Mosler Lover

Moslers Excluded from British GT

2009-08-15T18:40:00.002+01:00

Here's the story as reported to Daily Sports Car by Martin Short, Mosler Europe: I'm too incandescent at the moment to make any further comment...

In response to a series of protests from David and Godfrey Jones and their Preci Spark Ascari team, managed by Mike Jordan, the MSA's National Court has ruled that the Mosler MT900 GT3 is no longer eligible to race in the GT3 Class of the British GT Championship.

In addition, results and points scored by Mosler drivers Dan Brown and Martin Short, including and post Snetterton (the time of the final Jones protest), have been wiped from the record, so Rollcentre's Dan Brown is no longer in contention for the British GT3 title (until this ruling he had scored 60 points, just nine behind the Preci Spark drivers).

Henceforth, unless the British GT Regulations are re written, Mosler GT3's can only race in the Invitation Class of the Championship. This option is currently unworkable for Martin Short and his Rollcentre team.

The National Court's findings include this sentence: "It is, however, the view of this court that the problems and the difficulties, especially for the Mosler, would seem to have been caused in large part by the actions of SRO in apparently knowingly permitting the Mosler to compete in a Class for which it was patently ineligible."

Moslers were entitled to compete in the Belgian GT Championship because a National GT3 Class was specifically included in that country's series, but no such class was ever specifically written into British GTs where, in the Court's words, "the Mosler was permitted by SRO to run within the Homologated GT3 Class".

Without FIA Homologation, it follows, according to the National Court decision that the Mosler cannot compete in the GT3 Class, despite the go-ahead from SRO that it could. The problem is that SRO neglected to formally add the words 'and National' to the Rule "FIA and National GT3 Cars are eligible within the Championship Regulations" (although other sentences allowing the SRO to accept any car within British GT existed).

This indicates a conflict between the SRO and the overall management of the British GT Series, the MSA. SRO had given written and verbal affirmation that National GT3 cars were eligible, in fact , re-inforcing this well established policy, accepted the Mosler entry both before the season began, and at each subsequent race event. Rollcentre is hopeful that SRO and the MSA will come together and recognise the omission of the words 'and National' was indeed a technical oversight that they can immediately correct, and not a matter of ongoing policy.

Meanwhile, the issue over those two inadvertently omitted words (and National) in the formal regulations have proved costly for the SRO, the Championship, Rollcentre Racing and Mosler Europe and most importantly and tragically, Dan Brown.

Ironically, the Jones brothers are racing a car with a current performance advantage due to another technicality. The Ascari was originally only entitled to run in FIA GT3 several years ago because there were relatively few marques available in the European Championship's first year and without any Ascari entries in Europe this year, the Ascari couldn't be 'performance equalised' for FIA GT3, the result of which has been that all Balance of Performance measures accrued for the Ascari over the last 3 years have been dismissed. Consequently, the Preci Spark entry has been running without last year's 80 kg of ballast, and without the higher 20mm ride height Equalisation measure.

Martin Short: " We took part in the British GT this year to compete in the GT3 class against other high performance and competitive race teams for the National British GT Title, something the Invitation class does not offer. The fact that this unfortunate, semantic incongruity has now befallen us, with three quarters of the Championship gone by, and with the best young driver in BGT since Jonny Cocker taken out of the title running simply beggars belief.

"Hopefully, the British GT Championship will return to a better state next year. In the meantime, we will run where we are welcomed.

"As a postscript, I find it incredible that the MSA approves the regulations, and then decides they are wrong. Moslers were running under these specific regulations three years ago."

Dutch Supercar Challenge: Spa Euroraces 28.06.09

2009-06-30T15:34:00.001+01:00

Back to Spa again for another round of the Dutch Supercar Challenge. The usual suspects were up at the front in qualifying; Cor Euser stuck the Marcos Mantis onto pole, with the Moslers of Martin Short and Berry van Elk in third and fourth. One notable non-starter was Andrew Beaumont in the Topcats Mosler.

