- iRacing.com Announces iRacing 2.013,035
- iRacing.com to create virtual McLaren MP4-12C GT39,271
- Scanning What’s in Store for iRacing with Tony Gardner7,389
- Dave Kaemmer Comes Clean on Dirt7,386
- The iRacing.com Protest System – May, 20126,677
- Improving the Sound of iRacing5,628
- iRacing 2.0 Debuts in 2011 Season 34,932
- Preview Shots of HPD ARX-01C, Ford GT & Suzuka4,890
- Two New Cars and Two New Tracks Coming to iRacing Soon4,790
- iRacing.com to Build Digital Honda for New Super GT Series4,489
- iRacing.com Announces iRacing 2.0 41
- Dave Kaemmer Comes Clean on Dirt 32
- The iRacing.com Protest System - May, 2012 30
- SFI Decertifies All Impact Racing Products 28
- Scanning What’s in Store for iRacing with Tony Gardner 18
- Improving the Sound of iRacing 15
- iRacing 2.0 Debuts in 2011 Season 3 13
- A Day with the Chief Steward 11
- iRacing.com to Build Digital Honda for New Super GT Series 11
- 'Shootout' Time Trials Coming To Indy 500 8
- iRacing.com2337
- NASCAR 1891
- Motorcycles 1844
- Formula Cars 1706
- WRC 1427
- IndyCar 1297
- Touring Cars 873
- Sports Cars 307
- Other Racing 356
David Phillips
Editor and ChiefDavid Phillips is a long-time contributor to print and electronic publications in the U.S. and abroad, including Racer, Autosport, AutoWeek, Motor Sport and SPEEDtv.com, oversees the daily updating of news stories and assigns, edits and contributes feature material for inRacingNews.com.
Chris Hall
iRacing.com Series WriterChris Hall has been writing since the nineties and moved into motorsports reporting in 2005, covering series such as ALMS, British GT, FIA GT, Le Mans and 2CV racing for Full Throttle magazine, Motorsport.com, The-Paddock.net, GTGateway.com, L' Endurance and, of course, inRacingNews. During 2008 and 2009, he worked with the RSS Performance Porsche Carrera Cup Team (and former British GT(C) champions) as a data engineer for a variety of drivers and models of 997s.
Jameson Spies
Contributing Writer19 years old, Jameson Spies lives in Quartz Hill, California. He grew-up surrounded by racing. His mother raced late models throughout Southern California while his father built and setup the car. Not surprisingly, Jameson began racing go-karts at the age of 13, and is now racing Spec Trucks at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale. He has a passion about all forms of racing and hopes to make a career out of it.
Jason Lofing
iRacing.com Series WriterJason is 21 years old and was born and raised in Elk Grove. California. A big time NASCAR fan, he hasn’t missed a race on Sunday in years. Lofing is also a huge San Fransisco Giants fan and tries to take in at least a couple games a year. Other than sim racing, his biggest (and far more expensive!) hobby is photography. Although he is rather new to sim racing, Lofing has already accomplished some pretty impressive results, qualifying for the 2011 iRacing Oval Pro Series in Season 1, 2011, winning the inaugural Landon Cassill Qualifying Challenge and finishing runner-up in the second one.
Tim Terry
Contributing WriterTim Terry, aka the voice of Maritime stock car racing, fell in love with sim racing in 2004 after he joined the Sim Racing Network crew as a pit reporter. From October 2004 to SRNtv’s closure in June 2007, he’s covered prestigious races and leagues such as the Online 500, FLM Fall 400, Real Racing Online and the DMP Racing League – each as the lead broadcaster for the company. At the same time the wheels started to turn in another direction as he began announcing stock car racing locally. Terry became the assistant announcer at Scotia Speedworld in May 2007 and took over full duties in May 2009 when long-time voice Mike Kaplan retired from the track. Terry also became the series voice of the Parts For Trucks Pro Stock Tour in ’09 and continues to hold down both posts in 2011. He has also announced races for the Pro All Stars Series, Atlantic Open Wheel and Maritime League of Legends tours and has called races at six different Atlantic Canadian tracks. Terry can be heard online at WebRacingNetwork.com, RLMtv.com and OLRtv.com covering sim races. He also makes occasional appearances on PSRtv.com. In addition to inRacingNews, his articles and columns can be read on ScotiaSpeedworld.ca, MaritimeProStockTour.com and his own website at timterryonline.com.
