Father's Day 400

[kiwiracer]

V8 SuperTourers confirm date, format for Taupo

The V8 SuperTourers first endurance meeting will be held at Taupo on the Father’s Day weekend

V8 SuperTourers has confirmed the date and the format for the category’s first appearance at Taupo.
As first revealed by Speedcafe.com, the fifth round of the V8 SuperTourers will be held at Taupo on September 1-2, to be known as the Father’s Day 400.
The Taupo event will be the first of three two-driver weekend, with a unique system in place for the category’s inaugural ‘enduro.’
The meeting will also be V8 SuperTourers biggest field to date, with two extra cars set to join the field for the event.
Practice on Saturday morning will comprise two one-hour sessions. In the first session, either regular driver or the assigned co-driver may drive the car, however, in the second session, only the co-driver is permitted on the track.
In the afternoon, two qualifying sessions, one for each driver, will be run with a short, 20 minute break in between. Each driver must complete a qualifying session and the time set by each driver will be their car’s starting position for the two races on Sunday.
For the two races, each driver must each start a race before a compulsory driver swap between laps 30 and 40 occurs. Both races will be in excess of 200km and the teams can decide how much of that distance each driver completes within the defined 10 lap pit window. Teams will be permitted to change tyres, however, refuelling is prohibited.
V8 SuperTourers managing director Mark Petch says the unique format will be a bonus for fans.
“This will be a format that will give the public a chance to see both drivers in action in the car, and one which will put pressure on both drivers to put in a good qualifying lap,” said Petch.
“It all adds to the excitement and the show and puts an emphasis on teams to make sure their second drivers are prepared and competitive, and not out there just to play a minor role.
“Both drivers must start a race, in their respective qualifying position, adding further to the excitement – plus, of course, there is the compulsory driver change, which is always one of the focal points of an endurance race.
“There are lots of new strategies for the teams and drivers to get their heads around, but there is going to be a huge amount of track time for the V8 SuperTourer cars and drivers, and what true petrol head Dad and his family wouldn’t just love that!”
Taupo’s Father’s Day 400 is expected to have half a dozen Australian-based drivers compete, along with other highly-credentialed New Zealand stars.
Tickets will go on sale this week with weekend passes starting at $40. Organisers will also offer a GA upgrade along the bank on the back straight so that fans can watch from their cars.


Sounding like a great event already, great to see the pressure on the Co-Driver to do the business. I hear McLauglins Co Driver is Non- Australian as well but no names. 20 Cars and 40 Drivers.....

[adbutler]

can't wait. love how they're doing the qualifying.

[NZSTfan]

Sorry, i have double posted this in the SuperTourer thread....my bad

May as well leave it there for now, unless the mods want to remove it.

But anyway 20 cars, what a result and one assumes the Edgell and Evans will be in the 2 new beasties??

[promax]

umm don't mean Simon McLennan

[NZSTfan]

Yeah i think you're right promax as Evans will be teaming up with Scott, something that has been mentioned on here but i forgot about that .........to busy at work to remember all of the names etc...lol

Edgell is not confirmed from what i can tell, so i guess its only rumoured at this stage.

[kiwiracer]

Better add Jacques Villeneuve to a V8ST Co Drive at some point, esp as he's filling in for Murphy (V8SC) at Townsville in a few weeks. Maybe even in Mr Murphy's (V8ST) itself. What's the chance...

[NZSTfan]

oooh now that would be cool

[promax]

Originally Posted by kiwiracer

Better add Jacques Villeneuve to a V8ST Co Drive at some point, esp as he's filling in for Murphy (V8SC) at Townsville in a few weeks. Maybe even in Mr Murphy's (V8ST) itself. What's the chance...

probably slim

[kiwiracer]

Originally Posted by promax

probably slim

But better odds than NZV8s having 20 cars on the grid at the First round, with quality drivers and all within say 2sec of Pole time....

[kiwiracer]

Originally Posted by NZSTfan

oooh now that would be cool

They could Team him up with his good friend ( Sorry no names) who is also trying to get a drive for Pukekohe....

[promax]

Originally Posted by kiwiracer

But better odds than NZV8s having 20 cars on the grid at the First round, with quality drivers and all within say 2sec of Pole time....

what does the NZV8s have to do with this?

Villeneuve is racing a Kelly car in V8SC. now why would that automatically mean he would race a different car, for a different team, in a different series, in a different country? Jacques Villeneuve is a big name driver.. one who's name will probably cost you a bit of money to sign. there are drivers out there that would probably pay for their driver and do just as good as job as Villeneuve in a ST. do teams have money to throw at driver like Villeneuve? do they racer?

