2017 RWRS Universe Silly Season Thread

[TomWazzleshaw]

Which I will get around to doing at some point...

Get onto it you lazy bastard! I wanna see Melrose overcome all challengers already

[Salamander]

At least I've won enough in my time to be considered a has-been. You've been an irrelevance for the last decade old man, so crawl back to your cave and let us do talking.

Yeah, only because you peons are a waste of my time these days. Nowadays I only race when I want to.

Says the man who lost to Prince bathplugging Walik in the lawnmower race the other day. You wouldn't stand a chance against someone from our time like myself, washed-up has been or not.

Yeah, it was Walik. I know I can beat him straight-up, so I took it upon myself to make it interesting and did that blindfolded. Almost pulled it off too. But if you wanna get your ass humiliated, Melrose, I am totally game for that.

[go_Rubens]

No, ekhä en ole pois vielä. Olin paikalla ja oil ilmaista mielipiteensä. Kyllä, olen ehkä ollit turvonnut ego. Aion edistyy RejectTrucks ja toivottavasti F1RDS, joten katso minua siellä.

As for translating that, go look it up yourselves.

[Salamander]

No, ekhä en ole pois vielä. Olin paikalla ja oil ilmaista mielipiteensä. Kyllä, olen ehkä ollit turvonnut ego. Aion edistyy RejectTrucks ja toivottavasti F1RDS, joten katso minua siellä.

As for translating that, go look it up yourselves.

Nobody carrreeesssssss.

[TomWazzleshaw]

At least I've won enough in my time to be considered a has-been. You've been an irrelevance for the last decade old man, so crawl back to your cave and let us do talking.

Yeah, only because you peons are a waste of my time these days. Nowadays I only race when I want to.

Says the man who lost to Prince bathplugging Walik in the lawnmower race the other day. You wouldn't stand a chance against someone from our time like myself, washed-up has been or not.

Yeah, it was Walik. I know I can beat him straight-up, so I took it upon myself to make it interesting and did that blindfolded. Almost pulled it off too. But if you wanna get your ass humiliated, Melrose, I am totally game for that.

Just bring it, old man.

[go_Rubens]

No, ekhä en ole pois vielä. Olin paikalla ja oil ilmaista mielipiteensä. Kyllä, olen ehkä ollit turvonnut ego. Aion edistyy RejectTrucks ja toivottavasti F1RDS, joten katso minua siellä.

As for translating that, go look it up yourselves.

Nobody carrreeesssssss.

Look, I apologize for bringing you guys into disrepute. Is that GOOD enough for your standards?

Anyway, I'm a random guy off the street? I've been hanging around but not saying anything. I needed to say something in this case, because the shite that happened should not happen. Can we remember professionalism? Take-san in particular, and Davies on an epic rant, I guess.

[Nuppiz]

No, ekhä en ole pois vielä. Olin paikalla ja oil ilmaista mielipiteensä. Kyllä, olen ehkä ollit turvonnut ego. Aion edistyy RejectTrucks ja toivottavasti F1RDS, joten katso minua siellä.

As for translating that, go look it up yourselves.

En ymmärrä sanaakaan tuosta siansaksasta.

[Ataxia]

No, ekhä en ole pois vielä. Olin paikalla ja oil ilmaista mielipiteensä. Kyllä, olen ehkä ollit turvonnut ego. Aion edistyy RejectTrucks ja toivottavasti F1RDS, joten katso minua siellä.

As for translating that, go look it up yourselves.

En ymmärrä sanaakaan tuosta siansaksasta.

So I ran zat through ze translation visualiser, boss...and zere vos something about ze "pork from Germany". Please don't tell me zat's vot ze whole Nurminen racing operations are calling me now...

[tommykl]

No, ekhä en ole pois vielä. Olin paikalla ja oil ilmaista mielipiteensä. Kyllä, olen ehkä ollit turvonnut ego. Aion edistyy RejectTrucks ja toivottavasti F1RDS, joten katso minua siellä.

As for translating that, go look it up yourselves.

En ymmärrä sanaakaan tuosta siansaksasta.

So I ran zat through ze translation visualiser, boss...and zere vos something about ze "pork from Germany". Please don't tell me zat's vot ze whole Nurminen racing operations are calling me now...

Non, non, I sink 'e wahs, 'ow you say, talking about zis J-P monsieur...

[Nuppiz]

En ymmärrä sanaakaan tuosta siansaksasta.

