Rebuilding your self-belief, especially when things go wrong, is critical to your success as a race driver. This week on the Racecraft & Race Cars Roundup I cover this and more.
In addition to advice on rebuilding your self-belief you will find more helpful racecraft tips, advice on how to measure for a race helmet and what a motorsport lawyer does and why.
I also feature news from various sports car and single-seater racing series from around the world as well as new track cars from Maserati, BAC and Ford. I also give you details on a great opportunity to perfect your racecraft on three iconic tracks with pro race driver Christina Nielsen.
All this and more in this week’s Racecraft & Race Cars Roundup on Motorsport Prospects.
Racecraft Tips & Techniques
On-Track
In the video above, Blayze explains how long to spend at minimum speed in corners.
In Train the Trainer: Monkeys, Late Apexes & Classroom Sessions, Ross Bentley of Speed Secrets explains the importance of asking why something is being taught instead of just accepting it.
Now, imagine this: fifteen adults, ranging in age from 25 to 65, are sitting in a classroom at a race track, listening to the instructor at a High-Performance Driver Education (HPDE) event talk about “How to work a corner.” The gray-haired instructor (I can say that because I’m one of them) says, “Corners should be driven with a late turn-in and apex.” Essentially, “You’re not ready to learn the right way to drive, so we’re going to teach you the wrong way, and then someday you’ll have to learn the right way.”
How is this any different from telling kids that all animals are called “dogs,” only to have to correct them when they get older?
Train the Trainer: Monkeys, Late Apexes & Classroom Sessions
In his Ask Ross feature, Ross also answers the question, how can braking lighter make me faster if I have to brake earlier?
In the video above, Grassroots Motorsports provides tips on easy data analysis. “Trying to figure out why your lap times are so slow? We can help with some easy tips to analyze your on-track data to find where you are losing time with Circuit Tools from VBOX Motorsport.”
In Part 3 of their series on perfecting your car control, Racing Car Technology looks at Trail Braking and Zero Steer.
In the subscriber-only edition of On Racing Drivers by Terence Dove, Terence explains why you should stop messing around on racing games and instead use them to win. “But, whichever way you want to do it, I want to show you how you can use the simulator right now, to create totally unexpected real world improvements. This is stuff I don’t think anyone really appreciates, even if they bash away at the sim for hours on end.”
The Third Angle Podcast looks at Dynisma: The ultra realistic driving simulators training F1’s biggest stars. You can listen here.
“Imagine being able to race round all the world’s top Formula One circuits and feel every bump and bit of understeer without actually having to travel anywhere. Or to be able to test drive a road car that hasn’t been built yet on the motorway. Dynisma creates driving simulators that make this possible. Founded by ex-F1 engineer Ash Warne, Dynisma develops incredibly realistic driving simulators for both motorsport teams and the car industry. What sets their simulators apart though is how quickly they respond, in milliseconds, so drivers feel like they’re driving a real car.”
Speaking of sim racing, tips on becoming a mentally strong sim racer are just part of what you will find in last week’s Sim Racing Roundup which you can read here.
Off-Track
If you are struggling with your self-belief due to your recent results, then the quick video above by Enzo Mucci is for you.
Motorsport Legal lawyer Sarah Franklin explains what she does in A Week in The Life of a Motorsport Lawyer as well as providing some advice for race drivers in an exclusive article for Motorsport Prospects. “Generic contracts, in my opinion, often cause confusion and don’t include everything that is needed, so, particularly during the off season, I spend a lot of time negotiating and preparing bespoke contracts – often picking up things that they probably haven’t even thought of.”
If you travel a lot in your racing career over multiple time zones, you will appreciate these tips for preventing and fighting jet lag by the Luxury Travel Expert.
Motorsport UK has developed the Motorsport Coach qualification (1st4Sport, level 2) to set the standard for coaching in motor sport.
The qualification will provide both personalised and collaborative experiences to develop and support coach learning, using a blend of face to face and online videos and workshops as well as practical observation and expert insights. It will cover technical, tactical, physical and mental skills and more importantly, the underpinning coaching principles drawn from best practice within the sporting industry.