[NZSTfan]

On the other hand maybe JV is keen to come to kiwiland to go fishing, surfing, bush-bashing, anything really. He could head here for some time out and then be treated like a rock-star if he races for the ST series.

I mean at the end of the day isn't there still talk of Scott Dixon and Tony Kanaan etc heading this way for some enduros?

Maybe, just maybe, some drivers would just like the experience of racing somewhere else, and maybe they are rich enough as it is so they don't necessarily need the coin, just something else/different to add to their CV.

[promax]

kiwi was getting his/her panties in a twist over my "probably slim" comment.. so i just expanded a bit on my 1st post

then again.. anything is possible

[harcey]

Originally Posted by promax

kiwi was getting his/her panties in a twist over my "probably slim" comment.. so i just expanded a bit on my 1st post

then again.. anything is possible

dont be surprised if there are only a couple of v8SC drivers for the enduros.......mutterings from some team bosses suggest they are not happy(perhaps read feel a bit threatened) about letting their "salaried" drivers run over here....dont be surprised if the likes of SVG actually dont end up on the grid.......put it this way,i dont think the highly paid SC drivers will appear unless a serious cheque is written as compensation to their bosses......sort of makes sense really.

[Icarus_nz]

It would be healthy either way.
Its nice to see a domestic series carving out its own space.
To my understanding this has been the aim of any New Zealand Premier Class since day dot.

[kiwiracer]

The Co-driver signings have been a little slow of late for the Endurance Series, Taupo only 2 Months away.

Confirmed so far

Coulthard/and who ever fills in for Murph
Knight/Alex Davison
Baird/Holdsworth
McIntyre/Lester


Nothing so far for,

Richards
Reid
Pedersen
Bell
Booth
Manuel
Fogg
Emery
Scott
Moore
Heimgartner
Corkery
Gaunt
McLaughlin-I hear driver signed-Big Name

Anybody else have any news or drivers to add

Drivers mentioned or tested
Jack Perkins, Owen Kelly, Scott Dixon, Tony Kanann, Tim Edgell,Shane Van Gis

[JC Ohope]

Originally Posted by kiwiracer

Nothing so far for,

Heimgartner

I thought it had been announced that Heimgartner would be pairing up with Paul Morris for the Enduro's?

[harcey]

Originally Posted by kiwiracer

The Co-driver signings have been a little slow of late for the Endurance Series, Taupo only 2 Months away.

Confirmed so far

Coulthard/and who ever fills in for Murph
Knight/Alex Davison
Baird/Holdsworth
McIntyre/Lester


Nothing so far for,

Richards
Reid
Pedersen
Bell
Booth
Manuel
Fogg
Emery
Scott
Moore
Heimgartner
Corkery
Gaunt
McLaughlin-I hear driver signed-Big Name

Anybody else have any news or drivers to add

Drivers mentioned or tested
Jack Perkins, Owen Kelly, Scott Dixon, Tony Kanann, Tim Edgell,Shane Van Gis

i am lead to believe waite with gaunt/william bamber with richards/morris with heimgartner/Dom storey with richard moore/simon evans with kayne scott----i would expect Halliday to be in one of the IMS cars....

[adbutler]

This was just posted on John McIntyre's face book page:
Talented teenage racer William Bamber is set to join Steve Richards in the #556 Falcon for the first-ever V8SuperTourer endurance race event in Taupo in September.

[Biggy G]

Bell & Peter Sharmach, announced on the Bell Racing FB page a couple weeks back.

[NZSTfan]

Sweet, its all starting to come together then

Any more news on the Corkery/Giz partnership? is that a goer?

[kiwiracer]

Originally Posted by NZSTfan

Sweet, its all starting to come together then

Any more news on the Corkery/Giz partnership? is that a goer?

Yip the field is starting to firm up over the last few days, with plenty more to come and only 60 Days to wait.

Interesting News Today for McLaughlin... Indian Money heading there way

[kiwiracer]

Originally Posted by NZSTfan

Sweet, its all starting to come together then

Any more news on the Corkery/Giz partnership? is that a goer?

Yip the field is starting to firm up over the last few days, with plenty more to come and only 60 Days to wait.

Interesting News Today for McLaughlin... Indian Money heading there way

[NZSTfan]

Originally Posted by kiwiracer

Yip the field is starting to firm up over the last few days, with plenty more to come and only 60 Days to wait.

Interesting News Today for McLaughlin... Indian Money heading there way

oooh, please divulge please dont tell me Kathikeyan (sp?) is heading over he'll hold up the rest of the field (thats a joke btw)

[kiwiracer]

Originally Posted by NZSTfan

oooh, please divulge please dont tell me Kathikeyan (sp?) is heading over he'll hold up the rest of the field (thats a joke btw)

Check out story at www.speedcafe.com

Interesting btw