WEATHER REPORT: The roll of thunder and lightning can be heard booming across the Costa tek Pellios raceway. The race tomorrow in Rhellis will be windy, wet and reaching teamperatures of 29 Cs (84 Fs). A tropical storm has rolled off the ocean and is expected to play havoc with the field tomorrow, with the usually stronger aggressive drivers having to take a backseat to the defensive drivers who will undoubtedly power through. PERFECT SETUP: SBT with a defensive driver WORST SETUP: DAC with an aggressive driver Eight drivers are in the worst possible position with nine teams carrying the worst setup. Three teams, LSE Technologies, Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund and the Kingtown National Raceworks, all run the perfect setup with two of the drivers classed as defensive. The first ever wet Ille de France FMR GP should make for some very interesting racing tomorrow and we'll all be watching closely. Good luck to all drivers. RACE REPORT 1: Its unheard but its not impossible. To go from the back of the grid to the front in one quarter of a grand prix (approximately 60 kilometres of racing) is a mean feat but proved possible by the guts and determination of the LSE Technologies driver, Heinz Spedston. He currently holds a marginal lead over Ben Drinkin of the Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund. Both teams were expected to perform excellently in the adverse conditions and here they are, leading the grand prix. Rodney, the Suited Marmaduke, from Screech of Surique holds the last podium position. Given how early it is in the race, it is unlikely that these will the final finishing positions. Quig of the Kingtown National Raceworks, the third team predicted to be strong under these conditions, holds fourth with a small gap in front and behind but he looks unlikely to hold his lead due to his aggressive nature. Fifth is Nestle, Keetorama's Naginii GP winner, driving a very strong small race car-like vehicle. The remainder of the top ten is made up of Rodney's teammate Cecile, Mentally Insane George's Racing Team drivers, Gerald Gerner of the Symira National team and Ben Drinkin's teammate Ineta Mann. Just outside of the top ten is Ahmed Dakis in twelth. This is amazing given how weak the BRT vehicle is in the wet and the wind but there he is, determined not to let the hostile Rhellisean homecrowd get him down. He is also ahead of all four drivers of Rhellis, the best of which is 27th. Speaking of, the rain has also claimed its first casualty today with Fish Goti of the Tastee Badger Treets Racing team. The disappointment could be seen in a Mexican wave-like affair as faces dropped around the track as the news spread. Goti was flying down the home straight after lap five, tried to lay down an overtaking move on another driver and hit a massive puddle of water on the track. The tyres weren't equipped for it, spun out and ploughed into the pit lane wall. Luckily, large barricades had been erected to catch debris and no spectators or pit crew members were hurt. Top ten at the quarter-way mark (15 laps) of the Rhellis GP: 1. Heinz Spedston (LSE Technologies) 2. Ben Drinkin (Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund) 3. Rodney (Screech of Surique) 4. Quig (Kingtown National Raceworks) 5. Nestle (Keetorama) 6. Cecile (Screech of Surique) 7. Johnson 2 (Mentally Insane George's Racing Team) 8. Johnson 1 (Mentally Insane George's Racing Team) 9. Gerald Gerner (Symira National) 10. Ineta Mann (Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund) By car number, positions 11 through 47: 36, 17, 31, 27, 39, 20, 10, 26, 6, 1, 41, 4, 15, 37, 40, 28, 8, 42, 19, 7, 51, 16, 47, 34, 12, 33, 48, 38, 5, 49, 32, 2, 14, 25, 9, 18 and last 35. OUT: 11 [crash] RACE REPORT 2: It was a fairly mediocre sector as many drivers decided to take their trip around Costa tek Pellios conservatively. It must have worked, however, as no other drivers failed to make it across the half way mark. With times more toward the slower end of things, with the rare spark of speed, drivers in the lower end of the field rose like bubbles in boiling water and popped and fell back down through the order as another driver came through. In the intense and stormy, like the weather, rivalry between the Rhellisean and Burtechian drivers, Ahmed Dakis is still holding his own, even though he slipped a few places. Nordla Anasad of Tastee Badger Treets Racing is the best Rhellisean now, some thirteen palces behind Dakis. Constructors leaders Ardent Antagonists are struggling against the vehicle