Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

MoneyGram Haas F1 Team’s Kevin Magnussen expects qualifying to be especially important at the Hungarian Grand Prix, as the “twisty” Hungaroring tends to prevent large amounts of overtaking. As the team has proven to be strong on a Saturday, Magnussen is excited to compete there and hopes to be competitive. 

“I think the Hungarian Grand Prix is always a good one, the circuit is a tight, little twisty track. It’s kind of difficult for overtaking, but it puts more emphasis on qualifying, so Saturday is very exciting in Hungary always. Usually, not this year, it’s the last race before the summer break, so there is also that to look forward to. I’m looking forward to going there and hopefully we can be competitive.”

On the other hand, Haas is continuing to struggle with pace on race day, and Magnussen said that the team is hard at work to find a resolution to their ongoing issues. 

“I think we’re obviously facing some issues getting competitive on Sunday. We can often be competitive on Saturday in qualifying when we have to do just one lap on the tires on low fuel, but it’s a different story on Sunday. 

“We’re working very hard to investigate what the cause is and come up with solutions. It’s a collective effort, and everyone is working super hard. I think with all the talent we have in the team, I’m very confident we can solve the issues.”

Suzuka Circuit in Japan is one of the most iconic racetracks in the world, known for its unique figure-eight layout and challenging corners. Here are some key features and highlights of the Suzuka Circuit:

1. Figure-Eight Layout: Unlike traditional racetracks, Suzuka Circuit features a figure-eight layout, where the track crosses over itself. This distinctive design creates a thrilling and dynamic racing experience.

2. Corners: Suzuka Circuit is famous for its challenging corners, including the iconic 130R. This high-speed corner tests the skills and courage of drivers as they navigate through its sweeping curve.

3. Suzuka Esses: The Suzuka Esses, a series of S-shaped corners near the start of the lap, require precise handling and a smooth line to maintain speed and control. It is a technical section that demands precision from drivers.

4. Degner Curve: The Degner Curve is a complex double-apex corner that presents a significant challenge. It requires a delicate balance of braking, throttle control, and precision to navigate effectively.

Mario Isola says the high temperatures expected during the Hungarian Grand Prix, both in the air and on the track, will put the drivers, cars and Pirelli’s tyres to the test.

The Hungaroring has a lot of slow corners – the circuit has the second slowest average lap time on the FIA Formula 1 World Championship calendar – and only one straight and one real overtaking spot, and as such puts a lot of pressure on the tyres.

Isola, the Motorsport Director at Pirelli Motorsport, expects the track conditions to improve as the weekend goes on in Hungary, but the track will provide a challenge to everyone as they seek to maximise their traction, which will be key to having a good weekend.

“The Hungarian Grand Prix has become a classic event of the Formula 1 summer season, and as such the air and asphalt temperatures, which are usually very high, are the main features,” said Isola.  “This puts the drivers, cars and tyres to the test, not least because the twisting nature of the track does not allow anyone or anything to catch their breath.

“There’s a fairly long pit straight, which provides the only real overtaking opportunity under braking into the first right-hand corner. Then there are 13 more corners – seven right-handers and six left-handers – on a circuit that is second only to Monte Carlo in terms of slowest average speed; to the extent that the cars use similar downforce settings to Monaco.

The Ferrari 312T is one of the most iconic and successful Formula 1 cars produced by the Italian team Ferrari. It was used in the mid-1970s and had several variations, including the 312T, 312T2, 312T3, 312T4, and 312T5. Here are some key details about the Ferrari 312T:

1. Introduction and Evolution: The Ferrari 312T was introduced in 1975 and marked a significant departure from its predecessor, the 312B. It featured a transverse-mounted gearbox, a new monocoque chassis design, and a low-mounted engine for improved weight distribution and handling.

2. Success and Championships: The Ferrari 312T achieved considerable success during its racing career. It won four Constructors' Championships for Ferrari in 1975, 1976, 1977, and 1979. It also helped drivers Niki Lauda and Jody Scheckter secure the Drivers' Championship in 1975 and 1979, respectively.

3. Innovative Features: The 312T introduced several innovative features. One notable feature was its horizontally opposed flat-12 engine, which contributed to a lower center of gravity. It also featured a distinctive air intake system known as the "winglet" on the car's nose, designed to improve aerodynamics and downforce.

4. Legendary Drivers: The Ferrari 312T was driven by legendary Formula 1 drivers, including Niki Lauda, Clay Regazzoni, Carlos Reutemann, Gilles Villeneuve, and Jody Scheckter. Their skill and talent, combined with the capabilities of the 312T, contributed to the car's success on the track.