Race one saw Euser make a strong start, yet Short was relentless in tracking the Marcos around the famous Ardennes circuit. Having dispatched Pastorelli for second place, Short passed Euser as the latter's battery began to fail. When van der Voort's Beemer crashed out, the safety car was deployed and the field took a mad dash into the pits under yellow flags.

With his now-customary success penalty, Short re-entered the race back in seventh place but began a relentless climb back through the field. Passing the ETEC Viper at the bus stop chicane put Mosler Europe into the lead; the race was red-flagged with five minutes to go with Short at the front. Another convincing win, bolstered by a solid drive by Berry van Elk who brought the V Max Mosler home in third.

Race two saw an uncharacteristic tactical error by Short. With an early safety car out to clear wreckage, he hoped to pit whilst the field crawled around. But the safety car came in too early for him; when he emerged from the pits the pack were back to full speed and not even a flying Mosler could catch them.

van Elk was well placed in fourth place as the race progressed. Then, a real turnaround; the two leading cars were called in to take drive-through penalties. Now, Berry had a scent of victory. Passing Werkmann's Opel V8 Star into Les Combes on the penultimate lap, the young Mosler driver pushed on to take the chequered flag - his maiden win in the Dutch Supercar Challenge. Martin Short came home in tenth, with Andrew Beaumont and Pat Gormley impressing in eighth.

The Moslers have an enviable track record around Spa and today proved to be no exception. Congratulations to Berry van Elk for what we hope will be the first of many Mosler wins.

Photos (c) www.supercarchallenge.nl where video highlights are available too

Dutch Supercar Challenge; Zandvoort 14.06.09

2009-06-16T08:29:00.001+01:00

Round three of the Dutch Supercar Challenge took place around the dunes of Zandvoort in North Holland.

Martin Short, fresh from export duties in Malaysia, hotfooted it from Schiphol to the circuit in time for qualifying. His old adversary, Cor Euser, took the Marcos onto pole by a tenth of a second from Short's Mosler. Berry van Elk qualified in sixth.

Engine problems seemed to bedevil Short's season, though; his crew were hard at work on the car after qualifying in order to make the grid for race one. But whatever magic dust they sprinkle around does the trick - Short got the drop on Euser (not for the first time this season) and took the lead on lap one. The Marcos looked consistently quicker, though, and Euser sprang back into the lead on lap six.

Safety cars and pitstops then shook up the race rhythm. Berry van Elk had been running well before losing it on a hard curb and beaching his Mosler. I speak little Dutch, so I guess at the end of this clip he's saying something like 'gosh, that's unfortunate, I was driving really rather well up until I made that silly mistake".

With the safety car out and the pitstop window about to open, chaos ensued. Drivers were slowing up to enter and exit the pits at the most opportune moment as the safety car snaked the field around. Short found himself in the lead after a second safety car outing, even though he'd had 55 seconds success penalty added to his stop. The lead was short lived, though; having stopped just before the pitlane entrance when waiting for it to open, he was given a drive-through penalty. Short did his best to make up time with a clear track ahead of him before taking the drive-through and emerging in third behind Euser and the leading Porsche 997.

Short closed down Euser but couldn't pass, crossing the line behind in third as the Porsche of van de Laar and Bleekemolen took the win. Later, Euser would be stung with a thirty-second penalty for a slow getaway from the pitlane so Short was elevated into second.

Race two saw less incident but a fantastic surge from Berry van Elk. Starting at the back of the grid after his off in race one, Berry had the whole field ahead of him to carve through. Euser and Short fought all race through, the Marcos taking the win. Short suffered a fuel pump failure that led the Mosler and Marcos to bump briefly; Short kept on running but lost valuable time whilst starting the reserve pump. With sixty seconds of success penalty on his pitstop as well, the Mosler Europe car still fought on and came home in a creditable fourth place.

Star Mosler performer of the day, however, has to be Berry van Elk. From the rear of the grid, he scythed through the field and took a well-deserved podium position by finishing third.

Martin Short leads Cor Euser in the championship by 14 points as the season continues in Spa at the end of June.

