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Formula One is increasing its efforts to develop and promote female drivers in the sport.
The promotion announced Friday it will launch F1 Academy, an all-female driver series, in 2023 with 15 drivers split up into five teams and competing in seven events.
Bruno Michel, CEO of Formula Motorsport Limited, is managing the new venture. The seven events will consist of three races each for a total of 21 races during the 2023 calendar.
According to F1's official announcement, the decision to start F1 Academy came after "assessing the barriers young female drivers face with entering the F1 pyramid," making it more difficult for them to gain the same level of experience as their male counterparts.
"I am very excited to launch this new category," Michel said in a statement. "Diversity is extremely important in motorsport, and with the F1 Academy we will prove that female drivers have what it takes to compete at high levels. I am absolutely convinced that if young women are given the same amount of experience as any other driver, they can successfully make their way through the pyramid."
F1 Academy will afford female drivers more time on the track for racing and testing, while also being able to work with professional teams that can help them develop the skills necessary to compete at the highest level of the sport.
The W Academy will continue to operate, along with F1 Academy. The W Series announced last month it had canceled its final three races of the 2022 season because of financial difficulties.
The W Series had its inaugural season in 2019 and began running under the F1 umbrella in 2021. The all-female series features 18 drivers. Jamie Chadwick has won the championship in each of its first three seasons.
Five female drivers have competed in an official F1 series race. Giovanna Amati was the last woman to compete in the senior circuit during the 1992 season.
The 2022 Formula 1 season has belonged to Max Verstappen, but after a season full of near-misses, George Russell has finally broken through.
Russell gave Mercedes its first win of the 2022 campaign at Sunday's São Paulo Grand Prix, turning in a dominant performance while teammate Lewis Hamilton finished behind him in second place.
Two weeks after setting the F1 single-season record for wins (14), Verstappen had a frustrating afternoon that was highlighted by a five-second penalty for causing contact with Hamilton early in the race.
The penalty caused him to take a nosedive down the field before he was able to recover for a sixth-place finish.
Two weeks after setting the F1 single-season record for wins (14), Verstappen had a frustrating afternoon that was highlighted by a five-second penalty for causing contact with Hamilton early in the race.
The penalty caused him to take a nosedive down the field before he was able to recover for a sixth-place finish.
Tensions also appear to be bubbling over between Verstappen and teammate Sergio Perez. Verstappen was criticized for his refusal to allow Perez to move ahead of him in Sunday's waning moments, a move that would have given Perez critical points as he attempts to lock up second place in the standings.
"It shows who he really is," Perez said on the radio to his team.
A fuming Perez later said Verstappen's two championships are "thanks to me."
While Verstappen would undoubtedly prefer a stronger result—and some better inter-team relations—there's nothing that can take away from his brilliant 2022 campaign. This is one of the finest seasons in the history of racing, in any discipline, across any decade.
Russell's victory will give Mercedes at least some reason to have a positive outlook heading into 2023. This season has been a consistent source of frustration for the Mercedes team, with Hamilton not performing up to his typical championship expectations due in large part to the failures of the cars given to him by the team.
Russell has emerged as a bright spot in the future for Mercedes, and giving him his first career F1 victory will go a long way toward building that team's morale moving forward.
Formula One Racing team Mercedes-AMG Petronas announced Friday that it has suspended its partnership with crypto exchange FTX.
According to TMZ Sports, the team said it will remove the FTX logo from its cars after the company filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy this week.
Mercedes-AMG Petronas is led by seven-time F1 points champion Lewis Hamilton, making him one of several high-profile athletes to be impacted by FTX bottoming out.
TMZ Sports noted that Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, Los Angeles Angels pitcher and designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and tennis star Naomi Osaka all have involvement with FTX.
Also, the NBA's Miami Heat renamed their home venue FTX Arena next year, although that partnership is likely now in danger.
FTX reportedly filed for bankruptcy since it was insolvent and unable to pay out its customers, despite recently being worth $30 billion and claiming this week that it was "100 percent liquid."
The decision to remove the FTX logo from its cars was an about-face for Mercedes-AMG Petronas since Jonathan Noble of Motorsport.com reported Thursday that the team had decided to stick with the decals for this weekend's race.
Instead, Hamilton and teammate George Russell will be without FTX advertising on their cars for Sunday's Brazilian Grand Prix.
Joey Logano is the NASCAR Cup Series champion for the second time in five years, and he capped off his phenomenal 2022 season in style.
All Logano needed to do to win the title was finish better than fellow playoff finalists Chase Elliott, Christopher Bell and Ross Chastain at the NASCAR Cup Series Championship on Sunday.
But he left no doubt as to who this year's champion was by placing first at Phoenix Raceway to cement his second-ever Cup Series title and fourth victory this season.
Ryan Blaney took second in the race, one spot ahead of Chastain in third. Bell finished 10th, and Elliott took 28th after spinning out early in Stage 3.
