Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

The Checkered Flag has learned that Bahrain Raid Xtreme will skip the Desafío Ruta 40 in August to focus on the Rallye du Maroc and 2024 Dakar Rally. Although not racing in Argentina effectively surrenders Sébastien Loeb‘s World Rally-Raid Championship chances barring a one-off with another outfit, BRX feels preparing for the bigger race in Dakar and supporting customer teams are of higher priority.

“We’re not going to Argentina after carefully considering the logistics, costs and the bigger picture plus we need to focus on new customer car builds and the Rallye du Maroc before the push towards Dakar 2024,” reads a BRX statement given to TCF on Monday. “It was not an easy decision to make but in the overall picture we believe it was the right one to take.”

BRX also stressed that they will retain the Bahrain Raid Xtreme name for Morocco and Dakar. Rumours have circulated since late spring that the Mumtalakat Holding Company (the Kingdom of Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund) ended its funding of the team following the Sonora Rally.

Loeb and his Prodrive Hunter are third in the W2RC standings behind the Toyota Hiluxes of Nasser Al-Attiyah and Yazeed Al-Rajhi. Although stage retirements in the first half of January’s Dakar Rally knocked him out of overall contention, Loeb roared to life in the second by winning six stages in a row (seven total) to finish second. A cooling pipe issue hampered his Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, though he was able to salvage points via his stage finishes, before crashing out at Sonora.

The Frenchman has raced for BRX, Prodrive’s rally raid factory team, since 2021. He finished runner-up to Al-Attiyah in the 2022 Dakar Rally and inaugural W2RC.

Pocono Raceway is not exactly known as a track where feelings are hurt, but that was certainly the case after Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race.

Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson battled for the lead in the final ten laps, leading to Hamlin pushing Larson up the track into the wall on lap 154. Larson expressed his displeasure by bumping into Hamlin shortly after the caution came out for Justin Haley‘s wreck.

As Hamlin cruised to the win, Larson was relegated to twentieth after leading twenty-four laps.

“He’s still a friend. Race me like an asshole but still a friend. I’m just mad right now,” Larson commented in his post-race availibity. “I’ve never had to reach out to him to apologise. I never had to. I can’t think of one time where I’m like, ‘Man, Denny, sorry I hurt your day’ or ‘Sorry I ended your day.’ There’s four or five times he’s had to reach out to me over the nine years I’ve racing in the Cup Series to apologise. […] I’m an agressive racer, I get it, but I tend to race my friends with more respect. I just feel like I haven’t gotten that respect from him especially this year.”

Although it was not from contact, Hamlin was also involved in an earlier incident with Larson’s Hendrick Motorsports team-mate Alex Bowman when the latter’s airflow got disrupted while racing Hamlin and caused him to get loose into a spin. Hamlin has developed a rather polarising reputation for his outspokenness—which semi-directly led to a points penalty earlier in the season—and his victory was met with a chorus of boos from the crowd.

Before it began, Jonathan Finn called the Baja España Aragón “an important race to collect points because there’s also a lot of top guys that have come down for this race, the points are going to be diluted here so it’s going to be important to not make any mistakes and just to stay on track here.”

Unfortunately, he had a rather difficult time following his own memo.

Entering his Baja Aragón début ranked second in the FIM Bajas World Cup, Finn had a rather brutal go in the Spanish countryside as he battled through clouds of dust kicked up by those who started ahead of him, which he called “almost like a whiteout when it snows really, really hard and you just couldn’t see anything.” After finishing thirty-first overall in the Prologue stage, he was forty-second, seventy-third, and forty-eighth across the three main legs.

He was classified twenty-third among all bikes and over two hours back of Kevin Giroud, the only other competitor in the Junior Trophy class but a quad rider, with a total time of 9:59:56. The Junior Trophy is reserved for riders under the age of twenty-five, and the 20-year-old Finn was the points leader in the division entering Aragón with runner-up finishes in the first three rounds; the Baja TT Dehesa Extremadura, also held in Spain in April, saw Giroud and Finn place in the same positions.

