Australian based Miedecke Stone Motorsport have this week confirmed the sale of another of their Aston Martin Racing V12 Vantage GT3 fleet as their position themselves (already) for their ambitious 2018 plans.

Having recently sold their chassis #11 GT3 car  some weeks ago George Miedecke has confirmed their sale listing for their chassis #19 car - the car that he, Ash Walsh and Tony Bates raced at this months Bathurst 12Hr so effectively before misfortunate removed the car prematurely from that event.


The full listing for the ex. Craft Bamboo Racing car can be found HERE

That still leaves the team with one V12 Vantage GT3 (as well as a V8 Vantage GT4) that he and his father Andrew are due to race in the Australian GT Endurance Championship which starts in May.

They were due to have a car entered into the Australian GT Championship with Tony Bates but that deal sadly failed to materialise although that is still being listed on some sites.

Their plans ………………… That is for them to announce!

Photo credits - MSM

Recently appointed full Partner Status, Australian based Miedecke Stone Racing shall this weekend embark on their first round of the GT Asia Series at the Japanese Okayama circuit with their #95 Aston Martin Racing V12 Vantage GT3.

With George Miedecke now being partnered by former Techno McLaren driver Nathan Morcom the team will be hoping their late arrival into the series (Okayama is round three of the 2016 series) will not stop them making their mark against some highly competent opposition.


"Despite missing the first two race weekend of the season, I am more than confident that we have made
the necessary preparations to be competitive in Okayama. I believe in Nathan, and I'm looking
forward to racing along side him in GT Asia this season. Regardless of the results this weekend, it will
be a good the benchmark for us to improve upon for the rest of the season" said Miedecke.

Having transported their two new Aston Martin V12 Vantages over to Melbourne's Phillip Island racetrack for the fourth round of the Australian GT Championship, father and son team Andrew and George Miedecke were hoping for something a little special from their latest acquisitions.

However, a strong reality check was to creep back into both of their Matt Stone Racing prepared cars leaving the team chasing multiple, yet  relatively minor faults all through Free Practice that left the team plum last at the end of the session having only completed 4 laps. On the other hand the Tony Quinn/Daniel Gaunt AMR GT3 stablemate finished free practice in P3.


Race one was surprisingly good for the #95 former Craft Bamboo Racing car after having started 27th Miedecke Jnr elevated it to finish P9 with the Darrel Lea Quinn/Gaunt car on the podium in third.

Race 2 was however just as disappointing as the Free Practice was was a simple $2.00Aus part struck the car down for it to see out the race from the garage after only 9 laps leaving Miedecke Snr frustrated within.

Tomorrow sees the team move over to their blue and orange former Craft Bamboo racing car for the 101 lap race of the Australian Endurance Championship - hopefully things will go better for them in that!!


Photo credits - Miedecke Motorsport / Australian GT

This weekend's round of the Australian GT at Phillip Island shall see Miedecke Motorsport launch their two recently acquired Aston Martin Racing V12 Vantage GT3's in the colours that Craft Bamboo Racing last ran the cars in at the FIA GT Wold Cup in Macau.

George Miedecke said that he 'wanted the public to see the cars heritage first time out" having only replaced a couple of strategic sponsor logos!! The picture above shows the car's today whilst being prepared for tomorrows Free Practice.

See practice starting here

The three Matt Stone Racing prepared Miedecke Motorsport Vantages will participate in both the Australian GT and GT Asia series.

Photo Credit - Miedecke Motorsport

Having secured both the former Craft Bamboo Racing Aston Martin V12 Vantages a number weeks ago, the fourth round of the Australian GT Series at Phillip Island next weekend should see these two new Miedecke Motorsport cars make their debut.

With all the Miedecke cars now being prepared by V8 Series team Matt Stone Racing (formally prepared by Ross Stone Racing) it is expected than one of these cars will again be driven by the father and son combo of Andrew and George Miedecke in the two by one hour race format but as yet no official entry list is available for the other car or for the race itself.


