The Supercars points leader broke his collarbone while mountain biking this morning (Saturday). He has since undergone surgery in Brisbane to have a plate inserted. Triple Eight is expecting van Gisbergen to be fit for the second round of the Supercars season at Sandown in a fortnight. However he will sit out next weekend's GT World Challenge Australia opener at Phillip Island , teammate Jamie Whincup to take his spot alongside Prince Jefri Ibrahim in the squad's Mercedes. "Shane van Gisbergen is recovering from successful surgery on his collarbone after a mountain biking accident this morning," read a statement from Triple Eight. "The Red Bull Ampol Racing driver had a plate inserted during the routine procedure in Brisbane this afternoon and is expected to recover well. "Van Gisbergen was due to race in the debut round of the Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS series next weekend at Phillip Island. While medically he would likely be able to do so, … [Read more...] about Van Gisbergen breaks collarbone in bike crash
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Paffett in frame for DTM return with Mercedes team
The driving force behind Paffett’s comeback is believed to be the Schaeffler Group, which has been a series partner of the DTM for several months and is also working with the championship on the DTM Electric project for 2023. Schaeffler, together with Paravan, has developed a steer-by-wire system that is set to be run by the Mucke team in its Mercedes AMG GT3 this year. Both Schaeffler and Paravan would like to have Paffett in the car, with the British driver having spent 15 consecutive seasons in the DTM as a factory Mercedes driver and scored 23 race wins on top of his two title successes. Paffett’s chances of a comeback have been boosted by Schaeffler-Paravan’s appointment of former HWA man Hubert Hugle. Hugle had been in-charge of technology at HWA for several years and also served as its DTM Development Manager, and thus worked closely with the British driver until Mercedes’ exit from the series after 2018. Paffett’s return would also sit well with DTM boss … [Read more...] about Paffett in frame for DTM return with Mercedes team