I am very upset I’m not a billionaire right now. Because this is the sort of art I’d spend my money on. A truly unique piece of motorsport history, a Toleman TG184-2 Formula One car driven by Ayrton Senna in his debut F1 season, is up for auction at The Spring Sale to be hosted by Silverstone Auctions on 16th May.
This particular car has become almost mythical and is perhaps best known for Senna’s remarkable second place drive in the rain-soaked 1984 Monaco GP, arguably the race which first demonstrated his extraordinary talents to the world. The Toleman, which Senna also raced to 3rd in the British and 7th in the Canadian Grand Prix’s, has been in private ownership for the past 16 years.
If I owned this car I think I’d cherish it like I would my own children. Here’s the video of why this car is so special. One more picture after the jump.
This admittedly dramatic sounding incident occured at the Friday free practice at the Malaysia GP. Sorry about the terribly music, I searched long and hard through down the corridors of YouTube for a version which hadn’t been dubbed over with shit music. But I couldn’t find one. So I went with the best quality footage.
After Sasha Martinengo’s massive April Fools scam, I got pretty angry and wrote this letter. I had also just found out my car had been impounded by the lovely people at Cape Town Traffic. Note to self, never write a letter in anger. I completely disagree with what he did, given his level of standing in SA with regards to Formula One. I took a beating in the comments and on Twitter, I’m not worried about that, however I did regret the personal jibes.
I have contacted him directly to apologise for getting so personal, which he responded to with “No worries,” etc. I don’t hate the guy, I mean I don’t know him personally so how could I. I still think he was way offsides and I do think his F1 preview show could improve drastically. Anyway, in the interests of transparency, I’ve not deleted the letter, but you’ll have to click Read More to see it.
The long-anticipated Ayrton Senna documentary/movie is due to hit UK screens in Summer, and we’ve got the preview. The trailer alone gave me goosebumps; the movie is probably going to reduce me to a quivering wreck.
Preview and a handpicked selection of magnificent Senna videos after the jump(more…)
This weekend, the classic Formula 1 Circuit Kyalami played host to the biggest private motoring event quite possibly in the world. The globally massive Top Gear rolled into town with a veritable barrage of petrol-burning stunts, displays and entertainment. Red Bull Racing flew Sebastian Vettel’s championship winning car, along with David Coulthard, to bring Formula One back to Kyalami for the first time since 1993.
Jodi Scheckter, South Africa’s only Formula One world champion, shipped his 1979 championship winning Ferrari along with three other iconic racing cars to the track for a quick blast, Nick Mason, the drummer of Pink Floyd, flew down to SA with his tasty little McLaren F1, which is worth more than Equatorial Guinea. Almost. Eddie Jordan, former Jordan F1 team boss and all round lunatic swore a bit and Sir Stirling Moss OBE signed some hats. It was epic.
And so were the Johannesburg thundershowers, which arrived like clockwork to cock up the whole goddamn weekend. Clarkson, Hammond and May were barely five minutes into their performance for 10 000 eager fans when the mother of all rain showers flooded the theatre. After laughing hysterically at each other, Clarkson announced: “Can I just say that this is absolutely fucking horrible”, to which Hammond added “I think if we don’t stop I’m going to drown”.
And that was that. I then sprinted back to the Red Bull garage where I was due to interview David Coulthard for 10 minutes, of which I was allowed about four before being told to ask my last question. For the occasion Red Bull had provided a lovely lounge full of 1000 people getting hammered at the free bar and a sound system pumping out the latest Café Del fucking Mar. What I’m trying to say is the video I shot is incomprehensible but I’ve done my best anyway.
The entire rain-soaked trip was worth it to a) have a drink with Coulthard and b) hear a modern F1 car screaming just metres away from me. That noise is unlike anything on earth; it crawls under your skin and beats your eardrums into panic mode. It’s just wonderful. Coulthard only managed a few minutes out there (the car was set up for dry runs) and unfortunately threw in the towel because it was simply too dangerous. He did execute some very loud donuts right in front of me, and the footage is all included.
Red Bull has given rise to what is possibly my favourite photographs of 2010. F1′s very own benevolent dictator, Bernie Ecclestone, turned 80 last week and yet shows absolutely no signs of slowing down/giving up. To mark the occasion, Red Bull Racing presented the maltese poodle of magnates with a custom zimmer frame.
