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Trans-Am Series TA2 driver Connor Mosack is back for another NASCAR Xfinity Series start, this time entering the Watkins Glen International race on 20 August. He will drive the #26 Toyota GR Supra for Sam Hunt Racing in what will be his second start.

“I’m really excited for the opportunity to race with Sam Hunt Racing this year at Watkins Glen,” Mosack stated. “Sam has a great group of guys, and I’m looking forward to working with them. My goal going into the race is to come out with a top-ten finish. Sam has competitive cars and if we can stay out of trouble in the race, I think we will be in a good spot at the end.”

Driving for TeamSLR in Trans-Am, Mosack sits third in the TA2 standings after eight rounds. He leads the class in poles with three at Charlotte, Road Atlanta, and Mid-Ohio, while his best finish is second at Charlotte. He finished third in the 2021 standings with a win at Watkins Glen, and will get additional track time there before the Xfinity event as Trans-Am visits the New York road course on 7–11 September.

While primarily a sports car driver, Mosack’s career began in stock cars as a late model driver. In 2021, he began part-time competition in the ARCA Menards Series with all eight starts to date coming on ovals. He has run six races in 2022 for Bret Holmes Racing and scored top tens in each with a best run of third at Iowa.

In June, he made his Xfinity début as a road course ringer for Joe Gibbs Racing at Portland, but was involved in a late crash and classified twenty-eighth after starting eighth. A month later, he entered the Camping World Truck Series event at Mid-Ohio for BHR, only to once again retire as his brakes failed and placed thirty-fourth.

The Dakar Rally serves as the ultimate challenge for many rally raid competitors, and the past week saw many of them go one step closer towards their dreams as the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) sent out acceptance letters to those they deem worthy of competing in the 2023 edition. Besides returning faces and defending winners, many amateur riders will get the chance to run the rally for the first time.

Unlike their four-wheeled counterparts, Bike and Quad riders become eligible through a selection process that includes filling out a questionnaire, which details their participation in FIM-sanctioned world championships and races that fall under the Road to Dakar banner, and a dossier on themselves. Such files were to be submitted by 22 July, and approval letters for amateurs began going out a week later. As part of increasing safety and consequently difficulty in qualifying, the ASO and FIM convened in July and agreed to “allow only experienced riders to participate”.

A multitude of riders who received the letters are newcomers, ranging from those like Tomás de Gavardo who wishes to continue the family legacy to those with experience in World Rally-Raid Championship events like Kyle McCoy, Mathieu Troquier, and Fabio Lottero.

Gavardo is the son of the late Carlo de Gavardo, the first Dakar rider from Chile and a multi-time national enduro champion who finished third overall in the 2001 edition. The younger Gavardo will race for BAS World, the Dutch arm of KTM’s factory programme. He won the FIM Junior Bajas World Cup in 2019.

“I am super happy to be able to announce my participation in the Dakar 2023,” Gavardo told El Deportivo. “In recent times, ASO had said that it was going to lower the quotas for enrollees. I was a little afraid that I would not be accepted, but I can already confirm that I will be in Arabia at the end of this year to run my first Dakar, at the age of 23. It’s a dream, I’m super happy and super grateful for the opportunity I’m being given.

McLaren F1 Team Principal Andreas Seidl said that Lando Norris maximized his position to take seventh at the Hungarian Grand Prix, finishing behind only the top three teams. He was pleased to see their recent upgrade placed them ahead of their main rival in the standings, BWT Alpine F1 Team, when it comes to pace at the Hungaroring.

“With all six cars from the top three teams finishing the race, P7 was the best we could achieve today – and we did it. The upgrade we introduced at Paul Ricard – and improved our understanding of here – put us into position to be the fourth fastest team, which is a great achievement.” 

Seidl said that despite running essentially the same tyre strategy on both cars, Daniel Ricciardo ended up struggling after his second stop on the hard tyres, a compound that ended up being difficult for other teams on the grid as well. Ultimately, Ricciardo’s race ended out of the points in fifteenth after starting ninth. 

“Lando executed a clean race today to take that seventh place but with the same strategy on Daniel’s side, we struggled to generate grip in the final stint on the Hard tyre and he fell out of the points.”

Seidl said that Ricciardo’s relative struggle with the hard tyre is worth reviewing as the team enters summer break, and he looks forward to some rest before the final half of the season, in which McLaren will likely be battling Alpine for fourth in the Constructors’ Championship. McLaren is currently just four points behind Alpine, a close fight that Seidl expects to be “thrilling”. 

