Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

In 2021, John Hunter Nemechek made the most of his three-race NASCAR Xfinity Series schedule with Joe Gibbs Racing by winning at Texas Motor Speedway. He will hope to repeat the effort in 2022 as JGR made the same offer to him, with starts scheduled for Richmond Raceway on 2 April, Dover Motor Speedway on 30 April, and Texas on 24 September.

“John Hunter was impressive in his starts with us last year and we’re excited to have him back this season to work with Jason (Ratcliff, crew chief) and our #18 team for a few races,” commented JGR Xfinity programme executive vice president Steve de Souza. “He really has made the most of every opportunity and we expect he will run up front again in these races.”

Nemechek primarily competes in the Camping World Truck Series for JGR partner Kyle Busch Motorsports. In his first season with the team in 2021, he took the series by storm with five victories and the regular season championship before finishing third in points. His 2022 campaign has started on a rough note with finishes of twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth after being involved in wrecks in both, though he led the most laps at Daytona and won the pole at Las Vegas.

In addition to his full Truck slate, he ran the Las Vegas and Phoenix Xfinity races for Sam Hunt Racing. After a twelfth in the former, he led SHR’s first laps at the latter with eleven en route to a fifth-place finish.

“I am really excited to have this opportunity to race again in JGR’s Xfinity Series programme after the success we had last season,” said Nemechek. “We were able to pick up a win in just three starts and hopefully we can add to that success this season.”

Niece Motorsports already has four full-time entries in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, but it will field another in Saturday’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. On Monday, the team announced Ross Chastain will pilot a newly opened #41 Chevrolet Silverado RST in a one-off entry.

Now in his second season as a full-time Cup Series driver, Chastain is coming off a runner-up finish at Phoenix and a second straight top three run. Four races into his first year with Trackhouse Racing Team, he sits fourteenth in points.

Chastain has driven for Niece since 2018, which included the full 2019 schedule. Despite a midseason points switch from Xfinity Series to Truck standings, he won three races (a fourth at Iowa was nullified via disqualification) and finished runner-up in the championship. Although he focused on the Xfinity and Cup Series for 2020 followed by strictly the latter in 2021, he occasionally returned to Niece and the Trucks. In thirteen starts since, he has eight top tens, a best finish of second at Kansas in 2021, and amusingly another disqualification. His younger brother Chad also raced for the team last season.

He finished in the top ten in four of his five career Truck starts at Atlanta. However, such a statistic is now irrelevant due to Atlanta’s reconfiguration.

Chastain posted on social media, “A lot of unknowns with the new Atlanta and the best way to learn is behind the wheel! I can’t wait to Press The Attack with this group again!”

Alexander Smolyar has lost his seat at MP Motorsport ahead of the FIA Formula 3 Championship season opener in Bahrain.

Smolyar is the highest-profile driver on the Road to F1 pathway to lose their seat due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The FIA allows Russian drivers to compete in international competition under a neutral FIA flag.

SMP Racing have supported the careers of drivers including Smolyar, Robert Shwartzman, Vitaly Petrov and Mikhail Aleshin. They have withdrawn from international motorsport, saying they “will not be able to take part in international racing tournaments.”

The SMP Racing programme was founded by the head of the SMP Bank, Boris Rotenberg, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

With the Formula 1 season opener just a matter of days away, Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN have announced a brand-new partnership with Swedish audio product company Nocs.

The Swedish company will supply Alfa Romeo with high-quality, professional devices developed for the cleanest sound in the world. Nocs is a brand devoted to professional DJs and serious music-lovers. Nocs specialises in creating exceptionally well-crafted earphones, headphones and speakers to produce the best possible sound in all settings. With a proven track record working with musicians, DJs and other artists, they bring together the art of music with the precision of technology.

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN, is very happy to welcome Nocs onboard, Vasseur is impressed by Nocs attitude to always strive for the very best.

“We are delighted to welcome Nocs to the Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN family. Their work reflects very much what we do within our company – we are driven by passion towards technological excellence. Nocs’s refusal to settle for ‘good enough’, always pushing for refinement and a better product, is at the soul of what we do in Formula One and we are looking forward to exploring ways for our companies to work together.”

Daniel Alm, CEO and Founder of Nocs, is over the moon that his company is going to be partnering up with Alfa Romeo, especially as he himself is a huge fan of Formula 1.

Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN have certainly been busy ahead of the 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, the Swiss-team have announced a brand-new partnership with premium French luggage brand Delsey Paris.

The Alfa Romeo team members will all use the Delsey Paris products as they travel around the world, for the longest Formula 1 season in the sports history. Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou will become the face of the company, which was founded in 1946, by becoming ambassadors for the brand in Delsey Paris’ world campaign.

