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16 Aug 2011, 15:12 (Ref:2941756) | #1 | ||
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TTA 2012 - The new kid on the block
Tomorrow at 12 TTA will hold its press conference to officially launch its 2012 concept. Hopefully we will get some answers on this new serie and see what they are really about.
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17 Aug 2011, 11:36 (Ref:2942046) | #2 | |
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Buys SRL. Well, colour me surprised. Hope Lindström made sure the GT's are given equal billing when they signed the contract, would be a damn shame to see it reduced to second fiddle. And even as he spoke I thought his words were somewhat disconected from the rest of the gang - the GT's are, as he said, a tried and tested concept with cars all over Europe. Which is (spec series aside) one of TTA's major problems.
So still not sure why you would lay the foundations of a strong series only to let someone else come in and steal your thunder. Well, I suppose they (Leif-Stanley-Poker) got out on the plus side money wise and can stay involved with less risks. Not the fate of many who starts a racing series. It does give them a lot better footing to stand on than SSK with Porsche. FrenchSpecs, GT's, Abarth, Ginetta's and the motorcycles is a package that will fill a day of racing no problems. Carrera Cup stays with STCC, which isn't surprising what with Solvalla and the GT's being a direct competitor. Not that it matters much in the long run, the GT's are a stronger platform and should win out in the end. Might still get a decent enough field in CC but nothing compared to the GT field. Final race in Gothenburg? Pretty sad that both series will run gimmick finales. It's no way to decide a championship, though I suppose Gothenburg is more survivable than Solvalla. Makes you wonder how the contracts looked when TTA were able to steal it from STCC, whether or not Volvo owns the track. Unless it expired this year (which I don't think it did?), you would have thought a normal contract would have put it on both calendars (or even just STCC, if it had been written by Bernie). No Mantorp or Knutstorp? I mean, there's two TBA's, sure, but what about the GT and Autoropa cooperation? Seems like a strong tieup to throw in the dustbin. Quite survivable with this new package, yes, but was there really no way to work those events into the main calendar? And you run on three permanent tracks when we've got eight in this country (same applies to STCC with four), please come the **** on. But hey, Anderstorp is back, so there's at least something to like. And as far as I could hear there was nothing about TV coverage mentioned? Though I suppose it shouldn't be as difficult now with the GT package. Would be damn funny if both STCC and this ended up on Viasat. In closing, surprised to see it end up with SRL? Yeah. But it takes away many organizational questions and makes it happening a lot more likely. And with STCC's quite frankly useless TV coverage still going strong, whoever can actually bring a race to the viewer and let them know what's going on (as opposed to randomly filming cars going by) will probably get out on top. Provided that the racing isn't dull. |
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Michael Delaney was wrong. In between is not waiting - in between is the glory, the passion. In between is what elevates racing. |
17 Aug 2011, 11:56 (Ref:2942057) | #3 | ||
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By Gothenberg, have they poached the street race from the STCC?
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17 Aug 2011, 12:39 (Ref:2942074) | #4 | ||
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17 Aug 2011, 16:07 (Ref:2942159) | #5 | ||
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17 Aug 2011, 17:01 (Ref:2942178) | #6 | |
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The total SRL package is good. With Porsche Cup run by Flash I assumed they would join SRL. But maybe there's a contract between STCC and Porsche Cup which prevents that.
I hoped they would show a car or at least some images. Still don't understand why they want to use KERS. |
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17 Aug 2011, 20:49 (Ref:2942268) | #7 | ||
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And I assume the Porsche Cup will fold and the cars there will be allowed to run in a Carrera Cup B class. CC will need all the cars they can get, and there's no logic in running classes that are direct competitors on your race weekends. The people who would run there could easily run in GTB instead - no party will have any interest in keeping it going. As far as I'm aware there should be some sort of contract governing this between FEAB and Porsche, just like CC. |
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Michael Delaney was wrong. In between is not waiting - in between is the glory, the passion. In between is what elevates racing. |
17 Aug 2011, 21:04 (Ref:2942273) | #8 | ||
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To be honest my only issue with the TTA has been the rules. I'm just not a fan of Solution-F. I would have no issue if they came up with a rule set that was cheaper then NGTC, but still kept production based cars. Would make sense if they just gone with the same rules that Superstars uses?
