Indholdsfortegnelse for 15/06/23 i Autosport

Le Mans couldn’t have asked for a better way to celebrate its centenary. The milestone would have made for a great event anyway, but the new Hypercar era properly getting under way and a titanic battle for victory going the way of Ferrari must have been more than even the Automobile Club de l’Ouest and FIA could have hoped for. Congratulations to AF Corse, Ferrari and drivers James Calado, Antonio Giovinazzi and Alessandro Pier Guidi for beating Toyota, which put up the sort of performance that adds weight to its five wins scored between 2018 and 2022, even if that run came to an end. There will always be some disquiet and doubt about the late Balance of Performance changes that hampered Toyota. Exactly how much of a difference they…

WEC/IMSA The United Autosports World Endurance Championship LMP2 squad will switch over to the IMSA SportsCar Championship next season. A move that has been in the planning for some time was belatedly announced in the wake of confirmation last week that there will be no room in the WEC for the secondary prototype class as Hypercar continues to expand. United boss Richard Dean revealed that there will be a “redirection of our entire WEC team for the foreseeable future”. He expressed disappointment that a class won by his team in 2019-20 was disappearing, but said that he understood the reasons. But the end of P2 in the WEC has also given United “the necessary kick up the backside” to fulfil a long-held ambition to race full time in IMSA. “It’s…

WEC/IMSA Former Porsche factory driver Neel Jani is to return to the wheel of the German manufacturer’s prototype machinery for the first time since 2017. The 2016 Le Mans 24 Hours winner is joining up with the Proton Competition squad to race both its 963 LMDhs over the remainder of this season. Jani, who left Porsche at the end of last year, will be teamed with Gianmaria Bruni and Harry Tincknell in the remaining rounds of the 2023 World Endurance Championship, starting at Monza on 9 July. The 39-year-old Swiss will also join them for the IMSA SportsCar Championship finale at Road Atlanta, the 10-hour Petit Le Mans fixture, in mid-October. “Obviously getting back in the top class is what I’ve been aiming for,” said Jani. “I’m really looking forward…

FORMULA 1 The Alfa Romeo-branded Sauber Formula 1 team has hired James Key as its new technical director, meaning a reuniting for the Brit, who was recently given the boot by McLaren, with team CEO Andreas Seidl. After ex-McLaren team principal Seidl was lured back to Hinwil ready for Audi’s impending takeover, successor Andrea Stella completed a thorough review of the Woking squad’ structure to rectify a poor adaption to the ground effect era. Key was shown the door and replaced by three co-technical chiefs. But the ex-Toro Rosso figurehead has fallen on his feet and now returns to the team where he served as technical boss from 2010 to 2012 before joining Toro Rosso. “James’s appointment is a crucial step on this journey,” said Seidl. “He has an outstanding…

TCR The TCR organisation is in talks to restore FIA status to a number of its disciplines next year, and is hoping that its final could be run with the title of FIA World Touring Car Cup. The event is set to take place in January 2024, with the top drivers from the TCR World Tour competing against other TCR series’ top drivers according to the category’s ranking platform. There is also the potential for the World Tour, which this year effectively replaced the FIA World Touring Car Cup, to run under an FIA banner. “We’re discussing with the FIA at the moment,” said TCR president Marcello Lotti. “Both sides are interested to find a collaboration for next season in terms of the TCR World Tour and the final. This…

CAN-AM TO AUSTRIAN GP Red Bull motorsport supremo and ex-BRM F1 racer Helmut Marko is to drive Hepworth International’s ex-Rodriguez BRM-Chevrolet P154 as part of a Can-Am demonstration at next month’s Austrian Grand Prix. McLarens will be in the hands of Juan Pablo Montoya, Jos Verstappen, David Coulthard and Alexander Wurz, with Mark Webber in a Lola T165. SCHUMACHER IN MERCEDES Mick Schumacher got his hands on the Mercedes W14 Formula 1 car last week during a Pirelli tyre test at Barcelona. Schumacher, the team’s reserve, completed 152 laps on the second of two days of testing. George Russell drove on the first day, while Ferrari was also present with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz sharing duties. All testing was carried out on rubber that had not been pre-heated as…

