#Audi Sport Team Land

[chussyracing]

what has been happening in the world of motorsports?

(a very long overdue summary from the past weeks under the cut)

F1 teams

Singapore presented us with some special helmets and liveries, but Red Bull posted they won’t do any of their previously planned special liveries to save weight and instead, the planned Singapore special livery was only ran on their F1 Academy car

On the other hand, Haas brought a special livery to Austin (along with special suits and probably also special helmets)

As previously communicated, GP got promoted while keeping the role of max’s race engineer (he is now also the head of racing)

VCARB replaced Daniel by Liam Lawson with an immediate effect, Helmut Marko (as per Horner’s words) wanted him out of the car around Spain already, Kym Illman said Daniel was meant to get a “key to the city” at COTA but now won’t, Zak Brown got his knickers in a twist over Daniel scoring the fastest lap of the Singapore race which effectively stopped Lando from getting his first ever career grand chelem and also helped Max in the championship (even if Lando wins everything from now on and scores all fastest laps, if Max ends up second he will still win by one point) and finally Oscar and Daniel swapped helmets as goodbye

Also it looks like Yuki and Liam might be in a shootout (sort of) these last few races to see if any of them could replace Checo

Alpine confirmed the end of their own engine supply based in Viry but the workers were assured they will all get a new offer for a new position and won’t be laid off work (Mercedes is the strongest candidate to supply them from 2026 onwards)

Funnily enough there are rumours that the Renault engine was looking pretty competitive for 2026 before the project got scraped

also they another of the teams with a special livery, this time orange like a mclaren – who on the other hand brought yet another chrome livery

James Vowles (still in delulu land) believes his “strongest lineup” on the grid will also have strongest engine since Merc seems to be ahead of their schedule for 2026, while Binotto admitted that Audi’s project will be vulnerable at the start with possibly the worst engine in 2026 (oh also james kinda hinted at fighting with Ferrari… in a Williams but ok)

As for the free seat in Sauber, it might be between Mick Schumacher and Valtteri Bottas as of right now based on the latest rumours (also Blic reported that Valtteri signed for a one year deal)

Haas got their lawsuit against Guenther Steiner dismissed

Also their contract with Toyota for technical partnership became official (interested to see if they get naming rights in the future and stuff, since they still have Ferrari engine till 2028 at least), also they signed a multi year contract with Orion 180

Alex Jacques thinks Daniel has many offers from outside of F1 including Nascar

Loic Serra and Jerome d’Ambrosio started working for Ferrari at the start of this month and Charles gave a nice interview where he hints at Ferrari being a championship contender in the next two years at the latest

Red Bull is supposed to bring new floor and front wing to COTA (but a lot of teams are planning upgrades tbh, with Merc saying that’s their final upgrade package and McLaren finally growing a pair to introduce the new floor they have been sitting on since mid-season already)

Today it broke out that they were caught cheating as they used a bib to change the ride height in parc fermé – therefore having a different set up for quali and race – and they admitted it exists but it cannot be accessed when the car is assembled and they will find a solution together with FIA to change it

After Courtenay got stolen by McLaren and instead, Red Bull made Hannah Smitz the head of strategy (good for her)

McLaren added another one to their 53 (was it 54?) sponsors, this time it is Tmobile (also they have a new sports center at the MTC)

Ferrari are allegedly trying to get some alpine workers from the failed engine project already

Merc won’t let Lewis test with Ferrari (BOOOOO) after this season as his contract states he can start officially on January 1st

Drivers and non sport news

Max Verstappen copyrighted his “simply lovely” after Zandvoort and now dropped his own merch with the phrase

Lewis will co-chair the next Met Gala along with Colman Domingo, ASAP Rocky, Pharell Williams and Anna Wintour (and honorary chair LeBron James)

Liam Lawson chose number 30 as his F1 driver number

Liam will also be greeted to F1 by getting a 10 places grid drop penalty at COTA’s sprint after getting new components outside of allocation

Checo re-confirmed (by posting a freaking meme on social media) he will be staying in the team for the rest of the season while Horner said he also has a contract for 2025 but that is uncertain as everything in the F1 world and also mentioned he may be eyeing George for the future since neither he nor Kimi have their place in Mercedes secure

Max celebrated his birthday by hiring the whole Mugello circuit to test Ferrari GT3 car

Lando posted his (overpriced) new merch, partnered with Ralph Lauren for a new fragrance, Charles stole another team sponsor to become their ambassador for some reason and Checo had an outing with Ford

Seb was a part of Blue Earth conference as a speaker

Checo and George did some nice photoshoots (I mean separate ones, not together, also Checo highkey ate it up)

It was also Charles’, Arthur’s and Kimi’s birthday

COTA will be Alex’ 100th race, so he has a special helmet design

Lewis showed the Dior collection he worked on (I will be honest it did NOT scream lewis to me?)

Did you know Haas’ team principal Komatsu loves climbing/bouldering? Now you know because as he signed the deal with Toyota (officially for press), he had clutches since he recently fell off one wall when climbing

Franco was simply his messy self and it was hilarious to watch

Charles posted the monza vlog :’)

Lewis teamed up with Bramblepeats to make vegan alternative for dog food (and let Roscoe promote it)

Yuki drove Red Bull in Red Bull Showrun in Taiwan and the car freaking caught on fire when he was doing donuts

Charles’ brother Lorenzo got engaged to his long term partner Charlotte

Gina Schumacher got married (and her father was apparently present but tbh the family owes us nothing and some people were so weird about it)

Ollie did a photoshoot with some very hot Ferrari cars

There have been rumours about George to Red Bull which were fueled by George meeting Horner and Marko during the break

(Logan is alive and well btw he apparently did some golf)

Wake up baby new landogate just dropped: he was talking down the problems drivers faced during Singapore GP, especially Mercedes boys who were excused from media duties to get medical help (yeah I get everyone struggled but let’s not get into the whole undermining heatstroke and dehydration thing please)

Lewis COULD technically sponsor himself because there are rumours Almave could appear as Ferrari’s sponsor under the Pernod Ricard umbrella

GPDA is supporting max against FIA in the whole swearing debate and George mentioned they want to set up a meeting soon to discuss this further

Ollie Bearman has a new episode on Beyond the Grid (that I have yet to hear just like the Charles one)

Oh also Lando got a new car. A Ferrari. Lol.

Lewis is publishing a short film Push Push today

Women in motorsport and junior drivers

Sophia Floersch’s documentary Racegirl won a golden dolphin award at Cannes in leisure and sports category

Chloe Chambers (Red Bull Ford) is the first confirmed driver for F1 Academy 2025 season

Formula E will hold a full female pre-season test session on 7th November in Valencia (with Bianca Bustamante confirmed to take the test for mclaren)

Zane Maloney will skip the F1 season finale in Abu Dhabi since he stepped up as FE driver for Lola Yamaha and he has the first race weekend on that date

Line ups for junior series are slowly announced with F3 so far: Louis Sharp for Rodin; Ugo Ugochuckwu, Noel Leon and Brando Badoer for Prema; Mari Boya, Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak and Roman Bilinksi for Campos; Charlie Wurz, Noah Stromsted, Rafael Camara and Emmo Fittipaldi jr for Trident; Tukka Taponen, James Wharton and Laurens Van Hoepen for ART and finally Martinius Stenshorne and Gerrard Xie for Hitech

Line ups for F2 so far: Leonardo Fornaroli for Invicta, Arvid Lindblad for Campos, Jak Crawford for DAMS (Dino is rumoured to get the Hitech seat but nothing is confirmed yet)

Felipe Drugovich will get an FP1 outing with Aston Martin in Mexico

Ella Lloyd becomes McLaren’s development driver for 2025 F1 Academy

Robin Raikkonen won his first karting championship (they grow up so fast wtf)

Isack Hadjar will take over reserve driver duties when Liam steps up into F1 in the place of Daniel

NHRA added new healthcare policy to help pregnant competitors to swap mid season

Dennis Hauger moves to Indy NXT from F2

FIA, rules and the future of the sport

Ben Sulayem’s main point of presidency is still to fight online abuse and swear words rather than the things that are actually important, so in his next quest, he repeated he wants drivers to swear less (or not at all in fact) and gave an interview where he was borderline racist

Then he slapped Max with community service penalty for saying fuck during press conference (something which Max later reacted to by giving shortest possible answers and giving his own press conference outside of official flow, he also mentioned that the drivers’ group chat is heavily discussing the matter)

Oh another thing FIA’s president is pissed off about is the British bias and the lack of credit they got for adding gravel traps to Spielberg

Pirelli is starting with the 2026 tyre testing (Aston tested them with Felipe Drugovich before Singapore and Liam Lawson did 2025 tyre testing with RB20 in Mugello)

F1 Commission wants to explore the rookie after season race but said it won’t happen this year yet, the teams agreed it would be possible in the future tho

As previously rumoured, F1 and LVMH signed a 10 year partnership deal (so Rolex out, Tag Heuer in)

FIA lost two more senior staff members: director of communications Luke Skipper and general secretary of mobility Jacob Bangsgaard (reminder that there are many that left already: FIA’s first CEO Natalie Robyn, head of FIA Women in Motorsport Commission Deborah Mayer, governance and regulatory director Pierre Ketterrer and head of commercial legal affairs Edward Floydd)

Instead they hired Alberto Villarreal as general manager and Alessandra Malhame as senior HR director

From 2025 onwards a bonus point for the fastest lap of the race will no longer be awarded (thanks lando…. Joking but also…)

Instead of 2 mandatory rookie sessions from a team (one for each car), there will be 4 of them (2 for each car)

There are rumours F1 might organize one big livery unveiling for all teams in London with tickets sold for the event (because cash is king and I don’t doubt teams also having individual launches anyway)

