Haha, I think you'll soon see that Mr Horvath is the Kimi Raikkonen of the GPGSL
Now here is the general Q&A with all our lovely team owners... I even make an appearance.
Enjoy.
Team Bosses Q&AHow satisfied are you with your/team’s performance this season. Did you expect more or less from Season 7?Stuart Ingers: Well I have got to be pretty satisfied with AMR's performance this season haven't I? We were even better than last. Ed Greenhalgh scored a magnificent 8 wins last season and I didn't think he would match that to be honest, but he did! He even scored more podiums than in the last campaign. With John Warrington scoring a win and another 6 podiums too, we can consider this a very successful year. I'm fairly satisfied with my own performance in testing, but I'm disappointed I couldn't defend my testing title, Tobias Kederer was just too strong this year. Hats off to him, he did a great job.
Tom Pellatt: I must be honest, I am disappointed with our performance this season. I had high hopes during the off-season testing that we could pull it out of the bag and return to very top of the field. After the first couple of races it became clear that we would be defending our second position in the championship rather than attacking first.
That said I am immensely proud that we managed to pull it back after the first few races. Team Shadow were the guys that really brought the fight to AMR more so than anyone else and so that is something to be proud of. I am extremely lucky to have some great drivers too who are great at interacting throughout the season and contributing to strategy which I feel is important.
Stefan van Renselaar: I'm quite disappointed with how this season has been going to be honest. Season 6 was our best season ever, even if you also include the seasons when we were named Alpha Motorsports and Ed was our boss. In season 6 we got our first win as Alpha Racing Team and our first win since season 3. I was going into season 7 thinking we would be a regular contender for podiums, but we’ve not been able to do that. We were in good positions during races, but we’ve had too many problems when we were in a good position. I think that losing John at the end of season 6 has not helped either, with John a lot of experience moved away to MPR. We promoted Carlos from his test seat to the race seat he is currently in because of that. Carlos has been doing a great job in his rookie season as a racer, but this season has been a struggle nonetheless for his, our car has not been great this season and as a rookie we cannot expect him to take that car and go and win races with it. We have had points finishes in most races though, but only on three occasions we were able to score points with both of our cars, which is just not good enough.
Dan Paddock: In both respects I am very satisfied, as a team boss it is great to see MPR back up in the top 3 where we rightfully belong. In terms of my driving, well three wins over the course of the season is a great way to finish my career.
Mal Stoddart: We started off pretty well, and then we had a break in at the team headquarters and all our cans of Whoop-Ass got stolen. When something like that happens it's really a bit of a setback. Of course we have our suspects, but for now we'll keep Mum on that.
Matteo Scalla: I expected more from this season. Our line-up made us think that we would have gone as well as in Season 6 if not better.
Ricardo van Smirren: I am pretty satisfied with the performance of our team. Both Dean and Ben took as much out of the season as was possible. 5th or 6th was what I’ve aimed for at the start of the season and to end in the top 6 is a pretty good feeling. Now it’s up to our mechanics to work on the car during the winter and get a better base for next season. We need to give the drivers the car they deserve. Dean and Ben are 2 top-drivers without a doubt.
Chris Copeman: I’m over the moon with the way that we have performed this season. It’s still only our second season as a team and we have come so far already. I have had to pinch myself at times, especially when I found myself getting disappointed about only finishing 5th or 6th in some races. I said at the start of the year that I would like the team to win a race this year and although we haven’t done that we should be on track to finish at least 5th in the Constructors’…which I will easily take.
Maikel de Boer: During the start of the season I was quite surprised, we seemed pretty fast and at least midfield! Then at some point we just started dropping back slowly. Still we made huge improvement from Season 6! We took some well-deserved podiums and even a pole position! I hoped for more, but I still believe Season 7 was above my expectations!
