A1 Gp

[Eddster]

It will take place after the F1 season, and the first race is at Brands Hatch on the 25th September. They hope it will become the World Cup of motorsport pitting countries against each other in open-wheeled V8's. There will be one car per country, and there are 25 countries taking part. Personally I am really looking forward to it, and have already got tickets to Brands (only £28). Whats everyone elses opinion on it?

Website: www.a1gp.com (http://www.a1gp.com)

[spyshagg]

:D

go portugal!

[DratsaB]

Yes, this seems like a really great idea. Fith Gear did a feature on it (Fifth Gear - [07x03] - 2005.04.04). I like the way all the cars are basically the same..pure driver skill is what counts, should make for some good races. I just hope they can generate enough attention.
Not sure about the Dubai track...lots of sand blowing around. could be interesting :)

[colcob]

Apparently they've also been designed to leave a pretty clean wake behind the rear wing, and also to have a front wing which is efficient in dirty air. So in theory there should be more overtaking.

[Neokiller]

this A1 gp will be a good challenge to the drivers and also a good competition between the countries, but what can i say GO PORTUGAL :thumb:

[Fragmatic]

I really want to goto the race at brands, It's my "local" track, but I have no-one to go with :( Looks like it's going to be a great series though.

[SpiderX]

Cant wait for it ! and the fact that its a coutry oriented thing gives everyone a good chance to show off, not like the super lobby oriented F1.

Go Portugal !!! :nana:

PS: Just hope TVs go along so everyone can see it!

[KiDCoDEa]

GO PORTUGAL!

[Madman_CZ]

interesting new series...... but no czech team :(

[Metalstar]

I really want to goto the race at brands, It's my "local" track, but I have no-one to go with :( Looks like it's going to be a great series though.

go on your own.

I have been to a couple of meetings at oulton or donnington on my own and you always find someone to chat to, even if you dont the atmosphere makes up for it at the bigger meetings.

I'm racing karts that weekend so i cant go :( :)

[Lible]

Hmm, would be nice, if we could have something like this in lfs

[GP4Flo]

I'm thinking about going to the german race at the Lausitzing, anybody else going there?

[sil3ntwar]

interesting new series...... but no czech team :(There is a czech team. Thomas Enge and some other bloke are driving. http://www.a1mania.com/name-News-article-sid-37.html

[Chris_Kerry]

I'm looking forward to something new and fresh. The qualifying system looks strange imo, but I think that the racing should be good. The times in testing seem to be rather spread out mind.

[Madman_CZ]

There is a czech team. Thomas Enge and some other bloke are driving. http://www.a1mania.com/name-News-article-sid-37.html


whooho now thats music to may ears!!!!! last time i looked we werent there

[Fragmatic]

Looks like I might be going to the brands race afterall (If I can find the cash)

Anyone up for an LFS mini meet?

[Tweaker]

They are coming to Laguna Seca.... which means I instantly love the series :)

Will buy tickets and go see them for sure! (Only about 1h 1/2 away from where I live)

[nikimere]

Hmm, would be nice, if we could have something like this in lfs

we do... LFS Nations Cup http://nationscup.forumer.com

I'll be at Brands and HOPEFULLY Laguna Seca. Friend of mine owns Irish Team and the driver is also a good friend of mine, so.... GO IRELAND!! :D :D

[DratsaB]

Friend of mine owns Irish Team and the driver is also a good friend of mine, so.... GO IRELAND!! :D :D

Sweet, we have an Irish team :)

[nikimere]

interesting new series...... but no czech team :(

errr... there is a Czech Team

Read ALL posts before replying!! :doh:

[AndyC]

Getting close now. Hopefully its going to be an intresting event and i'm curious to see how its going to pan out. Its a strange system they've got like the sprint race finishing positions are the main events starting places but it could just work!

Also intrested to see if the 'Push To Pass' button is going to be used to good affect, I'm sure with an extra 30bhp or so they'll be able to do something special.

Nice track to start the season off aswell, plenty of overtaking at the hairpin hopefully and various other places.

andy.

[Chris_Kerry]

Yes really looking forward to it now, there seems to be no real indication of how close the racing is going to be, but brands hatch will certainly allow it if it's close. Anyone going?