The prize giving ceremony should proceed in Rwanda as expected but WHO advised against it due to health concerns

FIA introduced the new F3 car, the idea is to help include female drivers (wheel will be suitable for smaller hands as well, steering should be easier) – they got feedback from Chloe Chambers

Other series

MotoGP will return to Portimao and from 2026 onwards also to India

Race of Champions will happen again in 2025 after being cancelled for this year, this time it won’t be a race on snow tho, they will move it to Australia

Mick and Seb already got confirmed for the ROC for team Germany

David Alonso won moto3 championship, Jake Hill won British Touring Car Championship and Maťo Homola won the TCR Eastern Europe Championship

Other news

Lego announced a new collaboration with Formula 1 (rather than selected teams like it was before) and it seems like every single team will be getting a set possibly

Hot Wheels (or Hotwheels?) also announced a partnership with F1 with the sets expected to come early next year

Michael Andretti stepped down at Andretti Global, while Zak Brown first got confirmed as part of the project and then resigned from Andretti Global within the same month

Felipe Massa spoke out about the financial burden of trying to get his championship back and fighting legally against F1

The thieves of Charles’ watch got sentenced from 10 to 4 years in prison

Aston Martin created ???? AiLonso which is the replica of Fernando in virtual reality that speaks and looks like him and I hated every second of writing this down and finding out it happened in the first place

Ruth Buscombe, Naomi Shiff and David Croft all got married within a month (or almost within)

There is a new segment on F1 TV called the Cooldown Room

[bunnytalksf1]

Oliver Bearman has a seat in Formula One for 2025

Officially! I had in my notebook that the Silverstone weekend would be good to announce it at, and I was right (even though this is very low hanging fruit at this point, lol).

So let's talk driver market!

I'm now of the opinion that several drivers will lose their seat at the end of 2024. So, who's safe?

Lando Norris / Oscar Piastri - McLaren (Multi / exp. 2026)

Charles Leclerc / Lewis Hamilton - Ferrari (Multi / Heavily rumoured to be exp. 2026, but officially multi)

Fernando Alonso / Lance Stroll - Aston Martin (Multi / Nepotism)

Pierre Gasly - Alpine (Multi)

Yuki Tsunoda - RB (exp. 2025)

Max Verstappen / Sergio Perez - Red Bull (exp. 2028 / 2026)

Nico Hulkenberg - Sauber (Multi)

George Russell - Mercedes (exp. 2026)

Oliver Bearman - Haas (Multi, probably exp. 2026)

Alex Albon - Williams (Multi, probably exp. 2026 or 27)

Most teams will not want rookies or new drivers in 2026 for the new regs, where feedback is key, so they're trying to finalise contracts now for then, hence why so many drivers are locked down in multi-year contracts / until post 26.

This new signing means that every team has at least one of their spots filled. All three of the top teams has both of its seats filled, leaving very little mobility for the midfield drivers. Most of these contracts are multi year, and undisclosed.

The reason I have Perez in bold is because I think that there is a huge possibility of them breaking contract in 2025 if his performance continues to be lacklustre, or if RBR loses the constructors. Tsunoda could go to the main team, or Ricciardo if CH is insane.

Who's most at risk?

Ricciardo

Marko keeps making comments about how RB is a junior team, and the team certainly doesn't want to lose Lawson, who has shown considerable promise and provided insight on the sim. His contract expires in September unless Red Bull offer him a full-time seat in F1, and Audi have shown interest. I wouldn't put it past Williams to put a punt on him, either. It's within Red Bull's best interest to promote Lawson, and Tsunoda is alrady re-signed. There's very little interest in Ricciardo outside the RBR family, and he's still under a long term contract at RBR, preventing him from shopping elsewhere.

Sargeant

His performances just haven't been good enough, and Alex Albon as a benchmark is good, but he's no Max Verstappen. He's had a rough time of it with the chassis drama etc etc but the bottom line is that he's just not been good enough for F1. He has a hand to play at Haas, but with the team in talks with both Zhou and Ocon, I think it's unlikely he finds his feet in the sport. Williams definitely do not want to re-sign him unless he performs miracles the rest of the season.

Bottas

He's aging, and has been hindered by the car for the last little while. He's just not been on the radar. He could land at Audi, or Mercedes, but he's not the first choice for either of those teams - Mercedes want Antonelli, and Audi are reportedly talking to Ocon and Lawson, who both have age on their side.

Magnussen

Not been performing when compared to Hulkenberg, and with the stunts he's been pulling i.e penalties, I wouldn't expect him to land elsewhere. He's another driver that's pretty old now, and not the most marketable either.

So, what about the rookies?

Next year, we are going to have three (or more, depending on what red bull does) rookies on the grid.

Bearman - confirmed - Haas

A well deserved seat, especially after his performance in the Ferrari at Jeddah.

Antonelli - Mercedes or Williams - unconfirmed, but extremely likely

Not sure if the right choice would be to bring him up, considering his performance in F2 hasn't been great and there's a lot of talk about how he's being rushed that isn't unwarranted. Toto doesn't want to lose him, and Williams would get a discount on engine parts.

Lawson - RB, Williams or Audi - unconfirmed, but likely

Another seat that has been long since deserved. He should have been in the RB seat this season. Audi have shown an interest. Will be a late mover, since his contract doesn't release him to other teams until September, but I expect him to be big in the market if he is released, and if Mercedes sign Antonelli.

Aron - ?? - Unlikely

Paul Aron was a Mercedes junior until midway through last year. He's currently affiliated with no F1 team, and is leading the F2 championship right now as a rookie. There's been noise about him getting a seat, but even if he wins F2, its unlikely he'll go anywhere for 2025. He's still one to watch, though, and will likely be snapped up if he wins as a rookie.

Hadjar - RB - unlikely

The ideal scenario for Hadjar would be both Perez and Ricciardo losing their seats, and for Tsunoda to go to the main team, freeing a space for him to drive alongside Lawson. Or, if RB loses Lawson, he's the next redbull driver in line. He's driving car 11 in FP1 this weekend, and sits second in the F2 standings with two race wins.

Other drivers at risk, but less so, include:

Zhou

I think he'll likely end up in Haas, and he is a driver with a huge hand to play in age and sponsorship, where he is comparable to Perez. His performances aren't horrific either. That being said, depending on where Sainz, Lawson and Bottas go, he might end up out of a seat.

Sainz

Never thought I'd be writing his name, but here we are. We've gone from Red Bull and Mercedes taking an interest in the early season to this. His management team should be fird. IN all seriousness, this is a weird one. He could definitely end up seatless if he doesnt kerb his ego, as from rumours, the reason he lost out on RBR and Merc seats was that he wanted longer contracts, i.e. in line with George Russell, and a 2+1 for RBR (both teams offered a 1 year deal). Then there's been a long line of teams interested and NONE of them seem to satisfy him. Most likely destination now is probably Alpine, but even Alpine seem to be losing interest. He needs to sign a contract now.

Ocon

I think he'll land on his feet, and end up in Audi, Haas, Williams, or even Mercedes if Toto doesn't sign Antonelli, as a stopgap driver. He's a solid driver and has a lot to offer. Could end up seatless if a very specific set of things happens, but he has options.

Anyways. Enjoy the race weekend! :3

[vivekbsworld]

Luxury Cars for Rent in Trivandrum: Elevate Your Travel Experience

Trivandrum, the capital city of Kerala, is known for its serene landscapes, rich cultural heritage, and growing business hub. Whether you are a visitor or a resident, renting a luxury car can significantly enhance your travel experience, offering both comfort and style. From corporate events to weddings or personal leisure, Luxury Cars for Rent in Trivandrum: Elevate Your Travel Experience are becoming increasingly popular. Let’s explore the world of luxury car rentals and why they make an excellent choice for various occasions.

Why Rent a Luxury Car in Trivandrum?

Style and Comfort: Whether it’s for a special occasion or just a day of cruising through the city, luxury cars offer a blend of comfort, advanced features, and sophisticated aesthetics that standard vehicles simply can’t match.

Impress at Corporate Events: If you’re attending a high-profile business meeting or corporate event, arriving in a luxury car can create a lasting impression. It showcases professionalism, success, and attention to detail.

Weddings and Special Occasions: In Trivandrum, where weddings are grand and vibrant, renting a luxury car for the bride and groom has become a trend. A sleek, elegant car can add a touch of glamour to the celebration, making the event even more memorable.

Touring in Style: Trivandrum has scenic spots like Kovalam Beach, Padmanabhaswamy Temple, and Ponmudi Hills. Exploring these locations in a luxury car can enhance the experience, providing both comfort and convenience for longer journeys.

Top Luxury Car Rental Providers in Trivandrum

Several car rental services in Trivandrum offer a variety of premium vehicles to suit your needs. Here are some of the top choices:

Royal Drive Rent-a-Car Known for their wide selection of high-end cars, Royal Drive offers options like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi. Their services cater to both short-term rentals for special occasions and long-term rentals for extended stays or business purposes.

Exotic Wheels A trusted name in Trivandrum for luxury car rentals, Exotic Wheels provides vehicles such as Jaguar, Land Rover, and even sports cars like Ferrari for the ultimate experience. They offer chauffeur-driven services and self-drive options, depending on your preference.

Saina Luxury Car Rentals Specializing in providing luxury cars for weddings and corporate events, Saina offers top-notch vehicles including premium SUVs and sedans. Their fleet includes cars like Audi A6, Mercedes S-Class, and BMW 7 Series, perfect for those looking to make a statement.

Trivandrum Luxury Rides With an emphasis on delivering high-quality service, Trivandrum Luxury Rides provides cars like Range Rover, Porsche, and luxury MPVs for group travels. Their flexible rental packages and commitment to customer satisfaction make them a reliable option for luxury car enthusiasts.

