The 50th running of the Suzuka 1000km had all the ingredients of a classic endurance race. A damp opening, multiple full course yellows, lead changes driven by strategy and outright pace, and a Porsche that simply would not be denied. When Laurin Heinrich took the checkered flag on Sunday evening, it ended a 32-year winless stretch for Porsche at one of motorsport's most demanding circuits, their 12th overall victory there and first since 1994. The #8 AO by Absolute Porsche of Heinrich, Alessio Picariello, and Julien Andlauer completed 184 laps and crossed the line 51.416 seconds clear of the field. Photo taken by Yuya RCAP Japan Opening Hour: Ford Took Control The 30-car field rolled to the green flag at 12:50 PM local time on a damp but drying Suzuka Circuit. Dennis Olsen in the #64 Miedecke Motorsport by Team MPC Ford Mustang GT3 Evo led from the start, with the #7 Absolute Porsche of Ayhancan Güven sweeping past the #45 PONOS Racing Ferrari for second early on. Olsen and Güven spent much of the opening hour trading blows at the front while the rest of the field fell away behind them. After one hour, the #64 Ford held the lead and Olsen was left in the car for a double stint, while Absolute Racing sent rookie Alessandro Ghiretti out in the #7 Porsche. Early problems began to stack up for several of the field's sentimental favorites. The #500 Team 5Zigen Nissan GT-R, driven by the factory Nissan trio of Katsumasa Chiyo, Kazuki Hiramine, and Atsushi Miyake, was caught up in contact with the #75 Mercedes-AMG of Mikaël Grenier and fell four laps down. They would never recover, eventually finishing 19th. The #75 Mercedes itself was not long for the race either. Owner-driver Kenny Habul lost control at the notorious 130R corner during his opening stint and collected the tyre barrier. The two-time Suzuka class winners managed to drive back to the garage but ultimately retired, the first car out. A collision between the #91 Herberth Motorsport Porsche and the #89 Team KRC BMW brought out a brief full course yellow before the 90-minute mark. The BMW was left stranded on the wet grass at Turn 2 and retired after 85 laps with damage. Photo taken by Yuya RCAP Japan The Race Turns on a Restart With Olsen and then Christopher Mies in the #64 Ford building a clear lead over the Absolute Racing entries, it appeared the Mustang was in control. Then a spin from the #18 Porsche Center Okazaki machine at Turn 2 collected the #555 Maezawa Racing Ferrari and brought out the Safety Car, erasing the Ford's advantage over the #7 Porsche of Dorian Boccolacci with a little under three and a half hours remaining. The restart changed everything. Heinrich, now in the #8 Porsche, began his charge from fifth. He dispatched the #45 PONOS Ferrari and then ran side-by-side with Nicky Catsburg in the #2 JMR Corvette down the West Straightaway into 130R. With a forceful move up the inside, Heinrich grabbed second. He then set his sights on Mies and the leading Ford. The gap was ten seconds. Heinrich began cutting it lap by lap. As the race passed halfway, Mies left a gap between Gyaku Bank Corner and NIPPO Corner and Heinrich drove the #8 Porsche through the inside to take the lead. A fast pit stop from the Absolute Racing crew kept Picariello out front and extended the advantage. When Heinrich returned to the car with two hours left, the race was effectively over. He drove away from the Ford and the entire field as the sun set over Suzuka, and the #8 Porsche completed 1,000 kilometers with 20 minutes still on the race clock, leading by more than 47 seconds at that point. The Rest of the Field The #64 Miedecke/MPC Ford of Olsen, Mies, and Frédéric Vervisch finished second despite being unable to hold the lead in the second half. It was Ford's best-ever result at the Suzuka 1000km and the best in the Intercontinental GT Challenge for the manufacturer, a strong debut outing for Miedecke Motorsport and Melbourne Performance Centre with the Mustang GT3 Evo. The #7 Absolute Porsche of Güven, Ghiretti, and Boccolacci completed a Porsche 1-3 after recovering from a late fuel rig issue. Güven closed the race in strong form and set a new GT3 race lap record at Suzuka in SRO competition, a 1:59.966. The #2 JMR Corvette of Catsburg, Scott McLaughlin, and Alexander Sims worked its way from tenth on the grid to fourth at the flag. The #77 Craft-Bamboo Mercedes-AMG of Maxime Martin, Kakunoshin Ohta, and Luca Stolz made up 23 positions from 28th after a qualifying disqualification to finish fifth, though their pace faded late and they dropped off the lead lap. The #45 PONOS Ferrari finished sixth after a shutdown cost the team the lead lap mid-race. The #69 Team WRT BMW of Anthony McIntosh, Parker Thompson, and Dan Harper won the Bronze class in seventh overall, WRT's third consecutive class win at Suzuka. A late drive-through penalty for contact could not shake their position. The #86 High Class Racing Porsche finished eighth and second in Bronze, with the #96 K-tunes Lexus ninth after climbing from 20th on the grid. Kerong in the #86 Porsche clinched the IGTC Independent Cup championship a round early by finishing first among the independent entries. In Pro-Am, the #60 LM Corsa Ferrari of Kei Nakanishi, Shigekazu Wakisaka, and former Formula 1 race winner Giancarlo Fisichella delivered one of the day's more impressive results, finishing tenth overall and taking the class win. Photo taken by Yuya RCAP Japan Championship Picture Porsche's 1-3 finish at Suzuka extends the manufacturer's lead in the IGTC Manufacturers' Championship. The season closes out with the Indianapolis 8 Hour, where Porsche will look to wrap up the title. AO by Absolute Porsche, and the legend of Bushi Rex, leave Suzuka with the biggest win of their program. Porsche's 32-year wait at one of the world's great circuits is over. Top 10 Results: Pos No. Team 1 #8 AO by Absolute Porsche 2 #64 Miedecke Motorsport by MPC 3 #7 Absolute Porsche 4 #2 JMR Corvette 5 #77 Craft-Bamboo Mercedes-AMG 6 #45 PONOS Racing Ferrari 7 #69 Team WRT BMW 8 #86 High Class Racing Porsche 9 #96 K-tunes Racing Lexus 10 #60 LM Corsa Ferrari (Pro-Am)

