Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

Zoey Edenholm was not the first Stadium Super Trucks driver to end up in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach‘s catchfence (Pat O’Keefe in 2016 has that dubious honour), but her accident was enough to create the shortest official race in series history.

Sunday’s Race #2 was barely four laps old when contact between Edenholm and Saturday winner Max Gordon sent the former airbourne and into the fence, shredding a section of it. Although the damage was repaired in time for the weekend-ending GT America, SST could not be resumed. Due to time constraints, this is not an uncommon fate for SST rounds that serve as an undercard to larger series; in Long Beach’s case, SST supported the NTT IndyCar Series whose race took place directly before theirs.

Edenholm’s truck had slightly rotated mid-air while hitting the second ramp coming to the start/finish line to begin lap three, causing her to land sideways and run diagonally into Gordon’s path. Neither she nor Gordon were able to react in time before they collided, spinning Edenholm into the wall.

Gordon lost his hood in the incident and attempted to continue. As it turned out, he also lost his brakes and careened past turn one into a barrier. He and Edenholm walked away without injury.

Lap four was supposed to be the restart after a scheduled competition caution, with Edenholm and Gordon respectively restarting second and third. By lasting just four circuits, it is the shortest SST event in terms of lap count. Race #2 of the 2016 Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix only saw three laps completed prior to Matt Mingay‘s crash and resulting injury, but is not counted in series records.

Toyota Gazoo Racing pulled off an extraordinary victory in the Hypercar class in the 6 Hours of Imola, the second round of the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship. The #7 car, driven by Mike Conway, Nyck de Vries, and Kamui Koboyashi, drove a superb race, battling a very difficult track, changing and treacherous conditions, and fierce competition from Porsche Penske Motorsport to win a very hard fought race.

Winners at the Qatar 1812km, the #6 Porsche came home second ahead of the sister #5 car in another very strong weekend for the German team. The first Ferrari AF Corse, the pole-sitting #50 car, came home 4th after another disappointing weekend for the Scuderia. The #8 Toyota came 5th, followed by a fantastic result by the #20 BMW M Team WRT car. The #51 and #83 Ferraris came home 7th and 8th.

Meanwhile, in LMGT3, it was a superb 1-2 finish for Team WRT, the #31 car claiming victory over the #46 car. This result means that local legend Valentino Rossi claims his first podium, taking second position along with his teammates Ahmad Al Harthy and Maxime Martin. Winners in Qatar, Manthey PureRxing, secured 3rd position in their Porsche 911 GT3 R LMGT3.

Speaking after the race, Koboyashi said “the team made a great achievement. I tried to not mess up! The track was really challenging and I had a lot of pressure from car #6 who did an amazing job. Thanks to the team and the support in Italy, and of course these two guys here” referring to his fellow drivers.

After his first WEC victory, de Vries said “I’m very happy and very thankful to be sharing the car with Kamui and Mike. The team executed the race perfectly and I think we really deserved this one.”

Max Verstappen took victory at the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix ahead of Lando Norris and Sergio Perez.

Formula 1 returned to Shanghai this weekend, and the grand prix didn’t disappoint, with multiple safety car and controversial incidents throughout the 56 lap race.

Valtteri Bottas brought out the first safety car after an issue caused him to stop on track, which was a disappointing end to a good weekend, where he managed to qualify ninth and tenth in both qualifying sessions. The restart saw multiple incidents, the most controversial being Lance Stroll crashing into Daniel Ricciardo and ending the Australian’s race.

Ricciardo was having his best weekend of the season so far, dominating his teammate in all of the sessions before the race. The Australian looked on for his first points of the season but had to retire despite trying to give it a go for a few laps after the contact.

Ricciardo was still in the race for the second safety car as it came out just a lap after the first one ended because of another incident involving a Visa Cash App RB car, this time Kevin Magnussen spinning Yuki Tsunoda out of the race. 

In 2022, Max Gordon started the Stadium Super Trucks season by winning Race #1 of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach while his father Robby Gordon finished right behind him to complete the family 1–2.

Two years later, Max Gordon started the 2024 SST season by winning Race #1 of Long Beach while Robby finished right behind him to complete the family 1–2.