Photos (c)Roel Louwers and Jacqueline Pelsmacker at www.supercarchallenge.nl

As always, highlights of the race can be seen on the Dutch Supercar Challenge website

Update issues

2009-05-13T07:19:00.000+01:00

My steam-driven broadband connection is playing silly beggars - I can barely hold a signal long enough to get this published, nevermind upload video - so updates from Britcar/DSC Rockingham et al will be on their way when normal service is resumed.

Dutch Supercar Challenge; Rockingham 03.05.09

2009-05-05T10:28:00.000+01:00

Well, it wasn't Donington; I was looking forward to seeing the Dutch Supercar Challenge at my home circuit, but the (slowly) ongoing works there led to a venue swap. Off to the Rock, then, for the championship's only UK round.

Qualifying proved to be nip and tuck as Martin Short traded fastest laps with Cor Euser in the Marcos. Short prevailed, leaving the 'Flying Dutchman' in second. Sat just behind them both on the grid was the only other Mosler in this round, Berry van Elk, in fourth.

With literally a grandstand view for race one, I felt the Rockingham roar as the field sped past on their rolling start. Martin Short took the field over the stripe and maanged not to get mugged in the banked run up to the Deane hairpin. Keeping Cor Euser at bay, the Mosler Europe car began to strech out a lead until the safety car was called out - Berry van Elk left his bonnet on the approach to Chapman after a disagreement with the back end of a Lamborghini. Berry made it back to the pits (as this video shows) but it was race over for the V-Max Mosler.

On the restart, Euser managed to put a flyer on Short and the Marcos took the lead. With success penalities slowing the Mosler Europe team's pitstop, that lead began to grow. Even a late stop-go penalty for Euser, who undercooked his own pitstop, wasn't enough of a hindrance to let Short claw back the top spot. He had to settle for second place as the only Mosler finisher.

Race two on Sunday saw Euser claim pole with Short alongside in second. This time it was the Mosler driver who was first to pounce, taking the Marcos into the first corner for an early lead. Catching the backmarkers by lap ten, Cor saw his chance and regained the lead as the lead pair negotiated the traffic.

Short, though, was content to play a waiting game. Diving into the pits as soon as the window opened, the Mosler was clad in new rubber and set off in pursuit. He was soon lapping at up to three seconds faster than before; Euser seemed satisfied to stay out for longer. When the Marcos finally pitted at the end of the window (with no tyre change made) the Mosler was only six seconds behind and lapping two seconds quicker than the leader.

Lap 23 saw the lead change for the last time. Euser missed the hairpin and span whilst trying to recover; Short put the hammer down for the pass and emerged nine seconds clear at the end of the lap. The Mosler cautiously extended its lead to take the chequer almost 17 seconds ahead.

A keen strategy had pressured Euser when it mattered and gave Short another deserved DSC win. Meanwhile, Berry van Elk had a storming drive from the back of the grid, finishing fourth overall with just not enough laps in the race for him to close the gap on the Passat V8 that took third place.

Here's more footage of race one from the roof of the pitblock:

The official DSC video from the event can be seen here

All photos (c) Roel Louwers at the Dutch Supercar Challenge website apart from in in-car shot; thanks to Martin Short for that one

DSMEC: Belgian Race Kick Off 25-6 April 2009

2009-04-29T16:16:00.001+01:00

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.

Photos (c) Jeroen Colpaert at grabx-art.be

PREVIEW 2009: Belgian GT

2009-04-23T09:32:00.001+01:00

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

DSMEC: Spa-Francorchamps 4-5th April 2009

2009-04-20T09:49:00.001+01:00

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

Photo (c) http://www.mext-racing.be

British GT: Oulton Park 11-13th April 2009

2009-04-16T11:37:00.000+01:00

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.

Photos (c) Richard Crawford at Flickr

Video (c) me with more from the day over at Youtube

Dutch Supercar Challenge: Spa-Francorchamps 12 April 2009

2009-04-14T11:42:00.015+01:00

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.

