Autoblog

Sky Sports gears up for F1 with dedicated channel

Noah Joseph — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:20:00 EST

There aren't a lot of television stations in the world dedicated entirely to cars. On this side of the Atlantic, we have Speed and Discovery's new Velocity channel, and the latter isn't even all cars all the time. But now, the UK is getting its own dedicated Formula One network.

Resulting from the BBC's forfeiture of part of its F1 contract to Rupert Murdoch's Sky network, Sky Sports F1 is launching this year in high definition. The channel will carry the grands prix themselves throughout the entire season, without commercials, as well as all the practice and qualifying sessions. In between race weekends, the channel will show interviews, magazine programs and re-runs of races.

Sky Sports F1 will be provided to existing Sky subscribers as part of their bundle, but it will also be available through other providers like Virgin Media, which has just signed on to the deal as well. Sky has also been lining up a roster of talent to cover the races and provide the commentary, including former F1 drivers Martin Brundle, Anthony Davidson and Damon Hill, the 1996 World Champion who most recently signed on.

As for race fans here in the colonies, we'll soldier on with Speed's coverage (with occasional races broadcast on Fox) and TSN in Canada.

Sky Sports gears up for F1 with dedicated channel originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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P1 reportedly following other British supercar clubs into bankruptcy

Noah Joseph — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 16:27:00 EST

Filed under: Trends, Government/Legal, Supercars, Earnings/Financials, UK

While the idea of the supercar club has yet to take hold here in The Colonies, across the Atlantic in jolly old England, the notion developed into a popular alternative to the costly prospect of owning and maintaining high-priced exotica. The idea, in a nutshell, was to provide customers with the opportunity to occasionally borrow vehicles from a stable of supercars. Since most privately-owned supercars sit around unused most of the time, membership in a supercar club seemed - and, for a while, was - a logical alternative, offering most of the benefits with none of the hassle.

Unfortunately, the weakened global economy has meant that many of these supercar clubs have had to close down. With membership dropping and fleets of supercars losing their value, these businesses haven't been able to stay afloat. Over the course of the past year, Seagrave, Group 20 and Club Velociter - all supercar clubs based in the UK - shut down, and now the grand-daddy of them all, P1, has gone into court-administered bankruptcy.

P1 International was the first such club, founded in 2000 by former F1 world champion Damon Hill and business partner Michael Breen, and it was arguably the most successful, with 300 members and a fleet of 40 supercars - including Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Porsches, Aston Martins and Bentleys - in two locations. Hill, now the president of the British Racing Drivers' Club, withdrew from the company three years ago, but claimed he was still owed money. A legal battle ensued, resulting in the club being put into bankruptcy by local courts. What this will mean for the club's members remains to be seen, but with used supercar values in the dumpster, it is reasonable to think that some well-used Astons and Ferraris will be up for grabs in short order.

[Sources: F1-Live and Car]

P1 reportedly following other British supercar clubs into bankruptcy originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 06 Apr 2009 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Top Gear officially reveals Stig's identity, and he's even more impressive than we thought

Frank Filipponio — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 15:59:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., UK, Celebrities

Fair warning: This is our third Stig post in about a week, so if you're not a fan of the Top Gear and its Tame Racing Driver, feel free to mosey on down the page. Speculation about the Stig's identity has always been a fun way to pass the time with fellow car buffs. It's one of those secrets that you'd love to solve, but that you hope nobody ever does at the same time.

Last week, a service man came forward to say that he came across the Stig's white suit and helmet while doing some work at a home in the UK, and then an art gallery blabbed that a certain well-known racecar driver came into their gallery to commission some Stig artwork. Between the two of them they figured it was time to let the world know what they did, so they revealed Stiggy's true identity. Well, they got it all wrong according to the blokes at Top Gear.