The younger Gordon only needed three laps to take the lead after starting eighth, and never lost the position the rest of the way. Behind him, his dad had a dramatic battle with Matt Brabham that went down to the final lap, the two running side by side for much of the lap before he cleared Brabham for second.

While Brabham had every opportunity to get physical whenever the older Gordon ran besides him (even quipping that he is “just saving it for tomorrow”), the three-time champion opted to race clean. The two were the fastest qualifiers on Friday, with Gordon holding the edge.

“I knew Robby was going to do everything he could to kind of rough me up and give Max a little bit of a break,” Brabham explained. “Obviously Robby wants to win, but he also probably wants his son to win over me. We had a good race out there. I just felt like I couldn’t quite get close enough in the last couple of corners. I was a bit stronger in the first half of the track. Maybe I can rough him up a little bit tomorrow. There’s obviously the overall and we’re all pretty close on points for that so we’ll see.”

Ferrari AF Corse put on a dominant display in qualifying for their home race at the 6 Hours of Imola. The Scuderia secured the top three spots on the grid in the Hypercar class for the second round of the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) with Porsche Penske Motorsport behind them in 4th and 5th. In LMGT3, round one winners Manthey PureRxing secured the top spot.

Hypercar

It would be hard for the weekend to be going much better for Ferrari AF Corse after qualifying. The Italian team topped both practise sessions on Friday and FP3 on Saturday morning at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. The Tifosi (Ferrari fans) were overjoyed when the team continued that run of form in qualifying, with Antonio Fuoco taking Ferrari’s third Hypercar pole in the #50 car with a stunning lap time of 1:29.446.

The privateer Ferrari AF Corse team came second, with Robert Schwartzman posting a time of 1:29.885, with the other factory Ferrari coming in just 0.068 seconds behind that in third. Such consistent performance will be heart-warming for the team who suffered a disappointing weekend at the season opening Qatar 1812km.

The team who dominated that weekend in Qatar, Porsche Penske Motorsport, are next on the grid. Race winning #6 comes 4th, an exciting 0.148 seconds behind the third Ferrari, with Matt Campbell, polesitter in Qatar, in 5th. Then comes reigning champions Toyota Gazoo Racing. Their mission is to get back on the podium. With their #7 car starting in 6th and #8 in 8th, they stand to benefit from any carnage between the Porsches and Ferraris.

First of the new teams for 2024 is BMW M Team WRT. They managed to split the Toyotas with Rene Rast posting a 1:30.600. They may still be 1.134 seconds of the pole pace, but to be in the mix with such veteran teams is surely encouraging. The three privateer Porsche teams make up the next three positions, with Hertz Team JOTA taking 9th and 11th, split by the Proton Competition Porsche in 10th.

After eighteen years, the International Race of Champions will make its return on 19/20 July at Lime Rock Park as part of the SpeedTour All-Star Race weekend.

While regarded by owner IROC Holdings LLC as a continuation of the defunct championship, the revival is more a vintage car series for veterans and those who own the original incarnation’s vehicles than pitting active racing stars against each other (a concept currently employed by the unrelated Race of Champions). The cars will be on display at the track before taking part in an exhibition race.

Regardless of whether authentic and replica, any car is eligible to participate so long as it has a pedigree in the old series. Seven models are available: the Porsche 911 RSR used during the inaugural season in 1973/74; the Chevrolet Camaros that competed from IROC II (1974/75) to its pause in 1980, brought upon by Chevrolet preparing for the third generation model; said third-gen Camaro from the relaunch in 1984 to 1989; the Dodge Daytona from 1990 to 1993 and Dodge Avenger in 1994 and 1995; and the Pontiac Firebird from 1996 to its shutdown in 2006.

The IROC name and assets were acquired by Ray Evernham and Rob Kauffman in January. Evernham, a NASCAR champion crew chief and NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee, began his career as a chassis specialist for the original IROC and maintains a large car collection that includes challengers from the series. He also co-founded the IROC spiritual successor Superstar Racing Experience in 2021 alongside Tony Stewart, who won the final IROC title. Kauffman formerly co-owned NASCAR teams Michael Waltrip Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing.

“I began my professional racing career at IROC, so to be part of the team bringing the brand back to life and to the fans is extremely gratifying,” said Evernham.

