Difference between revisions of "2011 Superleague season"

Revision as of 18:59, 18 July 2011

Three of the main title contenders - Lee Morris, Joe Consiglio and Jason Muscat seen battling in Austria.

The 2011 Superleague season is the 12th GPVWC Superleague season.

2011 turned out to be another year in which the reigning Champion, Finnish Janne Tanskanen, would not be defending his title. Tanskanen announced his retirement officially in a press statement just before Christmas, on the 23rd of December, 2010.

While the league clearly loses out on one hand, on another hand some people considered that both the Drivers' and Constructors' Championships to be thrown wide open. New talent had emerged at the end of the previous season and the rumour was that the league would be losing another of its top racing drivers and previous champion, Joe Consiglio, through retirement.

In the event, Consiglio didn't retire - signing another contract with Nordsjoen was surely going to keep the teams hopes high for consolidating a record-equalling three consecutive Constructors' titles in a row.

Pre-season

Testing

Report

Teams and drivers

Superleague Team	Base	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyre	No.	Race Drivers	Rounds	Test/Reserve Driver(s)
Nordsjoen Racing	Cardiff, UK	Nordsjoen	NR004	Mercedes-Benz FO-108X	P	0	Jyri Lylykorpi	1-4, 6-10	Georgios Davakos Pavel Loknovski
							Pavel Loknovski	11-12
						2	Joe Consiglio	1-12
Woods Racing	Croydon, UK	Woods	WR11a	Mercedes-Benz FO-108X	P	3	Mark Wicks	1-12	Gregg Lawson Dan Rusu
						4	Kieran Ryan	1-12
Red Archer Virtual Racing Team	Rethymno, Greece	Red Archer		Renault RS29	P	5	Jason Muscat	1–10, 12	Leontin Nemet Nikos Evangelidakis
							Nikos Evangelidakis	11
						6	David Jundt	1–12
Constant Racing	St. Helens, UK	Constant	CR-SL11	Renault RS29	P	7	Mark Stanton	1–12	Luis Fernando Laaff Robert Rose
						8	William Ponissi	1–5, 8
							Luis Fernando Laaff	6-9
Synergetic Motorsports	Belfast, UK	Synergetic	SM-11	Ferrari 056	P	9	Christoph Lichtenstein	1–12	Ryan McConkey Liam Hatchell Mal McKee
						10	Sam Millar	1–8, 12
							Ryan McConkey	11
Computrac Motorsports	Zolder, Belgium	Computrac		BMW P867	P	11	Gavin Thomas	1–3, 9-12	Marco Vandenbroeck
						12	Ben Morgan	1–5, 8-12
Draig Racing	Aberdare, UK	Draig		Ferrari 056	P	14	Lee Morris	1–12	Sean Scott
						15	Ryan Walker	1–12
ST Racing	Chandler's Ford, UK	ST		BMW P867	P	16	Mark Fuller	1–2, 4, 6-8, 10-12	Luke McKee
							Luke McKee	3, 5, 9
						17	David Stanton	1–12
European Williamson Dynamics GP	Berlin, Germany	Williamson		Mercedes-Benz FO-108X	P	18	Tim-Oliver Wagner	1-5, 10-11	Adam Smith Teemu Toikka
							Teemu Toikka	6-9
						19	Ojay Clark	1–12
Nijo Racing SL	Nantwich, UK	Nijo	NR11B	Toyota RVX-09	P	20	Ashley Walsh	5	Ben Warren Chris Williamson Tom Parker
							Chris Williamson	2, 6, 9-10
							Tom Parker	1, 3-4
							Ben Warren	7-8, 11-12
						21	Abdel Damghi	2-10
							Chris Williamson	1, 11-12
Triple-Double Racing	Oxford, UK	TDR	TDR001	Toyota TVX-09	P	22	Phil Perkins	1–8, 10-12	Philip Cullen Adam Rouse
						23	Adam Rouse	1-6
							Bart De Vos	7-12
Midnight Motorsport	UK	Midnight		Renault RS29	P	24	Dave Carr-Smith	1–4, 6-8, 10, 12
							Petter Kaasa	11
						25	Nick Rowland	1–4, 6, 9-12

^† Mal McKee replaced himself as test/reserve driver with Liam Hatchell after the Japanese grand prix.
^‡ Adam Rouse pulled out of the competition after the Austrian grand prix.

