2012 Race of Champions

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Layout of the Track ROC thai.svg
Layout of the Track

The 2012 Race of Champions was the 25th running of the event, and took place over 14–16 December 2012 at the Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand. [1] [2] [3] During the first day, a ROC Thailand contest was held with four local drivers to decide the identity of the Thai representatives. The top two drivers (Nattavude Charoensukawattana and Tin Sritrai) advanced to the ROC Asia contest, where they faced teams from India, China and Japan. The Thai team was guaranteed a place in the main Nations Cup, whilst the second spot was taken by the victorious Indian team formed by F1 driver Narain Karthikeyan and WEC driver Karun Chandhok. [4] During the second day, Germany took their sixth consecutive Nations Cup victory courtesy of Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher, beating France (Sébastien Ogier and Romain Grosjean) in the final 2–0. [5] During the final day, Romain Grosjean won the Race of Champions, beating Tom Kristensen 2–0 in a closely fought final. [6] [7] In the UK, the live broadcasts of the latter two days of the event on Motors TV attracted a peak of 44,000 television viewers, a respectable figure for a satellite-only channel. [8]

Participants

Romain Grosjean, the 2012 Champion of Champions Romain Grosjean Bahrain.jpg
Romain Grosjean, the 2012 Champion of Champions

Champions from numerous series were invited, including Formula One (Sebastian Vettel, Michael Schumacher and Romain Grosjean), MotoGP (Jorge Lorenzo and Mick Doohan), WTCC (Andy Priaulx), V8 Supercars (Jamie Whincup), PWRC (Benito Guerra) and IndyCar (Ryan Hunter-Reay). [9] Also present was eight-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen. The 2012 edition marked the first time drivers from India, Thailand and Mexico have competed, whilst it was the first time since the inaugural Nations Cup event in 1999 that there were no Finnish drivers present. Reigning champion Sébastien Ogier was the only former 'Champion of Champions' in attendance. [6] [10]

TeamDrivers2012 series
All-Stars Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen [11] WEC
Flag of Spain.svg Jorge Lorenzo [12] MotoGP
Americas [13] Flag of Mexico.svg Benito Guerra [13] Production WRC
Flag of the United States.svg Ryan Hunter-Reay [14] IndyCar Series
Australia Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mick Doohan [15] none
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Jamie Whincup [15] V8 Supercars
France Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean [16] Formula One
Flag of France.svg Sébastien Ogier [16] WRC
Germany Flag of Germany.svg Michael Schumacher [17] Formula One
Flag of Germany.svg Sebastian Vettel [18] Formula One
Great Britain Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Coulthard [19] DTM
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Andy Priaulx [11] DTM
India Flag of India.svg Karun Chandhok [20] WEC
Flag of India.svg Narain Karthikeyan [20] Formula One
Thailand [20] Flag of Thailand.svg Nattavude Charoensukawattana Super Car Thailand
Flag of Thailand.svg Tin Sritrai Super Car Thailand

ROC Asia

2012 marked the inaugural ROC Asia event, with drivers from a variety of championships (including Formula One, WEC and Super GT) taking part. The top two drivers from ROC Thailand would represent Thailand in the event. [10]

CountryDrivers2012 series
China Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Han Han [20] China Rally and CTCC
Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Ho-Pin Tung [20] PCC Asia
India Flag of India.svg Karun Chandhok [20] WEC
Flag of India.svg Narain Karthikeyan [20] Formula One
Japan Flag of Japan.svg Takuto Iguchi [20] Super GT
Flag of Japan.svg Kazuya Oshima [20] Formula Nippon/Super GT
Thailand [21] Flag of Thailand.svg Nattavude Charoensukawattana Super Car Thailand
Flag of Thailand.svg Tin Sritrai Super Car Thailand

ROC Thailand

The ROC Thailand contest was held to decide who would represent Thailand in ROC Asia, the Nations Cup and the Race of Champions. 2001 Asian Touring Car Series champion Charoensukawattana and 1999 Formula Asia champion Horthongkum battled out with drift driver Nana and touring car driver Sritrai to be among the top 2. [10]

CountryDrivers2012 series
Thailand Flag of Thailand.svg Nattavude Charoensukawattana Super Car Thailand
Flag of Thailand.svg Nattapon Horthongkum Super Car Thailand
Flag of Thailand.svg Sak Nana
Flag of Thailand.svg Tin Sritrai Super Car Thailand

Cars

Seven cars were used throughout the event. The Toyota GT86 and Lamborghini Gallardo Super Trofeo made their debut in this year, while the Škoda Fabia was dropped. [10]

