Category: Motorsports

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Audi WEC

2014 Audi R18 e-tron quattro revealed

2014 Audi R18 e-tron quattro

Following its track test at Sebring earlier this week Audi has given us more information on its 2014 WEC LMP1 challenger, the 2014 R18 e-tron quattro.

Powered by a V6 TDI and dual hybrid systems Audi is keen to push its record of transferring race technology to the road. Technology we take for granted now, such as TFSI petrol engines, advanced diesel engines and LED headlights, are just some of the technologies Audi has taken from its LMP1 program to its production lines.

New regulations for the 2014 season have seen Audi further develop its R18 concept and motorsport boss, Dr Wolfgang Ullrich, tells us the result is a shift in thinking: “The principles of the LMP1 regulations have fundamentally changed. The idea behind this is to achieve similarly fast lap times as in the past with considerably less energy. Making more out of less: a forward-thinking approach.”

More photos and a host of press material awaits after the break giving us a good run down of what to expect in the 2014 WEC season.

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Formula 1

Vettel slams F1’s double points decision

2013 Brazilian Grand Prix

Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel has spoken out against the sport’s decision to award double points for the last race of the season. This is one occasion were Vettel will have majority support from F1 fans, as a poll conducted by F1 Fanatic shows.

Speaking to Germany’s Sport Bild newspaper, the 26-year-old father-in-waiting said: “This is absurd and punishes those who have worked hard for a whole season. Drivers, fans and experts are horrified.

“I value the old traditions in Formula 1 and do not understand this new rule. Imagine, in the last Bundesliga match of the season there was suddenly double points.”

Sadly, we don’t have to imagine it Sebastian, it’s happening!

For the record, if the double points rule had been in place in recent years then Fernando Alonso would have become a triple world champion last year, Felipe Massa would have enjoyed his 2008 championship for a lifetime—rather than a few seconds—and Kimi Raikkonen would be a dual world champ at the expense of Michael Schumacher’s 2003 crown.

[Source: BBC | Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Porsche WEC

Mark Webber has first drive of Porsche LMP1 car

Porsche LMP1 test with Mark Webber

Mark Webber’s Porsche career began in earnest overnight when had has first test in the 2014 LMP1 racecar at Algarve in Portugal. It was the last track outing for Porsche’s LMP1 car until early January and Mark said it was important to get some seat time as soon as possible.

“My first day in this fascinating project was an intense experience for me,” Mark said. “I would like to thank Red Bull Racing for giving me the chance to join the project so early. This is a major and important step for us all. It allows me to integrate with the team quicker and to contribute to further developing the LMP1 race car.”

Head of Porsche LMP1 Fritz Enzinger explains the team is advancing well, but acknowledges there is much more to do before their race debut in April.

“Between the roll-out of the completely new car in June and now we have made significant progress,” Enzinger said. “Every single kilometre was important, providing us with new data that brought the development forward. The whole team has worked extremely hard and I would like to express my sincere thanks for this. Our efforts will continue unabated in 2014. Until the start of the season at Silverstone mid-April there is still a lot to do.”

Mark also understand the task at hand is a difficult one. “We have a long way to go and it involves a lot of hard work. I have no misconceptions about this,” he added.

Webber joins Timo Bernhard, Romain Dumas and Neel Jani as confirmed drivers for Porsche’s 2014 program. There will be six drivers in all and the remaining two will be named this weekend. It’s expected long-time Porsche works driver Marc Lieb and former F1 test driver Brendon Hartley will get the nod.

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Hyundai WRC

Hyundai Motorsport launches i20 WRC car

Hyundai i20 WRC

Hyundai Motorsport has launched its i20 WRC and with it comes a title sponsor and full driver line up for the 2014 season. Officially known as the Hyundai Shell World Rally Team the outfit will be lead by rising Belgian star and runner-up in the 2013 WRC season Thierry Neuville.

The team will run two cars over the course of 2014 and the second i20 WRC will be shared among three drivers. Finnish driver Juho Hänninen will compete in the bulk of the rallies with Spanish driver Dani Sordo stepping in for Rallye Monte Carlo, while Chris Atkinson will race in his home event at Rally Australia. More opportunities for Sordo and Atkinson to compete next year are likely, but that’s all we have confirmed for now.

You’ll notice a large N on the bonnet of the i20 and the overalls of the crew. This is a new letter used to signify “high performance technologies” used in the WRC car. It pays homage to the company’s Namyang R&D Centre and will also soon be seen on Hyundai’s road cars.

Michel Nandan, Team Principal of Hyundai Motorsport, explains much work has already been done, but the team knows its biggest challenge awaits.

“In less than one year, we have built and tested a brand new WRC-specification car, the Hyundai i20 WRC, and established a professional team and modern motorsport facility,” Nandan said. “It’s a huge accomplishment but we know that we have a lot to learn in our first season.