This course is for anyone that’s supporting and developing a driver at any stage of their career from grassroots right through to elite. You might be an existing instructor or motorsport coach wanting to develop your skills, or you may be brand new to motorsport coaching. You might even be fulfilling a different supporting role in the industry such as a motorsport engineer, team manager, a parent or even a driver coaching another driver. Whatever your motivation, this course will cover everything you need to know to make your coaching more successful and more effective.
You can find more details here.
Race Car & Series Developments
The Hankook 24H Series will abandon its current GT and TCE divisions in favor of a new class system as part of significant changes to the sporting regulations for the 2024 season. Sportscar 365 has all the details.
SRO America has outlined plans to hold a Pirelli GT4 America endurance race that’s earmarked for the Circuit of The Americas event in 2024. The exact length of the race has yet to be determined.
Driving Force Events, the promoter of the Gulf 12 Hours, has released a statement confirming the 2024 date for the middle-eastern endurance race at the Yas Marina Circuit and its plans for the future.
“In response to speculation following the recently announced 2024 Formula 1 calendar, promoter Driving Force Events wishes to clarify the situation and confirm a stable long-term future for the Gulf 12 Hours, consolidating it as the premier GT competition in the Middle East,” the statement reads. “This year’s edition of the Gulf 12 Hours will take place as scheduled on 10 December. It is set to feature a capacity grid of GT3 cars and again counts as the final round of the SRO’s Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC) season. A logistics plan has been developed to allow next year’s Gulf 12 Hours to take place on Sunday 15 December 2024, maintaining an attractive and efficient date for competitors despite the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix taking place shortly before, on 8 December.”
The creation of a new street circuit in Chennai was announced last Wednesday, with its first ever event set to include a night race for the Indian Formula 4 championship. Formula Scout reports that Indian F4 and the Indian Racing League will inaugurate the ‘Chennai Formula Racing Circuit’ on December 9/10, although it is yet to be confirmed when that will lie in Indian F4’s schedule as a 2023 calendar is yet to be released.
Formula Scout is also reporting that the Formula 4 Central European Zone championship is looking to double its grid size for 2024 and make a long-sought for trip to Oschersleben.
Formula Scout is also reporting that Formula Regional Middle East will be getting an all-UAE 2024 calendar while the F4 championship is to use two Yas Marina layouts.
Track Days
New Track Car News
Motor Trend has a first look at the new 2024 BAC Mono. “For 2024, BAC has given the original Mono a thorough going over. The mid-mounted 2.5-liter naturally aspirated I-4 co-developed with Mountune Racing and based on the Ford Duratec engine now makes an additional 6 horsepower, with output standing at 311 hp and 231 lb-ft. Borrowing a few tricks from the more-powerful Mono R engine, the standard Mono engine now revs to 8,000 rpm.”
The track-only MCXtrema has been unveiled by Maserati at Monterey Car Week. The vehicle has no type approval for road use and boasts a maximum power output of 740ps for acceleration on the race circuit. “Maserati MCXtrema was created with the aim of offering an incredibly exclusive product that can set a new paradigm for our track cars,” explained Davide Grasso, CEO, Maserati.
Grassroots Motorsports asks the question, why does the world need a $300,000 track Mustang? “Because a major automobile manufacturing company that recently announced it was going to stop producing cars except for one particular model as it transitions to an all-EV fleet has introduced the most badass, gas-powered track day car ever. And it’s doing so in America.”
Driving Opportunities
Christina Nielsen is hosting a once-in-a-lifetime trip this October, where she will be giving a select few an opportunity to get behind the wheel and improve their driving skills at three iconic Florida racing tracks (Daytona, Sebring, and Homestead).
From October 24th-30th, Christina Nielsen will take you to Daytona, Sebring, and Homestead with a vibrant community of passionate individuals who share a love for driving, networking, traveling, and pushing boundaries, where unforgettable memories are created exclusively for you. Christina Nielsen’s ‘Destination FLORIDA’ promises to connect individuals with like-minded people on an immersive journey that combines thrilling racetrack experiences with a dedicated team that handles every detail, allowing you to fully immerse yourself and elevate your driving skills to new heights at renowned global racetracks. With space extremely limited, register your interest HERE.
Author: Mark Boudreau
Mark is the publisher of Motorsport Prospects. As a former lawyer, he applies his legal background and research skills to assist race drivers by showcasing the resources they need to make their motorsport careers happen.
