Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

Max Verstappen feels there is still more to come from both himself and Oracle Red Bull Racing despite topping both free practice sessions on Friday as the Canadian Grand Prix weekend got underway.

The Dutchman paced the first session at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve with a time of 1:15.158 ahead of Scuderia Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr., and he improved his time to a 1:14.127 in the second session to edge out the other Ferrari of Charles Leclerc by 0.081 seconds.

Verstappen says it was positive to start the weekend so strongly but there is still time to find, particularly on the soft Pirelli tyre, and he will be looking to find that time ahead of Qualifying on Saturday.

“It was a positive day, of course there are always things that you can look at to try and find the complete balance, but overall today was a good start to the weekend,” said Verstappen.  “The softest compound is always the hardest one to nail, so I think there’s definitely more time to find in that, even then we have a competitive car so that’s good.

“The long run was good, it’s still hard on tyres around here so there’s still a few things to work on. Even with the things I want to improve, it was still a good day.”

What was supposed to be an dream turned into a nightmare for Travis McCullough when his NASCAR Camping World Truck Series début at Sonoma Raceway was aborted once he was already at the track due to a litany of issues surrounding him and his employer G2G Racing. As fans and media seek to find the full context, matters surrounding the team seemed to grow more questionable.

McCullough, primarily a short track racer, joined G2G for the Sonoma race in what would have been his maiden NASCAR start; he was assigned to the #47 while fellow Truck Series newcomer Mason Filippi was in the team’s #46. In an interview with Matt Burroughs of TehBen, McCullough explained G2G provided an especially appealing chance to race due to its more-than-affordable “crash clause”, which is charged to cover for damages in the event of a wreck. From there, however, things began to fall apart.

According to McCullough, G2G gave the impression of being shorthanded on crewmen, prompting him to bring his own team to assist. After a delay to the team’s haulers arriving at the raceway (along with just five employees), McCullough discovered the truck was unfinished with multiple missing or uninstalled components, prompting NASCAR officials to point out it could not undergo technical inspection before practice.

Further exacerbating matters was a delay in receiving his drug test results from NASCAR and its testing conductor Drug Free Sport. McCullough explained he did his test a week before the race as permitted, but inquiries to NASCAR as race day loomed were met with comments about holdups at Drug Free Sport. The same problem befell Colin Garrett, which prevented him from driving the #30 On Point Motorsports truck and placed Josh Bilicki in the vehicle.

With the results ultimately not arriving until well after race day, McCullough was formally disallowed to compete; per a report from LASTCAR’s Brock Beard, G2G tried to get Keith McGee in the #47 but did not have enough time to make the switch. Matters did not seem to improve for the team on the other truck as Filippi was replaced by Stefan Parsons for the race. Parsons retired after just nine laps with an oil cooler issue.

Brodie Kostecki might be enjoying a burgeoning career in the Supercars Championship, but the Australian is interested in returning to his roots on the other side of the Pacific Ocean. According to a report by Simon Chapman of Speedcafe, a recent trip to the Indianapolis 500 and NASCAR Cup Series race at Gateway have inspired the 24-year-old to consider pursuing a Cup start in 2023 should scheduling aligns in his favour.

Driving for Erebus Motorsport, Kostecki is in his second full season of Supercars competition and sits eighth in points after eight races. He enjoyed his breakout moment in the second race of 2022 at Sydney Motorsport Park when he won the pole and finished second.

“I want to do some more racing in general, to be honest,” Kostecki told Speedcafe. “I’m a racer at heart and I just want to drive anything. We only have twelve or thirteen rounds on our calendar. I want to try fill up almost every second week as much as possible with racing, whether it be in my sprint car [or otherwise]. I’m really looking forward to jumping back in that when the season starts back up in Toowoomba (where Gen3 testing recently took place).

“I want to spread my wings a bit and just try race as much as possible. I absolutely love my Supercar racing, I just want to try race as much as possible.”

Prior to entering Supercars or its feeder Super2 Series, Kostecki spent two seasons in the United States competing in what is now the ARCA Menards Series West. After running three races as a 15-year-old in 2013, he increased his slate to include nearly the entire 2014 schedule. He recorded four top tens, a best finish of fifth in the season finale at Dover, and a pole at Iowa en route to an eighteenth-place points finish.

Max Verstappen continued where he left off in the first session as he led the way in second practice for the Canadian Grand Prix on Friday.

The Oracle Red Bull Racing driver set a best time of 1:14.127 to head the pack, which was led by Scuderia Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr.

Verstappen set his best time around the halfway mark of the session, with Leclerc ending just 0.081 seconds back in second, while Sainz was 0.225 seconds back in third as drivers continued to get used to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve after the race was cancelled in both 2020 and 2021.

