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

Valmon Racing Team Russia will represent Aston Martin in the 2012 FIA GT World Championship which gets underway at Nagaro this weekend.

Run by 2011 FIA GT3 team, LMP Motorsport who will campaign the cars in partnership with Aston Martin Racing the team will start the season with two Aston Martin DBRS9s before switching to the new V12 Vantage GT3 later in the year. Austrian Andreas Züber will be joined by Sergey Afanasyev in the lead car with Alexey Vasilyev and his yet to be confirmed team mate in the second car.

Valmon Racing Team Russia supported by Villois Racing will also compete in the FIA GT3 round at Nagaro with 2011 Le Mans LMP2 class winner Tom Kimber-Smith and Natalia Freidina.

2012 FIA GT1 World Championship

6th - 9th April: Nogaro, France
20th - 22nd April: Zolder, Belgium
26th - 27th May: Navarra, Spain
8th - 10th June: Slovakia Ring, Slovakia
6th - 8th July: Algarve, Portugal
24th - 25th August: Beijing Goldenport, China
30th August - 2nd September: Ordos, China
14th - 16th September: Korean International Circuit, Korea (*)
29th - 30th September: Moscow, Russia (*)
30th November - 2nd December: Delhi, India

2012 FIA GT3 European Championship

6th - 9th April: Nogaro, France
20th - 22nd April: Zolder, Belgium
26th - 27th May: Navarra, Spain
6th - 8th July: Algarve, Portugal
29th - 30th September: Moscow, Russia (*)
5th – 7th October: Zandvoort, Netherlands
(*) TBC by April 15th

Legendary Scottish racing outfit Ecurie Ecosse made a successful return to international sportscar competition last weekend with a top-ten class finish at the Total 24 Hours of Spa.

Held at the iconic Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium the twice-around-the-clock race is one of the most demanding on the motorsport calendar, and with a bumper entry of over 60 cars also ranks amongst the most competitive.

With this in mind the team was thoroughly satisfied with Sunday’s result, which saw their #79 Aston Martin DBRS9 finish ninth in the highly competitive Pro-Am class and 20th overall.

The team’s driver quartet of Alasdair McCaig, Andrew Smith, Joe Twyman and Oliver Bryant stayed out of trouble throughout the event and were able to work around some late-race gremlins on the Saltire-liveried GT3 car to take the chequered flag. Aside from an issue with the ECU the car ran faultlessly as Aston Martin Racing Partner Team Barwell Motorsport, with whom Ecurie Ecosse contested the event, lived up to their reputation as a slick and professional operation.

Having made their successful sportscar comeback after an 18-year absence, Ecurie Ecosse are now focused on contesting further events as they work towards achieving their long-term goal of returning to the world famous Le Mans 24 Hours, a race the team triumphed at in both 1956 and ’57.

Hugh McCaig, Team Boss: “We've achieved what we set out to and that is extremely satisfying. The drivers were all excellent and apart from one minor incident - which was caused by dropped oil from another car - the race was trouble free. We had some problems with the ECU that meant the drivers had to nurse the car towards the end, but they managed this very well indeed.”

Alasdair McCaig: “Spa has been a great experience - the night stints in particular were phenomenal - and we've capped that with a strong result. We had a tremendous atmosphere in the garage all weekend and the Barwell Motorsport crew deserves recognition for that: they were first class. Overall this has been a great way to bring Ecurie Ecosse back and bodes well for the team’s future.”

Andrew Smith: “Spa has been a fantastic experience both on and off the track. The support we've had is staggering and we've built some excellent relationships with sponsors over the course of the weekend. Working with Barwell has been a pleasure, and of course the event itself was a fantastic challenge. Overall there's so much to be positive about going forward.”

Joe Twyman: “The aim for this race was to go the distance and so to have done that - and without a scratch on the car - is brilliant. We could have finished even higher had there not been problems with the ECU, but ninth in class is still a terrific result. This is an excellent platform upon which to build for Ecurie Ecosse's future.”

Oliver Bryant: “It's great to have achieved our goal of reaching the finish and to do so in the top ten of what is a very competitive class is fantastic. Having worked with the Barwell boys before I knew they’d do a fantastic job and I wasn’t disappointed. I’d certainly like to be involved with Ecurie Ecosse’s long-term plans so we’ll begin work on that soon, but right now I’m just proud of what we’ve achieved at Spa.”

The Ecurie Ecosse Spa 24 Hours programme kicked off on Wednesday 6th July, when drivers Andrew Smith, Olly Bryant, Alasdair McCaig and Joe Twyman attended the official event test at the classic Belgian track. Each of them were having their first run in a Barwell Motorsportprepared Aston Martin DBRS9 chassis, their weapon of choice for the return of the famous Ecurie Ecosse name to the international sportscar stage at the Total 24 Hours of Spa race on July 30/31.

With the four drivers needing to get acclimatised to the 2011-specification 600bhp Aston Martin GT3 car, there wasn’t much time to spare during the day but the team completed its programme with all four drivers comfortable in the charismatic 6-litre V12-engined DBRS9 by the end of the test. British GT Championship race-winner Olly Bryant is by far the more experienced of the line up in modern-day GT machinery, and as expected was the quickest. Andrew, Alasdair and Joe are all very successful historic racing campaigners, however, and all set a good pace around the daunting seven-kilometre Spa track.

