Lewis Hamilton (No. 44 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) won the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after a sensational battle with Max Verstappen (No. 33 Red Bull Racing Honda) in a highly successful return to Brazil for F1. Verstappen finished runner-up ahead of pole-sitter Valtteri Bottas (No. 77 Mercedes-AMG Petronas). Hamilton enjoyed a terrific start from P10 on the grid and was clearly on the charge, teammate Bottas – who lost the lead to Verstappen at the start – letting him by for P5 on Lap 5. Hamilton then took P2 off Sergio Perez (No. 11 Red Bull Racing Honda) in a duel that began on Lap 17 and culminated in a Lap 19 pass at Turn 4. The first stops took place around Lap 25, but the action built up to a terrific crescendo after Verstappen took a second stop on Lap 41, Hamilton on Lap 44. The Mercedes driver bore down on Verstappen and despite being shoved wide at Turn 4 – the stewards noting but not investigating – on Lap 48, Hamilton didn’t give up, trying it again on Lap 58 only to meet a stubborn defense. The winning pass came a lap later with DRS on the run up to Turn 4, this time Verstappen having no choice but to concede. Hamilton ended up 10.4 seconds up the road in first place at the flag, cutting Verstappen’s championship lead from 21 points to 14 points. Bottas, who took an opportunistic stop during the Lap 30 Virtual Safety Car period and another on Lap 41, finished third ahead of Sergio Perez, who started fourth, was up to second, but lost places to the two Mercedes. The Mexican took fastest lap at the expense of Hamilton on the final tour, having pitted for softs on Lap 70. Watch the video highlights here. (Thank you to F1 Media)
(Reuters)For the fourth time in 2021, Francesco Bagnaia (No. 63 Ducati Lenovo Team) took victory as the Italian led home a historic Ducati 1-2-3 at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comunitat Valenciana, with Jorge Martin (No. 89 Pramac Racing Ducati) and Jack Miller (No. 43 Ducati Lenovo Team) claiming the remaining podium steps. The race will forever be remembered as Valentino Rossi’s (No. 46 Petronas Yamaha SRT) last competition event, and The Doctor delivered a P10 in his farewell MotoGP™ appearance in front of a packed Circuit Ricardo Tormo crowd. Watch the race highlights here. (Thank you to MotoGP Media)
(crash.net.)Valentino Rossi signed off on his legendary 26-year MotoGP career with a competitive tenth place. After taking the checkered flag for the final time, Rossi parked at the side of the track where he was mobbed by not only his fan club but all of his rivals, as tears flowed in the Petronas Yamaha garage. Cheered all the way back to pit lane, Rossi then stood on his Yamaha M1 surrounded by the applause of team members from throughout the grid, before partying with his crew in the Petronas garage. (Thank you to crash.net)
Fabio Quartararo receives his 2021 MotoGP Championship trophy.
The route to the championship was straightforward: The top finisher among the two contenders at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta would be the champion. The finish, of course, was anything but straightforward. Felipe Nasr (No. 31 Whelen Engineering Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R) held on as Ricky Taylor (No. 10 Konica Minolta Acura ARX-05) tried to pass him on the final lap Saturday night, recovering after Taylor bounced through a gravel trap and back on track in front of him, to claim the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Daytona Prototype international (DPi) title by finishing second in the Motul Petit Le Mans. Nasr was chasing eventual race winner Harry Tincknell but leading the championship battle when Taylor tried to pass Nasr heading into Turn 10A on the final lap. The two cars made contact, and Taylor bounced off course and returned to the track ahead. But Nasr passed Taylor heading into Turn 11 and held on for second place in the race – and the championship – through the final turn of the final race of 2021 to prevail by 0.405 seconds.“I knew he was going to try to make a last-minute move, but that was a little too wild,” Nasr said. “All the way to the gravel and then coming across the track. If there was grass there, he could have just continued. He had to go through the gravel, and then I had to drive to take the position back. There are many ifs. If I was behind and I had to do something, for sure you’ve got to try it. Maybe it was a little too much, but I get it. He’s a racer, too. He’s got to try something.” While Nasr was going out as a champion, Tincknell, Oliver Jarvis and Jonathan Bomarito (above) were helping Mazda go out as a Motul Petit Le Mans winner in its final race in DPi. Tincknell drove the No. 55 Mazda Motorsports Mazda RT24-P past Nasr for the lead in Turn 7 with 22 minutes remaining in the 10-hour race and held it to the finish. Nasr’s championship run came in his final race with Action Express Racing, which announced last month that Tristan Nunez will replace