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Category Archives: racing
General Motors via Cadillac F1 Bound in 2026
The move comes after Max Verstappen took the 2024 driver’s title driving for Red Bull at Las Vegas over the past weekend. An announcement of some sort was widely rumored in the paddock. This starts another era in F1 as Cadillac would be the first new team to join F1 since 2016 and the eleventh team on the grid. In addition to the Cadillac F1 partnership with GM, TWG Global owns and operates Andretti Global, Wayne Taylor Racing, and Spire Motorsports. [It will also open up a couple of driver’s seats in the world’s most expensive motor sports series. Seven different drivers won more than one race in 2024, which has two races remaining. Gentleman, let the driver speculation intrigue begin. Gentlewoman? – AutoCrat] Continue reading
Posted in auto news, marketing, news analysis, people, performance, racing
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Cadillac Formula 1 Team Formula One, Dan Towriss, Formula 1, Ken Zino, Mario Andretti, Mark Walter, Max Verstappen, X @KenAutoinformed
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Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto – Formula One’s Newest Driver
The second driver for Audi’s entry into Formula 1 in 2026 will be the 20-year old Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto. He will drive alongside German Nico Hülkenberg (37) for Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber next year, which will become the Audi F1 factory team in 2026.
The experienced Hülkenberg, who was announced in April, and the promising F1 rookie Bortoleto form a Mutt and Jeff or opposite-experience driver pairing for Audi’s Formula 1 project. Bortoleto in 2023 stood out in his debut season winning the FIA Formula 3 Championship. The São Paulo native is currently leading the FIA Formula 2 Championship standings. His career began at the age of six in karting, and by twelve, he had moved to Europe with his family to pursue his Formula 1 dream. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, news analysis, people, performance, racing
Tagged 2026 Audi F1 factory team, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, formula one, Gabriel Bortoleto, Ken Zino, Nico Hülkenberg, Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber, X @KenAutoinformed
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Porsche Penske Motorsport Wins – Rename the 963 to 967?
The 2024 season was one of the most successful in Porsche’s long-distance racing history as the Porsche 963, won seven of eight possible titles together with the works team Porsche Penske Motorsport. Maybe it should be call 967 to honor the success in only the second year of racing the 963. The overall result of the 2024 season in the FIA World Endurance Championship WEC and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship was six out of six possible titles in North America, as well as the world championship crown for the works drivers Kévin Estre from France, André Lotterer from Germany and Laurens Vanthoor from Belgium in the FIA WEC. Porsche missed the manufacturer’s title in the world championship with the 963 this year by two points.
‟ ‘Nobody’s perfect’ – we already used this slogan in 1983, when only one third-party manufacturer appeared in the top 10 of the 24 Hours of Le Mans,” said Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport in a release celebrating the season today. It turns out that 41 years ago, Porsche publicized the Le Mans result under the ‘Nobody’s perfect’ on a now well-known poster. It depicted the racing cars from Stuttgart in the first eight places in the overall classification and in tenth place, with a Sauber BMW in between in the ninth spot. In AutoInformed’s view it also is just another example of Porsche’s sense of humor – counter the false stereotype on the lack of German humor. Remember the pink pig Porsche 917 endurance racer at Le Mans in 1971with the cuts of ham stenciled on the car? Continue reading
Posted in engineering, news analysis, performance, racing, results, shows and events
Tagged André Lotterer, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Dane Cameron, Felipe Nasr, fia, FIA World Endurance Championship WEC, imsa, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Jonathan Diuguid, Josef Newgarden, Ken Zino, Kévin Estre, Laurens Vanthoor, LMDh, LMH Hypercars, Porsche 963, Porsche Penske Motorsport, Thomas Laudenbach, X @KenAutoinformed
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Man vs Autonomous Machine Race Coming to Suzuka
The Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL)* said today that a “Man vs Machine Showdown” is coming to the Suzuka Circuit in Japan next month. The exhibition race will be the first time Japanese spectators can see a head-to-head race between human drivers and AI technology. It will take place on the Super Formula double-header season finale on November 9-10.
