F1 Preview: 2018 Chinese Grand Prix

By Apr 12, 2018, 8:00 PM EDT
Photo: Getty Images
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Two races into the 2018 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season and surprises abound in several places on the grid.

Even though Mercedes AMG Petronas appeared as daunting as ever entering the season, it’s Scuderia Ferrari who has been to Victory Lane in the opening two races, with Sebastian Vettel sitting on a perfect 50 points and at the head of the drivers championship.

McLaren F1 has had both Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne score points in the opening two races, yet Scuderia Toro Rosso, now using the maligned Honda power units McLaren parted ways with them, outran them in the Bahrain Grand Prix, with Pierre Fasly finishing an outstanding fourth, and doing so on merit – he qualified fifth and ran in the Top 5 all race long, moving up to fourth after Kimi Raikkonen dropped when disastrous pit stop saw him clip a team member and leave with a loose wheel.

Further, Gasly is even with Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo on 12 points and ahead of Max Verstappen after both Red Bulls record DNFs in Bahrain.

Even Alfa Romeo Sauber offered up a surprise, finishing ninth in Bahrain to currently sit ahead of Sahara Force India, who only points finish so far is Esteban Ocon’s tenth place at Bahrain.

All told, the opening two races have set the stage for a season potentially full of intrigue, and the unpredictability could continue at this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix.

Stories to watch for at the Chinese Grand Prix are below.

BAHRAIN, BAHRAIN – APRIL 08: Sebastian Vettel of Germany driving the (5) Scuderia Ferrari SF71H leads Valtteri Bottas driving the (77) Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team Mercedes WO9 on track during the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix at Bahrain International Circuit on April 8, 2018 in Bahrain, Bahrain. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Ferrari has a 2-0 victory advantage over Mercedes, and while Sebastian Vettel’s victory at the Australian Grand Prix was undoubtedly helped by a timely Virtual Safety Car, the Bahrain Grand Prix was a genuine display of strength from Ferrari, with Vettel securing pole and holding off a late challenge from Valtteri Bottas to take the win.

Still, there is reason to think Mercedes can easily find itself back in the winner’s circle in China. Lewis Hamilton was dominating in Australia before the Virtual Safety Car allowed Vettel to leapfrog ahead of him, and five-place grid penalty hampered his efforts from the outset in Bahrain.

Still, Hamilton worked his way up to third after starting ninth, and his charge forward featured an early nomination for “Pass of the Year” around Fernando Alonso, Esteban Ocon, and Nico Hulkenberg.

Add in some extra motivation after getting one-upped by Ferrari in each of the first two races, and Hamilton and Bottas will most certainly be ones to watch as they look to restore Mercedes’ supremacy.

Who Emerges This Week from the Jammed Midfield?

In Australia, it was the Haas F1 team who was “best of the rest” on pace, though their double DNF opened the door for McLaren and Renault Sport F1 Team to get double-points finishes.

In Bahrain, Toro Rosso came seemingly out of nowhere to be “best of the rest” with Gasly, while Haas put Kevin Magnussen in fifth while McLaren again had both drivers in the points – Alonso and Vandoorne finished seventh and eighth respectively.

Force India has stumbled out of the gates, with Ocon scoring the team’s only point, while Renault has looked fairly stout, with Carlos Sainz Jr. finishing tenth in Australia and Hulkenberg finishing seventh and sixth in Australia and Bahrain.

Even Alfa Romeo Sauber has been stronger than expected, with Marcus Ericsson finishing an impressive ninth in Bahrain.

With the midfield jammed as much as it is, it is anyone’s guess as to who will emerge from that pack this weekend, and if Mercedes, Ferrari, or Red Bull stumble, even in the slightest of ways, it’s very conceivable that one of these teams could land on the podium.

Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix rolls off at 2:00 a.m. ET.

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Ford unveils a new Mustang for 2024 Le Mans in motorsports ‘lifestyle brand’ retooling

Associated PressJun 9, 2023, 7:00 PM EDT
Ford Mustang Le Mans
Ford Performance
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LE MANS, France — Ford has planned a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans with its iconic Mustang muscle car next year under a massive rebranding of Ford Performance aimed at bringing the automotive manufacturer “into the racing business.”

