Robert Kubica has completed the second of two tests in a 2014-spec Williams as the Formula 1 outfit assesses the possibility of him returning to the grid in 2018. The 32-year-old Pole did a full day of running at the Hungaroring on Tuesday, six days after his one-day test at Silverstone in the same car.
The Williams Formula 1 team has been focused mainly on developing its 2018 car for the past month, according to chief technical officer Paddy Lowe. Williams has been consistently out-developed by rivals since a strong first year under the V6 engine rules in 2014, and the team has decided to make “substantial changes” to its
World Rally Championship teams have been busy completing their pre-event testing for Rally GB, with three manufacturers taking to Welsh roads of late for the task. Hyundai and M-Sport took to the Welsh forests last week in a similar area, while Toyota is completing its own running in Wales this week, and Citroen focuses its
Jorge Lorenzo says he would not give up a first win for Ducati to help team-mate Andrea Dovizioso’s MotoGP title charge until the final race. Lorenzo stated earlier in the season that he was open to obeying team orders to help Dovizioso if and when the time came. Dovizioso is now just 11 points behind
Andrea Dovizioso says he and Ducati find themselves in a “strange situation” that is making them more “relaxed” about their MotoGP title showdown with Marc Marquez. Dovizioso came out on top in an epic wet-weather battle against Marquez last weekend at Motegi to close the gap in the championship to 11 points with three races
IndyCar has explained its decision to replace Watkins Glen with Portland on its 2018 calendar, and has left the door open for the outgoing venue to return in the future. Watkins Glen returned to the IndyCar schedule in 2016 after a street race in Boston collapsed, but it suffered low attendance in its two-year spell
Kimi Raikkonen believes Ferrari can win any of the 2017 Formula 1 season’s remaining four grands prix if it can eliminate mistakes and get on top of its reliability problems. Ferrari’s championship aspirations have imploded in the last three races, with the team now trailing Mercedes by 145 points while Sebastian Vettel is 59 behind
Penske’s Brad Keselowski says it felt like only eight cars completed NASCAR Cup’s race at Talladega, with the race winner one of only four drivers in playoff contention to finish. The Ford driver won an attrition-filled race that had 11 cautions and three stoppages, with only 14 of 40 cars running to the flag. The
Pirelli will turn its ultra-soft tyres pink for the United States Grand Prix as part of Formula 1’s push to help breast cancer awareness. With F1 planning a host of initiatives this weekend in Austin as a sign of support for the Susan G Komen breast cancer charity, tyre supplier Pirelli has joined in to
The latest Autosport Podcast looks back at the last 20 years of Formula 1 and motorsport as a whole – including discussions of names such as Michael Schumacher and Jenson Button. To mark former Autosport Media UK Editor-in-Chief Damien Smith’s move into a new career, he joined Edd Straw to reflect on the characters and
Michael Andretti says he hopes his IndyCar outfit will be able to partner with the McLaren Formula 1 team for a second attempt at the Indianapolis 500 in 2018.
McLaren raced at this year’s Indy 500 for the first time since 1979, offering Fernando Alonso an attempt to complete the second leg of motorsport’s triple
Tech3 Yamaha has announced Australian veteran Broc Parkes will fill in for an unwell Jonas Folger in this weekend’s Phillip Island MotoGP race. After being struck down by a suspected mononucleosis, Folger was forced to miss last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi, and was replaced by Yamaha tester Kohta Nozane. Tech3 said at the
Brad Keselowski booked his place in the final eight of the playoffs by winning on his 300th NASCAR Cup Series start at Talladega. Three late red-flags left Keselowski in the lead, and the #2 Penske Ford driver won the last three-lap shootout with the help of team-mate Joey Logano. Keselowski won the first stage on
Motegi MotoGP race winner Andrea Dovizioso says preparing a last-lap strategy was key in seeing off title rival Marc Marquez in a “tense” duel for victory. At the start of the final lap of the wet-weather event, the Ducati rider looked set to finish runner-up to Marquez – but a major moment at Turn 8
Jorge Lorenzo has slammed fellow MotoGP rider Johann Zarco for ‘PlayStation’-like riding after the duo’s clash in the Japanese Grand Prix. Ducati rider Lorenzo had taken the lead of the Motegi race on the opening lap, but began to fade soon after, rapidly losing positions. But his descent down the order was also assisted by