So I ran zat through ze translation visualiser, boss...and zere vos something about ze "pork from Germany". Please don't tell me zat's vot ze whole Nurminen racing operations are calling me now...

Ah, you should not be worried. "Siansaksa" (literally "pig's German") is a Finnish figure of speech which means "gibberish". I certainly wasn't amining it at you.

Also go_Rubens, I did understand the point of your message. Machine translators usually fail with Finnish, though.

[Nessafox]

Jukka-Pekka, my best, i know a more useful way to use your mouth, if you know what i mean Here's 10€.

[DemocalypseNow]

Hey, Jukka-Pekka, or Wika-Waka, or whatever your name is, next time I'm in McDonalds, remember I like extra fries with my Big Mac!

[go_Rubens]

Jukka-Pekka, my best, i know a more useful way to use your mouth, if you know what i mean Here's 10€.

Kyllä. Thanks!

[DemocalypseNow]

Lancia RWRS future thrown into doubt after IBR "betrayal"

In a move that has the potential to rock the Reject World Race Series to its core, Lancia has suffered quite possibly the ultimate embarassment, after long-time partner Il Barone Rampante elected to sign a long-term works deal with Renault for their F1RWRS team.

"It's a very complicated legal matter, but, essentially, we have made this decision for competitive reasons," said Alessandro Linari, CEO of Il Barone Rampante. "It's not the best time for me to divulge any details. However, we had held talks with Renault and were impressed with the units they were building. They have been a strong competitor for us in the past and we knew they could produce good results. So we've decided to go in a new direction."

Meanwhile Lancia's competition powertrain department refused to make any comments after the shock switch made by their primary motorsport partner for the last two years.

With Lancia and IBR having a very strong co-operation elsewhere in RWRS, running as a "works" team in both F2RWRS, F3RWRS, RRC and IFRC, it is suggested that teh very public vote of no-confidence in the 016/1 powerplant may be an sign of the beginning of the end of Lancia's involvement in RWRS.

"You will have to ask Lancia about that," said Linari. "Right now, we are happy with our partnerships in F2RWRS and elsewhere. What the future lies for them is up to them. Perhaps we will continue working with them, perhaps we will go in a different direction. There's nothing certain at this time. We'll have to wait and see what happens."

[FMecha]

As a seat-filling pay-driver, Hiroto Tojo says he wants to drive for Dof(i)asco.

[pasta_maldonado]

As a present-day version of Jean-Denis Deletraz, Hiroto Tojo says he wants to drive for Dof(i)asco.

Fixed

[FMecha]

Alright, stuff it, Tojo now says he wants to drive for Gulf M/Power or Jones Racing in F2RWRS instead.

[DemocalypseNow]

[Ataxia]

[DemocalypseNow]

Il Barone Rampanate announces it will cease operations at end of 2016

In a shock announcement late this evening, Il Barone Ramapante CEO Alessandro Linari announced that his team would cease to exist at the end of the current calendar year.

"We are as shocked as everyone else," he said at a press conference. "Our key investor has pulled out. With this loss, we no longer have the means to support ourselves and our current set of operations."

"It is a tragic loss for everyone at this company. We have several hundred of the best employees in the industry who will lose their jobs. It's awful. We had make such strides during this year, we were reaching the pinnacle of world motorsport. Our teams have been competitive everywhere, all over the world, in all types of machinery you could imagine. This team has a rich history that will not be forgotten. But, it seems, the last chapter of that history is about to be written."

Linari would not go into the specifics of the financial loss, but admitted he saw little hope to continue the business' existence onwards into 2017 and beyond.

"Looking at the books, it would require an extremely significant instant cash injection to keep us afloat. Beyond that, there is potential for a good investment, but the upfront costs to continue are so high, and with so few people willing to put forward that level of investment from the first moment, it looks like we will have to close."

"We were already cutting back our programmes for next year, but it seems, even those cutbacks are not enough. It's simply devastating the losses we are goign to incur from this."

What will happen to their various entries across multiple series remain unclear - Linari is expected to negotiate individually with series organisers and rival team owners to organise a strategy regarding the future of the team's employees and drivers.

As a tribute, cars across many of the series IBR currently compete in will carry "Addio IBR" branding, a farewell message to fans of the team that has been racing in international motorsport since 1992, and can arguably trace its roots all the way back to 1977.

