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By: ST Racing
February 28, 2024
February 28, 2024
BMW racing driver and BMW of North America Brand Ambassador Bill Auberlen will race for ST Racing in the SRO GT World Challenge America Championship in 2024, campaigning a BMW M4 GT3 in the PRO class with Varun Choksey. 2024 marks the first year of a new multi-year contract that will see Auberlen help celebrate the 50th anniversary of BMW of North America in 2025 and race through the 2026 season, when he will observe his 30th anniversary with The Ultimate Driving Machine®.
During his decades of competition, 55-year-old Bill Auberlen has amassed more race starts behind the wheel of a BMW than any other driver in the world. His record of 65 victories in the IMSA series put him at the top of the all-time win list. He also leads the IMSA all-time pole list.
“I am excited to begin another chapter with BMW and BMW of North America,” said Bill Auberlen. “In addition to driving the Roundel to the top of as many podiums as I can, I have always enjoyed mentoring up and coming drivers. I’m happy to welcome Varun to the BMW brand. ST Racing has already enjoyed quite a bit of success in SRO competition, and I hope Varun and I can contribute to even more great results.”
Always ready for a new challenge, Auberlen will co-drive the No. 28 BMW M4 GT3 with 27-year old Varun Choksey, looking to enhance the career of yet another up-and-coming driver. In seasons past, Bill has shared a BMW and his vast talent with more than 90 co-drivers. Choksey, from Atlanta, Georgia, spent the previous two seasons racing in the Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America single-make series, finishing 11th in the PRO class last year.
Varun Choksey said, “It is important for me to continue to race a GT3 car and learn the intricacies of the co-driver relationship in the next stages of my career. SRO is a great step because GT World Challenge America offers great competition with excellent manufacturer support. When I was looking at next steps, Bill’s name was put forward as someone I should speak with. After a few calls, our families got together at Petit Le Mans 2023, and we began to make a plan. Bill put together a test at Buttonwillow with ST Racing and it went very well. I believe Bill and ST Racing is the combination that is the perfect move for me.”
The 13-round SRO GT World Challenge America championship will begin at Sonoma Raceway on April 5 – 7 and travel throughout the US with double-round weekends at Sebring International Raceway, Circuit of the Americas, VIRginia International Raceway, Road America, and Barber Motorsports Park. Each race will be 90-minutes long except the season finale, round 13, eight-hour race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in October.
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By: Indy Car
February 27, 2024
February 27, 2024
Sebring, Florida – It appears Marcus Ericsson is settling in nicely at Andretti Global.
2022 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Ericsson led the second day of NTT INDYCAR SERIES testing Feb. 27 at Sebring International Raceway, turning a top lap of 51.9512 seconds in the No. 28 Delaware Life Honda. Ericsson joins Andretti Global this season after racing the last four seasons for Chip Ganassi Racing.
His time on the bumpy, 1.67-mile circuit at Sebring was the quickest overall in two days of testing this week as every NTT INDYCAR SERIES team prepared for the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding on Sunday, March 10 (noon ET, NBC, Peacock, INDYCAR Radio Network). Ericsson won the St. Petersburg race last year.
“Today is very important, especially when you're in a new team,” Ericsson said. “It's been a lot of learning processes, learning the people, learning the car. Everything is new, obviously. We don't get a lot of tests these days. So, we need to maximize that.
“We just had a really good day. So, that's positive, and we're feeling excited about going to St. Pete.”
Two-time series champion Will Power was second quickest at 52.0076 in the No. 12 Verizon Business Team Penske Chevrolet. Like Ericsson, Power turned his top lap in the final 15 minutes of the session.
Pato O’Ward was third with his best afternoon lap of 52.0104 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. O’Ward showed remarkable consistency today, leading the morning session at 52.0158.
Felix Rosenqvist ended up fourth at 52.0305 in the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda. Rosenqvist, like fellow Swede Ericsson, has switched teams this season, shifting from Arrow McLaren to Meyer Shank Racing.
Graham Rahal rounded out the top five at 52.0598 in the No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda.
