So who's the Arena sponsor?

A week or so back a 10/10ths poster suggested AA would be the main sponsor for the Arena Focus project. Well, courtesy of Mike Hoyer's excellent photos over at Talk Photography Chilton did indeed sport an AA logo on his helmet at the first test the other day (photo 4); but that's most likely a hangover from the AA sponsorship of Dynamics last year. Plus that AA yellow would clash horrifically with Andyb's fantastic livery.

Photo 5, however, shows TCs racesuit; and the only logo (aside from Sparco and Arena) visible is..... Benfield, the insurance group previously part-owned by TC's dad Graeme Chilton. Benfield was sold to Aon, one of the world's biggest insurance brokers, in August last year netting Chilton Sr a cool £77m, and the resulting deal means he gets to be VC of Aon itself.

Reid back in touring cars

Well, kinda. He'll be doing a mix of British GT, FIA GT and Britcar in an Aston for Nicholas Mee Racing (NMR). According to the Daily Record:

The 51-year-old Glaswegian completed only four races last year with A Tech due to the worldwide financial crisis.

A shame indeed. Hopefully in 2009 he's got a team behind him that are financially secure and won't be affected by such economic problems? In Reid's words:

Unfortunately [in 2008] the credit crunch hit and it we ended up only doing a small part of the season. NMR have stepped in and they are owned by people who work in the City.

Ah...

Susie Stoddard photoshoot

The article won't tell fans much they don't know, but Susie certainly looks good in those pics for the Mail on Sunday. She'll have a way to go in order to match Danica Patrick in her two Sports Illustrated spreads though.

New Focus hits the track

And very good looking it is too.

eBay watch

• Scalextric Team RAC BMW of Colin Turkington
  
• Fantastic looking Motorbase Steven Kane 1:43 model (and it's signed)
  
• A 1:43 model of Charlie Cox's '95 Mondeo. Replicating his Thruxton crash with it will probably depreciate its value somewhat.
  

See the new Focus

Circle March 2nd in your diaries now... no it's not because it's the first unveiling of the new FPA-clone-series-for-Formula-Master-rejects-and-sons-of-fairly-well-known-racing-drivers-with-questionable-talent* Formula Two car, but Tom Chilton will be giving some demonstration laps at Brands Hatch in the new Arena Focus as part of MSV's launch day for the circuit. Priaulx will be putting his 320si through its paces as well.

* In attendance representing F2:

• Toro Rosso's Seb Buemi's cousin and one time A1GP rookie Natacha Gachnang
  
• 2008 FPA champ Jason Moore
  
• Son of the boss Jolyon Palmer, and
  
• possibly the best driver Lithuania has ever produced, Kazim Vasiliauskas