European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - March 22, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse Wednesday March 7i, 1989 the stars and stripes. Page 25 racing re urdu up season opens sunday in Brazil the 19b9 Campaign for the world driving championship in formula one grand prix racing. Opens on easier sunday with the brazilian grand prix at Rio de Janeiro. While Only 150,000 or so spectators will be seeing the action at the track More than 207 million people around the world will be following the race on television. Thai s an astonishing figure and it shows just How popular the soon of formula one racing has become through the use of television. The 207-million viewer figure plus other Perti nent figures regarding television coverage of grand prix racing was provided by the Mobil Oil company s German division us Hamburg. Mobil is the major sponsor of the German grand prix at Hock in him and its press office also distributes general information on grand prix racing. According to Mobil s statistics the increase in in Terest is nothing Short of fantastic with the count of television viewers per race some 207.4 million Dur ing 1988, an increase of 129 percent Over inc 90.5 million per race viewers in 1987. The total number Oft viewers for All 16 formula one grand prix races throughout inc 1988 season came to 3.3 billion As compared to a tout of 1.4 billion in 1987, also a gain of 129 percent. One. Might add that s a lot of racing meanwhile the television coverage increases throughout the world Mobil says with 81 countries receiving either live or taped telecasts last year com pared to 52 countries in 1987, a gain of 55.8 percent. Among newcomers to the grand prix television series last year were the soviet Union Poland Czechoslovakia South Korea Taiwan and China. This is All quite healthy for grand prix racing certainly and one can t help but wonder How Many More viewers it would attract if the level of Competition were greater. By that we mean if Mclaren Honda had not won 15 out of 16 races last year. Going into sunday s grand prix of Brazil the question is will Mclaren Honda win it and repeat its domination of last season with the turbos gone most observers think the Mclaren Honda team will not be in the position for a clean sweep and that things will be much closer this season. And that could be. Alain Prost of France who has been driving for the Mclaren team since 1984 and who has won two world titles along the Way thinks Mclaren will win this season but not easily. The Frenchman said recently that the most difficult 1989 will be trying to live up to the legacy of 1988, i Don t think it s possible to win 15 races again Frost said. This season will be much tougher. I really think we can be world champions again but i Don t know How Many races we can so perhaps he normally aspirated engines Wilt make a difference. These engines Are certainly Quick enough and it seems strange that they arc already producing Lap times in testing that Are Aster than the far More powerful Turbo cars of last season. Essentially this is supposedly due in the improved Rev Range of non Turbo cars making them More drive blk. This year there will be less Power but More emphasis of driving skill a Factor which is More than Welcome while Mclaren Honda has proved fastest during Winter testing in Spain the Benetton Ford with ital y s Alessandro Nannini driving was quickest during last week s pre uracil grand prix testing in Rio. There was a lot of wet weather during these sessions however so evaluations proved difficult. But sunday s brazilian up opener should provide some Strong impressions and clues As to How things should go for the year and we can All look Forward to checking things out on television in Germany the race will be shown on the first program Channel 1beginning at 6 . On the sport show. Along with the brazilian grand prix. Sunday s sport show will also feature the motorcycle grand prix opener the grand prix of Japan at Suzuka. This Wilt be a taped version. Last week s Shakedown tests at Rio where Benetton Ford did so Well were marred by a severe Accident involving the French Driver Philippe str Ift. The 33-year-old Frenchman who once drove for the British Tyrrell team was test ing his age Ford when he crashed at 160 Miles an hour. The French acs car spun out of control nipped and bounced Over a guard rail. The Force of the crash Tore off the car s protective Roll bar ripped out the engine Philippe Strain and split the car in half. Some observers said it was the worst Accident they had Ever seen. Str Ift sustained multiple injuries including Bro Ken vertebrae that caused paralysis. He underwent surgery in Rio and was flown Back to France last weekend he now has slight movement in his arms and legs and doctors say he has a Good Chance for full recovery. German Driver Joachim Winkelhoch who was to be the no. 2 Driver on the acs team behind sure it. Now finds himself the no. I Man in his first season of grand prix racing. Oral least he will be until age finds an experienced Driver to replace Struiff. You May have noted that the Nissan Ftp ext sports car won last saturday s 12 hours of Sebring to end porsche s run of 13-straight wins on that rough Florida circuit. But More significantly this was the first Victor for a