Latest news with #ZakBrown
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Telegraph
Lando Norris: I'm going to make up for Piastri crash at Red Bull Ring
It would be an exaggeration to say that Lando Norris's season hinges on the result in Austria this weekend. Whatever happens, we will still be less than halfway through this marathon, 24-race campaign. And as things stand he only trails his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri by 22 points in the championship. Less than a race win. But if ever Norris needed a morale-boosting weekend, it is now. The British driver joked on Thursday that he had 'almost forgotten' about his calamitous, race-ending crash into the back of Piastri in Montreal last time out until reminded of it by journalists on his arrival in Spielberg. But he was fooling no one. Nor in fairness did he attempt to. Truthful as ever, Norris went on to confess that it had been 'a tough couple of days' for him in the wake of that race. 'It took me a little time [to get over it] because my team means everything to me,' Norris said. 'They are the people I have grown up with and have given me my opportunity in Formula One. 'I felt very bad for the team and all the people who work at McLaren. It was a tough couple of days. But I have become a lot better at dealing with those moments and speaking to Andrea [Stella, team principal] and my team around me, Zak [Brown, chief executive], and trying to move on as quickly as possible, was very important. So we come here with that in the past and we go again.' Norris has said that a lot this season. But this time a strong weekend from him feels more significant. The qualifying errors were one thing. But that mistake in Canada has turbo-charged the voices of sceptics who do not believe Norris has the mental strength to cope with the pressure of a championship campaign. THE MCLARENS COME TOGETHER AND LANDO NORRIS IS OUT OF THE RACE! 😱🟠 — Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 15, 2025 And with Norris's home race coming up next week, where the spotlight on him will be acute – all the more so with the creation this season of a 10,000-seat 'Landostand' at Stowe Corner – the last thing he needs is to head to Silverstone off the back of another poor weekend. Hence why this race is so important. Norris said if there was one positive, it is that this weekend's race takes place at the Red Bull Ring, one of his favourite circuits. Twice he has finished on the podium here, in 2020 and 2021, when McLaren were far less competitive than they are now. And last year Norris was battling for the lead of the race with Red Bull's Max Verstappen, only for the Dutchman's aggressive driving in the braking zone to end his afternoon. 'If there is any track that I kind of would say I would go to to give myself the best feeling and make myself most comfortable, it's probably here,' he said. 'Just from my stats, my enjoyment of the circuit. Some of the memories I've had.' Norris did point out that Red Bull still had an advantage in high-speed corners, of which there are many in Spielberg. 'Max was on pole by like 4½-tenths last year,' he said. 'So we expect to be good, but maybe struggle a little bit in qualifying compared to some of our competitors.' Both Norris and Piastri – who admitted it was 'far too early' to talk about being given preferential status – still have one potential advantage over Verstappen. The Dutch driver remains on a disciplinary tightrope, one point off a race ban following his crash into George Russell in Barcelona. Not that Red Bull's four-time champion would take any questions on the subject. 'Are you joking?' Verstappen asked when his penalty points situation was put to him. 'Is this like a trap? I'm getting this question every single time, every weekend. Sorry, this is the last one. I have nothing to add.'
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Hollywood star Brad Pitt test drives 2023 McLaren at Circuit of the Americas to celebrate release of F1 The Movie
Is there a new rookie driver in the McLaren fold Australia's championship leader Oscar Piastri needs to be looking over his shoulder at? On the back of his starring role in the new F1 The Movie, Hollywood star Brad Pitt recently donned the papaya race suit – complete with the initials BP – for a private test of the 2023 McLaren challenger at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin. McLaren has shared a suite of pictures of Pitt's day in the F1 car with the actor revealing he fell just short of his target speed of 200 mph on the main straight at the Texan Circuit. The Oscar-winning actor took up an invitation from McLaren CEO Zak Brown to jump behind the wheel of the MCL60 to celebrate the global release of the film. Pitt, who stars as veteran F1 driver Sonny Hayes in the new movie, spent the day with McLaren's British star Lando Norris and said the experience was an 'absolute high'. 'I got to hit 197 (miles per hour) this week. I really wanted to hit 200. You know, it hurts me a little bit – three miles per hour short on the straight,' Pitt said of his experience behind the wheel of the McLaren on the Beyond The Grid podcast. 'I've just never experienced anything that's just, more feeling of presence in my life. You're just so focused, but you're not white knuckling. You're in this sublime groove. It is really extraordinary. 'I try to explain this feeling of downforce, and I fail every time because you try to say like a rollercoaster, but that's not even right, because you feel the fulcrum point underneath you – you're in it. 'I was in an aerobatic plane once, and it's the closest thing, but still this thing. This is such a unique feeling and an absolute high. I'm still on a high, I really am. I'm just still on a high. 'And I can't thank Zak Brown and the team (enough). I spent the day with Lando (Norris) – just what a high, what a high.' Pitt's efforts behind the wheel impressed Norris, who commented on a McLaren Instagram post, 'He nailed it tbf'. McLaren revealed Pitt visited its headquarters in Woking last month for engineering meetings, seat fit and an intensive simulator session ahead of his F1 track debut in Austin. The A-Lister underwent training to drive the modified F2 cars which feature in the movie, but Brown wanted to give him the opportunity to get a taste of a real F1 car. 'Putting Brad through his paces!' Brown wrote on his social media. 'Having seen what Sonny Hayes can do in the awesome new @F1movie, it was only right that Brad got to experience an F1 car for real.'
