SMALL, BUT FINE Since April 7, the Red Bull World of Racing has been on display at the Museum of Transport in Lucerne. On display are several Formula 1 bolides and drift cars, separately also two Le Mans winning cars from Porsche.
Peter Wyss - April 9, 2022
Neel Jani looks at one of the Red Bull F1s on display. As a former test driver, he knows them inside out.
The reopening of the Red Bull World of Racing at the Museum of Transport in Lucerne was attended by numerous guests and personalities from the world of racing on Thursday evening, April 7. First and foremost Neel Jani, who himself was a test driver for Scuderia Toro Rosso and Red Bull Racing for many years.
Memory of the last Swiss GP rider On the third floor of the Road Traffic Hall, there are several Formula 1 bolides from the past three decades on display. For example, those of Sebastian Vettel and Sébastien Buemi from Vaud, as well as a more modern RB Honda and Alpha Tauri.
The small exhibition also includes two BMWs of the famous Red Bull Driftbrothers.
Pit stop competition and racing simulator The exhibition, entitled "The Road to Championship," also looks back at the most emotional moments of Max Verstappen's world championship title in a replica F1 pit.
There, visitors can also compete in a real F1 tire change in the Red Bull Pit Stop Challenge or do their laps in a racing simulator on the world's most famous racetracks. In the process, the Red Bull cockpit tilts when accelerating, braking and steering.
Le Mans history from the Porsche Museum One floor below, there are two particularly valuable and successful sports cars from Porsche to admire that have only a very distant connection with the world of Red Bull. With the legendary Porsche 917 K (below left) and Dutchman Gijs van Lennep as his partner, Austrian Helmut Marko won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1971. Marko has long been well known as a motorsport advisor to the beverage company and as the mastermind behind its talent development program.
The Porsche 919 Hybrid next to it (bottom right) is the Le Mans-winning car from 2017. Neel Jani won the classic the year before with the same model. Both cars are on loan from the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart. The 917 K will then be one of the showpieces at Swiss Classic World at the Lucerne Exhibition Center at the end of May.
Please enter The Red Bull World of Racing is open every day. Admission is included in the regular Museum of Transport ticket.
Weekend tip: Swiss fans can join in the excitement
FORMULA 1 AND FORMULA E At the Australian GP, Ferrari and Alfa Romeo Sauber did well on the first day of practice. In Rome, Edoardo Mortara from Geneva defends the world championship lead in Formula E.
Peter Wyss - April 8, 2022
Ferrari was fastest twice on the first day of practice in Melbourne.
Formula 1 returned to the Albert Park Circuit this weekend for the first time since 2019, or 756 days after the scheduled Australian GP in March 2020, which was cancelled at short notice due to the Corona pandemic.
Ferrari still very fast On the first day of practice, the 20 drivers and their ten teams familiarized themselves with the track changes. These make the track even smoother and faster than before. Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari set the fastest time of the day with 1:18.978 after teammate Carlos Sainz had been the fastest in the first practice session on Friday morning.
Defending champion Max Verspannen (Red Bull) and the Spaniard ended up setting the second and third fastest times, while George Russell and Lewis Hamilton bumbled to 11th and 13th.
The chief engineer of the team that had been so spoiled by success for so many years put the problem in a nutshell.
Andrew Shovlin: "We're having a hard time getting the tires up to temperature here. That's the most important thing we have to work on overnight."
The Albert Park Circuit, which has been modified in some places, seems to suit the C42 from Hinwil.
Bottas keeps up well in the Alfa-Sauber C42 For Saturday's qualifying and Sunday's third round of the World Championship, the Ferrari vs. Red Bull duel is more likely to continue than a Mercedes advance under its own steam.
Fortunately, the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team also quickly got into gear in Australia. Valtteri Bottas was seventh fastest on the 5278-meter track, only around 1.1 seconds off Leclerc's best time, while Zhou Guanyu was a second faster (15th). Ferrari and Sauber fans can therefore hope for a good weekend.
Swiss television will show the battle for grid positions live on SRF two from 7:55 to 9:10 a.m. on Saturday, April 9, and the first Australian GP in three years early Sunday morning, April 10, from 6:50 to 8:55. Commentators are Oliver Sittler and Marc Surer.
Home game for the Swiss world championship table leader Formula E is still struggling for recognition among motorsport fans because electric racing is not associated with any emotions for them. However, most of the races are turbulent and varied, and if a Swiss driver is leading the world championship standings, that should generate a certain amount of interest in this country.