Apparently Ecclestone accepted the gift in good humour, just before the Korean Grand Prix, which we imagine wasn’t nearly as fun, as one of Ecclestone’s adversaries, God, played havoc with the weather.
The zimmer frame has two can holders, a mock Red Bull front wing, and a mock F1 steering wheel, which reportedly has buttons for Viagra, nurse, Power, lawyer, accountant and his assistant Pasquale Lattuneddu.
The F1 circus tent is currently pitched just outside of Budapest for the Hungaroring Grand Prix, or the FORMULA 1 ENI MAGYAR NAGYDIJ 2010, to give it’s official title. Unsurprisingly the Red Bull’s of Sebastien Vettel and Mark Webber continue to dominate, with Vettel putting in a scorching Q3 lap to claim pole position, his seventh of the season. He was over half a second quicker than his Australian team mate and a good 1.2 seconds faster than third-placed Fernando “this is ridiculous” Alonso in the Ferrari. Full results when you click “Read more” below. There may be a bonus video in this for you as well.
Following the successful hosting of the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, the nation is chasing other major sport events with renewed vigour, and Formula One is no exception.
Over the weekend, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone reaffirmed his belief that Formula One will come to the African continent this decade, and the leading city is Cape Town. Eccelstone told BBC radio that “We’ve been talking to the people in Cape Town…We’re talking about building a circuit. It’s probably about three years away. That’s what I would like to see. I would hope so. I’ve been hoping that for five years.”
South Africa enjoyed a healthy dose of Formula One from the inception of the sport. Cape Town was the first city to host an international Formula One Grand Prix in 1960 at the Killarney Race Circuit. The following year the saw the likes of Sterling Moss compete at the same facility but poor financial planning by the promoters lost the event for the venue.
The last time a Formula One race was held in South Africa was in 1993, at the Kyalami circuit in Midrand, north of Johannesburg. Kyalami also held a race in 1992, and from 1967 through to 1985. Prior to that, the Prince George Circuit in East London held events in 1962, ’63 and ’65.
The financial benefits are seemingly obvious; Formula One is the single most expensive sporting code per event on Earth, and returns to each track year after year. Mega-events like the Olympics come along once every few decades and place considerable strain on a city’s finances. It has been suggested that Athens 2004 played a considerable role in the Greek financial crisis which struck only this year.
The news spread rapidly and inevitably Dave Gant, CEO of the South African Grand Prix Corporation, was asked to clarify or even ratify the statements.
Formula One can be ridiculous at times. Honestly, it’s like a petrol-burning version of Bold and the Beautiful. Obviously feeling a little out of the spotlight, Alonso has gone and announced that his thumbs are insured, to the tune of £9 million.
In a statement that could be straight out of The Onion, a Santander spokesman said: “Alonso’s thumbs are a big symbol as, apart from being essential when driving a Formula One car, they represent a sign of victory and that everything is under control and well protected.”
We couldn’t make this stuff up if we tried. So what have we learnt here? Firstly, one requires opposable thumbs to pilot a 900 horsepower racecar. Well, probably. And secondly, Alonso’s chief concern, should he lose one of his precious digits, is not being able to display his happiness after winning a race.
I’m sorry, but is the world suffering from a collective bout of amnesia? ”The Bahrain Grand Prix was boring” they wailed. “It wasn’t exciting” they cried, gnashing their teeth. Boring you say. Boring? Well, fucking news flash, Formula 1 is boring.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZ3j_bFItoU
I'm stunned. This video, from Australia, pretty much cements the Land Cruiser as an icon. I don't want to spoil it for you, just take two minutes and watch this....
Absolutely loved this warning sign on a parking boom in the Cape Town CBD. They've inadvertently created a great name for a dubstep party.
Ciro De Siena
I am very upset I'm not a billionaire right now. Because this is the sort of art I'd spend my money on. A truly unique piece of motorsport history, a...
I’ve been driving the new Range Rover Sport Autobiography. It’s without question the first sports autobiography I’ve ever been remotely interested in, although I once picked up Herschelle Gibbs’ tome...
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httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZ3j_bFItoU
I'm stunned. This video, from Australia, pretty much cements the Land Cruiser as an icon. I don't want to spoil it for you, just take two minutes and watch this....