“The opportunity to test the DBRS9 at Spa proved to be invaluable,” said Ecurie Ecosse driver Andrew Smith, “we were able to learn a huge amount about the car and build up to a good pace. With the data we now have from the test and the additional time available to us in the car before the race itself, we are confident we will be able to fight competitively for a class podium”. The test also gave the Barwell engineers the chance to work with the latest specification Avon tyres around Spa for the first time, and the team were very happy with the set-up work carried out during the day. Former Barwell Aston Martin DBRS9 driver, and 2011 Le Mans 24 Hours LMP2 winner, Tom Kimber-Smith, was also on hand to help with testing and set-up duties during the day. “We were very happy with the performance of the DBRS9 and the Avon tyres at the test,” comments Barwell MD Mark Lemmer, “and we are confident that we have a good set-up on the car for the 24 Hours, and tyres that will work well from an endurance point of view.”

LMP Motorsport will run duel campaigns in FFSA GT and FIA GT3 European Championships with two 2011 spec DBRS9s.

The team founded in 2010 by Guillaume Lecluse and Yves Migeon competed in the French FFSA series with technical support from Lompech Motorsport will now make their international début.

“We’ll be Aston Martin Racing’s only representative in France and in the European Championship. It will be a stirring challenge for us,“ says Migeon.
“(Last year) in our learning season with the DBRS9 we were just ordinary Aston Martin Racing clients,” added Lecluse. “Now we are considered a Partner Team.

“The car has undergone a lot of development work this winter with the arrival of ABS, a new aerodynamic kit and several other improvements. It is going to be quicker and easier to drive.”

“We’re entering two cars in the French FFSA GT Championship and the FIA GT3 European Championship,”. “The national series has been completely rethought to give more spice to the meetings and attract even more spectators as well as boosting the broadcast of events on the internet.”

The Team will begin testing April at Portimao and plans further sessions at Paul Ricard and Navarra ahead of the opening round of the French series at Ledenon.

Frédéric Gabillon and Paul Lamic have already been confirmed in one car for the FFSA championship, with four more drivers currently in negotiations to team for the FIA GT3 Championship.

JT

Although the FIA GT1 World Championship is far from over, HEXIS AMR finished its 2010 season in GT3 on a high note. At the final rounds on the Zolder circuit, Fred Makowiecki and Manu Rodrigues finished second. This could well turn into a victory depending on the result of the appeal lodged by the team which was disqualified. A week later the French Aston Martin DBRS9s were back in action in the final round of the French FFSA GT Championship, a series in which the team had known success in the past. They were up against a top-class field but Mako and Manu scored another podium finish for the French squad.

FIA GT3 European Championship: 2nd on the track - a win in the courtroom?

The reigning European champions have been, through hard times this season. They had to wait until October to get back onto the podium again after being there at the first meeting of 2010 on the Silverstone circuit. After the disqualification of the Holzer-Van Splunteren Porsche as its brake discs were illegal, Mako and Manu are currently considered as the winners of the twelfth round giving them fifth place overall in the European Championship. The no.1 Aston Martin also set the fasted lap in both the weekend's races. "We're still alive and well in GT3", laughed team manager, Philippe Dumas. "We can't hide the fact that it's been a difficult year, but our team's strong and it's been able to bounce back. The FIA finally agreed to reduce the weight of the Aston Martin to 1290 kgs. It's a pity it didn't listen to us a bit sooner as I've been ringing the alarm bells since Brno. With a little less weight and a future ABS system, our car could still be on the pace. Of course, it's more difficult to drive than the others, but it's quick. It's well driven and with the whole team mobilized to get the best out of it, the results speak for themselves. We're strong and closely-knit and that's where this weekend's victory came from."

In Belgium, the Accary-Paillard Aston Martin was close to make it into the top 10. Philippe Dumas expressed his satisfaction with Luc Paillard's first season at this level in the HEXIS AMR squad: "The season didn't unfold as expected, but we found he's a really super bloke, and I'd like to thank him in the name of the whole team. I hope we'll be able to get together again and share a few podiums in the future."

The French FFSA GT Championship - a comeback podium

The successful streak in Belgium continued at Magny-Cours where the team hadn't raced since 2008. It was an exceptional one-off in every sense of the word with a Ferrari F550 Maranello for Philippe Dumas and Pedro Lamy! But the last appearance of the HEXIS AMR GT3 Aston Martins in the Nièvre went back to 2007. The "blue" car in the hands of Luc Paillard and Clivio Piccione did not have much of a race, while the "red" DBRS9 continued to surf on the wave of success that it has enjoyed since September. Manu and Fred finished third to the delight of the many guests that had come along to encourage the team. "This result at Magny-Cours is really great and means an awful lot from a personal point of view," smiled the team manager afterwards. "As I said to everybody before taking part in this race, we had more to lose than to win. Once again we took up the challenge with a lot of humility and we made a great job of it."

