Latest news with #InternationalMotorSportsAssociation
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Former Endurance Racing boss Gerard Neveu takes Retromobile to New York
Gerard Neveu will steer the organizing team for the event at New York's Javits Centre from November 19-22 next year. After 25 years in the motorsport and automotive industries Neveu has an extensive contacts book and deep experience of staging international events and operating in the US market. During his decade at the helm of WEC, he laid the groundwork for the championship as it is today, with hybrid technology attracting multiple manufacturers. Neveu was also one of the key protagonists in the convergence of regulations between the US based International Motor Sports Association (IMSA, owned by NASCAR) and the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO, owner of WEC and founder of the 24 Hours of Le Mans). Prior to WEC he served as the Director of Paul Ricard Circuit in the South of France. Retromobile Paris celebrates its 50th anniversary next year, and the New York show aims to capitalize on the burgeoning US classic car scene, where more than 50% of the global collectors' cars market is concentrated. Neveu's first moves in the role have been to secure 400,000 square feet in four halls in Javits Center and strike an auction partnership with Gooding Christie's. 'The concept of Retromobile is special,' says Neveu. 'You find both the biggest car collectors and vendors from all around the world at the same time, plus manufacturers and brokers. You also have a fan community attending the event, who can live out their dreams, see cars and people which may bring back precious memories. Retromobile is a celebration of all things automotive, including but not limited to, motorsport. And it is a place where you can live and share your passion for cars of all types.' James Allen The choice of New York, rather than the West Coast or Miami was based on a number of factors, with logistics being a key driver. 'But also because around New York you already have a huge community of car collectors and brokers,' says Neveu. 'For the inaugural show we are looking for 200-250 exhibitors (with more than 80% coming from the USA) and 50,000 – 60,000 visitors. 'The partnership with Gooding Christie's is great for the event because, with the combination of expertise from Gooding and the prestige of Christie's, we have every reason to hope for a spectacular classic car auction." The New York event has a lot to live up to. Retromobile Paris last year attracted 146,000 visitors, of whom 19% were from outside France and 600 exhibitors with auction sales of over $125m.'I'm trying to bring my experience of managing big automotive events and make sure we will be able to offer a great and unique experience to our visitors and participants,' says Neveu. 'The big challenge facing us will be to attain the heights of the prestigious Retromobile Paris. The 50th anniversary of Retromobile next year is the perfect opportunity to export the concept of this exclusive event elsewhere for the very first time and we will do our best to deliver an event in New York with the same DNA as Paris at its core but with the vibrant American colors running right through it.' To read more articles visit our website.
New York Times
11-03-2025
- Automotive
- New York Times
Action Express Racing Team Aims to Bounce Back at Sebring
The first race of the 2025 I.M.S.A. WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, run by the International Motor Sports Association, had been going so smoothly for the Action Express Cadillac team. Its car was racing fast and jostling for the lead. But then, about halfway into the Rolex 24 at Daytona, which began on Jan. 25, everything went wrong. A suspension part on the team's Cadillac V-Series.R car failed, pitching the Danish driver Frederik Vesti into a crash. Repairs followed, but any chance for victory was gone. The team that won the I.M.S.A. teams' and drivers' titles just two years ago had been thwarted again. But now, as Action Express prepares for round two of the season at the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring this week, the team's 2025 race victory and title glory hopes are not lost. 'We ended up ninth at Daytona, but certainly not what we felt like we'd earned,' Gary Nelson, the Action Express team manager, said in an interview last month. 'We're still expecting to win this year, with all this work that we've done on our car.' Action Express heads to Sebring with a smaller driving lineup compared with the four racers that it entered at Daytona. Vesti will race with Jack Aitken and Earl Bamber. 'More than other tracks, there's a bit of freedom for the driver to try different things and find their own way at Sebring,' Aitken said in an interview. 'The track is brutal, but it's a cool place.' Action Express knows how to win at Sebring, . The team has won three times in the day-night race since 2015 and had another victory there in the race shortened by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. 'The bigger difference at Sebring than Daytona is how much the track changes with temperature,' Nelson said. 'And over the years, we've kind of learned that one. Each time we've won, we were the strongest at the finish when the track cooled down.' Although it claimed those two I.M.S.A. titles in 2023, Action Express has not won in the championship since the Sebring race, also in 2023. The team has since faced stiffer competition, but might have won at Sebring in 2024 without a crash with a slower GT car that led to a huge accident. Nelson puts Action Express' 2023 success down to the team's taking 'a simplistic approach to the new technology' for cars that had been introduced to the new I.M.S.A. Grand Touring Prototype top class that year. Those cars are powered by hybrid engines that use electrical systems, including for braking. 'Most of the teams were struggling with braking in 2023 — regenerating electricity when slowing down to charge the battery,' Nelson said. 'Our group took a more simple approach and said, 'We may not regen as well as other teams, but we'll also not have brake issues that the other teams are having.' It's easy to go to the ice cream store and order one of everything, but it's probably not good for you.' The team held on to win the 2023 title by 21 points, from a total of 2733. In 2024, it finished fourth and scored no wins after a string of crashes. 'The other teams had also made a step forward,' Aitken said. 'We did as well, but we made too many mistakes. You just have to hold your hands up and say that.' While the team's 2025 campaign started with a setback, Nelson and his crew are taking inspiration from the team's past, when in the 2021 I.M.S.A. season the Action Express car led early in the first race at Daytona before dropping out of contention with exhaust and gearbox issues. But the team recovered to win that year's drivers' and teams' titles with a late resurgence. 'It came down to the last lap of the last race,' Nelson said. 'We only led the championship from the very last few laps of the season. We don't quit, we don't give up. We just keep pushing and pushing.'