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN, recognises the importance of the team travelling around the world with solid products.

“Our Formula One team spends a lot of time on the road and it’s important we do so with practical products, without compromising on style. Delsey Paris will allow us to be elegant on the road, as the team travels to every corner of the planet for this intense season of racing. Competition starts well before the lights go out on Sunday and Delsey Paris will help us be comfortable on the road and gain a little edge on our journey.”

Davide Traxler, CEO of Delsey Paris, is pleased that the company have become a partner of Alfa Romeo, with the CEO believing the two brands share similar values.

Rally Jameel, scheduled for 17–19 March, will be the first all-women’s rally raid in Saudi Arabia. Among the thirty-three entries is the #21 2022 Toyota Fortuner fielded by Sweden Challenge, which will be shared by Extreme E driver Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky and Annie Seel.

Åhlin-Kottulinsky is perhaps the biggest name of the sixty-six drivers involved. Now in her second year of Extreme E competition and first with defending champion Rosberg X Racing, she and fellow Swedish team-mate Johan Kristofferson won in Saudi Arabia at the season-opening Desert X Prix in Neom. While that was her first career Extreme E win, she leads all drivers in podiums earned with five after racking up two seconds and thirds apiece with JBXE in 2021.

Nicknamed the “Rally Princess”, Seel is more renowned for her motorcycle prowess, having competed in the Bikes category at the Dakar Rally between 2002 and 2011. At the 2010 edition, she overcame a crash that dropped her down a five-metre tomb to be the highest-finishing female rider. In 2003, she set a world altitude record after climbing Mount Everest’s base camp on a Honda XL250.

Seel moved to four-wheelers for the 2014 Rally and her next three attempts since. She ran this year’s Dakar in January as a team-mate to Annett Fischer, and their X-Raid Team Yamaha finished fifteenth in the Light Prototype class. The duo had finished third in December’s Hail Rally.

“Very excited to team up and share car with legend Annie Seel for Rally Jameel, the first ever all female off-road Rally in Saudi Arabia,” Åhlin-Kottulinsky posted on social media. She remarked in an Instagram Story that it will be her “first taste of something close to Dakar”.

Max Verstappen’s defence of his 2021 World Championship begins this weekend at the Bahrain Grand Prix, as the new era of Formula 1 begins under the lights at the Bahrain International Circuit.

Verstappen enters this season of course as World Champion, the Dutchman ended pre-season at Bahrain as the fastest driver, giving him plenty of confidence going into the season opener. Verstappen was involved in the big talking point of the 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix, after overtaking fierce rival Lewis Hamilton by going off the circuit. The Dutchman finished second in the end behind Hamilton at Bahrain last year, he will be looking to rectify this at the weekend.

Verstappen is very excited for the season to begin, especially with it being the first Grand Prix of the new era of Formula 1.

“We learnt a lot at testing in Barcelona and Bahrain, I’m very excited to turn our attention to racing now, it’s a whole new era for the sport and anything can happen. The focus is to bring the grid together and make it easier to follow, I hope we see that in the first race. Everything is so new so there are a lot of unknowns heading into the first race of the season.

“I’m looking forward to seeing where we are compared to the rest of the grid come qualifying on Saturday. The car looks good and as a Team we are in a good place. The most important thing for us in Bahrain is to have a stable weekend without too many issues and we hope to score a good amount of points.”

Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN have announced an extension of their partnership with automotive supplier Marelli, a partnership which began in 2019.

Marelli, like Alfa Romeo, have motorsport in their DNA, both thrive under the challenge of racing. Alfa Romeo will not only continue to use Marelli products, but the brand’s logo will feature on the C42 of both Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou.

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN, is glad that the partnership has been extended, especially with Marelli’s history and commitment to Formula 1.

“Marelli has been a loyal technology partner for a number of years and it’s a pleasure to extend our relationship with them – they are part of the family. We have been using their products for a long time and they are perfectly integrated within our cars and they truly are the gold standard in the sector. Marelli’s history and commitment to our sport are unquestionable and we are looking forward to working with them this season.”

Riccardo De Filippi, Head of Marelli Motorsport, is very pleased that Marelli will continue with Alfa Romeo for another year, De Filippi believes that both companies hold similar values and principles.

Ahead of the new Formula 1 season, Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN have announced an extension to their long-term partnership with brewery Singha Corporation into 2022.

