STCC: Unfair advantage for Audi?

[BSTR]

Originally posted by BSTR
If those cars are prepared in Germany they must enter STCC as Super 2000 cars instead of National Super 2000?

Would they be more competitive if prepared according NS2000 technical rules? Or is there actually anymore any real advantage in NS2000 compared to S2000 since sequential gearboxes are nowadays allowed in S2000 also?

As we have now read from Johan's site also there is a discussion about fairness of Audi A4 minimum weight going on in the STCC.

I was wondering a month ago if Audi A4 are allowed to run in STCC as National Super 2000 cars since they are built in Germany... I hope the rules will be changed asap to disallow such a twisting of rules that originally were written to make swedish built (home-made) cars also competitive.

[JMeissner]

Unfair weighs for Audi?
STCC 15/05/03

Tomas Engström is one of the drivers who finds the current weights for Audi unfair. "We are not driving on the same terms. The Audi-cars are 40 kilos lighter than ours," Engström said. The Honda driver is upset that the Audi is 40 kilos lighter because it is build according to national Super 2000 rules. This rule was meant to encourage local drivers to build their own cars and race with. But the three current Audi A4's in the STCC were build by Audi Motorsport in Germany. "One of the worlds biggest factories for Motorsport, I think it is damn wrong that they are to be classed as Swedish build," Engström continued.

"It is the weight that controls the cars and it shows especially when the tyres start to get worn. Then a 40 kilos lighter car is a big advantage. Ekblom would never have won the first race with another 40 kilos. At Falkenberg it means about three tenths per lap." The criticism has been noticed by the STCC and Johnny Haraldsson, technical director of STCC, comments on if things didn't really go as they intended with Audi:

"Something like that. We didn't at least think that they would be build by Audi Motorsport in Germany. KMS (Kristoffersson Motorsport) committed harder than we thought, which we of course think is great," Johnny said. Will the rules change already for Mantorp? "We have coming meetings and it is not impossible. We are looking at this continuously to make sure it is as fair as possible."

Source: Dalademokraten

Johan Meissner
johan@meissner.se

[rustyfan]

Being the first year with the new set of rules, it's bound to be issues - just look at how much hassle there was back and forth in the ETCC last year.

I'm sure STCC will get things sorted out and continue to improve on the quality if the championship (which already beats the ETCC in terms of excitement if you ask me) as the year progresses

[V8moz]

Ooooohhh yes!!!! The good old question about Audi's weight! I feel reminded of late '96 when the A4 quattro dominated all over the world. One year later they got extra weight and "out of competition" and the Audi boys were crying all season long... It's always the same with Audi!

[AdamED]

Yeah i have a severe dislike of audi in racing probabyl becasue i love volvo tho

[kmchow]

Definitely, the new STCC rules do need a bit of fine tuning. Alternatively, if Audi is penalized b/c their cars were built in Germany, I wonder if some BMW team could exploit the rules and build a S2000 BMW from parts sent from BMW Germany? Then, wouldn't they too qualify as being NS2000 too?

[racer69]

Aren't NS2000 and S2000 meant to be the same, except NS2000 cars don't have to be FIA homologated. If so, they should run the same weight.

[kmchow]

Originally posted by racer69
Aren't NS2000 and S2000 meant to be the same, except NS2000 cars don't have to be FIA homologated. If so, they should run the same weight.

While I'm thinking rulewise they should be the same. In reality, perhaps the STCC organizers are recognizing the fact that the locally built cars may not be as powerful engine wise, have the best aero kit or the best chassis design as the genuine S2000 cars. Thus, their lower race weight to make them on par with the S2000 cars.

On a side note, it seems no one has releaesd 1/43 models of the ETCC, BTCC and STCC cars yet. An inquiry to Minichamps
led to a curt reply from them saying they can't tell me whether or not the models will be released (likely due to competitive reasons)

[JMeissner]

Circus Audi & STCC
STCC 28/05/03

It is currently storming about Audi in the STCC. The STCC organisation has recently decided to add 40 kilos to even them to the other cars (look in the news archive for more information). Team boss Tommy Kristoffersson, Audi team boss, was very upset over having lost third place at Mantorp when the organisers counted the laps wrong. A frustration from the Audi driver was obvious when reading his thoughts at the Audi home page:

"Drive to the chequered flash, but only to make sure. If you see any other flags, keep going because they're perhaps only playing with you. Don't accept any awards, they'll perhaps take them back. Don't go to any press conference, the finish list might be a joke..." And during the same time the other drivers and teams are upset with them, one could read this on the STCC site today:

Did the Audi team boss Tommy Kristoffersson fool STCC's press chief, that is what the competitors say... "We might lack top speed on tracks with long straight as Mantorp," Tommy said and the press chief wrote on the STCC site. The competitors reacted directly:

"You are not to be fooled by Audi who tricked the entire Swedish press during five years in Super Touring. Audi's speed on the Mantorp straight hardly anyone could've missed. KMS strategy has always been to convince every one of their low power and bad top speed. D*mn they flew past everything at both Falkenberg and Mantorp!" That was the words of an anonymous STCC driver.

Source: DN & STCC.se

Johan Meissner
johan@meissner.se

[kmchow]

Didn't the last race (Mantorp) end in controversy because the officials miscounted the number of laps? Why aren't the organizers going to reverse the results?

[JMeissner]

They did reverse the results, right after the race, it was because of that Kristoffersson lost his third place and was upset.