NEWS // FERRARI UNVEILS NEW GT2 CONTENDER

Our friends at Axis of Oversteer managed to snag a photo of Ferrari's new GT2 contender. Based on the 458 Italia, Ferrari's new GT2 class competitor replaces the wildly successful F430 GT2, which won its class in both the American Le Mans Series and the FIA GT Championship. And while we're not keen on the aesthetic, we have to assume the 458 will be a marked improvement over its predecessor // [comment]

EYE CANDY // INSIDE THE AUDI R15 TDI

A lot of us work in office buildings, seated at desks or workstations. Some of us might even be relegated to cubicles. But there are those who spend their days here, at the wheel of a racing car. I happen to know a few of these guys (#TedAnthonyJr. #JoeyAtterbury). Their days are spent at the helm of rally cars, race cars and driving simulators. They work long hours, coaching at driving schools, preparing for the next race weekend. But can we really call that work? I suppose anything can get old. The love can get lost at some point, right? But for those of us riding desks and not dirt bikes Monday through Friday, we day dream of having an office like the one featured above... Do us proud gentlemen. We're all a little jealous // [comment]

NEWS // TOURATECH SPONSORS STREET FOR 2011 DAKAR RALLY

We are less than a month away from one of the greatest motorsport races in the world, the 2011 Dakar Rally. Entered into this years competition is Ellensburg native, Jonah Street, who hopes to to win the 5,900 mile rally with the help of Touratech-USA. Street, who will race his Yamaha WR540 across South America, will be in Seattle tomorrow night for a send-off party being held at the Touratech headquarters... [read more]

Touratech-USA has provided support for Jonah's race efforts, including motorcycle equipment, fundraising, and a significant financial contribution. Touratech-USA even created a limited edition Jonah Street Dakar Rally shirt with all proceeds going directly to Jonah. This project ended up raising $10,000 for his 2011 Rally effort.

“The idea to create a limited edition shirt was awesome and ended up raising way more money than we expected" said Street. "The guys at Touratech have done a lot of the groundwork which has given me more time to focus on training and preparing for the race.”



Prior to Dakar, Jonah was a dominant force in Baja with 3 consecutive wins in the Baja 500 and four 2nd place finishes in the Baja 1,000. In his first Dakar Rally, he posted multiple top-3 stage finishes and managed 17th overall. In the 2009 Dakar Rally, Jonah won stage 5 before pulling out of the race with an injury. In the 2010 Dakar Rally, Jonah finished 7th overall, and a few months later became the first American to win Rally Mongolia. Many people close to the sport regard Jonah as America’s best chance for a win at Dakar in 2011.

Fans can help Jonah get to Dakar by purchasing a limited edition T-shirt or joining Jonah’s fan club called the Riff Raff.

Images and Info: Touratech-USA
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

VIDEO // AYRTON SENNA - JAPANESE GP QUALIFYING 1989

Sit back and watch as Ayrton Senna puts his Mclaren Mp4/5 on pole ahead of the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix at the Suzuka Circuit. Video comes to us courtesy of Motorsport Retro // [comment]

VIDEO // ROGER CLARK & THE 1972 RAC RALLY

In 1972, British rally racer, Roger Clark, at the wheel of his Ford Escort RS1600, collected a famous victory at the RAC Rally, ending a 12 year reign of Scandinavian dominance. Driving through the night, Clark bested a handful of WRC greats to include Stig Blomqvist, Simo Lampinen, Shekhar Mehta and Ove Andersson. The video featured above is a tribute to Clark's victory // [comment]

EYE CANDY // ANDRETTI GOES AIRBORNE

Thought you guys might enjoy this shot of Michael Andretti getting some air in his McLaren MP4/8. And while I'm not entirely sure what Grand Prix this photo was taken at, I have to assume it was either the 1993 Canadian GP at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve or the French GP held at Magny-Cours on July 4, 1993. I make this assumption based on the fact that Andretti finished only six races during his one and only year at the wheel of a Formula One car. I'm sure Camden Thrasher will correct me, though // [comment]

VIDEO // FIA GT1 CHAMPIONSHIP @ INTERLAGOS

Check out this great clip from the penultimate round of the 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship held at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace in São Paulo, Brazil last weekend. Featured in the video is the long mid-race battle involving Clairay, Bartels, Mutsch and Muller. Enjoy! // [comment]

NEWS // MALDONADO CONFIRMED @ WILLIAMS F1 FOR 2011

Williams F1 today confirmed that Pastor Maldonado will contest the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship for the AT&T Williams team. The appointment finalises the team’s line up for next year following confirmation in November that Rubens Barrichello will remain with the British squad for a further season.

Venezuelan-born Maldonado started his motorsport career in karts at the age of seven, his passion for the sport ignited by a father and uncles who all competed. Having won seven national karting titles, Pastor moved into Formula racing in 2003. With three series championships and 30 wins to his credit, most notably a superlative victory at Monaco in only his debut year in GP2 in 2007, Pastor brings a wealth of experience to the team at only 25 years of age... [read more]

Pastor’s promotion into the pinnacle of motorsport follows an impressive 2010 campaign in the GP2 championship in which he was crowned champion and became the only driver to have ever won six successive feature races in a single season. Pastor also comes to the team with nearly 2,000kms of F1 testing mileage in hand having driven all four of the Abu Dhabi test days. Pastor will make his debut in the team’s 2011 race car, the Williams Cosworth FW33, in February’s winter test programme.