Nathan McGregor: As a team owner of a new team I was still realistic that we had a lot of work to do to get on pace with the front runners. At the beginning of the season I told the team that I would be satisfied if we just showed some improvement from the previous season. In fact we had accumulated our first season total of points by round 6. I was also incredibly proud of the way Jack was driving and it is sad to see him go, but I guess that just comes with being a smaller team.
What would be you high point of the season? Similarly, what would be your low point?Stuart Ingers: Oh the high point has got to be winning five grand prix on the trot, in fact, that run also gave us 7 wins from 8 races. Ed retaining the Drivers’ Championship has got to be up there too. Low points are Japan and Canada when we didn't have a driver on the podium! Also, John's six retirements and constantly falling victim of the one stop bug.
Tom Pellatt: The high point of the season I think would have been the win for Ruben at Road America. It marked our comeback from a tough start to the season and gave us the fight to retake second in the championship and prove that Ed could be beaten this season. Followed up by Marko's win the next race, it was a great period. I think the end of the season and when we were getting regular podiums I have felt most proud of all the guys in the team.
Our low point can be pinpointed at Surfer's. That was the point that I realised it was going to be tough to take the fight to Ed as we all know how important the first few races are and we were struggling just to get to the finish of the races without incidents, let alone battle for wins.
Stefan van Renselaar: Our high point would be the Pacific Grand Prix, where we scored our only podium of the season. But that was before our real struggles began. The last three races have been just bad, we manages to score just 5 points in three races with two cars. Germany was just horrible. With Carlos retiring and Rodrigo finishing almost last after a spin we threw away a good chance of scoring points, points we desperately need in our fight for sixth with Minardi.
Dan Paddock: The two wins for the team at Suzuka and Phillip Island coupled with the three pole positions are definitely high points. The lowest point was certainly Austria with the double DNF.
Mal Stoddart: Just getting the cars onto the grid would have to be a high point. The logistics alone are a nightmare. Having to pour some of the drivers into the car out of a bucket because they've been out on the tiles the previous night doesn't help either. The low point would have to be being soundly trounced by Snake Motorsports. Ouch, that hurt, and after we'd done such a sweet deal on a team owner driver swap. Maybe there was a bit of industrial espionage along the way, who knows. Anyway the deal has been resigned for Season 8 and we do have a good relationship with the CEO of Snake Motorsports, after all, he does build our cars for us.
Matteo Scalla: There hasn't really been a high point so far. And the low points have been too many to choose just one. I guess that Gianluigi's exit was pretty hard but generally the whole season has gone wrong for us.
Ricardo van Smirren: High and low-points? Pffff, we had a lot.
Chris Copeman: The high point has to be Japan. Jack drove superbly to get the team’s first podium and with Michael finishing 8th it put us 3rd in the teams championship…on merit! As far as lows go, it has to be Canada, we’d had such a great start to the season and then went to Canada and everything went wrong. It was such the opposite of the previous race in Japan. Mind you; it helped to put everything into perspective and bring back a sense of realism.
Maikel de Boer: The high point, definitely Nick Worseling's pole and 2nd place finish in France! Low point, I am not going to be pointing towards bad result but more to the three drivers I've lost over the season, on a side note big thanks to Dan Mills for lending me drivers! Much appreciated!
Nathan McGregor: The high point of the season for me was at Imola where we managed to bring the cars home in 6th and 7th position. On a track where passing is difficult, we started at towards the back of the pack and using good strategy managed to pull off the team’s best result of its short history.
The low point wasn't really one point in particular but the mere fact that we threw so many points away with costly errors at crucial times or those unwanted mechanical failures.
Who/What would you consider to have been the biggest surprise of Season 7?Stuart Ingers: Marko Aleksander announcing his retirement! I really thought Marko would finally achieve his aim and win the Drivers’ Title this season. He and Team Shadow have been our biggest rivals ever since Aston Martin bought Velox. It's always sad to see a founding member of the GPGSL leave the series. I want to thank him for all the great races he has been involved in and his huge efforts running the series. Thanks matey.
