Latest news with #JohnDoonan
Irish Examiner
6 days ago
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Cross-border research project to tackle potato blight
Scientists from UCC and Aberystwyth University will be collaborating on research to fight a disease that causes major crop losses and blight in potatoes. It was one of eight cross-border research collaborations to be awarded funding as part of a prestigious new Research Alliance Award, announced by the Welsh and Irish governments. Thanks to the new research grant, scientists from University College Cork (UCC) and Aberystwyth University's Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences and Department of Life Sciences will be allowed to work on new ways to tackle the disease Phytophthora infestans, also known as the 'Plant Destroyer'. This disease causes significant crop losses worldwide, including causing blight in potatoes, which has major economic and food security implications. Professor John Doonan, director of the National Plant Phenomics Centre at IBERS and co-lead on the project, said: 'This award recognises the power of international collaboration in solving global agricultural challenges. Phytophthora infestans continues to threaten food production systems across Europe. "By combining our expertise in AI, Prof. Luis Mur's expertise in metabolomics with plant pathology researchers in Cork, we aim to build the foundations of a long-term research partnership that can develop sustainable solutions that reduce the need for chemical disease control.' The Ireland-Wales partnership is funded by the Wales Innovation Network (WIN) and Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland, as part of a strategic effort to deepen academic collaboration and enhance access to Horizon Europe, the EU's flagship funding programme for research and innovation. Announcing the awards, minister for further and higher education, research, innovation and science, James Lawless, said: 'The Research Alliance Award highlights the strong ties between Ireland and Wales and the immense potential of our academic communities working together. "By investing in these innovative projects, we are paving the way for groundbreaking discoveries and solutions that will benefit both our countries and the wider European community. We look forward to seeing how these collaborations develop into larger-scale initiatives that deliver real-world impact.' The seed funding will support project activities for up to 12 months, including researcher exchanges, joint workshops, and preparatory work for future European funding applications. Other projects funded under the scheme span areas such as neurodegenerative disease, AI for seizure detection, freshwater clean-up, and next-generation batteries. Aberystwyth University is one of four Welsh institutions participating in the programme, alongside Cardiff, Swansea, and Bangor universities. The partner universities in Ireland are University College Dublin, University of Limerick, University College Cork, and Dublin City University. Read More Dig deep or not at all? Why it might be time to think about shallow ploughing
Washington Post
28-01-2025
- Automotive
- Washington Post
McLaren eyes expansion into sports cars, a decision that could impact IndyCar and Formula E teams
The whispers that McLaren Racing was eyeing sports car racing have circulated for months and it made sense: The brand is, after all, a supercar to sell to consumers and the truest platform to showcase high-performance vehicles would be a prototype class of sports car racing. And even though McLaren wasn't at last weekend's Rolex 24 at Daytona , where Aston Martin, Ferrari, Mercedes, Lamborghini, Porsche and many others were represented, McLaren still managed to crack the conversation. It was none other than John Doonan, president of IMSA, who said the quiet part out loud when, unprompted, in his prerace remarks about the strength of the series said: 'It looks like the papaya army plans to join us.' Is it true? Maybe, according to McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown. But the more Brown talked, the more likely it sounded. 'Our automotive business, which we work very closely with, is clearly synergistic with sports cars,' Brown told The Associated Press. 'McLaren Automotive is in the process of being acquired, so they're going to become, again, a very healthy organization that wants to go motor racing and we have been for some time under review of sports car racing. 'I find the rules fantastic. The manufacturers have clearly voted in their confidence in the new regulations, and clearly sports car racing is once again a major form of motorsports and definitely has our attention.' Don't rush out and buy your papaya gear just yet, though. Brown clearly has put careful thought into an expansion plan and is eyeing entry into the World Endurance Championship in 2027. 'For us to be ready for 2027, which is as soon as we would enter, we need to make a decision imminently, and I would say things are looking very favorable,' Brown said. 