Zolder was the nezt stop off for the Dunlop Sports Maxx Endurance Challenge with the MExT Mosler hoping to do more than hobble down the pitlane as they did in Spa.
The car had been shipped back to Mosler UK for a series of updates and setup testing with the team saying the car then 'felt like new and the difference was huge'. Handling improvements were offset by engine probems in practice but the mechanics had them sorted before qualifying.
MExT put their Mosler seventh on the grid, an encouraging result after the disappointment at Spa. Sadly, that's where their good luck ran out - dodging a BMW at the race start left them with nowhere to go apart from into a Porsche. This clip from Pitstop.tv shows the incident, about two minutes in:
As you can see, the car was damaged heavily and they were firmly out of the race. MeXT are hoping to have the car fixed in time for the 500km of Zolder in June.
The podium is getting closer for BF Racing after another solid endurance race in the V de V series.
Paul Ricard hosted the rain-lashed second round of the championship with a four-hour race. Manuel Ferreira and Ludovic Bour qualified in third and, in atrocious conditions, were mixing it with the leaders before steering and gearbox problems hampered their pace. The BF Mosler kept on rolling, though, to finish fourth.
Uncertainty shrouds the future of Moslers in this years Belgian GT championship.
Gravity have been advertising a Mosler for sale, G&A have sold theirs to Mext (for the Dunlop Endurance Cup) and there are no marque entries for the opening race at Zolder this weekend.
Despite reports that David Shelton could be racing a Mosler this year, no further details have emerged.
Although the series includes marques such as the Audi R8, Ford GT and Ford Mustang, only twelve GT3 cars will make the initial grid. Here's hoping that a Mosler presence is lurking somewhere, if only for the Zolder 24 hour race later in the year.
25-26 Apr Belgian Race Kick Off, Zolder 09-10 May 1000 km of Spa, Spa-Francorchamps 05-06 Jun 12 Heures de Spa, Spa-Francorchamps 10-11 Jul 25H VW Fun Cup, Spa-Francorchamps 22-23 Aug 24 Hours of Zolder, Zolder 24-25 Oct FIA GT Championship, Zolder
Spa hosted the first continental European outing for the Mosler with the opening round of the Dunlop Sports Maxx Endurance Cup (DSMEC).
The MeXt team of 'gentlemenn drivers' Lieven Goegebuer and Dirk Van Elslander were running the ex-G&A Belgian GT car from 2008.
After a number of set-up issues, the pair qualified in 18th. With only three Class 1 cars on the grid, there was every chance of a strong finish for the Mosler. Sadly, it was not to be - it struggled to make it out of the pitlane to the startline before the clutch then gave out.
Here's hoping MeXt get a longer run out when the series moves on to Zolder at the end of the month.
The ever-excellent pitstop.tv have footage from the race - the towed Mosler at 2:16 and an interview with Lieven Goegebuer at around 5:19
Oulton Park over the Easter weekend saw a welcome return for the Mosler into British GT after a year's absence. The factory-backed Rollcentre team, starting with one car, had high hopes given the Mosler's championship-winning record. Stuart Hall and Daniel Brown are one of the youngest ever driver pairings in British GT, Daniel still only seventeen as he made his series debut.
Race one on the Saturday saw the Momo-sponsored Mosler muscle its way onto pole. Brown pushed hard in the early laps, cold tyres holding no fear for him as he pulled out a lead over David Jones in the (dare I say) stunning Ascari KZ1R. With the gap up to nine seconds at the driver changeover, Stuart Hall took the Mosler onward and kept increasing the lead before easing off to take a clear win over the Ascari and a distant-third Rosso Verde Ferrari of Hector Lester and Allan Simonsen.
With no racing on Easter Sunday, the GTs were racing again on Bank Holiday Monday in front of an expectant Oulton crowd. Looking out over from Denton's I was looking forward to seeing the Mosler lead the field out of Old Hall Corner... but it was Simonsen in the Ferrari who came into sight first. The Rollcentre Mosler was struggling on new brake pads - fitted after problems late on it race one, hence the easing-off then - which allowed Rosso Verde to push though from second on the grid.
The racing was tight with Hall sitting firmly on Simonsen's rear bumper. Both lapped with little more than a second between them as the mandatory pitstop approached. Stuart Hall took the Mosler over and was soon sizing up the Ferrari, now driven by GT veteren Hector Lester. Would young blood prevail over the old guard? Hall started to size up manoevers to place a winning overtake but it wasn't necessary; Lester spinning out at Old Hall Corner to allow the Mosler to romp away to victory.
"I was a bit surprised when Hector went off," said Daniel, "because I hadn't put him under any pressure at that point. But I was also concerned because it might have meant a safety car period and that would have cut my lead." Lester was able to rejoin, though both the Jones' Ascari and the Craig Wilkins Viper pushed him down to fourth.
A stunning winning weekend for Rollcentre then, with two poles and two fastest laps to go alongside the race wins. It was one of the most enjoyabe racedays I've been to, not just for the Mosler win but because Oulton Park was such a superb circuit - good parking, decent food, toilets that worked and some of the best spectator views I've experienced. I'll certainly be back here in seasons to come.
The British GT now takes a break enforced by the Donington debacle and returns in May with a weekend away at Spa.
Spa in springtime; the Dutch Supercar Challenge returned with Short odds of more Mosler victories.
Ready to defend his 2008 crown, Mosler UK's Martin Short ran strongly in qualifying to put the factory car first on the grid for Saturday's first race. With a solid season behind him and the learning curve hopefully a little flatter this time around, Berry van Elk ran well and put his Mosler onto fourth spot. The Woodcock brothers returned for another Supercar season, qualifying in sixteenth place. No outing this weekend, though, for Harry Mecke or the KRM car.