FIA GT1 World Championship round 8 preview

The final rounds of the world championship look like being the theatre of a thrilling battle. On 23rd-24th October, the teams will race on a new Spanish circuit in Navarra halfway between Pamplona and Logrono. It measures 3393 metres and has an up and down layout. It is fast with several blind curves and some tight corners. Then comes the South American tour that will bring the GT1 circus to Interlagos in Brazil and San Luis in Argentina. "We still have three very important races to go, and there again I'm counting on our team spirit to end up on the final podium in the world championship. That would be the best possible reward," summed up Philippe Dumas.

HEXIS AMR’s weekend got off to a difficult start in the two categories in which the team’s cars were entered on the magnificent Portimao circuit in the south of Portugal. But it finished on a high note with two encouraging results! The cars’ performance in qualifying for the FIA GT1 World Championship was disappointing as the results failed to meet the team’s expectations, and it was the same story in the qualifying race. In the main event, Mako/Clairay stormed up though the field to sixth place scoring precious points. In the European FIA GT3 Championship, Mako again sliced his way up through the field on Sunday to see the flag in fifth place with the help of an on-form Manu Rodrigues, which helped the team to put the double retirement in race 1 behind it.

FIA GT1 World Championship: the best Aston Martin in the race

In Portimao, for the fourth time in seven rounds of this enthralling world championship, the no. 9 Aston Martin entered by HEXIS AMR led the four DBR9s home. To achieve this feat, the team had to fight tooth and nail. Yann Clairay and Frédéric Makowiecki started from fourteenth place on the grid for the qualifying race, in which they finished tenth despite poor road holding caused by a defective damper. But they had to do it all over again on Sunday as an engine change dropped them back five places on the grid for the main event. The two Frenchmen took the fight to their rivals and finished sixth after a few breath-taking passing manoeuvres!

Jonathan Hirschi and Clivio Piccione, the Nürburgring heroes who scored an excellent fourth place on the legendary German circuit, their best result of the season to date, were less fortunate in the Algarve. The no. 10 HEXIS AMR Aston Martin qualified in twentieth position and on Saturday the duo made a great start of the race. In 40 minutes, Piccione and then Hirschi pulled back 15 places helped by a good pit stop and got up into fifth. Unfortunately, it all went wrong in the closing stages as the car’s performance suddenly tailed off, and the drivers from Switzerland and Monaco saw the flag in sixteenth place in the qualifying event. The use of worn tyres is the reason for this sudden tumble down the time sheets, as the team wanted to keep two new sets for the championship race. However, the expected advantage did not materialise on Sunday, and no.10 was unable to extract itself from the middle of the pack and had to make do with thirteenth.

Philippe Dumas, team manager: “We were expecting a difficult weekend as the Aston Martin isn’t really at home on bumpy circuits. The rain at the start of free practice did not help things in view of qualifying. The blue car (no.9), which had to carry 10 kilos ballast after its Nürburgring result, did not get beyond Q1. Clivio put in a brilliant drive in the qualifying race, but Jonathan’s tyres were shot towards the end and he lost a lot of ground. Yann Clairay still needs more time to get used to the car to extract the best from the tyres over two laps and the red Aston (no. 10) didn’t make it into Q3. If you take into account the broken damper and the five-place penalty because of the engine change, Sunday’s race was a huge challenge especially with the two cars in fifteenth and sixteenth places on the grid! Jonathan and Clivio were not able to make headway and we’ll have to try and analyse what happened. Fred and Yann drove a blinder to fight their way up to sixth place, again with the help of the team who set the third-quickest time for a driver and tyre change. I’m also pleased with our bullet-proof reliability. We can finish the season on a high note and help Fred Mako to get into the top three in the world rankings! “

The last three races represent unexplored territory for the team starting with the brand-new Navarra circuit in Spain on 23rd – 24th November, followed by the South American tour end of November/beginning of December.


European FIA GT3 Championship: Manu and Mako’s frenetic fado!

HEXIS AMR fought back in the Algarve after the two frustrating meetings at Jarama and Paul Ricard. The first day’s running in Portimao did not go off all that well, either. The two Aston Martin DBRS9s were well down the time sheets in qualifying and they both retired in race 1. Luckily, the stunning drive on Sunday morning by the Franco/Franco-Portuguese duo Fred Mako / Manu Rodrigues put the team back in their rightful place. Fred started the race in eleventh place and had to fight hard in the hotly-contested mid-field group to hoist the no. 1 into the top 10 when it was time for driver changes. Rodrigues used a mixture of skill and aggression to overtake several cars and he saw the flag in fifth place.

Thomas Accary’s spin at the start of the race dashed all hopes of a comeback for no. 2, which was then given two penalties. Luc Paillard knew that a points’ finish was beyond his reach, but he still set some excellent times in what was a lonely race for the HEXIS AMR driver.

Philippe Dumas, team manager: “The performance level has gone up a few notches in this championship with the arrival of new cars. We’re finding it more and more difficult to compete with them, especially as the Aston Martins are the oldest cars in the field. We’re really up against it but we have to accept the situation as it is. Our fifth place today is almost as good as a victory!”

As in 2009, the Zolder circuit will host the final round of the European FIA GT3 Championship on 9th/10th October.

HEXIS AMR combined a dual program at Silverstone, with the second round of the FIA World Championship GT1 and the opening of the European season in FIA GT3. But the team was rewarded for its efforts, combining a podium in GT3, a front row start and a win in the qualifying race of "GT1 World, and a first podium for the Aston Martin DB9 No. 9 Thomas Accary and Frédéric Makowiecki.