Types of Luxury Cars Available for Rent

Luxury car rental services in Trivandrum offer a wide range of vehicles that cater to different preferences. Here are some popular categories:

Premium Sedans: Ideal for business trips and formal occasions, sedans like the BMW 5 Series, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, and Audi A6 offer a mix of comfort, style, and advanced technology features.

SUVs: For those who prefer a combination of luxury and space, SUVs like the Range Rover, Audi Q7, and BMW X5 are perfect. These vehicles provide ample room, ideal for family trips or group outings, without compromising on luxury.

Sports Cars: If you want to experience the thrill of driving in style, sports cars like the Porsche 911 or a Jaguar F-Type are available. These cars are designed for speed and aesthetics, making them perfect for car enthusiasts looking for a unique experience.

Luxury Vans and MPVs: For larger groups, renting a luxury van or MPV such as a Mercedes V-Class can offer a premium travel experience. These vehicles are spacious, making them ideal for group outings or corporate teams.

Key Features of Luxury Car Rentals

Chauffeur Services: Most luxury car rental services offer professionally trained chauffeurs, ensuring a seamless and comfortable ride without the hassle of driving yourself.

Self-Drive Options: For those who prefer to enjoy the driving experience themselves, many providers also offer self-drive rentals. This option is ideal for road trips or personal travel.

Customizable Rental Packages: Whether you need a car for a few hours or several days, rental services in Trivandrum offer flexible packages. This allows you to rent luxury cars on an hourly, daily, or even weekly basis, depending on your requirements.

Fully Maintained and Sanitized Vehicles: Especially in the post-pandemic world, car rental services are taking extra precautions to maintain hygiene. All cars are thoroughly sanitized before every use, ensuring a safe and comfortable journey.

How to Choose the Right Luxury Car Rental

Budget: Determine your budget before selecting a car. Luxury rentals come at different price points, so it’s important to choose a vehicle that aligns with your financial expectations.

Occasion: Choose a car that suits the occasion. For weddings, a sleek sedan or a luxury SUV is ideal, while for corporate events, a premium sedan can create the perfect impression.

Rental Duration: Consider how long you need the car. Many services offer discounts on longer rentals, so if you’re planning an extended trip, it might be worth inquiring about special rates.

Conclusion

Luxury car rentals in Trivandrum provide an elevated travel experience, perfect for making a statement at corporate events, weddings, or simply exploring the city in style. With a wide range of vehicles and flexible packages, renting a luxury car has never been easier. Whether it’s for a few hours or an extended trip, the right luxury car can make your journey memorable and unique.

[armotorblog]

ARMotors - Independent garage for repair & service of premium cars dubai. Porsche, Bentley, Ferrari, Audi, Rolls Royce, Maserati, Land Rover, Lamborghini. ARM® journey started in 2008 with a team of 5 dynamic & dedicated petrolheads, driven by an overwhelming passion for automobiles. Now we are an indomitable team of 55 members, serving over 10+ European luxury & sports vehicle brands on a facility of more than 29000 sq ft and 25 car lifts.

Today ARM® is the largest independent high-end car service and maintenance workshop catering to luxury cars like Porsche, Ferrari, Bentley , Maserati , Aston Martin , Lamborghini , Audi , Land Rover , Rolls Royce and McLaren . This luxury sports car workshop is located in Dubai, UAE with the dedication to providing state-of-the-art services for different brands of premium cars.

P531-279, Saih Shuaib 2, Dubai Industrial City, Dubai, UAE

[7forthereson]

DHONI THE UNTOLD STORY

Mahendra Singh Dhoni, popularly known as MS Dhoni, is an Indian professional cricketer. Born on July 7, 1981, in Ranchi (which was part of Bihar and is now in Jharkhand), Dhoni has left an indelible mark on the cricketing world. Let’s delve into his remarkable journey

Personal information Full name Mahendra Singh Dhoni Batting Right-handed Bowling Right-arm medium RoleWicket-keeper-batter

Accidental introduction to cricket

As a child, Dhoni was always into sports. He was a district-level badminton and football player. His football coach sent him to fill the position of a wicketkeeper on the school cricket team. He played well and soon bagged a permanent place in the group. This ignited his passion for cricket. Dhoni started focussing more on cricket after his 10th grade. He was very passionate about cricket and wanted to prove himself in this sport His father was not very fond of his son’s growing interest in cricket. He was of the view that there is no future in sports. However, Dhoni was clear-sighted about what he wanted for himself. He struggled against the rigid opposition from his father for prioritizing cricket over studies. But he was confident about chasing his dreams. So, going against his father’s wishes, Dhoni fulfilled his dreams instead. After that, he became a part of the Commando Cricket Club and an Under-16 championship. After this point, he pursued cricket seriously, but life had other plans for him. 

Breakthrough

The next match was his shot. Luck played in his favor the next time as he was selected for the Pakistan series. In the second match of the series, he scored a massive 148 off 123 to finally establish himself as a known face of the team. After that, there was no looking back. There were a lot more to come. This was the start, and he went ahead to make the most of his hard work and talent. His immense talent gained recognition, and he led the Indian team to the ICC World Twenty 20 Trophy in South Africa. Team India successfully won the trophy by defeating the Pakistani team. He accomplished his talent and made a mark for him self. Dhoni is the only captain to win the ICC Trophy, ODI World Cup, and Champions Trophy. His leadership is something that is celebrated across the country. Fans regard Dhoni as one of the greatest captains the team has seen. Despite his massive popularity, people knew him as a calm, cool, and composed persona. It must be because he has seen life getting hard and that aggression does not lead to rational decisions.

MS Dhoni’s achievements

In 2009, Dhoni was also awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian honor. In 2011, Dhoni etched his name on the list of 100 most influential people in the world through his persistent efforts and hard work. He was also awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award in the country, on Apr. 2, 2018.After winning the Cricket World Cup in 2011, film director Neeraj Pandey decided to make a biopic on the life and achievements of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The film, titled MS Dhoni: Untold Story – MS Dhoni The Untold Story, became a blockbuster hit and won the heart of many fans.Besides being a great cricketer, MS Dhoni is also a connoisseur of cars and bikes. He has a collection of many expensive cars and bikes. Some of his luxurious cars are Ferrari 599 GTO, Audi Q7, SUV Hummer H2, Land Rover Freelander 2, and Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk. Apart from this, Dhoni also has a collection of expensive bikes including Confederate Hellcat X132 and Superbike Kawasaki Ninja H2. On Aug. 15, 2020, Dhoni retired from all forms of International Cricket.MS Dhoni is also the Captain of Chennai Super Kings in IPL and has already won the trophy four times. He was rumored to play his last IPL game in 2021, but he brushed those rumors away. Recently, in 2022 he stepped down from the captaincy of CSK and handed it over to Jadeja. He is expected to play T20 cricket in 2023 too.

[aakarshita04]

Who Owns Volkswagen?

Among the companies in the automotive industry, Volkswagen is considered to be the largest. The company has been able to produce some of the best automobiles, such as the Volkswagen Beetle, the Volkswagen Golf, and the Volkswagen Passat. But the question is: who owns Volkswagen? This is a question that many people are interested in.

Audi

Whether it's Volkswagen's luxury brand Audi or their high-performance sports car Porsche, VW is one of the largest car companies in the world. Their brands appeal to a wide variety of customers. They're also known for their high-performance cars, piloted driving, and revolutionary technology.

Audi has been part of Volkswagen Group since 1965, and is known for their luxury and performance vehicles. Audi has factories in more than 100 countries and operates in more than 100 markets around the world. Audi has also produced the Audi E-Tron SUV, which is an electric vehicle.

Audi's logo is based on the four rings that represent four German automakers that merged in 1932 to form Auto Union. They are a tribute to the four companies.

Bentley

Whether it is Volkswagen, Bentley or Land Rover, the German automobile manufacturer is a household name. It has an impressive list of vehicle brands including Audi, Bugatti, Cupra, Porsche, SEAT, Skoda, Volkswagen Truck & Bus and Ducati. It is a shirt sponsor of Major League Soccer club D.C. United and the Liga MX team Puebla F.C. Among other things, Volkswagen owns the David Beckham Academy in England.

Bentley Motors was founded in 1909 in Crewe, England. In 1931, Bentley was purchased by the British Central Equitable Trust, which later sold it to Rolls-Royce. After a long run of trouble, Rolls-Royce was nationalized by the British government in 1971. The name Rolls-Royce was a trademark that was licensed by BMW. Although Volkswagen did not own the Rolls-Royce name, it did have access to its logo and slogan.

Bugatti

Founded in 1909, Bugatti is one of the world's most renowned car manufacturers. It produces luxury cars with high performance features and craftsmanship. The brand also has a presence in India. The company is located in Alsace, France.

Bugatti is a brand owned by Volkswagen. Volkswagen bought the rights to manufacture Bugatti vehicles in 1998. The company was previously owned by Ettore Bugatti, an Italian automaker of high-performance cars.

The Bugatti Veyron is the world's fastest hypercar, reaching a top speed of 250 miles per hour. The car is also known for its sleek design and craftsmanship.

Bugatti Chiron is a mid-engined sports car that is named after Louis Chiron, the famous racing driver. The car's power output is 1,103 horsepower.

Skoda

Founded as a bicycle maker in 1895 in Boleslay, Czech Republic, Skoda is now an auto manufacturer. Its products are sold in over 100 countries worldwide. Skoda Auto's profitability is second only to Volkswagen Group's. In 2017, Skoda Auto's operating profit was EUR1.6 billion.

Skoda Auto maintains its headquarters in Mlada Boleslav, Czech Republic. The company also produces commercial vehicles, such as trucks and buses. During the communist era, Skoda's reputation for engineering excellence was tarnished. However, deliveries have increased sevenfold since 1991.

