November 28, 2012
Published on tags: Superleague
With confirmation of the thirteen teams that will do battle in the 2013 GPVWC Superleague season having taken place at the successful GPVWC meeting in Solihull, what better time than now to speculate on the respective driver line-ups for each team, and discuss the few confirmed line-ups so far?
Midnight Motorsport

#1 - Lukas Euler - CONFIRMED #2 - Alex Cooper - CONFIRMED

The re-hiring of 2012 championextraordinaire Lukas Euler was never in question, but speculationas to who would partner him was rife. Team boss and driver Nick Rowland has opted to take a sabbatical from competitive duties in the GPVWC, and while Jamez Shepherd has made a return to his former team, his role is currently in a testing capacity. In the end, the team have opted for their 2012 test driver Alex Cooper, who had an impressive season in Supercup as part of CSG Racing, finishing 2nd in the championship. Cooper also took part in two races for Midnight in 2012, which included a surprising win at Suzuka.Integrating Cooper into the team should be a seamless transition seeing as he was a part of the team as a test/reserve driver last season, and has already developed a good working relationship with Euler. Whether Cooper will be able to match Euler for pace will remain to be seen, but there are high hopes for the young Englishman. Midnight Motorsport have a strong core both in and out of the car, and the hard-working champions will no doubt be out to defend both their titles.

Green Stripes Racing

#3 - Christoph Lichtenstein? Kieran Ryan? #4 - Matt Clipp? Chris Allen?

While team boss Christoph Lichtenstein would try everything in his power to try and re-sign his star man from last season Dave Carr-Smith, it was not to be. The fact the GSR cars will carry #3 and #4 on their cars for 2013 is testament to how successful the team's debut season was thanks to Carr-Smith. However, many expect the team to come crashing back down to earth during the 2013 season, unless the team can once again pull off a move for a big name driver. Matt Clipp is expected to re-sign with the team after showing solid improvement in the few appearances he made in 2012. Right now it isn't known whether Christoph will step up into the other race seat or look for other suitors, but either way, GSR may well be in for a much tougher season and must now prepare for life without Carr-Smith.

Hawkeye Racing

#5 - Bart De Vos? Ruud Heesterbeek? #6 - Lewis Redshaw? Jack Nicholls?

Hawkeye had a good, solid season in 2012, no doubt helped by the mid-season hiring of Jamez Shepherd, who helped the team to an impressive third place in the Constructors championship. Even without Shepherd, the team have a solid foundation for the future. It is widely expected that the team's original 2012 line-up comprised of Bart De Vos and Lewis Redshaw may come back together for 2013, though the Hawkeye package may be appealing to many drivers up and down the grid. While the team may not reach the lofty heights of challenging for regular wins like they were at the back end of 2012, they'll no doubt be in the mix for consistent points at every race. Perhaps more...

Red Archer Virtual Racing Team

#7 - David Jundt? Terence Grech? Ruud Heesterbeek? #8 - Jason Muscat? Jordan Weekes? Ojay Clark? David Gaspers?

The 2011 Constructors champions had high hopes for 2012 after bringing in the 2010 champion Janne Tanskanen to partner David Jundt, but the team did not perform as expected, taking just one solitary podium the whole season. The Finn took part in just seven races before calling it quits. The team then went through a plethora of drivers to partner Jundt for the rest of the season, which did nothing to aid team consistency. While Swiss driver Jundt came in for some criticism at times, he still took home a decent ninth position in the final drivers standings, while having as many as four different teammates throughout the season. The hiring of Ojay Clark brought some consistency, and more importantly results in the mid-part of the season. However, Clark decided to take an extended break, or even go into retirement from sim racing, once again leaving a big hole in the team. Despite the team forced into playing musical chairs in 2012, the Red Archer car and package still remained one of, if not the best on the grid. If the team can sustain a consistent, strong line-up for the whole season, then maybe they can think about challenging the top step of the podium again. What direction the team will head towards for drivers remains to be seen.

