Driving & Motorsports

Queen of England Awards Lewis Hamilton MBE

Hardy Shen — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 09:26:36 -0600

For Lewis Hamilton, it seems that everything has been going his way recently. Not only did he snatch up the Formula 1 Driver's World Champion title, he was the youngest ever to do so, and the first Englishman to do so in twelve years. To top it all off, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has dubbed Hamilton, along with nearly 1,000 other recipients, as Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (or MBE for short).

"It is a massive honor and incredible privilege for me to receive an MBE from Her Majesty The Queen. It is the most amazing culmination to what has been quite a year for me," Lewis commented after the announcement.

"I am also very humbled to be included on the Honors list alongside all the members of the general public who have been recognized for their tireless work in such varied and worthwhile arenas."

So what does this mean for the British champion? Well, he can officially add the letters MBE to his name with legitimate bragging rights. Don't be mistaken however, this is no 'Knighthood,' but at least it will look rather dashing on the resume and serve as an interesting conversation piece at parties.

+ Vodafone McLaren Mercedes: Lewis Awarded MBE

Video: Ken Block is a Better Driver than You (It’s Not Even Close)

Seyth Miersma — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:35:18 -0600

0-60 magazine is responsible for this video of Ken Block’s running of a Gymkhana course on an airfield in El Toro, Calafornia. It’s quite simply one of the most disgustingly competent displays of car control we’ve ever seen, in addition to featuring perhaps the bravest Segway rider we’ve ever seen. Take a few minutes, watch the video, and explode your expectations of what can be done with a car.

+ 0-60

Lewis Hamilton Becomes Youngest Ever Formula 1 Champion for McLaren Mercedes

Seyth Miersma — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 08:39:48 -0600

In only his second year as a Formula 1 driver, and at the tender age of 23 years, 10 months, and 26 days, McLaren Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton has become the youngest World Champion in the history of F1.

Hamilton secured his place in the annals of motorsport in rather spectacular fashion, closing in on the title by a single point after moving into fifth place on the final corner of the last race on the season calendar. Hamilton’s work at the Brazilian GP was just enough to edge the race’s winner, Ferrari’s Felipe Massa, with Hamilton totaling 98 points on the season to Massa’s 97. Felipe certainly didn’t go down without a fight however, finishing in first place for his home grand prix in Brazil.

Hamilton called the GP, “the most dramatic race of my whole life.” Going on to say, “We did a fantastic job throughout the whole year and, with all the sacrifices we made, I'm so thrilled to be able to win this for everyone."

Hamilton’s championship points with teammate Heikki Kovalainen’s 53, brought McLaren to a second place finish in the constructor’s championship behind the 172 points earned by the Ferrari team.

+ F1-Live

David E. Davis, Jr.'s American Driver, 12/08

NextAutos Staff — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:38:08 -0500

Video: Dale Jr., Kid Rock Get their National Guard On

Seyth Miersma — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:47:21 -0500

Americans have never been in short supply of jingoistic balladeers, especially during periods of national conflict, but this new rollicking number called Warrior from the Motor City’s most shirtless son is a real keeper. Playing on the patriotic trinity of stock cars, power chords, and guys in Humvees, this Kid Rock and Dale Earnhardt Jr. National Guard video is almost completely without guile, or a sense of scale. Click on the video above for one of the flag-wavingist, tire-shreddingist recruitment commercials you could ever hope for (or check out the website here ) and then tell us how it grabs you, in comments.

+ YouTube: Kid Rock Warrior Video

Question of the Day: If Sebastian Vettel Were A Stock, Would You Buy or Sell?

Seyth Miersma — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 20:06:11 -0500

We were all awfully excited after this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix but we do feel that perhaps the rhetoric surrounding Sebastian Vettel’s now brilliant future may have gotten ratcheted one notch too high. Is Vettel’s value about to shoot through the roof, or are we seeing the highest point of his career? Give us your answer, in comments.