Singha Corporation are a subsidiary of Boon Rawd Brewery, the Thai beer was produced in 1933. The Thai brand first became a partner of Alfa Romeo back in 2019, Singha Corporation produces other major beer brands and a growing range of sodas and mineral waters, catering for a wide range of tastes and consumers.

The Singha logo will be highly visible on the C42 of both Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou, as well as on team clothing and kit.

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal of Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN, is very happy that the partnership has been extended for a fourth year.

“We are delighted to extend our partnership with Singha Corporation for a fourth year, a sign of how well our two brands have been working together. We look forward to repaying their faith in the team with on-track results, and we are excited about the activation programme they will deploy to reach a growing number of fans this season.”

The 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship finally begins this weekend at the Bahrain International Circuit for the Bahrain Grand Prix, where Pirelli Motorsport will get to see the brand-new 18-inch tyres used across an actual Grand Prix weekend.

For the first Grand Prix of the season, Pirelli have opted for the hardest tyre compounds from their range, to be used at the Bahrain Grand Prix, the C1, C2 and C3 compounds. This is a step harder than used by the manufacturer last season, however last year the 18-inch tyres weren’t used. Pirelli have made this choice due to the Bahrain International Circuit being one of the most abrasive on the calendar.

The circuit is also very stop and go, with the first corner especially being a heavy braking corner due to the tightness of it. The circuit also possesses some very fast and sweeping sections, where grip is essential for a fast lap-time.

Pirelli’s Motorsport Director, Mario Isola, explained the reasoning as to why the hardest tyres have been chosen.

“We’ve opted for the hardest tyres in the range for this first grand prix given the track layout,  asphalt characteristics and temperatures: also because the compounds are different compared to previous years. The teams had the chance get familiar with the 2022 18-inch tyre range, having spent a total of six days of testing with all the compounds, although not always in representative conditions.

Williams Racing’s 2022 campaign kicks-off this weekend, as the 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship takes centre stage for round one at the Bahrain International Circuit, for the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The season opener already looks set to be one of the most unpredictable in recent memory, with the new generation of Formula 1 cars set to be pushed to their initial limits under the floodlit circuit. For Williams a good start to the season is vital, reliability will most likely be a key factor at the first few races this year, capitalising on others misfortune could turn out to be more important than ever before!

The British team start the season with a brand-new line-up, with Red Bull’s Alex Albon joining the team to race alongside Canadian Nicholas Latifi, who is entering his third season with the team. Both drivers will be hopeful of a strong start to the season but also to possibly take their place as lead driver at the team.

Williams Racing’s Head of Vehicle Performance, Dave Robson, is excited for the new season to begin, he also believes that despite winter testing, the true order of the field won’t be known until Sunday night.

“The opening race of any season is an exciting prospect and an opportunity to understand what our rivals were doing during pre-season testing. This season, with substantial changes to the cars, the tension and excitement is even greater, and we won’t know the true order until Sunday night when we see which drivers are able to deliver reliable performance.

“Winter testing has been tough, with only six days to investigate an almost entirely new package. Despite one day of low mileage last week, we still completed a lot of valuable running and have discovered quite a lot about the FW44. There is no doubt that there is a lot more to learn and we will see all the 2022 cars evolving quickly over the coming weeks. However, our job this weekend is to get everything possible out of the race on Sunday, to continue our setup work and to complete the integration of Alex into the Team by completing our first race weekend together.”

Alex Brundle will not take part in this weekend’s opening round of the FIA World Endurance Championship after he has tested positive for Covid.

The Brit, due to race in the #34 Inter Europol Competition, will be replaced by the team’s European Le Mans Series driver Fabio Scherer who will race alongside Brundle’s team mates Esteban Gutierrez and Jakub Smiechowski. Scherer is on hand for the team as he is in American for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship 12 Hours of Sebring, that will take place on Sunday, racing with High Class Racing.

“We are very sorry for Alex,” said team principal Sascha Fassbender. “He felt unwell yesterday and to make sure, he took a test and it was positive. We will miss his input and his speed. Hope he feels better quickly.

“But as luck wants it, Fabio Scherer, who joins us in the ELMS in the LMP2, will now do double duty this weekend as was in Sebring anyway.”

Formula 1 is finally back this weekend, as the 2022 season kicks-off at the Bahrain International Circuit for the Bahrain Grand Prix, where Alex Albon will be making his highly anticipated return to the championship.

After a year out of the sport, the Thai driver is back in the paddock but this time behind the wheel of Williams Racing’s FW44, for what will be his third season in Formula 1. Williams represents a fresh challenge for Albon, who will be keen for a good start to the season under the lights, perhaps even hoping to put pressure on Sergio Pérez’s seat at Oracle Red Bull Racing.