Nordsjoen Racing

#9 - Dave Carr-Smith - CONFIRMED #10 - Lee Morris - CONFIRMED

Sunday's announcement at the GPVWC meeting confirming Nordsjoen Racing's 2013 Superleague line-up sent shockwaves up and down the paddock, announcing both Dave Carr-Smith and Lee Morris to lead the team's road back to redemption. By Nordsjoen's previous success and high standards, last season was a total disaster for the team, with just two podiums to their name, both coming from the now retired Joe Consiglio. The team endured a lot of turmoil the rest of the way, with driver changes, and even three races where only one Nordsjoen car appear on the grid. Team boss William Ponissi has taken a huge gamble in acquiring the services of two proven race winners. While that may sound like the dream scenario for every team boss, it is not easy to forget various past situations where Morris has made his unhappiness plainly clear for everyone and anyone to see, and has butted heads with many in the past. But at the same time, the chance to drive for a storied team such as Nordsjoen could also bring out the very best in the blisteringly fast, but sometimes flawed Englishman. Pairing him up with another blisteringly fast driver in the form of Dave Carr-Smith is also another calculated gamble, but something that could reap dividends by the end of the season. Whether having a teammate that will push, and no doubt having someone who will give more than a run for his money will help Lee, or frustrate him remains to be seen. If everything works out as the team hope it does, Nordsjoen could be back celebrating a Constructors title once again. If it doesn't work out, therepercussionscould be disastrous. Either way, the spotlight over Nordsjoen Racing is shining bright once again.

Nijo Racing

#11 - Ruud Heesterbeek? #12 - Abdel Damghi? Ben Warren? David Jundt?

Nijo Racing's second season the GPVWC Superleague was a much more successful one, with then rookie Ruud Heesterbeek being one of the star performers throughout the season, and the team barely missed out on sneaking into the top six in the Constructors championship. Heesterbeek remains a key factor in the off-season driver market, and as the 2012 season went on, interest from other teams grew and grew. Various rumblings throughout the paddock suggest Heesterbeek is very content at Nijo and may well stay at the team, but until a confirmation is made, we can expect continued speculation as to the Dutchman's future. As for the second seat, that remains very much an open book, with a few possibilities such as Damghi and Warren returning to the team, with both drivers having been on Nijo's books since back in 2011. With the driver market still very much getting off the ground, it may be a while before we hear the team's driver line-up. One thing is for certain though, team boss Chris Williamson will be doing everything in his power to keep Heesterbeek at Nijo.

Kernow Sport

#14 - Mark Wicks? #15 - Kieran Ryan? Scott Bennett? Marek Skrajnowski? Ihab Abbas? Teemu Toikka?

Kernow Sport endured a mixed debut season to say the least. The hiring of Simon Cattell was somewhat of a coup for the team, and while he finished a solid seventh place in the championship, many had expected Cattell to be mixing it right at the front, despite the team being brand new to Superleague racing. It was a very difficult start to life as a team boss/driver for Mark Wicks too, not able to score points until Round 13 at Zandvoort, but showed a dramatic increase in form later on in the season. However, the team's slow start saw them bottom of the 'rookie' team standings, but still a solideighthoverall. With Cattell making the move away from GPVWC for 2013, Mark has some difficult decisions to make regarding his driver line-up. While he is almost certain to take the #14 seat himself, who will partner him at Kernow is a difficult thing to guess. Ihab Abbas did make his Superleague debut for the team at the final race of 2012 and could well make it a full-time move for 2013, though very little news has come from the team since the end of the season. One thing that can never be questioned is Mark's commitment to this project, and that he'll do everything in his power to move his team up the grid.

Woods Racing

#16 - Tom Parker - CONFIRMED #17 - Kieran Ryan? William Tringas? Teemu Toikka?

