Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

Team BMW‘s Colin Turkington is in business with his first win of the 2023 British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season on Sunday morning at Brands Hatch.

Turkington had to complete the start twice, with Dan Cammish initially on pole but a 45-minute delay paid heed to initial progress as a four-car melee saw the race neutralized for 45 minutes.

As Stephen Jelley was stopped out on the circuit after going into the pit wall carrying Andrew Watson, Adam Morgan, and Dan Rowbottom with him.

All now have work to do to salvage their days, especially in the case of Jelley and Morgan, but while it was a disheartening start for one side of the garage. Turkington provided some joy as he again took the top spot from Cammish at the start.

Cammish again was the one to suffer on the restart in a truncated 18-lap affair, as he dropped to fourth behind Turkington, Hill, and Sutton in the end.

Kris Wright‘s spin set up a restart with thirty-six laps remaining, which Grant Enfinger capitalised upon in such an impressive manner that he led the rest of the way and beat Corey Heim by over four seconds to score his eighth career NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series victory and first at Kansas Speedway.

Enfinger started eleventh but quietly worked towards the front, eventually finishing Stage #2 in second behind Ty Majeski. However, Majeski’s race came to a sudden end when he was trying to lap Rajah Caruth while pursuing Enfinger; Caruth placed multiple blocks on Majeski before being clipped by the latter and sent into the wall.

“We got back up front there with a little bit of strategy. Thought we may have made a wrong adjustment when we were racing the #24 there,” commented Majeski. “He was ultra aggressive blocking, so he blocked once, then twice, and I had a run and he was a little late.

“We weren’t very good the first run, missed our balance from practice a little bit, and we got a good adjustment and we had two-lap fresher tyres than everyone else, which made the truck better. It was a combination of both things, having a little bit fresher tires, but also making those adjustments. Overall, I think we had a good, capable truck to win tonight. It just wasn’t meant to be.”

Caruth explained, “It was really close, and we had a long way to go. I was trying to cover the top, and he just kind of hooked me there. I didn’t double-move or anything. I picked the top there, and he just took me.”

In a thrilling end to Q3, Sergio Pérez claimed the pole position for the 2023 Miami Grand Prix. However, it was not without drama as Charles Leclerc’s late spin resulted in a red flag and Max Verstappen qualifying in ninth place.

Fernando Alonso will start alongside Pérez, with his fellow countryman Carlos Sainz Jr. starting third on an insane grid for Sunday’s race.

Q1 – Shock Exit for Stroll, Double McLaren Exit

The first qualifying session at the Miami International Autodrome didn’t disappoint, with so much drama and many drivers leaving it late to put in the lap times they needed to secure their place in Q2.

Logan Sargeant, who was born in Florida, will start last on the grid in Sunday’s main event after he couldn’t put a good enough lap together to get himself out of Q1 at his home race. There wasn’t just disappointment for Sargeant, McLaren F1 Team saw both drivers knocked out. Despite showing impressive pace on Friday, it was not good enough for either cars to get through. Oscar Piastri will start nineteenth on the grid, while his team-mate Lando Norris will start sixteenth.

The biggest shock in Q1 though, was Lance Stroll getting knocked out. The Canadian driver has been having an impressive season as has Aston Martin Armaco Cognizant F1 Team; however, the Canadian simply took the unnecessary risk of making it through Q1 on just one set of Soft tyres.

It was a real stop-start affair throughout Qualifying on Saturday afternoon at Brands Hatch around the Indy circuit, but what is not stopping is Dan Cammish‘s fine form with the NAPA Racing UK driver who leads the BTCC Drivers’ Championship claiming pole position.

Cammish left it late in a last-gasp lap during the Top Ten Showdown, with a potential Team BMW top two being ripped away in the final seconds as the top four cars were separated by just 0.070s until Cammish came along and sealed it by a quarter of a second.

This is ahead of Colin Turkington and Jake Hill with the former producing some stellar laps amid going off track multiple times. Cammish’s teammate, Ash Sutton sits fourth ahead of Rory Butcher.

Team HARD. Racing‘s Autobrite Direct with Millers Oil side of the garage had a superb day with Bobby Thompson and new recruit Dan Lloyd making the top ten showdown and Jack Butel sealing 13th in a career-best. Ronan Pearson too who had a podium snatched away last time continues to impress and also made the Showdown.