For dual citizen Edoardo Mortara, whose father is Italian, Rome is a home race. The announcement by Venturi Racing and Maserati that the Monegasques and the Italians will be teaming up from Season 9 onwards should motivate the Geneva native, who leads the 2022 World Championship after three rounds of the season, even more.
Edoardo Mortara is easily recognizable in the Venturi cockpit thanks to the colorful helmet.
Two races on accident-prone track Two races will be held in Italy's capital city. The 3.380-kilometer track in the Esposizione Universale di Roma district is the second-longest in Formula E history.
In total, the typical wall-lined street circuit, which runs around the Obelisco di Marconi and behind the iconic Colosseo Quadrato, has 19 corners. There is a lot of up and down, plus fast sections, slow 90-degree corners and a tight chicane. Incidents that herald yellow phases are inevitable.
German-speaking TV viewers have the choice of watching the two races, each starting at 2 p.m. Swiss time, on MySports One, on Pro7 or on ORF1, as well as on the Internet on ran.de to look at.
Standings after three world championship rounds: One Swiss wants to defend the top spot in Rome, the other wants to catch up with the front runners.
FORMULA DRIFT IN LONG BEACH The Drift Force from Emmetten is contesting Formula Drift 2022 with two potent Toyota GT86s. At the start of the season in California, more would have been possible for Yves Meyer if it hadn't been for a controversial decision by a judge.
Editorial - April 7, 2022
As in the previous year, the racing team founded by Yves Meyer and Joshua Reynolds in 2020 is taking part in Formula Drift in the USA. This is the Formula 1 of drift racing, so to speak.
Powerful Toyota GT86 from the US championship team In partnership with Drift Cave Motorsports from San José CA, the Swiss are fielding two Toyota GT86s this year and are official brand ambassadors for Toyota Gazoo Racing Switzerland. Both will start in the top PRO category.
Meyer's car acquired The Drift Force from the factory-affiliated Papadakis Racing Team, which captured the team, driver and manufacturer's championship titles in 2021. Powered by E85 and NX nitrous oxide, the four-cylinder turbocharged 2.7-liter engine (base = U.S. version of the Toyota Corolla) delivers 930 hp and 850 Nm of torque to the rear axle.
The connection with the asphalt is handled by semislicks from the company's long-time partner Nexen and a KW Competition 3A EXR3 suspension.
Meanwhile, Reynolds is driving his Toyota GT86, which was previously used in Europe and modified in Switzerland. Due to logistical problems with shipping to the USA, however, he will not be able to get involved in the racing action until the second round of the season.
The judges of fact disagreed Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan at the season opener on a section of the GP circuit at Long Beach, where the IndyCars and IMSA sports cars will also be competing next weekend. Yves Meyer qualified 25th in the field of 38 drivers from all over the world for the first elimination of the top 32.
But the sixteenth final meant an early end for him. After the two duels - one lead and one chase run (left gallery) - against Chris Forsberg in a new Nissan Z, the judges saw the three-time champion from the USA as the winner.
Yves Meyer: "In my opinion, it was a controversial decision - definitely a very close one. On a positive note, I was able to keep up with a champion right away with a newly acquired car. After all, before this event I only completed one roll-out with the Toyota GT86. The main modifications to the engine were a dry sump and new electronics. We're proud of how well everything worked already. Now more fine tuning is needed."
Joy and disappointment The most successful Swiss drift driver of the present day therefore traveled home with mixed feelings.
Yves Meyer: "As an athlete, you always want more, of course. But as technicians, we're happy. Unlike with last year's cars, which have since been sold, with the Toyota we now have the power and grip it needs in this world-class field."
The second round of Formula Drift will take place on May 6 and 7 at Road Atlanta Raceway in Braselton, Georgia.
TURBULENTE GT WORLD CHALLENGE Of the nine Swiss drivers who started in the first major GT3 race, Raffaele Marciello finished second on Mercedes and thus made the podium. They put in a great performance in the GT4 field.
Editorial - April 4, 2022
Several yellow and red flags in the practice and qualifying sessions meant that turbulent scenes were also expected for the opening race of the GT World Challenge Endurance Cup in Imola. In the end, it was not only the speed of the individual teams that decided the outcome, but also luck with the timing and course of the two fuel stops with driver changes.
Only the champion car was faster than Marciello's Mercedes One of the two Mercedes Performance teams with Raffaele Marciello from Ticino, Spaniard Daniel Juncadella and Frenchman Jules Gounon had both. They were therefore also absolutely satisfied with second place overall.