that has taken them so far in 30th (Princess Shirvine) and 40th (Bolock). Drivers leader, Fluffy, is bogged down in 27th also struggling with a poorly setup car. Given the top drivers are pretty much out of the running, who will come through to take the points? Gerald Gerner has certainly come to play and looking at stamping Symira National into the challenge for the constructors. In only their third race, the relatively inexperienced Gerner is putting in an amazing performance. Ben Drinkin has maintained his second spot and James Pimpanzee of the Meadowbank Boy Racers, somebody many had thought had been lost to the FMR wilderness after blistering performances early in the season, is in third spot. Rodney of the Screech of Surique is now fourth, dropping a place, and Ineta Mann has determinedly pushed through to gain five places in the last quarter of the race to move up into fifth place. Sixth was previously leading Heinz Spedston. Many Liamopolisean fans simply cannot handle another disappointment like last week's and all are hoping that Spedston and the other two drivers in the top ten can get some points. Holding onto seventh place is Quig of the Kingtown National Raceworks and eighth is Silent Jim. Very little separates the top ten (in fact Liamopolisean drivers in ninth and tenth are dead even) and the results could go anywhere. Where? You'll have to stick around to find out. Top ten at the halfway mark (31 laps) of the Rhellis GP: 1. Gerald Gerner (Symira National) 2. Ben Drinkin (Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund) 3. James Pimpanzee (Meadowbank Boy Racers) 4. Rodney (Screech of Surique) 5. Ineta Mann (Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund) 6. Heinz Spedston (LSE Technologies) 7. Quig (Kingtown National Raceworks) 8. Silent Jim (Sport Francais de Moteur) =9. Pon Proteus (Liam & Co Racing) =9. Kik Marmington (LSE Technologies) By car number, positions 11 through 47: 30, 43, 26, 40, 17, 36, 13, 47, 37, 6, 15, 44, 49, 51, 27, 16, 18, 12, 2, 41, 31, 5, 33, 20, 28, 34, 38, 19, 7, 42, 8, 25, 9, 48, 35, 32 and last 14. OUT: 11 [crash] RACE REPORT 3: If the last quarter was slow, then this was fast. The drivers magically picked up the pace as the track started to dry out. The sun poked its head through the clouds every now and again. Combine this with the wind and the water on the track is starting to evaporate. Finally stepping up the pole plate, Ben Drinkin took the lead after Gerald Gerner had a fairly average quarter. He's gotten a slight lead but definitely has the vehicle advantage over most of his rivals as the top ten has managed to separate itself out from its very compact beginnings. Rodney has taken second spot after Pimpanzee floundered and failed to improve and dropped back into eighth. Gerald Gerner has fallen back to third after leading at the last change and fourth is the rapidly improving Kik Marmington. Ninth at the halfway, now fourth and with one of the strongest vehicles in the field, a good drive could easily Marmington improve right onto the podium. Silent Jim, a quiet achiever but a big achiever nonetheless, is now fifth and looking to pull more points to move him and his team up the standings. Two drivers failed to get across the line after the three-quarter way mark of the race. One was Brother Ulrik of the much derided by the home crowd and ulreliable Burtech Racing Team. For the third DNF of his team in seven races, Ulrik was the target of some terrible sportsmanship on the part of the Rhellis fans. After being sold staggering amounts of SP Ale, Naginii Firescotch and Huter Valley wine, the Rhellis fans were, needless to say, quite drunk and very disappointed in their drivers. Many of them had accumulated large collections of empty glass bottles and started to throw them onto the track at passing foreign drivers, particularly Brother Ulrik and Ahmed Dakis. A bottle hit Ulrik on the head and distracted him (luckily he wasn't rendered unsconscious because of his blue and yellow helmet) and he ploughed into the stationary Drivey McDriver who had been the victim of running over a broken bottle at 250 km/h. McDriver had punctured his tyre and had to pull out. Ulrik ended up rear ending him as lost control of his vehicle and ploughed into the Rio Racer. Top ten at the three quarter-way mark (48 laps) of the Rhellis GP: 1. Ben Drinkin (Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund) 2. Rodney (Screech of Surique) 3. Gerald Gerner (Symira National) 4. Kik Marmington (LSE Technologies) 5. Silent Jim (Sport Francais