News October 2008

Following a roller-coaster weekend of poles and penalties, the drama for Gigawave MotorSport’s Aston Martin DBR9 continued through to the very last corner of this weekend’s race at Zolder.

Having qualified in pole position for this, the 9th round of the 2008 FIA GT Championship, the FIA stewards later deemed the qualifying lap to have taken place under a yellow flag. The team was given a 10-place grid penalty. It was an agonising 6-hour wait for the final decision, and the decision was less than pleasing for the British team – but spirits remained high.

Starting the race from way back in 11th position, it was decided that the drivers, Allan Simonsen and Philipp Peter, had nothing to lose by racing as hard as they could.

Within two laps, Simonsen had started to chip away at the lost places, gaining four places with a pace that was matched only by the Jet Alliance DBR9 (in 1st place at that stage).

With two text-book pit stops and a faultless strategy, the Gigawave car continued to take places back from its competitors, peaking in 2nd place, before its final stop for a splash of fuel to finish the race.

The last 10 minutes of the race gave the crowd a battle that is rarely seen in modern motorsport, with the Gigawave Aston hounding down the Aston of Wendlinger. It was an epic battle between Simonsen and Wendlinger, with the cars side by side, a battle that was clean, safe and fantastic to watch. However, by the chequered flag, the Gigawave car simply could not find the space to pass.

The final result was a satisfying 4th place for the team, whose first anniversary is marked this weekend.

Philipp Peter comments, "Today we showed we have the pace to win races. Without the penalty given to us, rightly or wrongly, we would have started first and finished first. I had a lot of fun, as the car really is so good; we had a great team, great pit stops, a great strategy."

Peter’s teammate Allan Simonsen added, "I am very, very happy with the car’s performance today and with our tactics. It’s hard starting from 11th and, because of being in the pack, we sustained some damage to the rear diffuser which affected the car but it was a great fight. The team is just getting better and better."

It is with huge disappointment that the Gigawave MotorSport have had to accept a 10-place grid penalty for today’s 9th Round race of the FIA GT Championship in Zolder, Belgium.

The penalty was given by the FIA Stewards who deemed that the pole-winning lap from Allan Simonsen was set under yellow flag conditions which plagued much of the qualifying session.

The Gigawave MotorSport DBR9 Aston Martin will now start in 9th place on the grid and was not the only car to receive these penalties.

The team is obviously disappointed but will continue to race.

The Gigawave MotorSport Cycling team competed in the Run for the Earth charity cycling race at Zolder during the 9th Round of the FIA GT Championship.

The five team members, Allan Simonsen, Philipp Peter, Stuart Hall, Sidney Piaget and Barney Stinton braved the cold temperatures and failing light conditions to finish in a valiant third place ahead of a field of over 100 competitors. All of the FIA GT Teams competed, fielding their drivers, team principals, Data Technicians and there was even a reported sighting of 70’s pop sensation Rod Steward who appeared to be a special guest of the Scuderia Ecosse team.

Gigawave MotorSport Cycling team member Stuart Hall commented; "This was a big race for us and it really all came down to the strategy, rider change overs and the tweaks our engineers made to the bike. We used a new floor and aero package which really helped us in the higher speed corners."

Round 9 of the FIA GT Championship sees the Gigawave MotorSport team take the short hop across the Channel to Zolder, in Belgium.

The Gigawave Aston DBR9 will race on the historic circuit for the second time, marking the anniversary of its maiden outing with the team at the very end of last year. Hopes are much higher this time, however, as all the team’s expectations for the 2008 season have been exceeded.

Gigawave MotorSport racing driver Allan Simonsen comments, “I have never been this hungry for a win and I believe that we are close. We have real momentum in terms of pace and confidence. The Championship is really hotting up and we have so much to play for.”

Simonsen’s team-mate, Philipp Peter, explains, “Zolder is quite a challenge in terms of the car’s set-up. There are a number of slow chicanes but also some faster corners and one or two overtaking opportunities, so the way we engineer the car will be a compromise, in order to get the best out of it for this circuit. Tyre choice will be vital if the weather behaves as badly as usual but, whatever issues we face, our goal is clear: recover from the last few races and fight for the top step.”

Gigawave MotorSport’s race can be viewed from on board their Aston Martin DBR9, live at www.gt1live.tv

The Gigawave MotorSport DBR9 finished the 8th Round of the FIA GT Series in a solid 4th place at the French circuit of Nogaro.

Having qualified in 4th and getting a clean start, one could assume that the race was dull for the British team, however nothing could be further from the truth. Following a technical hitch in the first pit stop, a vital 6 seconds was lost, losing the team a promising 3rd place.

Dropping down to 8th following the stop, drivers Philipp Peter and Allan Simonsen were charged with fighting their way back towards the front before the 2 hour race came to a close.

The second pit stop was perfectly executed by the team and drivers. Strong and consistent lap times followed, enabling the highest finishing Aston Martin to climb back up to 4th place.

5 important points earned, moving Gigawave MotorSport up a place in the Championship standings.

Gigawave Ltd’s Director of Race Technologies, Nigel Stepney commented; “This was a race we could have won so there is an element of disappointment. We had a great strategy and the drivers followed it and managed their race in order to manage their tyres. Allan caught the front pack before their first stops because our tyres had been looked after. The technical issue at our first stop really let the strategy down but the rest of the race went like clockwork, jumping two other cars in the second stop thanks to the team doing and excellent job today, everyone works so incredibly hard in preparation for these races, we feel we deserve a win in our debut season”.

The Gigawave MotorSport DBR9 was placed on the second row of the grid for Sunday’s 8th Round of the FIA GT Championship in Nogaro, France.

Driver Allan Simonsen achieved a fantastic 4th place, the highest qualifying position so far this season for the team in a tense 11 minute qualifying session, leaving the car sitting on the clean side of the start grid for tomorrows’ race.

Allan commented; “After we were 1st in this mornings practice session, I did have higher expectations from this qualifying session, I felt front row was certainly achievable. I had three clear laps and the car felt good but we were just missing that last per cent. - But this shows we are getting better and better, I just pray we get a clean start tomorrow so we can get out there and race following the first corner incident in Brno”.

Gigawave MotorSport’s race can be viewed from on board their Aston Martin DBR9, live at www.gt1live.tv

Now settled into its new, 18,000sqft facility in the heart of Essex, Gigawave MotorSport has drawn a line under the disappointment of the team’s premature race withdrawal from the Brno round of the 2008 FIA GT Championship.

The damage sustained by its Aston Martin DBR9 race car in the first-corner impact at Brno, in the Czech Republic, did cause the Gigawave MotorSport team some very late nights in the run-up to the next, and 8th, round of the Championship. However, the DBR9 is fully restored and will be fighting for points and trophies in Nogaro, France.

The Nogaro circuit, situated at the foot of the Pyrenees, is a known factor to this young team, still in its first year of competition. The Gigawave DBR9 performed well at the pre-season test in what should be similar weather conditions to the race, due to take place this coming Sunday, 5th October.

This round will be the first in which the car was prepared in its new state-of-the-art home near Earls Colne in Essex. The building also houses the two race trucks, as well as the support vehicles. A move to such a large building was born from necessity, in order to allow Gigawave MotorSport to move in new – and expanding – directions over the next three years.

Gigawave MotorSport’s race can be viewed from on board their Aston Martin DBR9, live at www.gt1live.tv