Latest news with #podium
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Sport
- RNZ News
Kiwi Wollaston makes podium on Tour de France
Ally Wollaston. Photo: FDJ-Suez New Zealand cyclist Ally Wollaston has grabbed another Grand Tour podium. The 24-year-old finished third on stage three of the women's Tour de France. The FDJ-Suez rider managed to survive a chaotic sprint finish to the 164km stage from La Gacilly to Angers. Sprint specialist Lorena Wiebes of the Netherlands made an explosive push for the finish as a crash in the final 4km temporarily took out several riders including 2023 champion and Wollaston's team-mate Demi Vollering of the Netherlands. Opening stage winner Marianne Vos of the Netherlands lost a photo-finish to Wiebes but reclaimed the yellow jersey from Kim Le Court Pienaar, who led the general classification after Sunday's second stage but dropped to second with a six-second deficit. The stage, mostly on a flat terrain, began without Giro d'Italia winner Elisa Longo Borghini, who withdrew from the race due to a stomach infection. Vollering, who recovered from the crash, remained in contention in the general classification, sitting 19 seconds behind Vos. Another New Zealander, Niamh Fisher-Black, is tenth overall, 25 seconds behind the leader. Wollaston won a silver and bronze medal on the track at last year's Paris Olympics and won world titles in the elimination race and omnium. She finished third on a stage of the Vuelta Femenina earlier this year. The Tour continues on Tuesday with stage four, a 130.7km ride from Saumur to Poitiers through another mostly-flat terrain. The Tour is over nine stages. -RNZ / Reuters
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
A bittersweet weekend for IndyCar's Arrow McLaren at Laguna Seca
On paper, it was a solid weekend for the papaya squad, Arrow McLaren. Christian Lundgaard scored a podium, Pato O'Ward was a solid fourth and Nolan Siegel led his first laps of the 2025 season. But it came with a disappointing conclusion for Siegel and a championship likely lost for O'Ward. Lundgaard was the star of the day for the group. O'Ward rolled off second, but the Dane finished there from seventh after pitting earlier than his rivals to gain ground with an undercut. That led him to third, where he used a bold overtake to sneak past Colton Herta for the runner-up spot. He didn't have the pace to challenge frontrunner Alex Palou after a couple late cautions, but held onto second to give the organization its 11th podium on the year - a new high mark for the squad. 'I knew that the pit sequences are really key here,' Lundgaard said of his run. 'We went into this race not knowing if it was going to be a red (tire) race or a prime race. It ended up being a red race and I just can't thank this team enough.' O'Ward put together a complete weekend, qualifying second and finishing fourth on a day where the strategy and speed didn't fall his way. It was a solid result that continued a streak of success for the Mexican star. He's finished seventh or better in nine of the past 10 races, with two wins and five podiums. In many years, that would be enough to challenge for his first IndyCar title. But the consistency has come in a dominant year for Palou. The Chip Ganassi Racing star's seven (now eight) wins left O'Ward in need of major gains in Laguna Seca to have a chance to close within reach for the championship. But after Palou's win, he now holds a 120-point championship advantage with just three races remaining. The Spaniard could clinch the title next time out at Portland International Raceway. Barring an absolute meltdown - and despite O'Ward's best efforts - the championship battle likely ended Sunday under the California sun. Nolan Siegel, Arrow McLaren Then, there was Siegel. Running in his home state, the Palo Alto native was the only driver not named Palou to lead laps on Sunday. An alternate strategy put him out front for 11 laps early on before Palou surged past him in turn 3. Even after that, Siegel was still positioned to make the most of a race he'd started 16th in. But that all fell apart in the closing stages, when Siegel went for a spin at the Corkscrew. He attempted to make a pass on Louis Foster, but made contact and briefly looped around before rolling on. Siegel ultimately took the checkered flag in 18th, continuing a streak of four-straight races with an average finish of 21.75 after he'd scored results of eighth and 11th at Road America and Mid-Ohio. In the end, every driver at Arrow McLaren showed promise in Laguna Seca. Two of the team's drivers finished in the top-four spots and the other led laps. But with Siegel showing his inexperience and Palou continuing to dominate, there was little else on offer to be joyous about in the Java House Grand Prix of Monterey. Read Also: Arrow McLaren expands IndyCar operations with new Indianapolis facility Pato O'Ward, Arrow McLaren score strategic win in Indy Toronto Arrow McLaren's Nolan Siegel cleared to race in Toronto To read more articles visit our website.
