| By Edd Straw | Friday, November 29th 2013, 16:11 GMT |
Pastor Maldonado is at times a seriously fast racing driver, and while that doesn't make him a great, some critics of his Formula 1 switch to Lotus have gone way too far
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| By Kevin Turner | Friday, November 29th 2013, 16:26 GMT |
Honda Racing will run a new Civic estate in the 2014 British Touring Car Championship and will retain former champions Matt Neal and Grodon Shedden
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| By Matt Beer | Friday, November 29th 2013, 17:17 GMT |
Record-breaking skydiver Felix Baumgartner will contest the Race of Champions in Bangkok next month.
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| By Matt Beer | Thursday, November 28th 2013, 15:55 GMT |
Formula 1 did not adopt a regular numbering system until early in 1973, when car numbers were awarded based roughly on the constructors' standings
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| By Jonathan Noble and Dieter Rencken | Thursday, November 28th 2013, 16:57 GMT |
The FIA is planning to introduce a 'pole position trophy' in Formula 1 from the start of next year, after receiving preliminary support for the idea from teams
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| By Peter Mills | Thursday, November 28th 2013, 19:07 GMT |
Toyota's Alex Wurz recorded the fastest time in Thursday's opening free practice sessions ahead of the eighth and final race of the 2013 World Endurance Championship, the Six Hours of Bahrain.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Wednesday, November 27th 2013, 17:22 GMT |
McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh says there will be no excuses if his team is not back at the front in Formula 1 next year
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| By Sam Tremayne | Wednesday, November 27th 2013, 17:22 GMT |
Tom Coronel fears 2013 will prove to be his final season in the World Touring Car Championship
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| By Jonathan Noble | Thursday, November 28th 2013, 00:00 GMT |
Ross Brawn is to leave the Mercedes Formula 1 team at the end of this year, with confirmation of his departure expected imminently
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| By Jonathan Noble | Tuesday, November 26th 2013, 12:32 GMT |
Marussia may be celebrating its 10th place finish in the constructors' championship, but the quirks of Formula 1's commercial rights income structure means it will have to wait another year before a potentially big pay day.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Tuesday, November 26th 2013, 13:56 GMT |
Mercedes has confirmed that its engine dyno is back up and running fully, despite a small oil leak fire on Monday night
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| By Jonathan Noble | Tuesday, November 26th 2013, 16:16 GMT |
Red Bull believes Mark Webber got the timing of his retirement from Formula 1 spot on after taking a podium finish in his final race
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| By Jonathan Noble | Monday, November 25th 2013, 16:51 GMT |
McLaren thinks it let the chance of a first podium finish of 2013 slip through its fingers at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Monday, November 25th 2013, 17:35 GMT |
Marussia says its 11th hour heartache from 2012 meant it could not relax about taking 10th in the constructors' championship until after the chequered flag in Brazil
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| By Sam Tremayne | Monday, November 25th 2013, 18:18 GMT |
Juan Pablo Montoya completed the first test of his Penske IndyCar return at Sebring on Monday
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| By Edd Straw | Sunday, November 24th 2013, 21:18 GMT |
Heikki Kovalainen has blamed his failure to get the start right for his disappointing result in the Brazilian Grand Prix.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Sunday, November 24th 2013, 21:26 GMT |
Red Bull put Sebastian Vettel's pitstop drama in the Brazilian Grand Prix down to a very late strategy call amid fears of a safety car
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| By Hal Ridge | Saturday, November 23rd 2013, 21:39 GMT |
The new-for-2014 World Rallycross Championship is expected to include an event in Canada as part of the famous Trois-Rivieres Grand Prix
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| By Edd Straw | Saturday, November 23rd 2013, 22:11 GMT |
Pirelli motorsport boss Paul Hembery believes the lack of rain-tyre testing opportunities has contributed to Formula 1 cars struggling more in wet conditions
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| Sunday, November 24th 2013, 03:45 GMT |
Craig Lowndes struck back in the V8 Supercars title battle with a brilliant race two win at Phillip Island
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| By Edd Straw | Friday, November 22nd 2013, 19:59 GMT |
Pirelli Motorsport boss Paul Hembery does not believe the wet weather which prevented teams from testing its 2014 tyres is a major setback.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Friday, November 22nd 2013, 20:08 GMT |
Lotus insists it has not given up on an investment deal with Quantum Motorsports, despite ongoing delays in the arrival of funds.
