Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

The 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) returns to a sportscar racing staple for the penultimate round in what has been an utterly thrilling championship. Set at the spectacular Fuji Speedway, the 6 Hours of Fuji will see Toyota Gazoo Racing fight on home soil to take control of the championship, battling for the title against Porsche Penske Motorsport and Ferrari AF Corse.

2024 has been a vintage year for FIA WEC. The six previous rounds have each been won by a different car, with victory honours being shared between pairs of Porsches, Toyotas, and Ferraris. Following an intense battle at the Lone Star Le Mans where the winning margin after 6 gruelling hours of racing was an astonishing 1.7 seconds, FIA WEC returns to Fuji for the 11th time. Set at the foot of Mount Fuji, the Fuji Speedway always draws a large crowd of passionate fans, the stunning scenery being surpassed only by spectacular on track action.

The circuit may well be the second shortest on the calendar (after Interlagos) but it features a wide range of challenges for the drivers. Most famously, the straight is 1.475km long, meaning the cars need low drag to achieve their top speed. In 2023, the #50 Ferrari 499P clocked the fastest speed of 333kph, almost 207mph. However, sector 2 in particular features some corners that require almost maximum downforce to get the most out of the car. The teams that can find that difficult balance will be the ones to beat come race day on Sunday 15 September.

Hypercar

Coming into the Japanese round, home team Toyota Gazoo Racing seem to have the advantage. The #7 Toyota came within a whisker of winning the Lone Star Le Mans, and, at the previous round in Brazil, the #8 sister car was utterly dominant. As the most experienced team in WEC, they know how to get the most out of their cars as well as play the long game in endurance races. They also quite literally own the track. The hybrid powertrain of the Toyota GR010 Hybrid is designed, developed, and built at the Higashi-Fuji technical centre. The Japanese team has also won 9 out of the 10 previous WEC races in Fuji, including an impressive 1-2 finish in 2023.

“Everyone in the team is looking forward to our home race” explained #7 driver and team principal Kamui Kobayashi. “It is very important; after Le Mans, Fuji is the second most significant race of the season for us. As a Japanese driver and as a Japanese manufacturer, competing in Fuji is very important, plus it’s great to meet our Japanese fans. We have always been strong there and we have a fantastic record, with nine wins. Of course, we want to keep that successful run going in front of our fans, partners and colleagues.”

Trey Gibbs is eager to be the next short course star to excel at desert racing, and he already seems to be comfortable in his new environment as he was the fastest Trophy Truck Spec during qualifying for the Baja 400 on Wednesday.

Driving the #232 TT Spec, he set a time that was over five seconds faster than Elijah Kiger. The entry is recorded under Chelsea Magness‘ name since Gibbs is using her regular number, but the truck is fully prepared by Gibbs’ team without her involvement. Mavrick Gaunt, who added an unusually large rear fin-like wing to his truck to improve aerodynamics, was third; he does not plan to use the wing in the race itself.

While pre-running the truck days was the extent of Gibbs’ on-track SCORE International experience prior to qualifying, he looked like a natural.

“I knew I had to go down and throw down and went out and put it on the number one spot,” said Gibbs. “Pumped to be able to start in up front, but I got a lot of heavy hitters behind me starting for the race. All I got to do is go out there and run my pace and see where we wind up. Pumped on today, we had a good qualifying, made a couple bobbles here and there, but still able to put on a number one spot so looking forward to race day now.”

His SCORE début comes on the heels of winning Championship Off-Road’s Pro Lite title. Besides desert racing, his short course focus in 2025 will be on the higher Pro 2 category, which he entered for the first time at the Crandon World Cup earlier in September.

Wednesday marked the 23-year anniversary of the 11 September attacks on the United States that killed 2,977 people. In their immediate aftermath, the entertainment world scrambled to postpone events or make thematic changes to their content to align with the sudden paradigm shift in American culture.