HYPERPOLE QUALIFYING RACE STATS WINNERS’ AVERAGE SPEED Calado/Pier Guidi/Giovinazzi 120.626mph FASTEST LAP LAPS LED SEASON STATS DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP HYPERCAR LMP2 GTE AM MANUFACTURERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP HYPERCAR POWERED BY Motorsport Stats is the pre-eminent provider of motorsport data to media owners, rights-holders, bookmakers and sponsors. Its data services are founded on the world’s largest repository of racing results dating back to 1897. For more information contact sales@motorsportstats.com RESULTS WORLD ENDURANCE CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND 4/7, LE MANS 24 HOURS (FRA), 10-11 JUNE (342 LAPS – 2895.647 MILES) TOP 6 HOUR BY HOUR CHART DON’T MISS WEC REPORT 6 HOURS OF MONZA 13 July issue…

NASCAR CUP SONOMA (USA) 11 JUNE ROUND 16/36 New tyres and no mistakes helped Martin Truex Jr cruise to victory in last Sunday’s NASCAR Cup race at Sonoma. It took 33 laps for Truex to get to the lead but, once he did, he didn’t deviate far from it through the rest of the 110 tours with a fast Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. A late-race caution sent most of the lead-lap contenders, including Truex, to pitroad for new tyres, but Chase Elliott and two others stayed out on the restart with 15 laps remaining. It took Truex less than two laps to power around Elliott and reclaim the lead. From there, he easily held off Kyle Busch by 2.979 seconds to earn his second win of the 2023 season. The…

MOTOGP MUGELLO (ITA) 11 JUNE ROUND 6/20 MotoGP’s odd 2023 calendar meant four weeks had passed between the French Grand Prix and last weekend’s Italian GP at Mugello, the first of a triple-header before a six-week summer break in July. That was a lot of time for championship leader Francesco Bagnaia to sit and stew over a third grand prix non-score of the 2023 campaign at Le Mans, following a collision instigated by Maverick Vinales. Of all the places to return to action, Mugello was almost a must-win for Bagnaia. Not only did he need a strong weekend to slow his championship skid – he entered the round just one point clear of Marco Bezzecchi – but mainly because victory is an expectation for a factory Ducati rider at Mugello.…

HISTORIC 750 FORMULA Swiss enthusiast Hans Ruedi Howald made his race debut in Historic 750 Formula at Mallory Park on Sunday alongside his experienced pal Juerg Schneider, who first joined the fray with his Arthur JSG in 2018. For engineer Howald, who makes retro racing parts and acquired his British-built DNC Mk3 as a restoration project from Merlyn authority Roger Saretzki in Germany, competing on track was the realisation of a long-held ambition. After contesting a Gurston Down hillclimb in his Swiss-built Griffon Formula Renault – at the invitation of the late Simon Harratt, a regular in continental events – Howald’s 1200km pilgrimage from near Bern to Mallory was particularly poignant. “My father was a friend of [reigning double World Sidecar racing champion] Fritz Scheidegger, who died in a racing…

CTCRC Jason Rudge debuted his new wide-arched Ford Fiesta Mk2 in the Classic Touring Car races at Castle Combe last weekend. Rudge previously raced a Fiesta XR2 of similar vintage, but was tempted by the more modified version, powered by a two-litre Zetec engine, when delivering a car to a customer in Scotland. Rudge recommissioned the car, which had previously been used mainly in sprints, to meet the latest circuit racing regulations and plans significant further development with assistance from Kevin Clarke’s Intersport Racing operation. “It pulled very well,” said the West Midlander, who took a best result of 10th from the two Historic and Classic Thunder Saloon races. “But fifth gear’s very short so, by the time I’ve hit the bend in the pit straight, I’m in fifth gear…

The oldest active hillclimb in the world, which started in 1905, returned after its most recent five-year pause as part of the Cultra Motorsport Festival in Northern Ireland last weekend. Held within the grounds of the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum close to Belfast, 75 years of Porsche was the theme and it attracted a display and entries in celebration of the German marque. With organisation by the Thoroughbred Sports Car Club, vintage entries naturally featured and the Aston Martin LM2, which first took to Le Mans in a 1928 racing debut, opened the course.…

