Archive for Auto Racing

Why Ford is Better than Ferrari…

It was 1963, Enzo Ferrari was in a mood to sell a large stake in his little car company.  He had his eye on Ford, and made the overture.  Henry Ford II responded, and a deal was struck.

844-DENT 411  / 844-336-8411

GT40 MkI Henry Ford II

Henry Ford II with an Early GT40

Each had their motivations – Ferrari wanted cash for racing, Ford wanted the prestige that would come with Ferrari’s racing success. And, that’s about when the wheels came off the cart – a very fast cart, no longer being pulled by a prancing horse… Unexpectedly, Ferrari had announced that he didn’t care for the final terms offered by Ford – and by some accounts, they were both more than a little bit pissed off about it.  So, Henry II would need to find a different path by which he could establish his company’s sporting credentials – and the racing world would be better for it.

Lola Mk6

The Lola Mk6

Ford contracted with small British sports car builder, Lola, to provide the first chassis – it was, more or less, a Lola MK6.  It would be powered by a Ford V8 and it would be called the GT40 (it was 40 inches tall).

John Wyer GT40

John Wyer GT40

Victories didn’t come easily.  At first, the cars didn’t work so well.  They suffered from poor reliability in the hands of future sports car racing legend, John Wyer (all those Gulf Racing Mirage’s and Porsche’s were also his), and eventually the GT40’s made their way to Carroll Shelby, in Texas – yes, that Carroll Shelby.  And yes.., before we saw anything that looked like a Mustang with Shelby’s name on it.

250LM Chinetti NART

Ferrari 250LM – The Last Ferrari to Win at LeMans

In 1965, Ferrari would win LeMans, for the last time, with the gorgeous 250LM (would it have been a Ferrari / Ford?).  From 1966, the GT40 won 4 consecutive 24 Hours of LeMans (First with Shelby and then with Wyer), beating some of the baddest sports prototypes ever.  And, dare I say it? – embarrassing Ferrari. As all this Ferrari sports car crushing was going on out in the French countryside, Ford would also agree to fund development of the most successful Formula One engine ever – The 3.0 liter, V8, Cosworth DFV.  Lotus, McLaren, Brabham, Williams,Tyrrell and others, all became Ferrari killers with the DFV. As distinctly European as sports car racing and Formula One are, Henry Ford II and Carroll Shelby had managed to put their fingerprints all over both of them – Bravo, America!!! and, if you haven’t heard, Don’t Mess with Texas…

frdconcepts 02detroit

Carroll Shelby and the LeMans Winning GT40 MkIV

 

2014 Formula One Changes Explained

844-DENT 411  / 844-336-8411

All racing is cool, but Formula One is the best.  It is difficult sometimes to explain (even to an avid racing fan / enthusiast) the difference between F1 and any other cars with numbers on them, that seemingly all just drive around in circles.

And, it isn’t simply that F1 is the pinnacle of racing, as a sport – it is also indisputably at the top of automotive technology.

The rules are very restrictive, but a team’s (constructor’s) freedom to interpret those rules and devise solutions is very much wide open.  For example, every team must design and build their own unique chassis.

Here is an explanation by World Champions, Red Bull Racing, of the changes in rules from 2013 to 2014.  To see how the teams adapt, the races are all televised on the NBC (usually Sports) networks.