The track

A 697 metres tarmac track was constructed in the Rajamangala Stadium. [22] The track had a bridge to connect the outer lane with the inner lane in an 8 shape track. [23] All the races were run to 2 laps (1.394 km). [23] In the first day a chicane was placed in the bridge area. The chicane was modified for the second and third day making the lap time longer. [24]

Tom Kristensen made the fastest time (1:14.0680) on the second configuration in an Audi R8 at speed of 67.75 km/h. [22]

ROC Thailand

Round Robin

Pos.DriverWinsLossesBest Time
1 Flag of Thailand.svg Nattavude Charoensukawattana301:21.087
2 Flag of Thailand.svg Tin Sritrai211:22.287
3 Flag of Thailand.svg Nattapon Horthongkum121:22.877
4 Flag of Thailand.svg Sak Nana031:24.309

Final

WinnerTimeCarLoserTime
Flag of Thailand.svg Nattavude Charoensukawattana1:21.9160 Toyota GT86 Flag of Thailand.svg Tin Sritrai1:22.8871

ROC Asia

Round Robin

Pos.TeamWinsLossesDriversWinsLossesBest Time
1Flag of India.svg  India 42 Flag of India.svg Karun Chandhok 211:19.393
Flag of India.svg Narain Karthikeyan 211:19.460
2Flag of Japan.svg  Japan 33 Flag of Japan.svg Kazuya Oshima 211:18.470
Flag of Japan.svg Takuto Iguchi 121:19.853
3Flag of Thailand.svg  Thailand 33 Flag of Thailand.svg Nattavude Charoensukawattana211:21.110
Flag of Thailand.svg Tin Sritrai121:20.3364
4Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg  China 24 Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Han Han 211:19.450
Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Ho-Pin Tung 031:18.2100

Final

WinnerTimeCarLoserTime
Flag of India.svg Narain Karthikeyan 1:20.1777 Volkswagen Scirocco Flag of Japan.svg Kazuya Oshima 1:20.6809
Flag of India.svg Karun Chandhok 1:21.4805 Toyota GT86 Flag of Japan.svg Takuto Iguchi 1:22.4326

Nations Cup

Drivers who made a false start are marked with a Yellow cardYellow card.svg in the tables, and a time penalty of 5 seconds was added to their original time.

Group A

Pos.TeamWinsLossesDriverWinsLossesBest Time
1 Flag of France.svg France 42 Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean 211:16.613
Flag of France.svg Sébastien Ogier 211:16.240
2 Flag of Denmark.svg Flag of Spain.svg All-Stars33 Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen 211:14.708
Flag of Spain.svg Jorge Lorenzo 121:23.310
3 Flag of Mexico.svg Flag of the United States.svg Americas 33 Flag of Mexico.svg Benito Guerra 211:22.346
Flag of the United States.svg Ryan Hunter-Reay 121:19.133
4 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Great Britain 24 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Coulthard 121:15.798
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Andy Priaulx 121:17.055

Group B

Pos.TeamWinsLossesDriverWinsLossesBest Time
1 Flag of Germany.svg Germany 60 Flag of Germany.svg Michael Schumacher 301:15.614
Flag of Germany.svg Sebastian Vettel 301:16.657
2 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia 33 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mick Doohan 121:20.178
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Jamie Whincup 211:19.385
3 Flag of India.svg India 24 Flag of India.svg Karun Chandhok 121:18.317
Flag of India.svg Narain Karthikeyan 121:23.169
4 Flag of Thailand.svg Thailand 15 Flag of Thailand.svg Nattavude Charoensukawattana031:23.964
Flag of Thailand.svg Tin Sritrai121:19.160

Finals

 
Semi-finalsFinal
 
      
 
 
 
 
Flag of France.svg France 2
 
 
 
Flag of Denmark.svg Flag of Spain.svg All-Stars0
 
Flag of France.svg France 0
 
 
 
Flag of Germany.svg Germany 2
 
Flag of Germany.svg Germany 2
 
 
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia 0
 

Semifinals

Team 1Time 1CarTeam 2Time 2
Flag of France.svg France 2-0 Flag of Denmark.svg Flag of Spain.svg All-Stars
Sébastien Ogier 1:15.5143 Audi R8 LMS Tom Kristensen 1:15.6365
Romain Grosjean 1:23.1327 Toyota GT86 Jorge Lorenzo 1:24.7146
Flag of Germany.svg Germany 2-0 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Australia
Michael Schumacher 1:17.2869 Euro Racecar Jamie Whincup 1:22.1543 Yellow card.svg
Sebastian Vettel 1:17.6834Yellow card.svg Lamborghini Gallardo Super Trofeo Mick Doohan 1:19.6904