“Our aims for 2014 are realistic: we want to finish each rally with both cars and build up a database of information and experience so we can develop ourselves into prospective rally winners in the future. If all goes well, we will hope to be competing for occasional podiums as the year progresses.”

More detail and photos from Hyundai Motorsport are all yours after the break.

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Bathurst 12 Hour

Allan Simonsen Pole Position Trophy for Bathurst 12hr

Allan Simonsen

Race organisers for the Bathurst 12 Hour have announced they will be honouring the memory of Allan Simonsen by awarding an annual pole position trophy in his name starting with the 2014 race (7–9 February).

Simonsen passed away after an accident at Le Mans earlier this year and the trophy for the fastest qualifier at the Bathurst 12 Hour has the blessing of his family and Maranello Motorsport, the team he raced with in the 12 hour.

“The Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour team has the full support of our family to create the Allan Simonsen Pole Position trophy,” said Benny Simonsen, Allan’s younger brother and fellow GT racer.

“He told me that Bathurst was his favourite track and he just loved to go there. It is an honour to have the pole position award to be named after him.”

The Danish sportscar ace was blisteringly fast around Mount Panorama and set a number of lap records at the wheel of a Ferrari 458 Italia GT3.

In other changes to qualifying for the Bathurst 12 Hour the Class A (International GT3) competitors will get a 15 minute qualifying period to themselves after open qualifying has finished. This has been done to allow the cars in outright contention an opportunity to set a lap time with fewer cars on track.

At previous events pole position was decided by a combination of times by a car’s fastest two drivers. In 2014 the quickest lap by any single driver will stand and there will be no penalties for going faster than the nominated ‘benchmark time’.

That’s great news for fans and competitors alike as we’ll finally get to see just how quick GT3 cars can be around the mountain.

[Source: Bathurst 12hr]

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Formula 1 Red Bull Racing

Red Bull tries to humanise Sebastian Vettel

Sebastian Vettel

Here in Australia it’s accepted that four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel plays the pantomime villain to Mark Webber’s hero. As a result Vettel has been harshly judged by most Aussie F1 fans to the point that many find it hard to enjoy any success the young star achieves.

Worse, it’s expected that villain role will continue next season when Vettel pits his wits against the younger Australian F1 hope, Daniel Ricciardo.

In truth, as far as anyone on the outer can tell, Vettel has fast matured from the precocious twerp he was when he first arrived at what has become the sport’s premier team into a sage old man accepting his success with as much grace and humility as one can realistically expect in a sport that is all about massive egos.

And it’s the latter assessment of Vettel’s personality which Red Bull is promoting with this somewhat camp video of him riding a vintage bike through the alps.

Is there anything Red Bull won’t do for Sebastian?

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Formula 1

Double points on offer for last F1 race of season

2013 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Are you sitting down? Go on, sit down, right now…

The FIA has just announced a rule that will see the final race of the 2014 Formula 1 season, and beyond, be awarded double championship points in a bid to keep the title race alive to the last possible moment.

It might seem like first-class comedy, but this is real and it is going to happen next year. The rule change means the winner of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will get 50 points, instead of the usual 25. More pertinently, the driver who finishes third in the final race will get 30 points, more than of any other race winner during the year.

Also agreed at the meeting of the F1 Strategy Group was the introduction of permanent driver numbers. Each driver can pick a number between 2 and 99, with the number 1 reserved for the world champion if he chooses to use it.

A seemingly impromptu tyre test will take place in Bahrain next week (17–19 December) to give teams an opportunity to test Pirelli’s 2014 rubber. While all teams were invited only six of the 11 teams have accepted: Red Bull Racing, Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, Force India and Toro Rosso.

Five second penalties for minor infringements could also be introduced in 2014 after an in principle agreement was reached. We suspect arguments over how such a penalty would be added might scupper this for next year, at least.

And, finally, in what is possibly the most far reaching of the agenda items, agreement has been reached, in principle, to introduce a cost cap to Formula 1 starting from the 2015 season.

Back to the double points decision for a moment. We wonder if race organisers will now fight for the right to host the final grand prix of the season; in effect the status of the event has increased twofold. And will this gimmick be accepted by F1 fans? We’ve become used to DRS for artificial overtaking, so in time we expect the double points race will be embraced too. As dumb as that seems right now.

One last question: How long until Bernie’s sprinklers get switched on at random intervals to help spice up the racing?

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Volkswagen WRC

Volkswagen celebrates stunning 2013 with silverware

Volkswagen Motorsport collects WRC tophies

Last weekend Citroën was busy signing its drivers for 2014, but Volkswagen Motorsport had the rather more enviable task of attending the FIA’s annual trophy presentation night in Paris.

While there FIA President Jean Todt was kind enough to furnish Volkswagen with three trophies, one for the manufacturers’ title and one each for the championship winning driver, Sebastien Ogier, and his co-driver, Julien Ingrassia.

