The most striking, and frequently controversial, example of high-technology meshing with sport, Formula One (F1) has as much in common with aerospace as with automotive. Developing and optimising an F1 car involves cutting-edge innovation, state-of-the-art materials science and boosting the development cycle from concept to design, prototyping and manufacture from months to days or even hours. It is probably the most glamorous environment for an engineer to work in.
The cliché about F1 is that all this high-speed inventiveness makes it the R&D department of the automotive industry. Technologies pioneered on the Grand Prix circuits are taken up by high-end supercars and trickle down into mass production and the road vehicles that we normal mortals drive… Details
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Dubai: Mohammad Bin Sulayem, 14 times Middle East rally champion, survived a terrifying high-impact crash while driving a Renault Formula 1 car at the Dubai Autodrome last afternoon.
Participating in a drag-style shootout against a Ford GT, Bin Sulayem made a spectacular start but soon lost control of his car which swerved brutally to the right and slammed into the venue’s wall. The collision caused the car to spin around 180 degrees violently before it came to a stop in the middle of the track, 50 metres from the point of impact.
The Autodrome ‘s medical team rushed to the scene within 60 seconds … Details
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 Indy race car driver Helio Castroneves, his sister and his lawyer engaged in an intricate “pattern of deception” to avoid paying U.S. income taxes on millions of dollars over a five-year period, a prosecutor said Thursday in closing arguments at the trio’s tax evasion trial.
“These defendants attempted to skip out on taxes that all must pay, regardless of how rich, regardless of how famous, ” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Dwyer as the six-week trial drew to a close. “We have proved that beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Castroneves, a Brazilian who twice won the Indianapolis 500, and the others tried to conceal his control of a Panamanian shell company called Seven Promotions and lied to tax lawyers and accountants about his true income, Dwyer said. Documents and witnesses support the prosecution’s claims that Castroneves knowingly dodged some $2.3 million in U.S. taxes between 1999 and 2004, he added.
“Since 1999, the defendants have engaged in a pattern of deception…Â Details
Former IndyCar Series star returning to the Brickyard
American Le Mans Series driver and 1996 IndyCar Series co-champion Scott Sharp will be back in an open-wheel car for “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Sharp, who was last seen in IndyCar two years ago with Rahal Letterman Racing, has signed with Panther Racing to drive the No. 16 Patron Tequila machine in the 93rd running of the Indianapolis 500 this May.
Here is the full press release from Panther:
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (April 9, 2009) – Panther Racing announced today it has reached an agreement with veteran driver Scott Sharp and the Patrón Spirits Company to enter a car in the 93rd Running of the Indianapolis 500. Sharp last competed in the IndyCar Series in 2007 with Rahal-Letterman Racing, and is currently having a successful tenure in ALMS, where he is a member of Patrón Highcroft Racing.
Sharp will drive the No. 16 Tequila Patrón Panther Racing Honda Dallara… Details