[Gizz]

ive been hearing lots about it but i havent took the time to check it out yet, but from what i have been hearing it should be fun and its GREAT to see everyone have a go (countrys) and funding is not going to be the be all and end all like F1,...

ill check it out now, i think im on holiday on race day but ill check if not i might pop down ticket prices seem reasonable too :) if anyone else decides to go we will have to set a meeting point ;) Bagzee first at the burger bar :D

[sil3ntwar]

awesome race. Piquet and Halliday drove brilliantly. Good to see a big crash as well :P

[Fragmatic]

For anyone who went - I demand photos! <3

[(SaM)]

Yea, this is more like the kind of formula race I'd love to see, F1 bores me with all their gadgets. A1GP has no gadgets like TC, it's all down to the drive. There should be alot of over- and understeer they said.

And I believe I heard there was less slipstream for the rear wing being smaller?

[nikimere]

For anyone who went - I demand photos! <3
will have some for u tomorrow :)

[Mbrio]

Yea, this is more like the kind of formula race I'd love to see, F1 bores me with all their gadgets. A1GP has no gadgets like TC, it's all down to the drive. There should be alot of over- and understeer they said.

And I believe I heard there was less slipstream for the rear wing being smaller?

*cough* boost button *cough*....

But apart from that you're right. You could actually see them kicking the back out from time to time. :)

[Tweaker]

So they have boost like in Champ Car I guess? I suppose that is ok, makes for some interesting passing.

[Fragmatic]

will have some for u tomorrow :)

I love you. I'm really annoyed that I didn't get to go :(

[OPK]

w00t

A shame I did not find any TV station that covers it for free in germany.
Any footage? :P

[GP4Flo]

Same here :(

P.s. Are you going to the next race in Germany, OPK?

[OPK]

Nopes.

The Eurospeedway is just ~90 minutes away from me, but I don´t really have time atm...

[Da Hoe]

there was a live stream on a1gp.com

[Fragmatic]

there was a live stream on a1gp.com

WHATTT? :( bugger.

[AndyC]

you could have told me that earlier !!! lol

a well i'll have to find highlights on the web somewhere.

was it a good race? plenty of overtaking?

andy.

[Eddster]

Sorry, no pics guys, but it was a damn good day, and saw plenty of close racing. The excitement of the crowd was electrifying in the feature race when team GBR overtook the ossies and Brazil in the pits, only it to all end before one lap. Piquet was top draw throughout, especially his brilliant passing manouvre to overtake Australia, and he got a very good reception from the crowd after that. Loads of the dutch turned up with air horns and smoke grenades. Laughed when Verstappen was the first retirement of the series.

[nikimere]

could have sworn i saw Scawen there... or at least a guy who look amazingly like him! Scawen u there?

[bobvanvliet]

Loads of the dutch turned up with air horns and smoke grenades. Laughed when Verstappen was the first retirement of the series.Ah yes, but did you laugh when in the feature race (*cough* where the UK retired *cough*) he drove his bright orange machine from 25th to 9th in the opening lap?! :smileypul

In the end, he finished 7th, in the pack that was led by no. 3, quite an accomplishment coming from last place on the grid. Anyhoo, this shows how fun the whole A1 thing is. I'm a fan for sure :thumb:.

[OPK]

Hm, here is at least something:

http://rapidshare.de/files/5544575/A1GP_Race_1_Rollover.MPG.html

[Dragger]

they still seem like they are not used to driving formula cars. :/ hope it gets better in the future.

plus honestly im not a big fan of the "push to pass" button

[Racer X NZ]

Great formula idea but they REALLY need to learn about blue flags.
Total noob's down 3 laps dicing with the leaders. A definate Southern Hemisphere victory, Brazil, Aust & NZ.
Yeah, Verstaphen (sp) did ok, last on grid to 7th but Halliday ( NZ ) had never driven the track before & came from pitlane to 4th.
And if it wasn't for the above noob's could easily have been 3rd.
Still, as NZ said earlier, thats our worst race out of the way.

[Madman_CZ]

push to pass button? its the third time i see this inthe forum so i ask ..what the hell is it.... i missed the a1gp race so i dont have a clue...

some one please explain in short

thx


mad

[no_one]

push to pass button? its the third time i see this inthe forum so i ask ..what the hell is it.... i missed the a1gp race so i dont have a clue...

some one please explain in short

thx


mad

I think it's a button to give the driver some extra engine power. I think ( this is all from watching Champ cars on Eurosport so mebbie wrong) there is a limit to how many times they can use it per race.