'And whether we enter WEC and/or IMSA, that would probably be staggered. And at the same time, we're always reviewing our existing portfolio.' What that translates into is simple: Brown wants to be in WEC in 2027 and in IMSA in 2028, and he's reviewing McLaren's current participation in both Formula E and IndyCar. Whether that means he scales back, the teams remain status quo or he drops one of both of those programs remains unclear. McLaren currently fields two Formula 1 cars and celebrated winning the highly lucrative constructors championship last season. It has a two-car Formula E team and fields three cars in IndyCar, which, at the end of the day, is the the series the California-born Brown grew up dreaming of one day competing in himself. McLaren recently acquired 100% of the IndyCar program, has bought Andretti Global's old shop and invested millions in the series. But the pressure to get into the hypercar class of sports car racing is real so that McLaren can race side by side with its automotive rivals. 'We collectively feel sports car racing is a platform that can really benefit our automotive business, as well as our racing business,' Brown said. 'Sports cars is much more about the manufacturer and we at McLaren feel that's a great area we can work together.' When McLaren took over sole ownership of the IndyCar program at the start of this year, Brown was deliberate in his wording. He noted the brand was deepening its commitment to motorsports in North America and wants to 'strengthen our presence in North America, which is a very important market for our team and our fans.' He never used the word IndyCar. It didn't raise any red flags at the time, but now that the sports car ambitions are public knowledge, one has to wonder what he meant. F1 races five times in North America, a WEC team would likely enter the Rolex 24 at Daytona and an IMSA program in 2028 would give McLaren at least another 11 races in the region. And in a worst-case scenario of the IndyCar program exiting full-time competition, Brown likely would still enter McLaren in the Indianapolis 500. But Brown was emphatic that he loves IndyCar, that that series is his longtime passion and he wants the numbers to work. It helped that the 2024 F1 constructors title earned McLaren a $140 million payout in its first championship since 1998. Brown as an individual already has a presence in sports cars; he's part owner of United Autosport, a team in which he's not involved in the day-to-day operations but gives him access to the rules and regulations and a front-row seat to what sports car racing can do for McLaren. What that leads to, and how it will impact everything besides F1 in the McLaren portfolio, remains to be seen. 'When we take decisions on entering new forms of motorsports, we review our existing forms of motorsports,' Brown said. 'We are clearly rooted in Formula 1 and always have been, so that program comes first. And we needed to get Formula 1 in a good place, on track and off. Clearly Formula 1 is in a very strong place. We'll take a look at everything else.' ___ AP auto racing:
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
McLaren eyes expansion into sports cars, a decision that could impact IndyCar and Formula E teams
The whispers that McLaren Racing was eyeing sports car racing have circulated for months and it made sense: The brand is, after all, a supercar to sell to consumers and the truest platform to showcase high-performance vehicles would be a prototype class of sports car racing. And even though McLaren wasn't at last weekend's Rolex 24 at Daytona, where Aston Martin, Ferrari, Mercedes, Lamborghini, Porsche and many others were represented, McLaren still managed to crack the conversation. It was none other than John Doonan, president of IMSA, who said the quiet part out loud when, unprompted, in his prerace remarks about the strength of the series said: 'It looks like the papaya army plans to join us.' Is it true? Maybe, according to McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown. But the more Brown talked, the more likely it sounded. 'Our automotive business, which we work very closely with, is clearly synergistic with sports cars,' Brown told The Associated Press. "McLaren Automotive is in the process of being acquired, so they're going to become, again, a very healthy organization that wants to go motor racing and we have been for some time under review of sports car racing. 'I find the rules fantastic. The manufacturers have clearly voted in their confidence in the new regulations, and clearly sports car racing is once again a major form of motorsports and definitely has our attention.' Don't rush out and buy your papaya gear just yet, though. Brown clearly has put careful thought into an expansion plan and is eyeing entry into the World Endurance Championship in 2027. 'For us to be ready for 2027, which is as soon as we would enter, we need to make a decision imminently, and I would say things are looking very favorable,' Brown said. 'And whether we enter WEC and/or IMSA, that would probably be staggered. And at the same time, we're always reviewing our existing portfolio.' What that translates into is simple: Brown wants to be in WEC in 2027 and in IMSA in 2028, and he's reviewing McLaren's current participation in both Formula E and IndyCar. Whether that means he scales back, the teams remain status quo or he drops one of both of those programs remains unclear. McLaren currently fields two Formula 1 cars and celebrated winning the highly lucrative constructors championship last season. It has a two-car Formula E team and fields three cars in IndyCar, which, at the end of the day, is the the series the California-born Brown grew up dreaming of one day competing in himself. McLaren recently acquired 100% of the IndyCar program, has bought Andretti Global's old shop and invested millions in the series. But the pressure to get into the hypercar class of sports car racing is real so that McLaren can race side by side with its automotive rivals. 