george Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Young Briton to race for Thailand BANGKOK: -- Thailand-based Briton James Grunwell took a step closer to the world stage yesterday when he announced he will represent Thailand under the Meritus team banner in the Formula BMW Asia series this season. Sponsored by local firm The Pizza Company, the promising young racing driver was given a chance to compete against international drivers in the seven racing series, which will be held in five countries in Asia - China (Beijing and Shanghai), Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Thailand. Grunwell, 17, said he is delighted to represent Thailand in the world-class competition and his only objective is to win. "My goal is first to win the Formula BMW Asia championship. This is my focal point now. In the end I want to be a professional racing driver and earn my living doing so," said the highly-rated driver, who was awarded a US$50,000 Formula BMW Scholarship in January. "It would be great to become a Formula 1 driver, but there are lots of opportunities to be explored first driving in other series and other countries. I have climbed through the karting ranks in Thailand, drove Minis and concept cars. Now I am going to compete in Asia in the FBMW series. It is a great way to promote Thailand." Asked why an Englishman wants to race under the Thai flag, the young Grunwell said it was because of his love of Thailand, which he always feels is his homeland. "I was born in Holland and when I was six weeks old my family moved to Singapore for one year. After that we moved to Thailand and we have been here ever since. "I love Thailand and I feel it is my home country. I also like going to Holland, my mother's country, and England, but I feel more at home in Thailand. Thai food is my favourite - the spicier the better. I enjoy all the different flavours of Thai food and like rice much better than potatoes." The first event awaiting him is the Malaysian Grand Prix on Saturday, while the Thailand races will be held at the Bira International Circuit in Pattaya in September and Grunwell believes it will be a good first step for all Thai drivers in the world challenge. "It is an excellent opportunity for Thai-based drivers to make it abroad since the races are not only shown in Thailand, but are broadcast world-wide," he added. --The Nation 2006-03-15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astral Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 How come we don't have any Thai drivers? There are Thai youngsters coming up through the Go Kart racing scene!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roamer Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 How come we don't have any Thai drivers?There are Thai youngsters coming up through the Go Kart racing scene!! Sponsorship. In the most money oriented sport of all it counts the most. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maejo Man Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 How come we don't have any Thai drivers? There are Thai youngsters coming up through the Go Kart racing scene!! Sponsorship. In the most money oriented sport of all it counts the most. As Roamer so aptly states $$$$$$ You can have all the talent in the world, but unless you have the sponsorship, you unfortunately go nowhere. Karting was affordable, and that go me going. I went onto club racing in saloons, and I can still remember writing all those begging letters to the likes of Dunlop, Castrol and Shell for some form of sponsorship. Shell was the only one that came to the party. Any driver in the paddock with full sponsorship was an icon. I still maintain a full race tuned Cooper "S" even today for club events Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jing jing Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 Kudos to young Grunwell for carrying the Thai flag, although with his background one wonders why he'd be classified as a Brit anyway... could just as easily be Dutch. Beginning at age 30, I raced karts for a number of years in California and saw more than a few of my fellow racers move up to the professional ranks. One young Californian who I never raced against, as he was in the junior classes while I was running gearbox karts, is Scott Speed, who is now a rookie in F1 thanks to Red Bull's American Driver Search. My son, who is 5 months old now and half Thai, will have the opportunity to race at the earliest age possible. I don't want to force him into anything of course, but am aware that the younger one begins to pursue an athletic skill, the greater chance of developing a world class talent. Money is always an issue in racing so my time will be split between tutoring my boy in driving and setup techniques and banging on potential sponsors' doors for a "handout." It's