After a stellar qualifying result of fourth place, McLaren F1 Team’s Lando Norris ended up taking seventh place at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Though he would have wanted to finish higher up the grid, Norris admitted that his McLaren didn’t have the performance to stay ahead of the likes of Red Bull Racing and Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team. 

“P7, happy with that. After yesterday, of course we’d all wished for a bit more, but we just didn’t have the pace today with the quicker cars behind. We just did an extremely good job yesterday. I’m happy with it, it’s the maximum we could do today with the cars ahead. 

Norris said that seventh place was likely the best possible result for the team this weekend, behind only the leading teams and ahead of their main competition, BWT Alpine F1 Team. The result sees McLaren sit just four points behind Alpine in the battle for fourth in the Constructors’ Championship. 

“Tough in places but seventh was the best we could have done for the points today, and we were ahead of our rivals.”

“Unfortunately, there were more lows than highs” – Daniel Ricciardo

Team-mate Daniel Ricciardo slid back from his ninth place starting position to finish the Hungarian Grand Prix in fifteenth, as a chain of unfortunate moments saw the Australian driver fall out of the points. 

Bristol Motor Speedway is a legendary facility known for NASCAR, but it has occasionally welcomed non-pavement disciplines like dirt and even rallycross. On 3/4 September, BMS will add the Stadium Super Trucks as part of YouTube personality Cleetus McFarland‘s Bristol 1000 weekend. As of this article’s publishing, the trucks are scheduled to race following Bristol 1000 qualifying on Sunday.

McFarland revealed the invitation in a video posted to his second YouTube channel on Tuesday. He is competing in this weekend’s Music City Grand Prix with the trucks in what will be his second career start.

“We have locked in our deal with Super Stadium Trucks,” said McFarland. “As if racing cars at Bristol wasn’t going to be crazy enough, on September 3rd we have the best burnout contest the United States has ever seen guaranteed, and then Sunday, September 4th, amidst a Bristol 1000 Crown Vic race with thirty of your favourite YouTubers driving Crown Vics, we will have Super Stadium Trucks racing with Robby Gordon.”

An automotive YouTuber with nearly three million subscribers on his main channel, McFarland made his SST début at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in April. After finishing tenth in the first race, he was only meters away from winning the second event before he tried to correct his truck mid-air and spun out upon landing, causing him to hit the wall and lose the win to Gordon.

While short course off-road trucks are certainly a new face for Bristol, the Tennessee short track is no stranger to off-road racing. In 2013, Red Bull Global Rallycross raced on a course that began on the backstretch pit lane and swept through the two oval corners before cutting through the infield then rejoining the oval. The circuit mostly retained its concrete surface save for a dirt section on the oval’s frontstretch.

Kalle Rovanperä and Jonne Halttunen head in to this weeks Rally Finland flying high from back-to-back victories in the last two rallies. The TOYOTA GAZOO Racing World Rally Team driver currently leads the FIA World Championship after taking an impressive five victories from seven events so far this season.

Rovenperä goes into the weekend with an impressive 83-point lead, with his nearest challenger Thierry Neuville having taken only two podium finishes so far this season.

“Rally Finland is of course a very special event for us, but I try to treat it and enjoy it just like any other,” said the Flying Finn. “I don’t feel so much pressure, because after our wins this year I don’t think we have anything to prove.

“Of course, we will have great support from the fans and I would like to try and win it for them if we can. Last year it was not so easy for us so we will try to do a better job this time: We just need to prepare a bit better in the test to make sure we have a good setup and feel comfortable, and then I think we can be fast and really enjoy the weekend.”

“I’m sure there will be a lot of support for Kalle after his performances this year, and I know how that can give you a boost on your home event.” added Toyota Team Principal Jari-Matti Latvala.

ROKiT Venturi Racing sit thirty-five points behind the Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team following the London E-Prix, where Lucas Di Grassi rescued a much needed victory for the team.

After Race One, where Di Grassi was forced to start from last after having all of his Qualifying times deleted, Venturi desperately needed some points. Especially with Edoardo Mortara failing to finish in the top ten on Saturday also. Di Grassi rescued a small number of points for the team in Race One, after overcoming his last-place start for supposedly impeding others during Qualifying.

The Brazilian lined-up in second-place for Race Two, where he managed to find his way past Jake Dennis late-on and breakaway to secure a well-deserved victory. It was some vital points for the side, with championship contender Mortara failing to finish in the points yet again in Race Two.

Team Principal Jérôme D’Ambrosio was delighted after the second race, where he shared just how “proud” he was of his whole team.