#27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin driven by Mattia Drudi during the 6 Hours Lone Star Le Mans at Circuit of The Americas (Photo by: Kylar Boggs/RacingClipsAndPics) Heart of Racing Aston Martin claims home victory with the #27 in the 6 Hours Lone Star Le Mans in dominating fashion. This is their first victory at Circuit of The Americas and it is the first time to have both cars finish on the podium with the #23 Heart of Racing sister car finishing in third place. From start to finish, the Heart of Racing Team controlled the pace as they not only had both cars start in the top three, but also have gotten Hyperpole in LMGT3 class the previous three races. Both cars sit fourth, and sixth in the standings currently as they head into the next round at Fuji with very strong pace to close out the season.

Race 26: This was the first of three races, and one of the shorter ones for the weekend. Brodie Kostecki managed to secure another race win for himself at the Ipswich Super 440, managing to jump ahead of Matt Payne to secure that win. Rylan Gray had an impressive showing, finishing P7 in race 26. The young driver has had a mixed bag of results, but this was by far one of the most impressive weekends for him. Rylan Gray with an impressive start to the weekend in Ipswich, finishing P7. Matt Payne was P2, having to work hard to secure himself the sprint cup. It was a close fight between him and Broc Feeney, and he was beginning to close the gap. His teammate Kai Allen worked to secure P5, finishing one position up from where he started. Red Bull Ampol Racing had a way better outing in Ipswich, with a P3 for Will Brown and P4 for Broc Feeney. The pair have been having some struggles so far this year but have begun the rise and improvement over the past few race weekends. Chaz Mostert had a tough day, down three positions and only finishing p6. His teammate Ryan Wood was forced to start out of the top 10, but fighting through the field, ended up P9 and up four positions. The Tickford duo was the final two drivers within the top 10. Cam Waters would’ve been looking for a better result than what he had, but he managed to finish P8. His teammate also joined in, with Thomas Randle finishing P10. Race 27: Another sprint style race, consisting of only 39 laps. Races 26 and 27 were prep for the bigger race on Sunday. Will Brown managed the comeback of the century. He started from P3, and managed to get himself into P1, securing a win for the first time since 2025. His teammate also had a great result too, finishing P3 after moving up 3 positions. Red Bull have begun improving and it had shown at the past few weekends. Will Brown secures his first race win since 2025. Brodie Kostecki had another strong race, having started and finished his race in P2. His younger teammate Rylan Gray had a difficult race, unfortunately dropping 14 positions, to finish P25. Kai Allen and Matt Payne continue their solid race results. Kai Allen finished ahead of his teammate in P4. Matt Payne lost out on five positions on track and ultimately had to finish P6. Chaz Mostert managed another decent result finishing P5, although dropping down a spot. Ryan Wood had a tougher race, starting further down the field, top 10 was going to be near impossible. Tickford finished another race with two cars in the top 10. Cam Waters had another good race, although he would’ve liked to have been closer to a podium, P7 was where he was able to get to. Thomas Randle was also in a similar situation but had ended up finishing P9. Team 18 got into the top 10 during race 27. David Reynolds drove a brilliant race, making up eleven positions to finish P8, splitting the two Tickford cars. His teammate Anton De Pasquale, also got into the top 10, although losing three positions, he was still able to finish P10. Race 28: This was the longest of the three races during the weekend in Ipswich. A race in which Matt Payne needed to win to secure the Sprint Cup, however this wouldn’t be the case. Despite all the efforts of Matt Payne and Penrite Racing, an engine problem would unfortunately end his day early. Broc Feeney took out the win for race 27, ensuring that he also secured the Sprint Cup despite all the odds. His teammate Will Brown joined him on the podium, finishing P3 and helping the team score as much as possible. Broc Feeney secures another Sprint Cup, after Matt Payne is forced to DNF. In P2 and splitting both Red Bull cars was Brodie Kostecki who continues to show he is in form this season. Rylan Gray also managed to finish in the top 10 for this race, securing P8. Kai Allen was able to secure some solid points for Penrite finishing P4 due to being the sole driver left in the race. But it was a difficult day for Penrite in general. James Golding was a driver we didn’t expect to see in the top 10, but with his capability he brought Blanchard Racing Team into the fight. He managed to finish P5, whilst his teammate Aaron Cameron also helped to secure points, finishing P10. Anton De Pasquale and David Reynolds made another appearance in the top 10. De Pasquale finished P6, and David Reynolds managed to finish P9. Both drivers moved up from their original starting positions. Cam Waters was the sole Tickford car in the top 10, managing to finish P7. His teammate Thomas Randle could only manage P11, despite working extremely hard during the race. With the Sprint Cup officially completed, we move onto our Endurance Cup. Our main drivers work with Co-Drivers in endurance racing at two tracks: The Bend and Bathurst. Our first enduro takes place this weekend at The Bend and is sure to be an exciting one to watch. The Bend Motorsport Park.