quite a shame, really, that pure talent doesn't always get rewarded in racing as much as financial backing does. Considering that his primary sponsor in Formula BMW is "The Pizza Company," I reckon young Grunwell's family has some fairly deep pockets to plumb... well, more power to him I say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patex Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 How come we don't have any Thai drivers? There are Thai youngsters coming up through the Go Kart racing scene!! Sponsorship. In the most money oriented sport of all it counts the most. So you want assert Michael Schumacher and the others aren't all talented drivers and the Formula1 circus give his XX million$ cars to everybody with some money in the pockets?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maejo Man Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 So you want assert Michael Schumacher and the others aren't all talented drivers and the Formula1 circus give his XX million$ cars to everybody with some money in the pockets?? Amazing how some posters leap on a post and completely cock it up. There was no mention of lack of talent in FI Why not read the posts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jing jing Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 (edited) How come we don't have any Thai drivers? There are Thai youngsters coming up through the Go Kart racing scene!! Sponsorship. In the most money oriented sport of all it counts the most. So you want assert Michael Schumacher and the others aren't all talented drivers and the Formula1 circus give his XX million$ cars to everybody with some money in the pockets?? As a matter of fact most of the drivers ending up in F1 are from wealthy families. I don't think you'll find that our new WDC, young Mr. Alonso, for example, hails from the wrong side of the tracks, so to speak. Schumacher's father ran (owned?) a go-kart track when Michael was 4 or 5 years old, giving him a bit of a leg up on the competition. At the upper levels almost all the drivers are super talented -- everything else being equal, the super talented driver who can bring some sponsorship (from daddy or wherever) to the team will get preference over the super talented driver who brings diddly squat. Incidentally, my racing idol - the late, great Ayrton Senna - was from an extremely wealthy family in Brazil. Did having all that money behind him help Senna to climb the ladder? It sure didn't hurt his chances any... Edited March 15, 2006 by jing jing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patex Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 ...Schumacher's father ran (owned?) a go-kart track when Michael was 4 or 5 years old, giving him a bit of a leg up on the competition...... And he has won his first races on worn- out tires... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jing jing Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 ...Schumacher's father ran (owned?) a go-kart track when Michael was 4 or 5 years old, giving him a bit of a leg up on the competition...... And he has won his first races on worn- out tires... Really? That's new information to me... but now I wonder, were they worn-out at the beginning or just at the end of those races? And who's to say they were worn-out and not just "scrubbed-in?" In any case I'm sure that if the hot set-up was new tires, he'd have had new tires... in a sprint kart race sometimes scrubs are better, depending on the compound, because tires may last longer after being put through one heat cycle. Okay... that's all the free setup tips I'm giving on this forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patex Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 ...Schumacher's father ran (owned?) a go-kart track when Michael was 4 or 5 years old, giving him a bit of a leg up on the competition...... And he has won his first races on worn- out tires... Really? That's new information to me... but now I wonder, were they worn-out at the beginning or just at the end of those races? And who's to say they were worn-out and not just "scrubbed-in?" This was back in his go-kart times and yes, from the beginning...Schumacher's just ran the track, they wern't poor but also far away from rich. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maejo Man Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 In any case I'm sure that if the hot set-up was new tires, he'd have had new tires... in a sprint kart race sometimes scrubs are better, depending on the compound, because tires may last longer after being put through one heat cycle. While we are on Karting, is anyone still actively Karting? I have a brand new set of spun aluminium racing wheels up for grabs with new rubber on the rear wheels, complete with bearings. I know it's a little but thought I'd mention it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PREM-R Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 (astral @ 2006-03-15 19:49:17) How come we don't have any Thai drivers? BECAUSE IN MOTOR RACING YOU HAVE TO WEAR A HELMET AND EVERY ONE HAS TO GO DOWN THE PIT LANE IN THE SAME DIRECTION !!