The final leg on Saturday was especially brutal for Finn as he crashed multiple times. Despite his Honda CRF450 suffering substantial damage and hurting his hand, he was able to reach the finish.

Andrew Houlihan leads the FIM Bajas World Cup in the Veterans Trophy, but it has not been an easy journey for him. Much of the schedule consists of races in Europe sandwiched by dates in the Middle East on each side, making travel from his native Australia one long flight after another.

The most recent race, the Baja España Aragón on Friday and Saturday, was 17,186 kilometres away from his hometown of Albury in New South Wales. After heading to Melbourne, he boarded a fifteen-hour flight to Doha in Qatar, followed by an eight-hour plane trip to Barcelona. Once in Spain, he rented a car and drove five hours to reach Teurel.

Once all of that was said and done, he will return to Australia for a week of shore leave before redoing the process for the Hungarian Baja on 10–12 August.

The Baja Aragón came three months after another trip to Spain for the World Cup’s Baja TT Dehesa Extremadura located on the opposite side of the country in Badajoz. He took a similar plane trip, going from Albury to Melbourne, Melbourne to Doha, Doha to Madrid, then Madrid to Badajoz. While Extremadura and the previous round Qatar International Baja were separated by a month, Houlihan was on a tight schedule after spending much of that break sick with COVID-19. Houlihan is no stranger to racing in Spain, though both Aragón and Extremadura were his débuts in those races.

Aragón was a particularly difficult race as the top European rally on the World Cup calendar, attracting a litany of names that included World Rally-Raid Championship competitors on both the FIA and FIM sides. Tosha Schareina, who impressed at the Sonora Rally in April, won the bike overall.

Matthieu Jaffraud‘s Dakar Rally dream will have to wait another year. As the Amaury Sport Organisation began sending out messages to applicants either accepting or denying them entry in the 2024 Rally, Jaffraud fell under the latter category as organisers felt he has not built up enough of a portfolio in desert rallies.

As a result, he will now focus on making the 2025 race by entering desert races such as the Rallye du Maroc in October and its 2024 edition, as well as the 2024 Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. Both are rounds of the World Rally-Raid Championship.

“‘Reculer pour mieux sauter,'” goes the saying,” began a post from Jauffraud made Sunday. The phrase, which roughly translates to “take a step back to jump further”, is a French proverb that means to perform an action that might seem negative at first but will lead to a positive impact in the long run.

“When the list of drivers selected for the Dakar 2024 was released, and after discussing it with the organisation, the Jauffraud Racing Team is postponing its participation in the Dakar Rally to 2025.

“The lack of desert rally experience does not allow me to be on the list of qualified riders for 2024. But we will remedy this by gaining experience from next October with the Rallye du Maroc and program other rallies for 2024 with the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge and the Rallye du Maroc 2024.

Tommi Hallman has stunned the crowds here at Lydden Hill Race Circuit by taking victory at his debut RX2e event in the 2023 FIA World Rallycross Championship. Reigning champion Viktor Vranckx followed him home in second, with Ole Henry Steinsholt in third.

Hallman, who drives for SET Promotion, has dominated the whole weekend, winning three out of four heats, and then taking control of his semi-final and the final in emphatic style. Meanwhile, Nils Andersson, who was looking like Hallman’s main rival for the majority of the weekend, suffered suspension damage that relegated him to a disappointing fifth.

Semi-Finals

After a thoroughly wet first day, the sun shone on the final day of proceedings at Lydden Hill. Hallman had been dominant all through the heats and was expected to take the top spot in his semi-final and then the final.

Sadly Isak Sjökvist‘s weekend came to an end in semi-final 1. After a great start, overtaking Vranckx, he was defending well until a problem with the rear wheels made him lose position. A couple of corners later, he was forced to retire just after the jump with terminal damage to the rear wheel and suspension.

Out front, however, it was all about Hallman. Vranckx pushed hard but was unable to close the gap, finishing 2.3 seconds behind the flying Finn.