Most sporting leagues opted to postpone their upcoming games in the following days such as the National Football League and Major League Baseball, and the ramifications also extended globally such as the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup. Motorsport was more of a mixed bag domestically and overseas: the NASCAR Cup Series’ event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway was pushed back from that Sunday to the end of the 2001 season, while the CART race at Lausitzring and 2001 Italian Grand Prix went as usual save for memorial tributes.

SCORE International ended up being one of the few American racing championships that opted to proceed with their schedule that weekend. Scheduled for four days after the attacks on 15 September, the Primm 300 in Nevada was the fourth and penultimate race of the 2001 season, when the series bounced between Baja California (where it currently races exclusively) and the U.S.

It was not an easy decision to make. On one hand, racing so soon after such a tragedy did not feel appropriate. On the other hand, doing so could also be seen as a show of strength. One could also point out that Primm was unlikely to be targeted by terrorist activity. The only precedent seemed to be the 1991 Parker 400, where some mulled whether to proceed as it was shortly after the start of Operation Desert Storm, though that was still outside of America’s borders.

After a day of debate, SCORE President Sal Fish opted to proceed.

During the early 2010s, Mitchell deJong was one of the rising stars in rallycross with race wins and titles in a plethora of Lites series ranging from Global Rallycross to the FIA World Rallycross Championship. However, his career ended up on hold by 2018, though he stayed virtually fresh as a sim racer.

Seven years after his last real-life racing action, deJong found himself behind the wheel of a NEXT EVO during last weekend’s Nitrocross season opener at Richmond Raceway. Despite the long absence, he did not have to shake off any rust as he held off reigning Nitrocross NEXT champion Tommi Hallman to win the first race. While Hallman returned the favour the next day, deJong still wrapped up the slate by finishing second.

deJong was called into action by Bak40 Motorsports on relatively short notice. Even then, he was the fastest driver in NEXT qualifying before winning his heat race and semi-final on Saturday. He set the pace early in the final and kept Hallman at bay for the win.

“A lot of unknowns coming into this weekend but everything just seemed to fall into place,” he said following the Saturday win. “I’m getting more and more comfortable with the car and all the races leading up to the semi-final and final went pretty much perfect and on-point.”

The successful weekend adds to an impressive portfolio for the 26-year-old, who won the 2014 GRC Lites title and an X Games gold medal that year. He has also triumphed in the FIA World and European Rallycross Championship’s Lites divisions as well as RallyX on Ice, winning the latter’s 2017 crown before committing to sim racing full time. On the esports side, deJong has competed in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing and Porsche TAG Heuer Esports Supercup.

After spending the last eight years with Czech manufacturers, Aleš Loprais has switched to IVECO for the Rallye du Maroc and 2025 Dakar Rally. He will drive an IVECO PowerStar prepared by Team de Rooy under the InstaTrade Loprais Team De Rooy FPT banner.

Loprais had long been associated with Tatra thanks to his late uncle Karel, with whom he made his Dakar début in 2006, before racing with Praga from 2020 to 2024 with a best finish of second in the Truck category at the latest edition. Even then, he is no stranger to IVECO or the de Rooys as he entered the 2016 Dakar with them, only to retire after the first stage.

While his Praga, nicknamed “Lady”, has been reliable and fast, Loprais is reluctant about modifying the truck to comply with new FIA rules for 2025. Such a process can take years to perfect, which was unappealing for someone in the prime of his career. Loprais led the 2023 Dakar before withdrawing due to a fatal accident, then broke through with the runner-up in 2024.

He hopes to continue racing Lady at other events like the Morocco Desert Challenge and Africa Eco Race.

“We would need to make extensive modifications to the truck according to new regulations, including reducing its weight,” Loprais explained. “More important, in order to be at the top, we would have to completely overhaul the fuel injection system from a pump-jet to common rail, which most of our rivals use. That would take at least three to four years of expensive development, ideally with factory support. While that would be interesting, at this point in my career, I don’t want to spend my best racing years experimenting at Dakar instead of using my experience to achieve the results I’ve dreamed of.

