Rick Gauci Racing heads across the country to Perth Motorplex.
The RGR AEROFLOW / City Finance team have been building strength with their Top Alcohol campaign. After laying down a solid foundation at the Australian Nationals & with more runs being put on the AEROFLOW Funnycar has made the debut in the West an exciting challenge.
This the 2nd round of Top Alcohol at Perth Motorplex has a very strong WA presence & being virgins to the PM racing surface & a new body painted by SIKOOH been fitted to the Funnycar will make finding the right combination straight out of the container everything to make race day in this hot field of Top Alcohol Funnycars & Dragsters.
The RGR Team would like to give a special thanks to JBS quality tools for their support in getting the Team to Perth Motorplex for Round 2 of the Top Alcohol Championship.
Rick Gauci Racing is proudly sponsored by:
AEROFLOW www.aeroflowperformance.com.au
City Finance www.cityfinance.com.au
ROBBOS Spares www.robbos.com.au
Smithfield Diff & Gear www.diffandgear.com.au
BRAD PENN www.mscn.com.au
Newby Engineering www.newby.com.au
rickgauciracing.com.au
AEROFLOW & Rick Gauci Racing shine at Motorex 2011
After a trying race season the AEROFLOW / CITY FINANCE Funnycar made its self available for the public to see close up what Drag Racing cars are really made of. The two day event showcased a large variety of machines in the automotive world & the AEROFLOW / CITY FINANCE Funnycar had them all covered in the Horse power department. With the new season only 2 months away the RGR Team is ready to get back to business on the ¼ mile.
Rick Gauci Racing debuts new AEROFLOW colors at Willowbank’s New Year’s Series.
Rick Gauci Racing is delighted with AREOFLOW & Rocket Industries coming on board & strengthening the teams Drag Racing carrier in the ANDRA Pro Series. The team has come a long way in the short time of their Top Alcohol campaign. Laying down a solid foundation with more data & runs being put on the AREOFLOW Funnycar only builds up the confidence within the Team.
The field was faced with very tricky conditions with a hot track & high humidity. The first qualifying pass under the new colors almost ended as quickly as it started with fellow racer Debbie Reeds Top Alcohol Dragster hitting the wall & crossing in front of the AEROFLOW Funnycar. Staying focused for the remainder of the meeting ended up being the biggest challenge as the RGR teams thoughts & prayers were with Debbie’s well being.
 
After qualifying in the number 5 position the team went through there maintenance checks & finding as always the BRAD PENN oil running through the engines 3500 Hp veins had done it job & the RGR team was quietly confident they had a strong car for first round.
Unfortunately the heavens opened while the Top Alcohol class was ready in the staging lanes & the heavy rain put an end to the event. The RGR team will be racing at the Nitro Champs at Sydney Dragway starting 30th April.
Top Alcohol Pro Series round 2
At the 2nd Top Alcohol Pro Series round the Rick Gauci Racing team made a Body change on the City Finance Funnycar, the new Mustang body was put on to improve the down force. Positive data came out of the weekend with qualifying being very tricky for the team as the track temp was very high & with limited data to go off under these conditions the RGR team dropped into the NO-8 position with a 5.92 @ 216mph.
1st round saw the City Finance Funnycar run against the NO-1 qualifier Aaron Hambridge, after some strong tyreshake the race was over & the RGR team is only going the benefit from the meeting that they found hard to get a handle on after making the noticeable body changes.
 
Photos courtesy of www.badgerphotography.com.au
The RGR team have made race day on every occasion since stepping up into the class of Top Alcohol in the ANDRA PRO SERIES, the team has been moving forward in establishing themselves as a recognized name in the ANDRA Pro Series which has had them working hard behind the scenes to keep the City Finance Funnycar going fast. With an exciting major announcement from the RGR team about to be released in the coming weeks the team would like to thank all their sponsors for helping RGR get to this stage & beyond.
Australian Nationals 2010 at Sydney Dragway
After a good performance at the Winter Nationals in QLD the RGR team didn't have a smooth qualifying sessions at the Australian Nationals. 1st qualifier the City Finance Funnycar did not respond to the tune-up that was put into the engine, a sluggish 6.05 @ 230mph needed some fine tuning but with a data logger malfunction the team put it down to too much fuel. The 2nd qualifier saw the Funnycar react the same way with another 6.03 @ 235 mph, fortunately the data logger problem was fixed & the team could see NO1 cylinder stop firing at the hit of the throttle which in turn had us chasing an electrical problem. After changing the coil, magneto & points box the team was confident of a pass with all 8 cylinders working. Moving to NO7 in the 3rd qualifier Running a 5.92 @ 238 mph was a relief but NO1 cylinder showed there was still no fire & after further chasing the source it came down to a faulty ignition lead.
 