The business plan for Miedecke is to run both former CBR cars within their domestic Australian GT series but to transfer the teams original (ex Tony Quinn car) over to Asia to run in the GT Asia championship from about their third round in Japan in early July. It is understood that from this the team shall receive full Partner status with the AMR factory.

Photo credit - Miedecke Motorsport

It was somewhat disappointing to read this morning of the news that Hong Kong based Craft Bamboo Racing has been appointed Technical Partner for Porsche Motorsport in Asia.

Spotting that the teams two Aston Martin Racing Vantages were (and still are) 'for sale' on the Racecarsdirect.com website just a couple of weeks ago we stated that the unexpected sale raised more questions than it answered - until today!

Whilst we obviously wish the team well in their new partnership we do have to mourn the loss of a very capable team from the #TeamAMR family not just in Asia but around the world.

2015 saw Darryl O'Young crowned GT Asia champion and placed an overall third in last years inaugural FIA GT World Cup in Macau.

Photo credit - CBR

Perusing through the classified ads as is sometimes the trend on dark winter evenings you would be  surprised as to what you would find on offer on one race car site! The trouble it that it sometimes raises more questions than it answers.

Checking through Racecarsdirect.com  you would be somewhat spoilt for choice with Craft Bamboo racing offering both of their V12 Vantage GT3 used in 2015 to great effect by claiming the 2015 GT Asia Series title with Darryl O'Young. Details available here and here.


Scrolling down a few pages you'd also be reunited with images of the Motionsport V12 Vantage GT3 used at last years Liqui-Moly 12Hrs at Bathurst. It's sad to realise though that that that squad will not be out again in that car somewhere in the world. Detail found here.

Over in the GT4 category it appears that Academy Motorsport is also selling one of their V8 Vantage's as used in the 2015 British GT Championship. Despite the car being brand new at the start of 2015 this sale might just be part of a 'cunning plan' for 2016, a fact intimated by the team on social media prior to Christmas. What that plan is - we will leave it to them to announce!


Happy shopping!

The inaugural FIA GT World Cup final had Craft-Bamboo Racing starting on the back foot before coming back to snatch third in both the drivers' and manufacturers' championship. Teammates, Richard Lyons and Darryl O’Young started from P6 and P8 respectively but were confident that they could make their way up the field. The lights went out and the FIA GT World Cup was underway but there was more controversy right from the start. Eduardo Mortara jumped the lights and was later given a 20 second penalty for his offence.

Lyons made a cracking start in his #99 Gulf Marine Interush Aston Martin to take several positions by Lisboa corner. Unfortunately, a late braking McLaren turned missile, rear ended Lyons and torpedoed what was looking like a very competitive challenge. The #99 driver, never having raced in Macau, made huge strides in his performance and would have been a true contender without the unwarranted contact. This put an early dent in the team’s chances of claiming the manufacturer’s title and further stacked the odds against Craft-Bamboo. O’Young made his push right from the start, but on the first lap, a damaged Porsche on its way to the pits caused the Macau champion to lose more than ten seconds and forced him to play catch up for the remainder of the race.


After an unfortunate and harsh ruling that dropped #97 w11.com driver, Stefan Mücke, from pole position to third after the qualification race on Saturday, he began the final boxed in by a slower Mercedes. It was clear though that Mücke had the pace to challenge the leaders but was finding it difficult to find a way around with the Mercedes employing a tough strategy. Over the coming laps, Mücke kept up the pressure on the Mercedes and finally got the chance to make his move but was forced dangerously close to the outside. This allowed two Audis to sneak by and dropped Mücke to fifth, but he was determined to keep his challenge alive by striking back before a wayward Porsche caused a safety car period on lap 14. After two laps behind the safety car an incident involving another Porsche making contact with the barrier caused the race to be red flagged. This was a very unfortunate end to the weekend as Mücke and O’Young were not given the chance to compete for an even greater result, knowing that they had the speed to make a difference. O’Young had been working hard in the #55 VLT and had managed to pass two drivers on the narrow Macau streets to be classified fifth by the red flag.