Sebastian Vettel showed that the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team have started the weekend well by putting his AMR22 into fourth place, while Fernando Alonso proved that his pace from the first session was genuine by ending fifth for the BWT Alpine F1 Team, just ahead of Scuderia AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly.

George Russell was the best placed of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team drivers in seventh, with the Briton more than eight-tenths of a second back on the pace set by Verstappen at the front.  He ended just ahead of the two McLaren F1 Team drivers, with Lando Norris edging out Daniel Ricciardo by 0.046 seconds, while Alpine’s Esteban Ocon rounded out the top ten.

Dexter Bean only has two NASCAR road course starts to his name, both of which came in his home state of Wisconsin. On 2 July, that number increases by one as he enters the Xfinity Series race at Road America. Operating Engineers Local 139, a Wisconsin-based trade union for heavy construction machinery operators including Bean and his family, will serve as sponsors of his DGM Racing car.

“Combined with my father David Bean and grandfather Richard Bean, we have over 108 years of membership (in Local 139),” commented Bean. “Construction is our family tradition. On any given weekday, I can usually be found in a machine, so being able to combine racing and my daily life in construction makes this car and partnership with IUOE Local 139 very sentimental to me. It’s truly an honour to represent them.”

Bean, whose hometown is on the other side of the state from Road America in Elkhart Lake, finished twenty-sixth and thirty-second in his two starts there in 2017 and 2019. Outside of those two races, his lone other major road course start came in the ARCA Menards Series when he was fourteenth at New Jersey Motorsports Park in 2008.

His other thirty Xfinity starts have come on ovals, all but one of which are for DGM Racing. He has driven for the team since its inception as King Autosport in 2015, with a best finish of eleventh at Pocono in 2020. DGM owner Mario Gosselin is a brother-in-law of Bean.

“Internal combustion engines, horsepower, and the skill to control them are all part of an operating engineer’s everyday life, so naturally, a great amount of our members love to follow the NASCAR circuit,” said Local 139 president Terry McGowan. “That is why we are proud to announce our sponsorship of one of our very own who displays these very skills on the track. Brother Dexter Bean, a third-generation member, will now carry the logo of the Operating Engineers Local 139 on the track, and it will instill pride in each and every fellow member who sees his machine and his skill on display for all.”

Max Verstappen led the first free practice session of the 2022 Canadian Grand Prix at Montreal in Canada.

Carlos Sainz finished in second position, 0.246 seconds slower than the Dutchman. Fernando Alonso finished in third position at the end of the session.

The first free practice session of the Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montréal started with air temperatures at 25 degrees C and track temperatures at 41 degrees C. The skies were slightly overcast with a 20% chance of rain.

Formula 1 returned to this circuit after 2019 after race cancellations for two years due to the Covid19 pandemic.

The Pirelli tyre choice at this race is the white-striped hard compound tyres (C3), yellow-striped medium compound tyres (C4), and red-striped soft compound tyres (C5), the softest range of compounds in the Pirelli tyre range.

Dave Robson says the Canadian Grand Prix is making a welcome return to the FIA Formula 1 World Championship schedule this weekend, and he hopes for a competitive weekend for his Williams Racing team at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

After two years off the schedule, Canada is back on the calendar, and Robson, the Head of Vehicle Performance at Williams, says there is excitement within the team about its return.

“The Canadian Grand Prix makes a very welcome return to the calendar having been missing for the last two years due to the pandemic,” said Robson.  

“Both the city of Montreal and the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve itself are traditional highlights on the Formula 1 calendar and as a team we are looking forward to getting back there.”

Robson says the team will be using the free practice sessions on Friday to fine tune the car to the track, and he hopes that both Alexander Albon and Nicholas Latifi can be fighting in the midfield and for points come Sunday afternoon in Montréal.

Despite it being his third season in the FIA Formula 1 World Championship, this weekend will see Nicholas Latifi finally race in his home Grand Prix, with the Canadian race back on the calendar after a two-year hiatus.

The race at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was postponed in both 2020 and 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, leaving Latifi unable to perform in front of his home fans, but this weekend, the Williams Racing driver will finally get that chance.

“I’m super excited to finally be heading to Canada for my first home race!” said Latifi.  “Getting the opportunity to compete at home and seeing all the Canadian fans will be a great feeling.”

Looking ahead to the weekend, Latifi does not know if the track will be one to suit Williams, but he will be looking to maximise his result, something he was unable to do last time out in Azerbaijan after a couple of penalties left him alone at the back of the pack.

“It’s another track with long straights, which we seem competitive on,” he said.  “However, some corners may not be particularly well suited to our car, based off my previous experience from FP1 sessions, so that might balance us out a little bit.

Olli Caldwell, currently racing in the FIA Formula 2 with Campos Racing and part of the Alpine Academy, had his first taste of FIA Formula 1 World Championship machinery earlier this week at Silverstone.