HISTORIC RALLYING Former British Touring Car star and historic racer Patrick Watts plans to contest the daunting Peking to Paris Motor Challenge next May and June. Watts will tackle the marathon rally with his wife Pam co-driving in his 1965 Sunbeam Tiger, in which Watts won the British Historic Rally Championship in 2006. He has not used the car during the subsequent 17 years. Widely regarded as one of the last great motoring adventures, the Peking-Paris runs for 36 days and covers 8700 miles, including sections across the desert in Mongolia. It is run by Historic Endurance Rallying Organisation-Endurance Rally Association for pre-1976 cars and has a capacity 90-car entry. “Pam wanted to do it,” said Watts. “She got talking to someone at Goodwood and they do endurance rallies, so…

EQUIPE GTS Tom Smith (MGB Roadster) EQUIPE LIBRE Mike Whitaker (TVR Griffith) EQUIPE SUPER LIBRE Mike Whitaker (TVR Griffith) EQUIPE 70s/PRE ’63/50s Grahame Bryant (Morgan +8) TRIPLE-M RACING CHALLENGE Races 1 & 2 Roland Wettstein (Parnell-MG K3) COCKSHOOT CUP/MG CUP Race 1 Keith Egar (MG Midget) Race 2 Mark Wright (MGF Cup Car) MG TROPHY Races 1 & 2 Fred Burgess (ZR 190) BCV8/MIDGET & SPRITE CHALLENGE Race 1 David Weston (MG Midget, below) Race 2 Neil Fowler (MGB GT) GT & SPORTS CAR CUP John Pearson/Gary Pearson (Jaguar E-type) For full results visit: tsl-timing.com…

OULTON PARK CIVIC CUP Race 1 Alistair Camp Race 2 Will Redford TCR UK Race 1 Bruce Winfield (Hyundai i30 N) Race 2 Carl Boardley (Cupra Leon Competicion) FIESTA ST150 Race 1 Sam Beckett  Race 2 Paul Dobson FIESTA JUNIOR Races 1 & 2 Luke Hilton (ST) FIESTA ST240 Race 1 Simon Horrobin  Race 2 Albert Webster CASTLE COMBE CTCRC JAGUAR CHALLENGE Race 1 Guy Connew (XJS) Race 2 Tom Lenthall (XJS) KUMHO BMW Races 1 & 2 Jason West (M3 E46) CTCRC CLASSIC & HISTORIC THUNDER Races 1 & 2 Jason West (BMW M3 E46) CCRC HOT HATCH Races 1 & 2 Shaun Goverd (Citroen AX) SPORTS 2000 DURATEC Races 1 & 2 Michael Gibbins (MCR S2n) SPORTS 2000 HISTORIC Races 1 & 2 Paul Streat (Lola T87/90) CCRC…

MONDELLO PARK IRISH STRYKERS Races 1 & 2 Michael Cullen FIESTA ST CHAMPIONSHIP Races 1 & 2 Michael Cullen FIESTA ZETEC CHAMPIONSHIP Race 1 David Maguire Race 2 Michael Barrable FORMULA BOSS IRELAND Race 1 Barry Rabbitt (Dallara F312) Race 2 Tony Greenan (Dallara F317) FORMULA VEE Race 1 Sean Newsome (Sheane) Race 2 Colm Blackburn (Leastone JH002) IRISH TOURING CAR CHAMPIONSHIP Races 1 & 2 Cian Walsh (Honda Civic) IRISH GLOBAL GT LIGHTS Races 1 & 2 Cameron Fenton HISTORIC RACING CAR ASSOCIATION Races 1 & 2 Jackie Cochrane (Sunbeam Tiger) IRISH LEGENDS Races 1 & 2 Peter Barrable Race 3 Jamie Moylan FUTURE CLASSICS Race 1 David Hammond (Fiat Uno) Race 2 Robert Doherty (Honda Civic) FORMULA SHEANE Race 1 Keith Hogg Race 2 Richard Kearney For full…

WEC Toyota has given the strongest indication yet that its long-running World Endurance Championship programme will switch over to hydrogen in the future. The Japanese manufacturer unveiled what it is calling the GR H2 Racing Concept ahead of last weekend’s Le Mans 24 Hours as a pointer to what is probably to come. The GR H2 remains very much a show car and is a long way from being a running test hack in which to develop hydrogen technology. No technical details were released and it is understood that, as it stands, the GR H2 is nothing more than a styling exercise conceived to point to where Toyota wants to take the hydrogen combustion technology it is already developing in the Corolla H2 Concept that has been racing in Japan…