New entries

The first new team to secure a place in the Superleague was Nijo Racing, owned and managed by Chris Williamson. Nijo came straight in from a successful Masters season, bypassing the Supercup, and looking eager to carry that success into the Superleague. Initially having signed Tom Parker and Ashley Walsh, the team underwent many changes in driver line-up in the first half of the season, with Parker pulling out after only a few races.

Triple-Double Racing was the next team to secure a place in the Superleague, founded and initially managed by Ben Warren before Phil Perkins took the reins scant days before the opening race. Driver Jyri Lylykorpi was initially linked with the team, however the team secured GPVWC stalwarts Adam Rouse and Phil Perkins.

The final new team to secure a place was Midnight Motorsport. Driver Nick Rowland's brainchild, the team managed to secure both himself and experienced racing driver and manager Dave Carr-Smith, which seemed to promise a strong team in bid for the Constructors' and Drivers' Championships. Reliability problems and bad luck were the order of the day for the beginning of the season for Midnight, however.

Team changes

• Due to inactivity there were three teams that became defunct at the end of 2010 - Argentina Racing Team, Oz Racing and CSG Racing. A lot of CSG's assets and expertise would end up going to the new Midnight Motorsport outfit.
• Whilst the management initially remained the same, the Yellowbirds GP team had new sponsors and so were rebranded as Computrac Motorsports for 2011. Gavin Thomas took over the management of the team mid way through the season.
• Williamson Dynamics moved their base of operations from their traditional base in England to the German city of Berlin and accordingly added the prefix 'European' to their team name. They too experienced a management change mid-season, as Adam Smith took over day to day operations of the team.
• A dispute amongst the Triple-Double Racing team in the opening races saw Ben Warren depart his own team, which was then taken over by Phil Perkins.
• Having had a bad 2010 season, Draig Racing threw caution to the wind and invested heavily in engines and drivers, leading the team to be in financial trouble part way through the season. The league then placed strict limitations on the team in relation to testing and development for the rest of the season.

Driver changes

2011 Calendar

Round	Race Title	Grand Prix	Circuit	Conditions	Mod	Date	Time
							Track time	GMT
1	Australian Grand Prix	Australian GP	Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne	Sunny	rFactor v1255	24th March	???	19:00
2	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Abu Dhabi GP	Yas Marina Circuit, Yas Island	Sunny	rFactor v1255	31st March	???	19:00
3	Japanese Grand Prix	Japanese GP	Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka, Mie	Sunny	rFactor v1255	7th April	???	19:00
4	Chinese Grand Prix	Chinese GP	Shanghai International Circuit	Sunny	rFactor v1255	21st April	???	19:00
5	South African Grand Prix	South African GP	Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit	Sunny	rFactor v1255	5th May	???	19:00
6	Austrian Grand Prix	Austrian GP	A1-Ring	Sunny	rFactor v1255	12th May	???	19:00
7	French Grand Prix	French GP	Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours	Sunny	rFactor v1255	19th May	???	19:00
8	Monaco Grand Prix	Monaco GP	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	Sunny	rFactor v1255	2nd June	12:30 pm	19:00
9	British Grand Prix	British GP	Silverstone Circuit	Sunny	rFactor v1255	16th June	???	19:00
10	Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain GP	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain	Sunny	rFactor v1255	23rd June	???	19:00
11	San Marino Grand Prix	San Marino GP	Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, San Marino	Sunny	rFactor v1255	7th July	???	19:00
12	Turkish Grand Prix	Turkish GP	Istanbul Park	Sunny	rFactor v1255	14th July	???	19:00
13	Mexican Grand Prix	Mexican GP	Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Mexico City	Sunny	rFactor v1255	28th July	???	19:00
14	Canadian Grand Prix	Canadian GP	Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal	Sunny	rFactor v1255	25th August	???	19:00
15	Brazilian Grand Prix	Brazilian GP	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	Sunny	rFactor v1255	1st September	???	19:00
16	Italian Grand Prix	Italian GP	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	Sunny	rFactor v1255	15th September	???	19:00
17	Spanish Grand Prix	Spanish GP	Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona	Sunny	rFactor v1255	29th September	???	19:00
18	Belgian Grand Prix	Belgian GP	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Spa	Sunny	rFactor v1255	6th October	???	19:00
19	Dutch Grand Prix	Dutch GP	Circuit Park Zandvoort	Sunny	rFactor v1255	13th October	???	19:00
20	Singapore Grand Prix	Singapore GP	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	Sunny	rFactor v1255	20th October	???	19:00