“It was a fantastic race today – awesome drives in qualifying and the race from Lucas to achieve this first, and well deserved, win with the team. Unfortunately, it didn’t go Edo’s way today, but that’s Formula E and I have no doubt that he will come back fighting in Seoul. Most of all though, I am incredibly proud of the team – yesterday was a very difficult day and today we showed once again what we’re made of. We won’t stop fighting until it’s over.”

Lucas Di Grassi claimed a brilliant victory at Race Two of the London E-Prix on Sunday, following on from a difficult Race One on Saturday. The Brazilian driver started second-place for Race Two, alongside Race One winner Jake Dennis.

Di Grassi sat behind for the first half of the race, before making his way past the Brit during the pair taking their various attack modes. Once in the lead, the ROKIT Venturi Racing driver pulled away, to claim a thoroughly deserved victory. The thirty-seven-year-old was elated after the race, the complete opposite of what he was like after Race One.

On Saturday, Di Grassi was made to start from last-place, after having all of his lap-times deleted for impeding other drivers. It was one of the most bizarre penalties ever seen in motorsport, which understandably left the Brazilian furious.

After the race on Sunday, Di Grassi explained how he “deserved” the win, after what happened on Saturday.

“This result means everything to me. I had a great battle with Jake [Dennis] and from start to finish, the race was very strategic. I think we timed our Attack Modes perfectly and that allowed us to build a good energy buffer and then, when the time was right, I was able to spend the energy, open a gap and then hold the lead from there.

The Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team are on the brink of claiming the Constructors’ Championship, after a strong weekend at the London E-Prix sees them take a thirty-five point margin in the season finale in South Korea.

It’s not just joy for the team in the Constructors’, there is also reason for the team to celebrate the current Drivers’ standings, as Stoffel Vandoorne extended his lead to thirty-six points from Mitch Evans.

Vandoorne had a strong weekend, after finishing second in Race One, and then recovering to fourth-place in Race Two. Sunday’s race especially was a champion’s drive by the Belgian driver, who finished fourth despite having started thirteenth. None of his title rivals could capitalise on his poor Qualifying on Sunday, as they all failed to finish in the points.

Nyck de Vries‘ weekend ended better than it started, after being awarded a five-second penalty late on in Race One for moving under braking whilst defending third-place from Nick Cassidy. The penalty saw De Vries drop off the podium, much to his disappointment. He made up for it in Race Two, where this time he finished third but wasn’t awarded with a late penalty.

Mercedes-EQ Team Principal Ian James was very pleased with the team’s “healthy haul of points” across the weekend, but is aware that anything can still happen.

Mere hours after being announced as the new BWT Alpine F1 Team driver for the 2023 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season, Oscar Piastri has disputed the news and insists he will not be racing their next year.

The silly season moves started earlier this week when Fernando Alonso announced he would be leaving Alpine to move to the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team in place of the retiring Sebastian Vettel, and it was expected that Alpine’s current reserve driver Piastri would take his place.

The team announced Piastri earlier on Tuesday afternoon, but the press release lacked any comments from the driver, and the Australian has now released a statement on his social media accounts saying he will not be an Alpine driver next season.

“I understand that, without my agreement, Alpine F1 have put out a press release late this afternoon that I am driving for them next year,” said Piastri on Twitter.

“This is wrong and I have not signed a contract with Alpine for 2023. I will not be driving for Alpine next year.”

Austin Hill‘s NASCAR Xfinity Series rookie season has been blazing through with two wins and a sixth-place points position after twenty races. To reward him for his successes, Richard Childress Racing has given him a chance at a Cup Series start for the first time as he enters Sunday’s race at Michigan International Speedway in a newly opened #33 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.

“As a kid growing up in this sport, getting the chance to run a NASCAR Cup Series car is the ultimate dream, especially with a team like Richard Childress Racing that has so much history and success,” Hill stated. “I’m so thankful that Richard Childress and everyone at RCR have so much faith in me. It will be a learning weekend for sure, but I’ve had success at Michigan International Speedway in the past and can’t wait to take on the track’s wide, sweeping corners in a NASCAR Cup Series Chevrolet.”

Hill joined RCR for the 2022 season after an eight-win career in the Camping World Truck Series, and immediately made an impact by winning the season opener at Daytona. Another victory came in June at his home track of Atlanta. He has netted thirteen top tens in total and is the only rookie locked into the playoffs, which would guarantee him Rookie of the Year honours (which is set based on final points standing) if it remains that way.

The #33 was last used by Austin Cindric for his part-time Cup campaign with Team Penske in 2021. RCR fielded the number part-time from 2003 to 2008 before Clint Bowyer became its full-timer in 2009. In three seasons driving RCR’s #33, he scored three wins and a best points finish of tenth in Year #2. After Bowyer left for Michael Waltrip Racing in 2012, the #33 retracted to a limited slate for multiple drivers including current RCR Cup driver Austin Dillon.