Race one saw Short take command from the start with potential non-Mosler rivals falling by the wayside. Both Euser's Marcos and Pastorelli's V8 Star developed mechanical problems; only Peter Versluis in the Corvette Z06 provided any hope of a serious challenge. The lead Mosler proved too strong for the rest of the field, though, Short keeping the factory car out in front to take the season's maiden win. Despite a thirty second penalty for overtaking under yellows, Versluis kept second with Berry making it a Mosler 1-3 as he grabbed third spot on the podium. The Woodcocks finished in eleventh and didn't feature again that weekend.
The second race saw Short start from the front but with a fifteen-second victory penalty to take at the pitstop. Early laps were tight, with the Rudolph Viper harrying Short until the Mosler laid down consistently fast laps to establish the lead. The rest of the competition looked as if it was going to be slim again, with Pastorelli, Versluis and van Elk all dropping off with technical problems and Cor Euser starting the Marcos from the pitlane after his earlier woes.
When Short brought his Mosler in for the mandatory pitstop, he'd established a fifteen second lead. With a fifteen second penalty to take, it looked like the race was primed for action... so Martin was bemused to exit the pits with an extended lead. It seemed that the only pairing with the ability and stomach for the fight was Cor Euser and the Marcos, clawing his way through the field having started last, but even he wasn't going to catch the fast-lapping Mosler.
Short eased off significantly towards the end but still took the chequered flag over eighty seconds in front of Euser.
So, two poles and two wins for the Mosler factory team and another podium for Berry van Elk. Martin Short did say "a win's a win" but I bet he's enjoy stiffer competition when the DSC take their spring break over in the UK at Rockingham in May.
The sun shone over the Cheshire parkland circuit today as the Rollcentre Mosler blistered its way to a two-race-winning weekend.
Having shoved the Momo-sponsored car onto pole for both races, Stuart Hall and Daniel Brown took their first win on Saturday with only a dicky braking issue causing concern towards the end.
Race two saw Simonsen thrust the Rossa Verde Ferrari past Hall into Turn One but the Mosler harried hard. They carried round in formation for the first half of the race. After the driver changes, Daniel Brown was itching for an opportunity to pass - and lap 23-ish gave it him on a plate as Hector Lester span out. Brown brought the Mosler home and gave Rollcentre a dream start to their 2009 British GT season.
I'm gutted to find out that the British GT and Britcar meetings at Donington have been cancelled.
With no racing license issued by the MSA, both series look set to move down to Rockingham.
This is a real kick in the balls for me - I was looking forward to seeing five Moslers sweep down the Craner Curves. Moreso, I was looking forward to a couple of months worth of great racing that I can catch a bus to get to; my carbon footprint being somewhat smaller than average given that I don't actually drive a car (don't own a car, don't have a license, never had a lesson. Yes, there's a rich vein of irony in a guy being a GT fan but not knowing how to drive).
Something fishy's going on at DP; all they've done so far is put a half-arsed tunnel in. That needs some Arnco and a catch fence. But that hasn't been done.... so DP have taken down the Dunlop Bridge, fecked up the tunnel, jeapordised a season's racing and done swipe all about constructing anything else.
Well, Mr Gillet, you've now got a few clear months to twaddle about now that FPA, Brit GT and Britcar have pulled out. Are you going to now going to send the tractors in? Have you actually got the money to send the tractors in?
And can anyone give me a lift from Derby to Rockingham ;-)
Mext Racing will run a Mosler in the Belgium-based Dunlop Sport Maxx Endurance Cup.
The series visits Zolder, Spa and Assen for races between two and four hours with a ten-hour season finale at Zolder in November.
With four classes of GT and Touring Cars in competiton, there's likely to be plenty of lively racing. Mext have taken on the ex-G&A Mosler that competed in the Belgian GT last season with Dirk van Elslander and Lieven Goegebuerwill racing in Class One.
4-5/04 Dunlop First Race (Spa Francorchamps) 25-26/04 Belgian Race Kick Off (Circuit Zolder) 14/06 500 km van Zolder (Circuit Zolder) 17-18/07 Zolder Super Prix (Circuit Zolder) 12-13/09 Truck GP (Circuit Zolder) 23-24/10 Finale Races (Assen (NL)) 14/11 Zolder 10 Hours (Circuit Zolder)
The Mosler is back in British GT as Rollcentre front a two-car team for 2009. As well as racing here when his Dutch Supercar commitments allow, Martin Short will field a full-season entry driven by BRDC 'Superstar' Stuart Hall and the seventeeen-year-old rising star, Daniel Brown.
Short is optimistic that the returning Mosler will be competitive in a strong-looking field that for 2009 includes four Ferraris, a brace of Lamborghini Gallardos and a Ford GT. "Stuart and Dan are going to make a very strong team," Short believes, "and that our team focus is very much on them, on the Mosler, and on regaining the championship title which we last won in 2003.”
Both young drivers have been involved with Rollcentre already - Stuart Hall being part of their 2007 Le Mans 24 Hours team and Dan Brown victorious alongside Martin Short in the Moslers Britcar win at Silverstone last weekend.
The MOMO-sponsored Mosler was looking good at the British GT media day and I'm certainly looking forward to seeing at full throttle during the season opener at Oulton Park over the Easter weekend.
MExT put their Mosler seventh on the grid, an encouraging result after the disappointment at Spa. Sadly, that's where their good luck ran out - dodging a BMW at the race start left them with nowhere to go apart from into a Porsche. This clip from Pitstop.tv shows the incident, about two minutes in:
