Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

The Dakar Rally ended Friday with victory for many, but also tragedy. In the morning of the race’s final day, mechanic Quentin Lavalée died of injuries sustained in an accident involving the support vehicle he was driving and a civilian truck. He was twenty years old.

“This morning at 11:30, on the assistance liaison route, an accident involving an assistance vehicle and a local truck, according to local police authorities, occurred at kilometre 234,” read a statement from race organiser Amaury Sport Organisation. “The driver of the car belonging to the team PH Sport, Quentin Lavalée, of France, very sadly passed away in the accident. He was 20 years of age. His passenger, the Belgian Maxime Frere. was injured and was transported to the National Guards Hospital in Jeddah. He was conscious and a full analysis is underway.”

Lavalée was the chief mechanic of the #726 Peugeot 205 T16 fielded by 205 Africa Raid in the Dakar Classic with support from Lavalée’s employer PH Sport. Piloted by Rudy Jacquot, the #726 finished twenty-fourth in the class, two spots behind team-mate and uncle François‘ #728 Peugeot 404. The T16 is a restoration of the vehicle driven by Ari Vatanen to victory in the 1987 Rally. Rudy’s cousin Christophe finished thirteenth in 205 Africa Raid’s #902 MAN TGE 280.

“It is with immense sorrow that we mourn today the loss of Quentin, our chief engineer on the 205 Turbo 16,” read a translated social media post from PH Sport. “We extend our heartfelt condolences to Quentin’s family and loved ones.

“Many of us have known the Chalindrey native since he was born and have seen him grow up to join our team. His passion, kindness, simplicity and radiant personality will be sorely missed.”

The fallout from the end of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is still nothing short of spectacular a month on. Social media (especially Twitter) has been full of posts and discussions calling for serious action to be taken, including the sacking of race director Michael Masi. It was known that the FIA would launch a full investigation into what happened on that fateful Sunday and, on January 13, a statement was released that outlined the details of what’s going to happen with that.

“Following the decision of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris on 15 December 2021, the FIA administration, under the leadership of Mohammed Ben Sulayem, has started the detailed analysis of the events of the last Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix,” the statement read. “The FIA President launched a consultation with all F1 teams on various issues, including this one.“

“On January 18, an item on the agenda of the Sporting Advisory Committee will be dedicated to the use of the Safety Car,” the statement continued. “The following stage will be a shared discussion with all F1 drivers.“

“The outcome of the detailed analysis will be presented to the F1 Commission in February and final decisions will be announced at the World Motor Sport Council in Bahrain on 18 March.”

Jeffrey Earnhardt has rejoined the Toyota stable for the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series. After two years at JD Motorsports, he announced Friday that he has signed with Sam Hunt Racing for “multiple races” in the upcoming season. He will drive the #26 Toyota Supra, though specific dates were not immediately revealed. ForeverLawn, Inc., who was a sponsor at JDM, follows him to SHR.

“Welcome home, Jeffrey Earnhardt,” posted the team on social media. “We are thrilled to have you and ForeverLawn, Inc. on board with us for multiple races this season. Gearing up to be an exciting year!”

The fourth-generation driver spent the last two seasons at JDM as a full-timer. Despite not running the first four races in 2020 and initially signing on as a part-time driver, he enjoyed a solid campaign with twelve top-twenty finishes and a points placement of twenty-third. However, 2021 only had six such runs as he attempted all but one race, failed to qualify for three, and placed three spots lower in the standings. Earnhardt has not run every race in a national series season since the 2014 Xfinity slate with JDM, where he finished sixteenth.

His first experience with Toyota came during the second half of 2018 when he ran much of the Cup Series events for Gaunt Brothers Racing. The following year, he joined Joe Gibbs Racing (an SHR ally) which entailed sporadic starts for the team’s Xfinity programme and driving for the newly formed XCI Racing there and in Cup. Despite aspirations of going full-time Cup racing with XCI, he departed the team in the summer and XCI has since disappeared.

Earnhardt is the second announced driver in SHR’s #26 after Ryan Truex was hired for the season opener and more on Thursday. The #26 finished twenty-third in the 2021 owner standings with the likes of Grant Enfinger, Santino Ferrucci, Colin Garrett, Brandon Gdovic, Dylan Lupton, John Hunter Nemechek, Will Rodgers, and Kris Wright.