Tommi Hallman continues his impressive run of form here at Lydden Hill Race Circuit, topping the leaderboard in the RX2e class of the 2023 FIA World Rallycross Championship. He narrowly missed out on a clean sweep, coming second in heat 4 after a great battle with championship leader Nils Andersson.

Heat 3

Robert Vitols recovered from a DNF in heat 2 to take his heat race win in heat 3. Catie Munnings, racing for #YellowSquad, recovered from a first corner incident to fight back for second. The battle for the overall lead is still between Nils Andersson, reigning champion Viktor Vranckx, and newcomer Hallman. Hallman and Andersson were battling for the lead of their heat race, with Hallman having just enough pace to ensure Andersson came out of his joker lap behind him. Vranckx tough weekend continued when a front left puncture put him out of contention for a heat race win. Hallman and Andersson took the top two positions in heat 3.

Heat 4

Vranckx fought back in the final round of heats, pushing hard and taking victory in his final race. However, his unfortunate weekend continues, as he was given a 12 second penalty by the stewards after contact with Pablo Suárez at turn 1. He still has work to do to take the top spot, as his time was 5 seconds slower than the ultimate fastest heat time. Munnings continued her impressive form, once again recovering from a difficult start to fight back to third in her race.

But it was in the final race that the most action took place. Hallman was shuffled back into fourth position after the first run through Talladega. He elected to go for his joker lap straight away on lap 2, giving him some clear air to push and close the gap to Andersson, who had taken a commanding lead. Hallman pushed as hard as he could, almost losing it on multiple occasions and drifting spectacularly around the Talladega drift. Andersson jokered on the penultimate lap, coming out just ahead of Hallman, and the due pushed each other hard to the line. Hallman finished second, 0.8 seconds behind Andersson.

Vitols’ weekend may well be over, however, following damage to his steering on the last lap of his race. He pulled off to the side of the track just before the jump with his front right wheel bend at a very strange angle.

Special ONE Racing have confirmed that they are unable to compete in the last four rounds of the 2023 FIA World Rallycross Championship. The fire that broke out on Friday 21 July at Lydden Hill Race Circuit destroyed both of the Lancia Delta Evo-e RX cars and one of the two workshop trucks supporting the team.

The fire broke out just before 8:45am on Friday 21 July in the number 9 car of nine-time world rally champion Sébastian Loeb. It then grew and spread rapidly to Guerlain Chicherit‘s car and the workshop truck. The fire brigade were rapidly on the scene but were unable to put out the fire. Thanks to a quick evacuation and the professionalism of the Special ONE Racing team, there were miraculously no injuries.

The FIA is investigating the cause of the fire, which is currently unknown. As a result, the RX1e racing at Lydden Hill has been cancelled, with all other racing continuing as planned. At this stage, Special ONE Racing says, “we can already state that no handling errors were made by the staff of the Special ONE Racing team, nor by those of its partners.”

The loss of the two Lancias is a blow to the sport. They were the most talked about cars on the 2023 grid, garnering huge attention and praise at every event. Special ONE Racing added “the team would like to thank all those who have sent messages of encouragement since Friday, and more generally since the start of the adventure in April. We’re proud of the response to our two magnificent Delta Evo-e RXs, of which all that remains today are photos and videos.“

Loeb expressed sympathy for his colleagues: “the first essential piece of news was that no member of the team was injured. My thoughts go out to all the men and women who have worked or are working on this project with such determination and passion, and who have seen everything go up in smoke in just a few moments.”

The RX1e class of racing in the 2023 FIA World Rallycross Championship at Lydden Hill Race Circuit has been cancelled. This is due to an ongoing investigation into the fire that took place on Friday 21 July. All other racing action at the track will still go ahead, including the 5 Nations British Rallycross Championship and the support RX2e class of World RX.

So far, the cause of the fire that devastated the Special ONE Racing team area on Friday is unknown. According to the FIA, the video evidence suggests that the fire started in the battery area of the car as it was charging up in the team area. As this is unconfirmed and the investigation is ongoing, the FIA has decided that it is unsafe to run the RX1e class for the entirety of the weekend.

