New dimension in car racing

The Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) introduced the nation to an official form of racing that’s as closely related to the driving you would experience on Shaikh Salman Highway on a Thursday night as anything else you will witness.

Ferraris could be seen ‘tailgating’ the car in front, fervently flashing its lights to instruct the forward driver to move over. Cars racing three of four abreast in areas where only two should exist, occasionally using the run-off areas to execute breathtaking overtaking manoeuvres. Leaving, of course, bits of car flying everywhere!

Needless to say, within the safely controlled confines of the BIC, the racing was sensational.

The World Endurance Championship (WEC) brought us several races all wrapped up in one with five different categories of cars battling it out. 

While some may have been overawed by the difficulty in working out the rankings in each, there was, to me, an intrigue in watching the contrasting levels of performance between each. Even Porsches and Ferraris as finely tuned as these languished at the back of the field.

Clearly the WEC has gone to great lengths to help the thousands of spectators follow the action. Cars carried different coloured number backgrounds to ease identification of the categories while cars also displayed side lights indicating their position-in-class (one light for first place up to three for third). 

As the racers became more familiar into the nigh, it was even possible to distinguish the leading cars at the farthest reaches of the circuit due to the different shaped lights, both front and rear.

The title of the event suggests that this is a marathon rather than a sprint – indeed, with the frequent driver changes it could be argued that it is several marathons at the same race.

However, as with the F1, spectators were treated to excitement from the start, with the in-form Toyota Hybrid driven by Alex Wurz expertly forcing his way past the Audi of two-time Le Mans winner, Marcel Fassler, on the first bend. It was the seventh lap before he took the outright lead.

In a race lasting six hours, differentials between cars are measured in laps rather than seconds. However, with smaller pit crews than F1, driver changes (including the seats) and technology tested to the limit, even a gap of several laps can soon disappear. Both of the leading teams, for example, lost laps when changing defective lights. Others were less lucky – JRM, for example, lost nearly 60 laps.

Several teams suffered from the heat with the Bahrain temperatures taking the word ‘endurance’ to the extreme. One team reported on its website an ambient temperature of 60 Celsius with the track itself recorded at 48.

The crucial engine and brake components did not suffer as expected, although teams did struggle to cool other parts while the car was at rest.

The WEC is a treat for the senses. There is something special about seeing such aerodynamically-evolved cars racing side-by-side around sharp corners with headlights beaming, even in daylight. 

The setting sun provided a stunning back-drop while blinding the drivers as they came down the first hill. 

Once night fell the race entered yet another new dimension with some parts of the track lit with others pitch black, further testing the drivers’ skills. 

Around the grandstands the lights of the cars and spectator TVs reflected off the mirrored surfaces. The silhouette of a spoiler and the side panels lit by approaching headlights are part of the beauty of racing at night. Deep in the desert the strange multi-coloured lights at times appeared eerily similar to scenes from a Martian invasion B-movie!

And then there’s the noise.

Strangely, the fastest cars, lapping within 10 per cent of the fastest F1 car, were impressively quiet, at times passing down the main straight before you knew they were there, the only sound being the tyres working hard and the rush of the wind. The motor-racing purists were more satisfied by the deep-throated roar of the Aston Martin and Ferraris.

Of the various contests, while the Audis claimed top honours overall, the closest contest was in the LMGTE Pro with the two AF Corse Ferraris valiantly overcoming the sole Aston Martin. 

While the Vantage had the greater single lap speed a small technical problem ensured additional time in the pits allowing Giancarlo Fisichella and Toni Vilander to claim top honours for the fifth time in this sixth race of the season, sealing the title in the process with two rounds remaining. The second Ferrari was excluded from the results, penalised for dangerous driving when Beretta collided with the Nissan of Greaves Motorsport.

Elsewhere, the challenge of racing in Bahrain allowed for a first victory of the season for the all-British driver line-up of Strakka Racing who were able to overcome Rebellion for the first time this season, keeping the race for the LMP1 (Privateers) title open until the next race in Japan. 

To cap a fine weekend, due to a tussle with the leading Toyota which was classed as a racing incident by the stewards, Strakka was also able to claim a podium in the overall category, allowing the drivers to mount the podium for two successive victory ceremonies.

Another differential between the WEC and F1 is off-track, where the drivers and pit-crews were far more accessible and willing to chat. 

Throughout the weekend fans could be seen chatting to team members about their cars. Despite clearly struggling from the heat they were happy to give their time.
 
During the autograph session every one of the drivers sat in their racing suits, many without shade, gladly posing for photos and chatting amiably to fans, young and old. 

This is a racing series for the fans and will quickly grow in popularity.

During the course of the weekend the WEC and BIC announced that the endurance race will return to Bahrain next year. 

The later date in November will ensure that the Sakhir Circuit brings the curtain down on the championship.
 
A repeat of this inaugural event will please the thousands who turned up and will leave them dreaming, for another year at least, that it could be them fast approaching Fisichella in a Ferrari, flashing their headlights and ordering him out of their way.