Changes

Rule changes

Qualifying

Results and standings

Grands Prix

Rd.	Grands Prix	Pole position	Fastest lap	Winning driver	Winning constructor	Report
1	Australian Grand Prix	Joe Consiglio	Lee Morris	Lee Morris	Draig Racing-Ferrari	Report
2	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Joe Consiglio	Joe Consiglio	Lee Morris	Draig Racing-Ferrari	Report
3	Japanese Grand Prix	Joe Consiglio	Lee Morris	Lee Morris	Draig Racing-Ferrari	Report
4	Chinese Grand Prix	Jason Muscat	Mark Stanton	Lee Morris	Draig Racing-Ferrari	Report
5	South African Grand Prix	Sam Millar	Sam Millar	Lee Morris	Draig Racing-Ferrari	Report
6	Austrian Grand Prix	Sam Millar	Sam Millar	Jason Muscat	Red Archer-Renault	Report
7	French Grand Prix	Jason Muscat	Joe Consiglio	Joe Consiglio	Nordsjoen-Mercedes	Report
8	Monaco Grand Prix	Lee Morris	Lee Morris	Dave Carr-Smith	Midnight-Renault	Report
9	British Grand Prix	Lee Morris	Lee Morris	Joe Consiglio	Nordsjoen-Mercedes	Report
10	Bahrain Grand Prix	Jason Muscat	Lee Morris	Lee Morris	Draig Racing-Ferrari	Report
11	San Marino Grand Prix	Lee Morris	Lee Morris	Lee Morris	Draig Racing-Ferrari	Report
12	Turkish Grand Prix	Joe Consiglio	Joe Consiglio	Joe Consiglio	Nordsjoen-Mercedes	Report
13	Mexican Grand Prix					Report
14	Canadian Grand Prix					Report
15	Brazilian Grand Prix					Report
16	Italian Grand Prix					Report
17	Spanish Grand Prix					Report
18	Belgian Grand Prix					Report
19	Dutch Grand Prix					Report
20	Singapore Grand Prix					Report

Scoring system

Points are awarded to the top 10 classified finishers.

Drivers standings

Pos Driver AUS UAE JPN CHN RSA AUT FRA MON GBR BHR RSM TUR MEX CAN BRA ITA ESP BEL NED SIN Points 1 Lee Morris 1 1 1 1 1 3 2 11† 2 1 1 2 151 2 Joe Consiglio 13† 2 2 4 3 2 1 12† 1 4 2 1 119 3 David Jundt 4 4 4 6 6 4 5 7 5 3 4 3 86 4 Jason Muscat 16 3 8 2 2 1 Ret 5 3 2 DNS Ret 80 5 Dave Carr-Smith 2 Ret 6 3 DNS Ret Ret 1 DNS 5 DNS 5 54 6 Ojay Clark 5 5 Ret 8 4 11 6 2 8 10 DQ‡ 8 47 7 Mark Wicks 9 7 7 10 8 5 7 4 10 9 7 11 39 8 Bart De Vos 3 6 6 7 5 7 34 9 Sam Millar 3 Ret 3 Ret 9 8 4 Ret DNS DNS DNS Ret 33 10 Nick Rowland Ret Ret 5 Ret DNS Ret DNS DNS 4 Ret 6 4 27 11 Adam Rouse 6 6 Ret 7 7 7 22 12 Christoph Lichtenstein 12 11 9 9 12 Ret Ret 3 Ret 8 10 9 20 13 Kieran Ryan 8 10 12 13 5 6 8 14† DNS 12 Ret 14 18 14 Ryan Walker 11 12 15 18 10 10 9 Ret 7 6 Ret 6 18 15 Mark Stanton Ret 8 10 5 11 9 Ret 9 9 16 Ret Ret 16 16 Pavel Loknovski 3 10 11 17 Jyri Lylykorpi 7 9 Ret 14 DNS Ret 12 Ret Ret Ret DNS DNS 6 18 Ben Morgan 10 Ret 11 Ret Ret DNS DNS 8 13 Ret Ret 13 4 19 Petter Kaasa 8 3 20 Phil Perkins Ret 15 Ret Ret Ret 14 Ret 13† DNS 11 9 12 2 21 Mark Fuller 15 Ret DNS 16 DNS 13 11 10 DNS 15 14 16 1 22 Abdel Damghi Ret Ret 12 Ret Ret 10 Ret Ret 13 DNS DNS 1 23 David Stanton Ret 13 13 11 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 17 11 15 0 24 Chris Williamson Ret 16 DNS DNS DNS 12 DNS DNS 11 Ret 12 Ret 0 25 Gavin Thomas Ret Ret 14 DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS 12 14 Ret Ret 0 26 Ben Warren Ret Ret DNS DNS 13 Ret 0 27 William Ponissi 14 14 Ret 17 Ret DNS DNS Ret DNS DNS DNS 0 28 Tim-Oliver Wagner Ret DNS Ret 15 DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS Ret Ret 0 29 Tom Parker Ret DNS Ret Ret 0 30 Luke McKee Ret DNS Ret 0 31 Ashley Walsh Ret 0 32 Teemu Toikka Ret DNS DNS Ret 0 33 Luis Fernando Laaff Ret Ret DNS Ret DNS 0 34 Nikos Evangelidakis Ret 0 35 Ryan McConkey Ret 0 Pos Driver AUS UAE JPN CHN RSA AUT FRA MON GBR BHR RSM TUR MEX CAN BRA ITA ESP BEL NED SIN Points