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| Friday, November 22nd 2013, 21:54 GMT |
Dallara has released the first images of the new Indy Lights car that it will introduce in 2015
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| By Jonathan Noble | Thursday, November 21st 2013, 18:54 GMT |
Lotus suspects that Heikki Kovalainen's problem in the United States Grand Prix may have been caused by a blocked brake duct rather than a front wing failure
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| By Jonathan Noble | Thursday, November 21st 2013, 19:14 GMT |
Adrian Sutil looks set to remain at Force India next year after revealing on Thursday that he had signed a deal for the 2014 Formula 1 season
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| By Glenn Freeman | Thursday, November 21st 2013, 19:40 GMT |
Ferrari junior Raffaele Marciello dominated Formula Renault 3.5 testing for the second day running at Aragon
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| Wednesday, November 20th 2013, 17:49 GMT |
Ferrari junior driver Raffaele Marciello was quickest in both sessions on the first day of Formula Renault 3.5 testing at Aragon
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| By Jonathan Noble | Wednesday, November 20th 2013, 17:10 GMT |
Mercedes has admitted that it is still learning to get the best out of Lewis Hamilton, in the wake of his fraught radio conversations during the United States Grand Prix
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| By David Evans | Wednesday, November 20th 2013, 18:52 GMT |
Carlos Sainz will compete in next year's Dakar Rally with the SMG team
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| By Marcus Simmons | Tuesday, November 19th 2013, 16:34 GMT |
Ex-BMW Sauber and Williams Formula 1 test driver Marko Asmer has been earmarked by Fortec Motorsport for the Blancpain GT Series
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| By Ben Anderson | Tuesday, November 19th 2013, 16:59 GMT |
Formula 1 powerhouse Ferrari will run a new four-round winter series in America early next year, to help train aspiring professional single-seater racers.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Tuesday, November 19th 2013, 17:06 GMT |
Red Bull does not believe it should feel bad in any way because of its complete dominance of Formula 1 right now.
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| By Ben Anderson | Monday, November 18th 2013, 17:49 GMT |
GP3 racer Jack Harvey will test for leading Indy Lights outfit Schmidt Peterson Motorsports next week as he looks to carve out a future career in IndyCar
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| By Gary Watkins | Monday, November 18th 2013, 16:42 GMT |
Audi has revealed that its 2014 World Endurance Championship challenger has already tested on two occasions.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Monday, November 18th 2013, 17:32 GMT |
Lotus boss Eric Boullier accepts that his team may end up losing Nico Hulkenberg to a rival squad if the Quantum Motorsport deal is not finalised very soon.
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| By Edd Straw | Monday, November 18th 2013, 00:06 GMT |
Heikki Kovalainen's disappointing result in the United States Grand Prix was caused by a front wing problem.
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| Sunday, November 17th 2013, 02:09 GMT |
Austin Dillon survived handling problems, a brush with the wall and a late restart to just beat Sam Hornish Jr to the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide title following a dramatic Homestead finale
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Subscribe to Premier Sports TV to watch all Sprint Cup events live in the UK. Visit www.premiersports.tv for more information.
| By Sam Tremayne | Sunday, November 17th 2013, 02:43 GMT |
Gabriele Tarquini's hopes of securing second in the 2013 World Touring Car Championship have been dealt a blow after he was forced to take an engine change
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| By Sam Tremayne | Sunday, November 17th 2013, 03:52 GMT |
Yvan Muller ensured a victorious end to his RML career with a dominant display in the World Touring Car Championship's Macau opener
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| By Jonathan Noble and Matt Beer | Thursday, November 14th 2013, 22:40 GMT |
Heikki Kovalainen does not think his performances for Lotus in the season's final two Formula 1 races will have any bearing on his chances of a 2014 drive
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| By Mark Glendenning | Thursday, November 14th 2013, 22:58 GMT |
The motorsport fraternity has begun to pay tribute to the career of four-time IndyCar champion and three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti following the Scot's enforced retirement from racing
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| By Sam Tremayne | Friday, November 15th 2013, 01:06 GMT |
Yvan Muller blitzed the first World Touring Car Championship practice on the streets of Macau, finishing nearly three quarters of a second clear of the rest of the field
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| By David Evans | Wednesday, November 13th 2013, 20:42 GMT |
M-Sport's pre-Rally GB test was delayed on Monday when its truck crashed and got stuck on its side in the Clocaenog forest
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| By David Evans | Wednesday, November 13th 2013, 20:15 GMT |
The World Rally Championship manufacturers have united to create a new proposal to end the 2014 running order controversy
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| By Jonathan Noble | Wednesday, November 13th 2013, 22:17 GMT |
Heikki Kovalainen will be announced as Kimi Raikkonen's replacement at Lotus on Thursday once final details of his contract with the team have been sorted out
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| By Jamie O'Leary | Tuesday, November 12th 2013, 16:55 GMT |
French team Signature will return to Formula 3 with Renault engines next year in the category's European Championship.
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| By Mark Glendenning | Tuesday, November 12th 2013, 16:16 GMT |
Occasional Indy Lights entrant Mikael Grenier is scheduled to drive an IndyCar for the first time tomorrow when he joins KV Racing for a two-day test at Sebring.
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| By Jamie O'Leary | Tuesday, November 12th 2013, 17:00 GMT |
New world champion Marc Marquez set a blistering pace on the second day of MotoGP post-season testing at Valencia on Tuesday.
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| By Sam Tremayne | Monday, November 11th 2013, 17:27 GMT |
Jorge Lorenzo set the pace in MotoGP's post-season test at Valencia, just a day after surrendering his championship crown to rookie Marc Marquez.
