NZTC Championship 2000/01

PRESS RELEASE #5
3rd January 2001

LET THE BATTLE BEGIN IN THE 2000/2001 NEW ZEALAND TOURING CAR CHAMPIONSHIP

As predicted by NZTC Championship points leader Brett Riley, the second round of the six round series held at Pukekohe Raceway Auckland on 2/3 December 2000 proved how tough the competition for this years title is becoming. At the end of the meeting it was two all for International Motorsport and Team Kiwi respectively.

Despite horsepower on the superfast Pukekohe Circuit being acknowledged by Riley as the BMW's Archilles heel, his weekend began well, snatching pole off Jason Richards in the dying laps of the 20 minute qualifying session. Riley's time of 1:06.229 sec put him 0.076 sec ahead of Richards Pitstop Nissan Primera. "Very occasionally you put together a lap that brings it all together. Track, car and driver. It was one of those laps. The car felt really good and I didn't make any mistakes. I'm very happy" enthused Riley. By the end of the session the top six cars were separated by less than a second.

After clashing with the BMWs in two qualifying sessions and three races, Team Kiwi had failed to halt Riley's points bonanza with a win. They desperately needed that win to rectify the situation.

Saturday's Race was warm and dry. Riley got off to a great start, with defending Champion Jason Richards in the Team Kiwi Pitstop Nissan Primera in hot pursuit. Richards drove the car to its limits and beyond. On more than one occasion it seemed he would loose control of the car, especially through high speed corners.

As the cars pushed up over the John Deere Mountain Richards managed to tuck up under Riley and overtook him down the main straight. "I think Brett was a little surprised to see me take him on so early in the race despite cold tyres" said a beaming Jason Richards.

Barrie Thomlinson found himself on a lonely vigil in third spot. He managed to break away from the pack, but couldn't close the gap between him and the to lead cars. Behind him a second International Motorsport/Team Kiwi battle was being fought. Angus Fogg in the Placemakers Nissan Primera made assault after assault on the BNT/Castrol BMW 320i of Kevin Bell

The mover through the pack was Rhys McKay's Toyota Corona, catching and passing Fogg at the hairpin. Though he filled Bell's rear vision mirror for the remainder of the race, he couldn't get passed by race end. Richards crossed the line almost 1.5 seconds ahead of Riley, with Thomlinson in third and Kevin Bell holding out Rhys McKay for third.

"We're thrilled with our win. Not only is it our first win in the 2.0 litre class, but its our first win full stop" commented Team Kiwi's principle David John. "We see the 2.0 litre class as the premiere class in New Zealand circuit racing and we are determined to give it our best crack. We have had so little time for testing. With more development time over Christmas we believe the cars can only get more competitive" beamed John.

In Sundays reverse grid race Angus Fogg bolted from fifth to place tremendous pressure on leader Jody Vincent through the Esses. Kevin Bell also got away to an excellent start, falling in behind Fogg. The close contact racing seen at Manfield continued with Aaron Harris in the Dynapack BMW 320i Coupe making contact first with Peter Butler's Ford Telstar and then Rhys McKay's Toyota Corona, the Telstar loosing the back bumper and the Corona the front right panel in addition to sustaining disc brake damage.

Current NZTC Champion Jason Richards and series leader Brett Riley battled their way through the pack, with Richards ahead until lap five when he spun exiting the Esses. His wild ride across the grass, the track and the kitty litter clogged the Nissan's engine cooling, overheating the car and terminating the Pitstop Primera's race.

Riley managed to avoid the mayhem and set out in pursuit of Fogg and Bell. By the last lap he was snapping at his BMW team mates heals, but had run out of time. Fogg had pushed on, building a substantial lead over the BMWs, crossing the line nearly six seconds ahead of them. Fogg was elated with his win, "It will only be a matter of time before both Team Kiwi Primeras were running reliably and we get that one/two finish." "The car was still incredibly nervous through high speed turns despite some changes we made to the car" he conceded. "There was no rear grip through the sweeper which made it hard to keep the car on track"

Apart from Angus Fogg's advance to fourth on the grid due to his lap time in the previous race, the grid for the 12 lap compulsory pitstop race remained the same as Saturday's. Riley had been starved of a win all weekend and starting from pole position giving him his best chance of securing another 32 points. Unknown to the other teams, Jason Richards joined the grid with a blown head gasket, his priority and Team Kiwi's, to finish and gain valuable points, rather than repeat Saturday's win.

Riley, Fogg and Bell' all got off the line cleanly, with Fogg harrying Riley as they dived through the Esses and on to the back straight. Richards quickly became swamped by the pack and the car's mechanical problems looked terminal. Fogg was using all the track and more to try and overtake Riley's BMW. But unlike the first race Riley kept the door firmly closed on the Primera. The Primera was still suffering from rear end instability through high speed turns and twice it appeared that Fogg had completely lost control of the car. The crowd was on its feet as Fogg careered and spun down the grass verge of the main straight at well over 160 km and hour. "I don't know how I managed to save that one" an exhausted Fogg commented after the race. Kevin Bell had been getting quicker all weekend and he capitalised on Fogg's loose drive to make up time

The compulsory pit stops effectively ended the Riley/Fogg battle. Unlike the Manfield meeting, there were no major dramas in the pits - only coming out of them! It was the radar gun reader who determined the race result after Riley, Fogg, Harris and Homewood were all deemed to have speeded in pit lane and as a consequence incurred a five second time penalty.

Although Riley crossed the line first the time penalty relegated him to second behind his team mate Bell. "Its not how I like to win races" reflected Bell, "But the points are helpful to the team and it caps off a great weekend for me".

Three winners in three races. Total commitment from the drivers all weekend, and the Team Kiwi Nissan Primeras beginning to exert pressure on Championship leaders, International Motorsport.

When the cars reassemble on the grid at Ruapuna Park in Christchurch on 7th January 2001, it will be as if the NZ Touring Car Championship has restarted over again.

During the Christmas break Team Kiwi have made substantial changes to the rear suspension of their cars. "We've been working on stiffening the rear end of the car to improve it's high speed cornering" said Angus Fogg, who not only drives the Placemakers Nissan Primera, but built both 2.0 litre cars for the David John outfit.

"We're happy with the straight line speed, but it could be pretty exciting through the turns!" "We're just pleased to have some time to test the cars" current NZTC Champion Richards said. "We took the cars out to Pukekohe before Christmas and are much happier with their handling. Angus has been working hard on the suspension. We believe we have found a lot more performance in the overall package and are really looking forward to resuming the battle with Lyall and the BMW boys".

International Motorsport's engineers have not been idle either. The BMW E36 320is have had a complete revamp of their suspension and engine management systems. "As a result, we have scored a very useful boost to our speed which will curtail the outright speed advantage of our front wheel drive rivals" said team boss Lyall Williamson.

The new suspension is a variant of the one the team will use on the E46 BMWs the team is currently building in their Parnell workshop. It allows for greater adjustment of the set-up and will comply with the newly introduced super production rules.

Almost half way through the season and Brett Riley holds a handy lead over the field. Until the cars clash again at Ruapuna, Christchurch this weekend its still unclear which team has done enough to stamp their dominance on the Championship..

For more information contact:
Tony Bunyan
New Zealand Touring Car Website

Email editor@nztouringcars.co.nz
Website www.nztouringcars.co.nz