Following a landmark decision for road-based motorsport competition in the UK, the Welsh government has written new laws facilitating closed-road events, that have already come in to force.

The MSA spent several years campaigning for a change in the law to allow local authorities to suspend the Road Traffic Act for authorised motor sport events, without requiring individual Acts of Parliament. New enabling legislation commenced in England on 10 April 2017.

Following a further consultation, the Welsh Government has now published its own statutory instrument facilitating closed-road motor sport in Wales. As in England, it names the MSA and its sister governing body for two-wheel UK motor sport, the Auto-Cycle Union (ACU), as the authorising bodies for closed-road motor sport events.

“Wales is home to a dynamic automotive sector with an annual turnover of some £3bn (US$4.1bn) and this is an excellent opportunity to inspire people to become a part of automotive and engineering industries in the future,” said Ken Skates, cabinet secretary for Economy and Transport. “I also recognize how such events can boost local, often rural, economies through increased tourism and hospitality, and offer community opportunities such as volunteering.”

“It’s no understatement to say that this development will literally change the landscape of Welsh motor sport, providing opportunities to take the sport to new areas of the country on closed public roads,” added Rob Jones, MSA chief executive. “Wales is already recognised globally for its motor sport heritage and this development will add significantly to the country’s pre-eminence in the sport.”

“We believe that Wales has a lot of roads that would lend themselves to this new closed-roads legalisation,” concluded Paul Loveridge, chairman of the Welsh Association of Motor Clubs (WAMC). “It creates the opportunity for Welsh motor sport to really flourish and we look forward to exploring ideas for new events and initiatives over the coming the months and years.”

The post Wales gives green light to closed-road motor sport appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

The FIA’s WRC breaks down the multiple compound choices facing drivers in the 2018 Championship and how the various options affects on-stage performance

The post WRC 2018: Tech Special Winter Tires appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

Following M-Sport’s victory in the WRC last year, Ford has announced a new agreement to supply extended technical and financial support to the Cumbrian team.

Starting in 2018, the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team will benefit from additional technical support from the global Ford Performance organisation at its headquarters in Dearborn, U.S., led by Mark Rushbrook, global director of Motorsport.

The OEM is extending the company’s investment to ensure the M-Sport Ford World Rally Team remains competitive through the 2018 WRC season and beyond, following technical and financial contributions in 2017.

The increased backing from the OEM is a key driver in M‑Sport’s retention of Sébastien Ogier – 2017 FIA WRC Drivers’ champion – for the 2018 season. Ogier and upcoming talent Elfyn Evans will lead the team, alongside their respective co-drivers Julien Ingrassia and Daniel Barritt, in the Fiesta WRC.

“Ford’s 20-year relationship with M-Sport has delivered unparalleled success at all levels of rallying, something we’re very proud of, and has also established Fiesta as the standard for rally competitors around the globe,” Rushbrook said. “Last year we supported M-Sport with the development of the all-new Fiesta that went on to campaign to an FIA championship win. For 2018, we’re excited to be able to provide even greater support.”

Ford has been a continuous partner with M-Sport since 1997. As the Ford-appointed specialist in rally-sport, M-Sport produces vehicles for rally competition in several classes, from FIA R2 to the pinnacle in WRC. Almost 400 M-Sport developed Fiestas are currently competing in rally-sport globally.

“We’ve enjoyed a fantastic relationship with Ford over the years and it’s great to see that support increase as we look to defend our FIA World Rally Championship titles in 2018,” added Malcolm Wilson OBE, M-Sport managing director.

“In Sébastien and Elfyn we have another strong line up and the added technical support will allow us to progress the development of the Ford Fiesta WRC. The competition will be closer than ever but I’m confident that, together with the support of our partners, we can produce the same high levels of performance and reliability that delivered so much success in 2017.”

The post Ford extends WRC involvement with M-Sport backing appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

Volkswagen has finally unveiled the R5 variant of its Polo GTI. Destined for its customer motorsport program, the R5 is based on the sixth and latest generation of the new Polo.

The company states that the development of the new rally car incorporates experience and know-how acquired from its four-year stint in the WRC.

