Autoblog

Tonio Liuzzi heading home to Itay's Superstars series with Mercedes AMG

Noah Joseph — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:29:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Sedan, Europe, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Mercedes-Benz, Racing

Italy's Superstars Series may have seemed like an insignificant championship in the past, but drivers and manufacturers alike are beginning to take notice of what is rapidly emerging as Italy's equivalent of Germany's DTM, Japan's Super GT or Australia's V8 Supercars series. One of those drivers is Tonio Liuzzi, and one of those manufacturers is Mercedes-Benz.

The German automaker had been represented in the series before, but is now launching an officially factory-sanctioned works effort with a specially-prepared C63 AMG touring car fielded by Caal Racing. And it has lined up an experienced driving talent to man the wheel.

A veteran of 80 grands prix, Vitantonio Liuzzi has driven for Red Bull, Toro Rosso, Force India and HRT, but unfortunately failed to distinguish himself with a single podium finish, pole position or fastest lap in the span of his six years in Formula One. Prior to ascending to the pinnacle of motorsports, he had won the International Formula 3000 championship, and has also tried his hand at A1GP (representing Italy) as well as the Speedcar Series (a stock car series held briefly in the Middle East).

Will he prove himself a greater talent in touring cars than he did in F1? We'll have to wait and see, but given the factory support in a privateer-dominated series and the number of championships Caal Racing has won, things are looking up for Liuzzi and Mercedes. Follow the jump for the official announcement (in Italian) and check out the batch of official high-resolution images in the gallery above.

Continue reading Tonio Liuzzi heading home to Itay's Superstars series with Mercedes AMG

Tonio Liuzzi heading home to Itay's Superstars series with Mercedes AMG originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hispania Racing finally joins the party with new F1 car and drivers

Noah Joseph — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 08:29:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Racing

2011 HRT F111 - Click above for high-res image gallery

Better late than never, they say. And whoever said it could very well have been talking about the Hispania Racing Team. In its debut season last year, the upstart team's two cars - driven by an array of pilots over the course of the championship - retired nine times and failed to score a single championship point. But that's okay, because neither did the other two newcomers, Lotus and Virgin.

This year, though, Hispania has gone back to the drawing board, bringing in veteran designer Geoff Willis to thoroughly work over last year's Dallara-sourced car. After every other team unveiled their new cars and ran them at the successive pre-season tests, HRT was still building theirs, showing us some renderings of the new livery in the meantime and running the old car to test the new tires. But now they've finally put on the finishing touches, shown it to the world and took it out on the track for the first time.

While they were at it, HRT has also announced its final driver line-up, filling in that last TBA on the 2011 driver roster with the hiring of Tonio Liuzzi (who lost his seat at Force India) to drive alongside Narain "Tata Money" Karthikeyan this season. Check out their new Cosworth-powered ride in the high-res image gallery below.

Gallery: 2011 HRT F111

[Source: Hispania Racing Team]

Hispania Racing finally joins the party with new F1 car and drivers originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 08:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Force India dumps Tonio Liuzzi for DTM champ Paul di Resta

Noah Joseph — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs

It's a tough business, being an F1 driver. It's one of the most coveted, competitive jobs in the world. Every year there's a crop of new youngsters vying for race seats, and there's only so many to go around. Nico Hulkenberg found that out the hard way when he lost his seat at Williams to newcomer Pastor Maldonado. Vitantonio Liuzzi is no stranger to the phenomenon either.

Tonio lost his seat at Red Bull to Christian Klein in 2006, bumped down to the b-squad at Scuderia Toro Rosso only to be replaced two years later by multiple Champ Car champ Sebastien Bourdais. After settling for a test role with Force India in 2008, he was promoted to the race seat for the subsequent two seasons, and has now been replaced by another young gun.

For the 2011 Formula One season, Force India has confirmed Paul di Resta as its race driver alongside returning pilot Adrian Sutil. Di Resta spent last season in F1 as a test driver himself for Force India, all the while locking up the DTM championship in Germany to add to his pair of Formula 3 series titles.

