We’re quickly heading into race week, the second round of the year will see us returning to the North East, and it’s certainly a very busy time for Thailand Super Series (TSS). For drivers and teams it’s vital to come away with the best results possible as the coming weekend will mark the halfway point in the series and the destiny of titles will begin to shake out.
There will also be a new category in the programme this coming weekend compared to the opening round in May as the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia will rejoin us. The series in fact only last year returned to Thailand after an absence of a decade and it was a successful as well as very overdue return. And now the exciting Porsche 991 GT3 Cup machines are all set to take to the track in Buriram on Friday.
Meanwhile some of our leading racecars have recently been on show in the capital city as TSS took the opportunity of the break between the first two rounds to present the series to the wider public at the Bangkok International Auto Salon, which has just been held at the Impact Exhibition Center in Muang Thong Thani.
Also this week, Khun Narasak Ittritpong has been given no less than two new cars to race this year, a KTM X-Bow GT4 and Honda Civic TCR, for Super Car GTC and TCR Thailand respectively, veteran Porsche racing legend Khun Craig Baird is the latest star name to arrive in the TSS paddock to assist one of our leading drivers and while most attention is focused on the double trip to the North East, the work towards attaining FIA Grade 3 licencing for the Bangsaen Street Circuit relentlessly continues.
Porsche racers all set to rejoin TSS programme
Last year the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (PCCA) returned to Thailand after an absence of a decade – its previous visit here had come in 2005 when the German sportscar championship raced for the last time at Bira Circuit. It was a successful and much overdue return. And now the exciting ‘one make’ racers are set to venture back here for a second consecutive year and once again they will hook up with the TSS programme as we make our second trip of the season to the North East.
When the full grid of new-generation Porsche 991 GT3 Cup machines pitched up in Buriram last year they certainly impressed the spectators, especially as the drivers – who combine many different skill levels – tested out the circuit’s braking points from scratch. It looks like the same story is going to unfold next week when the popular series returns, although most of the pack will now have much better familiarity with the circuit to draw on.
Thai fans will have three drivers to keep a close eye on next weekend, as Khun Sontaya Kunplome, Khun Suttiluck Buncharoen and Khun Vutthikorn Inthraphuvasak will all be in action. There are plenty of connections to be made too between these drivers and PCCA, Khun Sontaya and Khun Vutthikorn were both on the PCCA grid when the series last came here a decade ago – so a big circle has been joined up – while all three were on grid last year for PCCA’s first visit to Buriram. In fact for Khun Sontaya and Khun Vutthikorn it was a renewal with the series after a long time absence while for Khun Suttiluck it was his rookie year.
Khun Sontaya and Khun Suttiluck are both racing in Super Car this year, in GTC and GTM respectively, while Khun Vutthikorn was the 2013 Super Car overall champion, the first top category title winner of the ‘TSS Era’.
That all means 2016 represents the trio’s second year at the wheel of the ‘991’ generation racer – and that has really shown its benefit as all three have shown a distinct uptick in their pace over the first two rounds of the year, which were held at China’s Shanghai Circuit and Japan’s Fuji Speedway respectively. The Thai trio race in the highly competitive Class B and coming into the Buriram event, after two rounds and five races so far, Khun Vutthikorn is the best placed with 92 points – that puts him in second place in the classification – while Khun Suttiluck has 40 points (8th in Class) and Khun Sontaya 25 points (11th in Class). As well as improved pace the trio have also been a model of consistency, they have all scored points in every race so far – clearly that will be a record they intend to maintain next weekend.
But it won’t just be about Thai drivers as more than 20 cars are expected on the grid. After the first five races (four full points scoring races plus a flat score ‘invitational’ race that pitched PCCA against the Porsche Carrera Cup Japan), Khun Maxime Jousse has impressed the most as he has four wins and leads the standings with 91 points. The Frenchman has arrived in PCCA this year after three very impressive seasons in Porsche Carrera Cup France which netted him fourth place in the final classification on his rookie year (2013), the championship runners up spot the next season (2014) and finally the outright title last year (2015).
