2011 Karjala Grand Prix

The 2011 Grand Prix of Karjala was the 35th Grand Prix at the Karjala Raceway in Finland.

In a controversial move, no one was locked into the field, and all drivers (including full time TM Master Cup Series drivers) had to qualify or race their way in. This created a chaotic situation amongst some of the full-time teams that had been off the pace on road courses that would otherwise have been guaranteed a starting berth in the race. This race is mostly known for the embarrassing performance of Saar Motor Company and all of its drivers, as Mike Whitmore was the only one of them to qualify for the race. Whitmore started the race very deep in the field and was eliminated after the first lap.

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Pre-race storylines
The simmering feud between Alexis Rainsford and Team Saar USA resumed as the team filed a protest on behalf of driver Tony Durbin, claiming Rainsford was intentionally blocking Durbin during his flying lap in the second qualifying session. Rainsford reportedly forced Durbin into the grass coming to the Kallela Corner before the Dwyer S, and again on the main straight. Durbin insists that he might have made it through qualifying if Rainsford had not been; "driving dangerously."

"We had the quickest car in the speed trap. It's all about power in these straights since there is no grip at all around here." Durbin said. "Leave it to Alexis to almost crash us, Everett, the 47 car, and the 60 car. They should at least take her best time away because what she did out there was reckless."

Dangerous driving during practice sessions does not, however, constitute the loss of a driver's fastest lap according to TM Master Cup series rules. However, Rainsford can still be moved back places on the grid since provisions in the rulebook allow for 5 to 10 grid place penalties. In short, Rainsford can not be bumped from the field according to the rules, but she can be moved further back on the grid for the race.

Volpi Racing Team owner Cyril Volpi said he would appeal if any penalties were handed down, however Alexis Rainsford was all smiles for her interview.

"Tony's just mad because this qualifying session was the only way he'd make it into the race." Rainsford said. "But I have no problems with that, I can win this one from 13th or 18th, or wherever they move us. I didn't give it 100% out there, I don't think Duff, Packer or Chris did either."

The officials would have the last word, however – and after much debate, the race stewards and TM Master Cup Series officials announced that Rainsford will receive a 10-place grid penalty for reckless driving during last-chance qualifying. The incident involved Rainsford blocking Tony Durbin on his flying lap, resulting in Durbin failing to set a time in when he had posted the fastest first sector time yet.

Rainsford's vicious blocking of Durbin, where he was run across the track was deemed worthy of a penalty. Rainsford expressed no desire to appeal the penalty, even though Volpi did.

"Reckless driving is not an offense that can be punished with the loss of a driver's fastest time according to the current rulebook," a spokesperson for the stewards said. "However, it is punishable with a grid place penalty, and to make the rule have effect, we have applied it for the race."

Volpi said the ruling was "obscene", however, Rainsford seemed apathetic when interviewed.

"Both sides got what they wanted it seems, because now I'm starting right in the middle of the turn 2 hornets nest. The first lap is going to be the hard part, but I'm ready for it." Rainsford said. "Really I'm not upset with the grid penalty, I expected to get moved all the way to last to be honest. Either way I trust that we'll be able to get to the front when it matters."

Format
The qualifying format for the Karjala Grand Prix was as follows:


 * All 113 cars on the entry list participated in a two-hour pole shootout, done with three different sessions with fixed weather (40 minutes per session).
 * After all times were pooled, the fastest five times were the first five spots on the grid for the race.
 * The remaining 107 cars repeated the same procedure, only with 60 minutes instead of 120.
 * Again, times were pooled, with the fastest five cars filling spots six through ten on the grid for the race.
 * All non-qualified cars went to the usual Pre-Qualifying/Qualifying races to fill the balance of the grid.

All Independent's Trophy entries got a free entry into the race, but they did not receive any Independent Points. The race will again award double points for all championship points paying positions.

Time trials
In a qualifying session that was largely determined by draft trains on the long straights, FLASH Racing's Arto Kekkonen set a new track record by a very large margin over last season's pole time. Drivers were putting this sudden increase in speeds down to the super-soft tire compounds that Cooper Tire brought specifically for pole qualifying, and by additional boost given to the cars for pole qualifying. Word is, however, that the tire compounds may be similar to ones used for the qualifying races and for the Karjala Grand Prix itself.

In between qualifying sessions, the track heated up, and as a result all of the times were significantly slower.

During the second session, there was a report of an incident involving Alexis Rainsford blocking Tony Durbin while the latter was on a flying lap. (See Pre-race storylines for aftermath of this.)

Results of qualifying sessions
&Dagger; Rainsford was penalized 10 grid positions for actions during second-round qualifying (see above).

Qualifying races

 * For qualifying race coverage, please see: 2011 Karjala Grand Prix qualifying races.

The race
The drama usually associated with this event started before the green flag fell – Leonid Roderick picked up a puncture on the warm-up lap and had to pit. Meanwhile, Mikhail Pulyakov experienced a fire under the hood of his Katzev and did not even take the start.

Results

 * For the full finishing order, click here.

Rainsford's victory celebrations could best be described as exuberant, literally jumping for joy on the podium. It was a win that some felt was overdue, as Rainsford had previously been very close to winning the Karjala Grand Prix.

"This is awesome! From 18th to first, that's how its done!" Rainsford said in her post-race interview. "I want to thank everyone at VRT for putting up with me, Lynxe for being a lot of fun to work with, my mom for showing up, Chris [Davenport] for his support, Cyril [Volpi] for all his help... and everyone in front of me for giving me motivation to beat them!"

"This was long overdue. If officialdom had read the rules we would have won last year, too." Cyril Volpi, Rainsford's car owner said. "I'm happy we avenged what happened last year, so I will not complain about last year any more. She does things with that car that I have never seen anyone do successfully, she's just so exciting to watch on the track because she really pushes the limit more than anyone else."

Rainsford's win marks the first win at Karjala for a privateer chassis (since Volpi's only road car, the SR560, is not sold in the United States). It is also her 10th TM Master Cup Series victory, and her 2nd of the season. She is the only repeat winner of the year so far. Her successes of late have positioned her to take her third Master Cup, causing irritation to some fans.

"If you're tired of watching the best be the best, then motorsport isn't for you. There will never be an equal playing field. I think people don't like me because we're too damn good, and when you're on top, everyone wants to see you fall down ... and I'm not playing the way the fans want me to." Rainsford said in the media center when asked about some fans not warming up to her winning ways.

Postrace penalties

 * None