Yahoo
24-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Nico Hulkenberg: ‘F1 podium talk was cold coffee – but I'm not done yet'
In modern-day Formula One, there aren't too many narratives which could have compensated for Lewis Hamilton missing out on a Silverstone podium for the first time. Nor one which sparked more acclaim than Lando Norris winning his home grand prix. Yet Nico Hulkenberg's tense and glorious third-place finish last time out – ending the sport's longest podium-less streak, 239 races and no more – was just that. From last on the starting grid in P19, the German driver and his Sauber team, now pivotally led by ex-Red Bull guru Jonathan Wheatley, executed every call and nailed every pit-stop in the dry-wet chaos to leapfrog 16 cars and finish on the podium, staving off Hamilton in the process. A podium for Hulkenberg in a Sauber before Hamilton claims a podium for Ferrari? Nobody had that on their 2025 F1 bingo card. Hulkenberg's glistening beam as he stood on the podium, rather amusingly holding aloft a trophy made out of Lego, will be one for the season picture-book come December. It was, without a doubt, one of the stories of the year so far. 'It's confirmation of the hard work that the team is putting in,' Hulkenberg tells The Independent, amid a run which now stands at four point-scoring finishes in a row, heading into this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix. 'The update in Barcelona [round nine] has made a really big difference. It was a big turning point in our season. 'The magnitude of the step we've made is a surprise. It's really delivered. Before, it was difficult to do anything in races but now, it's very, very positive.' A Silverstone weekend which concluded with such unbridled joy for the 37-year-old, nicknamed 'The Hulk', started with a five-hour delay at Nice Airport due to air traffic control strikes, down the coast from his home in Monaco. As such, this one-on-one chat with Hulkenberg in the uniquely transparent Sauber motorhome, somewhat isolated at the far end of the Silverstone paddock, was delayed by several hours. Who knows what might have happened over the subsequent days had he not been asked for the umpteenth time about his excruciating podium-less run? Funny how things work out. 'It's not something I think about,' Hulkenberg says about the preceding 238 F1 race starts, which included 112 top-10 finishes, 608 points but astonishingly, zero podiums. The German even has a pole position to his name, taking advantage again of some wet weather in his rookie season at Williams in Brazil, back in 2010. 'I don't really care or pay attention to it [podium-less streak], it's cold coffee, honestly. We're all trying to chase the best possible result. We believe that crazy things can happen, with the weather or whatever. 'You've just got to be here and ready for it. And when the day comes, take it.' The foreshadowing is uncanny. For Hulkenberg, this 2025 mid-season surge represents the zenith of his career renaissance. Hulkenberg was brought up in Germany's most populous region, the North Rhine-Westphalia, in the city of Emmerich am Rhein on the Netherlands border. Yet quickly, his talent looked certain to cross boundaries. NICO HULKENBERG'S F1 CAREER (2010-CURRENT) Races: 239 Points: 608 Top-10 finishes: 113 Wins: 0 Podiums: 1 Pole positions: 1 Best drivers' championship finish: 7th in 2018 (Renault) Rated extremely highly as a youngster – in 2009 he became the third driver after Nico Rosberg and Hamilton to win GP2 (now F2) in his rookie year – F1 stints at Williams, Force India and Renault gave him the pinnacle class of racing he craved. In fact, former manager Willi Weber compared 'The Hulk' to fellow German Michael Schumacher, a seven-time champion of the world. His results in F1, as you will have gathered by now, were consistently impressive, without reaching stratospheric levels. Indeed, his only victory in this period was a stunning win for Porsche at the 24 Hours of Le Mans event in 2015. In doing so, Hulkenberg became the first active F1 driver to win the prestigious endurance race since Johnny Herbert and Bertrand Gachot in 1991. But after nine years in F1, Hulkenberg was dropped at the end of 2019 and spent three seasons on the sidelines as a reserve. A second bite at the cherry, for most onlookers, did not seem forthcoming. Except, perhaps, for the man himself. 'My F1 comeback in 2023 is my biggest achievement to date,' he says, surprisingly, when asked if his Le Mans triumph was his best career accomplishment. 'As a result? Yes, sure, Le Mans. But now, to have this opportunity with Sauber and Audi next year and to still be here, keeping up with the youngsters, pushing to be in F1. 