One Khun Maxime’s quartet of victories in PCCA so far this year includes the last round’s ‘invitational’ race where he beat off not only the entire PCCA field but all the Japanese Porsche drivers who had the ‘home’ advantage thanks to the race being held at Fuji Speedway.
Khun Nico Menzel, last season’s PCCA ‘find’, is in second place on 80 points after the five races; the 18-year-old finished an impressive third in the championship last year and is looking to improve on that performance this time around. Khun Andrew Tang, who is a member of the Porsche China Junior Programme, is in third place overall with 64 points and the 22-year-old is in fact the only driver to have beaten Khun Maxime to the top step of the PCCA podium so far this season.
In Class B Khun Vutthikorn goes head-to-head with Khun Yuan Bo, who has been one of the revelations of the season so far – he won the PRO-AM class in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia last year had has switched to PCCA to race a Porsche for the first time this year, enjoying a smooth transition. Nothing less than the Class B title is at stake here – there are just 12 points separating Khun Yuan and Khun Vutthikorn (94 and 82 respectively) and expect that rivalry to be fierce in Buriram.
The PCCA competitors will enjoy two half hour long free practice sessions in Buriram this coming Friday (8 Jul), starting at 1110 and 1410 respectively, before they all head out for the 30 minute qualifying session the following morning (Saturday 9 Jul) and then take the green lights for Race 1 at 1650 in the late afternoon. Race 2 will take place the day after (Sunday 10 Jul).
Under the spotlights at the Bangkok Auto Salon
TSS took the opportunity of the break between the first two rounds to present the series to the wider public at the Bangkok International Auto Salon, which was held late last month at the Impact Exhibition Center in Muang Thong Thani.
We displayed six cars on our booth during the lavish tuning and modified car show. Leading the lineup in the Challenger Halls were the most striking contenders from Super Car GT, namely the Lamborghini Huracán LP620-2 Super Trofeo, which very impressively swept to victory in all three races during the season opener back in May on its TSS debut, and B-Quik Racing’s Audi R8 LMS Cup, the Italian car’s closest challenger that weekend, which also kicked off its year in style with a superb triple podium finish.
Meanwhile, Super Car GTC was also represented on the booth by another car that enjoyed success in the North East, also coming on its TSS debut; that was Vattana Motorsport’s brand new KTM X-Bow GT4. The black-and-blue carbon-fibre racecar claimed GTC victory in Race 1 after an imperious lights-to-flag victory.
TCR Thailand has been a buzzword so far this year and three racecars were presented on the booth, two SEATs and a Honda. The SEAT Léon Cup Racer is the benchmark car in TCR series worldwide and it transmitted that form into TCR Thailand winning both races at the season opener back in May. Representing the Spanish brand at the Auto Salon were the cars driven by Khun Paritat Bulbon (Sloth Racing) and Khun Grant Supaphong (Krating Daeng Racing Team). The former driver also raced his car in last month’s TCR Asia Series round at Buriram and took a trip to the AM podium as a reward for his efforts.
Honda’s Civic TCR also made the jump from TCR Thailand to TCR Asia Series last month and thanks to some superb driving by Khun Nattachak Hanjitkasem the end result was a first and second place in the AM class from the two races. That was a remarkable success for this driver and his blue, white and chrome liveried car was on the booth to reflect that performance.
Elsewhere the other Krating Daeng SEAT of Khun Chen Jian Hong was on show. That car has also enjoyed a great start to the season, the Taiwanese driver winning the AM class in both the opening TCR Thailand races in May.
There was more representation from Super Car GTM as over on the official Toyota booth the 86 sportscar, which is entering its fourth season in the top flight, was displayed. This has become one of the most successful ‘Super Car’ machines of the TSS era and the #39 example driven by Khun Nattavude Charoensukhawatana shows very little sign of giving up its quest for podium glory as it earned a fine second place during this year’s season opening weekend. It was shown with a simulated pit crew working on the car.
