SALZBURG, Austria – He’s been flying a notoriously fast Edge 540 since making his debut in the Red Bull Air Race World Championship in 2009, but Japan’s Yoshi Muroya is starting to see this potential advantage slip from his grasp as the other teams ramp up horsepower around him. Hoping to refine his flying style in the track this year, the 37-year-old pilot was planning to profit from this capable machine in 2010 but it looks like his focus now includes a program of speed mods to catch up with his adversaries.
Cowling en route
“We’ll have a new cowling in Windsor,” began Muroya, who finished up in 12th place after the times from Qualifying were used as the final result in rained-off Rio. “We have two weeks and it’s going to be tight. We need more time really but we’re making the new cowling anyway and we’ll just wait to see if it’s ready in time.”
The Rio track highlighted the need for speed for Muroya, who said the design meant success was more reliant on power than pilot skills. With plenty of longer straights where pilots could easily gain or lose significant time, Muroya faced a tough challenge as he tried to get the very most from the plane. “We tried to push as much as possible but I was still having to fix myself,” he said, after picking up penalties for cutting his margins so tight. “It was definitely more about aircraft performance and speed than either Abu Dhabi or Perth.”
Team effort in vain
After the second day of training Muroya was concerned that engine power was down. By Qualifying, he had insisted the Lycoming be assessed to identify any technical glitches. Flying in the Wild Card on race day and also in the later abandoned Top 12, the Japanese pilot was confident the team’s effort the previous evening would have been worth it had the race not been cancelled. Although it’s difficult to accurately say whether Muroya could have made it through to the Super 8s after picking up a penalty for descending in the gate during his Top 12 run, it was clearly frustrating to have missed the chance to find out.
“We were looking forward to a good day and the chance to claw our way back into the running,” added Muroya, who was also contesting the judges’ decision to award the penalty. “I don’t think that turn was dangerous at all. The aircraft was stable and there wasn’t any problem. I am pretty sure it was a misjudgement but for the next race I will fly as clean as possible.”
Further plans
In addition to the streamlined and more compact cowlings, Muroya will fit a completely new exhaust system this year. He is clearly watching and learning from those around him, realising that to move ahead he will have to continually push the technical boundaries. As the pilot, Muroya just needs to work on his own skills in the track to maintain consistency if they are to move out of the bottom of the table. His team is currently in 11th place on 3 points.
Comments
Add a comment