• Development of a power unit for the premier class of motorsport from the 2026 season
• Hybrid power unit will be developed at the Audi Sport facility in Neuburg an der Donau under Adam Baker’s leadership
• New rules focusing on sustainability and cost efficiency are important factors for getting involved
• Change at Audi Sport: after successful restructure, Julius Seebach passes the baton to Rolf Michl
• Le Mans/WEC Project Officially Dropped

Audi enters the premier class of motorsport. From 2026, the premium brand will compete in the FIA Formula 1 World Championship with a specially developed power unit. The project will be based at Audi Sport’s facility in Neuburg near Ingolstadt. This is the first time in more than a decade that a Formula 1 power train will be built in Germany.

Audi announced its entry at a press conference at the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa- Francorchamps. At the event, Markus Duesmann, Chairman of the Board of Management of AUDI AG, and Oliver Hoffmann, Member of the Board of Management for Technical Development, answered questions in the company of Formula 1 President and CEO Stefano Domenicali and Mohammed ben Sulayem, President of the International Automobile Federation (FIA).

“Motorsport is an integral part of Audi’s DNA,” says Markus Duesmann. “Formula 1 is both a global stage for our brand and a highly challenging development laboratory. The combination of high performance and competition is always a driver of innovation and technology transfer in our industry. With the new rules, now is the right time for us to get involved. After all, Formula 1 and Audi both pursue clear sustainability goals.”

The key to getting involved is the world’s most popular racing series is the clear plan to become more sustainable and cost-efficient. The new technical rules, which will apply from 2026, focus on greater electrification and advanced sustainable fuel. In addition to the existing cap on costs for teams, a cost cap for power unit manufacturers will be introduced in 2023. In addition, Formula 1 has set itself the ambitious goal of being a carbon-neutral racing series by 2030.

ACTIVELY SHAPING FORMULA 1’S TRANSFORMATION

Oliver Hoffmann, Member of the Board for Technical Development, says: “In view of the major technological leaps that the series is making towards sustainability in 2026, we can speak of a new Formula 1. Formula 1 is transforming, and Audi wants to actively support this journey. A close link between our Formula 1 project and AUDI AG’s Technical Development department will enable synergies.”

From 2026, the electric power output for the power units, consisting of an electric motor, battery, control electronics, and a combustion engine, will increase sharply compared to today’s Formula 1 drive systems. The electric motor will then be nearly as powerful as the combustion engine, which has an output of about 400 kW (544 hp). The highly efficient 1.6-liter turbo engines run on advanced sustainable fuel – also a prerequisite for Audi’s entry into the series.

HIGH POPULARITY IN KEY MARKETS AND WITH YOUNG TARGET GROUPS

Globally recognized, highly emotional, and technologically advanced – that’s how Formula 1 has met Audi’s exact requirements. The series holds races in all relevant markets of the brand. As a spectacular platform for the most demanding electrified racing cars in the world, it is of particular interest to car manufacturers. Audi is taking on the challenge of proving its “Vorsprung durch Technik” in this competitive environment.

The great interest in Formula 1 is global and the racing series is one of the sporting events with the highest reach in the world. In 2021, more than 1.5 billion TV viewers watched the races. Formula 1 is popular in key markets such as China and the USA, and the trend continues to rise – even among young target groups. On social media, Formula 1 is now experiencing the highest growth rates among the world’s most popular sports.
Neuburg Site to Develop the Power Unit.

The power unit will be built at Audi Sport’s state-of-the-art Competence Center Motorsport in Neuburg an der Donau, not far from AUDI AG’s company headquarters in Ingolstadt. “For the development and manufacture of the Formula 1 power train, we will build on the valuable expertise of our motorsport employees, continue to invest in our motorsports center, and also recruit highly specialized professionals,” says Audi Sport Managing Director Julius Seebach, who organized the entry into Formula 1 as part of Audi’s realignment of motorsport.