Volkswagen entered into a joint venture partnership agreement with Skoda in 1991. In the following years, Volkswagen increased its ownership in Skoda. By December 1994, Volkswagen had a 30 per cent stake in the company. In December 1995, Volkswagen increased its stake to 70 per cent.

SEAT

Founded by the Instituto Nacional de Industria (INI) in 1950, SEAT (Sociedad Espanola de Automoviles de Turismo) is a Spanish automobile manufacturer. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen Group.

SEAT is based in Martorell, near Barcelona in northeastern Spain. Volkswagen's co-operation agreement with SEAT is the first outside of Germany. It was signed in September 1982. SEAT contributed up to 15.2% of the total output of the VW group in 1989.

The SEAT logo is rounded, rather than square, and silver on a red background. The company's modern logo was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1999. The logo was introduced before the launch of the Leon hatchback.

Volkswagen

Known for its iconic Beetle, Volkswagen is a German-based car manufacturer with operations in more than 150 countries. It is also the owner of a number of other famous brands including Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, MAN, Skoda, Seat and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles.

Volkswagen started off as a small car maker, producing only a few models before World War II. It reshaped itself into an automotive empire. The company has a wide range of brands that appeal to a variety of consumers.

The Volkswagen brand is the flagship of the company. It is also a household name. Volkswagen is also the owner of Bugatti, a French brand, and the Spanish brand SEAT. The company's latest product is the Volkswagen Arteon. It is a three-row SUV.

[viper-motorsports]

Teams from the likes of GPX Racing and Audi Sport Team Land set to compete in the Kyalami 9 Hour have packaged their racing machines for delivery to South Africa ahead of the 2020 Intercontinental GT Challenge finale scheduled for 12 December.

[mechanicsden-blog]

(It’s been a while since I post here.) Congratulations to Audi Sport Team Land, Sebastian Vettel, and Takuma Sato on their victories on the Weekend of Motorsport that is Nurburgring 24 Hours, F1 Monaco GP, and the Indy 500 (respectively)!

[endofthelinexx]

Roses and Flame | 1

Pairing: Female!Driver!Horner reader x Toto Wolff

TW: language, Christian Horner, slow burn, enemies to lovers, age gap

Rating: Mature, 18+

AN: Hiii! Quick little introduction to myself, I go by Lor or you can call me Dawn. A few months ago I was introduced to formula 1 by a podcast and very quickly became obsessed with it. When watching drive to survive I discovered this very handsome man and started reading fics about him. I soon realized there weren’t too many options, I haven’t written in a while but I’m going to try my best to provide y’all with another option! Hope you enjoy :) Comment if you want to join the taglist!!

Word Count: 1.2k

Mini summary: Collins Horner is the eldest of Christian and Geri’s children. She has been raised to be the fastest female racer Motorsport has ever seen and to despise Mercedes while doing it. But what happens when her world turns upside down?

*No permission is given for reposting my work, copying it or parts of it and claiming it as your own.

| chapter 1 | chapter 2 | chapter 3 | chapter 4 | chapter 5 | chapter 6 |

Years on years you had put into this sport, from go-karting to your newest opportunity, formula 1. It was something that you grew to love and was a big part of your life. Your last season in f2 was definitely your best season by far, winning your first world championship. You could’ve sworn that the second you lifted that trophy over your head f1 teams started reaching out to you. None of them really caught your eye besides Porsche. It was a new team in the 2022 season led by Michael Schumacher, and this team had big expectations held by the fans for obvious reasons. Your teammate, Dennis Hauger, was a rookie as well which made it clear you would have some competition for the unofficial number one driver for the team.

It was a warm spring day in Oxfordshire, the sun peered through your thin curtains brightening up your room. Your alarm contrasts the sound of the birds chirping and the water of the large pond outside hitting the shore. You did live in your own home, but it had been built on your family’s land. It was a small cottage-style home surrounded by modest English gardens. You had moved in at the age of 22 with your dog, Rooster. You let out a sigh and sat up, rooster already impatiently waiting to go outside. The second you stood up he bolted downstairs. Throwing on a pair of shorts, you looked in the mirror. Your dark hair that you had neatly put up in a bun the night before was now chaotic and messy. You stared at it for a second before deciding to leave it, walking downstairs and opening the French doors to let the dog out. You left them open, letting the fresh air fill your home as you made your morning tea. Coffee had never been your thing, the bitterness paired with how shaky it made your hands was far from worth it. Holding the warm mug, you stepped out into the garden, heading over to the large tree with a bench swing hanging from the largest branch. As you sat you took a breath in, thinking about the upcoming season. This time next week you’d be shipped off to Bahrain for your first f1 race, it brought a smile to your face followed by a wave of stress.

You sat outside for a little bit before heading inside to do a quick workout and get ready for the day. Going back downstairs, you put on some faint music as you heard a car pull up in your driveway. Peaking out the window you saw a matte black Audi which could only be your best friend, Audrey Blanchet. She got out of the car, dressed casual, and approached your home. She was probably about 5’8” with long blonde hair, if someone were to just glance at her they would be able to tell she’s Dutch and they’d probably think she’s a model as well. You had met her through racing, she was one of the other female rookies starting in f1 for this season. It was clear what team she raced for due to her fancy car, Audi Sport. 

She pulled you in for a hug, laughing a little as she spoke in her Dutch accent, “hey girl!”

 You hugged her back, “hey!”

You both went in and sat in the living area, talking about gossip for a little while snacking. Her teammate, Tayla Thompson, was the only other female rookie and she was insufferable. She got jealous easily and would definitely be the type to sabotage, but even with all these negative characteristics, she was a great driver and true competition.

 “So, are you excited for next week?” Audrey began.

 You looked up from your glass of wine, “I have mixed emotions.” As you spoke she nodded in understanding, “I’m very excited but this race sets the tone for my career and yours too. My goal is top 10.”

 She laughed, “then you’re going to have some big competition because I’m sure that’s everyone’s goal.”

 Laughing with her, you nodded, “now that’s true.”

 You worked well under stress, I mean your father is Christian Horner, and he knows how to apply pressure. You’re just used to it, but this was a whole new level. You wrapped up your conversation over the next hour and a half and she left.

Wednesday rolled around fast and before you knew it you were giving your luggage to the driver as he packed it. Hopping in the car, you sat next to your father who was on the phone, clearly annoyed with the person on the other end. 

‘Probably an engineer,’ you thought and looked out the window as the driver took you both to the private airfield.

 In a blink of an eye, you were on the plane and in the sky.

 Your father looked at you, speaking in a sarcastic tone, “can’t wait for the jet lag and the idiots in the Mercedes garage this season.”

 You rolled your eyes at the thought of the Mercedes team. You had been taught to hate them, especially Toto and Lewis, who both repeatedly stood in the way of your father’s success and soon yours as well. It was a natural rivalry and you couldn’t wait to put pressure on them.

There was light chat about strategies and press throughout the flight as well as a quick nap. And soon enough the plane was landing and you meeting up with your agent, Florence, heading to the track. Sitting in the passenger seat while Florence drove and went over some tips with you when it came to the press, reminding you what to say to certain questions. Walking from the car to the paddock was unreal, cheering fans and the press taking photos. You’d never thought you could sign so many cards and hats. The second you stepped onto the paddock it all became real, press taking photos and videos of you walking, you’ve never been more self-aware. Looking around at all the fellow racers, you had truly entered the men’s club.

While battling your negative feelings you were basically tackled followed by a, “ha! Got ya!”

 From a man with a British accent, you huffed and shook him off, “Lando really?!” 

He laughed and started walking with you, “our teams’ garages are right next to each other.”

 “Really?” You questioned, spotting the luxury logo of Mercedes on one of the hospitality buildings, immediately spotting the tall Austrian.

 You both locked eyes, immediately you sent him a glare and he looked away to talk to one of the team members next to him.

 The team member looked at you and then back at Toto, “that’s Collins Horner.”

 You read his lips, Toto rolled his eyes and nodded, seeming to now understand your glare.

 “Hey! I’m talking to you,” Lando snapped his fingers in your face.

 You jumped a little, snapping out of your focus and looking over at him, “yeah? Sorry.”

 He laughed a little at your reaction, “it’s fine, I just said I was going to get a higher position than you in quali.”

 You rolled your eyes and walked into the garage.

next chapter >>

[wannabe-fic-writer]

Moment In Time

Pairing: Natasha Romanoff x Reader

Summary: Just when you've gotten out, you’re given a reason to come back.

Warnings: Might be some mild language.

Chapter 2

* * * * * * *

“Oh no one is judging you ya big doofus.” You trail a finger along the shiny metal surface, looking at your tinted and distorted reflection.“ Just think it’s a little unnecessary.” Looking up at Tony, you smile.

His brown eyes roll, a hand grabbing onto the roof of the sports car to assist in pulling himself out.“ There’s nothing unnecessary about having options.”

A snort of a laugh falls from your lips as you walk to the next car.“ Yeah sure. If that’s what you want to call this.” 

“Half of these aren’t even mine.” He defends himself, hanging the keys up along with the other sets.

Pursing your lips you point to the car you’re in front of,“ who does this belong to then?” 

“Natasha.” He answers, taking far too much delight in the way your challengingly cocky attitude drops.

So you decided to hang out for a while, see a couple floors and let Tony explain some things to you as he liked to do, then head home. But you’d found a reason to stick around. Or, better put, Tony found reasons for you to stick around. 

You’d go to a floor, take in the sights, the tech, and listen to the man ramble on about the functionality of the floor. Around floor five you were ready to head out but Tony claimed you couldn’t see the medical floor and not go to the labs. And you couldn’t see the labs without seeing his workshop. 

This reasoning went on and on until you found yourself in the garage. The sun had set a few hours ago, lights automatically flicked on inside the tower and the seemingly day to day sounds of the tower went away. 

