Category: Nascar

Aston Martin returns to F1 grid with Cognizant as title sponsor

With anticipation building for almost 12 months and a monumental amount of work undertaken behind the scenes, Aston Martin is back in Formula One. The new era has officially begun.

Click here to subscribe to our print edition!

Aston Martin finally reveals the first look at the new identity while setting out a vision for the journey ahead. And what better way to begin the new age than by welcoming a new title partner, Cognizant, an American multinational IT brand with ambitious plans to broaden its global reach.

The team will be known as Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One™ Team when it lines up on the starting grid for the new season.

Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team @AstonMartinF1 A new era has officially begun. 👊

In a sport where technology and innovation take centre stage, Cognizant will play a key role, not merely as a sponsor, nor even as a behind-the-scenes … Read the rest

Arden Motorsport Join BRDC British F3 for 2021

There will be two new names on the BRDC British F3 grid in 2021, as Arden Motorsport branch out to Britain’s premier single-seater series. Ginetta Junior champions Elite Motorsport also replace the outgoing Lanan Racing.

Founded by Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner to allow him to compete in Formula 3000 in 1997, Arden has since kept extensive links with the Red Bull Junior Team and has fielded several Red Bull junior drivers.

These include Porsche factory driver Neel Jani, Sébastien Buemi, Daniil Kvyat, Carlos Sainz Jr and Dan Ticktum. Yelmer Buurman competed with Arden in GP2 in 2008, and raced for RAM Racing in the 2020 Intelligent Money British GT Championship, finishing fifth.

Arden have tasted some success in 2020, including Alex Quinn’s Formula Renault Eurocup Rookie title and a third-place in the British F4 Teams Cup.

Arden finished second in British … Read the rest

Chinese GP promoter seeking 2021 Formula 1 race postponement

The Chinese Grand Prix is set to become the second Formula 1 race to be postponed in 2021 as the promoter seeks a date change to later in the year.

Last year’s race in Shanghai was the first to be scrapped following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a further 12 races eventually being cancelled through the 2020 season.

F1 unveiled a more usual calendar for 2021 in November, listing 23 races, but is already set to postpone the planned season-opener in Australia due to the ongoing pandemic and global restrictions in place.

Doubts had begun to emerge over the viability of the planned race in China on 11 April, but the promoter of the race has now confirmed it is seeking a postponement until later in the year.

“We have been in contact [with F1] via conference call almost every week”, Yibin Yang, the general manager of race … Read the rest

In the Pit Lane – Sauber’s game plan

F1 commentators were surprised with the announcement that Mick Schumacher had signed for the Haas team instead of what was believed to be the better option of the Alfa Romeo team. Team boss Frederic Vasseur said he was not sure why Ferrari has placed Mick Schumacher at rival Ferrari-powered team, Haas, for 2021 and beyond.

Click here to subscribe to our print edition!

Vasseur told the Blick newspaper, “Beats me.” adding, “Maybe it made more sense for Ferrari to bring Mick to Haas and keep Giovinazzi with us. For stability in the team.”

Alfa Romeo Racing – Frédéric Vasseur

The truth of what lay behind the decision regardless of Vasseur’s ‘bewilderment’ is what dictates most decisions in F1 – money!

Alfa Romeo is, of course, the Sauber motorsport team with Alfa paying for the team to be named Alfa Romeo.

With one seat at Alfa Romeo assigned to Ferrari as … Read the rest

Next-gen 911 GT3 Cup Set to Debut in Porsche Carrera Cup Asia

Head of Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific, Alexandre Gibot, announced on 2 December 2020, that the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia will return in 2021. The season will feature 15 rounds separated over 7 weekends. The new season will also join two Formula 1 Grand Prix’s, with the new 2021 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup.

The new season will get underway at the Chinese Grand Prix on 9-11 April, with another F1 support race in Singapore on 1-3 October. The series also joins the 10 Hours of Suzuka that will take place on 20-21 August. There are 4 other events in, Zhuhai, Zhuzhou, Ningbo and another race in Shangai will coincide with an expanded Porsche Sports Cup China calendar.