WEC Imola will join the World Endurance Championship for the first time as part of an expanded eight-race schedule in 2024. The home of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix has been announced as a replacement for the Monza round along with the confirmation of the return of Austin and Interlagos to the schedule. Imola’s place on the calendar has been precipitated by the requirement to move the Italian round of the WEC from the July date Monza will have occupied between 2021 and 2023. The shift is necessary to accommodate an extra race outside Europe as the series moves from seven races back to its traditional pre-COVID eight rounds. Monza is unable to host the WEC in April because the track will be undergoing scheduled works at that time. Imola’s…

FORMULA 1 The restoration of the South African Grand Prix to the Formula 1 calendar in time for 2024 is now highly unlikely, although there is an outside chance of a return to Kyalami for the following season. The event hasn’t been held since 1993 (below), and now a planned comeback for next term has been dealt a major blow. Ostensibly, this is because championship bosses reckon the current proposal is unsustainable and could collapse before any contracted term fully elapses. But this breakdown also comes amid accusations from the US ambassador to South Africa that the country has supplied arms to Russia, with which it maintains a ‘warm’ political relationship. F1 terminated the Russian GP contract last year following the invasion of Ukraine. Autosport understands F1 will consider another…

Australia-based Brit Tom Oliphant scored his first victory since the June 2021 Brands Hatch BTCC round when he triumphed in the TCR Australia reversed-grid race last weekend at Winton. With his Lynk & Co developing an issue in testing, Oliphant was forced back into the Ashley Seward Motorsport Alfa Romeo with which he started the season. Tenth in race one gave him reversed-grid pole, and he led all the way. Oliphant is sixth in the points, while Hyundai driver Bailey Sweeny, who won the finale at Winton, tops the table.…

UK START TIMES Friday 16 June FP1 1830 FP2 2200 Saturday 17 June FP3 1730 QUALIFYING 2100 Sunday 18 June RACE 1900 CATCH THE RACE LIVE SKY SPORTS F1 BBC RADIO 5 LIVE TV Highlights CHANNEL 4 2330 TYRE ALLOCATION CHAMPIONSHIP POSITIONS Drivers Constructors MONTREAL STATS Previous winners 2022 POLE POSITION Max Verstappen 1m21.299s POLE LAP RECORD Sebastian Vettel 1m10.240s (2019) RACE LAP RECORD Valtteri Bottas 1m13.078s (2019) Laps led Michael Schumacher 433 Lewis Hamilton 354 Sebastian Vettel 311 Ayrton Senna 185 Nelson Piquet 154 Nigel Mansell 131 Fernando Alonso 103 Alain Prost 90 Rene Arnoux 73 Ralf Schumacher 72…

It might be overplaying it to suggest that Peugeot was the revelation of Le Mans 2023, but its pace and perhaps also reliability must be considered a surprise for a manufacturer that has consistently underperformed since joining the WEC last season. The avant-garde 9X8 Le Mans Hypercar led the race, was ensconced in the top three for much of its first 12 hours, and looked good for a top five at lunchtime on Sunday. No one would have predicted that, even after the Peugeot LMH looked strong in the opening sessions of the Test Day and the meeting proper, ending up six tenths off each time. That form wasn’t repeated in qualifying, but the drivers were insistent that improvement had been made since an abject display the previous time out…

JOTA PACE GOES UNREWARDED Last year’s LMP2 class winner Jota again showed prodigious pace at Le Mans (above), but Pietro Fittipaldi explained that “many little things ended up going wrong” during the race. Fastest in qualifying and second in Hyperpole, Fittipaldi moved to the front with a brave call of staying out on slicks in the first rain shower, but a brush with the wall at Tertre Rouge, engine overheating and a failed starter motor left him a frustrated 13th with Oliver Rasmussen and David Heinemeier Hansson. “It’s just crazy, we’ve had so much pace and just haven’t been able to get on the podium [in 2023],” he said. RADIO ISSUE HINDERS PREMA Miscommunication was cited as the reason for Prema’s Filip Ugran missing the call to pit for rain…

BMW TEAM’S NEW FERRARI… There was certainly no opportunity for the Walkenhorst Motorsport squad to ease itself gently into racing at Le Mans when its debut, secured via winning the winter Asian Le Mans Series title, proved to be a dramatic contest. Despite the regular BMW squad’s Ferrari (above) having a few offs when the rain arrived, it was able to continue and achieved its objective of finishing, eighth in class, albeit six laps behind the leaders. …AND UNLUCKY JMW SWANSONG It was a disappointing final Le Mans GTE Am outing for JMW Motorsport’s Ferrari 488 GTE Evo. The car originally made its Circuit de la Sarthe debut in pre-Evo spec in 2017, when it won the class, and has appeared each year since, leading some to believe that it…