Photos (c) Roel Louwers at www.supercarchallenge.nl

Race highlights (including interview with Martin Short) available on the DSC site

Quick race report: British GT, Oulton Park

2009-04-13T19:06:00.003+01:00

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.

Full report and videos to follow.

UPDATE: Donington cancellations

2009-04-09T21:41:00.003+01:00

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 ;-)

PREVIEW: Dunlop Sport Maxx Endurance Cup

2009-04-09T12:17:00.002+01:00

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.

http://www.mext-racing.be/
http://www.dunlopendurancecup.be

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)

Photo (c) Mext Racing

PREVIEW 2009: British GT

2009-04-01T10:04:00.001+01:00

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.

11-13/04 Oulton Park
25-6/04 Donington
09-10/05 Spa
30-31/05 Rockingham
13-14/06 Knockhill
04-05/07 Snetterton
16-19/08 Silverstone
19-20/09 Brands Hatch

Photo (c) (top) www.britishgt.com, (mid and bottom) Jan Stevenson

Australian GT: Melbourne 26-29 March 2009

2009-03-31T07:35:00.011+01:00

Pit lane starts, last lap incidents and safety car shenanigans... the Australian GT moved to Melbourne and the Moslers were in the thick of the action again.

Craig Baird had blistered the Mosler/Shell/Stahlwille to the head of the grid with a sub-two-minute record-breaking qually lap. But such pace led to the Mosler being issued with an intake restrictor on top of the 100kg of penalty weight being carried. Come the start of race one, Baird failed to make the rolling start and joined from the pitlane... and then swung back in having failed to complete a full lap.

It transpired that team owner and Mosler Australia distributor John Teulan had decided to change the engine mapping on Baird's car, leaving Baird concerned that he would be swamped at the start.

Things didn't run smoothly for Teulan either, locking up the rear on lap 5 to leave his Mosler in the kitty litter.

Race two therefore saw both Moslers starting at the back of the grid. John Teulan didn't last long - another rear lockup saw him off track and into the wall on lap three. Craig Baird, meanwhile, set off to scythe through the pack. Having made 18th place by the end of lap one - passing half the field in doing so - he continued to pressure the pack and was running in ninth by lap five.

Then on the last lap, Baird went one Lambo too far. In trying to pass Dean Grant's Gallardo, he took both cars off circuit and out of the race.

So, race three saw Baird at the back of the grid again. And, as in the previous race, Baird set about butchering the field as he moved from 35th to 12th in the space of a lap. The safety car was soon out as an Elise took a liking to the barriers before an Exige and Porsche had a coming together. After two laps, a flag was out on the start/finish line... the chequered flag! Race three had turned into a one lap sprint and two-lap safety car parade! It seems the race was halted early in order to get the day's scheduel back on track - that's what happens when you share a stage with those pesky F1 prima donnas I suppose.

No points awarded for the farcical race three and two DNFs for Baird and Teulan made for a frustrating Mosler Melbourne weekend. Two wins for David Wall in the PR Technology Porsche GT3 Cup S puts him at the top of the championship, Craig Baird slipping to eleventh. John Teulan is one spot from propping up the table in 22nd.

Photo by drinking_black_coffee on Flickr

Britcar: Silverstone International 28th March 2009

2009-03-31T07:25:00.015+01:00

Hard rain, hail and GTs. Must be Silverstone in the springtime. Britcar 2009 got underway with four Moslers vying for honours in both the overall championship and the UK's first Mosler Challenge.

Qualifying saw the Moslers strung through the top end of the order; the McInerneys highest placed in third, the KRM combo of Riley and Flux one row back in sixth and the factory car with team boss Martin Short and ex-Formula Palmer Audi graduate Dan Brown in eighth. Rachel Green and Henry Fletcher started the Topcats car down in fourteenth place.

As the field rolled round to the grid, Martin Short pulled swiftly into the pits. This was worrying - had the car sprung a problem already? The pack took two warm-up laps before being unleashed but still Short hadn't re-appeared. As I froze myself into my seat at Woodcote, the lights went green. When the field reappeared at the end of the first lap, there were two surprises - Flux had bludgeoned the KRM car into the lead from their sixth slot start and Short was back out hunting the pack down. It appeared he'd dove in to don slicks, anticipating the drying circuit, but there had then been confusion about pit-lane-starting procedure which held him (and several others) back.