FIA GT1 World Championship

In the qualifying, the tone is set. Jonathan Hirschi and Fred Makowiecki pass unhindered through "Q1", the first meeting that eliminates the slowest seven cars to keep only six. Then Clivio Piccione Set the fastest time of the "Q2", while the eighth time of Thomas Accary is enough for two cars the team reach the final stage of Q3.

This final session drew the first four rows of the grid for the qualifying race. The team has optimized the set-up of the car after the Q1, and Fred Mako held the best time for much of the session. He is dethroned in the last moments by the Aston Martin AMR Young Driver Darren Turner. As with Abu Dhabi, but under more rewarding, an Aston Martin HEXIS AMR soar in first line late Saturday afternoon! With a different strategy in the management of tires, Jonathan Hirschi hoisted the car to an excellent sixth place on the grid.

Who would have bet on a double podium so early in the season? Stepping in at short notice for Jean-Denis Deletraz, Thomas Accary discovered piloting a GT1 directly at Silverstone, while participating alongside the championship event of FIA European GT3. Yet it retains the second place at the start of the qualifying race, and resists the Maserati which took the FIA GT Champion title last year. He then increased the pace to break away from his pursuer. The penalty imposed on Enge for cutting the white line at the entrance to the pitlane propelled the No. 9, to the head of the race. Fred Makowiecki do let go and take it with 3''5 ahead? the No. 10! Clivio Piccione and Jonathan Hirschi have achieved a perfect score while also returning to complete the first double of HEXIS AMR highest level of world GT racing.

We will therefore, not one but two Aston Martin AMR HEXIS on the front row first of the championship race! Initially, the absence of instructions between the two teams is highlighted by the takeover of Jonathan Hirschi. But at the end of the second round, Fred Mako resumed his lead and escapes. On his last lap Jonathan is suffers a puncture. This drops him from the 2nd to 9th place just before passing the wheel to Clivio who starts again 16th.

Meanwhile, Thomas Accary took over Fred's lead of the race, with a former Formula 1 driver in his mirrors, in second, a little further. But the 24th of 28 laps, Thomas must serve a drive through for having started the engine before the car is resting on the ground during the pitstop. It passes the finish line in second position, before being dragged to an additional penalty of 15 seconds. Due to a radio problem, it has not approved in time order to go through the pits to serve his penalty. Thomas and Fred are therefore left 3rd, before learning the exclusion of the Aston Martin AMR Young Driver of the winners for non-compliance technique. Therefore, they get their 2nd place, subject to call. But one thing seems certain at the time of writing: HEXIS AMR has indeed dropped, from his second attempt, his first podium in the FIA GT1 World Championship! In addition, the points scored in both races allow the team to point to 3rd place in the standings, while Fred and Thomas 2nd in pilots.

FIA GT3 European Championship

This year, the French team is the only representative of Aston Martin in the discipline. The best time established by Mako in the first practice session bodes well for the weekend, but in the first qualifying session, both cars must be content with 14th and 19th time. The first race will be equally difficult, with concerns fuel pressure that confine the No. 2 in 13th position, and a hook that eliminates the entry No. 1.

Fortunately, the race 2 will help raise the fleet GT3 team at the height of his cousins GT1. At the cost of a part of the night, the technicians of the team managed to solve the problem of No. 2. Thomas and Luc Paillard Accary thank them by placing points 7th place. Luke merit kudos especially because, like Thomas in GT1, he quickly took the measure of the Aston Martin GT3 without pre-testing, and showed a fine attacking temperament.

4th Party, Mako fights like a devil in the top 5, before handing over to Manu Rodrigues. The Franco-Portuguese double a Ford GT Stowe (connoisseurs will appreciate), sees a Porsche out, slow down and take a Ferrari head! Manu can not resist the Corvette that had dominated the early running, but he does not waver and crossed the line to a flawless second spot.

Reactions

Clement Mateu: "It can only be satisfied even if we could have a little more of our competitive advantage on this circuit, a few kilometers from the workshops of Aston Martin Racing. We have garnered a lot of points in GT1, and we're still down in GT3, despite a balance of performance clearly more favorable to other manufacturers. "

Philippe Dumas: "The small errors that cost us the Tourist Trophy did not detract from our fantastic week-end. Our small team has done wonders. We have not encountered problems in GT1, I am pleased with all our pilots and crew who did a great job. "

After revealing the identity of the first pair of drivers who compete for the European Championship FIA GT3 (Frederick Makowiecki and Manu Rodrigues with the Aston Martin DBRS9 No. 1), HEXIS AMR announces the name of his third driver GT3: Thomas Accary. The young man, two vice European Champion, loyal to the team for the third consecutive season, lead the Aston Martin DBRS9 No. 2.