“Presenting the new Polo GTI R5 to the public was a magnificent moment,” said Volkswagen Motorsport Director Sven Smeets. “The close relationship to the road-going Polo GTI is unmistakable. In the rally Polo, the GTI family has another spectacular ambassador. Our team and the colleagues at Volkswagen Design in Wolfsburg deserve great credit for this. Over the coming months, the Polo GTI R5 must prove itself in a series of tough scenarios, in order to ensure that it can build on the success of its predecessor in the customers’ hands.”

The car has been in development since the start of 2017, with initial asphalt and gravel testing taking place in mid-November, in Fontjoncouse, France. The program is set to continue in Great Britain later this month.

“The Polo GTI R5 came through the initial tests without any problems. The feedback from the test drivers was very positive,” added technical director François-Xavier ‘FX’ Demaison. “It is obviously beneficial to be able to call upon an experienced team of engineers and mechanics, who helped to develop the Polo that won the world championship. And it goes without saying that, as we have in the past, we are also taking advantage of the close and excellent cooperation with the colleagues in the technical development department in Wolfsburg, as well as our Škoda colleagues, who have been offering their customers an R5 car since 2015.”

The Polo GTI R5 is powered by the same inline four-cylinder turbocharged engine, which is mounted transversely in front of the front axle, as the road car. In R5 application, the engine’s capacity is reduced to 1.6 litres, in accordance with regulations. This generates 272 hp and 400Nm. This is transferred via a close-stepped, sequential, five-speed racing gearbox and permanent four-wheel drive. Weighing 1,320kg, VW is claiming a 0 to 60mph (100kph) sprint of 4.1s.

Volkswagen expects the GTI R5 to be homologated in the summer of 2018, with first deliveries planned for the second half of the year.

In 2012, the International Automobile Federation FIA passed the R5 regulations for a new generation of rally cars, aimed primarily at customer teams, talented youngsters and privateers. Since then, more than 400 cars have been produced by five different manufacturers and have been in action in national and international championships all over the world.

The post Volkswagen reveals R5-spec Polo ahead of 2018 customer deliveries appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

Following a year off in 2017, Pirelli will return to the World Rally Championship from next year, homologating new products for the latest generation of World Rally Car as well as the feeder WRC2 category.

Not only that, but Pirelli also becomes exclusive supplier to the Junior World Rally Championship from next year: a series dedicated to drivers born later than January 1, 1989, driving identical R2-class Ford Fiestas. The winner will become the owner of a brand-new Fiesta R5 together with a tire, fuel and free rally entries package towards the 2019 WRC2 season.

An entirely new range of P Zero tires for asphalt and Scorpion tires for gravel has been produced for next year’s World Rally Championship, along with a redesigned Sottozero for ice and snow (available with and without studs).

For asphalt, there’s a brand-new P Zero RK5A tire together with a softer P Zero RK7B. For wet asphalt, the Cinturato RWA makes its debut. All these tires contain new constructions and compounds that provides them with more grip and performance than ever before, thanks to a selection of patented technologies.

For gravel, Pirelli introduces the new Scorpion K4 Reinforced, together with a softer Scorpion K6 Reinforced. As well as being extremely fast, the extra reinforcement in these tires safeguards against punctures even in the most extreme off-road conditions. A new tread pattern has also improved driveability and handling.

For the two winter rallies in the championship, Monte-Carlo and Sweden, there is a new-generation Sottozero tire: Sottozero B for Monte-Carlo, and Sottozero Ice (with long studs) for Sweden. This again uses patented technology to ensure stud retention, delivering optimal grip throughout the length of the stage.

“With our long and illustrious history in the World Rally Championship, paired with some of the most successful teams and drivers in the sport, it was a natural decision for us to return next year,” commented Pirelli’s head of car racing Mario Isola. “We’ve developed tires that are specifically suited to the multi-faceted demands of the World Rally Championship, using many of the lessons learned from Formula 1, which should provide a competitive advantage without compromising reliability. We’re especially pleased to be returning to the Junior championship as well, as it fits in perfectly with our philosophy of supporting young drivers, having helped to shape the careers of so many top stars in the past.”

Pirelli will also continue to supply the European Rally Championship, which has assisted many young drivers in climbing the career ladder, as well as bagging three back-to-back overall titles for Pirelli’s Kajetan Kajetanowicz. The European Junior Under 27 Championship will once more be exclusively supplied by Pirelli, again using R2 cars.

