Issue 16

THE PIT STOP issue 16

q u a r t e r l y

m o t o r s p o r t

m a g a z i n e

IMAGE BY PHD PHOTO

CONTENTS

8 22 36 56 74 IN SHORT

FATHER AND SON EFFECT Examining how Simon Hill supports his son, Jake in the British Touring Car Championship

LEAVING WITHOUT SAYING GOODBYE Looking at how Sergio Perez could be leaving F1 without an appropriate send-off

THE NEARLY MAN We deep dive into Valtteri Bottas' career and how his F1 career ultimately came up slightly short of his ultimate potential

LEFT DESERVING MORE Ash Miller reviews the career of Michele Alboreto, and how bad luck stopped him from achieving more

CEMENTING GREATNESS Examining how Mika Hakkinen cemented his status as one of F1's greatest drivers in 1999

IS A NEW MOTOGP RIVALRY ON THE HORIZON?

GONE BEFORE IT STARTED Ash Miller argues that Lamborghini has bailed on its WEC efforts too soon

THE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN TWO SEASONS Hamir Thapir compares the 2024 F1 season with an equally competitive 1983

TRACKSIDE FOCUS Taking a look at the motorsport photography workshops offered by Trackside Focus

THE SOLUS J.R Hildebrand explains what it was like getting behind the wheel of the McLaren Solus GT

WHY FOURMAUX'S SWITCH TO HYUNDAI IS RISKY

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MCLAREN TROPHY GOES TO THE WIRE THE PIT STOP 5

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THE ULTIMATE DUO

ust like that, we’re at the end of 2024. What a fantastic year it’s been. So much has happened throughout the last 12 months, especially from a motorsport perspective and for the magazine itself.

It’s hard to believe that The Pit Stop began four years ago. In many ways, Issue 1 feels like yesterday, but also a lifetime ago, and throughout the 16 issues we’ve now published, we’ve covered a wide variety of stories from a mind-boggling number of championships.

But of all of the stories we’ve published, one of my personal favourites lies within the pages of this issue, and is the first story you will read.

Those familiar with Simon Hill will know that he’s been present in the world of motorsport for a long time. He started out racing before transitioning to media-related roles within the industry, and once his son, Jake got behind the wheel, he threw his whole weight behind him, to help make sure Jake’s career became a success.

And it has. As you’ll read in more detail shortly, Jake has gone on to become one of the UK’s greatest touring car drivers, and having had the privilege of previously interviewing Jake myself, I can confirm that he is the ultimate professional. He’s honest, articulate and incredibly intelligent outside of the car as well as inside it.

But when in the British Touring Car Championship paddock, you very quickly become aware that Jake isn’t riding his solo. His Dad is very much part of the picture.

‘Dad and lad’ racing stories aren’t uncommon in motorsport, but few evolve into the type of partnership Simon and Jake now have. But the one thing that shines through when talking to Simon is the amount of pride he has for his children.

I interviewed him while at Goodwood Festival of Speed, and he literally could not wipe the grin off his face, knowing that Jake would be driving a Shadow CanAm car up the famous hillclimb. He was simply over the moon that his son would be driving such an iconic car.

And he’s quick not to single Jake out either. Throughout the interview, he also mentioned just how much pride he also has for his daughter.

To be honest, I don’t think it would really matter what either of his children decided to do, he’d still have the same approach as he does with Jake’s motorsport career. Fully devoted, completely passionate about what they’re doing, but all the while knowing when to sit in the background.

When chatting to Simon about what it’s like watching Jake racing, especially when he attends events like Goodwood, he said: “I’m just Dad standing at the back, just being proud and enjoying it”.

What Simon said actually does him a disservice. He doesn’t often just stand at the back. He might on noncompetitive weekends, but when it comes to BTCC, he’s fully involved but in a way that doesn’t hinder Jake. If anything it makes his life easier so he can focus on his job at hand.

But while his roles might change depending on the scenario and circumstances, there’s one thing that always remains the same: the passion and pride he has when watching his son do something he loves.

That’s the difference, that’s what stands out, and it’s fantastic to see.

Rob Hansford Editor

EDITORIAL Editor Rob Hansford Contributors Ash Miller, J.R. Hildebrand, Ian Page, Hamir Thapir, Tom Baker, Adam Proud Photography Contributors PHD Photo, Ed Waplington, Grand Prix Photo, Matt Widdowson THANKS TO Peter Nygaard, Roger Ormisher, Kevin Ritson, Goodwood Estate, Tom Baker, Ed Waplington, Adam Proud, Greg Childs, J.R Hildebrand, Bruno Senna, McLaren Automotive

COMMERCIAL ENQUIRIES Enquiries commercialenquiries@thepitstopmagazine.com 6 | THE PIT STOP

IMAGE BY ED WAPLINGTON

FATHER AND SON EFFECT WORDS BY ROB HANSFORD IMAGES BY ED WAPLINGTON

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istorically, when racing drivers start out in their career, it usually begins with a member of their family, often their father. It’s not uncommon especially in lower levels of racing - to see racing drivers turning up at racetracks with their dads standing

firmly by their side.

But as those drivers get older and mature, a father’s presence usually begins to dwindle, with them attending races only for the bigger events. Look down a Formula 1 paddock for example. Yes, you might see parents of a driver every so often (excluding Lance Stroll, whose father owns the F1 team he races for) but you don’t usually see them present in the paddock

SIMON HILL IN THE PIT GARAGE WATCHING SON JAKE ON TRACK

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week in, week out.

That’s predominantly because as drivers become more successful, they usually take on a manager to help coordinate their racing career. But there are notable exceptions of course, and one of the biggest exceptions of all will be found in the British Touring Car Championship paddock - Simon Hill.

Hill is no stranger to the intricacies of motorsport, having been directly involved in the industry for many years. He was a racer himself, having previously competed in national and club categories including Formula Ford and Formula Renault. He has also been involved in the media aspect of the industry, having commentated on various race events since 2003, while also having been an instructor at Brands Hatch’s racing

school from 1990 to 2001.

It’s fair to say then that Hill knows the world of motorsport pretty well, but when his son and now British Touring Car Championship driver Jake decided to go racing, it changed Hill’s position dramatically. It was no longer about his own involvement and success in the industry, it was about making his son’s career as successful as it can possibly be.

Some people wouldn’t gain as much satisfaction standing on the sidelines, instead wishing they were the ones behind the wheel making the magic happen.

But with Hill, that’s clearly not the case. You only need to see him in the paddock at the weekend, with a huge smile beaming across his face as he watches Jake tackle the BTCC’s finest at the very front of the field,

to know how much he loves being in the garage. And Hill himself admits that he gets more satisfaction out of watching Jake race than he ever did racing himself.

“More in fact, much more,” was Hill’s response when The Pit Stop asked him that very question. “For two reasons. One is he’s infinitely more skillful than I ever was and two is because the things he’s racing are so unbelievably cool.”

The second aspect of Hill’s response there is an interesting element. Jake is well known for being one of the most talented BTCC drivers on the grid, racing a West Surrey prepared BMW 3 Series, with backing from Mark Blundell Motorsport. He’s no slouch either. In 254 race starts he’s reached the podium on 54 occasions, and has won 18 races. And since 2022 he’s consistently

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JAKE HILL RACING THE LASER TOOLS BMW AT BRANDS HATCH

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been in the hunt for the overall championship win.

But the BTCC isn’t the only racing Hill undertakes.

He is also a lover of historic racing, and is often seen at various events getting behind the wheel of older machines, including Ford Capris and Nissan Skylines, and on occasion, more unusual machines.

When talking about what it’s like to support Jake as his father, Hill was stood in the paddock at Goodwood as Jake was getting ready to drive a monster of a machine - a CanAm Shadow. And as he explains, it’s seeing Jake getting so much pleasure out of driving a variety of different cars, doing something he loves that makes Hill so happy.

“Just this in itself - this Shadow I’m looking at behind us - this 1970 car is about the most unbelievably bonkers thing that you’ve ever seen,” explained Hill.

“But I look at it from the point of view that maybe when I was his age, and racing currently, I would have liked to have done it. I wouldn’t now, no chance! I probably wouldn’t get in it for starters. But the point is, I get so much pleasure from watching him just go and enjoy himself.

“I’m just Dad standing at the back, just being proud and enjoying it, and being that enthusiast.

“I think we’re all the same. We all love motorsport and we love seeing these unbelievably cool cars. But to see him doing it and doing well at it, it fills me with a

huge amount of pride.”

When at historic meetings, and events like Goodwood Members’ Meeting and Goodwood Festival of Speed, it’s easy for Hill to enjoy the moment, watching his son get behind the wheel of some of the world’s most iconic machines.

But when Jake is back tackling his day job the atmosphere is naturally very different. At the end of the day, Jake wants to be a BTCC champion. He’s come close in recent years, but he’s yet to achieve the dream, although it very much is a realistic opportunity.

As a result, there’s a huge amount of pressure resting upon Jake’s shoulders. It means BTCC race weekends become about hard work and focus. That doesn’t mean there’s any less fun involved - if the enjoyment wasn’t there, Jake would not be as successful as he’s become.

But it’s enjoyment and satisfaction in a different way.

As a parent watching your child go through those intense levels of pressure can be hard. It’s not easy to be sat on the sidelines knowing that there’s nothing you can really do to make that pressure disappear, no matter how much you want to be able to.

Having been a racer himself, Hill understands more than most what his son is going through, but rather than getting in the way, trying to help in a manner that doesn’t have any real purpose, Hill has established a role that enables Jake to simply focus on what he needs

HILL DROVE A SHADOW AT GOODWOOD IN 2024 14 | THE PIT STOP

HILL AFTER WINNING THE 2024 BTCC CHAMPIONSHIP

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to - winning on the track.

“I think when he’s racing in touring cars, there’s obviously a lot at stake there”, said Hill. “In terms of he’s representing BMW, he’s got some major partners, when you look at MB, as in Mark Blundell who is obviously the team and the manager that he’s got, and some big partners that he’s got personally and professionally.

“So at a touring car meeting, my role is much more to look after some of those partners, to show people around the car and do garage tours and pit walks and all that kind of stuff. So I’m much more invested in it almost as a team member there, rather than here (Goodwood Festival of Speed), just as Dad coming to watch it like you are watching it and enjoying it as a fan. So the pressure is more that we know that the results are super important in that. If he goes up the [Goodwood Festival of Speed] hill in the Skyline and wins his class - great. If he doesn’t, it’s a shame, but it’s not the end of the world.

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“So the pressure at a touring car meeting is definitely there for everybody involved because we’ve all got the same objective, which is to try and obviously do as well as you can, and ultimately try and challenge for the championship.”

The way Hill has positioned himself alongside Jake has to be fully commended and applauded. He’s heavily involved in his son’s career without being overbearing or being too hands on. It can be all too easy for parents to get over-invested and almost take over their child’s career. It’s something you see all the time, mainly because those parents are pursuing their own dreams through their children.

But in this case, it’s different. Hill knows where the line is, respects it, but does everything he can up to it to ensure Jake is well supported and that his level of pressure is as low as it can possibly be on any given race weekend.

That’s no easy feat to achieve but both father and son have definitely hit the right balance, and the results

SIMON HILL AND MARK BLUNDELL AFTER JAKE HILL WON THE 2024 BTCC TITLE

show. Look up and down the BTCC grid and Jake Hill and MB Motorsport definitely come across as one of, if not the most professional team in the paddock. And it’s not all show without substance.

Jake may have missed out on the BTCC title over the last few years, but on both occasions he has finished third, just behind champions Ash Sutton and Tom Ingram. But in 2024, he made all of his hard work count, beating Ingram to win the championship by just eight points.

The result was huge, and as you might expect, the emotions hit Jake hard as he crossed the line in the final race of the season.

“2024 BTCC champion sounds amazing,” said Hill. “It just hasn’t sunk in yet, it’s everything I’ve ever wanted and more. I’m overwhelmed, the support has been incredible, I’m speechless.

“The emotions started to hit me as I made my way to the last corner at Clearways, I was getting a bit teary

eyed there – we just brought it home. As we crossed the line it was just an amazing experience.

"We’ve had a great race and an amazing weekend, and it happened when I needed it most. It’s made everything worth it; it has been such a fight the last 15 years to even stay on the grid and now we’ve made it happen!”

And for Jake’s father, well you can only imagine how big a smile he had.

He’s never been afraid of telling people about how proud he is of Jake’s achievements, and it never comes across that it’s a way for Hill to take credit for success himself either. It’s always about his son.

Often, a father/child partnership in racing often peters out over time, and that usually only helps the child go on to become even more successful. But this is one of the rare occasions where the partnership seems to be all the better for it, and long may it continue!

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IMAGE BY ED WAPLINGTON

RAINY DAY IT WAS A WET DAY AT SILVERSTONE BUT IT DOESN'T MAKE THIS MERCEDES AMG F1 CAR LOOK ANY LESS PRETTY. IF ANYTHING, IT JUST ADDS TO THE DRAMA.

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LEAVING SAYING WORDS BY ROB HANSFORD IMAGES BY RED BULL CONTENT POOL 22 | THE PIT STOP

WITHOUT GOODBYE THE PIT STOP | 23

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he 2024 Formula 1 season has come to an end, and for several drivers it has been their last - either within F1 entirely, or with the current team. But there’s one driver who has a contract in place to drive next year, that could yet find himself looking for a job before next season even begins.

It’s fair to say Sergio Perez has had a difficult few months of late. Although his start to the 2024 F1 season began well, with two second place finishes for Red Bull in the opening two races of the year, after the Miami

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Grand Prix, Perez’s championship began to unravel.

In the first six races of the year Perez was on the podium four times. But since then, he’s not finished in the top three at all. In fact, he never even made it into the top five, with his best result since Miami being at the Dutch Grand Prix, where he finished sixth.

By the time the summer break came around there were already questions looming about whether Red Bull were prepared to accept Perez’s form or whether they were going to replace him with someone else.

Daniel Ricciardo was one driver that entered the frame to replace Perez, but Red Bull decided to take a

different approach to the situation. Instead of trying to beat Perez with a stick, it tried to give him a show of support, believing relieving some pressure might help his performances. As a result, during the summer break Red Bull gave Perez a two-year contract extension.

Unfortunately, the contract extension didn’t improve the situation at all, and so it meant that going into the final grand prix of the season, there were many people expecting that it could be the last time we see Perez racing in F1.