Months after winning his first ever race in a side-by-side, Manuel Andújar nearly repeated the feat in his début as the driver of one when he finished second in class at the Rally Raid San Rafael to his team-mate Jeremías Gonzalez Ferioli. It might not have been a victory, but the run is still a good start as he prepares for life in a new discipline.

Andújar raced a Can-Am Maverick R prepared by Ferioli Racing Team but emblazoned with his 7240 Team branding, while Sergio Lafuente served as navigator. He set the fastest time in the Prologue, beating Nazareno López by forty seconds, before Ferioli took the lead the next day after he lost fifteen minutes due to the navigation tablet malfunctioning.

Ferioli continued to hold the advantage when he beat Andújar by 2:49 in the first Selective Section of the third and final day, then delivered the killing blow of 1:18 in SS2. By the end, Andújar settled for second and 16:45 behind Ferioli in a 1–2 finish for the team.

“I’m very happy with the results of our debut—P2 with a stage win included,” he wrote. “Despite some issues with the tablet on day 2, we were able to maintain a good race pace and keep it until the end. But honestly, being self-critical, there are several seconds per kilometre that can be improved, and we’re going to work on that.”

Even if not a win, a second is certainly nothing to scoff at, especially as Ferioli is one of the top SSV drivers in Argentina. He and Andújar both won their classes at the World Rally-Raid Championship’s Desafío Ruta 40 in June, the latter clinching the championship in the Quad category in the process.

The sound of race cars will once again permeate Ukraine’s circuits. New Automobile Federation of Ukraine rules came into effect on Friday that will allow organisers to hold motorsport events in the country, provided they receive a referral from their discipline’s FAU committee and approval from the regional military administration in which the race is held.

The FAU was able to refine its policies after kart races and hillclimbs were successfully held in the spring and summer despite being under martial law. The national Ukrainian Karting Championship re-launched, with one round in June being held in Poltava at the Ltava sports facility where the kart track is named after Volodymyr Chernysh, a local driver who raced in the series before being killed in action last September near Bakhmut. The Ukraine Forest Challenge Kyiv, Ukrainian Hillclimb Cup, and various local automobile clubs have also hosted races to raise money and buy equipment for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Martial law had sidelined Ukrainian motorsport series since its imposition immediately following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. On 5 June 2023, the Ministry of Youth and Sports outlined “additional measures” that would permit sporting events to take place under the circumstances, which the FAU stated race promoters “must ensure compliance with”.

The ministry requires the event organiser to meet with officials such as the venue operator and deputies of the State Emergency Service and National Police, with whom they are to give estimates on the number of people taking part. While matches and races are held behind closed doors, the police will scout out the venue before the start for any potential threats.

Given the obvious threat of a Russian attack, the track or stadium must have a suitable shelter within a 500-metre radius for everyone to take cover, as well as an action plan with proper evacuation procedure. Diagrams of evacuation routes must be placed around the venue. All competitors must undergo briefings beforehand on what to do should an attack occur.

After about two weeks of work, SNAG Racing‘s off-road buggy is set to be deployed to Ukraine to be used by Russian troops. The team insists the buggy will not be used in a military capacity and is rather being employed for “humanitarian aid.”

SNAG began the vehicle restoration process in late August with plans of selling it to the regional government of Sverdlovsk Oblast, who will transfer it to the Russian military in Ukraine. Team owner Sergei Kariakin, the 2017 Dakar Rally Quad winner and 2023 Silk Way Rally T3 victor, is a staunch supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin and a deputy in the Sverdlovsk Region Legislative Assembly.

The buggy had to be virtually rebuilt from the ground up. Kariakin publicly explained the brakes and clutch were fully replaced, while the steering system and gearbox underwent heavy repairs and upgrades. A platform was also installed at the rear for transport. New panelling has also been added along the body.

“We are pleased to announce that we have completed preparing a buggy to humanitarian aid to the special military operation,” begins a team statement. “This buggy was purchased by the Government of the Sverdlovsk region, and we developed and adapted it according to all the necessary criteria and the specified requirements.