The post Pirelli to return to World Rally Championship from 2018 appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

The results of the 2017 Professional MotorSport World Expo awards are in! This year’s event saw a fantastically wide variety of motorsport achievements celebrated in style.

UK-based World Rally team M-Sport were the evening’s biggest winner, picking up the Race Car of the Year and Motorsport Engineer of the Year accolades. The awards were collected by Gary Chandler, test engineer at M-Sport. Another bumper year for new race car debuts, M-Sport’s 2017 Fiesta WRC fought off extremely stiff competition in the Race Car of the Year category from the multi-race winning Audi RS3 LMS TCR, the IMSA dominating Cadillac DPI-V.R., Porsche’s all-new 911 RSR and the Lexus LS500 GT500.

The WRC car crafted by M-Sport found favour with the judges due to the small Cumbrian teams independence from factory support, in addition to the incredibly strong, consistent performances of the car, out on some of the most challenging stages on the planet.

In addition to the incredibly strong car, the team snagged the services of four-time WRC champion Sebastian Ogier. Alongside talented youngsters Ott Tanak and factory-backed privateer Elfyn Evans, the Fiesta WRC has claimed four outright victories, several podiums and multiple points scoring finishes to give M-Sport the 2017 WRC Drivers and Teams titles, beating the Citroën, Hyundai and Toyota factory efforts.

M-Sport’s second award came in the Motorsport Engineer of the Year category, with its head of rally Engineering, Chris Williams taking top honours ahead of Ludo Lacroix, competition director of Virgin Australia Supercars front-runners DJR Team Penske. Abt Sportsline’s technical director Franco Chiocchetti, Dr Frank-Steffen Walliser vice president of Motorsport and GT cars Porsche, Carl Faux, lead engineer at Team B.M.R, and the designer of the unique NGTC Subaru Levorg, which took Ash Sutton to the 2017 BTCC driver’s title.

The 23-strong judging panel were more than impressed with the way that Williams’s design took on manufacturers with considerably more budget than that of the independent team. Williams oversaw every aspect of the car’s development by M-Sport, from the 2.0-liter turbocharged engine, co-developed with Ford, to the transmission and to the completely in-house fabricated shell.

Strong performances from a number of teams, in a diverse range of championships in 2017 meant that the Motorsport Team of the Year category once again served up a shortlist that was anything but short. With over twenty entries on the list’s first draft, it was the heroes of the 2017 running of Le Mans, Jackie Chan DC Racing, who emerged victorious ahead of DJR Team Penske, Abt Sportsline, J.A.S. Motorsport, Renault e.Dams, and PSRX Volkswagen Sweden.

Jackie Chan DC Racing’s achieved several firsts at the WEC’s flagship event. Taking full advantage of a diminished LMP1 entry, and its partnership with Britain’s Jota Sport, the team became the first LMP2 team to lead laps at Le Mans, and despite losing the lead with a little over one hour left, Jackie Chan DC Racing became the first Chinese team to win its class at Le Mans. Co-owned between Asian Le Mans Champion David Cheng and actor Jackie Chan, the team has also taken (to date) two further victories at Spa and the Nurburgring to amass a comfortable lead in both Endurance Trophy championships for team, and driver.

The German supplier Bosch took top honours in the bumper-sized Motorsport Technology of the Year for its all-new CAS-M3 Collision Avoidance System. With a number of crash protection orientated devices entered for 2017, such as Motordrive’s MD-10 seat, DJR Team Penske’s leg protection tray, as well as Toyota and the FIA’s jointly-developed THUMS project, there was a strong driver safety theme. Other entries in to the category included ZF’s Formula 1 dampers, BMW’s Topometric 3D digitization cell, and Stratasys’ FDM Nylon 12CF material; as used on the McLaren MCL32 this season. However, it was Bosch who emerged victorious. Its device provides real time visualization and warns the driver about approaching or overtaking cars via intuitive marking of the cars on the display. It helps preventing the most common causes of collisions and gives drivers the chance to focus on the track.

In other categories, the Race Series of Year title went to the all-electric Formula E championship, in a line-up featuring global heavyweights such as the SRO Group’s Blancpain Endurance Series, America’s IMSA Weathertech United Sports Cars, Australia’s Virgin Supercars, the FIA’s World Rallycross Championship and the immensely popular TCR International Series.

