Wayne Taylor running the team they have every chance of securing a very popular and long overdue victory in this Rolex 24 event at Daytona.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-10-wayne-taylor-racing-corvette-dp-ricky-taylor-jordan-t

#31 Whelen Action Express Racing Corvette DP: Eric Curran/Dane Cameron/Simon Pagenaud/Jonny Adam

The second Action Express entry is yet another contender for victory, with a very good driver line up and one of the best teams in the class. Full season drivers Eric Curran and Dane Cameron return after a breakthrough 2015 season. The duo combined for two wins and finished the year in third, only five points behind their team mates in the championship battle.

Whilst this entry hasn’t had the attention it’s sister entry has, the #31 crew appear to be stepping out of the shadow of the #5 entry and will want another championship run this year. The best way to do this is to start the season well and the team have secured a very good lineup to help with this.

Alongside quick amateur Curran and Cameron are Penske Indycar racer Simon Pagenaud and the Sunoco Whelen Challenge victor Jonny Adam. Pagenaud is a very quick sportscar driver and will provide both blistering pace and experience for this car, whilst Adam is a very quick British GT driver who will look to show his talents in the step up to prototype machinery.

With the Action Express crew running the car this car has every chance of victory come Sunday afternoon, although it will face very tough competition if this car wants to secure victory, the perfect car set up will be one of the key’s to victory. Do not overlook this car as it’s a contender.

#37 SMP Racing BR01-Nissan: Maurizio Mediani/Nicolas Minassian/Mikhail Aleshin/Kirill Ladygin

The Russian SMP Racing team make their debut at the Rolex 24 this year, with their newly designed BRO1 car now looking to be a fully reliable and quick car after it’s introduction halfway through last season.

The team are novices at Daytona and will therefore have a lot to learn during the race week, although with the LMP2 entries having an apparent slight edge on the Daytona Prototypes based on the pre-race roar before the 24, this team could be an outside shout for a podium if it can have a relatively clean run in the race.

On the driving front the team has a very good line up consisting of their usual WEC roster. Ferrari backed driver Maurizio Mediani is a quick driver, with Nicolas Minassian and Mikhail Aleshin they have two very quick racers who will likely post the fastest times for this car. Completing the line up is the Russian amateur Kirill Ladygin, although he surprised everyone by posting the car’s fastest time in the pre-race test.

This entry has plenty of potential to spring a surprise in the race, although the lack of experience from both the team and driver line up in this race will surely count against them as the race progresses. If the team can have a good run a podium is on the cards, but it will all depend on staying out of trouble and how their amateur rated drivers does.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-37-smp-racing-br01-nissan-maurizio-mediani-nicolas-minas

#50 Highway to Help Riley-BMW DP: Jim Pace/Bryon DeFoor,David Hinton/Dorsey Schroeder/Thomas Gruber

The #50 entry returns for an expanded 2016 calendar comprising the Tequila Patron North American Endurance Cup events. This is typically a Daytona only entry, with the charitable cause benefiting is typically the primary goal for this team.

This year they have the highly professional Starworks Motorsport providing technical assistance to the team, although with a car that is now several years old and a largely amateur driver line up a good result for this team will be very tough to achieve.

For this team however, attaining a good result is simply an added bonus and instead will simply enjoy driving in the race. The line up will be led once again by Fox Sports TV commentator and long term racer Dorsey Schroeder. Racing is now a hobby for the experienced American, although expect him to still be driving quickly and leading this entry in the race.

Of the rest Jim Pace is one to look out for, as the experienced racer is a former winner of this race back in 1996 and can still turn fast times at this track despite his age. Bryan DeFoor, David Hinton and Thomas Gruber will be a solid pair of hands for this car, although don’t expect them to be setting the pace of the leaders in their stints. For this team finishing the race will be an achievement, with a top ten in class an added bonus for this team.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-50-highway-to-help-riley-dp-bmw-byron-defoor-dorsey-schr

#55 SpeedSource Mazda-AER Prototype: Jonathan Bomarito/Tristan Nunez/Spencer Pigot

The SpeedSource factory supported Mazda team return in 2016 with a petrol powered AER entries, after suffering with constant reliability issues with their previous Skyactiv diesel technology.

The team appear to be back in contention based on their times at the pre-race roar before the 24, although testing times are hard to gauge as the real representative times won’t be set until qualifying.

The team is experienced now in the series, and has a very good young driver line up in this #55 entry. Jonathan Bomarito provides years of sportscar experience a long with quick times in a car he is very comfortable with. His full season partner will be the young Tristan Nunez and he is a very quick up and coming sportscar driver. Whilst completing the line up the team completed a coup by signing Indy Lights champion Spencer Pigot. He appeared to have adjusted well to sportscars and was setting quick times in the pre-race test, so his stints in the race will be well worth watching.

