So petrolheads, how are your weekend plans looking? Notice a chunky racing car-sized gap slap bang in the middle? We’re not sure an endless shoe shopping spree or a certain rugby tournament will fit, but your date with the sofa and the High Speed Television Channel is guaranteed to slip in perfectly!
How about a trip to Florida to kick things off? Sounds good doesn’t it? Great weather, stunning beaches, oh, and a legendary racetrack nestled in a sod-off 101,000-capacity arena. The Daytona International Speedway is our natural port of call in such situations, especially when we have all the best bits from the venue’s flagship 2016 event – the Daytona 24 Hours – to show you. Now, Americans undoubtedly like racing really fast in circles, but they also know a thing or two about putting on a spectacular sportscar shootout. All it takes is 54 snarling racers, four categories and one challenging string of asphalt to create a show that’s revered the world over.
You wouldn’t think it’s possible to be more chilled than in a cool place like Florida. Well, our ice road racing friends from the Andros Trophy would probably disagree, and we can prove it with a replay of the penultimate round from Clermont/Super Besse. Hanging on for dear life is perfectly normal procedure for most of us when driving on slushy wintery mush, but not for these guys and girls. We dare you to watch the nutters who do this stuff for fun without wincing.
Hot on the heels of a great first round in Ruapuna, we also have some cracking highlights of the 2016 Toyota Racing Series New Zealand's second outing at Teretonga Park. What you’ve got here are the bare necessities of entertaining motorsport: young talent, identical machinery and plenty of bold manoeuvres. Judging by the amount of raw, unbridled racing that concoction provides, what more’s there to add?
Did you know that Volkswagen’s little FIA World Rally Championship Polo R monster is the most successful WRC car in history, having won 87.5% of the rallies its entered? Before we get the chance to pick our jaws up from the floor, Rally Sweden will be upon us, so we’re putting on highlights from last year’s event to get you in the mood. Despite a three-second time deficit to the lead in the closing stages, Sebastien Ogier put in a mighty performance to secure a dramatic win and set his championship bid firmly in stone. Fast forward 12 months and the imperious Frenchman will need two eyes firmly on Citroen’s rapid Kris Meeke to keep another Monte-Carlo-style spat for the lead at bay, so get psyched!We also have a full replay of Le Touquet Enduropale in case you missed it last week, as well as some bonkers agricultural drag racing in the form of the Tractor Pulling Euro Cup.
Saturday 6th February06:25 – Le Touquet Enduropale replay14:15 – Tractor Pulling Euro Cup16:20 – Andros Trophy replay, Rd 6, Clermont/Super Besse18:55 – Toyota Racing Series New Zealand, Rd 2, Teretonga Park20:00 – IMSA SportsCar Championship highlights, Rd 1, Rolex 24 at DaytonaSunday 7th February14:15 – FIA World Rally Championship retro 2015, Rd 2, Rally Sweden
