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WSR To Challenge for the BTCC Title in 2006.. With the MG ZS! |
Thu, Jan 12th 2006 |
 RAC, the longest established motoring organisation, is sponsoring West
Surrey Racing (WSR) in the 2006 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car
Championship (BTCC), under the name Team RAC.
The
sponsorship deal represents a return to RAC's roots in motorsports,
after the organisation was involved in the initial BTCC when it was
established in 1958. Team RAC is the latest in a series of activities
designed to demonstrate RAC's expertise in motoring, which includes the
current advertising campaign - More Know How - featuring real-life patrols giving motorists practical hints and tips.
Under the sponsorship, Team RAC will enter the 10 race events with two branded WSR-designed and built MG ZS cars.
Commenting
on the sponsorship deal, Shaun Meadows, Marketing Director, RAC, said:
"We are delighted to be sponsoring a team in the BTCC, which is a key
event in British motorsports. Our recent advertising campaign has shown
our patrols sharing advice with motorists and this deal further
demonstrates how we can establish RAC as the experts on motoring."
Dick
Bennetts, Team Principal, WSR, said: "We are extremely pleased to be
working in partnership with RAC and forming what I believe will be a
formidable force in the 2006 BTCC. The RAC name has been associated
with British motorsport since the earliest days of the sport in this
country. The MG is a race-winning car and with further development I'm
confident we can build on our previous success. We are currently in
negotiations with a number of experienced drivers to complete our
line-up."
Alan Gow, BTCC Series Director, said: "It's great to
see a household name such as RAC in the BTCC. With the WSR team and
thanks to the excellent marketing opportunities the BTCC offers, I'm
sure RAC will enjoy great results both on and off the track."
View the gallery by clicking on the image above.
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An Historic Race Debut For MG XPower's SV Supercar |
Fri, Mar 25th 2005 |
 MG’s XPower SV supercar has embarked on its first serious motorsport
competition as a private entry by Peter Lloyd Racing, competing in the
VdeV Endurance Championships held last weekend at the Jarama Circuit,
in Spain.
The XPower SV is a race-bred road car that incorporates a number of track-inspired
features. It requires only a modest amount of modification for racing,
work carried out in this instance by Birmingham-based racecar preparation
specialists JP Motorsport, to enable it to compete in the endurance race
series that started on Sunday 20 March.
With only three weeks of preparation and no pre-race track testing, the
SV’s first race was as much a shake-down as a full-blooded attempt
on the race title and the car was pulled in for several time-consuming,
non-standard pit stops to check vital components. As a result, the team
was more than satisfied with a trouble-free performance over four fast-paced,
punishing hours and 90 laps of the Jarama Circuit in baking heat, to finish
a highly creditable 33rd position overall (out of 43 starters) and 7th
in class (subject to confirmation) | Read more... |
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MG Confirms Return to the DTM Race Series |
Fri, Feb 25th 2005 |
MG, a name synonymous with motor sport is to make a welcome return to
the DTM in 2005. The season kicks off on April 17 at Hockenheim,
Germany.
Taking on the might of Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Opel, MG
starts a new and exciting chapter in its illustrious sporting history.
"Racing against prestigious brands in DTM is an exciting way to raise
the MG profile," said Rod Ramsay, managing director, sales &
marketing, MG Rover. "We see the young audience that the series
attracts as key to the growth of the marque across Europe."
David Sharples, director, MG Sport and Racing added: "DTM is a race
series the public really connects with. It is a perfect opportunity for
MG to showcase the racing qualities of its V8 muscle car, the ZT 260.
We are delighted to be working with Oxfordshire based automotive
technology specialists Zytek and are confident we will make a real
impact in our first season."
The fast, furious and highly competitive series attracts top names such
as ex Formula One drivers Mika Hakkinen, Jean Alesi, Heinz-Harald
Frentzen and Allan McNish. Close racing, spectacular overtaking and
tight championship battles will be seen by viewers in 175 countries, as
well as attracting record numbers of trackside spectators. The 11 race
series visits seven circuits in Europe, as well as Istanbul and for the
first time, Brno in the Czech Republic.