'We collectively feel sports car racing is a platform that can really benefit our automotive business, as well as our racing business,' Brown said. 'Sports cars is much more about the manufacturer and we at McLaren feel that's a great area we can work together.' When McLaren took over sole ownership of the IndyCar program at the start of this year, Brown was deliberate in his wording. He noted the brand was deepening its commitment to motorsports in North America and wants to 'strengthen our presence in North America, which is a very important market for our team and our fans.' He never used the word IndyCar. It didn't raise any red flags at the time, but now that the sports car ambitions are public knowledge, one has to wonder what he meant. F1 races five times in North America, a WEC team would likely enter the Rolex 24 at Daytona and an IMSA program in 2028 would give McLaren at least another 11 races in the region. And in a worst-case scenario of the IndyCar program exiting full-time competition, Brown likely would still enter McLaren in the Indianapolis 500. But Brown was emphatic that he loves IndyCar, that that series is his longtime passion and he wants the numbers to work. It helped that the 2024 F1 constructors title earned McLaren a $140 million payout in its first championship since 1998. Brown as an individual already has a presence in sports cars; he's part owner of United Autosport, a team in which he's not involved in the day-to-day operations but gives him access to the rules and regulations and a front-row seat to what sports car racing can do for McLaren. What that leads to, and how it will impact everything besides F1 in the McLaren portfolio, remains to be seen. 'When we take decisions on entering new forms of motorsports, we review our existing forms of motorsports,' Brown said. 'We are clearly rooted in Formula 1 and always have been, so that program comes first. And we needed to get Formula 1 in a good place, on track and off. Clearly Formula 1 is in a very strong place. We'll take a look at everything else.' ___ AP auto racing:
Associated Press
28-01-2025
- Automotive
- Associated Press
McLaren eyes expansion into sports cars, a decision that could impact IndyCar and Formula E teams
The whispers that McLaren Racing was eyeing sports car racing have circulated for months and it made sense: The brand is, after all, a supercar to sell to consumers and the truest platform to showcase high-performance vehicles would be a prototype class of sports car racing. And even though McLaren wasn't at last weekend's Rolex 24 at Daytona, where Aston Martin, Ferrari, Mercedes, Lamborghini, Porsche and many others were represented, McLaren still managed to crack the conversation. It was none other than John Doonan, president of IMSA, who said the quiet part out loud when, unprompted, in his prerace remarks about the strength of the series said: 'It looks like the papaya army plans to join us.' Is it true? Maybe, according to McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown. But the more Brown talked, the more likely it sounded. 'Our automotive business, which we work very closely with, is clearly synergistic with sports cars,' Brown told The Associated Press. 'McLaren Automotive is in the process of being acquired, so they're going to become, again, a very healthy organization that wants to go motor racing and we have been for some time under review of sports car racing. 'I find the rules fantastic. The manufacturers have clearly voted in their confidence in the new regulations, and clearly sports car racing is once again a major form of motorsports and definitely has our attention.' Don't rush out and buy your papaya gear just yet, though. Brown clearly has put careful thought into an expansion plan and is eyeing entry into the World Endurance Championship in 2027. 'For us to be ready for 2027, which is as soon as we would enter, we need to make a decision imminently, and I would say things are looking very favorable,' Brown said. 'And whether we enter WEC and/or IMSA, that would probably be staggered. And at the same time, we're always reviewing our existing portfolio.' What that translates into is simple: Brown wants to be in WEC in 2027 and in IMSA in 2028, and he's reviewing McLaren's current participation in both Formula E and IndyCar. Whether that means he scales back, the teams remain status quo or he drops one of both of those programs remains unclear. McLaren currently fields two Formula 1 cars and celebrated winning the highly lucrative constructors championship last season. It has a two-car Formula E team and fields three cars in IndyCar, which, at the end of the day, is the the series the California-born Brown grew up dreaming of one day competing in himself. McLaren recently acquired 100% of the IndyCar program, has bought Andretti Global's old shop and invested millions in the series. But the pressure to get into the hypercar class of sports car racing is real so that McLaren can race side by side with its automotive rivals. 'We collectively feel sports car racing is a platform that can really benefit our automotive business, as well as our racing business,' Brown said. 