Philippe Dumas, Team Manager, returns to the signing of HEXIS AMR with this driver to the meteoric rise: "The goal is that we do a program in continuity with a genuine desire to see Thomas run in one of our GT1 World Championship next year. I believe in him for this adventure as I believed in him trusting in early 2008 for his first experience in GT while going through a phase of doubts. "Teammate has not yet been validated, so the research team a competitive driver, Bronze classified by the FIA since Thomas became a pilot Or
Before giving the floor to Thomas Accary, back on his record:

History
Born 17.11.1987 in Annecy
2009: European Champion FIA GT3 (ranked teams)
Vice Champion European FIA GT3 (rank Drivers)
2008: Vice Champion European FIA GT3 (Teams and Drivers)
2005: 5th Rookie Championship Formula Renault 2.0
2004: 7th Championship Formula Campus France (3 podiums and 1 win)

Can you return to the sucsess of the 2009 season?
2009 was a year very constructive for me and the team (Hexis Racing AMR). She brought me a little more experience and I am very satisfied with the results we have obtained (in 2009, AMR Hexis Racing was crowned for the first time European Champion FIA GT3 Teams classification). I am pleased to have achieve my goals of 2008, climbed the final step of the podium as we were then Vice Champions.

What are your goals for 2010?
Victory! And this time a total victory by winning titles Teams and Drivers HEXIS with AMR. I hope to garner more experience and learn new things through the presence of AMR HEXIS World Championship FIA GT1, notably through its drivers (Jean-Denis Deletraz, Frederick Makowiecki, Clivio Piccione and Jonathan Hirschi).

What qualities do you look at your future mate?
Before any consistency, teamwork and of course the performance! I do not care his record?

The final word?
I would like to thank Euro-Trading (wholesaler of electrical equipment) who followed me for six years, and Peter Tanisman (Swiss watchmaker). Finally, a big thank you to my father, HEXIS AMR and energy drink Kalaschnikow.

A new team with some experienced and successful old hands is joining forces to put the Aston Martin name on the grid for the 2010 Avon Tyres British GT Championship. Vantage Racing – whose chief advisor is sports car legend Hugh Chamberlain – will shortly be taking delivery of a factory-fresh DBRS9.

The Aston will be driven by team principal Tom Black and multiple British GT race-winner Stuart Hall. Chamberlain believes the duo will have a strong chance in a GT3 field which is daily growing in size and stature. “I am very happy that Tom has decided to step up to British GT, and I’m very happy that we have the kit to do a good job; I’m looking forward to the challenge.”

Vantage Racing was formed by Black in 2008, and its chief engineer is ex-Chamberlain Engineering employee Steve Hay. The team guided Black through his first steps in racing that season and paired him with Hall in a GT4 Aston (pictured above) in club sports car racing last year. “Tom is very much a brand new driver,” says Chamberlain. “We were very happy with his progress in 2009; by the end of the season he was a lot closer to Stuart’s pace.”

Tom Black commented: “Having really enjoyed my first two seasons in GT racing I’m delighted to be stepping up to GT3 in such a competitive car. With the depth of driving and support experience we now have on-board at Vantage Racing, I’m confident that we will be competitive in 2010.”

Twenty-five-year-old Hall won two British GT races in 2009, adding to a racing CV which bears testimony to his prowess in single-seaters and sports cars. Hall was fourth overall in the Le Mans 24 Hours in 2007 at the wheel of a Pescarolo.

Chamberlain’s is one of the best known names in British motorsport. Over a career spanning more than 30 years, Chamberlain-managed teams have won three sports car world championships, two European championships and nine national championships, as well as numerous class wins at Le Mans.

Chamberlain’s return to the Avon Tyres British GT Championship, and the Vantage Team’s support, is welcomed by series manager Benjamin Franasovicci: “It is great news for the championship that a competitor of Hugh’s experience and standing is supporting us for 2010. Things are moving ahead well: the GT3 class is looking more than healthy and there is strong interest also in GTC and GT4.”

The new ‘compact’ eight-meeting/14-round format of the championship is proving a major attraction for time-stretched competitors, reports Franasovicci. “Having both races on the same day and extra track time on Saturday for testing means one fewer night away for teams and drivers, and therefore less expense.”

British GT, the opening rounds of which are scheduled for Oulton Park at Easter, is sponsored by UK tyre manufacturer Avon Tyres and is further supported by insurance specialist AON, by Sunoco Racing Fuels, by Anglo American Oil Company and The Independent.

www.britishgt.com
www.vantageracing.co.uk
AMR Teams

The French Motorsports Federation, the FFSA, held its prize-giving on Monday evening at Versailles. As well as presenting trophies to the winners of the various FFSA Championships, including the FFSA GT and GT3 Championships, trophies were also presented to French drivers who shone on the international stage. This included Hexis Racing AMR, who secured victory in the FIA GT3 European Teams Championship. On the photo, at the back just left of centre, Clement Mateu is seen along with Julien Rodrigues and Thomas Accary.

AMR Teams

Aston Martin Racing partner team Barwell Motorsport will expand their efforts next season. Not happy with just Belgian and British GT they will return to the FIA GT3 Championship with a two car team.

Barwell are currently upgrading the cars to full 2010 spec, a standard that should see them run at the front in all three championships.
The team also look likely to enter the Spa 24 hours.


AMR Teams

HEXIS Racing AMR swept to its first major international title winning the FIA GT3 European Championship by a comfortable margin. In the Drivers’ Championship, the crew of the number three Aston Martin DBRS9 comprising Thomas Accary and Julien Rodrigues are the new vice-champions of Europe, while Frédéric Makowiecki and Manu Rodrigues took a splendid fourth place.