'I did need a break and a bit of a detox. It put a lot of things into perspective. But I had that feeling that I wasn't done yet. I had the desire to jump back in and be competitive again.' An understated figure in the current driver staple of social media stars and fashion icons, Hulkenberg is now one of the sport's senior men. Alongside Max Verstappen, he is one of just two fathers on the grid, with four-year-old daughter Noemi sometimes seen tottering around the garage in search of her dad. His rock-star spiky hair look is in deep contrast to his mellow tone; he is rarely one for exaggeration or hyperbole. Yet amid Sauber's current resurgence with Hulkenberg and F2 champion Gabriel Bortoleto at the wheel, and with German giant Audi soon taking over the reins, an outfit so defeated last year looks very much revitalised under the guidance of Wheatley and ex-Ferrari chief Mattia Binotto, as we head into the second half of the season and new regulations in 2026. With the podium 'cold coffee' finally swallowed, there remains one obvious goal for Hulkenberg to crack. Now, the unwanted record is that he is the driver who has the most F1 races to his name without a victory. 'You always want to achieve more until you're winning,' he sums up. 'I haven't been there or done that. 'But in F1, it's not always easy. You need to be in the right spot with the right people. I'm in a big project now and it's a very exciting opportunity. 'Next year is a reset and offers an opportunity for every team. Audi are very serious whenever they enter any motorsport competition. Hopefully we can be a very big contender in the next few years. 'F1 is all about timing. For me, in my career, it hasn't clicked. Well, not yet.'
The Independent
24-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Independent
Nico Hulkenberg: ‘F1 podium talk was cold coffee – but I'm not done yet'
In modern-day Formula One, there aren't too many narratives which could have compensated for Lewis Hamilton missing out on a Silverstone podium for the first time. Nor one which sparked more acclaim than Lando Norris winning his home grand prix. Yet Nico Hulkenberg 's tense and glorious third-place finish last time out – ending the sport's longest podium-less streak, 239 races and no more – was just that. From last on the starting grid in P19, the German driver and his Sauber team, now led by ex-Red Bull guru Jonathan Wheatley, executed every call and nailed every pit-stop in the dry-wet chaos to leapfrog 16 cars and finish on the podium, staving off Hamilton in the process. A podium for Hulkenberg in a Sauber before Hamilton claims a podium for Ferrari? Nobody had that on their 2025 F1 bingo card. Hulkenberg's glistening beam as he stood on the podium, rather amusingly holding aloft a trophy made out of Lego, will be one for the season picture-book come December. It was, without a doubt, one of the stories of the year so far. 'It's confirmation of the hard work that the team is putting in,' Hulkenberg tells The Independent, amid a run which now stands at four point-scoring finishes in a row, heading into this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix. 'The update in Barcelona [round nine] has made a really big difference. It was a big turning point in our season. 'The magnitude of the step we've made is a surprise. It's really delivered. Before, it was difficult to do anything in races but now, it's very, very positive.' A Silverstone weekend which concluded with such unbridled joy for the 37-year-old, nicknamed 'The Hulk', started with a five-hour delay at Nice Airport due to air traffic control strikes, down the coast from his home in Monaco. As such, this one-on-one chat with Hulkenberg in the uniquely transparent Sauber motorhome, somewhat isolated at the far end of the Silverstone paddock, was delayed by several hours. Who knows what might have happened over the subsequent days had he not been asked for the umpteenth time about his excruciating podium-less run? Funny how things work out. 'It's not something I think about,' Hulkenberg says about the preceding 238 F1 race starts, which included 112 top-10 finishes, 608 points, but astonishingly, zero podiums. The German even has a pole position to his name, taking advantage again of some wet weather in his rookie season at Williams in Brazil, back in 2010. 'I don't really care or pay attention to it [podium-less streak], it's cold coffee. We're all trying to chase the best possible result. We believe that crazy things can happen, with the weather or whatever. 'You've just got to be here and ready for it. And when the day comes, take it.' The foreshadowing is uncanny. For Hulkenberg, this 2025 mid-season surge represents the zenith of his career renaissance. Rated extremely highly as a youngster – in 2009 he became the third driver after Nico Rosberg and Hamilton to win GP2 (now F2) in his rookie year – F1 stints at Williams, Force India and Renault gave him the pinnacle class of racing he craved. Results, as you will have gathered by now, were consistently impressive, without reaching stratospheric levels. Indeed, his only victory in this period was a stunning win for Porsche at the 24 Hours of Le Mans event in 2015. In doing so, Hulkenberg became the first active F1 driver to win the prestigious endurance race since Johnny Herbert and Bertrand Gachot in 1991. But after nine years in F1, Hulkenberg was dropped at the end of 2019 and spent three seasons on the sidelines as a reserve. A second bite at the cherry, for most onlookers, did not seem forthcoming. Except, perhaps, for the man himself. 