him in the No. 31 machine next season. Nasr’s co-champion, fellow Brazilian Pipo Derani, spoke of the emotion behind the championship. “For me personally, it was very emotional to look back and slowly start to realize that I’m a champion,” Derani said. “I’ve learned from the mistakes I’ve made and I’ve grown so much as a person over the last year. To finish this chapter with Felipe was great.” Taylor, Filipe Albuquerque and Alexander Rossi had the same mission as their rivals – keep the No. 10 Acura ahead of Nasr, Derani and Mike Conway in the No. 31 Cadillac. That mission was in reach for almost all of the race’s 410 laps. "The championship literally came down to the last corner,” Taylor said. “I just have to say I gave it everything I had. There’s going to be a lot of nightmares before Daytona (the 2022 season opener) just thinking about what I could have done differently.” (Thank you to Jeff Olson/IMSA Wire Service)
While Felipe Nasr and Pipo Derani shared the drivers’ championship, Action Express claimed the DPi team championship – its fifth since 2014 – and Cadillac claimed the DPi manufacturer title. But at times, Nasr’s final stint was difficult for his teammates to watch. “It kept us on the edge of our seats all the way to the end there,” Conway said. “It was hard to watch. I had to walk off a couple of times from the TV and catch my breath. This is what this championship is like. The IMSA series is really tough. It always goes down to the wire.” Watch extended highlights from Petit Le Mans (Courtesy of Motorsports on NBC) here. (Thank you to Jeff Olson/IMSA Wire Service)
Felipe Nasr and Pipo Derani, your 2021 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Daytona Prototype international Champions.
The Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) class saw a three-way fight for the Motul Petit Le Mans victory, with John Farano, Gabriel Aubry and James French (No. 8 Tower Motorsport ORECA LMP2 07) gaining the victory when the No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA was penalized postrace for an unserved pit-lane drive-through for incident responsibility in a late clash with the No. 8. It was the second Motul Petit Le Mans win for both Farano and Aubry; the first for French. The No. 52 still clinched the LMP2 championship for drivers Mikkel Jensen and Ben Keating with the runner-up finish. They also took home the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup title, along with third driver Scott Huffaker. (Thank you to Mark Robinson/IMSA Wire Service)
The No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports ORECA clinched the LMP2 championship for drivers Ben Keating and Mikkel Jensen (above) with the runner-up finish. Keating, the 11-year IMSA veteran, was pleased to collect his first season championship. Even with the disappointment of losing out on his second Motul Petit Le Mans win, the Texan managed a smile. “We’re walking over here talking about how (mad) we are still about how the race finished,” Keating said. “But it was an exciting race because of all the yellow flags. Even eight hours into the race, four cars were all on the lead lap and we were only one lap behind the DPi field. It kept incredibly close the entire race.” (Thank you to Mark Robinson/IMSA Wire Service)
The No. 74 Riley Motorsports Ligier JS P320 arrived at Michelin Raceway with a narrow lead in points, but after 10 grueling hours of competition, the team departed carrying a bag full of trophies. Not only did drivers Gar Robinson, Felipe Fraga and Scott Andrews (above) lead the most laps, but they enjoyed a runaway victory as Robinson cruised to the WeatherTech Championship in the inaugural season of the Le Mans Prototype 3 (LMP3) class. The No. 74’s nemesis, the only team standing between it and the title, was the No. 54 CORE autosport Ligier shared by Jon Bennett, George Kurtz and Colin Braun. They were in striking distance – lurking 50 points behind – going into this season-ending battle. But the No. 54 was never really a threat. The car had problems throughout the race and retired in the ninth hour of competition. The No. 74 did face a race battle from the No. 30 Jr III Racing Ligier, but it wound up a lap behind Fraga in second place. "Felipe just brought it home, like he always does,” Robinson said. “It’s incredible to watch that guy do what he does. You think you are going as fast as you can go and he finds another half second. The way he goes through traffic and how he handles these races so well is really incredible.” (Thank you to Godwin Kelly/IMSA WIre Service)