This team is somewhat of an unknown quantity going into the race thanks to it’s new petrol engine, therefore making a prediction on it’s form is very tough. If this team can remain trouble free with the new engine they will likely be in the hunt for a podium, although it’s not yet known if they have the last few tenths that will required to secure a podium placing in this race.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-55-mazda-motorsports-mazda-prototype-spencer-pigot-jonat

#60 CURB Michael Shank Racing Ligier JS P2-Honda HPD: John Pew/Ozz Negri Jr/AJ Allmendinger/Olivier Pla

Michael Shank returns with his Ligier JS P2 for another crack at the race they won in 2012. The team were the first Daytona Prototype team to switch to the LMP2 spec Ligier, and with a year of running under their belts should come into this year’s race with a much better chance of victory.

The team have been working on the lack of torque and drive ability that they suffered with last year. This will be crucial especially for the experienced amateur rated driver John Pew, and could he could be the difference between victory and a podium place come the final hours of the race.

Full season partner Ozz Negri Jr returns once again as does Nascar race AJ Allmendinger, and this year are joined by on-loan factory Ford driver Olivier Pla. The very quick Frenchman spent last year with the Nissan LMP1 programme, and has extensive experience with the Ligier JS P2 prototype.

With a high quality driver line up like this and a quick car underneath them, only misfortune will likely stop this team fighting for victory. This entry is right up there with any other in the class for victory and don’t be surprised to see this car driving into victory lane immediately after the race.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-60-michael-shank-racing-with-curb-agajanian-ligier-js-p2

#70 SpeedSource Mazda-AER Prototype: Joel Miller/Tom Long/Ben Devlin

The second SpeedSource Mazda entry is this #70 car, which was also looking very quick in the pre-race test. The team’s issues appear to have been solved thanks to the new petrol powered AER 2.0 litre engine.

The SpeedSource team has plenty of experience and factory Mazda assistance so therefore will be strong with pit stops and strategy in the race. On the driving front the team has a good, solid line up that will be able to get them to the finish in a good position.

Ben Devlin will likely take on the role of the experienced driver thanks to almost 15 years of prototype experience across Europe and America. Tom Long has been associated with Mazda for most of his career and also brings plenty of experience to this entry. Completing the trio is Joel Miller, who has adapted well in the past few years since switching from single seaters to sportscar racing.

There will be almost nothing this team and driver line up will not have seen before with this race, and this experience could prove crucial in a race that will be likely decided by the smallest of margins. If the new AER engines can remain reliable this team has the chance of a overall podium, which would be a huge result for the SpeedSource team.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-70-mazda-motorsports-mazda-prototype-joel-miller-tom-lon

#90 VisitFlorida.com Spirit of Daytona Racing Corvette DP: Ryan Dalziel/Marc Goossens/Ryan Hunter-Reay

The Spirit of Daytona squad came within a whisker of winning last years championship after leading it for most of the season, yet has decided to change their driver line up for 2016. Gone are the previous long term pairing of Richard Westbrook and Michael Valiante, with Ryan Dalziel and Marc Goossens replacing them.

Both Dalziel and Goossens are very quick and experienced sportscar racers, with Dalziel winning the race in 2010 whereas Goossens brings over twenty years of racing experience. The new full season line up is joined for Daytona by former Indycar and Indianapolis 500 winner Ryan Hunter Reay. He will bring pace along with years of experience from competing in this race.

With a team that was arguably the best in the class last year, along with a driver line up containing this much experience and pace this entry is one of half dozen that are serious contenders for overall victory. For the local Spirit of Daytona team this would be a huge achievement and no one could begrudge this entry victory.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-90-visitflorida-com-racing-corvette-dp-marc-goossens-rya

#01 Claritin Chip Ganassi Racing Riley-Ford DP: Alex Wurz/Andy Priaulx/Brendon Hartley/Lance Stroll

The fabled Chip Ganassi Racing team return for another season in the prototype class, despite also taking on the race debut for the works Ford GTLM programme this year also.The team once again brings two Riley-Ford’s to Daytona and will be looking to repeat their win from last year.

In recent years the Chip Ganassi team have dominated this race, winning three of the last six. This year the #01 has an all star driver line up of long term F1 and sportscar driver Alex Wurz, touring car and GT fast man Andy Priaulx, current WEC champion Brendon Hartley and up and coming F3 racer Lance Stroll.

This line up is likely the best in the class in my opinion, with Wurz and Priaulx providing years of experience along with plenty of pace to boot. It’s likely Hartley and Stroll will be the all out attack racers of this entry, although for Stroll he is still adjusting to the Riley Daytona Prototype. He suffered an accident in the pre-race test which hampered them, although his experience will only improve during race week.

With such an all star team and line up, only mechanical misfortune or a mistake from one of the drivers will likely stop this team. Amongst a potential half dozen serious contenders a lot of people would likely bet on this car if they were forced to. It will be interesting seeing how this car gets on throughout the race, don’t expect it to be far from the top of the timing screens all race.

#02 Target Chip Ganassi Racing Riley-Ford DP: Scott Dixon/Tony Kanaan/Kyle Larson/Jamie McMurray

The second Chip Ganassi racing entry comes into the race as defending champions from last year. Whilst the #01 has taken a lot of the pre-race press attention, do not ever discount this #02 entry as they are more than capable of repeating their victory from last year.

