Countdown to ROC 2014: Race Of Champions in numbers
ROC FACTS
ROC 2014 in Barbados will be the 26th annual end-of-season Race Of Champions since its first event in Paris in 1988.
Bushy Park Barbados is ROC’s first host venue in the Americas – and the 11th overall – along with such prestigious host venues as London’s Wembley Stadium, the Stade de France in Paris and Beijing’s ‘Bird’s Nest’ Olympic Stadium.
The track for ROC 2014 at the Bushy Park Barbados is 2.3 kilometers long and 6.5 meters wide.
ROC’s unique crossover bridge is made up of concrete, gravel and tarmac and weighs a total of 560 tones – equivalent to over 100 elephants.
The record for constructing the entire ROC track stands at four days of uninterrupted round-the-clock work, with two further days for decoration, branding and wiring.
The record for dismantling the entire ROC track after the event is 40 hours.
The Race Of Champions is broadcast in over 180 countries around the world, reaching a potential audience of over 1 billion people.
ROC DRIVERS
The Race Of Champions has featured over 200 different drivers in its 26-year history.
18 Formula 1 World Championships: Michael Schumacher (7), Alain Prost (4), Sebastian Vettel (4), Fernando Alonso (2) and Jenson Button (1)
14 MotoGP World Championships: Valentino Rossi (7), Mick Doohan (5) and Jorge Lorenzo (2)
36 World Rally Championships: Sébastien Loeb (9), Juha Kankkunen (4), Tommi Makinen (4), Sébastien Ogier (2), Carlos Sainz (2), Marcus Grönholm (2), Walter Röhrl (2), Miki Biasion (2), Timo Salonen (1), Hannu Mikkola (1), Bjorn WaldegÃ¥rd (1), Ari Vatanen (1), Markku Allen (1), Stig Blomqvist (1), Didier Auriol (1), Petter Solberg (1), Colin McRae (1)
The only two World Rally Champions not to compete at the Race Of Champions are 1977 winner Sandro Munari and 2001 champion, the late Richard Burns.
ROC CARS
There are a total of 25 cars in the ROC 2014 paddock ready to race this weekend.
Of the cars appearing at ROC 2014 the Volkswagen Polo RX Supercar is the fastest to go from 0-100kph at 1.9 seconds – faster than a Formula 1 car.
The average 0-100kph time of the cars at ROC 2014 is 3.1 seconds.
The fastest of all the cars appearing at ROC 2014 is the Audi R8 LMS with a top speed of 290kph.
The cars parked in the ROC 2014 paddock produce a total of 9,868bhp.
The total weight of the cars competing at Bushy Park Barbados is over 24 tones.
Michelin has brought 400 tires to the Race Of Champions – up to 200 of which will be used over the course of the weekend.
ROC RECORDS
The closest ever finish to a race came at ROC 2006 in Paris, when TAG Heuer set a still unbeaten world record by measuring a difference of an astonishing 2/10,000ths of a second between winner Mattias Ekström and second-placed Heikki Kovalainen.
Swedish rally great Stig Blomqvist has the most ROC appearances with 15. Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen tops the current drivers with his 13th consecutive appearance in 2014.
The individual ROC king is France’s Didier Auriol with 4 ‘Champion of Champions’ titles, just ahead of fellow rally ace Sébastien Loeb and DTM racer Mattias Ekström with 3 each.
Team Germany’s Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel have a record 6 victories in the ROC Nations Cup.
The youngest driver appearing at ROC 2014 is Esteban Ocon, who is 18 years and two months old.
The oldest driver appearing at ROC 2014 is Mick Doohan, who is 49 years and six months old.
ROC’s ultimate record-breaker may be regular stunt driver Terry Grant, who is the current holder of 19 Guinness World Records – leading the way on everything from donuts to driving on two wheels and parallel parking. He’ll be trying to make it 20 at ROC Barbados…