Mixed is again the right word to describe a team's season in 2012, this time for Woods Racing. Gone are the days of consistently battling at the top for the championship, but the team still showed the odd flash of promise this season. The team moved quickly to re-sign Tom Parker for the upcoming season, making the most improved driver in Superleague award winner the very first driver confirmed on the grid for 2013. Woods clearly need some consistency in the team, and re-signing Parker was a no brainer. Speculation as to who will partner him still remains though. Many predicted former Woods driver Dave Carr-Smith to return to the team, but it was not to be after he moved to Nordsjoen. Jamez Shepherd was another name linked to the drive, but that also appears a no-go with the Australian confirming his testing role at Midnight Motorsport. Just a matter of weeks ago, Kieran Ryan's race seat looked in jeopardy, but with the amount of available drivers dwindling by the day, we may well see the Irishman on the grid for 2013. However, rumours of Kieran possibly shopping himself around to other teams have recently came out, so perhaps team boss Ollie Woods has indeed made a move for another driverafter-all. Watch this space.

Constant Racing

#18 - Mark Stanton?#19 - David Stanton? Teemu Toikka?

2012 saw the Stanton brothers come together as teammates for the first time, and the Constant Racing boys have probably had their most difficult season to date. Not for the lack of trying, both Stanton's had some bad luck throughout the season which no doubt lost them some certain points finishes. Only Round three at Abu Dhabi saw both Constant cars come home in the points, something the team will look to rectify for 2013. It is widely expected to see both Mark and David return to the grid for Constant Racing for next season.

ST Racing

#20 - Mark Fuller? #21 - Scott Bennett? Geoff Meade?

ST Racing came into the 2012 season with a huge amount of optimism, thanks to the signing of Tom Eley, who in other series hadshownexcellent speed. However, Eley's Superleague career would be no longer than three races, salvaging a solitaryeighth place finish at the very first round in Melbourne before deciding to call it quits after Barcelona. Sadly for the team, that remained their only points finish of the season. The rest of the season was a complete disaster, with the team sometimes only fielding one car, or sometimes not appearing on the grid at all. Team boss and driver Mark Fuller will be desperate to find a solid, consistent and dedicated driver line-up for 2013. Fuller himself is expected to take the #20 car, but should have a few options for the other seat.

Phoenix F1

#22 - Kieran Ryan? Bart De Vos? Sam Millar? Wopke Hoekstra? #23 - Boyd Bryson? Lewis Redshaw? Andrejs Pestovs?

Phoenix F1 return to the GPVWC Superleague paddock for the first time since the rFactor era, and team boss Andy Graydon will no doubt hope for a seamless transition back into the league after a few years away. The team as a whole has kept extremely quiet, and right now only a few names are being whispered around the paddock as to who may end up as the team's drivers. Whether the team have already made a decision regarding their future drivers, or are playing the waiting game remains to be seen. Either way, Phoenix F1 are definitely a team to watch, and it will be interesting to see exactly how they adapted to the 'new style' GPVWC Superleague.

Halcyon Racing Team

#24 - Phillip Cullen? #25 - Adam Rouse?

Halcyon Racing's entry into the 2013 Superleague season came as a surprise to many, with most just assuming the team would carry on as a Supercup outfit. The team's recent success in the Masters series show they really mean business, and with Cullen and Rouse looking fairly likely to be the team's drivers, they will bring a still relatively young team a huge and helpful amount of experience.

Torrent Motorsports

#26 - Petter Kaasa? Rickard Hellsten? #27 - Jim Parisis? Mindaugas Klumbis? Ari Nieminen?

No surprise at all to see Torrent Motorsports on the grid for the 2013 Superleague season. Although still relatively new to GPVWC, the team has a huge amount of pedigree and experience around the sim racing world, and after dominating both Formula Challenge and Supercup last season, the move to Superleague was a no brainer. While Supercup champion Petter Kassa and Formula Challenge champion Jim Parisis are the favourites to take the seats, Torrent can rely on a handy pool of very quick drivers, so whoever we see line up for the team, they will surely be a force to be reckoned with. Exactly how big the step from Supercup to Superleague is for a well established team like Torrent remains to be seen, but no doubt they will already have extremely high hopes for 2013.