Sean McInerney took Eclipse up to second early on. Initial tyre choice seemed to become an issue, as some of the pace-setters seemed to start struggling and end up as overtaking fodder for Short. The factory Mosler was tearing through the order, already up to eighth by the end of lap six. Flux had pushed hard to open out a reasonable lead, but Short was whittling the gap away and had taken the lead by lap twenty.

As Dan Brown took over the Rollcentre Mosler at its mandatory pitstop with less than an hour to go, he kept it out in the lead with both the earlier-stopping KRM and Eclipse cars still running in the top ten. The former came in for a quick splash and Ian Flux put the hammer down to try and improve on fourth place. Sadly, the engine couldn't take the strain and the Mosler was forced to retire with about half and hour to go. Also, somewhere around was the Topcats Mosler although it wasn't troubling the front-runners.

In his first competitive Mosler outing, Dan Brown brought Rollcentre home to take the chequered flag and top spot in the Mosler Challenge. The Prosport LM3000 came second and the superb looking Ginetta G50Z took third (as well as the Class 1 win). Fifth place for Eclipse gave them second place in Class 1 as well as the Challenge.
Topcats finished down in 24th and the retired KRM in 25th.

Good to see a Mosler take the win with a lush piece of driving by Mr Short. Hopefully the Mosler Challenge can still attract a few more entries, even in these straitened times, perhaps even by the time Britcar reaches round two at Donington for their May Bank Holiday meeting.

All wobbly video and slightly-Photoshopped pictures are (c) Simon H Johnson

Australian GT: Adelaide Clipsal 500 19-22 March 2009

2009-03-31T06:53:00.000+01:00

Thirty cars, three races, one victor - the Mosler Down Under story began with a rollercoaster first chapter featuring spills, thrills and a trio of race wins for the marque.

Craig Baird took the Mosler/Shell/Stahwille team to the top of the podium after each race of the Australian GT opening weekend in Adelaide. Pushed hard in each by the Porsche of David Wall, Baird made the most of the Mosler's muscle to notch up three victories. Race three saw Baird and Wall escape early from a pack that seemed to have a fatal attraction to the concrete and kitty-litter, with four cars failing to make it round the first lap. Wall traded top spot with Baird before the Mosler stamped its authority on the race and secured a trio of victories.

But the Adelaide weekend was bittersweet for Mosler Australia distributor John Teulan. He lost his Mosler on lap five of race one and didn't make it out onto the grid again.

PREVIEW 2009: Britcar

2009-03-27T10:59:00.001Z

The 2009 Britcar GT Championship promises Moslers driven by past winners as well as fresh faces.

Eclipse, pictured above in testing, return with the McInerneys (their international committments permitting). Flux and Riley have also thrown their hat into the ring. Topcats will be back too, with Henry Fletcher and Rachel Green lining up for race one at Silverstone.

Also on the entry list for the season opener is Mosler UK's Martin Short, juggling Britcar alongside defending his Dutch Supercar crown and the occasional jaunt in the British GT. Martin has Britcar drives available and the UK's first Mosler Challenge will run through the season.

So, four Moslers are expected to line up for the first race round Silverstone International on March 28th. We'll be there to bring back our first video report of the new season.

Photo (c) Paul Cherry

PREVIEW 2009: Dutch Supercar Challenge

2009-03-27T10:50:00.000Z

A healthy grid of Moslers is predicted for the Dutch Supecar Challenge in 2009.

Martin Short will defend his title as well as race in Britcar when the races don't clash. Riley and Flux return too along with the Woodcock brothers. Berry van Elk will be looking to harry the old guard again. And Harry Mecke returns, having secured the services of Patrick Simon as a co-driver.

The season gets underway at Spa in April and visits England over the first May bank holiday - I'll be at Rockingham to watch the largest Mosler field ever!