Incredibly with his drive for the season coming in the form of Williams, Albon will have started all three of his seasons in the sport, with a different team! Albon, who remains heavily connected to Red Bull, is very excited for the season to start after all the hours of work put in over the winter.

“I’m obviously very excited for the first race of the year and to be back racing. It will be the result of all the hard work over winter and everything we’ve learnt from six days of testing, so I’m looking forward to seeing that come together and pushing as much as we can. The track is tricky because, as we saw in testing, it’s very windy, sandy and hot which are tough conditions to contend with. It’s a good track for racing though, so it should be an exciting weekend for Formula One.”

“It’s been a long pre-season with a lot of effort” – Nicholas Latifi

Like his new team-mate, Nicholas Latifi is entering his third season in Formula 1, all of which have come at Williams. 2022 is a big season for the Canadian to take the lead at Williams, after being somewhat in George Russell’s shadow for the last two years, Albon however has just as much capability of becoming the lead driver at the team.

The first round of the 2022 FIA World Endurance Championship is finally upon us. Last weekend saw the 32-strong grid taking to the track for the Prologue and gave us a first look at the predicted competitive order, so what should you be looking out for this weekend? And what might stump the drivers during the 1,000 Miles of Sebring? The Checkered Flag brings you everything you’ll need to know ahead of the start of the new season.

Alpine Elf Matmut were the favourite Hypercars from the Prologue, but the LMP2 cars certainly brought the challenge, taking three of the four sessions’ fastest lap times. Toyota Gazoo Racing struggled with the new year’s Balance of Performance (BoP) weightings which, importantly, doesn’t allow them to use their hybrid power until they are at faster speeds (last year it was 150kph, this year it’s 190kph). This means the Japanese team can use their hybrid boost for less of the lap, reducing their maximum speed output.

This shift is all done for the balance of fairness; with Alpine still running an LMP1 car rather than an LMH the Toyotas would have an overall advantage on the French team. However, this was an element Toyota weren’t expecting to affect them as much as it has. It will be surprising if Toyota cannot get on top of this new hurdle ahead of this weekend’s race, but even if they do it is likely they won’t disappear into the distance as they frequently did last season.

Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus complete the Hypercar class with their sole 007 LMH. The team were told by the FIA they had to enter at least one full season car if they wanted 24 Hours of Le Mans entries as, at the end of 2021, the team weren’t sure if they wanted to take on another full season. To keep both of their cars in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the #708 will take part in the full 2022 championship.

The LMP2 cars kept the LMHs on their toes during the Prologue, but two teams really stood out against the rest of the grid. Keep an eye on 2021 champions Team WRT and United Autosports this weekend as they will be favourites to take the first LMP2 victory of the season. After an extremely successful rookie season, Team WRT quickly made themselves one of the favourites and certainly expect to continue their winning streak from last year. United Autosports, on the other hand, will be hoping for an improvement on 2022 and hope that the qualifying and race pace discrepancies that plagued the end of their season don’t interfere with the 2022 LMP2 championship.

What do Chase Briscoe and Kyle Jergensen have in common? They both recorded first victories in a major event in the desert.

A day after Jergensen celebrated his maiden Mint 400 in Nevada, Briscoe was doing the same for NASCAR Cup Series win #1 at Phoenix Raceway. An overtime restart placed him in a three-way battle with Tyler Reddick and Ross Chastain, both of whom were also seeking their first wins, with Briscoe ultimately holding them off.

Briscoe started sixth while fellow Ford driver Ryan Blaney won the pole. It was a relatively clean stage with the only yellow flags coming on laps 27 (a mandated competition caution) and 41 (debris). William Byron took the lead for the latter’s ensuing restart and the eventual stage win ahead of Briscoe, Chase Elliott, Reddick, Alex Bowman, Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, Kevin Harvick, Joey Logano, and Austin Dillon.

Bell’s race took a turn when he spun on lap 120 for Stage #2’s only caution. Blaney dominated the segment as he led all but ten laps including the final one to win. Elliott, who led said ten circuits, was second followed by Harvick, Byron, Larson, Reddick, Chastain, Briscoe, Dillon, and Logano.

Tyre degradation resulted in the first of three incidents in the final stage when Martin Truex Jr.‘s right-front tyre went down and caused him to slam into the turn two wall. He explained shortly after that the car had been “getting really loose all day on the longer runs. I was just out there trying to take care of it, and we gained a few spots on the restart and I was just trying to take care of the rear tires. Coming off of turn two there, I’m kind of neutral free, and then all of a sudden, it shot straight into the fence. I cut a right front down running up there in the glue or something.”