[spyshagg]

Great formula idea but they REALLY need to learn about blue flags.
Total noob's down 3 laps dicing with the leaders. A definate Southern Hemisphere victory, Brazil, Aust & NZ.
Yeah, Verstaphen (sp) did ok, last on grid to 7th but Halliday ( NZ ) had never driven the track before & came from pitlane to 4th.
And if it wasn't for the above noob's could easily have been 3rd.
Still, as NZ said earlier, thats our worst race out of the way.

there are no BLUE flags..... thats a thing of Modern F1.

In A1 (and the old F1, ayrton senna times), the front pilots must prove they can pass the backmarker. The backmarkers are only forced to let them pass if they block intentionaly the faster car. If they block, a Black and white flag is showed and then yes, they are forced to let them pass.
(and he did..)

good old F1 times

[spyshagg]

I think it's a button to give the driver some extra engine power. I think ( this is all from watching Champ cars on Eurosport so mebbie wrong) there is a limit to how many times they can use it per race.

yes, they can use it 4 times in the sprint race, and 8 times in the feature race. To a total of 30 seconds on each race.

30s is low, so its only used when really necessary (you could see that some drivers did not use it at all, and i think its because of the oversteer lol.. lots of them spin out )

[Dragger]

its kinda like nos lol.

+ 30 hp when you press it.

[nikimere]

there are no BLUE flags..... thats a thing of Modern F1.

In A1 (and the old F1, ayrton senna times), the front pilots must prove they can pass the backmarker.

What are you on about? There are blue flags! Blue flags have been around racing since before the 80's. It's just the marshalls didn't give the guy any blue flags and thats why he didn't move over. Other drivers DID get blue flags and moved out of the way. It was just a mistake by Race Control.


The Irish driver is a friend of mine and i was asking him about the The 'Push to Pass' button. It only gives the driver an extra .1 or .2 of a second a lap maximum.

[AndyC]

The Irish driver is a friend of mine and i was asking him about the The 'Push to Pass' button. It only gives the driver an extra .1 or .2 of a second a lap maximum.

The idea in theory isn't to get a faster lap time though, its to help with overtaking, giving them a few extra mph can make a good difference to an overtaking manouver but to a lap time, not much.

andy.

[nikimere]

The idea in theory isn't to get a faster lap time though, its to help with overtaking, giving them a few extra mph can make a good difference to an overtaking manouver but to a lap time, not much.

andy.

i know that. i was trying to put it in perspective....

[spyshagg]

What are you on about? There are blue flags! Blue flags have been around racing since before the 80's. It's just the marshalls didn't give the guy any blue flags and thats why he didn't move over. Other drivers DID get blue flags and moved out of the way. It was just a mistake by Race Control.


The Irish driver is a friend of mine and i was asking him about the The 'Push to Pass' button. It only gives the driver an extra .1 or .2 of a second a lap maximum.

i had many friends in the race.... thats the rule they told. And because i did not see a single blue flag during the Tv broadcast, i believed them (they were there... i didn't)

[nikimere]

i had many friends in the race.... thats the rule they told. And because i did not see a single blue flag during the Tv broadcast, i believed them (they were there... i didn't)
i saw some of the other guys get blue flags, but not the pakistan driver for some reason

[AndyC]

i know that. i was trying to put it in perspective....

I know you were mate, I was just saying that its may sounds like its a huge boost but it isn't (which you know already :tilt: )

Andy.

[Levi1]

Great race to watch, so much more fun than watching Formula 1.
But they can improve on a few things,..
Instead of a boost button give em a manual gearbox and clutch.
Make it 1 race instead of 2, seeing a guy stand on the podium twice is stupid. (there should be one GRAND prix instead of one and a half,.. or atleast give more points for the full race than the sprint race)
Cars need more horsepower, it's less than GP2 now.
Nicer looking cars :p, like eighties/nineties F1's, hehe

and the noob drivers should be kicked out :)

[nikimere]

They have manual clutches, but yes i think they should have manual gears too instead of sequential.
I like the 2 race thing. More motorsport on TV :D The prize money goes to the winner of the 2nd race.
I think the cars are fast enough, and they sound MEGA!
They have ugliest rear end since Margret Thatcher!

