Genesis Reveals New Details About Its Magma Racing Team at Le Mans
GMR team principal Cyril Abiteboul also announced a new race base in Le Castellet, France, and introduced important new members to the team.
Genesis design chief Luc Donckerwolke revealed that the brand is expanding into new markets: France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain.
Genesis is getting closer to its goal of chasing racing championships. During a press conference today ahead of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Genesis Magma Racing team principal Cyril Abiteboul shared an update about the development progress of the GMR-001 Hypercar as well as new details about Hyundai Motorsport's expansion.
Hypercar Development Speeds Up
The new race car, two of which will compete in the 2026 World Endurance Championship (WEC) as part of the LMDh Hypercar class (a two-car IMSA team will follow in 2027), was first announced last year at an event in Dubai. We also learned that Genesis's Hypercar will feature a turbocharged V-8 engine with a hybrid system. Earlier this year, Genesis gave the world its first look at the GMR-001's orange-themed livery, and the racer is getting closer to reality.
This content is imported from Third party. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
Genesis
Today, Abiteboul announced that the Hypercar has completed a successful dyno test. This is said to be the next step in validating the racing team's decision to employ a V-8 powertrain, which was designed by basically combining two of Genesis's 1.6-liter turbo fours. The latter engine has seen success in Hyundai Motorsports' participation in the WRC (World Rally Championship).
Abiteboul also revealed that Hyundai's motorsports division is growing to accommodate the newly created GMR team, with the operation establishing a base in Le Castellet, France. As the team principal explained, this will help with the development testing of its first two Hypercars due to the proximity to Oreca's factory, which supplied the chassis and continues to supply parts for its LMDh race cars.
New GMR Team Members, Le Mans Experience
Joining Abiteboul's ranks are three new faces that the team principal says will provide valuable experience from their extensive racing backgrounds. Anouck Abadie has been named team manager. Not only does she have a history working with the FIA, the governing body of motorsports, but Abadie has also previously led endurance teams as the manager and sporting director. She is joined by Gabriele Tarquini, who has won multiple Touring Car championships and is GMR's sporting director. Justin Taylor is the team's chief engineer, with experience in both IMSA and WEC. Previously, Taylor was the race engineer for Chip Ganassi's Cadillac racing team and also for Ferrari, whose team placed first overall in the 2023 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Genesis
From left to right: Justin Taylor, Anouck Abadie, and Gabriele Tarquini.
"They all have great experience in motorsport, which will be complemented by additional endurance racing expertise of the other team members we will recruit in the coming months," Abiteboul said. "This mix and the management structure we announced today will be at the center of the team through our testing this year with the GMR-001 Hypercar and our race team in the FIA World Endurance Championship next year."
While Genesis Magma Racing won't be competing for a Hypercar title in this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans, members of its trajectory team will get valuable experience for the top-dog competition in 2025. This year, GMR's LMP2 entry will be part of the action, with Jamie Chadwick, Mathys Jaubert, and André Lotterer driving the #18 Oreca 07 race car fielded by GMR's partner, IDEC Sport.
Genesis Looks to Grow Its Market Share
Of course, automakers don't just race for the fun of it. There's a lot of prestige involved, especially for a fledgling luxury brand like Genesis. While the company has made inroads in the U.S. market despite being a decade old, it's continuing to expand its footprint into other regions. During today's press conference, Genesis design chief Luc Donckerwolke also revealed that the brand plans to start selling models in more parts of Europe, including France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain.
Genesis
If its racing aspirations yield positive results, people around the world might take even better notice of a car company that started as a luxurious Hyundai model and could compete with the likes of Aston Martin, BMW, Cadillac, and Lamborghini. While the results remain to be seen, the road to victory lane is currently being paved.