WINNING MARGINS SHORTEST LONGEST KEY MILESTONES KEY 1923 The first edition of the Grand Prix d’Endurance is ‘won’ (there was not yet an official winner) by the Chenard-Walcker of Andre Lagache and Rene Leonard. They cover 128 laps of the same 10.7-mile circuit used for the 1921 French GP, a distance of 1373 miles. 1929 The circuit is shortened at the western end, reducing the lap distance to 10.2 miles. Henry Birkin’s fastest lap is 46 seconds faster than his 1928 best, though part of the improvement is down to the new Bentley Speed Six that he and Woolf Barnato drive to victory, covering a record distance of 1767 miles. 1932 The circuit takes on what will become its familiar shape, with a new section connecting the start/finish straight with…

LE MANS CUP LE MANS (FRA) 8-9 JUNE ROUND 2/5 Both of the Road to Le Mans races supporting the 24 Hours followed a similar pattern. They were crash-strewn contests, with each featuring lengthy safety car periods. And both times the on-the-road winner was penalised. The Team Virage Ligier of Martin Rich and Manuel Espirito Santo had seemingly triumphed in the opener, but they were later relegated to fourth after being penalised for a pass behind the safety car. It was therefore the Nielsen Racing Duqueine of Matt Bell and John Melsom that triumphed, John Schauerman having slipped back when he took over from early dominator Wayne Boyd. An inspired call to pit the Team Thor Ligier of Audunn Gudmundsson and Colin Noble early in race two behind the safety…

BRITISH GT Raceway Motorsport has lost its appeal against disqualification from last month’s Silverstone 500 round of the British GT Championship. The team’s Ginetta G56 GT4, driven by Freddie Tomlinson and Stuart Middleton, took class victory on the road in the three-hour contest, but had been shown a black flag in the latter stages and the duo were disqualified post-race. The punishment centred around Middleton driving through a red light at the end of the pitlane during the second hour, with the car handed a lengthy stop/go penalty. This was initially suspended, pending a post-race investigation, before it was reinstated, prompting the team to appeal the decision. An Investigatory Hearing was held by governing body Motorsport UK last week, which rejected the appeal. “We’re disappointed that it didn’t go our…

McRAE CARS UP FOR SALE Three rally cars driven by Colin McRae during his illustrious career will be auctioned at this year’s Silverstone Festival. They include the 1977 Chrysler Sunbeam Ti Group A machine, which was the first rally car McRae bought, in 1985. McRae’s 1992 British Championship-winning Subaru Legacy RS ‘Group A’ car and a 2005 Ford Escort Mk2 built by the 1995 World Rally champion himself are also up for grabs. MENZIES HEADS HOME… Three-time British Hillclimb champion Wallace Menzies heads the championship into his home event at Doune in Scotland this weekend. After 12 of the season’s 30 run-offs, Menzies heads his rivals by a full 20 points after six wins and he is yet to finish outside of the top three. Scott Moran and Matthew Ryder…

OULTON PARK BRSCC 10 JUNE Amid a day of hectic tin-top action, Alistair Camp kept a cool head to take his first Civic Cup win of 2023 while misfortune struck other title contenders. Having traced his low-end power deficit at previous rounds to a cracked fuel pump, Camp was back on the pace at Oulton Park. Starting second in the opening race, he shadowed poleman Morgan Bailey until third-placed Jack Harding lost his car under braking for the Island hairpin, spinning across the grass and wiping out Bailey. Both cars suffered heavy damage but the drivers walked away. Camp, who narrowly avoiding getting collected himself, was declared victorious from Max Edmundson and Danny Hobson. Camp’s Pro Alloys team-mate Will Redford won the reversed-grid race via bold outside-line passes on Tommy…

MONDELLO PARK MPSC 10-11 JUNE Michael Cullen was on top form at Mondello Park last weekend, doing the double in both the Irish Stryker class and the Fiesta ST series as he was shadowed home in each of the former races by team-mate Kevin O’Hara. Drafted into the second LOH Motorsport Fiesta ST for the weekend was fellow Lotus Cortina competitor David Dickenson, who duly followed Cullen home in race one but, with the top six reversed in race two, Dickenson was caught back in the mid-pack. Cullen, on the other hand, charged up to grab the lead from impressive newbie Sylvie Bartlett, with Kian O’Brien completing the podium. Dave Maguire qualified his Fiesta Zetec on pole and, after a series of safety cars and a stoppage, led the pack…