Vettel Storms to Record-Breaking Win at Monza

Seyth Miersma — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 09:52:26 -0500

The Italian Grand Prix was the sight of many firsts this weekend including the first ever GP win for the very young Toro Rosso team, and the title of youngest ever Formula 1 race winner for Sebastian Vettel. The 21-year-old Vettel finished a dominating first place after a very wet day at Monza, securing the record for youngest win which had previously belonged to the day’s fourth-place finisher, Renault’s Fernando Alonso.

After spending the first two rain drenched laps behind the safety car with the rest of the field, Vettel was able to pull away at an astonishing rate in the rapidly improving Ferrari-powered Toro Rosso car. The German driver reeled off laps nearly two-seconds faster than second place Robert Kubica in the early going, establishing a ten second advantage by the first pit stop.

The win quite rightly brought massive adulation for the superb performance of Vettel, with several members of the F1 glitterati reaching out to congratulate the young driver. Seven-time World Champion called Vettel’s performance “completely clearly top-class,” going on to mention that the Monza fans went away satisfied because, “a half-Ferrari still won.” Vettel’s former boss at BMW racing, Mario Theissen, called the driver’s development over the last year fantastic, joking that, “he is only 21; perhaps when he is 31 he will be back with us.”

+ F1-Live: Vettel begins F1 race to greatness

David E. Davis, Jr.: American Driver — Phil Hill

David E. Davis Jr. — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 10:38:53 -0500

Phil Hill
April 20, 1927 – August 28, 2008

We all have to die somewhere, and Phil Hill died on the Monterey Peninsula in August, after collapsing at Pebble Beach. He was the winner of the first Pebble Beach Road Race on Seventeen Mile Drive in 1951, driving a modified Jaguar XK-120, and he was very much an icon around that gorgeous stretch of California real estate. His victory at Pebble Beach in 1951 and his death there almost sixty years later, were like bookends, holding between them a great, great life, one which we might all hope to emulate.

The flood of tributes to Phil Hill as our only American-born F1 World Champion (in 1961), and as an American racing driver who did so much to put Ferrari on the map in the United States, have seemed so reverent and so afraid to speak above a whisper that future generations may not appreciate how much fun and how funny Phil was—usually intentionally, often unintentionally—and what an endlessly entertaining conversationalist he was.

There was something of the boy genius about Phil Hill. Long after disease had begun to erode his youthful racing driver’s physique, his brain was still young and apt to go off in flights of fancy involving all manner of subjects. After a morning’s drive in a small fleet of vintage Bentleys back in June of 2000, we sat with him at a picnic table by a beautiful lake in Tennessee’s Smokey Mountains National Park. As we ate our sandwiches, we listened to his very funny rendition of “Albert and the Lion”—a comic English poem by Marriott Edgar about a small boy who is taken to the zoo by his parents and manages to get himself eaten by a lion. The piece goes on for several stanzas as the bereaved parents try to negotiate some sort of grubby settlement for the little blighter, who actually got exactly what he deserved. Phil had it down cold—the accents, the mean-spirited parents’ wheeling and dealing, the lot.

When I was a beginner at Road & Track magazine, there was a persistent story that kept making the rounds. Early in the Fifties, Phil drove for Charles Hornburg, the West Coast Jaguar distributor.

Charles Hornburg was inclined to worry and fidget, and on an occasion when Phil, Charles, and Charles’s wife Gwen were driving across the country in a Jaguar Mark VII sedan, towing their Jaguar racing car, he got his opportunity. Naturally—as any well-informed car person would have predicted—the Mark VII began to overheat and Mr. Hornburg began to fret. Soon he suggested that the race car should be backed off the trailer and driven by Phil, to reduce the chance of damage due to overheating. This was done, and Phil set off in the race car which also began to overheat. Now there were two overheating Jaguars. Mr. Hornburg decided that he should drive the race car and the little caravan stopped again, to swap drivers. Phil, exasperated, leaped into the Mark VII with the well-bred Mrs. Hornburg, and hissed, “Gwennie, do you have the slightest idea what an asshole you have married?”