“Austin Hill has shown talent in every series he’s raced in during his career, so I couldn’t be more excited to have him behind the wheel of a Cup Series car,” commented Childress. “He’s having a strong season in the Xfinity Series, and I know he will be just as competitive and eager to learn behind the wheel of a Cup Series car.”

Logan Sargeant will get his first run in an official FIA Formula 1 World Championship session later this year, and it will be in front of his home fans at the Circuit of the Americas.

The American racer, currently competing in the FIA Formula 2 championship, will take over the Williams Racing seat of Nicholas Latifi in the opening practice session for the United States Grand Prix.

Sargeant competing in the session will fulfil Williams’ requirement to run young drivers in two free practice sessions as part of the 2022 regulations after Nyck de Vries ran for them ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix.

And the twenty-one-year-old is delighted to be given a chance to show what he can do behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car during an official session for the first time having run in the Young Driver Test in Abu Dhabi with Williams at the end of 2021.

“I’m super excited to be given this opportunity to drive my first Free Practice in Austin,” said Sargeant.  “To be given the chance at the US Grand Prix is something extremely special to me.

Honda and Oracle Red Bull Racing have announced their technical partnership will continue until the end of the 2025 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season.

Initially the deal was to run until the end of 2023 but has been extended by two more years until the end of the current engine cycle, with Honda giving technical assistance to Red Bull Powertrains, which was born following the decision by Honda to leave Formula 1 as an official engine manufacturer at the end of 2021.

The Red Bull/Honda relationship worked well together last year to take Max Verstappen to his maiden World Drivers’ Championship, while the first year of the technical alliance between them sees the Dutchman on top of the standings again heading into the summer break whilst the team is also leading the Constructors’ battle.

Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner has welcomed the announcement, and he hopes the success the two parties have enjoyed in recent years can continue through the next three years.

“Red Bull’s partnership with Honda has been an incredibly successful one and we are pleased that this will continue until the end of the current era of the FIA’s power unit regulations in 2025,” said Horner.

Oscar Piastri has been confirmed as Fernando Alonso’s replacement within the BWT Alpine F1 Team when the Spaniard moves to the Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team in 2023 – or have they?

The Australian had moved into prime position for the seat alongside Esteban Ocon after Alonso made the surprise switch to Aston Martin earlier this week.

And now the 2021 FIA Formula 2 champion has earned a promotion from his reserve drive of 2022, with Team Principal Otmar Szafnauer announcing the decision on Tuesday.

“Oscar is a bright and rare talent,” said Szafnauer.  “We are proud to have nurtured and supported him through the difficult pathways of the junior formulae.

“Through our collaboration over the past four years, we have seen him develop and mature into a driver who is more than capable of taking the step up to Formula 1.

Extreme E stands out from other championships in its mission for providing women with opportunities in the racing world, especially with the requirement that teams field a female driver alongside their male counterpart. During July’s Island X Prix in Sardinia, the series invited four female students from its Student Ambassador programme to study and experience the doubleheader, and they will also join the championship for the rest of the 2022 season.

The Student Ambassador project is organised in partnership between Extreme E and McLaren Racing, who plans to launch a similar model for Saudi citizens as part of their partnership with Island X Prix and team title sponsor NEOM. As part of their duties, the ambassadors work directly for the series along with the Legacy Programmes and Scientific Committee; the former is a series of environmental efforts in the race sites’ areas, with the Island X Prix’s being blue and green carbon stores, while the latter is a joint panel between professors from the Universities of Cambridge and Oxford concerning the series’ climate and sustainability actions. Other responsibilities include focusing on hospitality for guests while also talking with media and the teams themselves.

“It was incredibly busy at times, but I enjoyed being part of the work that goes into making these events happen,” Student Ambassador Ioana Ispas, an aerospace student at Queen Mary University, said in an interview with Extreme E. “The heat definitely made working outside a challenge, but we were all able to adapt to the conditions pretty well.”

Fellow ambassador Amanda Kangai, who studies engineering at Cambridge, also spoke to XE about her experience in Sardinia. Kangai served as a paddock tour guide while Ispas oversaw tours onboard the series’ roving ship St Helena.

“As I oversaw the tours, there are many facts that I have learnt about the paddock,” commented Kangai. “In addition to the statistics, watching and talking to the engineers, mechanics, drivers and team principals was great. They are really patient and open to give advice to activate my future in motorsport.”