According to the statement issued by the FIA to the teams, “it has been determined that the investigation has not progressed far enough to determine a root cause for the failure that led to the fire. Nor will the investigation be able to find the root cause in time for the event to proceed with the assurance of the appropriate level of safety for the spectators, team members and drivers…further, the battery manufacturer, Kreisel, was unable to provide an appropriate level of assurance in the system, pending their investigations“.

While this is bad news for the World RX teams who have come over to the UK to compete, there will still be plenty of action for the fans to enjoy. The RX2e class provided scintillating racing on Saturday 22 July, with newcomer Tommi Hallman leading the overnight standings ahead of Viktor Vranckx and Nils Andersson. These cars are allowed to run, as they operate a different power system to the RX1e machines. The pace of these electric cars is extraordinary, with lap times comparable to the British supercars, which is unheard of.

Furthermore, the 5 Nations British Rallycross Championship has stepped up to fill the schedule. The decision was taken to declare the result of Saturday’s running as the end of that round, and start an entirely new round on Sunday. This means that Patrick O’Donovan has taken another victory at Lydden Hill, ahead of Jack Thorne, who was thoroughly impressive in the changeable and increasingly wet conditions on Saturday, and veteran racer René Münnich. The new round will consists of two heats, semi-finals, and then the grand final.

Team JAOS‘ Baja 1000 début in 2022 ended after 100 miles, but they will be back to try to complete the rest in November as Tomonori Noto once again pilots the Lexus LX600.

JAOS arrived in SCORE International after enjoying success in the Asia Cross Country Rally, crossing the Pacific to compete in America in 2021. The team, the racing division of SUV parts maker Japan Australia Offroad Service, raced with the Toyota Land Cruiser and Hilux before switching to Toyota’s subsidiary brand Lexus.

At the Baja 1000, electrical problems triggered the fail-safe in the car, causing it to automatically kill the engine’s function. The team was unable to restart the issue and withdrew.

The Lexus was one of two entries in the Stock Full class for production SUVs. The other entry was a Land Cruiser fielded by Canguro Racing, who completed the race while working with JAOS as a technical partner.

“There were no problems at all in the domestic test, but it stopped at the actual pace which is completely different in speed,” said JAOS principal Daijiro Akahoshi. “This is the toughest part of the competition.

Austin Hill took a risk by staying out instead of pitting for fuel in the closing laps of Saturday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Pocono Raceway, and a dramatic overtime restart put him out front for the first and only time en route to his fourth win of the year.

Overtime commenced with Hill behind Josh Berry. The former gave a push, but it was what Berry called “a little longer and harder than I wanted into turn one” and sent him careening wide. Hill slipped by and led the rest of the way. The win provides a strong end to Hill‘s Saturday after retiring from the Craftsman Truck Series race earlier in the day due to a late crash.

“We didn’t have the best car all day,” said Hill. “Andy (Petree) and all the guys back at RCR Engines worked really hard. We got the car better. I thought we were maybe a top-five or top-seven car. I didn’t think we had anything for the leader today.

“With fuel saving, we didn’t know if we were going to make it and it was on my mind going into the Tunnel Turn (turn two) that I had to get back to the start/finish line. I had enough fuel to do a burnout so we saved enough.”

The contact dropped Berry back before being clipped into the wall with Ryan Sieg on the final lap to end the race under caution. Relegated to twenty-fourth, the finish ruined an otherwise oustanding day as he claimed the pole, led fifty-one laps, and won two stages.

Kyle Busch Motorsports has long been the top team in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. On Saturday, their eponymous owner brought their win total into the triple digits.

Kyle Busch passed former KBM driver Corey Heim on the final lap to win at Pocono for the third time in his Truck career. It is also his second win in his final allowed Truck start of the year, having previously won at Las Vegas in March in his return to Chevrolet and notching top tens in each race.

He and Heim traded blows throughout the final stage before Busch found his run along the inside line in turn two. Of KBM’s 100 total wins, forty-eight are courtesy of the boss.