12-04: Francorchampions, Spa Francorchamps
03-05: Britcar, Rockingham
14-06: Masters of F3, Zandvoort
28-06: Euroraces, Spa Francorchamps
19-07: Zolder Superleague, Zolder
09-08: Rizla Racing Day, Assen
04-10: Spa Racing Festival, Spa Francorchamps
25-10: DSC Finaleraces, Assen

V de V: Jarama March 22nd 2209

2009-03-24T10:32:00.000Z

The first Mosler outing in Europe for 2009 was at the Spanish circuit of Jarama for the opening round of the V de V GT Touring Endurance championship.

BF Racing entered their MT900R, maintained by Perspective Racing and driven by Manuel Ferreira and Ludovic Bour. They qualified in third and finished fifth in their first competitive outing in the marque.

I don't get much information about the V de V races so, if you know of any websites that report on the series apart from vdev.fr please let me know.

Photos (c) Mario on Flickr

PREVIEW: VdeV 2009

2009-03-10T10:22:00.000Z

Another major European championship has a Mosler entry for 2009.

The VdeV test day at the end of February saw Thierry Perrier of Perspective put a GT3 specification car through its paces. It will be raced by Ludovic Bour and Manuel Ferreira in the Modern Endurance class. With the lower-spec 'Club' Mosler also being offered for racing this year, there are high hopes that more of the marque may yet make the starting grid in this popular French endurance championship.

Official championship website: http://www.vdev.fr/

Timetable:

20-22 March Jarama 4 hour
24-26 April Paul Ricard 4 hour
29-31 May Val de Vienne 3 hour
26-28 June Lausitz 8 hour
28-30 August Dijon 3 hour
25-27 September Ledenon 3 hour
23-25 October Magny-Cours 6 hour
20-22 November Estoril 6 hour

Photo (c) www.endurance-info.com

PREVIEW 2009: Australian GT

2009-03-09T10:29:00.000Z

Our first preview of the 2009 season sees the Mosler venture Down Under.

John Teulan becomes the official distributor for the marque in Australia and his team, Statewide GT Racing, will run two Moslers in the Australian GT championship. He'll drive one car himself with the other piloted by former V8 Supercar driver Craig Baird.

Further Mosler orders for Oz are pending. With this year's championship including the likes of the Dodge Viper, Aston Martin, Lamborghini and Maserati, the marque is up against stiff competition in its debut season.

It all kicks off at the Clipsal circuit in Adelaide, March 19th-22nd.

Official website: http://www.gtchampionship.com.au

Calendar:

Round 1, Clipsal 500 Adelaide, March 19-22
Round 2, Albert Park GP Circuit, March 26-29
Round 3, Phillip Island, May 16-17
Round 4, Eastern Creek, July 18-19
Round 5, Sandown International Raceway, November 27-29

DUBAI 24 hour 2009

2009-02-27T10:17:00.000Z

Gravity International fielded the only Mosler in this year's Dubai 24 hour enduarnce race.

Loris de Sordi, Vindent Radermecker, Eric Lux and Gerard Lopez were joined by Chinese A1GP and GP2 driver Ho-Pin Tung.

They qualified 17th overall and second in their SP2 class for 24-hour specials.

After six hours, the Mosler was up to 13th place but it proved unlucky for Gravity. The engine blew, forcing a lengthy pitstop and eventual retirement.

Photo (c) Eric Teeken, Dubai 24 website

BRITCAR: Brands Hatch 'Into The Night' 15.11.2008

2009-02-27T08:23:00.000Z

With jokers to be played and championship places to be decided, Britcar came back to Brands Hatch for the season finale - ninety minutes of night driving around the tight Indy circuit.

A dusk qualifying session saw Moslers block out the front row, the McInerneys on pole with the Topcats Beaumont and Taylor next to them. The Aston of Drayson and Cocker recovered from an earlier mishap to slot into third.

That trio ran together in order up to the mandatory pitstop, Taylor taking a a brief lead ten laps in before Sean McInerney out-dragged the Topcat three laps later. The Moslers traded fastest laps, Taylor eventually blistering a 47.788 t record the best of the day.

