[WEC Race] 2013 FIA WEC - Round 7 - 6 Hours of Shanghai

[Beetle]

After a torrential typhoon nearly rained out the entirety of the 6 Hours of Fuji just a few weeks ago, teams are hoping for a better outing as the FIA WEC makes the short trip to Shanghai, China, for round 7 of the season. Meteorology is definitely on the minds of all of those attending the 6 Hours of Shanghai on November 9. Despite having a classified "humid subtropical climate", morale going into the event, on and off the track, is high, as the region generally stays cool and dry in the late autumn. Shanghai International Circuit, located in Jiading district, will be the venue for round 7. Built as ultramodern as possible, rather like the city itself, the track lacks history and character and isn't a favorite among drivers or viewers. It has often been criticized for overuse of runoff area and lack of elevation change, but while it's not exactly pretty to look at, the circuit generally produces surprisingly thrilling racing. Most notably (and surprisingly), Toyota will again bring two of their cars, not just one, to the event. After a Toyota victory was tinged with disappointment by an Audi championship wrap-up and a victory in the wet, which some would call "chance", the team is certainly hoping for a bare-knuckle brawl at Shanghai to prove who is truly the quickest, not just in the wet and by circumstance. Fielding two cars will definitely improve their chances against Audi. Also, after winning the final race of the American Le Mans Series, Nicolas Prost will return to the FIA WEC at Shanghai as third driver in the #12 Rebellion Racing Lola Toyota with Andrea Belicchi and Mathias Beche, who are looking to pick up the scraps from the two battling factory teams. Also of note, Greaves Motorsport will return to the WEC under its usual name (it was under the GAINER International moniker last race), with Eric Lux, and Nissan GT Academy champion Mark Shulzhitskiy, a newcomer to the series. The Aston Martin lineup continues to be in flux, with Frederic Makowiecki, Bruno Senna, Richie Stanaway, and Paul Dalla Lana still not confirmed for Shanghai. The entry list remains relatively unchanged for the rest of the grid as 28 sportscars from around the world will do battle at the massive, intimidating, and intense Shanghai International Circuit from November 8-9. Come one, come all, to the 6 Hours of Shanghai!

After a rather uninteresting stretch of races after the 24 Heures du Mans, including the washed out 6 Hours of Fuji, it seems like things might be finally going in the right direction for the LMP1 class with Toyota closing the gap to Audi in pace. The Japanese squad again fields two of their cars, the #7, winner at Fuji, driven by Alex Wurz and Nicolas Lapierre (Kazuki Nakajima appears to be absent from the entry list), and the #8, driven by Anthony Davidson, Stephane Sarrazin, and Sebastien Buemi, as usual. Audi can no longer be considered firm "favorites" after Toyota all but matched the German team's overall pace and managed to take the victory in treacherous conditions.

In LMP2, OAK Racing finally managed to find a break in G-Drive Racing's defenses and pounced on the opportunity, taking the win and breaking G-Drive's two-race winning streak (Interlagos and Austin). The winning car at Fuji, the #35 driven by Ricardo Gonzalez, Bertrand Baguette, and Martin "Plowey" Plowmann, leads the championship for LMP2 drivers, just ahead of Luis Perez Companc, Pierre Kaffer, and Nicolas Minassian, the drivers for Pecom Racing's sole entry. The next OAK Racing machine follows closely after, in the hands of David Heinemeier-Hansson, Olivier Pla, and The Cookie Monster (Alex Brundle), while G-Drive's Roman Rusinov, John Martin, and Mike Conway are still suffering from a shaky start to the 2013 season as well as a disqualification at Le Mans for a technical infringement. David Cheng, the only Chinese driver in the race, will replace Erik Maris in OAK Racing's distinctive "art car", unveiled at Le Mans. Finally, Lotus is anxious to repeat the success they had at Circuit of the Americas after a challenging weekend in Japan.

After Aston Martin Racing claimed the second win in a row at Fuji in the GTE-Pro category, AF Corse and Porsche AG Team Manthey must be as eager as ever to claim a win in what can only be described as a mostly one-sided season. Strangely, the points don't reflect that. In the World Cup for GT Drivers, Giancarlo Fisichella and Gianmaria Bruni lead 3rd placed Stefan Mucke and Darren Turner by 9.5 points, with the lethal Lieb/Lietz combo in the middle. Despite Frederic Makowiecki's consecutive race wins, a retirement at Le Mans and an absence in Brazil has lodged him firmly down the points. However, in the chase for the manufacturer's championship, Aston Martin only lags 4.5 points behind Ferrari, with Porsche lying a further 16.5 points behind the leader. GTE-Pro is a turbulent world and the racing is incredibly close. Expect to see a bumper-to-bumper battle between the two AF Corse Ferrari 458s, at least one of the Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantages, and the two Porsche 911s... for six grueling hours!