On Pastor’s appointment, AT&T Williams Team Principal, Frank Williams, said, “Pastor first caught my eye in 2007 when he drove a masterful race at Monaco. Since then, he has regularly reminded us of his unquestionable talent with some skilful wins, particularly during this year’s GP2 championship, taking an unsurpassed record of six successive victories. Of course, we already know Pastor from the time he spent with the team at the Abu Dhabi test, but we are very much looking forward to developing his talent over the winter and a fruitful season with him next year.”

Pastor commented, “I feel very privileged that Williams has selected me as one of their race drivers. It is a great way to end what has already been an amazing year for me. I tested with the team in Abu Dhabi, but can’t wait to start working with everyone properly to be in the best possible shape going into next year. I will be doing my best over the winter to prepare myself, and I know the team will be working hard to ensure a successful season. 2011 will be the first time in nearly thirty years that a Venezuelan has driven a Formula One car so I will be looking to get some good results in return for the support my country has given me to help get me to this position today.”

Images and Info: Williams F1
Editorial: Neil Tozer

EVENTS // ENDURO TRIBUTE TO FALLEN HERO

Held around the rugged combat tank testing ranges at Bovington UK, the Seth Stephens Enduro was run as a fitting tribute to the Poole based marine who tragically lost his life in Afghanistan this summer. Corporal Seth Stephens is thought to have been a member of the UK's elite "Special Boat Service" – the Royal Marines’ equivalent of the SAS. He was killed in southern Afghanistan on July 1st... [read more]

The SBS have their top security base at Royal Marines Hamworthy, and their work in combat zones is shrouded in secrecy. Stephens was a keen enduro rider and was a member of the Royal Marines Poole Enduro Club. 130 riders from across the South gathered to pay their respects with a minutes silence prior to the start of the 3 hour "Hare and Hounds" type event.

Victory around the gruelling six mile course went to Nick Life from Totnes in Devon.

Photo & Editorial: Neil Tozer

VIDEO // RHYS MILLEN'S CLIMB ATTACK BRAZIL

As promised, here is the full version of Rhys Millen's run up the side of Serra Do Rio Do Rastro in Santa Catarina, Brazil during the Red Bull Xtreme Drift. The video was shot and edited by DC Chavez with a Canon 5D Mk II, Contour HD 1080P, Contour GPS and HVX200 // [comment]

PHOTO GALLERY // SUPER GT @ FUJI SPEEDWAY (PART TWO)

Featured below is part two of Masaaki Kitagawa's photo collection from the ninth and final round of the 2010 AUTOBACS Super GT Series at the Fuji International Speedway. Follow the link for a look... [read more]

























Photo(s): Masaaki Kitagawa
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

EYE CANDY // AIRBORNE @ THE GERMAN GP

Thought you guys might enjoy this shot of James Hunt taken at the 1975 German Grand Prix. Hunt, who was driving a Heskesh-Ford 308B, retired after only ten laps when a wheel came off. Of the 24 cars that qualified for the race, only ten managed to finish, with Carlos Reutemann collecting the win in his Brabham-Ford, followed shortly thereafter by Jacques Laffite (who started from 15th) and Niki Lauda // [comment]

PHOTO GALLERY // SUPER GT @ FUJI SPEEDWAY (PART ONE)

Two weeks ago, ColdTrackDays correspondent, Masaaki Kitagawa, visited the Fuji International Speedway for the ninth and final round of the 2010 AUTOBACS Super GT Series. The event, which was a non-championship round, saw both the GT300 and GT500 classes compete on the 2.835 mile circuit. And while no championship points were awarded, the action on track was as fierce as ever.

Follow the link for a handful of images... [read more]

























Photo: Masaaki Kitagawa
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey

VIDEO // MOTORSPORT - EVERY SECOND COUNTS

For those of you that didn't see this video posted to the ColdTrackDays Facebook page, check out this wonderful collection of motorsport footage uploaded by antti2phoenixbird. The video, which includes footage of everything from Formula One and MotoGP to the Dakar Rally and the World Rally Championship, also includes a handful of quotes from some of racings greatest participants // [comment]

TRIVIA // WHO, WHEN AND WHERE?

With the weekend drawing to a close I thought we'd post a trivia question for Monday morning consumption. And while it seems obvious that this is the Tyrrell P34 six-wheeler, the questions is - who is driving, what circuit are they on and when was this photo taken? Follow the link and post your answer in our comment section. First person with the correct answer wins some CTD schwag. Good luck! // [comment]

VIDEO // JEFF ZWART'S PRE-PPIHC PORSCHE PRACTICE

Jeff Zwart, a commercial film director from Woody Creek, Colorado, drove a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup in the 2WD Time Attack class at this years Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. Zwart, who had technical support from Porsche Motorsport North America and Pirelli Tires, did a bit of testing before hand and has since released this video from his shakedown run on the Los Coyotes Indian Reservation east of San Diego // [comment]

VIDEO // RHYS MILLEN'S CLIMB ATTACK BRAZIL TEASER

Check out this teaser for a forthcoming film featuring Rhys Millen and his 750 horsepower RMR Hyundai Genesis Coupe. The video, which was shot by DC Chavez using a Canon 5D Mk II, Contour HD 1080P, Contour GPS and HVX200, will highlight Millen's drive up the side of Serra Do Rio Do Rastro in Santa Catarina, Brazil. Stay tuned, as the video is scheduled to be released on Thanksgiving // [comment]

PHOTO GALLERY // FORMULA NIPPON @ FUJI SPEEDWAY

Last weekend the Formula Nippon series ran alongside the AUTOBACS Super GT Series at the Fuji International Speedway. ColdTrackDays correspondent, Masaaki Kitagawa, was trackside all weekend and was able to send us a handful of images from the eighth and final round of the championship.

Follow the link for a look... [read more]

































Photo(s): Masaaki Kitagawa
Editorial: Justin W. Coffey