The season of car launches is looming upon us more and more as we get closer to the start of the 2022 Formula 1 season. The teams are starting to finish off their cars for the 2022 season and it’s only a matter of time before we see them all in the flesh for the first time. As well as the hiring of new Team Principal Mike Krack, the Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team announced to the public today that the Aston Martin AMR22 will be revealed to the world on February 10, 2022. This makes Aston Martin the first of the F1 teams to announce a set date for the launch of their new car; Scuderia Ferrari has announced a rough time window of February 16-18, but is yet to lock in a concrete date like Aston Martin has.

The unveiling of the AMR22 will be held at Aston Martin’s headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The team’s two drivers Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll will be at the launch event, as will key members of the team’s staff. This will no doubt include new Team Principal Mike Krack, as well as other major figures including Lawrence Stroll and Martin Whitmarsh. The AMR22 will be the first Aston Martin F1 car designed under the new technical regulations and, like the AMR21, will be powered by a Mercedes power unit.

Aston Martin (which rebranded from Racing Point after the 2020 season) finished 7th in the constructors’ championship in 2021, scoring a combined total of 77 points. The team also managed one podium finish that year, courtesy of Sebastian Vettel finishing second during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku.

With the announcement that Mike Krack will be joining the Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One team with immediate effect, BMW M Motorsport have announced that Andreas Roos will be taking over responsibility for motor sport activities of BMW M GmbH as of 1 February.

“We would like to thank Mike Krack for his passion and dedication across the motor sport portfolio of BMW and BMW M,” said Franciscus van Meel, CEO of BMW M GmbH. “He has demonstrated his wholehearted commitment to motor sport in various roles within our company. As Head of BMW M Motorsport, he took some important decisions over the past year aimed at securing a successful future for our motor sport projects. He has now been given the chance to fulfil a career dream and we do not want to stand in his way. We would like to wish Mike every success in his future endeavours.”

“At the same time, we are delighted to welcome Andreas Roos as our new Head of BMW M Motorsport,” continued van Meel. “He has also held senior management positions in international motor sport for many years and his vast experience makes him the ideal appointment at the helm of our racing involvement. With Andreas on board we are in the best possible shape to enjoy an exciting future pursuing ambitious goals with our new BMW M4 GT3 and LMDh project. We are looking forward to enjoying great success together.”

While Formula 1 is seen as the pinnacle of motor sport, it wasn’t a clear cut decision for Krack to leave his role at BMW after being part of the German manufacturer for some time.

“This was not an easy decision for me,” says Krack. “I have spent a large portion of my professional life at BMW, and have grown incredibly fond of the brand and my colleagues over all these great years. I would like to say thank you for everything we have achieved together through the many different projects.

It was only a few days ago when the Aston Martin Cognizant Formula 1 Team announced that its long-serving Team Principal Otmar Szafnauer would be stepping down. This came amid rumours that Szafnauer would be moving to the Alpine F1 Team to take on a senior role there. Now today Aston Martin has announced the signing of a new Team Principal in the form of Mike Krack.

Krack previously led BMW’s global motorsport operation, a position he had held at the company since 2014. In this role, he’d been in charge of BMW’s Formula E, GT and IMSA programmes as well as being a part of the brand’s planned expansion into the new LMDh formula for IMSA and the World Endurance Championship. Prior to that, Krack had a senior role at Porsche and also has a decade of previous Formula 1 experience with Sauber.

Krack will report to the team’s owner Lawrence Stroll and the team’s CEO Martin Whitmarsh. He will also be reunited with Sebastian Vettel, who he worked with at BMW-Sauber from 2006-2007.

“It is a thrill and an honour to have been appointed to the position of Team Principal of Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team, and I am very grateful to Lawrence [Stroll] and Martin [Whitmarsh] for giving me such a fantastic opportunity,” Krack said in an official statement. “Aston Martin is one of the greatest automotive brands in the world, and to have been asked to play a leading role in delivering the on-track Formula One success that such an illustrious name so richly deserves is a challenge that I plan to embrace with energy and enthusiasm.”

“I have been working in motorsport for over 20 years, and worked in Formula One with Seb Vettel in 2006 and 2007 when I was a BMW-Sauber engineer and he was the team’s test driver. I have huge respect for his speed and ability, and it will be fantastic to be reunited with him,” Krack continued. “Lance Stroll is a seriously fast and talented driver, too, with 100 Grands Prix starts to his name, and I am very much looking forward to working closely with him.”