Super Compact is another exciting new category on the programme this year and its first ever races were also held at Buriram back in May. Mazda factory supported Innovation Motorsport has switched away from a few seasons in Super Production to join Super Compact and the team enjoyed a promising start to the new season with a multiple trophy haul.
Both the official Mazda drivers’ Khun Michael Freeman and Khun Tachapan Vijittranon stepped up to the podium at the end of each of the two races and that leaves them very well placed in the Super Compact Drivers’ (Overall and Class C) and Teams’ championships with another six races remaining.
The Mazda2 racers were on display on the official Mazda booth at the Auto salon along with the healthy collection of trophies they bagged from that weekend. The turbodiesel racecars cover all the bases too as one competes in sedan format while the other is a hatchback.
Bangsaen upgrades proceeding to schedule
The TSS season kicked off in Buriram back in May and is heading back there this week for round two, but although Bangsaen isn’t really on the radar yet for drivers and teams, it’s a continually unfolding story for Racing Spirit and the operation to achieve FIA Grade 3 licencing for this year’s 10th Anniversary edition in November is proceeding continually all year.
The Racing Spirit Track Development Team put the core infrastructure foundations to achieve FIA Grade 3 in place last year and is now driving the programme towards its conclusion. TSS Vice President Preeda Tantemsapya and TSS Technical Manager Pairuch Ngernmeesri head the Track Development Team with additional input coming from Track Designer Simon Gardini who makes regular visits to support the programme.
Khun Simon was in Bangsaen a couple of weeks ago to examine progress and was able to give an update on the work that’s currently being undertaken. “We’ve been working continually on the elements we need to achieve the Grade 3 licencing for this year,” he explained. “That work has been going on both in respect to the track itself and separately to the infrastructure that makes up the circuit.
“Last week we have had inspections at Bangsaen around the circuit,” the Australian continued, noting that they are looking not just at the requirements for the 2016 event but also at the same time well into the future. “Specifically we were working on areas we will widen for this year’s event and also the broader plans to widen additional areas the following year so there’s a quite well thought out capital works plan unfolding to keep upping the level of safety and the quality of the track on an ongoing basis, regardless of the Grade 3 requirements. It’s a plan not just for one year to get a licence but to keep progressing over the coming years.”
With a number of sections being upgraded last year in preparation for the FIA homologation, there is one key area that needs to be addressed during the concluding phase. “Specifically it’s coming out of what’s now Turn 23, the last slight right hander onto the main straight,” says Khun Simon. “There will be widening works there, it’s always been a narrow neck in the track, so there is significant investment there with moving some of the things like power poles and infrastructure away from the edge of the track to allow for widening works.
Next month will see a major survey being conducted across all physical aspects associated with the event. “On the track we will have a full topographical survey being conducted,” Khun Simon also pointed out. “That’s something that’s necessary for us to get the FIA licence completely correct and it’s also because we do have these longer term plans so we’re not just surveying the track itself for the FIA requirements but also the spectator areas, the new paddock area and some areas that could be used in the future.
“We will get a full technical picture of the track from the survey,” he continued. “While some of the things are easy to identify and deploy, the survey will identify their exact extent and make sure we are exactly right.
“So there will be quite an upping of the planning and confirmation of the elements in the next few weeks and we will have people down on site for two weeks doing that,” Khun Simon adds. “Then we will prepare the final FIA dossier and start on the capital works on the streets.”
The infrastructure will also continue to be upgraded – and some of the original safety assets will be steadily phased out. “In terms of off the track people will see a bit difference in some of the infrastructure this year as we’re progressively adding more sections of concrete barriers,” he says. “Last year we introduced more concrete barriers and new guard rails, there will be more of those.
