Latest news with #Kyalami
The Herald
6 days ago
- Automotive
- The Herald
African F1 race return still looks a long way off, says Domenicali
Formula One still hopes to return to Africa and is talking to three possible venues, CEO Stefano Domenicali said on Saturday, but any race deal looks a long way off. The continent is the major omission on a record 24-race calendar and last hosted a grand prix at South Africa's Kyalami circuit in 1993. The Liberty Media-owned sport is keen to rectify that but wants a stable venue that can become a fixture for the long-term. Financial issues have also been an obstacle in the past. 'We cannot go to a new place ... without staying for a long time,' Domenicali said at a Monaco Grand Prix media event to announce a partnership extension to 2030 with the MSC Cruise Division. 'We are progressing our discussion with I would say three places in Africa. Realistically speaking, I don't think we're going to have an outcome in the very short term,' added the Italian, speaking on board the cruise ship Explora II in the Monte Carlo harbour. He did not name any cities or circuits. Rwanda and South Africa are the two main candidates, with Kyalami and Cape Town put forward as possibilities for the latter. Rwandan President Paul Kagame announced his country's bid last December, when Formula One's governing body held its gala awards ceremony in Kigali, but that has been complicated by fighting in eastern Congo involving Rwandan-backed M234 rebels. The Democratic Republic of Congo urged Formula One in February to end talks with Rwanda. Domenicali said Formula One remained committed to adding Africa to what is already a crowded schedule with more countries seeking to join. 'We are missing one continent and we want to connect also to that,' he said. 'It's a matter of finding the right plan and hopefully we are going to update you soon on that project.'
CNA
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- CNA
African F1 race return still looks a long way off
MONACO :Formula One still hopes to return to Africa and is talking to three possible venues, chief executive Stefano Domenicali said on Saturday, but any race deal looks a long way off. The continent is the major omission on a record 24-race calendar and last hosted a grand prix at South Africa's Kyalami circuit in 1993. The Liberty Media-owned sport is keen to rectify that but wants a stable venue that can become a fixture for the long-term. Financial issues have also been an obstacle in the past. "We cannot go to a new place... without staying for a long time," Domenicali said at a Monaco Grand Prix media event to announce a partnership extension to 2030 with the MSC Cruise Division. "We are progressing our discussion with I would say three places in Africa. Realistically speaking, I don't think we're going to have an outcome in the very short term," added the Italian, speaking on board the cruise ship Explora II in the Monte Carlo harbour. He did not name any cities or circuits. Rwanda and South Africa are the two main candidates, with Kyalami and Cape Town put forward as possibilities for the latter. Rwandan President Paul Kagame announced his country's bid last December, when Formula One's governing body held its gala awards ceremony in Kigali, but that has been complicated by fighting in eastern Congo involving Rwandan-backed M234 rebels. The Democratic Republic of Congo urged Formula One in February to end talks with Rwanda. Domenicali said Formula One remained committed to adding Africa to what is already a crowded schedule with more countries seeking to join. "We are missing one continent and we want to connect also to that," he said. "It's a matter of finding the right plan and hopefully we are going to update you soon on that project."
Reuters
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- Reuters
African F1 race return still looks a long way off
MONACO, May 24 (Reuters) - Formula One still hopes to return to Africa and is talking to three possible venues, chief executive Stefano Domenicali said on Saturday, but any race deal looks a long way off. The continent is the major omission on a record 24-race calendar and last hosted a grand prix at South Africa's Kyalami circuit in 1993. The Liberty Media-owned sport is keen to rectify that but wants a stable venue that can become a fixture for the long-term. Financial issues have also been an obstacle in the past. "We cannot go to a new place... without staying for a long time," Domenicali said at a Monaco Grand Prix media event to announce a partnership extension to 2030 with the MSC Cruise Division. "We are progressing our discussion with I would say three places in Africa. Realistically speaking, I don't think we're going to have an outcome in the very short term," added the Italian, speaking on board the cruise ship Explora II in the Monte Carlo harbour. He did not name any cities or circuits. Rwanda and South Africa are the two main candidates, with Kyalami and Cape Town put forward as possibilities for the latter. Rwandan President Paul Kagame announced his country's bid last December, when Formula One's governing body held its gala awards ceremony in Kigali, but that has been complicated by fighting in eastern Congo involving Rwandan-backed M234 rebels. The Democratic Republic of Congo urged Formula One in February to end talks with Rwanda. Domenicali said Formula One remained committed to adding Africa to what is already a crowded schedule with more countries seeking to join. "We are missing one continent and we want to connect also to that," he said. "It's a matter of finding the right plan and hopefully we are going to update you soon on that project."