[V8fan12]

High Performance Racing to expand RWRS operations in 2017

New Zealand-based High Performance Racing, who debuted in the RWRS this year, have today announced expansion plans for 2017. The team, who currently compete in the F1RSTC, RRC, Lupo GTI, and RRT championships have announced that they will compete in the 2017 RTCC and potentially other series as well.

However, team owners Dominic Spearman and Ray Douglas have stated that the team could be forced to pull out of some of the series they currently run in due to the cost of running so many cars in so many different series.

Spearman said: "It would just not be financially viable to run in so many series at once. We just don't have the funds required".

However, there is hope, as HPR have gained a valuable asset in the form of a works deal with Mazda that will see them become the official Mazda works teams of the 2016-2017 F1RSTC and the 2017 RTCC.

Douglas stated: "For sure, the Mazda works deal will help, but we will still require more sponsorship. Dominic, Craig (Harris), and I can't continue funding the team ourselves", referring to the sponsorship that their companies, the Douglas Media Group, Harris Finance, and Spearman Industries bring to the team.

As for who may drive in the RTCC effort, HPR's driver Julian Clark has been mentioned as a possibility after a stunning drive in his debut for Onyx Toyota Racing at Knockhill.

[HawkAussie]

High Performance Racing to expand RWRS operations in 2017

New Zealand-based High Performance Racing, who debuted in the RWRS this year, have today announced expansion plans for 2017. The team, who currently compete in the F1RSTC, RRC, Lupo GTI, and RRT championships have announced that they will compete in the 2017 RTCC and potentially other series as well.

However, team owners Dominic Spearman and Ray Douglas have stated that the team could be forced to pull out of some of the series they currently run in due to the cost of running so many cars in so many different series.

Spearman said: "It would just not be financially viable to run in so many series at once. We just don't have the funds required".

However, there is hope, as HPR have gained a valuable asset in the form of a works deal with Mazda that will see them become the official Mazda works teams of the 2016-2017 F1RSTC and the 2017 RTCC.

Douglas stated: "For sure, the Mazda works deal will help, but we will still require more sponsorship. Dominic, Craig (Harris), and I can't continue funding the team ourselves", referring to the sponsorship that their companies, the Douglas Media Group, Harris Finance, and Spearman Industries bring to the team.

As for who may drive in the RTCC effort, HPR's driver Julian Clark has been mentioned as a possibility after a stunning drive in his debut for Onyx Toyota Racing at Knockhill.

I wouldn't expand too much V8fan12, or you might not end well from the rest of the teams

[RealRacingRoots]

I wouldn't expand too much V8fan12, or you might not end well from the rest of the teams

[AndreaModa]

Il Barone Rampanate announces it will cease operations at end of 2016

What have I missed? Does this mean no more Jones/Linari rivalry?

[Nessafox]

Alright, for the Octan Young drivers, i have decided that both F1RDS drivers (Barett and Nicchi) will make promotion to F3RWRS for 2017
Also De Boer has shown enough to justify promotion to F2RWRS
Da Cunha has been dissapointing sofar, so i will sideline him a year to IFRC, to re-gain his confidence, and because probably he needs more time, also he will have 2 young drivers in F3RWRS putting him under pressure.
The other F2RWRS and IFRC seats will be confirmed later. It's likely that IBR is going to spam me over with his drivers, though

[DemocalypseNow]

The other F2RWRS and IFRC seats will be confirmed later. It's likely that IBR is going to spam me over with his drivers, though

Oh This, you know me so well!

[AndreaModa]

This isn't team news at all but I figured this is the best place for it. A not so subtle hint at 2017!

First, a bit of background:
Following the lawsuit in the US over the Deepwater Horizon spill, which all took place in 2014, BP was handed the full $17.6 billion bill in damages and along with enormous damage to its reputation, particularly in the US, it attempted to re-group. With its finances severely hit, and revenues down as customers switched to other brands for their fuel and chemical products, BP faced an impending crisis. Conscious to ensure one of the country's largest companies didn't go bust and remained based in Britain, the British government stepped in with assistance in 2015 and there began a process of planning for BP's future that would see the company re-focus and re-brand its operations to try and put the whole sorry affair behind it.

One of the agreed measures in the UK and select other countries was to re-brand almost 50% of BP's fuel stations under the National brand, which had been out of existence since the early 1990s. National originated in the 'National Benzole' company which was founded in London in 1919 and was acquired by what was then Shell-Mex and BP Ltd. in 1957. The 'Benzole' part was phased out in the 1960s as the ingredient became obsolete in fuels and National remained a brand of service station until the early 1990s when it was retired by BP. As a brand that had been popular in the UK during its existence, and still under the ownership of BP, National was an ideal fit for the re-brand as BP grappled with its image problem. January 2017 was the month established for the change-over and the following was one of numerous promotional adverts placed on garage forecourts, in newspapers and magazines, roadside billboards and on websites.