His teammate and current champion, Tom Ingram sat seventh ahead of Josh Cook who span at the end but still was involved after a poor weekend last time out.

Nick Cassidy is the new leader of the 2022/23 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, after the New Zealander claimed victory at the iconic Monaco E-Prix, marking back-to-back wins for the Envision Racing driver. Joining Cassidy on the podium was Mitch Evans and Jake Dennis, who were robbed of the chance to fight for the win on the final lap.

Cassidy Goes on the Charge

With Sacha Fenestraz‘s time from the Final having been deleted for an overuse of power, it was Jake Hughes who led the all-rookie front row, with both drivers targeting their first podium in the Formula E. Could either driver go even further and claim their maiden Formula E win at the Circuit de Monaco or would the title favourites work their way to the front?

As the lights went out for the ninth round of the season, it was Hughes and Fenestraz who got away the cleanest, with the pair having remained first and second on the run up to Massenet. Norman Nato also remained in third on the opening lap, meaning Nissan maintained their powertrain 1-2-3. For the championship contenders, Evans found himself in sixth with Cassidy and Dennis in eighth and ninth, whilst standings leader Pascal Wehrlein was all the way down in thirteenth.

The man on the move, though, was Oliver Rowland, who extraordinarily made up seven places on the opening lap, before becoming the first driver to activate their Attack Mode. The Mahindra Racing driver found himself in ninth after activating his Attack Mode, with him having been sixth before taking it. An early yellow flag was briefly needed after André Lotterer pulled into an escape road to retire from the race, as a result of damage to the front of his car after crashing at the final corner.

Back at the front and the pace was visibly being managed in a bid to preserve energy, something which bunched the field up. Cassidy was busy making the most of the bunched field, with the Kiwi having overtaken two cars at once on Lap Five around the outside of the Grand Hotel hairpin, to promote himself to sixth. Two laps later and the Berlin Race Two winner was suddenly in third, after overtaking Dan Ticktum and Nato at consecutive corners.

Following an investigation into Sacha Fenestraz‘s pole lap at the Monaco E-Prix, it has officially been confirmed that the Frenchman’s time will be deleted, due to an overuse of power. It means that fellow rookie Jake Hughes will start the ninth round of the 2022/23 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship from pole position, due to having been beaten in the Final.

Hughes actually failed to set a lap in the final against Fenestraz, after the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team driver locked-up and cut across the Nouvelle Chicane. Fenestraz’s lap was ultimately deleted by the stewards, though, after he was found to have experienced a “power usage over regulatory limit of 350kW”. The Frenchman will therefore start from second for this afternoon’s race at the Circuit de Monaco, with a Nissan powertrain front row remaining the same.

The Japanese manufacturer will actually have one of their cars in the top three spots on the grid, after Norman Nato qualified third. The penalty means that Hughes has now claimed two pole positions in his maiden Formula E campaign, whilst Fenestraz remains on just the one.

Both rookies will face a huge amount of pressure during the race to remain amongst the podium places, with several championship contenders coming from the mid-pack.

Rookie Sacha Fenestraz claimed pole position for the Monaco E-Prix, following a sublime qualifying performance in the ninth round of the 2022/23 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. It will be an all-rookie front row for Saturday’s race, as Jake Hughes was defeated by Fenestraz in the Final. It was a session to remember for Nissan, with their powetrains having secured a 1-2-3. Elsewhere, it was a messy qualifying for several championship contenders.

Group A

Kicking-off qualifying at the iconic Circuit de Monaco was all the drivers currently occupying an odd position in the Drivers’ Championship, meaning championship leader Pascal Wehrlein was joined by two-time Formula E Champion Jean-Éric Vergne, São Paulo and Berlin winner Mitch Evans, Sam Bird, René Rast, reigning World Champion and last season’s Monaco winner Stoffel Vandoorne, André Lotterer, Norman Nato, Dan Ticktum, Fenestraz and Berlin Race Two polesitter Robin Frijns.

As the opening group got underway, Evans, Vergne, and Vandoorne were arguably three of the favourites to make it into the top four places necessary to progress to the duels, having shown good pace in the two Free Practice sessions. As the twelve drivers completed their out-laps, there was an ominous rain cloud looming over the circuit, something which threatened to throw up some challenging conditions.

