New Zealand’s most successful race car driver, Craig Baird MNZM, has further extended his victory tally with two wins on the streets of Singapore in the weekend, leap-frogging to the head of the 2010 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (PCCA) series standings.
Driving the SC Global backed Porsche 997 at the SC Global sponsored event, Baird’s results came after a concerted effort by Porsche repair agents and his Kiwi crew provided the 40-year-old with a perfectly handling car for the Formula One support race weekend. The penultimate event on the 2010 calendar, Baird’s two wins moved him from an 18 point deficit to a six point lead in his maiden chase for the Asian title.
“The car was mega – as soon as I got behind the wheel it was ready to go. It’s testament to how hard the Porsche and Triple X boys worked, going over it front-to-back with a fine tooth comb and getting a balanced handling car ready,” said Baird after the Singapore double-victory.
Starting second on the grid in the opening race behind defending champion and previous series leader Christian Menzel (Germany), Baird seized upon a tyre selection gamble. Opting for a dry tyre following a Singapore rainstorm, the hot and humid conditions allowed Baird to claim his first ever victory on the Asian calendar.
In the pre-cursor race to the SC Global Singapore Grand Prix, Baird’s second race of the weekend proved the benefit of starting from pole position in the Asian series: “The staggered off-set of the grid makes it so much easier when you’re at the front. From there it was a start-to-finish run for me. Darryl O’Young challenged for a while, he was passed by Marchy Lee, and then he challenged for a while. I could see he was driving quite aggressively and thought he’d burn his tyres even more trying to have a go getting past. So I stuck to the game plan and it worked.”
With doubts as to how the car would handle after chassis damage at the previous PCCA round that was followed by a transit accident, Baird paid tribute to the work put in to supply a car that handled the same prior to the damage.
“Obviously we’re learning more and more about the car all the time, and the Michelin tyre. We’ve finally figured out the combination that works and works for my driving style. And without the work from everyone involved, the team wouldn’t have been able to deliver me the car we could move forward with rather than re-learn.”
With four weeks until the final event on the 2010 calendar, the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia returns to China next month for two race rounds at the Shanghai International Circuit on October 22-24.
2010 Porsche Carrera Cup Asia championship points (after round 8 of 10) – top four
1, Craig Baird, NZL, 121
2, Christian Menzel, GER, 115
3, Mok Weng Sun, SIN, 96
4, Marchy Lee, HKG, 61
PCCA round 7 results - top ten
1, Craig BAIRD (NZL), SC Global Racing (SIN), 29:12.272
2, Darryl O’YOUNG (HKG), LKM Racing (HKG), +0.347
3, Marchy LEE (HKG), Red Bull Racing (HKG), +14.758
4, Rodolfo AVILA (MAC), Team Jebsen (HKG), +29.288
5, MOK Weng Sun (SIN), Team PCS Racing (SIN), +46.602
6, Ringo CHONG (SIN), Team Kangshun (CHN), +46.983
7, Philip MA (HKG), Jacob & Co Racing (HKG), +1:31.427
8, Jean Marc MERLIN (FRA), Team J2M Racing (FRA), +1:38.769
9, Wayne SHEN (HKG), Modena Motorsports (HKG), +1.46.963
10, Jeffrey LEE (TPE), Team Pauian Archiland (TPE), +1:48.150
PCCA round 8 results - top ten
1, Craig BAIRD (NZL),SC Global Racing (SIN), 28:49.024
2, Marchy LEE (HKG),Red Bull Racing (HKG), +2.251
3, Darryl O’YOUNG (HKG),LKM Racing (HKG), +3.114
4, Christian MENZEL (GER), Team StarChase (CHN), +11.078
5, Rodolfo AVILA (MAC), Team Jebsen (HKG), +21.138
6, MOK Weng Sun (SIN), Team PCS Racing (SIN), +53.741
7, Ringo CHONG (SIN), Team Kangshun (CHN), +56.339
8, Jeffrey LEE (TPE), Team Pauian Archiland (TPE), +58.901
9, Francis TJIA (HKG), OpenRoad Racing (HKG), +60.456
10, Philip MA (HKG), Jacob & Co Racing (HKG), +61.854
Monday, September 27, 2010
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Baird in a race against time
Leading New Zealand race driver Craig Baird returns to Singapore unsure how the VnC Cocktails - SC Global Porsche 911 will perform at this weekend's Formula One SingTel Grand Prix following transit damage to the championship contender's car.
