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ROC at Wembley

Wembley to undergo tarmac transformation for ROC

Media information: 02 November 2007

wembley track
The Race of Champions track lay-out that will be constructed at Wembley later this month

Wembley Stadium’s famous football pitch is set to be tarmacked in less than four week’s time when newly-appointed contractors FM Conway pave the way for The Race of Champions next month.

The spectacular event will see the world’s most famous racing drivers, including Michael Schumacher, David Coulthard and Jenson Button, go head-to-head in a champion of champions decider.

FM Conway, the company of 2006 British F3 Champion Mike Conway’s father, has recently been appointed to get Wembley ready for the task and will start transforming the London landmark with 1,800 tonnes of tarmac on 24 November.

paris track
The Race of Champions as it appeared last year in the Stade de France

“There’s been a lot of planning to this over the last couple of months,” said FM Conway’s Contracts Director Brian Morris, who says a team of 40 men will work night and day to get the track ready in time. “We went to the Stade de France to see The Race of Champions last year so we know what we’re letting ourselves in for!”

The circuit design, which sees two lanes running parallel to allow drivers to race within the confines of the stadium, has been modified to account for Wembley's dimensions. “We have tested the new layout and from that we can see it will be very interesting," said Michèle Mouton, co-founder of The Race of Champions, who is still arguably the world’s most successful woman in motorsport after a glittering rally career in the 1980s.

"Working at Wembley will present some issues we haven’t encountered before. The ground slopes away from the pitch and we have to work on this camber, which will be the main problem this year for me.”

Assistant Race Director, Marc Duez, thinks the camber will add drama to the racing. “We have four corners with opposite camber,” said the Belgian former race and rally driver. “It gives the cars a certain roll; they have less grip than in a normal corner so we hope that it will provide even more spectacular racing!”

The Race of Champions is a unique motorsport format that sees drivers from all genres racing against each other in a stadium environment, allowing the expected 80,000 fans uninterrupted views of every second of action.

"Transforming Wembley Stadium into a proper tarmac race track in five days is a huge and costly project," said Fredrik Johnsson, President of event organisers IMP. "Just to re-lay the famous football pitch after The Race of Champions costs over £150,000, but the result is spectacular!"

Timeline

Saturday 24 November

  • Condition survey
  • Induction of operational team (40 workers)
  • Lay aluminium protection plates on the turf

      • Monday 26 November

      • Place concrete safety barriers to perimeter
      • Place and compact 2,500 tonnes of sub-base
      • Place 100 tonne bridge and ramp units

      Wednesday 28 November

      • Lay 1,800 tonnes of tarmac

      Thursday 29 November

      • Finishing touches to curbs
      • Line marking
      • Jet cleaning

      Friday 30 November

      • Hand over to The Race of Champions

      Editors’ Notes

      Copyright-free hi-res photos are available to download at www.raceofchampions.com or by calling Andy Bothwell or Paul Rayner at Performance PR on +44 (0)208 5413434. Alternatively you can E-mail andyb@performancepr.com or paul@performancepr.com.

      The Race of Champions was started in 1988 by Fredrik Johnsson and Michèle Mouton, the world’s most successful female rally driver.

      The Race Of Champions event on December 14 will be made up of two separate competitions – The ROC Nations Cup and The Race of Champions.

      Each competition pits drivers against each other in a head-to-head knockout format, with equal equipment ensuring races are won and lost on talent alone.

      The ROC Nations Cup features drivers paired into teams based on their nationality. The teams then fight head-to-head against each other in knockout competition. Last year Team Germany (Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel) beat Team Finland (Marcus Grönholm and Heikki Kovalainen) in the final.

      The Race Of Champions is a straightforward knockout competition, where 16 drivers go head-to-head until the champion is decided. In last year’s Final, Mattias Ekström beat Michael Schumacher in the third race of a best-of-three battle.

      Already confirmed for The Race of Champions 2008 are:

      • Seven-times F1 World Champion Michael Schumacher (Team Germany)
      • Triple World Touring Car Champion Andy Priaulx (Team Autosport Great Britain)
      • Honda Racing F1 Team race winner Jenson Button (Team Autosport Great Britain)
      • Toro Rosso F1 racer Sebastian Vettel (Team Germany)

      IMP, Les Caravelles, 25 Boulevard Albert 1er, MC 98000, MONACO
      For media enquiries call +44(0)208 5413434 or email andyb@peformancepr.com or paul@performancepr.com
      For general enquiries call +377 97 97 22 88 or email info@raceofchampions.com