[spyshagg]

i think the next race is gonna be 1 race with many laps.... if you check ESTORIL race at a1gp.com, you see this:
Location: 6 km north west of Lisbon
Track Length: 4360 m
Laps: 71
Direction: Clockwise
Total Distance: 309,560 km

[nikimere]

Germany is the next round 09th Oct
Estoril is the 3rd rouns on 23rd Oct

long races are boring... i hope there are 2 races

[spyshagg]

Germany is the next round 09th Oct
Estoril is the 3rd rouns on 23rd Oct

long races are boring... i hope there are 2 races

I gave Estoril example because the Eurospeedway does not show the laps info..

for me, long races all the way.
The sprint race sucks because no one wants to race for real, being afraid of missing the real race (that gives money) if they have a accident.

[nikimere]

a bit late but here as promised... pictures!! :D http://www.freshmultimedia.com/a1

[Woody]

Greetings from Brazil!

Check this

http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/a1gp/archive/2005/brands_hatch/brands_hatch-1.wvx

or this

http://www.a1gp.com/media/

for a streaming video showing both last sunday races. It lasts more than 3 hours. The Sprint race starts at 30 minutes, and the Feature race starts at 2 hours position.

Enjoy! :D

Woody

[detail]

Watched it on Monday on TV, fine racing, much better than F1. No need to add power, I think they'd better have make the cars even less aerodynamic efficient, with more drag to make slipstreaming easier.

I hope Rusinov will drive for Russia nex time. Vasiliev needs more training, he raced in FIA GT very long, and also is older.

[Levi1]

I think they'd better have make the cars even less aerodynamic efficient, with more drag to make slipstreaming easier.
I thought rear drag is exactly what they don't want, because it would make following/overtaking in corners harder.

[detail]

I thought rear drag is exactly what they don't want, because it would make following/overtaking in corners harder.
Right. May be so.

[bobvanvliet]

Yeah, if I recall correctly, they designed the rear wings especially to not leave very "dirty" air. Also, it seems the front wings are designed to perform well in any dirty air that does occur. All this is to make sure they can drive real close to each other, which increases the fun/excitement. :thumb:

[detail]

Then, probably, they also worked with tyres suppliers to achieve steady tyres performance, to make them less dependent on rubber, less sensible to dirt (while in F1 they always try to get maximal peak performance).

So, looks like the sheikh's team made a good job. Looked at all the F1 disadvantages and solved many of them. Meanwhile in F1 Mosley and Ecclestone are constrained with tons of formal agreements with teams and can't make them move by a millimiter.

[nikimere]

F1 blows!!

(might be a bit dramatic eith a few drinks but u get the point!)

[bobvanvliet]

Then, probably, they also worked with tyres suppliers to achieve steady tyres performance, to make them less dependent on rubber, less sensible to dirt (while in F1 they always try to get maximal peak performance).
Not really. You saw a lot of them starting to oversteer towards the end of their stints. But I don't see that as a downside, stopping twice is not really an option in A1, so this really seperates the good drivers from the rookies (who spun out). One guy though, pitted real early and drove the rest of the feature race on one set of tyres and finished somewhere nice iirc, so they are rugged enough. :thumb:

[hrtburnout]

go Jos Verstappen :D

[Mr.Ferret]

anybody know were i could download a telacast of the latest A1 (Euro speedway) thanks ;)

[Coffee]

They only work when the A1 racing is on..

sector time
http://www.catmoto.com/TempsOnLine/pagines/cursa.asp
TV feed
http://mfile.akamai.com/18494/live/r...asx?bkup=41357

or

http://mfile.akamai.com/18494/live/reflector:41355.asx?bkup=41357

Geoff - Canberra

[farcar]

I've attached s few photos from the Eastern Creek round and support races today in Sydney. An incident packed event marred by a huge crash in the A1 race 2. The Japanese driver Hayanari Shimoda became airborne after leaving the track at top speed and skimming over the gravel trap.

The car impacted the wall about 20 metres from where myself and friends were sitting. We feared the worst for the driver when we realised that the car was torn in half and the driver unable to get out.

Fortunately fire and medical crews were on the scene within seconds and did a great job. The driver was reported as being concussed but OK.

Overall, a great day at 'the Creek' and it's great to see such a fantastic series in Sydney.

[sil3ntwar]

http://www.chrisormerod.com/gallery/photos/4/1.aspx

[Goop]

Great photos guys.

[Nitemare]

last race in sepang was by far the most exciting one yet! and a LOT more exciting than f1...

...and what a great performance from Tomas Enge! :trophy_br: :thumbsup: