Contents:

joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsportN E W S , T R E N D S , I D E A S A N D E C O N O M I C A N A LYS I S F RO M T H E M OTO R S P O RT WO R L D

Issue 11.09

February 28 2011Bahrain Grand Prix cancelledThe question of Arab World instabilityRussian banker buying into WRC?Austin hires top horse racing executiveAnother great idea from IndyCar

Financing the Hispania Racing TeamKanaan out as de Ferran shuts team......while Taylor ponders Indycar moveCooperation across The PondTrevor Bayne - a fairytale

Bahrain Grand Prix cancelledThe Kingdom of Bahrain has withdrawn from hosting this year’s F1 Grand Prix race, in order to allow the country to focus on its "process of national dialogue".

The decision was taken following the recent civil disorder. Bahrain's Crown Prince - HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa - is now trying to find a non-violent solution to Bahrain's problems.

"Although Bernie Ecclestone had graciously made clear that a decision on the race was entirely Bahrain’s to make and was not yet required, we felt it was important for the country to focus on immediate issues of national interest and leave the hosting of Bahrain’s Formula 1 race to a later date," Prince Salman said. "I would like to extend my personal gratitude to Bernie Ecclestone for his support and understanding. After the events of the past week, our nation’s priority is on overcoming tragedy, healing divisions and rediscovering the fabric that draws this country together; reminding the world of the very best that Bahrain is capable of as a nation once again united."

That is going to take some time to achieve given the mistakes made in the last 10 days.

"We look forward to being back in Bahrain soon," said Ecclestone. The Formula One group will not be demanding payment for the race fees this year, which means that there will be a $40 million hole in the budget, unless a bew date can be found. There is no decision as yet as to when, or indeed if, the race can be rescheduled later in the year as the F1 calendar is already very tight and no-one wants to cut into the summer break, although racing in Bahrain in the summer is not practical because of the extreme temperatures likely at the time of year.

The only real option is to try to fit the event in with Abu Dhabi at the end of the year. Neither event really depends on spectators, as both are funded by the governments, so the problem of proximity is not as bad an issue as might be the case. However the options are limited, unless F1 is willing to go on into December. Teams may want the additional revenue that they would get from the race but have to balance this against the costs involved and the effect that an additional event would have on the crews, who are already stretched by the demands of the current calendar and the Resource Restriction Agreement, which means that they cannot simply hire more staff.

At the moment the Indian GP is scheduled for October 30, with Abu Dhabi on November 13 and Brazil on November 27. Putting a race on between India and Abu Dhabi is not possible because no-one knows whether or not the Indian customs will be able to handle the F1 freight because this is the first time the event has happened. In any case, teams would struggle to take part in three events in three weekends. Holding Bahrain a week after Abu Dhabi (November 20), might be possible but that would require Brazil being pushed back to December 4, which would not be popular as this would reduce the winter break. It seems that there is no insurance to cover such an eventuality and that the CVC and the teams must thus accept the loss.

Teams will be switching the final test of the pre-season to Barcelona.

The season will start on March 27 in Australia.

joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsportpage 2

The question of Arab World instability The cancellation of the Bahrain Grand Prix may be big news this week and it may cost each of the Formula 1 teams a small amount of money, but it is not likely to have any longer term effects on the sports. The uprising in Libya and other unrest in the Arab world is, however, rather more threatening for the sport. Libya is in chaos with erratic dictator Moammar Gadhafi (below) now employing desperate measures to try to hold on to power. Libya is Africa's largest producer of oil and ranks 15th of the world's oil exporters. There has therefore been concern amongst oil traders that the fighting could threaten oil supplies. This has resulted in a surge in the price of oil in the last few days, with a hike of 13 percent in the course of the last seven days, although the price settled at $97.88 a barrel on Friday, significantly down from a midweek high of $103.

This sent stock markets lower as investors envisaged the effects of more expensive oil on the different industries. In an effort to head off more trouble the International Energy Agency announced that the impact of Libyan oil supplies being disrupted was far less than expected as supplies can easily be balanced with increased output from other big producers in the region. Despite this higher oil prices will have an effect on the economic revival simply because it increases the costs of transporting goods and

the price of fuel at the pump and leaves the consumer with more money to pay out, lss to invest and less confidence in the recovery. Economists at Goldman Sachs estimate that a sustained $10 increase in the price of a barrel of oil will reduce US growth by 0.2 percent per annum. The real fear, however, is that the domino effect that has been seen in the Arab world, with one country after another rising up against its rulers, will eventually lead to upheaval in one of the bigger oil suppliers, such as Iran or Saudi Arabia. There are also fears that China's economic growth might take a dive if there was unrest there.

It is also interesting to note that the economic effects expensive oil pervade all levels of society. Last week the US government announced that deep spending cuts by regional governments was resulting in lower growth rates. Decision-makers at state level have been cutting back on funding and jobs because of the economic situation, and that this will impact on customer spending, which in turn will impact on corporate profits and thus corporate spending such as sponsorships.

Russian banker buying into WRC? North One Sport is one year into a 10 year deal with the FIA to exploit the commercial rights of the World Rally Championship and thus far there has been very little obvious development. The companys says that it has been doing a great deal behind the scenes and that some of this preparation work will begin to become more obvious in the months ahead. There are suggestions that a new manufacturer will be entering the series soon and there is speculation that this will be Saab, which is now owned by the Spyker Cars NV, following its acquisition of the Swedish car firm from General Motors a year ago, with funding from Russian banker Vladimir Antonov.

Antonov is a controversial figure. An investigation by the Swedish monetary agency Riksgälden and the Swedish security police Säpo is reported to have found connections between him and organized crime in Russia. These findings were reported to the FBI in the United States and soon afterwards GM told Spyker that there would be no further talks about Saab until the Antonov family sold it stake in Spyker Cars NV. The deal that was then agreed was that the Antonov family could not invest in Spyker Cars NV until 2016, when GM's preference shareholding comes to an end. Antonov (right) has loudly proclaimed his innocence and two independent reports have emerged that show that there has been no involvement in any form of organised crime in the past. There has been talk of GM reversing its decision but this is ultimately irrelevant as Spyker Cars NV has decided to achieve the same thing without GM being able to do anything. In the last few days the Spyker has announced that it is selling the Spyker sports car business to a company owned by Antonov, and will now change the name of the holding company to reflect the fact that it is concentrating on developing Saab. The proceeds of the sale will be used to reduce the debt load of the holding company. Antonov wanted to buy into the business in order to create a manufacturing plant in Kaliningrad, where he can build cheaper cars for the Russian market. He can now do the same thing using the Spyker name or some other brand that can later become associated with Saab once the GM agreement comes to an end. Thus it seems like everyone has achieved what they wanted with GM not seen to be doing business with Antonov; Spkyer getting money to stabilise the holding company and Antonov getting a car factory where he wants one.

joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsportpage 3

If the North One Sport deal is confirmed, it will give the promotional firm the chance to push ahead rebuilding the WRC, while at the same time, helping them out as another manufacturer will be good news for the sport. Ostensibly Saab is not owned by Antonov so there is not a clash of interest...

Antonov's money comes from finance. Since 1989 he has built up various finance companies, notably Convers, Finasta, Investbank, Latvijas Krjbanka and Snoras, the last-named being a Lithuanian bank that was seen on the Renault F1 car last year. He is based in Moscow.

The FIA will almost certainly have to give its clearance for the deal to go ahead as the commercial contracts will include a clause regarding the change of control of the business. If North One Sport remains in control there is not a problem. It will be interesting to see what happens next, given the history of the Formula One group and the financial gymnastics that occurred after the business was taken over by banks and venture capitalists.

Austin hires top horse racing executive The United States Grand Prix in Austin has appointed Steve Sexton as its president. Sexton is one of the top names in US horseracing, having managed a string of different venues in the course of the last 28 years, starting out in the marketing department at Santa Anita Park in Los Angeles. He went on to Canterbury Park, in Minnesota, and from there to San Francisco's Golden Gate Fields racecourse, before being appointed general manager of Thistledown, in Cleveland, in 1991.

Three years later he moved to Texas to work on the start-up of Lone Star Park and became the general manager of the facility in 2000. He then moved on to become president of Arlington Park in Illinois in 2001, overseeing preparations for the track's first Breeders’ Cup, before joining Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2002. The racecourse is one of the most famous in the United States and hosts the country's most celebrated horse race, the Kentucky Derby. Sexton served as Executive Vice President of Racing Operations and President of the Churchill Downs Entertainment Group until deciding to move on in November 2010.

"This project represents a unique opportunity for the City of Austin and the State of Texas to be the focal point for a world-wide audience," Sexton said. "I'm very pleased to join the talented team the owners have assembled and am really excited to

be a part of building a showcase that attracts diverse visitors from around the world and opens new education, innovation and research opportunities to benefit the global community."

There is much to be done in the course of the next 18 months, with the Austin organisers in a race against time to build the facility and have it up and running in time for the first event, which is expected to be confirmed for the autumn of 2012. The first earth moving work is now underway at the 900-acre Wandering Creek site, near the town of Elroy, just outside Austin. The scheme is being backed by local businessman Red McCombs. The work is expected to cost around $250 million and the plans for the future include use of the facility for testing, corporate events, concerts and festivals.

The business model for successful racetracks is a proven one, although it is very difficult to achieve if there is a Formula 1 race as the fees tend to be too high and local assistance is required. Austin has such backing.

Another great idea from IndyCar The IndyCar Series has finally confirmed that it will end at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 16. But to add a little excitement to the occasion there is a prize of $5 million on offer for any driver from another championship - if they can win the race. It is a tall order, of course, but the money means that it is worth considering. The real aim is to pull in some NASCAR stars for the event and by doing so attract more fans for the open-wheeler series. The timing is thus important. NASCAR will run its Bank of America 500 at Charlotte, North Carolina, on the Saturday evening, allowing the drivers plenty of time to fly to Nevada for the Sunday afternoon IndyCar race. The event will be in the middle of the NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup, which may deter some of those fighting for the title, but others may deem it worth a try. And IndyCar chief executive officer Randy Bernard says that he is going to try to get the big teams to run the additional cars, which means that the outsiders will have a better chance of success. He wants to see big NASCAR names in the cars. It is not impossible logistically for a Formula 1 driver to make the trip from Korea, as it is 16 hours ahead of California and thus in theory a driver could make the trip to Las Vegas in the time available, but that is unlikely as most of the F1 stars have no experience on ovals. It might however provide an opportunity for someone such as Scott Speed or Sébastien Bourdais, who are quite capable of running competitively in

joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsportpage 4

IndyCars, whether they could beat the top names is another matter - but that is part of the fun.

There is no doubt that Bernard wants to try to pull in a star such as Tony Stewart, who was a successful IndyCar driver in his day, or a Sam Hornish. In a perfect world Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch or Dale Earnhardt Jr would have a go at the $5 million, but the reality is that they will probably have other considerations to be taken into account.

Whatever the case it is a terrific idea and one that shows once again why Bernard is making such a difference these days in the IndyCar world, compared to the previous management.

Financing the Hispania Racing Team A year ago Jose Ramon Carabante bought Adrian Campos out of the troubled Campos Meta 1 Formula 1 team and announced that he was establishing a Spanish-based team called Hispania, with a base near Valencia, until a new headquarters would be built in Murcia. The cars were built by Dallara, with Cosworth engines and an XTrac gearbox. Bruno Senna and Karun Chanhok were signed to drive and the whole thing would be run by Colin Kolles. Things have turned out slightly differently. The Carabante Family found F1 rather more complicated than they had imagined. To begin with the media was discouraged from suggesting that the team was Spanish in name only and that it was not based in Spain at all, but rather at Team Kolles's headquarters in Greding, in Ingolstadt in the south of Germany. It took on a lot of Toyota F1 people, who had been left in the lurch when the Japanese firm departed F1 at the end of 2009. Murcia got some free publicity but then disappeared from the cars, suggesting that money was never paid. Dallara was quickly removed from the equation, ostensibly by mutual agreement, but behind the scenes there were rumours of a nasty break-up. Whatever the case the car was not very competitive and Dallara kept quiet about the details of the divorce. Kolles began to switch the drivers around depneding on who had money available, indicating that the millions of Euros that everyone had expected to see from Spain were not arriving... The Spanish discovered that there are no Spanish sponsors interested in F1, unless the deal involves Fernando Alonso. Even the much-hyped Juan Villalonga, a former Telefonica boss from a few years ago, failed to bring in any cash. As the team has nothing in Spain, the whole operation is basically being rented from Kolles and one presumes that he has suitable deals in place and budgets that have been agreed. He pays the salaries and appears to be doing all the deals. It was thought that over the winter the team would be sold and the Carabante name would disappear from F1 but that has not yet happened. Kolles has found the money to pay for a new car and one can only imagine that this has been borrowed from either a potential buyer or from a financial institution. This arrangement has allowed the team to continue operating while the Carabantes continue to dream of finding the big Spanish sponsor.

We have seen from Virgin that there are some financiers who believe that an investment in an F1 team is a logical thing to now that there is a Resources Restriction Agreement that stops teams spending as much as they might otherwise spend. This means that it is easier to be competitive enough to survive on a small budget and investors can even take money out of the business in terms of profits. The team has some solid sponsors, brought in using B2B deals with the Virgin empire, $10 million a year in TV rights money, and at least one driver bringing in cash. This seems to be enough.

HRT is in a similar situation but without any serious sponsorship (beyond Narain Karthikeyan's money from Tata), it needs to pay Kolles to run everything and but if the Spaniards fail to make those payments, he is very much the man in control. As the team cannot run without him and any borrowings can later be turned into equity if things turn nasty.

The team has built its own chassis, the design being sub-contracted to various groups of engineers. The manufacturing of the chassis has been sub-contracted to Carbotech in Austria. The gearbox now comes from Williams F1 and the overall package should be more competitive than last year's car. The plan now seems to be to use Tonio Liuzzi to see what the car can really do and if he can get some results the team will be better off. It may even be possible to find some sponsors. The Carabantes do not want to leave the sport without recouping their investment, which is fine as long as they keep Kolles. If they default on those payments he gains traction in discussions about ownership. In such a situation it is going to be very hard to sell the team to anyone other than Kolles... The team is cleverly structured as while the team name may currently be Hispania Racing Team, the cars are called HRTs, which means that any word beginning with H can be added to the term Racing Team to change over to new ownership, without all the complications that currently exist at Lotus Renault GP, which is forced to run cars called Renaults, despite the fact that the French cr company is out of the team ownership.

joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsportpage 5

Kanaan out as de Ferran shuts team... Gil de Ferran has closed down his IndyCar team, because he cannot find the backing he needs to stay in business. The announcement leaves Kanaan, the 2004 IndyCar champion, out of work.

"This is a very difficult announcement for us to make," de Ferran said. "When Tony and I put the deal together we both knew that it had to make financial sense and we set ourselves certain targets. We believed that together we were a strong proposition both on and off the track and really felt we could have become a major force in the championship in 2011 and beyond. Despite our collective best efforts we have not been able to secure the sponsorship funds to go any further.

De Ferran enjoyed backing from Honda during his racing career and afterwards when he moved into team management, notably with the American Le Mans Series Acura sports car team, but also in Formula 1 with Honda Racing. The IndyCar team was originally started in 2007 as Luczo Dragon Racing, owned by Stephen J Luczo, the man in charge of Seagate Technology, a major hard drive manufacturer, and Jay Penske, the son of Roger Penske. The team ran a Penske car for Ryan Briscoe that year and finished fifth. The programme was extended to six races in 2008 with Tomas Scheckter and the organisation began preparing its own cars. It became a fulltime entrant in 2009 with Raphael Matos but then merged with de Ferran Motorsports in 2010, running Matos.

Kanaan says that he is determined to race in the IndyCar Series this year.

...while Taylor ponders IndyCar move Wayne Taylor has talked about waiting to set up an IndyCar team since 2003, but in the meantime the sports car racer-turned team owner has been building up Wayne Taylor Racing in GrandAm, recently working closely with Dallara to develop the Italian firm'snDaytona Prototype. Taylor says that his organistion has been looking for money for IndyCar for more than a year.

"It has been hard trying to find the money, " he says, "but we also have such a good team and with where IndyCar seems to be going, we want to be there next year. We’ve been negotiating with a company for a while and if they sign with us, that would allow us to add an IndyCar programme."

In addition to his links with Dallara, Taylor has a strong relationship with GM, which is due to enter IndyCar in 2012 when the technical regulations change.

It remains to be seen whether or not Taylor can find the cash he needs. IndyCar is a tough market at the moment, with even the likes of Roger Penske and Michael Andretti struggling to find the money needed.

Cooperation across The Pond European and US motor racing promoters have rarely worked together in the past, each happy to ignore the others and concentrate on doing their own thing. There have been occasional forays into the other camp, with the intermittent US Grand Prix and some IndyCar races in Europe. The sports car scene has been a little more integrated, thanks mainly to the adoption of the Le Mans rules by the American Le Mans Series.

Faced with the problems of competing against NASCAR the US Touring Car Championship has decided to try to make itself a little more international and thanks to the introduction of the S2000 regulations this is now possible as both the USTCC and the FIA World Touring Car Championship are using the same basic machinery. WTCC promoter Marcello Lotti says that the US market is such an important one for the car manufacturers that it is only logical to try to work with the American organisation, which is headed by Ali Arsham. The first major step is to establish a WTCC race in the US and the two series are now looking for a weekend when they could get together for a joint event, and the best venue at which this could take place. The intention is to try to establish the first such event in 2012.

Trevor Bayne - a fairytale Every now and again the motorsport world needs a good fairytale to keep the youngsters dreaming of making it in the big time. The story of Trevor Bayne is just such a story. Bayne was 19 years of age when he headed up to Daytona at the wheel of his own pick-up truck. He was to spend the week in a team motorhome and had nothing more than some team gear and a couple of teeshirts. He was not at all prepared to win the Daytona 500 and then be whisked off on a whirlwind media

Page 6 joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsport

tour across the country, as happens to every Daytona 500 winner these days. No-one saw this one coming - not even the man himself, but he was in the hunt all day long in his Motorcraft/Quick Lane Wood Brothers Ford. He took the lead with seven laps to go and beat Carl Edwards by 0.118 sec at the chequered flag, becoming the youngest ever winner of the Race, at 20 years and a day and he gave the team - NASCAR's oldest - its first victory since 2001.

"It’s the greatest thing we’ve ever had happen to us," said Glen Wood, the team founder, who is now 85. "It’s certainly put us in the spotlight more than I can ever remember."

These days the team is run by the second generation: Glen's sons Eddie and Len, and his daughter Kim. Times have changed but one thing remain constant: the Wood Brothers have been with Ford exclusively since 1950 and Bayne's victory was Ford's 600th Cup triumph. It also brought the driver a purse of $1,462,563, which is a lot of money for a 20 year old from Tennessee...

He's been in racing much of his life, beginning in karts at the age of five. He moved into stock cars at 15 in the USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series (Southern Division) and then moved on in 2008 to join the Dale Earnhardt Inc driver development programme, racing in the NASCAR Camping World East Series. signed to drive for Michael Waltrip Racing for a limited schedule. for 28 races before moving on to Roush Fenway Racing, which improved his performances and he finished seventh in the series in 2010. He made his Sprint Cup debut with the Wood Brothers at the Texas 500 last year. The 500 was his second Cup start.

After the victory it became very clear that no-one was expecting it, not even Bayne himself. There was almost no merchandising available and thus on Sunday night there were frantic efforts to get teeshirts made and diecast models produced. Bayne's major problem was that he needed clothes for the whirlwind media tour of the US that every 500 winner goes through, and someone to drive his truck home to North Carolina.

Bayne himself seemed to be in a daze.

"It keeps hitting me over and over again. It’s like you get to win a bunch of times," he said. "I look around at my crew. I look at all their faces and think: 'Wow, we won this Daytona 500 and it really is incredible'."

WHISPER WHISPER WHISPER g According to Forbes the value of the top 10 NASCAR teams in 2010 is only five percent down on 2009. The list is dominated by Hendrick Motorsport, which is valued at $350 million, on revenues of $177 million. Roush Fenway Racing is second but it is valued at only $224 million on revenues of $140 million. Richard Childress Racing is third on the list, followed by Joe Gibbs Racing, Penske Racing, Stewart-Haas, Michael Waltrip Racing, Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing, Richard Petty Motorsports, and Red Bull Racing. Dale Earnhardt Jr remains NASCAR's highest-paid driver, earning $29 million in 2010 despite his poor performance on the track. Earnhardt's Hendrick teammate Jeff Gordon is second with earnings of $25 million, with five-time Sprint Cup champion Jimmie Johnson, third with revenues of $24 million.

g Ray Evernham the former owner of Evernham Motorsports, which was purchased by George Gillett Jr and became first Gillett Evernham Motorsport and then Richard Petty Motorsports, is taking legal action against Gillett, seeking $19.3 million which Gillett had agreed to pay for the remaining 20 percent of the team. Evernham claims that Gillett has breached an agreement between them.

g The FIA World Touring Car Championship race at Suzuka will take place on the short version of the circuit, instead of the usual Grand Prix layout. The short version of the course, which reduces the distance from 3.6 mile to 1.3 miles is deemed to be better suited for the racing, avoding the use of the long straights, the hairpin and the celebrated Spoon Curve. This will mean that the spectators will be able to see a lot more of the action.

g The two factory Minis of Kris Meeke and Dani Sordo appear with the car numbers 37 and 52. The former was the number used by Paddy Hopkirk and Henry Liddon when they won the Monte Carlo Rally in 1964. Sordo will run number 52, which was used by Timo Makinen and Paul Easter when they won the same event a year later.

Page 7 joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsport

g Audi has confirmed that it will have three new DTM drivers in 2011. Gone from the 2010 squad are Darryl O'Young (who replaced Alexandre Premat at the end of last year), Markus Winkelhock and Katherine Legge. Martin Tomczyk has been downgraded from the Abt Sportsline team to a 2010 car run by Team Phoenix. He will be partnered by Swiss Rahel Frey (right), who moves into DTM from German F3. Team Rosberg will have two new drivers in Edoardo Mortara (left) and Filipe Albuquerque (centre). Team Phoenix's Mike Rockenfeller will move up to Abt Sportsline, alongside Mattias Ekström, Timo Scheider, Oliver Jarvis and Miguel Molina, the last-named in a 2008 spec car. Legge says she is returning to the United State after three years and hopes to get into IndyCar. She spent two years in Champ Car before moving to Germany in 2008. Ekström recently broke his left wrist while playing volleyball but there is plenty of time for this to heal before the first round of the series at Hockenheim on May 1.

g Drayson Racing has dropped out of the American Le Mans Series and will now race in the new EVCUP for electric cars. Drayson will field a Westfield iRACER in the new zero-emission series. Lord Drayson, a former government minister, has long been the champion of environmentally-friendly motorsport projects.

g Brazil is to get a presence in the FIA World Rally Championship with the announcement of a Brazil World Rally Team, which will appear with one car this year and hopes to expand to two in 2012. The team will have a Mini Countryman that will be run by Prodrive. The team will be overseen by Paul Howarth, who used to run the Subaru World Rally Team with Daniel Oliveira as the driver. He is switching into the World Championship from the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. The aim is to promote Oliveira as a driver and at the same time open up more interest in the WRC in motorsport-mad Brazil.

g The Marussia Virgin Racing team is supporting the new Formula KGP category this year. This is a seven-round UK championship, which Marussia Virgin Racing intends to use as the foundation of its young driver programme. At the end of the season, the top three drivers and one driver who has demonstrated outstanding ability irrespective of points will win the chance to test in Formula Renault.

g The competition to win car sales in Argentina has resulted in the automobile manufacturers becoming heavily involved in the country's TC2000 touring championship, with well-funded works teams battling for honours. This has meant that the best drivers are much in demand. This has resulted in a major shake-up of line-ups this year, with Fiat, in particular, looking for more success. Scuderia Fiat has signed José María López and Gabriel Ponce de León in addition to Emiliano Spataro and new boy Emiliano López (Jose Maria's brother). The older Lopez raced last year with the Equipo Petrobras Honda Racing, with which he has previously won two TC2000 titles, while three-time champion Ponce de León joins from the Ford factory team. The Peugeot Cobra Team is also making a bigger effort and has expanded its team to three cars with new recruits Facundo Ardusso and Matías Muñoz Marchesi joining Juan Cruz Alvarez. Ardusso raced last year with Toyota Team Argentina. Luis José di Palma leaves the Peugeot team. The Toyota squad continues with a four car line-up with Ardusso being replaced by 2006-2007 champion Matias Rossi, who was previously with Renault. His team-mates will be Mariano Werner, Bernardo Llaver and new recruit Ignacio Char, who was with Fiat last year. Renault has a totally new line-up with Guillermo Ortelli and Mauro Giallombardo. Ortelli joins from the Chevrolet factory team, where he has been replaced by Esteban Guerrieri.

g Auto GP has announced plans to award GP2 tests to two of its drivers this season. The champion and the winner of the newly-introduced Under 21 Trophy will get the chance to test GP2 cars at the end of the season. This is not quite on a par with the Formula 2 test drive with Williams F1, but it is still interesting, particularly for the younger drivers.

g Max Snegirev is moving up from British Formula 3 to Formula 2 in 2011. The 23-year-old Russian driver raced in the National Class in 2009 and then moved up to the Championship division in 2010, but finished only 18th, the last of the regular runners, scoring only one point for a tenth place at Snetterton. He did rather better when he returned to Formula Palmer Audi for the last two rounds.

g Bamboo Engineering has announced plans to compete in the WTCC Series this year, in addition to entering the BTCC and running a Chevrolet Corvette in the FIA GT1 World Championship. Darryl O'Young and Japan'sYuke Taniguchi will race Lacettis in the WTCC, while it is expected that Harry Vaulkhard will race one of the cars in the BTCC.

g Belardi Auto Racing has signed Venezuelan Jorge Goncalvez as team mate for Anders Krohn in the Indy Lights Championship

JOE SAWARD’S BUSINESS OF MOTORSPORT is available only by subscription. 52 issues per year, distributed by e-mail on monday MORNINg OF EAch WEEk. SUBScRIPTION RATES ARE US$299.00 FOR A yEAR OR $25 PER MONTh. IF yOU WOUlD lIkE TO TAkE OUT A SUBScRIPTION, OR WOUlD lIkE FURThER DETAIlS, PlEASE cONTAcT US AT WWW.MORIENvAl.cOM/BUSINESSOFMOTORSPORT.hTMl

Page 8 joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsportPage 8 joesaward'sbusinessofmotorsport

© cOPyRIghT 2011. MORIENvAl PRESS, 4 RUE DES TROIS cOURONNES, 60127 MORIENvAl, FRANcE. All RIghTS RESERvED. NO PART OF ThIS PUBlIcATION MAy BE REPRODUcED OR cOPIED FOR ANy REASON OR By ANy MEANS — gRAPhIc, ElEcTRONIc OR MEchANIcAl INclUDINg EMAIlINg, PhOTOcOPyINg, REcORDINg, TAPINg, INFORMATION STORAgE AND RETRIEvAl SySTEMS OR FAcSIMIlE TRANSMISSION.

ConneCtIvIty

in 2011. Goncalves, a 19-year-old from Los Teques, finished fourth in the Star Mazda Championship last year, with five second places. Goncalves started his career in karts and then went to France and contested the Formula Renault Campus series before racing in the Formula BMW USA Series in 2008.

g West Surrey Racing has announced the re-signing of Rob Collard and has hired Nick Foster to join him in the BTCC this season. The two will race BMW 320s. Foster joins the series after competing in the CSL Cup in which he finished fourth last year. Last year's driver Andy Neate is moving on after a poor season in which he scored only one ninth place. Neate returned to competition last year after serious accident in a TVR Sagaris at Silverstone in October 2008. He suffered multiple injuries including a broken neck and two collapsed lungs and spent two weeks in a coma. It is expected that he will switch across to Arena Motorsport.