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ASCAR Racing Series

(Redirected from VSR V8 Trophy)

ASCAR (Anglo-American Stock Car Racing), was a stock car racing series that raced at circuits around the United Kingdom and Europe from 2001 until 2008. The series went through many guises during its seven year period and was known as the ASCAR Mintex Cup from 2001 to 2003, later known as the Days of Thunder Racing Series (2004) and the SCSA (Stock Car Speed Association) (2005 to 2007) before its final season as the SCSA MAC Tools VSR V8 Trophy. Although going through these varying identities the series was commonly referred to and known by its original name of ASCAR. The series predominantly raced the oval tracks at the Rockingham Motor Speedway and the EuroSpeedway Lausitz in the early years but in its final season in 2008 was solely road racing series that would visit various tracks in the UK most notably Brands Hatch and in France at Croix en Ternois. The series folded in 2008 and merged into part of the European Late Model Series in 2009, racing in Belgium and the UK.

ASCAR Racing Series
VSR V8 Trophy (Series final logo)
CategoryStock cars
CountryUnited Kingdom United Kingdom (2001–2008)
Germany Germany (2001–2003)
France France (2008)
Inaugural season2001
Folded2008
ConstructorsChevrolet
Ford
Pontiac
Tyre suppliersGoodyear
Hoosier
Avon Tyres
Last Drivers' championColin White (2007)
Last Teams' championCWS Racing Chevrolet (2007)

Constructor cars consisted of NASCAR style Chevrolet, Ford and Pontiac racers with a field that peaked at 37 drivers competing during the 2002 season. John Mickel was the first ever champion with a different driver winning the title over all six-seasons, with Team West-Tec, RML and Torquespeed each winning two drivers championships each. Colin White and John Steward were the only drivers who raced in every season, whilst various drivers from a range of different styles of motorsport competed either single races or single seasons, most notably Colin McRae, Aaron Slight, Jason Plato, Max Papis, and the 2002 champion Nicolas Minassian.

History

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An ASCAR race at Rockingham during the 2004 season.

The ASCAR Mintex Cup made its debut in 2001 with the first ever race being held at the Rockingham Motor Speedway on 26 May, the race was won by former two-time BTCC champion John Cleland for his Chevrolet-powered Cleland Speedsport team. The event that took part in front of 12,000 fans saw Cleland qualify on pole, however he had to fight back to win the race which had seen six-different race leaders [1] Further rounds at Rockingham, Knockhill Racing Circuit in Scotland, EuroSpeedway Lausitz in Germany and Mondello Park in Ireland were cancelled due to a fuel pickup issue, so Round 2 didn't hit the calendar until 26 August back at Rockingham. The initial season saw 14 teams fielding 21 cars with the season eventually being won by John Mickel of Torquespeed, by beating Dutchman Michael Vergers in the final race by 0.2 seconds, winning the title despite only two wins to Vergers three. Following his championship win, Mickel stated "I owe it all to my crew. We've grown up around the short ovals together and most of them have been with me since I was 10, they didn't let me down. They won it for me."[2]

The 2002 season saw the peak number of drivers racing in the series with 37 taking part during the year, representing a total of 13 teams. Each race event would partner the BRSCC Pickup Truck Racing, with the series being split between six-events at Rockingham, and two in Lausitz consisting of a total of 20 rounds. The season saw its first American competitors compete as NASCAR drivers Randy Tolsma and Brandon Whitt both drove the no.48 Deuce Racing car, whereas Colin McRae, Darren Manning, Matt Neal and Jason Plato all joined XCEL Motorsport. Darren Turner registered six-wins during the season but having missed the opening five-rounds he would only place 7th in the Championship with the title going to French driver Nicolas Minassian of RML Group who only won the one race back in Round 2.[3]

 
The start of a race at Rockingham during the 2004 season.

In 2003 the series took on the additional name of "Days of Thunder" after the film of the same name, the season was reduced to 13 rounds spanning over 8 events at both Rockingham and Lausitz. Minassian's replacement at RML, Ben Collins took six race victories, all coming in the final eight rounds of the season. In 2004 the ASCAR label was dropped completely and the series was labelled as the "Days of Thunder Racing Series", the series also dropped the Germany races due to the costs involved and the projected grid numbers of cars willing to make the journey. The season which now ran exclusively from Rockingham was won by Stevie Hodgson of TorqueSpeed.

