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MINI Challenge

Points amendment for MINI Challenge

MINI Challenge

MINI Challenge organisers have issued a press release with a revised points table following a post-event decision from CAMS. The third race of the Round 3 meet at Queensland Raceway was red flagged short of full race distance due to Sarah Harley’s accident.

CAMS officials have contravened the Stewards’ original decision now stating that the race leader did not complete 75% of the full race distance. Therefore only half points can be awarded. Chris Alajajian and Paul Stokell remain in the first two places on the points table, but Sean Carter replaces Peter McNiven in third.

The statement from MINI, along with a revised championship ladder, is available after the break. MINI Challenge action resumes at the Townsville 400, 9–11 July.

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MINI Challenge

Team Australia set sights on Spain’s MINI Challenge

MINI Challenge - Team Australia

The MINI Challenge has many great aspects about it. One is the fact you can buy a MINI John Cooper Works from your local MINI dealer that is pretty damn close in performance to the track-only racecars. Another is that the series is run in a number of countries. This aspect provides opportunities for cross pollination of competitors.

In addition to the Australian championship there are MINI Challenge competitions currently held in Germany, Spain, UK, Brazil and Saudi Arabia. And it is MINI Challenge Spain we focus on here. Next month at the Jarama circuit near Madrid Paul Stokell and Chris Alajajian will combine forces to form MINI Challenge Team Australia.

Paul and Chris, normally direct competitors, earned the right to represent Australia due to finishing first and second in the 2009 Australian MINI Challenge championship.

The guys leave for Spain at the end of this month and will prepare for a three race program starting on 5 June. At the wheel of their specially designed Team Australia MINI each driver will compete in a 20 lap sprint race on the first day of racing. On day two they will share duties in a 50 lap enduro.

Chris Brown, Marketing Manager MINI Australia says there is more to come as well, “These money-can’t-buy opportunities to race overseas are key benefits of being involved in an international category like MINI Challenge. This is only the beginning of a broader international outlook for MINI Challenge.”

Alajajian is excited to be working with Stokell, “Normally Paul and I are the greatest of rivals so it will be different working as a team but I think this will give us an opportunity to learn from each other, driving the same car for the same team.”

“The main objective is to be consistent and show pace and I think if we both have that same objective we can offer a great package for MINI Challenge Team Australia. I really like the style of this ‘teams’ racing format, it makes me even hungrier to get out there and post some top results,” Alajajian said.

Both Alajajian and Stokell are in good form leading the 2010 championship table and here’s hoping the lads can put in a good effort for Team Australia in Spain. In exchange it is hoped a Spanish team will take place in the final round of the Australian MINI Challenge at Homebush in December.

The full press release from MINI can be viewed after the break. Also available is a YouTube video of a 2009 MINI Challenge racecar competing in the recent CER Jarama event.

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MINI Challenge

2010 MINI Challenge – Round 3, Queensland Raceway

2010 MINI Challenge - Australia

At the end of an action packed Round 3 Chris Alajajian still leads the 2010 Australian MINI Challenge. But he didn’t have it all his own way. A qualifying infringement cost Alajajian points and sent him to the back of the grid for Race 1.

Alajajian made good progress in the opening race to finish in sixth place. Defending MINI Challenge champion Paul Stokell crossed the line first, but it was that spectacular accident from Kain Magro that grabbed the headlines and made news clips around the world. Magro’s car rolled seven times, leaping into the crowd on its journey. Amazingly just two spectators suffered minor injuries. Magro also walked away from the crash unscathed.

The second race returned to normal on track action and was won by a fast charging Alajajian. Race 3 was red flagged following Sarah Harvey’s rollover. It happened on the same corner as Magro’s crash the previous day. Despite heavy contact with the tyre wall, Harvey suffered no serious injury. These MINI Challenge racecars are tough little buggers it would seem.

Races 3 and 4 were both won by Alajajian, with Warren Luff and Stokell sharing the podium. In fact, Luff and Stokell finished in the top three placings for all four races over the weekend. Even though Luff didn’t win a race, his consistency and Alajajian’s lost qualifying points ensured Luff claimed the round win. Stokell finished the round in second place and in the process moved up the points table from fifth to second, cutting Alajajian’s overall series lead by four points.