The twenty-year-old Briton took to the track in an Alpine F1 Team A521 after being given the chance by the French team to run as part of its young driver test programme, and he completed more than four hundred and eighty-five kilometres in the car driven by Fernando Alonso to the podium in the 2021 Qatar Grand Prix.

It was a big step up in machinery for Caldwell, but the youngster was delighted to get given the opportunity to run in a Formula 1 machine for the first time.

“It’s been unbelievable and I’m quite speechless, there’s nothing I could compare it to,” said Caldwell.  “It’s everything I expected and more.  There’s nothing you can do to prepare for how it feels.

“The car is incomparable to F2, everything is more, there’s more speed, downforce, braking plus there’s about 50 more buttons.

Following Formula 1’s announcement of the Albert Park Circuit retaining the Australian Grand Prix until 2035, the FIA Formula 2 and FIA Formula 3 promoters have announced plans for F2 and F3 to join the pinnacle of motorsport at the street circuit from 2023 onwards.

The proposed changes are subject to approval by the World Motorsport Council (WMSC).

The CEO of both F2 and F3, Bruno Michel, said, “I am extremely happy to add Melbourne to both F2 and F3 calendars from 2023. It further enhances the international aspect of both our championships, having them race on a new continent.”

“It also shows that more and more circuits believe that F2 and F3 are an added value to the Formula 1 Grand Prix experience, showcasing the next generation of drivers.”

The 2022 grid holds two Australian drivers, Virtuosi Racing’s Jack Doohan and Trident’s Calan Williams who will both be looking forward to a home race if they are able to get a drive for next season.

With 2007 Formula One World Champion Kimi Räikkönen set for his maiden NASCAR Cup Series start at Watkins Glen International in August, speculation has run deep in the NASCAR community about other drivers with little to no stock car racing experience potentially doing one-off starts. While organisations like Räikkönen’s new employer Trackhouse Racing Team and Team Stange Racing are eager to provide such opportunities, NASCAR recognises that even the most decorated non-stock car racer should know what they are doing should they decide to dabble.

NASCAR has notoriously stringent testing rules, and the sanctioning body is not afraid to clamp down on teams it views as bending such laws regardless of background. Nevertheless, with practices only lasting fifteen to twenty minutes in a given race weekend, it would not be smart to have someone unfamiliar with stock cars only get that much before diving into an actual race.

Any driver whom NASCAR regards as possessing “elite credentials” is allowed to partake in a Select Driver Orientation Test once greenlit by NASCAR. How such a classification is determined is not publicly known, but one can assume the likes of Räikkönen, being an ex-F1 Champion, and three-time Supercars Champion-turned-IndyCar winner Scott McLaughlin would be among them, much like the driver rankings used by the FIA. IndyCar regular Simon Pagenaud, who voiced his interest in a reply to FOX Sports’ Bob Pockrass tweeting the test procedure, would also likely qualify while the best player of NASCAR 99 on Nintendo 64 probably would not.

Although such tests might be high-profile, drivers are not allowed to do whatever they please as restrictions include a duration of ten hours total across a single day of testing, taking place at NASCAR/IMSA-approved courses (IMSA is owned by NASCAR), and only having one Next Gen car with no backups permitted.

Testing rules are as follows:

The driver must be approved by NASCAR.The driver must have elite credentials from the highest forms of motorsports in the world.The driver must be entered into a NASCAR Cup Series Event(s) by a current organization actively participating in NASCAR Cup Series Events.Only drivers that are licensed and approved for Competition for the appropriate track type in the NASCAR Cup Series will be eligible to participate in a Select Driver Orientation Test.The driver must not have previously tested or competed at a similar track type in a Next Gen vehicle.Only one Next Gen vehicle of suitable specification for the track type at which the test will be conducted is permitted.A backup vehicle will not be permitted.The test must be conducted within 90 days of the entered Event.No other drivers are permitted to test or “shakedown” the vehicle.The organization fielding the driver at the Event may not be the primary test team, but may send up to four representatives.The organization conducting the test must be approved by NASCAR.Unless approved by NASCAR, only equipment (including the vehicle) from the testing organization will be permitted at the test.The organization fielding the driver at the Event will be responsible for all testing costs.A maximum of three sets of tires may be allocated for the test and must be ordered according to Goodyear’s protocols.Test engine specifications must be appropriate for the testing track type.The only vehicle configuration changes permitted during the test must be related to ride and handling based on driver feedback.Data will be limited to steering, brake pressure (front/back), throttle position, gear position, and NASCAR will provide the ECU logging configuration. No other sensors or data system may be installed on the vehicle.Distribution of test data will be TBD.Maximum test duration is one day, for a maximum of ten hours. Time starts the moment the vehicle is on-track for the first time. Additional time may be granted in the event of inclement weather or other track related issues. NASCAR must approve any time adjustments in advance of additional time being accumulated.The testing venue must not be at a location in which the driver is entered in an Event.Media may or may not be allowed, at NASCAR’s discretion.The organization fielding the driver at an Event(s) must submit a test request via the voucher system a minimum of three weeks prior to the test.If the test is approved by NASCAR, a voucher will be issued.The test must be conducted at a NASCAR or IMSA approved race track with NASCAR approved track services, and follow all NASCAR safety protocols.