RJ Anderson might not be a Championship Off-Road regular as he pursues an Extreme E championship and races in SCORE International, but he quickly made an impact in his first COR race of 2023, much to C.J. Greaves‘ chagrin.

Anderson ran as high as second for much of the Friday Pro 4 race before contact with Cole Mamer resulted in damage that eliminated him from contention, while Greaves chased down Andrew Carlson to score his third win in the class for 2023. The following day, Greaves’ race ended with a flip after hitting Anderson and flipping onto the K-rail.

Even with Greaves out of contention, Anderson had to drive away from a wave of chaos as Jimmy Henderson stalled and spun on the 180 hairpin, causing a stack-up that collected Carlson, Mamer, and Johnny Greaves. Still, Henderson was able to slip away and rejoin the race, eventually holding off Kyle Chaney for the runner-up spot by just .001 of a second. Henderson eventually apologised for the accident.

C.J. Greaves talked with Anderson about the incident after the race before parting ways. On social media, he expressed amusement at an Instagram meme depicting him and Anderson as Brian and Dom in the ending to The Fast and the Furious.

“Had some adversity yesterday, but my team, I love these guys. We don’t do this all season, but we come out here and make it count,” said Anderson. His part-time schedule has included ERX since COR’s inaugural season in 2020. “I’m really proud of my whole team for putting the effort in. Had a super fun race.

PHM Racing has announced that Michael Shin will be competing for PHM Racing by Charouz in the remaining rounds of the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship. Shin, hailing from South Korea, brings a wealth of experience from his participation in championships such as F4UAE, British F4 Championship, FRMEC, and GB3 series.

“I am honoured to be racing with PHM Racing for the final three rounds of the FIA Formula 3 Championship,” Shin expressed. “It will be a valuable learning experience for me to familiarize myself with the European tracks and gain mileage in this car. I extend my gratitude to Roland and the team for this opportunity, and I will give my best to make the most of the upcoming weekends.”

Roland Rehfeld, the Team Principal of PHM Racing by Charouz, welcomed Shin to the team and acknowledged their previous acquaintance during the F4UAE season in 2022.

“We welcome Michael within our PHM Racing by Charouz team for the last three rounds in this year’s FIA F3 Championship. Knowing Michael since the F4UAE season 2022, it will be interesting how quickly he will adapt to the F3 car and the whole environment within the team and paddock in general.

Rehfeld emphasized the challenge of entering the championship mid-season without prior experience in an FIA F3 or GP3 car, “Entering the championship after mid-season is never easy, especially without any seat time in an FIA F3 or GP3 car before.To be honest McKenzy Cresswell did a great job the last two rounds with us and showed that GB3 is a good platform to prepare drivers for the next step into FIA F3.

A deflated Pierre Gasly admitted: “Everything went wrong for us” after a double retirement for BWT Alpine F1 Team in the FIA Formula 1 World Championship round at the British Grand Prix.

For a second time this season both the Alpine A523 cars have failed to cross the checkered flag. The first double non-finish came in the Australian Grand Prix, as teammates Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly collided with each other, ending their race immediately.

A double retirement at your home Grand Prix however felt devastating, considering Silverstone is a track where Alpine have had seven consecutive top-eight finishes.

Gasly was on the wrong side of luck the whole race, being forced to retire with a broken suspension following a collision with Lance Stroll.

The French driver was racing in the points position, closely behind Fernando Alonso. However, pitting just one lap before the Safety Car came out meant he lost two positions, falling back outside the points.

To leave your home Grand Prix with no points isn’t exactly what BWT Alpine F1 Team, Team Principle Otmar Szafnauer had in mind when his drivers lined up tenth and thirteenth after qualifying at the FIA Formula 1 World Championship British Grand Prix.

Esteban Ocon stopped with a hydraulic leak, while Pierre Gasly was forced to retire with suspension damage after a collision with Lance Stroll. To rub salt into the wounds of a double retirement, McLaren F1 Team, close rivals of Alpine, leapfrogged them in the constructors championship with a season-best haul of 30 points.

Despite a new front wing being introduced, which showed some promise both drivers were unable to showcase the full potential of the A523 over the course of the 52-lap race at Silverstone.

“It’s always a bitter feeling when you leave a Grand Prix without scoring points; especially our home race for Enstone at Silverstone,” said Szafnauer reflecting on the disappointing race weekend.

“Esteban retired with a hydraulic leak – a frustrating issue which we must resolve. It meant Esteban was not able to show his hand in the race, which is made even more disappointing given how the race played out.