The announcement confirms two of the last race seats that were up for grabs for the upcoming season, leaving only one position open at the upstart Hispania Racing Team alongside Narain Karthikeyan (who in turn replaced Bruno Senna). So did Liuzzi get relegated back to the test driver job for the upcoming season? Not even: that job went to the aforementioned Nico Hulkenberg. It's a cutthroat business, Formula 1 racing. Follow the jump for the official announcement.

[Source: Force India]

Continue reading Force India dumps Tonio Liuzzi for DTM champ Paul di Resta

Force India dumps Tonio Liuzzi for DTM champ Paul di Resta originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 28 Jan 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Whyte & Mackay blends special scotch for Force India's F1 drivers [w/video]

Noah Joseph — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 08:58:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Marketing/Advertising, Videos

Force India drivers receive their custom blended whiskies - Click above for high-res image gallery

Think drinking and driving don't mix? Well they don't. Not in the common sense of the term, at least. But though some advocates have called for its elimination, booze brands have been sponsoring motor racing for decades. And while they may not run on grain alcohol like IndyCars, several F1 teams continue to carry sponsorship from scotch whisky distillers like Johnnie Walker and Whyte & Mackay.

To mark its collaboration with Force India, the latter's master distiller Richard Paterson - a giant in the scotch business - created special blends for each of the team's drivers: Adrian Sutil, Tonio Liuzzi and test driver Paul di Resta (who remains the only Scot in F1 following David Coulthard's retirement). Each blend was matched to the driver's character and presented to the drivers in lead-up to the recently concluded British Grand Prix.

Marketing ploy? No doubt. But while we enjoy our jobs more than the next guy, this serves as just one more reason why we'd willingly swap our laptops for an F1 helmet any day. Have a closer look in the gallery below or follow the jump to see Paterson giving Force India a little extra boost for the race.

Gallery: Whyte & Mackay for Force India

[Source: Whyte & Mackay]

Continue reading Whyte & Mackay blends special scotch for Force India's F1 drivers [w/video]

Whyte & Mackay blends special scotch for Force India's F1 drivers [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 21 Jul 2010 08:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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End of Year Shuffle: 14 Formula One teams swap drivers for 2010

Noah Joseph — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:28:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs

If you thought the series of driver changes in the middle of this ongoing Formula One season was something, it's nothing compared to the grand game of musical chairs expected to ensue as the season draws to a close. With BMW closing up shop, several new teams joining the grid and at least a couple of former world champions switching teams for next year's championship, we're shaping up for the biggest jumble the F1 circus has seen in years. Follow the jump to see how it's unfolding so far.

[Image: Clive Mason/Getty]

Continue reading End of Year Shuffle: 14 Formula One teams swap drivers for 2010

End of Year Shuffle: 14 Formula One teams swap drivers for 2010 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 09:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Force India confirms Tonio Liuzzi for Fisichella's seat

Noah Joseph — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Hirings/Firings/Layoffs

From Left to Right: Giancarlo Fisichella, Vitantonio Liuzzi and Adrian Sutil

Italian race fans are in for a big treat at their upcoming home grand prix at Monza this weekend. Not only will their homegrown hero Giancarlo Fisichella, fresh from his command performance at Spa, be driving for their nation's pride-and-joy team Ferrari, but there'll be another Italian driver on the track as well, as Force India has confirmed the promotion of Vitantonio Liuzzi to his compatriot's vacated race seat.

The announcement comes as no big surprise, really, as Liuzzi was expected to get the nod. The promising Red Bull prodigy advanced to Formula One in 2005 after winning the International Formula 3000 feeder series the year before, racing first for the Red Bull Racing team then spending two seasons with Toro Rosso before being dropped in favor Sebastien Bourdais. Tonio has spent the past two seasons as a test driver for Force India, waiting for his chance to get back into the hot seat. And that's exactly what he'll do at his home race this weekend.

As for Fisichella, his contract with Ferrari has emerged as something of a gilded cage. He'll be filling in for Felipe Massa likely for the rest of the season, after which he'll stay on as a test driver next season. Nice work if you can get it, but as David Coulthard and Michael Schumacher could tell you, reverting to test driver - no matter how prestigious the team - is tantamount to retirement.

[Source: Autosport]

Force India confirms Tonio Liuzzi for Fisichella's seat originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 10 Sep 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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