“In partnership with Japan Race Promotion, A2RL’s ‘Man vs Machine’ challenge will pit two Super Formula race cars against each other in a head-to-head competition. One car will be piloted by former F1 driver Daniil Kvyat, A2RL’s development driver, while the other will be entirely controlled by advanced autonomous algorithms and robotics, showcasing cutting-edge technology,” A2RL said. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, marketing, milestones, news analysis, performance, racing, shows and events, software defined vehicles
Tagged A2RL, Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League, Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology and Research Council, AI technology, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Dallara SF23, Daniil Kvyat, Juju Noda, Ken Zino, Stephane Timpano, X @KenAutoinformed
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Mattias Ekström Joins Ford Performance for 2025 Dakar Rally
“Joining the Ford Dakar program is really exciting for me,” said Mattias Ekström. “Ford and M-Sport have built a vehicle that looks, sounds, and drives awesome and we all have a common ambition to win the Dakar Rally. I have had four tries at Dakar so far and now I can say that I have some experience to be able to aim for the top. There is also a lot of knowledge and experience in the team to back up the ambition – starting with the long motorsport heritage of Ford, proven track record of M-Sport, very impressive driver line-up, smart engineers, technicians, and the rest of the team. I look forward to the first competitive outing with the Ford Raptor T1+ at Rally du Maroc and later at the Dakar Rally. I am in it to win it and I hope we will have very successful and great years ahead of us. I will do everything in my power to make it happen.” Continue reading
Posted in auto news, marketing, news analysis, performance, racing, shows and events
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Carlos Sainz Sr, Ken Zino, Mark Rushbrook, Mattias Ekström, Mitch Guthrie Jr, Nani Roma, Rally du Maroc, rally T1 category, X @KenAutoinformed
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McLaren W1 Supercar Global Reveal This Sunday
McLaren Automotive today said that the next version of its legendary ‘1’ car lineage – a new supercar named W1, will be revealed at 13:00 BST on Sunday 6 October 2024. The McLaren W1 is the successor to the McLaren F1. The W1 name “celebrates McLaren’s World Championship mindset.” The public reveal date marks the 50th anniversary of McLaren winning its first Formula 1 Constructors’ World Championship, and Emerson Fittipaldi winning the 1974 World Drivers’ Championship with McLaren.
“The McLaren W1 is defined by real supercar principles and is the ultimate expression of a McLaren supercar. Born of our rich racing history and World Championship mindset, W1 pushes the boundaries of performance and is worthy of the ‘1’ name. Like its predecessors the F1 and McLaren P1™, W1 defines the rulebook of a real supercar,” Michael Leiters, Chief Executive Officer, McLaren Automotive. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, design and styling, engineering, marketing, milestones, new vehicle, news analysis, performance, racing, shows and events
Tagged 1974 World Drivers’ Championship, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Emerson Fittipaldi, Ken Zino, McLaren F1, mclaren p1, McLaren W1, Michael Leiters, X @KenAutoinformed
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Performance Driving – Acura Integra Type S HRC Prototype
Acura today debuted the Integra Type S HRC Prototype, showcasing a potential new line of street and track-focused Honda Racing Corporation* performance parts. Introduced during Monterey Car Week, a congregation of automotive and motorsports enthusiasts, the Acura Integra Type S HRC Prototype is said to build “upon the dynamic capabilities of the most powerful, best performing Integra ever to deliver ultimate street and track performance for Acura enthusiast customers to enjoy on their own Integras.”
“HRC performance parts is an exciting concept focused on building a stronger connection with Acura and Honda enthusiasts eager to access exclusive HRC race engineering to augment their performance driving experience,” said Jon Ikeda, Senior Vice President, Honda Racing Corporation USA.”Every spec of the Acura Integra Type S HRC Prototype screams performance. Everything is functional – if it doesn’t add performance it isn’t on the car.” Continue reading
Posted in auto news, engineering, marketing, milestones, new vehicle, news analysis, performance, racing, shows and events
Tagged Acura Integra Type S HRC TCX race car, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Honda Racing Corporation USA, HRC US, Ken Zino, X @KenAutoinformed
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Cadillac Racing Expands WEC Entries to Two Cars in 2025
Cadillac Racing said today that its FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC)* Hypercar program will expand to a two-car factory program to be named Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA** beginning with the start of the 2025 season. It’s a major realignment of two separate racing programs that have tried to beat each other for two seasons now. Jota is leaving Porsche. Drivers of the No. 12 and No. 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R racecars, powered by the purpose-built Cadillac 5.5-liter DOHC V8 engine, will be announced in the future. Continue reading
Posted in marketing, milestones, performance, racing
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA, FIA World Endurance Championship, Hertz Team JOTA, hypercar, John Roth, Ken Zino, Sam Hignett, wec, X @KenAutoinformed
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Honda 1964 RA272 F1 Car to Lap Laguna Seca Historic Races