Red Bull hasn’t exactly hidden the fact it's been considering other drivers to race alongside Max

Verstappen in 2025 either.

Ahead of the United States Grand Prix, Daniel Ricciardo lost his drive at RB and was replaced by Liam Lawson for the remainder of the season. This was done so Red Bull could evaluate what his speed is actually like in an F1 car and whether he has what it takes to drive in the senior team.

There was a view that Lawson and Tsunoda were essentially in a shoot-out for Perez’s seat, although Williams’ Franco Colapinto also came into the frame late on into the year.

Colapinto and Tsunoda appear to have been ruled

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PEREZ AT THE MIAMI GRAND PRIX

out though, and given how the remainder of the season has unfolded, you’d suspect that if Perez does go, Lawson will be the one taking the Mexican driver’s seat Red Bull.

Up until the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Perez has always maintained that he has a contract for 2025. But speaking after the grand prix - a race in which he failed to finish, having been involved in a collision with the

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Haas on the opening lap - Perez admitted for the first time that contract termination talks were taking place between him and his employer.

“We are talking,” Perez said to digital media outlet, The Race.

“We try to see what's best moving forwards, and we'll see what happens in the coming days.”

“We will discuss the situation for both parties and

see if we are able to reach an agreement. If not, like I say I’ve got a contract for next year.”

While not stating anything outright, it sounds as though Perez will only leave if Red Bull pays him a hefty compensation package, and with Perez holding a decent set of cards, he knows he’s in a position where he could be able to leverage a decent payment.

Some might argue that Perez should cut his losses,

avoid any further embarrassment and walk away with some dignity still intact, but there’s also an argument for saying ‘why should he?’

Results might not be going Perez’s way, but it’s clear that he still loves to race and isn’t ready to retire from F1. And so knowing that it’s unlikely he’s going to get a drive anywhere else for the foreseeable future, he wants to protect his own position as much as possible if he’s

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PEREZ ON THE PODIUM FOR SAUBER AT THE 2012 MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX

not going to be racing. That’s totally understandable.

But the saddest part about the whole situation is that if Perez doesn't return next year, he won’t have been given a send off that he really deserves.

Perez might not have been in his best form in 2024, but over the course of his career he has been a great driver that has provided F1 with plenty of excitement.

Making his debut in 2011, Perez quickly proved he had real potential, often extracting performance out of his Sauber that people thought was not possible in his first few seasons.

He had a knack of being able to look after his tyres in a way nobody else seemed to be able to, and in his second F1 season he picked up three podium results, two of which were second places.

Perez’s stand out performance during that period was the 2012 Malaysian Grand Prix.

In the latter stages on a drying track, Perez was flying in his Sauber and was quickly hunting down the Ferrari of Fernando Alonso. It looked like a first F1 victory could be his, and likely would have been until he took too much kerb at Turn 14 and had a slight off. That cost Perez five seconds, but he still hung on to second,

finishing just 2.2623 seconds behind the Ferrari at the end of the race.

His opportunity to race towards the front with McLaren arguably came slightly too soon in his career, and he always seemed a step behind then team-mate Jenson Button.

Once at Force India which became Racing Point, Perez quickly rebuilt his reputation though, and was often a driver you could rely on to score points on almost every weekend. The only thing missing from Perez’s CV at that point was a victory.

It did come though, on his very last race for Force India at Bahrain in 2020. That season was arguably one of Perez’s best and everyone was fully aware that he was a driver that was too good to lose from the championship, with his seat going to Sebastian Vettel, who was joining the team once it was rebranded to Aston Martin for 2021.

That’s how Perez ended up at Red Bull. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was aware that F1 was about to lose one of its strongest drivers at that time, and with Alex Albon not performing brilliantly

HE HAD A KNACK OF BEING ABLE TO LOOK AFTER THIS TYRES IN A WAY NOBODY ELSE SEEMED TO BE ABLE TO

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alongside Verstappen, the decision was made to drop Albon back to reserve driver duties and bring Perez in.

For the next two seasons, the podiums flowed in.

He might not have been able to consistently match team-mate Verstappen, but he was able to regularly get his car onto the podium, finishing third in the driver’s championship in 2022 and second in 2023 when Red Bull had a clear advantage over its rivals.

He’s achieved some great things in F1, and that’s why it's a huge shame that those achievements could not be celebrated in Abu Dhabi if it was in fact his final race in F1.

Just look at Valtteri Bottas as an example. He too hasn’t had the greatest of seasons, but Sauber gave him a fitting send off with a guard of honour before the race began, and there were several tributes about the positive impact on the championship he’s made during his career.

Perez should be someone that deserves the same treatment. He might not have been a world champion, but he’s still been a great F1 driver and had a career that’s spanned 15 years. Not many drivers ever remain in the championship that long.

To put it simply, he deserves better. Red Bull has had plenty of time to decide what it wants to do with Perez for next year, and if it doesn’t want him in the team for 2025, it should have made the necessary steps to ensure that everyone knew where they stood before the

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

That would have enabled Perez to have had a fitting send-off before disappearing into retirement, and it would have been a far better way for him to bow out rather than his career fizzling away in the winter in a rather messy divorce.

Of course, the decision making process highlighted above has perhaps been over-simplified, and yes, Perez perhaps isn’t making Red Bull’s life overly easy when it comes to a severance package and is therefore maybe not helping himself out in some ways.

But it just feels wrong that Perez’s career could finish behind closed doors without anyone being able to give him a proper goodbye.

If this situation could end with Perez joining a different team then of course it’s completely different.

But that’s not the case here. If he’s not racing with Red Bull in 2025, he’s not racing with anyone, and it’s very likely that he’ll end up retiring from F1 for good.

That’s why it’s such a shame that events are unfolding in the way they are. The only hope now is that if Red Bull does want Perez gone, it finds a way to resolve the matter amicably and swiftly. Because if this drags out well into the winter, it’s going to make matters a hell of a lot worse. And that won’t look good on anyone.

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IMAGE BY MATT WIDDOWSON

CENTURY THE CENTURY MOTORSPORT BMW TACKLING THE BRITISH GT IN 2023. IT WAS SO GOOD THAT IT WON THAT YEAR'S CHAMPIONSHIP.

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the NEARLY man WORDS BY IAN PAGE IMAGES BY SAUBER / MERCEDES

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E

very sport has a nearly man. Someone who was “there or thereabouts”, and under the right circumstances could have achieved greatness and a whole lot more.

Sports people who are clearly the real deal and are by no means “also rans”.

Tennis had Andy Murray, who despite an incredible career, could have really reached the heady heights if it wasn’t for the dominance of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

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Golf had Tiger Woods, dominating the late nineties to early noughties, extinguishing the competition.

Football had Manchester United in the ’90s.

Once-in-a-generation players and competitors whose exceptional and almost superhuman abilities in their chosen fields make those around them disappear into the back pages of the history book. I could go on.

The same could be said for Valtteri Bottas. The hugely likeable Finn now finds himself without a seat in Formula 1 and staring down the barrel of pastures

new, having once been considered a championship contender. Having finished runner-up in both 2019 and 2020 for Mercedes, Bottas has notched up 10 race wins, 67 podiums, 20 pole positions, 19 fastest laps and scored an impressive 1797 career points since he made his debut in the sport over a decade ago.

Showing an early interest in motorsports, Bottas’ journey began in karting, where he quickly made a name for himself with numerous victories and championships, setting the stage for his future in

racing. A transition to single-seaters was on the cards in 2007 competing in the Formula Renault 2.0 NEC and Eurocup, where he continued to impress.

It was his success in Formula 3 and his championship win in the 2011 GP3 Series which highlighted his potential and he began to catch the attention of F1 teams, joining Williams as a test driver in 2010 and was then promoted to a race seat in 2013. His time at Williams showcased his talent and having struck up a great partnership with Brazilian Filipe Massa, he helped

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revive the ailing Williams team. He made the leap to title contender with a move to in form Mercedes in 2017, replacing the retiring Nico Rosberg.

These stats show he’s no push over, there would be lots of drivers out there that would have gladly traded places for those numbers… But much like those names above, the Nastola-born driver struggled for real dominance and despite driving for the in-form team at the time, multiple driver championships passed him by.

Why was this? Was he the victim of bad luck, was he just not physically fit enough to cope with the demands of being at the sharp end of the grid, did personal lives get in the way? You could argue yes to all of these, but it really came down to two words: Lewis Hamilton.

The Mercedes-era of Hamilton’s career was nothing short of crushing. Much like the Schumacher/Ferrari partnership in the 2000s, it was unrivalled, snuffing out the competition with the most brutal of margins.

At that time in history there were talents like David Coulthard, Kimi Raikkonen, Juan Pablo Montoya, and in particular Rubens Barrichello. And yet, they all fell short because of Schumacher’s brilliance and the partnership with his team. Direct comparison can be drawn with Schumacher’s Ferrari team-mate Barrichello,

for whom had to settle quite publicly for number two status and, in all honesty, would have achieved far more if it wasn’t for the circumstances he found himself in.

We all remember Austria 2002 when the Brazilian was asked to handover the race win to his team-mate.

Such was the sheer natural talent of Hamilton that Bottas had to go the extra mile. He focused on personal development, including physical fitness and mental strength, in order to have the right tools to take the fight to his team-mate. Despite this, Hamilton continued to dominate and although he was starting to get race wins under his belt, the second driver position beckoned.

The Mercedes/Hamilton partnership was in full bloom, and it could be argued that Bottas’ progress was hampered by a team that was built around his star team-mate. Of course, when Bottas made the step up from Williams, it was a significant career step, providing him with a competitive car and a team with the cash to back that up. But running at the sharp end of the sport has its challenges and with the Brackley-based squad moulding itself around Hamilton, it left Bottas trying to fight his fight with one hand behind his back.

DIRECT COMPARISON CAN BE DRAWN WITH SCHUMACHER'S FERRARI TEAM-MATE BARRICHELLO

VALTTERI BOTTAS AND LEWIS HAMILTON WHILE AT MERCEDES

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BOTTAS ON THE PODIUM AT THE 2021 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX

Second to upgrades, second to team orders, second to the endless resources that the team had to help their drivers score points and win races. It must have been hard mentally. I’m sure we can all think of times in our lives, in our work, in our relationships with siblings, where despite how hard we push our own achievements, we are always second to the table. It took a toll on Bottas’ personal life, culminating in a divorce from his wife citing the "challenges my career and life situation bring”. This is something the man he replaced - Nico Rosberg - would sympathise with. The mental and physical fatigue he went through on his quest to beat Hamilton fair and square influenced his decision to retire and spend more time with his wife and children, having reached the top albeit for one season.

For the next five seasons, Bottas clocked in and clocked out, playing his supporting role with aplomb.

Answering his critics with multiple race wins across those five years, most notably the 2019 Australian Grand Prix when an intentionally barbed radio message was broadcast, not so politely telling said critics where to go. It is without a doubt that Mercedes have Bottas to thank for those five constructors’ championships: without the Finn playing the team game and taking podium places whilst keeping the rest of the grid at bay, it could have been a much closer game during

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those years…

However, the measure of a sportsperson can be determined by how they react to the situations they find themselves in. Bottas’ career can be determined by his compliance to play the team game just as much as it can be by being outshone by Hamilton.

Consistent in his driving, he became a championship contender’s dream team-mate, putting in shift after shift allowing his superstar team-mate to flourish. Much like Mercedes, Hamilton has a lot to owe Bottas for his championships.

Despite both team and driver owing a lot of their successes to a very competent number two, it was a Mercedes career which never seemed to quite take off and Bottas failed to mount any sort of realistic championship challenge - certainly not in the same way his predecessor did in 2014 or 2016 - and 2021 proved to be his last season with the Brackley-based outfit.

Whether it was something Bottas genuinely wanted, only he will know, but it seemed the right move, with Bottas unsure about only being given one-year deals and George Russell waiting in the wings. Having been part of the Mercedes wider team since 2017, Russell made his debut in F1 with Williams and showed great potential. He deputised for Lewis in the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, and was desperately unlucky not to win

BOTTAS AT THE 2020 AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

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BOTTAS AT THE MEXICAN GRAND PRIX

it, having got a puncture on the lap 64. Russell then made the leap up to become a full-time Mercedes driver for the 2022 season.

For the ever-gracious Bottas, it seemed like a natural move. “Obviously, it was very natural to get George in the car, because he's been kind of part of the team for a long time," Bottas explained back at the start of 2022. "It's a new generation, and that's also how the sport is evolving. Mercedes, they've had this Young Driver Programme, and George has been in that for a long time. And for them to waste that opportunity, in case he obviously still develops further and becomes more experienced, and even quicker, they didn't want to miss the opportunity.”

This paved the way for Bottas to move to Alfa Romeo, a rebranded Sauber with actually little to no real technical involvement from the Italian car manufacturer and relying on Ferrari power. The backmarker hoped its new acquisition would bring experience and expertise to the team. His arrival, despite being an obvious “step back” in overall career terms, proved successful and he made a significant impact to the team.

The then-boss of Alfa Romeo was Fred Vasseur with whom Bottas had worked with during his F3 and GP3 days. Ultimately the old boss was very persuasive. The

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move allowed Bottas to take on a senior leadership role, one he was clearly never going to get at Mercedes, partnering with rookie Zhou Guanyu. His experience and guidance proved crucial for not only Guanyu’s development but the team's development as a whole.

Scoring points consistently, once again his reliability helped the team achieve a significant improvement in the Constructors' Championship standings right from the get-go, and in the 2022 season helped the team achieve their highest Constructors’ placing, sixth.

It was clear that at Alfa Romeo Bottas wasn’t going to take race wins or championships, but it was clear the team valued him in a way that he wasn’t at Mercedes.

The team leaned on his feedback and expertise in a different way, and although not necessarily building a team around him as such, it felt like a trade-off of championships for great parity.

Away from the competitive glare of F1, Bottas seemed to have found his ‘happy place’. He seemed settled in his new role as an elder statesman and had found a balance with the demands of the sport and his personal life. Settled in a relationship with Australian cyclist Tiffany Cromwell, adopting her homeland as his own - and with the mullet and “tash” in tow - embracing his fellow adopted countrymen and continued to be a hugely popular and likeable driver

with both fans and his fellow competitors.

