BMW drivers aim for finishing 2008 WTCC season on a high.
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Printed Date: 21-May-2024 at 22:24
Topic: BMW drivers aim for finishing 2008 WTCC season on a high.
Posted By: kbannon
Subject: BMW drivers aim for finishing 2008 WTCC season on a high.
Date Posted: 10-November-2008 at 21:11
BMW drivers aim for finishing 2008 WTCC season on a high.
10-11-2008 Press Release
Munich,
10th November 2008. This weekend sees the drivers in the FIA World
Touring Car Championship competing for points and victories for the
final time this year. While the drivers from the BMW national teams can
no longer challenge for the World Championship title at the “Guia
Circuit” in Macau (MO), history shows that BMW should never be written
off at this famous city circuit, despite suffering a difficult season:
six out of the eight touring car races held on the 6.117-kilometre
track since 2004 have been won by BMW drivers.
No fewer than 15 drivers will line up for the two sprint races with
a handicap weight of 70 kilograms. These include BMW Team UK’s Andy
Priaulx (GB) and the BMW Team Germany drivers, Jörg Müller (DE) and
Augusto Farfus (BR). Each of these three drivers can still move up to
third in the Drivers' Championship. Félix Porteiro (ES) and Alessandro
Zanardi (IT) race for BMW Team Italy-Spain with 51 and 32 kilograms of
ballast respectively.
Andy Priaulx (BMW Team UK):
“Obviously this will be the first time for ages that I have gone to
Macau with no chance of winning a title. I suppose in some ways I can
enjoy my favourite circuit a little more as I shall not be thinking
about anything other than the races. It is difficult to find a driver
who doesn’t like this track.”
Jörg Müller (BMW Team Germany):
“Macau is always a highlight for me. The circuit is as unique as
the atmosphere. The teams are closer together here than anywhere else.
I like street circuits in general, as they are very unforgiving. It
goes without saying that my big goal is to stand at the top of the
podium again at the end of the season.”
Augusto Farfus (BMW Team Germany):
“Last year I had to wave goodbye to my title aspirations following
a crash in Macau. For this reason, I am now highly motivated to return
to winning ways on this fantastic circuit. My season has not gone
entirely to plan, and I would like to go into the winter break with a
great result behind me.”
Félix Porteiro (BMW Team Italy-Spain):
“I have not exactly been blessed with luck over the last few races.
Hopefully Macau will be better for me. I drove there for the first time
in 2007 and gained a lot of experience. This should stand me in good
stead.”
Alessandro Zanardi (BMW Team Italy-Spain):
“Previously I only picked up World Championship points in Macau in
2005. I want to change that record, and end the year with a good
result. It will be crucial to avoid dangerous situations at the start.
If I can manage that, then there is a lot in these races for me.”
------------- Current: 2009 E60 520d "Sport" tractor Previous: 1989 E30 320i SE 1997 E39 523i 2003 E39 525i Sport Individual
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Replies:
Posted By: kbannon
Date Posted: 13-November-2008 at 09:18
Farfus sets early pace at Macau
By Steven English |
Thursday, November 13th 2008, 07:51 GMT |
Augusto Farfus set the quickest time of the first World Touring Car session at Macau today.
The Brazilian, who won on his debut at Macau in 2005, posted his
best effort on the last lap of the half hour session in his BMW 320si.
"The first laps at Macau are always very tricky, so no one is really
pushing - it was the same for me. I drove very carefully today because
this track doesn't forgive any mistake.
"However, I'm happy with the way we have begun the weekend - the car
looks good and is well balanced. We have started at a reasonable level,
but for sure the others will catch up soon.
"Let's wait until tomorrow morning, after the two practice sessions we will have a better idea of how qualifying will be."
Briton James Thompson was second fastest in his N.Technology Honda
Accord and is hoping that he can maintain that strong form for the rest
of the weekend.
"I'm pretty chuffed actually," he said. "It's difficult to say how
quick we'll be, but the team have done an outstanding job as usual.
"I'm hoping we can keep this up. If you're quick in first practice, it's usually a good indicator for the rest of the weekend."
Chevrolet's Nicola Larini was third fastest, with Felix Porteiro
fourth for BMW and the other two Chevrolets of Alain Menu and Rob Huff
fifth and sixth.
Championship leader Yvan Muller was the best of the SEATs in seventh
place, with title rival Gabriele Tarquini just a couple of tenths
behind in eighth.
The field was tightly packed at the front, with just eight tenths of
a second covering the top 12 cars around the 3.8-mile street circuit.
