From press release
The 2015 version of Canada's national championships is headed to Ontario's Canadian Tire Motorsport Park new Kart Centre on August 20 to 23 when competitors from across Canada will race for the top podium positions in the Rotax Max Challenge and Briggs & Stratton National classes.
Paul Cooke ASN Canada FIA's Vice President: “ASN is excited about bringing our Canadian Championships to the newly named Mosport Kartways” now under the management and operation of Daniel and Marco Di Leo and undergoing major renovations including track layout changes, new drainage, paving and kerb installations. A major feature is the installation of a new modern administration centre”.
“The Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and DiLeo partnership is a major boost for race driver development in Ontario and Canada” said Cooke.
Ron Fellows: “Our Kart Centre is now a substantially upgraded facility and for the ASN Canada FIA Karting Nationals, it means new and exciting challenges for everyone: drivers, technicians and coaches. Our investment in the Kart Centre further compliments Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and our commitment to being Canada's complete home for motorsports.”
Daniel Di Leo, Mosport Kartways Managing principle, “Our team is proud to host the Canadian Championships, welcoming drivers, families and teams from across Canada to the beautiful rolling hills of Ontario's Durham Region. Planning with ASN is already underway. In addition, our new name “Mosport Kartways”, will bring a host of kart-oriented features including, corporate events, club, regional and national racing events as well as an “Arrive & Drive” program”.
ASN Canada FIA is Canada's Motor Sports Sanctioning Authority appointed by The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) with 131 Affiliated Organizations across Canada.
From press release
Hyundai Motorsport Monday announced that New Zealander Hayden Paddon would remain part of its driver line-up for the 2015 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC).
The 27-year-old will take part in a heightened campaign next season, driving a minimum of nine rallies alongside co-driver John Kennard, starting from the second round of the 2015 WRC, Rally Sweden in February.
Paddon will also join the Hyundai Shell World Rally Team on recce duties at the season opening Rallye Monte-Carlo in January.
The New Zealander joined the team in its debut season competing in six rounds of the Championship at the wheel of the No. 20 Hyundai i20 WRC and scoring points for the Hyundai Motorsport N team.
The Kiwi crew secured a best finish of sixth place at Rally Australia before taking their first ever WRC stage win in Rally Spain. The duo will aim to continue the momentum and positive performances from 2014 into next season, helping the team to maintain its impressive rate of development.
From GMM
Jean-Eric Vergne has made a promising start to his post-F1 career.
Dropped by Toro Rosso after three years on the grid, the 24-year-old Frenchman burst onto the Formula E scene at the weekend with pole in Uruguay.
He was then challenging for the race win before suspension trouble struck his Andretti machine.
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| Jean-Eric Vergne, Andretti Autosport, in Uruguay. (Photo: FIA Formula E) |
Vergne had become an established F1 name until this year, and was reportedly in the running to keep his seat for 2015 instead of the rookie Carlos Sainz jr.
Toro Rosso team boss Franz Tost admitted it was a "difficult decision to let him (Vergne) go because there's no doubt he is a very talented driver".
"But our team's remit is to bring on the youngsters in the Red Bull junior driver programme and JEV had completed three seasons with us," Tost added.
Having lost his Formula 1 seat with Toro Rosso last month, Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne found a new home at Andretti Autosport in the new FIA Formula E electric championship.
Without any testing, Vergne planted his car on pole position last weekend for the ePrix of Punta del Este, Uruguay.
Vergne battled for victory with another former F1 driver, Sebastian Buemi until two laps from the end when the right front suspension of his car collapsed.
Talking to
Autosport, Vergne said: “I had no expectations coming into this weekend. I came here to have fun and that's what I did”.
"The weekend would have been perfect if I had won, but somehow the suspension broke and that was that. I didn't touch the wall or anything. I believe the suspension of these cars is fragile and I heard they're going to be changed for the next race,” Vergne added.
"I think we've shown a fantastic performance, especially with pole position. That was a proper pole, and it's nice to be at the front again,” the Frenchman added.
Andretti Autosport has not confirmed if Vergne would compete in the next Formula E race.
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| Jean-Eric Vergne, Andretti Autosport. (Photo: FIA Formula E) |
From GMM
Ron Dennis has likened Kevin Magnussen to champions Fernando Alonso and Mika Hakkinen, insisting the deposed rookie Dane's career is only on "pause".