David Allen
Contributing WriterNorth Carolina born and raised with over 15 years of computer/IT experience, I combine two of my biggest hobbies -- racing and technology -- here at inRacingNews. In my spare time I run a Nascar fan site and cure my own need for speed riding atvs. If it involves technology or racing I'll be there, but combine the two and I'll be looking a front row seat. Stop by and say hello anytime!
Allen Krier
Contributing WriterAllen was born in West Palm Beach, Florida but grew up in Atlanta and attended Georgia College and State University where he received a BS in Information Systems. Currently a resident of Albany, GA, he started sim racing in 2008 while in college when iRacing was first released to the public. Since then, Krier has been a two time iRacing Pro Series driver (2009 and 2010), picking up one Pro Series win at Daytona in ‘09. Besides sim racing, Allen’s other hobbies include RC Car racing as well as “attending and watching any sporting event that I can including going to the local dirt track.
HRT expects short-term struggle
December 17th, 2011
HRT’s new team principal Luis Perez-Sala has admitted that the squad will probably start 2012 in worse shape than it ended 2011 as its restructuring progresses – but is confident that the team’s longer-term prospects are now much brighter.
The team is aiming to establish a more Spanish flavour under new owner Thesan Capital, and this week promoted ex-Formula 1 racer Perez-Sala to the team boss position after the departure of Colin Kolles, who had guide HRT since its eleventh-hour transformation from the struggling Campos project just prior to its grand prix debut in 2010.
Although design work for the 2012 car is being carried out in Munich, HRT is beginning to establish a new Spanish base in Valencia, and has signed former McLaren reserve Pedro de la Rosa as its first driver for next year.
Perez-Sala conceded that producing the new car while moving base and restructuring the team was a tall order, and that it was likely to result in a very difficult start to 2012.
“The task ahead of us, with the design of the car and change of headquarters, is huge,” he said. “Formula 1 is very complicated and implies a lot of preparation work, so, in this respect, HRT is a little bit behind other teams.
“We will feel the effects of this transformation the team is going through and will have to pay for it at the start of the season. We’re not going to be at the same level as when we finished this past season, where the same team had been running for two years, but we’re aware of that.
“We’re taking a step back so that we can take two forward. 2012 will be an important year for us to settle and face a more natural and stable situation in 2013.”
The Spaniard said he had total faith in the ability of the HRT personnel and that it was only the element of transition this winter that would set the squad back.
“Right now the main strength of the team is the people that make it up,” said Perez-Sala. “There is a good group of professionals, with a lot of desire and willpower and faith in this project, this is very important because the sacrifices that are being made and that will have to be made are big ones.
“The major weakness is that the team is still going through a process of change and we are in December and Formula 1 doesn’t stop. This is a competition where the deadlines are established and where you’re being examined publicly, officially and permanently. That is the main inconvenience for us at this time of restructuring. But one thing is for sure and that is that we will work to the fullest and put in all our effort.”
Perez-Sala thinks it will probably take the new generation F1 rules in 2014 for HRT to really close the gap to the established teams.
“In the medium term we intend to improve the car and get closer to our rivals than last year,” he said.
“In the long run, with a better car and a solid structure, we will think about the strategy for 2013 and, above all, 2014 when there will be major changes to regulations.”
He added that amid all the changes within the team, naming a second driver alongside de la Rosa was not currently a priority.
“We are in advanced talks with several drivers but we can’t anticipate anything yet,” Perez-Sala said. “It’s a decision we surely won’t make until the start of next year because, at this stage, who will be the team’s second driver for next season is perhaps the least urgent one right now.”