Each of the top five drivers Tuesday posted times quicker than the best overall lap Monday, 52.0883 by reigning series champion Alex Palou in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Palou ended up sixth on the overall speed chart.
Twelve drivers combined to turn 698 laps Tuesday. A total of 27 drivers tested over the two days at the historic circuit, turning a total of 2,115 laps. Sebring’s rough, bumpy surface consisting of concrete and asphalt is a good simulation of street course tracks like those at St. Petersburg.
“Basically, what you're looking for is just different types of patches, concrete, asphalt, bumpy,” O’Ward said. “That's what you get in a street course with the years that go by. Some surfaces get rougher, some of them get redone, so you really don't know what to expect until you get there, but you expect to get a little bit of everything.”
A driver gaining extra attention today was sports car veteran Colin Braun, who was behind the wheel of the No. 51 Dale Coyne Racing Honda. It was the first test in an INDYCAR SERIES car for Texas native Braun, 35, a three-time IMSA season champion and overall winner of the 2023 Rolex 24 At Daytona with Indianapolis 500 winners Helio Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud and current NTT INDYCAR SERIES rookie Tom Blomqvist.
Braun and Jack Harvey tested this week for DCR, the only team yet to name its driver lineup for this season. Braun ended up .1597 of a second quicker than Harvey, who drove DCR’s No. 18 Honda on Monday. Braun’s best lap was just .9657 of a second off the top overall test time turned by Ericsson, impressive for his first day in an INDYCAR SERIES car.
“My first day in (INDYCAR SERIES machinery), certainly a blast jumping in the deep end,” Braun said. “A lot to learn, but it was great having Jack Harvey here helping out, and these guys did a really good job of walking me down the path and letting me learn step by step. It was fun.
“Made progress all day. It felt like it went pretty smooth on my end. Still a lot to learn, but it's a great group of guys to learn from and work with. So, a big thank you to Honda and Dale Coyne for giving me a chance here. A lot of fun.”
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- Category: Road Racing
By: Canadian International AutoShow
February 26, 2024
February 26, 2024
Toronto, Ontario — The 2024 Canadian International AutoShow was a record-setter, welcoming more than 370,000 people to the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
With consistently strong attendance throughout the 10-day run of the event — including four days that set single-day attendance records — the 2024 AutoShow was visited by 371,559 guests, the highest number in the 51-year history of the event. The previous record of 358,842 was set in 2018.
“With so many new brands adding to the roster of presenting manufacturers this year, an expanded indoor and outdoor test drive program and a diverse and well-presented series of features, our consumers came out in force,” says Jason Campbell, General Manager of the AutoShow. “We had positive word-of-mouth, media coverage and social media activity from early attendees, and that helped propel us to a strong finish and a new attendance record.
“We are looking forward to the challenge of creating an even bigger and better show for 2025.”
The 2024 AutoShow hosted 44 automotive brands — a significant increase from the 28 who were at the first post-pandemic show in 2023. The Show also featured 31 new vehicle debuts, its most diverse and unique collection of luxury and exotic vehicles and compelling attractions that complemented the new cars, trucks and SUVs showcased by the manufacturers.
The 2024 event was also expanded back to its original full building format, which helped spread the audience and help us ensure a more positive consumer experience — with more to see when they got here — despite the big attendance.
The 2025 Canadian International AutoShow will take place February 14th to 23rd, 2025, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Stay up to date at autoshow.ca. Stay connected with the Canadian International AutoShow on Instagram @autoshowca, Tik Tok @autoshowca, X @autoshowcanada and Facebook at /autoshowcanada.
About the Canadian International AutoShow, presented by The Toronto Star
Celebrating the automobile since 1974, the Canadian International AutoShow features more than 650,000 square feet of exhibits, displays and attractions spanning the North and South Buildings of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. With annual attendance in excess of 350,000, the Canadian International AutoShow is not only the largest automotive expo in Canada, it is also the country’s largest consumer show. A leader in lifestyle, technology and all things automotive, it is a showcase for the latest cars, trucks, SUVs, concept cars, exotics, classics, muscle cars, electric vehicles, alternative fuel vehicles and autonomous vehicles.