Television highlights, driver quotes and the current championship table can all be seen after the jump.

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MINI Challenge

Another MINI Challenge crash at Ipswich 300

Sarah Harley's MINI Challenge racecar crashes into the tyre barrier

The MINI Challenge series has seen another spectacular crash at the Ipswich 300 event held at Queensland Raceway today. Sarah Harley’s car reportedly had a sticking throttle, forcing her car to understeer off the track and into the tyre wall. The impact happened at high speed and she was lucky to walk away with no serious injury.

After the incident Harley was taken to hospital for observation but was soon released. On her return to the track she said, “That was a really big hit this morning and it is a testament to the MINI and its strength that I walked away with just a bit of whiplash. It was scary heading into the tyre wall so fast I kind of tensed up and braced myself. It was a hard impact but all the safety features on the car did their job and officials worked really quickly to help me out of the car and secure the situation.”

News footage of today’s incident from Channel Seven can be seen after the break. The clip also includes a brief interview with Kain Magro, the driver involved in yesterday’s dramatic incident.

In on-track news the round was won by Warren Luff, who was making his MINI Challenge debut. Defending champion Paul Stokell ended the round in second place, while current series leader Chris Alajajian came home in third. A highlights package of this round will air nationally next weekend on the Seven Network (check you local guides for details).

Photos of the two crashes can be seen at the Catch Fence Photos forum.

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MINI Challenge

Two spectators injured after MINI Challenge crash

MINI Challenge crash @ Ipswich 300

An incident in the first race of this weekend’s MINI Challenge round at Queensland Raceway has resulted in injury for two race goers.

A statement from MINI Challenge organisers reads, “Two spectators were injured and transported to Ipswich Base Hospital. The extent of their injuries appears to be relatively minor, pending full medical evaluation. Both were conscious whilst being treated at the scene. There were no other reported injuries.”

The accident happened after a car was involved in an accident and flipped into the air, cartwheeling over a safety barrier. According to the official statement the driver was taken to Ipswich Base Hospital by ambulance for precautionary tests and is believed to be uninjured. FoxSports have reported the driver involved was Kain Magro.

More details as they come to hand. The full statement from MINI Challenge is available below.

[Pics: 7 News]

UPDATE #1: A Channel Ten news segment reporting on this incident can now be seen below. It is worth noting that the Channel Ten report stating the driver was injured is incorrect. Thanks to smarm providing a separate link to crash footage.

UPDATE #2: News footage from host broadcaster Channel Seven is also available below.

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MINI Challenge

2010 MINI Challenge – Round 3 Preview

Chris Alajajian, current series leader, 2010 MINI Challenge

This weekend’s MINI Challenge round at Queensland Raceway includes a few firsts for the series. The most obvious is the debut of the John Cooper Works MINI Challenge racecars on the Ipswich circuit. In addition the usual three race program will be replaced with a four race card, including two races on Saturday and two races on Sunday.

MINI Challenge Category Manager Ted Toleman is looking forward to the weekend, “It is great to see a four-race format for the first time in our series. We have seen some incredibly close racing over the last two events and now the fans in Queensland will be treated to even more of this exciting racing. We have competitors as young as 16-years-old in the series and for the young guys there is nothing better than experience and track-time to help them progress positively through their careers.”

Another first this weekend will be the appearance of Sarah Harley, who will be the first female to race in the MINI Challenge for 2010. She will be joined by a number of V8 Supercar drivers, including Warren Luff, Luke Youlden and Dean Canto.

Steven Bradbury returns to the MINI Challenge grid at the wheel of the Pizza Capers Ãœber-star car and he hopes this experience will allow him to further his motorsport ambitions, “I love driving race cars and I’m counting down the days until I hit the track at QR. The experience I gained last year in the MINI, and having driven at QR before, will hopefully enable me to be quite competitive. I have longer term aspirations in motorsport and driving the UberStar Car is an opportunity that might help me realise those aspirations.”