In Neuburg there are already test benches for F1 engine testing as well as for electric motor and battery testing. Additional necessary preparations are currently being made in terms of personnel, buildings, and technical infrastructure, with everything essential to be in place by the end of the year. A separate company was recently founded for the power unit project as a wholly owned subsidiary of Audi Sport. Adam Baker will take over the management of the company and thus the Formula 1 project as CEO. The trained engineer has held various senior positions for manufacturers and teams in motorsport. Before joining Audi in 2021, he worked for the FIA for three years.
Audi will announce a decision on which team they will be lining up with in 2026 by the end of this year.

FORMULA 1 DECISION GOVERNS MOTORSPORT FOCUS

Audi Sport is pooling its strengths for the Formula 1 project and as a consequence is discontinuing its LMDh project. The motorsport division had recently suspended the development of the sports car for endurance racing. Alongside customer racing, Audi Sport will continue its innovation project with the RS-Q e-tron in the Dakar Rally. Next year, Audi’s aim is overall victory in the desert.

Whether the World Rally Championship, World Sportscar Championship, US motorsport, DTM, Le Mans, or Formula E – Audi Sport has set standards in many categories with numerous titles. “Formula 1 is the next major milestone in Audi’s motorsport history,” says Julius Seebach.

Audi’s entry into Formula 1 marks the conclusion of its motorsport restructure, but also the close of a formative period at Audi Sport GmbH. Managing Director Julius Seebach will join AUDI AG on September 1, 2022, and will take on a new strategic business area in Technical Development, reporting directly to the Executive Board.

Hoffmann, who, in his role as an Executive Board member also serves as Chairman of the Advisory Board of Audi Sport GmbH, would like to thank Seebach for his performance: “Julius stands for strategic foresight, consistent action, and sustainable results in challenging times.” Under his leadership, Audi Sport GmbH has repeatedly achieved record sales and earnings figures. Sales doubled with the RS model offensive and the all-electric RS e-tron GT was successfully brought to market.

In 2020, Seebach also assumed responsibility for motorsport at Audi and resolutely made it ready for the future. Under his leadership, the most complex racing car in Audi history was developed in record time: the RS Q e-tron for the Dakar Rally. Following its successful debut with four stage wins at the Dakar Rally in January, the Audi RS Q e-tron achieved its first overall victory in Abu Dhabi in March – the first triumph of a car with an electric powertrain in a desert rally. Entering Formula 1 is the successful conclusion of his work.

Starting September 1, Seebach will be succeeded by Rolf Michl, who has been Chief Operating Officer Racing at Audi Sport since February. Together with Dr. Sebastian Grams, he will form the Management Board of Audi Sport GmbH. Michl has a degree in business administration and is a long-standing member of the Audi Sport family. After holding various positions in marketing at AUDI AG and Audi Sport, he took over as Head of Product Marketing RS Models in 2016. After moving to Abt Sportsline as Director Vehicle Customization, he returned to Audi Sport GmbH as Head of Sales/Marketing in 2019. Michl has played a key role in shaping the company’s portfolio and sales successes over time. Hoffmann notes that “Rolf is an authentic leader and brings with him the experience he will need from motorsport and series production.” In addition to his positions in marketing, Michl was responsible for devising and implementing the Audi Sport TT Cup in 2014.

Source: Audi Sport Media Release

The post IT’S OFFICIAL AUDI HEADS TO F1 IN 2026 appeared first on In Pit Lane.

Just as it did this season, the 2019/20 Asian Le Mans Series will feature four races each of four hours in length, and it will again start in China at the Shanghai International Circuit on the final weekend of November. The opening race will continue to be run in conjunction with the China Touring Car Championship (CTCC).

As was recently announced 2020 will see the Series’ first visit to Australia. The second round of the Championship will be held on the 12th of January 2020 at The Bend, Australia’s newest permanent circuit approximately 100km East of Adelaide. The Asian Le Mans Series will be the first series to use the full 7.77km configuration of the circuit.

In a change to their traditional season ending date, the third round of the Championship will be held at the Sepang International Circuit. The race will be held on Saturday the 15th February in 2020.

In another first for the series, the 4 Hours of Sepang will finish at night with the second half of the race being run after sunset.