'Sports cars is much more about the manufacturer and we at McLaren feel that's a great area we can work together.' When McLaren took over sole ownership of the IndyCar program at the start of this year, Brown was deliberate in his wording. He noted the brand was deepening its commitment to motorsports in North America and wants to 'strengthen our presence in North America, which is a very important market for our team and our fans.' He never used the word IndyCar. It didn't raise any red flags at the time, but now that the sports car ambitions are public knowledge, one has to wonder what he meant. F1 races five times in North America, a WEC team would likely enter the Rolex 24 at Daytona and an IMSA program in 2028 would give McLaren at least another 11 races in the region. And in a worst-case scenario of the IndyCar program exiting full-time competition, Brown likely would still enter McLaren in the Indianapolis 500. But Brown was emphatic that he loves IndyCar, that that series is his longtime passion and he wants the numbers to work. It helped that the 2024 F1 constructors title earned McLaren a $140 million payout in its first championship since 1998. Brown as an individual already has a presence in sports cars; he's part owner of United Autosport, a team in which he's not involved in the day-to-day operations but gives him access to the rules and regulations and a front-row seat to what sports car racing can do for McLaren. What that leads to, and how it will impact everything besides F1 in the McLaren portfolio, remains to be seen. 'When we take decisions on entering new forms of motorsports, we review our existing forms of motorsports,' Brown said. 'We are clearly rooted in Formula 1 and always have been, so that program comes first. And we needed to get Formula 1 in a good place, on track and off. Clearly Formula 1 is in a very strong place. We'll take a look at everything else.' ___
Yahoo
26-01-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
IMSA YouTube channel exceeds 2 million live views during 63rd Rolex 24
The 63rd Rolex 24 At Daytona isn't even over yet, and the international YouTube livestream of the race has already amassed more than two million views. The 2025 season opener marks the end of the first year of IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship races streaming live on YouTube. In that time, the channel has experienced exponential growth as new fans and viewers both domestically and globally have continued to discover the series through additional digital content. Starting at the 2024 Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring with a softly launched first race stream on IMSA's official YouTube channel, the momentum has steadily built over that period and is appearing to reach a crescendo with the first Daytona viewing on the channel. That Sebring race provided a starting point, with 21,000 peak concurrent views and 505,000 total live views for what was essentially a trial run to see how a WeatherTech Championship race would appear on the platform. As the anticipation built for the start of the first Rolex 24 to be streamed on IMSA's YouTube channel to an international audience, the viewership appeared before honorary starter Koji Watanabe, President of Honda Racing Corporation, even waved the green flag to start the race (pictured). Before the race start, 20,000 people were 'waiting' before the race went live. Once the race was underway, the race hit a new peak concurrent viewership number of 72,000. The YouTube feed achieved a milestone number of live views by the end of Saturday with over 1,000,000. It got even better as of Sunday morning, with that number eclipsing 2,000,000 live views. On the whole, the IMSA YouTube channel has nearly tripled in subscribers in the last 12 months and is approaching 730,000 subscribers as the Rolex 24 nears its conclusion. The domestic broadcast continues on NBC and Peacock in the U.S. as part of a long-term partnership extended for multiple years. Alongside it, the YouTube growth on the digital front has been a remarkable success story. Beyond the international race coverage, the channel has also grown along with the popular YouTube docuseries 'Win the Weekend' Presented by Michelin. A third season of 'Win the Weekend' is set to premiere shortly after the Rolex 24, with content captured during the weekend set to feature. Both series have delivered more than 15 million views to help increase the subscriber count and grow the IMSA audience. 'We tried something last year at Sebring without any promotion that has taken our YouTube channel subscribers on the IMSA YouTube channel from 250,000 subscribers to knock it on the door of 700,000 before today's race starts,' said IMSA President John Doonan in a prerace interview session. 'At peak last year at Sebring, there was 21,000 viewers watching the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. Now it's geo-blocked in the U.S., and certain few other countries. But in France, Germany, the UK, obviously in Asia, Australia, you name it, fans around the world can take it in free, on YouTube on the IMSA YouTube channel, flag-to-flag.' The remainder of the 63rd Rolex 24 At Daytona continues to stream on the official IMSA YouTube channel to the finish, alongside the NBC and Peacock feeds for domestic TV. Story originally appeared on Racer