Monza proved to be a difficult track for many of the drivers. A constant back and forth of position swapping proved a difficult way to maintain track position. But the tow was able to prove beneficial to some, with others struggling significantly. A chaotic start to the Italian Grand Prix. Kimi Antonelli managed to get himself a home grand prix win, starting from the back end of the grid, due to an engine penalty. He gained multiple positions early, before eventually working through the rest of the field, to secure the win. His teammate George Russell had a tough time, working against the tyres capability and eventually losing out on his teammate due to the tyre difference. Max Verstappen secured himself a P3 spot, despite a constant back and forth fighting early in the race. Eventually he was able to put himself in a decent position where even he was fighting for the win, until Redbull had nothing more to give. Liam Lawson was again in the Redbull as Isack Hadjar was still sitting out, and although he did well, his qualifying result didn’t help the race. He ended up P14, well out of the points and simply unable to fight to get into the top 10. The McLaren pairing was P4 and P5, fighting against one another for a good amount of time in the race. Lando Norris was able to get ahead of his teammate within the final few laps, securing P4, whilst Oscar Piastri was down in P5. Lewis Hamilton was forced to settle for only P6. An early altercation between himself and his teammate Charles Leclerc dropped him down to P10. He was able to get back towards the top end of the fight, but with 40 lap old medium tyres and Ferrari not pitting him, P6 was all he was able to get. Charles Leclerc however had a difficult day out. By lap 3, he was out of the Italian Grand Prix, after crashing at the parabolica. He was taken for medical checks to ensure he is capable to race at this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix. A tough day for Leclerc sees him out of the Italian Grand Prix on Lap 3. Pierre Gasly despite starting on pole, quickly lost track position due to the capability of the Alpine. He ended up down in P7, even with all the work done to get onto pole position. Franco Colapinto had his work cut out for him; after making a mistake and dropping down the field, he eventually managed to get back into the points finishing P9. The Racing Bulls pairing were the last two securing points at the Italian Grand Prix. Arvid Lindblad put in the hard work to secure a P8 position, whilst Yuki Tsunoda, who was filling in again managed to finish P10. Audi missed out on points only by a slim margin. The drivers did well to work their way through the field, however Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg were only able to get to P11 for Bortoleto and P12 for Hulkenberg. Carlos Sainz had a decent weekend, having started P13, he did well to maintain that position all through the race, finishing P13. His teammate Alex Albon had a tough outing, starting from the back of the grid due to penalties, he still managed to do well and eventually finished P17. Ollie Bearman and Esteban Ocon had a tough day. Both drivers could do very little to gain position, instead losing spots. Bearman finished in P15, just ahead of his teammate Ocon, who finished P16. A difficult Qualifying and Race for the Haas Duo. Cadillac managed to have both drivers finish the grand prix. Sergio Perez managed to finish P18, whilst his teammate Valtteri Bottas finished P19. They still have a long way to go as a team but are slowly learning. The only team with a double DNF was Aston Martin. Fernando Alonso was forced to retire his car due to issues relating to damage, whilst his teammate Lance Stroll retired due to a hydraulic issue, forced to pull over at turn one. This weekend we head to Spain again to attend the Madring for the first time. This track will be interesting. Something new for all the drivers and should prove for some drama during the weekend.

#50 Ferrari AF Corse driven by Nicklas Nielsen during 6 Hours Lone Star Le Mans at Circuit of The Americas (Photo by: Kylar Boggs/RacingClipsAndPics) Nicklas Nielsen and Ferrari AF Corse are victorious in the 6 Hour Lone Star Le Mans in dramatic fashion for the first time this season, and since the 2025 season opener for the #50. This is also the second podium for the #50 Ferrari since the 6 Hours of Spa Francorchamps finishing that race in third position. Ferrari become the third manufacturer to win a race this season. This victory for the Scuderia came in dramatic fashion as within the last fifteen minutes, the Toyota #7 of Nyck De Vries suffered a mechanical failure with loss of the hydraulic pressure, forcing him to retire the car after having dominating pace. Jack Aitken after starting on the front row, finishes third on track, but is promoted up to the second position after the #35 Alpine of Charles Milesi recieves a penalty for an unsafe pit release. This is Cadillac's best result of the season. Alpine & Cadillac are the only team to have both cars finish in the points. The #35 finishes in third with the #15 of Kevin Magnussen finishing in eighth. Cadillac picks up their first podium since Sao Paulo, finishing in second, and the #12 finishing in ninth place respectively.

