In the round-up: Lando Norris has been awarded the Lorenzo Bandini Trophy for his performance in the 2023 season.
In brief
Norris wins Bandini Trophy
McLaren’s Lando Norris became the latest recipient of the Lorenzo Bandini Trophy in a ceremony in Italy.
First awarded in 1992, the trophy is presented to a figure within Formula 1 chosen by a committee who has demonstrated notable proficiency during the previous year. It is dedicated in honour of late Ferrari driver Lorenzo Bandini, winner of the 1964 Austrian Grand Prix, who was tragically killed after an accident during the 1967 Monaco Grand Prix.
Norris is the latest driver to be awarded the trophy after Kevin Magnussen was the winner last year.
Lamborghini confirm hypercar lineup
Lamborghini and Iron Lynx have confirmed their two driver teams who will race in the World Endurance Championship and IMSA series in their new SC63 LMDh hypercar.Former Formula 1 driver Daniil Kvyat, Formula E racer Edoardo Mortara and Mirko Bortolotti will team up in the WEC, while newly announced Juncos IndyCar driver Romain Grosjean will join Andrea Caldarelli and Matteo Cairoli for the team’s IMSA campaign
Meguetounif moves into F3 with Trident
Sami Meguetounif will move up into Formula 3 for 2024 with Trident, the team has announced.
The 19-year-old has raced full time at Formula Regional level over the last two years, finishing ninth in the FREC this season with three podium finishes to his name. He also tested for Trident in Formula 3 machinery earlier this year.
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Links
Motor racing links of interest:
Red Bull boss 'excited' for future of Milton Keynes F1 base (BBC)
'We head into our 20th year next year, and to think we've won 13 championships. The exciting thing is the future. We are now building our own engine on site here in Milton Keynes, in preparation for 2026. As a centre of excellence, we're attracting and developing some of the most incredible talent within the industry.'
New scholarship will honour the legacy of a motorsport legend (Cranfield University)
'A new motorsport scholarship at Cranfield University is set to continue the global legacy of Tyler James Alexander, one of the founding fathers of the McLaren Formula 1 team. The Tyler James Alexander Scholarship will offer an exceptional student, from any background, access to Cranfield’s world-leading Advanced Motorsport Engineering MSc. The successful applicant will also benefit from internships at UK and US motorsport racing teams and mentoring from leading professionals in the industry.'
Hamilton on sitting (very) still with Mountain Gorillas (Conde Nast Traveler)
'nothing prepared me for the moment when we finally saw the gorillas. We came across this flat piece of land, and suddenly there they were: a group of about 10 mountain gorillas within a meter of us. It was mind-blowing. Seeing them there, so relaxed in their natural habitat, was incredibly moving. I remember thinking, This is where they should be, in their homes—free.'
Thermal Club building up for IndyCar all-star race (Racer)
''They’re going fairly steady. You always wish they will go faster, sell out immediately, and be done. But we really haven’t started advertising yet, so I think there’s a lot of people that still don’t realize where they need to go to get tickets. The advertising stuff should start here pretty soon and finalizing some sponsorship and things like that. We should have a lot of stuff coming out in the next week or so.''
Is it possible to complete a pit stop in complete darkness? (Red Bull via YouTube)
Red Bull's incredibly well drilled pit crew complete a racing pit stop in total darkness in just 2.84 seconds.
The Link episode nine (Sauber via Youtube)
'Planning, reacting, and orchestrating the team's moves. Join Rithvik Dhananjay, our race strategist, as he shares the behind-the-scenes action from the Ops Room during a race weekend.'
We always endeavour to credit original sources. If you have a tip for a link relating to single-seater motorsport to feature in the next RaceFans round-up please send it to us via the contact form.