The pace in the three-hour race was set by the WRT Audi, already victorious in last year's championship, which factory drivers Kelvin van der Linde, Charles Weert and Dries Vanthoor drove to victory at Imola.
The first GTWC podium of the year. On the far left of the drivers' lineup, the tall Raffaele Marciello in second place.
Small mistake cost Niederhauser and Légeret a top result Initially, the second-fastest Audi in qualifying from the Saintéloc Junior Team with German Christopher Mies at the wheel (upper gallery, left) was among the front runners. After eight laps, he took the lead from Weerts, who had been leading from the start, which Van der Linde retook after the driver change.
The young Swiss Lucas Légeret made a small mistake about halfway through the race when he was in second place, forcing him through the gravel bed and knocking him out of the top ten. Patric Niederhauser as the final runner was still able to secure ninth place and thus two points.
Rossi must also learn from mistakes Nico Müller, with star driver Valentino Rossi and factory driver colleague Frédéric Vervisch as partners on another WRT Audi, did not yet manage this. "Vale" took over the car from the Bernese in 13th position after the first third of the race and roughly maintained this during his stint.
Unfortunately, the rookie missed his pit position in the scrum (upper gallery center) and thus lost a lot of time due to the involuntary pit pass. More than 17th place overall was no longer possible. The majority of the 20,000 or so spectators had come mainly because of Rossi, despite Corona protection measures.
Bad luck for "unemployed" Rahel Frey The other Swiss drivers Dominik Fischli (upper gallery right), Mauro Calamia, Alain Valente (lower gallery left) and Karim Ojjeh finished well below the podium in their respective classes. Rahel Frey did not race at all because team-mate Sarah Bovy spun on the second race lap and her Ferrari was subsequently hit by a McLaren.
Emil Frey Racing only in midfield Emil Frey Racing only managed one top 15 finish. Two of the three crews drove the three-hour race to the end, with the #63 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO of Mirko Bortolotti, Jack Aitken and Albert Costa Balboa (lower center gallery) finishing 13th.
The #19 crew of Giacomo Altoè, Léo Roussel and Arthur Rougier were unlucky as a fuel supply problem forced them to retire in the final hour. Stuart White, Tuomas Tujula and Konsta Lappalainen overcame a power steering problem in their #14 Huracán, but only finished 28th. In the Silver Cup standings, they at least still scored two points for P9.
Swiss double victory in GT4 Swiss flags flew several times after the two one-hour races of the GT4 European Series. In the equally large field of 48 near-series GT sports cars, Switzerland's Konstantin Lachenauer and Briton Gus Bowers prevailed twice.
Their Aston Martin Vantage AMR (lower gallery, right) will be fielded by Team Spirit of Léman. Lachenauer, who comes from national karting, has been part of the Aston Martin Racing Driver Academy since 2021 and won his first GT4 race at Zandvoort last year.
In the second race, which like Saturday's first ended under yellow, Alex Fontana and Ivan Jacoma placed themselves on the podium as overall runner-up and winner of the Cat. Pro-Am on the podium. Sixth from the previous day, they managed to jump ahead in the Porsche Cayman thanks to good pace from the start and a perfectly timed pit stop.
NEW REVIEW After two seasons, Jasin Ferati moves from the Formula 3 cockpit to the 510-hp Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. The Winterthur native will contest the Porsche Sprint Challenge Suisse at Fach Auto Tech.
Editorial - April 2, 2022
Jasin Ferati and Alex Fach are looking forward to working together at the race track.
Despite offers for the Formula Regional by Alpine and promising Euroformula Open test drives in Valencia at the beginning of the year, Jasin Ferati has decided to make a new start in a completely different motorsport sector.
Decision of reason Driving for the title in the premier GT3 class in the Porsche Sprint Challenge Suisse in an experienced top team with competitive material is seen by the 18-year-old from Winterthur and his environment as a better approach to continuing his racing career than the almost hopeless attempt to finish in the points in a mediocre Formula 3 team against 40 equally motivated competitors from all over the world.
Jasin Ferati: "I'm looking forward to the new challenge. Although the handling is completely different, I got to grips with my new work machine well during the first tests at Le Castellet. It will be interesting to see how I perform and develop over the season with the GT3 Porsche, which is not easy to drive."
Advantages and disadvantages Ferati sees the fact that four of the six race tracks on the Porsche Sports Cup Suisse schedule are very familiar to him as an advantage. And the fact that many of his competitors have been involved in this championship for some time is an additional challenge.