de Moteur) 6. Quig (Kingtown National Raceworks) 7. Antoinette (Flying Mosmaniacs) 8. James Pimpanzee (Meadowbank Boy Racers) 9. Pon Proteus (Liam & Co Racing) 10. Royal Flush (Meadowbank Casino House Ltd) By car number, positions 11 through 45: 30, 15, 3, 51, 21, 40, 17, 38, 44, 20, 43, 6, 31, 13, 8, 36, 41, 47, 49, 16, 5, 28, 48, 34, 2, 25, 42, 19, 7, 32, 12, 27, 33, 9 and last 14. OUT: 11 [crash], 35 [puncture], 18 [distraction by bottle] RACE REPORT 4: It was only a matter of time before that deathtrap of a roundabout took its first casualty. In fact, it took three at once in a terrible pile-up. Milo (Naginii FMR), Nestle (Keetorama) and Pimpy McBling (Meadowbank Boy Racers) all collided together on lap 56, ending any hopes of making a comeback. Nestle was just leaving the roundabout as Milo and McBling were entering it in an amazing display of skill, trying to outdo each other. Unfortuantely, Nestle left at the exact moment that the two were coming and all three crashed. Nestle hit the rear of Milo, who was leading, and the front of McBling as she tried to accelerate through the tiny gap in a remarkable show of bravery. The three drivers spun out and into the Marmalitter, all three unable to restart their engines. That is, they couldn't get out of the Marmalitter and even if they could, their vehicles wouldn't run very far, given the almost irreparable damage done to the wings of the vehicles. Its not all bad either as the small contingent of Liamopolisean fans had something major to celebrate. After last week's terrible disappointment in Mosmania, LSE Technologies driver, Kik Marmington, has powered her way through the field to grab the chequered flag. 22nd after fifteen laps, 6th after 31, 4th after 48 and now 1st after the full 62 laps. It was a truly incredibly performance and the entire crwe has to be congratulated. There were some signs of disappointment from the SP fans as their driver picked up second place. Most were pleased with this result which was by far and away the Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund's best result with their fantastic Commoner, Ben Drinkin. In three races, the Symira National team has done what many teams are still struggling to do with twice as much experience, with Gerald Gerner getting across the line in third and claiming the team's first podium. In fourth place we had Rodney from the Screech of Surique, who's points today bring the team's total to 31, with fifth occupied by the steely driver of Silent Jim. Top ten at the conclusion (62 laps) of the Rhellis GP: 1. Kik Marmington (LSE Technologies) - 30 points 2. Ben Drinkin (Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund) - 20 points 3. Gerald Gerner (Symira National) - 15 points 4. Rodney (Screech of Surique) - 12 points 5. Silent Jim (Sport Francais de Moteur) - 9 points 6. Quig (Kingtown National Raceworks) - 7 points 7. James Pimpanzee (Meadowbank Boy Racers) - 5 points 8. Royal Flush (Meadowbank Casino House Ltd) - 3 points 9. Antoinette (Flying Mosmaniacs) - 2 points 10. Ralphmy (Kingtown National Raceworks) - 1 point By car number, positions 11 through 42: 1, 21, 30, 8, 44, 3, 40, 20, 41, 5, 25, 31, 366, 17, 49, 43, 42, 7, 12, 15, 47, 19, 38, 16, 28, 33, 34, 48, 2, 14 and last 27. OUT: 11 [crash], 35 [puncture], 18 [distraction by bottle], 9, 13, 32 [pile-up] As the sun sets over Costa del Man, leaving the orange light sparkling over the waves, we look to the evermore exciting Ille de France Championships. With the Kingtown National Raceworks picking up 8 points today, there are no longer any teams with zero points. This leaves the lack-lustre Liam & Co Racing, in much poorer form than their Tableland counterparts, in last place, a point behind the Flying Mosmaniacs. At the top are still the Ardent Antagonists, with a seemingly untouchable 58 points. Tastee Badger Treets and the Naginii Racing Group still hold equal second on 55 with Sport Francais de Moteur in fourth on 51 and the Burtech Racing Team, shockingly dropping both drivers next season in the new Burtech Inc Racing, is fifth on 46.5, half a point ahead of LSE Technologies and the Marma & Papa Duke Trust Fund. Drivers now, and it shows that a Marmaduke only needs to good races to be the best with the 37 points of Kik Marmington slingshotting her into first. Fluffy of the Naginii Racing Group is second on 35, followed by James Pimpanzee, Nordla Anasad, Ben Drinkin and Arch Rival in third, all on 32. With only three more grands prix left this season, the championships are looking tighter than ever.