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maejo Man Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 (astral @ 2006-03-15 19:49:17) How come we don't have any Thai drivers? BECAUSE IN MOTOR RACING YOU HAVE TO WEAR A HELMET AND EVERY ONE HAS TO GO DOWN THE PIT LANE IN THE SAME DIRECTION !!!!! Post of the day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBWG Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 How come we don't have any Thai drivers? There are Thai youngsters coming up through the Go Kart racing scene!! Sponsorship. In the most money oriented sport of all it counts the most. Hi Thailand/Siam do have a previous history in F1, although it was some time ago. Prince Bira raced during the early 1950's with some success in Maserati and ERA's. I believe they also have a national racing colour ...bright yellow. TBWG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maejo Man Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Thailand/Siam do have a previous history in F1, although it was some time ago. Prince Bira raced during the early 1950's with some success in Maserati and ERA's.I believe they also have a national racing colour ...bright yellow. Quite correct TBWG.. Prince Birabongse Bhanutej Bhanubandhs of Thailand was a flamboyant driver in the pre war years and up till his retirement in the mid fifties . He raced predominantly at the famous Brooklands, and all over Europe including Le Mans. Passed away in London in the early sixties. I only saw him race once, and that was the British Grand Prix in 1954 when a host of my "idols were also racing including Mike Hawthorn and Stirling Moss. Some great names there...... BRITISH GRAND PRIX RESULTS Pos No Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points 1 9 José Froilán González Ferrari 90 2:56' 14 2 8.14 2 11 Mike Hawthorn Ferrari 90 + 70.0 3 6.14 3 23 Onofre Marimon Maserati 89 + 1 Lap 28 4.14 4 1 Juan Manuel Fangio Mercedes 89 + 1 Lap 1 3.14 5 10 Maurice Trintignant Ferrari 87 + 3 Laps 8 2 6 4 Roberto Mieres Maserati 87 + 3 Laps 32 7 2 Karl Kling Mercedes 87 + 3 Laps 6 8 8 Ken Wharton Maserati 86 + 4 Laps 9 9 19 Andre Pilette Gordini 86 + 4 Laps 12 10 29 Bob Gerard Cooper-Bristol 85 + 5 Laps 18 11 25 Don Beauman Connaught-Francis 84 + 6 Laps 17 12 3 Harry Schell Maserati 83 + 7 Laps 16 13 23 Leslie Marr Connaught-Francis 82 + 8 Laps 22 14 26 Leslie Thorne Connaught-Francis 78 + 12 Laps 23 15 28 Horace Gould Cooper-Bristol 44 + 46 Laps 20 Ret 7 Stirling Moss Maserati 80 Axle 4 0.14 Ret 22 Bill Whitehouse Connaught-Francis 63 Fuel System 19 Ret 17 Jean Behra Gordini 54 Suspension 5 0.14 Ret 5 Roy Salvadori Maserati 53 Transmission 7 Ret 6 Prince Bira Maserati 44 Accident 10 Shr 6 Ron Flockhart Maserati Ret 32 Luigi Villoresi Maserati 40 Engine 27 Shr 32 Alberto Ascari Maserati Ret 24 John Riseley-Prichard Connaught-Francis 40 Accident 21 Ret 12 Reg Parnell Ferrari 25 Engine 14 Ret 31 Alberto Ascari Maserati 21 Engine 30 0.14 Ret 18 Clemar Bucci Gordini 18 Accident 13 Ret 20 Peter Collins Vanwall 16 Engine 11 Ret 14 Robert Manzon Ferrari 16 Engine 15 Ret 21 Peter Whitehead Cooper-Alta 4 Oil Leak 24 Ret 30 Eric Brandon Cooper-Bristol 2 Engine 25 Ret 15 Louis Rosier Ferrari 2 Engine 31 DNS 27 Alan Brown Cooper-Bristol Non Starter 26 DNS 30 Rodney Nuckey Cooper-Bristol Non Starter 29 Photo with Malcolm Campbell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBWG Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Hi MM Thought I had been following motor racing for a long time but can't beat that. I started in the Jim Clarke, Graham Hill era. My all time top 3, Pedro Rodriguez Jochen Rindt, Ronnie Peterson alas all dead unfullfilled potential Stephan Bellof & Tom Pryce TBWG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maejo Man Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 In danger of going here, but hey, I'm in Thailand, so it's Thai related The sixties were some of the best times for all aspects of racing, but modified saloons were what kept me in the garage all week nights. I still get high on R40 Don't do serious competitions, but the odd sprint meeting is still a blast...... 1969 MkI "S" 1370cc/43DC0E Webber and still turns a 0-60 in under 6 secs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBWG Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 In danger of going here, but hey, I'm in Thailand, so it's Thai related The sixties were some of the best times for all aspects of racing, but modified saloons were what kept me in the garage all week nights. I still get high on R40 Don't do serious competitions, but the odd sprint meeting is still a blast...... 