Historic F1 track set for axe with 'difficult' decision to be made
Formula One Group chief executive Stefano Domenicali admitted “it will be increasingly difficult” to hold two Grands Prix in the same country, putting the future of Imola in doubt. The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix is in the final year of its contract in 2025, and with Monza’s future secure until at least 2031, Domenicali acknowledged a […]
Formula One Group chief executive Stefano Domenicali admitted “it will be increasingly difficult” to hold two Grands Prix in the same country, putting the future of Imola in doubt.
The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix is in the final year of its contract in 2025, and with Monza’s future secure until at least 2031, Domenicali acknowledged a “definitive choice” over Imola’s place on the calendar will come this year.
F1 news: Domenicali admits two races in same country ‘increasingly difficult’
Spain is due to have two races on the calendar in 2026 as an all-new street circuit in Madrid joins the schedule, taking on the Spanish Grand Prix mantle from the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, which will be in the final year of its current contract to host Formula 1.
As for Barcelona’s long-term future, Domenicali has previously emphasised the strength of the relationship Formula 1 has with promoters at the Catalan circuit, meaning it is not impossible for the circuit to remain on the calendar beyond the end of its current deal.
In Italy, however, the Formula 1 CEO admitted “it will not be easy” from a personal perspective if a second Italian race has to fall away from the calendar in 2026 – potentially to make way for Madrid – with the former Ferrari team principal having been born in Imola himself.
He made sure to praise the circuit for stepping up in the Covid-affected 2020 season as it returned to the Formula 1 calendar, but said a “definitive choice” over its future will come this year.
More on the F1 calendar and each circuit’s current contract
F1 circuit contracts: What is the current contract status of every track?
F1 2026 driver line-up: Which drivers are already confirmed for 2026?
“In the coming months we will face this choice: from a human point of view it will not be easy, but I have to exercise an international role that puts me in front of so many requests around the world from emerging countries that can allow F1 to grow,” Domenicali told Radio Rai Gr Parlamento, as quoted by Italian publication il Resto del Carlino.
“It is an evaluation that I will soon have to make as a definitive choice.
“Italy has always represented and will represent in the future an important part of Formula 1.
“It will be increasingly difficult to have two races in the same country because interest in Formula 1 is growing and it is a situation that we will have to face in the coming months. It is difficult for it to continue for a long time.
“I do not forget that Imola responded at a time of great difficulty, that of Covid.
“When there was a need to find new places, they responded immediately with the enthusiasm and ability of an entire city.”
Domenicali has spoken before of the use of calendar rotation for European races, with Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium having been the first to sign a rotational deal for its next stint in Formula 1 – hosting races in four of the next six seasons, after 2025.
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‘Lonely’ Palou cruises to win at IndyCar Alabama Grand Prix | National News
Spanish pole-sitter Alex Palou dominated from start to finish to win Sunday’s Alabama Indy Grand Prix and stretch his IndyCar points lead in quest of a third consecutive season title. Palou won for the third time in four races this season with Denmark’s Christian Lundgaard second and New Zealand’s Scott McLaughlin third. It was the […]
Spanish pole-sitter Alex Palou dominated from start to finish to win Sunday’s Alabama Indy Grand Prix and stretch his IndyCar points lead in quest of a third consecutive season title.
Palou won for the third time in four races this season with Denmark’s Christian Lundgaard second and New Zealand’s Scott McLaughlin third.
It was the 14th IndyCar career victory for Palou after 90 laps over the 2.3-mile, 17-turn road course at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama.
Not since New Zealand’s Scott Dixon had a driver won three of the first four races in an IndyCar campaign.
Palou cruised to victory in 16.26 seconds.
“It was a perfect day, I would say a perfect weekend,” Palou said. “The car was amazing, super fast, and I just had a ton of fun. I was a bit lonely there but I loved it. It was an amazing day.”
Dutchman Rinus Veekay was fourth with Australia’s Will Power fifth.
Palou, chasing a fourth series crown in five campaigns, won this year’s first two races at St. Petersburg and Thermal and captured his latest on the same Alabama track where he took his first IndyCar triumph in 2021.
“We’ve always been really good here. I love this place,” Palou said. “Every lap here feels good. It’s going to be special from now on.”
Palou surged ahead at the start and cycled back to the front quickly after the first two sets of pit stops. He refueled for the last time on lap 65 and three laps later was back in front to the finish.
Palou, 28, advanced his points edge with Lundgaard moving past Long Beach winner Kyle Kirkwood of the United States into second.