Team boss Chip Ganassi has smartly retained his mixed roster of Indycar and Nascar racers this year, after their big success last year. Indycar duo Scott Dixon and Tony Kanaan are both very quick along with experience. It was the uncanny fuel saving ability of Dixon last year that played a part in their close fought victory, with Nascar racers Kyle Larson and Jamie McMurray swapping their stock cars for another crack at the Rolex 24.

The #02 slightly edged the #01 in the pre-race test, although choosing between the two will be very difficult to do until the early hours of the race have passed. Both entries have an equal chance of victory, and if any team will win this race it’s hard to look past the Chip Ganassi outfit. This entry in particular has a winning pedigree, one that it will want to continue this year.

imsa-daytona-january-testing-2016-02-chip-ganassi-racing-riley-dp-ford-scott-dixon-tony-ka

That concludes my preview of the prototype class for this year’s eagerly anticipated Rolex 24 hours at Daytona. As I’ve mentioned above there are half a dozen very serious contenders for victory, with a further half dozen likely to be in the hunt for victory if any of these teams slip up or suffer from misfortune in the race. Predicting a winner before the race is impossible, it will be thrilling to watch the race unfold and see who is in the right position to claim victory.

Coming up in the next few days will be my preview of the prototype challenge class, so stay tuned for that. I have to give huge credit to Motorsport.com for their incredibly high quality photos used in this preview and I encourage everyone to visit their website at Motorsport.com for all the latest news and high quality pictures from around the motorsport world. Finally I wanted to say thank you for making it this far and reading the article, I would greatly appreciate any feedback both positive or negative I want to hear your thoughts on this article.

Times Are Changing In The Premier League

As I write this, December 30th 2015, a simple look at the Premier League table will provide plenty of shocks to football fans across the world. At the halfway point of the season, you would expect the traditional top four teams to occupy the lucrative Champions League places.

The traditional top four consisting of Arsenal,Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea have barely changed since the Premier League era began in 1992. The only change has been the emergence of Manchester City and it’s Middle Eastern mega rich backers. Their money have allowed them to usurp Liverpool in the traditional top four. These traditional super powers of English football have dominated for over two decades. Until this season.

This season has been hugely unpredictable, with the traditional ‘big’ clubs dropping off slightly as those below them have risen up. This perfect storm has manifested itself into a current Premier League table which no one could have predicted before the season.

Yes, Arsenal may currently be top of the league, but after years of ridicule thanks to a recent lack of success, their accession to the top of the league has been slightly surprising. The London’s clubs fortunes this season pale into insignificance thanks to the sterling performances of lowly Leicester City. The team that produced a miracle to stay up last season have been Premier League leaders for a huge portion of the season, currently sitting second in the league, level on points with Arsenal.

What is remarkable is that at this point Leicester were bottom of the league and looking certain to be relegated. Their survival was a fairy tale, but under new manager Claudio Ranieri, words cannot describe the unexpected success the team has had so far this season.

With a first team bought for less than £20 million pounds, Leicester have matched and beaten the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United. The team’s transfer policy has been rewarded massively with bargains such as Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez in particular stealing the headlines. Costing a combined £1.4 million, the pair have linked up beautifully this season to devastating effect.

jamie-vardy-riyad-mahrez-leicester-city_3375357 Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez celebrate one of the dynamic duo’s many goals for Leicester this season. Photo copyright Sky Sports.

Vardy has taken most of the plaudits thanks to setting a new Premier League record of scoring in eleven consecutive games, and currently sits joint top of the goalscorers list with 15 goals in 16 games. Mahrez is not far behind his team mate, with 13 goals in 17 games so far in the league.

Below Leicester there are plenty more surprises. Pre-season favorites Manchester City’s struggling away form limits them to third currently, with Tottenham the current form team in the league sitting pretty in fourth.

They have rose steadily up the league, and this season finally looks to be the season they can break through into the top four and the all important Champions League, after years of just missing out in fifth.

Crystal Palace are another high flying team, who have gone from lower mid-table to fifth in just over a season under Alan Pardew. In any other season their performances would have garnered plenty of press attention, but amongst the struggles of others and the rise of Leicester they have been regrettably been overlooked so far.

One team who have certainly not been overlooked by the press have been Manchester United. Arguably the world’s most famous club are floundering in sixth, with a under fire Louis Van Gaal the most likely manager to be next sacked. Since the Sir Alex Ferguson era ended, the clubs management and transfers have not been up to scratch. Their traditional role as a perennial top four side is seriously under threat for the future if something does not change at the club soon.

3118074087 Louis Van Gaal feeling the strain after their defeat to Stoke on Boxing Day. Will he still be in charge next season? Photo copyright PA.

Throughout the league there are shocks, with the newly promoted Watford surprising everyone by sitting in eighth, led by top scorer Odion Ighalo and his 13 goals. Liverpool are suffering from a turbulent season and currently sit tenth in the league, giving new manager Jurgen Klopp a lot to think about with the January transfer window coming up.

Liverpool are currently in the final stages of the steady declining process bitter rivals Manchester United are just entering into now. The club needs to adjust it’s transfer policy, which in recent years has been laughable in comparison with the likes of Leicester.