(On an unrelated note, look at those fuel prices!!)

EDIT: In case you're wondering why I've done this, it's an attempt to get a little bit more differentiation into the RWRS universe in comparison to real life. In reality the National brand is long dead and buried but a resurrection here gives us another fictional company so to speak which is something I like to see. On that note, there'll be more of fictional companies in future. Oh yeah that's right! I'm not done yet!

[WaffleCat]

This isn't team news at all but I figured this is the best place for it. A not so subtle hint at 2017!

First, a bit of background:
Following the lawsuit in the US over the Deepwater Horizon spill, which all took place in 2014, BP was handed the full $17.6 billion bill in damages and along with enormous damage to its reputation, particularly in the US, it attempted to re-group. With its finances severely hit, and revenues down as customers switched to other brands for their fuel and chemical products, BP faced an impending crisis. Conscious to ensure one of the country's largest companies didn't go bust and remained based in Britain, the British government stepped in with assistance in 2015 and there began a process of planning for BP's future that would see the company re-focus and re-brand its operations to try and put the whole sorry affair behind it.

One of the agreed measures in the UK and select other countries was to re-brand almost 50% of BP's fuel stations under the National brand, which had been out of existence since the early 1990s. National originated in the 'National Benzole' company which was founded in London in 1919 and was acquired by what was then Shell-Mex and BP Ltd. in 1957. The 'Benzole' part was phased out in the 1960s as the ingredient became obsolete in fuels and National remained a brand of service station until the early 1990s when it was retired by BP. As a brand that had been popular in the UK during its existence, and still under the ownership of BP, National was an ideal fit for the re-brand as BP grappled with its image problem. January 2017 was the month established for the change-over and the following was one of numerous promotional adverts placed on garage forecourts, in newspapers and magazines, roadside billboards and on websites.



(On an unrelated note, look at those fuel prices!!)

EDIT: In case you're wondering why I've done this, it's an attempt to get a little bit more differentiation into the RWRS universe in comparison to real life. In reality the National brand is long dead and buried but a resurrection here gives us another fictional company so to speak which is something I like to see. On that note, there'll be more of fictional companies in future. Oh yeah that's right! I'm not done yet!

Well...that screws over Wulfric Wombesi big time!

[Ataxia]

WaffleCat, would you be a lamb and check your PMs? Cheers, pal!

[AustralianStig]

Well...that screws over Wulfric Wombesi big time!

Yep, looks like all his sponsorship just dried up from 2017 onwards.

Let's hope he can actually get some decent results in the PRC or his career is done!

[AndreaModa]

Oh I wouldn't worry about his personal sponsorship from BP, as a Congolese that's something quite separate to BP's operations in the UK, etc! Don't let my own little storylines ruin anything for your own drivers, you do what you want! I don't have a monopoly over sponsorship from the world's sixth largest company!

[Ataxia]

Fusion Motorsports sign Reatherson for 2017

British driver Quentin Reatherson will remain within the Astro Racing Group for another season as he joins the Fusion Motorsports F2RWRS team.

Reatherson is currently driving for Astro's Nebula Grand Prix outfit in IFRC, and after a few unfortunate retirements that plagued the start of the season the Brit has managed to produce a good run of form. He currently sits 6th in the championship, having finished second at the Zandvoort final.

"We're delighted to keep Quentin, he's been a joy to work with" said team principal Jacques Couteau. "We've shown that Fusion are a strong F2RWRS team, and we're hoping Quentin will slot right in and do an excellent job next year."

Couteau also spoke of the second seat, as it has been rumoured that the team will not continue with either of their current drivers. "We'll announce Quentin's team-mate in due course; we've been in talks with a number of drivers and we're close to signing a deal with one such driver. The only clue that I can give is that he'll be a familiar face to everyone within the Astro setup."

Fusion are also looking for a new engine supplier, after being allegedly unsatisfied with the Holden engines that the team have used so far in 2016.

[WaffleCat]

I'd like to thank the bloody amazing chaps at Astro for this magniflorious opportunity. They have given me a ride in IFRC through Nebula and now with their latest offer, I am one step closer to achieving my dream of participating in the F1RWRS. I will do my best to not let anyone down in the team.