About ten years ago, Phil and I were asked to do a tribute to the late Luigi Chinetti at a Ferrari Club gathering at Watkins Glen. Luigi, the ex-racing driver who convinced Enzo Ferrari to build road-going coupes and convertibles as a source of revenue for his racing activities, was the original distributor for Ferrari in the United States, and had even run his own U.S.-based Ferrari team—the North American Racing Team (NART). He helped a number of young drivers, including Phil Hill, and I was pleased to be able to celebrate his memory in that company.

I drove to the assigned motel, and received a call from Phil while I was unpacking. “David? What are we supposed to do here?” “Well, Phil, I’d say that they want us to talk about Chinetti and his various contributions to motorsport as a former driver and Ferrari team owner, and the guy who brought Ferrari to the United States.” Phil barked, “How can I do that? How can I do a tribute to Chinetti? He was the enemy! His cars were always causing us problems on the factory team! We’d get team orders from Ferrari and we’d all be ready to rebel, and that useless Englishman, Mike Parkes, would say, ‘I think we should obey team orders and run the way they want us to.’ I’d say, ‘What about NART? Are the Rodriguez brothers going to run to team orders, or are they going to go absolutely as fast as they can go? And of course they’d go absolutely as fast as they could go.’”

I asked him, “Why don’t you tell that story? This crowd will love it.” Phil: “Oh, I can’t tell that.” Me: “Why not?” Phil: “They don’t want to hear stuff like that. It’s boring. I don’t even know what I’m doing here.” Of course, when we stepped to the microphones, he was the star, and his stories were brilliant.

In 1963, before the Mexican GP, we spent an afternoon prowling the Mexico City antique shops. Phil was looking for old player piano rolls and I was looking for old cameras. All afternoon I lamely badgered him not to continue driving for the ill-conceived ATS racing team, put together by friends of his led by former Ferrari engineer Carlo Chiti. I feared he’d kill himself in a bad car, and I begged him to let me try to find him a suitable ride for the Indianapolis 500. This, despite the fact that I had no clout whatsoever at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

He put up with my arguments for quite a while, then faced me and said, “Everybody does important things, like racing, to impress certain people. The people I want to impress won’t be impressed if I drive an Indianapolis car.”

Turbocharged Engines for Formula 1 a Possibility in 2012

Hardy Shen — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 09:19:09 -0500

With ongoing discussions about impending formula changes for Formula 1, some teams are pushing for a major change in the engines used.

Both Renault and BMW are heavy advocators for small turbocharged engines for the 2012 season and beyond. The teams propose the engines have a 1.5-liter capacity with a maximum 22.8 psi of boost (according to European figures). The move isn’t terribly surprising from either of those companies, both of whom were at the forefront of turbo technology the last time F1 went to forced induction.

The use of turbos in Formula one isn't anything new. In fact, turbocharged 1.5-liter engines were used two decades earlier. With Ferrari engined cars finishing in the top position at the Valencia circuit last weekend, it's no wonder the Italian marquee's rivals are pushing for this change.

+ F1-live: Some teams want turbo engines for 2012

Video of Phil Hill's Last Race

Reilly Brennan — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 08:54:29 -0500

While saddened by the news of Phil Hill's death, we nonetheless take joy in recounting great moments from his storied career. Perhaps one of Hill's lesser known victories was his last--when he joined Mike Spence for a victory at the BOAC 500k at Brands Hatch in 1967. The pair drove a Chaparral 2F to a victory and this British docu-film does a nice job of capturing the essence of it all.

Phil Hill Dies At 81

Reilly Brennan — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 15:34:53 -0500

Phil Hill died this morning at Community Hospital of Monterey Peninsula of complications from Parkinson's disease. He was 81 years old.

