RACE RAP: Monday, august 30
WHINCUP REPLACEMENT THIS WEEK
Triple Eight will reveal its replacement for Jamie Whincup tomorrow morning at 0830 on the Gold Coast.
The big money is still on Broc Feeney, who is starring in Super2 with The Bulls and even raced a Hyundai Excel at Hidden Valley to help him learn the Darwin track “for the future”.
Roland Dane took a gamble on Whincup when he was a Garry Rogers’ reject joining T8 as understudy to Craig Lowndes, in a clear parallel to Feeney, but there is no certainty on who will be confirmed at Red Bull Ampol Racing.
DOOHAN IS NOW A TRUE CONTENDER
Jack Doohan proved he is a genuine contender for the FIA Formula 3 championship with a starring performance at Spa in Belgium.
Doohan grabbed a confident pole position for the Trident team that has allowed him to show his true potential in 2021, after a torrid time with HWA last year, then won a Sprint race as wet weather marred the weekend.
He started from the front in the Feature race on Sunday morning and did everything right to close down the gap to the Dennis Hauger at the top of the F3 points table.
GARDNER STARS AT SILVERSTONE
Remy Gardner did everything right to claim a memorable Moto2 win at the British Grand Prix.
He had speed but also commitment, riding up from fourth on the grid to make some impressive overtakes on the way to a win at Silverstone that shows why he will be world champion in 2021.
In the MotoGP feature, Jack Miller fell just short of third at the flag – although he held the spot briefly on the last lap – as Fabio Quartararo cemented himself as championship elect with a runaway win for Yamaha.
TAYLOR HAS A TORRID TIME IN GREENLAND
Molly Taylor is still ahead in Extreme E championship after the third round in Greenland, despite rolling during qualifying and then being stopped by a mechanical failure in the final while her co-driver Johan Kristoffersson was at the wheel.
“Our comeback fight wasn’t to be. Unfortunately we had another power cut out whilst battling for the win in the final, leaving us in P5 in the end,” Taylor says.
“It’s been a rollercoaster weekend in every sense but I’m proud of our pace and fight. It was also pretty cool to battle the start with my childhood rally hero (Sebastian Loeb). We still maintain the championship lead and our eyes fully focused forward.”
BUTTON UP FOR HISTORICS
Former world champion Jenson Button has been dabbling in all sorts of motorsport since his retirement from Formula One, most recently GT racing in England and off-road running in Baja.
Now he is turning to old-school with a commitment to driving old-timer cars at the Goodwood Revival meeting in the UK on September 17-19.
His mount for the meeting is a traditional British sports car, a Jaguar E-Type, although he faces a torrid time against a field including Ferrari 250s, Aston Martin DB4s and AC Cobras.
SUPPORT FOR S5000 IS GROWING
Confirmation of the born-again single-seater Tasman Series is helping to drive new support for the S5000 category.
The Volante Rosso Racing squad has just taken delivery of a first S5000 chassis as the experienced Porsche Carrera Cup squad takes on a new challenge.
The team is headed by former Formula One engineer Chris Papadopoulos and racer Josh Hunt, who are working towards a Tasman Series debut in November and then a full attack 2022 S5000 Australian Drivers’ Championship.
AMBROSE NASCAR FOR LEYBURN SPRINTS
Supercars rookie Brodie Kostecki will tap his NASCAR race experience in the USA when he steps into the car once used by Marcos Ambrose to win a Nationwide series race at Watkins Glen back in 2008.
He will be driving the car at the Leyburn Sprints in regional Queensland, one of the few major events to survive the latest Covid-19 restrictions.
The round-the-houses runs at Leyburn, west of Brisbane near Warwick, will happen on September 11 and 12, although Kostecki will only be driving on the Sunday.