Credit: Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific

Since 2003, Porsche Carrera Cup Asia helped both Pro and Am drivers trough the ranks. Double series champion Earl Bamber who is now a Porsche factory driver. Also thr … Read the rest

‘Biofuel can save the internal combustion engine, but F1 has to be quick’

Formula 1 has taken a number of important steps towards the future over the last few years. The budget ceiling has guaranteed fairer competition, and with a range of young talents it also looks good in sporting terms. But what about the sustainable picture of Formula 1?

According to Andreas Haupt of Auto Motor und Sport, it is in fact absolutely essential that sport gets to work on this as quickly as possible. He foresees that in the next few years, politicians will accelerate decisions that will completely ban cars powered by fossil fuels. This is already happening in some cities.

That would, of course, be a great loss for car enthusiasts, and Formula 1 would be squeezed with internal combustion engines. That is why, in Haupt’s view, it is very important that they set the development of CO2-neutral fuels in motion as soon as possible and also use them … Read the rest

Mercedes increases technical partnership with Williams Racing for 2022

Mercedes-AMG Petronas are pleased to confirm that they have expanded their technical collaboration with Williams Racing to include the supply of certain transferable components from 2022.

Click here to subscribe to our print edition!

Mercedes-Benz Power Units have powered Williams Racing since the hybrid era began in 2014 and from 2022, the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team will also provide gearboxes and related hydraulic components to Williams.

Historically, Williams has built its own gearboxes and hydraulics in-house, however, the increased partnership will enable Williams to implement a more efficient design and manufacturing process in-house in the long-term, allowing the team to focus its resources more effectively in other performance areas. Williams will continue to design and manufacture other chassis parts internally.

Toto Wolff, CEO and Team Principal of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team said: “We are pleased to expand our technical cooperation with Williams through this new agreement. For Williams, … Read the rest

Raphael Lessard upgrades to full-time Truck schedule with GMS for 2021

When Raphaël Lessard joined GMS Racing in November, it was intended to be for at least twelve races with the possibility of the full schedule if sponsorship was produced. Two months later with the 2021 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season a month away, he got what he wanted. On Thursday, GMS Racing announced that Lessard will drive the #24 Chevrolet Silverado for all twenty-two races in 2021. Richelieu Hardware, which has served as an associate sponsor of Lessard’s, will reunite with him on the #24 in the same capacity.

“We are really happy with the return of Richelieu Hardware to our program for the 2021 season. The favourable results of our first cooperation in 2020 now place both parties in an excellent position to build a stronger win-win partnership throughout the 2021 season,” Lessard stated.

“I’m really excited to have a second full season in the pickup … Read the rest

Ferrari launches 1000th Grand Prix celebration book

Ferrari turned to Motorsport Images to assist in the making of the 1000th Grand Prix celebration book, the first must-have book of 2021 – especially for fans of the Scuderia! Ferrari is the only team to take part in 1,000 Formula One Championship Grands Prix.

To celebrate this milestone, the Italian team has produced a new book showing a visual story of its 1,000 races, with an image from every race in which it has taken part since 1950.

To help in this monumental task, Ferrari turned to Motorsport Images to supply 130 of the images from its unique, unbroken collection.

Motorsport Images is known globally as the definitive photo resource for all things motor racing and automotive, not just Formula One, with over 26 million assets dating back to 1895 through to what happened on the track a few seconds ago.

It supplies newsrooms across the world, supplying visual … Read the rest

Spa Added To The 2021 British Rallycross Calender

For the first time since it’s inception, the Motorsport UK British Rallycross Championship 5 Nations Trophy Presented by Cooper Tires has a confirmed calendar covering events in five different nations including the season finale at World Rallycross venue Spa Francorchamps in Belgium. All of this is, of course, subject to regulations around the pandemic and how the different nations cope with the situation.

The 2021 season opens at ‘The Home Of Rallycross’, Lydden Hill in Kent over the May Bank Holiday weekend with round one being held on 29 May and round two on Bank Holiday Monday, 31 May. Then for the first time since 2017, the British Rallycross will cross the Irish Sea to Mondello Park for round three on 10/11 July. The most exciting thing about this round is the fact that the top Irish Rallycross drivers will be competing and the Irish fans are … Read the rest