Jeddah Corniche Circuit

SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX

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July 03, 2012
Published on tags: Superleague
A new feature form the GPVWC Media Department is something akin to the 'Letters to the Editor' you will find in your local newspaper. We will be inviting different GPVWC community members the opportunity to write about their thoughts on the goings-on of the community. First up is GPVWC stalwart Kieran Ryan of Woods Racing.


Silverstone.


I was tempted to leave the article at that, but alas there is more to report on than just a simple venue. It is the half way point of the Superleague season and while the silly season is kicking off, the action (and by that I mean who's said what to whom on the forum) is just starting.



It is the British Grand Prix and for most of us, its home. The track has had a regeneration of sorts in the last few decades. Long gone are the old deadly gravel traps a child would spend hours building sand castles out of from the eighties. Instead, the modern Silverstone's latest creation is new pit facilities and the movement of the start/finish straight, somewhat oddly, towards the tail end of what was the old layout.



It was an odd experience at first, finding myself almost finishing the lap coming out of Becketts and Copse. The decision to move turn one into a more tightly packed first split hopefully suits the Superleague as first corner smashes are a thing of the past ? well, if Istanbul or Montreal is anything to go by! Have we escaped this curse? Watch this space....



In more interesting news the latest kick in the arse has come in the form of the disciplinary committee. Many a driver were taken to town by them at Monaco (including yours truly), but has this changed things around for the better? Since Monaco we've seen less and less penalties handed out by the committee as drivers have appeared to become nicer.

Indeed at Turkey we only had two penalties.


While this may be a welcome relief for all, it may make the racing more boring as commented by Scott Woodwiss live on-air. Penalties are given out to those who offend the rules and give another driver a bloody nose. However, it may have had the opposite effect then first intended. Perhaps now no one wants to take a risk anymore. Are we now happier giving a handshake to some drivers and a finger to others rather than get tangled up in someone else's mess?



It's only been nine races and we've lost the two world champions that started the season with us. How odd it seems to lose such talents. Personal lives come first, but are there underlying reasons why we've lost them? Has the Midnight domination destroyed all hopes of winning again? Are we set to see our own version of McLaren's ultra successful 1988 season in front of us? Surely not, after all one team can only upgrade so much before they've maxed out, right? I must say hats off to these guys. They really did their homework this year and if they win the championship then the best guys will have won it.



Drivers take different perspectives and some moan about domination while others check the passion at the door, boot up (the computer that is), suit up (put some clothes on if they are so inclined, though I'm sure some sit happily in their boxers) and get down to the nitty-gritty of doing lap after lap in some vain hope of beating the Midnights.



Finally, this season has shown something new to everyone - that finishing a race doesn't guarantee you points or podiums anymore (take note Mr. Wicks). We've seen the highest finishing rate of any Superleague season to date, with twenty finishers in both Canada and Turkey. The heat has been turned on and the battles raging mid-field are enough to stir a cat in heat! And believe me, I know! Finishing in the points now is no longer an easy accomplishment, and I can attest to this. Yet the desire remains clear. We are half-way through a season where the learning curve never ends and hope must remain alive for chance is round the next corner!



See you on track,

Peace,
KR



(ED. Note: Some sub-editing has been done to bring the article up to publishing standard. These edits do not change the content of the writer's opinion pieces. The views remain solely those expressed by the driver and not necessarily those shared by the GPVWC Media Department or GPVWC Administration. ? GPVWC Media Department Editor-in-Chief)