Roger Penske and his racing teams have done it all, racing in a multitude of series and achieving reat success. However, he wants another go at the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans and the accompanying FIA World Endurance Championship.

Team Penske intends to field an Oreca 07 Gibson in the 2022 WEC’s LMP2 class for Dane Cameron, Emmanuel Collard, and Felipe Nasr. All three drivers have enjoyed success in the American sports car realm, with Cameron winning the 2019 IMSA DPi championship for Penske. Collard, a longtime Le Mans racer who won his class in 2003 and 2009, was previously a Penske driver in the American Le Mans Series. Nasr is the defending IMSA DPi champion, his second such title, and he raced at Le Mans in LMP2 in 2018 and 2021.

“Joining Team Penske in a great opportunity and I can’t wait to compete in WEC and return to Le Mans this year,” Nasr stated. “I know we’ll learn a lot as a team as we develop our programme and gain some great experience. I’m really excited to get to work as we begin to build momentum for the future.”

Penske fielded a team in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship that was closed after the 2020 season when Acura pulled its support. While this consequently left Penske out of sports cars in 2021, the team eventually allied with Porsche to form Porsche Penske Motorsport, an outfit that will begin competing in the new LMDh class (which replaces DPi) of IMSA and WEC in 2023.

While Penske has won nearly everything in racing, from the NASCAR Cup Series‘ Daytona 500 to the NTT IndyCar Series‘ Indianapolis 500, his Le Mans experience is sporadic by comparison. His team’s last start in the legendary endurance race came in 1971 in alliance with North American Racing Team, where Mark Donohue and David Hobbs ultimately retired due to an engine failure.

The Triple Crown is a popular concept in motorsport: win three certain races, earn bragging rights and occasionally a monetary prize. In the case of the NTT IndyCar Series, such an idea was used during the 1970s and 1980s, followed by 2013 to 2015, for winning major rounds like the Indianapolis 500.

For 2022, IndyCar has revived the triple but in a much different manner; this time, the crown is attained based on versatility. On Thursday, IndyCar announced the formation of the PeopleReady Force for Good Challenge, a partnership between the sanctioning body and industrial staffing company PeopleReady, in which the first driver to win a race on each of the schedule’s three track types—oval, road course, street circuit—can win $1 million for themselves and a charity of their choosing: $500,000 is shared between the driver and their team, while the other half goes to charity.

The 2022 calendar has four ovals—Texas Motor Speedway, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Iowa Speedway, and World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway—compared to six road courses and five street circuits. While the latter two categories greatly outweigh the ovals, the likelihood of a driver winning at least once on each of the three is actually higher than one might think. Such a feat has been accomplished every year since 2015 save for 2021, though Josef Newgarden came close with wins on an oval (Gateway) and road course (Mid-Ohio) and three second-place finishes on the streets in St. Petersburg, Detroit, and Long Beach. Had the challenge existed in years past, Newgarden would have achieved this in 2017 and 2020.

Even if nobody completes the sweep, PeopleReady intends to donate $10,000 to each race winner regardless of their progress in the challenge.

“The PeopleReady Force for Good Challenge will help drive home PeopleReady’s mission to connect people and work as a force for good in the communities they serve while highlighting the skill of NTT IndyCar Series teams and drivers and our collective commitment to helping others,” said Penske Entertainment Corporation head Mark Miles. “This programme will keep fans engaged all season and continue to raise vital awareness for a variety of worthy charities.”

Until 2014, the NASCAR Cup Series typically conducted a test session at Daytona International Speedway to prepare for the upcoming season nicknamed “Preseason Thunder”. Eight years later, it returned… sort of.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, seventeen cars took to the high banking of Daytona to practice drafting in the Next Gen car set to début in 2022. Both sessions were topped by Fords as rookie Harrison Burton was the fastest each time ahead of Team Penske ally and fellow Cup newcomer Austin Cindric, as well as another Penske entry driven by Joey Logano in the first and Ryan Blaney in the second.

With Kyle Larson in Oklahoma for the Chili Bowl Nationals, Hendrick Motorsports entrusted his #5 to Dale Earnhardt Jr., a two-time Daytona 500 winner who last raced in Cup in 2017. Earnhardt, who tested the Next Gen at Bowman Gray Stadium in October, was twelfth and fifth in two sessions.