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| By Edd Straw | Monday, November 11th 2013, 18:46 GMT |
McLaren has taken the decision to replace Sergio Perez with Kevin Magnussen for the 2014 Formula 1 season
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| By Glenn Freeman | Monday, November 11th 2013, 19:31 GMT |
With so few testing opportunities for Formula 1 newcomers today, teams have become incredibly cautious when it comes to taking a chance on a rookie, but McLaren has decided Kevin Magnussen is worth a shot
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| By Scott Mitchell | Sunday, November 10th 2013, 18:25 GMT |
Ferrari paid tribute to its outgoing Formula 1 driver Felipe Massa by dedicating its season-ending World Finals to the Brazilian on Sunday
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| By Scott Mitchell | Sunday, November 10th 2013, 18:11 GMT |
Cal Crutchlow admitted his final MotoGP race before leaving Tech 3 Yamaha for Ducati was "emotional", but said his crash at Valencia would not sour his farewell
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| Sunday, November 10th 2013, 23:29 GMT |
Kevin Harvick grabbed the Phoenix NASCAR Sprint Cup win as Carl Edwards ran out of fuel on the last lap, while Jimmie Johnson moved to the brink of a sixth title
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Subscribe to Premier Sports TV to watch all Sprint Cup events live in the UK. Visit www.premiersports.tv for more information.
| Saturday, November 9th 2013, 15:39 GMT |
Esapekka Lappi earned his first European Rally Championship win with a commanding performance in Valais
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| By Scott Mitchell | Saturday, November 9th 2013, 14:05 GMT |
Marc Marquez smashed his own circuit record as he blitzed qualifying for the 2013 MotoGP title decider at Valencia
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| Saturday, November 9th 2013, 19:17 GMT |
Auto GP has scheduled an additional two-day test to take place at Vallelunga at the end of November
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| By Toby Moody and Matt Beer | Friday, November 8th 2013, 17:39 GMT |
Valentino Rossi's crew chief Jerry Burgess says he was taken by surprise by the Italian's decision to drop him at the end of the 2013 MotoGP season.
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| Friday, November 8th 2013, 16:22 GMT |
Esapekka Lappi increased his lead of the European Rally Championship finale to over 40 seconds with a commanding run through the Rally of Valais' Friday afternoon stages
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| Saturday, November 9th 2013, 00:04 GMT |
NASCAR Sprint Cup points leader Jimmie Johnson will start the penultimate round of the 2013 season on pole position after topping Phoenix qualifying
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Subscribe to Premier Sports TV to watch all Sprint Cup events live in the UK. Visit www.premiersports.tv for more information.
| Thursday, November 7th 2013, 16:13 GMT |
Andreas Aigner leads the Rally of Valais by 3.7 seconds after the opening day of the European Rally Championship finale as pace-setters Craig Breen and Jeremi Ancian were penalised heavily.
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| By Pablo Elizalde | Thursday, November 7th 2013, 17:20 GMT |
McLaren Formula 1 junior driver Stoffel Vandoorne dominated the final day of GP2 Series post-season testing on Thursday, the Belgian setting the pace in the morning and afternoon sessions
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| By Mark Glendenning | Thursday, November 7th 2013, 17:42 GMT |
Hulman and Co CEO Mark Miles has completed the formation of the leadership team that will steer the company's motorsport division, which includes the IndyCar Series and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Wednesday, November 6th 2013, 17:34 GMT |
Kimi Raikkonen is set to stick with the short wheelbase Lotus for the remainder of the 2013 Formula 1 season after some encouraging signs from Abu Dhabi
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| By Edd Straw | Wednesday, November 6th 2013, 17:35 GMT |
Former GP2 champion Davide Valsecchi has not given up hope of racing in Formula 1 in 2014
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| By Sam Tremayne | Wednesday, November 6th 2013, 19:16 GMT |
Rio Haryanto put Caterham at the top of the timesheets after the second day of GP2 post-season testing at Yas Marina
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| By Gary Watkins | Tuesday, November 5th 2013, 17:08 GMT |
World Endurance Championship LMP2 frontrunner Delta-ADR is looking to chase victory in the opening two rounds of next year's United SportsCar Championship — with two different types of car.
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| By Edd Straw | Tuesday, November 5th 2013, 15:38 GMT |
Force India deputy team principal Bob Fernley is hopeful the team has taken a decisive advantage over Sauber in the battle for sixth in the constructors' championship.
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| By Sam Tremayne | Tuesday, November 5th 2013, 17:36 GMT |
Raffaele Marciello topped the first day of GP2's post-season test at Yas Marina for the Trident Racing squad.
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| By Kevin Turner | Monday, November 4th 2013, 16:13 GMT |
The British Touring Car Championship's turbo boost adjustment regulations will be modified for 2014.
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| By Pablo Elizalde | Monday, November 4th 2013, 17:02 GMT |
Moto2 champion Pol Espargaro switched to four wheels on Monday to test a Formula Renault 3.5 car at the Barcelona circuit
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| By Glenn Freeman | Monday, November 4th 2013, 17:36 GMT |
Formula Renault 3.5 champion Kevin Magnussen has withdrawn from this week's Abu Dhabi GP2 test.