After being so dominant throughout the weekend, Craft-Bamboo Racing were unable to secure the FIA GT World Cup title despite the competitiveness of their trio of Aston Martins. The team scored third overall in the manufacturers’ category, missing the second spot by only one point but taking third in both categories is still a huge result for the team and a fantastic achievement among the world’s best GT teams and drivers.

On track at least in this morning's Qualification Race, Aston Martin Racing's Stefan Mucke earned a lights to flag victory aboard his #97 Craft Bamboo Racing V12 Vantage GT3 in Macau.

Having left things late in the qualifying session yesterday to claim the inaugural pole position for this new event it appears that a race restart procedure transgression earned the German a ten second post race penalty that would ultimately drop his finishing position down to fourth.

The series later confirmed that Mucke has been adjudged to have braked suddenly and without just course directly in front of Marco Engel in the following Mercedes SLS GT3 causing Engel to take avoiding action and earning the German an unfair advantage at the restart following an incident with one of the Bentley's.


Stablemates Darryl O'Young and Richard Lyons also had a good opening race starting from sixth and seventh on the grid respectively. Lyons quickly got the jump on the #55 VLT liveried car of O'Young on the opening lap to move up to sixth - a position that he would maintain until the end.

O'Young would get muscled off what racing line exists around the street circuit to drop down to ninth by lap 3 - he would later recover to finish the race in eighth - just two seconds behind the #99 Gulf liveried car of Lyons.


Tomorrow sees the eighteen lap feature race of the GT World Cup event with the drivers starting in their finishing positions from todays race. That means Mucke starts P4, Lyons P6 and O'Young P8.

Photo credits - FIA GT World Cup

Aston Martin Racing factory driver Stefan Mucke today secured pole position for the inaugural FIA GT World Cup at the Macau Grand Prix.

Representing the marque with customer team Craft Bamboo Racing the German joined team regulars Darryl O'Young (#55) and Richard Lyons (#99) with their vibrantly liveried V12 Vantage GT3's in the FIA's event designed to showcase everything that is best about GT racing.

The Hong Kong based CBR team quickly found pace and rhythm during the Free Practice sessions with Darry O'Young (2015 GT Asia Champion) heading the AMR trio in fourth behind the then domineering Mercedes with Mucke and Lyons behind in sixth and tenth places respectively. Come the second Free Practice session the #97 car of Stefan Mucke then turn the table to become the fastest car on the tight and twisty street circuit with O'Young down in sixth biy only a half second slower.


During a dramatic and red flag marred Qualifying session earlier this morning a flying Mucke left it until after the third crash induced red flag period to elevate himself from a still credible fourth up to clinch a dramatic last minute pole potion, beating the new Audi R8 of Edoardo Mortara by nearly a tenth of second (2:18:032).


Team mates O'Young also went on to secure sixth (2:19:427) and Lyons just behind in seventh (2:19:637) for the twelve lap Qualification Race on Saturday which will also determine the starting positions for the 18 lap Feature Race on Sunday.


Stefan Mücke

Craft-Bamboo Racing driver, Darryl O’Young took the 2015 GT Asia Series drivers’ championship in an incredible nail biting finish to end a roller coaster weekend of racing in Thailand. After teammate, Daniel Lloyd, started from P2 and took an early lead, the #99 Aston Martin pulled away from the competition and O’Young was able to continue expanding the gap until crossing the line to take the title. Frank Yu and Richard Lyons’ luck did not improve for the final race of the season, with Frank being hit on turn three of the first lap. This put the #88 Interush on the back foot but they fought hard to take P9 by flag fall.

