WTAC 2014 – Competition Day 1 Coverage Presented by BorgWarner EFR
by Martin Gonzales
The World Time Attack Challenge has come a long way since its initial running back in 2008 when it was simply an Australian time attack event. WTAC has grown from a national event to one of the most anticipated time attack events in the world. The formula has been a very simple one, provide a venue and the means for the fastest time attack machines in the world to compete while giving fans a wide variety of motorsport related activities to enjoy. The level of competition at WTAC is on a completely different level than we're used to seeing in the states. Couple that with an extremely passionate fan base and there is no surprise why the WTAC has earned a permanent spot in our event calendar.
This year held an extra special place in our hearts as the ARK Designs BNR32 had actually made it to the right continent and we were all anxious to see how it would stack up. As reported in our Practice Day coverage, the ARK Designs BNR32 had been spending time at Hypertune and when we left the team on Thursday afternoon all signs were pointing to it being on track and competing.
During Thursday's practice it was apparent teams were not pushing their cars very hard and were simply using the day to shake down the cars and squash any “bugs” that reared their ugly heads at the last minute. Though cars like the Tilton Evo and Scorchin S15 turned some laps, it was difficult to gauge just how fast they would run during competition.
The EFR powered Tilton Interiors Evo, last year's champion and world record holder, showed up to this year's WTAC with a brand new aero package that was sure to help it shave some time off of its already fast 2013 time of 1:24.8550.
Though the Pro Class is the star of the show, you would be doing yourself a great disservice by not paying close attention to the other four classes at the WTAC. It is truly amazing to see just how efficient teams have been at maximizing the performance of their vehicles while remaining within their class' rule set.
The Clubsprint class is the closest to a street class at WTAC. Very minor body and aero modifications are allowed and all cars must be street registered. Engine modifications are not restricted, but engine swaps are restricted to being from the same manufacturer and number of cylinders the car originally came with. Though professional drivers are not allowed in this class, this is a feeder series for the other classes and the skill of these drivers is far from being at a novice level. 
Minimum weight is also restricted in the Clubsprint class to ~3,140 pounds (1,425 kg) or factory weight minus 5%. Sequential gearboxes are not allowed and all competitors must run the Advan Neova R spec tire. As you can see from the FR-S above, Clubsprint cars do not have elaborate aero packages. Other than the rear wing, front splitter and fender flares the car retains all of its original body work.