McLaren gave 22-year-old Magnussen his grand prix debut this year, but for 2015 he has been installed as merely the reserve driver as the British team starts its new Honda era with Alonso and Jenson Button.
Supremo Dennis admitted he sympathises with Magnussen as he is stepped aside, remarking at one point during last week's announcement: "Look at his (Magnussen's) poor little face!"
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| Ron Dennis and Kevin Magnussen. McLaren. (Photo: WRi2) |
But team boss Eric Boullier insists McLaren is not abandoning the Dane, whose father Jan Magnussen was dropped by the Stewart team after less than two seasons in the late 90s.
"He (Kevin) had a very good year," Eric Boullier said. "As a rookie driver he did a very good job, and there is no reason he should not be back in F1 racing sometime."
Both Alonso and Button, however, have been signed for more than just a single season, meaning that Magnussen's comeback might have to be with another team.
"It could be a possibility, but there is no discussion yet," Eric Boullier is quoted by
Sky. "But Kevin has definitely 100 per cent of our support."
Ron Dennis agreed with that, likening Magnussen's "pause" to Alonso and Hakkinen, whose own F1 careers had faltering starts before they went on to become multiple champions.
"The thing I think he's going to have in common is that one year's testing does not take away your opportunity of being in formula one," he said. "Kevin's so young."
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From press release
A last minute safety car caused by a spin from the Kessel Racing Ferrari 458 GT3 of Jorge Lorenzo changed the face of the 2014 Gulf 12 Hours race.
Michele Rugolo, driving the AF Corse Ferrari 458 GT3, made the best use of the lapped traffic following the restart with just 30 minutes remaining, to take the win by 3.058 seconds after 315 laps of racing at the Yas Marina Circuit.
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| The winning Ferrari 458 GT3 of AF Corse (Photo: Gulf 12 Hours) |
Second place went to the hard charging Bernd Schneider driving for the defending champions, Abu Dhabi Racing Black Falcon Mercedes SLS AMG GT3 team, with Khaled Al Qubaisi and Jeroen Bleekemolen. Schneider finished 2.683 seconds clear of third placed Kevin Estre who piloted the Von Ryan Racing McLaren 650S with Rob Bell and Alvaro Parente.
"We did our best and we were very close but the Ferrari was extremely fast this year," the defending champion, Khaled Al Qubaisi said.
"The AF Corse guys had more speed than us, about 2/10ths of a second per lap but we tried our best and it was very close. It's always disappointing not to win when we came to win but we will try again," Qubaisi said.
From press release
Porsche Motorsports made a series of announcements over the week-end during its annual "Night of Champions" gala in Weissach.
Amongst other thins, it was confirmed that the 2015 car used in the LMP1 category of the World Endurance Championship (WEC) would be an evolution of the 919 Hybrid that made its debut last season.
"The 2015-spec 919 Hybrid will be a distinct evolution of the 2014 model," said a press release. "(It) was optimized in almost every detail and, for 2015, should be even more adaptable to the different characteristics of the race circuits."
The definitive driver combinations will be confirmed eventually.
Porsche will also campaign two 911 RSRs in the world championship. According to current plans, the Porsche works drivers Michael Christensen (from Denmark) and Richard Lietz (from Austria) as well as Patrick Pilet (from France) and Frédéric Makowiecki (also from France) will share the two cockpits.
Further more, Team Porsche North America will field a pair of 911 RSRs in the United SportsCar championship (USC).
At the season-opening 24 Hours of Daytona, Earl Bamber will join forces with the seasoned specialists Frédéric Makowiecki and Jörg Bergmeister (from Germany). Nick Tandy (from Great Britain), Patrick Pilet, and LMP1 regular Marc Lieb (from Germany) share driving duties in the sister car.
Olivier Panis will turn 50 in a not-so-distant future. But apparently he has no intentions of slowing down.
The 1996 Monaco Grand Prix winner scored another victory, this week-end during round two of the Trophée Andros ice racing championship, in Andorre.
Behind the wheel of his Toyota Auris, he beat Andréa Dubourg (Renault Clio) and Benjamin Rivière (Citroën DS3) for the win during race two of the event. Race one winner Jean-Philippe Dayraut finished only fifth behind Panis.
This means in the championship standings, Panis trails Dayraut by just six points.