Lloyd started the race from P2 knowing that the championship rested on getting ahead of the Bentley that sat on pole position. As the lights went out, Lloyd expertly placed the Aston Martin and timed his start perfectly before passing the Bentley with a superb maneuver into the first corner. The young Brit had executed the crucial championship move and set about widening the gap between their title rivals as quickly as possible. Using the clear air ahead to his advantage, Lloyd was able to dive into the pits and change over to his teammate with a healthy gap. O’Young hit the track knowing that the title rested on his ability to stay ahead and keep the Bentley at bay. Immediately his pace was impressive and began to pull away, adding to the gap that his teammate had created. O’Young drove on the limit for his entire stint, elevating his pace to another level and expanding his lead to over 11 seconds. As the flag fell for the final time this season, O’Young crossed the line eight seconds ahead and became the first Hong Kong driver to win the GT Asia Series drivers’ championship. O’Young’s title would never have been possible without the talented help from young Australian Jonathan Venter and Englishman, Daniel Lloyd, who are both members of the elite Aston Martin Evolution Academy.

The entire 2015 GT Asia Series championship has boiled down to the final round in Thailand this weekend, where Craft-Bamboo Racing will be fighting to take both the drivers’ and teams’ championship at the Chang International Circuit. #99 VLT driver, Darryl O’Young, is four points clear of his closest competitor after a stunning double win in Shanghai with teammate, Daniel Lloyd. The pair will be looking to make a repeat of their performance this weekend to seal the drivers’ championship and help Craft-Bamboo Racing to close the gap in the teams’ championship. Richard Lyons and Frank Yu will be hoping for a better weekend after a tough round in Shanghai but the pair is positive that they can deliver the results to move the team into the number one spot in the teams’ championship.

After their dominant double victory in Shanghai, Darryl O’Young was able to take the lead in the drivers’ championship and stay four points clear of his closest competitor. The #99’s season rivals in the Bentley sit only four points behind, placing them within striking distance of the VLT Aston Martin. O’Young and Lloyd will be doing everything in their power to keep the Bentley behind them while they make their final championship assault, and a good qualifying session will give them the best opportunity of staying ahead. Achieving pole position in the last two rounds, the #99 pair are set on continuing their streak and have shown how quick they can be at the head of the pack.


Richard Lyons and Frank Yu were off to a great start last round in Shanghai after taking pole and were leading for the majority of the race. Unfortunately, the pair’s bad luck struck once again and thanks to multiple incidents, prevented them from taking home a top result. With the #88 Interush Aston Martin’s pace undeniable; Lyons and Yu will be challenging at the very front of the field in Thailand and are on the hunt to capture their first win of the season. With only 14 points separating the top of the teams’ championship, the #88 pair will be fighting to score as many points as possible to help the team towards their goal of taking both championships.

Practice for rounds ten and eleven of the GT Asia Series will begin on Friday, October 23rd. Qualifying one will be held on Saturday, October 24th, from 9:40-9:55, with qualifying two running from 10:05-10:20. Race one will be held on Saturday from 13:35-14:35 (local time GMT +7) Race two will be held on Sunday 15:15-16:15. Live streaming of the event will be available from the GT Asia Series YouTube page, https://www.youtube.com/user/afosTV.

Richard Lyons, Driver

"It hasn't been the campaign we had hoped for in the #88 Interush Aston. However, Thailand is a new circuit for most teams and drivers so we might see a shakeup in the results. I've raced there twice in the last year so I'm hoping I can share this experience with Frank and get us running at the sharp end."

Frank Yu, Driver

“It is the last round of the championship and we haven’t had much luck this year so we are looking for a strong finish to score some points for the teams’ championship. We would also like to see our VLT sister car win the drivers’ championship this year.”

#99 VLT Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3

Darryl O’Young, Driver

“I'm looking forward to the weekend in Buriram as the championship is really down to the wire. With only a 4 point spread and several competitors in the championship fight, anything is possible heading into the season finale. I'm not going to think too much about the points, we just want to repeat the job we did in Shanghai which is to execute a mistake free weekend, and hope that is enough to win the title. It’s anyone’s championship and Craft-Bamboo Racing is ready to step up our game in this critical moment in the championship.”