2005 saw the series renamed once again "Stock Car Speed Association" (SCSA) after a link-up with the American Speed Association and incorporated the Pickup Truck Racing Series under the same banner. Michael Vergers who had been with the series since the inaugural season took the title for Team West-Tec winning three of the twelves rounds which once more were all held at Rockingham. In 2006 the SCSA and Pickup Truck Racing ran at Rockingham as part of the "Thunder Sundays" package organised by the BRSCC. The series continued to field only the twelve rounds and the participating number of drivers was moved down to 18. Oli Playle took the title with a dominating season scoring eight race wins.

 
SCSA cars line up on pit road for the season finale of the 2006 season.

The SCSA name remained for 2007; as part of a new sponsorship deal competitors competed for the 'SCSA MAC Tools V8 Trophy'. On Wednesday 5 September, British motorsport publication Motorsport News reported that the SCSA would come to an end after the final race of this season. However, the teams, and the organisers of the Mac Tools V8 Trophy vowed to continue in 2008, whether as a MSA Sanctioned championship, or just as a "series". The final recognised oval racing season was won by Colin White, with the field reduced once more to seven rounds, competed by only 15 drivers. 2008 heralded a new direction for the series with a focus on road courses due to a lack of dates offered by the oval tracks. The cars ran as part of the VSR Series, with the stock cars known as the VSR V8 Trophy. In 2009 the series joined with CAMSO V8 to form the new European Late Model Series.

Period Sponsor Brand
2001–2002 Mintex ASCAR Mintex Cup
2003 No Sponsor ASCAR Days of Thunder Series
2004 No Sponsor Days of Thunder Racing Series
2004–2006 No Sponsor SCSA (Stock Car Speed Association)
2007 Mac Tools SCSA Mac Tools V8 Trophy
2008 Mac Tools Mac Tools VSR V8 Trophy

Race days

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In 2003 the series took on the additional name of "Days of Thunder" after the film of the same name. This was done as a marketing tool as starting in this year they promoted the series as a day out for all the family and had appearances from bands such as Busted and The Darkness.

Teams and Cars

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A Ford Taurus driven by John Steward in 2004.

ASCAR fielded the latest NASCAR Generation 4 variant race machines at the time, a combined field of 5.7 litre V8s tuned to 470 bhp & sporting Ford Taurus, Chevrolet Monte Carlo or Pontiac Grand Prix body shells.[4]

In 1992, the Gen 4 car arrived at the sport when steel bodies became primarily custom made instead of using stock pieces, and wind tunnels became a staple as teams worked to gain aerodynamics.[5] At racing speeds approaching 200 miles per hour, a modern NASCAR race car can generate enough lift to get airborne if it spins sideways. To keep cars firmly planted, roof flaps were required in 1994.[citation needed]

1994 was also the final year that V6 engines were used in the Busch Series, as many short track series had abandoned six-cylinder engines.[6][7][8][9][10][11][12]

In 1995, Chevrolet switched back to the Monte Carlo, which started the trend of rounder body shapes in Cup and the then-Busch Series. In 1998, Ford introduced the Taurus, which was the first four-door stock car model approved for NASCAR competition in the modern era.[citation needed]

The Gen 4 car was used full time until 2007, and it was retired in the Cup Series after the 2007 season (in which Toyota, who had already competed in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, made their debut in the Cup and the then-Busch Series with the Camry), while the other sixteen races were run by the fifth-generation Car of Tomorrow. The Car of Tomorrow went full-time in 2008, with the second-tier series adopting their own Car of Tomorrow first part-time in 2010 and full-time the following year. Body panels in the style of the Gen 4 car continue to be manufactured by Five Star Race Car Bodies, and were legal in the ARCA Racing Series until 2020, when composite-bodied cars in the style of the Generation 6 were mandated (despite this, modern ARCA cars still use Gen 4 chassis). As of 2022, the Gen 4 car is still legal in the ARCA Menards Series West and East (though Dodge body panels are illegal); Hailie Deegan scored her first NASCAR win at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway dirt track in a Gen 4 Toyota Camry in 2019.

In the generation's final years, aerodynamic development led to some of the cars (otherwise known as "offset" bodies) being called "twisted sisters" in reference to the asymmetrical shapes of the car's body. The Car of Tomorrow, by contrast, featured a symmetrical body in order to curb aerodynamic development wars in an attempt to cut costs.