“One of the major areas will be debris fencing,” he continues. “There’s been a couple of types of debris fencing in use for many years, some does and some doesn’t satisfy FIA guidelines but there is now a massive financial investment in a significant amount of FIA compliant debris fencing for this year which will be higher than what’s currently required by the guidelines but being a street circuit and people being so close we are anxious to provide the maximum level of debris fencing.
“So that new debris fencing will cover areas such as the main straight and main spectator areas along the beachfront and down into the pitlane area. So in the last couple of weeks we have been having inspections at the fabrication yard to look at these things.
“The other thing we started to introduce last year was gates to improve access to the track both operationally for recovery and also for overnight access, opening it up quicker and more conveniently for local residents and business,” he adds. “We have evolved those for this year and took a look at the latest versions. So all those thing are going on at the moment and we’re pressing on continually towards the FIA licence.”
A tale of two (new) cars
Most racing drivers hope for a new state-of-the-art racecar at the start of the new season. Some get an exciting new machine, most don’t. Very few get two new cars, never mind that they’re cutting edge machines that usher in new standards.
One driver though has two new cars this year – and that’s Vattana Motorsport’s Khun Narasak Ittritpong. That’s because the team has acquired a KTM X-Bow GT4 for Super Car GTC and a Honda Civic TCR to race in TCR Thailand. Two very different racecars, but both have caused a stir in the TSS paddock this year and – crucially – they both certainly seem to be the ones to have.
The KTM X-Bow GT4 arrived in Thailand just in time for May’s season opener in Buriram and the futuristic looking racecar had a perfect start as Khun Narasak won Race 1 comfortably, running out front from the green lights to the checkered flag. The car, which has already set a new benchmark in European GT4 racing, is built by Reiter Engineering in partnership with KTM – so it was logical that Vattana Motorsport, as the Reiter agent here, brought the car over.
Striking to look at, especially with its front hinging one-piece glasshouse, the KTM feels something akin to a ‘mini LMP’ car – and Khun Narasak reckons that dynamically it’s just as impressive as its carbon fibre visuals. “The KTM is the most fantastic car I have ever driven,” he says. “Because it not only looks like a cartoon or a batman car but the feeling of the car is very impressive because the traction is much more on every corner, I’ve never seen that before, it seems like a go-kart but much more than a go-kart.”
Because the raw power is held back by a restrictive BoP required to allow it to compete in GT4, which is further optimised as required to adhere to Super Car GTC, that means the available power must be used to perfection in conjunction with its characteristics of light weight and superb handling.
“The first thing you have to do before you race the KTM is you need much more training about its power, the power controls the KTM, if you don’t have the power right you can’t control the KTM,” Khun Narasak emphasises.
“The KTM has much decreased power because of the BoP regulations, so the speed is lower, the acceleration is lower and the power is lower,” he adds. “But it’s not so important to me as I use everything from the corner, the corner is the most important thing for the KTM, good handling and good cornering are the most important things for this car.
Cornering is the key then. “We have a lot of time on the straight as we put in 170 kg for the BoP,” he adds with a laugh. Khun Narasak also reckons that the latter half of the season will better suit the KTM. “I’m sure the car is very fast, especially at Bangsaen.”
The car enjoyed a ‘textbook’ debut with an untroubled victory in the opening race. “I’m very happy, I’m happy with every lap, every time, I just waited for the win flag,” said Khun Narasak afterwards. Race 2 didn’t go so well though and despite being in the thick of the front running action again, multiple deployments of the Safety Car caught him out and a resulting time penalty dropped him off the podium.
However Khun Narasak collected vital championship points and that leaves him well positioned, just six points off the provisional classification leader after the first round. Clearly the combination of Khun Narasak, the KTM and Vattana Motorsport is a potent one and they have their combined eyes focused on winning the championship.