“It’s awesome. Everything we could have hoped for and much better,” Lundgaard said.
The fifth race of the season will be contested Saturday on the road course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as teams prepare for the series’ signature event, the Indianapolis 500 oval classic on May 25.
NASCAR Cup Series results from Texas: Kyle Larson wins stage, finishes fourth
FORT WORTH, Texas – With 12 cautions including seven in the final stage, Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway quickly became a battle for survival. And while ultimately, it wasn’t quite the win it often looked like it would be for Kyle Larson, his No. 5 Valvoline Chevrolet was still intact and rolling when […]
FORT WORTH, Texas – With 12 cautions including seven in the final stage, Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway quickly became a battle for survival.
And while ultimately, it wasn’t quite the win it often looked like it would be for Kyle Larson, his No. 5 Valvoline Chevrolet was still intact and rolling when the checkered flag fell.
Larson won the second stage – his fifth straight race at Texas with a stage victory – and turned in a solid fourth-place finish, scoring 50 points along the way. It was the second straight race in which the 32-year-old scored the most points.
He also led the most laps and was in control of the race through much of stage three. But on lap 244, Michael McDowell got a good jump on a restart and had help from behind, shuffling Larson back to fourth. With three more cautions and restarts, and with track position at a premium all day, Larson wasn’t able to quite make it back to the point.
“You don’t want to give up the lead at a mile-and-a-half (track), it’s hard to get it back,” Larson said. “Michael just did a good job timing it. I left early the restart before and was going to leave early again then and he just anticipated and left probably right with me or barely before and he had (Tyler) Reddick pushing behind him. Wish I could go back and do that all over again. Just try to learn from it.”
William Byron, the Cup Series points leader, was solid in each of the first two stages, finishing seventh in both and scoring eight points. During the stage two caution break, crew chief Rudy Fugle made a two-tire call but Byron made contact with Cole Custer upon leaving his stall. Still, Byron took over the lead and was able to hold on for a while, eventually succumbing to Larson.
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After trying to short pit, Byron was trapped a lap down when Jesse Love crashed with 49 laps to go, bringing out a caution. However, he quickly got it back when Kyle Busch spun a handful of laps later and the No. 24 team went to work. More cautions and trips down pit road gave the team more time to repair the nose and by the end, Byron had rallied all the way back to a 13th-place finish.
Chase Elliott was also trapped a lap down along with Byron and like the 24 team, the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts squad used the Busch caution to rejoin the lead lap. From there, the 9 followed the 24 back through the field, avoiding damage from cautions and eventually coming home with a 19th-place showing.
Alex Bowman was also fast throughout most of the early going, especially in stage two as he rocketed through the field all the way to third, scoring eight points. But the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet was collected in a crash at the beginning of stage three, not of Bowman’s doing, and the damage was too severe to repair. He finished 35th.
“I just saw guys wrecking in front of me. I tried to get high. The No. 16 (AJ Allmendinger) came back across the track, and we all piled in there,” Bowman said. “I hate that for this team. We had a really fast No. 48 Ally Chevrolet. I think we passed more cars than anyone’s ever passed at Texas.”
The NASCAR Cup Series will return next week with a race at Kansas Motor Speedway. Next Sunday’s race is set for a 3 p.m. green flag and will air on FS1.
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How Michael McDowell’s underdog run for the win ended in the wall
Spire Motorsports has one NASCAR Cup Series victory as an organization, but that was almost six years ago. On Sunday at Texas, they started from pole position with Carson Hocevar, but it was veteran Michael McDowell who nearly brought home the hardware for the team in a stunning upset. Instead, his race ended on the […]
Spire Motorsports has one NASCAR Cup Series victory as an organization, but that was almost six years ago. On Sunday at Texas, they started from pole position with Carson Hocevar, but it was veteran Michael McDowell who nearly brought home the hardware for the team in a stunning upset. Instead, his race ended on the back of a tow truck.
“I just really hate it for everyone on this No. 71 Chevrolet,” said McDowell. “We were giving it everything we had there to try to keep track position. Joey [Logano] got a run there, and I tried to block it. I went as far as I think you could probably go. When [Ryan] Blaney slid up in front of me, it just took the air off of it and I just lost the back of it. I still had the fight in me, but I probably should have conceded at that point.
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“Just proud of everyone at Spire Motorsports. I know that’s not the day that we wanted, but we had the opportunity to win the race. I’m really proud of everyone at the Hendrick Motorsports engine shop – you guys saw those restarts, the motors were ripping. Just hate that we didn’t get it done, but we knew we had to go for it. We went for it and it didn’t work out.”