“Our efforts are focused on supporting those in difficult situations, and we are doing everything possible to ensure that this aid will provide the fullest help to our soldiers and civilians.”

The three-race Jordan 4×4 Championship came to a close Friday along the Panorama Dead Sea Complex. As was the case in the first two rounds, Palestinian drivers showed up in what they feel is a major morale boon amidst the ongoing war in their home country.

The Jeep Wrangler of Wisam Khalilieh and co-driver Serri Handal was the fastest car overall to win the Pro class, while Amjad Hananeh and Emad Hananeh finished runner-up in their Kia Sorento to complete a Palestinian 1–2 finish. Khalilieh had finished third at the season opener in February but missed the second round in July as he was working on upgrading the vehicle.

“This is something to be proud of,” he told Palestine TV Youth & Sports. “When you work hard on something and end up in first place, it feels great.”

Jordan’s Feras Al-Mousa and Husam Al-Ajouri joined them on the podium in their Toyota 4Runner. Al-Mousa commented, “Those guys came from Palestine, and their cars are impressively modified, really strong vehicles.”

The Palestinian Motor Sport & Motorcycle Federation remarked that “despite the ongoing war on our beloved homeland, the determination of our off-road racing heroes to win remains.” The federation, as the country’s FIA and FIM representative, released similar statements following the other two races. Days before the finale, the PMSMF began taking direct humanitarian action by sending 4×4 vehicles into Tulkarm with food and supplies for civilians.

Red-Lined Motorsport‘s REVO T1+ has taken on rallies across the world, but only needed one stop in Australia to already be a winner there. Adam Kaplan dominated the first three days of the eleven-stage Sunraysia Safari Creoss Country Rally to secure the victory outright.

With Aleshia Penney as navigator, Kaplan set the fastest time on the first day, clearing the WRC-branded Subaru Crosstrek of Dean Herridge by nearly three minutes, then repeated the feat in Day 2. He kept his foot on the pedal and built his lead even more during the third stage while Herridge finished seventh, effectively securing the win for Kaplan.

Kaplan got lost on the first corner to start the final day and lost two minutes, which he called “the dumbest thing ever but that happens.” The misadventures prevented a sweep as Will Dunn‘s Nissan Patrol beat Herridge for the stage win. Kaplan still joined them on the day’s podium.

Developed in South Africa, the REVO has been busy since its début in 2023. After primarily competing in the South African Rally-Raid Championship, it has competed in the Dakar Rally, World Rally-Raid Championship, FIA Baja Cups, and even the Taklimakan Rally in China. The vehicle was Red-Lined’s first vehicle for the T1+ subcategory.

“A really big SHOUT OUT to Adam Kaplan and Aleshia Penney on winning the 4 day 11 stage 1200km Sunraysia Safari Rally in their AEH powered REVO T1+,” wrote Red-Lined boss Terence Marsh, “this was the debut event for our T1+ race car in Australia so to say that we are PROUD is an understatement!!!”

With his rally raid career in flux following Audi’s shutdown, Stéphane Peterhansel has kept busy by returning to his roots on a motorcycle. This past weekend, he threw it even further back by winning the FIM Enduro Vintage Trophy in Camerino, an enduro race for bikes built before 1991.

Peterhansel, an ambassador for Yamaha who won the Dakar Rally six times with the marque, raced a 1981 Yamaha IT 250. Although he switched to rally raid cars in 1999, he remained involved with Yamaha in the years since. In 2023, Peterhansel returned to bike rallies when he ran the Morocco Desert Challenge on a Yamaha Ténéré 700 as part of the non-competition Ténéré Spirit Experience; his wife Andréa is the programme’s general manager.

“Unfortunately, I missed the last two years because it is not always possible for me to come,” Peterhansel commented. “But this year, I had more freedom in my racing schedule, so I made it a priority to be here.