Following the the first real push laps, Evans topped the group from Vergne, Vandoorne and Bird; however, both DS Penske drivers were under investigation for a technical infringement. With three minutes remaining, Lotterer and Wehrlein demoted Vandoorne and Bird out of the top four, leaving the duo with work to do. It quickly became clear, though, that faster times were possible, as Nato, Fenestraz and Ticktum moved into the top four, demoting Vergne, Lotterer and Wehrlein.

It meant the final push laps would determine the top four of what was a frantic session, with several drivers having posted strong sector times. As the chequered flag was flown it was a shock Nissan Formula E team 1-2, as Nato topped the group from Fenestraz, Ticktum and Evans, who claimed the top four spots. It meant Wehrlein was once again eliminated in the group stage of qualifying, with the German set to start from eleventh. It was announced after the group that all of Vergne’s and Vandoorne’s lap times had been deleted for the technical infringement, to the disappointment of DS Penske.

Two years after his last NASCAR Cup Series race, Ryan Newman will make his return at Darlington Raceway on 14 April, driving for Rick Ware Racing. He will run multiple races for the team, though a specific schedule was not immediately revealed.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to work with Rick Ware Racing and Ford,” said Newman. “I think this will be good for all of us with our combined experience and knowledge.

“Being part of the Throwback Weekend at one of my favorite tracks in Darlington is pretty special. After recently being named one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers, it carries even some significance.”

Newman’s last Cup action was in 2021 when he finished twenty-eighth in points for Roush Fenway Racing before his seat was taken by Brad Keselowski, who purchased a stake in the team and rebranded it to RFK Racing. Since his departure, he returned to his roots in dirt track racing while also running the Superstar Racing Experience, a series founded and operated by his former employer Tony Stewart, and was second in the championship with a win at Stafford. He will once again race in SRX in 2023.

He was named one of the seventy-five greatest drivers in NASCAR’s history by the sanctioning body in recognition of his accolades including eighteen Cup wins, the 2008 Daytona 500, 2002 All-Star Race, a 2014 Cup championship runner-up finish, and being one of forty-one drivers to have won in all three national series. Newman has also won in the ARCA Menards Series, International Race of Champions, and NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. Nicknamed “Rocket Man”, he has fifty-one poles in his Cup career, once again making him the active leader for the most in the series and ranking him ninth all time.

Maserati MSG Racing‘s home weekend has started in sublime fashion, after Maximilian Günther topped Free Practice 2 at the Monaco E-Prix just an hour ahead of qualifying. Elsewhere, there were concerns for the top two in the Drivers’ Championship, with Pascal Wehrlein having finished the session in fourteenth with Nick Cassidy in twenty-first.

Just an hour following the conclusion of Free Practice 1 and it was already time for Free Practice 2, highlighting how jam-packed the schedule was at the Circuit de Monaco for the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. Unlike in the opening session of the day, the sun had fully risen for the start of Free Practice 2, with the weather having been glorious.

With qualifying following the session, all the drivers were quick to get out onto the legendary circuit, most notably all four Porsche-powered cars after they lost significant time in Free Practice 1 to diagnose a software issue. Mitch Evans topped the first practice session after posting a 1:30.361, with the likelihood being that the Kiwi’s time would be comfortably beaten due to the warmer track conditions.

It was Evans who topped the second practice session following the opening ten minutes; however, his leading time was still four-tenths slower than what he managed early in the morning. As the session hit its halfway point, though, the fastest lap from the opening practice was finally beaten, as Sébastian Buemi went to the top before rookie Sacha Fenestraz posted a 1:29.788.

Apart from Fenestraz and Buemi’s fastest laps, the opening twenty minutes of Free Practice 2 were somewhat sluggish, with it appearing that the sides were focusing on energy management for this afternoon’s race. Buemi improved on his best lap with eleven minutes remaining in the session after setting a solid 1:29.679, putting him a tenth clear of Fenestraz.

The second free practice session of the Miami Grand Prix saw Max Verstappen set the fastest time ahead of the Scuderia Ferrari’s, with Carlos Sainz Jr. finishing second and Charles Leclerc in third. Verstappen and Leclerc swapped fastest laps early on in the session, but Verstappen was able to solidify his lead on soft tyres.

Verstappen’s fastest lap was a 1m 27.930s, which was four-tenths of a second faster than Sainz’s time. Leclerc was only a tenth of a second behind Sainz but brought out the only red flag of the session when he crashed into the barriers at Turn 7.