It wasn’t just a KTM that was a new racetrack ‘toy’ this year either as Khun Narasak now has a Honda Civic TCR to race in TCR Thailand, the newest championship on the TSS programme which has grabbed much attention this year. Vattana’s new Civic didn’t quite arrive in time for the TCR Thailand season opener but it did land in time for him to join the TCR Asia Series race at Buriram last month. That gave Khun Narasak and his engineers useful track time to better understand the car before TCR Thailand resumes this week.
Built by JAS Motorsport in Italy, the Civic TCR represents the ‘next generation’ of racing touring cars. “The TCR car is very nice and has very good handling,” says Khun Narasak. “I think the car is the same as the touring car but [has] better power and better aerodynamics and lighter.
The visit of TCR Asia Series gave the team a great opportunity to get to grips with the Civic, with support from West Coast Racing engineers in the garage. “We have to change the style to the front wheel drive with turbo, that is complicated for us, for the first runs,” says Khun Narasak. “I have not [had] much time to drive this car, but our times are getting better and better, if we have more time the car will be very fast.”
Indeed in the first race, pitted against some of the best touring car drivers in Asia, Khun Narasak grabbed the final step of the podium after a strong drive to third place. Expect more pace to be unlocked by this car-driver combination next week in Buriram when TCR Thailand resumes.
Kiwi legend rocks into the paddock
As the competitive bar in Super Car skyrockets our leading drivers continue to draft in international star names to help them raise their game. Learn from the best is the mantra – and the latest big name to have dropped into the paddock is Khun Craig Baird who was here to help out his fellow countryman (and a bit confusingly to write this story, his Christian name namesake) Khun Craig Corliss.
Certainly our newest ‘visitor’ is one of the best in the business with a title-laden career that stretches back over quarter of a century. Exactly 25 years in fact as Khun Craig Baird started racing in Formula Pacific in 1991 – and he won that championship at the first time of asking. The now 45-year-old New Zealander is however probably best known for his success in Porsche’s Carrera Cup and has an unrivalled eleven championship titles split between the Australian and New Zealand series.
He’s also got more than a decade’s experience racing the ‘V8 Supercar’ Holden Commodore so he was well placed to help Khun Craig at the season opener back in May as the GTM regular got to grips with his Holden, which was hitting the track for the first time following a major closed season upgrade that had seen the big ‘green machine’ shipped back to its original builder, Triple Eight Engineering, in Australia.
Khun Craig Baird was at Buriram this time last year to race in the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia on its first return visit to Thailand after more than a decade away – and there were no surprises then from this driver as he made his customary trip to the podium. During the weekend he bumped into Khun Craig Corliss, as he explained in the Kiwi Racing Team’s garage during the most recent TSS weekend, back in May. “I’ve had a relationship from last year when I raced here in Carrera Cup,” he said. “Craig [Corliss] and I got together and got on well, so now I’m just over try to do a bit of driver training with him.”
There were a number of ways he was able to help get the new season underway. “Obviously there’s quite a big gap between his last race and the first race of the season so it’s always good if you can try to copy someone’s data, put someone else in the car,” said Khun Craig Baird. “He also made some [mechanical] changes to the car so he wanted someone to tick them off and see if the car is okay and I was also doing some driver training and helping a mate out.”
Last season Khun Craig Corliss enjoyed an impressive year and finished the season as Super Car GTM Vice Champion – in fact he led the championship classification going into the final weekend of the year in Bangsaen and also picked up a win in Buriram. This year though it looks like he’s going to have his work cutout if he wants to get onto the front running pace.
Khun Craig Baird also admitted that – but he said that the support team had been pulling together and working hard to get the car into the best possible shape to compete at the front. “Realistically we are racing new GT cars and a V8 Supercar is probably not the tool I would use this year,” he said. “There are definitely better options if you look at the new Lamborghinis and others, but Craig enjoys the Holden, he enjoys the V8 Supercar and that’s the path he’s chosen. So as a group we will try and give him the best package possible.