The Powertrain Innovation of the Year award went to Mercedes-Benz AMG Petronas team, for its W08 EQ Power+ 2017 Formula 1 power unit. Mercedes-AMG units have truly dominated the hybrid era but nevertheless, the team has continued to work on and refine the engine and has now recorded a thermal efficiency in excess of 50%, essentially meaning the unit makes more power than waste energy. The W08 took on complete engines from Cadillac and ECR in America’s IMSA series, Gibson Technology in LMP2, KTM in MotoGP, and Mahindra and Magnetti Marelli in Formula E. Rohm Semiconductor’s SiC diode, also used in Formula E, rounded out the categories entries.

California’s Thermal Club took top honours in the Motorsport Facility of the Year, whilst a dramatic running of the 2017 Singapore GP, saw Marina Bay run the Palm Springs facility very close in the voting. Other entries in the category included China’s Speedpark Ningbo, the recently rejuvenated Martinsville NASCAR facility, Portugal’s Circuito Internacional de Villa Real, and the new for 2017 Red Hook street circuit in Brooklyn.

The now familiar Young Rally Driver of the Year award was collected by Ewan Tindall. Highly praised by the judges for displaying a maturity and approachability, both in and out of the car, that singled Tindall out as a real future prospect for the sport of Rallying. Not only consistent, but also very quick, Tindall has taken the crown in both the 2017 J1000 Ecosse and 2017 Kick Energy Formula 1000 rally championships.

Introduced for 2016, and back once again, is the Outstanding Contribution to Motorsport category, which was won by last year’s runner-up, birthday boy, charismatic owner and namesake of Dallara; Giampaolo Dallara. One of the most prominent figures in global motorsport, the Dallara name is known across the world for its participation in a staggering long list of disciplines including Formula 1, Formula 2 and 3, Indycar, Indy Lights, Formula E, LMP2, IMSA DPI, World Series 3.5, Super Formula and more. As a result, Dallara has built a reputation for building and supplying some of the finest single-seaters available. Sadly, for us, Dallara was not only celebrating his 81st birthday on the day of Awards ceremony, but also launching the first ever Dallara road car and as a result, was unable to attend. Collecting the honour on behalf of Giampaolo was Andrea Burzoni, design manager at Dallara.

“In the short time that I’ve been organising these awards, I’ve never been so uncertain of the results as the individual votes came in,” explained John O’Brien, editor of Professional MotorSport World, and chair of the judging panel. “Following the multiple regulations changes throughout the industry, 2017 has, for me, been one of the best in recent time. Yes, there have been some sad losses in certain championships, but on balance, there’s been much, much more to celebrate. Malcom Wilson’s M-Sport, and its truly superb performance in the WRC against factory-supported teams shows that with the right regulations in place, budget will always come second to clever engineering. Formula E’s victory also proves that green motorsport was no passing fad, and will only go from strength to strength.

The close fight for Race Series of the Year proves that despite what is written in mainstream press, motorsport is not in a bad shape globally, and when you look at the viewing figures of these championships it proves that people still watch motorsport in abundance. Whilst it’s easy to point out what ‘needs’ to be improved without solution, we prefer to celebrate the achievements of what makes this industry so great. The breadth and depth of the nominations in all the categories this year shows that there’s an awful lot to be proud of.”

The winners of the 2017 Professional MotorSport World Expo Awards:

Race Car of the Year
Winner: M-Sport Ford Fiesta WRC

Shortlisted:
Audi Sport RS3 LMS
Cadillac DPI- V.R
Porsche 911 RSR
Lexus LS500 GT500

A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.

Motorsport Team of the Year
Winner: Jackie Chan DC Racing x Jota Sport

Shortlisted:
DJR Team Penske
ABT Sportsline
J.A.S. Motorsport
Renault e.Dams
PSRX Volkswagen Sweden

A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.

Powertrain Innovation of the Year
Winner: Mercedes-AMG M08 EQ Power+ 1.6-liter V6

Shortlisted:
Gibson Technology GK428
ECR/ Cadillac LT-R 6.2-liter V8
Rohm Semiconductor’s SiC diode
KTM ‘Big Bang’ V4
Mahindra Racing M3Electro

A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.