Eric Stafford
Managing Editor, News
Eric Stafford's automobile addiction began before he could walk, and it has fueled his passion to write news, reviews, and more for Car and Driver since 2016. His aspiration growing up was to become a millionaire with a Jay Leno–like car collection. Apparently, getting rich is harder than social-media influencers make it seem, so he avoided financial success entirely to become an automotive journalist and drive new cars for a living. After earning a journalism degree at Central Michigan University and working at a daily newspaper, the years of basically burning money on failed project cars and lemon-flavored jalopies finally paid off when Car and Driver hired him. His garage currently includes a 2010 Acura RDX, a manual '97 Chevy Camaro Z/28, and a '90 Honda CRX Si. Read full bio
This content is imported from Third party. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
5 hours ago
- New York Times
Chelsea owners BlueCo reach agreement to sign Julio Enciso from Brighton
BlueCo — the group that owns Chelsea and Strasbourg — has reached an agreement to sign midfielder Julio Enciso from Brighton & Hove Albion. Enciso spent the second half of last season on loan at Ipswich Town and has chosen to join the BlueCo project for his next step. Personal terms for the 21-year-old Paraguay international are in place with BlueCo. Advertisement The sides have a healthy relationship after a conducting a significant amount of business since BlueCo completed its takeover of Chelsea in the summer of 2022 and then Strasbourg a year later. Enciso is expected to initially spend time at the French club but is viewed as a long-term Chelsea player. The Athletic previously reported that he was not part of head coach Fabian Hurzeler's plans at Brighton for the coming season. He is currently sidelined with a knee injury that required surgery. He went on loan to Ipswich in January for the remainder of the 2024-25 season. He went on to make 13 appearances, scoring two goals and adding three assists as Ipswich were relegated back to the Championship. () Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Private equity owners led to Genesis Healthcare's bankruptcy: report
This story was originally published on Healthcare Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Healthcare Dive newsletter. Dive Brief: A new report from the Private Equity Stakeholder Project alleges skilled nursing facility operator Genesis Healthcare's bankruptcy filing last month can be traced to financial mismanagement at the hands of its private equity owners. Formation Capital, which acquired Genesis nearly two decades ago utilized leveraged buyouts, sale-leaseback transactions and layered debt to extract value from the operator, while Genesis struggled to stay viable, according to the report. Genesis' bankruptcy isn't an isolated event, the report argues. Private equity-backed firms were involved in more than half of large healthcare bankruptcies last year, according to the watchdog group. Dive Insight: Genesis, which once operated 175 skilled nursing facilities across 18 states, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections in July. It declared $708 million in secured debt and over $1.5 billion in unsecured debt, including money owed to workers and vendors. The Pennsylvania-based company blamed the filing on industry headwinds, including reimbursement challenges from payers and legacy liabilities. However, the Private Equity Stakeholder Project said Genesis' financial problems stemmed from the management decisions of its private equity owners. Formation Capital, along with JER Partners, purchased the operator for $1.7 billion in 2007 via a leveraged buyout. In 2011, Formation executed a sale-leaseback transaction of 147 properties to Health Care REIT for $2.4 billion. The deal brought cash for investors, but stripped Genesis of the property and saddled it with long-term triple-net leases, in which the tenant is responsible not just for rent, but also covering property taxes, insurance and maintenance costs. Collectively, the financial tactics reduced Genesis' financial flexibility and resources needed to respond to a changing healthcare landscape, the report said. Meanwhile, Genesis appeared to cut corners on patient care as it reduced investments in staffing and resident care. For example, in 2020 a Genesis Healthcare subsidiary reached a settlement with the Vermont attorney general after the state found inadequate staff training had led patients to incur injuries and in one instance die from receiving improper care. Another Genesis facility, St. Joseph's Center in Trumbull, Connecticut, was slated for closure this year following multiple health and safety failures. Nearly 200 residents were relocated from the facility this spring after Legionella bacteria was discovered in the facility's water system. Then, two months later, patients were moved again due to fire safety concerns. 'Genesis Healthcare's bankruptcy was a predictable result of a financial strategy that extracted value through debt and real estate transactions while leaving the company with fewer resources to sustain care,' said Michael Fenne, senior research coordinator at PESP, in the report. 'Unless these tactics are addressed directly, more nursing home operators may follow the same path and leave more patients, workers, and public programs to absorb the costs.' Across healthcare, private equity ownership is associated with a heightened risk of bankruptcy. Last year, private equity-backed firms were involved in seven of the eight largest healthcare bankruptcies, as tracked by the Private Equity Stakeholder Project. Steward Health Care and WellPath Holdings, a healthcare provider in jails and prisons, were two of the largest filings last year. Recommended Reading Nursing home operator Genesis Healthcare files for bankruptcy
Forbes
7 hours ago
- Forbes
Lungarotti - Preserving And Advancing Wine History In Umbria