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17 Aug 2011, 21:23 (Ref:2942278) | #9 | ||
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As far as touring car regulations in general go I expect nothing will work out. Six, seven, maybe eight years from now, a bunch of failed or struggling championships with second hand cars noone wants to buy. If we're lucky maybe these years will teach people to come togeather and write a universal set of regulations instead of splitting the market ever and ever more. |
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Michael Delaney was wrong. In between is not waiting - in between is the glory, the passion. In between is what elevates racing. |
18 Aug 2011, 09:19 (Ref:2942416) | #10 | |
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After 15 years of Super Touring and S2000 (was there a STCC before?) moving to a 100% spec series is in my opinion a step to far. With Sweden being a small country I understand they go for something more cheaper as S2000 and NGTC but why not a compromise? E.g. spec chassis powered by a NGTC engine (so far the engine part of NGTC is a big success) or spec chassis with original body parts attached like the new New Zealand V8 Supertourer or Argentinian/Brazilian TC2000.
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18 Aug 2011, 10:38 (Ref:2942449) | #11 | |||
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Personally I'm dreaming that they somehow, someway, will make it possible to run at either configuration at Gotland Ring. I expect that it will remain a dream, however. Quote:
I see what you're saying, but at the same time a spec series is what provides the best racing in Sweden (shown on TV, anyway) right now; Camaro Cup. It's bloody fantastic. Ok so I might be a tad biased, with my love for V8s and american-style racing overall, but anyway... Last edited by rustyfan; 18 Aug 2011 at 10:49. |
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18 Aug 2011, 11:12 (Ref:2942457) | #12 | |
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I have seen only 2 Camaro races and I like it too but at the end it stays a single make cup.
BTW they should allow Mustang and Charger bodies. |
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18 Aug 2011, 12:00 (Ref:2942480) | #13 | |||
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18 Aug 2011, 12:46 (Ref:2942501) | #14 | ||
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As for TTA, I like their concept about how to arrange a championship, get the teams involved and how they will work together with the track owners. But I really don't like the cars they'll be using. I haven't heard or read many people in Sweden saying good things about the racing in DTM lately, and it's not even broadcasted on Swedish TV this season. But still, Swedes tend to think that DTM-style cars is God's gift to motorsport and that's what everyone wants to see, and not the "taxi cars" used in STCC today. The TTA car is really what the drivers want to race, and the teams like it since the cars are ready and all they can focus on is setups, no expensive development. Will be interesting to see what the spectators think. It's like "mail-order" racing where you buy, sorry, "lease" or "rent", a car that is turn-key ready. No more new Polestar Racing or Brovallen companies that develops their own cars through racing in TTA. Such new companies have to develop through other disciplines. No manufacturer has shown any support for TTA so far (officially), and from what I heard in the pits at Karlskoga they still haven't got the rights from any manufacturer to use the silhuettes of Volvo's S60, BMW's 3-Series etc. But TTA said that "the manufacturers haven't closed the door for us, but nothing is confirmed yet". V8 Star, anyone? Unbranded plastic cars with oldschool Nissan V6's is not what I like to see, and then it doesn't matter if Göransson, Rustad or Flash himself is behind the wheel. To be honest, that's the guys you most likely will see in the TTA cars, except new and young talents. Rumors says the Carl-Philip Bernadotte will drive in TTA, but there goes the "elite" from that championship I feel sorry for the way motorsport on top level in Sweden has taken. And now there's a sandbox "war" between the two parts. It's typically Swedish, once we have a good thing going, our ego will make us think we're bigger and can do things like other, larger series or markets, has failed to do (V8 Star another example) or can do (V8 Supercars, DTM, NASCAR). But in the end we're just a small country in an offside sparsely populated region of the world, with a small market for car manufacturers. Let's just hope things work out in the next couple of years, but with an uncertain financial climate in the coming years, 2 large racing leagues might be too big for tiny Sweden. I really hope I'm wrong and has to eat it up in 2013 or 2014! |
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19 Aug 2011, 07:20 (Ref:2942815) | #15 | |||||