In the bottom half of the table, there is one glaringly obvious surprise. Chelsea. The current Premier League champions have suffered the kind of awful season rarely experienced in the top European leagues. Everyone has been wondering quite simply how can a team that won the league seven moths ago retain the same squad and yet be 14th in the league going into 2016.

Whilst many pinned the blame on top players turning on Jose Mourinho. Whilst the unthinkable happened several weeks ago and the special one was sacked from his beloved Chelsea, even under interim boss Guus Hiddink results have not dramatically improved.

This season is not likely to get any easier for Chelsea, and realistically they would be happy with a top ten finish to the season, something laughable before the season started in August.

2C3849B000000578-0-image-a-26_1442147035612 This expression from Jose Mourinho perfectly sums up their season. The look of disbelief and regret is shared amongst Chelsea fans. Photo copyright Reuters.

With the consistent increases in TV money giving every team a lot more money to spend, it becoming clear the traditionally vast differences between the budgets of the top four and the rest is closing at a gradual pace. Whilst the likes of Man City and Man Utd of course have huge resources to spend, their performances relative to that of the likes of Leicester and Watford show that top ten teams can be assembled for a fraction of what the big clubs spend.

With increasing pressure amongst the traditional top four as to their current future’s, could this season mark a turning point in the traditional balance of power with the Premier League. With question marks over the manager’s positions at Man City,Man Utd and Chelsea for next season could we see the likes of Crystal Palace and Leicester consistently challenging the top four in years to come?

In the past it appears there was a certain fright factor associated with playing the top four clubs, but this season has consistently shown that any club in the league can beat the top four on their day. With this new found confidence, perfectly illustrated by Stoke’s recent demolition of Man City 2-0 a few weeks ago, I hope this season will become the norm as the Premier League seemingly becomes more competitive every week. I’m sure you will join me in eagerly anticipating the second half of this season.

What are your thoughts on the current state of the Premier League? Please give your thoughts below and most importantly thank you for reading.

2015 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2015 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 4,300 times in 2015. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 4 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

Should Chelsea have sacked Jose Mourinho?

The special one returns. On the 10th June 2013 Chelsea fans across the world celebrated like they had just won the Premier League. The special one was returning to Stamford Bridge. Two and a half years later and history has repeated itself. Mourinho and Chelsea have parted ways. But should Chelsea have stuck by Mourinho this time?

Based purely on the results of this season, Chelsea should have sacked Mourinho weeks ago. The club have gone from being Premier League champions to sitting 16th in six quick months. They have lost nine of their 16 games in the league, and sit only a precarious point away from the relegation places.

jose-mour_2584957i Jose Mourinho smiling as he is announced as the Chelsea manager for the second time. Little did he or the fans know about how his second reign would end. Photo copyright Andrew Matthews/The Telegraph.

However, Jose Mourinho isn’t any old manager. Especially at Chelsea. He has been embraced by everyone at the club, especially the fans. His instant success in his first stint between 2004 and 2007 guaranteed him a place in Chelsea folklore. He led them towards back to back title triumphs and various domestic trophies.

Everywhere he has gone an increasing mystique has surround the Portugese manager. Initial success with Porto announced his name to the world, yet since then he has become the highest profile manager in football.

Successful stints at Inter Milan and Real Madrid have ensured he will always been known as one of the best managers there ever was in football. So when it was announced his was returning home to Chelsea in June 2013 the future seemed bright for the club and it’s fans.

He navigated through a trophy less first season in charge, before returning the Premier League trophy to Stamford Bridge in his second season. A new long term contract was signed and the club returned for a new season expecting plenty of the same success.

290b1e8c00000578-0-image-a-85_1432539502288 Mourinho celebrating leading Chelsea to the Premier League title in 2014. This was his third league title whilst at Chelsea. The next six months would be a lot less successful for him and the club. Photo copyright Getty Images.

See, this is where the difficult reality set in. Chelsea started the season poorly. A bad start quickly snowballed into a bad first six, then eight games, ten games, fifteen games to the point that after their latest defeat to Leicester on Monday Night football 2-1 crisis meetings were held. The funny thing is, the roles of the two clubs on Monday night have been completely reversed this season.

Leicester have shocked everyone as they currently sit two points clear at the top of the table heading towards Christmas, whilst Chelsea have become the club fighting to stay in the Premier League this season.

It’s clear that if Jose Mourinho were any other manager Chelsea would of sacked him a long time ago. Yet his reputation and influence at the club kept him in the hot seat as he dug Chelsea into an even deeper hole every week.

There have been the usual outbursts against referee’s this season, yet on Monday he finally turned on his players. He publicly called out his players for not following the pre-match game plan. He claimed this was the reasons behind their defeat to Leicester.

4676410

This expression sums up the season Chelsea and Mourinho have had so far. The search begins for the right man to rectify it. Photo copyright unknown sourced from Squawka.com .

With key players playing well under their best season it was becoming clear with every defeat that tensions were going to rise in the dressing room . The pressure simply became too much for the club and after holding a emergency meeting, agreed to part with Mourinho under “mutual terms”.