“For me, this is racing without pressure. During my career, I always had pressure to win when I raced, but that’s not the case here.”

Even with low stakes and not having done an enduro event in years, the two-time FIM Enduro World Champion still shined as he accumulated the fewest points to win the overall. The victory concludes a summer of dabbling in various off-road bike races in Italy, the Frenchman having finished third at the Swank Rally di Sardegna on his Yamaha WR450F in June.

Kevin Hansen has won the 8th round of the 2024 FIA World Rallycross Championship. The Swedish driver secured his first victory of the season in fine fashion in Montalegre, Portugal, holding off a determined charge from Saturday’s winner Johan Kristoffersson. 2019 champion Timmy Hansen came home in 3rd, giving Hansen World RX Team another double-podium to add to their collection.

Race Report

As the second day of the double-header event in Portugal got underway, it looked as though Sunday could see a repeat of Saturday’s success for Kristoffersson. The Swedish superstar charged into the first corner of his first heat race in 4th, but came out of the corner in 1st, muscling through in his Volkswagen Polo KMS 601 RX to take victory. Meanwhile Timmy Hansen bounced back from a disappointing end to his Saturday racing with a confident performance, securing victory in both of his heat races.

Kevin Hansen made an inspired decision in his second heat race, diving for his Joker on the first lap of the race. This allowed him to continually log fast lap times while the rest of the field squabbled for position, meaning that, when the dust cleared, it was a Hansen World RX Team lockout of victories in heat 2.

Semi-final 1 saw both Hansens line up alongside each other with Klara Andersson and Anthony Pelfrene for company. The Hansens executed some perfect fraternal teamwork to shut the door on Andersson in the first corner, allowing the two Peugeot 208 RX1e drivers to pull away from the pack. Meanwhile, Andersson and Pelfrene were engaged in a fantastic battle for third, with the Frenchman doing just enough to defend from a charging Andersson and secure his place in the final. Due to a track limit violation, however, he was cruelly disqualified from the final.

Niclas Grönholm got a superb start in semi-final 2 in his electric PWR RX1e, but unfortunately didn’t have the pace to contend with the two internal combustion engine (ICE) KMS – HORSE Powertrain cars of Kristoffersson and Ole Christian Veiby. Unusually, it was Veiby who got the better of Kristoffersson on this occasion, coming home first in the semi-final to line up alongside Kevin Hansen in the final.

Johan Kristoffersson has won the 7th round of the 2024 FIA World Rallycross Championship in style in Montalegre, Portugal, with one of the all-time great world rallycross finals. The Swedish superstar overcame the odds to secure yet another victory, followed home by Niclas Grönholm and Kevin Hansen.

Kristoffersson certainly did not have everything his own way. Following a dramatic semi-final, in which he sustained a rear left puncture and consequentially significant damage to the rear of the car generally, there was serious doubt as to whether his Volkswagen Polo KMS 601 RX would be able to take to the final grid at all. However, the team at KMS – HORSE Powertrain worked wonders in the short break between the races, getting the car ready, not only to race, but to take victory.

Race Report

World rallycross’s return to Portugal was set to be a stunning event and a crucial battleground in the “Battle of Technologies,” pitting internal combustion engine (ICE) cars up against their electric counterparts. The received wisdom before the event was that the long straights and fast, flowing corners should favour the electric vehicles.

Indeed, electric cars were leading into the first corner in every heat race. Despite pressure from the two Hansen World RX Team drivers, it was Kristoffersson in his ICE Polo that took wins in both of his heats. In the other heats, it was Grönholm in the electric CE Dealer Team car that claimed victory on both occasions.

In the first semi-final, it was Kristoffersson versus Kevin Hansen. Hansen defended mightily from a storming Kristoffersson, with Kristoffersson struggling with very poor visibility thanks to the dust being thrown up. Following the tyre issues, Kristoffersson was in a battle with Anthony Pelfrene. The French driver put in a superb drive to haul in and overtake the ailing Kristoffersson, but unfortunately a racing incident in the final sector saw Pelfrene spin out of contention for a spot in the final.