The outcome of the GT Le Mans (GTLM) class competition at the 24th annual Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta wasn’t determined until the final 10 minutes of the 10-hour endurance classic. Mathieu Jaminet, in the No. 79 WeatherTech Porsche 911 RSR-19 that he shared with Cooper MacNeil and Matt Campbell, edged the team’s No. 97 entry (with drivers Kevin Estre, Michael Christensen and Fred Makowiecki) by 0.318 seconds at the checkered flag after ceding the lead on the final lap of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season finale. WeatherTech Racing orchestrated the 1-2 finish when the No. 4 Corvette Racing C8.R came into contact with the overall race-leading No. 55 Mazda Motorsports DPi with just under 15 minutes remaining. The Corvette sustained damage when it speared off course, requiring driver Nick Tandy to retire the car. Estre (No. 97 WeatherTech Porsche 911 RSR-19) had stretched his lead to more than 10 seconds over Tandy when the Corvette encountered trouble, with Jaminet in the No. 79 running a close third at the time. The WeatherTech cars swapped positions in the late stages to maximize championship points for the No. 79, which is a full-season WeatherTech Championship entry. It marked the third race win of the season for MacNeil and Jaminet, who were joined by Campbell for their victory earlier this year at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented by Advance Auto Parts. Jaminet and MacNeil also triumphed at Road America. The race was slowed by 10 full-course cautions until the last two hours and 10 minutes ran clean. “Just staying out of trouble was the key,” MacNeil observed. “With as many cautions as we saw today, it was just a matter of time until you were caught up in one yourself. There’s not a scratch on our Porsche.” Jordan Taylor and Antonio Garcia clinched the 2021 GTLM championship for Corvette Racing by starting Saturday’s race. While they won the championship by simply taking the green flag, the No. 3 Corvette C8.R wasn’t around to see the checkered flag. Taylor was at the wheel when he was swept into an accordian-style eight-car accident on a restart at the start of the fifth hour. After cresting the hump that precedes the downhill braking zone for Turn 10, Taylor found the track blocked by a group of slower cars and slammed into the back of a GT Daytona entry. Garcia, who was watching on television at the time, was not surprised there was a crash. “I could anticipate something happening after three or four restarts because traffic was crazy today,” he said. “There was a lot of tension between the classes.” Taylor said it was the biggest accident of his career and estimated the impact speed at 110 mph. “Definitely a scary moment when you come over the crest in fifth gear and everyone is stopped,” he remarked. “The stack-up effect is always there in (Turns) 10A and 10B; it was just way more extreme today." "At first I thought I broke my back – that’s how hard the impact was,” he added. “My lower back is a little sore with some muscle spasms, but I’ll be fine in a couple days. Thankfully, Corvette and Pratt & Miller built a race car that kept me safe.” Taylor’s fourth IMSA championship was almost forgotten in the aftermath of the accident drama. Garcia’s title was his fifth in IMSA competition. The Corvette duo repeated their championship-winning performance from 2020. “Amazing to get another championship for Antonio and I,” Taylor said. “Two in a row, and it was great to finish off the GTLM era with two championships like that.” This was the final WeatherTech Championship race for the GTLM category, which is being replaced by the GTD PRO class in 2022. (Thank you to John Oreovicz/IMSA Wire Service)
As is so often the case in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship endurance races, the GT Daytona (GTD) class provided a full-on exhibition of close racing, constant lead changes and genuine triumph – with Ross Gunn driving to victory in the Motul Petit Le Mans for the No. 23 Heart of Racing Aston Martin team over the No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche, whose runner-up effort was stellar enough to earn the season championship. Through the day and the night at Michelin Raceway, the cars swapped the lead continuously with five, sometimes six, cars consistently on the lead lap in a race whose class lead seldom varied by more than a half-minute. The final margin of victory was 7.857 seconds after 10 hours of racing concluded in chilly 40-degree weather. The No. 23 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage GT3 – with drivers Gunn, Roman De Angelis and Ian James – took the lead for good with only 35 minutes remaining, the top spot changing three times in the final hour alone. It was the team’s second win of the season and first at Michelin Raceway. “It’s awesome, what a testimony to everybody who works on this team and the great effort they did,’’ James said. “My teammates were amazing today and nobody was going to beat us there at the end. Ross Gunn was just on fire. We’re going to enjoy this one.’’ (Thank you to Holly Cain/IMSA Wire Service)