[pasta_maldonado]

British Leyland Name Returns To UK


After 30 years, British Leyland will resume trading in the United Kingdom. The company, not seen since 1986, has been resurrected as part of a deal between British and Chinese investors, will see thousands of jobs created in Britain. The official re launch of the company is set to occur on 1st December 2016.

Continued on pages 4, 5, 6.

Thanks to Ataxia for the lovely logo.

[AndreaModa]

Nice! Though I'm interested to see under what brands British Leyland will trade under - it's quite a complex web of ownership these days, across Tata, BAE Systems, BMH, BMW and SAIC!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:British_Leyland

That said, if you fancy using the Triumph car brand, in terms of RWRS canon it was bought from BMW by a guy I created called David Marshall when I tried to do Triumph-badged BMW F2RWRS engines but that didn't go well. I've gone down the line of Marshall selling the brand off again so in theory Triumph at least is fair game. You could say it was picked up by BMH (British Motor Heritage) and then BL reacquired it perhaps?

As for the rest...good luck!

[AustralianStig]

Wow, awesome logo. I'd almost buy a Leyland if it had a badge like that!

[pasta_maldonado]

Nice! Though I'm interested to see under what brands British Leyland will trade under - it's quite a complex web of ownership these days, across Tata, BAE Systems, BMH, BMW and SAIC!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:British_Leyland

That said, if you fancy using the Triumph car brand, in terms of RWRS canon it was bought from BMW by a guy I created called David Marshall when I tried to do Triumph-badged BMW F2RWRS engines but that didn't go well. I've gone down the line of Marshall selling the brand off again so in theory Triumph at least is fair game. You could say it was picked up by BMH (British Motor Heritage) and then BL reacquired it perhaps?

As for the rest...good luck!

The plan is for a revival of British Motor Holdings to purchase Tata's share of the brands, after they decided they weren't profitable enough due to mismanagement.

All will be revealed at a later date

[Ataxia]

Astro form partnership with Mazda

British racing conglomerate Astro Racing Group have signed a long-term partnership with Mazda Motor Corporation, it has emerged today.

Having recently signed an engine deal with Mazda for the upcoming ACO Le Mans series, it has been reported that Mazda were incredibly impressed with the layout annd structure of the Astro organisation and moved into talks with their owners about a partnership. The Japanese car company have been looking into a full RWRS program, and the relatively young Astro group were their choice to carry the Mazda flag.

"We're delighted to announce this partnership with Mazda" explained Jacques Couteau, the co-owner of Astro Racing Group. "We'll be carrying the Mazda name into as many series as possible in 2017, starting with our Nebula and Pulsar operations. Alvarez Competicion will also run Mazda SkyActiv engines in the F1RICS next year too, provided the entry is finally confirmed."

Mazda are also currently looking into building an F2RWRS-spec rotary engine, although the F2RWRS commission were unavailable for comment. It remains to be seen if any other engine projects will begin.

[AndreaModa]

Jones Racing Group undergoes restructuring

Jones Racing Group, the Banbury, England-based motorsports operation run by former driver Sammy Jones, is to undergo a restructuring over the winter of 2016. Currently the structure of the group sees the parent company (sometimes referred to as JRG) overseeing all motorsport activity, with separate operations run for each of Jones' exploits within the motorsport scene. JRG also manufactures its own range of chassis and has developed a successful customer base within the F3RWRS championship.

The Financial Times has been informed that this structure is to be altered, with JRG, the group, remaining as overall parent company to Jones' empire but beneath it there are to be two distinct entities. One is already known, and will be called Jones Racing International. This arm of the group will cover all of Jones' racing activities, but not chassis manufacture. That is expected to remain under the Jones Racing Group banner.

The second arm of the business however remains a tightly guarded secret within the Oxfordshire company. Trademark filings at the UK Intellectual Property Office for the use of the word "Atlas" are reported to have been registered under the name of D. Marshall, which is widely believed to be businessman David Marshall who has dealt with Jones previously. Marshall was known to be re-engaging with Jones on a secret project following the collapse in his attempt to restart car production using the Triumph brand of which Jones himself was an investor. The secret project was believed at first to be a new attempt at the World Land Speed Record and whilst this has been dismissed by sources close to Jones, the exact nature of the project remains to be revealed.

[Gerudo Dragon]

I'm crap at writing in character so.......

The Crusaders may be re-named Rogue Squadron in 2017

That is all