After thirty laps and another safety car period, the Eclipse Mosler had pulled a three-second-plus lead. But backmarkers were beginning to clog the road ahead, allowing Taylor to close the gap back up.

An early pitstop and a safety car period saw the Barwell Aston jump up to second as the late-pitting Topcats Mosler slid back down the order. Up front, the Eclipse car was harried by Johhny Cocker as the gap between them was worn away. Eventually, after 104 laps of Brands, the Mosler took the chequered flag a mere 2.2 seconds in front of the Aston.

Topcats settled for third; having played their joker, the double points awarded gave them all they needed to claim the Class 1 title for Andrew Beaumont and Henry Taylor.

No Moslers in the overall championship honours - consistent points scoring in the lower classes denied any of the marque's teams that crown - but there were some great race victories throughout the season.

Photos - Last picture (Topcats Mosler) by Nick Dungan on Flickr, all others courtesy of clip-motorsports on Flickr.

DUTCH SUPERCAR / MOSLER CHALLENGE Assen Final 26.10.08

2008-10-31T09:51:00.018Z

The last weekend of the Dutch Supercar Challenge sees the field in Assen for the two final races. Martin Short had the chance to take the overall championship as well as the inaugural Mosler Challenge title.

Slotted behind the championship rival's Viper on the grid, Short to his Mosler from fourth to second at the start as the Viper jostled with the pole placed Arjan van der Zwann. With Cor Euser taking the lead, Short knew he'd have to push hard to make the most of the early part of the race, as penalty seconds at the pitstop would diminish any time cushion he could build up.

An accident on the pit straight saw the safety car deployed and the field having to drive to pitlane as a diversion. Four laps of this saw Short's time advantage eroded. When the lights went green again, Short knew he'd have to push Euser hard and eventually took the Marcos on lap 8. With just three clear laps before the mandatory pitstop, Short planted pedal to metal in an attempt to mitigate the ensuing time penalties.

After the stops, Martin Short was down in tenth place; Berry van Elk had clawed his way from the back of the grid to sixth and the KRM car was looking masterful as Ian Flux took the wheel in third. There in fourth was the ETEC Viper, Short knowing that he needed to close the gap to have a chance to taking the title today. Pushing hard often comes at a price, though, and the factory Mosler span out on the fastest corner of the track. Short kept the Mosler out of the wall and back into the race, but now had even more catch-up work to do amongst the backmarkers.

The Moslers continued their steady ascent. Ian Flux took second place from Cor Euser and Berry van Elk fought his way up to fifth. Short was taking things steady when the day took an incredible turn; the ETEC Viper suffered a blown engine and was out of the race. As he passed his stricken rival, Short knew that eighth place or better would give him enough points to take the championship.

He began carving back upfield and reached seventh by the last lap. Up front, Ian Flux in second pushed the leading DTM Audi TTR hard, the latter spinning in the Strubben hairpin allowing KRM to take the race win. Berry van Elk also pulled out an overtake to claim fourth spot. Martin Short dropped a place in a nervous finish but eighth was enough to take the 2008 Dutch Supercar Challenge title.

Race two may have seemed anti-climatic with the title now decided. Instead, heavy rain livened up the last Assen race.

Berry van Elk suffered clutch problems again before the start, though thankfully they were fixed to allow him a start from the second row. With KRM on pole in and Martin Short looking to put in a champion's finish to the season, the scene was set for a classic Mosler tussle up front.

By turn one, Short was already up to fourth and had the lead the end of the first lap. Cor Euser harried him for eight laps, the Marcos eventually gaining the upper hand.

The other Moslers were having a mixed race - Berry van Elk running wide and beaching, then Ian Flux doing likewise. But Harry Mecke kept up a great wet pace and finished fifth overall.

Short was happy to let the ETEC Viper past as he brought the factory car home in third place, another race podium and another Mosler Challenge win for the Dutch GT champion.

Photos (c) Marc de Waart and Robbert Maas, www.supercarchallenge.nl