#51 Ferrari Hypercar on track during FP1 at Circuit of The Americas (Photo by: Kylar Boggs/RacingClipsAndPics) Antonio Giovinazzi is on pole position for Sunday's 6 Hour Lone Star Le Mans at Circuit of the Americas. However, qualifying ended in dramatic fashion. Antonio Giovinazzi and Cadillac driver Jack Aitken tied for provisional pole however, it ended up going to the Ferrari driver. Jack Aitken achieves his best qualifying position of his WEC career effectively tying for pole position but that P1 award will have to wait another time for Jack Aitken. Giovinazzi's previous pole position came back in Imola of this year. Ferrari look to aim back and close in on the points lead in the title battle with BMW and Toyota. Antonio Giovinazzi will lead the field to green in what will be a very hot day in the Lone Star State.

The Heart of Racing Team claims Hyperpole in the LMGT3 Class for the 6 Hour Lone Star Le Mans at Circuit of The Americas, and also lock out the top two starting spots for the first time ever. Eduardo Barichello claimed pole position for the third time in his WEC career. #27 Heart Of Racing Team Aston Martin LMGT3 driven by Zacharie Robichon, Ian James, Mattia Drudi (Photo by: Kylar Boggs/RacingClipsAndPics) The previous pole positions in Barichello's WEC Career came at the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo and the 6 Hours of Fuji back in 2025. Barichello's teammate Zacharie Robichon claimed second position in LMGT3 Hyperpole qualifying. The #27 has also claimed pole position earlier in the year at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Robichon behind the wheel. #23 Heart Of Racing Team Aston Martin LMGT3 driven by Eduardo Barichello, Gray Newell, Jonny Adam (Photo by: Kylar Boggs/RacingClipsAndPics) The Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin LMGT3's have been fast all weekend long as they will lead the LMGT3 grid to green in tomorrow's 6 Hour Lone Star Le Mans at Circuit of The Americas.

The Dutch Grand Prix was an extremely dramatic one. With a safety car almost instantly, drama wasn’t too far behind. Lando Norris took out another win at the Dutch Grand Prix for its final time on the calendar. His teammate Oscar Piastri struggled for pace during the race, couldn’t get past drivers and was forced to settle for an underwhelming P6 result. Your top 3 at the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix: Lando Norris, Kimi Antonelli and George Russell. Mercedes was unable to keep up with Norris as he stormed ahead. Team orders established that Kimi Antonelli was to gain a position on his teammate, so finished P2. George Russell however after giving P2 up, was then under extreme threat from both Ferrari drivers following closely behind. Russell was lucky when a last-minute Virtual Safety Car was called for debris that reduced the opportunity for an overtake. George Russell would finish in P3. The Ferrari drivers had a much better weekend compared to last year’s result. Lewis Hamilton continued his point scoring with another P4 result, despite having concerns regarding strategy during the race. Charles Leclerc ended up finishing P5, with some awkward team moments and stressful times. Leclerc made some interesting calls, choosing to try and battle his teammate, almost resulting in crashing, but luckily better decisions were made. Isack Hadjar was forced to miss the Dutch Grand Prix due to injury with Liam Lawson stepping into the RedBull Racing seat. Liam Lawson was the only RedBull Racing car in the top 10 and managed to finish a solid P7, despite being put into the team that week. Max Verstappen however had anything but a fairytale ending for his home grand prix, crashing on the final corner at the end of lap 2. It was a devastating situation with Verstappen obviously very disappointed. Onboard with Pierre Gasly as Max Verstappen crashes out of the Dutch Grand Prix. Nico Hulkenberg had a better weekend out. He managed to score some points for himself, finishing P8. This comes after a tough season so far with various issues and car concerns causing him to DNF a lot of races. His teammate Gabriel Bortoleto struggled for pace, finishing only P13, but the team itself is showing more promise. Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin were finally able to get some points under their belt, finishing P8. A much better result for the team who at the start of the season was unable to start and finish many of their races. Lance Stroll however, had another DNF added to his list after quietly retiring the car on lap 45. The final driver making it into the top 10 was Alpines Pierre Gasly, finishing P10. Once again Gasly continues to have a better year at Alpine. His teammate Franco Colapinto had a tough race, receiving a penalty that was added post-race for failing to slow for yellow flags, which resulted in a P14 finish. Pierre Gasly battles Yuki Tsunoda for track position. Yuki Tsunoda made another return due to Hadjar being out. He took the position at Racing Bulls and the pairing managed to finish just outside the top 10. Yuki Tsunoda finished P11, and Arvid Lindblad managed to finish just behind in P12. Sergio Perez secured a P15 result during the race. This was a solid result for the tough season the team has had. But the same couldn’t be said for the other side of the Cadillac garage, with Valtteri Bottas having another DNF added to his underwhelming season. Williams had a race to forget, especially when the two drivers crash into one another and almost result in a double DNF. This result however did see Alex Albon DNF, and Carlos Sainz received a 10 second penalty and ended up P16. Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz run into one another on the closing stages of the Dutch Grand Prix. Haas was the only team with a double DNF. Oliver Bearman couldn’t get going for the second race restart and was forced to pull over and finish the day there. Esteban Ocon suffered a similar fate, with a power unit issue causing his DNF on lap 55. We return this weekend to the Temple of Speed, for the Italian Grand Prix. This is an exciting weekend for Ferrari, but also for Kimi Antonelli. However, a race penalty looms over Antonelli’s head for the weekend.