It’s quiet now, save for you and Tony talking and him occasionally starting up the cars.

You can’t lie and say you don’t enjoy hanging out with Tony. You’d always enjoyed your time with him, his actions and ideas unpredictable and so genius from the moment he learned to talk. But you also can’t lie and say you weren’t getting tired. A low, dull, rumbling started in your stomach not too long ago from the lack of food since this morning.

Making a bit of a show of looking at the last car, a sleep silver Audi that you know belongs to Tony, you check out the interior and make comments on the exterior. Then over exaggeratedly, you yawn and stretch your arms out. 

“Alright T. It’s gettin late. Think it’s about time I head home.” You tell him, walking over and gently dropping your hand onto his shoulder. 

He chuckles softly,“ Y/n, what kind of friend would I be if I let you go all the way back to Brooklyn while you’re tired and clearly hungry?” He pats your hand on his shoulder,“ you know Maria didn’t raise me that way.” 

It takes every ounce of willpower to not toss him somewhere so you could leave. But you know it’s been some time since you and Tony actually hung out and while he definitely has some ulterior motive to this, his persistence gave it away, you oblige him. Your reasoning is that you know the food will be good. 

What you aren’t expecting, however, is to find the entirety of the Avengers sitting around the living room on the main floor. Unlike the other floors that were quiet, a low chatter fills the space and a clanking of cutlery to ceramic plates. 

With Tony’s arm around your shoulders, you’re guided to the tables lined with food that looks delicious. Tony obviously has some private chefs around here. 

“Um, am I crashing some type of party or bonding time?” You ask him as he starts to pile food onto his plate.

“No,” he smacks his lips and waves you off,“ not really. We just eat together. Cap says it strengthens the team and all and I pay for the food so everyone comes. I’m sure they’ll be glad to have you.” With an almost devilish smile, he puts a bread roll on his plate and turns away. 

Your narrowed eyes follow his retreating form. Sighing and shaking your head, you grab a plate, put a little of everything on it, then head over to the unoccupied bar. 

Before you sit down to eat, you grab one of Tony’s expensive bottles of liquor off the top shelf. Pouring yourself a glass, you walk around the bar, catching the eyes of a couple members of the team before you sit down. 

As you eat and drink, the laughter and banter of the team behind you erasing the silence of the room, you can’t help but remember the numerous times you’d had the privilege of being around your friends like that.

* * * * Flashback * * * * 

With a friendly smile you push your chair out and stand up, walking over to the kitchen doorway. Reaching forward you grab the glass dish from the woman’s hands.

“Careful it’s-”

You nod and smile,“ I know. I’m fine.” 

Marie’s eyes squint at you and she nods in understanding as she remembers. Patting your arm she turns back to the kitchen right before Jarvis comes out and follows you to the table. 

Whispering a quiet ‘excuse me’ to Ana, you reach around her to place the dish on the table, then refind your seat across from her. The second your butt touches the seat two sets of eyes are on you. 

“Y/n please tell this buffoon how ludicrous his invention sounds.” The angelically accented voice of your close friends says. You swear you can feel her gaze burning into your temple. 

You look over at her, opening your mouth to speak when Howard cuts in. 

“No Y/nn, tell Margaret that this is genius. It’s revolutionary!” He exclaims and your eyes widen a little. 

Face morphing into an expression of offense, Peggy turns to look at Howard and they start bickering again. 

Smiling amusedly, you lean back into the chair, making eye contact with Jarvis’ wife An from across the table.

Both of you shake your heads, An chuckling softly just before Jarvis comes to sit beside her. 

“Howard,” the man looks up at the stern but sweet tone of his wife.“ That’s enough honey.” She gives a smile that matches the sweetness of her tone. 

The Brit beside you snickers and you lightly smack the side of her leg with the bag of your hand, muttering a quiet,“ relax.” Which results in her huffing and crossing her arms, sending a glare at Howard that she fixes just as Marie sits down across from her. 

Despite having been bickering since long before now, the Agent and Philanthropist waste no time in playing nice over dinner. Alongside them, Marie, An, Jarvis, and yourself have one of many very entertaining dinners. Laughs exchanged between all of you. 

* * * * Flashback End * * * * 

You’re yanked from the memory when a heavy weight lands on your shoulder. 

Tensing up, you prepare yourself to fight whoever it is but you quickly remember that you’re in the Avengers tower with earth’s mightiest heroes. The chances of this being an attack are slim.

Still slightly tense, you look over your shoulder at the owner of the hand on your body. To find America’s golden boy looking down at you. 

“Everything alright?” He asks, seemingly concerned. . 

You give him a small smile and chuckle softly,“ all good Captain.” You give a playfully mocking salute and he sighs instantly afterwards.

Walking around the bar, he leans on top of it with his fingers laced in front of him.“ Listen I- I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did on the jet earlier.”

“That’s one way to put it.” You take a bite of your food, staying silent until you swallow, then sipping your drink.“ We’re good. I know my unexpected bombing was, well, unexpected.” He chuckles lightly at your words and shakes his head. 

When he reaches up  to almost nervously rub the back of his neck, you know he isn’t completely sure that everything is good.

“Have a drink with me Cap.” You tell him, nodding to the shelf of alcohol behind him. 

Looking from you to the drinks, he nods.“ You can call me Steve.” He tells you, putting some ice in his glass then pouring his drink. 

“Well Steve,” you raise your glass to him and he gently taps his against yours.“ Feel free to call me Y/n.” You tell him, sipping your drink.

He smiles softly at you, your invitation seemingly having done the job of calming his nerves slightly. Light conversation flows between the two of you, a back and forth of questions that answers don’t hold much consequence but still shed some light on the types of people yourself and Steve are. 

By the time the sun has disappeared beyond the horizon and the sky is littered with stars and the lights of every skyscraper you and Steve are well through one of Tony’s more expensive bottles of liquor. Loud laughs sound from the two of you as you joke with one another. 

While the alcohol doesn’t affect either of your systems as it would someone else, the other occupants of the living space would assume you were drunk.

It intrigued more than a few of them how loose and easy going Steve is. It wasn’t as if he never had fun with them or drank, but there seemed to be something about you that brought an even lighter aura to the older man.

“It was incredible. I’m telling you,” you shake your head with a small smile of excitement.“ I wasn’t inclined to be excited about it since I was there to see the Yankees kick ass, but the Dodgers played exceptionally well.”

Steve has a small smirk on his face, nodding approvingly as he sips his drink.“ Well I can’t say I’m surprised.” 

Once again you laugh, finishing your drink and leaning off of the bar top.“ Ever proud, Mister America.” You say teasingly, bringing yet another laugh from the tall blonde. 

He finishes off his drink and you take a deep breath and release it.“ Welp Cap,” pushing up out of your chair, you smile at him,“ it was a pleasure chatting with you. Ever want to talk about the good ole days-”

“I’ll give you a ring.” He holds his hand out to you and you shake it firmly.

As you take up the glasses and your plate you nod a goodbye to Steve and go your separate ways, you to the kitchen and Steve to the elevators. 

Setting the dishes in the sink, you turn the water on and lean against the counter as you wait for it to get hot. Just before your mind can begin to wander you catch sight of movement in your peripherals. 

A smirk almost instantly pulls onto your face at the sight of the red head walking in. Her green eyes are already trained on you with a look in them that you can’t describe. 

“Agent Romanoff,” you nod to her, smirk still in place. 

She takes small purposeful steps closer, stopping a few feet away from you,“ you lied to us. Member of SHIELD for a while?” She raises her eyebrows and shakes her head with an overly sweet smirk,“ you founded SHIELD.”

You hiss in a breath of air through your teeth, turning to face away from her as you chuckle.“ I didn’t lie, actually. Withholding all of the truth is a different thing.” Drying the plates off, you set them on the rack to dry, the forks and cups following afterwards.“ And let’s make something very clear, I am not a founder of SHIELD.” You dry your hands and turn to her.

“Really? Cause SHIELD records say otherwise” She reasons, stepping closer. 

Eyebrows raising at her further approach, you do the same. You smile softly at her and close the distance between you two, leaving just under a foot of space.“ I understand you aren’t happy with the redacted details of my history Agent Romanoff so let me clear it up for you.”

Natasha tilts her head at your words and listens intently as you continue.“ I didn’t found SHIELD. I was the first ever agent. Agent Carter and Howard Stark saved me and administered me an enhanced version of the same serum Steve took. I owed them my life and I made sure to protect them,” you falter at that, jaw clenching as a horrible memory flashes through your mind.

“That’s how you met Tony?” She asks. It wasn’t missed by Natasha. The ex-assassin could read anyone. The second she noticed the distant look in your eyes she knew something was wrong and while she was curious, something told her not to ask about that. 

You shake your head to clear your thoughts and look at her.“ Was in the hospital the night he was born. Watched him grow up.” You smile fondly,“ he’s family.”

For a moment it’s quiet. Still you watch Natasha, unsure if she’s finished or not. Just when you think she’s done, you nod and head towards the door, only to stop when she speaks. 

“Why did you come for us?”

Turning from the door, you look over your shoulder at her,“ I owed Nick a favor.”

Her eyes narrow at you and you give a small nod before leaving out. 

Neither you or Natasha would’ve guessed that would be your last conversation for the span of the next week. While you were at the tower a few times, to drop off something you’d talked about with Steve or pick up Tony before the two of you went and hung out somewhere, you hadn’t gone inside. 

She wouldn’t admit it to you but Natasha had started to wonder when you’d come back. Not only does your reputation precede itself, something about your personality intrigues her more than she’d ever been before. She wanted to see you again, talk to you again. 

Green eyes look through the clear blue glass, brows slightly pinched together at the sight of you and Tony hugging. Natasha debated with herself whether or not she was going to go speak to you as Steve jogged out of the front doors and over to you, sharing a handshake and a hug. 