McDowell, who has over 500 starts as a Cup Series and shocked the world when he won the 2021 Daytona 500 with Front Row Motorsports. Since then, he collected another victory at the Indianapolis Road Course in 2023, but that was the last time he visited Victory Lane. In the off-season, he joined Spire to help the three-car organization improve its on-track efforts. Well, when crew chief Travis Peterson made the call to take two tires in favor of track position, McDowell almost secured a lot more than a decent finish.
He snatched the lead away from Kyle Larson, fending off all challengers on every restart. He was helped by the fact that the closing laps of the race featured very short runs due to the constant carnage throughout the pack. But when defending series champion Joey Logano finally caught him with four laps to go, McDowell had no intentions of surrounding.
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He ran Logano all the way to the apron in a desperate attempt to block, but it wasn’t enough. He fell back to third as Logano’s teammate Ryan Blaney also passed him, but he kept pushing.
That’s when he lost control in the dirty air from Blaney’s car, slamming the outside wall and ending his day. His crew chief put his head in his hands in disbelief as McDowell’s race came to screeching halt. Despite his valiant effort, McDowell leaves Texas with a 26th-place finish.
Photos from Texas – Race
Joey Logano, Team Penske Ford
Joey Logano, Team Penske FordSean Gardner / Getty Images
Sean Gardner / Getty Images
NASCAR President Steve Phelps
NASCAR President Steve PhelpsJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske Ford
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske FordJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletChris Graythen – Getty Images
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing ChevroletChris Graythen – Getty Images
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Noah Gragson, Front Row Motorsports Ford
Noah Gragson, Front Row Motorsports FordChris Graythen – Getty Images
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Austin Cindric, Team Penske Ford
Austin Cindric, Team Penske FordChris Graythen – Getty Images
Dramatic fire ends Denny Hamlin’s Texas NASCAR Cup race
Denny Hamlin became the first driver to fall out of the race Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway with his day ending in a dramatic oil fire. Hamlin was attempting to make up ground after some early miscommunication with the team. When Noah Gragson spun, forcing the first yellow flag of the race, the entire field […]
Denny Hamlin became the first driver to fall out of the race Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway with his day ending in a dramatic oil fire.
Hamlin was attempting to make up ground after some early miscommunication with the team. When Noah Gragson spun, forcing the first yellow flag of the race, the entire field dove to the pits … except Hamlin. In some confusion over code words, he stayed out when he was meant to pit. He came to pit road alone, falling to the very rear of the field.
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A frustrated Hamlin began his march forward, but it was slow going as passing is extremely difficult at the modern version of Texas. However, the No. 11 Toyota Camry began to slow abruptly with just a few laps to go in the stage. Off the pace, the car spun out in Turn 1, as flames erupted from under the car in what appeared to be an oil fire.
This will mark Hamlin’s first DNF of the 2025 season, finishing 38th (last). He completed just 75 of 267 laps before the mechanical failure. It also ended an impressive streak of 21 consecutive lead lap finishes for Hamlin. The first stage ended under caution with Austin Cindric collecting taking the ‘win’ and collecting ten valuable bonus points.
“It was blowing up for about a lap or so before it really detonated,” said Hamlin. “I tried to keep it off to keep it from full detonating, that was they can diagnose exactly what happened to it. It’s tough to say exactly what it is, but they’ll go back and look at it and we’ll find out in a few weeks.”
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Speaking more on the rash of mechanical gremlins plaguing the Toyota camp, Hamlin said, “I’m not really sure. I’ve had blown engines in two or three season in-a-row now where we didn’t have any issues several years prior to that. Just trying to develop I’m guessing and trying to get more. Certainly, we feel like we need to get a bit more power but this was unexpected for us.”
Photos from Texas – Race
Joey Logano, Team Penske Ford
Joey Logano, Team Penske FordSean Gardner / Getty Images
Sean Gardner / Getty Images
NASCAR President Steve Phelps
NASCAR President Steve PhelpsJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske Ford
Ryan Blaney, Team Penske FordJames Gilbert / Getty Images
James Gilbert / Getty Images
William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
William Byron, Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletChris Graythen – Getty Images
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Ross Chastain, Trackhouse Racing ChevroletChris Graythen – Getty Images
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Noah Gragson, Front Row Motorsports Ford
Noah Gragson, Front Row Motorsports FordChris Graythen – Getty Images
Chris Graythen – Getty Images
Austin Cindric, Team Penske Ford
Austin Cindric, Team Penske FordChris Graythen – Getty Images
Laurens County First Steps joins NASCAR Day Giveathon to expand early literacy program | News
Laurens County First Steps (LCFS), a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting early childhood education and family development in Laurens County, recently announced its participation in the NASCAR Day Giveathon 2025. LCFS is one of only ten South Carolina organizations selected to benefit from this 27-hour online fundraising event. The NASCAR Day Giveathon will kick off […]
Laurens County First Steps (LCFS), a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting early childhood education and family development in Laurens County, recently announced its participation in the NASCAR Day Giveathon 2025.
LCFS is one of only ten South Carolina organizations selected to benefit from this 27-hour online fundraising event.
The NASCAR Day Giveathon will kick off at 3:00 PM EDT on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, and continue through 6:00 PM EDT on Wednesday, May 14, 2025.
All funds raised during this event will directly support the integration of the Laurens School District 55 Dolly Parton Imagination Library affiliate program with the Laurens County First Steps program. This unification will ensure that all children across Laurens County can participate in a single, streamlined program.
The annual cost to maintain this expanded initiative is estimated at $46,204. With the community’s help, LCFS can provide a free book every month to 1,426 children from birth to age five — at a cost of just $2.70 per child.
To make a donation during the Giveathon, please visit https://laurensfirststeps.org/ starting at 3:00 PM EDT on May 13. Click on the event link to be directed to the NASCAR Day Giveathon donation page. Every gift, regardless of size, will directly impact young lives by supporting early literacy and school readiness.
For further information, please contact Laurens County First Steps at toniable@laurenscfirststeps.org or 864-984-8130.
Erik Jones completes 300th NASCAR Cup Series race in fifth
FORT WORTH — Erik Jones completed his 300th NASCAR Cup Series start Sunday with a fifth-place finish in the Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway. Photo: Marty Aragon/TRE The 28-year-old racer started 14th, earned stage points in Stage 1, and overcame multiple pit road penalties to earn his first Top-5 finish since Talladega last October. […]
FORT WORTH — Erik Jones completed his 300th NASCAR Cup Series start Sunday with a fifth-place finish in the Wurth 400 at Texas Motor Speedway.
Photo: Marty Aragon/TRE
The 28-year-old racer started 14th, earned stage points in Stage 1, and overcame multiple pit road penalties to earn his first Top-5 finish since Talladega last October.
“It was a sloppy day in a lot of ways. We had two pit road penalties, but just happy to come back from it and get a top-five,” Jones said.
Photo: Aragon/The Racing Experts
“It would have been pretty disappointing to have a car this good, kind of our first car this year that’s been pretty strong to throw it away. I thought we were headed that way, but it turned out well.”
Jones made his NASCAR Cup Series debut in May 2015, filling in for Kyle Busch in the No. 18. He later made two starts in 2015, subbing for a suspended Matt Kenseth before joining the series full-time in 2017.
After his rookie campaign at Furniture Row Racing, Jones raced from 2018 to 2020 at Joe Gibbs Racing, earning two of his three wins with the team.
Jones joined Petty-GMS Racing in 2021, which later became Legacy Motor Club, piloting the No. 43 entry.
Photo: Jeff Ames/TRE
Jones became the 104th different driver in NASCAR history to hit the 300-start mark.
In his 300 career starts, Jones had amassed 2 pole, 3 wins, 38 Top-5 finishes, 90 Top-10 finishes, 828 laps led and two playoff appearances (2018 and 2019).
Lee Petty was the first driver to hit the 300-start mark in 1958 with his 13th start of the year at Old Dominion Speedway.
Daniel Suarez, who has 298 starts, is expected to hit the 300 start mark at later this month at the Coke 600.
Dominic Aragon is currently the editor-in-chief for The Racing Experts.
From Grants, New Mexico, USA, Aragon started watching NASCAR in 2004 and has been covering the sport since 2009. Aragon is a 2012 graduate of Grants High School and a May 2016 graduate of the University of New Mexico with a B.A. in Mass Communications & Journalism. Aragon has worked in local and national media, as a musician, and an educator. He is co-author of the 2024 book “All of It: Daytona 500 Champion Tells the Rest of the Story” with racer Geoff Bodine.
Aragon, his wife Feliz, and son Christopher currently reside in Grants, New Mexico, USA.
You can reach Dominic at daragon@theracingexperts.net.
F1 circuit contracts: What is the current contract status of every track?