'My F1 comeback in 2023 is my biggest achievement to date,' he says, surprisingly, when asked if his Le Mans triumph was his best career accomplishment. 'As a result? Yes, sure, Le Mans. But now, to have this opportunity with Sauber and Audi next year and to still be here, keeping up with the youngsters, pushing to be in F1. 'I did need a break and a bit of a detox. It put a lot of things into perspective. But I had that feeling that I wasn't done yet. I had the desire to jump back in and be competitive again.' An understated figure in the current driver staple of social media stars and fashion icons, Hulkenberg is now one of the sport's senior men. Alongside Verstappen, he is one of just two fathers on the grid, with four-year-old daughter Noemi sometimes seen tottering around the garage in search of her dad. His rock-star spiky hair look is in deep contrast to his mellow tone; he is rarely one for exaggeration or hyperbole. Yet amid Sauber's current resurgence with Hulkenberg and F2 champion Gabriel Bortoleto at the wheel, and with German giant Audi soon taking over the reins, an outfit so defeated last year looks very much revitalised as we head into the second half of the season and new regulations in 2026. With the podium 'cold coffee' finally swallowed, there remains one obvious goal for Hulkenberg to crack. Now, he is the driver who has the most F1 races to his name without a victory. 'You always want to achieve more until you're winning,' he sums up. 'I haven't been there or done that. 'But in F1, it's not always easy. You need to be in the right spot with the right people. I'm in a big project now and it's a very exciting opportunity. 'Next year is a reset and offers an opportunity for every team. Audi are very serious whenever they enter any motorsport competition. Hopefully we can be a very big contender in the next few years. 'F1 is all about timing. For me, in my career, it hasn't clicked. Well, not yet.'
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Kyffin Simpson rides two-stop strategy to breakthrough first IndyCar podium
entered Sunday in need of some help to make the most of the day after just missing out on the Fast 12 in qualifying. Rolling off 13th, his No. 8 team knew it would need to get creative to find a way to the front. Thankfully for the group, a slate of early cautions opened the door for strategic variation. Simpson took advantage for his first IndyCar podium. Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing 'It was a crazy race,' Simpson said afterward. 'So many ups and downs. At one point we thought we were in the worst position, then very quickly it turned to one of the best positions. All the glory to God. (My crew) did an incredible job on pit road today. …. Just incredible.' As one of many starting on the alternate tire, Simpson stretched the rapidly-degrading rubber a full 16 laps while most came in on the opening laps or under caution on lap 4. While risky, it allowed Simpson's team to put him on a two-stop pit strategy that, aided by a slew of yellows over the opening half of the race, was made favorable and easily doable on fuel. Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing With the rest of the field coming in for an extra stop, Simpson was able to cycle through to second entering the race's middle stages. He never saw the lead — Rinus VeeKay was ahead as the lone driver on the same strategy and Pato O'Ward overtook them both for the win. But the 20-year-old avoided putting a wheel wrong and rode the strategy out for a third-place finish. While a feel-good result on its own, Sunday's effort also came with a sigh of relief. Simpson had qualified third and come close to a podium run in Mid-Ohio only to see it undone late when he stalled on pit road and ran over tire changer Nico Don's foot. He finally saw a complete run come together two weeks later in Toronto. Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing 'At Mid-Ohio I was really bummed, because realistically we could have even won that race,' Simpson said. 'To not even be on the podium, I was super bummed there. To come back here and get it done is incredible.' Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing With Sunday's podium, Simpson finally has a noteworthy result amid a summer of solid runs. While overshadowed by the heroics of winning teammates Alex Palou and Scott Dixon, Simpson has put together four top 10 runs in the past seven races and made it to the checkered flag in each race, rising from 21st to 14th in the championship standings. Read Also: Pato O'Ward, Arrow McLaren score strategic win in Indy Toronto See how crashes and on-track incidents defined the 2025 Toronto Indy The winners and losers from IndyCar's 2025 Mid Ohio 200 race To read more articles visit our website.