Final

Team 1Time 1CarTeam 2Time 2
Flag of France.svg France 0-2 Flag of Germany.svg Germany
Romain Grosjean 1:17.3946 KTM X-Bow Michael Schumacher 1:15.3257
Sébastien Ogier 1:20.5839ROC Car Sebastian Vettel 1:18.6005

Race of Champions

Knockout stage

QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal
         
Flag of France.svg Sébastien Ogier 0
Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen 1
Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen 1
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Coulthard 0
Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Ho-Pin Tung 0
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Coulthard 1
Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen 0
Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean 2
Flag of Germany.svg Sebastian Vettel 0
Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean 1
Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean 1
Flag of Germany.svg Michael Schumacher 0
Flag of Germany.svg Michael Schumacher 1
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mick Doohan 0

Quarterfinals

Driver 1Time 1CarDriver 2Time 2
Flag of France.svg Sébastien Ogier 1:14.5605 Audi R8 LMS Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen 1:14.0680
Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg Ho-Pin Tung 1:21.7089 Volkswagen Scirocco Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Coulthard 1:21.6364
Flag of Germany.svg Sebastian Vettel DNF Yellow card.svg KTM X-Bow Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean 1:15.5455
Flag of Germany.svg Michael Schumacher 1:17.0426 Euro Racecar Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mick Doohan 1:25.1853 Yellow card.svg

Semifinals

Driver 1Time 1CarDriver 2Time 2
Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen 1:14.3384 Audi R8 LMS Flag of the United Kingdom.svg David Coulthard 1:15.8312
Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean 1:14.8951 KTM X-Bow Flag of Germany.svg Michael Schumacher 1:15.3823

Final

Driver 1Time 1CarDriver 2Time 2
Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen 1:18.9348ROC Car Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean 1:18.4775
Flag of France.svg Romain Grosjean 1:16.0779 KTM X-Bow Flag of Denmark.svg Tom Kristensen 1:16.4569

References

  1. Google news article from AFP
  2. The IBNLive news article on the race
  3. "Bangkok to host 25th Race of Champions". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 25 May 2012. Archived from the original on 19 September 2012. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  4. "The Hindustan Times article on ROC Asia". Archived from the original on 23 December 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  5. "News Story – Team Germany win sixth ROC Nations Cup". Race of Champions. Archived from the original on 17 December 2012. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  6. 1 2 "News Story – Grosjean crowned 2012 Champion of Champions". Race of Champions. Archived from the original on 19 December 2012. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  7. The Formula One official site article on the race
  8. "Motors TV coverage of Race of Champions peaks with 44,000 viewers". The F1 Broadcasting Blog. 17 December 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2012.
  9. Pre-race article by Fox News
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 "The pre race participication list for the competition". Archived from the original on 10 December 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
  11. 1 2 "Tom Kristensen and Andy Priaulx to return". autosport.com. Autosport. 20 November 2012. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  12. "Jorge Lorenzo to make Race of Champions debut". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 31 October 2012. Archived from the original on 2 January 2013. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  13. 1 2 "Guerra to partner Hunter-Reay on 'Team Americas'". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 7 December 2012. Archived from the original on 12 December 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
  14. "2012 IndyCar Champion Hunter-Reay to race in Bangkok". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 3 October 2012. Archived from the original on 5 January 2013. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  15. 1 2 "Whincup and Doohan pair up for Team Australia". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 11 October 2012. Archived from the original on 2 January 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  16. 1 2 "Reigning champion Ogier partners Grosjean for Team France". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 4 December 2012. Archived from the original on 8 December 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  17. "F1's greatest driver of all time Schumacher heads to ROC in Bangkok". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 18 September 2012. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2012.
  18. "F1 world champion Vettel returns to ROC in Bangkok". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 11 June 2012. Archived from the original on 19 August 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
  19. "David Coulthard heads to Bangkok for ROC 2012". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 24 October 2012. Archived from the original on 28 December 2012. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Vettel and Lorenzo to go head-to-head at ROC". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. 7 December 2012. Archived from the original on 10 December 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
  21. "ROC Asia". raceofchampions.com. Race of Champions. Archived from the original on 9 December 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  22. 1 2 "Race Of Champions – 14th–16th December – Rajamangala Stadium, Bangkok". TSL Timing solutions. Retrieved 25 December 2012.
  23. 1 2 "The Track". Archived from the original on 29 December 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2013.
  24. "Speedcafe" . Retrieved 23 January 2013.