The Friday unveil of the new Mustang Dark Horse-based race car follows Ford’s announcement in February (and a ballyhooed test at Sebring in March) that it will return to Formula One in 2026 in partnership with reigning world champion Red Bull.

The Mustang will enter the GT3 category next year with at least two cars in both IMSA and the World Endurance Championship, and is hopeful to earn an invitation to next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The IMSA entries will be a factory Ford Performance program run by Multimatic, and a customer program in WEC with Proton Competition.

Ford CEO Jim Farley, also an amateur sports car racer, told The Associated Press the Mustang will be available to compete in various GT3 series across the globe to customer teams. But more important, Farley said, is the overall rebranding of Ford Performance – done by renowned motorsports designer Troy Lee – that is aimed at making Ford a lifestyle brand with a sporting mindset.

“It’s kind of like the company finding its own, and rediscovering its icons, and doubling down on them,” Farley told the AP. “And then this motorsports activity is getting serious about connecting enthusiast customers with those rediscovered icons. It’s a big switch for the company – this is really about building strong, iconic vehicles with enthusiasts at the center of our marketing.”

Ford last competed in sports car racing in 2019 as part of a three-year program with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team scored the class win at Le Mans in 2016 in a targeted performance aimed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ford snapping Ferrari’s six-year winning streak.

Ford on Friday displayed a Mustang with a Lee-designed livery that showcased the cleaner, simplified look that will soon be featured on all its racing vehicles. The traditional blue oval with Ford Performance in white lettering underneath will now be branded simply FP.

The new mark will be used across car liveries, merchandise and apparel, display assets, parts and accessories and in advertising.

Farley cited Porsche as an automaker that has successfully figured out how to sell cars to consumers and race cars in various series around the world while creating a culture of brand enthusiasts. He believes Ford’s new direction will help the company sell street cars, race cars, boost interest in driving schools, and create a merchandise line that convinces consumers that a stalwart of American automakers is a hip, cool brand.

“We’re going to build a global motorsports business off road and on road,” Farley told the AP, adding that the design of the Mustang is “unapologetically American.”

He lauded the work of Lee, who is considered the top helmet designer among race car drivers.

“We’re in the first inning of a nine inning game, and going to Le Mans is really important,” Farley said. “But for customer cars, getting the graphics right, designing race cars that win at all different levels, and then designing a racing brand for Ford Performance that gets rebranded and elevated is super important.”

He said he’s kept a close eye on how Porsche and Aston Martin have built their motorsports businesses and said Ford will be better.

“We’re going in the exact same direction. We just want to be better than them, that’s all,” Farley said. “Second is the first loser.”

Farley, an avid amateur racer himself, did not travel to Le Mans for the announcement. The race that begins Saturday features an entry from NASCAR, and Ford is the reigning Cup Series champion with Joey Logano and Team Penske.

The NASCAR “Garage 56” entry is a collaboration between Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet and Goodyear, and is being widely celebrated throughout the industry. Farley did feel left out of the party in France – a sentiment NASCAR tried to avoid by inviting many of its partners to attend the race so that it wouldn’t seem like a Chevrolet-only celebration.

“They’re going right and I’m going left – that NASCAR thing is a one-year deal, right? It’s Garage 56 and they can have their NASCAR party, but that’s a one-year party,” Farley said. “We won Le Mans outright four times, we won in the GT class, and we’re coming back with Mustang and it’s not a one-year deal.

“So they can get all excited about Garage 56. I almost see that as a marketing exercise for NASCAR, but for me, that’s a science project,” Farley continued. “I don’t live in a world of science projects. I live in the world of building a vital company that everyone is excited about. To do that, we’re not going to do a Garage 56 – I’ve got to beat Porsche and Aston Martin and Ferrari year after year after year.”

Ford’s announcement comes on the heels of General Motors changing its GT3 strategy next season and ending its factory Corvette program. GM, which unlike Ford competes in the IMSA Grand Touring Prototype division (with its Cadillac brand), will shift fully to a customer model for Corvettes in 2024 (with some factory support in the IMSA GTD Pro category).