Create account | Log in as member
http://www.gpvwc.com/media/layout/login_arrow.png
Formula Sprint 2
Japanese Grand Prix
Suzuka International Racing Course
Tuesday 2nd of April 2024 19:00:00
More
February 06, 2002
And it was done, Matt Maple and Peter Van-Oostende embraced as there 'baby' was finally designed, Mapes-VO was offically born and now it was only a matter of time until the long term dream became a reality.

After closing the Mapes-VO press office to focus FULLY on the design of the 2002 car, today it was re-opened and to the delight of Matt and Peter there sitting on the desk in there Joint-Management office was a piece of paper simply saying "press".

Now for a brief update on the proceedings around the factory, we have a FULL team of designers, engineers, mechanics and of course the hard working commercial department.

The heads of department are as follows:

Comm. Manager: Jamie Day

Chief Designer: Peter Wilsson

Chief Engineer: Samson Crud

Chief Mechanic: Thomas Burns

Peter worked very hard on this side of things securing contracts with the best he felt would fit into the Mapes-VO family, he commented "Of course every team wants the best people for this job, but I looked further then their previous jobs. A lot of them made excelent cars and all, but I also wanted people who did a great job in the past AND were committed to our

team. I think we have signed personel who will fulfill both important aspects".

Peter was also responsible for directing Jamie Day in the general direction of Sponsers, the team has ended up with Benson and Hedges as primary sponser for 2002, Jamie said "the boys told me it was important for us to get a great sponser, and when i told them my opinions they were more than open to suggestions, they demanded and i suppied". Jamie also worked hard in

securing S.Oliver, Baumler and Camozzi as secondary sponsers for the team, Matt said "money may be money, but we wanted it coming in from reliable sources, and i think we achieved that with the lineup we have".

Some of you now be thinking 'Where does Matt come in', Matt secured the the more 'technical' components in the fuel, engine and tyres departments, these are as follows:

Engine: Honda

Tyres: Michelin

Fuel: Petronas

Matt was clearly happy with this, "I was delighted to secure all the things that the team wanted, we decided on Michelin tyres because mainly the language barrier, we decided the European tyre brand would be easier in

general communication than Japanese, although I am sure its not true. As far as Fuel we approached Petronas very early as they had been reccomended to us

by a close friend as 'the one to go for' we took that advice and its so far so good. Finally the engine, this was a very tough decision to make and one that we hope pays off, Honda are one of the biggest manufacturers in the world and we had no hesitations once the offer came along".

Finally theres only one thing left, drivers. Mapes-VO of course like all other teams is in negotiations talking to drivers, we dont feel that we will have any problem lining up at Melbourne with 2 drivers as Matt now explains "I dont lie, i am a VERY honest guy and i can assure the rest of the field that when it comes to Melbourne we will have 2 of the best drivers on the

grid, and the scariest thing is you better believe it".

Thank-You for reading, I hope you are all up to date now with the happenings of the Mapes-VO Honda team and we look forward to hearing from you at the launch on the 20th of February.