It was an emotional day in Phoenix after news emerged that Coy Gibbs, the co-owner of Joe Gibbs Racing, died overnight at the age of 49. A pre-race moment of silence honored his memory.
With heavy hearts, the field got going in Phoenix with a title on the line. Here's how it went down.
Stage 1
Logano ended up winning the first stage (60 laps) by a half-second over Blaney.
Elliott (sixth), Bell (11th) and Chastain (13th) rounded out the playoff quartet at this juncture.
Stage 2
Bell and Chastain had a great pitstop in the second stage that vaulted them up the leaderboard.
Logano still held the lead midway through the race, but his teammate Blaney soon took over first.
Blaney ended up hanging on for the Stage 2 win. Here's how the final four looked at that moment.
That set the stage for a dramatic finish.
Stage 3
Elliott went from an incredible high to a massive low early in Stage 3.
He vaulted himself into sixth place after a crucial pit stop, with only Logano ahead of him in the playoff chase.
However, contact from Chastain sent Elliott spinning into the wall, subsequently ending his championship dreams.
He fell all the way to 30th in a car that needed more maintenance.
Numerous analysts and fans gave their take on the matter.
With all that going on, Logano still led the playoff pack with first in sight.
Issues on pit road gave Logano more breathing room over Chastain:
But Bell was hot on Logano's heels.
Unfortunately, Bell endured a scary pit stop after a member of the pit crew got his finger stuck between the nut and the spindle.
That wasn't the only harrowing moment of the stage, as Brad Keselowski had to climb out his car after it caught fire. Thankfully, he was unharmed.
The title ultimately came down to Logano and Chastain. Logano eventually took the lead from Chase Briscoe and never looked back:
The champion spoke postrace with NBC.
With that, Logano and Team Penske emerged victorious. This also marked the second Cup Series title for crew chief Paul Wolfe, who won with Keselowski in 2012.
Closing Notes on Playoff Participants
Logano previously won in 2018, when he earned three race victories and 26 top-10 finishes.
Bell came in as a big underdog in just his third NASCAR Cup Series season, but he's steadily risen from 20th in 2020 to 12th in 2021 before the top-four finish this year.
Chastain arguably came in as the biggest longshot of them all having never finished higher than 20th in four full-time NASCAR Cup Series seasons.
But he forced his way into the championship conversation thanks to a pair of wins and one of the most incredible maneuvers in NASCAR history.
Elliott, the regular-season champion, was looking for his second title in three years.
In the end, it was Logano who emerged as this year's champion.
Fans won't have to wait too long for the beginning of the 2023 season, which will start February 5 with the Daytona 500.
For the second time since 2018, Joey Logano is the king of NASCAR.
Logano finished first at the Phoenix Raceway's NASCAR Cup Series Championship on Sunday, besting the Championship 4 field of Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain and Chase Elliott and winning the title in style.
Chastain finished third, Bell 10th and Elliott 28th on the afternoon.
It was a fantastic season for Logano, who finished with four overall wins, including two in the playoffs. He was one of 19 different race winners in what was a dramatic, parity-filled NASCAR season.
Despite that parity, however, Logano came into the day with the utmost confidence.
"I knew going into this thing that we were going to win the championship," he said in his post-race interview. "I told the guys we were the favorite from Daytona, and we truly believed it, and that's the difference. Man, it's like I said, I had a good team with a bunch of confidence, and we had all the reason in the world to be confident."
"Man, this is what it's all about," Logano added. "When you're a kid ... my dream was to win Cup championships. Here we are with two of them. It just means so much, it's so special."
Kyle Busch is the only other active multi-championship driver in the Cup Series.
Team Penske completed its first-ever season with both IndyCar and NASCAR champions after Will Power won the former in September. It's Team Penske's third-ever NASCAR title.
Logano finished the year on a dominant note, leading 186 of 312 laps.
It was a tougher day for Elliott, who was spun out by Chastain in the final stage and fell out of contention.
Only Chastain among the title contenders truly challenged Logano on the day, but Sunday belonged to Logano. He was more than ready to meet the moment.
"I don't want to be comfortable," he told ESPN's Ryan McGee last week when asked if he would try to treat this final race like any other Sunday on the track. "The added pressure and intensity, that's how you find a different level out of yourself. Winning championships is why I do this. It's why I've always done it. So, none of this should feel normal because you're living that dream."
Dream achieved, for a second time.
Seven-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson announced Friday he's returning to NASCAR in 2023 as a minority owner and part-time driver for Petty GMS Motorsports.
Johnson told Jenna Fryer of the Associated Press he'll compete in about five Cup Series races next year, beginning with the season-opening Daytona 500, an event he's won twice (2006 and 2013).