Leclerc lost control of his Ferrari after wrestling with a snap of oversteer, locked up, and sent his car front-first into the barriers. The incident happened with only 10 minutes remaining in the session, meaning the Ferrari driver had no chance to return to track. Verstappen’s fastest lap was impressive, especially considering he had complained of discomfort from his ‘HANS protection device’.

Sainz finished second in the session, four-tenths of a second behind Verstappen, while Leclerc finished third and only a tenth of a second behind Sainz. Sergio Perez finished fourth, half a second off the pace, while Fernando Alonso finished fifth, seven-tenths of a second off the pace. Lando Norris briefly led the session when soft-tyred running began but ultimately finished sixth, with Lewis Hamilton in seventh.

Lance Stroll finished eighth for Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team, a second off the pace, while Esteban Ocon was just 0.007s back in ninth for BWT Alpine F1 Team. Alex Albon was a whisker off in tenth for Williams Racing, with a brief lock-up hampering his qualifying simulation.

The opening practice session of the Miami Grand Prix saw George Russell set the pace, with his Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team teammate Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc following in second and third place respectively. With track temperatures soaring up to 51C under the sweltering Miami heat, the drivers took to the resurfaced Miami International Autodrome for the first time to familiarize themselves with the track conditions, and it provided some interesting results.

Max Verstappen got off to a strong start, setting the early pace on the hard tire ahead of Leclerc and Hamilton. The session wasn’t all easy going for Mercedes though, Russell was forced to return to the pits after experiencing vibrations on his steering wheel. His Mercedes mechanics had to change the steering rack on his W14 to resolve the issue.

After the drivers completed their initial runs on the hard and medium tires, they switched to the softer rubber. Verstappen continued to lead the pack with a time of 1m 31.054s just before a red flag was waved after Nico Hulkenberg crashed. Following the break, the Mercedes pair left it late to set their times on the soft tire, with Russell crossing the line to set a time of 1m 30.125s, surpassing Hamilton’s brief time at the top by 0.212s.

Leclerc, who finished in third place, provided an early glimpse of the potential of the upgraded floor on the Ferrari. Meanwhile, his teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. finished fifth, and Verstappen ended the session in fourth, sandwiched between the Ferrari drivers. Pierre Gasly finished an impressive sixth quickest for BWT Alpine F1 Team, who are looking to build some much needed momentum going into the weekend. The Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team duo of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll in seventh and eighth place respectively. Hulkenberg’s time was still good enough to secure him ninth place, while the other Alpine of Esteban Ocon rounded out the top-10.

Rather surprisingly, Sergio Perez, who won the previous race in Baku, finished in eleventh place, ahead of McLaren F1 Team’s Oscar Piastri in twelfth, and Kevin Magnussen’s Haas in thirteenth place. Valtteri Bottas was the lead Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake driver in fourteenth place, ahead of the Williams Racing of Alex Albon and Lando Norris in the other McLaren. Zhou Guanyu finished in seventeenth place, ahead of the Scuderia AlphaTauri of Yuki Tsunoda in eighteenth, with Logan Sargeant finishing nineteenth for Williams. Nyck de Vries finished the session at the bottom of the timesheets.

Round 2 & 3 of BTRDA Clubman’s Rallycross Championship took place at the home of Welsh motorsport, Pembrey Circuit. Most classes had multiple winners as the weekend taking its toll on some cars.

In the Super Modified class, it was Fred Ling who couldn’t be stopped on either day. He won four of the six qualifying sessions and both finals. On Saturday it was Gary Cook and Phil Chicken who completed the podium when both passed Chris Smith on track. Smith redeemed himself on Sunday with a second place ahead of Michelle Swallow. Her Porsche gearbox was destroyed on Saturday morning but the team was able to source a Boxster nearby. The road-going car arrived at the track that evening to much fanfare but took until late into the night to be removed and fitted into the race car. On Sunday, Chicken had a coming together with Todd Crooks which saw both cars roll multiple times. Both were uninjured from the dramatic accident and Chicken even raced a couple of hours later in the A-Final. He followed Swallow all race but retired on the final lap with steering failure.

The largest class, Classic produced close racing but it was Lee Wood who kept his 2023 unbeaten run up. John Cross had qualified on pole for Saturday’s final but lost out to Wood and Jamie McBain at the start. They finished in that order. For round three, Wood won every session with McBain and Cross finishing in the same order.

