A series of photographs of the 2017 AMR have surfaced online this evening, depicting AMR test and reserve driver Jarod Lindsey putting the first miles into the new chassis for Felix Beyer at a PR event from Phillip Island.
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AMR have confirmed that Will Hoskins will race for the team alongside mainstay Felix Beyer, in an announcement a few days before the 2017 challenger's first shakedown at Phillip Island this weekend.
Braselton, Georgia – The Skip Barber Racing School and American Formula Virtual outfit FIRST Motorsport have announced that a partnership deal has been agreed upon that will push the development of young American drivers and will involve cross promotion between the Skip Barber Racing School and FIRST. FIRST Motorsport Team Principal Adam Blocker was at Road Atlanta, one of the base operations for the Skip Barber Racing School, today to announce the partnership and had the following to say: Following the 2016 Young Driver Test in Jerez, Allar Kangur has been named by DS Automobiles Team Mathershaw as their second driver for the 2017 season. Rumours persisted that the French team would once again promote from within as they had with Olen Inman in 2016, and this has proven to be the case, with the 19-year-old Estonian set to make his FV debut next year. Team principal Arthur Lapierre did not hide his excitement at the deal: “We’re delighted to announce that Allar Kangur will be racing with us in 2017. He is a driver of impeccable talent with an exemplary record in the junior championships, and I personally know his talent very well after he won the VWRS with Lapierre this season. We also know his quality when it comes to developing a car – something we know is going to be crucial over the next few years – because of his role as test and reserve driver in 2016.” Kangur himself was also pleased: “I am glad I have got this opportunity from Arthur and Robert. For 2017 I want to learn with Adrien to improve as much as I can, he is someone I have enjoyed working with very much so far. I cannot wait to get out on track again and show everybody what I can do.” On the subject of test and reserve driver, Thierry Xylander will take on that role in 2017, rumoured to be alongside a race seat in a junior championship as he prepares to take a race seat himself in the future. Lapierre stated: “He was certainly the only other driver we seriously considered for the second driver role, but we believe that an extra season of experience outside of the spotlight will serve him very well indeed. He’ll be a big asset to the team as test and reserve driver, where he will get a lot of experience of developing the car alongside honing his racing skills in the junior series.” In a final announcement, Lapierre revealed that the 2017 car, designated the DS Mathershaw RJM-005, would be launched at Paul Ricard early in January. Lufthansa AMR are ready to unveil their 2017 challenger, the AMR-FV-3, on the opening Sunday of the New Year, the team has revealed.
Allar Kangur has put himself firmly in the frame for the vacant seat at DS Mathershaw next season as the 2016 VWRS Champion lapped fastest on day two by nearly fourth tenths of a second, also beating fellow DS Mathershaw junior Thierry Xylander's time from yesterday by over two tenths.
DS Mathershaw youth driver - Belgian Thierry Xylander - has topped day one of the 2016 Formula Virtual young drivers test, but he was run close by Meteor's reserve driver Jamie Gerrard as just 0.089 separated the pair.
Rumours have emerged from the Formula Virtual paddock of disagreement between North Star Racing and engine supplier BMW over who will join Judson Sikes and Aleksy Nowosinki in the NSR-V02 for the 2017 season.
After what has been months of silence from the Southampton based team, they've finally revealed what they intend to do about the many drivers affiliated with the team itself.
Following the conclusion of the 2016 Formula Virtual World Championship season in Brazil, the DS Automobiles Team Mathershaw team called a press conference, with team principal Arthur Lapierre and technical director Robert Mathershaw both in attendance alongside newly crowned World Champion Adrien Simon and his outgoing team mate Olen Inman.
Reporter: First of all, I’d like to congratulate you Adrien for taking the title for the first time. How does it feel to be champion? AS: It feels incredible. From the second I got in the car for the first test at Estoril I knew it was going to be a good year, but I couldn’t have dreamed it was going to end this way. The first thing I want to do is congratulate and thank Olen for a wonderful battle all year. We’ve been extremely close through the season, and he should be very proud of his performance – he’s a future champion for sure. Reporter: Olen, you were pipped by the smallest of margins in the final race. Do you have any regrets about this season? OI: No. I’ve loved the experience, and I gave it my all. Adrien is a more than worthy champion, and it has been an honour to race with him this year. Reporter: It was announced after the race that you’re going to FUN for 2017. How long have you known about this? OI: It was a mutual agreement between the team and myself that I’d be leaving at the end of 2016, and I’ve known for a couple of races. I can’t deny I’m disappointed, but I can understand the circumstances and why it has happened. The team management made sure I had somewhere to go for next year, so I’m thankful for that at least. Reporter: Arthur, can you explain why he’s leaving the team despite the fact he has just finished 2 points short of the title in his rookie season? AL: It wasn’t an easy decision. Formula Virtual is as much about business as it is about sport. Olen is an outstanding driver, and I’m sure he’ll experience success at the highest level again. His attitude has been excellent all year, and this didn’t change because of what happened. Reporter: That doesn’t really answer the question: Why are you dropping Olen? AL: As a team, we aim to strike a perfect balance between short-term success and planning for the long term. Our money isn’t infinite, and we need to choose our battles wisely. We’ve got a wonderful team here, which includes a number of extremely talented drivers in the DS Automobiles Lapierre Junior Team, and we feel the best step for the future is to promote this talent. Reporter: So it’ll be a Junior Team driver that replaces him? AL: It’s certainly likely. We’ll be making our assessments during the Young Driver Test, and after that a decision will be made. Reporter: Robert, this has been your main project for the previous four seasons now, how does it feel to have engineered success at last? RM: This is our greatest achievement. We started with a tiny facility in Liverpool, and we now have a state of the art factory at the Paul Ricard circuit. I’m so proud of this entire team, from Adrien and Olen to the janitors at the factory – every single person who works for DS Automobiles Team Mathershaw is world champion. In addition, I think it’s important to note the contribution of Downton in this triumph – alongside DS, they have developed the engine into the finest powerplant on the FV grid, and the two teams have developed a working relationship unlike anything else on the grid. Finally, and this may shock some of you, I’d also like to thank Karl Beckenbauer. He left the team under strained circumstances last season, but without his contribution during our formation, we wouldn’t be where we are now. Reporter: This is for all of you. Do you think more success is possible in 2017? RM: It’ll be hard. We’re open about the fact we put a hell of a lot into this year, and while we’re starting from a brilliant base after this year, we’ve got to be pragmatic. AL: It’s possible, but everyone in the team knows our position for 2017, and we’re preparing for a year of consolidation before going all out for the 2018 titles. AS: Like le chef [Mathershaw] and le prof [Lapierre] say, we know it’s going to be tough. But on a personal note I have my own goals both in and out of the cockpit, so I think 2017 is going to be a very interesting season. Downton FV Team and DS Automobiles Team Mathershaw - who each have an engine group that combine to build and tune the engines run by both teams in the Formula Virtual series - have this evening announced that despite previous reports, DS Downton will power Lopez FV Team in the 2017 Formula Virtual season.
Adrien Simon will head the field for the start of tomorrows title deciding Brazilian V-Prix, but team mate and championship leader by five points - Olen Inman - will start alongside him on the front row.
Enrique Ruiz set the pace in practice ahead of his home race but so much rain fell during the session it was difficult to distinguish at times what was track and what was lake. Ruiz's 1:55.573 was a whopping 43-seconds slower than last years pole position time, set by his team mate Elroy Wagner.
Ingram today ended the rumours linking various drivers, most notably Rodolfo de la Fuente, to their second seat by announcing Jean Mattson will remain with the team.
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