The session was interrupted just once when Jaap van Lagen crashed at Curva R on his out lap and blocked the track. Pos Driver Team Time Gap 1. Augusto Farfus BMW 320Si 2:33.624 2. James Thompson Honda Accord 2:33.711 +0.087 3. Nicola Larini Chevrolet Lacetti 2:33.793 +0.169 4. Felix Porteiro BMW 320Si 2:33.815 +0.191 5. Alain Menu Chevrolet Lacetti 2:33.889 +0.265 6. Robert Huff Chevrolet Lacetti 2:33.914 +0.290 7. Yvan Muller Seat Leon 2:34.024 +0.400 8. Gabriele Tarquini Seat Leon 2:34.234 +0.610 9. Tiago Monteiro Seat Leon 2:34.285 +0.661 10. Alessandro Zanardi BMW 320Si 2:34.325 +0.701 11. Rickard Rydell Seat Leon 2:34.363 +0.739 12. Jordi Gene Seat Leon 2:34.433 +0.809 13. Andy Priaulx BMW 320Si 2:35.282 +1.658 14. Tom Coronel Seat Leon 2:35.342 +1.718 15. Jorg Muller BMW 320Si 2:35.884 +2.260 16. Sergio Hernandez BMW 320Si 2:36.031 +2.407 17. Franz Engstler BMW 320Si 2:36.201 +2.577 18. Andre Couto Honda Accord 2:37.956 +4.332 19. Manabu Orido Chevrolet Lacetti 2:38.961 +5.337 20. Takayuki Aoki BMW 320Si 2:39.129 +5.505 21. Matthew Marsh BMW 320Si 2:39.701 +6.077 22. Kirill Ladygin Lada 110 2:42.204 +8.580 23. George Tanev BMW 320Si 2:44.516 +10.892 24. Joseph Meszei Honda Civic 2:45.445 +11.821 25. Andrei Romanov BMW 320Si 2:46.419 +12.795 26. Viktor Shapovalov Lada 110 2:46.573 +12.949 27. Lei Kit Meng Toyota Altezza 2:47.382 +13.758 28. Masaki Kano BMW 320I 2:51.330 +17.706 29. Ibrahim Okyay BMW 320Si 2:52.273 +18.649 30. Melvin Choo BMW 320Si 3:09.467 +35.843
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http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/72098 - autosport.com
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Posted By: kbannon
Date Posted: 15-November-2008 at 18:35
BMW Team UK’s Priaulx secures front-row grid position in Macau.
14-11-2008 Press Release
Macau,
14th November 2008. In an eventful qualifying session at Macau’s “Guia
Circuit”, Andy Priaulx (GB) claimed second on the grid for the 23rd
round of the FIA World Touring Car Championship. The triple world
champion set a personal best time of 2:30.458 minutes, and finished
just 0.173 seconds behind Chevrolet’s Alain Menu (CH), who took pole
position the same way he had done in 2007. BMW Team Germany’s Augusto
Farfus (BR) led for most of the session, but had to make do with fifth
following an accident on his final flying lap.
Farfus’ team-mate Jörg Müller (DE) posted the tenth-fastest lap in
the final qualifying session of the year, while the BMW Team
Italy-Spain drivers, Félix Porteiro (ES) and Alessandro Zanardi (IT),
were 13th and 14th respectively.
Priaulx produced a thrilling finish to the 45-minutes of qualifying
and set his fastest lap on his final attempt, with just a few seconds
remaining on the clock. He commented: “I am very pleased with being
where I am. It has been a tough year for me but it is nice to be at the
front again, and I hope we can take that place into the race. The red
flags did not disrupt my session thankfully. As long as I drive well,
push hard and finish the races then I shall be very happy with myself
and try to finish the season on a high note.”
As is traditional round Macau’s twisty street circuit, several
incidents spiced up the show, with two of them causing the red flag to
come out. First it was BMW privateer driver, Masaki Kano (JP), who
stopped in a dangerous place, then an accident involving title
contender Gabriele Tarquini (IT) brought about the second stoppage
about 14 minutes before the end.
Farfus was on his 14th lap when he also hit the barrier and was
forced to park his BMW 320si WTCC on the side of the track. “It’s a
pity, we had the chance to do better today,” said the 25-year-old.
“With my first two sets of new tyres I was able to set the pace at the
front and was leading. On my third attempt, however, I couldn’t get the
best out of the new tyres as I ran into traffic.”
Müller, a triple Macau Guia Race winner, added: “For me it was far
from easy today. The grip from the tyres was different every lap - on
some laps I had understeer, on others oversteer. From tenth it will be
more difficult to keep out of any trouble on the first corner on
Sunday, but I will do my best not to be involved in any dramas.”
Race one at the “Guia Circuit” will start on Sunday at 12:00hrs
local time (04:00hrs GMT), the second race will get underway at
13:15hrs (05:15hrs GMT). The two rounds will be televised by Eurosport
International and also be streamed live on the internet, at
http://www.bmw-motorsport.com - www.bmw-motorsport.com .
