2009 World Touring Car Championship

[Simon Trendell]

It a street circuit version of Monza!

 

[Ryan Callan]

I have to agree with Simon - same type of track as Monza.

Hybrid did a song called Marrakech - on their Morning Sci-Fi album.

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJGdDtOPjNk[/media]

Click here for the Marrackech Grand Prix YouTube Channel

 

[Ryan Callan]

Perhaps this track is why they dropped Monza for Imola - no need for two tracks the same? :wink:

 

[Sam J Simpson]

Think this lot beat Hybrid by a few years :laugh2: this was actually the first thing that came to mind when I read the thread title :rotfl: damn I feel old.

[media]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=wtzIwGViR5w[/media]

Sam

 

[Ryan Callan]

Wrong spelling

 

[Jon Trotter]

It looks a bit uninspiring really doesn't it. It will be nice to have another street track, but I was expecting something a bit like Porto or something a bit similar to Denver or one of the other US street tracks. I think it should give us some good races though.

 

[Nick Fine]

I'm so glad others have reacted surprised too - that really is a boring course....it's basically a loop with some pits and couple of decent turns.

Maybe they're trying to get americans into WTCC? </me ducks>

 

[Jon Trotter]

Cancel the Priualx thing - the radio here in Guernsey have said its not clear what is going to happen with Andy next year: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/7741379.stm

 

[Jose Ferreira]

Yes because WTCC want more money:beer:

 

[Wido Rossen]

Lada has confirmed that they will take part in the FIA World Touring Car Championship 2009. The promoter of WTCC, KSO, and Lada also agreed to organise a WTCC-event in Russia 2010.
"This deal is a great honour for us and we are ready to support AVTOVAZ in the preparation and homologation of their new Priora racing car. Welcome, LADA!" said KSO general manager Marcello Lotti.

This year Lada was represented by three 110 2.0 cars by the Russian Bears Motorsport-team. The goal for 2009 is to take one step up in the performance.

"We sell now 160,000 cars per year and we intend to increase these figures; motorsport is a good mean to promote our products. Our goal is to be in the middle of the pack during our first WTCC season, and then we will be working to improve. We are really ambitious!" said Boris S. Aleshin, president of the AVTOVAZ Group.

As for the possibility to bring WTCC to Russia, Lotti said:

"We will be working together with the FIA and RAF (Russian National Sporting Authority) to identify a suitable street circuit and a date for the 2010 season. Our priority is to race in Moscow."


( Source touringcartimes )

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

Great news for Jaap van Lagen Workscar next season, juuhuu.. Hopefully they will stay with Russian Bears Motorsport because those guys did maximum efforts with hardly any budget for the last years. Would be a nice reward for them also.

 

[Karl Dubois]

new lada

Also Lada Tuning CAr

Lada BIO Fuel

 

[Péter Bártfai]

I like Ladas very much! My grandfather has a 2101 in orange! (in very good shape!)
I would really like to try the WTCC Lada, even if it's not the fastest WTCC car with it's 270bhp However I saw an interview with them, where they said this car will only go a few more races at the beginning of the new season, then they'll have a new model! Their goal is to finish races in top 10! The only thing I can say: Go Ladas!

 

[Andi Sommerfeld]

BMW lines up again in 2009 WTCC - Return to the ALMS.

In 2009 BMW Motorsport will put its touring and sports car programmes into action on several popular stages, and will use racing versions of the BMW 3 series to fight for victories and titles.
BMW once again take part in the FIA World Touring Car Championship, where the marque will be aiming to recapture the World Championship titles it missed out on with the BMW 320si WTCC in 2008. The newly developed BMW M3 ALMS will line up in the American Le Mans Series, where it is charged with writing another chapter in the success story of BMW in the US. “Touring cars have traditionally been very important to BMW,” says BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen. “The same applied to GT sport, to which we are returning in 2009 with the new BMW M3. Our commitment to the World Touring Car Championship and the ALMS will allow us to demonstrate the sporting properties of our cars to a wider public.”

Between 2005 and 2007, BMW won all the Drivers’ and Manufacturers’ Championships in the WTCC. Last year it had to make do with second place for the first time. Theissen explains: “I am pleased that a compromise was reached regarding the 2009 rules. This balances out the different engine concepts and should allow for fair and even competition between the manufacturers. We are absolutely determined to be back at the top of the WTCC at the finale of the 2009 season in Macau. We shall announce our team and driver line up at a later point in time.”

29.11.2008 - (bmw-motorsport.com)

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

Thank God they stay! :thumb: great news

 

[Bram Hengeveld]

From next season a system of Compensation Weights will replace the Success Ballast system that has previously adjusted car weights based on driver results.
From next season a system of Compensation Weights will replace the Success Ballast system that has previously adjusted car weights based on driver results. Compensation Weight will balance the performance between car models rather than the difference between the drivers. Therefore all drivers in the same model of car will carry the same weight.
Although results and lap times proved its effectiveness, the Success Ballast system had two weak points, firstly it hid the identification of who really were the best drivers and secondly because of major technical differences between the cars (front or rear-wheel drive, petrol or diesel engine), forced the FIA Touring Car Bureau to issue a number of technical waivers to further balance performance.
Compensation Weight will solve these problems, being an objective system based on models (by homologation number) instead of driver's results.

How will it work?

The new system will be based on a lap time calculation process.
The best lap times of the two fastest cars of each model in qualifying, and the best two lap times of the two fastest cars of each model in both races will be averaged.
The calculation will be based on a three event rolling average, except it will be applied for the first time after the first two events.
For example, the results of Events 2, 3 and 4 will determine the Compensation Weight for Event 5.
When after this calculation, a model's average is within a 0.3s threshold in relation to the fastest model, no action will be taken.
If a model is slower than the fastest model by more than 0.3s, 10 kg will be deducted for every complete 0.1s more than the 0.3s threshold, up to a maximum of 60 kg. If subsequently the model gets within 0.3s, it will lose the weight deduction on the same basis of 10kg per 0.1 sec.
The system does not attempt to achieve exact equality; it seeks to get slower cars up to a competitive position (+0.3s). Therefore success will depend on the best car/driver/team combination and not the compensation system.

(Source: fiawtcc.com)

 

[Wido Rossen]

yep , would be boring if they left the series.

 

[Ryan Callan]

Thank god they have stayed

 

[Ryan Callan]

Getting complicated......