Scuderia Ferrari know they must bounce back this weekend at the Canadian Grand Prix, after their dismal double DNF in Azerbaijan last weekend. This weekend’s race in Canada is the first since 2019, due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Following their Baku agony, Ferrari now sit eighty-points behind Oracle Red Bull Racing, meaning that another slip-up this weekend could put their Austrian rivals out of sight. The same has to be said for Charles Leclerc, who after retiring from two of the last three races is now thirty-four-points behind Max Verstappen.

Ahead of the important weekend at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Ferrari’s Track Electronics Manager, Paolo Pierro, explained what his role in the famous team is.

“I’m in charge of electronics at the track. I see to the management of all electronics over the race weekend and during the preparation period. In practical terms, I coordinate the activities of the personnel who look after the electronics, which covers all the electrical components on the car (sensors, actuators, cabled and wireless communications), operation and programming of the strategy software, work on low level control in the car and managing the controls for the start.

“But electronics is also the communication systems to and from the car, between all the engineers and mechanics, as well as the telemetry systems on the car and transmitting images to Formula 1. Electronics also impacts on the work in the garage with the interface and supply to the car, as well as the electronics for the pit-stops”.

Coming off a win in Baku, Oracle Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen is looking to extend the team’s lead in the constructors standings at the Canadian Grand Prix, which is returning after two seasons off of the calendar. 

With all the discussion surrounding the stiff ride and ‘porpoising’ common in the new-regulation 2022 cars, Verstappen said he is curious about how the cars will behave on Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. 

“We haven’t been to Montreal for a while so it’s exciting to go back and see how the track is, it has quite a unique layout and it will be interesting to see what the surface is like, hopefully our car will work well this weekend.”

Red Bull extended their lead in the constructors championship last time out with a 1-2 finish, while closest competitors Scuderia Ferrari saw both of their cars retire due to technical issues. Though the team is now eighty points ahead, Verstappen said that they will need to stay focused in order to maintain their standing as it is still early in the season. 

“I always look forward to going to Montreal, it’s a really beautiful city and arriving off the back of a 1-2 in Baku, it would be great to leave Canada with the same result. It is of course great that we are ahead in the Constructors’ and Drivers’ Championships but there’s still a long way to go, we need to keep pushing as a Team and maximise point scoring as much as possible.”

Toto Wolff was pleased to see the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team were able to capitalise on the misfortune of Scuderia Ferrari during last weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix despite a tricky weekend for the team.

The bouncing down the straights at the Baku City Circuit were uncomfortable for both George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, with the latter in obvious pain after the event where he struggled to get out of his car having finished fourth.

But despite the issues Mercedes had in Azerbaijan they scored a good number of points, and Team Principal Wolff says it was the best result possible based on the limitations of the W13 at this stage of the season.

“Baku was a tricky weekend for us, particularly with the bouncing issues, but we really maximised the opportunities that came our way and left Azerbaijan with a solid collection of points,” said Wolff.

“We benefited from the misfortune of others, but reliability is an important factor in Formula 1 and there’s no shortage of hard work at Brackley and Brixworth behind getting both cars to the finish line.”

Frédéric Vasseur says the challenging weekend in Azerbaijan will only make his Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN team stronger, with none of the team letting their head drop despite missing out on points.

Heading into the first Canadian Grand Prix since 2019, Vasseur, the Team Principal at Alfa Romeo, says he is expecting an immediate reaction to the disappointment from the Baku City Circuit, and he hopes that both Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu can contend for points on Sunday afternoon.

Alfa Romeo fell to sixth in the Constructors’ Championship thanks to their no-score in Azerbaijan and the double points score for the BWT Alpine F1 Team.  They currently have forty-one points, six less than their French rivals but fourteen more than seventh placed Scuderia AlphaTauri.

Vasseur is hoping for a clean weekend at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, with the aim of proving that the performance they showed in Azerbaijan was a one off, and they can return to the kind of form they showed in the opening seven races where they scored points in all but one event.

“Baku was a challenging weekend for the team, but these are the circumstances in which you see the real mettle of a group,” said Vasseur.  “Nobody, neither in the garage nor at home, let their heads drop: what you saw was an immediate reaction to bounce back from the disappointment.