Ogier reminded us all of the obvious, taht nobody could have predicted such unprecedented success for Volkswagen this year.

“If anyone had told us before the start of the season that Julien and I would end the year with nine wins and the World Championship title, we would probably have sent them straight to the team doctor,” he said. “This is a dream come true for Julien and me, and we are both extremely proud and honoured to finally get our hands on the FIA trophies.”

Team boss, Jost Capito also shared a few words of gratitude for his Volkswagen Motorsport colleagues.

“Never in our wildest dreams did we imagine this kind of result in our first season in the World Rally Championship,” Capito reflected. “I would like to say a big thank you to everyone in the Volkswagen team. From the mechanics to the truck drivers, from the race engineers to the marketing department—the commitment shown by every single individual is what made the greatest success in Volkswagen’s motorsport history possible.

“And we must not forget that the Polo R WRC was not only quick from the word go, but also extremely reliable. Our three driver/co-driver pairings also produced outstanding performances. Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia, in particular, more than deserve their title in the Driver and Co-Driver Championship, with nine wins to their name this season.”

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Citroen WRC

Meeke and Ostberg signed by Citroën for 2014

Citroen DS3 WRC, 2013 Rally Australia

Citroën Racing announced its 2014 WRC driver lineup overnight and it’s big news, with Mikko Hirvonen shown the door from the French team. With the retirement of Sebastien Loeb behind them Citroën will return with two full-time drivers next year: 34-year-old Northern Irishman Kris Meeke will race alongside 26-year-old Norwegian Mads Ostberg.

It’s big show of faith for Meeke and co-driver Paul Nagle. Meeke’s last appearance for Citroën was at Rally Australia and things didn’t end well after he crashed out twice during the event.

“It’s an incredible opportunity,” Meeke enthused. “I’ve always been close to Citroën over the last few years. I’m really lucky to be able to work with a team that has so much experience and so many titles.”

“I have only competed in ten World Championship rallies in a WRC,” the former MINI driver added. “I think I’ve got some potential, but I still need to get some experience under my belt. The Citroën DS3 WRC is a terrific car and I’m going to be able to use the team’s knowledge to help me improve. I know that I’ll have to be patient in the first half of the season and learn all about the rallies that I haven’t done before.”

With 65 WRC events, and one victory, under his belt Ostberg is ready for the challenge ahead and brings with him a focus for success.

“I’m joining Citroën Racing to get some good results and to try and win some rallies,” the former Ford driver said. “I’ve always shown that I could be quick. I know that the standard in the World Rally Championship is exceptionally high, but I want to be competitive!”

As in 2013, Abu Dhabi driver Khalid Al Qassimi will drive in selected WRC events, which include Sweden, Portugal, Italy and Spain. He will also concentrate on taking part in the entire Middle East rally Championship.

The futures of Hirvonen, Dani Sordo and Robert Kubica remain uncertain. You’d expect Hirvonen to be considered by M-Sport. Meanwhile, the high of winning his first rally this year may be short lived for tarmac specialist Sordo. Kubica has previously said he will only race in the WRC next year if he can secure a full-time drive; his opportunities are fast running out.

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BMW Motorsports

VIDEO: BMW M235i Racing on track

BMW M235i Racing

If the thought of a BMW M235i Racing grabs your attention, then here’s a video just for you. It’s little more than teaser clip so don’t go in expecting lots of sideways action or even adrenaline fulled 10/10ths driving. The beauty about this customer racecar is you can buy your own and drive it in any manner you like!

BMW Motorsport says it already holds 30 advance orders for the factory-prepped racers. At €59,500 (plus taxes) it’s easy to see why.

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Audi WEC

Audi previews 2014 LMP1 challenger

2014 Audi R18 e-tron quattro

Audi has just released this image of its 2014 LMP1 racecar which will defend its WEC title and Le Mans crown. Clearly Audi has put all the good ideas into the car itself because it’s still called the R18 e-tron quattro. That’s despite some significant changes to the LMP1 category for 2014.

The new R18 is undergoing testing at Sebring International Raceway in Florida and full details of the car will be released on 18 December.

Dr Wolfgang Ullrich, Audi Motorsport boss, says the team is aiming to get some development miles into its new R18.

“The tests are mainly focused on achieving high mileage, coordinating the highly complex hybrid drive systems and working out an efficiency-optimized total package that has never before been as complex as this one,” Ullrich said.

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Formula 1 Video

Are you missing Formula 1?

F1 the queen of motorsports

It’s Sunday night and there’s no Formula 1 race waiting to close the week out. If you’re having high-octane withdrawal symptoms here’s a short video from F1 fan Patrick Krutyj that brings you some of the highs and lows we’ve witnessed from circuits around the globe in recent years.

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