“Just unreal. I felt like I did everything right,” said Heim, who settled for second. “It seemed like we had about five laps in the truck before it started tightening up on me. I didn’t really get the run I wanted out of (turn) one and I knew [Kyle’s] straightaway speed was really good. I was a little upset initially, but realistically, I would have done the exact same thing.

“Heat of the moment right there, but I’ve just got a lot of respect for Kyle. I raced for him for two years, and he was really good to me, and he raced me with respect today. Hard racer, he didn’t wreck us to win. It just really sucks. I really thought we had it there, especially when it seemed like he couldn’t form up a run enough to pass me and then he sent it on the last lap.”

Max Verstappen was forced to settle for second on the grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday, with the Oracle Red Bull Racing driver admitting he was unable to get a set-up that worked well across the Qualifying hour at the Hungaroring.

Verstappen, who is looking for a seventh consecutive victory this weekend and his ninth of a remarkable 2023 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season, was odds on favourite to take top spot in Qualifying, but he was denied by 0.003 seconds by Lewis Hamilton.

And it was balance issues that prevented him from taking pole position, with his second lap in Q3 slower than his first effort, meaning Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team’s Hamilton was able to jump ahead of him when it mattered.

“We have not performed the way we should be performing all weekend, it has been really difficult to get the most out of the car,” said Verstappen.  “I was struggling with putting the balance together, front to rear.

“We tried a lot of different things in terms of set-up but it didn’t really work. When you are struggling in qualifying you can only try one or two things and then when you really push you fall out of the window again.

After leading Toyota to a World Rally-Raid Championship, three World Cups for Cross-Country Rallies, and a trio of Dakar Rallies, Nasser Al-Attiyah is heading for greener pastures once his contract expires in September. He announced his departure shortly after winning the Baja España Aragón for the sixth time on Saturday.

His final race will be the W2RC’s Desafío Ruta 40, which ends on 1 September on the same day as his contract. Rumours about his future have circulated since May, from which he began contract negotiations with at least two other undisclosed teams while keeping the door open to extending his Toyota stint. A report from MARCA after the Baja Aragón revealed Prodrive as his next stop, where he will team up with W2RC rival Sébastien Loeb.

“We have won the Baja Aragón for the sixth time and we are leading the World Rally-Raid Championship and I am very happy,” began Al-Attiyah after his win. “But on the other hand, I am sad because Aragón will be my last Baja with Toyota. Such is life and I wish the team good luck for the future.”

Al-Attiyah joined Toyota Gazoo Racing in 2016, immediately making an impact by winning the Cross-Country World Cup (predecessor to the W2RC). Despite retiring from his first Dakar Rally in a Hilux the following year, he has never finished worse than second overall since with victories in 2019, 2022, and 2023. He also claimed the 2017 and 2021 World Cups and the inaugural W2RC in 2022.

So far in 2023, he leads both the W2RC and the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas. He has two wins in the former at Dakar and the Sonora Rally, whereas the latter campaign has seen triumphs at the Saudi Baja, Qatar International Baja, and Baja Aragón while finishing runner-up in the Italian Baja.

Lewis Hamilton was jubilant after securing his one hundred and fourth career pole position on Saturday, the British racer taking a record breaking ninth pole at the Hungaroring.

No driver in FIA Formula 1 World Championship history had secured more than eight poles at a single circuit, but Hamilton broke that record with a stunning final effort on Saturday afternoon, the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team driver denying Max Verstappen by just 0.003 seconds.

It is Hamilton’s first pole position since the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix of 2021, and he was happy to take top spot even although he was not expecting to be taking the fight to Oracle Red Bull Racing’s championship leader this weekend.

“Pole position is an amazing feeling!” said Hamilton.  “I feel so grateful because the Team have worked so hard.

“We’ve been pushing so much over this time so to finally get pole position is great; it feels just like the first time. I didn’t expect that we’d be fighting for P1 coming here today. When I started my final lap, I gave it absolutely everything. There was nothing left in it.”