Hill is known to enthusiasts as the first—and only—American-born driver to win the Formula 1 World Championship (Mario Andretti won the title in 1978 but was born in Italy, even though he was and is an American citizen). Hill won the title in 1961, driving a Ferrari 156 “Sharknose” mid-engined racer for the factory. That year Hill battled the entire year with his teammate, Wolfgang von Trips, but captured the crown during the second-to-last race of the season when von Trips was fatally injured in a crash at Monza—one that also took the lives of 14 race fans. With the manufacturers’ and drivers’ titles wrapped up after that awful day, Ferrari opted out of the last race of the season (at Hill’s “home” track of Watkins Glen), leaving Tifosi to believe the Scuderia sat out the last race out of respect for their fallen driver and the lost spectators, while Hill and others wondered if Ferrari simply wanted to save money having already captured the title. Like most Ferrari lore, perhaps not knowing the real story is the best story of all.

What is known is that Phil Hill was one of the best racing drivers the world has ever seen. In addition to his landmark F1 championship, he was the first American to take an overall win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (1958, driving Ferrari’s 250 Testa Rossa with Olivier Gendebien), the first driver to record a sub-9-minute lap at the Nürburgring, and one of only a handful of drivers who have won the 12 Hours of Sebring three times overall.

Hill was successful—if not a winner—in nearly everything he drove. And he drove the sorts of cars that most of us have on our bookshelves in 1:12 scale form. Cars like the aforementioned Ferrari 250 TR, Ferrari 156, Ford GT 40, various Chaparrals, Cobras, Cooper-Climax T73s, Cooper T70s, and the McLaren M1.

While the last few years of Hill’s life have been plagued by the awful effects of Parkinson’s Disease, his racing career finished at the top. His very last race was a victory—behind the wheel of a Chaparral 2F at the BOAC 500 kilometer at Brands Hatch in 1967.

Goodbye, Phil. You were one of the great ones.

+ PhilHill.com (Click to sign the online book of rememberance)

1300 Subarus Can't Be Wrong: Massive Colin McRae Tribute Planned

Chris Paukert — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 09:25:33 -0500

Over the weekend August 30, U.K. Colin McRae fans will celebrate the life of the late rally hero by convoying 300 miles from Lanark to Banbury. More than 1300 Subarus are expected at the gathering, a trail of Fuji Heavy products that is expected to stretch some 20 miles.

Lanark, as you may recall, is the home of Prodrive, the renowned Subie fettling house. The convoy will be led by none other than McRae’s 1996 Impreza 555 WRC car to Prodrive’stest track in Warwickshire. The group will then attempt to break two Guinness World Records, one of which is the parade of 1300 Subarus, the other of which is to spell out ‘COLIN MCRAE’ in a nearly half-mile long display.

The event has already raised in excess of £25,000 for the McRae family’s charities of choice,and they hope to raise more money along the way. The organizers have now stated that the event is full and closed to further registration, although bystanders and well-wishers are encouraged to cheer them on.

If you happen to be in Blighty on August 31, check out the full press release and website URL below for predicted convoy positioning to join the celebration.

+ www.mcrae-gathering.co.uk

PRESS RELEASE

22 August 2008

McRae convoy to stretch 20 miles

Nearly 1300 Subarus will gather to celebrate the life of Colin McRae and create a convoy which will stretch nearly 20 miles.

Fans all the way from Scotland to the Midlands will be able to watch the convoy as it travels more than 300 miles from Lanark to Banbury along the motorway network on Saturday 30 August. The convoy of Subarus departs Lanark at 10 am, led by Jimmy McRae in one of Colin’s original cars, before travelling south along the M74 and M6. By the time it reaches Birmingham and heads down the M40, it will have grown to more than 700 cars and stretch over ten miles, creating the memorable note of the flat four boxer engine for ten minutes as the cars pass by.

On Sunday 31 August, 1300 cars will gather at Prodrive in Banbury before being led up the M40 by McRae’s 1996 Impreza 555 rally car in a convoy 20 miles long. On arrival at Prodrive’s test track in Warwickshire, they aim to break two official Guinness World Records. Firstly, the cars will write out ‘COLIN MCRAE’ in a sign nearly half a mile long and visible to passengers landing at Birmingham airport and then create a parade of 1300 Subarus.

