TRD 86 Cup turbo boosts measly budgets
If you have a sharp mind and no wobbly hands, and if you have ever sipped on the heady cocktail of racing dreams, this could be your chance to ease into the pit lane. This year will see the inaugural season of the TRD 86 Cup, the first single make championship in the UAE. Yas Marina Circuit will host the six race weekends with the first round taking place between the 11th and the 13th of December.
When it was launched a couple of years ago, Toyota 86 had succeeded in bringing puritan pleasure of racing back into the affordable sports car category. The TRD 86 Cup does exactly that for the competitive racing scene. The race will take place in two classes – a master’s class for seasoned racers and a rookie class for newbies.
The champions will be rewarded in cash, and the kind of ecstasy only racing podiums can provide. All for a meagre budget of AED 150,000, which will include a motor-sport tuned vehicle with racing seats and suspensions, race kit livery and the works. The racers will even get to keep their cars, so there!
Toyota hasn’t been merely ballyhooing its “Waku Doki” philosophy (something like adrenaline rush in Japanese); Toyota 86 has proven itself as a thoroughbred motorsport vehicle, winning the V3 class Nürburgring 24 Hours in 2012 while TRD has built its reputation on remarkable performances in the All-Japan Formula Three Championship Series, Super GT grand touring series, and the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The racing school at Yas Marina Circuit has already been associated with Al Futtaim Motors through the Yas Drift School, which again uses the rear-wheel drive Toyota 86 cars. In the wake of the race, Al-Futtaim Motors will soon bring the TRD racing and performance enhancement components to the market for a wide range of Toyota vehicles.
Drivers interested in competing in the inaugural TRD 86 Cup season can find out more details online at http://www.yasmarinacircuit.com/en/motorsport/yas-motor-racing-club/86-cup
Audi R8 LMS Cup to debut in Abu Dhabi
The UAE motor sport calendar just got hotter with the announcement of the Audi R8 LMS Cup finals in Abu Dhabi.
The Audi R8 LMS Cup is the first Audi one-make sprint race series in the world and has its home base in China. It will have its Middle East Debut in Abu Dhabi with the final rounds 11 and 12 at the Yas Marina Circuit on December 12-13, alongside the Gulf 12 Hours race. 24 models of the GT3 customer racing cars compete against each other in the series. The car boasts a V10 engine with 560 horsepower and a lightweight Audi Space Frame (ASF) made of Aluminium. 12 races over six race weekends will take place in 2014. Internationally, the Audi R8 LMS (which stands for Le Mans Series) has already scored more than 100 victories.
Four titles will be hotly contested in Abu Dhabi: The Audi R8 LMS Cup overall title, a category for amateur drivers (Am Cup), one for teams and a “Four Rings Trophy” for regional Audi teams and dealerships.