Engineer of the Year
Winner: Chris Williams, head of rally engineering, M-Sport

Shortlisted:
Ludo Lacroix, competition director, DJR Team Penske
Franco Chiocchetti, technical director, Abt Sportsline
Dr Frank-Steffen Walliser vice president of Motorsport and GT cars Porsche
Carl Faux, lead engineer, Team B.M.R.

A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.

Motorsport Facility of the Year
Winner: Thermal Club, Palm Springs

Shortlisted:
SpeedPark Ningbo, China
Martinsville, USA
Marina Bay GP circuit, Singapore
Circuito Internacional de Vila Real, Portugal
Red Hook, Brooklyn street circuit, USA

A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.

Motorsport Technology of the Year
Winner: Bosch CAS-M3 Collision Avoidance System

Shortlisted:
Michelin Pilot Sport EV Formula E season three tire
MotorDrive MD-10 competition seat
ZF Motorsport Formula 1 damper
Stratsys FDM Nylon 12CF material
DJR Team Penske Supercars leg protection
Toyota & FIA THUMS project
BMW M/ Topometric 3D digitzation and serial measurement cell

A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.

Race Series of the Year
Winner: Formula E

Shortlisted:
TCR International
IMSA Weathertech United Sports Cars
Blancpain Endurance Series
Virgin Australia Supercars
FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy

A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.

UK Young Rally Driver of the Year
Winner: Ewan Tindall

Shortlisted:
Sam Adams
Eddie Lewis
Tom Llewellin
Elliot Payne
Robert Wilson

Outstanding Contribution to Motorsport
Returning for 2017, the Outstanding Contribution to Motorsport Award honours those who have gone above and beyond what is required in this industry – often at great personal expense.
Winner: Giampaolo Dallara, Dallara

Shortlisted:
David Richards, Prodrive
Alejandro Agag, Formula E
Stephane Ratel, SRO Group

A high-resolution image gallery of all the finalists in this category can be found on the PMW Expo Facebook page.

The post PMW AWARDS: The 2017 winners are in! appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

Wales Rally GB has reported record-breaking crowds were in attendence this weekend, to see local hero Elfyn Evans become the first British driver to win on home soil in the FIA World Rally Championship since 2000.

More than 100,000 spectators lined the classic Wales Rally GB forest stages, for the first running of the new generation of World Rally Cars. Overcoming not only the threat posed by his rivals but also characteristically challenging weather conditions including dense fog on Saturday evening, the Dolgellau driver made the most of the DMACK tyres on his M-Sport run Ford Fiesta WRC. Expertly navigated by Lancashire-based co-driver Daniel Barritt, he sprinted clear of his pursuers and ultimately reached the finish line at the end of Sunday’s Brenig Power Stage some 37.3 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor.

In so doing, Evans joined British rallying legends Roger Clark, Colin McRae and Richard Burns as only the fourth homegrown driver ever to triumph on the event, and the 28-year-old is the first Welsh driver to win any WRC rally.

“What a weekend!” enthused Dayinsure Wales Rally GB Managing Director, Ben Taylor. “We’ve had an amazing few days which have delivered everything we could possibly have asked for. Huge crowds, fabulous weather, close competition and the best possible result.

“I think half of Wales was on the stages today to see Elfyn win his first WRC event and to lift that famous trophy on home soil must be very special. Congratulations to Malcolm Wilson and everyone at M-Sport, Sébastien and Julien [Ingrassia], and of course Elfyn and Dan – it’s been an amazing weekend.

“I also need to thank everyone that has put in such a lot of hard work to make it all possible. We have a magnificent army of more than 2,000 volunteers and marshals who give up something like 5,000 days this week alone to put the stages together and to keep the fans and the crews safe. Once again they’ve done a tremendous job and should all be very proud of what the UK has delivered for the WRC.”

The post Wales Rally GB reports record-breaking crowds in 2017 appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

Figures from the initial 10 WRC rounds show fans are flocking to view this season’s gripping action, and crowds have risen by 5% compared with 2016 to more than 3,750,000 people. With the final three fixtures still to add to the tally, the attendance across all 13 rounds is on course to create a record for the modern-era WRC.

“The figures emphasise the new-for-2017 cars are a huge draw for fans. With the last three rallies in Spain, Great Britain and Australia still to be included, attendances across all 13 rounds are on course to shatter four million,” said WRC Promoter managing director Oliver Ciesla.