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Social media
Notable posts from X (formerly Twitter), TikTok and more:
Amazing to come home to a factory full of Champions 🏆 Thank you everyone @redbullracing for making such an incredible season possible 🙌 pic.twitter.com/b5lfEL7BvU
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) December 14, 2023
2023 season complete ✅
Watch as Ravin, our Head of Race Strategy Operations, explains our season and the ups and downs we faced. pic.twitter.com/PXuklbnPxi
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) December 14, 2023
From one World Champion to another, hear from Max Verstappen and Marc Márquez when they chatted about their Championship winning Honda machinery at the recent #HondaRacingThanksDay#Honda #HRTD2023 pic.twitter.com/T0hpkfs1nO
— Honda Racing Global (@HondaRacingGLB) December 14, 2023
Tomorrow 3pm 👀#HertzTeamJOTA #JOTASport #WEC pic.twitter.com/AeNe976X4V
— Jota Sport (@JotaSport) December 14, 2023
Welcome to my world~ 🐱💛 pic.twitter.com/UpNPB0bhSr
— 周冠宇 | Zhou Guanyu 🇨🇳 (@ZhouGuanyu24) December 14, 2023
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- Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory
Comment of the day
Audi’s new CEO may have come out and reaffirmed his commitment to their Formula 1 entry in 2026, but ianhaycox isn’t convinced…
I’ll be amazed if we see Audi in F1 at all.
Why spend millions on a new ICE when Audi customers will not even be able to buy a new Audi with an ICE in most territories. It just doesn’t make any sense to me, for them to flounder around at the back of the grid until 2028 probably, with what possible marketing angle?
With the emergence of more affordable EVs, government buying incentives and climate crisis pressures, three years is now a long time in the auto industry.
I predict in two years’ time, they will be back-tracking.
ianhaycox
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Max Jacobson John White and Reiter!
pcxmac (@pcxmac)
15th December 2023, 0:29
hopefully he really fleshes out every race in 2024 and is able to unquestionably/smoothly approach every potential outcome. Not sure if McLaren will be as competitive next year as I suspect Merc and Ferrari will significantly up their performance.
Jere (@jerejj)
15th December 2023, 5:46
I don’t get the reference in Zhou’s Tweet, but a cute cat in that (probably random) image.
kuvemar
15th December 2023, 7:50
He’s adopted a cat, not sure how much more obvious it could be 😼
Dusty
15th December 2023, 12:37
Wrong. This tweet is an invitation. The picture is “my world” in Zhou’s view. He says “welcome”! He is the cat. He needs love, obviously the heart. He wants meaning to his life but he is stuck, his mind is hardcoded to do only one thing. Pursuit a red dot. Is it money? Parental approval? Albon’s rain light LEDs? He wants to get out of this cage.
Next time you read X (formerly Twitter) at least try to understand it.
Lewisham Milton
16th December 2023, 0:12
I think he’ll find the cat’s adopted him.
SteveP
16th December 2023, 8:45
Dogs have owners, cats have staff.
I’m under multiple ownership/adoption
Todfod (@todfod)
15th December 2023, 6:23
Sometimes I wonder what the criteria is for the Bandini trophy. Norris was good this year .. in fact.. I’d rate him as the 3rd best driver overall, but I’d say Alonso was far more impressive. He got more podiums, more points and put in stellar overtaking moves to cement that P4 in the WDC.
Magnussen won it in 2022… God knows what they were smoking.
notagrumpyfan
15th December 2023, 7:53
Of course the Bandini Trophy isn’t about on track performance, but more about how you achieved* it. Also Alonso was awarded it before (there been no repeat recipients).
*Their check list for ‘achievement’ seems to include: are you Italian; are you linked to Ferrari; does Ferrari want you to driver for them; and probably any other reason not to pick Sainz.
MacLeod (@macleod)
15th December 2023, 8:00
That pitstop in the dark is faster then some teams during races……… impressive!
Nice kitten i hope he has enough time to be around the little fellow to create a good bond.
Coventry Climax
15th December 2023, 10:39
According to Wikipedia:
I remember when Bruna Senna was handed (can’t get to saying ‘awarded’ in his case) the trophy, they said it was for all the things he’d been doing off the track, not his results on track (obviously). But what were the things he achieved for F1? Beats me.
Does anyone have the real criteria they use to award this trophy?
The previous ‘winners’ are a mix of downright mediocre up to quite outstanding drivers.
What’s the point of this award actually?
SteveP
16th December 2023, 8:47
Solid excuse for a get-together with loads of food and drink?
Coventry Climax
16th December 2023, 9:59
I do that all the time, without the need for any excuse.
AlanD
16th December 2023, 21:22
In the article it says he received it for “notable proficiency” which sounds like one of those awards they make up at school for “pupil with tidiest desk” so that everyone gets an award.