Latest news with #Daytona24Hours
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Adapting to Hypercar from Formula E is 'so easy' for Pascal Wehrlein – here's why
One of the most high-profile rookies at this year's Le Mans 24 Hours, Porsche Penske Motorsport's Pascal Wehrlein feels adequately prepared for the demanding French classic. The former Formula 1 driver, DTM champion and reigning Formula E world champion took sixth on his endurance racing debut at the Daytona 24 Hours alongside Bryce Aron, Gianmaria Bruni and Tijmen van der Helm, then ninth at the Spa-Francorchamps 6 Hours with Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor. Advertisement Wehrlein is now coming into Le Mans with a third set of team-mates, sharing the #4 Porsche 963 with Felipe Nasr and Nick Tandy. Following the test day, he feels confident in his ability to be quick, regardless of the Porsche LMDh prototype being extremely different to the Formula E machinery he drives most of the time – because it's too different for the comparison to be relevant in any way. 'Obviously I've driven many categories in my career so far, so in general I have a very good understanding of what a car needs to be quick,' the German explained. 'I've driven DTM, which is a prototype touring car; I've driven Formula 1, which has a lot of downforce; Formula E, and now LMDh. I would say I have quite a big toolbox of driving styles – and adapting quickly to it, I know what it takes. 'I feel like, also, the transition from Formula E to this car is so easy, because actually you don't have a wrong reference. The cars behave so differently that I don't compare it to Formula E, I don't take anything from that car, jump into this car and think, 'yeah but here it felt like that'. It's completely different cars. 'I would assume, for example, if I put myself 10 years back, and sat in a DTM car and then drove this car, there would be a lot more going on in my head: 'Yeah, but my DTM car is a bit like that, and now I'm in this'. It's so different. There's nothing to compare. It makes the transition quite smooth.' Pascal Wehrlein, TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team Pascal Wehrlein, TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team Team-mates Nasr and Tandy are competing at Le Mans for the sixth and 13th time respectively, with the Briton having won the race overall in 2015, which represents a wealth of experience for Wehrlein to lean on. Advertisement Asked by what advice his partners have given him, Wehrlein said: 'So much. I think it would exceed your report! 'They've been so supportive. Felipe and Nick, the whole team – even Laurens, Kevin in Spa, my other team-mates. 'I've been asking a lot of questions, just because I know there are a lot of rookie mistakes and errors you can do, and I just want to jump that step. I want to be as well prepared as I can. 'A lot of it is actually procedures – rules, regulations, slow zones, all this stuff. A penalty here can be so costly. 'Timo [Bernhard] has been very supportive, giving a lot of advice on traffic management – how to place your car, where to place it. Advertisement 'Jumping into the car, being on pace, on speed, that is not the thing. It's more about procedures, about how to be fast through the traffic and avoid losing a lot of time there. 'If you approach a corner and you see it's going to be tight to pass this LMP2 car or GT3 car, is it worth to push flat out and pass him, or will I not make it anyway, so it's better to save energy and save fuel? Just that – a bit of a different mentality.' Read Also: Ferrari 'clearly faster' than Toyota at Le Mans - Sebastien Buemi To read more articles visit our website.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
'This guy's mega' - how Norris developed into world title contender
Australian Grand Prix Venue: Albert Park, Melbourne Dates: 14 March-16 March Race start: 04:00 GMT on Sunday, 16 March Coverage: Live radio commentary of practice and qualifying on BBC 5 Sports Extra, race live on BBC Radio 5 Live. Live text updates on the BBC Sport website and app McLaren Formula 1 boss Zak Brown has guided Lando Norris' career since 2015, and believed he was a future world champion "pretty much right away". This could be the year Norris proves him right. McLaren ended last season as constructors' champions and, barring unexpected surprises, Norris has the chance to build his flirtation with a title challenge against Red Bull's Max Verstappen last year into a full-on onslaught in 2025. Brown is far from the only one who has long felt Norris was destined for the very top. Stephanie Carlin, who worked with Norris throughout the junior categories and is now McLaren's F1 business operations director, also always believed he would make it. "He was just phenomenally quick," Carlin says, "and he was able to execute it really well. There's been an underlying talent and speed and pace that's existed from the first time he got in a car." Brown has been backing Norris, 25, since long before either were at McLaren. Until Norris reached F1, the money to fund his career came from his father Adam, who became a multi-millionaire through success as a pensions trader. Norris, who has dual Belgian nationality through his mother Cisca, was