In response to all of the speculation that has been reported as fact (by this outlet among others), the show wants to set the record straight. That's why the BBC outlet has just issued a statement identifying their white-clad road warrior. The Stig has been revealed to be...wait for it....Graham Hill. Yes, the very same Graham Hill who won the GP World Drivers Championship in 1962 and 1968 and was reported to have died in a tragic plane crash back in 1975. Who would have guessed? Ironically, his son and fellow Formula One World Champion Damon Hill was one of the people rumored to have donned the white driving suit and helmet. What a clever ruse.

This comes as quite a shock to everyone who has followed the story. After all, Graham would be about 80 years old now. Some say his mustache wax was the clue that made the team come forward with the news. Some say he has been growing frustrated getting out of so many awkward supercar doors. All we know is, you can follow the link to hear the whole exciting story of how this two-time champion worked with the BBC to fake his own death, some 20 years before the BBC even dreamed up the need for a Stig on a show they hadn't even created yet. Fascinating. Thanks for the tip, Rafer!

[Source: Top Gear | Image: Slim Aarons/Getty]

Top Gear officially reveals Stig's identity, and he's even more impressive than we thought originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 21 Jan 2009 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2007 Goodwood Festival of Speed: Formula One

Frank Filipponio — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 20:09:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Classics

Goodwood has been an incredible experience and we hope you have enjoyed the coverage as much as we've enjoyed providing it. One of the numerous highlights for us was undoubtedly the Formula 1 cars; from those outrageous beasts of the '30s and '40s, through the mid-engine revolution, and on up to the technically-packed computers on wheels we have today. Friday and Saturday they had a relatively dry track to play with, and most of them seemed to be taking advantage of the conditions. Sunday's rains meant it was a bit trickier to put together a quick time, but it provided a chance for many drivers to just put on a good show for the fans.

And the drivers themselves were a big part of the show. From Sir Stirling Moss, John Surtees, Sir Jackie Stewart, Damon Hill, and Emerson Fittipaldi, to Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button, David Coulthard and Anthony Davidson, it was a pretty impressive list. And sometimes the pairings were just magical, as when Damon Hill found himself behind the wheel of one of his father Graham's old single-seaters. As cool as it was to see the older legends in action, the real thrill comes from having so many current drivers and cars on hand.

Davidson drove the 1987 Williams-Honda FW11B that Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet won the championship with. Ferrari had cars from 1960, '68, '93, '98, 2000 and 2006. Honda brought their latest car, the Earth-decorated RA107, in which Christien Klien took on the driving duties until Jenson Button showed up. McLaren-Mercedes, Red Bull, Toyota, and Williams-Toyota all brought out '06 or '07 cars as well. Because the competition was getting a little beyond the safety measures at the event, these cars weren't timed, but drivers like Coulthard and Hamilton really showed what the cars could do. Long burnouts while waving seemed to warm the hearts of the soaked crowd. Some drivers stayed for autographs, but with a race next week and all that rain still coming down, it was understandable that most could only be there for a short time.

Gallery: Goodwood Festival of Speed: Formula One

2007 Goodwood Festival of Speed: Formula One originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 25 Jun 2007 20:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dutch TV interview proves The Stig is indeed human

Frank Filipponio — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 16:02:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Etc., Videos

Some Dutch TV show visited the Top Gear set recently and interviewed the cast. Well, everybody but Jeremy. But the list of interviewees included THE STIG! Even though the others fail to acknowledge that the Stig is even human, this Sheryl Crow lookalike manages to coax a few words from the test driver behind the white suit and helmet. Those who have suspected the driver is in fact former Formula One champion Damon Hill will have more evidence to support their case, as the voice does indeed sound a lot like his. Still, many people think there are several different drivers who don the kit and play the role, so we still don't have the definitive answer on who the mystery man is in any given test. Follow the jump for the YouTube clip.

[Source: Final Gear via Jalopnik]

Continue reading Dutch TV interview proves The Stig is indeed human

Dutch TV interview proves The Stig is indeed human originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 13 Mar 2007 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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