1969 MkI "S" 1370cc/43DC0E Webber and still turns a 0-60 in under 6 secs Hi MM I too enjoyed the sixties saloon car scene...Gerry Marshall, Dave Brodie, Norman Abbott etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBWG Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 In danger of going here, but hey, I'm in Thailand, so it's Thai related The sixties were some of the best times for all aspects of racing, but modified saloons were what kept me in the garage all week nights. I still get high on R40 Don't do serious competitions, but the odd sprint meeting is still a blast...... 1969 MkI "S" 1370cc/43DC0E Webber and still turns a 0-60 in under 6 secs Hi MM I too enjoyed the sixties saloon car scene...Gerry Marshall, Dave Brodie, Norman Abbott etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dan Sai Kid Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 How come we don't have any Thai drivers?There are Thai youngsters coming up through the Go Kart racing scene!! I don't know if the same would apply to Thai drivers, but there is a school of thought in F1 that the Japanese drivers lack a certain amount of upper body strength. Japan's most succesful F1 driver was a guy called Satoru Nakhajima - he raced at Lotus in the late 80s and early 90s - he was basically there because he could provide a lot of sponsoship money. All that he did was get lapped - he was really out of his depth. Anyway, the last race of the 80's was the Australian Grand Prix - which was held in monsoon conditions - visibility was zero and drivers were crashing out all over the place - Alain Prost even refused to compete. Nakajima had a barn-stormer and eventually finished fourth - which was attributed to the less physical demands of racing in the wet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBWG Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 Hi MM I too enjoyed the sixties saloon car scene...Gerry Marshall, Dave Brodie, Norman Abbott etc. Don't know what i did wrong with previous posts but they went before I had finished . Anyway, I used to watch the saloons whilst trundling around the UK circuits competeing in the Modsports championships. Unfortunately my ability did not live up my enthusiasam, in short I was rubbish See attached photo of me in the thick of it a Brands in my Ginetta G4 with 1 litre MAE dry sump screamer. I might have been c**p but I enjoyed myself. Is but my colour scheme was Bright yellow and blue, Thai national racing colours! Nice chatting to you MM. TBWG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maejo Man Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 I too enjoyed the sixties saloon car scene...Gerry Marshall, Dave Brodie, Norman Abbott etc. I think we better move this to the motor forum as it's going off topic Well well. Gerald Dallas Royston Marshall (GDRM) Late of the Fairway North Wembley number 6 if I remember. His first car was an A35 (10-CRO) which he rolled at Silverstone, hence all his scars on his face. He married an old girlfriend of mine Carol Maynard. He'll be sadly missed....... You might recall WER-113 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TBWG Posted March 17, 2006 Share Posted March 17, 2006 How come we don't have any Thai drivers? There are Thai youngsters coming up through the Go Kart racing scene!! I don't know if the same would apply to Thai drivers, but there is a school of thought in F1 that the Japanese drivers lack a certain amount of upper body strength. Japan's most succesful F1 driver was a guy called Satoru Nakhajima - he raced at Lotus in the late 80s and early 90s - he was basically there because he could provide a lot of sponsoship money. All that he did was get lapped - he was really out of his depth. Anyway, the last race of the 80's was the Australian Grand Prix - which was held in monsoon conditions - visibility was zero and drivers were crashing out all over the place - Alain Prost even refused to compete. Nakajima had a barn-stormer and eventually finished fourth - which was attributed to the less physical demands of racing in the wet. Hi Dan Sai kid I remember "Naka" he did seem to have rather a lot of incidents However Sato is not doing to badly, also some of the European drivers are quite slight, Fisi, Alonso and they seem able to cope. Davidson is also frail looking but can put in good times, we have to wait and see if he can do a race distance' This Thai guy the thread refers to is in fact mainly European so should not be a problem for him. Time will tell if any future Thai drivers can make the grade. TBWG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.png.3b3332cc2256ad0edbc2fe9404feeef0.png)
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now