History has a way of sneaking up on us. Consider the Lungarotti winery in Umbria, for example. Known for the celebrated Rubesco red, it is a surprise to many that this wine was first made in 1962, several years before the DOC system was put into place in Italy. Recently, Chiara Lungarotti, CEO of the family business that has two wine estates in Umbria, introduced a new wine called Rubesco 62, both in honor of this wine as well as a celebration of one of Umbria's - and Italy's - most respected producers. Umbria has too often been underrated among Italian wine regions for various reasons, not the least because it's not Tuscany or Piedmont; hence there isn't a world-famous red wine such as Barolo, Barbaresco, Chianti Classico or Brunello di Montalcino produced in the region. That's a pity, as there are so many beautiful red wines - and a handful of whites - that emerge from Umbria; Rubesco has been one of the most successful. While there are several red and white wines produced at Lungarotti, Rubesco is the company's calling card. A blend of Sangiovese and Colorino (a red varietal often blended with Sangiovese to add color to the wine), Rubesco is a medium-bodied red, somewhat similar to a Tuscan red (such as Chianti Classico), but with its own personality, offering notes of tobacco and pepper; it's a wonderful accompaniment to most tomato or meat-based pastas. There is a second Rubesco produced at Lungarotti; this a Rubesco riserva from a single vineyard named Vigna Monticchio. First produced from the 1983 vintage, and classified as a DOCG wine in 1990, this is richer on the palate than the classic Rubesco, with more pronounced aromatics (black plum and morel cherry) and more impressive complexity and aging potential; this is one of Umbria's most accomplished red back to the new wine, Rubesco 62, this is a lighter-styled red that offer classic Sangiovese flavors and is meant for earlier consumption than the standard Rubesco; it has very good acidity and harmony, and would be best paired with lighter red meats, bean soups or vegetables. A companion wine is a white called Torre di Giano 62, a blend of Trebbiano and Grechetto; medium-bodied with light herbal notes in the finish, pair this with lake fish or young cow's cheese. While Torgiano is the original home of Lungarotti as a wine producer, they have also established a winery in Montefalco, southeast of Torgiano, and a bit north of the town of Spoleto. Lungarotti told me that upon the death of her father in 1999, she started to take over the winery; she was 27 at the time. 'At this point, we took our first step out Torgiano.' That was the beginning of Montefalco wines for Lungarotti, the most famous of which is Montefalco Sagrantino; the Sagrantino grape is one of the most tannic varieties in Italy; these wines need more time after release to become more approachable compared to Sangiovese-based Rubesco. 'We wanted to demonstrate the Sagrantino can be an extremely enjoyable wine to drink. We started to tame in the vineyards and at the winery.' This was accomplished with reducing the length of the maceration as well as using a lower temperature during this winemaking process. The Lungarotti Montefalco Sagrantino is quite elegant, and while it does need a few years after release to shed some of its tannins, it is a complex wine that beautifully pairs with game birds and most red meats some four to five years after the vintage, while the wine typically peaks at 10-12 years.I wrote earlier that Lungarotti is preserving wine history; the best example of this is at the Muvit Museo del Vino in Torgiano. Lungarotti told me that I needed to see this, and I agreed, but hoped that it was not the typical Italian wine museum with a few old corkscrews and faded documents. She told me this was different, and that I would most certainly enjoy it. Boy, was she right! This is a substantial museum, with a wide variety of exhibits, ranging from tools and technical equipment for viticulture and winemaking, ceramic wine containers of the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Baroque ages as well as contemporary, engravings and drawings from the 15th to the 20th century, and wine-themed paintings and lithographs from celebrated artists over this time frame; there is even an original work by Picasso on display. If you are ever in Torgiano and love learning about the history and romance of wine, a visit to this museum is a must. (For more information on the museum, click here.) The 60-plus year history of the Lungarotti winery is in great hands with Chiara Lungarotti, thanks not only to her dedication to her wines, but also her tribute to the history of Italian wines over the centuries. Brava, Chiara!Notes on a few current releases from Lungarotti: Torre di Giano 62 (Bianco di Torgiano Umbria DOC) - A blend of Trebbiano and Grechetto; aromas of melon, mint and green herbs. Medium-bodied, with a light herbal finish. Pair with couscous or lighter seafood over the next three to five years. (91) Rubesco 62 (Rosso di Torgiano Umbria DOC) - 100% Sangiovese; medium-bodied with aromas of red plum, cherry pie and chrysanthemum. There's no need to think about this delightful wine - you simply enjoy with soups and lighter pastas over the next three to four years. (90) Rubesco Riserva Vigna Monticchio 2019 - 100% Sangiovese. 2019 was an excellent vintage in Umbria, as evidenced by this glorious wine. Medium-full with excellent complexity and flavors of morel cherry and red plum, along with a savory note of soy sauce. There is very good acidity, while the tannins are quite fine, and the oak notes are restrained. This will evolve over the next 10-12 years (perhaps even longer) and would best be paired with a hearty dish such as pork roast with truffles or Peking Duck. (93) San Giorgio 2019 (Umbria Rosso IGT) - One of the two signature wines from Lungarotti, this is their best wine in many vintages. A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Sangiovese from hillside vineyards in the Torgiano area, this has expressive aromas of black plum, morel cherry, black mint and subtle notes of iodine and soy. Medium-full with impressive concentration and very good acidity, this demands patience, as it will be at its best in 12-18 years. Pair with filet mignon or leg of lamb. (94) Montefalco Rosso 2021 - A blend of 70% Sangiovese, 25% Sagrantino and 5% Merlot. Morel cherry, thyme and forest floor aromas. Medium-bodied, this is a charming wine with moderate tannins and good acidity styled for consumption within the next three to five years; pair with lighter pastas and vegetables. (88) Montefalco Sagrantino 2021 - 100% Sagrantino, this 2021 vintage is just being released. Medium deep ruby red /light purple, this exhibits aromas of wild cherry, blackberry and violets. Medium-full with rich, but well balanced tannins, this needs time to round out, and should be at its best in another 10-12 years. You can serve it tonight, however with such dishes as suckling pig, roast lamb or venison. (93)