educated at Millfield in Somerset, but as his career blossomed it became increasingly hard to find time to attend school, and there was a fair bit of home tutoring involved. Every step Norris took on track, he was a winner, but when it came time to move up to motor racing for 2014 after winning European and world karting titles, Adam Norris and manager Mark Berryman did not have the necessary contacts. They turned to Brown - then the boss of a sports marketing agency called JMI, and well known in F1 as a deal maker and sponsor finder. Initially, Brown felt "this is not what I do". But Norris' team were persistent. Brown says: "I thought: 'All right, everyone tells me he is the greatest thing since sliced bread, maybe I can help.'" Brown set Norris up with a meeting with Ron Dennis, then boss of McLaren, and soon started helping him as he moved up through the ranks. "He just destroyed everybody in everything," says Brown. By 2017, Brown was in charge of McLaren Racing, after Dennis was ousted by the other owners, and he began to lay out the steps for Norris to graduate to F1. In January 2018, Brown paired 18-year-old Norris with then McLaren driver Fernando Alonso, a two-time F1 world champion, in the Daytona 24 Hours sportscar race in his United Autosports team. Norris gave himself the target of setting a faster lap than Alonso - and achieved it. And stunned people with his pace in the wet at night before the car eventually retired. "Fernando Alonso, one of the best racing drivers in the world, Lando was his match," Brown says. "Cold tyres, middle of the night Daytona, if you asked Richard Dean, who ran them, who was better, he wouldn't know." When Alonso announced he was quitting F1 at the end of 2018, Norris was the obvious replacement, and McLaren started giving him experience in practice sessions. Having proved faster than one McLaren race driver, Stoffel Vandoorne, in his first outing, his next was at Monza, with Alonso in the other car. Brown recalls: "They're swapping times. Fernando has just set his time, so he's done, and obviously paying attention to what times Lando is doing. "We come on the radio to Fernando and we go: 'Fernando, Lando's on a lap, get out of his way.' "First sector, same 10th. Second sector, Lando is half a 10th up. Third sector, on the radio, Fernando: 'Sorry, I didn't see him.' Lando: 'Fernando just blocked me!' And we all just giggled on the pit wall, like, 'Welcome to Formula 1.' "So when you see those things, you just think: 'This guy's mega.'" A few races later, Norris jokingly served Alonso a cup of tea during a wet practice session at the US Grand Prix in Austin. But soon he was the apprentice no longer. In his debut season in 2019, Norris was immediately a match for his team-mate Carlos Sainz, who had four years' experience, and he destroyed then seven-time race-winner Daniel Ricciardo when the Australian joined the team in 2021. By then, Alonso had returned to F1 after two years in other categories. He and Norris swapped helmets. The Spaniard wrote on the one he gave to Norris: "You are a star - a rock star." Norris quickly became a fan favourite, with his diffident-but-jokey personality, and willingness to show his true self on social media. His public profile built through the Covid-19 pandemic as he live-streamed himself playing video games, and he used that to build his gaming and lifestyle brand Quadrant. Brown says: "He used to be very shy and he still kind of is a quiet, shy guy in his own way. Even though he kind of comes off as extroverted, he's actually not. But as he's become more mature, I have seen him become more comfortable in his skin. "He has never lacked confidence. He was a young kid when I first met him, he was 14. So what I've seen outside of becoming a better racing driver, (is) a better team leader, more prescriptive in what he wants. And his on-track performance has grown with it." It has taken time for Norris to establish himself as a front-runner in F1. In their first few years together, the McLaren car was not fully competitive, although Norris came close to a win with a superb performance in Russia in 2021, only to misjudge the incoming weather and not pit for wet tyres in a late downpour. Norris kept the faith, signing two contract extensions, despite interest from Red Bull. That, Brown says, was down to "relationships, transparency, visibility to what we were doing. He's comfortable here. This has been his family since day one." Norris' career trajectory turned midway through 2023, a year that started with a restructuring of McLaren's engineering group by Andrea Stella, who had been made team principal the previous December. The first fruit of Stella's reshuffle was an upgrade package for the Austrian Grand Prix in July 2023. It vaulted McLaren from close to the back to become the closest challengers to dominant Red Bull. Carlin joined McLaren at the beginning of 2024. It had been more than five years since she had worked with Norris in F2. "I sat in engineering and heard him giving feedback," she says, "and I was blown away. I just could not believe the development of this teenager I'd known, a very successful F2 driver and champion in F3 and F4. It was incredible." Those first five years in F1 had turned a boy into a