Finally, in the GTE-Am category, Aston Martin Racing continues to dominate with their "Young Driver" program. For the #95 car, it is all about catching up after a devastating Le Mans, both statistically and emotionally, and a retirement at Sao Paulo. However, the #95 has shown stunning speed and surprising endurance at the Circuit of the Americas (2nd place) and Fuji Speedway (win), and hopes are high as rapid Danish driver Nicki Thiim returns to his duties at Aston Martin Racing replacing the late Allan Simonsen. The #96 Aston Martin has proven more consistent over the course of the season, with three podium finishes in the last three races and no finishes outside the top five in class. Therefore, they lead the championship, but the induction of Roald Goethe back onto the team may cost them valuable time as the Goethe's pace, when compared to the pros, is simply not up to par. The #76 IMSA Performance Matmut Porsche has been a lurker all year, with consistent finishes, even a win at Le Mans... and if any of the drivers in the #96 AMR car make a mistake, IMSA Performance Matmut will be there to pick up points. Finally, the South African Jack Gerber is hoping to finally turn things around for the #61 car, which has had a very disappointing season due almost exclusively to Gerber's mistakes. All in all, an exciting, dynamic race will be on our hands in GTE-Am.

HELPFUL LINKS

CIRCUIT WEBSITE

TICKETS

WEEKEND SCHEDULE
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8

Start	End	Race	Session	Duration
08:00	10:00	FIA WEC	FREE PRACTICE 1	120'
10:15	10:45	Boss GP	FREE PRACTICE	30'
10:45	11:15	Media Hot Laps		30'
11:15	11:45	VIP Hot Laps		30'
12:00	14:00	FIA WEC	FREE PRACTICE 2	120'
14:15	14:45	VIP Hot Laps		30'
14:45	15:15	VIP Hot Laps		30'
15:15	15:45	Boss GP	QUALIFYING	30'
16:00	16:25	FIA WEC	QUALIFYING - LMGTE Pro & LMGTE Am	25'
16:35	17:00	FIA WEC	QUALIFYING - LMP1 & LMP2	25'
17:10		FIA WEC	QUALIFIYING PRESS CONFERENCE

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9

Start	End	Race	Session	Duration
08:45	09:15	Boss GP	RACE	30'
09:00	09:30	FIA WEC	AUTOGRAPH SESSION	30'
09:20	09:50	FIA WEC	PIT WALK	30'
09:20	09:50	VIP Hot Laps	AUDI	30'
10:00		FIA WEC	PITS OPEN
10:10		FIA WEC	PITS CLOSED
10:15		FIA WEC	GRID WALK opening	35'
10:40		FIA WEC	GRID WALK gate closing
10:50		FIA WEC	GRID WALK end of the track evacuation
10:56		FIA WEC	GREEN FLAG
11:00	17:00	FIA WEC	RACE
17:15		FIA WEC	PRESS CONFERENCE

ENTRY LIST

EXTENDED WEATHER FORECAST

HOTELS AND ACCOMMODATIONS

TRANSPORTATION
From central Shanghai to the circuit by car
From Shanghai West Railway Station (Shanghai Metro, Line 11)

TRACK MAP

LAP OF SHANGHAI INTL.

ANDY BLACKMORE SPOTTER GUIDES

FRC PREDICTIONS COMPETITION!

COUNTDOWN AND TIME CONVERSION PAGES
FP1
FP2
Qualifying
Race

DRIVER STANDINGS AFTER FUJI
1. (#2) McNish / Kristensen / Duval - 147
2. (#1) Lotterer / Fässler / Tréluyer - 106.5
3. (#8) Davidson / Sarrazin / Buemi - 81.25
4. (#12) Beche - 51.5
5. (#7) Wurz / Lapierre - 49.5
...
1. (#35) Baguette / Plowmann / Gonzalez - 114.5
2. (#49) Companc / Kaffer / Minassian - 103
3. (#24) Pla / Heinemeier-Hansson / Brundle - 96.5
4. (#26) Rusinov / Martin / Conway - 81
5. (#25) Walker / Graves - 44
...
1. (#51) Fisichella / Bruni - 108
2. (#92) Lieb / Lietz - 102
3. (#97) Mücke / Turner - 99.5
4. (#?) Senna - 76
5. (#71) Kobayashi / Vilander - 73
6. (#?) Makowiecki - 72.5
7. (#92) Dumas - 72
8. (#91) Pilet / Bergmeister - 66.5
9. (#91) Bernhard / (#?) Dumbreck - 42
10. (#81) Malucelli - 30
11. (#96) Campbell-Walter / Hall - 28












Bring it on, Shanghai!