The final round of the 2019/20 Asian Le Mans Series will be held at the Buriram International Circuit on the 23rd of February 2020. Moving away from the traditional mid January date, the Thai circuit will instead host the final round of the Championship.

The 2019/20 Asian Le Mans Series calendar has been designed to ensure it avoids clashes with other Asian series and major events in the region, whilst also allowing for transport times for those teams from around the world wishing join the Series.

2019/20 Asian Le Mans Series Calendar details:

Round 1: 22 – 24 November 2019
Shanghai International Circuit, China

Round 2: 10 – 12 January 2020
The Bend, South Australia

Round 3: 14 – 15 February 2020
Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia

Round 4: 21 – 23 February 2020
Buriram Chang International Circuit, Thailand

Source Asian Le Mans Series Media Release

The post Asian Le Mans Announce 2019/20 Calendar appeared first on In Pit Lane.

In Pit Lane host and producer Brett Ramsey said that he and the show’s all volunteer crew were delighted to have the support of the 2019 Motorsport FanZone which was an exciting feature of the Australian Grand Prix atmosphere bringing the F1 excitement into the “Grand Prix City” of Melbourne.
The Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park has played an important part in the history of In Pit Lane which this year shares its 23rd anniversary with the move of the race to Melbourne.
“There was a sense of excitement when the GP came to Melbourne, we used that to push for us to bring In Pit Lane to television on OptusVision and Troy Schembri began F1 Merchandising having all the onsite Merchandise at Albert Park.
OptusVision is long gone but the Grand Prix, Troy Schembri and In Pit Lane are still here and very much a part of the Melbourne Motorsport landscape”
With Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo joining Renault this year, the French Auto manufacturer will have a featured place at this year’s Motorsports FanZone with Renault Production Car Display, F1 Car display and famous chalk artist drawing Daniel Ricciardo portrait. Race fans can take a picture of themselves on the Renault F1 Podium, and there’s even a giant Daniel Ricciardo adorning one of Crowns famous Fire Towers, a must see.

Get information and book your very own drive with Mega Fast Karts. Get up close to Superkart display and find out how you could race Superkarts.
Check out display & meet the staff of Race Team sponsors “Royal Flair Caravans” which have contribution to young race drivers, event merchandise, memorabilia, model cars & much more.

In Pit Lane is a production of RMITV Student Television and returns to C31 Melbourne in the first week of March (time TBC)

The post MotorSports FanZone at Crown joins In Pit Lane appeared first on In Pit Lane.

The post Dutton Takes Targa Ownership appeared first on In Pit Lane.

The ACO & FIA’s obsession with hybrid energy and the desperate attempt to attract a new and younger audience were the features of the annual ACO media conference at Le Mans.
Among the news from the event the ACO conference announced a brand new E-Sports Championship both Online & On Location at circuits during WEC events.

There will be E-Sport events held in Asia, North America, Europe but once again Australia misses out.
The website for the new competition is www.lemansesports.com a further press conference with more details will be held at Silverstone in August.

The ACO also paid tribute to the Spirit of Le Mans winner, Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones President of the FIA’s Endurance Commission.
The former CEO of L’Oreal is also a member of the Board of Directors at Ferrari SpA, BNP Paribas and Sanofi, and also a member of the supervisory board of Air Liquide.
No doubt he is a great friend of the event but I have no doubt their are hundreds of volunteers, drivers and media who deserved the honour far more.  The event also honoured Grand Marshall of this years event, six time winner Jacky Ickx.

But the big news was the announcement of the new rules.

The Prototype Is Dead, Long Live The Hypercar!

The era of the prototype is dead. The new Hypercar concept focus on the appearance, style and lines of the cars in the new premier league. Cars that turns heads, like hypercars, supercars, prestigious GTs and concept cars do on the street or at any motor show.
According to the FIA/WEC media release these new prototypes must be “technologically powerful and compelling in design and will therefore remain hybrid, with a KERS system in front and 4WD to ensure energy efficiency.”
“This technology will become more and more popular as the KERS system developed by some constructors will have to be used on production cars at a pre-defined price.”

