A1GP: Engines roaring on Taupo track

Jonny Reid will be the crowd favourite at Taupo. Photo / Alan Gibson

Kiwi motorsport fans will think they've died and gone to heaven this weekend. World-class international motor racing has already arrived in Taupo and the 22 countries making up the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport are getting ready to battle it out.

Kiwi Jonny Reid will be fighting it out on our behalf around the 3.5km track. Last year, Germany won the New Zealand leg of the series, setting a new lap record, 1m 14.7s, but Reid was on the podium finishing third in both races.

As the countdown to the main game begins, A1GP chief executive Pete da Silva said: "This is exactly where A1GP wants to be.

"I know the different nations were delighted with their Kiwi experience. It may be a very picturesque environment and the people may be laidback and friendly, but it also delivers in terms of professionalism and motorsport passion."

Da Silva said the placement of a round in New Zealand was what A1GP was all about - spreading the motorsport word.

"This is still a relatively new series, but traditions are developing, rivalries are forming and we're seeing countries like New Zealand really racing from the heart," Da Silva said.

He went on to mention that other rounds should emulate New Zealand and host other classes around the A1 event.

Not since the halcyon days of the 1950s and 1960s when the likes of Chris Amon, Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham, Graham Hill and Bruce McLaren raced on our shores have we had a regular international field.

Reid will not have it all his own way as the Swiss driver, Neel Jani, who tops the table on 79 points, has been a consistent performer this season. France (60) and Loic Duval, only one point ahead of New Zealand (59), have happy memories of Taupo finishing second in both races last year. Last year's series champion, Germany, who won both previous races, may be languishing down the table but can't be counted out as everything has to click for them at some stage.

Although most of the drivers will have raced at Taupo before, none will have driven through the modified corner at the end of the main straight.

The track owners took heed of driver complaints at the lack of passing opportunities and the previously fast, flowing corner has been changed into a sharp 90-degree left-hander, followed by a tight right-hander. Spectators will be in for a treat as there's bound to be some late-breaking duels and hustling going on.

Now in its third season, A1 is getting much more competitive with drivers from all levels of racing including Formula One (current and ex), ChampCar, Formula 3 and GP2 competing. And with a lot of teams following New Zealand's lead of sticking with one driver, the racing is getting close indeed.

The 2007 Formula Renault Euro Cup champion, Brendan Hartley, gets his first chance to drive Black Beauty since testing at Silverstone in August last year. He will drive in the two 25-minute sessions today, before Reid takes over for the rest of the weekend.

"I really enjoyed my experience at Silverstone, but representing your country at home in a championship round is going up a gear," says Hartley. "I'm keen to help out any way I can and contribute towards New Zealand winning."

With the running of the A1GP at Taupo, New Zealand will become the first country in the world to use a 30 per cent biofuel mix for an international race.

However, the A1GP is not the whole story - there are a number of national championships being contested over the weekend.

After a seven-week lay-off, the NZV8 teams are chomping at the bit to get back racing. With just six rounds in this year's championship, the Taupo event could see the leading four - John McIntyre with 382 points, Kayne Scott with 331, Angus Fogg with 328 and Paul Radisich with 319 - establish an unassailable lead over the rest of the field.

Forming part of the seven-round national Toyota Racing Series is the three-race international series which culminates with the Denny Hulme Memorial Trophy on Sunday.

Halliday will be keen to win this weekend, not only to take the mini-series title - he also wants to finish the season with some silverware.

Andy Knight leads the overall championship on 564 points; Ben Harford is second on 458 with youngster Earl Bamber in third with 423.

The GT3s resume battle with Craig Baird unbeatable so far with six wins from six starts. Young guns Daniel Gaunt and Jono Lester will be hoping to get one over the two international drivers of Baird and Halliday. For the first time in the series' four-year history the field will include a current Porsche Mobil1 Supercup driver, Briton Phil Quaife. Baird leads on 450 points, Halliday has 361 and Gaunt 328.

The Minis continue their tussle and Richard Moore will be looking to get back on the pace after rolling his car at Ruapuna. It's tight at the top with Brett Collins leading on 396 points, followed by Keeley Pudney on 364 and Gavin Dawson on 337.

* The sum of all its high-tech parts

* The A1 Grand Prix cars blasting around the Taupo track this weekend can hit speeds of 310km/h. But, with the vehicles being identical, and having no anti-lock braking and no traction control, the emphasis is on driver skill.

* The cars have a power-boost button to encourage overtaking moves, making for a better spectacle. Each car is equipped to provide a limited number of 30hp boosts per race.

* The huge torque developed by the engine requires a significantly larger rear tyre. Slick tyres provide progressive levels of grip and feedback that are lacking in treaded or grooved tyres. Unlike road tyres, which have to last for thousands of miles, a slick is made of a unique blend of materials, only one of which is rubber.

* In racing temperatures of up to 90C, the tyre surface becomes almost gel-like. This, coupled with the car's down-force, makes the tyre "squash" into the racetrack surface - giving huge grip and cornering capabilities.

* With no traction control the rear tyres have to be able to perform when the driver unleashes 550bhp. The A1 tyre is a control tyre - all teams use the same compound. In wet conditions, a specially-developed rain tyre is used.

* As any engineer will tell you, the ability to reliably transmit up to 550bhp through a lightweight gearbox is hard to achieve. The gear pack is mounted sideways giving better weight distribution and allowing very compact overall dimensions.

* The gearbox casing is made of magnesium alloy - strong and light - while the gear wheels are straight-cut steel alloy. The front and rear suspension is of a double wishbone and pushrod operated twin coil over damper construction. Adjustable ride height, cambers and toe, as well as anti-dive and anti-squat all allow fine tuning to get the ultimate handling set-up.

* The steering rack is a drop-gear single pinion design, which has undergone rigorous testing. The steering wheel itself is made by Sparco and has an integrated digital dashboard. At 280mm in diameter, the wheel has a flat bottom (so as not to snag on the driver's legs).

* The electronic gear shift system allows gear shifting through paddles mounted on the steering wheel. The right-hand paddle shifts up a gear, the left shifts down, with no clutch operation needed. Other switches select neutral and reverse.

* Brake manufacturer AP specifically designed a set of disc brakes with four-piston callipers for the challenge of slowing down a car that can reach speeds of more than 310km/h.

* Steel alloy discs give excellent, progressive braking and unlike carbon or ceramic brakes they work just as well when cool.

* The all-new engine was developed specifically for the A1 car by the team at Zytek Engineering. Despite its immense power, it weighs only 120kg - making the A1 engine one of the lightest 3.4-litre racing engines ever made. A new engine for next season will be designed by Ferrari.