Now for Chelsea fans this must feel similar to his first departure in September 2007, but this time Chelsea are in a much bigger mess. They are in a very real fight for survival in the Premier League, and whoever they get in to replace Mourinho faces a very difficult task in recovering their season.

Their only bright spot this season has been their Champions League progression, although they face PSG and will be hoping the French club don’t knock them out of the tournament again. For now the club will have to find a decent replacement for Mourinho, whose future in unclear after his reputation has taken a hit with the struggles Chelsea have endured this season. The optimism shown by Mourinho’s appointment in June 2013 couldn’t seem further away this time.

Nico Hulkenberg: A future World Champion

November 7th 2010. Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace. Interlagos,Brazil. Round eighteen of the 2010 Formula One World Championship. Rookie Nico Hulkenberg has just taken pole position by over a second in the unfancied Williams-Cosworth. At this moment it seemed inevitable Hulkenberg would go on to a highly successful career with poles,wins and several world titles.

December 2015. Nico Hulkenberg is still a highly rated F1 driver. That is the only part of his career that many would have correctly predicted in 2010. Instead of moving on up the F1 grid Hulkenberg has remained trapped in the midfield, bouncing between Sahara-Force India and Sauber. Whilst he is rightly seen as one of the top drivers outside the top three teams, he is now 28 and time seems to be running out for him to get the top F1 seat his talent deserves. So why has he not yet progressed to a top team?

That is a question something plenty of F1 pundits are still trying to answer. Hulkenberg continues to produce giant killing results, yet every year he remains stuck in the midfield. The biggest factor against him is simply his height and weight. In a world where shaving every kilogram is crucial, having a driver like Hulkenberg at 1.84m tall behind the wheel is problematic.

Brazilian Grand Prix Nico Hulkenberg in his Williams on the Friday before his giant killing Saturday qualifying performance in Brazil. Photo Credit LAT photographic/Andrew Ferraro.

He also cannot bring a huge sponsorship package to teams, something that is becoming increasingly important as teams continue to struggle in the current financial climate. This is why he was forced to drop out of F1 at the end of his impressive rookie campaign in 2010, being replaced by Pastor Maldonado and his Venezuelan petrol dollars. He was forced to spend a year on the sidelines as the Sahara-Force India reserve driver.

After once again showing his talents after being promoted to a race deal with Sahara-Force India for 2012, he returned to his previous heroics and almost took the midfield Sahara-Force India to victory in the Brazilian Grand Prix, only to collide with leader Lewis Hamilton when trying to overtake him. He was heavily linked with the vacant seat at McLaren for the 2013 season, although he was overlooked for fellow up and coming talent Sergio Perez.

Taking the drive Perez vacated at Sauber produced similar giant killing performances, and the historic close links between Sauber and Ferrari should have put him in the perfect position to join Ferrari, ye inexplicably he was overlooked to replace Felipe Massa for the veteran Kimi Raikkonen.

saub-hulk-melb-2013-4 Nico Hulkenberg in his first race for Sauber. 2013 would prove to be a season of two halves for the young German. Photo copyright Sauber F1. Sourced from F1Fanatic.co.uk .

With the progress that the team made in 2015, it would of been very interesting to watch Hulkenberg behind the wheel. Since this snub the closest he came to a top seat was a likely move to Lotus for 2014, although the collapse of a investment package curtailed that move.

Hulkenberg continues to star in the very close F1 midfield battle, although in the second half of this season he appeared to struggle slightly against Mexican team mate Sergio Perez. With his Sahara-Force India team strongly rumored to have signed a partnership deal with Aston Martin, perhaps his fortunes in F1 are about to take a upward turn.

Arguably his biggest achievement in 2015 came outside of Formula One, as he harked back to the past by tackling the prestigious Le Mans 24 Hours alongside his F1 commitments. With the Porsche team he managed to do the impossible and win with an all- rookie line up of himself along with Porsche factory GT drivers Nick Tandy and Earl Bamber.

lemans-24-hours-of-le-mans-2015-lmp1-podium-class-and-overall-winners-porsche-team-nico-hu Hulkenberg celebrating victory with team mates Nick Tandy and Earl Bamber. Their victory was a deserved but a shock at the highly competitive Le Mans 24 Hours. Photo credit Motorsport.com .

This win was yet another reminder to the F1 paddock that surely Hulkenberg is deserving of a top line seat in the future. With the likes of Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa coming to the end of their careers, it seems there will be plenty of drives available amongst the big teams. Hulkenberg has been overlooked by the top teams before, surely it won’t happen a second time. The German has too much talent for that to be the case.

What are your thoughts on this article? Please feel free to comment below.

Ayrton Senna And His Legacy

Ayrton Senna. Much like David Beckham and Muhammad Ali he transcends sports and is fully established in popular culture worldwide. Ask many people around the world with even the smallest interest in sports to name a racing driver and many would say Ayrton Senna.

This is one area of his lasting legacy. He is still culturally relevant today in 2015, over 21 years after his untimely death. Whilst in recent times his name has been promoted thanks to the very good film SENNA, chronicling the charismatic Brazilian’s life.

