Welcome to the weekend!

It’s been a great Friday at the Toronto Indy watching all of our friends racing on their home streets. From Mac Clark in USF2000 to RySpec in the Radical support series and Demi Chalkias in the GT4 class, it’s been awesome to take the subway down to Exhibition station and step out to see racing in Toronto.

Also - shoutout Demi going P1 earlier today! Her house might be at a racetrack (literally) but Toronto is still a home race for her 🤣 🤙

Formula 1

It’s a busy day so excuse this brief F1 column! In summary:

• Daniel Ricciardo returns and everyone is happy!

• FIA announces a potential ‘Grand Slam’ trophy which only Max Verstappen will win

Next race: Sunday, July 23rd @ 9am EST

Paddock Auctions

Our friends at P1 Auto Auction have just scheduled this 2017 Camaro SS with the 1LE track pack, and then some! Check out the full build at the link below and we can only imagine how much fun this car would be on a power circuit 🤘

Auction starts: July 25th @ 6pm EST

Click to view 2017 Camaro SS 1LE

The last of the V12 G Wagons..

Auction starts: July 31st @ 5pm EST

Click to view 2016 Mercedes G65 AMG

Race Cars for Sale

This 2019 McLaren 720S GT3 is still available from the good folks at P1 Groupe. Good set of spares, needs nothing but a driver!

Click to view 2019 McLaren 720S GT3

Just a reminder that Team Stradale has Radicals ready to rock - much like this SR10 if you’re brave enough..

Click to view 2021 Radical SR10

News Racers Can Use

The Business of Sports Car Racing

Many are referring to these days as the “golden era of sports car racing” and for good reason. The convergence between IMSA and the ACO has allowed for the flourishing GTP/Hypercar platform, GT3 racing is exploding across the globe and grids are expanding month over month. The business of sports car racing has never been so good.

Why has this been happening? It’s a combination of rule makers and manufacturers embracing sustainability as a core pillar of sports car racing with the adoption of hybrids and sustainable fuels thus embracing the future direction of road cars. It’s also about manufacturers building cars that people want to race and series promoters providing the championships they want to race them in.

But there are warning signs that must be heeded even during this golden age. Costs are rising and the expense of racing in GT3 is steadily increasing to the point where it’s becoming a barrier to the target market that has embraced GT3 racing so heartily. It’s time to address issues such as this now while the sport is in such rude health to prevent the inevitable downward slide that sports car racing so often finds itself in.

Let’s enjoy this golden era but let’s also ensure that it continues for as long as possible, by making the right decisions now to ensure that the sport’s future remains “golden” for as long as possible.

News Racers Can Use is written by Mark Boudreau from Motorsport Prospects

Quick Bites

🤩 Visualization skills are key for a race car driver

🎮 iRacing’s growing influence on driver development

📓 How to build a racing sponsorship plan.