With 16 cars to line up this weekend the action is sure to be fast paced and full of thrills. Can Chris Alajajian continue his early season speed, or will defending champion Paul Stokell start a charge up the points table?

A few press releases from MINI can be found after the jump and if you can’t get to Queensland Raceway this weekend make sure you book some time on the couch the following weekend for the Channel 7 highlights package scheduled for 8 May.

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MINI Challenge

2010 MINI Challenge – Round 2, Melbourne

MINI Challenge, Melbourne

This MINI Challenge wrap of Round 2, held during the Australian Grand Prix weekend at Albert Park, has been a little delayed because I was waiting for the television highlights. However, due to a few reasons it looks like the highlights package won’t be going to air, which is a great shame for the series.

On to the racing, then, and Chris Alajajian was able to build on his Round 1 success by placing on the podium in all three races. He has now established a 46 point lead over Sean Carter and Peter McNiven, both on 218 points.

Alajajian was happy to claim a win in the final race and is enjoying the racing so far in 2010, “We finished all three races on the podium this weekend and it was great to be able to end the weekend with a race and round win.

“Two round wins in a row is really making things look good for my championship hopes, he said. “There was some really close racing once again and I can’t wait to see what round three will bring.”

Round 3 of the Australian MINI Challenge takes place this coming weekend at Queensland Raceway (television highlights are scheduled for broadcast on 8 May).

More images from Melbourne and the series table can be see after the jump.

[Pics: Spherix]

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MINI Challenge

2010 MINI Challenge – Round 1, Adelaide

MINI Challenge, Rd1, Adelaide

The Australian MINI Challenge has been underway since mid-March, and the 2010 version is showing mixed signs. On the plus side the series has two title sponsors in Hertz and Pizza Capers. On the down side there are only six confirmed races, with the Gold Coast SuperGP only pencilled in at this stage. As yet there are no confirmed slots for live television coverage either.

Round 1 action was part of the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide and a highlights package went to air nationally yesterday afternoon. Paul Stokell is back to defend his 2009 title and Chris Alajajian looks to be his main threat in 2010.

You may recall the series got of to a spectacular start during Friday practice when emerging racer Chris Wootton made a MINI Challenge debut he would rather forget. I’m sure things will only improve for Chris throughout the rest of the year.

Over the rest of the weekend the racing in Adelaide was some of the best seen yet in the MINI Challenge. Although, there was a lot of contact between the cars and a lot of damage suffered as a consequence. As exciting as that is to watch from the comfort of one’s lounge room it must make for extreme discomfort in the hip pockets of the drivers and team managers.

Chris Alajajian managed to fight his way to top spot on the podium in Round 1 to get his 2010 campaign off to a great start. You can see video and pictures of the action after the break. Once you’ve watched the footage see if you agree with me in thinking the MINI Challenge organisers may not be so quick to invite Robbie Maddison back for a third appearance in the Uber-star car.

[Pics: Spherix]

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Audi MINI Challenge Motorsports

Short circuit

Clipsal500 - Chris Wootton rolls his MINI

The Clipsal 500 is currently underway in Adelaide. It’s one of the country’s biggest race meets and as well as the V8 Supercars there is a host of support categories. Series like the MINI Challenge and the Australian GT Championship are two of the higher profile categories.

As we know, motorsport is often filled with a lot of ups and downs. For Chris Wootton (pictured above), he got a bit of both when he blew a fuse and rolled his MINI at the chicane just after the start–finish line. He wasn’t the only one to short circuit at that corner, though. Sadly, Mark Eddy in his newly delivered Audi R8 LMS and Tony Quinn, in his Mosler MT900 GT3, also tasted concrete.

You can see all these incidents, and more, in the clip after the break. Fortunately none of the drivers were hurt in any of the accidents. There’s some beautiful machinery that’s been damaged and best wishes to the crews and team owners for a speedy return to competition.

[via V8TVNews | Thanks to Avril for the tip]

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MINI MINI Challenge

MINI John Cooper Works Challenge Edition

MINI JCW Challenge Edition

MINI Australia brings us news that followers of the brand will have already known for a few months now. That is, the exclusive availablilty in Australia of a MINI John Cooper Works Challenge Edition. Essentially the Challenge Edition is a bunch of goodies cobbled together for a bargain basement price. Kind of like a chilli pack on steroids. How does an extra seven grand of kit for $2500 sound? Not too bad, hey.