Hockenheim will mark the return to a series in which great success was
enjoyed in 1986. Driver Kurt Thiim won the championship amassing 130
points and collected three wins along the way. This time out, powered
by V8 4.0 litre engines developing 500 bhp, the MG-Zytek team will race
two MG ZTs.
More details concerning sponsors and driver line-up will be announced over the coming weeks.
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MG-SV for 2005 British GT Championship |
Thu, Nov 4th 2004 |
The news
that the provisionally named Project X team is to enter the aggressively styled
MG-X Power SV in the 2005 Cup class means that a proud record of racing debuts
for British sportscars in the championship looks set
to continue next season.
Details of
the effort are still coming together but some of the important groundwork is
already in place.
Team
Principal is Paul Kneeshaw, previously with Team Jedi and now ably assisted by
the team’s chief engineer Jay Bullock, a man with a background in sportscar racing which stretches back to the Toyota Group C
campaigns of the 1980s.
The team is
still working to finalise a driver squad but will reportedly have the services
of Anthony Reid for development work. The ex-MG factory driver is however,
unlikely to race for the team.
With MG
Rover currently rather cash strapped, works support is highly unlikely but the
factory has donated the car to the effort, together with plans for a
race-engineered version. MG Rover has clearly had racing ambitions for the SV as
plans evidently exist for an N-GT version of the
car.
For Cup
class running however there is much work to be done, principally on suspension
and ride height.
“The car is
currently running a bit higher than we’d like,“ revealed Paul Kneeshaw, “but
we’re working with Randle Engineering to find a solution. At the moment we’re
bang on 1100 kg but with the power to weight rules in the class we’ll need to
rein her in a bit.”
The standard
road car develops a healthy 385 bhp from its V8 engine.
Project X is dipping a
toe in the water in 2005 but is looking to push forward rapidly: the FIA GT
Championship is in its sights in future years, with an N-GT version of the car.
Before that though it looks like being Porsche vs Ferrari vs Marcos vs Lotus vs
MG (and others) in the 2005 Cup Class.
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WSR MG’s Dominate In Germany |
Tue, Oct 12th 2004 |
 2004 BTCC Independents Champions, WSR, carried on their winning ways, dominating both DPM touring car races at Oschersleben. Anthony Reid, driving a WSR MG ZS, made the most of his pole position to lead both races from lights to flag, setting fastest laps in each to add icing to the cake.
Reid’s team mate, Swiss youngster Mathias Schläppi (22), making his touring car debut, finished 4th in race one, before a storming drive in the feature saw him take an impressive 2nd.
Anthony Reid:-
"It was a great result for WSR as we’d never been to Oschersleben before. The circuit is very technical, but we chipped away at the set-up over the weekend, continually improving the handling and the MG ZS was brilliant in both races.
The level of competition in the DPM is high with a good standard of driving; in fact I finished both races without a mark on my car!"
WSR team principal Dick Bennetts:-
"The whole team enjoyed the experience of racing in a different championship and our task was made a lot easier with the assistance of Beat Maurer of Maurer Motorsport who put the deal together. The organisers were very welcoming and the entire event was well run.
There was very little difference in performance between our BTCC spec cars and the ETCC spec cars. With success ballast the weight of our car and the leading DPM cars was virtually the same.
WSR is currently assisting Maurer Motorsport and MG in their negotiations to run cars in the 2005 championship. I believe the profile of the MG brand in Germany would be even further enhanced by contesting the full championship."
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Win fantastic WSR BTCC Goodies |
Wed, Apr 14th 2004 |
 Following Anthony Reid's excellent showing at the BTCC at Round one with a 2nd place in the ZS (powered this year by the 2 litre K Series engine), I was amazed to hear about the sponsorship situation with the team and decided that the site should try and help them out.
Therefore, we have struck a deal with WSR, the team who runs the BTCC cars where if we can raise £1,300 we can have our website URLs on the cars, along side our friends over at XpowerForums.
