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The most surprising thing about the cancellation of the Chinese Grand Prix is that it was ever on 2023 Formula 1 calendar to begin with. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Before next year’s record-breaking 24-race schedule was announced, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali indicated a decision on the return of China’s race would not take place until after October, when the ruling Communist Party’s National Congress would take place. At the time many outside China wondered whether the party’s president and China’s leader Xi Jinping would use the occasion to announce an easing of the country’s strict ‘zero Covid’ polices, under which it continues to impose lockdowns in response to outbreaks. He did not, and the country is now struggling to keep a lid on protests against the severe measures which have lasted for three years. The cancellation of F1’s 2023 race in Shanghai was therefore widely expected. China’s only F1 driver, Zhou Guanyu , told RaceFans last month … [Read more...] about Where could F1 race if it replaces the cancelled Chinese Grand Prix? · RaceFans

Audi has begun construction of an extension to its engine facility where the manufacturer will build its Formula 1 power units. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free A new, 3,000 square metre facility is being built at Audi’s Competence Center Motorsport in Neuberg an der Donau. Building F7.2 (shown above) will house new test benches for developing the hybrid turbo power unit which Audi will compete with in Formula 1 from 2026. Audi is also expanding the workforce which will develop and build the energy recovery system, electric motor, battery, combustion engine and transmission. It has already recruited around 220 staff for its F1 project and intends to have over 300 by the middle of next year. They will be able to make use of some parts of the new building as early as March. Audi Formula Racing GmbH was founded to run the F1 project. Its managing director Adam Baker said: “Developing a power unit for the world’s most demanding racing series in Germany is a … [Read more...] about Audi building extension to engine factory for F1 project · RaceFans

Listen to this article Fiat’s next coupe-SUV is destined for Brazil, and a new teaser campaign unveils its distinct profile. The new crossover will play a vital role in the Brazilian market, where vehicles like this sell well. Fiat’s South American style center designed the vehicle, which combines the lines of an SUV with those of a streamlined four-door coupe. The crossover’s compact size makes it suitable for the country’s roads. The new Fiat crossover will ride on the same platform as the Fiat Pulse , which is another recently unveiled vehicle for Brazil. The new Fiat Fastback will ride on the brand’s MLA platform, and the engine lineup should not deviate from what’s offered in the Pulse. In fact, the 130-horsepower (96-kilowatt) turbocharged 1.0-liter and the 175-hp (128-kW) turbocharged 1.7-liter engines should appear in the new model. Both powertrains should pair to either a dual-clutch automatic or continuously variable transmission. Gallery: Fiat Fastback Teaser … [Read more...] about Oh Good, Fiat Is Teasing A Coupe-SUV And It’s For Brazil

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 6 Julia Reichert, the Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker behind “American Factory” whose films explored themes of race, class and gender, often in the Midwest, has died. She was 76. She died Thursday night in Ohio from cancer, her family said Friday through a representative. She was diagnosed with stage four urothelial cancer in April 2018. Often called the “godmother of American independent documentaries,” Reichart told the stories of ordinary Americans, from autoworkers dealing with both plant closures (2009's “The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant”) and foreign investors (2019's “American Factory”), to members of the American Communist Party (1983's “Seeing Red”) to female labor activists in the 1930s (1976's “Union Maids”). In her 50 years of filmmaking, Reichert won two Primetime Emmy Awards and was nominated for four Oscars, winning one with her partner … [Read more...] about Julia Reichert, Oscar-winning documentarian, dies at 76

Chip Ganassi Racing have announced they have hired Marcus Armstrong to race for them in all road course and street circuit rounds of the 2023 IndyCar championship. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free The 22-year-old driver, who spent the last three seasons in Formula 2, will join Ganassi for the 2023 IndyCar season, driving the team’s number 11 car at all races except for those run on oval circuits. He will therefore contest 12 of next year’s 17 races. The former Ferrari academy driver claimed four race victories during his time in F2, three of which came this season. He was classified 13th in the driver’s standings in each of the three seasons he participated in the series. Armstrong tested an IndyCar for Dale Coyne Racing at Sebring with Hitech F2 team mate Juri Vips in October and had spoken on his podcast, Screaming Meals, about his interest in racing in the series. Armstrong says he was excited to join fellow New Zealand racer and IndyCar champion Scott … [Read more...] about Ganassi signs Armstrong to drive road and street IndyCar races in 2023 · RaceFans

Formula 1 will not race in China next season after it the series confirmed its scheduled round in Shanghai has been cancelled. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free The world championship was intending to return to China in April next year as the fourth round of the 2023 season. However, due to the logistical problems presented by the Chinese government’s Covid restrictions, Formula 1 has decided it will not be possible to stage the race at all in 2023. Formula 1 last raced at the Shanghai International Circuit in 2019. China remains the only race originally planned for the 2020 season – the year most heavily impacted by Covid – not to have held a grand prix since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020. The Vietnam Grand Prix was originally scheduled to make its debut during the 2020 season but the race did not take place. There are a number of potential replacement venues being considered to take over China’s slot on … [Read more...] about Formula 1 cancels Chinese Grand Prix for fourth year due to Covid · RaceFans

Kevin Magnussen showed he’d matured on his return to Formula 1, says Haas team principal Guenther Steiner. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Following his points-scoring comeback in Bahrain, Magnussen’s form dipped around the middle of the season. But after changing race engineers he rebounded by scoring a shock pole position for the sprint race in Brazil. Steiner said team’s first pole position in F1, achieved in a rain-affected session, was made possible by the effective combination of Magnussen and his latest race engineer, Mark Slade. The pair previously worked together at Renault in 2016 and were reunited during the latter races of 2022. The returning driver began the year with race engineer Ed Regan, who then moved into an office-based role, and Dominic Haines served as an interim replacement before Slade took over. Magnussen and Slade’s reunion quickly reaped rewards. A first points finish in eight races came at the United States Grand Prix, then … [Read more...] about Surprise Brazil pole showed Magnussen rebounded from mid-season “struggle” · RaceFans

Until this season it had been six years since Valtteri Bottas last beat his team mate over the course of the season. That was when he comfortably saw off Felipe Massa at Williams, before heading to Mercedes where he went up against no other team mate than Lewis Hamilton. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free It was only to be expected that a driver of Bottas’ experience, with 10 grand prix victories to his name, would show rookie team mate Zhou Guanyu the way. But Zhou can head into his second season at Alfa Romeo with his head held high. The score-line may reflect it poorly, but he showed up very well against his experienced team mate. Alfa Romeo began 2022 in great shape. Bottas put his car on the third row of the grid in Bahrain, but Zhou lagged well behind him. The newcomer quickly brought that gap down, and though it spiked over the half-second mark occasionally, that tended to be at unfamiliar tracks, and as the season went on he increasingly … [Read more...] about Bottas is team’s top scorer but Zhou makes case for a second season · RaceFans

Link to this image full-size: https://www.racefans.net/2022/12/02/rookie-zhou-impresses-alfa-romeo-despite-bottas-scoring-almost-all-their-points/f1-canadian-grand-prix-2022-race-3/ 24 ZHOU Guanyu (chi), Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN C42, 77 BOTTAS Valtteri (fin), Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN C42, action during the Formula 1 AWS Grand Prix du Canada 2022, 9th round of the 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship, on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, from June 17 to 19, 2022 in Montreal, Canada – Photo Antonin Vincent / DPPI Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free Previous Image Next Image … [Read more...] about F1 – CANADIAN GRAND PRIX 2022 – RACE · RaceFans