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By: REV TV
February 27, 2024
February 27, 2024
Burlington, Ontario — REV TV CANADA'S MOTORSPORTS & MOTORING DESTINATION 24/7 is thrilled to announce that they will bring highlights from Australia’s rip-roaring racing series Supercars to Canada.
Often considered the best touring car category in the world and a leader in motorsport entertainment, Supercars has produced some of the greatest races and racing drivers the world has ever known. With the recent success of IndyCar’s Scott McLaughlin and NASCAR’s Shane Van Gisbergen—two of the most successful Supercars drivers of all time—the series from down under has landed on the radar of North American race fans with a bang.
“Canada has a long history with the Supercars series with Saskatchewan’s Allan Moffat being one of the sport's absolute legends,” said Ed Kanerva, Director of Marketing and Programming at REV TV. “We can’t wait to bring the next generation of Supercars superstars to Canadians across the nation who we are certain will love Supercars’ brand of barn-burning action.”
Highlights from the first round of the Supercars Championship, the famed Bathurst 500 from Mount Panorama, will be broadcast Thursday, March, 29th at 8PM ET.
About REV TV
YOUR MOTORSPORTS & AUTOMOTIVE DESTINATION is available to over 8 million households across Canada and features hundreds of live races from around the world and right here at home. From two-wheels to four and so much more. REV TV showcases all forms of high-octane racing, such as MotoGP, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, World Supercross Championship, World Rally Championship, INDY NXT, WorldSBK, along with news coverage such as The Inside Line (F1), Winged Nation (winged sprint cars) and PASMAG’s Tuning 365. We also have a slate of original programming with REV Culture with Todd Lewis that features interviews with motorsports luminaries, All North Racing which focuses on grassroots racing, a slew of how-to and behind-the-scenes programs, and so much more. REV TV is your MOTORSPORTS & AUTOMOTIVE DESTINATION 24/7.
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By: Samantha Tan Racing
February 26, 2024
February 26, 2024
BMW of North America, LLC announced today that Samantha Tan, the 26-year-old Asian-Canadian driver and co-owner of Samantha Tan (ST) Racing, will continue to support BMW M in 2024 as BMW M Motorsport Global Ambassador with appearances at events in North America and Europe. She will also return to compete in the 2024 SRO GT World Challenge America series co-driving a BMW M4 GT3 with Neil Verhagen in the Pro-Am class. Last year, in their first weekend together, Tan and Verhagen finished second in both rounds at VIRginia International Raceway.
"Finding the right words to convey my excitement and the significance of this moment is a challenge,” shared Samantha Tan. “Being a lifelong enthusiast of BMW, I am thrilled to continue my role as an official brand ambassador for BMW M Motorsport in 2024. This journey has been a dream realized, and it fills me with immense pride to represent BMW and race in their colors. I am eager to start this exhilarating season ahead and look forward to our continued growth and success."
In addition to her GT3 duties, Samantha will race a BMW M4 GT4 in a SRO GT America series race during the Long Beach Grand Prix weekend on April 19 - 21. Tan will also race a BMW M4 GT4 at select Nürburgring races this summer. Released on Feb. 22, the latest episode of BMW M Motorsport’s Mbedded series features Samantha and her life on and off the track (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rc_z_iTGr0c).
“We are very pleased to re-sign Samantha for another year sharing her passion for the BMW M brand with the world,” stated Adam McGregor, BMW NA Motorsport Manager. “Sam’s approachability and boundless energy allows her to inspire fans of BMW M in a very unique way. Sam and ST Racing had a very successful 2023 and we’re excited to build on that success in 2024.”
ST Racing was established in 2017, winning championships in the Pirelli World Challenge and the Pirelli GT4 America series in 2019 and 2020. In 2021, the team exported their North American success to win the 2021 24H Series overall championship. The next year, ST Racing moved up to the GT3 class, making history after taking the first ever overall win for BMW's new M4 GT3 at the 2022 12 Hours of Mugello.