For the time being, all looked well. Alfa Romeo had undergone a couple of commercial partner rebrands, but Bottas’ role looked solid and still of real benefit, but a quiet life is never guaranteed in this sport and in 2022 Audi announced that they would be taking over from Alfa Romeo and entering into a strategic partnership with Sauber. The team rebranded once again to Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber for 2024 and 2025 before becoming Audi F1 for 2026.

With this, it was announced in April 2024 that Nico Hulkenberg would be driving for Sauber/Audi in 2025, with the German car manufacturer wanting a German driver on their books. The F1 rumour mill began as always and talk of who would take the remaining seat began. Surely Bottas would be safe? His record speaks for itself, he had been brought in to offload his expertise and insight, to help push the team on.

But at the age of 35, some would argue his best days are behind him. Why invest in something or someone that has diminishing returns? Surely, the future is with Guanyu, the young Chinese driver is still building his career with the team.

The young rookie has insisted over recent months that he remained in the running, but it was clear that

Bottas was a nose in front when it came to who was onboard going into 2025. The Finn remained optimistic that he would keep his place when he spoke of a potential contract extension and that something had been agreed upon.

However, that extension never materialised and instead discussions ended with a mutual agreement to separate as Sauber had elected to go with an all-new line-up in 2025 as rookie Gabriel Bortoleto will be joining Hulkenberg, a move which felt harsh to say the least.

Bortoleto had been on Sauber’s radar for some time, despite newly appointed Sauber boss Mattia Binotto admitting that Mick Schumacher was in the running.

This meant a straight shootout for the last available seat between Bottas and Bortoleto.

The choice would boil down to two things. Whether Sauber wanted to play it safe with experience as it builds on past successes and works towards becoming Audi in 2025 or go with a new name, bringing in youth and longevity.

Once Hulkenberg was signed, Audi began to hold out for Carlos Sainz, hoping it could tempt the Spaniard to join forces with his time at Ferrari coming to an end.

Sainz opted for Williams, but rather than turning to

BUT AT THE AGE OF 35, SOME WOULD ARGUE HIS BEST DAYS ARE BEHIND HIM

BOTTAS AT THE AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX

Bottas, Audi turned to Bortoleto.

To many it would seem the arrival of Bortoleto was the nail in coffin, but it was the signing of Hulkenberg that really spelled the end for the Finn.

Had Hulkenberg not switched across from Haas, Bottas could have been a good bet to remain alongside Bortoleto and provide guidance and expertise as he had done with Zhou.

All that became redundant with Hulkenberg’s arrival, and Sauber’s desire not to employ two elder statesmen who were quite similar in terms of skill set. Bottas had become a casualty of F1’s “generational shift” as teams opt for young inexperienced rookies above the more seasoned veterans.

And so, we come to the close of the 2024 season with one of the sport’s stalwarts bidding us farewell.

What next for Bottas?

It has been rumoured that his management team knew it was unlikely that the Finn would be getting

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the multi-year deal he wanted and have been working on a back-up plan as a reserve driver for Mercedes.

Someone with his experience could be of real value to the eight-time world champions as they find themselves sliding slightly down the pecking order.

In many ways it would be the perfect scenario, as it would keep Bottas visible in the paddock, and allowing him to stay sharp in the simulator and testing days, helping to increase the chances of a potential return in the future.

What about Indy Car, a series that has many a ex-F1 driver in the ranks? “I think it’s a great series,” Bottas said when asked the same question. “Good racing, I’ve heard the cars are quite fun to drive. Some of the events like the Indy500, it’s a huge event, apparently with great atmosphere. As a sporting event, it’s big.” I would say eventually, one day, there could be a chance I’ll give it a go. But for now, F1 remains the priority.”

Bottas would be a big asset for IndyCar, but for

2023'S CENTRAL FEATURE FOR THE FESTIVAL OF SPEED

the time being it appears F1 is very much the target, in whatever way it falls. He certainly has no shortage of activities to keep him occupied having recently completed his own Ironman competition in his home using his back garden pool, peloton bike, and treadmill, transforming his living space into an endurance-testing arena. The gruelling event included a 2. 4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a full marathon of 26.2 miles!

Whatever he chooses to do next, I’m sure he will be welcomed with open arms.

Valtteri Bottas, F1’s nearly man’s journey has been one of resilience, adaptability, and unwavering dedication. From his early days at Williams to his role as a key player in Mercedes' dominance and his leadership at Alfa Romeo and Sauber. Bottas has consistently demonstrated his value as a driver and team player, and while he may not have achieved the world championship that many believed he was capable of, Bottas' contribution to the sport cannot be understated.

As Bottas prepares to leave the grid, he leaves behind a legacy of professionalism, sportsmanship, and determination. His ability to thrive alongside one of the sport's greatest drivers in Lewis Hamilton, and his later success in rejuvenating Alfa Romeo and Sauber showcases his versatility and resilience.

Whatever path Bottas chooses next, be it as a reserve driver, exploring other racing series, or pursuing new challenges entirely, his impact on F1 will be remembered. His journey serves as a reminder that success in motorsport isn't always measured in championships, but in the respect earned, the teams improved, and the positive influence left on the sport.

As the F1 community bids farewell to one of its most likeable and respected figures, there's no doubt that Valtteri Bottas' story in motorsport is far from over. His determination, skill, and passion for racing suggest that wherever he goes next, success and admiration will surely follow.

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IMAGE BY PHD PHOTO

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN AYRTON SENNA MIGHT BE REMEMBERED DUE TO HIS F1 EXPLOITS, BUT THAT WASN'T THE ONLY CHAMPIONSHIP HE EXCELLED IN. HE FIRST MADE AN IMPRESSION IN FORMULA FORD, DRIVING THIS VAN DIEMEN.

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LEFT DESERVING MORE WORDS BY ASH MILLER IMAGES COURTESY OF GRAND PRIX PHOTO / ALAMY

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A

frantic flurry of black and white chequers paints the mid-November air, dancing aloft in the way only Glen Dix could orchestrate.

Famous for greeting the winner of the Adelaide Grand Prix since its inception 10 iterations previously, it falls this time across the giant ‘Red 5’ adorning the blue and white Rothmans Williams-livered nose of F1 titan Nigel Mansell. The jubilant crowd are further

ALBORETO IN THE MINARDI AT THE 1994 BRITISH GRAND PRIX

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whipped into a frenzy, having already witnessed the sight of team-mate Damon Hill famously clashing unceremoniously with the Benetton of German hotshoe Michael Schumacher to decide a first world title in the latter’s favour. The victory marked the return of Mansell to the top step of an Formula 1 podium for the first time since the Portuguese Grand Prix over two years previously.

With Ferrari’s Gerhard Berger and McLaren’s Martin Brundle following ‘Il Leone’ home to complete

the final podium of 1994, a collective sense of relief, delayed grief, and released tensions washed over the F1 paddock. A season marred by death, scandal, and politics, and still touted to this day as F1’s darkest, the culmination of the Adelaide Grand Prix was the full stop on arguably one of the most dramatic campaigns in motorsport history.

While Adelaide had been frequently privy to a large number of ‘firsts’, including first wins, grands prix and records for many, the 1994 edition was poignant in its’ lasts.

Despite raising the winner’s trophy aloft in South Australia, history will show it to be Nigel Mansell’s final grand prix victory - a statistic that rather cosily seats Mansell with the anorak-pleasing record of still being the last driver over the age of 40 to have won an F1 race. Turning wheels for the final time in F1, the eponymous Lotus Formula 1 team also faded out of grand prix racing - a double DNF for drivers Mika Salo and Alex Zanardi bringing to an end the lineage of one of the great innovators of motorsport. A veritable shopping list of drivers would also end their varying

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ALBORETO IN THE 1981 F2 CHAMPIONSHIP DRIVING FOR MINARDI

tenures in the sport as they left Adelaide. Some, like Hideki Noda and Paul Belmondo, had barely gotten a foothold on the record books before departing. Others would carry surnames such as Brabham, Fittipaldi and Lehto would fare similarly, and drop off the brutally fickle F1 radar.

However, among the global fanfare surrounding the controversial end of a titanic title fight and the

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return of many a fans’ hero to the top step, one little Italian climbed out of his broken Minardi-Ford almost unnoticed with just 12 laps remaining. With the removal of his signature blue and yellow helmet, he made his way back to the paddock anonymously for what would be the final time, in a way unbefitting of a man who less than a decade previous had been the heart and soul of Italian hopes for a home grown Ferrari world champion.

It was a dream so nearly realised, and if not for a handful of twists of differing fates, the name Michele Alboreto may have been lit up alongside the likes of Farina, Pavarotti and The Pope in Italian folklore.

Having been born and raised just a stones throw from the heartland of Italy’s motorsport Mecca, a young Michele made his racing debut at a relatively late 20 years old. Patching together a Formula Monza

car with friends, he wasn’t particularly competitive or noteworthy. However, with a step up into Formula Italia in 1978, success would swiftly follow, Michele winning races against a crop of strong Italian talent.

Formula Three would beckon, and in 1979 a successful run of results in both the European and Italian Championships would see Michele take home sixth and second places respectively against an even

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stronger Italian field.

This momentum would continue to colour his results, with the European Formula Three championship crown falling his way for 1980, thanks to being both fast and consistent. Impressing enough to be drafted in as test driver at F1 team Brabham, Michele got his hands familiar with F1 machinery barely five years into his blossoming motorsport career. For 1981, Michele Alboreto was not only a winner in Formula Two with Minardi, taking its only win in Misano, but also an F1 race driver for the first time alongside American Eddie Cheever - stunning form from a driver fairly new to the sport caught the attention of a keen-eyed Ken Tyrrell, eager to burgeon his driver line up with promising new talent.

Replacing the underwhelming Ricardo Zunino on home soil for Round 4 at Imola, Michele turned heads with his immediate pace. Despite retiring from his debut, Tyrrell kept the quiet Italian on for all but one of the remaining races of the 1981 campaign. With a best result of ninth, he kept the experienced Cheever honest and did enough to convince ‘Uncle Ken’ to keep him on for 1982.

A refined Tyrrell 011 was his tool for the new season, and he was immediately on the pace. First points would come with a pair for fourth places in the Brazilian and US West Grands Prix early in the season, and a return to home soil in Imola would net his first podium in front of his native crowd. Sparse results mid season due to poor reliability made for troubling trends, but with the 011 being refined for France, points would follow consistently.

The finale of 1982’s spectacularly unpredictable season would take place on the uninspiring twists of the Caesars Palace Car Park in Las Vegas, a circuit universally panned by spectators and drivers alike for its unimaginative layout and torturous heat. McLaren’s John Watson and Williams’ Keke Rosberg would be the remaining two title protagonists in a season that saw an eventual 11 different drivers take victories throughout the season, unprecedented in the sport at that time.

Despite getting tangled with Cheever - now in a Ligier - on the opening lap and narrowly avoiding being spectacularly removed from contention, Alboreto found his Tyrrell to be an effective tool around Las Vegas’

A REFINED TYRRELL 011 WAS HIS TOOL FOR THE NEW SEASON, AND HE WAS IMMEDIATELY ON THE PACE

ALBORETO DRIVING A TYRRELL IN 1981

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brutal streets.

Michele would slowly wind in Prost, who was struggling with rubber pick-up and vibration from his tyres, eventually overtaking the Frenchman during the closing stages. Sporting Cheever’s rubber signature on his sidepod, Alboreto comfortably drove the remaining laps to take his first grand prix victory. It was a popular win - Tyrrell’s first for four years, and in a beautiful twist for the record books, the final win for the mighty Ford DFV engine.

Now carrying the modified DFY variant, the 1982 Tyrrell wasn’t as competitive. Despite Michele adding another fun statistic of taking the last naturally aspirated grand prix victory for six years with a masterful drive in Detroit, this would be Tyrrell’s only real high point in a difficult season.

His tenacity and resilience, coupled with gritty showcases of skill dragging his naturally aspirated car to play among the increasingly dominant turbo cars, hadn’t gone unnoticed. Married together with his impressive showings for Lancia as part of their official factory World Endurance Championship team throughout the Tyrrell years, rumours would surface of

Michele catching the eye of an even more prominent Italian.

Awed by Alboreto’s ‘quick, versatile and poised’ driving, his signature would be pursued by none other than Enzo Ferrari himself for a seat alongside Rene Arnoux for 1984. Going against even his own insistence that he’d never sign an Italian driver again, the impressive Milanese had done enough to have his services secured at a top team for the first time in his career.

Getting his hands on turbo power for the first time in his F1 career, Michele was fast out of the blocks. It would only take until round three in Zolder to take a prolific victory for Ferrari - the first Italian to do so for the marque since 1966’s Ludovico Scarfiotti-pre-wing cigar shaped Monza victory and a justification of his signing.

His 1984 season would turn out to be a show of strength; while he would only take the one victory that year, a further three podiums would follow in Austria, Germany and at home for a second place at Monza. From eighth in the standings the previous season, Alboreto would rocket up to fourth, with only

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ALBORETO ALSO HAD A SPELL AT BENETTON IN 1983

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the dominant McLaren pairing of Prost and Lauda and the Lotus of Elio De Angelis finishing ahead. With the momentum building for 1985, it set tongues wagging on the potential of the Ferrari for the following season.

With the new Ferrari 156/85 packing more punch from more powerful V6 turbo, Michele and new teammate Stefan Johansson had an effective car with reliability woes sequestered. Out of the box in Brazil, Michele converted pole position into a hard- fought second place finish, and repeated his podium finishing prowess with second at the next round in Portugal. In the torrential rain, a race often remembered for being the debut win for Ayrton Senna largely forgets a sterling drive in messy conditions for Michele to put himself firmly in the Championship hunt.

Differing from the touch-and-go reliability of the previous season, the 1985 Ferrari was proving more than a match for the still-quick McLarens of Alain Prost and Niki Lauda, and although Senna was mighty in the Lotus, consistency kept the cerebral Alboreto in the fight. Come the half way point, Michele’s run of six podiums and two DNFs from eight starts ensured the little Italian headed into the summer with championship aspirations firmly on his mind.