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| Sunday, November 3rd 2013, 19:24 GMT |
Fernando Alonso has been given the all-clear by doctors after his big impact during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
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| Sunday, November 3rd 2013, 23:44 GMT |
Jimmie Johnson re-established his NASCAR Sprint Cup points lead with just two rounds to go by dominating at Texas Motor Speedway
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Subscribe to Premier Sports TV to watch all Sprint Cup events live in the UK. Visit www.premiersports.tv for more information.
| By Jonathan Noble | Saturday, November 2nd 2013, 18:16 GMT |
Kimi Raikkonen has been excluded from qualifying for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix following a front floor deflection test failure
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| By Jonathan Noble | Saturday, November 2nd 2013, 18:33 GMT |
Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg believes his Abu Dhabi Grand Prix qualifying showing was one of his best drives of the 2013 Formula 1 season.
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| Saturday, November 2nd 2013, 18:35 GMT |
Kimi Raikkonen's exclusion from qualifying means a major shake-up for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix grid
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| Friday, November 1st 2013, 22:17 GMT |
Carl Edwards grabbed his second NASCAR Sprint Cup pole of 2013 in qualifying for Sunday's Texas Motor Speedway race.
One of the final drivers to run, Edwards produced a 27.535-second lap in his Roush Fenway Ford to beat 2012 champion Brad Keselowski's Penske entry to the top spot.
Just 0.084s covered the top six drivers, with joint points leaders Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth both within that blanket.
Johnson had held provisional pole for a while before Keselowski and Kenseth came through, despite a big moment on his qualifying lap.
He ended up three places clear of Kenseth, as Paul Menard and Kyle Busch got between them.
Johnson's Hendrick team-mates Dale Earnhardt Jr and last week's Martinsville winner Jeff Gordon share row four.
Hours after his 2014 Furniture Row deal was announced, Martin Truex Jr was current employer Michael Waltrip's leading qualifier in 15th, while present Furniture Row man Kurt Busch was only 31st.
The elder Busch was one of a number of big names that newcomer Parker Kligerman outqualified, as the Nationwide Series graduate put Swan's Toyota 23rd.
Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Ford 27.535s 2. Brad Keselowski Penske Ford 27.537s +0.002s 3. Jimmie Johnson Hendrick Chevrolet 27.559s +0.024s 4. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet 27.574s +0.039s 5. Kyle Busch Joe Gibbs Toyota 27.582s +0.047s 6. Matt Kenseth Joe Gibbs Toyota 27.619s +0.084s 7. Dale Earnhardt Jr Hendrick Chevrolet 27.648s +0.113s 8. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet 27.668s +0.133s 9. Ricky Stenhouse Jr Roush Fenway Ford 27.674s +0.139s 10. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford 27.688s +0.153s 11. Kasey Kahne Hendrick Chevrolet 27.740s +0.205s 12. Joey Logano Penske Ford 27.761s +0.226s 13. Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Chevrolet 27.780s +0.245s 14. Denny Hamlin Joe Gibbs Toyota 27.781s +0.246s 15. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota 27.812s +0.277s 16. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 27.863s +0.328s 17. Aric Almirola Petty Ford 27.884s +0.349s 18. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford 27.890s +0.355s 19. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet 27.892s +0.357s 20. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet 27.921s +0.386s 21. Austin Dillon Childress Chevrolet 27.931s +0.396s 22. Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota 27.961s +0.426s 23. Parker Kligerman Swan Toyota 27.973s +0.438s 24. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt Ganassi Chevrolet 27.989s +0.454s 25. Elliott Sadler Waltrip Toyota 27.993s +0.458s 26. Clint Bowyer Waltrip Toyota 28.008s +0.473s 27. Casey Mears Germain Ford 28.030s +0.495s 28. David Gilliland Front Row Ford 28.118s +0.583s 29. David Ragan Front Row Ford 28.141s +0.606s 30. Danica Patrick Stewart-Haas Chevrolet 28.150s +0.615s 31. Kurt Busch Furniture Row Chevrolet 28.210s +0.675s 32. Trevor Bayne Wood Brothers Ford 28.221s +0.686s 33. Mark Martin Stewart-Haas Chevrolet 28.342s +0.807s 34. Josh Wise Front Row Ford 28.439s +0.904s 35. Michael McDowell Parsons Ford 28.523s +0.988s 36. Kyle Larson Phoenix Chevrolet 28.536s +1.001s 37. Landon Cassill Circle Sport Chevrolet 28.638s +1.103s 38. Travis Kvapil BK Toyota 28.671s +1.136s 39. David Reutimann BK Toyota 28.680s +1.145s 40. Timmy Hill FAS Lane Ford 28.719s +1.184s 41. Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota 28.839s +1.304s 42. Dave Blaney Baldwin Chevrolet 28.992s +1.457s 43. JJ Yeley Baldwin Chevrolet 36.845s +9.310s
Subscribe to Premier Sports TV to watch all Sprint Cup events live in the UK. Visit www.premiersports.tv for more information.
| By Sam Tremayne | Saturday, November 2nd 2013, 00:39 GMT |
Thed Bjork handed Volvo the ideal start to its World Touring Car Championship return by topping the timesheets in first practice at Shanghai.