Some teams with multiple drivers rotated for the second test day. For example, the Spire Motorsports #7 was shared by regular driver Corey LaJoie and Landon Cassill, who will run the Busch Light Clash in the team’s #77. Denny Hamlin skipped Day 2 after blowing an engine while in the draft in the first.

“It’s been a long two days and I would say that we were really happy with where we netted out here,” said NASCAR Senior Vice President for Innovation and Racing Development John Probst. “I feel like this was a pretty good extension of the test that we did in Atlanta about a week ago. We were able to dial in the package a little bit more than when we were here in late 2021.”

When Seth Quintero won the tenth stage of the Dakar Rally on Wednesday to tie Pierre Lartigue‘s 1994 record for the most stage wins in the event’s history, he wrote on Instagram, “Today we shook hands with history, tommorow we try to break it.”

A day later, he broke it.

Quintero, aided by navigator Dennis Zenz, set the fastest time in the Light Prototype class in Stage #11 on Thursday of three hours, fifty-seven minutes, and fifty-three seconds to win his eleventh stage. Even more impressive is that Quintero accomplished it in twelve stages (the first stage is divided into 1A and 1B), while Lartigue reached his mark of ten when the 1994 Rally had seventeen. He also won the Prologue prior to the main Rally.

The Red Bull Off-Road Junior Team USA duo have won every stage so far except for Stage #2, which saw them leading by five minutes before a differential failure doomed their hopes of a clean sweep. Fellow Red Bull driver Guillaume De Mevius won that stage, but retired from the Rally three stages later due to critical rollcage damage.

The 19-year-old Quintero was more than eager to celebrate his historic achievement while also calling out those critical of the feat.

In a development that’s come as rather a shock to the world of Formula 1, the Alpine F1 Team has announced that as of 13th January 2022 its Executive Director Marcin Budkowski will be stepping away from his role. According to a statement by the team, CEO Laurent Rossi “will temporarily ensure the team’s management to allow everyone to focus on the next season’s preparation.”

Budkowski had originally joined the team (then under the Renault brand) in October 2017, after a stint as the head of Formula 1’s technical department. His signing attracted a lot of controversy at the time, as he was very close to the FIA and Formula 1 Management due to his previous position and therefore had access to critical details surrounding the 2018 cars.

He was responsible for the day-to-day running and operations of the team and remained there through its transition from Renault to Alpine. Before this, Budkowski had been an aerodynamicist at the Prost Grand Prix team in 2001. He later worked for Ferrari from 2002-2007, McLaren from 2007-2014 (where he ended up becoming the head of the aerodynamics department) and then for Formula 1 from 2014 until leaving to join Renault.

“I would like to thank Marcin Budkowski for his commitment and contribution to the team’s results over the last four years,” Rossi said in the team’s official statement. “The team is fully focused on getting the car ready for the first race in Bahrain and deliver a step beyond in performance.”

“I truly enjoyed being part of the leadership team of Renault then Alpine F1 Team, working with such a talented and dedicated group of people,” said Budkowski. “I will be watching the Teams’ progress fondly in the seasons to come.”

Ryan Truex is back in the NASCAR Xfinity Series as a part-timer. On Thursday, Sam Hunt Racing announced Truex will drive the #26 Toyota Supra in various races beginning with the season opener at Daytona International Speedway.

After making sporadic starts in the Xfinity Series from 2010 to 2015, Truex ran the full 2018 season for Kaulig Racing. Despite making the playoffs and ending the season with eleven top tens and a twelfth-place points finish, he was replaced by Justin Haley for the following year. He reverted to a part-time status over the next two years, which included running six Xfinity races for JR Motorsports with four top tens.

He ran the full 2021 Truck schedule for Niece Motorsports, scoring three top tens, a best race finish of fourth at Daytona, and placing sixteenth in the standings. Truex did not return to Niece for 2022.

“Being able to work with Ryan, not only a real talent, but one of my best friends, is definitely one of the coolest opportunities I’ve had as a car owner,” said SHR owner Sam Hunt in a press release. “He’s a proven driver and well deserving, and he can also help continue SHR’s growth with his experience and knowledge of where we are at as a team. We know each other far past the sport, and we have been able to lend advice to one another prior to this as friends. Anytime you get to go to work with one of your favorite people – I see it as a win.”