One of the greatest title runs in American open-wheel history reached another milestone in Milwaukee. A 19-year-old carrying one of rallying's most famous names stood on the top step for the first time at the national level. And IndyCar had to clean up a premature announcement from a South American mayor. Here is the weekend in motorsport. Palou Makes History in Milwaukee Numbers rarely do justice to what Alex Palou has built at Chip Ganassi Racing, but these ones deserve to be read slowly. Five championships. Six seasons. Four consecutive titles. The youngest five-time champion in American open-wheel history. The fastest driver ever to reach five titles, shattering a record held by A.J. Foyt, who needed eight seasons to achieve the same. And at 29 years old, Palou is not close to finished. He clinched the 2026 IndyCar Series championship with a race to spare at The Milwaukee Mile on Sunday, completing a season in which he has scored six wins, eight poles, seven podiums, 12 top-fives, and led 673 laps across 17 races. The title also pushed Chip Ganassi Racing past Team Penske for the most championships in IndyCar history, giving CGR 18 series titles and a 68.4 percent championship win rate across the 19 seasons since reunification. "Everything that I owe to this team, to these two men sitting next to me, that they give me the opportunity to be not only a race winner, then a champion, now a five-time champion," Palou said at the post-race press conference. "It just feels like we started yesterday. We're just getting closer and closer. We're having more fun and more fun each day." For context on how quickly all of this has happened: Foyt won his five championships over eight seasons. Scott Dixon, who sits second on the all-time list with six, needed 16 seasons to reach five. Palou has done it in six. He is also the first driver to win four consecutive titles since Sébastien Bourdais from 2004 to 2007, and at 29 is the youngest to reach five championships in the history of the sport, besting Foyt (32 when he reached five) and Dixon (38). Chip Ganassi, who noted with some satisfaction that his organization has now passed Roger Penske on the all-time titles list, was quick to credit the infrastructure around his driver as much as the driver himself. "What has allowed him to do that? The people around him, the team, the partners we've had," Ganassi said. "A lot of people still have fingerprints on this championship today. They're still here. They're still part of this." When asked whether Palou could eventually reach eight championships and surpass Foyt's all-time record, Ganassi did not hesitate. "Absolutely. I wouldn't want to bet against that." Lia Block Wins First Overall ARA Rally at Ojibwe Forests Nineteen-year-old Lia Block claimed her first overall victory at the national level of U.S. rallying on Saturday, winning the Ojibwe Forests Rally in Minnesota alongside co-driver Alex Gelsomino in a Hyundai i20 N Rally2 for Block House Racing. Competing in the RC2 division of the American Rally Association National Championship, Block finished the two-day event with a time of 1:44:23.1, more than two minutes clear of Javier Olivares and co-driver Leah Brisset in second. The win follows podium results at the Olympus Rally, Southern Ohio Forest Rally, and Rally Colorado, making it four consecutive podium finishes on the national circuit. Block currently leads the ARA National Championship standings by 21 points with two rounds remaining, the Overmountain Rally Tennessee on September 18 to 19 and Lake Superior Performance Rally on October 9 to 10. "My first overall ARA win. Hard fought but lead from stage one and finished with a two-minute lead," Block posted on Instagram. "This one has been a long time coming with the disappointment at Snow Drift earlier in the year. Hard work pays off." The result adds to an already remarkable early career. Block won the ARA Open Two-Wheel-Drive championship in 2023 at just 16 years old, becoming the youngest ever to claim that title. She also competed in the F1 Academy championship in 2025, finishing ninth overall and winning in Singapore. Block is the daughter of the late Ken Block, the legendary American rally driver and extreme sports icon who died in a snowmobile accident in 2023. IndyCar Pushes Back on Colombia Race Reports IndyCar found itself doing some public damage control this week after Barranquilla Mayor Alejandro Char publicly announced that the Colombian city had secured an IndyCar race along the Magdalena riverfront for April 2028, describing it as the series' first event outside of North America. The series responded quickly and firmly. "We have met with representatives of Barranquilla in Indianapolis but have not yet visited the city ourselves," IndyCar said in a statement provided to Motorsport.com. "While the city is interested in hosting an IndyCar race in 2028, we are in the earliest stages of due diligence with this and other prospective opportunities. We are a long way from an agreement and any assumption otherwise is premature." Mayor Char made the announcement during the launch of the Magdalena River Crossing, framing the event as part of a broader strategy to position Barranquilla as a destination for major international sporting events. The revitalized riverfront, once an industrial zone, was presented as the backdrop for a potential street circuit layout. IndyCar's statement makes clear that nothing close to a contract exists. Exploratory meetings have taken place but an actual site visit from the series has not yet happened. A Colombian race in 2028 remains possible in theory, but it is nowhere near confirmed.