“It’s fundamental to our existence and the future that we get this right.” Such a statement might seem extreme, almost sensationalist, but Motorsport UK CEO Hugh Chambers is acutely aware of exactly how important embracing sustainability has become. Whether it’s referred to as climate change or global warming, it is (pardon the pun) a hot topic and with good reason. The flooding that caused the cancellation of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix and the wildfires that have engulfed parts of Canada are just two of the high-profile climate disasters around the globe in recent weeks. Closer to home, the UK is undergoing another heatwave as global temperatures continue to rise year on year. There’s no escaping this stark reality, and it means a greater focus is being placed on all…

The head-turning paint job adorning the #93 BMW 3.0 CSL at the 1975 Le Mans 24 Hours was the result of an inspired idea from French racer and art enthusiast Herve Poulain to persuade the artist Alexander Calder to express his creative vision across the machine’s bodywork. And so, thanks also to the patronage of BMW motorsport boss Jochen Neerpasch, the firm’s first Art Car came into being. It showed impressive pace, running as high as sixth in the hands of Poulain, US racer Sam Posey and 1964 24 Hours winner Jean Guichet before a broken CV joint forced its retirement, followed by life as a museum exhibit. For classic motorsport DVDs and downloads head to dukevideo.com For more great photographs, visit motorsportimages.com…

WEC Ford has unveiled the definitive GT3-spec Ford Mustang and named Proton Competition as its partner team in the new LMGT3 class of the World Endurance Championship. The official launch of the car, announced back in January 2022, took place on Friday in the so-called Village at Le Mans on the eve of last weekend’s 24 Hours. Simply known as the Ford Mustang GT3, it was shown in a special colour scheme created by livery specialist Troy Lee. The car is based on the seventh-generation Mustang Dark Horse model and is powered by a 5.4-litre Ford Coyote V8. Development of the GT3 racer has been led by long-time Ford partner Multimatic Motorsports, while M-Sport in the UK has been in charge of the engine programme. Long-time Porsche team Proton is…

WEC The Automobile Club de l’Ouest, World Endurance Championship promoter Le Mans Endurance Management and Autosport parent company Motorsport Network have launched a Global FIA WEC Fan Survey. The survey operates in 11 languages across Motorsport Network’s motorsport.com website, with data analysis from Iris Sport. It follows an initial FIA WEC survey from 2017. In addition to identifying favourite drivers, teams and tracks, the survey aims to gather input on a wide range of topics, including viewing habits, live race attendance and media consumption; opinions about future changes to improve the sport, and insights into key issues beyond the race track. Motorsport Network president James Allen said: “FIA WEC and its iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans race are one of the world’s most enduring sporting challenges. We have data…

FORMULA 1 Formula 1 chiefs want the cars to go on a crash diet for the next rules era beginning in 2026. While the new engine regulations have been thrashed out and will ditch the complex and expensive Motor Generator Unit – Heat, the chassis concept is still up for discussion. The FIA, F1’s commercial rights holders and drivers are pushing to ditch the pounds. The current breed of machinery tips the scales at 798kg. That’s a 200kg rise since 2008. The 2014 introduction of turbo hybrid engines created a hike to 691kg before the 2017 advent of ‘wide cars’ and the addition of the halo bumped the bulk to 740kg. Speaking exclusively to Autosport, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem said: “One thing I would like to see is very…

“It’s too early to say. If we get into next year and they’re dominating again, then yes.” That was the start of Lewis Hamilton’s reply when asked if he believed that Formula 1 was now in the ‘Max Verstappen era’. Based on the evidence of 2023 so far, and with the weight of Hamilton’s words – carefully chosen, seemingly uttered with an air of frustration but not bitterness based on the atmosphere in the room after the 2022 US Grand Prix – it can be said that F1 is now firmly into the Verstappen age. The Dutchman has five wins from the opening seven rounds this term and has clearly seen off team-mate Sergio Perez’s faint hopes of making a 2023 title fight, with Verstappen’s points lead already at 53.…