It’s been a great start to their home race weekend for Ferrari AF Corse. The Italian team secured the top spot in the Hypercar class in the first two practise sessions as the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) gets ready for the 6 Hours of Imola, the second round of the championship. In LMGT3, it was another double success, this time for TF Sport and their pair of Corvette ZO6 LMGT3.R cars.

Hypercar

The Italian fans had a superb start to their Friday at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. In FP1, four out the top five cars were Italian. The #83 Ferrari led the way with China’s Yifei Ye posting a 1:31.347, putting the privately run Ferrari 0.156 seconds ahead of the factory run #50 car. Splitting the Italian pack was Peugeot TotalEnergies. The French team will be delighted with 3rd, as their car has undergone a major overhaul before this round.

Equally delighted will be Lamborghini Iron Lynx, who secured a brilliant 4th place at their home track. They will be hoping to continue that form as the weekend progresses. The final Ferrari, the #51 car, posted a 1:32.065 to round out the top five.

Then came a trio of Porsches. Once again, a privateer team beat the factory outfit as the #99 Proton Competition car led the two Porsche Penske Motorsport machines home. Reigning world champions Toyota Gazoo Racing finished FP1 in 9th and 10th The Japanese team are targeting a podium this weekend in Imola, so there is work to be done if they want to achieve their goals.

FP2 also saw success for Ferrari, this time for the factory team as Antonio Fuoco posted a 1:30.957 in the #50 car. This time, however, the main competition came from Porsche Penske Motorsport. The #6 car that dominated the opening race at the Qatar 1812km looked on flying form as Kevin Estre posted a best time just 0.342 seconds behind Fuoco. Robert Schwartzman in the #83 Ferrari maintained the brisk pace of his car, posting a best time a mere 0.032 seconds of the pace of the Porsche.

Robby Gordon remains undefeated in Stadium Super Trucks qualifying at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach this decade. For the fourth year in a row, he set the fastest time to earn himself a bonus point.

Since SST returned to Long Beach in 2021 (the 2020 weekend was cancelled due to COVID-19), Gordon has been the Fastest Qualifier in each iteration. Much like in 2022, he held off Matt Brabham for pole as he led by .476 of a second. Gordon has topped Long Beach qualifying six times total, with two prior coming in 2016 and 2018.

Brabham enters Long Beach as the defending winner after sweeping the 2023 weekend. A win by either him or Gordon would break a tie with the other for the most SST victories at the street circuit with six, while no driver has won three straight there.

Max Gordon recorded his second-career best qualifying effort in third, behind his second at Nashville in 2022.

After narrowly losing the Race #2 win in 2023, Myles Cheek qualified fourth and improved upon his sixth that year.

It has been a little while since we last saw the IndyCar Series in action. While fans did see cars on track at The Thermal Club, that was for a non-points exhibition-style race. As far as points races go, there has still been just one this season. That was well over a month ago in St. Petersburg. Josef Newgarden commanded the race from pole, and now holds a 14-point lead in the championship standings over Pato O’Ward and Team Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin. Behind those two sit Will Power and Andretti Global‘s Colton Herta.

Now, IndyCar descends on the sunny shores of Long Beach, California, just 20 miles south of Downtown Los Angeles for the Grand Prix of Long Beach. As far as drivers go, some changes have been made. Theo Pourchaire is set to make his IndyCar debut, filling in for David Malukas in the No. 6 for Arrow McLaren. Nolan Siegel will also make his maiden IndyCar voyage, sitting in the No. 51 for Dale Coyne Racing, a seat that was filled by IMSA star Colin Braun in St. Pete.

Al Unser Jr. holds the record for the most wins at the track with six, but as far as those in the field this weekend, Alexander Rossi is the only multi-time winner at Long Beach with back-to-back wins in 2018 and 2019.

Read on to find out all you need to know about this weekend’s action under the sunny California skies.

The Chaborz M-3, a lightweight military buggy used by the Russian Armed Forces, will enter the Silk Way Rally in 2025 pending upgrades to make it fit for rally raid competition. The entry will be overseen by the government of the Chechen Republic, where the car is made. Adam Khakimov, the Republic’s Minister of Industry and Energy, told TASS on Tuesday that entering the largest rally in Russia will help promote tourism and interest in off-road vehicles.