Eight of the 10 rallies have reported more spectators than last year, based on ticket sales, local authority and police estimates. Italy recorded the biggest increase with crowds at the Sardinia event up by 59%.

Sweden’s move to a new base in Torsby delivered a 33% for February’s snow and ice fixture. The drama of the rally-closing Power Stage finishing in the service park for the first time, followed immediately by the podium ceremony, generated a surge in fan numbers.

Argentina and Portugal both topped 950,000 spectators to remain the championship’s best-attended rounds, and a spectacular opening at Zócalo square in the heart of Mexico City helped the north American fixture top 550,000, more than 14% higher than in 2016.

“WRC spectator numbers show a steady positive development since 2013. We expect the final 2017 figures to reveal an increase of nearly 30% against those from just five seasons ago,” continued Ciesla. “Fans have loved the appeal of more powerful and spectacular World Rally Cars that have produced such great action, as well as the most exciting and unpredictable drivers’ title fight in a decade.”

Six different drivers representing four manufacturer teams have won a rally this year and three remain in title contention with two rounds left in Great Britain and Australia.

The encouraging figures follow half-yearly data from independent analyst Nielsen Sports which showed the WRC’s worldwide broadcast time also rose again by 10%, and the global TV audience by 17% from the season-opening Rallye Monte-Carlo to June’s Rally Italia Sardegna.

The post WRC reports increased crowd sizes at events during 2017 appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

EVO Corse is back at Cologne in 2017. The Italian alloy wheels manufacturer is showcasing their wide range of competition wheels and race tools, including the new SanremoZero 9×17″. Dedicated to circuit racing, SanremoZero has twelve paired spokes falling towards the hub that allows a low offset, ensuring maximum stability to the car, while the 9″ rim contour can host the largest brake calipers and is optimized for racing tires.

Also on display will be the EVOjack Quadra that has a hydraulic scissor jack design for rally racing. Thanks to the carrier member that fits the chassis without the need for the insertion hole, the EVOjack Quadra is also an effective and easy to use product for any racecar.

EVO Corse can be found at the 2017 Professional MotorSport World Expo, in Booth 7080

The post SHOW NEWS: Lightweight competition wheels appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.

Victory in round six of the FIA World Endurance Championship marked the 300th time that UK-based engineering and race team, Prodrive, had taken the chequered flag

When the Prodrive-run Aston Martin Racing team took victory in Texas in the latest round of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) last weekend (September 16), it was the 300th time a Prodrive team had won a race or rally since the company was formed in 1984.

The Aston Martin Vantage GTE sealed the 300th win some 33 years after Prodrive’s first victory at the Qatar rally on 27 January 1984, when the Porsche 911 SC RS won the opening round of the Middle East Rally Championship. The event was also Prodrive’s first, handing it victory on its motorsport debut.

Since then Prodrive has competed in 1171 events, running cars for a wide range of manufacturers including MG, BMW, Subaru, Alfa Romeo, Honda, Ford, Volvo, Ferrari, Aston Martin, MINI and VW, and in national and international race and rally championships, including the World Rally Championship, British Touring Car Championship, Australian V8 Supercar Series, Global Rallycross and the World Endurance Championship.

As well as 300 event wins, Prodrive has won numerous titles including:

Six World Rally titles (three drivers’ and three manufacturers’), Five Le Mans GT titles, Four World Endurance Championship titles, Three Chinese Rally Championship titles, Four British Touring Car Championships Three British Rally Championships, Two Middle East Rally Championships, Five Asia-Pacific Rally titles, Le Mans Series, US rally championship, Two Belgian Rally Championships, Two French Rally Championships.

Today Prodrive runs the Aston Martin Racing team in the FIA WEC and the FAW-VW rally team in the Chinese Rally Championship. From 2018 it will also be competing in the FIA World Rallycross Championship with a Renault Megane RX it is creating for Guerlain Chicherit.

“I still recall that very first event in Qatar, with Saeed Al Hajri driving the Porsche,” recalls Prodrive chairman and founder, David Richards. “Then we were just a dozen or so people with tremendous enthusiasm and great ambitions. I don’t think any of us dreamt that more than three decades on, Prodrive would be what it is today; not just a motorsport business that in 2018 will be competing in two FIA world championships, but one that has diversified into so many technology sectors beyond motorsport.”

The post Celebrating 300 victories in images appeared first on Professional Motorsport World.