"I've had a watchful eye on the ownership part and what's happening with NASCAR, and the opportunity that I have here, the business structure and the model with NASCAR charters is just so different from than anything else in motorsports," Johnson said. "I want to be part of it. We certainly watched Michael Jordan join, what the Trackhouse Racing folks have done, and there's all these rumors of people who want to get into the sport. I'm honored and thankful that I'm going to be part of it."
The 47-year-old California native spent two decades with Hendrick Motorsports before leaving the Cup Series after the 2020 season.
He recorded 83 wins and 374 top-10 finishes in 686 starts during that 20-year tenure. He won NASCAR's top title in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013 and 2016.
Johnson spent the past two years in the IndyCar Series with Chip Ganassi Racing. He finished 21st in the 2022 standings before he announced in September he'd step away from a full-time racing schedule.
"This was a difficult choice for me, but in my heart I know it's the right one," he said in a statement at the time. "I'm not exactly sure what the next chapter holds, but if an opportunity comes along that makes sense I will consider it. I still have a bucket list of racing events I would like to take part in."
Petty GMS Motorsports features two full-time cars in the Cup Series: the No. 42, which will switch drivers from Ty Dillon to Noah Gragson in 2023, and the No. 43 driven by Erik Jones.
Details for Johnson's car and sponsors for his limited schedule remain a work in progress, per Fryer.
This year's Cup Series schedule will wrap up Sunday when Joey Logano, Christopher Bell, Ross Chastain and Chase Elliott compete for the championship.
The 2023 Daytona 500 is scheduled for Feb. 19.
Max Verstappen made history Sunday by holding off Lewis Hamilton to win the Mexico Grand Prix in Mexico City.
With the victory, Verstappen now has 14 wins in the 2022 season, setting a new all-time record for most in a single year. He entered the race tied with Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel atop the record books.
The race was mostly dominated by Verstappen. Hamilton briefly took the lead after the Dutchman pitted on Lap 26, but when he brought his Mercedes to pit road 10 laps later, Verstappen overtook him once again and never looked back.
The key difference for Verstappen was that he switched to medium tires, while Hamilton switched to hard tires. Hamilton could be heard on his radio multiple times complaining about his tires, while Verstappen was in cruise control and had a lead of over 10 seconds for nearly the entire second half of the race.
Verstappen's Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez placed third, while Mercedes' George Russell settled for fourth. Ferrari's Carlos Sainz rounded out the top five.
Sunday's victory continues a dominant run for Verstappen, who is now on a three-race winning streak. The 25-year-old was victorious at the Japan Grand Prix on Oct. 9 and again at the United States Grand Prix last weekend.
Verstappen will have the opportunity to extend his single-season record when he returns for the Brazil Grand Prix in Sao Paulo on Nov. 11-13.
Christopher Bell qualified for the Championship 4 of the NASCAR Cup Series with a victory Sunday at Martinsville Speedway in the Xfinity 500.
Joey Logano, Chase Elliott and Ross Chastain will join him in battling for the points title.
Chastain narrowly qualified after edging out Denny Hamlin to the last championship berth, and he left fans at a loss for words because of the tactic he deployed to secure a fifth-place finish.
The 29-year-old put his foot on the gas and used the outer wall to guide him around the track.
No matter how the season ends for Chastain, this will become the stuff of NASCAR legend.
Entering Sunday, three of the four championship round spots remained up for grabs. Joey Logano guaranteed himself a place in the next round with a win in the South Point 400 on Oct. 16. Kyle Larson's victory the following week meant nothing else was settled.
Hamlin and Elliott banked valuable points by placing first and second, respectively, in the first two stages of the race. Heading into the final stage, they were both on pace to qualify for the Championship 4.
Neither could afford to rest on his laurels, though, especially with Bell making his way to the top of the field. Ryan Blaney was looking to play the role of spoiler as well. In need of a win to advance, he was running behind Bell deep into the final stage.
Whether Bell or Blaney led the field, Chastain found himself as the odd man out in both scenarios.
Many of the top contenders used a caution in the late stages as an opportunity to head to pit road. When the race resumed with 23 laps remaining, Chase Briscoe had climbed into first place, and Chastain overtook Hamlin.
It didn't take long for Hamlin to not only pass Chastain but also open a wide enough gap for him to reclaim fourth place in the playoff standings.
As that was unfolding, Briscoe was in a tense battle with Bell and Brad Keselowski to hold on to first. The pit stops proved pivotal as Bell had the better car and fresher tires down the stretch. With four laps remaining, he passed Briscoe and surged ahead to remove any drama in the final outcome.
Hamlin might have thought he was coasting to the result he required, too, only to see his title hopes evaporate in a matter of moments.
In the end, it was a straightforward win for Bell, and Chastain delivered the moment that's likely to be remembered the most.
The NASCAR Cup Series will end its 2022 season at Phoenix Raceway in Avondale, Arizona, on Nov. 6.