Once such modifications are performed, which include redesigning the chassis and certain body parts, the M-3 will likely race in the Open category. While sharing various traits with side-by-side vehicles, especially being based on the FunCruiser Lite UTV, it does not meet T3 or T4 regulation.

Sergey Zlobin recently tested the M-3 on the campus of the Russian Special Forces University in Gudermes. A former F1 test driver for Minardi and rallycross competitor, Zlobin won the 2014 FIA World Endurance Championship in the LMP2 class as well as the European Le Mans Series’ GTE title before transitioning to a directorial role at SMP Racing, which currently competes in domestic series.

“[He] evaluated the characteristics and capabilities of the off-road vehicle,” Khakimov said about Zlobin. “The information obtained will be used to determine the necessary improvements and adjustments to the parameters of the buggy in accordance with the requirements of auto racing championships.”

The Russian Special Forces University, a school to train Spetsnaz personnel, commissioned ChechenAvto and FunCruiser Lite maker F-MotoSport to produce the M-3 in 2016. Chaborz means “bear wolf” in Chechen and is also the series name for the M-6, a larger six-seat patrol vehicle released around the same time.

The Taurus T3 Max dominated the Dakar Rally‘s Challenger class in January, winning nine of twelve stages and finishing 1–2 with Cristina Gutiérrez and Mitch Guthrie. However, they perhaps performed a little too well.

A complaint was lodged against both drivers’ engines during the race, prompting the FIA to claim them for teardown and inspection back in France. Three months later, the FIA confirmed the motors are legal and their finish will stand.

João Monteiro and South Racing Can-Am filed the protest on 17 January, claiming Guthrie and Gutiérrez originally had bearings in their engines made from composite material in violation of FIA rules. The allegation came on the heels of Taurus drivers Eryk Goczał and his uncle Michał Goczał being disqualified for using such material in their clutches, which is forbidden under Article 2.3 of the FIA International Sporting Code’s Appendix J, Article 286.

During a hearing on 3 April, the FIA’s Technical Delegate clarified this restriction does not apply to certain engine parts and that “the use of bearing made of composite material is allowed.” The verdict came down during the BP Ultimate Rally-Raid, incidentally won by Monteiro in the SSV category.

“We will continue down the same path we have been following, never ceasing to develop the most efficient car in the Challenge category market, the lightest, the one with the lowest maintenance cost, with the capability for any driver, regardless of the team, to be as competitive as their abilities demonstrate,” concludes a statement from Taurus, a joint collaboration between MCE-5 Development and Wevers Sport.

Lamborghini Iron Lynx are set and ready for the 2024 6 Hours of Imola, the second round in the 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari is located just over an hour’s drive away from the team’s headquarters and they are eager to put on a good show for their home fans.

The Lamborghini SC63 is the Italian marque’s first entry into the Hypercar category in the WEC. The bright green car certainly turned heads at the season opening Qatar 1812km and finished a respectable 13th out of 19 Hypercars on the grid. The car also finished a promising 7th in the 2024 12 Hours of Sebring, where the team experienced what the engineers called probably the toughest conditions the car will face all year.

After completing these races without major issues, the team are focusing on maximising their potential at their home race. Now with race experience under their belts, the team will use that to create a baseline set up during the practise sessions. Reliability and learning remain the top priorities for a programme still so early in its development, but the team are very keen to showcase what they can do in front of their adoring home crowd.

The 4.9km Imola circuit is a favourite for drivers and teams alike, but offers a significant challenge. For the Lamborghini Squadra Corse drivers who share driving duties in the one SC63 competing this weekend, their experience may prove invaluable. Mirko Bortolotti won in GT cars at Imola, Edoardo Mortara competed at the circuit in the early days of his career, while Daniil Kvyat finished 4th in the 2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix with Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda.

Especially compared to the wide, smooth Lusail International Circuit in Qatar, the tight twists and turns of Imola mean that traffic management and overtaking opportunities in general will be tough for the Hypercars to contend with. Traffic management will be particularly tricky when attempting to negotiate their way past the slower LMGT3 cars with which they share the track.