Round 9 of the FIA Formula 2 championship saw the first victory for Victor Martins, with an amazing wet weather drive, and a closer championship battle at the historic Silverstone Circuit. Two thrilling races, practice and qualifying sessions, and furious on-track action took place over the course of the weekend. The results of the first race set the grid for the second race in a reversed grid arrangement, adding an element of unpredictability and excitement. The starting grid for the first race was chosen by the qualifying session.

Free Practice

The weekend started off with championship contender Ayumu Iwasa of DAMS setting a benchmark of 1:41.539. ART’s Victor Martins led the session along with his Alpine Academy teammate Jack Doohan until the Red Bull junior took the lead.

Around the 24-minute mark, Van Amersfoort Racing’s Juan Manuel Correa spun off into the gravel of Corpse and therefore brought out the red Flag. Victor Martins had once again taken the lead with a 1:41.653 before MP Motorsport’s Dennis Hauger’s spin at Brooklands brought out the Virtual Safety Car.

With Less than 5 minutes left in the session, every driver brought out their flying laps. Iwasa came on top of the board with a 1:41.593, followed by Martins, Doohan, Arthur Leclerc, Enzo Fittpaldi, Jack Crawford, Home Hero Ollie Bearman coming in seventh, Theo Pourchaire, Richard Verschoor, and Dennis Hauger, who rounded out the top 10, as Trident’s Clement Novalak brought out the red flag as he spun off at Stowe, ultimately ending the session with two minutes to go.

Qualifying 

ART’s Victor Martins secured first place, setting a time of 1:39.832, and is set to start the feature race ahead of his grid-mates, with Campos’ Kush Maini joining him in the front row and Iwasa coming up from third place as he set the first benchmark of 1:41.100, which was matched exactly by his Dams teammate Arthur Leclerc.

Liam Lawson says he understands the reasons why he was overlooked in favour of Daniel Ricciardo to replace Nyck de Vries for the remainder of the 2023 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season.

Dutchman de Vries was sacked by Scuderia AlphaTauri after the British Grand Prix after failing to impress his team in the opening ten races of the season.  Alongside Logan Sargeant at Williams Racing, de Vries had failed to score points in 2023, and has now paid for his poor performances with his job.

Ricciardo, who rejoined Oracle Red Bull Racing as their reserve and test driver at the start of the year after losing his drive with the McLaren F1 Team, has been drafted in as his replacement.  He previously raced for the team under its previous guise – Scuderia Toro Rosso – between 2012 and 2013.

Lawson, on the other hand, is a Red Bull Junior Team starlet who is impressing with his driving in the Japanese based Super Formula championship.  The New Zealander has scored three victories so far in his rookie season and sits second in the Drivers’ Championship.

He has been earmarked as a future Formula 1 driver by Red Bull advisor Dr. Helmut Marko but was not chosen this time around to join AlphaTauri, a decision the multiple FIA Formula 2 race winner understands.

Summertime is often associated with bright, sunny days. That is, unless NASCAR is in town.

The Cup Series‘ Crayon 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway was quickly postponed to Monday at noon Eastern Standard Time due to heavy rain and the threat of further storms in the area.

The postponement continues a frustrating stretch of inclement weather for the series, which is just a week removed from having the Atlanta round shortened by rain and a fortnight after the Xfinity Series’ Chicago race suffered the same fate. Even the week before that in Nashville saw the Cup race have its start date moved up amid fears of rain, though the entire distance ran without trouble. Weather had also struck shortly before summer began, with the All-Star Race’s heat races run in the rain and Coca-Cola 600 moved to Monday.

The Northeastern United States has been hit by heavy storms and rains for much of July. In neighbouring Vermont, severe flooding led to a federal state of emergency being declared and forcing the Superstar Racing Experience’s upcoming Thunder Road Speedbowl race to be cancelled. Much of New Hampshire was under a flash food warning on Sunday, though forecasts hope for optimistic outlooks by Monday.

The Xfinity race on Saturday ran in its entirety, as did Cup Series qualifying that put 2022 winner Christopher Bell on the pole.

The Dakar Rally will return to Saudi Arabia for the fifth year in a row in 2024, and the country is set to continue hosting the event through 2029. While competitors are fine with this as Saudi Arabia offers sweeping deserts and particularly difficult terrain, some were hoping for some of it to take place in neighbouring countries too.

Benediktas Vanagas is one of those echoing such sentiments. Speaking with Cross-Country Rally News after the Dakar Rally presentation in Prague, he expressed an interest in seeing the Dakar Rally expand beyond its current Saudi base, though he acknowledged Saudi Arabia is already large enough that even running multiple rallies would not cover its massive deserts.