Another win on the cards in Montreal early that season only galvanised his strength, and in a field consisting of on-form Mansell, Prost, Lauda, Rosberg, Senna and De Angelis, Alboreto shone brightly. Italian press were vocal in their praise, a home-grown hero providing promise for grand prix glory in a national icon was almost too much to fathom. A second win at Hockenheim, despite clashing with team mate Johansson at the very first corner and trailing oil smoke throughout secured his position as the only driver to genuinely threaten Alain Prost’s title defence. Going into the final five rounds of the championship, Alboreto was a firm favourite to challenge Prost for the world title. Excited Italian tongues started wagging - could this be the home-spun saviour Ferrari had been praying for since the days of Alberto Ascari?

With the championship winding down into its final phase, it would be vital for Ferrari to continue their push to keep McLaren honest. In an ideal world, this would have been the case; but in a scene now seemingly typical of Ferrari woes, lady luck deserted the Italian team in their hour of need.

Not only did she desert the desperate team, she decimated their chances. A Ferrari engine disassembling itself at Monza with a handful of laps remaining would set the tone for the remainder of the year; a similarly inoperable clutch would put Michele out of the Belgian Grand Prix as early as lap three, and a turbo giving up in Brands Hatch and Kyalami would yield similar retirements. Any slim chance Michele held until that point went up in pieces with his gearbox at the final round in Australia, and the season-long promise of stopping ‘The Professor’ from taking his first world title evaporated among the various colours of dissipating smoke clouds erupting from the back of his

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Ferrari. A dejected and deflated Alboreto would venture into the off-season incensed with the team’s failure to string together a reliable car, ruing his missed chance to lift the laurels for a Ferrari as an Italian hero.

For 1986 Michele would be joined by team mate Stefan Johansson in the revised Ferrari F1/86. The wind, however, seemed truly knocked out of Alboreto’s sails; in a season that heralded nine DNFs and just 14 points, Johansson would outscore the struggling Michele by six points to finish ahead of his lauded team leader. With just a single podium on the books, pundits were vocal about Michele’s retention by Ferrari for the following season, arguing the McLaren-bound Johansson should have been the team’s pick for the following year.

The softly-spoken Italian would have Gerhard Berger for company in the team for 1987, and although there were flashes of speed typical of Michele, the season would prove winless yet again. Although three podium appearances signalled an uptick in form, Berger easily outclassed his veteran team mate, winning in Japan and Australia to firmly cement himself as bona-fide team leader.

1988 would see the line up remain unchanged, as was the trend of results. A dominant McLaren would take 15 of the available 16 victories that season, with the only non-McLaren win being picked up by Berger at Monza, leading home a Ferrari 1-2. With the enigmatic Enzo Ferrari passing away a matter of days earlier, many saw this as the writing on the wall for Michele come season’s end, and the team chose against signing him for 1989.

Frank Williams’ controversial style of negotiations would catch out the struggling Italian as it came time to find a new home for the following season. Effectively promised a seat with the exclusively Renault-powered team for 1989, Williams insisted Michele stand firm and wait for the announcement. However, the luckless Alboreto would prove to be simply strung along, as Williams would announce Belgian Thierry Boutsen and former Lancia sportswear team-mate Riccardo Patrese as their drivers. Rumours from as early as the French Grand Prix had begun swirling that Alboreto would be rejoining his old Tyrrell team, but with the Williams door being left ajar until late in the negotiations, it left him with few other options by the time Williams eventually decided on their drivers.

His record-breaking 80-race tenure at Ferrari officially over, Michele headed back to familiar scenes with Tyrrell for 1989. Although positive about the potential of his return initially, relations with team boss Ken Tyrrell would soon turn sour.

As early as the Monaco Grand Prix in May, the decision to give team-mate Jonathan Palmer the newer 018 chassis in favour of Michele left a bitter taste in the mouth of the vastly more experienced Italian, and he sat out Thursday practice in boycott. When he eventually got his hands on the newer car for the race he channelled his anger into a fine drive to fifth place, outgunning Palmer in ninth.

ALBORETO DRIVING FOR FERRARI IN THE 1987 MONACO GRAND PRIX

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The next round in Mexico was even stronger Michele hauled the new Tyrrell to the podium, bringing the car its best result of the year. With form finally looking strong again and Michele driving like his old self, you could be forgiven for looking forward to a seemingly inevitable Alboreto second-coming.

Lady Luck would reappear with a vengeance, however - retirements in the USA and Canada would bring no joy to the hapless Italian driver, and come France, she twisted the knife.

A new sponsorship deal with Camel for the French Grand Prix onwards would directly conflict with Alboreto’s personal sponsors Marlboro, and when Ken Tyrrell unceremoniously requested Michele ditch his

ALBORETO IN FRONT OF AYRTON SENNA DURING THE 1993 ITALIAN GRAND PRIX

long-time partners to stay in the team, Alboreto would be ousted in favour of soon-to-be F3000 champion, and Camel-backed Frenchman, Jean Alesi.

Marlboro would, ironically, withdraw their support of Alboreto when the Italian requested for them to find another drive. After sitting out both the French and British rounds of the championship, he would find refuge at the Larrousse team, who themselves were also backed by Camel. A miserable year followed, meaning Michele fell a long way behind team-mate Philipe Alliot, finishing just one race and even failing to qualify for the final three rounds of the championship.

The luckless Italian would end up at Footwork Arrows for the following three seasons. A lack of a

competitive car hampering the Italian once again, he would drive for the perennial mid-fielders during a time when their tenure with a Porsche V12 would prove so ill-fated that the team switched suppliers after just five races in 1991. So bad was the pace of the car, not a single point would be scored throughout both 1990 and 1991. A switch from Ford to Mugen Honda power for 1992, however, would prove to be an injection of good fortune - four points finishes and 10th in the world championship standings saw the smile return to Michele’s face.

This flourish in form would prove to be the beginning of the end for Michele in F1. A move to the ill-conceived BMS Lola Scuderia Italia team would herald a string

of non-qualifications, and the team wouldn’t dip out of the 1993 world championship with two rounds remaining, choosing to pool resources with stalwarts Minardi for 1994.

Michele would make the move to Minardi as part of the merger, but it was clear that the Italian was a shadow of his former self. Far removed from the epic championship challenger from just a decade previously, the 1994 Minardi was not a car to bring Michele back to the front. Finishing just over half of the races that season, a sixth place in Monaco would prove to be his only highlight. In a season marred by the deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger, the Minardi team would be embroiled in the mix of ill fate, when

an unseated wheel would injure several mechanics in the Imola pit lane during the closing stages of a tragic weekend. Come season’s end, Michele’s record 194 grand prix starts and five victories would prove to be his final F1 stats. The unceremonious retirement in Adelaide would be a sad end to his final F1start.

A disillusioned Alboreto would take up drives in the German DTM, International Touring Car and World Sportscar Championships for 1995, none of which brought much in the way of success.

For 1996, however, Alboreto would move stateside to take up a drive in the newly formed Indy Racing League with Scandia/Simon Racing. This would intertwine with drives in the IMSA World Sportscar Championship and the Le Mans 24 Hours, and while Michele was active in all championships throughout the season, results would continue to be sparse.

For 1997, however, a change in fortunes would herald a Le Mans 24 Hour victory for Joest Racing in a Porsche

WSC-95, bringing the car home alongside former Ferrari team-mate Johansson and Dane Tom Kristensen.

Despite a competitive return to the front of the field, this would prove to be Michele’s only major successes in sports cars. A move to Audi brought mildly competitive results, and the patient Italian endured several seasons of misfortune and ill-pace, before a win in the 2001 Sebring 12 Hours for the German manufacturer resurrected hopes for a strong partnership with Audi.

Michele’s relationship with Lady Luck would, however, turn devastatingly sour.

Audi would arrive at the East German Lausitzring to test components for their upcoming Le Mans 24 Hour effort, with Michele doing much of the heavy lifting on the circuit's many configurations to trial the effectiveness of the car leading up to what appeared to be a competitive attempt at a second Le Mans victory.

Testing the car on the Lausitzring’s oval proving grounds, the team were conducting high speed analysis

when, at close to 300km/h, a rear tyre would fail dramatically. Michele’s car was pitched up into the air, and somersaulted over the barriers at unabated speed.

In a final cruel blow to the Italian, he would succumb to his injuries almost instantaneously.

A rampant screw in the tyre would be determined to be the cause of the tragedy, and would lead to Audi developing on-car sensor based tyre pressure monitoring systems in a bid to prevent a repeat occurrence. For Michele, however, it would be too late.

Family had urged him to give up racing - but he was dedicated and professional to the very last.

From an early career that seemed destined for greatness, his dances with Lady Luck would prove to be of mixed fortunes; and whatever was whispered into her ear in the latter half of 1985’s F1 season, she appeared to dislike the words. A gentleman off the circuit, but a calculated and clinical driver on it, the classy little Italian would win the hearts of fellow drivers

and fans throughout. Never an ill word was ever spoken against the Milanese maestro.

Such is he still revered, that in time for the 2021 edition of the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, the late Alboreto would have his name immortalised on the circuit. The famous final corner, Parabolica, would be renamed to Curve Alboreto, to mark the 20th anniversary of his death.

As of 2024, there is yet to be another Italian winner with Ferrari, and the polite Alboreto is still remembered fondly by those who raced him, watched him, and followed him throughout his career. The image of his blue-and-yellow helmet inside the scarlet machines is still as arguably iconic as Villeneuve of Schumacher either side of his own Ferrari tenure in F1, and Alboreto’s legacy will remain as part of his native Monza, where his will be the last name the drivers see in a race leading up to the chequered flag for every Italian Grand Prix to come.

IMAGE BY PHD PHOTO

EYE FOR DETAIL EVEN RACING SHOES ARE DESIGNED TO BE AS LIGHT BUT AS HARDWEARING AS POSSIBLE.

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CEMENTING GREATNESS

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H

aving run the 1998 world championship right down to the wire, you can forgive Mika Hakkinen for wanting the fight for his second Formula 1 world championship to have been a little easier. After all, the saying goes that it’s usually harder to win first time around than it is to win again.

Hakkinen secured his first world championship title at the final round of the season in Suzuka, winning the race, while his season-long title challenger Michael Schumacher fluffed his lines, stalling on the grid before the lights went out and then subsequently retiring on lap 32 when a tyre on his Ferrari exploded.

Schumacher’s retirement meant that Hakkinen won that year’s title by 14 points, but if he thought battle was hard, he was in for an ever bigger fight the following season.

When the new season came around, it was clear that McLaren had lost none of its pace through the winter of 1998. Arriving in Melbourne, Australia for the first race of the season, both Hakkinen and team-mate David Coulthard were fast straight out of the gates.

The pair locked out the front row for the opening race of the season, Hakkinen securing pole while Coulthard took second having been 0.484s slower.

What was more impressive though was the fact that Hakkinen was well over a second faster than Schumacher who started the race from third.

Having also dominated all of the preceding practice sessions, many assumed that McLaren would dominate the race to get its season off to the perfect start, but unfortunately that’s not how it played out. Instead, both cars didn’t even make it to the end, with Hakkinen retiring with a throttle issue on lap 22, while Coulthard suffered a hydraulic failure five laps before.

Unusually, McLaren had time to solve its problems, since there was a massive five-week break after the first round. F1 had planned to visit China and then Argentina after the Australian Grand Prix, but both races were removed from the calendar.

There was no official reasoning why the Chinese Grand Prix was cancelled in 1999, but the Argentine Grand Prix was cancelled due to disagreements between the event organiser and commercial rights holder.

That meant the second race of the season took place in Brazil, and once at the Sao Paulo circuit, Hakkinen discovered his McLaren now had some reliability to match its pace, and not only took pole position for the race, but then went on to win, beating Schumacher by 4.9 seconds.

Leaving Brazil, Hakkinen was second in the championship, two points adrift of Ferrari’s Eddie Irvine, but with the McLaren clearly being the faster car, there was every reason to believe Hakkinen would emerge as the championship leader after the San Marino Grand Prix.

But that wasn’t to be,

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Having once again taken pole position, Hakkinen took a commanding lead at the start of the race. But on lap 17, his grand prix completely unravelled when he made an unusual mistake.

Coming through the final chicane that opened up onto the start/finish straight on lap 17, Hakkinen was too eager getting on the throttle and with both rear wheels on the kerb placed on the outside of the corner, the rear end of Hakkinen’s car decided to try and swing round on him.

Hakkinen tried to save to the oversteer, but while trying to collect it, he ended up crashing into the wall on the outside of the track, sending him immediately into retirement.

It was a huge blow for Hakkinen, and an embarrassing one too. He wasn’t under any pressure at from any other driver at that stage of the grand prix, and with Schumacher going on to win the race, it meant he fell further down the championship order to third.

Over the following few races, it was clear Ferrari was closing the gap to McLaren over single lap pace, but Hakkinen did manage to make it to the podium in Monaco before returning to winning ways in Spain. And he managed to repeat that feat in Canada, winning the very first F1 race to finish behind a safety car.

Those two victories put Hakkinen in control of the championship for the first time that season. Leaving Canada the McLaren driver was at the top of the standings on 34 points, four more than Schumacher in second and nine more than Irvine who was third.

A second place behind the Jordan of Heinz-Harald Frentzen at Magny-Cours meant that Hakkinen extended his championship lead to Schumacher who finished fifth - to eight points leaving France.

But at the following round in Britain, the shape of the championship was completely changed for the remainder of the year.

McLaren once again had the fastest car over a single lap, and Hakkinen secured yet another pole position with a time of 1m24.804s. He was over four tenths faster than Schumacher’s Ferrari who was second, while McLaren team-mate Coulthard couldn’t get anywhere near Hakkinen’s time.

Coulthard line up third on the grid, but his best effort was 0.790s off Hakkinen’s benchmark, while Irvine was a further tenth back in fourth.

When the lights went out, Hakkinen had a great start away and so did Coulthard who leapt into second position. However, two cars stalled while trying to leave their grid box and as the field went down the Hangar Straight, the race was red flagged.

At that point, the two Ferraris were jostling for third position and were side-by-side when the red flags came out, and coming into Stowe, Schumacher went straight off into the gravel trap, and hit the barriers front on extremely hard.

Initially, it was thought that Schumacher hadn’t realised the race had been red flagged, however it

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HAKKINEN DURING THE 1999 MONACO GRAND PRIX

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later transpired that the brakes on his Ferrari had failed which caused the incident.

Schumacher was seen to be conscious in the car after hitting the barrier, but he did not get out of the car. And once the medical teams got to him, it became clear that he had broken one of his legs.