While entry to the McRae Gathering is now closed, organisers are hoping fans will show their support along the route. “It would be great to see people cheering us along,” said Grant Hendry, one of the organisers of the McRae Gathering. “When the idea of the convoy to commemorate the life of Colin was born, we never dreamt 1300 Subarus would be taking part. We even have Subarus joining us from all over Europe, from Poland and the Ukraine to France and Spain, while some fans are flying in especially from Australia and Argentina to be part of this memorable occasion.”

The McRae Gathering has already raised more than £25,000 for the McRae family’s officially nominated charities and is hoping to raise more money along the route.

For more information please visit: www.mcrae-gathering.co.uk.

Estimated position of the convoy:

Saturday 30 August
10:00 – Lanark town centre
10:20 - M74, J13
10:45 - M74, J16
11:05 - M74, J21
11.30 - M6, J41
11:55 - M6, J38
12:10 - M6, J36
12:40 - M6, J32
13:00 - M6 - arrive Charnock Richards services
14:00 – M6 - depart Charnock Richards services
14:25 - M6, J18
14:30 - M6, J16
14:45 - M6, J15
15:00 - M6, J14
15:30 - M5, J4
15:45 - M42 J2
16:20 – M40 J11 Prodrive Banbury.

Sunday 31 August
12:00 – 13:00 M40 J11 to J15

Schumacher Crashes Ferrari on 'Ring--With His Son?

Chris Paukert — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 18:23:05 -0500

Retired Formula One champion and racing legend Michael Schumacher just can’t seem to slow down. The Ferrari-master was spotted last Tuesday circling the Nordschliefe circuit at Germany's Nürburgring in a Ferrari 430 Scuderia with his young son, Mick, in the passenger seat. Later during that same session, the partially damp track was closed after the same Ferrari--a model Schumi himself helped develop--was involved in a wreck.

There are conflicting reports as to whether the car was a prototype or a production Scuderia test car. Judging by these new on-the-scene photographs from our friends at CarPix, early reports that the Ferrari was a write-off appear to be incorrect, even though German newspaper Bild reports that the car went off at more than 250 kilometers-per-hour (155 miles-per-hour).

It is unclear if his son Mick—a new kart driver himself—was in the car when the accident took place, but Schumacher’s spokeswoman Sabine Kemp has apparently gone on record acknowledging the shunt. Worryingly, our man in the trees' photographs clearly show the F1 champ and his son driving on the circuit without helmets, though it isn’t clear at what speed...

+ F1 Live: Schu crashes Ferrari road car prototype

Nobuhiro 'Monster' Tajima: Three Time Pikes Peak Champion

Hardy Shen — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 06:42:28 -0500

At the recent Pikes Peak race, Nobuhiro 'Monster' Tajima managed to take the title for the third consecutive year.

Using a "very heavily modified" Suzuki XL7 , the 58-year-old Suzuki WRC monster managed to clock a time of 10-minutes and 18.250-seconds on the 12.5-mile course. None of the other competitors even broke the 11-minutemark making Tajima truly the King of the Mountain.

Unfortunately, due to slippery conditions on the tarmac and dirt, Tajima failed to complete the course in less than 10 minutes, losing the $25,000 prize offered by organizers. In fact, the conditions were so bad that the race was red-flagged a total of 14 times and several competitors had to be hospitalized.

"The car and tires were perfect, and I couldn't have driven the hill any faster," said Tajima.

"But the conditions were very challenging, especially at the top of the course, so I could never have broken 10 minutes. But I'll be back next year..."

With a course record of just a second off the 10-minute barrier, Tajima might just pull it off next time when the conditions are right.

+Top Gear: Big three for Monster

Tony Stewart Released from Gibbs, Buys Ownership in His Own NASCAR Team

Reilly Brennan — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:04:01 -0500

Formula 1 Drivers May Strike Over ‘Superlicense’ Cost

Hardy Shen — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 11:49:58 -0500

Due to the rise in cost of their mandatory FIA superlicenses, next month's British grand prix may be put on hold as Formula One Drivers threaten to strike. With the fee now at $15,491, plus $3098 per point (based on European figures), the drivers claim that the increase is both radical and unfair. According to a supporter of the possible strike, the expense will be particularly hard on drivers like Robert Kubica, the new championship leader.
"He is not yet earning an awful lot, but his license costs nearly a tenth of his income," said the supporter.

