Posted: 26 January 2012

Josh's winter racing in New Zealand continued at a rainy Timaru last weekend.

Josh qualified in sixth for race 1 and fifth for race 2 whilst Hannes van Asseldonk took pole in both sessions with Bruno Bonifacio in second for both.

Race 1 pole sitter van Asseldonk slipped down to fifth and third placed starter Nick Cassidy took the win after passing van Asseldonk and a stalled Bonifacio on the opening lap. Bonifacio slipped down the grid as cars swarmed past him but he managed to recover to eighth at the chequered flag. Damon Leitch and Felix Serralles passed van Asseldonk the back straight and Josh was fighting for fourth place. The safety car was deployed briefly but couldn't save van Asseldonk from a charging Hill once the green flag racing resumed. Hill was soon past Serralles as well and chasing Leitch who was charging hard to catch Cassidy but couldn't quite close the gap. Josh attempted a bold overtaking move on Leitch on the back straight as the leading 2 slowed whilst fighting for first place but the move didn't stick and Josh brought the car home in third.

Race 2 for the Timaru Herald Trophy,  on a wet Sunday morning saw Cassidy take the win again from fourth on the grid. Bonifacio briefly took the lead on the opening lap before van Asseldonk fought back and he was quickly followed by Cassidy after dispatching Leith for third. Josh finished in eighth after going off the track early on. Chris Vlok lost his front wing and retired and Tanart Sathienthirakul retired too as the track began to dry. van Hasseldonk had a shocker of a race and could only manage fourteenth which became his starting position for race 3.

Josh started in eighth for Race 3 but ended up eighteenth after being, to quote Josh, "punted off" from sixth. van Hasseldonk's run of bad luck continued as he came home last in nineteenth. Damon Leitch took the win and is second in the championship, just 11 points behind Nick Cassidy. Josh is currently in fourth, 34 points behind but there's 75 points per win up for grabs!

After race 2 Josh was interviewed by Peter Windsor and you can watch the full interview on Peter Windsor's website.

The series continues this weekend at Taupo.

Labels: Nick Cassidy, Bruno Bonifacio, Hannes van Asseldonk, Toyota Racing Series, Joshua Hill, Tanart Sathienthirakul, Chris Vlok, Felix Serralles, Damon Leitch,

Posted by Mike at 26/01/2012.

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Posted: 15 January 2012

Once again Josh is taking part in the Toyota Racing Series in New Zealand this winter ahead of a season in Formula Renault 2.0 with MSA.

Josh won the first round of the Toyota Racing Series in New Zealand, a series in which he took part in last winter. Josh qualified in fourth for the first of the weekend's 3 races with Lucas Auer, the nephew of Gerhard Berger, on pole. Fellow Brit Jordan King was second and Raffaele Marciello was third. The rain came down at the start and Auer spun just three corners in to the race as Raffaele Marciello collected Auer as he spun and the race had to be restarted. Hill led from the restart ahead of Jordan King and after a 3 car scrap for turn one he led the field home to take the win ahead of Damon Leitch (who started eleventh) and Jono Lester. King and Hannes van Asseldonk went off track and their cars could not be recovered safely so the race finished early under a safety car.

Hannes van Asseldonk soon made up for his disappointment with a stunning drive in race 2. Auer again had pole ahead of Jordan King with Hill in third and Hannes van Asseldonk in fourth. Jono Lester took a trip in to the gravel shortly after the start and the safety car was deployed whilst Lester's car was recovered. No sooner was the safety car back in the pits when Auer went off and the safety car was out again. Van Asseldonk was leading now ahead of Nick Cassidy, Jordan King, Bruno Bonifacio and Josh Hill. Once the track was clear Bonfacio passed King and Hill and Marciello tangled, causing damage to Hill's front wing. Hill was ordered in to the pits by race control for a new wing. In the meantime the safety car was out yet again as the heavens opened and sleet began to fall on the track. Race control ended the race early as the track was too wet for slicks. Hannes van Asseldonk took the win ahead of Cassidy and Bonifacio. Josh was thirteenth.

Hill was down in thirteenth for the start of race 3 as the grid was the same as the race 2 finishing order but with the top 6 reversed. As the rain sheeted down the race was chaotic to say the least. Jono Lester, who started last, sliced his way through the field to seventh. Bruno Bonifacio jumped the start in seventh place and was handed a 5 second penalty after the race. There were only 2 laps of green flag racing however as the rain continued to pour down and the safety car led the field round until the chequered flag. The stewards declared the race however so the results were based on the lap before the race race was declared. Nick Cassidy took the chequered flag but van Asseldonk was leading on the count back lap before he spun out, causing the red flag that ended the race, so van Asseldonk took the win. Hill was up to fourth on the last lap but was classified in sixth in the end results.

After 3 races Damon Leitch is leading the series with 181 points ahead of Nick Cassidy, Hannes van Asseldonk and Josh Hill in fourth with 146 points. The action moves on to Timaru on the 19th - 22nd January.

Labels: Bruno Bonifaci, Nick Cassidy, Toyota Racing Series, Joshua Hill, Lucas Auer, Gerhard Berger, Jordan King, Raffaele Marciello, Jono Lester, Damon Leitch, Hannes van Asseldonk,

Posted by Mike at 15/01/2012.

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Posted: 04 December 2011

Although we're all about Josh Hill on this site it's a shame to see a talent like Dan Wells struggle to get on the grid for 2012.

Dan needs £7000 to take part in next year's Formula Renault 2.0 UK championship. Now YOU have the chance to sponsor a racing driver as Dan has set up his own Go Fund Me page where you can contribute to his 2012 racing budget.

Labels: Dan Wells, Formula Renault,

Posted by Mike at 04/12/2011.

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Posted: 03 December 2011

Damon Hill appeared on The Flying Lap with Peter Windsor on Wednesday.

Damon and Peter talked about Josh's career so far, Michael Schumacher, Kimi's comeback and much more. You can watch the whole video below.

Labels: Joshua Hill, Smibs.TV, The Flying Lap, Peter Windsor, Damon Hill,

Posted by Mike at 03/12/2011.

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Posted: 30 November 2011

Josh's father, Damon Hill, will be Peter Windsor's guest on The Flying Lap on Wednesday 30th November.

Formula 1 World Champion and Josh's dad, Damon Hill, will be Peter Windsor's guest on The Flying Lap on Wednesday 30th November. The Flying Lap is Peter Windsor's weekly F1 and motor sport themed chat show / video podcast where he interviews a whole host of motorsport drivers, personalities, writers and journalists and it has fast become my favourite motorsport show. Peter will be talking to Damon about his career and Josh's. The show is also available on iTunes and YouTube after the live airing.

Labels: Damon Hill, Peter Windsor, The Flying Lap, Smibs.TV, Joshua Hill,

Posted by Mike at 30/11/2011.

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