Naturally, the race restart was delayed for a significant period of time so Schumacher could be extracted safely from his Ferrari and taken to hospital.

And when the race did eventually restart, Hakkinen once again went into the first corner leading, although this time he had the Ferrari of Irvine hot on his heels.

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Hakkinen soon gained total control of the race though, and went on to pull a considerable lead on Irvine, but that all changed at the first round of pitstops.

Coming into the pits as normal, Hakkinen was expecting he’d be in for a quick service, a dash of fuel and then be on his way again, but instead he was stuck stationary for nearly half a minute after the pit crew had a big problem getting the right front wheel reattached to his McLaren.

Hakkinen returned to the track, but he was completely out of race winning contention. And while

that was going on, Coulthard managed to overtake Irvine to move into the lead while Irvine was leaving the pits. It was a busy few minutes, and with Hakkinen in 11th, he knew that he’d have to put in some great lap times if he was going to get himself back into the points.

Immediately he started setting fastest laps, but coming out of the final corner the left rear wheel of Hakkinen’s car came off and rolled into the middle of the track.

Given the way Silverstone’s pitlane was setup at the time, Hakkinen was able to dive into the pits to

have the car looked at. The crew took a look and fitted another set of new tyres, and after 24 seconds sat stationary in the pits, Hakkinen was sent back out on to the track.

The safety car was then called out after Jacques Villeneuve’s car broke down on the start/finish straight and when the race got going again properly, Coulthard and Irvine recommenced their intense fight, while Hakkinen began un-lapping himself in his bid to improve upon his 17th position.

A few laps later though, Hakkinen peeled into the pits for a third time, and this time retired from the race.

Too much damage had been caused to his McLaren and there was no way he could continue to the end of the race.

And with Irvine in hot pursuit of Coulthard for the race win, it looked like Hakkinen could be on course to lose his championship lead advantage. However, despite a relentless pursuit of Coulthard, Irvine was never able to find a way through to win the race, instead settling for second, meaning that Hakkinen still retained an eight point advantage in the championship with Schumacher and Irvine tied on 32.

That wasn’t the biggest takeaway from Silverstone though. Hakkinen had always expected that Schumacher would be his main title rival in 1999, but after it was confirmed he’d broken a leg and would miss the majority of the season while he recovered, it appeared Hakkinen’s chances of retaining the title had become just that bit easier.

But what he didn’t account for was a relentless Irvine ready to step forward and take the fight to the McLarens.

With Schumacher out of the picture, Irvine knew that the 1999 season was his best ever chance of winning the F1 driver’s championship. He had to take the opportunity while it was there, and after Silverstone he found a great run of form, winning the following two grands prix In Austria and Germany.

Hakkinen meanwhile was third in Austria and retired in Germany, meaning Irvine led the championship by eight points with six races to go.

At the following race in Hungary Hakkinen was able to reduce that advantage to a mere two points with victory, while Irvine finished 27 seconds adrift in third.

Neither of the two title contenders were able to finish on the top step in Belgium, with David Coulthard taking the honours, but Hakkinen did finish runner-up, two places ahead of Irvine, which meant he regained the championship advantage by a single point.

Everything was still to play for, but as F1 headed to Monza for the Italian Grand Prix - the home of Ferrari - there were some who thought that home advantage could push Irvine back into the championship lead again.

Hakkinen was determined to buck those assumptions though and immediately got to work by taking pole position for the race. Irvine meanwhile had a tougher time in qualifying and could only manage

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FRENTZEN LEADING THE WAY DURING THE 1999 EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX

eighth, 1.333s slower than Hakkinen’s benchmark effort.

When the lights went out for the start of the race, Hakkinen quickly pulled away in the lead. By lap 28 he had an eight second advantage over Frentzen who was second while Irvine was still confined to the fringes of the points.

It was another race where Hakkinen was in total control, but on lap 30 Hakkinen made another unforced error, just like he had in San Marino. Going into the Rettifilo chicane, Hakkinen selected the wrong gear - putting his car into first rather than second - and spun off the track and out of the race.

He knew that crash could be extremely costly, and sitting on the side of the track, the pressure start to show as his emotions got the better of him. He knew he couldn’t afford any race retirements, but having made a mistake all on his own without being under pressure from another car on track, showed just how hard he was pushing, and how the psychological aspect of the championship was starting to affect him.

Hakkinen’s only saving grace was that Irvine could only finish sixth, meaning he gained a single point.

That was however enough to bring both drivers level on points in the championship standings, while it appeared Frentzen was beginning to become a serious title contender as well.

Frentzen ended up winning the Italian Grand Prix, his second victory of the season and he was now only 10 points of the championship leaders.

The championship was realistically becoming a proper three-way battle, and there was huge

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excitement about the prospect of a huge fight for the championship for the remaining races as the F1 circus headed to Germany for the European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring.

But what ensued was a chaotic race, one that changed the look of the championship going into the final two rounds.

Hakkinen didn’t have the outright pace over a single lap at the Nurburgring. Instead it was in-form driver Frentzen who took pole position with a fantastic lap.

He was the only driver to set a time below the 1m20s, ending up over two and a half tenths faster than the McLaren of Coulthard, and what’s more, speaking after the session he felt he good have gone even faster claiming he set the lap with five laps worth of fuel onboard.

Hakkinen lined up third while Irvine at a tricky qualifying session, ending up only ninth.

When Sunday’s race came about, the focus seemed to be on Frentzen, with many people wondering whether he could take control of the championship in the closing stages. But things went awry when the lights went out at the start of the grand prix.

In a significant error of judgement, Frentzen jumped the start before the lights went out. Hakkinen followed him, while Coulthard stalled, and the Williams of Ralf Schumacher and Prost of Olivier Panis also moved out of their grid boxes.

The race start was aborted as a result of that, meaning all five of those drivers managed to escape any sort of penalty and were able to line back up on

the grid in the same positions they’d qualified in.

Frentzen and Hakkinen especially were fortunate to escape any type of penalty for their race start infringement, and when the race did eventually get going properly, they took full advantage of their second chance.

Frentzen led into the first corner, while Hakkinen managed to get the leap on Coulthard to move himself up into second. Irvine meanwhile had got himself up to eighth, but as soon as they got through the first complex there was a huge crash with the Sauber and Benetton of Pedro Diniz and Alexander Wurz careering off into the gravel.

Diniz ended upside down in the gravel, and naturally the safety car was called out while marshals extracted the drivers and removed the cars from the track.

Shortly after the safety car was called back in, rain began to lightly fall on the track. Full of confidence, Frentzen went on to put a reasonable gap between himself and Hakkinen, but the pair of McLarens began to fall into the clutches of Schumacher’s Williams.

On lap 21 Hakkinen came In for his first stop, with the hope he could undercut Frentzen, Irvine also took the same approach the following lap, pitting from

fifth position. But Irvine’s pitstop was not executed anywhere near as well as Hakkinen’s - or so he thought.

As Irvine came into his pit box, the mechanics began changing the tyres, but nobody had brought out the right rear tyre for his Ferrari. It took over 15 seconds before the tyre was actually fitted to his car, meaning he had spent a total of 28.2 second sat stationary in his pit box.

That was disastrous for Irvine. He put an end to any hope of him fighting for the strong points finish he needed to stay firmly in the championship hunt. But he did receive some fortune later on in the race.

But Hakkinen’s fortunes weren’t much better.

While his stop had been fast, McLaren had opted to put Hakkinen on to wet tyres, expecting the rain to increase. But the track was still too dry for the wets, and as a result, Hakkinen began losing seven seconds a lap to his rivals.

Hakkinen quickly dropped down the order and had lost so much time that Irvine was able to overtake him after he emerged from the pits on slick tyres, despite having been stationary for nearly half a minute.

That meant Frentzen and Coulthard were the ones battling for the lead, with the Benetton of Giancarlo

HERBERT LEADING COULTHARD IN THE 1999 EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX

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FISICHELLA CRASHING OUT DURING THE 1999 EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX

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Fisichella in third.

On lap 31 Frentzen made his first stop and reemerged with his lead still intact. But as he exited the first corner, his Jordan ground to a halt. His Jordan wasn’t going anywhere, and he retired on the spot, meaning he would not be scoring a single point in the race. After the grand prix, Jordan stated that Frentzen’s car had an electrical issue, although it later transpired Jordan had said this to protect its driver, and in fact, he’d forgotten to disable the car’s anti-stall system when leaving the pits.

The drama wasn’t over though. With the rain picking up conditions became challenging for the drivers and it wasn’t long before mistakes began to creep in. And unfortunately for race leader Coulthard, he was the first victim, spinning off on lap 38.

Coulthard’s retirement meant that Fisichella was

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promoted to the lead, but 10 laps later he made the same mistake as Coulthard, and he too spun out of the race, meaning Schumacher was the leader.

But not even Schumacher could stay in the lead for long. He picked up a puncture, and with over half a lap still to go, he lost several places before he could get round to the pits for a fresh set of tyres.

Schumacher’s puncture meant that Johnny Herbert was now the race leader, but further back, Hakkinen and Irvine had begun making their way back through the field, aided by the retirements.

With all the chaos going on at the front of the field, it meant the minnow team, Minardi had been able to take advantage of others misery, and was on the verge of potentially having both cars in the points.

But even they were unable to avoid the drama, and on lap 53 Luca Badoer - who had been running

in sixth - retired after his engine failed. He was visibly distraught when he got out of the car, leaning against his Minardi in tears.

Badoer’s retirement did aid his team-mate Marc Gene though, who moved up into the final points position, which soon became fifth after Jacques Villeneuve’s BAR retired with a broken clutch.

All the while, Hakkinen had been closing in on championship rival Irvine who was now in sixth, and on lap 61 Hakkinen managed to force Irvine into a mistake coming into the final chicane, taking the final points position off the Ferrari.

Hakkinen wasn’t done there though. He got his head down and was soon on the rear wing of Gene and made light work of the Minardi, passing him for fifth, meaning he had would at least be scoring two very valuable championship points, while both of his rivals

would be leaving Germany with nothing.

Herbert was the eventual winner of the race, with Jarno Trulli finishing second for Prost, ahead of the second Steward-Ford of Rubens Barrichello. But more importantly for the championship, Irvine crossed the line down in seventh.

That meant Hakkinen now had 62 points, while Irvine would go into the final two races with 60 and Frentzen 50.

The penultimate race of the year was at Malaysia. It was the event’s debut F1 grand prix, and ahead of the event, Ferrari announced that Schumacher would be returning to the team having recovered from the injury he sustained at Silverstone.

Schumacher quickly pledged that he would do everything he could help his team-mate win the world championship that year, and McLaren knew their lives would become so much harder for the final two races.

When qualifying got underway, Schumacher quickly proved that his time off hadn’t affected his pace in any way. He put his Ferrari on pole position with a time that was 0.947s faster than team-mate Irvine who was second. Coulthard lined up third on the grid, while Hakkinen could only manage fourth.

Meanwhile Frentzen - who was firmly a championship outsider given he needed to make up 12 points on championship leader Hakkinen over the final two races - struggled for pace and was confined to a lowly 14th on the grid.

The Ferraris led away at the start of the race, but on the fourth lap Schumacher let Irvine past and decided to deliberately slow down to try and hold the McLarens up. That approach wasn’t able to prevent Coulthard from passing Schumacher on the following tour of the Sepang circuit, although it didn’t come to anything as he retired on lap 15 with a fuel pressure problem.

Hakkinen however was unable to find a way past Schumacher. He even tried to go on a low fuel run after his first stop to get the leap on the Ferrari, but that didn’t work and Hakkinen then had to pit again so he had enough fuel to complete the race.

After his final stop, Hakkinen returned to the track in fourth position. He did managed to overtake Herbert to get up into third, but he had no chance of catching Schumacher for second.

Irvine won the race, with Schumacher and Hakkinen behind, meaning Irvine would go into the final race of the season as the championship leader. But before anyone left the track, there was still a twist in the narrative to play out.

Three hours after the grand prix ended, both Ferraris were disqualified from the race having failed a single technical test.

FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer ruled that the Ferraris’ bodywork did not conform to the regulations, stating the bargeboards were found to have infringed the permitted dimensions.

Ferrari immediately stated it would be submitting

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an appeal, with Ferrari team principal Jean Todt stating that the cars had been in the same condition throughout the entire weekend and had been unchanged from the specification that was used in the European Grand Prix, and that in all of the previous tests the cars had passed inspection.

"The cars were inspected both here and at the last race at Nurburgring and were found to be OK,” said Todt.

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Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn also added that there was “no performance benefit to be gained,” from the modified bodywork.

The case went to the FIA International Court of Appeal and when they reviewed the matter, and Ferrari successfully convinced the FIA judges that the measurements taken by the FIA technical delegate after the race were not correct and that the bargeboards were legal within the 5mm tolerance allowed within the

IRVINE LEADING COULTHARD AT THE MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX

regulations.

As a result, the disqualification was overturned, and Ferrari’s one-two was reinstated, meaning all of the pressure would be on Hakkinen going into the final race of the season.

And as you can expect, upon hearing the decision, McLaren team principal Ron Dennis was extremely unhappy citing as “a bad day for the sport”.

“We believe the push now for our sport has

inevitably become quite commercial,” said Dennis.

“Everybody wants to have an exciting race in Japan, but I think the price we have paid for that one race is too great. It is a bad day for the sport. What has actually occurred is that through heavy scrutiny of your rules a way has been found to provide a reason for the appeal to be upheld.

“I am convinced that Ferrari’s miscalculation was a mistake. But even if this oversight had a negative

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RON DENNIS AND MANSOUR OJJEH

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influence on the performance of the car, that is immaterial. The regulations state that the car must comply, and that rule has been rigorously enforced over many years of grand prix racing.

“There are politics in every sport and the real losers today are not McLaren. The winners are not Ferrari. I feel the real losers are the genuine motor racing fans.

The benefits of this decision are purely short-term and I don’t think that it does any long-term good. And now this sport has lost a degree of its integrity.”

Two weeks later, Hakkinen and Irvine got ready for a title showdown at Suzuka in Japan, the host of the final race of the 1999 F1 season.

Irvine had a four point advantage going into the grand prix, so all of the pressure was on Hakkinen in his bid to retain his championship crown for a second consecutive year. A victory for Hakkinen would seal the championship for the McLaren driver, no matter where Irvine finished, so that had to be the target.

