The Suzuka 10 Hours round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge in August is the latest casualty of the COVID-19 crisis. What would have been the second round of the IGTC after February’s Bathurst 12 Hours has been cancelled. The move announced by IGTC promoter the Stephane Ratel Organisation on Friday said that circuit owner the
Month: May 2020
The return of Richmond Raceway to the IndyCar Series calendar has been pushed back to 2021 while the Toronto street race has also lost its date on the 2020 schedule. The 0.75-mile Richmond oval was due to stage an IndyCar race for the first time since 2009 on June 27, but despite the return of
Marcus Ericsson believes the rivalries emerging from the incidents in IndyCar’s iRacing series finale could continue into the start of the real-world season next month. Ex-Formula 1 driver Ericsson, who moved to IndyCar last season after making 97 grand prix starts, was one of a number of drivers involved in clashes in the final round
The rescheduled Spa 24 Hours blue riband round of the GT World Challenge Europe in October will go ahead with or without spectators, series boss Stephane Ratel has vowed. Ratel made the claim after confirming that the two Italian rounds due to kick off the revised GTWCE schedule announced last week will take place behind
Reigning World Rally champion Ott Tanak believes his start with the Hyundai team has been better than expected, despite a serious crash and his 24-point deficit to leader Sebastien Ogier. Tanak ended Ogier’s run of six world titles with Toyota last year, but decided to join Hyundai alongside Thierry Neuville for 2020. That move allowed
Jorge Lorenzo reckons that Yamaha stablemate Valentino Rossi could start to win MotoGP races again if the seven-time premier class title winner gets a bike he is comfortable with. Rossi is about to embark on his 21st season in the premier class and his 15th for Yamaha and, although he hasn’t won a race since
Toyota Gazoo Racing has pulled out of this year’s Nurburgring 24 Hours due to the coronavirus pandemic, but has vowed to return to the race in 2021. Toyota has been competing on the Nordschleife since 2007 and had already announced plans to compete in this year’s event with a Lexus LC in the SP-PRO class.
Kyle Busch concedes his error triggered the collision with Chase Elliott to wreck his rival’s race as they battled for second place in the closing laps of Wednesday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway. NASCAR’s second race since its return to action from the coronavirus postponements – the first Wednesday NASCAR race since Richard
Denny Hamlin employed a clever strategy to win his second NASCAR Cup Series race of the season at Darlington in a race cut short by rain on Wednesday night. In the second race of NASCAR’s return following the coronavirus pandemic-induced hiatus – the first Wednesday NASCAR race since Richard Petty’s 200th victory at Daytona on
It might have been a proven package, but the Jamie Campbell-Walter-driven Lister was not the favourite to win the 2002 FIA GT season-opener at Magny-Cours. Yet, despite amateur co-driver Nicolaus Springer losing a minute during his middle stint, that’s exactly what it did, thanks to inspired driving and clever strategy Laurence Pearce likes to tell
Stephane Ratel believes the current coronavirus crisis is not only reshaping the 2020 season but also the direction of technology, with a future of electric and customer racing on the horizon. With all motorsport having been hit by postponements during the coronavirus pandemic, while NASCAR became the first series to make a tentative return behind
Alex Marquez has admitted he is a “little bit worried” by the pressure of having limited time to prove himself worthy of a new Honda MotoGP contract this season. Reigning Moto2 champion Marquez was promoted to a works Honda ride for 2020 on a one-year contract, but the coronavirus-induced delay to the season comes at
Ducati test rider Michele Pirro says the ban on MotoGP wildcards this season is unfair and suspects the decision could be related to Honda not wanting Jorge Lorenzo to race for Yamaha. The decision to stop manufacturers entering extra bikes in certain races during the coronavirus-delayed 2020 campaign was announced last week by the Grand
The 104th Indianapolis 500 should be taking place this weekend. The coronavirus pandemic means we’ll instead have to wait until August to enjoy America’s greatest race, but it seemed the opportune time to look back at some of the Brickyard’s finest moments. The famous event was first run in 1911, so picking out the best
Just days after his terrifying Formula 1 crash at Suzuka, a battered Allan McNish went to the United States to take on an equally frightening IndyCar oval test with Penske at Fontana Allan McNish can easily claim rights to being one of racing’s great all-rounders of his generation. After a blazing karting career, he climbed