Tom Pellatt: I think MPR's pace at the start of the season was stronger than I had thought it would be. They were fast out of the blocks and certainly improved on their pace from last season.
I don't think that anyone would have predicted Ed's dominance in the second half of the season however so I think that would be my biggest surprise.
Stefan van Renselaar: In my opinion that would be Christel with their move from ninth to fifth in the Constructors’ Championship. A close second would be the silly season that is developing right now, with a massive amount of drivers changing teams or leaving altogether.
Dan Paddock: For me there are two standout surprises. Firstly, the ascendency of Christel, who have leapt up into the midfield pack, and then secondly the sharp decline of Southern Cross Racing who only a few seasons back beat us into 3rd in the Constructors’ Championship.
Mal Stoddart: Not finishing in the top ten, or did we, must check on that!
Matteo Scalla: N/A
Ricardo van Smirren: Maybe not everyone will choose this team but to me the great performance of Christel VXR was quite a surprise. In only their 2nd season they are challenging an old championship winning team. If I’d had a hat I’d take it off on this occasion.
Chris Copeman: I have to be biased and say Gary Spencer. He came from nowhere to blow away the competition in his first five races. He put a Christel at the top of the timesheets for the first time ever, which ironically, given my answer to the last question, was at Canada and has performed solidly since. He’s definitely a future world champion.
Maikel de Boer: I don't really have an answer for this. AMR winning with Ed was no surprise at all and around the field some nice victories have been made by all the teams. Maybe to me it's still our own pole position in Dijon, never would have guessed it in the 6th race of the season!
Nathan McGregor: As I said earlier, Jack really shone in the car this year and was consistently battling for points, sometimes when the car didn't deserve to be anywhere near the points. He showed me that he had the hunger and desire to be the best in this sport and I think he can get there. In a lot of ways he reminds me of a young Fernando Alonso.
What are your hopes for Season 8 and beyond?Stuart Ingers: Dominate!!!!!
Tom Pellatt: Obviously Season 8 is going to be a very different one for Team Shadow. For the first time ever we will be working with a new engine provider in Mercedes. We also lose the contributions of Marko as he retires from the series. The latter will be a tough change, as he's a great guy that helps a lot with all aspects of the team but I know Tobi will do a fantastic job as he moves up to a race seat... Finally!!
In my opinion, we have one of the strongest driver line ups with the experience of Ruben heading the team and Tobi's brilliant speed. Both are drivers from our Driver Development Programme and so they know how we work as a team and it means I have faith in them that they'll give 100%. People should be worried about Team Shadow Mercedes' pace nest season.
Stefan van Renselaar: I hope that we can get back where we were in season 6 next. Carlos has gained a lot of experience during this season, so we should be able to do alright next season. Beyond that I would absolutely love to win a championship, it does not really matter whether that is a Drivers’ or Constructors’ Championship. We will be working very closely with a number of different technical partners during the off-season to bring our car to a new level. A few of these partners will be new to us, but I believe that if we start working with them now, it will be beneficial to us in the future.
Dan Paddock: I’d like for us to seriously challenge TSS and Aston Martin again. However, I think we need to first get Jack comfortable at the team. Once he is settled in then we will see how it goes. I still seriously believe that Charrel has what it takes to be a champion, so I don’t see why he can’t make an attempt on the title next season. On a realistic level though, our main aim is to once again finish in the top 3 in the Constructors’ Championship to cement ourselves back at the top of the field.
Mal Stoddart: Keeping my current drivers would be good, losing Dean Kittleson who was a great talent was a bit of a blow, and having new drivers that are a bit of an unknown makes it hard to get the full potential out of the cars. However I do think we should improve our standing in Season 8. Oh, and better security at headquarters, perhaps we'll rent a dog or something.
Matteo Scalla: For Season 8 I'm focusing on improving my driving abilities and Scuderia Minardi is a team where I think I can reach my goal. I would love to return to racing one day.