The new regulations have set a 3:20.00 target lap at Le Mans so the cars will be slower than the current LMP1 Cars.

The other priority is cost. The new rules aim to allow manufacturers and teams to build and run cars a quarter of current budgets. Costly developments will be kept in check by a new homologation procedure and technical rules that will seek to reduce budgets.

However, there will be no restrictions on engine selection but fuel consumption rules will ensure fair competition between different systems. ( The return of the rotary?)
The new regulations will take effect for 2020-2024.

The conference also announced a plan to encourage Hydrogen fuelled cars to compete in their own class from 2024 but like most of the conference the announcement was light on detail.

Pierre Fillon, President of the Automobile Club de l’Ouest said “Crafting these regulations was particularly satisfying as very quickly it sparked interest and gained the support of competitors or potential competitors. A new era will dawn in 2020 for endurance racing. On paper it has enormous potential. Le Mans 2018, 2019 and 2020 will each be outstanding editions, but now I can’t wait for the start at the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans.”

Richard Mille, President of the FIA Endurance Commission said that “What has been announced today is the first step in a new direction for the premier class of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The new regulations are a framework that will be attractive to more manufacturers and teams, while at the same time retaining the excitement of endurance racing for existing fans to enjoy and to attract a new generation of spectator to the sport. The proposals announced today include cost limiting measures, making hybrid power more affordable and building a future for endurance with renewable energy. From 2020 the front of the grid will look very different and it is an exciting prospect that we are all looking forward to seeing.”

Ultimately the success or failure of these new regulations will depend on the support of manufacturers and no mention was made at all about any specific interest from any single manufacturer. There was also no mention of the future of other categories such as LMP2 or GTE.

Another notable omission from this years media conference was any mention at all of IMSA, perhaps signalling that the planned cooperation and relationship between the FIAWEC and their North American counterparts may have come to an end.

With FIAWEC Media Release.

The post ACO/FIA Announce New “Hypercar” Regulations for 2020 appeared first on In Pit Lane.

The post It’s Le Mans Time Again! appeared first on In Pit Lane.

In more good news for the series, it appears as if the new privateer non hybrid LMP1 entries will be competitive.
The n°3 Rebellion Racing R13-Gibson of Thomas Laurent was third fastest in the first session with the French driver setting a 1m58.629s lap, just 0.4 seconds behind the lead Toyota.
Fourth fastest time and still within one second of Alonso was the Dragonspeed USA machine of Henrik Hedman, Ben Hanley and Pietro Fittipaldi

Ford led the way in the LMGTE Pro category with the n°67 Ford GT of Andy Priaulx setting a 2m15.014 lap of the 7km Spa-Francorchamps track and just 0.2 seconds ahead of the n°66 Ford GT of Olivier Pla. Porsche were third and fourth quickest in the 90 minute session.

Pastor Maldonado set the fastest LMP2 time on his WEC debut with a 2m03.494s lap in No.31 DragonSpeed Oreca. The Venezuelan’s lap was 0.6 seconds ahead of the rest of the LMP2 field, with 2016 champions Signatech Alpine in second and 2015 champions G-Drive Racing in third.

In LMGTE Am Matteo Cairoli was fastest in the n°88 Dempsey-Proton Racing Porsche, with a 2m16.601 lap s best to outpace the n°86 Gulf Racing UK 911 of Ben Barker in the car he will share with Alex Davison by 1.4 seconds. The second Dempsey-Proton Porsche which Matt Campbell will drive was third quickest, with the n°56 Team Project 1 911 in fourth, to give Porsche a 1-2-3-4 at the end of the session.

The second Free Practice session will take place this afternoon at 16h25 local time.

The post Alonso Quick In WEC Debut At Spa appeared first on In Pit Lane.

In the Combined Sedans it was a stunning come from behind win to local Sports Sedan driver Steven Lacey who took out the overall honours.
Starting from the rear of the grid in the days first race, Lacey took advantage of a late race safety car to come from behind to take the win in his yellow Camaro over the TA2 cars of American driver Gar Robinson (Dodge Charger) and Queensland driver Russel Wright (Mustang).