Daniel Lloyd, Driver

“Really looking forward to Thailand, it is a little different because not many people have been to the circuit before which is a good thing for me because I haven’t been to any of the circuits out in Asia. I have been doing a lot of preparation on the simulator to get ready for the last round. The track seems great, a real driver’s circuit. The main focus is going to be working together to take the championship the last two rounds have been really positive and we will be trying to repeat this success in Thailand.”

Richard Coleman, CEO of Craft-Bamboo Racing

“This is the most important race of the season and with both the championships on the line we are going to have to dig deep. After the success in Shanghai, the team has proved what they can do and we will be going out there with the intention of taking both championships.”

Tens days after confirming just one driver for the forthcoming FIA GT World Cup event at Macau in mid November, Aston Martin Racing and their customer team Craft Bamboo Racing yesterday confirmed the remaining two driver slots.




Joining Craft Bamboo Racing stalwart Darryl O'Young will be fellow Craft Bamboo Racing and GT Asia entrant Richard Lyons together with works driver Stefan Mucke.






Lyons shall compete in his 'regular' Interush sponsored #99 car, now with a hint of Gulf sponsorship and livery whilst Mucke (no stranger to the team from previous events) will compete in the W11.com sponsored #97 car.


“It is great to be back in Macau this year. It is an amazing event on the craziest street circuit and will be my second race with Craft-Bamboo in 2015. After our podium finish in Bathurst we want to be at the very top of the podium in the FIA GT World Cup final" said Mucke whilst Lyons was a little bit more surprised at the opportunity. “I never thought I would get the chance to race at the inaugural FIA GT World Cup in Macau. This is a fantastic opportunity for me" he was reported to have said.

The FIA today announced the provisional entry list for their inaugural GT World Cup event due to be held at the Macau Grand Prix on the third weekend in November.

Alongside manufacturers like McLaren, Porsche, Audi and Mercedes-Benz Aston Martin have had three Craft Bamboo Racing prepared V12 Vantage GT3 entries confirmed for the event but unlike all the other entries only Craft Bamboo Racer Darryl O'Young has been confirmed.


Seeing that the #97 and #99 CBR cars have yet to be allocated a driver it is surely highly likely that at least one of these slots will be filled with an Aston Martin Racing factory driver.

The event will be made up of a Qualification race of 12 laps or 45 minutes (whichever comes first) on Saturday, November 21, and the main event lasting 18 laps or 60 minutes on Sunday, November 22.

The top two cars from each registered manufacturer will accrue points and the marque with the most points will win the first FIA GT World Cup crown.

Darryl O’Young now leads the drivers’ championship after a dominant race two win in Shanghai, where Daniel Lloyd helped the #99 pair to lead from start to finish. O’Young is now four points clear of second place, with only one round left in the championship scheduled for next month in Thailand. The #88 Interush Aston Martin of, Richard Lyons and Frank Yu, proved to be even quicker, setting the fastest lap of the race but were unable to capitalize on their speed after having to fight their through their way through the midfield.

Darryl O’Young is once again tied for the lead in the GT Asia Series drivers’ championship after an incredible last minute dash by teammate, Daniel Lloyd, helped the pair to victory in race one at the Shanghai International Circuit. The #88 Interush Aston Martin of, Richard Lyons and Frank Yu, started the race on pole and were looking like strong contenders for the win until two separate incidents of contact ruined their chances.