 
Team West-Tec are the most successful team in the series, winning 2 titles like TorqueSpeed and RML, they won more races than any other team with 21.
Team Constructor Seasons Championship Wins Race Wins
Team West-Tec Chevrolet (2001–2004)
Ford (2001–2003)
Pontiac (2003–2006) 		2001–2006 2 21
Colin Blower Motorsport Chevrolet 2001–2002 0 0
Team Catchpole Racing Chevrolet 2001–2006 0 0
Cleland SpeedSport Chevrolet 2001 0 1
Oughtred & Harrison Ford 2001 0 0
Shear-Speed Pontiac 2001–2003 0 0
Streber Motorsport Pontiac 2001 0 0
TorqueSpeed Chevrolet (2001–2005)
Ford (2004–2005) 		2001–2005 2 17
Dudman Motorsport Chevrolet 2001 0 0
Lee Caroline Racing Ford 2001 0 0
Steward Racing Chevrolet (2001)
Ford (2002–2007) 		2001–2007 0 1
CWS Racing Chevrolet (2001–2007)
Pontiac (2005) 		2001–2007 1 15
Michael Smith Racing Chevrolet 2001 0 0
TJ Motorsport Ford 2001 0 0
Hodgson Motorsport Chevrolet
Pontiac 		2002 0 2
RML Group Chevrolet 2002–2003 2 10
Fast-Tec Motorsport Ford (2002)
Pontiac (2003–2005) 		2002–2005 0 0
Deuce Racing Chevrolet 2002 0 0
Xcel Motorsport Ford (2002)
Pontiac (2003) 		2002–2003 0 1
Team HTML Pontiac 2002–2004 0 7
Kidd-Richardson Racing Chevrolet 2003–2005 0 0
Shark Racing Chevrolet 2003 0 0
Intersport Racing Pontiac 2003–2004 0 0
Team Turn-Four Chevrolet
Ford 		2004 0 1
24-7 Motorsport Chevrolet 2004–2005 0 0
Renegade Racing Chevrolet 2004 0 0
Kraco Racing Chevrolet 2005 0 0
MyOwnRaceTeam Pontiac 2005 0 0
Team For Trucks Ford (2005)
Pontiac (2005–2007) 		2005–2007 0 0
Revolution Racing Chevrolet 2006–2007 0 1
Team Networking Chevrolet 2006–2007 0 0
M-Tec Chevrolet 2006 0 0
Team Ranger Racing Chevrolet 2007 0 0
CB Racing Chevrolet 2007 0 0
Team Air Ambulance Pontiac 2007 0 0
KLANN Racing Chevrolet 2007 0 0

Drivers

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John Mickel, the first ASCAR champion from the 2001 season.

The inaugural championship in 2001 was won by future NASCAR driver John Mickel racing for Torquespeed.[2] In 2002 French driver Nicolas Minassian of RML Group arrived from CART and took the title.[3] Further Champions were Ben Collins in 2003,[13] who also worked as The Stig on Top Gear during his ASCAR tenure,[14] Stevie Hodgson, Michael Vergers, Oli Playle and Colin White.

Although most of the field often included a field of British professional and semi-professional stock car drivers, a number of well-known racing drivers from across a wide variety of series competed, often racing either single races or for one full season. They included former WRC champion Colin McRae,[15] ex Formula 1 drivers Max Papis[16] and Kelvin Burt,[17] former IndyCar series driver Darren Manning,[18] former World Superbike Championship rider Aaron Slight,[19] American Nascar drivers Randy Tolsma,[20] Brandon Whitt[21] and Steve Grissom[22] also took part, as did former BTCC champions Jason Plato,[23] Matt Neal[24] and John Cleland.[1] Aside from Ben Collins, future Top Gear presenter Chris Harris took part in the 2004 season,[25] and fellow motoring journalists Tiff Needell and Amanda Stretton raced in the debut 2001 season.[26] Toby Scheckter the son of 1979 F1 champion Jody competed in the 2002 season.[27]