The victory also marks WRT's first win in ice racing, the multiple 24 Hours of Spa winners having just started in Trophée Andros competition this year.
From press release
Multiple Formula 1 grand prix winner David Coulthard put in a stunning performance to eclipse 15 fellow stars of motor sport and win the Race Of Champions on a thrilling afternoon of action and entertainment at Bushy Park Barbados.
The best-of-three Grand Final boiled down to a battle of Formula 1 drivers young and old. But in the end Coulthard saw off Mercedes F1 official reserve driver Pascal Wehrlein to become Champion of Champions for the very first time.
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| David Coulthard is new champion of champions (Photo: WRI2) |
Coulthard had been in the Race Of Champions Grand Final once before, when he lost out by the narrowest margin to rally legend Sébastien Loeb at Wembley in 2008. This time he prevailed over his young German challenger, who can nonetheless be proud of his run to the Grand Final at the first time.
At the semi-final stage, Coulthard pipped six-time V8 Supercar Champion Jamie Whincup by just two tenths of a second. The other race was a battle of the young guns as Wehrlein eliminated the 2014 FIA European F3 Champion Esteban Ocon.
Coulthard had a spectacular quarter-final win over FIA World Rallycross Champion Petter Solberg in the Volkswagen RX Polo, meaning there was to be no repeat of the ROC Nations Cup glory the Norwegian enjoyed Saturday.
From press release
The third race of the Formula E season turned into a grudge match between two former Red Bull drivers: Sébastien Buemi and Jean-Éric Vergne.
Buemi and Vergne both became professional racing drivers after rising through the ranks of the famous energy drink company's junior program, which Helmut Marko heads.
Vergne actually replaced Buemi at Toro Rosso at the end of the 2011 season. Like his predecessor, he lasted only three season before being axed.
Still without plans for next year, the Frenchman joined Andretti Autosport in Formula E, and straight away snatched pole on his debut, this week-end in Uruguay.
In the race though, Buemi outsmarted Vergne with a better pitstop strategy. The Swiss picked up his first victory of the season, while Vergne dropped down the order with mechanical problems.
Another former Red Bull driver, Jaime Alguersuari finished fifth.
Vergne continued to shine after the race, topping the timing charts during a collective test.
From press release
On a hot afternoon in the Caribbean, legends from many of the world's biggest motor sport series teamed up in pairs to battle for national and regional pride.
They raced a mix of cars - including the Ariel Atom Cup, Audi R8 LMS, Stadium Super Truck, VW Polo RX, KTM X-Bow, ROC Car and Euro NASCAR - on a purpose-built parallel track at Bushy Park Barbados.
Le Mans legend Tom Kristensen and FIA World Rallycross Champion Petter Solberg prevailed in the final against Team Scotland.
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| Solberg and Tom Kristensen pick up their trophy for winning the Nations Cup (Photo: WRI2) |
First Kristensen defeated Williams F1 official test driver Susie Wolff, then 13-time F1 grand prix winner David Coulthard won out against Solberg to take it to the decider. But Kristensen came out on top in the end, winning the final heat after Coulthard spun off at the final corner.
Host nation Team Barbados (Dane Skeete and Rhett Watson) delighted the home fans with a magnificent ROC Nations Cup debut, making it through to the semi-final before they were beaten by Team Scotland
Skeete kept the crowd on the edge of their seats by defeating Wolff but Coulthard came out on top in the end with two wins.
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Every year once the motorsport season is over, the Race of Champions gathers everyone around for one last event. Just for fun, some say.
It's a chance for the spectators to see their favourite drivers from all the different series go head to head in identical cars. But there are no points involved, no championship.
Nine-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen, who retired this year, hopes he can continue to compete in the Race of Champions because he very much enjoys socializing with his peers and other motorsport fans.
"The event not just about winning, the Dane says. "It's very much about socializing. It goes all over the world and we enjoy meeting the fans from different places. I'm always very honoured to be invited."
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| Tom Kristensen is enjoying himself at this year's Race of Champions (Photo: WRI2) |
But not everyone shares Kristensen's opinion.
"All these guys are as crazy as I am, that's for sure," replies Petter Solberg, the new World rallycross champion.
"Tom said we are here for fun but that's BS! We are here to fight, we give everything. The track here is very different to the ones in stadiums, but at the same time it's hard. There have even been some crashes already (Saturday) morning - which is also fun, yes."
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