Fox News
18-06-2025
- Automotive
- Fox News
Pato O'Ward Leading Arrow McLaren Charge But Still Work To Be Done
With two drivers in the top four in points, Arrow McLaren can feel closer to challenging for an INDYCAR title. Pato O'Ward, who finished second in the INDYCAR trip to St. Louis last week, sits 73 points behind series leader Alex Palou. Christian Lundgaard, in fourth, is 129 points back. For O'Ward, he feels good about where he's currently positioned. "All we need to do is just keep on our wagon and keep pushing forward, and we'll see if we're sitting pretty in Nashville [the season finale]," O'Ward said. So how pretty are things at Arrow McLaren — an organization whose parent now competes for wins on a regular basis in Formula 1? If you are McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown, you have to be happy with O'Ward and Lundgaard. Lundgaard came from Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, and in his first year with the team last season, he finished 11th in the standings. Alexander Rossi, who Lundgaard replaced, finished 10th in the standings last season. Rossi is now at Ed Carpenter Racing and is 10th in the current standings. Arrow McLaren's somewhat rookie Nolan Siegel is 21st, a disappointing start to the season. A few weeks ago in Detroit, Brown indicated he wasn't going to have a fast trigger after a season last year when two drivers ran that car until Siegel was hired for the final 10 races of the season. "I'm not changing any drivers this year," Brown said. "My big thing is progress ... and seeing that he's continuing to grow as a driver." That being said, Brown indicated that "more is needed" from Siegel. Brown always keeps people thinking, both with his own team and how he views the series as a whole. His ideas can seem extreme but also honest, so that can make him a polarizing figure. The love-hate relationship in the Formula 1 paddock for him is on full display in the Netflix series "Drive to Survive." He's frustrated by INDYCAR's slow progress to design a new race car, which Brown believes could increase the quality of racing. Teams were told last week that the car won't be ready until the 2028 season. "We are in sore need of a new car," Brown said prior to that decision. "I understand we're waiting on the engine formula, which will drive what type of car you need. But I think at the end of the day, we've done a lot of Band-Aids on this car, and it's why it weighs so much, it's not fast enough, et cetera, et cetera." Now that the team knows it must race this car for at least another two years, there shouldn't be (if there was) any waiting to focus on the development of the new car and not the current one. If McLaren wants to be a factor — Ganassi and Andretti have won all the races this year with Palou and Kyle Kirkwood — and you've got to believe Penske will eventually emerge, McLaren will need O'Ward to remain consistent, Lundgaard to be even more consistent and Siegel to show more than flashes of potential. O'Ward, who has four podium finishes this year, is positive when talking about trying to catch Palou, who has won five races this year. "The guy has been on a run," O'Ward said. "He has five wins or something. I've got zero wins. I've just got a handful of podiums. "We need to start racking up some wins, and that'll make that points count come down a lot faster than what you're seeing now." Lundgaard's emergence with the team is a test for O'Ward in some ways, as it could create a similar dynamic to their Formula 1 team of two drivers with similar results trying to establish themselves as the top driver on the team. O'Ward has held that role for the last four years. "I think it's great for the team," O'Ward said last month. "I think it's great that we have two cars that are fighting. Nolan is coming up to speed quickly this year, and I think that that's a boost that the team needed. "To be fairly honest with you, I feel like my biggest competitor is myself. Always is. Always has been. I'm very confident with what I could do with the race car when it's what I need. ... I've always been on my own island. Still am." He also quipped that "I love that the media is making a big deal out of it right now." That's the attitude one would expect from athletes. They have to embrace the competition. Time will tell if O'Ward will continue to embrace at the least the outward resemblance of an intrateam competition. But he's right. For now, he needs to be on his own island trying to catch Palou. Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.