In qualifying, neither of the two title contenders could clinch pole position, with Schumacher taking the top spot in his Ferrari. But crucially, Hakkinen managed to qualify ahead of Irvine, ending up second on the grid, while Irvine was a few positions further back in fifth.

With only one car ahead of him on the grid, Hakkinen was fully focused on making sure he was first into the opening corner of the race. If he could do that, he could control the grand prix from there. And he did just that.

Hakkinen got a lightning start from second on the grid, and even though Schumacher tried to cover the McLaren off, Hakkinen was simply too fast and already had the jump on the Ferrari. Hakkinen already had a decent margin over Schumacher by the time he entered the first corner and he immediately got his head down and began to pull away from the rest of the field.

Irvine also had a strong start, getting himself up to fourth, which later became third when the Prost of Olivier Panis retired with an alternator issue on lap 20.

But despite the progress made in the opening stages of the race, Irvine couldn’t do anything to catch Hakkinen’s McLaren. Schumacher kept Hakkinen honest throughout the race, but he too couldn’t beat the Ferrari. That meant Hakkinen was able to take a lights-to-flag victory, beating Schumacher by five seconds, while Irvine finished third, over a minute and a half behind his rival.

And with victory in the bag, Hakkinen was crowned world champion for the second year in a row, beating Irvine by a mere two points in the driver’s

championship.

And although Hakkinen was happy to have won a second title, he was also relieved it was all over.

“It’s obviously different,” said Hakkinen when asked how it compared to winning his first world championship title. “First time is always the first time and it is a different feeling obviously. But this year was a very difficult year.

“All the way through the start of the season we had slight problems and we weren’t able to finish the races in the start of the year. We lost a lot of points, we all understand what problems we experienced during the year.

“So very difficult year and deciding the championship in the last grand prix - it’s nervewracking and I really don’t recommend it to anybody that experiences it. I know I experienced it with Michael last year and now Eddie this year. I hope it’s enough already.”

As you’d expect, Irvine was disappointed to have missed out on the world championship, especially since he was aware it would likely be the last time he’d have a realistic shot of winning the title for the foreseeable future, having not been re-signed by Ferrari for 2000.

But there was a consolation prize for him and Ferrari.

A driver’s title might have gone wanting, but with Coulthard retiring on lap 40 with a hydraulics failure, it meant that Ferrari beat McLaren to the constructors’ championship, ending up with four more points than them at the end of the year.

It was a great way for Hakkinen to win a second world championship title though. Going right to the wire, with everything on the line, he proved that he really did have the mental strength to keep a calm head, and he obliterated Irvine in the race. But it would be the last time Hakkinen had a chance to taste championship victory.

Ferrari turned up to the start of the 2000 F1 season with a truly dominant car, and despite Hakkinen’s best efforts, he could do nothing to stop Schumacher from going on to win a third world championship title.

Hakkinen’s form also began to dip going into 2001 and at the end of the year he took a sabbatical from F1, which subsequently became retirement.

But even though he never managed to win a third driver’s championship, the two he won - under the immense pressure he had - with both titles going to the wire, proved beyond doubt that Hakkinen really was one of the greatest F1 drivers of his time.

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IMAGE BY ED WAPLINGTON

THE FESTIVAL THERE WERE PLENTY OF ICONIC F1 CARS ON SHOW AT THE 2024 SILVERSTONE FESTIVAL, INCLUDING THIS LOTUS.

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I

n the realms of the automotive world, few names hold the sheer star power that Lamborghini holds.

Angular, muscular road-going fighter jets come to mind when the name is uttered by passionate lips, and pedigree and power combine to whet the desires of arguably every motoring aficionado.

However, less well known have been the marques racing pursuits; from the oddities of Japanese Touring

THE LAMBORGHINI AT THE 2024 LE MANS 24 HOURS

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Cars being punctuated by a fearsome Diablo to the signature wail of 12 cylinders resonating around the grand prix circuits of the world, success in high-end competition has been sparse. A primary percentage of Lamborghini’s competitive success has been through bolstered GT versions of their familiar road-going machines, going head-to-head with the likes of Aston Martin, Honda and McLaren to duel for GT3 honours.

So when it was confirmed that the Hypercar rules would be taking over from LMP1 as the top-tier of prototype endurance racing for 2021, there were many raised eyebrows when Lamborghini announced it would be joining the category for 2024. Entering an LMDh chassis for the 2024 season, the official justification for taking the step into endurance racing’s premier category was that it aligned with the company’s

commitment to hybrid technologies in their road cars.

With a veritable cavalcade of global manufacturers taking the step into the top flight of Le Mans style racing, Lamborghini’s involvement was an unexpected boost for the category. The tantalising prospect of natural rivals like Ferrari and Lamborghini going toe to toe at the very top of the motorsport ladder was considered as justification for the rule shake-up, and a

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big draw card for fans and other manufacturers alike.

Lamborghini came to the party with a twin turbo 3.8 litre DOHC V8 petrol engine, married to a Bosch MGU system to provide the hybrid power. The inclusion of the famous manufacturer was whispered to have been at least a little influenced by rivals Ferrari making the jump to the Hypercar category, and more than a few people speculated this to be the case. However, with Lamborghini becoming one of nine global manufacturers to take on the challenge, the health of endurance racing had never looked better.

Fast forward less than 12 months, and talk has turned to Lamborghini once again - although this time it’s about the marque’s sudden exit from the World Endurance Championship. Pundits and professionals spilled their varying opinions over suggestions that the two-car requirement for the championship was a reason for the rapid devolution of their programme. With a single car entered by partners Iron Lynx, Lamborghini’s development has ground to a halt at the mention of

the need for more cars. In barely a year, a global brand that had seen an ‘exciting opportunity to compete at the very top of endurance racing for the first time’ were expelling such belief that WEC ‘no longer aligned with the company’s strategy’.

Although it insisted that the move was just a ‘pause’, and that ‘competing for the highest honour is still an ambition for years to come’, its decision to withdraw from the championship is a bizarre way to show it, if its statement is really true.

However, there’s more to the story - while dropping out of the top echelon after a single year has appeared to spell trouble, Lamborghini will continue to keep development of the SC63 in America via the IMSA championship, although as to which team has not been mentioned. As of the time of writing, details remain vague as to what exactly Lamborghini intends to do to further develop its Hypercar chassis.

WEC’s two-car ruling has been implemented to ensure that teams entering the championship are

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willing to fully commit. And the case for that has gotten even larger in recent months with yet more manufacturers showing interest in the Hypercar class.

Discouraging single-car efforts effectively threw down the gauntlet to the lesser outfits, signalling a ‘get serious or get out’ approach that has also meant the likes of the smaller manufacturers like Isotta and Glickenhaus have also disappeared from the grid.

Despite intense collaboration with French endurance giants Ligier for the manufacture of its 2024 chassis,

and a promising debut few rounds to bring home points, the remainder of Lamborghini’s 2024 season was a disaster. While rivals Ferrari came home third in the championship, Lamborghini went pointless for a large portion of the year - only a 10th place at Le Mans saved the ailing marque the embarrassment of finishing on the bottom of the WEC table.

For a manufacturer proud of the lineage it has amassed, this was a hard pill to swallow. Seasoned regular WEC drivers Daniil Kvyat, Edoardo Mortara and Mirko Bortolotti

FOR A MANUFACTURER PROUD OF THE LINEAGE IT HAS AMASSED, THIS WAS A HARD PILL TO SWALLOW

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found the going tough, and despite the addition of the second car of Romain Grosjean, Andrea Caldarelli and Matteo Cairoli for Le Mans, the team struggled to match the outright pace of their Le Mans-winning Italian contemporaries. The resounding drubbing of Lamborghini by Ferrari in the world’s most famous endurance race was a devastating blow to the aspirations of the team.

For all the on-track uphill battles and tough lessons faced by the team, perhaps the most influential reason for the change in LMDh direction comes from the sudden departure of the prolific Giorgio Sanna in March, just a handful of days before the SC63 made

its’ IMSA debut. Replaced by former Chief Technical Officer Rouven Mohr, Sanna’s impact on the direction of Lamborghini’s entire motorsport presence is impossible to overstate. The architect of a large part of Lamborghini’s motorsport direction since the inception of Lamborghini Square Corse, Sanna was instrumental in campaigning Lamborghini’s entrance into the Hypercar category. Passionate about Lamborghini’s presence on the global motorsport stage, the modern programmes for the Hypercar project, as well as the GT3 and LMGT3 programmes, were penned at the behest of Sanna.

His departure left a rift in the plans for Lamborghini’s

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motorsport direction, and with the SC63 having barely turned a wheel, even those close to the centre of the WEC were stunned to learn of the change in leadership.

While many speculated personal reasons, and others touting a conflict of direction for the switch up, the undeniable chasm left by Sanna left Lamborghini motorsport fans scratching their heads.

While budget for a season is always a factor in how viable a two-car team is for an entire WEC season, another reason for the shuffle out of the top tier of

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WEC has been the development focus of the new Temerario GT3 car, which is due to be available to customers in 2026. Adding to their already successful GT plans, the choice to put its efforts into a tried and tested sector of its racing lineage makes financial sense, especially when customer teams are considering bringing on fresh Lamborghini GT3 cars into their fold, whether it be replacing the outgoing Huracan Evo or switching from another manufacturer.

Add in the early programme test that destroyed a

car, a rushed homologation process to get their LMDh car ready for the championship, and an increasingly strained relationship with Iron Lynx, and the ‘perfect storm’ of reasons for scaling back their efforts after only a single year becomes starkly, if not sadly, apparent.

With development still needed in their second year of running, it remains to be seen whether Lamborghini will return to the top flight of global endurance racing after a season of honing their programmes in IMSA. With representation scaling back to almost nil in WEC,

including the famous Iron Dames team who will be switching to Porsche for 2025, a disappointing season will have to continue to be analysed and channelled into greater progress for its chosen championships.

However, for 2025 at least, the sight of a shock of electric green twisted into familiar aggressive SC63 angles will have to be resigned to just a single season of top-tier competition - while Lamborghini continues to find its feet in the prototype game for the first time - for the time being.

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IMAGE BY PHD PHOTO

GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND SIDECAR RACERS ARE A DIFFERENT BREED. LEANING RIGHT OVER THE BIKE, THE PASSENGER RISKS LITERALLY EVERYTHING TO ENSURE THE WEIGHT IS CORRECTLY BALANCED TO MAKE THE CORNER.

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THE SIMILARITIES TWO

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BETWEEN SEASONS

WORDS BY HAMIR THAPAR IMAGES BY GRAND PRIX PHOTO / RED BULL CONTENT POOL

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I

t's impossible to contest the claim that Sergio Perez has cost Red Bull dearly in 2024. With his confidence shattered, his mistakes frequent and his form lacklustre at best, Perez has denied his team both first and second place in the Formula 1 constructors’ championship. A downturn that has been magnified by his team-mate Max Verstappen wrapping up a fourth consecutive drivers’ title.

While it is by no means unheard of for the drivers’ and constructors’ champions to hail from different teams – 2021, 2008 and 1999 are but a few examples

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– it's significantly less common for a team to produce a drivers’ champion while failing to crack the top two in the constructors’ race. With Max Verstappen having clinched the 2024 drivers’ championship and Red Bull failing to improve on third, it marks the first time such a disparity has emerged between a driver and his team since 1983. That season was the year Brabham trailed the likes of Renault and Ferrari, despite its star driver Nelson Piquet claiming his second world title.

Coming off the back of a turbulent 1982 season that claimed the lives of Gilles Villeneuve and Riccardo Paletti, 1983 was largely untroubled by contrast.

A comprehensive rule change mandated all-new flat floors, effectively ending the ground effect era for that season. The subsequent loss of downforce forced teams to introduce larger wings, a development that also improved overall driveability. With turbocharging now the norm, mid-race refuelling had been introduced

by Brabham the previous year and was - by the start of ’83 - standard practice for the majority of the grid. But despite having set this particular trend, Brabham’s 1983 campaign was, at best, lopsided.

Just as Red Bull has been hindered by an underperforming second driver in 2024, Brabham was

also forced into battle with one arm tied behind its back. But unlike Perez, whose occasional bad luck has been allied to a dismal run of form, Piquet’s team-mate Ricardo Patrese endured a string of reliability issues that bordered on the comical.

An exhaust failure took him out of the running at the season-opening round in Brazil, electrical problems put paid to his chances at Long Beach, a water leak robbed him of a possible podium in France, his Brabham’s engine let go one kilometre into the Belgian Grand Prix, turbo problems ended his chances at Silverstone, while a suspected failure to switch the inline-four from

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qualifying spec to race spec rendered his pole position at the Italian Grand Prix worthless. Such was the extent of Patrese’s misfortune that he finished just four of the year’s 15 races, his only contributions to the team being a podium in Germany and a long overdue win in South Africa. When viewed as a whole, it's easy to see why Brabham was so easily outdone by the opposition.

Given this inconsistency, the constructors’ title seemed, for the most part, to be Renault’s for the taking. With Rene Arnoux having left for Ferrari, Alain Prost was now the undisputed team leader, a fact that was reflected in the RE40. Built to suit Prost’s millimetric precision, it sported the team’s first carbon fibre chassis which, when married to a 1.5 litre V6, whose famed turbo problems had been largely eliminated, led to a car that could for much of the year, lay claim to the title of fastest on the grid. Prost took four wins and three further podiums to establish a 14-point lead with just four races remaining.

Prost had a seemingly unassailable buffer, but things took a turn with the Renault driver taking a (figurative and literal) knock at the next race in Zandvoort.

Having battled Piquet for over 40 laps, Prost looked to have gained the initiative going into turn one, only to lose control of his car. Prost hit his title rival, breaking his suspension in the process. With both drivers failing to finish, Prost’s title lead was still technically intact,

that was until the turbo problems Renault thought it had done away with, returned. Two failures in the final three races left Prost powerless to defend against a resurgent Piquet, whose noteworthy race pace enabled him to claim back-to-back wins at Monza and Brands Hatch as well as a podium at the season finale in South Africa. It was a great final three races for Piquet, and was enough to pip Prost to the world title by just two points.

Having suffered a 16-point swing in just four grands prix, Prost did little to hide his dismay. His outspoken criticism of the RE40 led to an abrupt and acrimonious split from Renault who - to add insult to injury - could not even console themselves with the constructors’ crown.