(IMSA)While just short of the race win, drivers Laurens Vanthoor, Zacharie Robichon and Lars Kern (No. 9 Pfaff Porsche 911 GT3R) did everything they needed to earn the team’s first championship. Saturday certainly marked a triumphant comeback for the Porsche, which only qualified eighth fastest in class on Friday but pushed the Aston Martin for the victory all the way to the end. “We were like, at this point, we might as well try and win the race, too," an emotional Robichon said. “I think I just got something stuck in my eye, I don’t know what’s going on here. It’s been pretty special. For Laurens, Lars and myself, it’s the last race as a team so it’s a little bittersweet. But I couldn’t be more proud. It’s super special. We’ve worked together as a team and Laurens came in and this whole team – every guy and girl – it’s what they deserve." Three cars – the No. 9, No. 23 and the No. 1 Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini Huracán GT3 – came into the race with a mathematical shot at the title. But the top qualifier among the trio - the No. 1 Lamborghini - had early race contact with an LMP3 car, which sent the Lamborghini behind the pit wall for lengthy repairs only two hours into the race. It continued, however, finishing seventh in class. (Thank you to Holly Cain/IMSA Wire Service)
(Chevrolet images)
For the first time in its 24-year history, Corvette Racing will contest multiple endurance racing championships during its 2022 racing program. Corvette Racing will contest full-season championships in both the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Corvette Racing will field one Chevrolet Corvette C8.R in each series with the teams coming together for a two-car effort planned for the 24 Hours of Le Mans next June. All six Corvette Racing drivers from 2021 will return for the new season. Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg will race in IMSA, while Tommy Milner, Nick Tandy and Alexander Sims will race in the WEC. Chevrolet also confirmed that it will build and sell all-new Corvette Z06 GT3.R race cars (shown) to customers beginning with the 2024 racing season. Following the final race of the GT Le Mans (GTLM) category at Petit Le Mans on Nov. 13, Corvette Racing will shift to the new-for-2022 GT Daytona (GTD) PRO category. Garcia and Taylor – who are on the verge of repeating as GTLM Drivers champions – will run the full 10-race championship in the No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R. Catsburg will rejoin Garcia/Taylor for the Rolex 24 At Daytona (where they won the 2021 GTLM class), Sebring and Petit Le Mans. Though the GTD-PRO Corvette C8.R will look similar to the GTLM car, a revised wing profile will mean a slightly different level of downforce at the rear of the C8.R, and the IMSA team will run on customer Michelin tires, per GTD regulations. The GTD-PRO Corvette will use the same 5.5-liter, flat-plane crank V-8 but with a slightly decreased power output over the GTLM rules package. An anti-lock braking system (ABS) also will be featured on the IMSA C8.R along with other driver aids that are mandated by the class regulations. Chevrolet has won 13 Manufacturers Championships (14 with the start of Saturday’s Petit Le Mans) in IMSA since 2001. The presence of Corvette Racing in the FIA World Endurance Championship means Chevrolet will fight for the GT Manufacturers World Championship, along with another IMSA Manufacturers title in 2022. Milner and Tandy will take on the six-round global championship with the No. 64 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R, which will continue in the GTE Pro category against similar factory entries. Milner and Tandy’s season will begin with the 1,000 Miles of Sebring on March 18 as the FIA WEC returns to its doubleheader weekend with IMSA, which runs the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring the following day. Other circuits for the WEC Corvette Racing effort in 2022 include Monza, Fuji and Bahrain, plus a return to Spa-Francorchamps. The focal point, as is the case each season, will be the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Corvette Racing aims to gain invitations for two Corvette C8.Rs as the program goes for a ninth class victory since 2001. Sims will reunite with Milner and Tandy at Le Mans, with the Garcia/Taylor/Catsburg trio eyeing a Le Mans return, as well. But the really big news from Corvette Racing? The 2024 season will mark the debut of the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R racer, marking the first time Chevrolet will be offering a turn-key, customer-focused racing Corvette for competition in a wide variety of GT3 championships. “It’s an exciting time for Corvette – first with the reveal of the production Z06 and now confirming the Corvette Z06 GT3.R for customer racers,” said Mark Stielow, Chevrolet Director of Motorsports Competition Engineering. “The availability of the Z06 GT3.R will allow customer race teams the opportunity to campaign a Corvette that has benefited from Corvette Racing’s rich history.” The introduction of the Z06 GT3.R will mean privateers can compete in both endurance and sprint races across multiple series. Additional details such as pricing and support package options will be confirmed at a later date. More information is available at Chevrolet Motorsports.