News24
17-05-2025
- Automotive
- News24
Toyota Gazoo Racing unveils striking Sand Beige livery ahead of SA Safari Rally
Toyota Gazoo Racing will sport a striking Sand Beige livery for the upcoming Safari Rally. The livery pays tribute to the hue that adorns Cruisers and Hiluxes of passionate Toyota owners. Toyota Gazoo Racing has opened an impressive new motorsport hub in Kyalami, Gauteng. Paint colours like Rosso Corsa, British Racing Green and Bleu de France are synonymous with motorsport, having adorned legendary racing cars through the ages. Now, Sand Beige can be added to that list. The popular light brown colour that adorns a large chunk of the Toyota Land Cruiser 70s sold in South Africa has been employed on the Toyota Gazoo Racing Hilux Ultimate T1+ for the upcoming South African Safari Rally that kicks off near Sun City on Sunday, 18 May. The team has historically run black or white cars along with the red and white Toyota Gazoo Racing logos but felt a change was necessary for the first home round of the W2RC world championship. Also, finding a home on the rear quarter panel is the now iconic 'It's not a bakkie, it's a Hilux' phrase. The Sand Beige colour is an iconic Toyota hue and is well-loved by Cruiser owners operating in the South African farming and overlanding community. It makes it a great fit for the pair of racing bakkies at their home round of the World Rally-Raid Championship (W2RC) in front of their passionate fans. The two cars run by Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa will be piloted by Saood Variawa, Francois Cazalet, Guy Botterill, and navigator Dennis Murphy. Following their second-place finish at this year's Dakar Rally, Henk Lategan and co-driver Brett Cummings have made the step up to the European-based Toyota Gazoo Racing for the remainder of the W2RC season. They will be behind the wheel of a similar Hilux Ultimate T1+ campaigned by that team. Similarly, veteran Toyota driver Giniel de Villiers will be in contention aboard a Hilux campaigned by the privateer outfit Team Hilux Rally Raid. Toyota Gazoo Racing opens new facility The new livery was showcased to the media ahead of the event at the all-new Toyota Gazoo Racing Motorsport Hub, located in Kyalami, Gauteng. The facility sets a new benchmark for South African and international motorsport facilities. Construction on the 12 500 m² facility began in October 2024 to create a world-class hub dedicated to high-performance motorsport engineering, manufacturing, and development. The Rally-Raid Hub will serve as the new home of TGRSA, housing the team's race vehicles and technical departments under one expansive, multi-level roof, with room to grow in future. Designed to meet the increasing demands of international competition and continuous innovation, the facility has been purpose-built to support every aspect of modern rally-raid racing. It includes a dedicated engine room, damper laboratory, in-house dyno, and an extensively upgraded fabrication division. The machine shop has also been significantly enhanced, now featuring a full suite of 3-, 4-, and 5-axis CNC machinery, ensuring precision component production at the highest global standards. The new building dramatically improves capacity, with space to prepare up to 20 race cars, compared to just six at the team's previous base. Every workshop and support area has been designed to optimise efficiency, workflow, and quality control. This includes a state-of-the-art parts store, complete with a custom-built software system to manage inventory and logistics servicing TGRSA and multiple teams worldwide. The team at Kyalami can build ten new Hilux race vehicles per year, but a big motivation behind the upgraded facility was to enable the team to increase their fabrication and parts manufacturing capability to meet the needs of Hilux racing teams worldwide. In the last ten years, the local outfit has built close to 140 racing Hiluxes of various iterations, and a large majority of these cars continue to be raced by teams and privateers worldwide. See the world's top rally raid drivers in action From Sunday, 18 May, to Saturday, 24 May, Sun City and its surroundings will be transformed into a rally-raid central. Fans are invited to witness the magic of international rally-raid racing up close. Spectator points are free and located at each stage, allowing fans to watch top local champions go head-to-head with the world's best. General admission tickets and passes are available now via TicketPro.
IOL News
12-05-2025
- Automotive
- IOL News
Unleashing the new Toyota GR Yaris: a unique racing challenge at Aldo Scribante Circuit
Kyalami was the last outing of the current Toyota GR Yaris. For the rest of the season the GR Cup Media Challenge will be in the new more powerful GR Yaris It's a new car, a new track and a new challenge when the Toyota GR Cup heads into the third round of the National Extreme Festival at the Aldo Scribante Race Circuit in Gqeberha this weekend. The Toyota GR Cup Media Challenge manual GR Yaris' have been put out to pasture after three seasons and two races in the current season, which means we'll be behind the wheel of the updated and more powerful Toyota GR Yaris. First view It will be the first time the new versions will be seen in South Africa because they haven't officially been launched locally. The first batch of six were scooped up by Toyota Gazoo Racing South Africa (TGRSA) to make our stripped out racing cars. Our outgoing track weapons produced 198kW and 360Nm, while the new GR Yaris is now good for 210kW and 400Nm from its 1.6-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine. Significantly, the six-speed manual gearbox we've become accustomed to has been replaced by a newly developed eight-speed Direct Automatic Transmission (DAT) with upgraded software aimed directly at quick shifting and optimised gear selection. It's also fitted with paddle shifters and we'll have three practice sessions on Friday to determine which options work best. I have a suspicion I'll settle for the electronic brain because I've read that the auto 'box boasts world class shifting speeds. It also means that you can keep both hands on the steering wheel, allowing you to focus on braking points, corner entries and exits.