There to contest the penultimate round of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia(PCCA) on the street course used during the night Formula One race, Baird says his championship aspirations rest largely with his Triple X team being able to get the car ready for action.
His car initially suffered significant chassis damage in the first race of the previous round held at Zhuhai (China), in June. Sent to a Porsche repair centre in China, it was returned to factory condition ready for the journey to Singapore. En-route to Beijing, ahead of its sea journey, Baird’s containered car sustained further and fresh damage during a truck accident that resulted in fatal injuries for its driver. Damage assessments are inconclusive, with the shipping of the car a first priority.
Circumstances now require Baird and his Triple X Motorsport team to alter their travel arrangements and head to Singapore earlier than initially allowed. Aside from cosmetic damage, the team need to assess the car’s race condition by measuring its datum points for alignment.
“We need to get it as close as possible if we're to use any of the data gained so far this season,” said Baird of his situation. “Otherwise we're starting from scratch; it's just so unknown at this stage, we're relying on so many others outside the team's control.”
Currently second in the 2010 PCCA championship standings with two events left to contest, the 40-year-old Kiwi currently trails the defending title holder Christian Menzel from Germany by 18 points.
Against a stellar line-up this weekend that includes former champion, Darryl O'Young from Hong Kong, Marchy Lee and Rodolfo Avila are also rated as some of the better racers in the Asia-Pacific region. Although Baird does have the benefit of past form: it's the only event on the six scheduled for 2010 the ex-pat Kiwi has contested before.
Finishing second overall in 2009 to Menzel on the Singapore streets, Baird says the night atmosphere is a great one for drivers.
“The atmosphere surrounding the event is a good distraction for young bucks; cool hands are rewarded. So it's the best opportunity of the year to put the VnC Cocktails - SC Global car at the front given the result from last year, if the dice rolls our way.”
Following the scratching of the Korean round scheduled for August, Singapore now becomes the fifth event Baird and his New Zealand team contest for their inaugural 2010 Asian title chase.
With only one 30-minute practice late on Friday around the 5.073 kilometre circuit set in Marina Bay, Baird head's in to qualifying at 3.30pm on Saturday with the first 12-lap race run just 90 minutes later. The second and final race of the weekend is just prior to the start of Sunday's Formula One night Grand Prix.
There to contest the penultimate round of the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia(PCCA) on the street course used during the night Formula One race, Baird says his championship aspirations rest largely with his Triple X team being able to get the car ready for action.
His car initially suffered significant chassis damage in the first race of the previous round held at Zhuhai (China), in June. Sent to a Porsche repair centre in China, it was returned to factory condition ready for the journey to Singapore. En-route to Beijing, ahead of its sea journey, Baird’s containered car sustained further and fresh damage during a truck accident that resulted in fatal injuries for its driver. Damage assessments are inconclusive, with the shipping of the car a first priority.
Circumstances now require Baird and his Triple X Motorsport team to alter their travel arrangements and head to Singapore earlier than initially allowed. Aside from cosmetic damage, the team need to assess the car’s race condition by measuring its datum points for alignment.
“We need to get it as close as possible if we're to use any of the data gained so far this season,” said Baird of his situation. “Otherwise we're starting from scratch; it's just so unknown at this stage, we're relying on so many others outside the team's control.”
Currently second in the 2010 PCCA championship standings with two events left to contest, the 40-year-old Kiwi currently trails the defending title holder Christian Menzel from Germany by 18 points.
Against a stellar line-up this weekend that includes former champion, Darryl O'Young from Hong Kong, Marchy Lee and Rodolfo Avila are also rated as some of the better racers in the Asia-Pacific region. Although Baird does have the benefit of past form: it's the only event on the six scheduled for 2010 the ex-pat Kiwi has contested before.
Finishing second overall in 2009 to Menzel on the Singapore streets, Baird says the night atmosphere is a great one for drivers.
“The atmosphere surrounding the event is a good distraction for young bucks; cool hands are rewarded. So it's the best opportunity of the year to put the VnC Cocktails - SC Global car at the front given the result from last year, if the dice rolls our way.”
Following the scratching of the Korean round scheduled for August, Singapore now becomes the fifth event Baird and his New Zealand team contest for their inaugural 2010 Asian title chase.
With only one 30-minute practice late on Friday around the 5.073 kilometre circuit set in Marina Bay, Baird head's in to qualifying at 3.30pm on Saturday with the first 12-lap race run just 90 minutes later. The second and final race of the weekend is just prior to the start of Sunday's Formula One night Grand Prix.
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