OPINION: Although NASCAR defied common convention and returned to racing in the middle of a global pandemic, the initial signs are that the race went – largely – without any issues, and the series must retain its scrupulous approach to safety A lot could have gone wrong as NASCAR held the first top-tier motorsports event
NASCAR racing superstar-turned-TV-analyst Dale Earnhardt Jr. says Jimmie Johnson can win races and contend in this year’s Cup Series playoffs if he can clean up his “mental mistakes”. Johnson was within half a lap of winning Stage 1 on NASCAR’s racing return at Darlington Speedway, in the Real Heroes 400, when he crashed into the
Contract negotiations between Ducati and Andrea Dovizioso for the 2021 MotoGP season are still on hold, with the rider’s manager confirming no proposal has been made to his rider. Dovizioso’s current deal with Ducati is up at the end of the year, but discussions over a new deal have stalled as both parties disagree on
As just one of four journalists allowed inside Darlington Raceway for NASCAR’s return after the coronavirus postponements, JIM UTTER provides insight into the new normal and, while the comeback has been a success, he predicts greater celebrations will be delivered at a later date I’ve spent more than 20 years covering NASCAR races and witnessed
MotoGP’s 2019 rookie sensation Fabio Quartararo admits his rivals “looked at me differently” after taking his debut pole at Jerez last year. Quartararo guided his customer ‘B-spec’ Petronas SRT Yamaha to six poles and seven podiums in a debut season which has earned him graduation to Yamaha’s works team alongside Maverick Vinales in 2021. It
NASCAR will carry out an official review on Monday but the immediate reaction to Sunday’s first live race with no fans appeared a very positive one. With all the safety protocols in place in order to restart NASCAR’s season during the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a lot of anxious anticipation as to how the event
Stewart Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick eased to victory at Darlington as the NASCAR Cup series returned to action for the first time since March. NASCAR had suspended its season following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic following the race at Phoenix in early March, before a calendar re-jig ended with the first spring race at
KTM has revealed it opposed Aprilia’s request to continue developing its MotoGP engine before the 2020 season starts, and has no plans to deviate from its current design. On Friday it was announced that the premier class’s two concession manufacturers would be granted more time to work on their engines, instead of having to stick
NASCAR has a “huge responsibility” on its shoulders as it becomes the first high-profile sporting category to return to competition amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Cup Series will resume the 2020 season at the Darlington Raceway on Sunday, having been paused since the 8 March round at Phoenix. United States president Donald Trump declared a
On this day in 2012, Casey Stoner dropped the bombshell that he’d be retiring at the end of the season. On that Thursday afternoon in France, the double MotoGP world champion shattered Honda’s hopes of assembling the ultimate dream team for 2013 On 17 May 2012, MotoGP’s greatest enigma shocked the world on the eve
Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr believes there are people who want NASCAR to “fail” when the Cup Series makes its return to racing following its coronavirus-enforced hiatus at Darlington on Sunday. The driver of the #43 Chevy for Richard Petty Motorsports believes the eyes of the sporting world will be on NASCAR this weekend, as it
NASCAR Cup race winner Alex Bowman will remain at Hendrick Motorsports after signing a contract extension to keep him at the team until the end of 2021. Bowman, who replaced Dale Earnhardt Jr in the #88 car having substituted for him during 2016 as Earnhardt recovered from a concussion, began his full-time foray in the
New Chip Ganassi Racing recruit Matt Kenseth is “excited” to make his NASCAR Cup return at this weekend’s Darlington round, as he replaces Kyle Larson at the team. Kenseth was drafted into the #42 car after Larson was released from his Ganassi contract for using a racial slur during a NASCAR-sanctioned iRacing event. Having last
Ryan Newman can’t remember the final moments when he was last competing in a NASCAR race, but he has no apprehensions about his return to action nearly three months later. Newman, 42, suffered a closed head injury in a violent crash on the last lap of the Daytona 500 season opener on the 17th February
The world is seeking its ‘new normal’ during this coronavirus pandemic. In top-level motor racing, that first step comes Sunday when the NASCAR Cup returns after a two-month break – its first track action since Phoenix on 8th March. The first race back will be held on Sunday 17th May at Darlington Raceway starting at