New factory

Alfa Romeo have unveiled their new car for the 2023 season but former racer turned pundit Martin Brundle believes there is a problem with it. In a change from last season’s offering, Alfa went for a predominantly black car with a shade of the company’s red across the top. The new livery, which was unveiled at the team’s Switzerland base on Tuesday, received the approval of the fans but one expert believes there could be a problem when it takes to the track. Brundle has been a long-time pundit on Sky Sports F1 so knows what he is talking about when it comes to how cars will look both on the track and on people’s TVs, and believes the black plus the carbon finish will make it an issue. “Love the back of the rear wing,” Brundle tweeted. “This new low weight carbon finish is becoming very prevalent in F1, weight limit drops by 2kgs this year and most teams were struggling before. “But this car will be hard to see on TV or trackside on an overcast day.” PlanetF1 recommends … [Read more...] about Martin Brundle spots a problem with Alfa Romeo’s new C43 livery

F1 2023 is fast approaching as teams take the covers off and reveal their colours ahead of a brand new season of action. There is every reason to be excited about the F1 2023 season, teams having had the chance to put their wealth of learnings about the new Technical Regulations to use with their second attempts, the 2023 challengers. And the first key step ahead of seeing these new creations on the track is launch season, as the teams, while often hiding many of their clever innovations, are at least more than happy to show us what their cars are going to look like. Our luck really is in because with 10 teams making up the grid, you guessed it, that means we have 10 different livery reveals to enjoy. So, let’s take a look at the designs which we will clap eyes on in F1 2023… Haas Haas did the honours of kicking-off launch season for 2023 when they revealed the livery for their 2023 challenger, the VF-23, on January 31. The American outfit struck a new title … [Read more...] about F1 2023 liveries: See all the new season looks as they are unveiled

Houston and Harris County officials want you to sell them your guns. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Harris County officials are holding another gun buyback event later this February, according to KPRC 2. This is the third gun buyback hosted by city and county officials in the past several months. The city imposed new rules on the events in September, after a man sold dozens of 3D-printed guns back to the city during its inaugural buyback last summer. The event will take place on Feb. 18 at Deussen Park, according to KPRC 2. At past buybacks, officials have offered between $50 and $200 in gift cards in exchange for different types of guns, no questions asked. Mayor Turner, alongside Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis and Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, are hosting a press conference with additional details about the upcoming event at 1 p.m., KPRC 2 reported Monday. At the first gun buyback on Jul. 31, an anonymous man sparked controversy and prompted … [Read more...] about Houston, Harris County want to buy your guns, no questions asked

Two anticipated trends in 2023 Formula 1 car design were evident in the first new chassis presented for the upcoming season today. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free While Red Bull, Haas and Williams relied on models or old cars to reveal their new liveries over the past week, Alfa Romeo became the first team to show something approaching a genuine 2023 machine. Their video broadcast showed Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu revealing the car in a similar configuration to what they will run when testing begins in Bahrain in two weeks’ time. The team also issued images of its car in launch specification. One obvious change is the shift towards a darker livery, just as fellow Ferrari power unit customers Haas have done. Teams have been removing paint and exposing the carbon fibre beneath for years in an effort to save weight, but the introduction of new regulations last year prompted many to go a step further. It’s striking that Alfa Romeo, who began last … [Read more...] about The major change Alfa Romeo made after being “stuck in a corner” last year · RaceFans

Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu says he feels “more ready than ever” going into this year’s Formula 1 season after returning to his home country for the first time in two years. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free The Chinese driver returned home in December to visit family and friends but also to conduct several sponsor and media engagements. Prior to that, the last time he had been in China was to be part of the presenting team for the F1 Esports series China Championship in Shanghai in January 2021. “We tried to switch fully off [over winter] because from my side, of course, was the two years haven’t been back [to China], and obviously family and friends,” Zhou said at the launch of Alfa Romeo’s 2023 F1 car. “So that was a very nice time spending there over the holidays, and I really feel more ready than ever because it was first great to catch up with all the people back home in China. “Coming back here, I feel like I was able to train harder, put even more … [Read more...] about F1: Zhou “more ready” after first trip home in two years · RaceFans

Ferrari has announced another change in a senior position within the company with the arrival of Lorenzo Giorgetti as chief racing revenue officer. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Giorgetti will report to CEO Benedetto Vigna, and arrives at the team while continuing to be part of the Global Esports Federation’s board. Prior to that he was the chief commercial officer at Italian football club AC Milan and worked at the RCS Media Group leading the commercial management of its sports portfolio. He joins Ferrari seven years after the company was publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange. “With his experience and leadership, Ferrari will further develop long-term collaborations with our sponsors across all sport activities, including the emerging Esports world, and with our passionate global fan community,” said Vigna. Ferrari’s racing activities have also expanded for 2023, with the F1 and GT racing programmes now joined by an entry into the World … [Read more...] about Ferrari hires Esports expert as racing revenue officer · RaceFans

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 6 Barbara Brandon-Croft wrote a pitch that, 34 years later, has lost none of its punch. "Few Black Cartoonists have entered national syndication since the 1970s," began the boldfaced heading to her letter to newspaper syndicates. "None have been Black Women." What Brandon-Croft was offering the gatekeepers of such mass distribution was not a shaming as much as a way to course-correct. They could overcome their lack of representation while also reaching new audiences. "We all gain from the Black experience," she wrote in the letter. "Moreover, everyone's to gain from the Black female experience in particular." Her precise verbal strike caught the eye of Universal Press Syndicate editor Lee Salem, who had nurtured such strips as "Calvin and Hobbes" and "Cathy" and later discovered "The Boondocks." He knew excellence when he saw it, replying to her: "It's rare to … [Read more...] about A trailblazer who brought a Black woman’s voice to comics

Lest anyone worry that the Magic Mike series has nothing left to say, or nothing on its mind but glistening abs, the third and allegedly final installment begins with a voice over—British, proper, authoritative—waxing rhapsodic about the role dance has played across all of human history. Such pontification is not so surprising coming from Steven Soderbergh, who recently kicked off a different film with a narrated flashback to the invention of money. But it's still a concerningly academic way for this movie to start, and the first moment of several in Magic Mike's Last Dance that might bring to mind the immortal words of Barton Fink 's Ben Geisler. Channing Tatum . Male stripper movie. What did Soderbergh need, a road map? A decade ago, the director and his screenwriter, Reid Carolin, knew better than to overthink the story of a Florida exotic dancer balancing his daydreams of opening his own furniture store with his nightlife flashing flesh for cash. The original Magic … [Read more...] about ‘Magic Mike’s Last Dance’ strips the fun out of the franchise

By Sally M. Hill / movie reviews The commercials make “Magic Mike” out be a fun, light-hearted night out with the girls, without the two-drink minimum or the need for a bunch of ones to stick in g-strings. Actually though, “Mike” tries to be more than that, darker and deeper, but alas, it’s as superficial as a spray on tan. Too bad. Director Steven Soderbergh (“Traffic,” “Ocean’s Eleven,” “The Informant!,” “Contagion”) has made some interesting movies. He was the reason I thought “Mike” could be more than just a bunch of guys shaking their booties. He and screenwriter Reid Carolin (his first feature film) have attempted to make a character study disguised as a comedic stripper film, but the characters aren’t interesting beyond their stripping. Even if one character pleads unconvincingly, “I’m not what I do.” Character studies only work when a person is interesting and you care about what happens to them. The filmmakers do acknowledge our hard economic times and the troubled … [Read more...] about ‘Magic Mike’ deeper, darker than ads let on