Max Verstappen makes history off the track. RCR made its 2027 Cup plans official. Rockingham Speedway's future is uncertain again. And a new era of LMP2 competition took its first concrete step forward. Here is the weekend in motorsport. Verstappen Commits to Red Bull Through 2030 The speculation is over. Max Verstappen has signed a contract extension with Red Bull Racing through the end of the 2030 season, removing any possibility of a move to Mercedes, McLaren, or anywhere else for the foreseeable future. The announcement was made Thursday at Zandvoort ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix, Verstappen's home race, and it brought to a close 18 months of near-constant rumors about where the four-time world champion would drive next. His previous contract ran through 2028 but contained performance-based exit clauses that had kept the paddock guessing. Those clauses are now irrelevant. The financial scale of the commitment is worth noting. Reports suggest Verstappen's base salary could reach around €92 million per year from 2027, potentially rising to approximately €115 million with performance bonuses. Red Bull has not confirmed those figures, but if accurate the four-year extension could represent a package approaching €460 million in total. Whatever the exact number, this is one of the biggest contracts in the history of the sport. And will make him the 7th highest paid athlete in the world behind the likes of Lionel Messi, Lebron James (goat), and Shohei Ohtani. Verstappen has not had an easy 2026. He finished second in the championship behind Lando Norris in 2025 and has yet to win a race this season. He has been one of the loudest critics of F1's new electrified hybrid regulations, describing the cars as "anti-racing" and at various points hinting at retirement. But his public frustration appears to have run its course. Ahead of the summer break he said he was tired of complaining about the cars, and Thursday's announcement suggests he has found enough reason to commit to the long haul. "I am really pleased with the contract extension," Verstappen said. "We have the best people and I'm excited to keep working together with everyone to get back to the top again. Getting to work with Laurent now for over a year has also been great. I see a clear vision he has for the team." Team principal Laurent Mekies, who took charge of Red Bull last July following Christian Horner's departure, will see the extension as a significant endorsement of the direction he is taking the organization. The team has lost several senior figures in recent years including Mekies' predecessor, chief designer Rob Marshall, and race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, who departs for McLaren no later than 2028. Keeping Verstappen removes the one question that mattered most. The extension also fits a broader trend of long-term driver commitments across the top of the grid. Charles Leclerc is signed at Ferrari through the 2030s. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are both contracted to McLaren through the end of the decade. Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon both extended at Williams. The driver market for 2027will be quieter than ones in the past. Verstappen has 71 race victories, placing him third on the all-time winners list, and four world championships, all with Red Bull. Austin Hill Confirmed Full-Time at RCR for 2027 Richard Childress Racing officially announced this week that Austin Hill will drive the No. 33 Chevrolet full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2027, completing a transition that began under difficult circumstances earlier this season. Hill stepped into the car following the death of Kyle Busch in May, taking over what had been renumbered from the No. 8 out of respect for Busch's legacy. He has been running double duty since, competing for the O'Reilly Auto Parts Series championship while also handling Cup weekends. His best Cup result to date is a ninth-place finish at the 2025 Chicago Street Course race. The 32-year-old has spent five seasons full-time in the O'Reilly Series with RCR, winning 16 races including his very first start with the organization in 2022. He also has eight Truck Series wins to his name from his time with Hattori Racing Enterprises. "Every race car driver dreams of competing full time in the NASCAR Cup Series, and to have that opportunity with RCR is something I don't take for granted," Hill said. "I've learned so much this year about what it takes to compete at this level, and I'm excited to take everything I've learned and apply it to this next chapter." With Hill moving to Cup and O'Reilly Series teammate Jesse Love also stepping up to the Cup Series with Wood Brothers Racing for 2027, RCR will need to fill both of its junior series seats for next season. Rockingham Speedway Could Be Changing Hands Rockingham Speedway may be heading for another ownership change, and the timeline could be short. The Rock was absent from the 2027 NASCAR schedule released this week, dropping out of the O'Reilly and Truck Series rotation after hosting both in each of the past two seasons. The IHRA, which currently owns the track, has been dealing with financial instability, and Track Enterprises president Bob Sargent told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio that he has already been in conversations about a potential acquisition and believes movement is close. "I think something will be done in the next 30 to 60 days as far as the property itself," Sargent said. "From everybody that I speak to in his group, I think there is an urgency to get this done." Sargent indicated Track Enterprises was prepared to move quickly if the opportunity arose and had personnel and plans ready to go. Rockingham has a complicated history with NASCAR, having been dropped from the Cup Series schedule in 2004, briefly returning for Truck Series races in the mid-2010s, and only recently coming back into the national series rotation. Ligier Names First Customers for Next-Gen LMP2 Car Ligier has announced the first three teams that will campaign its new JS P228 when next-generation LMP2 regulations come into effect in 2028, with Algarve Pro Racing, Inter Europol Competition, and Panis Competition all confirming their commitments. All three organizations previously ran the current Ligier JS P217 before Oreca's near-total dominance of the LMP2 class effectively made the Oreca 07 the only competitive option. The 07 has been so dominant that it has been four years since a non-Oreca car raced at Le Mans in the LMP2 class, with the JS P217's final appearance coming in 2022. The new regulations, which overhaul the LMP2 framework for the first time since 2017, designate only Ligier and Oreca as approved chassis suppliers, reducing the field from four manufacturers to two. The intent is to create genuine competition between the two brands rather than the effectively spec formula the class became under the previous rules. Inter Europol, one of the three confirmed Ligier customers, won the LMP2 class at Le Mans this year for the second consecutive season, doing so with the Oreca 07. The JS P228 will make its debut in the European Le Mans Series and at Le Mans itself in 2028, with IMSA eligibility following in 2029. "Seeing three teams of this calibre choose the Ligier JS P228 is a tremendous recognition of the work carried out by everyone at Ligier Automotive," said company president Jacques Nicolet.