Renault Formula 1 boss Cyril Abiteboul has suggested the French marque could help Jolyon Palmer to secure a seat elsewhere in motorsport for next season. It was confirmed last Saturday that Palmer will not see out the season at Renault, as Carlos Sainz joins the Enstone-based team for the final four races of the year
Aston Martin has recruited staff with Formula 1 experience, including personnel from Ferrari, as it continues to evaluating entering the championship as an engine supplier. The British manufacturer will become Red Bull Racing’s title sponsor in 2018 as part of an enhanced relationship that has already yielded the Valkyrie hypercar. Aston is taking a close
Valentino Rossi says he was left with “pain everywhere” following a dramatic early crash during Sunday’s Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi. The Yamaha rider was an early retirement in tricky conditions as he suffered a major highside at Turn 7 on the sixth lap while running in ninth place. Rossi had already crashed in Saturday’s
Sebastian Vettel says Kimi Raikkonen is the best team-mate he has ever had in Formula 1 because the Finn does not try to play political games. Vettel has not always got on well with team-mates, having famously clashed several times with Mark Webber at Red Bull. He and Raikkonen collided at the start of the
Marc Marquez has apologised to Andrea Dovizioso for reaching “the limit” with an aggressive pass during their stunning fight for victory in MotoGP’s Japanese Grand Prix. After passing early leader Danilo Petrucci, Marquez and Dovizioso engaged in a fierce fight for victory that ended with a final-lap showdown. The elbow-to-elbow racing started when Dovizioso made
Andrea Dovizioso closed the gap on MotoGP points leader Marc Marquez after coming out on top in an epic dice for glory in the wet at Motegi. The race turned into a two-way fight between this year’s title protagonists, a reprise of their pulsating Red Bull Ring duel earlier the year, which was also won
Valentino Rossi reckons he was fortunate to avoid further damaging his injured leg in his practice four crash ahead of this weekend’s Motegi MotoGP race. Rossi, who is still recovering from breaking his right leg in a training accident in early September, fell at the Turn 8 left-hander during FP4. The Italian was quickly able
Red Bull believes Esso’s latest Formula 1 fuel upgrade has delivered a performance improvement worth one grid slot depending on the circuit. The Milton Keynes-based team feels that its Renault engine has held it back in terms of power this season leaving it searching for gains in other areas such as fuel. The team’s fuel
A “pissed off” Cal Crutchlow claims he “can’t ride” his LCR Honda MotoGP bike in the wet this year after struggling to 15th place in Motegi qualifying. The British rider was knocked out in Saturday’s first segment qualifying after struggling in wet conditions he usually thrives in. Crutchlow was a loss to explain why he
Max Verstappen should stay at the Red Bull Formula 1 team long term and build it around him, reckons team principal Christian Horner. Verstappen has been linked with both Ferrari and Mercedes beyond 2018, but Horner thinks he would be better off staying put than teaming up with either Sebastian Vettel or Lewis Hamilton at
Marc Marquez insists he has no regrets over the tyre gamble that cost him a likely Motegi MotoGP pole, as the Honda rider felt the mileage on slicks was more important. Championship leader Marquez topped FP1, FP3 and FP4 during the rain-affected Japanese GP weekend and looked a strong favourite for pole as he initially
Brendon Hartley believes he is ready for his Formula 1 debut in next week’s United States Grand Prix, after a “pretty crazy week” led to a shock Toro Rosso call-up. As predicted by Autosport, Hartley was announced on Friday as a replacement for Toro Rosso’s Super Formula title-contending driver Pierre Gasly for the next F1
Maverick Vinales admits he can see his MotoGP title ambitions “slipping away” following a dismal run to 14th place in qualifying at Motegi. Yamaha rider Vinales lies third in the standings, 28 points down on leader Marc Marquez with four rounds left, and needs a big result in Japan to keep his championship challenge intact.
Johann Zarco grabbed a shock MotoGP pole position at a wet Motegi, as slick-tyre gambles backfired for Marc Marquez and Valentino Rossi and Maverick Vinales was eliminated in Q1. After setting the quickest time of the weekend so far in FP4, Marquez seemed nailed on for pole when he immediately bettered his own benchmark with
Brendon Hartley will make his Formula 1 debut for Toro Rosso at the United States Grand Prix at Austin, as predicted by Autosport. The New Zealander has been drafted in as replacement for Frenchman Pierre Gasly, who will be competing in the Super Formula finale in Japan instead. Hartley has fallen off the F1 radar