His legacy is also largely made up thanks to the continued work of the Instituto Ayrton Senna, which have helped millions of underprivileged children gain a quality education since it’s inception months after Senna’s death.

instituto-ayrton-senna The logo for the Instituto Ayrton Senna. For more information on this great non-profit organization please visit the link at the bottom of this article. Photo Copyright Instituto Ayrton Senna.

Outside of Brazil Senna is rightly remembered for his heroics at the wheel of a racing car, which saw him win three world titles and 41 wins in simultaneously a brilliant and villainous way.

However in Brazil Senna is remembered for being a sporting hero who gave away tens of millions of dollars to support charities and underprivileged children. He also provided a rare ray of hope for a nation experiencing huge social and economic problems during his career.

His success on track and his personality off track is why he was able to capture a nation’s support in a way very few sports athletes are able to do. He is the only example of this in Formula One history in my opinion.

The final scene from the brilliant 2010 film Senna perfectly encapsulates the grief felt by the Brazilian people after his death. Copyright SENNA/Working Title.

The support he received in his racing career is sadly exemplified perfectly by the outpouring of grief surrounding his death. After three days of national mourning, his funeral procession saw millions of people line the route, grief stricken at the loss of the biggest national hero of his time.

Unfortunately another factor behind Senna’s remaining influence in culture is the very public nature of his passing. He died live on television with hundreds of millions of people watching his Williams FW16-Renault spear straight into the outside wall of the Tamburello corner of the Imola circuit beginning lap seven of the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.

His passing was reported by every major newspaper, TV and radio station worldwide, ensuring almost everyone knew about his death aged only 34. 21 years on and the world is a completely different place to the one he departed on May 1st.

The rise of technology and social media makes us all feel far more interconnected than was ever possible in 1994, therefore it can only be imagined the significance his death would of had in the era of 24/7 news.

His legacy will always live on through the work of the brilliant Instituto Ayrton Senna, who are carrying on the work Senna started throughout his racing career. For many sports and F1 fans he still has a special place in history, with many suggesting he is the greatest racing driver who ever lived.

Ayrton-Senna-celebrates-v-011 (1) A famous picture of the victorious Senna joyfully spraying the champagne after a crucial win in the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix. Senna would win his third and final world title later that year. Photo copyright Keith Sutton/Sutton Motorsport Images.

For the millions of fans he still has they can comfort themselves with various memories, films and TV footage devoted to the Brazilian, and for many poor children in Brazil his institute can provide them with a chance to better themselves in life through education. That is the real legacy Ayrton Senna has left the world after his death. Ayrton Senna Sempre.

For more information on the Instituto Ayrton Senna please take a minute to visit their website. http://www.institutoayrtonsenna.org.br/ .

If anyone has any thoughts or comments please feel free to share them below and thank you for reading.

Where Next For Kevin Magnussen?

5th October 2015. Kevin Magnussen was celebrating his 23rd birthday. But a good day very quickly turned into a very bad one when he checked his emails. He noticed one from McLaren team principal Ron Dennis’s personal assistant Justine Bowen. He was being told his services as McLaren F1 reserve driver would not be required in 2016 and his contract would therefore not be renewed. Even for the famously business orientated Dennis this seemed a very harsh move.

Magnussen had grew up and developed with the team since he joined their young driver programme in 2010, reaching the pinnacle with a second place in his debut for the team at the 2014 Australian Grand Prix. Magnussen showed well against experienced former world champion team mate Jenson Button. But then the big names became involved. Honda were partnering with McLaren from 2015 onwards, and very quickly Fernando Alonso fell out of love with Marco Mattiacci and Ferrari, rendering him suddenly on the market for 2015.

This brought about a scenario which seemed impossible in 2008. Fernando Alonso would reunite with Ron Dennis and McLaren. This seemed impossible after their very bitter and public falling out in their first spell together in 2007. But I guess times change and money talks in F1, all of this leaving Magnussen battling Button for the remaining race drive for 2015.

Magnussen racing his way to the Renault World Series title in 2013. The future seemed bright for him at McLaren, but this would soon change. Photo copyright Motorsport.com

What followed was a very drawn out waiting game for both Magnussen and Button as months passed whilst McLaren tried to make their decision. Whilst it’s believed many in the team favoured the younger Magnussen, it appears at the last minute experience won out and the team announced their driver line up of Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button in early December.

With very little time to find himself another drive in a competitive series, Magnussen had little other option than to accept the role of McLaren reserve driver for 2015, before finding a race seat for 2016. One thing was clear. Kevin Magnussen still wanted to race in 2015. He was in the advanced stages of securing a Indycar drive for the year so he could continue to race. Then Fernando Alonso got in his way again.

In the later stages of pre-season testing Alonso mysteriously crashed his McLaren-Honda, and whilst the initial assessment was not a serious one, it was quickly discovered Alonso had suffered a concussion and was unlikely to make the opening Australian Grand Prix several weeks later.

Magnussen was forced to end talks of an Indycar drive as he was called into action to replace Alonso in Australia. What followed was a hugely disappointing grand prix weekend where both McLaren drivers were plagued with issues surrounding the new Honda power plant. Magnussen qualified last and didn’t even start the race as his engine failed before the start to complete a miserable weekend for him and the team.

