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This year's Caterham Formula 1 driver, Kamui Kobayashi set the best time in both days of the Super Formula test held at Okayama circuit in Japan.

Kobayashi, who raced for Toyota, Sauber and Caterham in Formula 1 wants to give his career a new swing.

For that test, the Japanese was behind the wheel that Frenchman Loic Duval drove this season.

Other drivers in action during that test included 2013 GP2 champion Fabio Leimer, IndyCar series' Takuma Sato, former Williams-Toyota F1 driver Kazuki Nakajima, former IndyCar driver Bertrand Baguette and Nissan protégé, GP3 driver Jann Mardenborough.

Former BMW works driver in the DTM, American Joey Hand will replace Memo Rojas in Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates' No. 01 Ford EcoBoost Prototype in the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship.

Joey Hand will be codriving alongside veteran Scott Pruett next year.

The team also announced that partner Ford and their EcoBoost engine technology will serve as the primary sponsor of the No. 01 in the endurance series.

With Rojas leaving the team, his sponsor Telmex also leaves Ganassi.

Both Ford and Hand step into their new roles with the team as part of multi-year deals.

Riley Ford EcoBoost No. 01. (Photo: United SportsCar)

German Formula 1 driver Nico Hulkenberg enjoyed a successful season in 2014, showing remarkable pace and consistency.

“Hulk” ranked 9th in the drivers' standings with 96 points while his team, Force India finished the year in 6th position behind McLaren.

In an exclusive interview with Formula1.com, Hulkenberg said he was really happy with his performance, especially in the early part of the year.

“I think on the whole I'm pretty satisfied with 2014. It was my best season in terms of points scored and my position in the championship,” Hulkenberg said.

“The first half of the year was a lot of fun - that was when the car was at its most competitive and we made that count. The four P5 finishes were results we worked hard to achieve and were definitely the highlights. Monaco stands out for me because it was such a tough race and I really had to nurse my supersoft tires in the last 20 laps. I also remember my overtaking move on Kevin [Magnussen] at Portier. The second half of the year was more challenging. Things did not really go my way and I was quite unlucky in several races. But it was good to end the season with a strong result in Abu Dhabi,” he explained.

Nico Hulkenberg, Sahara Force India. (Photo: WRi2)

At the end of 2013, the German left Sauber after only one year to return to Force India. What made him decide to switch teams?

“I don't think it's a sixth sense, but sometimes you have to make a decision on what you feel in your stomach,” Hulkenberg replied.

“The decision at the end of 2013 was not so much about leaving Sauber, but about the opportunity at Force India - a team I already knew very well. There were lots of factors in that decision, but Force India with the Mercedes engine seemed like the best combination. Yes, it proved to be the right decision. Sometimes you need some luck,” he explained.

Mexican Sergio Perez will remain Hulkenberg's teammate in 2015. How well are the two working together?

“Checo is a very strong team mate, which is a good thing because it helps bring out the best in me,” Hulkenger declared.

“The first year with Rubens [Barrichello, in 2010] was interesting and tough. He was very quick. He also taught me a lot. My relationship with Checo is very competitive but also healthy. We both want to beat each other but we get on okay and work well together to move the team forward,” the German said.

American telecommunication giant Sprint announced on Tuesday that it would not extend its sponsorship of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series beyond 2016.

The significant changes within Sprint and the highly competitive business environment it is in led to a decision not to extend its Cup Series entitlement position following the 2016 season.

Sprint has been the title sponsor for NASCAR's top series since 2004, when Nextel signed a 10-year agreement for the Nextel Cup Series. The name changed to the Sprint Cup Series in 2008 following the corporate merger between Nextel and Sprint.

"We are proud of our association with NASCAR's top series but have made the decision not to extend our sponsorship beyond the next two years," Sprint's vice president-Marketing Steve Gaffney said.

"As we look to the future, Sprint is focused on investing in maintaining a competitive edge and providing consumers with the best value in wireless."

The announcement Tuesday gives NASCAR two seasons to find a replacement.

Photo: NASCAR

In a very, very brief press release issued Wednesday, Ferrari announced that Hiroide Hamashima was leaving the team.

“Ferrari announces that Hiroide Hamashima, currently responsible for tire performance analysis, will leave the Scuderia at the end of the year.”

The Japanese engineer was the director of motorsport tire development at Bridgestone between 1981 and 2011.

In January 2012, Ferrari announced that Hamashima moved to the team and took a role in its technical department to improve the interaction of the Formula 1 car and the tires.

Stefano Domenicali, Hiroide Hamashima and Felipe Massa, Ferrari. (Photo: WRi2)

From GMM

Michael Schumacher was the most searched-for sportsman in 2014, the internet giant Google has announced.

An analysis of the more than two trillion searches on the world's most popular search engine this year also showed that Schumacher's skiing crash and recuperation was the ninth most popular internet news story overall.

The F1 legend's struggle was only out-searched by those seeking news about paralympian Oscar Pistorius' murder trial and the Malaysia Airlines disasters, with ALS and Ebola topping the list overall.

Despite the high interest in Schumacher's recovery, however, the Swiss news website Bluewin reports that his personal fashion sponsors Navyboot and Jet Set have terminated their deals with the 45-year-old German.

The news comes after the German mineral water company Rosbacher ended its commercial backing of Schumacher earlier in 2014.

A spokesperson for the Gaydoul group, owner of the Navyboot and Jet Set brands, confirmed that its sponsorship deals with Schumacher have ended.

The deals were estimated at $5 million per year.

U.S. regulators investigating failures of Takata Corp. airbags are preparing for a legal fight in case the Japanese parts maker doesn't comply with a request to expand a recall.

Mark Rosekind, confirmed to head the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, faces immediate pressure to take a tougher stance with automakers and suppliers on safety matters, reset the agency's culture and manage the coming wave of...

Mark Rosekind's nomination to head the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration was confirmed late Tuesday by the U.S. Senate, filling a yearlong vacancy atop the nation's auto safety regulator.

TRW Automotive Holdings struck a deal to transfer U.S. pension obligations to MetLife as the maker of auto parts works to limit liabilities.

Third-generation Chrysler dealer Bill Snethkamp, president of Bill Snethkamp's Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram in Michigan, died Friday. He was 65.

Takata said it has hired public relations firm Sard Verbinnen as the company contends with the fallout from its recall crisis for potentially defective airbag inflators that can spray vehicle occupants with metal shrapnel.

A year after the creation of Dongfeng Renault Automotive Company (DRAC), Renault's joint venture with Dongfeng, the group said it was on target to launch its first locally manufactured vehicle in China in 2016.

News 16 Dec, 2014

Handling guru leaves Lotus after 26 years, is now in charge of vehicle dynamics at Aston Martin

AutoTrader is adding dealer reviews to its website after long resisting them. The giant vehicle shopping site has agreed to post consumer reviews of dealerships collected by DealerRater, the two companies announced today.

News 23 Dec, 2014

We look back at the stories that made 2014 a vintage year for car news

Volvo is developing new three-cylinder engines that will appear in its 60-series cars, like the S60 sedan, V60 wagon, and the XC60 crossover.

Cadillac's forthcoming CT6 sedan is supposed to be trailblazing for the brand. But don't expect a radical new design direction.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has resumed exports from Brazil to Mexico - there is a free trade agreement between both countries - after over three years due to weak Brazilian demand and a more favorable exchange rate.

Nissan says it has licenced its Around View Monitor and Moving Object Detection (MOD) technology, jointly developed with Clarion for use by Hitachi Construction Machinery