Bjork, who recently claimed this year's Scandinavian Touring Car crown, hit the front early on and was never displaced as the field largely focused on long runs over the 30-minute session.
His 1m55.323s effort left him more than six tenths clear of a chasing pack led by Honda's Gabriele Tarquini and Nika's Rickard Rydell, who like Bjork is making a one-off appearance in China.
Yvan Muller meanwhile edged out Suzuka racewinner Norbert Michelisz in the fight for fourth, with Tom Coronel finishing as the top BMW, less than two hundredths of a second down the road.
The top six was effectively locked in after the opening five minutes, but there was at least movement down the order as Freddy Barth put his Wiechers BMW seventh minutes from the end.
That demoted the second factory Honda of Tiago Monteiro to eighth, and also bumped Lada's James Thompson and the RML Chevrolet of Tom Chilton to the fringes of the top 10.
Chilton was one of several drivers to have small moments when he ran slightly deep into Turn 15, moments before Michelisz saved a massive lock-up at the same corner.
Eurosport Asia Trophy competitor Ka Lok Mak was the session's only spinner, losing the rear of his Chevrolet exiting Turn 9.
Pepe Oriola meanwhile was a notable absentee on the timesheets, with the Spaniard completing just one exploratory lap due to power steering problems.
Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Thed Bjork Polestar Volvo 1m55.323s 2. Gabriele Tarquini Honda 1m55.934s +0.611s 3. Rickard Rydell Nika Chevrolet 1m55.977s +0.654s 4. Yvan Muller RML Chevrolet 1m56.075s +0.752s 5. Norbert Michelisz Zengo Honda 1m56.132s +0.809s 6. Tom Coronel ROAL BMW 1m56.150s +0.827s 7. Freddy Barth Wiechers BMW 1m56.178s +0.855s 8. Tiago Monteiro Honda 1m56.231s +0.908s 9. James Thompson Lada 1m56.544s +1.221s 10. Tom Chilton RML Chevrolet 1m56.574s +1.251s 11. Rob Huff Munnich SEAT 1m56.636s +1.313s 12. Alex MacDowall Bamboo Chevrolet 1m56.763s +1.440s 13. Hugo Valente Campos SEAT 1m56.821s +1.498s 14. Marc Basseng Munnich SEAT 1m56.949s +1.626s 15. Franz Engstler Engstler BMW 1m57.138s +1.815s 16. Stefano D'Aste PB BMW 1m57.161s +1.838s 17. James Nash Bamboo Chevrolet 1m57.193s +1.870s 18. Mikhail Kozlovskiy Lada 1m57.231s +1.908s 19. Tom Boardman Special Tuning SEAT 1m57.396s +2.073s 20. Darryl O'Young ROAL BMW 1m57.669s +2.346s 21. Rene Munnich Munnich SEAT 1m57.686s +2.363s 22. Fernando Monje Campos SEAT 1m57.841s +2.518s 23. Mehdi Bennani Proteam BMW 1m58.031s +2.708s 24. Yukinori Taniguchi Wiechers BMW 1m58.092s +2.769s 25. Charles Ng Engstler BMW 1m59.571s +4.248s 26. Filipe de Souza China Dragon Chevrolet 1m59.583s +4.260s 27. Henry Ho Engstler BMW 2m00.988s +5.665s 28. Kin Veng Ng China Dragon Chevrolet 2m01.305s +5.982s 29. Jeronimo Badaraco Son Veng Chevrolet 2m01.532s +6.209s 30. Ka Lok Mak RPM BMW 2m03.291s +7.968s 31. Pepe Oriola Tuenti Chevrolet -
| By Sam Tremayne | Saturday, November 2nd 2013, 03:44 GMT |
Yvan Muller denied Thed Bjork a clean sweep of World Touring Car Championship practice sessions at Shanghai with a late surge in FP2.
The series' newly-crowned champion beat his Scandinavian counterpart by just over three tenths of a second, in the process setting the fastest time so far this weekend.
Bjork, who once again set his best time in the opening minutes, was able to hold onto second ahead of Chilton.
The Briton had led team-mate Muller out for the latter's flyer, and while the duo reversed roles in the final minutes neither was able to improve.
James Thompson continued his and Lada's strong start to the weekend by sealing fourth, just over half a second down the road from Muller.
Bamboo locked out fifth and sixth through Alex MacDowall and James Nash respectively, while Pepe Oriola just shaded Tiago Monteiro's Honda and Rob Huff's SEAT in the fight for seventh.
Gabriele Tarquini meanwhile stole into 10th at the flag, demoting a BMW trio of Stefano D'Aste, Tom Coronel and Franz Engstler in the process.
Engstler was the session's only spinner, losing his BMW at Turn 11, while Jeronimo Badaraco missed the second half of the session after coming to a halt on the outside of Turn 13.
Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Yvan Muller RML Chevrolet 1m55.508s 2. Thed Bjork Polestar Volvo 1m55.848s +0.340s 3. Tom Chilton RML Chevrolet 1m55.910s +0.402s 4. James Thompson Lada 1m56.069s +0.561s 5. Alex MacDowall Bamboo Chevrolet 1m56.109s +0.601s 6. James Nash Bamboo Chevrolet 1m56.196s +0.688s 7. Pepe Oriola Tuenti Chevrolet 1m56.204s +0.696s 8. Tiago Monteiro Honda 1m56.261s +0.753s 9. Rob Huff Munnich SEAT 1m56.341s +0.833s 10. Gabriele Tarquini Honda 1m56.455s +0.947s 11. Stefano D'Aste PB BMW 1m56.479s +0.971s 12. Tom Coronel ROAL BMW 1m56.527s +1.019s 13. Franz Engstler Engstler BMW 1m56.574s +1.066s 14. Rene Munnich Munnich SEAT 1m56.708s +1.200s 15. Rickard Rydell Nika Chevrolet 1m56.847s +1.339s 16. Norbert Michelisz Zengo Honda 1m56.946s +1.438s 17. Tom Boardman Special Tuning SEAT 1m56.997s +1.489s 18. Hugo Valente Campos SEAT 1m57.017s +1.509s 19. Marc Basseng Munnich SEAT 1m57.036s +1.528s 20. Fernando Monje Campos SEAT 1m57.345s +1.837s 21. Freddy Barth Wiechers BMW 1m57.496s +1.988s 22. Darryl O'Young ROAL BMW 1m57.533s +2.025s 23. Charles Ng Engstler BMW 1m57.926s +2.418s 24. Mikhail Kozlovskiy Lada 1m57.950s +2.442s 25. Yukinori Taniguchi Wiechers BMW 1m58.616s +3.108s 26. Filipe de Souza China Dragon Chevrolet 1m59.732s +4.224s 27. Henry Ho Engstler BMW 2m00.586s +5.078s 28. Kin Veng Ng China Dragon Chevrolet 2m01.911s +6.403s 29. Ka Lok Mak RPM BMW 2m02.726s +7.218s 30. Jeronimo Badaraco Son Veng Chevrolet 2m02.774s +7.266s 31. Mehdi Bennani Proteam BMW -
| Thursday, October 31st 2013, 18:06 GMT |
DRIVERS - Valtteri BOTTAS (Williams), Romain GROSJEAN (Lotus), Adrian SUTIL (Force India), Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes), Sebastian VETTEL (Red Bull Racing), Fernando ALONSO (Ferrari)
PRESS CONFERENCE
Sebastian, your fourth world title of course. Tell us about the last four days. What have you been doing, how have you celebrated and what has the reaction been like?
Sebastian VETTEL: Well, the reaction has been very positive. Obviously great relief when I crossed the line on Sunday, a great feeling. Sunday night, obviously the whole team still had to do the pack-up, but we had a little bit of fun in the hotel bar - quite spontaneous. Obviously, there's not a lot of time between the race in India and the race here, so the team is very busy. So we couldn't go completely made, but I had a time on Sunday night and then I had two days at home before coming here, again fairly quiet, not very spectacular. I just enjoyed the peace at home. I had some time for myself, back with my girlfriend as well. So, fairly quiet.
Probably history will remember this achievement as you in a strong team with a strong beating a very strong field of drivers - looking at the gentlemen sitting around you here. Is that how you see it?
SV: I think that's the way it always has been. When Lewis won his title in 2008 he was with a strong team facing strong drivers, same for Fernando in 2005 and 2006, so yeah, even 20 or 30 years ago it has always been the name of the game. That's how people remember the past and one day will remember what we are doing now.
Fernando, runner-up again. So hard to hit the sweet spot in Formula One isn't it? How far off championship level do you feel your group is?
Fernando ALONSO: I think we need to be realistic, knowing that we didn't have the chance this year to fight for the championship. In the beginning of the year we were a little bit closer but then we were not quick enough and we are fighting now for other targets, which is the Constructors' Championship and second place in the Drivers' [Championship] as well, which was not the main priority when we started the season but still a good target to achieve and a good thing for the team, to help them. We'll see, I think we need to keep very focused in the remaining races and try to do our best and obviously with half of our mind thinking of 2014 because we are competitive people, we want to win. This year it was not possible but next year we start from zero.
How has your relationship with the team evolved over the course of the year, particularly in terms of steering a course for the future?
FA: It's fantastic. Obviously, every weekend I repeat the same thing. So I guess in Austin on Thursday the first question in the press conference will be how is my relationship with the team...
The question was how has it evolved?
FA: It was perfect, it's perfect and it will be perfect.
Lewis, coming to you. You didn't perhaps expect to challenge for the title this year but can you talk about the level of the challenge coming from Sebastian and Red Bull and how you take the fight to them from here?