The last thing the ex-assassin expects to feel is the little flutter in her stomach when you smile brightly. 

She tears her gaze away from you, frown deeper than before. Her thoughts running a mile a minute. 

When a weight drops onto her shoulder she almost flinches. Grabbing the hand on her, she twists it and forces the person to stand in front of her, slamming them into the window. 

“Well damn.” You curse, using your hand on the window to push yourself off the window. A chuckle falls from your lips as Natasha let’s you go.“ Guess it wasn’t a good idea to approach a trained agent without speaking.” You say jokingly, green eyes snapping down to the smile on your lips and back up.

There’s an incredibly short pause from Natasha before she channels her usually straight expression.“ What’d you want Y/Ln?”

“How bout a smile Romanoff.” When a beat passes without her expression changing you sigh.“ I want a cup of coffee. And I want you to come get one with me.”

“Come again?” Her expression cracks slightly as her eyebrows raise slightly. 

You tilt your head and smile softly at her.“ You were practically shooting lasers at me through the window. Figured either you wanted to get out of the tower or you were jealous Tony and Steve were taking up all my time.” A teasing tone wraps around all your words and Natasha instantly scoffs. 

“I have no reason to be jealous of Stark or Rogers.” She says and you nod.

“I figured as much. Which means you want to get out of the tower.” You nod for her to follow you.“ Cup of coffee does everyone some good.” 

Natasha watches the confident stride you make towards the door, not once looking back as you just know she’s going to follow. And she does, despite her pride telling her not to.

The coffee shop isn’t too far away from the tower so you walk. Unlike your walks with Steve, it’s silent. The redhead stays two steps behind you, not saying a word as she follows. 

A burst of cool air rushes past the two of you with your first step into the coffee shop to the sound of the bell jingling above you. Smiling softly at the familiar building you walk further in.

Natasha takes into account that there are no more than ten customers inside. For a New York coffee shop it was incredibly quiet and quaint. 

“Love it here,” she hears you mumble as you step up to the counter.“ Hi, can I get one medium black coffee and a large iced coffee with two creams and two sugars.” The woman rings you up and you pay. Pocketing your wallet as you turn to face Natasha. 

You smile at her lack of emotion. There is no reason for you to be as grumpy and blank as she is.“ I’ve been to a lot of places but here, they have the best coffee.” You tell her. 

Her head tilts slightly and you purse your lips and nod. Once again it’s silent as you wait, then you grab the coffees when your name is called, turning to hand the black coffee to Natasha. 

With things going the way they are, you have an internal battle on staying here or just going back to the tower. Taking one last chance, you nod to an empty table and sit down. Natasha coming over and sitting as well.

“Look, Natasha, you can’t hate me so much that we can’t even have a coffee together.” Your tone of voice is one of confusion and slight sadness. 

Frowning once again at the emotions in your voice, Natasha watches you. Green, calculating eyes and a blank expression are the only signs of how hard she’s thinking right now. 

With a huff of a sigh she says,“ I don’t hate you.” She admits, face finally giving way to emotion.“ I- I barely know you.”

“Well maybe we should change that.” Holding up your cup of coffee you take a sip and tell her,“ I think if you give me a chance, I might not be as bad as you think.”

Her eyes narrow and for the first time ever, you see her crack the smallest of smiles.“ We’ll see about that.”

* * * * * * *

Taglist: @owloftheshadows @natasha-danvers @blackxwidowsxwife @yumusak-yastik

[allegra-writes]

"Fine line" part I

Peter Parker x SHIELD Agent! Reader x Harry Osborn

Teen and Up

Warnings: Canon typical violence

Part of the "Fine Line" series. Welcome to the endgame.

SERIES MASTERLIST | MY MASTERLIST

He had never seen you fight before. It was stupid of him, and potentially dangerous, to stop and think about something like that in the middle of a freaking battle, but he just couldn't help it. You were graceful, deadly. You and Kate Bishop moving together like a well oiled machine. Strike team Delta, Fury's pride. A blur of perfectly shot arrows and high kicks. 

But not even you were enough to stop the giant monstrosity in its path of destruction, not even him was. And it had hostages now. 

"Six!"

"I know K, I'm seeing it!"

"I'm on it guys!" Peter called back as he swung by you like a red and blue meteor, following the greenish abomination currently climbing up the side of a skyscraper, carrying a sports car on his free hand as effortlessly as if it was a toy. 

"One little question though" He switched to coms, "What the hell is that thing??"

"That thing" You explained, "is Norman Osborn…"

Peter's hand slipped, sending him flying face first into the building wall,

"Say what?!" 

"We'll fill you up later, Spidey" Kate quipped, "For now, would you mind giving us a hand before King-kong over there kills anyone? I don't trust his butter fingers not to drop that Audi"

"Yes, ma'am" You could hear Peter's smile in his voice, "S.H.I.E.L.D girls are so bossy"

"Well, we are your superiors..." You noted, finally arriving at the entrance of the building when he was already halfway to the top. 

"Ugh, I hate it when you pull rank on me" He groaned, swerving to dodge the shards of broken glass raining upon him.

You snorted, 

"No you don't"

"No, I don't" He admitted, "Kinda turns me on"

"Ew! Guys, I can hear you" Kate catched up to you, shooting an arrow hooked to a line around her belt. Peter wasn't surprised to see it hit its mark flawlessly on a ledge above his head, "Hi, hot stuff, need a ride?" 

You rolled your eyes, but wrapped your arms around her shoulders nonetheless, holding on tight. 

"Hey!" Peter protested, mid swing, "No flirting with my girl!"

"I saw her first!" Kate released the latch, and soon you both were ascending at breakneck speed, easily surpassing Peter, "Race you to the top, Spidey!" 

His laughter resonated through the coms, as he sped up to follow you, guns blazing into the battle.

…

There was no laughter anymore. The friendly banter and quick comebacks had died long ago, the second you had realized it was a trap. The goblin creature was far more intelligent than you were led to believe, having set the ploy from the very beginning, his seemingly driftless rampage through the city, not so random after all. 

And far more psychotic, as you had learnt when he tore open the car in his hands to reveal the terrified blond man inside. 

"HARRY!"

Peter's horrified scream matched your own.

"Well well well, it seems you awake quite the loyalty" a massive hand closed around Harry's torso, his indigo orbs finding yours across the rooftop "for such a pathetic little worm"

"Let him go, Goblin" Kate's tone was placating, almost gentle, "you don't know what you're doing…"

The creature laughed,

"That's what you think? What your imbecilic little investigation concluded?" Kate and you exchanged a look. Of course. Your investigation about the Green Goblin and other Oscorp shady experiments relied heavily on Norman Osborn personal files. The thought of the passionate scientist, who valued his work more than his own son, lying in his own research had never even crossed your minds. He had played you like a fiddle, misled you every step of the way, and you had bought right into it.

"I worked with S.H.I.E.L.D longer than you had been alive, and Fury thinks he can sic you after me? Two little girls playing spy and my own creation??" Harry looked about ready to pass out as the Goblin waved him around, gesticulating with his hands as he spoke.

Through the corner of his eye, Peter caught a glimpse of Kate inching closer to the beast, and was only half interested when he inquired,

"What do you mean your creation?"

"Everything special about you," The Goblin's deformed visage twisted in what Peter assumed was supposed to be a smirk, "came from one of my labs!"

"That might be true, you might have involuntarily given me my powers, but you didn't make me Spider-man" Peter countered, "Mister Stark gave me the suit, and showed me what it meant to be a hero, and I loved him and admire him more than you will ever be able to understand, but he didn't make me Spider-man either. 

I choose to be Spider-man, every day. I created myself, cause it isn't who we were made to be that makes us who we are. Our choices make us who we are! You might have the powers and appearance of a monster, but you don't have to be one!"

"If you really think that, you are even more stupid than I thought, Peter Parker"

"Pe-peter?" Harry gasped through the creatures crushing grasp around his torso. Peter hesitated for a second, before taking his mask off. 

"Yeah, it's me, buddy" He admitted, watching his friend's eyes go wide, "It's going to be ok, Haz. We'll get you out of this, I promise…"

Famous last words. Peter should have known better by then than to jinx things like that. Because not two minutes later, he was seeing Kate's little ambush fail, the creature's tail whipping around with enough force to send her flying against a wall and knock her out, Peter's own kick just a little too slow to stop the Goblin from grabbing you in his free hand.

"Wings? It has fucking wings??" Peter cursed under his breath, scrambling to follow the monster as he flapped his enormous, membranous wings, soaring across the city. But the creature had no intention of going too far.

"You say our choices make us who we are, very well" The Goblin challenged him, hovering above 700 feet of empty air, and Peter's heart stopped. "Let's see what yours are. What is it going to be, your friend… or your lover?" 

"Don't do it, Goblin!" He yelled, standing on a ledge, ready to pounce, when he saw it. Or rather, saw her, purple hair blowing in the wind, standing on the air, a little lower and further behind from the Goblin, one palm pointed down, creating some sort of sonic wave that kept her up. She signaled a series of orders with her free hand, and Peter nodded almost imperceptibly, but enough for you to realize something was happening. You twisted in the Goblins grip to see what was going on at your back. Oh, fuck.

"Make your choice, Peter. Now!" 

Norman Osborn let go of you and Harry at the same time, leaving you to watch your boyfriend dive for your ex. But you weren't falling, you were floating, cushioned by a column of vibrating air. 

"Don't worry, rookie," You heard an annoyingly familiar voice say, "big sis is here…"

Great. You were never going to live this down, now. 

Meanwhile, Peter had problems of his own, the momentum the Goblin had thrown his own son away making it difficult for him to catch Harry on time.

And even after he had the other man safe in his arms, he wouldn't stop squirming, fighting in his hold. 