When Jim Glickenhaus pitched up in the World Endurance Championship exactly two years ago, he outlined a dream of vanquishing Ferrari on its return to the front of the grid at the Le Mans 24 Hours. It didn’t come true last weekend, but he did get his two Pipo-engined 007 Le Mans Hypercars home ahead of all four Porsches on the grid. That was still some achievement for a ‘garagiste’ who has been so important in the Hypercar story. The Glickenhaus Racing team added a sixth-place finish – and a seventh, too – to the fourth the 007 achieved on its Le Mans debut in 2021 and the third it notched up 12 months ago. It couldn’t really have hoped for more going into the 100th anniversary Le Mans, although…

Colin Braun must have experienced a bit of deja vu last weekend. On his previous Le Mans outing, Peugeot was making its long-awaited return, and rain blighted proceedings. And just like 2007, when an 18-year-old Braun drove a Risi Ferrari to second in GT2, the IMSA regular came away with silverware after scooping LMP2 Pro-Am spoils for Algarve Pro Racing. A puncture and faulty accident data recorder that cost 13 minutes in the pits were the only notable delays for the ORECA-Gibson 07 that Braun shared with George Kurtz and James Allen – the driver who denied Kurtz LMP2 honours in a dramatic finish at the Daytona 24 Hours. “It was a really tricky race; when the big rain showers came down, it was crazy,” said Braun, a Daytona GTP…

You couldn’t fail to notice the ‘Garage 56’ NASCAR entry at last week’s Le Mans 24 Hours. Yes, there was the obvious visual difference of the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 stock car compared to the prototypes and GTs making up the rest of the 62-strong grid. But it was the sound, too. The thundering roar of the 5.8-litre V8 engine was completely distinct from everything else on track, the perfect metaphor for this ambitious project. It certainly created a buzz, with drivers, teams and fans all transfixed by it. And a driver line-up comprising stars from the worlds of Formula 1 (Jenson Button), NASCAR (Jimmie Johnson) and Le Mans (Mike Rockenfeller) undoubtedly added to the interest. Qualifying demonstrated that the Chevy was fast, too. The Hendrick Motorsports squad behind the car…

TCR WORLD TOUR VALLELUNGA (ITA) 11 JUNE ROUND 3/9 After Norbert Michelisz had won a relatively uneventful opening race of the third round of the TCR World Tour at Vallelunga for the BRC Hyundai N Squadra Corse team, Rob Huff broke through in an incident-strewn second heat to take his first win in the series, putting himself firmly in title contention with Audi Sport Team Comtoyou. The TCR World Tour took a temporary break from running with the European series to host a standalone round in Italy, and that made for a subdued grid of 16 cars, as opposed to 23 last time out at Spa. In qualifying, the two Hyundais of Michelisz and Mikel Azcona slipstreamed their way to 1-2 on the grid ahead of the Cyan Racing Lynk…

AMERICAN SPEEDFEST The Garage 56 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 NASCAR that contested the Le Mans 24 Hours last weekend is due to be on display at this weekend’s American SpeedFest event at Brands Hatch, while a special US stock car celebration is also planned for the Silverstone Festival later in the year. The Hendrick Motorsports ‘innovative car’ generated plenty of interest at Le Mans, where it was driven by 2009 Formula 1 champion Jenson Button, seven-time NASCAR Cup title winner Jimmie Johnson and 2010 Le Mans victor Mike Rockenfeller to 39th place after comfortably outqualifying the GTE Am runners. Now the car is set to be on static display at Brands, when the traditional UK round of the NASCAR Euro Series is held. There will also be a NASCAR element to…

BRITISH GT Morgan Tillbrook has stepped down from driving duties at Enduro Motorsport and will be replaced by Matt Topham at the wheel of the team’s McLaren 720S GT3 Evo for the remainder of the British GT season, beginning this weekend at Snetterton. Tillbrook has competed in British GT full-time for the previous two seasons alongside his fellow Enduro co-founder Marcus Clutton. Together, the pairing have won three British GT events and finished third in last year’s GT3 standings, as well as taking numerous wins in the GT Cup. The team explanded to running a GT4 entry this year alongside the GT3 car, but growing work commitments mean Tillbrook will no longer race for the squad this season. “Purely Morgan’s work commitments, [he’s got] quite a lot on at the…