In the proverbial ‘battle of the number twos’ Eddie Cheever had done his bit to outdo Ricardo Patrese, his four podiums and two top six finishes yielding a points tally of 22 as opposed to Patrese’s 13. But having failed to secure a win all season, Renault was denied a driver line-up that could regularly challenge for victories.

However, the same could not be said for Ferrari.

Just as the Scuderia didn’t feature prominently in any 2024 title discourse and instead quietly put together one of their strongest campaigns in recent years, 1983 was a year in which Ferrari pulled off a feat that is yet to be repeated. Despite neither one of its

PROST AT THE 1983 AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

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ARNOUX RACED FOR FERRARI IN 1983

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drivers finishing first or even second in the title race, Rene Arnoux and Patrick Tambay’s combined points tally of 89 was enough to give Ferrari its eighth F1 constructor’s championship.

Put simply, Ferrari had two winners in its arsenal, while Renault and Brabham did not. Blisteringly quick in qualifying, the team enjoyed a purple patch in the second half of the season, with Tambay claiming three podiums and pole positions, while Arnoux secured three wins and two further podiums from the last eight grand prix. With a run like that, you’d logically expect him to be in with a shout of the driver’s crown, not least because of the aforementioned tussles between Piquet and Prost.

That may well have been the case, were it not for a series of technical gremlins that hindered both drivers

at different points of the year. Tambay’s early season consistency meant he was able to close to within just eight points of Prost after round nine at Silverstone.

But the remainder of his season was not anywhere near as straightforward. Reliability gremlins crept into Tambay’s Ferrari and he failed to finish four of the remaining six grand prix, a catalogue of turbo and engine problems denying him any title chances.

Conversely, Arnoux outscored the entire grid during the second half of the season. He had a great run of form that was, in essence, an elaborate recovery drive given his failure to score in five of the first seven grand prix. At different points of the year, Ferrari was arguably the class of the field, but with both its drivers suffering a string of reliability issues, neither of its drivers could make a credible case for the world title.

TAMBAY LEADING ARNOUX, PIQUET AND PROST IN THE 1983 AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX 120 | THE PIT STOP

2024 has had no shortage of headlines. But among the stillborn title fights and burgeoning rookies lies a trend that could become a pre-eminent talking point in years to come: Red Bull’s downturn in form.

Red Bull’s failure to successfully develop the RB20 has been an undeniable factor in the team’s drop in pace compared to its rivals. And it’s arguably a large factor in why Red Bull has been able to hold on to its

constructors’ title for another year. But so too is Sergio Perez’s fall from grace. Having failed to finish on the podium since China and having scored just 35% of Red Bull’s points, his campaign is likely to be remembered as a testament to the dangers of an unbalanced driver line-up. An issue that has plagued Red Bull Racing just as it did Brabham in 1983.

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IMAGE BY ED WAPLINGTON

CROWD PLEASER IT MIGHT NOT HAVE BEEN THE MOST SUCCESSFUL LE MANS CAR EVER, BUT THERE'S FEW MOTORSPORT FANS WHO WILL EVER FORGET ABOUT THE PEUGEOT 908.

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TRACKSIDE FOCUS WORDS BY ROB HANSFORD IMAGES BY CHRIS NICHOLSON / JAMIE NASH / KEERAN MARQUIS / CHRIS HOLDSWORTH

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photographers are descending onto circuits the world over, in search for the perfect image.

Naturally, those shots can be a little harder to find with non-accredited photographers not allowed past the chainlink fencing that now stands around the majority of circuits. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

It can be done if you know where to and how to craft the shot, and that’s what Trackside Focus by The Photographic Adventure Company is helping people with, with the tour operator providing luxury motorsport photography workshops.

Finding the right spot isn’t really what this workshop

CHRIS HOLDSWORTH

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here’s always been a specific art form long associated with the world of motorsport: photography. The two have gone hand in hand ever since motor racing began, and for a long time pictures and the accompanying written words were the only way people could find out what had happened during different races across the world.

These days seeing photographers trackside is still a very common sight. But it isn’t just the professionals trying to find the perfect spot to get the shot of a lifetime. Increasingly, even more amateur and hobby

is fully focused on though. It’s about helping clients up their game when it comes to shooting cars or bikes on the race track. It takes more than pointing a camera at an object and then shooting to capture the perfect image - a lot more.

The brain behind Trackside Focus is Greg Childs. He’s put on offer a variety of workshops throughout Europe and Asia for people to purchase, with courses taking place at iconic circuits like Spa, Catalunya, Dubai and even Brands Hatch.

Some of those workshops come with media accreditation but others, like the British GT workshop at Brands Hatch take place in general public areas.

Greg has also enlisted the assistance of professional motorsport photographers, including British GT and Porsche official photographer Dan Bathie.

As Bathie explains, one of the big benefits of the course is that it allows photographers to break their routine, something he learned when recently hosting one of the Trackside Focus British GT workshops.

“I think it’s easy to go to a track and sometimes you know a good place to go, and you’ll go and get images that you’ve got before because you know it works,” Bathie told The Pit Stop. “You kind of do the same techniques because you know it works.

“So it was then making [the workshop participants]

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KEERAN MARQUIS

JAMIE NASH

CHRIS NICHOLSON

CHRIS HOLDSWORTH

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think outside the box a little bit potentially.”

And this is where having a professional photographer of a tutor can pay dividends as Childs explains.

“The benefit of having someone like Dan on the workshop as the photography tutor, I think when people go to a race weekend on their own with their camera, they don’t try those shots because they don’t know whether they will work,” explained Childs. “And if they don’t work, they don’t understand why they don’t work. So they end up going away and don’t learn why that shot doesn’t work.

“With Dan, you can take a shot and if it doesn’t work, Dan is there to teach you why that shot maybe doesn’t work or to maybe try it differently so that it does work.”

But even though experts like Bathie are there to help the participants improve their shots, they’re not there to tell them exactly what to do.

“The aim of the workshop - and this is for all of the workshops we do, not just the British GT - is to inspire and empower the amateur photographers that come on the workshop,” said Childs. “It’s not to tell them ‘this is how you do it, these are the settings you use’.

That’s not the aim of the workshops, and that’s never been the aim. The aim is to always encourage and inspire them to give them the confidence to be able to go back to Brands or Silverstone or Donington, wherever, and take that learning with them.”

And that’s a great way to tackle a photography workshop like this.

Photography is an art form, it’s not formulaic.

Everybody has a different way of approaching it, people like different styles of photography and what gets one person excited can often make somebody else question what the creator was thinking. But that’s art.

It’s there to drive discussion and debate. It’s not about being to everybody’s taste.

Being a photographer himself, Childs understands this, and appreciates every shot is subjective, which is why he focuses more on helping photographers reach their potential rather than prescribing specific techniques.

“Photography is one of the most subjective art forms. It’s all completely subjective. There is no right, there is no wrong, there is no correct way of doing anything in photography,” he said.

Bathie agrees. “I think that’s why I really enjoyed seeing the output [from the participants] as well, and trying to not tell people ‘OK, you’ve got to do this’. It’s more ‘if I was here, I’d probably do this’, but through many ways of doing a shot at this corner or this place, depending on what your style is.”

And the small group sizes really help when it comes getting the most out of the course, and for Bathie it helps him get a greater understanding of everyone’s

approach to photography, which helped him to provide tailored advice for everyone.

“You chat to them the night before the course, so you get a little bit of an understanding of what they’ve done or what they want to get out of the workshop.

Then you go in and you set some base teachings. And then it allows you to work more individually, especially with the small class size.

“Some people might want my sort of help or advice a little bit more, some people are more willing to go off and do their thing, and they’ve learnt from the Saturday and they’re like ‘OK, I’ve got some stuff I want to try’. And some people are maybe more like ‘OK, what about this?’ Or ‘how about if I do this?’

“So yeah, it definitely helps and with having a class of four, there was a lot of one-on-one time.”

The course participants feel like they really get a lot out of the workshops too. Naturally, they all have different reasons for going on the workshops, and that was no different with the recent British GT luxury workshop.

“I signed up for The Trackside Focus British GT workshop as I was curious to experience a hospitality package at a series I’ve attended regularly with general entry, but also to get two solid days of close tuition from a professional motorsport photographer,” explained one of the attendees, Chris Nicholson.

The hospitality was great, but what really made the trip a success for me was the attention to detail from Greg at Trackside Focus and the time spent learning with Dan Bathie.

Greg instinctively knew what the group would need and when. He made sure we had space in the hospitality suite before we arrived, had drinks available, and knew the logistics at all times. His focus on delivering a great customer experience was clear and meant I could focus on the photography.

The tuition from Dan Bathie was a huge enabler for me. He was so quickly in tune with what I wanted to achieve that, with only a few words, he got me making changes and trying new things that delivered impressive results. I have left the workshop able to shoot a wider variety of images and in different conditions. That’s the best measure of success.”

Chris Holdsworth agreed. He’d previously been on another of Trackside Focus’ workshops in Barcelona, and said his “high expectations” of the course were met entirely.

“Brands Hatch is my local circuit, but experiencing it with VIP access and hospitality was a refreshing change from the usual muddy outings,” he said. “This unique vantage point allowed me to fully concentrate on my photography, which was the main goal of the day. Greg had everything meticulously arranged and was available throughout, ensuring a seamless

"PHOTOGRAPHY IS ONE OF THE MOST SUBJECTIVE ART FORMS."

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JAMIE NASH

CHRIS HOLDSWORTH

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CHRIS NICHOLSON

KEERAN MARQUIS

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CHRIS HOLDSWORTH

experience.

“The presence of Dan Bathie, a respected motorsport photographer, was invaluable. His insights on angles and shot composition opened my eyes to new possibilities. It was a privilege to learn from someone with such depth of knowledge.

Not everyone tackling these workshops is fully acquainted with motorsport photography though. Jamie Nash, who also attended the British GT workshop at Brands hatch explained he’d never done anything like that before, but was made to “feel very comfortable”.

And it was learning new techniques he picked up while on the course that he enjoyed the most.

“My favourite part was learning about panning,” said Nash. “I hadn't done that before and with Dan’s coaching, I managed to get quite good with it and got my shutter speed down to 1/10th of a second. Learning to do that in one day was amazing and the different locations around the track that he took us to were really good spots.”

The thing that Childs believes helps make his workshops stand out is the fact that while the photography element is the centrepiece, the fact that the whole workshop is done with VIP hospitality really

adds to the experience.

“Yes, you’ve got Dan there and all the photography.

That’s the centrepiece of the workshop. But then you’ve got the hospitality, the hotel, the grid walk, the pit walk.

And also, with Dan knowing the teams, Team Parker Racing gave us access to the garage for a few minutes.

It’s those little connections which all have those unique touches,” said Childs.

“But from a business perspective, it’s selling the experience to people. It’s experiencing British GT from a different perspective. Yes, you’ve got the photography tuition there with an incredible photographer. But you’ve also got the VIP treatment. From hospitality, to the hotel, to transport, everything is organised by us, and I think everyone enjoys being able to just focus on the photography and not have to worry about transport, travel or food.”

With workshop sizes limited to four people, a full luxury VIP treatment around the course itself, this really is more than a photography workshop. As Childs said himself, this is an experience. And experience for the avid motorsport photographer wanting to take their skills to the next level. You can’t ask for much more than that, can you?

If you want to learn more about Trackside Focus' luxury motorsport workshops, head to tracksidefocus.com

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IMAGE BY PHD MATTPHOTO WIDDOWSON

THE WORK JUNIORS NEVER STOPS MECHANICS WORKING LATE INTO THE EVENING ON THE AF CORSE FERRARI HYPERCAR AHEAD OF THE 6 HOURS OF FUJI.

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THE SOLUS WORDS BY J.R. HILDEBRAND IMAGES BY MCLAREN

W

alking around the Solus GT up on high-stands at Austin’s Circuit of the America’s F1 garages, it lives up to its billing as a car straight out of a video game. It’s part fendered single-seater in its overall orientation and proportions, part Group C prototype with those giant tunnels flaring out on each side of the center-exit exhaust, and part otherworldly spaceship in its body shaping and slidelatch fighter jet cockpit canopy.

A part of you momentarily wonders why, exactly, does this car exist? Then you see all the mechanics start

to cover their ears, the 829bhp naturally aspirated 5.2L Judd V10 sends a shockwave through the garage as it roars to life, and the why of it becomes simple. Because it can. And that’s good enough for me.

The Solus GT is not a car that you just hop in, slide the seat to where you want it, adjust the column, and go. Each cockpit is specifically tailored to the owner of the car. Such is the nature of any other single-seater that pulls in excess of 3Gs in cornering and braking, so such is the nature of the Solus GT. The canopy is simple, well thought-out, it works, and it truly does look and feel like that of a supersonic aircraft. It elegantly slides fore and aft on a track with a tactile feeling of materials strength and precision, and it locks into place

with a system of six heavy-duty latches that leave nothing to question.

It requires being around the people that look after the car to really get the full picture. It’s got a support crew that’s closer to a scaled-down F1 pit crew than a scaled-up group of track-day mechanics. Nobody looking after it is just messing around, and you had better not be, either.

At a point in the early afternoon, the time came to drive and I got a quick tutorial of the different driving modes. There are two large rotary knobs on the F1like carbon fiber steering wheel; the knob on the left has four macro settings – Wet, Intermediate, Track, and Race, while the rotary on the right allows you to

manually adjust the parameters within those macro driving modes. They wanted the few of us there to at least start out in “Track” mode which has more invasive traction control and limited top-end engine power, so of course we did.

The lead mechanic leans in to finish getting your belts sorted, you pull your gloves on, and you fire up the 10,000rpm fire-breather at your back – not with a quick stab of the “Start” button that automatically sorts it for you but with more analogue press-and-hold until the thing lights off. The chief mechanic then reorients to stand directly in front of you, slides the canopy back and gives it that last bit of assertive effort to lock it into place. Then he looks you directly in the eye and gives

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you the thumbs-up.

As I sat there in this V10 fighter jet on wheels, I couldn’t help but smile and think, 'OK, this is pretty badass'.