Crosscar again increased its field size, now with five cars. David Attiwell and Will Butler proved the class of the field with each topping qualifying and winning a Final, Attiwell taking Saturday and Butler Sunday. The remainder of the grid also stood on the podium, Paul Batson, Luke Holly, and Ethan Rouse. By the next round, at least nine eligible cars should be in the UK. It is expected that six or seven will race at Blyton Park.

Tyler McAlpin got the better of Will Ovenden in the Junior races on Saturday. Come Sunday it was Ovenden who took first place and the championship lead back away. Corey Padgett completed the podium for the third time in as many races this year. Martin Peters won round two of the Production class with a controlled drive ahead of Stuart Woollen and Mark Henry. After making a poor setup choice on Saturday when on pole, Alex Fletcher didn’t make the same mistake again on Sunday. He led from the front all race to take a commanding win, almost three seconds clear of Woollen and Henry.

Looking to bounce back after a disappointing tenure with the MoneyGram Haas F1 Team, Mick Schumacher has been speaking on how he’s been using his new role inside the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team to help develop his craft ahead of a potential return to a full-time FIA Formula 1 World Championship seat in 2024.

Schumacher was dropped by Haas after a number of costly crashes by the young German driver in 2022, saw Team Principal Guenther Steiner look towards the more experienced hands of Nico Hülkenberg to partner Kevin Magnussen at Haas for the 2023 campaign.

After both Stoffel Vandoorne and Nyck de Vries left their roles inside the Mercedes ranks, the team looked towards the young German driver to be their new reserve driver. Allowing Schumacher to join the team that his father made his Formula 1 comeback for between 2010 and 2012.

Speaking in his new diary column on Mercedes’ website, Schumacher touched on how he has been finding life inside his new team.

“Since I joined Mercedes, I’ve been settling in great. Everybody is just so open-minded towards me, and that made me feel welcome from the first moment I stepped into the factory in Brackley. I’ve spent a lot of time there in these first months. It’s a very impressive facility.

Mitch Evans started the Monaco E-Prix in perfect fashion, with the São Paulo and Berlin winner having topped Free Practice 1 thanks to a 1:30.361; however, elsewhere there were early issues for Porsche to diagnose.

As the sun rose over the mediterranean at the iconic and legendary Circuit de Monaco, it was rookie Jake Hughes who led the field out onto the circuit to kickstart an action-packed day. For the first time this season every session is taking place on the same day, meaning any mistake could be hugely costly.

It only took a minute for André Lotterer to bring out the first yellow flag of the weekend, with the German having entered the runoff at Mirabeau, before completing a stylish 180° and continuing on his way. Interestingly, with Monaco being perhaps the smoothest track of the season, there wasn’t a huge rush to gather data, with several big-hitters having remained in the pits for the opening handful of minutes.

All four Porsche-powered cars remained in the pits ten minutes into the session, with it having appeared that Lotterer’s lock-up on his out-lap was perhaps an issue for the German manufacturer in general. It certainly wasn’t an ideal scenario for championship leader Pascal Wehrlein, who sits in the lead of the standings by just four points. Evans also weirdly remained in the pits, suggesting that Jaguar may also have their own issues to deal with.

On the track and it was Stoffel Vandoorne who topped the session as it moved into its final twenty minutes, on what was a beautiful morning. It was his team-mate, Jean-Éric Vergne, though, who jumped to the front as the first session of the weekend hit its halfway mark, as all four Porsche-powered cars and Evans returned to the circuit. Vergne was quickly replaced at the top of the timesheets by Sébastian Buemi, who posted a 1:32.367.

Logan Sargeant will experience a home Grand Prix for the first time in his FIA Formula 1 World Championship career this weekend, with the young American set to compete in his maiden Miami Grand Prix.

The Williams Racing driver has shown good pace at times during his rookie season but has yet to break into the points, one of only two drivers on the grid not yet to have scored a top ten finish alongside Scuderia AlphaTauri’s Nyck de Vries.

However, Sargeant is excited for what he is expecting to be a tough weekend at the Miami International Autodrome, and he is keen to enjoy it as much as he can.

“I’m really excited for my first ever home race,” said Sargeant.  “I’m expecting it to be a challenge with the heat and not knowing the track, but my energy and motivation to be at my best is topped up.

“It’s going to be a very special weekend for me that I will enjoy very much!”