Chevrolet leaves after weight dispute
After several head on collisions with the Danish Touring Car Championship management, Perfection Racing that are operating Chevrolet Motorsport Denmark, today announced that they are leaving the DTC after the 2009 season.
The team reached the conclusion after receiving a bulletin from the DTC A/S, in which their Chevrolet Lacetti cars has received a further 20 kilos of ballast.
Apart from the Hartmann Honda Accord’s, all other cars in the field were to stay on the normal minimum weight.
“We have only driven two rounds this season,” team manager Kent Bo Steffensen explains.
”And especially the one at Padborg Park offered very exciting and close racing among the different brand of cars. A small adjustment was made after the first race at Jyllandsringen, where Jan Magnussen and Martin Jensen had 15 kilos removed from their cars.
Then we experienced three different makes of cars at Padborg Park make it to victory. Points wise James Thompson made it to the top with 50 points ahead of Jan Magnussen with 44 points, and Michel Nykjær with 41 points.
All that on a track which always has been known as a track where the front wheel driven cars has had advantage, so where is the reason for putting extra weight in the Chevrolet´s and the Honda´s?”
The DTC features no new 2009 cars this year and due to that fact the series is driven by the same models of cars as last season, where no weight adjustments were made.
Perfection Racing seems to struggle with the fact, that a sudden need of adjustments are necessary. Also the TV coverage of the series has been a point of several collisions between the DTC A/S and Perfection Racing.
The team threatened withdrawal, after it was known that there would be no TV coverage at round 2 at Padborg Park.
“You can argue for the fact, that a new model of car needs to have its weight adjusted, once its strength has been established, compared with the other cars in the field, “ co-owner of Perfection Racing, Michael Klostermann explains. “But this year we are driving with the exact same cars as last season. That means that the only changes in the level of competition is in the changes, the respective teams has introduced through the winter, and the new drivers who is driving some of the cars.”
“We have worked hard to trim our Chevrolet during the winter, and we have found a couple of tenths during that process. The only reward we get is extra weight. That is not exactly motivating for the team, to get punished for the good effort, so due to that we have decided that our arrangements with the DTC will not continue longer than the present season.”
The Danish importer of Chevrolet cars, Chevrolet Denmark, backs the decision. Brian Groth explains: “At Chevrolet Denmark we understand the decision made by Perfection Racing. We have been at odds with the frequent changes, and the reasons behind. But we appreciate that Perfection Racing will stay and fight on during the rest of the season on the terms, which has laid out.”
“And we will, as soon as possible, sit down together with the team, ad discuss which future opportunities there could be for a continued cooperation.”
The team will debut in the World Touring Car Championship in September at Oschersleben, with Michel Nykjær driving the Chevrolet Lacetti. This could be a toe in the water test, before making a decision for the 2010 season.