Much of the interest for a multi-national Dakar stems from providing more variety and access to other populations. The original Paris–Dakar Rally route began in Europe before running through northern Africa, while its time in South America crossed the borders of countries like Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru, with only the 2019 race exclusively taking place in Peru.

Nearly every Saudi neighbour including the Kingdom itself hosts international rally raids, with Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates all having dates on the FIA Middle East Cup for Cross-Country Bajas. Qatar, Jordan, and the UAE also welcome the FIA and FIM Bajas World Cups, while the UAE’s Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge is part of the World Rally-Raid Championship like Dakar.

Dakar race director David Castera has also not ruled out the possibility of crossing borders, but stressed that it would only be practical if the Rally stayed in a nearby country for multiple stages due to the logistics of customs and immigrations.

John Hunter Nemechek continued to add to his NASCAR Xfinity Series points lead on Saturday as he dominated New Hampshire Motor Speedway by leading 137 laps. However, he did have to get past an overtime scramble to convert his laps led into his fourth win of the season.

A seven-car accident that resulted in substantial damage for his Joe Gibbs Racing team-mate Joe Graf Jr. and Sam Mayer with two laps remaining set up overtime. As the Chevrolets of Chandler Smith, Austin Hill, and Daniel Hemric tried to bring the heat, Nemechek quickly extinguished it by pulling away before taking the white flag. Contact between Sheldon Creed and Cole Custer moments later caused another caution that ended the race.

Nemechek described overtime as “nerve-wracking for sure,” having added some flair to an otherwise lopsided showing as he often led by over two seconds. Justin Allgaier and JGR colleague Sammy Smith won the two stages, though neither had much answer for Nemechek otherwise, the latter even having to claw back after spinning his tyres on a late restart and stacking up the inside line.

The victory is Nemechek’s second in a row after taking Atlanta the previous week.

“We’ve clicked from almost day one,” he commented on his team. “We’ve been consistent all year. Just time to keep clicking off all of these victories.”

KAMAZ-master might be the king of the Silk Way Rally, but MAZ-SPORTauto has usurped the throne. For just the second time in the race’s history, KAMAZ failed to win the SWR as MAZ’s Siarhei Viazovich defeated a KAMAZ onslaught, securing a Belarusian victory on Russian soil.

Despite an early navigational error, Viazovich recorded a total time of 24 hours, 22 minutes, 14 seconds to hold off an army of KAMAZ trucks led by Eduard Nikolaev, who finished eleven minutes and forty-six seconds back. Defending champion Dmitry Sotnikov failed to podium in a race best lowlighted by him driving into a gully in Stage #2, prompting MAZ driver Vitaliy Murylev to help pull him out; Sotnikov finished fourth with Andrey Karginov beating him for the third and final spot on the podium.

MAZ is only the second manufacturer to defeat KAMAZ in the Silk Way after Aleš Loprais won the 2011 truck category in a Tatra.

“We are very happy to be at the finish. It has been a long way for us at thirteen years,” said Viazovich. “MAZ took part in the Silk Way for the first time in 2010, and today we finally became the winners of this most difficult race in the most difficult weather conditions when it started to rain. As always, we chose unconventional tactics and went on the attack today on a slippery road. We had excellent grip, the tyres worked great, we never slipped anywhere, we didn’t make a mistake, we quickly ‘rolled’ Andrey Karginov at the 40th kilometre, passed him, and kept a good pace until the very finish.

“MAZ turned out to be the fastest car in this rally and one of the fastest in the world. Representing the Republic of Belarus here is a great honour for us.”

20-year-old Jeremías Pascual might be a newcomer to rally raid, but he looked like a seasoned veteran when he finished second among all bikes in the South American Rally Race in February. As August approaches, he already has the greatest rally raid of all on his mind.

Hoping to make the 2024 Dakar Rally, Pascual intends to enter the Desafío Ruta 40, racing a Beta 430 RR for MEC Team. He will participate in the Rally2 category with emphasis on the Road to Dakar, a subclass for those with no prior Dakar Rally experience. The best performing RtD entrant in races that fall under its umbrella—which includes all four World Rally-Raid Championship rounds like the DR 40—earns free admission for Dakar.

“The Desafío Ruta 40 will only be my third rally raid, for which, first of all, I want to continue learning from the discipline,” he told Vía País. “Learning is something that you never finish doing.

“Racing Dakar is a dream for any racer. It is for me too. I will do everything possible to win the registration.”

Pascual came to rally from the Campeonato Argentino de Motocross, Argentina’s national motocross series, where he won the MX2 B championship in 2019. In 2022, he made his FIM Motocross World Championship début at the MXGP of Patagonia-Argentina, finishing thirteenth in MX2.