With six podium places, three wins and four pole positions, 2009 marked the coming of age of a team which has been constantly progressing since it made its debut in GT racing in 2005. After testing the water at the national level, the team ramped up its ambitions in 2007 with the acquisition of three Aston Martin DBRS9s which it raced in the FIA European GT3 Championship as well as in National Championships in France and Germany. Almost from the word go the team picked up pole positions and soon notched its maiden podium finish. The following season saw the team claim its first outright win and close out the season as European vice-champions in both the Team and Driver categories.

This season HEXIS Racing AMR threw itself into the quest for European glory in the GT3 class and tasted the joys of a GT2 podium place thanks to its partnership with Aston Martin Racing. The strategy paid off and the Champagne corks popped as the team took the Team trophy. In the midst of this superb overall performance was a tinge of regret as the guys from the Gard region of France were unable to improve upon last season's runners up spot in the driver tables. Yet going into the last meeting of the season Thomas Accary and Julien Rodrigues held a half-point lead.

FIA GT3 2009 Champion Team Manager Philippe Dumas had this to say about the performance of his troops at Zolder: "We fought tooth and nail right up to the end but I have to admit that the decision to replace Dubaï with Zolder played against us. It was virgin territory for us and our car is not at its best on this type of circuit. The changeable weather didn't help us either. At times there was just one dry trajectory through the circuit and it put our drivers in difficulty. This meant that our car number three, which was the best placed to take the championship, was not able to give its best during qualifying. Thomas was forced to take risks at the start of race one but made a mistake at the first turn. He set off again behind the pack and he and Julien went on to climb impressively back up to ninth place. However, it was their nearest rivals who won the race. In race two they managed to go from 16th to sixth place and hold on to the European runner-up spot. Mako's pole position with the other car shows that we were right up there performance-wise.

Aston Martin number four carved spectacularly through the field in race one, moving up from 14th place to finish fifth. With Mako at the wheel and well in front, number four looked favourite to win race two until the safety car came out on the track just prior to the driver change window. The team opted for a risky double choice of pitstop and tyre type but with unfortunate consequences.

So for next season the team still has an elusive goal to aim for, not to mention the new challenges HEXIS Racing AMR will be setting for itself. In Lédenon the team is already hard at work on new developments. There will be no time for a winter break!

The final emotional word must go to Clément Mateu. "I remember how this all started and how we first got involved in GT racing with the Rodrigues family. Then came our decision to embark upon a new adventure with our Aston Martins. We didn't have much experience but we did have the desire to excel. And now today ... wow! These days we have a strong team and we have top class drivers who have kept the dream alive all season. It has been a tough season, especially at the start, but thanks to great support from our partners, our drivers’ sponsors and all the HEXIS family, we never doubted it would come good. I think we have all thoroughly enjoyed this 2009 season despite the relentless pressure we have been under. It makes winning the title all the more satisfying. Now it's time to look ahead to new things. Strike while the iron's hot! We will be pushing hard to do better still. We want to establish ourselves as a force to be reckoned with in GT racing in France, Europe and the whole world!"



AMR Teams

If the end of the 2009 season promises to be exciting, 2010 should not be bad either for the Lédenon based team. Clement Mateu confirms the recent trend: "we continue to work onwith Aston Martin in the future”.
“The FIA GT3 is always on the agenda, with a major development program planned to stay competitive, and maybe a national championship in addition to Europe with the same cars. We want tp commitment to the Nurburgring 24 Hours with our third DBRS9 GT3 endurance version. The year 2009 saw us start in GT2, with a first podium in the FIA GT for the Vantage. As for the 24 Hours of Le Mans we are very interested, why not a V8 Vantage GT2 in le Sarthe next June?”
“Finally, our participation in the World Championship FIA GT1 is still valid. We are eager to learn more about the schedule and TV coverage, because it is indispensable to estimate the budget. A meeting is scheduled this weekend at Paul Ricard with the operator SEO. Anyway, we thank the partners and the pilots who trust us and Aston Martin Racing and Aston Martin Lagonda. We are only at the beginning of a great adventure!”


AMR Teams

Gaydon, October 19 2009. Official Aston Martin Racing Team – Hexis Racing is heading to Zolder, Belgium for the final round of the FIA GT3 Championship, hoping to win the Team and Driver titles.

The team’s title chances were greatly improved last week after the FIA International Court of Appeal overturned an exclusion imposed at Oschersleben, reinstating six precious points for the DBRS9 driven by Thomas Accary and Julien Rodrigues.

Hexis Racing’s Aston Martin DBRS9s have recorded three victories and three additional podium finishes this season. Following the appeal, the team is back at the top with a 20.5 lead in the Team Championship and a 0.5 point lead in the Driver Championship. With two races of the 12 race season remaining and a maximum of 36 points available there is everything to play for.

Hexis Racing Team Manager Philippe Dumas commented: “We are all very happy and relieved that the FIA reached a fair decision, recognising that a simple clerical error made by the manufacturer when the DBRS9 was first homologated was just a mistake and that no performance advantage was gained. It is to Aston Martin’s credit that they resolved this situation and we are back in the hunt for the Championships.”