The car’s seven-speed sequential transmission utilises an automatic clutching mechanism for getting away like many top-level racing cars do these days, but rather than that which you’d find in even the Senna GTR that can handle all variety of modulation much like a street car, the Solus GT demands assertive commitment. The fact that once you select first gear and release the brake you must commit to a significant throttle application, without hesitation, with blind faith in the launch control until you’re off down the pit lane so as not to damage the car, is just another instance of this being no ordinary track car.

Select first. Press the pitlane speed limiter button.

Foot off the brake. Full-throttle sent up to the speed limiter. Away we go.

At the exit of the pit lane I released the pitlane speed limiter and rolled into the throttle ascending up towards COTA’s notorious first corner. As I released the car off the apex down toward Turn 2 I laid in it to a joyous cacophony of V10 scream bouncing off the rev limiter with the traction control working overtime up through second and third gears as the cold LMP-spec Goodyears struggled mightily to adhere to the road, the car twitching in all directions to my absolute delight.

The car is stiff and low like any proper high-downforce machine must be to take full advantage of what all that aero will give you, which also makes it so you have to drive the car quite hard before it will give you much feedback. So you have to get with the programme.

The sheer weight, power, and grip of the Solus GT makes it stupidly fast even in the just-gettingacquainted phase. The V10 is blasting you from point A to point B with reckless abandon, and everywhere

I COULDN'T HELP BUT SMILE AND THINK, 'OK, THIS IS PRETTY BADASS'.

THE MCLAREN SOLUS BEING DRIVEN AROUND THE CIRCUIT OF AMERICAS

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else around the track the car is telling you that there’s plenty left to go and find, in no uncertain terms. The tyres came in quickly, and as I drove the car deeper and deeper into the corners, as I asked more of its lateral grip capacity through high-speed sections, it continued yelling back at me “yes sir, may I please have another!”

Without any sense of having reached its peak and without any complaint from the front tyres.

It's worth pointing out just how unusual this is.

Literally every single “track day” car I’ve ever driven inevitably builds understeer. So when, after shedding seconds upon seconds of laptime down to a pace that only LMP prototypes and open-wheel cars ever occupy in just a few short laps, the front tyres still had plenty more to give, it was a staggering departure from any prior experiences like this.

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I’m not the only one that feels this way about the Solus GT either. McLaren’s Bruno Senna has also driven the car and has similar thoughts on the car’s abilities.

“I mean, it’s incredible,” he said. “A unique experience for people that are not Pro drivers but still with a huge, huge limit. So as you develop as a driver, there’s not much faster you can go if you’re not a full pro driver. So I think not only a unique project from an engineering perspective, but also from a fan perspective.

“Everybody saw the car in the Gran Turismo game so there’s already a legend behind it and then of course you have a prototype that is very accessible to many drivers. An incredible project, and I hope I could just drive it more often though.

“It’s much closer to LMP2 and LMP1 cars, between

THE ARTURA HAS BEEN HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL IN BRITISH GT

them in terms of pace. But just more friendly to drive which is welcome of course. Also the visibility is much nicer, much easier than most of these cars as well. So there is like a friendly characteristic to it that you don’t get in proper race cars and I think this is something that’s quite a privilege because high performance cars normally have this quite unfriendly behaviour or character to achieve the laptime. So McLaren did a good job there.”

And the downforce levels?

“On the high speed you’re pulling lots of G. So if you want to take really everything out of the car in terms of performance, you need to be quite physically fit or you can do only a few laps and then you’re tired. So yeah, it requires a lot from the driver but that’s how you take the maximum performance.”

It is not just the overall speed of the car that caught Senna’s attention though. He also found the beautiful cockpit environment really appealing.

“Visbility in that car is by far the best visibility I’ve ever seen in any sort of high performance car. It’s a 180 view on the front almost. But the halo, you don’t even see it after a while, so it’s quite incredible and very friendly.”

The McLaren engineers said they were targeting an LMP2 car’s pace with the Solus GT and that they achieved. I have no doubt about that. More than that, however, in this car that came into the world as an idea, by way of a video game, they’ve shown us a glimpse of the future that’s rooted in things we love about the past like no other racing car has done in quite some time.

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ARTURA T H E

F U L L

F O R C E

O F

M c L A R E N

U LT RA -L IGHT E NGINE E R IN G. B L I S TER I NG E L EC T R IF IE D P OW E R. S U BL I ME AGIL I T Y A ND E NGAG E M E N T. Artura isn’t simply our first series production hybrid. It’s the next-generation supercar.

AVA I L ABLE N OW

Fuel consumption combined: 4.6l/100km | CO2 emissions combined: 104g/km.

For our emissions statement please go to cars.mclaren.com

IN SHORT

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Image credit: Red Bull Content Pool

IS A NEW MOTOGP RIVALRY ON THE HORIZON?

BY ADAM PROUD

With all the excitement leading up to it, it’s fair to say the 2024 MotoGP season lived up to the hype.

We had a new premier-class champion crowned in Jorge Martin, the rebirth of Marc Marquez’s undoubted talent, and quite the rider merry go round which was stirred up between the pair mentioned.

We’ve got a new champion hungry to retain the crown with a new team, and a veteran who is keen to take that elusive ninth world title.

So, let’s start off with the reigning champion Martin. The midpoint of 2024 brought a bit of a low blow for the Spaniard, when a rapid escalation of events took him from being all but confirmed to be riding alongside Pecco Bagnaia on a factory Ducati to being ousted in favour of a certain eight-time world champion.

For Martin, 2025 was essentially a fully-fledged factory bike or nothing, so he was left scrambling to find another home, which brought Aprilia into the mix.

A rider who was already hungry for the title suddenly had another incentive to go on and take the spoils: snatch the number one away from Ducati and take it to another Italian manufacturer.

With the MotoGP crown on his head, the 26-year-old will head to Aprilia keen to keep hold of it and send a message to his former manufacturer who favoured the services of Marquez to himself.

Speaking of Marquez, he’s another rider who will be desperate to carry over his 2024 form into this season.

Last year saw a return of the pre-2020 form that we all became so used to week in week out. With a move away from his beloved Honda to a 2023-spec Gresini Ducati, 2024 was essentially a test for Marquez to see whether he still had that pace to fight at the front.

As each race went by, it became crystal clear that he does, in fact, still have it.

From struggling each race in his latter years at Honda to suddenly being a favourite for the podium every round on a year old Ducati, Marquez was arguably one of if not the rider of the

season.

Not including sprint races, Marquez finished on the podium 10 times, including a return to the top step on three occasions, something he hadn’t done in three years, and this form put him third in the championship.

And, to Martin’s expense, that got him a well earned shot on the factory Ducati for 2025.

It won’t be easy by any means, because he now shares a stable with one of the grid’s strongest riders in Bagnaia, who is a two-time premier-class champion and has become accustomed to being Ducati’s number one rider.

But going by his post-season test in Barcelona where he took to the track on a fully updated Ducati for the first time, it’s clear Marquez will be a force once 2025 gets underway.

“I’ve come back to the old times [with a] factory team,” he said after riding the factory Desmosedici for the first time.

“On that kind of test, especially the first one of 2025, it’s super busy. You cannot concentrate on taking the maximum [out of] the bike because you are trying many things.

“You cannot crash, because if you crash then the plan of the day changes a lot and becomes more difficult.

“So you need to be super precise with all [those] things.”

When asked if he felt back to normal having returned to a factory role, Marquez said the equipment is there to fight and a clearer image will be made in 2025’s pre-season tests.

“Being in the factory team means [there is] more responsibility, especially when you are riding with the best performing team these last years,” he explained.

“We will do our best, be super professional and help the team, and I think today was the first step, the first impressions.

“In Malaysia we will start the real pre-season.”

It’s of course still too early to predict what may happen once the lights go out for the 2025 season, but keep a close eye on these two Spaniards, because if one thing is certain it’s that this pair will be vying for the top spot come the season's end.

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WHY FOURMAUX'S SWITCH TO HYUNDAI IS RISKY

Image credit: Hyundai

BY ROB HANSFORD

Adrien Fourmaux will take a new step forward in his World Rally Championship career when he joins Hyundai for the 2025 season. But is it the right move for the French driver?

Fourmaux has long been considered one of the WRC’s greatest young talents, ever since his first full year with M-Sport in 2021.

During that year he picked up some great results, including two fifth places in Croatia and Kenya, proving he had real potential.

His career stalled in 2022 which resulted in M-Sport demoting him back to WRC2, but a year out clearly helped and throughout 2024 Fourmaux did the best he could with the machinery he had.

The Puma has always been half a step behind the Toyota Yaris GR and the Hyundai i20 N in the Rally1 era, but despite that Fourmaux was able to collect five podiums throughout 2024, again underlying his talent. So it’s easy to see why Fourmaux wanted to make the move to Hyundai for 2025.

With its star driver Thierry Neuville having won this year’s world championship, Fourmaux knows that the i20 N is a car that will allow him to fight for outright victories. That part was never in question though. The biggest question is whether Hyundai will allow Fourmaux to fight for the championship?

Ever since Cyril Abiteboul joined Hyundai, team orders have frequently been imposed. It’s not a tactic often seen in the WRC, but having learnt how to use team orders to good effect in F1, Abiteboul has transferred the knowledge to WRC, which has helped the team secure several victories.

So the biggest concern regarding Fourmaux’s move to the South Korean manufacturer is that he could be asked to make way for his team-mates, Neuville and Ott Tanak, if he’s leading a rally with either of them chasing him behind.

Both of those drivers would be considered more senior to Fourmaux, especially since they’ve both won world championships. Tanak and Neuville can be relied upon to win rallies, while Fourmaux is yet to win a WRC event outright in his career. So if Hyundai wanted a safe pair of hands to guarantee victory, you can understand why it might feel more comfortable if it had Neuville or Tanak leading the charge.

However, Fourmaux has no such concerns. He’s said that this 152 THE PIT STOP

was a consideration for him before he agreed to join Hyundai, but that the team has told him that he will have an equal chance to fight for the championship.

If that’s the case and Hyundai does indeed stick to its word, then Fourmaux’s move to Hyundai makes complete sense. For the first real time in his WRC career, he’ll have an opportunity to fight for the world championship.

But although Hyundai says it will give him an equal chance of fighting for the title, it doesn’t necessarily mean it won’t continue to use team orders, which could hamper the Frenchman.

As always, the devil will be in the detail of exactly what has been agreed. From what Fourmaux’s said, there’s nothing to suggest Hyundai won’t use team orders, just that all of its drivers will have an equal chance of fighting for the title.

But if Neuville or Tanak start to get an advantage in the championship over the other two Hyundai drivers, and if Toyota’s drivers are close in the battle as well, you can easily see a situation where Hyundai will begin enforcing team orders to ensure its leading driver gets as many points as possible to maintain the advantage.

That’s the biggest risk Fourmaux faces with his Hyundai move.

Equal machinery and an equal opportunity at the start of the season aren’t the issues. It makes sense why Hyundai would want all three of its drivers battling all-out against each other at the start of the season.

But as the year develops, it’s hard to see a scenario where Hyundai refuses to impose team orders if Toyota is breathing down heavily on its drivers. And given the fact that Fourmaux is still lacking rally-winning experience, you’d assume he’d be the first of its three drivers to be sacrificed if needed. Not because of a lack of quality, but because he is yet to prove he can consistently win.

That’s what makes Fourmaux’s move such a risk. But if he can fly out of the blocks and win from the off, he at least does have a chance to swing the odds into his favour.

Image credit: McLaren

MCLAREN TROPHY GOES TO THE WIRE

BY TOM BAKER

The McLaren Trophy signed off its second season of racing with three champions crowned during the final weekend of racing at Barcelona in October. The 2023 champion-winning partnership of Gonzalo de Andres and Tommy Pintos were split for this year, with Gonzalo teaming up with German racer Alejandro Geppert, while Tommy partnered Brazilian racer amateur Adalberto Baptista.

In the first weekend it looked like Optimum Motorsport would be the ones to beat as it claimed a decisive race one win at Misano in Italy. It would have won the second race as well but for a five-second track limits penalty that ensured it missed out on a second victory by just 0.099 seconds. Taking the top step on that occasion were Gonzalo and Alejandro.

The historic Spa-Francorchamps was the venue for rounds three and four in support of the 24-hour race. Always a highlight of the year, the event has a unique feel as all the cars and drivers head down to Spa town in a huge parade on the Wednesday evening. By Friday it was back down to business as de Andres and Geppert once again took victory ahead of series debutant Erik Behrens. The Swede, having previously raced the GT4 iteration of the Artura in a 12-hour event earlier in the year, put his knowledge to good use and secured pole position for the second race.

Making an impression during a hard-fought race was Australian 17-year-old Jayden Kelly who drove superbly to take the first win of his car racing career, and to do it at Spa was something special.

In the 570S class, Hermann Backus & Kevin Rohrscheidt joined the championship and immediately gave class leaders Ryan James and Oli Webb something to worry about by winning round three. Ryan and Oli had already won the two opening races but would prove to have the measure of their rivals over the course of the year, claiming eight wins on their way to securing the title at Monza.

As the championship made its way to the Nürburgring in Germany, Adalberto and Tommy found their rhythm, finishing runner up in race one after a superb battle to the flag where the gap once again was just a tenth of a second in soaking wet conditions. They went one better for the second contest however,

taking a race two win and setting up an intriguing title battle for the final rounds of the year.

After missing the German races, Erik Behrens returned for Monza to challenge Danny Henrey in the Artura AM class. He qualified third for the second race and drove a strong stint to finish second, splitting the title rivals, as Tommy and Adalberto once again claimed victory and ensured the title battle would go down to the final weekend in Barcelona.

The Spanish city was the home venue for SMC Motorsport as their supporters turned out in force to witness a championship victory, but Behrens was once again a thorn in their side, denying them a race one pole position. Gonzalo never-the-less capitalised when his rival bogged down off the line to seize the lead of the race. A lead he and Alejandro wouldn’t relinquish, crossing the line for not only the win but also the Artura class championship, and help secure the Teams’ title for SMC. By the final race of the weekend there was still one title up for grabs but it was all but settled as soon as the lights went out. In the Am class Erik Behrens only had to start the race to take the title after Danny Henrey unfortunately had an off in race one, damaging his car too badly to take the start of the second event.

Taking third place overall and making another trip to the top step of the AM class podium ensured he did it in style, joining the other champions on the F1 podium overlooking the pit lane to celebrate their 2024 success.

THE PIT STOP 153

IMAGE BY ED WAPLINGTON

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