joey barnes Tag

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief It has been confirmed by McLaren that engine supplier Honda will bring in a redesigned power unit for the 2017 Formula 1 season. The Japanese manufacturer returned to the sport in 2015, scoring a woeful 27 points as McLaren-Honda only managed to finish ninth in the constructors’ standings. However, 2016 saw a dramatic improvement as the Woking-based team scored 76 points and finished sixth in the constructors’ standings with Fernando Alonso finishing fifth on two occasions (Canadian Grand Prix, U.S. Grand Prix). The team’s technical director,Read More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief It has been announced that Garth Rickards will join Carlin for the 2017 Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires season. The 24-year-old American competed in USF2000 the past two seasons, competing in 2015 with Team Pelfrey before switching to Pabst Racing for 2016 and going on to capture a podium at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The jump up to Indy Lights means that Rickards will skip the Pro Mazda Championship – the second step on the Mazda Road to Indy ladder. “To say I am excitedRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief The dominoes continue to fall as now Renault have confirmed the launch date for their 2017 Formula 1 machine for February 21. In what feels like a contest of ‘who can show it off first,’ the French manufacturer’s date is three days ahead of Ferrari, two ahead of Mercedes and one ahead of Force India. The team, which returned to F1 last season after taking over the Lotus F1 Team, finished 2016 with nine points en route to ninth in the constructors’ standings. The 2017 lineupRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Force India officially confirmed that it will reveal their car for the 2017 Formula 1 season at Silverstone on February 22. The team enjoyed its best season to date with a fourth-place finish in the Constructors’ Championship, led by a pair of podiums from Sergio Perez and a best finish of fourth by Nico Hulkenberg  – both of whom finished among the top 10 in the driver’ standings. Hulkenberg has since moved on to Renault and Esteban Ocon will now drive the upcoming VJM10 alongside PerezRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Mercedes will officially launch the W08 Hybrid, their 2017 Formula 1 car, on February 23 at Silverstone. The reigning Constructors’ Champions unveiling comes a day prior to rival Ferrari running their new car for the first time at Fiorano. The overhaul of technical regulations will put a greater emphasis on the shakedown process for the teams when they go to Barcelona on February 27. The German squad will use the revealing for a filming day while at the British-based circuit. The team has yet to nameRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Roughly three months away from the start of the 2017 Formula 1 season and there is still just as much unrest as there was when Nico Rosberg announced his retirement just days after winning the championship in Abu Dhabi in late November. But uncertainty is a good thing. Now, it appears that longtime Williams driver Valtteri Bottas will finally get his shot with a top team as Rosberg’s replacement (although nothing has officially been confirmed). A variety of rule changes still have the teams looking atRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief A return to Manor was in the mix for Rio Haryanto, but recent events have put a major hit on a chance for a race seat for the 2017 Formula 1 season. The 23-year-old Indonesian’s main backer Pertamina, a state-owned oil and natural gas corporation, has decided to pull its sponsorship, leaving the country’s first F1 competitor without substantial funding for next season. “This year there will not be a continuation of participation by Pertamina in F1,” spokeswoman Wianda Pusponegoro said in a statement. “Of courseRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Toro Rosso is looking to rebrand its Renault power unit for the upcoming 2017 Formula 1 season. The Italian-based squad is moving from Ferrari as its main supplier to the French manufacturer next season in an effort to be as similar to its senior team – Red Bull Racing, whom reached an agreement with Renault for 2016 to re-badge the power units under the TAG Heuer name. Franz Tost, team principal for Toro Rosso, recently told Gazzetto dello Sport that his team aims to follow theRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Juncos Racing announced that it will bring back Kyle Kaiser for a second Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires campaign in 2017. The 20-year-old joined the team for the 2014 Pro Mazda Championship, finishing sixth in the standings before moving up to Indy Lights in 2015. He enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2016, finishing third in this year’s championship behind Ed Jones and Santiago Urrutia. The Californian becomes an immediate favorite for the title after scoring two wins, three poles and nine podiums. The chance toRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief The FIA have unveiled their provisional list of entries for the 2017 Formula 1 season, with four seats currently vacant. Despite several entries being set several weeks ago, the recent retirement of World Champion Nico Rosberg has Mercedes scrambling to fill the seat, while both seats at Manor remain empty along with one at Sauber. Although Toro Rosso will move away from Ferrari power next season, it isn’t known yet which label they  will give the Renault powerunits – likely copying that of its senior team,Read More