In the round-up: Williams team principal James Vowles admits the team is facing a serious shortage of parts heading into the final race of the season.
In brief
More chassis damage for Williams
Williams is flying extra staff to Yas Marina, scene of this weekend’s final race, to help repair their FW46s after both cars were damaged again in Losail.
“You’d expect three large accidents, maybe, at the upper end, in a year,” said Vowles in a video released by the team. “Yet we’re here looking at 17 accidents, total, in 23 races.
“The damage with Franco [Colapinto], unfortunately, is large. The chassis was impacted and we have a team going out to Abu Dhabi that will be there shortly working through the night in order to make sure we’re back up and racing. The gearbox was impacted in damage on both cars from incidents and then there’s floor damage, rear suspension damage and other miscellaneous components as well.
“Normally in a season you can sustain that. But race, after race, after race – we are getting very short on components.”
Hunter-Reay and Harvey confirmed for Indy 500
Ryan Hunter-Reay and Jack Harvey will drive the two-car entry for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports in next year’s Indianapolis 500. Harvey missed the race this year in his partial season for Coyne.
Esterson moves up to F2
Trident has confirmed 22-year old Max Esterson as the first of its two Formula 2 drivers for 2025. The New Yorker made his start in motorsport at the age of 10 on iRacing.
Dufek stays in F3
Joshua Dufek will remain in Formula 3 next year, joining Hitech. He finished 28th in the series this year for AIX, scoring his only point in the final race.
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New motorsports leadership executives introduced as Andretti Global moves on without Andretti (AP)
‘Doug Duchardt, who has served multiple roles with race teams and with General Motors, was named chief performance officer of motorsports at TWG Group, which now oversees all of the former Andretti properties. Jill Gregory, a former NASCAR vice president and marketing officer who also ran Sonoma Raceway, was named chief operating officer of a subsidiary of TWG and president of Andretti Global.’
County okays reduced payment for Formula 1 trackside ads (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
‘The new advertising agreement will see F1 paying Clark County $350,000 annually, down from the $1 million race officials paid during the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix.’
‘We are committed to continuing the fight against the toxic online abuse that threatens the integrity and spirit of sports worldwide and I know that this award will serve as an important catalyst for the campaign as it enters the next phase of its development. Now more than ever, it is crucial that we show a united front and say: ‘no more’.’
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Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Eric!