David King, Head of Motorsport for Aston Martin added: “I am delighted that we can put this behind us and Hexis can focus their efforts on fighting for the prestigious FIA GT3 title on the track. I wish them the best of luck as they head to Zolder for the final races of the season.”


AMR Teams

HEXIS Racing AMR's two crews each came away from the Paul Ricard HTTT circuit with five points, as they jockey for position in the FIA GT3 European championship. However, the manner in which they each got the points was quite different! Thomas Accary and Julien Rodrigues won race 1 after it had been stopped following a crash in the 4th lap. Their Aston Martin and six other cars suffered considerable damage in the pile-up. Starting from pole position, the other DBRS9, driven by Frédéric Makowiecki and Manu Rodrigues took 4th place in race 2 despite incurring a stop and go. With just one more meeting and two races to go in the season, HEXIS Racing AMR increased its lead in the European team standings while its two driver crews closed the gap on the leaders.

Team and drivers alike put in some excellent work during open practice. Aston Martin No. 4, driven by Fred Mako and Manu Rodrigues, was inseparable from first place in both sessions. The sister car, No. 3, with Thomas Accary and Julien Rodrigues at the wheel, clocked the 5th and then the 2nd fastest lap. Continuing this good form, Thomas Accary qualified on the outside of the front row for race 1. In the second qualifying session, Mako took his second pole position of the season.

Unfortunately things went horribly wrong for several competitors at the beginning of race 1. In Lap 4, Armindo collided with the Morgan driven by Enjalbert. Oil escaping from one of the radiators plus a few spots of rain were enough to turn the surface of a fast curve into a skating rink. The red flag came out to stop the race after a pile up involving an Audi, a Lamborghini, two Corvettes, a Ford GT and a Ferrari in addition to Thomas's Aston Martin. Armindo got excluded for having caused the original incident. Thomas Accary and Julien Rodrigues were declared winners, the points allocation was halved and several faces were likely to be missing from race 2.

However, HEXIS Racing AMR were determined that this fate would not befall their car. The team stayed up all Saturday night in an attempt to repair DBRS9 No.3. They managed to get the car on the grid for the 4PM start of Sunday's race but Julien was only able to complete a few laps. In the other car Fred Mako had opened up a big lead by the time he handed over the wheel to Manu Rodrigues. Sadly, Manu came out of the pits a second too early and picked up the inevitable stop and go penalty. He lost 30 seconds that way but still nourished hopes of a podium place. He was still in 2nd place when Armindo tried to muscle his way past. The result was a tailspin for both cars but fortunately they both managed to get going again, with the order unchanged. In the final lap Armindo finally managed to get by with Ludwig's Corvette right behind him, so Manu finished the race 4th.

HEXIS Racing AMR's crews are lying 3rd and 4th in the European FIA GT3 championships and are among 15 drivers still in with a chance to take the title at Zolder next October 24-25. The team holds a 15½-point lead over Phoenix Racing in the team championship standings. The maximum points score possible is 36 for a pair of “one-two”.

In team-manager Philippe Dumas' opinion: "we were happy and confident after practice. The drivers produced almost perfect drives in qualifying. We found the right balance between consistency and out-and-out performance. We won race 1 but the accident in lap 4 destroyed the chassis of Thomas and Julien's car. We did all we possibly could to repair it in the hours between the time when the car was released from the parc fermé at 8PM Saturday night and shower time at 8AM on Sunday morning. The FIA could have stopped us from racing but instead they congratulated us for the amazing job we had done. We demonstrated just how much we were up for it! That was our second victory of the meeting. Mako's fantastic stint at the wheel of the other car in race 2 might have earned us another win had it not been for this mistake in the pit lane. Manu nevertheless drove a fine race, too. What happened after with Armindo happened, that's all there is to say about it. We have to take the positives from this. We are still very much in the game, we worked really well and I get the impression we are becoming a team to be reckoned with."



AMR Teams

HEXIS Racing AMR, which is used to carving up European roads far from its base in the Gard, will have to travel no more than 172 km to the superb “High Tech Test Track” at Le Castellet. For this home circuit Philippe Dumas and his team will want to forget the disappointment in Portugal, where both Aston Martin DBRS9s had to abandon the race when they were well in the hunt for victory. The aim will therefore be to consolidate the lead in the Teams class in the FIA European GT3 championships and to position themselves once again for the final dash to the line for the Drivers title. All of this without losing sight of a 2010 season holding out great promise in, possibly, three race categories.

For HEXIS Racing AMR, the magic initials HTTT could well stand for “Hot Trophy Trail Time”. The fact is that a home race always has a special meaning for a team. They can look forward to great local support. The fact that a HEXIS Racing AMR DBRS9 is starring on the poster is a source of encouragement.

The race takes place three weeks after a Portuguese outing which proved a great letdown for HEXIS Racing AMR. Flashback: Over the first half of the season, the Aston Martin No. 3 of Julien Rodrigues and Thomas Accary achieved a podium position at Silverstone and a victory at Oschersleben. The Aston No 4 of Manu Rodrigues and Frédéric Makowiecki secured 3rd and then the top podium place at the night meeting in Adria and went on to secure another 3rd place finish in Germany. Provisional results: the pairings occupy 2nd and 3rd places respectively in the European championship; all four drivers have their eye on the title and the team has an eight point lead over its nearest rival in the Teams class. At the end of this 2009 season there is still so much to play for.