O’Young started the race in P8 and after a long battle in the midfield, the Hong Kong driver handed over to teammate Lloyd at the start of the pit window. The young Brit began to move his way up and was making good progress until a large accident brought out the safety car. After the extensive safety car period, there were only a few minutes of race one remaining. Lloyd, who was in P5, didn’t give up and instantly made the jump on the Ferrari of Liu as the safety car returned to the pits. From here, Lloyd was on a mission to hunt down the leader before the flag fell. In an incredible display of skill, the Craft-Bamboo driver closed the gap and fought his way to the front of the grid, taking P1 with a superb maneuver, running three wide on the way into the first corner. Lloyd executed the daring challenge perfectly and was now in the lead with one lap left. In a nail biting finish, Lloyd roared down the pit straight for the final time at the front of the pack and took the win for the #99 VLT Aston Martin.

Craft-Bamboo Racing has been chosen by Aston Martin Racing to represent the marque at the inaugural FIA GT World Cup in Macau. The team will field their pair of Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3s that are currently competing in the GT Asia Series and aim to take the maiden title when the event is held from November 19-22.

Craft-Bamboo Racing are Aston Martin’s official technical partner in Asia and have a wealth of experience in Macau, racing in the GT and Touring Car categories on numerous occasions. Craft-Bamboo Racing have enjoyed a great deal of success with Aston Martin, claiming third in the Dubai 24 Hour in 2013, third in the Bathurst 12 Hour in 2015 and taking multiple wins and podiums in the GT Asia Series over several seasons.


Craft-Bamboo Racing has a successful touring car history at Macau, scoring independent class wins in 2011 and 2012 in the WTCC. In 2013, the team claimed victory once again; taking independent wins in both races saw Craft-Bamboo Racing claim the independent championship title and third overall in the drivers’ championship.

The brand new event for 2015 will see five manufacturers enter a trio of GT3 cars that will compete for the FIA GT World Cup for Manufacturers’ title. A qualifying race will be conducted for 12 laps, which will then be followed by a 60 minute main event race. The top two cars from each manufacturer will then be scored following the Formula One scoring system.

Craft-Bamboo Racing is in the process of finalizing their two drivers and will be releasing the line-up over the coming month.


Quotes

John Gaw, Managing Director & Team Principal of Aston Martin Racing

“Craft-Bamboo Racing is our [Aston Martin] technical partner in Asia and given their experience in both the GT Asia Series and the Macau Grand Prix makes them the perfect choice to represent the brand at the inaugural FIA GT World Cup. Craft-Bamboo Racing are a popular team in the region and having them involved in the competition will be great for the many local fans that make the journey to the famous race each year.”

Richard Coleman, CEO of Craft-Bamboo Racing

"We are delighted to have been selected by Aston Martin Racing to represent the brand at the inaugural FIA GT World Cup. Macau has been in the heart of our racing activities for a number of years and we have enjoyed many successes there. I am convinced we will be competitive at the event and will be looking to finalise our driver line up shortly. "

Source material - Craft Bamboo Racing

Craft-Bamboo Racing were able to claim a third place podium in the inaugural Sepang Three Hour for round seven of the GT Asia Series after a dramatic end to the rain soaked event. It was the #99 VLT Aston Martin of, Darryl O’Young and Daniel Lloyd, who took P3 after they started the afternoon from pole position after two blistering qualifying performances. The #88 Interush sister car of, Richard Lyons and Frank Yu , proved to be quick as well, starting from P3 on the grid for the three hour spectacle. They unfortunately suffered some setbacks but fought back towards the end of the race to take P10. The #99’s efforts today, see Darryl O’ Young only three points away from first place in the drivers’ championship heading into the next round in Shanghai.

It was, Frank Yu, who began the three hour event for the #88 Interush car and he made a clean get away from the rolling start, keeping the car out of trouble into the first few turns. Frank battled in the intense heat to drive a fantastic stint, keeping at bay many seasoned international GT drivers and at the end was able to hand over the car in P8.

Richard, showed his great pace from the get go and started to move up the field but after 20 minutes the weather had taken a harsh turn and brought out the safety car. Making the most of the situation, Lyons pushed as hard as he could and used his knowledge of the circuit to combat the weather and he was able to finish his stint in P6.