Ricardo van Smirren: Our hopes are to improve and end up in the top 4 of the Constructors’ Championship. We need to really up our game in order to not be a midfield-contender forever. Luckily we've managed to keep both drivers for Season 8 and that makes me pretty confident.
Chris Copeman: I would hope that we could continue our outstanding progress. I think we need to build on this year and try to get that first race win. If you look at the teams above us in the championship the one thing that they all have in common is a race win. I think/hope that once we break that duck we will be able to push on to even greater things. I definitely believe that I have the drivers to do it…lord knows they’ve come close enough this season!
Maikel de Boer: So far every season we have been able to improve on our last. In Season 7 we scored our first pole and a number of podium finishes, for Season 8 we would like to finish 7th or higher in the WCC and hope to score our first win in GPGSL!
Nathan McGregor: We have some very good drivers on board for Season 8. The 2 experienced heads of Chris [Hinz] and Adam [Davies] will be a great thing for this team. They are both very experienced drivers in the GPGSL and will go a long way in helping us with the development race during the season.
Our new recruit to the testing seat Gianluigi Silvestre is a very exciting prospect indeed and I can’t wait to let him lose in our new car in Melbourne. As for me, well I'm not getting any younger, but I'm definitely not going anywhere either
Finally, what is your favourite livery of the season?Stuart Ingers: Team Shadow Subaru, always the best looking car on the grid every season.
Tom Pellatt: Tough question! This is the last season where we'll have our traditional blue and yellow colours. It's a paint scheme that has remained with me for so many years now that, I have to say, is my favourite as it means so much to me.
Stefan van Renselaar: I like both the Aston Martin and TNR cars a lot, both designs are nice and clean and don’t have colours in them that don’t seem to belong there. But I do have to say that I also very much like our, the Snake and MPR cars.
Dan Paddock: I actually love our livery. I think Snake Motorsports did an amazing job re-imagining our classic look onto their new chassis. We never did quite look right in red. I probably should have taken note of what happened to Williams when they did the same. Still, there are some other great liveries on the grid. I particularly like the TNR and the SMS. I think it is important to keep an element of continuity with each new livery if you want to develop a team image, and both of these teams have done that. I also really like the MAC Racing livery. I hope we see something similar for the new season.
Mal Stoddart: That would have to be SCR's of course. Then there's that rather odd pink one that usually appears at the start of the season, perhaps we'll get to see it again at the start of Season 8.
Matteo Scalla: Mine of course. Our best livery for our worst season, funny, isn’t it?
Ricardo van Smirren: Well I must say, we had a season with a lot of beautiful cars. I actually liked almost all of them. The Christel is a beauty as is the Team Shadow car. But for me the MPR Lancia, which reminds me of the good old Lancia-Delta, is a stunning car. I hope that Paddock continues to keep his deal with Martini for next season.
Chris Copeman: I really like the AMR for its sheer beauty and simplicity. It’s definitely true that the beautiful cars are usually the fastest. I am also a fan of the Scala livery as well. I think that yellow and blue just work so well together.
Maikel de Boer: Never an easy question this, as all the cars look very good! My top 3 would be MPR, TNR and SMS (Yes I know my own team! Can't help it looks fine!). Well let's make a call here then, I go with the Martini Paddock Racing car! Repainted this season by Snake Motorsports paint division and based on the amazing paintjob that Monil Santilal has created before!
Nathan McGregor: I'm probably a little bias when I say this but I think our livery was the best on the grid this season. Simplicity is always the best way to go when trying to design a dynamic livery. The colour was also a very important part as well. It was the perfect shade of blue because it was eye catching and our fans could always easily tell where we were on the track but it was also to help with the branding of the team as we have factory backing from Ford.
Races: 163 - Wins: 23 - Pole Positions: 24 - Fastest Laps: 22
Season 9: Constructors' Champions