Notable Drivers

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Season Driver Team(s)
2001   Amanda Stretton Team West-Tec
2001–2004   Rob Speak Team West-Tec, Colin Blower Motorsport, Team Turn Four
2001   John Cleland Cleland SpeedSport
2001   Tiff Needell Colin Blower Motorsport
2001–2005   Mark Proctor Oughtred & Harrison, Fast Tec Motorsport
2001–2005   John Mickel TorqueSpeed
2001–2007   Colin White CWS Racing
2001   Aaron Slight TJ Motorsport
2002   Kevin McGarrity Hodgson Motorsport
2002   Kelvin Burt RML Group
2002   Nicolas Minassian RML Group
2002–2004   Ben Collins Fast Tec Motorsport, RML Group, Team Turn Four
2002   Paula Cook Fast Tec Motorsport
2002   Randy Tolsma Deuce Racing
2002   Brandon Whitt Deuce Racing
2002   Toby Scheckter Deuce Racing
2002–2003   Derek Hayes Deuce Racing, Team West-Tec, Team HTML
2002   Colin McRae Xcel Motorsport
2002   Darren Manning Xcel Motorsport
2002   Matt Neal Xcel Motorsport
2002   Jason Plato Xcel Motorsport
2002   Darren Turner Team HTML
2003   Steve Grissom RML Group
2003–   Andrew Kirkaldy Xcel Motorsport
2003   Kieran Dynes Scott Racing Services
2003   Max Papis Team HTML
2004, 2006   Steve Dance TorqueSpeed, Team Catchpole Racing
2004   Chris Harris TorqueSpeed
2005   Gavin Seager Kidd Richardson Racing
2005–2006   Hunter Abbott TorqueSpeed, Steward Racing
2006–2007   Pete Wilkinson Team Ranger Racing
2006   Paul Poulter Steward Racing
2007–2008   Carl Boardley CB Racing

Nationalities

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The nationalities of every driver who participated in an ASCAR race from 2001 to 2007.

Country Drivers
  United Kingdom 70
  United States of America 4
  Australia
  France
  Republic of Ireland 		2
  Colombia
  Germany
  India
  Italy
  Netherlands
  New Zealand
  South Africa
  Sweden 		1

Previous champions

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Ben Collins on his way to winning the 2003 ASCAR championship
Year # Driver Points Team Constructor Wins in Season
2007 78   Colin White 1940 CWS Racing Chevrolet 5
2006 88   Oli Playle 1985 Team West-Tec Pontiac 8
2005 28   Michael Vergers 2245 Team West-Tec Pontiac 3
2004 24   Stevie Hodgson 2010 TorqueSpeed Chevrolet 2
2003 84   Ben Collins 2299 RML Chevrolet 6
2002 8   Nicolas Minassian 2535 RML Chevrolet 1
2001 24   John Mickel 860 TorqueSpeed Chevrolet 2

Tracks

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Aerial of Rockingham Motor Speedway

Between 2004 and 2007 all of the ASCAR races were held at the Rockingham Motor Speedway in England. The circuit was overlooked by the 6280 seat Rockingham Building, a steel-framed, glass-fronted grandstand building containing suites, offices, bars and kitchens, and by four grandstands. Together the building and grandstands offered a total seating capacity of 52,000. The inner pit and paddock complex was accessed from the Rockingham Building via two pedestrian tunnels and there was a further spectator viewing area on top of the pit garages. The 1.48 mile American-style banked oval circuit was 18.3 metres (60.0 ft) wide and had a maximum bank angle of seven degrees and comprised four very distinct corners. Rockingham's oval was unique in the UK and one of only two speedways in Europe (the other is Lausitzring). The oval circuit could also be converted to a road course layout for events by positioning temporary chicanes and curves both on the main area and apron of the circuit.

In 2002 and 2003 the series also raced in Germany at the EuroSpeedway Lausitz but the venue was eventually dropped due to the costs involved and the projected grid numbers of cars willing to make the journey. The entire 2008 season was a road racing based series as opposed to the Oval circuits. This incorporated trips to Snetterton, Cadwell Park, Lydden Race Circuit, Brands Hatch, Pembrey Circuit, Mallory Park and the French race track at Croix en Ternois.

Circuit Years Races Notes
  Rockingham Motor Speedway 2001–2007 72 Rockingham ran as the sole circuit for the entire series from 2004 to 2007.
  EuroSpeedway Lausitz 2001–2003 7 Lausitz was scheduled for 2001 but cancelled, it later hosted races in 2002 and 2003 before being dropped from the calendar.
  Knockhill Racing Circuit 2001 0 The event at Knockhill was cancelled and removed from the calendar due to a fuel pickup issue.
  Mondello Park 2001 0 The event at Mondello Park was cancelled and removed from the calendar due to a fuel pickup issue.
  Snetterton Circuit 2008 4 The final season of competition saw the series run as a road racing championship.
  Cadwell Park 2008 1 The final season of competition saw the series run as a road racing championship.
  Lydden Hill Race Circuit 2008 1 The final season of competition saw the series run as a road racing championship.
  Brands Hatch 2008 3 The final season of competition saw the series run as a road racing championship.
  Circuit de Croix-en-Ternois 2008 1 The final season of competition saw the series run as a road racing championship.
  Mallory Park 2008 1 The final season of competition saw the series run as a road racing championship.