Lacey won the afternoon race comfortably over Robinson with Victorian driver Rick Newman in an impressive third place in his Falcon. Paul Boschert, who won Friday’s first race saw his day end early when his Corvette hit the wall heading up Mountain Straight in Saturday’s first race. 

Wayne Seabrook in his 1976 Porsche 911 won both races in Group S Historic Sports Cars after race one winner Geoff Morgan failed to finish the first race of the morning while in a comfortable lead.

Kim Burke (Radical SR3RSX) won his maiden race race in the Radical Cup with a narrow win over RA Motorsport team mate Nicholas Stavropoulo and race one winner Peter Paddon after the race finished under the safety car.

Photos: Christian Schmidt

The post Local Lacey Romps Home In Mount Panorama Sedan Supports. appeared first on In Pit Lane.

The BMW Team Schnitzer driver, who shares the #43 BMW M6 GT3 with co-drivers Augusto Farfus and Marco Wittmann, lapped the 6.2km Mount Panorama circuit in a 2:01.934 – the second fastest qualifying time in 12-hour history.

Mostert was the second-last car out in the Pirelli Shootout and held on to pole position, after South African young-gun Kelvin van der Linde fell 0.2 seconds short in his pole attempt.

It was BMWs second 12-Hour pole at the Mountain and one position better than the marque qualified in 2017.

“We were close last year in the Pro-Am entry but it’s pretty special to go to the pointy end and actually get the pole this time with Schnitzer Motorsport and the BMW Motorsport group,” said Mostert.

“For me it’s amazing, the boys gave enough trust in me to qualify the car and we made the car better and better over practice. It’s a lot of hard work to fly a car all the way from Germany to put it on the pole so it’s fantastic.”

Van der Linde’s lap, which was only 0.235s slower than Mostert’s, was good enough to secure the South African Audi gun a front row start for tomorrow’s race, driving the #22 Valvoline Jamec Pem Racing Audi he shares with Garth Tander and Frederich Vervisch.

The sister #74 Audi of Christopher Haase, Christopher Mies and Markus Winkelhock will start from third on the grid, with Haase setting a 2:02.434 early in the session after being the fifth car on track.

The Bend Motorsport Park-supported Lamborghini will start a surprise fourth following a stunning lap from Bathurst 1000 champion, Luke Youlden.

The car had qualified eighth in the pre-shootout session however Youlden’s flyer saw them rocket up the order to secure a second-row starting position.

Scott McLaughlin hauled his YNA Autosport McLaren 650S GT3 to fifth place, while Cameron Waters will start his Strakka Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 from sixth – despite not having originally planned to contest the shootout.

Waters’ had qualified 11th however was elevated into the shootout after the Laser Plumbing BMW Team SRM entry was excluded from qualifying due to a technical infringement.

Row four of the grid will be occupied by the #37 Audi Sport Team WRT Audi of Robin Frijns – who set a 2:03.448 – and the #58 YNA Autosport of Shane van Gisbergen, Craig Lowndes and Cöme Ledogar in eighth.

Steven Kane (Bentley Team M-Sport Continental GT3) and Matt Campbell (Ice Break Porsche 911 GT3R) completed the top-10 in the shootout.

Grove Racing’s #4 Porsche GT3 Cup of Stephen Grove, Brenton Grove and Ben Barker have taken out the Class B pole position after Barker lapped the 6.2km circuit in a 2:08.071.

The British driver set the flier early in the session to hand the squad the class pole by just over a second over the #23 Team Carrera Cup Asia Porsche of Paul Tresidder, Chris van der Drift, Andrew Tang and Evan Chen.

JFC – Carter Grange’s #21 car of Daniel Stutterd, Sam Fillmore and Andrew Fawcet picked up third in class with a 2:11.732.

Boat Works Racing took out the pole position in Class C after Aaron Seton set a fast lap early on in the #30 BMW M4 GT4 of Tony Longhurst, Matt Brabham and himself, while Team SRM’s #44 BMW M4 GT4 finished second quickest in the class.

MARC Cars Australia took out the Invitational Class pole position with the #91 MARC II V8 of Keith Kassulke, Rod Salmon and Will Brown with a lap time of 2:06.118.

The Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour commences at 5:45am on Sunday morning.

The race will be broadcast live in its entirety by 7mate around Australia and Sky Sports New Zealand.

A live stream will allow the rest of the world to watch for free via the Bathurst 12 Hour website.

Source: Bathurst 12 Hour Media Release

Photo Credit: Richard Craill

The post BMW On Pole At Mount Panorama appeared first on In Pit Lane.

The race itself, and the top ten shootout are exclusively live for Australian viewers this afternoon on 7Mate, but the good news is that the practice and main qualifying session are also being streamed live.

Even better news for some, is that the support events will also feature so you can check out the action of the combined Sedan race featuring an eclectic selection of old V8 Supercars, Sports Sedans and Improved Production Cars.

There’s the Radical Cup and for the first time classic Sports Cars with the Group S Historic Sports Cars of the 60’s & 70’s.

Audi topped the time sheets on Friday after the Schnitzer BMW team set the early pace.

The #22 Valvoline Jamec Pem Racing Audi of Kelvin van der Linde, Frederic Vervisch and Garth Tander were the fastest in the opening day of track action at Mount Panorama  with Vervisch setting the quickest time of the day, a 2:03.136s flyer, during the fourth practice session.

“Everything is going good. It’s difficult to see the real pace of everyone and the second thing is you have to have a clear lap as well,” the 31-year-old Belgian driver said.

“Not bad, for a first time for sure better than I expected so it’s good to be in front, but you want to be there on Sunday,”

“The car is really nice, we did some improvements from earlier in the day to now and I’m more comfortable and confident, it’s really cool. Like everybody describes its really nice.”

Vervisch said the No. 22 squad felt like they would be a competitive proposition for the remainder of the weekend.

“I think we have a really strong line-up, we all three are on a really strong pace,” he said.

“Obviously it’s very nice to have Garth as a team mate he knows the track well, we did a track walk yesterday and he really gave us some good indications which obviously helped today.

“We will see, we still have to decide who will do it [Qualifying], one of us three can do it and obviously we want to keep the car on track, I think that’s the main thing.

“For sure top ten would be nice, that’s out aim and its always better to start at the front than the rear.”

The BMW team Schnitzer M6GT3 of Chaz Mostert / Marco Wittman and Augusto Farfus was second fastest overall, just 0.25s behind the leading Audi.

 All three of the BMW drivers lapped towards the front of the time sheets during their respective times behind the wheel today.

Returning to Mount Panorama for the first time since Touring Car racing in the 1980s, the famous Schnitzer squad impressed from the outset with Farfus storming to the top of the times during his first ever run at Mount Panorama.

Completing a good day for the Jamec-Pem Audi squad, the sister Audi R8 was third fastest overall today with former winner Christoper Mies, Christopher Haase and Markus Winkelhock splitting the driving duties.

The day was dominated by Audi and BMW with the two brands filling the top five positions in the final session.

Outside of the searing lap times, the biggest story was perhaps the arrival of the Bentley Team M-Sport Continental GT3s t Mount Panorama.

After lengthy shipping delays, the five containers worth of freight – including pit lane equipment for AMG outfit Strakka Racing – was unloaded in Melbourne on Thursday afternoon and trucked the 10 hours to Bathurst.

They arrived at 3:00am Friday morning, with the team on hand to prepare the cars and get them on track for the first practice session just after 8:30am.

Remarkably, the cars lapped on the edge of the top-10 in the later practice sessions, despite the rushed preparation.

Saturday action will include a fifth and final practice session prior to qualifying with the Pirelli Top-10 Shootout, which will be broadcast live on 7mate around Australia. International viewers can watch the shootout and the main race on Sunday via the Bathurst 12 Hour website  with commentary from the team at Radio Show limited John Hindhaugh, Johnny Palmer and Shea Adam alongside local commentator Richard Craill.

Source: With Bathurst 12 Hour Media Release.
Photo @Richard Craill.

The post Audi Set The Bar In Mountain Shootout appeared first on In Pit Lane.