Photos courtesy of www.badgerphotography.com.au
1st Round saw the City Finance Funnycar line up against their unofficial team mate Wayne Newby’s JBS Dragster, sponsors like Smithfield Diff & Gear, Newby Engineering were in a win win situation to go into the semis. After nailing the Dragster on the start line the RGR Funnycar found its legs & ran 5.76 @ 250mph only to get bet right on the line. It was the first pass running on 8 cylinders all weekend & if only the RGR team had another shot at the track then the result may have been a lot different.
Rick Gauci Racing would like to thank there sponsors for all their support & without them RGR would of struggled in achieving the goals they currently have achieved.
The RGR team records a huge step forward at the Australian Winter Nationals
Going into the final round of the “ANDRA PRO SERIES” at the Winternationals in Queensland the RGR team knew nothing short of a PB was going to get them into the top 8 elimination field & this was the goal the team had to finish the season. Only having 3 passes on the Willowbank track prior to this event & no existing data for the event made it so much more of a challenge.
The 1st qualifier saw the City Finance Funnycar break a blower belt before the 1000ft mark & still run its quickest pass to date with a 5.72 @ only 213mph which put the team straight into 6th spot & showed we were on the right track to make race day.
With a couple of tweaks the 2nd qualifier was a jaw dropper & had the crew ecstatic with the time of 5.602 @ 254.95mph. With only 2 seasons & 43 passes on the City Finance Funnycar, Rick Gauci put his name down as the 5th quickest Alcohol fueled driver in the Australian Pro Series. Rick commented “We are now going fast but we will be going even faster!”
 
The exposure of Australian Drag Racing is currently growing at a very healthy rate and during the event over 39,000 people walked through the gate and over 25,000 in the USA alone watched the event live stream through the web which in turn made the huge achievement even sweeter.
With the start of the New Season on 10th 11th and12th September at Sydney Dragway the RGR team will be working hard to kick the season off on the same note as they finished the this one and staying consistently fast will be the key to moving forward.
Sydney Dragway Karcher Nitro Champs Report
The Nitro Champs meeting was to be a stepping stone for the RGR team and the 1st qualifier on Friday night went off with a bang in more ways than one. Pro Stock was throwing down fast ET times and it looked like the track was going to be tight for T/A, but unfortunately the track went off. The City Finance Funnycar had an over rev at the 1000ft mark which in turn dropped a valve and coasted to a 5.91 @ only 206mph. This still put us straight into number 4 qualifier position.
Ralf & Anthony from Smithfield Diff & Gear along with Wayne Newby helped, burning the midnight oil with the crew. Mark at MSCN helping out with supplying parts, as well as some of the No. 1 oil in Australia, “BRAD PENN”. Thanks guys for your commitment to RGR staying in the race.
Saturday was back to basics after we decided to play it safe by changing the engine, and the 2nd qualifier was a half track pass so the team could assess the new engines vitals. The numbers were very strong to half track which show we had lost nothing. The City Finance Funnycar finished number 6 in qualifying, which again was a solid achievement for the team.
Race day had us paired up with the very consistent dragster of Dean Oakey, and we needed to make them catch us if they can. We did get the holeshot and ran hard all the way with a 5.83 @ 248mph, only to get beaten right on the finish line and that was a killer.
The City Finance Funnycar is showing consistent 5 second passes down the track, and next the meeting at the Winternationals in Willowbank the RGR team will be a thorn in other races side.
Sydney Dragway Summernationals Report
The RGR team went to the meeting with a positive approach to move forward. The weather was always going to be a concern & the team had to make sure the first Qualifier put the team in the field in case it was the only shot the City Finance Funnycar had before first round.
With no existing data for the density altitude over 3500ft & high track temperature, getting everything to work was a new challenge for the team. We were first pair out & nearly got it right with a strong pass until the burst panel blow just after the 1000ft mark & the City Finance Funnycar slow to a very impressive 5.85sec @ 238mph which put the team in number 3 position in the strong field & the number 1 Funnycar in the field of Dragsters & Funnycars. Unfortunately the weather turned bad & the meeting had to be cancelled but the confidence in the RGR team was high & confirming the City Finance Funnycar is on the money & will be a hard opponent to get around.
2009-10 Season so far...
In the 2008-09 season, the Rick Gauci Racing (RGR) Top Alcohol Pontiac Funnycar showed a lot of potential. With only 15 passes on the new car we drop into the 5 second club with a 5.858 back up by 5.771 at WSID Nitro Champs in May.
The 2009-10 season has started with the same promise. In the first round at Willowbank a 5.90 put us into the field. Our third qualifier half track time put us on another 5.7 pass but a kill switch wire broke and shut the engine off. Our first round opponent was Steve Reed but unfortunately the throttle cable broke on the launch and ended our weekend. It is disappointing to go out that way but in all it was a very productive weekend for the team.
The second round at WSID Australian Nationals for RGR was going to be the meeting we would start to tweak to screws, with enough data now to make small steps in achieving PBs. Our first Qualifier being a strong 5.79 @ 249mph (PB MPH) show we are on song but at the 1000ft something went through the supercharger, which in turn changed the weekend to one to forget. We replaced valves and cleaned up the Supercharger at Newby Engineering, with Wayne burning the midnight oil with us till 5am.
The second qualifier we decided to change Supercharges as we were not completely happy with the Supercharger data. This in turn resulted in stripping the teeth of the blower belt. Up against Wayne Newby in the first round, and not worried about losing to Newby Racing, we decided to chance that the blower belt wouldn't strip again. Unfortunately by half track bits of belt were flying everywhere and that was the end of our weekend.
Next round for the team will be at Sydney Dragway Summernationals, and a real test for RGR to keep moving forward. With the team only into their second season in Group 1, we are growing more confident of becoming a difficult opponent to get around.
Stay tuned for more RGR high lights and low lights.
Copyright 2009 Rick Gauci Racing. All Rights Reserved.
Website Designed and Hosted By Fish Web Designs & Hosting
Photos by Badger Photography
|