This would be an excellent show of solidarity behind the great guys at WSR, not to mention Anthony Reid and Colin Turkington.
The donations will be in the form of a raffle, with 100% of the price of the ticket (less paypal's cut) going into the sponsorship pot. Tickets are from £10, with no limit on the number of tickets you can buy.Remember, this is for some fantastic, money can't buy WSR merchandise.
We have 4 jumpers for 4 runner up prices (worth £45 each), and the top prize being a pit stop suit, worth over £400.
More Details on how to get hold of tickets, please click here.
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Jonathan Palmer Chooses MG |
Mon, Mar 1st 2004 |
 Having recently purchased Brands Hatch, Oulton Park, Snetterton and Cadwell Park race circuits, MotorSport Vision is now the market leader in driving experience events and is already initiating substantial changes to revitalise the motor race circuits business for the future. MotorSport Vision is completely revamping its retail motorsport experience programme and has chosen MG Rover and its sporting brand MG to provide more exciting cars for its guests to drive at Brands Hatch and Oulton Park.
In the MG ZR and ZS models, motorsport enthusiasts will have a choice of two of the finest sporting car ranges available for their track day experience. They can then follow that up with high-speed demonstration laps in the latest rear-wheel-drive
ZT 260 V8. Motorsport Vision has also selected the ZT 260 V8 for Course Car duties at race meetings and the ZT-T estate for a quick-responding Doctor’s Car.
John Parkinson, Managing Director, MG Sport & Racing Limited, commented: "MG, fundamentally a sports motoring brand, has a key role to play in the perpetuation of British enthusiasm for motorsport. This new alliance is a win-win for both parties, with the real winner being the enthusiast himself."
Jonathan Palmer, Managing Director, MotorSport Vision, said: "The circuit driving experiences available to the public at Brands Hatch and Oulton Park are already popular with some 20,000 participants per year experiencing the thrill of driving on two of the most dramatic circuits in the world. Like MG, the names of all our circuits are steeped in British motorsport history and we share a commitment to build on our reputations for providing affordable driving exhilaration."
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First Female Drive For 48 Years In Monte Carlo MG |
Sat, Jan 24th 2004 |
 Top female rally driver Natalie Barratt’s entry in a Super 1600 MG ZR on the Monte Carlo Rally this week is the first time a woman has driven an MG on this event for nearly half a century, when Nancy Mitchell competed at the Principality in an MG Magnette in 1956.
Natalie has several years’ experience of international rallies, but decided to take a year out last year to go circuit racing in saloon cars. However, when the opportunity arose to go for the Junior World Rally Championship (JWRC) with the KF Concept backed Risbridger Motorsport Solutions Team this year in a competitive car, partnered by Welshman Carl Williamson, she didn’t hesitate.
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K Series Celebrates A Successful Season Of Motorsport |
Fri, Nov 28th 2003 |
 The K Series engine is equally at home powering rally cars to class victories
in Wales or thrilling Caterham enthusiasts at Brands Hatch thanks to its high
power output, lightweight all-aluminium construction and legendary in-built reliability.
Last week, Powertrain Ltd celebrated its 2003 achievements with champion racing
drivers from all areas of motorsport. | Read more... |   
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MG ZT-T Tops 225 Mph At Bonneville Speed Week |
Wed, Sep 10th 2003 |
 MG inline for a Guinness World Record
MG Rover Group has applied to the Guinness World Records for the World's Fastest Estate car / Station Wagon record. The MG ZT-T, codenamed X-15, reached a top speed of 225.609 mph (360.9 km/h) at the August 2003, 55th annual Bonneville Speed Week Nationals, on the Salt Flats in Utah, USA.
In 2002 Nick Stephenson, deputy chairman of Phoenix Venture Holdings, himself an accomplished drag racer in the UK, together with MG Rover design director Peter Stevens, of McLaren F1 fame, decided to build a 200 mph estate derived from the forthcoming MG ZT-T V8.
| Read more... |
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