The younger brother of fellow Toyota driver Martin Truex Jr., the younger Truex is a two-time champion in what is now the ARCA Menards Series East. Like Martin, he also has Cup Series experience, having run much of 2014 and last attempting to qualify for the 2019 Daytona 500.

Valentino Rossi has officially traded two wheels for four. On Thursday, the seven-time MotoGP champion announced he will race full-time in the GT World Challenge Europe for W Racing Team, driving an Audi R8 LMS with his iconic #46.

After ending his illustrious motorcycle racing career, Rossi tested with WRT at Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia in December. The team noted in a following statement that it was conducted “with a view to evaluate future cooperation possibilities”, which of course was realised with Thursday’s announcement.

WRT, a twenty-eight-time drivers and teams champion, is coming off another strong campaign as the 2021 overall champion in both categories.

“I am delighted to join Team WRT for a full Fanatec GTWCE powered by AWS programme,” Rossi stated. “Everybody knows that I have always been a great car racing fan and that I have always been interested in a racing on four wheels once my MotoGP career would come to an end. Now I am completely available to devote myself to a car racing programme at high level and with the right professional approach. Team WRT is the perfect fit I was looking for and I am anxious to start this new adventure in the GTWCE with them.”

As a full-time driver, Rossi will compete in both the Endurance and Sprint Cups. Of the ten tracks that the series will visit, Rossi has won in MotoGP at Imola (twice), Paul Ricard (once), Misano (thrice), Valencia (twice), and Barcelona (ten times). Imola, Paul Ricard, and Barcelona are Endurance Cup dates.

Rick Ware Racing is now an ally of Stewart-Haas Racing. Ryan Preece is now a member of Stewart-Haas Racing. Ryan Preece also does not have a full-time ride but his contract with SHR stipulates he can run two races for an ally.

It doesn’t take a detective to realise that Preece was going to join RWR for some Cup races in 2022, and all parties made that official on Thursday. Preece will drive the #15 Ford Mustang for “multiple races” including the Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on 6 February.

When Preece joined SHR last Thursday as a reserve and simulator driver, his deal also mentions he can run two Cup races, three Xfinity Series rounds, and seven in the Camping World Truck Series. The Truck slate was quickly confirmed to be with David Gilliland Racing, for whom he won in his series début at Nashville in June. The two Cup starts were to be at Dover International Speedway (1 May) and Charlotte Motor Speedway‘s Coca-Cola 600 (29 May), though it is possible that Ware increases his schedule if interested.

“Ryan is a great addition to the RWR lineup for 2022,” said team owner Rick Ware. “His talent on the racetrack has been shown through his achievements in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and NASCAR Xfinity Series. Our alliance with SHR and Ford has allowed us to put a wheelman behind the wheel, starting at the quarter-mile showdown in LA.”

The Clash, which will be held on a quarter-mile short track within a football stadium, is a natural pick for Preece. He regularly competes in the Whelen Modifed Tour, a division that specialises in short tracks, and he won the 2013 championship.

2021 Porsche Sprint Challenge GB champion Theo Edgerton will make the move up to Porsche Carrera Cup GB with Joe Tandy Racing for the 2022 season.

17-year-old Edgerton started racing at the age of 10 in karts, entering his first championship in 2017 before moving in to the Ginetta Junior series in 2018. The 2019 season saw the Worcester-based driver gain his first podium in the Junior series as he moved up to the Porsche Sprint Challenge series for 2020, taking third place in the championship with one victory, five second place finishes and a further three final podium positions.

2021 brought further success as the young driver took eight overall victories, ten podiums, two pole positions and six fastest laps. Edgerton also made it to the final four finalists in the 2022/23 Porsche Carrera GB Junior shootout.

“We’re delighted to welcome Theo back to JTR, this time to race with us full time in Carrera Cup,” said team boss Nick Tandy. “After his rookie year in Sprint Challenge, Theo tested a 911 with us back in 2020 and we were immediately impressed with his attitude and capability to drive these high-powered cars.

“We watched with interest his dominant season in 2021 in his Cayman to become champion. With another year’s experience under his belt, we’re all looking forward to working together and getting our teeth into Carrera Cup GB and the new 911GT3 Cup race car.”