"Noooo! Go after her! Save her!!"

Peter managed to land the both of them in a terrace, 

"She's ok! She's fine, see? She's got this! She's got this…" Peter finally released Harry, pointing up to the place where you still were hovering in the air with that other agent. 

"She… she's… flying?" 

"I think that is actually the other one's making…" Peter shrugged, scratching the back of his neck. Harry started pacing back and forth, obviously overwhelmed, trying to make sense of everything that had just happened.

"And you're Spider-man…" he turned to Peter, who nodded. "And that thing… what the fuck was that thing?" 

Peter hesitated,

"Apparently, a crazy scientist" he finally decided on a half truth.

"A crazy… Mate, what even is your life?"

"Honestly? I've been asking myself that same question for years…"

Harry barked out a watery, hysterical laugh. He wanted to punch the shorter guy, he wanted to throw himself at his feet and thank him for saving his life. To apologize for all the drunken midnight calls, and also stab him in his boyishly handsome face for being so fucking noble and heroic and brave and impossibly perfect and for stealing his girl. 

He clutched as his chest, the burn almost making him double over in pain, and he realized he was hyperventilating.

"Harry, Harry, look at me. Look at me! Do you feel my chest? Can you feel my chest under your hand?" 

Harry noticed then that Peter was pressing his open palm, splayed against the spider logo on his own chest. He nodded his affirmation.

"Good, feel how it moves? Breath with me" Peter ordered, "inhale…" 

Harry breathed in, in time with his friend's expanding chest.

"Now exhale" 

Harry let go of his breath.

"That's right, you're doing so great" Peter's praise warmed up something inside his gut. "Inhale…" and Harry did, catching a faint whiff of your perfume. Peter smelled like you, the realization making him notice just how close to each other they were, only inches apart. And he wondered idly if that was the view you were used to, the one you favored over everything else: warm brown eyes, staring into your soul, right before leaning in. He wondered if you appreciated those hard, muscular shoulders under your hands, before pulling him close. He wondered if Peter's lips still tasted like you.

And before he knew it, Peter found himself with Harry's mouth crashing on his.

He knew he should stop it, step away, but he was rooted to the spot, caught off guard by the sudden onslaught of sensations. It was different from kissing a girl. Hard planes where he was used to soft curves. The tickle of scruff, and slightly chapped lips where he was used to your strawberry sweet lipstick. But as Harry's tongue licked his bottom lip, begging for entrance, Peter couldn't help but open up to him, to surrender to him, as his tongue conquered every inch of Peter's mouth, a greddy, hungry victor. 

"I hate you so much" Harry breathed against Peter's mouth, even as his big hands came to frame the brunet's face, the metal of his finger rings cool against Peter's cheeks

"Doesn't feel like hate…" He quipped, before scraping his teeth against Harry's lips, tearing a moan out of him.

"No, it doesn't" the taller boy admitted, pushing one thigh between Peter's, gasping as he felt one of the hero's hands coming to rest against his lower back, pressing him closer. 

"You taste like cigarettes" Peter marveled, for some reason finding the bittersweet taste delicious. 

"And you taste like her" Harry replied, diving in again.

Peter froze. Her. You. His girlfriend. 

"Harry… Harry stop" Peter muttered, between nibbles "we need to stop. This is wrong"

"Feels right" The heir protested, teeth latching onto Peter's lower lip to stop him from pulling away. Peter groaned, but managed to break the kiss anyway. 

"It's not. We can't do this to her." 

Harry sighed, resting his forehead against Peter's, still reluctant to let go completely,

"I know…" he admitted. 

They stood like that for a few moments, willing breathings to calm, and hearts to slow down.

"You should go" Harry spoke finally, taking a step back, Peter immediately missing the warmth of his body in his arms. He wanted to say something, anything, to chase away the heartbreak, the loneliness in those pale blue eyes, but he couldn't. The knot in his own throat would not allow it. 

So he just stepped away, slipping his mask on, and jumped. He caught a glimpse of Harry's teary, red face, sticking out from the balcony to watch him go, before shooting off a web and swinging away, back to the skyscraper where Kate had fallen. Because if he knew you at all, that was exactly where you were going to be, taking care of your best friend.

…

"...I'm telling you, I had everything under control!"

"Is that why you were hanging 700 feet in the air?" The purple haired girl argued, crossing her arms over her chest, "Admit it, rookie, you're lucky I arrived just in time to save your ass. Again."

You were fuming, face flushed and eyes bright, and Peter found himself struck yet again by how gorgeous you were. A pang of guilt stabbed his stomach. 

"I didn't ask you too" You replied, petulantly, "and stop calling me 'rookie', I'm a level 9 agent."

"... I'm still higher than you"

"For one level!" You cried in frustration, "One single fucking level!"

"Would you two shut up?" Kate stumbled up, and Peter broke free from his haze to hurry and wrap a stabilizing arm around her shoulders, "You're giving me a headache"

"Yeah, that would be the concussion," purple quipped, "don't worry, Simmons should be here any minute to take a look at that"

"Yay, finally a sane person to talk to" Kate deadpanned. Purple ignored her.

"And you must be the boyfriend…" She singsonged, nudging you with her shoulder, "He's cute under the mask, how did you managed to get him to go out with you?" 

"Hey!" Peter and you exclaimed indignantly, in unison. 

"I'm kidding, jeez!" She raised her hands in surrender. "Come on, won't you introduce us?" 

You rolled your eyes, but complied anyway,

"Daisy, this is Peter Parker. Peter, this is Daisy Johnson, weirdo fancies herself my sister"

"Ooh, 'fancies'! You've spent way too much time with that brit boy, didn't you?"

"Daisy, I swear to god I will-"

"You need to tell her" Kate whispered, taking advantage of your distraction.

"Wh-what?"

She scoffed, Kate had never had much patience for anyone's bullshit.

"About what just happened with Harry. She will understand, Peter, I promise. But only if she hears it from you"

"H-how do you know?"

"I see better from afar" The archer smirked, before returning her attention to you and, apparently, your sister.

"Are they always like that?" Peter whispered, a little alarmed. Kate snorted,

"Just wait till you meet the rest of her old team…"  

"Yeah, what do you say, boyfriend?" Daisy smirked, mischievous glimmer in her eyes so much like yours, "Ready to meet the family?" 

Peter gulped, he really wasn't. 

To be continued...

[themotorsportblog]

HONDA LEAVES F1: FIVE BOLD PREDICTIONS

Honda are taking another hiatus from F1, opting to have a break from the sport at the end of it’s current deal with Red Bull and Alpha Tauri, but what’s next for them, their drivers and the teams they supply?

Tsunoda will be left in No Man’s Land

The big winners from this announcement are current Alpha Tauri driver Daniil Kvyat and reserve driver Sergio Sette Camara, who may now face less competition for a seat in the junior team as the main backing behind F2 racer Yuki Tsunoda getting a seat was Honda wanting a Japanese driver in the sport.

Without Honda’s influence Red Bull will once again have full control over the four race seats they possess on the grid and can put whichever drivers they like in there.

Tsunoda has had a decent season in F2 but far from the standout campaigns of Ilott, Schumacher and Shwartzman (even though he’s fallen away of late) having lost a win in the Styrian Feature Race thanks to a faulty radio, picking up a lucky win at Silverstone after the leaders collided and then dominating at Spa, his fortune at Silverstone being the main reason he’s still in the hunt for the title.

His title race may still be on but, he will surely have to win it now to make an impression on Dr. Marko, and with a current 44-point deficit to overturn with just two rounds remaining its looking like a tough ask. In addition to the big black marks against his name for failing to score in either race in Austria, Hungary and Mugello, he may outrank Kvyat who’s days seem numbered, but won’t do the same to Sette Camara so it’ll be a case of close, but just not enough seats available.

Next Stop: Formula E

Honda mentions specifically about developing Carbon Neutral and Battery EV technology in this morning’s press release.

These are two things heavily linked and related to Formula E, with its battery-powered electric racing, and its vow to become the first carbon neutral sport, which is now a reality.

The series became the first sport to achieve a certified net zero carbon footprint in its efforts to combat climate change last month, and it shows how serious the championship takes this and how much of an attractive prospect it’s becoming having already captured: Audi, Porsche, BMW, Nissan, Jaguar, DS and Mercedes – with the Silver Arrows the only team on that list that currently competes in F1.

Honda will want to develop this new technology and go and race its direct competitors in Formula E, rather than hanging around in F1, failing to dislodge the monopoly Mercedes has on the sport.

Red Bull & Alpha Tauri will go back to Renault

Mercedes and Ferrari certainly aren’t going to want to start providing a title rival with an engine deal that could see them beaten using their own power.

That leaves both teams with only one option, heading back to Renault with their tail between their legs to heal the wounds created by their previous split, in the hope of striking up a new deal.

That is unless someone new comes in at very late notice, Porsche have been sniffing around for a while, and it was revealed that they did have a test engine built for a 2021 entry – however they were unable to strike a deal with all the other suppliers about abandoning the MGU-H component.

With only potentially 18 months until the start of the 2022 season that doesn’t leave long for the development of the abandoned engine plans, and they already have a works in Formula E to concentrate on…

They’ll be gone for a while

Honda plans, according to their press release, seem set until achieving Carbon Neutrality in 2050, and F1 doesn’t seem part of those plans in any form. This hints that they could be gone for a while, having been absent from the sport between 2009-2014, 1993-1999 (even though Mugen remained) and 1969-1982.

You can expect this break to be as long as the latter as the company looks ahead to developing battery and carbon neutral technologies, which are involved in F1, but to a lesser extent than somewhere such as Formula E.

This difference in priorities could lead to a lengthy split, until F1 can agree a new set of principles which fall more in-line with the ones the Honda board has already agreed on.

