Headline News Category

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Mercedes announced Monday that Formula 1 champion Nico Rosberg has accepted an ambassador role with the team. Rosberg, 31, retired just days after capturing his first F1 title in a thriller at Yas Marina Circuit in November. The news comes on the same day that the team confirmed Valtteri Bottas as his replacement alongside Lewis Hamilton, moving over from Williams. The German has made no plans to compete in any form of racing in 2017, but the team confirmed the role and stated that his firstRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief McLaren has set the launch date for its 2017 Formula 1 machine for February 24, three days prior to pre-season testing at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain. The Woking-based team made the announcement via Twitter and becomes the fifth team to confirm its launch plans. Honda, the teams engine supplier, has already announced plans to introduce an almost entirely designed power unit, which is rumored to be similar to Mercedes in that it could feature a split turbo with a connecting shaft going through the engineRead More

By Toby Christie, NASCAR Editor After an explosive 2016 campaign, which saw Martin Truex Jr. collect four victories, lead 1,809 laps and cement himself as a formidable championship contender, the Mayetta, New Jersey native is being rewarded with more sponsorship backing. Auto-Owners Insurance, which adorned the hood of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing machine for three races in 2016, will double that commitment for the next two years according to a press release from the race team. “Teaming up with Furniture Row Racing has been an outstanding fit forRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Sauber has announced that Pascal Wehrlein is set to drive alongside Marcus Ericcson for the 2017 Formula 1 season. Wehrlein is part of Mercedes junior program and had been one of the names in the mix for the seat at the Mercedes factory team that was recently vacated by recently-retired reigning world champion Nico Rosberg. However, the team opted to negotiate a deal with Williams to bring on Valtteri Bottas on a one-year flyer. The 22-year-old German marks the completion of every team on the gridRead More

By Seth Eggert, NASCAR Writer Recently, Shigeaki Hattori moved his Hattori Racing Enterprises team to a new race shop. When the move was announced, Hattori stated that his No. 81 Toyota Tundra would compete full-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. With the move from a shop next to Germain Racing Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series team to the shop that once housed Rusty Wallace Racing nearing completion, Hattori named the driver of his Toyota Tundra as Ryan Truex. Truex piloted the No. 81 Toyota Tundra in 15 racesRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter Verizon IndyCar Series team owner Bobby Rahal seems to like the potential of the series expanding internationally. The 1986 Indianapolis 500 and three-time Indy car champion turned team owner feels that going international would elevate IndyCar’s bottom line if the event well supported. He alluded to CART/Champ Car’s successful stint in Surfer’s Paradise Australia from 1991-2008 as an example of how a race was done right.  “We had tremendously successful races in Australia, Surfer’s Paradise became a huge event,” Rahal told Motorsports Tribune. “There’s aRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Williams officially announced Felipe Massa is re-joining the team for the 2017 Formula 1 season. The 35-year-Brazilian’s return means that he will team alongside incoming rookie driver Lance Stroll, with Valtteri Bottas released to join Mercedes – also on a one year deal. Massa announced his retirement from F1 at the end of the 2016, but the shocking retirement of reigning world champion Nico Rosberg just days after winning the title opened up negotiations between Mercedes and Williams in an attempt to bring on Bottas. WilliamsRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Mercedes has finally announced that Valtteri Bottas as its driver for the 2017 Formula 1 season alongside Lewis Hamilton. Bottas replaces reigning world champion Nico Rosberg, who announced his shocking retirement just days after winning the title in a thriller in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The 27-year-old Finn emerged as the favorite to replace Rosberg, but with a contract in place at Williams for 2017 it meant Mercedes had to negotiate a deal with the Grove-based outfit to release him for the upcoming season. ItRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Contributing Writer *Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for 24 drivers. We will release one driver preview per day over a 24-day stretch. Age: 39 Years in Cup: 15 Career Wins: 17 Biggest Accomplishment: 2008 Daytona 500 Champion 2016 was a surprisingly inconsistent season for one of NASCAR’s most consistent drivers, but the good news for Ryan Newman is that he’ll have a chance to return to form in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series with Richard Childress Racing (RCR)Read More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Contributor *Editor’s note: Motorsports Tribune will be previewing the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season for 24 drivers. We will release one driver preview per day over a 24-day stretch. Age: 35 Years in Cup: 11 Career Wins: One Biggest Accomplishment: First career Cup Series win (Watkins Glen – 2014) For A.J. Allmendinger, 2016 may not have provided a race win or a Chase berth, but the California native was still able to rebound from a down year in 2015 to make some noise in hisRead More