Team manager Philippe Dumas has this to say on the disappointments suffered in Portugal: “We were hit by several technical problems. My hope is that they all occurred on the same weekend and on the same circuit and that they’ll leave us alone at Paul Ricard! I just think that the Portimao track is particularly hard on our style of car mechanically, with too much emphasis on sudden compression at high speed. But we need to be aggressive and take some risks if we are to compete in these hotly contested championships."

The team, FIA GT3 European vice-champion for the 2008 season, wants to prove that it has moved up a notch this season. “It’s in the difficult times that the true metal of a good team can be seen”, Dumas went on to say. “At Portimao we proved that we are a strong and closely knit unit. It’s got heart. People understood the team’s commitment and passionate desire to succeed. Despite the bad result and the failure to score a single point, the weekend was strangely the best of the season from the technical and sporting standpoint. The men and one woman comprising the team worked fast and well and Aston Martin Racing complimented us on the team’s performance. The drivers did their job perfectly. I have to congratulate everyone concerned on the commitment and spirit shown. It is this attitude which makes for a great team and is consistent with the view of racing which we share with Clément and Michel Mateu. In the end, it’s all about people. We need to stay positive and remember that we’re experiencing a fantastic sporting season and performing very well and that there’s still a third of the way to go! The Paul Ricard circuit is certainly a determining factor in terms of our objectives. We’re ready for the battle and for the points count at the end."

GT3, 2, 1… HEXIS Racing AMR’s countdown to the future

If the end of the 2009 season promises to be exciting, 2010 won’t be a bad year either for the Lédenon team. Clément Mateu has this to say regarding the latest developments: “We’re continuing to work increasingly on our future with Aston Martin and on a few other more or less familiar projects. The FIA GT3 is as always on the agenda and we plan for major development work so as to keep up with the competition. We are thinking about contesting a national championship as well as Europe, using the same cars. We might also enter the Nurburgring 24 Hours with our third DBRS9 GT3 model, in an endurance version. This year has seen our first venture into GT2 racing and a first podium position in the FIA GT class. Since we’re very interested in the Le Mans 24 Hours, why not enter a V8 Vantage GT2 next June? Our participation in the FIA GT1 World Championships is still very much on. We’re very keen to know more about the schedule and the TV coverage since these factors are vital to our budgeting and expenditure and revenue estimates. A meeting with the SRO operator is scheduled this weekend at the Paul Ricard circuit. Whatever happens, we should like to thank partners and drivers, who have placed their trust in us, and both Aston Martin Racing and Aston Martin Lagonda. We’re only just at the beginning of a great adventure."

AMR Teams

Paul Ricard HTTT is the home circuit for the Hexis Racing AMR team, who will be hoping for better luck in the South of France than they had at the Autódromo Internacional Algarve. Round 4 winner Frederic Makowiecki describes a lap of the 5.8km circuit in his nr4 Hexis Racing AMR Aston Martin DBRS9

"I like Paul Ricard now with a new track, which is incredible. The circuit is very interesting because we have different parts with slow corners and a long fast straight followed by two quick corners. This is the reason I like this track and it is very important to have a good set up.

"Coming across the line you arrive at the first chicane in 6th gear, dropping down to 3rd for the corner, braking at around 100 metres. We brake very late to keep the speed for the next part of the circuit. After the next chicane we have a very long corner at Saint-Beaurne which is very difficult because the car understeers here. Staying in 3rd gear the corner opens up on the exit. It is important to get the set up for the entry of the corner as it will try to go to the outside of the track and you must stay in the middle to get a good exit.

"The next corner at L'ecole is very short which is normally flat but if you make an error here you can end up in the wall here, so it is difficult but not really a big problem, you just need to be clean in this corner. We arrive at the next corner, which is the Chicane in the middle of the Mistral Straight, at aroudn 230kph. The Chicane is taken in 2nd gear, moving up to 3rd at the exit and it is important to get a good exit to carry the speed for the rest of the Straight.

"After the Mistral we arrive at Signes in 6th gear, maybe in 5th, at around 190kph. This is a difficult part of the circuit because after we take the corner we lose some of the braking before the next turn at Beausset. Beausset is a little bit like the second chicane, taken in 3rd gear we arrive at around 200kph, dropping to around 150kph in the corner. The next corner at Bendor is long but slow and is important to prepare for the exit.

"The next corner at Village is flat and is no problem, which leads to the very long left corner at Tour. Arriving at 170 or 180kph, braking and dropping to 3rd gear and then down to 2nd gear for the last corner at Virage du Pont, which is a short right hand turn which takes you back onto the start-finish straight.

"The Paul Ricard circuit is very smooth and you can use the kerbs but they are very aggressive, so you have to be careful. There are four maybe five places to overtake on this track. At the first Chicane is a good place if you have very good traction out of the corner. The second chicane is also a place to overtake as it is easy for a driver to make a mistake and present an opportunity. The chicane in the middle of the Mistral Straight is also a good place. The track is very wide and smooth and there are opportunities to overtake at most places. It is a great circuit and I'm looking forward to the two races."
AMR Teams