The weekend in Perth produced some interesting racing and some crazy post session dramas. Race 23 had some quality racing, especially with the likes of the Toyota Supras who appear to be starting their fight. Race 23: Matt Payne was the big winner managing yet another P1 result in the 2026 season. His teammate Kai Allen appeared to also have a decent race, with some issues with challenging having started P5, and finishing in P6. Kai Allen vs Brodie Kostecki during Race 23. Ryan Wood fought for another strong result in the Toyota Supra finishing in the P2 spot. The young kiwi has been putting on a solid year so far, showing his capabilities and sometimes showing up his championship winning teammate. Chaz Mostert had a great race result, having started outside the top 10, and making it all the way to P5. Anton De Pasquale was the only Chevrolet Camaro to make it into the top 10, and he held his ground finishing the race in P3. He was another driver like Mostert who made some solid moves during the race, ending up 6 places higher than his starting place. The Tickford pairing of Cam Waters and Thomas Randle continued with another double point scoring result. Cam Waters lost a couple positions, having started P2 and finishing P4. His teammate Thomas Randle has had a mixed bag year so far, unfortunately he dropped 6 spots, finishing P9. Perth Super 440 Race 23. Broc Feeney held his own against the top runners, once again having a difficult start to the season, he began to pick up again during the Perth weekend. He managed to move up 6 spots to ultimately finish P7. Will Brown had a tough day, not being able to get past Jack Le Brocq and forced to settle for P12. Andre Heimgartner was the third Supra running in the top 10. An extremely positive result for a team looking to make a point and so far, this season they have done well. Heimgartner has proved he is in form and working to improve himself as well and P8 in the first race in Perth was a solid start. Finishing in P10, ahead of his teammate who struggled was Rylan Gray. Gray showed heaps of potential during the weekend, proving that he may be young but has the capability to hang. The young driver was able to finish well ahead of his teammate who had an incident with Kai Allen which forced him into the sand trap, causing him to end up a lap down on the field and finishing last. Race 24: Race 24 was a race to watch, for some brilliant wheel-to-wheel racing. Broc Feeney managed to get himself a win, battling against a determined Matt Payne and just getting the better of him. His teammate Will Brown also had a much better result, finishing race 24 in P5, up 7 positions from his starting spot. Broc Feeney ends the win drought with a P1 result in Perth Race 24 Matt Payne and Kai Allen were trying their hardest to keep up and chase down the RedBull Ampol car, but to no avail. Matt Payne finished 2 seconds behind Feeney, settling for P2, whilst Kai Allen was further down the road, finishing in P3, well ahead of P4. P4 was Chaz Mostert who had himself a much stronger race result, despite moving up only 1 position, whilst Ryan Wood had a difficult qualifying session, but managed to move himself up into the top 10, ultimately finishing P8. Brodie Kostecki had a more positive result in race 24. Starting in P7, Kostecki had a lot to prove having had a disaster race earlier on. He went on to finish P6. His teammate Rylan Gray had a tougher session, down 8 spots and forced to settle for P17. Andre Heimgartner continues to prove himself quite a lot as of recently. He managed to pull off another top 10 finish, ending up above Ryan Wood in P7. An impressive result for Brad Jones Racing, having Heimgartner ready to prove what he is capable of. Double top 10 finish for Andre Heimgartner in Perth. Tickford were the last two within the top 10. Cam Waters had a different race, compared to the previous one, having started p8, and going on to finish P9, it was a quiet day for him. His teammate Thomas Randle had a decent race, although struggling ever so slightly and only just remaining in the top 10. He would go on to finish P10. Race 25: The final race in Perth was the longest one but proved to be the weekend for Matt Payne. Payne finished the weekend with another strong result, finishing on the top step. A solid result for Penrite as well, given their strengths in the current season. Kai Allen had a brilliant race, starting from the back end of the grid, making up 18 positions to finish within the top 5, in P5. Matt Payne and Broc Feeney go head to head for the sprint cup. Broc Feeney had a much stronger weekend in Perth than that of any race weekend so far, securing a P2 spot in race 25. Will Brown however, had a different weekend, starting in P19, only making up 2 positions and finishing P17. Team 18 secured P3 with Anton De Pasquale, another great result for him as a driver, showing his capabilities. His teammate David Reynolds got himself a top 10 finish in Perth, finishing P9 and giving Team 18 a top 10, double points finish. Cam Waters was able to get a P4 finish during the final race, an unfortunate situation given he had started P2. Thomas Randle had a tough race, ending up P10, despite starting P8. A good result, with some room to improve in the longer races for Tickford. Chaz Mostert was the only standing Supra within the top 10 finishers. A solid result for the world champion, with being up 6 positions from his starting spot, whilst his teammate suffered a difficult result, with a DNS for Ryan Wood. A solid weekend for Chaz Mostert in Perth. Aaron Cameron was able to secure some big points for himself and Blanchard Racing, with a P7 result. This is a much better result for him, given his tough races and moments of bad luck during racing moments. Our final top 10 position went to Jayden Ojeda, who finished P8. This was a quiet result, due to the battles occurring throughout the field, but he managed to sneak in and take solid points home from Perth.