Motorsport UK has donated a Pinzgauer 6×6 vehicle to the Armed Forces of Ukraine after over two years of fundraising. It is expected to arrive in Lviv this weekend before being sent to Kyiv the week after. From there, it will be transferred to the 46th Airmobile Brigade for use as an armoured ambulance.

The project launched in May 2022, less than two months after the full-scale Russian invasion began. A GoFundMe was started with the goal of raising £60,000 to donate to the Ukrainian Embassy, who then used the money to purchase the Pinzgauer. David Richards CBE, the chairman of Motorsport UK and Prodrive, provided the opening and largest salvo of £25,000.

The British Motorsport Trust pitched in £5,000, the second largest donation ahead of the £3,000 from the village of Duns Tew. Contributions from Northern Ireland were spearheaded by the Association of Northern Ireland Car Clubs’ £2,000 alongside the Ballynahinch & District Motor Club and Ulster Rally (£1,000 apiece), Ulster Automobile Club (£500), and Dungannon Motor Club (£250). From Scotland, the Scottish Association of Motor Sports Club and RSAC Motorsport each donated £250. Other donors included the Association of Motorsport Recovery Operators and Shenington Kart Racing Club, both doing £250 as well.

Bicester Heritage, a former military airfield, hosted events like the Bicester Scramble and Flywheel to raise awareness for the cause. In June 2023, a booth was set up at Flywheel with the Pinzgauer on display; Victoria Prentis, then the MP for Banbury who has helped Ukrainian refugees in Britain, visited the booth and remarked the vehicle “looks more like a tank than an ambulance, but it has to considering where it’s going.”

Although Austrian rooted as part of the Steyr-Puch line, the Pinzgauer was produced in the United Kingdom by BAE Systems and its subsidiaries from 2000 to 2007, the last iteration being the Pinzgauer Vector PPV (Protected Patrol Vehicle). While new models are no longer made, the Goole-based Venari Group is currently responsible for building emergency vehicles as well as restoring and converting former British Army stock for such purposes. Other military vehicles in the company’s portfolio include an armoured Land Rover, Mercedes Vario, and a Unimog. Venari previously worked with the Embassy of Ukraine for Belgium and Luxembourg to supply fourteen Pinzgauers to Ukraine in March 2023.

Fesh Fesh‘s new Tatra FF7 truck had a strong début at the Baja Poland last month when it finished third in class. As the Rallye du Maroc and 2025 Dakar Rally loom, owner/driver Tomáš Vrátný is hoping it can keep up its pace.

The FF7 was revealed in July at the Colours of Ostrava festival, where it was christened by Czech President Petr Pavel. Luck did not seem to be on its side at first when the team had to abort the Baja Poland’s Prologue due to the gas pedal sensor malfunctioning, forcing them to work overnight to get it fixed for the weekend. From there, however, they managed to regain their footing and finish third among trucks in the Polish Cross-Country Rally Championship behind a pair of fellow Tatras from Buggyra ZM Racing.

“Ahead of the Morocco races, we’re assessing a lot of feedback and issues that came up during Baja Poland, and I hope the car will be well-prepared for Africa,” said Vrátný. “I believe the ‘Seven’ in the name will bring us good luck.”

The FF7 is a 4×4 vehicle that stands in rather stark contrast to Fesh Fesh’s Ford Cargo EVO I and Tatra Jamal EVO III. It measures at 6.49 metres long by 3.2 m wide and 2.5 m high, with a wheelbase of 4,500 millimetres. From there, it weighs in at 8,750 kilograms.

The truck’s body was designed in partnership with the Slovakian R&D company Werkemotion. It boasts a cab-over design pulled from the wildly successful Tatra 815 Puma, which sits atop a chassis with swinging axles, air springs, and a central load-bearing tube frame. A central tyre inflation system, common among Tatra’s military trucks, is used within the cabin to manage the 14.00R20 Michelin X Force ZL tyres.