Honda engines have powered four drivers to a combined eight Formula One Drivers’ Championships. Engines created by Honda have twice set F1 records for the most race wins in a season, including a historic 2023 season, with Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez winning all but one race in dominant fashion. This beat the previous win-rate record set by McLaren Honda in 1988 with drivers Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost. As this run went on and on veteran racing journalist Chris Economaki said into an open mike during ABC’s Wide World of Sports coverage that “I have seen better racing in a Cornfield in Iowa on Saturday night.” ABC fired him. When I caught up with him later in the press room of the New York Auto Show I said, “sorry to hear about your ABC gig,” Chris said, “They bought my voice, not my mind.” The lack of competition for the past couple of season in F1 has been well noted by others – but not as succinctly as Chris did. Continue reading
AC Cars Revives Cobra GT Coupe
AC Cars released today the first images of the new AC Cobra GT Coupe. The first ever official AC Cobra coupe set for production, working from an augmented version of the existing AC Cobra GT Roadster architecture. This road-going model, you might remember – if you are of a certain age and Monte Carlo Rally, LeMans and Kammtail resonate – draws on AC’s racing heritage. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, marketing, milestones, new vehicle, performance, racing, shows and events
Tagged AC Cars, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Carrol Shelby, Cobra GT Coupe, David Conza, Kammtail, Ken Zino, le mans, lemans, Monte Carlo Rally, X @KenAutoinformed
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Mattia Binotto Returns to F1 as CEO at Sauber Motorsport
“I am delighted that we have been able to recruit Mattia Binotto for our ambitious Formula 1 project,“ said Gernot Döllner, CEO of AUDI AG. “With his extensive experience of more than 25 years in Formula 1, he will undoubtedly be able to make a decisive contribution for Audi.“ Following his university degree in mechanical engineering at EPFL in Switzerland, the Italian immediately joined the F1 test team of Ferrari in 1995. He subsequently had various positions, from chief engineer to manager of the engine department and technical director. In 2019 he was additionally appointed as team head of Scuderia Ferrari.” Continue reading
Annals of Marketing 2026 – Audi Formula One and bp
“Audi and bp have always worked together successfully in motorsport. We are delighted that we can take this special partnership to the next level in Formula 1. Audi stands for ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’ and bp and Castrol also aspire to deliver the best technologies in the field of fuels and lubricants. This is a perfect match. It is a strong signal for Audi’s future F1 factory team that we have been able to establish this partnership at such an early stage,” said Andreas Seidl, CEO Audi F1 team. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, marketing, milestones, news analysis, performance, racing, shows and events
Tagged Andreas Seidl, Audi F1, Audi Formula One, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, bp, Castrol and Aral brands, Castrol EDGE, Ken Zino, Nicola Buck
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Honda Racing has a New UK Formula One Base
Honda is celebrating its 60th anniversary of its first F1 participation this year. The company is currently providing technical support and marketing cooperation as a team partner to Oracle Red Bull Racing, which is enmeshed in an ongoing alleged inappropriate sexual behavior scandal. Honda also supplies the VISA Cash App RB Formula One Team. As part of this technical support, HRC manufactures and supplies PUs along with support for PU operation throughout the season to Red Bull Powertrains (RBPT)*. This partnership will continue until the next year’s 2025 season.
*RBPT is a Red Bull group company responsible for F1 PU building. They are in charge of production and operation of ESS (Energy Storage System) for current F1 PU. Continue reading
Annals of Marketing and Racing – Cadillac Opulent Velocity
Cadillac said today that its view what the future of electric performance is contained in teaser look released of the Opulent Velocity concept vehicle. It is designed to market the past, present and future of Cadillac and its performance brand, V-Series. In marketing speak, Opulent Velocity represents the duality of the Cadillac brand defined in the name, Opulent + Velocity.
“Opulent Velocity is designed to foreshadow a zero emissions expression of performance and modern luxury leadership,” said Bryan Nesbitt, executive director, Cadillac Global Design. “We will share more later this year, so stay tuned.” Continue reading
Posted in auto news, design and styling, marketing, new vehicle, performance, racing
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Brandon Vivian, Bryan Nesbitt, Cadillac V-Series, Ken Zino, Opulent Velocity, Sebring International Raceway
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F1 – Qatar Investment Authority Buys Into Sauber
QIA was founded in 2005 to invest and manage the state reserve funds. QIA is among the largest and most active sovereign wealth funds globally. QIA invests across a wide range of asset classes and regions as well as in partnership with institutions around the world “to build a global and diversified investment portfolio with a long-term perspective that can deliver sustainable returns and contribute to the prosperity of the State of Qatar.” It is the subject of controversies, including its dealings with Russia, embezzlement charges of former executives, its ownership of Heathrow airport, the PGA tournaments, the football World Cup, among others. Continue reading →