It was a long eight months, but the Stadium Super Trucks are finally back for 2024. For the third year in a row, the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach will open the season as the California street circuit continues its run as the only track left from the inaugural season in 2013.

Matt Brabham enters as the defending winner after sweeping both events in 2023. After spending that year primarily competing in Indy NXT and Trans-Am alongside SST, Brabham is now an IMSA driver.

Myles Cheek hopes to avenge his heartbreak when Brabham passed him for the lead and win in Race #2 with two laps remaining. Settling for second, he still earned his maiden career podium after finishing seventh in the first race as he was getting used to the truck; the weekend was his first in SST since 2017.

Before they focus on the NORRA Mexican 1000 the week after, Robby and Max Gordon will tackle Long Beach. Robby is tied with Brabham for the most wins at Long Beach with five, and the father/son duo swept the 2022 weekend that included a 1–2 finish in Race #1.

Bill Hynes, the longest active driver besides the elder Gordon, returns for his tenth full-time campaign. After finishing tenth in the first Long Beach race in 2023, he was taken out of the second after getting turned by Robert Stout; Stout, a series regular since 2021, is not entered as he prepares for the upcoming Championship Off-Road season.

Aleš Loprais and his team have started work on building a Tatra 815 Puma for the Dakar Classic, intended as a tribute to his uncle Karel Loprais. The project began in early April.

Karel Loprais raced the Paris–Dakar Rally from 1986 to 2006, exclusively for Tatra as an employee for the company, with his first race in the Puma 4×4 truck (officially designated as T 815-2 R55-16) taking place in 1998. Already a three-time winner prior but coming off a retirement in the 1997 edition due to an engine failure, he hoped the Puma would be more reliable and his wishes were answered as he scored two stage wins en route to victory in the Truck class. Over the next three years, Loprais added two more wins in 1999 and 2001 while finishing second in 2000 and 2002.

The Puma was eventually put on display in at the Tatra Technical Museum (Technické muzeum Tatra) in Kopřivnice. He continued to race at Dakar through 2006 before retiring. Loprais died in December 2021 at the age of 72.

The younger Loprais also began his career with Tatra, working as his uncle’s navigator in 2006 before taking over as driver. In 2011, he won the Silk Way Rally in Russia and remains the race’s only non-Russian or -Belarusian Truck champion. After bouncing between various manufacturers between 2015 and 2019, including a return to Tatra, he currently races for fellow Czech manufacturer Praga. Aleš finished runner-up in class at the latest Dakar in January.

In March, Tatra Trucks launched Projekt T 162 “Karel”, building a rally raid-spec T 162 truck that was conceived in 1988 but never realised.

Neil Woolridge Motorsport will look to defend their South African Rally-Raid Championship in a new Ford Ranger T1+ sporting a redesigned front end. Reigning champion Gareth Woolridge and Boyd Dreyer will pilot the #200, on the heels of their Dakar Rally début, while brother Lance Woolridge and Kenny Gilbert are in the #234.

Gareth entered the Dakar in January after winning the SARRC. His race was upended by a rollover in Stage #7 that knocked him out of the overall, though he was able to reach the finish; although he finished forty-first overall in the Ultimate class, he placed as high as seventh on the final day. The programme was fielded by NWM in partnership with WRC team M-Sport, and he also had two-time Dakar winner Nani Roma as a team-mate.

The redesigned Ranger, however, does not have M-Sport involvement, though the team still maintains relations with NWM ally Past-Racing in both rally and rally raid. Based on the production model, the 2024 Ranger’s body has been reworked to improve airflow and vehicle cooling. This is particularly emphasised by the new grille that leads into the front cooling package, the latter of which has been shrunk to allow more space in the engine bay for mechanics to work. The wheelarches have also been widened to channel air into the dampers.

Its approach/departure angles are now more fluid for better aerodynamics, which was partly achieved by lowering the hood to help the driver see out the windshield. The differential guards on both ends have been strengthened to better protect the vehicle. Underneath the front is a modular bashplate.

Other elements such as the engine and suspension remain the same. The former is 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 Ford EcoBoost engine like its predecessor, though the engine control software has been updated. The suspension entails bespoke dampers 76 millimetres in diameter with 350 mm of wheel travel, the latter complying with FIA T1+ regulations.