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The "taxi cars", on the other hand, tend to offer closer racing but wow do they look slow or what? Where's the excitement? Where's the feeling that when you're watching a driver you can just tell he's on the ragged edge, wrestling his car through the corners and really driving it? Now now, I'm not saying the S2000 drivers aren't driving hard, because I know they are, but you sure can't tell from the outside for the most part because it just looks so... slow. I suppose all the FWD cars lessen the spectacle as well. Real race cars use RWD Quote:
Not even Formula 1 or MotoGP qualify. Quote:
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19 Aug 2011, 23:49 (Ref:2943184) | #16 | |||||||||||
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Of course there is logic in Bernadotte racing - he's decent enough, these cars seems to be of the more forgiving and accessible type (similiar to Grand Am), and as Flash will have to find grid fillers somewhere any he won't have to pay for is great. You really would expect to see Lindland in one of the cars. But of course they can't use Bernadotte unless he starts contending for wins in CC, they'd be shooting themselves massively in the foot. Put him in the GT's with a pro co-driver, he'd be very useful there. I actually would quite like to see him in a GT-Am entry at Le Mans - would be a real contender there. Quote:
MotoGP gets close since they've only really got Abraham, and he's a very talented kid as well. F1, true. But we're speaking in context of the Swedish racing scene here, so I guess everyone down to Ebbesson qualify in their eyes? Since he was allowed to test the car. Ahlberg would be out of luck presumably. But the only way you can properly define it as an "elite" championship is if you only have paid, professional drivers. I mean, they said they'd got a lot of submissions from teams but wanted to make sure the spots were secured by ones coming from the "elite". Sooo... does Engström, Mattias, Stureson et al qualify? They go out and find sponsorship to fund themselves. This part is what I predict will become the real laughing stock. |
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Michael Delaney was wrong. In between is not waiting - in between is the glory, the passion. In between is what elevates racing. |
25 Sep 2011, 17:53 (Ref:2960751) | #17 | |
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So Volvo signed a 4 year deal entering 4 cars.
Ekblom moves to Volvo. |
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25 Sep 2011, 22:23 (Ref:2960895) | #18 | ||
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Will circuits get split, or will they let both championships visit them?
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26 Sep 2011, 01:21 (Ref:2960930) | #19 | ||
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Right now it looks a lot like a split...
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26 Sep 2011, 10:46 (Ref:2961068) | #20 | ||
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And this is just bad! The same kind of behaviour already damaged American Open-Wheel racing badly, when Indianapolis locked-out CART. Any little chance for "peaceful" coexistence between the two series dwindles more and more, why the "victor" will end up with less than he had before.
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26 Sep 2011, 17:57 (Ref:2961250) | #21 | |||
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I think it will be very clear when the 2012 season starts which serie will survive into 2013 and which one who wont. |
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26 Sep 2011, 21:13 (Ref:2961362) | #22 | ||
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27 Sep 2011, 11:06 (Ref:2961583) | #23 | |
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It'll all depend on who's the most willing and able to spend the most amount of money to get their series to look good. But just because you make it to 2013 doesn't mean you'll survive - spending money now is all well and good but you've got to have a sustainable business model to go beyond that.
I did ask for some real news from TTA and Ekblom to Volvo definitely is. If Volvo does give up on WTCC they already have three drivers - Dahlgren, Rustad and Ekblom. Have to say you could do worse than putting Radermecker in the last car. Knows the car, which has got to be an advantage for the whole team this first year, and I think enough people remember him from BTCC for it to have some media value. And he's pretty decent. |
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Michael Delaney was wrong. In between is not waiting - in between is the glory, the passion. In between is what elevates racing. |
27 Sep 2011, 11:55 (Ref:2961608) | #24 | ||
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By the sound of the article on TouringCarTimes, a parallel WTCC program for Volvo should not be excluded.
http://www.touringcartimes.com/article.php?id=6794 Is Volvo continuing in the Belgian series? If not, they could also get Eric van de Poele, an ex-F1 driver. |
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27 Sep 2011, 22:04 (Ref:2961913) | #25 | |
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Yeah one would think that history would've taught us a lesson but no; when big enough egos get involved there always seems to be a total train wreck waiting around the corner.
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