Magnussen in pre-season testing for McLaren this year. His lack of racing would prove a huge frustration to him during the year. Photo copyright McLaren/LAT.

Fast forward nine months and Magnussen is now looking for a race deal in 2016 after largely being sat on the sidelines for 2015. He came close to joining the new Haas F1 team for 2016 but lost out to first choice Romain Grosjean, and has recently tested for World Endurance title winning Porsche 919 for the team.

Magnussen will surely be a driver high in demand for 2016 with his talents, it’s now whether he wishes to try and continue in single seater series such as Indycar/Super Formula or whether he changes tack and moves over to sportscars or GT racing.

Surely Magnussen will get another chance in F1 soon, he’s too talented to only have one season at the pinnacle of motorsport. Only forces beyond his control can stop him. Yet where does the young Dane go from here? He’s looking to bounce back in big way next year after being an after thought at McLaren this year. Add the extra fire surely provided by the process of his dismissal from the team and he will be looking to prove a point next year.

He was close to an Indycar drive this year, so could he cast his eye back to the series for next year. The only top line drive available appears to be the final Chip Ganassi Racing entry, a car he could seriously impress with next year. Should he take up this seat he would surely be a dark horse contender for race victories throughout the year.

For now another possibility that hasn’t been ruled out is joining the Super Formula series in Japan. It’s highly competitive with a top quality grid which would keep Magnussen race sharp as he looks towards a return to F1. Whilst it will make it harder to gain the attention of Formula One in Japan, the series would be every bit as good as Indycar for him right now. Whilst nothing has been mentioned and it seems unlikely, it cannot be ruled out.

Or could he be eyeing sportscars next year? The WEC is building in prestige and popularity every year, with an increasing influx of young single seater drivers making the move to become professional drivers. With the level of technology in the current leading LMP1 these prototypes are arguable more advanced than current F1 cars.

Magnussen posing before testing the WEC title winning Porsche 919 Hybrid at Barcelona. Will he be racing the car in 2016? Photo copyright Porsche AG.

After testing the Porsche 919 Hybrid at Barcelona, he raved about the car calling it “the most advanced race car in the world”. Should the European Grand Prix in Baku remain clashing with the Le Mans 24 Hours, that would leave a seat available in the Porsche team for their warm up events and the 24 Hours itself. Porsche say their considering several drivers, could Magnussen be one of them?

He would make a big impact for the Porsche team and would likely prove very fast in the WEC next year. The series would also be the perfect shop window for him to try find a way back into F1 when he feels the time is right. Porsche won both the championship itself and the marquee Le Mans 24 Hours, an opportunity to make your debut for Porsche contending for victory would be a dream for Magnussen.

From here who knows where Kevin Magnussen will be racing in 2016. The only thing we know is that whatever he’s driving, he’ll be going flat out and racing at the front.

Where do you think Magnussen will be racing next year? Let me know in the comments section and thank you for reading.

Just What Is The Price Of Modern Sporting Success?

Do you have what it takes? How far are you prepared to go? Will you do whatever it take to reach your goals? These are all cliched question asked to modern athletes of whatever sport. See that’s exactly the issue. Increasingly sports has taken on a win at all costs mentality.

This is commendable that athletes will increasingly do whatever it takes to win in sport, yet for some this leads them over the line of fair play and into the murky waters of cheating. But just why do these professionals sometimes break the rules to attain success. Quite simply, as a society we all demand it.

The world lauds the victor, etching their names into the history books to be remembered. Simultaneously, we typically discard the loser, vanquishing them to the abyss of obscurity. For the winner, there come the plaudits, fans, money, social prestige and glamour of been held up as a winner. This is exactly why some athletes break the rules to achieve this.

Don’t for a second think this is confined to a select few sports. Almost all major sports have had some sort of scandal or cheating bringing unwanted attention to the sport and it’s global image. Whereas in the past sport was a recreational activity of the wealthy, it has now been turned into a major worldwide business with billions of dollars at stake for those in charge.

This explains why sometimes it isn’t just the athletes who bend the rules for their own benefit, as Sepp Blatter and FIFA can attest, sometimes the governing bodies themselves are at it also.

FBL-FIFA-CORRUPTION Sepp Blatter looks bewildered in the aftermath of a recent stunt by a British comedian. He threw money at Blatter during a FIFA press conference, making fun of the current corruption scandal engulfing him and FIFA. Photo copyright Fabrice Coffrin/ AFP/Getty Images.

The Russian doping scandal has dominated the sports headlines this month, and whilst it is initially shocking over time it simply becomes another example of sport ethical code being brought into serious question.

So far it appears from the WADA (World Anti Doping Agency) report, Russia was involved in an institutional doping programme involving the government, athletes, coaches and even the former IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) president Limane Diack.

Allegations are made that the IAAF president from 1999 to August this year accepting bribes from Russia to cover up positive drug tests of it’s athletes. Whilst this is a terrible incident for the IAAF and athletics to be going through, it wouldn’t be the first time a governing body has been accused of bribery.