Lewis HAMILTON: They've done an incredible job for some time now, so you know, they've raised the bar and everyone just needs to work harder. Us, as a team, we're working as hard as we can to really put the energy into next year and hope that we can compete with them. That's ultimately what I'd love to do and ultimately what the team desires too. That's what the dream is. There's a long steep curve for us to climb or hill for us to climb for next year but it's more of a level starting ground for everyone and you can either get it right or wrong. Hopefully we're on the right side.
Racing drivers always move on very quickly and I wonder if mentally you're already in 2014.
LH: No, no. I'm still trying to... this year hasn't been perfect for me and I'm always trying to learn and improve. There are lots of areas that can always be improved on, from myself and from the team, and we're just working on those because we don't want to carry the negatives of anything we have into next year.
Q: Romain, really strong run of form at the moment. Was India your best performance yet in Formula One, do you think? How much more is there to come from you?
Romain GROSJEAN: Hopefully two more places! It was certainly one of our best races. We misjudged our level of performance on the Saturday and we took the right decision about the strategy, how to go for the race. It was clearly not an easy one as I really had to first make the option tyre last and then try to make the prime tyre last for 47 laps. There were some quick cars around me, especially behind me, and yeah, just try to take care as much as we can of our tyres and do good driving. But I think Japan was a pretty good race. We had certainly a fantastic start and led the race from there, which was somehow easy to control in the first part. I think Red Bull was just a little bit too quick behind but when you watch the gap with Fernando who was P4, it was quite big, so I think those last four races have been pretty good: trying to improve myself every time, car is getting there and clearly the blue cars are still a little bit quicker than we are - but we try to push them as much as we can.
Q: Let's cut to the chase: you're a completely different racing driver from 12 months ago. What's the key to the turnaround do you think?
RG: I don't think there is any particular key to be honest. We like to put some things are changes but to me the work started a year ago and I'm improving myself day after day - or I'm trying to. The start of the season was poor. It's a bit of a shame when we look at what we are capable to do right now but then since we put back the car in place it has been getting better and better. I was a bit unlucky before Germany and then Germany things turn out to be well together and from there we had very, very good races and the car is doing well. Hopefully it's going to be the case until the end of the season.
Q: Adrian, strong drive in India, bold strategy. How important was it to stem the recent tide of Sauber getting closer and closer to you? And how much confidence has that given the team going forward now for the rest of the year?
Adrian SUTIL: Well it was an important race for us, of course. It was our home grand prix and we wanted to show that we're still able to be in the top ten. The last couple of races were a bit more difficult to score the points but we recovered and we did what we could to make a good result. We risked a little bit with the strategy - where we had both cars on a different strategy. I was on a one-stop - more risky - but almost the same outcome. Eighth and ninth position was almost the maximum we could achieve. Six points as a team, now 23 points ahead of Sauber, which is quite a good gap. It's not over yet, we have to push on, but I think quite comfortable. It's very important for us to save this sixth position in the championship, looking to next year of course, as a team. But I think, yeah, nice to have recovered a bit. Now we focus on what we have and try to optimise the package and do similar results in the next couple of races.
Q: Looking from the outside it seems that the tyre change mid-season didn't really help your team particularly. What do you feel about that?
AS: Yes, it's true. It's one reason. We were a bit slower after that change but also we decided to stop the development very early in the season, so we had no parts on the car for the last six months or so. It's quite a long time. I think it just hit us: from the tyre; from the development. Also the strategies in the race were more equal for everyone. Normally we were able to save one pitstop just because our tyre life was much better to others. After the tyre change that was different. But also we messed up a little bit the setup in the last races. We tried to somehow go back where we were but with a package where we just couldn't make it. We tried different setups and it almost just slowed us down even more. We got problems, we made mistakes as the driver because the car was so difficult to drive. So, in India was said "we stop it, we take what we've got," and that was the key for the points.
Q: Valtteri, been obviously a difficult, challenging year for you. What sort of shape are Williams in going forward?
Valtteri BOTTAS: Yeah, it's been a challenging year. We've been learning a lot the whole year as a team. It's been very tough. So we're definitely I think going in a good direction, we're now very focussed for next year. What I've seen at the factory, the working at the factory is changing. We've got some new people and I've already seen some good things. I really think the future of Williams will be much better than what we've seen this year.
Q: Not too many rumours about you, does that indicate that you're staying put for next year?
VB: I think Claire Williams is tomorrow in the press conference so maybe you can ask her.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Joy Chakravarty- Sport 360) Seb, considering that the big prize is already yours, how will you motivate yourself to win over the next three races, and if you win on Sunday, will it be one of your greatest challenges, when you win with just about nothing to gain from the season, at least?
SV: Well, I don't think we approach the weekend as if there's nothing to gain. I think we - as a fact - we love what we're doing. We enjoy the challenge and that's why there's no question as to why we are here and what we have to do. We want to race, race the others as hard as possible. If we have a chance, we want to win. As I said, I had some quiet days at home which was good, to sober up after India and get ready for here.
Q: (Khodr Rawi - Autosport Middle East) Sebastian, after winning so many races and four consecutive championships, do you think it will be harder again for you to lose?