Before 2008, the license was at $2618, plus $692 per point (based on European figures). Comparing previous costs to the current fee, the increase is especially substantial. This means that Kimi Raikkonen's 2008 license cost is over $350,000.

An urgent meeting with FIA president Max Mosley is being requested by the Grand Prix Drivers' Association to discuss the issue before the upcoming race. If an agreement to lower the license cost is not met however, the drivers say they are prepared to boycott the race.

+ Motor Authority: F1 drivers threaten strike over license fees

Video: Garage 419 Shows Pontiac Power at Lime Rock Park

Seyth Miersma — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 08:39:29 -0500

Our friends at Garage 419 recently took a trip to one of America’s great tracks, Lime Rock Park, where the cars from Pontiac were putting up surprisingly quick lap times. In addition to some fine racing footage, a bevy of smoky drifts, and interviews with fresh-from-the-field drivers, 419 gives us a peek at the surprisingly nice route to the park from NYC.

+ YouTube: Off the Track at Lime Rock - Garage419

NASCAR Report: Sprint All-Star Race

Stan Baldwin — Mon, 19 May 2008 12:00:46 -0500

Sometimes being liked is just as important as being good. After failing to qualify for the 2008 All-Star 100 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Kasey Kahne’s adoring fans put him on the grid by ballot. Rather than enjoying the race with a Budwieser in front of a wide screen, Kasey took the #9 Dodge Charger to the checkers in the final segment of the exhibition 100 lap event, collecting one million dollars for his troubles.

Kyle Busch was on the pole and appeared to have the car to dominate the field once again, but even Toyotas occasionally suffer mechanical maladies. While easily leading the second of four 25 lap segments Kyle’s #18 Camry suddenly lost power, surrendering the point position to Carl Edwards. Kyle continued to circle the track, losing positions, until the segment ended with the scheduled yellow flag. In the pits the Joe Gibbs team poked around under the hood and concluded their day was done.

Greg Biffle’s Ford was running well. When Denny Hamlin blew his engine, handing the lead to Kasey during the fourth and last segment, Greg figured he could get around the Dodge. After all, the Gillett Evernham Motorsports Dodge was shod with old rubber having only taken fuel during the last stop, and Biffle was running on two brand new tires. But, after making one good effort to get around the Dodge, Biffle’s car seemed to tighten up and he was not able to challenge again. Behind winner Kasey Kahne, Greg Biffle took second, Matt Kenseth third, Jimmie Johnson fourth. Tony Stewart, Ryan Newman, Sam Hornish Jr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin and Carl Edwards filled out the top ten. And everyone will be back for the Coca Cola 600 next weekend.

Danica Patrick Considering Test for Honda F1 Team?

Seyth Miersma — Fri, 02 May 2008 14:45:23 -0500

IndyCar newsmaker Danica Patrick, who recently won her first IRL race, is apparently in consideration for a test drive with Honda Racing’s Formula One team.

Patrick’s victory at the Motegi circuit has enlivened talk that the IRL star may be looking towards a bigger and brighter racing career, including running in motorsport’s premiere series. The driver recently made mention that she would love to try her hand at F1, but only if a serious test was on offer.

Said Patrick, “Every driver would love to drive a Formula One car at some point in their life, so yeah.

eBay Auction of the Day: ‘Intimidator’ Bumper Car

Seyth Miersma — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 17:00:15 -0500

After countless years on the Santa Monica Pier in California spent ferrying the NASCAR dreams of bouncing youth in 90-second intervals, this French-built, Intimidator spec, #3 Chevy bumper car is up for auction on eBay Motors.

While there aren’t many of us that could provide the bumper car with a functional arena (what does one call the place where bumper cars “go