‘Twas the weekend before Christmas on the High Speed Television Channel. All was peaceful, until a turbo-charged whine pierced through the night air, followed swiftly by a throaty V8 rumble and the squeal of tyres on a 90 right. Welcome one and all, to another weekend of high-stakes action on Motors TV, cherry-picked from around the globe for maximum entertainment value.
We start with round two of the Asian Le Mans Series, the 4 Hours of Fuji. Jackie Chan-DC Racing (yes, that Jackie Chan) swept both the LMP2 and LMP3 classes at the Zhuhai season opener, but under the shadow of Mount Fuji, could their rivals have any riposte? In the GT class, Ferrari looked to continue their strong start to the season after finishing first and second in China, but would have to be wary of a Vincenzo Sospiri Racing Lamborghini bolstered by Super Formula standout Yuhi Sekiguchi, while Spa 24H winner Philipp Eng hoped to make a splash on his series debut with Team AAI’s BMW.
An average British race fan may think they know their way around the Rockingham Motor Speedway, but conventional wisdom is ripped apart in the brilliant Motorsport News Circuit Rally Championship. The unique format of turning race circuits into rally stages has proven immensely popular and it’s easy to see why, with fans flocking to see their local tracks in a new light over the regular off-season. Over two days, including night stages, the assembled R5 and classic RWD machinery will be in for a stern test…
The single-make Toyota NZ 86 championship is only in its fourth season, but the Kiwi saloons have already built a reputation for close quarters racing. Reid Harker prevented defending champion Ash Blewett from taking a hat-trick of victories at the fast and flowing Pukekohe by just two tenths of a second, but with Blewett absent from Taupo, could Harker go on to take command of the title race?
Creventic’s 24H Series went from strength to strength in 2016 and you can recap all the best bits in this season review special. A mammoth 100-car grid made the trip to Dubai for the season-opener way back in January, which was followed by the successful launch of a touring car-only sub-series at Silverstone, won by veteran Martin Short and his stalwart Rollcentre Racing crew. Revisit the highs and lows of Mugello, as Optimum Motorsport’s hopes were cruelly dashed at the last, and witness Porsche’s new 911 GT3-R sweep Paul Ricard and Catalunya with all the conviction of a Matt Le Tissier penalty kick.
There’s plenty more season review action to get through too, with a look back on the eclectic Dutch Supercar Challenge series on its travels around Northern Europe, not to mention the fastest, maddest four-wheel-drive beasts on the planet from the World Rally Championship and the always entertaining IMSA Sportscar Championship.
And if all that’s not enough, then how about a nostalgic revisit of the British GT Championship, which went down to the wire at Donington Park for the fifth successive season. There were six different winners in nine races in 2016, but three pairs stood above the rest. Aston Martin factory driver Jonny Adam would become the first man to successfully defend his crown, alongside Derek Johnston, if he could finish with one car between himself and the Lamborghini of Phil Keen and Jon Minshaw, while the Bentley of Rick Parfitt Jr. and impressive rookie Seb Morris were also in the mix. As expected, it didn’t disappoint!
Saturday 17 December09:00 – FIA World Rally Championship, Best-Of12:10 – Motorsport News Circuit Rally Championship, Round 3, Rockingham14:15 – 24H Series, Best-Of18:25 – Toyota NZ 86 Championship, Round 2, Taupo19:25 – Asian Le Mans Series, Round 2, 4 Hours of Fuji20:30 – IMSA Sportscar Championship, Best-Of
Sunday 18 December12:10 – Asian Le Mans Series, Round 2, 4 Hours of Fuji14:45 – Supercar Challenge, Best-Of17:50 – British GT Championship, Best-Of