In terms of performance, the 1260-kilogram Porsche GT3 Cup car with rear-wheel drive and sequential six-speed transmission is superior to Ferati's previous race car. The 4-liter six-cylinder engine produces 510 hp and enables top speeds of up to 260 kilometers per hour.
In the footsteps of Alexander Fach Ferati has long since identified a weighty point of contact with his motorsport career. The clear winner of the last two Porsche Sprint Challenge Suisse races is a long-time karting rival, Alexander Fach from Schwyz, who is the same age as Ferati and will be making the leap into the international Porsche Super Cup in 2022.
Jasin Ferati: "Following in his footsteps in Switzerland and then following the same path is now the goal. Alexander's father's team, which has been successful for years, offers the best conditions for this. It's up to me now to take advantage of this opportunity and recommend myself for higher tasks."
Fach Auto Tech will thus field no fewer than five cars in the popular Swiss Porsche one-make cup. The season starts on the last weekend in April at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg.
VIVA VALE! At the opening round of the GT World Challenge Endurance Cup, many eyes are on Nico Müller's Audi R8 - because motorcycle star Valentino Rossi is his celebrity partner. Emil Frey Racing represents the Swiss team colors. Watch live on the Internet.
Peter Wyss - April 1, 2022
52 sports cars from Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, BMW, Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Mercedes-AMG and Porsche are entered for the first endurance race of the GT World Challenge Europe. More brand diversity is almost impossible.
One GT3 car in particular stands out, even though it's not really a contender for victory. One of five new Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo2 cars from WRT, the current champion team from Belgium, will start the three-hour race with the legendary number 46 of the multiple motorcycle world champion Valentino Rossi.
Five special races for Nico Müller After retiring from MotoGP as a rider, the Italian has decided to continue his career on four wheels. His regular partner in all ten races (Sprints and Endurance) is Belgian Frédéric Vervisch. In the five endurance races, Nico Müller is the third man.
The Bernese is himself excited about the premiere.
Nico Müller: "We made great progress at the test day in Imola and at the official pre-season test at Paul Ricard. Our pace is already pretty good. Let's wait and see where it takes us at the start of the season. In any case, it's great to be able to do business with a star like Vale."
Nico Müller, Valentino Rossi and Frédéric Vervisch form a special trio.
With Patric Niederhauser and Lucas Légeret, two more Swiss drivers in the Saintéloc Junior Team share a new Audi. The third driver is the German Christopher Mies, ADAC GT Champion 2021 with Ricardo Feller. Like Raffaele Marciello on a Mercedes-AMG, they race in the 17-car premier class Pro, in which a majority of the drivers are professionals.
Silver category boom New to the circle of Swiss drivers in the world's strongest GT3 racing series is Alain Valente, who, however, brings experience from other GT championships. The driver from Bern competes for the Silver Cup in the Haupt Racing Team in a Mercedes-AMG.
With 18 participating vehicles, the category with at least two silver drivers under the age of 25 per team sets a new record. Last year's winner was Emil Frey Racing with Alex Fontana in the individual classification and the all-Swiss trio Feller/Ineichen/Fontana in the Endurance Cup.
Emil Frey Racing with three Lamborghinis, but without Swiss driver This season, the Safenwil-based team is concentrating on the five endurance races, because apart from the new commitment in the ADAC GT Masters is no longer possible. The three Lamborghini pairings are Mirko Bortolotti and Albert Costa with Jack Aitken in #63, Giacomo Altoè with Arthur Rougier and Léo Roussel in #19, both in the Pro class. Stuart White, Konsta Lappalainen and Tuomas Tujula are racing in #14 in the Silver Cup.
Emil Frey Racing is contesting the Endurance Cup this year with three Lamborghini Huracan cars.
Other silver drivers are Dominik Fischli and Mauro Calamia in two different Porsche 911 GT3 R cars. After finishing runner-up in the GT3 Challenge Suisse 2021, Fischli is now entering the big stage, whereas Calamia already has several such races behind him.
Golden Rahel Frey The newly announced Gold Cup replaces the previous Am classification and includes 13 sports cars for the first time. As already reported, Rahel Frey is racing in the Ferrari 488 from Iron Dames for the first time in this series with Michelle Gatting and Sarah Bovy.
In the all-women team from Italy, the Solothurn native is the gold driver. Karim Ojjeh, a native of Lausanne with Saudi roots, is part of the Audi team in Imola.
First guest appearance in Hockenheim The race will start at 3 p.m. on Sunday, April 3. The starting positions will be determined six hours earlier in qualifying from 9 to 10 am. The Lamborghini Super Trofeo, GT2 European Series and GT4 European Series will also hold their first two races of the season in the supporting program.
After the opening race at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, the Endurance Cup of the GT World Challenge Europe has four more endurance races on the calendar: at the Circuit Paul Ricard in France (June 5), at the Hockenheimring (September 4) and at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya (October 2). The season highlight is the legendary 24 Hours of Spa-Franchorchamps on July 30/31.
Michelle Gatting from Denmark, Rahel Frey from Solothurn and Sarah Bovy from Belgium also race together against the men in the FIA WEC.
Live on YouTube with German commentary All practice, qualifying and race sessions can be viewed live on the official website at this Link as well as on the YouTube channel of the organizer; in addition, live timing of all races of all weekends is offered.
The highlight: For the first time, the broadcasts on YouTube are also commented in German (in addition to English, French and Italian).
THE Swiss drivers were on top of their game at both the season opener at the Nürburgring and the 12H Mugello. However, only one team managed to win.
Peter Wyss - 28 March 2022
Whereas the early kick-off of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) on the same weekend a year ago had to be cancelled due to overnight snowfall, last Saturday the 126 teams took to the wheels for the first 4-hour race of 2022 in glorious spring weather. Although some Swiss drivers started in top GT3 sports cars, none made it onto the podium.
Good GT3 debut for Ricardo Feller With a 40-second gap to the winning Manthey Porsche, called "Grello," of Vanthoor/Christensen/Makowiecki, the Phoenix Audi driven by Ricardo Feller finished fourth. The 21-year-old from Aargau once again amazed with the third-best time in qualifying - at his first GT3 event on the Nordschleife - and the lead after his starting stint. A subsequent 35-second time penalty for an offense under yellow (code 60) threw Feller and his two partners Kuba Giermaziak (PL) and Kim-Luis Schramm (D) back to 7th place.
Nico Müller was also well on his way to the podium with Christopher Haase after the German had done impeccable work in front of him. However, a puncture cost the Audi duo a lot of time and subsequently only allowed sixth place overall.
M&M with strong recovery The opposite was the case for Manuel Metzger, Raffaele Marciello and Luca Stolz. Their Mercedes-AMG (gallery left) only started from 18th place after contact in qualifying.
The race then went much better for the driver from Thurgau, Ticino and Germany. P5 at the finish with a gap of just under 41 seconds became fourth place after the penalty against the Feller Audi.
Team-mate Philip Ellis in the second HRT-Mercedes, on which team owner Hubert Haupt also entered the race, lost three laps to the front runners due to a defective alternator and finished 15th and last in the top class SP9.
Patric Niederhauser was the third Swiss or ASS-licensed driver to make it into the top 10 alongside Metzger and Marciello. However, a Code 60 offense also threw his Audi back two positions to 11th place.
Two Swiss at the top of the table Mauro Calamia, Ivan Jacoma and the German Kai Riemer were responsible for the only Swiss class victory. With a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS (gallery on the right), they won the newly launched Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring by Manthey Racing. In the process, they left twelve other teams with identical Cup3 vehicles behind them.
Since a new points system will apply in the NLS from 2022, which no longer favors the best from the classes with the largest number of entrants, the trio is tied at the top of the standings with other winners from classes with at least seven starting cars.
Lucky break for Frédéric Yerly The two Germans Marek Schaller and Matthias Wasel fought with their Max Kruse Racing teammates from the start for the lead in SP3T. Shortly after Frédéric Yerly had taken over the VW Golf GTI TCR (center gallery) for the last third of the race, a wheel broke off due to a sheared bolt. Fortunately, it happened on the GP circuit, so that no accident was the consequence, but only a time-consuming pit stop to change the wheel hub.
So this still resulted in second place in class with three classified teams. In qualifying, the defending champion in the class winner's trophy had managed the fastest Nordschleife lap ever with this car with 8'42.9.
Ranko Mijatovic and his two partners achieved a strong second place in the new V2T-4WD class with a BMW 330i over nine equal teams of opponents. In this class, turbo production cars with a maximum displacement of two liters and 215 kW of power compete against each other. The front-wheel-drive cars now compete in their own class.
Roland Schmid finished fourth in class with his BMW team. With chances of a podium finish in the top production car class V6, Philipp Hagnauer's Porsche Cayman S retired with fuel supply problems.
Premier winner in the 24H Series There was no Swiss success, but there were some podium finishes, for the Swiss at the 12H Mugello in Tuscany. At the second round of the 24H Series 2022 (after the 24H Dubai in January), the Canadian team ST Racing ensured the world's first overall victory for a new BMW M4 GT3 (lower gallery left).
With team co-owner Samantha Tan, a woman was part of the winning trio. The Porsche 911 GT3 R of last year's winning team Herberth Motorsport with Daniel Allemann from Solothurn retired early after several incidents.
Three Swiss podium places The two Swiss Porsches from the Orchid Racing Team finished second in their classes after leading some of the two-part race - 5.5 hours on Saturday afternoon and 6.5 hours on Sunday starting at 9 a.m.: Loic and Frank Villiger with Laurent Misbach and Fabio Spirgi in the GT3 car in the 992-AM class and Alexandre Mottet with Stefan Chaligne, Antoine Leclerc and Antonio Garzon in the 718 Cayman GT4 CS MR in GT4.
The Audi RS3 LMS TCR from Wolf-Power Racing was one of the favorites in the touring cars. However, Jasmin Preisig and her two partners were unable to do anything against the Thai team with a new Cupra Leon Competición, which had already won in Dubai. In the end, the team from Schwyz had to settle for 3rd place (center gallery with Preisig in the green overall on the podium) after a run-out. Defending champion Autorama Motorsport was not at the start for the first time since Dubai 2019.
Only themselves could beat the two BMW M2 CS Racing from Hofor Racing by Bonk Motorsport (gallery right) in Group TC. Hofor team boss Martin Kroll had to settle for second place in the internal duel.
Weekend Tip: Return to Jeddah and the Nürburgring 🎥
ONE GP AND TWO LONG DISTANCE RACES Less than four months after the premiere in Saudi Arabia, Formula 1 is back on the fastest GP street circuit. At the Nürburgring and at Mugello, quite a few Swiss drivers will start the season. Everything live on TV and on the Internet.
Peter Wyss - March 24, 2022
Scuderia Ferrari celebrated a one-two in Bahrain with Leclerc and Sainz. It wants to confirm this right away (Photo: Ferrari).
Just 111 days after its GP premiere in Saudi Arabia, Formula 1 will race again in Jeddah (the city's German name) from Friday to Sunday. At 6174 meters, the Jeddah Corniche Circuit is the second-longest track on the GP racing calendar and, with average speeds of around 250 km/h, the fastest street circuit in the world.
Slight changes to the route As seen last year, there is a higher risk of safety car phases compared to other tracks. Because it is a street circuit, it takes longer for incidents to be resolved.
At the same time, fast corners like the one in Jeddah can cause major incidents. For the second Saudi Arabian GP, changes were therefore made to increase the run-off zones and improve safety.
Formula 1 already offered spectacle with its completely new race cars last Sunday in Bahrain. This is therefore now also expected at the pure night race - the track is illuminated by 600 light poles. On the track, which is completely different in terms of its characteristics and has no previous test drives as in Sakhir, virtually all the teams will be starting from scratch again.
The Jeddah GP circuit with Mercedes' specifications
Motivated team from Hinwil Bahrain double winner Ferrari and its customer teams Haas and Alfa Romeo Sauber should once again be able to exploit Italian power. After the successful start to the season with nine world championship points scored by Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou, the head of Alfa Romeo Racing and Sauber Motorsport is both optimistic and realistic.
Frédéric Vasseur: "We feel we have a competitive car and a determined driver duo, and that boosts morale in the team. However, we are under no illusions about the challenge ahead. We saw in Bahrain how close the field is and how competitive qualifying and the race are. If we do our best, two cars in the points is a realistic prospect."
Swiss television will report live from qualifying on its third channel SRF info on Saturday, March 26, from 5:55 to 7:10 p.m. and from the second race of the season on Sunday, March 27, from 6:20 to 8:50 p.m. For the first time, German Oliver Sittler will be the commentator, expertly assisted by ex-GP driver Marc Surer.
Alfa/Sauber versus Haas - the two Ferrari customer teams shone in Bahrain (Photo: DPPI).
Six Swiss aim for Nürburgring victory The Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) 2022 begins on Saturday with the first of eight races. The best sporting and also weather conditions can be expected in the Eifel. For the first time in two years, spectators (with 2G) are allowed everywhere and thus provide the worthy backdrop.
The German GT3 teams in particular are preparing for the 24-hour classic at the end of May in the first three races. That's why there are also quite a few factory drivers in the various GT3 sports cars, including some from Switzerland.
For example, Riccardo Feller, Nico Müller and Patric Niederhauser in three different Audi R8s of the latest evolution. Philip Ellis and Raffaele Marciello/Manuel Metzger are in two Mercedes-AMGs from Haupt Racing. So a Swiss can definitely be expected on the overall podium.
Entire race day live on the Internet Other people from Switzerland include Frédéric Yerly on a VW Golf TCR from Max Kruse Racing (with whom he captured the SP3T class title in 2021), Roger Vögeli on a Cupra TCR, the duo Iacoma/Calamia on a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS, Philipp Hagnauer on a Cayman S, Roland Schmid and Ranko Mijatovic on two different BMW 330i and Julien Apothéloz on a BMW M240i Racing. In addition, Liechtenstein's Fabienne Wohlwend is now driving a BMW M4 GT4 in the Giti Tires women's team.
The start of the race over four hours will take place on Saturday, March 26, as always at 12 noon. Like the training (8.30 to 10 am) it will be available on the YouTube channel of the NLS (here the direct link) broadcast live.
Autorama remains in Wetzikon Ten weeks after the 24 Hours of Dubai, the 12H Mugello forms the second round of the 24H Series 2022. As at the Nürburgring, touring cars and GT cars make up the field of participants with some Swiss.
Among them, only Daniel Allemann in Herberth Racing's Porsche is in contention for overall victory, as he was last year. The Ferrari 488 GT3 from Kessel Racing is driven by five Italian customers.
Orchid Racing is aiming for class victory with a new Porsche 992 GT3 Cup and a Cayman GT4 partly with Swiss drivers. The same applies to Wolf-Power Racing from Schwyz with its Audi R3 LMS TCR, in which Jasmin Preisig will be competing.
The partner team Autorama Motorsport, which has won the championship three times, will not be present for the first time since its entry in 2019, but will be at the garage's spring show in Wetzikon.
Return of Hofor Racing In contrast, Hofor Racing by Bonk Motorsport returns to the 24H Series with two BMW M2 CS Racing. The 2018 champion team did not travel to these endurance races after the outbreak of the pandemic two years ago and concentrated on the ADAC GT4 Germany and the NLS. The only CH driver is Hofor boss Martin Kroll.
This two-part race - Part 1 on Saturday from 1 to 6:30 p.m. and Part 2 on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. - will also be shown online at the Livestream completely transferred.
Auto-Renntage Frauenfeld: Free access for the public
SOON THE ENGINES RUN AGAIN As spring approaches in Switzerland, so does the national automobile racing season. A first highlight is the "Auto-Renntage Frauenfeld", which will be held for the 22nd time by the ACS Thurgau Section on the weekend of May 14-15, 2022.
Editorial - 23 March 2022
Spectators can stay at the edge of the track behind the barriers, there is no other special infrastructure.
The date is right - as an exception, the popular Frauenfeld car racing days will not take place in April, as in many years before the forced break due to the corona, but in mid-May. Participants and spectators alike can therefore hope to experience and enjoy the sporting action on the Great Allmend in warmer temperatures and longer daylight.
Two days of action for free The highlight: The public will be granted free access at both races! The visitors are allowed to move freely in the signposted spectator areas and can eat as usual at various catering stands.
They will also be permanently informed about everything worth knowing about the race by the two accomplished track announcers Christian Mettler and Marcel Muzzarelli. However, this year there will be no supporting program and no specially constructed pit lane, in order to concentrate entirely on the racing.
Again the long course Since Friday, March 25, drivers can register for participation via the online platform go4race.ch. The registration deadline is April 18 at midnight. The number of participants over both days is limited to 360.
The competitors can be happy: As in the years 2014 to 2016 and in July 2021, the race will be run on the course with 49 gates, which has been extended by 500 meters to around 3.2 kilometers in the finish area. The fast start straight and the infield on the Grosse Allmend, which is popular with spectators, will remain unchanged.
As in July 2021, the Suzuki riders will start two separate races in Frauenfeld.
Varied race program The event counts as the second round of the 2022 Swiss Slalom Championship, and points are also at stake for the Suzuki Swiss Racing Cup and the Porsche Slalom Cup. There will be two races with separate scoring for both one-make cups.
As part of the LOC event on Saturday, there will also again be a regularity test for historic vehicles. The aim is not to achieve the best time, but to keep the difference between the two running times as small as possible. The audience can look forward to some beautiful and fast moving classic cars.