man, and a promising driver full of potential into one of the best in the world. But there was still learning to be done. After a slow start to 2024, another upgrade for the Miami Grand Prix in May made McLaren absolutely competitive. Norris took his maiden win that weekend. He secured three further victories as it began to look as if he could challenge for the title. In the end, the head start Verstappen established in the first five races of the year was too much. A few small Norris errors along the way did not help. "I made my mistakes, and I learned a lot," Norris says. "The one thing I've learned is probably to believe in myself a bit more." Norris is not one to shy away from his difficulties in public. Berryman says: "I know he berates himself a little bit but he's always done that. We're trying to stop him doing it as much but he probably won't. He's a bit like Charles (Leclerc of Ferrari). They just say it how it is. "The main thing from a Lando perspective is that I don't think there has been anything that he's not got considerably better at after review. On a development curve of Lando, we are not plateauing yet. We are still at a pretty high level of (growth) in terms of where he is hungry in looking at himself and helping himself." Carlin adds: "Learning to be an F1 driver and learning to be a championship-contending F1 driver are two different things. And that's what we've talked about, in terms of learning how to win a race first of all, and learning how to win a world championship are two completely different campaigns." There were signs by the end of last year that the lessons had been taken on board. Now it is down to Norris to deliver on them. What would success look like? Key questions for Hamilton at Ferrari Does Verstappen fear Russell but not Norris? F1 Q&A 'I know my time will come' - Russell exclusive How to follow Australian Grand Prix on the BBC What is at stake at under-pressure Red Bull? Who are the rookies joining the F1 grid in 2025? Who will win F1 drivers' title? Make your choice Antonelli ready for 'big responsibility' of replacing Hamilton F1 2025: All you need to know about new season
BBC News
12-03-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
'This guy's mega' - how Norris developed into world title contender
Australian Grand PrixVenue: Albert Park, Melbourne Dates: 14 March-16 March Race start: 04:00 GMT on Sunday, 16 MarchCoverage: Live radio commentary of practice and qualifying on BBC 5 Sports Extra, race live on BBC Radio 5 Live. Live text updates on the BBC Sport website and app McLaren Formula 1 boss Zak Brown has guided Lando Norris' career since 2015, and believed he was a future world champion "pretty much right away".This could be the year Norris proves him ended last season as constructors' champions and, barring unexpected surprises, Norris has the chance to build his flirtation with a title challenge against Red Bull's Max Verstappen last year into a full-on onslaught in is far from the only one who has long felt Norris was destined for the very Carlin, who worked with Norris throughout the junior categories and is now McLaren's F1 business operations director, also always believed he would make it."He was just phenomenally quick," Carlin says, "and he was able to execute it really well. There's been an underlying talent and speed and pace that's existed from the first time he got in a car." 'Everyone tells me he's the greatest thing since sliced bread' Brown has been backing Norris, 25, since long before either were at Norris reached F1, the money to fund his career came from his father Adam, who became a multi-millionaire through success as a pensions who has dual Belgian nationality through his mother Cisca, was educated at Millfield in Somerset, but as his career blossomed it became increasingly hard to find time to attend school, and there was a fair bit of home tutoring step Norris took on track, he was a winner, but when it came time to move up to motor racing for 2014 after winning European and world karting titles, Adam Norris and manager Mark Berryman did not have the necessary turned to Brown - then the boss of a sports marketing agency called JMI, and well known in F1 as a deal maker and sponsor Brown felt "this is not what I do". But Norris' team were persistent. Brown says: "I thought: 'All right, everyone tells me he is the greatest thing since sliced bread, maybe I can help.'"Brown set Norris up with a meeting with Ron Dennis, then boss of McLaren, and soon started helping him as he moved up through the ranks. "He just destroyed everybody in everything," says Brown. 