ROAD CAR TO RACE WINNER Harrison Chamberlain gave his Volkswagen Golf GTI a winning debut in the Castle Combe Saloon Championship last weekend. The Golf, which replaces his Renault Megane, was Chamberlain’s road car and runs a standard engine with 70,000 miles on the clock. On a wet track, Chamberlain outpaced brothers Gary and Adam Prebble, who tangled as they battled for the early lead, to claim a maiden win. DASH HOME FOR SPARES One-time Pre-’66 Touring Car champion James Ibbotson had an eventful weekend at Castle Combe. His Hillman Imp Super suffered an engine blow-up in Saturday’s race and, after collecting spares in Milton Keynes, he fitted them on Sunday morning. But his effort went unrewarded when a loose alternator cable caused the Imp to pack up in the…

SILVERSTONE MG AND TRIUMPH 100 10-11 JUNE The MG Car Club and Equipe Classic Racing brought full line-ups to their mid-year Silverstone showpiece, which this time celebrated the centenaries of MG and Triumph. Tom Smith surprised himself by winning Equipe’s 55-car GTS race, since he’d assumed that his MGB Roadster’s relative lack of straightline punch would be punished on the vast Grand Prix circuit. But he remained in a net lead throughout the 40-minute pitstop race, although Lee Atkins, returning after nine months away, was always close in his TVR Grantura. They were aided, too, when polesitter Sam Kirkpatrick had a wheel depart early on after a front hub sheared on his MGB. “It was just a case of staying away from everyone,” Smith explained of his approach. “That’s why…

CASTLE COMBE CCRC 10-11 JUNE Guy Connew harnessed the V12 power of his Jaguar XJS to take Jaguar Challenge honours in an entertaining tussle at Castle Combe, before Tom Lenthall scored a Sunday success in his straight-six version. Connew’s car had to withstand a relentless chase from the Class B machines of Lenthall and Colin Philpott – and, before it expired, the more standard XK8 piloted by Mike Seabourne – to take Saturday’s opener. A sticking gear selector thwarted Philpott’s last-lap challenge and allowed Lenthall to snatch second, although it was academic when Philpott’s car weighed in 8kg short and he was disqualified. Ballast added, Philpott charged from the back to join the leading pair before a lap was complete on Sunday morning, only to be sidelined by a loose…

MALLORY PARK 750MC 11 JUNE On a momentous day when James Calado – a retirement in a Stock Hatch race at Mallory Park in 2008 – immortalised himself among the 750 Motor Club’s alumni by winning the Le Mans 24 Hours, Jeff Humphries scored a brilliant maiden Type R Trophy victory driving his third EP3 of the season. While karting ace Calado was chasing a licence upgrade signature for Formula Renault over 15 years ago, Humphries finished third in the same Stock Hatch race aboard a Peugeot 106. Having started his Type R debut at Oulton Park last May from pole, Humphries began this season in the same car, but engine failure in testing for Croft’s opener meant Danny Hobson lent him another. Despite taking pole, third and second at…

VIDEO GAME F1 23 (available on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox) RRP £69.99 A new year and a new official Formula 1 video game from Codemasters and Electronic Arts. F1 23 has some ground to make up after F1 22’s post-launch instabilities, superfluous supercars and inconsistent handling left us to look elsewhere for our virtual driving kicks after the initial shine had worn off. For this year’s edition, which will be released tomorrow (16 June), we must first touch upon Braking Point 2, a story mode continuation from F1 2021. Fictional racers Aiden Jackson and Devon Butler return alongside a roster of new additions, such as Davidoff Butler, Devon’s father. He also happens to be the majority investor in the Konnersport team that fields the duo. Then there’s Formula 2 driver Callie…

When you’ve raced over a dozen different Formula 1 cars from Minardi to Ferrari, and enjoyed a lengthy GT racing career in the Prancing Horse’s machinery, choosing a favourite is going to be tough. Post-Formula 1, Giancarlo Fisichella has notched up two class victories at the Le Mans 24 Hours with AF Corse, in 2012 and 2014. And although he considers the Ferrari 458 GTE with which he took those wins among his favourites, as well as his Petit Le Mans class-winning 488 GTE, there is one car that stands out, the one that took Renault to its first constructors’ F1 championship and helped Fernando Alonso to his first drivers’ title – the R25. The mighty yellow-and-blue V10 machine was quick off the blocks, enthuses Fisichella, who proclaims it as…