Television coverage

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In the United Kingdom, Motors TV aired full races of ASCAR, whilst Channel 4 aired a highlight show presented by Helen Chamberlain. In 2004 SCSA coverage reached 44 million viewers.[4]

List of race winners

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Colin White won the last oval title for the series in 2007, and is the most experienced driver, competing in all but one race meeting from 2001 to 2007.
Wins Driver Seasons competed
13   Colin White 2001–2007
10   Oli Playle 2003–2006
9   Ian McKellar Jr. 2002–2005
  Michael Vergers 2001, 2003–2005
7   Ben Collins 2002–2004
6   Darren Turner 2002
5   John Mickel 2001–2005
3   Kelvin Burt 2002
  Stevie Hodgson 2002–2005
2   Kevin McGarrity 2002
  Roland Rehfeld 2002–2003
  Hunter Abbott 2005–2007
1   John Steward 2001–2007
  Rob Speak 2001–2004
  Nicolas Minassian 2002
  Darren Manning 2002
  Lee O'Keefe 2002, 2006–2007
  Mark Willis 2004, 2006–2007

See also

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A panorama of Rockingham Motor Speedway

References

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  1. ^ a b "ASCAR: Rockingham race report".
  2. ^ a b "ASCAR: John Mickel Rockingham race report". 22 November 2001.
  3. ^ a b "Nicolas Minassian Q&A". 13 June 2003.
  4. ^ a b "MAC TOOLS V8 Trophy Stock Cars Stock Car Speed Association, Thunder Racing".
  5. ^ Weaver, Matt (May 6, 2021). "NASCAR Generations". Autoweek.com.
  6. ^ "Resin NASCAR Buick/Chevy V6 Busch Grand National Engine | #443476133".
  7. ^ "1994 Chevrolet Lumina NASCAR | F260 | Kissimmee 2012".
  8. ^ "When Did V8 Engine Replace V6 in Busch Grand National? – McNally Institute".
  9. ^ "No Reserve: 1994 Chevrolet Lumina Busch Series Race Car Project". 27 January 2024.
  10. ^ "Buick: Racing's forgotten (V-6!) juggernaut". 5 August 2019.
  11. ^ "Chevy 4.3L 262ci V-6 - Engine Build - Overview - Tech - Hot Rod Magazine". 18 July 2014.
  12. ^ "Popular Mechanics". Hearst Magazines. May 1997.
  13. ^ "ASCAR: Ben Collins Rockingham notes 2003-07-29". 30 July 2003.
  14. ^ "Former Top Gear Stig Ben Collins Reveals All in Hilarious Reddit Open Thread". 18 May 2015.
  15. ^ "McRae to race ASCAR at Rockingham". 9 September 2002.
  16. ^ "Max Papis will run UK's ASCAR series". 29 May 2003.
  17. ^ "BTCC race-winner Kelvin Burt to return to FF1600 in Walter Hayes Trophy". 22 October 2021.
  18. ^ "CHAMPCAR/CART: Darren Manning profile". 6 September 2002.
  19. ^ "Slight to race in UK".
  20. ^ "BARC - Rockingham - 12th/14th September - 2002 :: Timing Solutions Ltd".
  21. ^ "ASCAR: Brandon Whitt to compete in final two races". October 2002.
  22. ^ "2003 ASCAR Championship Rockingham, England. 11th May 2003. Steve Grissom World Copyright: John Colley/LAT Photographic ref: Digital Image Only | 2003 ASCAR Championship | Motorsport Images".
  23. ^ "A switch of car for Plato". 22 February 2002.
  24. ^ "Motorsport memory: 2003 ASCAR". 19 July 2018 – via PressReader.
  25. ^ "Chris Harris (UK)/Results/2004 - the Third Turn".
  26. ^ "ASCAR: Rockingham finale report".
  27. ^ "ASCAR: Toby Scheckter signs with ASCAR". 12 April 2002.
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