'Welcome to Formula 1' By 2017, Brown was in charge of McLaren Racing, after Dennis was ousted by the other owners, and he began to lay out the steps for Norris to graduate to January 2018, Brown paired 18-year-old Norris with then McLaren driver Fernando Alonso, a two-time F1 world champion, in the Daytona 24 Hours sportscar race in his United Autosports gave himself the target of setting a faster lap than Alonso - and achieved it. And stunned people with his pace in the wet at night before the car eventually retired."Fernando Alonso, one of the best racing drivers in the world, Lando was his match," Brown says. "Cold tyres, middle of the night Daytona, if you asked Richard Dean, who ran them, who was better, he wouldn't know."When Alonso announced he was quitting F1 at the end of 2018, Norris was the obvious replacement, and McLaren started giving him experience in practice proved faster than one McLaren race driver, Stoffel Vandoorne, in his first outing, his next was at Monza, with Alonso in the other recalls: "They're swapping times. Fernando has just set his time, so he's done, and obviously paying attention to what times Lando is doing. "We come on the radio to Fernando and we go: 'Fernando, Lando's on a lap, get out of his way.'"First sector, same 10th. Second sector, Lando is half a 10th up. Third sector, on the radio, Fernando: 'Sorry, I didn't see him.' Lando: 'Fernando just blocked me!' And we all just giggled on the pit wall, like, 'Welcome to Formula 1.'"So when you see those things, you just think: 'This guy's mega.'" 'You are a rock star' A few races later, Norris jokingly served Alonso a cup of tea during a wet practice session at the US Grand Prix in Austin. But soon he was the apprentice no his debut season in 2019, Norris was immediately a match for his team-mate Carlos Sainz, who had four years' experience, and he destroyed then seven-time race-winner Daniel Ricciardo when the Australian joined the team in then, Alonso had returned to F1 after two years in other categories. He and Norris swapped helmets. The Spaniard wrote on the one he gave to Norris: "You are a star - a rock star."Norris quickly became a fan favourite, with his diffident-but-jokey personality, and willingness to show his true self on social media. His public profile built through the Covid-19 pandemic as he live-streamed himself playing video games, and he used that to build his gaming and lifestyle brand says: "He used to be very shy and he still kind of is a quiet, shy guy in his own way. Even though he kind of comes off as extroverted, he's actually not. But as he's become more mature, I have seen him become more comfortable in his skin."He has never lacked confidence. He was a young kid when I first met him, he was 14. So what I've seen outside of becoming a better racing driver, (is) a better team leader, more prescriptive in what he wants. And his on-track performance has grown with it."It has taken time for Norris to establish himself as a front-runner in their first few years together, the McLaren car was not fully competitive, although Norris came close to a win with a superb performance in Russia in 2021, only to misjudge the incoming weather and not pit for wet tyres in a late kept the faith, signing two contract extensions, despite interest from Red Bull. That, Brown says, was down to "relationships, transparency, visibility to what we were doing. He's comfortable here. This has been his family since day one."Norris' career trajectory turned midway through 2023, a year that started with a restructuring of McLaren's engineering group by Andrea Stella, who had been made team principal the previous first fruit of Stella's reshuffle was an upgrade package for the Austrian Grand Prix in July 2023. It vaulted McLaren from close to the back to become the closest challengers to dominant Red Bull. 'I just could not believe his development' Carlin joined McLaren at the beginning of 2024. It had been more than five years since she had worked with Norris in F2."I sat in engineering and heard him giving feedback," she says, "and I was blown away. I just could not believe the development of this teenager I'd known, a very successful F2 driver and champion in F3 and F4. It was incredible."Those first five years in F1 had turned a boy into a man, and a promising driver full of potential into one of the best in the world. But there was still learning to be a slow start to 2024, another upgrade for the Miami Grand Prix in May made McLaren absolutely competitive. Norris took his maiden win that weekend. He secured three further victories as it began to look as if he could challenge for the the end, the head start Verstappen established in the first five races of the year was too much. A few small Norris errors along the way did not help."I made my mistakes, and I learned a lot," Norris says. "The one thing I've learned is probably to believe in myself a bit more."Norris is not one to shy away from his difficulties in says: "I know he berates himself a little bit but he's always done that. We're trying to stop him doing it as much but he probably won't. He's a bit like Charles (Leclerc of Ferrari). They just say it how it is."The main thing from a Lando perspective is that I don't think there has been anything that he's not got considerably better at after review. On a development curve of Lando, we are not plateauing yet. We are still at a pretty high level of (growth) in terms of where he is hungry in looking at himself and helping himself."Carlin adds: "Learning to be an F1 driver and learning to be a championship-contending F1 driver are two different things. And that's what we've talked about, in terms of learning how to win a race first of all, and learning how to win a world championship are two completely different campaigns."There were signs by the end of last year that the lessons had been taken on board. Now it is down to Norris to deliver on them.