Only thing is those closely following MINI Australia’s movements would have thought availability of the Challenge Edition had expired which is what their website said prior to Christmas and is still saying today—”only until 31 December 2009″ (see screen grab below).

But with a press statement being launched in time for Australia Day I guess buyers can once again consider taking advantage of this offer. So what does the Challenge Edition consist of?

You start with one ripping MINI John Cooper Works model (hardtop, cabrio or Clubman), which is fitted with the same 155kW engine found in the MINI Challenge racecars. Then, for your extra $2500, you get the full JCW body kit, including the John Cooper Works Carbon spoiler. Also thrown in is a JCW Aluminium cross brace, JCW Alcantara and Carbon steering wheel, JCW Carbon gearshift knob with Alcantara shroud, JCW Carbon handbrake lever with Alcantara surround and unique Challenge Edition badging.

MINI say this offer is only available for a limited time, so if you’re keen, you best get on down to your local MINI Garage to see just how serious they are about limiting this special deal.

Full release and extra images available after the jump.

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MINI Challenge

MINI CHALLENGE 2009 – Round 8 TV highlights

The 2009 MINI Challenge season wrapped up just before Christmas at the Sydney 400. This was a new street circuit for the series, held in Homebush at Sydney Olympic Park.Coming in to the round Paul Stokell held a reasonable safe series lead and just needed to collect a meagre 24 points from the three races to secure his first MINI Challenge title.

The first clip above features the action from the first two races, while the clip after the jump wraps up the season with highlights from the final race of the year. More action from Race 1 can be seen be seen on this earlier AUSmotive post.

Despite a wheel literally falling off in the first race Paul Stokell was able to secure the points he needed in Race 2 and in doing so collected the 2009 Championship for himself and DecoRug racing. Stokell finished the year on 966 points, 48 ahead of series debutant Chris Alajajian on 918. Rounding out the top three for the year was Scott Bargwanna on 873 points.

In 2010 it looks like we might be seeing more of former touring car ace Glenn Seton, who took out the round win here at Homebush. He will make a great addition to the field and add some further depth to the series.

You can check a preliminary calendar for the 2010 season at the MINI Challenge website. For now, though, we’re set for Round 1 of the new season to take place at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide, 11-14 March.

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MINI Challenge

MINI CHALLENGE 2009 – Round 8, Race 1

The final round of the 2009 MINI Challenge saw the series arrive at a new street circuit in Sydney’s Olympic precinct. On paper, the track layout look quite bland, but in reality there’s plenty there to keep the drivers on their toes.

This was something series leader Paul Stokell certainly discovered in the first race. Needing just 24 points this weekend to wrap up the 2009 title Stokell made it hard for himself registering a DNF in Race 1.

Former Australian Touring Car Champion Glenn Seton returned to the MINI Challenge at Homebush and showed the field a clean pair of heels in Race 1. Chris Alajajian finished second, while Scott Bargwanna rounded out the top three.

Racing in the Uber-Star Car this weekend was current Le Mans champion David Brabham. Showing his adaptability, Brabham brought his MINI home in fourth place in the first race.

Race 2 was won by Chris Alajajian, with Scott Bargwanna and Nathan Caratti not far behind. Rounding out a great weekend, Glenn Seton won again in Race 3, with the consistent duo of Bargwanna and Alajajian finding their way to the podium again.

While Stokell didn’t have a great weekend, he did bag the points he needed. Scoring 54 points in all, that was enough to ecure the 2009 MINI Challenge title. Congratulations to Paul and the DecoRug team. Meanwhile, Glenn Seton and Chris Alajajian finished the round tied on 162 points, but Seton got the overall victory on account of his two races win. A mere six points behind was Scott Bargwanna in third.

You can see the second part of Race 1 after the jump, along with a brief interview featuring David Brabham. Highlights of this round will be on Channel 7 nationally on Saturday 19 December, check your local guides for details.

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