VE Commodore Supercar breaks cover

The pictures, taken by Stealth Photos at the Woomera rocket range in South Australia, are splashed on the magazine's cover and page three with an array of headlines -- Scoop! Busted! Blast off! and Gotcha!

The VE -- built by Walkinshaw Performance, run by Holden Racing Team in Holden Motorsport livery with 07 on its doors, and driven by Todd Kelly -- did three days of aerodynamic testing at Woomera after its earlier trials at Holden's Lang Lang proving ground in Victoria.

Today's Auto Action report, by its editor-at-large Mark Fogarty, says the pictures "expose the VE racer's muscular DTM-style façade, featuring a new front clip that accentuates the road car's signature bulging wheel arches".

It says the Woomera sprints were restricted to 200kmh "as the test programme was limited to measuring and fine-tuning the downforce and drag levels of the VE's aggressive-looking front splitter and undertray assembly, and towering rear wing at simulated racetrack cornering speeds".

"As a result of the measurements, the front clip and boot-lid wing will be altered to match the VZ's downforce," it says.

The public unveiling of the VE Supercar is planned for October, after the Bathurst 1000, and Holden hopes to have all its leading teams fielding VEs in 2007.

Walkinshaw Performance's Craig Wilson declares the group "pretty happy" with the Woomera tests. The VE is due to return to the rocket range for official evaluation late next month to finalise its homologated wing package for '07. It will be put through back-to-back trials against a BF Falcon to ensure it meets V8 Supercar parity requirements.

Auto Action reports that the VE racecar is designed to be up to 50 per cent cheaper to build and repair, mainly by enabling the VZ engine and drivetrain to be retained with minimal modification.

Ford-Richards deal close
Ford Performance Racing may finalise an agreement before Bathurst for Steven Richards to join it next year in place of Jason Bright. While Holden team owner Larry Perkins is continuing to play hard ball over his option on Richards, FPR boss Tim Edwards has told Auto Action his team is getting close to contracting its leading candidate. However, Edwards is not saying publicly who that candidate is -- and an announcement may not be made until the end of the season, or even the end of the year. The offer for Richards to rejoin the Blue Oval is reportedly worth $750,000 a year. Bright is off to head his own team, Britek.

Brady song for Brocky
A musical tribute to King of the Mountain Peter Brock is being recorded this week by jingles and sports anthem "king" Mike Brady for release ahead of Bathurst. A brief item in today's Auto Action says "those who've heard it predict the ballad will be as emotive and timeless as Brady's 1979 hit Up There Cazaly" -- the unofficial theme song of Australian Rules football for more than a quarter of a century. Proceeds from sales of the new song will go to the Peter Brock Foundation.

Brisk changes for Briscoe
Ryan Briscoe's versatility is being thoroughly tested. This week he represents Australia in the opening round of the second A1 Grand Prix "World Cup of Motorsport" in Holland. Next week he's at Bathurst driving for Holden Racing Team. Two weeks later he could, it seems, be racing a Champ Car for RuSPORT at the Gold Coast Indy, substituting for injured Brazilian Cristiano Da Matta. RuSPORT could not agree terms with Dario Franchitti and was due to trial Briscoe, 2003 Gold Coast Indy winner Ryan Hunter-Reay and little-known Michael Valiante at Sebring in Florida this week. Any deal is likely to include the final Champ Car round in Mexico City too. Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais only needs ninth place in Surfers' Paradise to clinch his third straight Champ Car title.

Renault heat on Schumi
Despite Ferrari winning five of the past six Formula One races, taking the constructors' championship lead, and Michael Schumacher closing to within two points of Fernando Alonso in the drivers' championship, Schumi will not handle the pressure of the last three rounds as well as the Spaniard, according to a man who has worked closely with both.

Pat Symonds, Renault's executive director of engineering, says: "They are both fabulous drivers and formidable competitors, but I truly believe Fernando handles pressure better than Michael. Throughout his career there have been many instances of Michael not performing to his potential when he has been under pressure. And I think the pressure for him is greater than ever in these last three races (this weekend in China, where Schumacher never won, then in Japan and Brazil). Previously he always had the safety net of trying again next year if he didn't win. There is no 'next year' for him now (because of his imminent retirement)."

Zanardi wins world tourer race
Alex Zanardi, the Italian star who lost his legs in 2001, has scored his second world touring car championship race victory in a BMW specially-adapted for him to drive with his new artificial legs. His first win came last year, when he started from pole position in a reverse-grid race at Oschersleben in Germany. This time he did it after qualifying second at Istanbul Park in Turkey.

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