Even as I type the long running investigation into FIFA is going, with strong allegations that outgoing president Sepp Blatter accepted bribes from both Russia and Qatar to secure them the 2018 and 2022 World Cup’s respectively. There are even allegations now that previous World Cup’s were effectively bought by nations through bribery in the voting system.

Another sports governing body with a blemished name is the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale), who face allegations their former president Hein Verbruggen covered up positive drug tests of former superstar rider and doper Lance Armstrong.

armstrongseven_get_2318739b Lance Armstrong posing for the camera’s, celebrating his landmark seventh straight Tour de France title. Only in 2012 was it widely known that a major part of all his victories was systematic doping. Photo copyright Getty Images.

I would need to write a separate blog to fully explain in detail the whole story behind each of these allegations, however they all form a pattern, giving further evidence supporting the fact sport is now big business with all the positives and drawbacks associated with this.

Football is the most popular sport in the world, and this makes it the prime target for perceived cheating in the pursuit of success. It can range anywhere from something simple like diving to try and win a free kick or penalty, upwards to illegal transfers using third party ownership of players through to out and out match fixing.

This issue is most famous for the 2006 case in Italy where the then Serie A champions Juventus were found guilty and relegated to Serie B. This issue is still prevalent today, especially in Eastern Europe.

In rugby there was the “bloodgate” scandal of 2009, whereby in a Heineken Cup quarter final match, Harlequins player Tom Williams faked a blood injury so that the team could make a tactical substitution.

Once found guilty Williams was banned for four months, with director of rugby Dean Richard banned for three years. Diving is also becoming an increasing problem in rugby union. Aside from this rugby has a very honest public perception, but this shows there is room for cheating in even seemingly “honest” sports.

quins-getty_3129753b Harlequins Tom Williams leaves the field after the infamous “bloodgate” rugby scandal of 2009. Williams faked a blood injury and was banned for four months. Photo copyright Getty Images.

In F1 there have always been allegations of cheating amongst teams, although this was considered tame in comparison to the 2009 scandal surrounding the Renault team. It was unearthed that the team had gone ahead with a plan from their driver Nelson Piquet Jr to deliberately crash on lap 13 of the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.

This allowed the teams lead driver Fernando Alonso to claim the race lead thanks to a pit stop he made just before the accident. He went on to win the race, although the plot was only uncovered a year later. There was also the 2007 example where a few rouge Ferrari and McLaren team members were found to have passed over information on the current 2007 Ferrari F1 car.

F1 has also been rocked by allegations made against commercial rights holder and F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, who has been previously accused of bribery in both the awarding of TV rights, and with adding new races to the F1 calendar.

Nelson Piquet Junior, Brazilian racing car driver for Renault cr Nelson Piquet Jr infamously deliberately crashing early on in the 2008 Singapore GP. The crash allowed team leader Fernando Alonso a clear victory after a poor qualifying. Photo copyright Getty Images/Daily Mail.

Cycling meanwhile has already been covered by three blogs I made last year chronicling it’s dark years between the early 1990’s into the late 2000’s. You can find them here , here and here .

It’s common knowledge that cycling has had doping issues throughout it’s history, although during the past few years it’s become apparent that doping was rife in the 90’s and 2000’s.

To win races or to even become a professional doping was widely accepted as necessary, with boatloads of drugs, slush funds to pay for it and highly qualified secret doctors all characterized this period. The 1998 Festina Affair is a perfect example of this.

American sports may have their own niche and primary audience in North America, but this hasn’t stopped it from being tainted by cheating. There is an ongoing problem of performance enhancing drug use within both baseball and the NFL.

In baseball especially there has been a recent history of a number of high profile players such as Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez being linked with steroid use in their careers. Whilst it’s less of an issue in the NFL, this does not mean it is immune to cheating.

020413-bonds-barry-600 Baseball superstar hitter Barry Bonds during a game for the San Francisco Giants. Bonds legacy would be tainted with the news he used steroids during his career. Photo copyright Denis Poroy/AP.

Deflategate is a recent example, where the Superbowl champion New England Patriots were found guilty of under inflating their football’s before a key play-off game against the Indianapolis Colts. This advantage for the Patriots cost them a heavy fine and a loss of their first round draft pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

There are plenty more examples from sports I both did and didn’t mention in this article. (Ed. If you can think of any other cheating scandals I haven’t mentioned please comment below.) This article shows how cheating is now a necessary evil within sport, with a number of factors behind this.

A major reason is the vast amounts of money generated from sport in the 21st century, of which naturally trickles down to the players. Only the successful players however can earn the mega money all kids who love football dream of earning.

Another may be the people around them, such as coaches or parents who can convince an athlete to cheat if it’s for their own personal gain. Another may simply be for personal prestige, with the trappings of celebrity and worldwide super stardom and adulation from fans only afforded to the most successful athletes.

Whatever the reasoning behind it is, sports fans now have to accept that they simply cannot believe in sport to the same degree previous generations did, simply because there is too much of an incentive to be successful within modern sport. In pursuit of this, it can drive some over eager athletes to cross the line and cheat to attain success.

If anyone has any comments on this article, feel free to post it below I’d love to read them and thank you for reading.

sportsjournalismsgs

A blog about world events particularly sporting one's