japanese car in an International endurance race of 12 hours standing and it won t be the last. The Nissan also won the race from pole position led All but 30 minutes of the 12 hours and never missed a beat. Impressive to say the least driving were 1msa Champion Geoff Brabham of Australia the american Chip Robinson and Aric Luyendyk of the Netherlands a International team. " so the japanese Star continues to Rise in the world of Auto racing. Honda has shown its superiority in formula one while powering the Williams and Mclaren teams to world championships with Turbo engines and Honda s next move could be into world championship sports car racing. Others think thai Honda like porsche will soon be Temple to go indy car racing. There s already a Rumor going around that Honda has commissioned the Mclaren and tag techniques d Avant Garde organizations to construct a group c sports car for the purpose of world championship racing " " so Honda unable to Battle with Mercedes in for Mula one racing because Mercedes won t play could enter sports ear racing where Mercedes has staked its reputation in its comeback to International racing. If tills should happen the crowds or racing Are assure Honda is. Mercedes would be a great scenario. Where to go this weekend it s easier weekend so things arc a bit slow in Europe where racing is concerned but there is a program at the Zand Voon circuit in Holland for Louring cars for Mula Fords and formula Renault cars. Practice is saturday with races on easter sunday and monday. The Zand oort circuit which once hosted the dutch grand prix is located just outside the North sea resort City of Zand Voort on the motorcycle front meanwhile there s a German adar wooo kilo Clur motorcycle rally scheduled for saturday at who Hock Nchim circuit. The action goes from 8 . To 6 ., and the 4.2 Milc grand prix count will be used. The City of Hocke Nchim is located a few Miles Southwest of Hei Delberg. To Tan ind so Ripe slowdown draws thumbs Down from Drivers by Mike Harris a Molari ports writer Hampton a. A race Drivers Don t like to be told they have to slow Down so Lascar s latest modification of the unpopular Carburettor re Stricler Rule has plenty of critics. Included among those critics is Darrell Waltrip the Winner of last month s Daylong 500 and one Driver who had been in favor of slowing the cars at Day Lona and Talladega by restrict ing their Carburettor air intakes i Don t like it he said. You can go carried away with these kind of things. Like in � lot of things a Little bit is Good but a Little Uit More Ain t so hot Lascar officials confirmed the expected Rule change Sun Day prior to the Start of Sun Day s Motorc Rafi 500 at Atlanta International raceway the teams were informed. That beginning with he Winston Soo at Talladega Ala on May 7, the cars required to use Carburettor re Stricler plates with smaller openings than the ones that have been in use since july 1987. Bill France or president of Lascar said he new Rule is designed to slow the cars by Aboul 4.Mph, but Drivers Crew chiefs and car owners were Al most unanimous in predictions that the speeds would be at least 7-8 Mph slower at Talladega. That would mean the pole position would be in the 190 191 Range with race speeds in the High 180s on the 2.66-mile, High banked Oval. Speeds above 200 Mph had become commonplace at Talla Dega and Daytona International Speedway through most of the 1980s until Lascar moved 10 slow the cars Down following a nearly disastrous Accident at Talladega in May 1987. Bobby Allison last control at about 210 Mph on the main Straightway flew into the air and look out about 100 Yards of steel fencing protecting the packed main grandstand sever Al spectators suffered juries by Allison was not Hurt. The sanctioning body moved quickly to require the new Wiric Tor Paties slowing the cars Down by about 8 Mph by the time they ran at Daytona that july. The Rule imposed Only for races at the two fastest super speedways on the Lascar Cir Cuit reduce the current one Inch openings in the Carburettor plates in l5-l6ihs of an Rich on 1989 cars and 29-3 2nds of an Inch for 1987 and tag models few of which will be in use after the Chevrolet teams introduce the new Lumina Model next month at Talladega. Reducing the amount of air that mixes with the gasoline flowing through the Carburettor cuts horsepower. Alan Kulwicki who started from the pole position in Sun Day s race said "1 Don t think i like it the new Rule. I did t really like restrict or plates in the first place. The smaller they make it the worse it is. It s All follow the Teader now. You can t pass anybody the Way it is. Everybody $ on the ragged Edge of being too Loose just try ing to keep up. It s not the idea of being limited that bothers me added Kulwicki a graduate Engineer. They Lascar want to slow the cars Down to make them safer. This in t safer. This just makes the Drivers put their spoilers Back and be More bold in their moves. If it was 10 Miles per hour slower and safer i d be All for it Bill Elliott said i be been opposed to the plates since they Ever put them in. The Way i see racing the object of the Dairell Waltrip change Ain t so hot game is to go As fast As you can go. The Way things Are now you gel in same Lough situations out there because you Don t have a lot of
