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Corse Radical V8s Hit The Track!
Neale Muston, left, and Ash Samadi were impressed with their Corse Radical SR8s (Good Publicity photo)
Two of the three Radical SR8s to be fielded by Corse Motorsport in next year’s Radical Australia Cup have arrived in Australia – and drivers Neale Muston and Ash Samadi haven’t wasted any time hitting the track in the 2.7-litre V8-powered cars.
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Reigning Radical Australia Cup champion Muston and ex-GT racer Samadi gave their SR8s a shakedown at Sydney Motorsport Park in December.
Muston was impressed by the 320kW SR8’s extra power over the 155kW four-cylinder SR3 he drove in 2011-12, although it required a slightly different driving technique.
“The SR8 is faster than the SR3 in a straight line, but the main difference is exiting corners,” Muston said. “The power has to be applied smoothly, otherwise wheelspin and loss of control become issues.
“Looking after the tyres will be important in next year’s Radical series, especially in the longer races.”
After one day’s testing, Muston was reluctant to predict how much faster the SR8 would be than the SR3.
“We didn’t have ideal gearing at SMP – I was topping out at 255km/h before Turn 1 – and there’s some suspension and aero fine-tuning to be done,” he said.
“I’ll have a better idea of the SR8’s potential after we do another test, but times in the order of 1min. 25sec. (four seconds quicker than the SR3 lap record at SMP) should be achievable on new tyres.”
Samadi, who will make his Radical Australia Cup debut this year after contesting the Australian GT Championship for the past few seasons, was also happy with his testing performance.
“I drove seven or eight laps in each of the four 20-minute sessions,” he said. “It took me a couple of sessions to become familiar with the Radical’s open cockpit and the high downforce in the fast corners, but by the end of the day I was close to the pace.”
Samadi found the SR8 quicker than his Mosler GT car at SMP.
“The SR8 was faster than the Mosler just about everywhere,” he said. “It doesn’t have as much power but it’s lighter, so it accelerates just as quickly and it brakes better. I was going 20-25 metres deeper into Turn 2 than I would in the Mosler!
“The Radical’s aerodynamics made a difference too. On new tyres you could probably take Turn 1 nearly flat!”
Samadi explained the reasons behind his switch to the Radical Australia Cup for 2013.
“GT is a great category with capable drivers, but to be competitive you need to buy the latest model or upgrade your car every year,” he said.
“Instead of upgrading the Mosler, I decided to take a break from GTs and try V8 Radicals instead.
“I imagine that driving skill is more important with these cars, because everyone has basically the same equipment, and the cars stay the same from year to year.
“Although Radicals are very different from the GTs I’ve driven over the years, I believe I can be competitive after more seat time in the car.”
Corse owner Mick Mitchell was satisfied with the SMP testing results.
“Based on our experience with the SR3s we were expecting the SR8s to go fast straight out of the box, which is what happened,” he said.
“There’s a bit of set-up work to do, because 2013 is the first time the V8 model will run in the Radical Australia Cup. But it’s been run in Radical series in other countries for a few years, so I’m not expecting any problems.
“With better gearing and a bit more sorting we’re looking at a top speed of around 260km/h, and carrying that through fast corners like Turn 1 at SMP and Phillip Island.
“Neale was the benchmark, being the reigning Radical champion, but his times were even better than I was anticipating for his first day in the new car. Ash has plenty of racing experience, so he didn’t take long to get up to speed either.
“They both should be at the pointy end of the field this year.”
A third British-built SR8, to be driven by Nick Kelly, is due to arrive at Corse Motorsport’s Wetherill Park workshop later this month.
The six-round 2013 Radical Australia Cup kicks off at the Top Gear Festival on March 9-10 at SMP.
PaddockTalk Perspective
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