SV: To be honest, I'm not getting in the car and thinking that there's a guarantee that we will do well. Maybe that's a little bit the impression that you get from the outside; obviously since the summer break we've won all the races but we come here and there's absolutely no guarantee that we will do well, so we have to give it everything we have. Yes, we have a strong package so I think we have reason to be confident. I need the team, I think the team needs Mark and myself to push the car to the limit and to get some good results. There's no guarantee for what we've been doing the last couple of races to make it last.
Q: (Heikki Kulta - Turun Sanomat) Valtteri, last four qualifyings you have managed to beat your teammate. Have you found something new in your one lap performance?
VB: The whole season I've been learning a lot and there are little things you're picking up all the time. In qualifying, it's been very tight this year - it's always like that - and every hundredth counts. I think after the August break, for sure I've also improved in qualifying. I think I can now maybe get a bit more out of the car more consistently than before. I feel more confident all the time, so maybe we can see that in the results.
Q: (Paolo Ianieri - La Gazzetta dello Sport) Lewis, we heard yesterday some declaration from Dieter Mateschitz saying that Red Bull has been working hard on the development for this season but also trying many new parts that they will use in 2014; about 50 percent of that will be on next year's car. How is the situation at Mercedes? Have you been trying the same path or also working on trying to fight with Ferrari for second place in the Constructors' series?
LH: Probably not being doing as much as it sounds as they have been doing, in terms of developing for next year, but I think that a lot of the stuff that you do develop on this year's car, upgrades that we do bring to this year's hopefully will have an effect on next year's car. It's kinda of similar but some teams obviously can turn their focus a little bit earlier and some a little bit later, but hopefully, ultimately, we'll still be competitive next year with these guys.
Q: (Frederic Ferret - L'Equipe) To Romain, Sebastian and Fernando: what do you think of Kimi as a man and as a driver?
RG: As a man, I would say yeah, Kimi basically I don't know him. He is with me as he is with you. As a driver, he's a very good driver and he has been, until recently, a very good teammate. He's a quicker driver, he's a consistent driver and to me, having him to learn (from) and to improve myself has been pretty good. But yeah, I don't see him in different clothes to the ones we're wearing right now.
SV: Well, I think I have huge respect for the fact that he loves what he's doing, he loves motor racing, any form of it. Obviously, I think Formula One gives him a lot of satisfaction to drive a Formula One car. He doesn't like the rest of it so much. On a personal level, he does talk to me. I don't know what I do differently. He's one of the most straightforward guys I've met so far and I respect a lot that he has always been very honest. Since I came into Formula One, he was ready to help, even gave me a lift a couple of times early on. I get along with him.
FA: Personally, I cannot say anything because I do not know him enough to speak about him personally. As a driver, he's a great champion, great talent, very very fast. He likes what he's doing. That's the best thing.
| By Mark Glendenning | Thursday, October 31st 2013, 19:19 GMT |
Veteran IndyCar race engineer Bill Pappas has joined Rahal Letterman Lanigan, where he will oversee Graham Rahal's car.
Pappas' 25-year career has included stints at Roush Racing, Chip Ganassi Racing, Hall Racing, Walker Racing, Panther Racing, and most recently Dale Coyne Racing, where he spent the past two seasons working with Justin Wilson.
He engineered Gil de Ferran to CART rookie of the year honours in 1995, and supervised Juan Pablo Montoya's Indianapolis 500 win in 2000.
"I'm excited that Bill is joining the team," said Rahal. "He brings not only a wealth of experience, and Indy 500 wins as well as others, he can really help take our team and engineering staff to the next level.
"I've known Bill a long time. We have had opportunities to work together before but it just didn't fall into place until now."
The arrival of Pappas marks the second tweak to RLL's engineering staff in a little over three months.
Rahal started the year with Gerry Hughes as his race engineer, with Neil Fife taking over in late July after Hughes was moved to a new role as the team's head of development.
A second place on the Long Beach street course was the highlight of an otherwise disappointing year for Rahal, who finished the season 18th in the standings.
| By Sam Smith | Thursday, October 31st 2013, 23:31 GMT |
The Super Aguri name is set to make a surprise return to international motorsport in the new Formula E Championship from 2014.
Aguri Suzuki's operation, which ran in Formula 1 from 2006-8, was announced as one of the 10 Formula E entrants in Tokyo on Friday morning.
The squad will be known as Super Aguri Formula E, or SAFE.
AUTOSPORT gets the inside line on Super Aguri's comeback
Executive chairman Suzuki will be joined by ex-Super Aguri technical chiefs Peter McCool and Mark Preston.
"When the FIA Formula E project was announced we were instantly attracted to it and started to put some plans in place," McCool told AUTOSPORT.
"We met with Alejandro Agag and his team earlier this year and fully informed him of our intentions and objectives for the SAFE project, presenting our vision for a Formula E team that represents Japan and Asia.
"Once Aguri came on board over the summer the final major part of the jigsaw was in place and now we are looking ahead to the inaugural season of the FIA Formula E Championship."
Since his F1 team was disbanded in mid-2008, Suzuki has continued to run a Super GT programme in Japan under the Team Aguri banner.