The Citizen
18-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Citizen
McLaren's Le Mans hypercar will be sold to (very few) members of the public
McLaren's Le Mans hypercar will be sold to (very few) members of the public Alongside Ford, McLaren has also committed to joining the Le Mans LMDh Hypercar category from 2027, which will make it one of the most competitive the top tier of the endurance series has ever been. Looking for a new or used vehicle? Find it here with CARmag! On the weekend of the 93rd running of the iconic and revered Le Mans, McLaren unveiled its soon-to-be challenger, which will officially take on the Circuit de la Sarthe in 2027. Dubbed Project: Endurance, the initiative is a collaboration between McLaren Automotive and McLaren Racing, centred around customer ownership of a genuine Le Mans Hypercar and direct involvement in the development of the brand's 2027 FIA World Endurance Championship challenger. Related: Road Test: Isuzu MU-X 3.0TD Onyx XT 4X4 Participants will be limited to a highly select group of clients that will join the McLaren racing legacy, one that includes victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995, two Indy 500 wins, 190+ Formula 1 Grand Prix victories, and the rare distinction of being the only manufacturer to have claimed motorsport's Triple Crown. The Hypercar itself will be built in partnership with Dallara, which has been critical in McLaren's IndyCar efforts. Behind the cockpit will be a rear-wheel-drive V6 twin-turbo hybrid powertrain, closely related to the one McLaren will field in the WEC's Hypercar class. McLaren says it promises to deliver authentic race-bred performance and the kind of driving experience typically reserved for professional endurance racers. A key selling point for what will realistically be a multi-million rand purchase will be integration into McLaren's factory development programme. The English automaker says that this includes testing phases and strategic briefings; they will shadow the creation of the 2027 WEC car alongside McLaren Racing's engineers, drivers, and management. The experience includes trackside immersion at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2027, where McLaren will chase its next Triple Crown, and aim to win all three jewels in a single season once more. Related: All-New Honda Amaze Lands in SA – Pricing and Spec Each Project: Endurance owner will also take part in a two-year global track programme, covering world-class circuits in an arrive-and-drive format. This includes personalised driver coaching, dedicated pit crews, and race engineers at each event to maximise performance and deliver a genuine endurance racing atmosphere. McLaren Group CEO Nick Collins describes the venture as 'a bold, authentic Le Mans Hypercar customer ownership experience', adding that it 'delivers a new dimension in McLaren customer partnership'. His counterpart at McLaren Racing, Zak Brown, echoed the sentiment, calling it 'an incredible chance to own an authentic race car and get closer to the action on track'. More details will be revealed as the programme develops, but for those fortunate enough to be selected, Project: Endurance sounds like the ultimate entry into the world of motorsport. Click here and browse thousands of new and used vehicles here with CARmag! The post McLaren's Le Mans Hypercar Will Be Sold to (Very Few) Members of the Public appeared first on CAR Magazine.
Yahoo
15-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
'Papaya rules' cost McLaren points as Norris and Piastri crash
Australian Formula 1 driver Oscar Piastri of team McLaren, drives during the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. Christinne Muschi/Canadian Press via ZUMA Press/dpa McLaren might consider reviewing their "papaya rules" after a collision between their drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris at the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday cost the team points in the championship. The "papaya rules" allow Norris and Piastri to race each other in an aggressive but clean way without the team's intervention and with neither of them being considered the number one driver. Advertisement "Papaya rules are, you know, it's your team-mate. Race him hard, race him clean, don't touch," chief executive Zak Brown explained last year, with papaya referencing the team colours. This strategy played a negative role in Norris' title fight last season as he missed out on the crown to Red Bull's Max Verstappen. At the 2024 Italian Grand Prix, for example, the McLaren duo went wheel to wheel and Piastri made his way past polesitter Norris in the opening lap and ultimately finished ahead of the Briton. McLaren's lack of pecking order with its two drivers in that race also paved the way for Charles Leclerc's victory, which at the time put Ferrari into the constructor's title fight. Advertisement In Canada on Sunday, Norris again left crucial points behind as he didn't finish the race following a collision with Piastri with three laps to go. The two McLarens had a fierce fight in the final laps, going wheel to wheel on lap 67. Piastri went ahead, but Norris braked too late and ran into the back of the championship leader. "I'm sorry, all my bad, all my fault. Sorry, stupid from me," Norris said over the radio. In the driver's mixed zone, the two shook hands and Norris apologized. While Piastri was unharmed and finished fourth, Norris - who is second in the drivers' standings - saw the gap to Piastri increase to 22 points. Advertisement Many fans believed that a crash between the two was just a matter of time, while Brown said earlier this year that he expected Norris and Piastri to collide at some point. "I know everyone's kind of waiting for the moment (and) I think that moment will come when they're racing each other very hard and somebody gets it a little bit wrong," Brown told The Race F1 Podcast in April. "But I'm not worried about the outcome. Because we've discussed it, we know it's more of a when than an if." Inside the team, some even believed that the sooner the two collided, the better. But the strategy going forward is unclear. Advertisement The good news for title holders McLaren is that they still have a big lead in the constructors' championship - 175 points ahead of Mercedes, who took second place thanks to George Russell's win and Kimi Antonelli's maiden F1 podium in Canada.