(BMW images)
BMW M Motorsport has announced that BMW Team RLL, who has been celebrating successes with BMW M Motorsport since 2009, will compete with two LMDh prototypes as of 2023. An initial sketch of the car (above), which will be called BMW M LMDh, was revealed during the Petit Le Mans weekend at Road Atlanta. Alongside the LMDh test program, BMW Team RLL will field two BMW M4 GT3s in the new GTD Pro category in the 2022 IMSA season (below). BMW Team RLL has been contesting the GT category of the IMSA and its predecessor series in BMW racing cars since 2009. This partnership’s biggest successes have been the GTLM wins with the BMW M8 GTE at the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2019 and 2020, the GTLM title wins in the driver, team and manufacturer standings of the 2020 Michelin Endurance Cup, and a total of five GT titles with the BMW M3 GT in the 2010 and 2011 seasons of the American Le Mans Series. Bobby Rahal’s team also enjoys success in the North American IndyCar Series. The team has won the legendary Indy 500 twice, most recently in 2020. Alongside the intensive testing with the BMW M LMDh, BMW Team RLL will contest the 2022 IMSA season starting with two BMW M4 GT3s in the newly established GTD Pro category in the first races. “For me personally and professionally this is a dream come true,” said Rahal. “Now to first run a brand-new car like the BMW M4 GT3 and after that make the next step with BMW Team RLL to race for overall wins in the LMDh class is a direction we definitely wanted to go. I’m so pleased, so proud, so thankful that we’ll be able to do it together with BMW M Motorsport.”
(Toyota)
Toyota has unveiled its new race car for the 2022 NHRA season in Funny Car competition. Toyota will campaign the GR Supra for the first time beginning with the season kickoff event in Pomona in February. Toyota has competed with the Camry in Funny Car competition dating back to 2012. Prior to the Camry, the Toyota Celica and Toyota Solara were run. In addition to the augmented styling characteristics of the new GR Supra Funny Car, safety enhancements have also been made during the development of the new car. These include giving the driver more visibility while sitting behind the wheel and adding more room around their helmets along with additional safety foam in the driver’s cockpit of the GR Supra. TRD worked closely with Toyota Champion Funny Car driver, J.R. Todd, on many of the safety enhancements during the nearly two-year development process. “It’s been a really unique experience getting to work with the engineers at TRD on the new GR Supra Funny Car,” said Kalitta Motorsports Funny Car driver J.R. Todd. “To be a part of the work to try to make these cars as safe as possible for us as drivers means a lot to me. We all worked together on some of the issues we’ve faced for some time including visibility. That said, I’ve had some big moments in my DHL Toyota Camry including my first U.S. Nationals win and championship. Toyota’s support of NHRA, Kalitta Motorsports and myself specifically means a ton, and I hope we can deliver even more success to them with this new GR Supra.” Toyota is celebrating its 20th season in NHRA this year. Toyota drivers have won 137 Top Fuel and 43 Funny Car races, along with six Top Fuel and three Funny Car championships during its tenure in the series.