Hungary proved that anything could happen, and drama ensued during the race itself. Lando Norris went from pole position to the race win, whilst battling with drivers on track, including his own teammate at the beginning of the race. Oscar Piastri had a brilliant start to the race and was showing that he could go on for the win, until an issue with his engine forced him to pull over and DNF. This situation came moments after an incident involving Carlos Sainz and ignoring blue flags due to being lapped. Your top 3 in Hungary: Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli Max Verstappen has started to pick up again with the RedBull car looking a lot stronger at the Hungaroring. He managed to pull off a solid P2 finish, behind Lando Norris. His teammate, Isack Hadjar still managed to get into the top 10, finishing P6. Kimi Antonelli managed another podium result in the 2026 season, finishing in P3. This has been a strong start for the young Italian, but could the return from the break change that? George Russell has a subpar race, struggling to get through the traffic, and being forced to settle for P7, behind Hadjar. The Ferrari duo once again continued their results of top 10 finish, and one after the other. Charles Leclerc showed plenty of pace but began to drop off halfway through to manage tyres. Leclerc managed to finish the race in P4, due to Lewis Hamilton getting a late penalty. Hamilton was looking strong for another top 4 result, but due to the 5 second penalty, forced him to drop into the P5 result. Lewis Hamilton is still the only remaining driver to score at every race weekend. Racing Bulls had another double point scoring weekend. Both drivers had a solid first half of the year, scoring plenty of points till now. Liam Lawson had a strong race result, finishing P8, whilst his teammate Arvid Lindblad finished just within the top 10, in P10. Racing Bulls continue their positive results with another double points scoring race before the break. Splitting the two Racing Bulls drivers was Nico Hulkenberg, who had a much better weekend. Given the difficulty and struggles he has been facing so far this year, he needed a win and that came in Hungary as he finished P9. Gabriel Bortoleto almost got into the top 10 but fell short of that result finishing behind Arvid Lindblad in P11. Alpine had a mixed result weekend. Pierre Gasly was able to show that he is still capable of beating his teammate, finishing a solid P12. His teammate Franco Colapinto struggled for pace during the weekend, only managing to finish P15, whilst being 2 laps down on the field. Aston Martin brought some new upgrades to Hungary, and they sure did impress. Both drivers were able to finish within the top 15 result. Lance Stroll managed to beat his teammate to P13, whilst Fernando Alonso was forced to settle for P14, just behind. This result shows there is some hope with the new upgrades for this team to show what they’re worth. Fernando Alonso is impressed with the upgrades Aston Martin had brought to Hungary. Esteban Ocon has been needing to prove his ability with rumours circulating about his future at Haas for months now. He managed to beat his teammate during the weekend finishing P16. Oliver Bearman had a much tougher race, only managing to finish P19. The Williams drivers had the ability to split the two Haas. Williams as a team have had a rocky first half of the season, with plenty of issues and terrible results. Hungary unfortunately was no different. Alex Albon had a quiet weekend compared to his teammate, finishing only P17. Carlos Sainz had more of a dramatic weekend, receiving a 5 second penalty for the collision with Oscar Piastri due to ignoring blue flag warnings. Carlos Sainz almost runs Oscar Piastri off the track in a lapped car drama. Cadillac had another tough weekend and began their break earlier in the race. Valtteri Bottas only managed 13 laps before suffering a brake failure due to a fire, which forced him to pull over and DNF. Sergio Perez was able to get through 48 laps before there was concern regarding the car and overheating, so he was forced to DNF as well. We are now on Summer Break, a quiet yet chaotic time of the year for F1. Could there be announcements during the break? When we return, we begin the second part of the season in the Netherlands at Zandvoort.