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Posted By: thepits
Date Posted: 15-November-2008 at 20:35
Eurosport timings:-
15/11 23:00 Qualifying (Re-Run) ... followed by
15/11 23:45 morning warm-up (Live)
16/11 04:00 Race 1 (Live) ... followed by
16/11 04:45 Race 2 (Live)
set your alarms
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Posted By: kbannon
Date Posted: 16-November-2008 at 18:41
Priaulx scores two podiums for BMW to conclude WTCC season in Macau.
16-11-2008 Press Release
Macau,
16th November 2008. In the 2008 FIA World Touring Car Championship’s
season finale at Macau’s “Guia Circuit”, Andy Priaulx (GB) claimed a
podium position for BMW Team UK in each of the two races. In the 23rd
round of the year, the triple world champion crossed the line second,
just 0.523 seconds behind the race winner, Chevrolet’s Alain Menu (CH).
In the chaotic second nine lap sprint race Menu’s team-mate Robert Huff
(GB) took victory, with Priaulx securing his ninth podium result of the
season by coming third.
BMW Team Germany’s Augusto Farfus (BR) finished fourth in race one,
so scoring five points. Alessandro Zanardi (IT) put in an excellent
performance for BMW Team Italy-Spain in the second race: He had started
from the pit lane, but still managed to finish fifth. Farfus’
team-mate, Jörg Müler (DE), retired in race two, after coming home
tenth in race one. BMW Team Italy-Spain’s Félix Porteiro (ES) finished
fourth in race one, but only completed the formation lap in race two
and was not able to start due to a technical problem.
Yvan Muller (FR), like Priaulx, also made it onto the podium in
both races. Thanks to this the SEAT driver increased his points’ tally
to 114 and secured his first world championship title. Muller succeeds
Priaulx, who had not only won all three world titles since 2005, but
also the 2004 European Championship. The BMW works driver scored 81
points this year, earning him fourth in the drivers’ classification.
Priaulx is the best-placed BMW driver in the 2008 championship. In the
Manufacturers’ Championship, BMW added 23 points to its tally, giving
it a total of 274 and consolidating its second place in the
manufacturers’ championship – behind SEAT, but ahead of Chevrolet and
Honda. BMW privateer Sergio Hernández (ES) of Proteam Motorsport won
the Independents’ Trophy.
Andy Priaulx (BMW Team UK):
“Once again this year Macau was good to me. Congratulations to Yvan
Muller. Gabriele Tarquini gave me his European title in 2004 and I now
hand the world title to Yvan. It is an honour to give the championship
to a quality driver. I am proud to be the best BMW driver again.”
Alessandro Zanardi (BMW Team Italy-Spain):
“It’s very nice to conclude the season with this unexpected
success. I dedicate these four points to my team. The guys put in a
tremendous effort between the two races to give me the chance to take
part in race two. Congratulations to Yvan Muller, he is a worthy
champion.”
Augusto Farfus (BMW Team Germany):
“It’s not easy to cope with a retirement when you are leading the
race on the final lap. But it somehow reflects how this season went for
me. I’m sorry that James Thompson was forced to retire. This was my
only chance to overtake him. Maybe he didn’t expect an attack there.
Congratulations to SEAT and Yvan Muller. To beat your team-mates by
such a clear margin is impressive.”
Jörg Müller (BMW Team Germany):
“Obviously you don’t want to finish a long season in such a manner
– most importantly not in Macau, which I really like. On the first laps
of race one I had massive understeer and lost ground. In race two, I
couldn’t avoid hitting Andre Couto, who had crashed into the barriers
right in front of me. Yvan Muller’s performance this year deserves my
highest respect.”
Félix Porteiro (BMW Team Italy-Spain):
“I’m really disappointed by this end to the season. In race one I
even had the chance to bag an eighth-place finish. But then persistent
brake problems caused me to have an accident, and I lost several
positions. On the formation lap of the second race, my car simply
stalled due to a problem with the electronics.”
14.11. - 16.10.2008 Macau (MO), China, Podium, Andy Priaulx (GBR), BMW
Team UK, BMW 320si WTCC - "Guia Circuit", 2008 FIA World Touring Car
Championship (WTCC).
14.11. - 16.10.2008 Macau (MO), China, Andy Priaulx (GBR), BMW Team UK,
BMW 320si WTCC - "Guia Circuit", 2008 FIA World Touring Car
Championship (WTCC)
------------- Current: 2009 E60 520d "Sport" tractor Previous: 1989 E30 320i SE 1997 E39 523i 2003 E39 525i Sport Individual
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Posted By: thepits
Date Posted: 16-November-2008 at 18:43
Priaulx scores two podiums for BMW to conclude WTCC season in Macau. |
still only came 3rd in the championship though - oh well, about time some-one else won it
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Posted By: thepits
Date Posted: 16-November-2008 at 18:49
thepits wrote:
still only came 3rd in the championship though.. |
oops - I mean 4th - I forgot Huffy in the "Chevvy"
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