In addition, there will again be a trial class for beginners. There is no better opportunity to drive your everyday car safely at the limit.
Further information before and after the event is continuously available on the homepage of the ACS Thurgau.
Bahrain: Perfect start to season raises many hopes
GP POINTS AND F3 PODIUM It wasn't just Sauber Motorsport that was jubilant after the successful F1 season opener in Bahrain. The Swiss also impressed in Formula 2 and Formula 3.
Peter Wyss - 21 March 2022
Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou revealed the potential of the C42 in the very first race - it can continue like this (Photos: DPPI).
Sauber Motorsport, as the team and manufacturer of the Alfa Romeo C42, experienced its best start to the season in seven years on Sunday evening in Bahrain. On March 15, 2015, Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson drove from 11th and 16th on the grid at the Australian GP in Melbourne to finish 5th and 8th, respectively, after a good hour and a half of pacing.
Disillusionment in the further races The mood in the Hinwil team was similarly good afterwards. But the season was sobering - it was to remain the best result of the year for both drivers and the team. In the Constructors' World Championship, eighth place resulted; only McLaren-Honda and Marussia-Ferrari had fewer points.
Mercedes celebrated a double victory in the first Grand Prix and then, with the almost unbeatable duo of Lewis Hamilton/Nico Rosberg, the world championship title.
Forza Ferrari! In 2022, the omens are different. The C42 chassis seems to have succeeded, as does the turbo hybrid engine modified by Maranello for the Scuderia and its two customer teams Haas and Sauber. Otherwise, Valtteri Bottas (left gallery) and Guanyu Zhou (right gallery) would not have been able to fight their way back into the top ten after botched starts.
The Chinese, who matured into a GP driver in no time, benefited from the late technical retirements of the two Red Bulls of Verstappen and Perez to just score points in tenth place, while the Finn, who was already convincing with P6 in qualifying and many overtaking maneuvers in the race, moved up from eighth to sixth place as a result.
Scuderia Ferrari's terrific one-two finish by Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz and Kevin Magnussen's fifth-place finish, which sent the Haas F1 Team, which had been completely empty-handed in 2021, into a frenzy of joy, underscore the capabilities of the power unit from Italy.
Combat message from the team boss With the nine championship points gained, the Italo-Swiss team is in fourth intermediate place in the constructors' standings behind Ferrari (maximum 44 points), Mercedes (27) and Haas (10). Even the team boss would hardly have dared to dream of this, although he is aware that it is unlikely to stay that way.
Afterwards, the Frenchman spoke of a perfect start to the season.
Frédéric Vasseur: "The team showed skill and stamina. After a poor start, we fell behind, but stuck to our plan and moved well up the field. In a way, this is an even more promising sign because it means our car is really competitive. We are aware that the season will still be long and that our competitors will challenge us as early as next week in Saudi Arabia. I'm particularly happy for Valtteri and Zhou: a result like this in their first race with the team is the best start for our collaboration. We'll try to build on this by developing our car and continuing to fight at this level."
Ralph Boschung still going strong, victory for Sauber apprentice The performances of the two Swiss drivers in the most important classes below Formula 1, who also started their season in Bahrain, were also strong.
Ralph Boschung finished both Formula 2 races in the 600-plus hp Dallara of Campos Racing from Spain in fourth place (gallery left). The man from the Valais thus continued his top performances from the 2021 season finale in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi, where he climbed the podium twice for the first time in third place. The points haul was better than ever last weekend, so he travels to Jeddah in fourth place overall.
Thanks to his victory in the main race, Théo Pourchaire (center gallery) is the first leader of the standings. The Frenchman has been a member of the Sauber Academy since 2019 - even that on Sunday morning caused jubilation in the Alfa/Sauber F1 pit.
First Formula 3 podium for Saucy, points for Jenzer team Grégoire Saucy is also a promise for the future. The 22-year-old from Jura already finished his first race weekend in FIA Formula 3 in third place (gallery on the right). However, the 22-year-old from Bassecourt only advanced to Sunday's podium after a competitor received a time penalty. After fourth place on the grid, this result of last year's Formula Alpine champion was nevertheless highly deserved. Incidentally, Saucy is the first Swiss to make it onto the podium in the current FIA Formula 3 (since 2019, previously GP3 Series).
Jenzer Motorsport also scored its first two points. Finishing ninth in Sunday's main race, Finn William Alatalo was the best of the three new drivers in the team from Lyss. All in all, the outcome of all the races in Bahrain raises hopes of a continued positive season for the Swiss teams and their drivers.