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Light blue Practiced only (PO) Blank Did not participate (-) Excluded (EX) Withdrew entry before the event (WD) Bold - Pole Italics - Fastest lap

^† Drivers did not finish the Grand Prix, but were classified as they completed over 75% of the race distance.
^‡ Ojay Clark finished 6th but was disqualified from the race for excessive corner-cutting. Positions behind him were therefore promoted by one place.

Constructors standings

Pos Constructor Car No. AUS UAE JPN CHN RSA AUT FRA MON GBR BHR RSM TUR MEX CAN BRA ITA ESP BEL NED SIN Points 1 Draig Racing 14 1 1 1 1 1 3 2 11† 2 1 1 2 169 15 11 12 15 18 10 10 9 Ret 7 6 Ret 6 2 Red Archer 5 16 3 8 2 2 1 Ret 5 3 2 Ret Ret 166 6 4 4 4 6 6 4 5 7 5 3 4 3 3 Nordsjoen 0 7 9 Ret 14 DNS Ret 12 Ret Ret Ret 3 10 136 2 13† 2 2 4 3 2 1 12† 1 4 2 1 4 Midnight 24 2 Ret 6 3 DNS Ret Ret 1 DNS 5 8 5 84 25 Ret Ret 5 Ret DNS Ret DNS DNS 4 Ret 6 4 5 Triple-Double 22 Ret 15 Ret Ret Ret 14 Ret 13† DNS 11 9 12 58 23 6 6 Ret 7 7 7 3 6 6 7 5 7 6 Woods Racing 3 9 7 7 10 8 5 7 4 10 9 7 11 57 4 8 10 12 13 5 6 8 14† DNS 12 Ret 14 7 Synergetic 9 12 11 9 9 12 Ret Ret 3 Ret 8 10 9 53 10 3 Ret 3 Ret 9 8 4 Ret DNS DNS Ret Ret 8 Williamson 18 Ret DNS Ret 15 DNS Ret DNS DNS Ret Ret Ret DNS 47 19 5 5 Ret 8 4 11 6 2 8 10 DQ 8 9 Constant 7 Ret 8 10 5 11 9 Ret 9 9 16 Ret Ret 16 8 14 14 Ret 17 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret DNS DNS DNS 10 Computrac 11 Ret Ret 14 DNS DNS DNS DNS DNS 12 14 Ret Ret 4 12 10 Ret 11 Ret Ret DNS DNS 8 13 Ret Ret 13 11 Nijo 20 Ret 16 Ret Ret Ret 12 Ret Ret 11 Ret 13 Ret 1 21 Ret Ret Ret 12 Ret Ret 10 Ret Ret 13 12 Ret 12 ST Racing 16 15 Ret Ret 16 DNS 13 11 10 Ret 15 14 16 1 17 Ret 13 13 11 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 17 11 15 Pos Constructor Car No. AUS UAE JPN CHN RSA AUT FRA MON GBR BHR RSM TUR MEX CAN BRA ITA ESP BEL NED SIN Points

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Light blue Practiced only (PO) Blank Did not participate (-) Excluded (EX) Withdrew entry before the event (WD) Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest Lap

^† Cars did not finish the Grand Prix, but were classified as they completed over 75% of the race distance.