Opportunities for Japanese drivers will become limited again

Nobuharu Matsushita, Nirei Fukuzumi and Tadasuke Makino have all made it to F2 in recent years but have been unable to any further with their single seater careers, in fact the latter two have had to scamper back to the Super Formula to continue their racing journeys.

Whilst it’s unknown what will currently happen to Tsunoda and countryman Marino Sato (who isn’t backed) the support of a Japanese company such as Honda to help their careers progress is pivotal if they want to make the step up to Formula 1, but without them involved in the top level of motorsport, any form of backing is incredibly unlikely, especially without Toyota involved either.

In fact, Tora Tokagi is the last Japanese driver to make it through to F1 without the backing of either manufacturer (although he was hugely backed by Satoru Nakajima, who was Honda-affiliated before retirement) and he left the grid after just two hopeless seasons in 1998-99.

Every single Japanese driver to have raced in F1 this century has had significant backing behind them before entering the sport, and without either company competing in the sport, it’s unlikely we’ll see another for a while, especially with the limited seats on the grid…

What do you think will happen next for the likes of Red Bull, Alpha Tauri and Yuki Tsunoda? Let me know!

Follow me on Twitter: @Luke2Wallace

[formulatrash]

It’s so cool you can paint pictures of drivers on a human level!! Who is the coolest female driver you’ve met? And have you ever spent time with the queen that is Susie Wolff?

I know Susie quite well cus she’s a Formula E team boss (and has been for two seasons pretty much, now)

She’s really cool. Clever, sharp, able to ignore the sniping (and it is constant) that any failings in the team’s delivery are because of her gender. Not from other people in Formula E, but the media (not particularly English language media but that’s by no means universal) and the usual armchair commentators from Twitter to YouTube to the third circle of hell that is Facebook group comments of course spout sewage constantly.

Oh, she got the job because of her husband (she didn’t), she isn’t serious about motorsport, she had no proven record as a team boss previously.... I mean, neither did Allan McNish but that curiously doesn’t come up as to why he’s in charge of Audi, despite absolute shitting the bed in Season 4.

(I love Allan but: it would be disingenuous to call the start of S4 anything other than a clown show at Audi, albeit mostly related to finding their feet as a factory outfit - and it was fair not to put that on him; imagine if he’d been Alanis, though...)

Susie has led Venturi to the most success they’ve ever had as a team but still gets called mediocre by geniuses from the comfort of their couches. She wants more, of course - she’s an ambitious and fiercely driven person. She’s also super friendly and funny and I really like her; she has huge amounts of time for people and particularly young people and women starting out in their careers. I’ve done a few bits with her and D2BD and like, you don’t start a thing like that because you don't give a shit, you know?

Here’s something I don’t think I’ve ever published? It’s an interview I did with Susie in Riyadh back at a showcase before the start of Season 5. We were nervous. It was weird.

Diriyah, Riyadh, 2018 There are sometimes moments around interviews where technically your recorder is running but it’s not per se the start of formal questions yet. In a side room of a Riyadh conference centre, sitting down with Venturi Formula E team principal Susie Wolff, I had one of those this week.

It would be fair to describe the Riyadh Eprix as ‘controversial’ - putting a Formula E race in a country known for being the home of oil is one, admirably punk thing. But Saudi Arabia is - or has been - a very closed kingdom, with extremely strict rules and social systems that seem obviously out-of-joint with the western twenty-first century.

Beyond that, I have an international relations degree and used to work for human rights organisations. You can use google to pick out the contexts in which I was previously aware of Saudi Arabia. I am fearless to the point of total disregard for my personal safety but my heart fluttered as I went to Heathrow, as I boarded the plane, as we landed. Everything I knew said I shouldn’t do it.

But you know how it is when someone tells you that, even if it’s you.

I don’t know much about Saudi Arabia and I can’t pretend that 24 hours there has illuminated the country to me more than watching the chasing, blinking lights of Riyadh’s enormous, luminescent sprawl did while I was sitting at my hotel window typing notes.

Launch events are launch events. The fact I was wearing an abaya and hijab (although it’s not obligatory for non-Muslim women my hair is a bit avante-garde to risk it) didn’t really change the fact that they’re just awkward promotional chat, albeit with Arabic-to-English headset.

And then it was straight on to interviewing Saudi princes - who are just politicians, the sports ministry fairly far removed from anything that isn’t, uh, sports. But nonetheless “interviewing Saudi princes” rates quite highly on my *record scratch* *freeze frame* ‘Yep, you’re probably wondering how I got here?’ scale. How the hell did I get here?

Anyway, after that I spoke to Susie Wolff, the new head of Venturi Formula E team. It was a strange, semi-breathless moment; interviewing one of my heroes in motorsport, in the absolute least likely circumstances. A female ex-race driver being interviewed by a female journalist, in a country that women were banned from attending let alone participating in motorsport.

As she sat down, Susie looked me dead in the eye and said “Look, you of all people can’t have a go at me about this.”

I knew exactly what she meant. Should we be there? I don’t know, maybe not. If we weren’t, what dead-behind-the-eyes man would be and where would we be getting new jobs?

I didn’t notice it at the time but when I heard the audio back, we both sound nervous - breathy, almost on the verge of panic. I didn’t become a motorsport journalist to interview Saudi princes or worry about this shit - except maybe I did, really because Formula E has to be an obnoxious upstart, it has to be confrontational even and especially with the scariest potential opponents.

It was before last season, then and so the first thing I had to ask Susie was what she could expect from the season, coming in as Venturi team principle. It’s the most nervous we both sound on the whole recording.

“I absolutely don't underestimate the challenge ahead of me. I've been a great believer, my whole life, that you've got to push yourself out of your comfort zone.

“You've got to do things that do slightly scare you because that's when you develop as a person and when I took on this challenge I absolutely realised the work that lay ahead of me.”

It would be fair to say that, a few years ago when I decided to do this. I did not. I myself cannot claim to have any bold vision in the way I stumbled my way into Formula E and really hoped it was going to come up with something to save my life because I’d run out of my own options.

Susie clearly had a different approach, a full long-game more than a messy explosion of want/need/hope. But sitting there in this weird exhibition centre in a city I’d never been to before, she put it very well.

I had to ask her about the “women’s test” - the option for teams to run a second car at an in-season test in Riyadh, provided it was driven by a woman of sufficiently high driving standard:

“I started Dare To Be Different because everybody talks about the fact that there's not enough diversity in motorsport. But very few people do something about it and I think it's about being proactive - if you want to see change, be part of that change, don't sit and talk about it but actually try and help make it happen.

“And what I appreciate so much since joining Formula E - and I can very much say joining the Formula E family - is that they're very, very supportive, more than any other championship we approached. Because they realise that it's a problem. And it's something that they want to be proactive on.”

Everyone said it was a stunt. And yes, of course it was a stunt. So are rookie tests that get Mick Schumacher into a Ferrari, so is anything where there’s a constraint that conducts the order of the event. So is sport. But it wasn’t a badly-thought-through one and with my brain already trying to stop bending back on itself with the news I actually might quite like??? Saudi Arabia??? I didn’t quite notice how much.

Susie obviously had more detail on it -

“I think the concept that they came up with regarding the test day, within the first race weekend, is really good. I was quite vocal in how the concept should be transported and run properly because for me, rather than just creating an opportunity which creates a lot of attention but actually doesn't have any fundamental credibility or any long-lasting impact is not going to be positive change for the long run.

“So we had quite some discussions at our team principals meeting that actually teams will run a female driver if they find one that they want to run, that's of the right level. There will be no different sessions for different levels, there will be no women just put in the car out of completely out of the depth.

“I lost a very good friend of mine who should never have been in the situation that she was and I think when this happens it has to be done the right way and those inputs were all taken on board and I'm very confident that we have now created an opportunity that is going to a) have an very positive impact and b) show not just the Saudi community but the wider world what's possible. I think you can't underestimate the impact of seeing women on track, that's something visible that women can identify with and that's role models to which they can aspire.

“I will be announcing in November a full-time test driver within my team who is a female, I've taken her because of her abilities not just because she's a female [it was Simona de Silvestro, who tested for Venturi that December and is now part of Porsche] but I absolutely believe in in - and I think, you also because you're one of very few within what you do, you're a fantastic role model and that can inspire so many people - and that's why it's up to us to have a positive impact and have a positive change but it has to be done in a credible way.

“Because I'm not just flying a flag saying 'let's do something for the sake of it,' I very much think we have to do something but in the right way, in a credible way that's going to create long-lasting impact because I'm pretty sure you'd also love to see, in ten years, more young women doing what you do and to be able to turn around and say 'wow, I helped people to understand there was a possibility within this sport.' And the sport does have so many possibilities it's just that what people see is a male dominated world but there's no reason why it has to be. Not just focussing on the on-track activities, I very much believe that we have to look at the whole sport, from your industry in journalism to the engineering, the whole sport just needs to be more accessible to women and they have to come in at grass-roots level and be able to rise to the top of the pack.

“If they're of the right level. And I think that is one of the problems right now, internationally and I think that's where the Women in Motorsport commission was great that they did this assessment because people were able to see it. In one of our first meetings in New York when this idea had just come up many people were saying 'oh where will we get anyone from' and I was like 'well wait a second, in Audi there's Ashley Freiburg, at BMW there's Beitske Visser and obviously Jaguar there's Katherine Legge there are enough available, it's not ok to say you don't have the numbers when there are enough good women right now it's just a case of being open to that change. Certainly, it's one thing that I very much appreciate about Formula E - they're supporting us massively and we've got some exciting news coming out toward the end of October with regards to Dare to be Different and more events around Formula E and that's something that I'm very grateful for the opportunity to work on.”

(I apparently gave up properly writing the article at this point, I guess no one commissioned it - but hey, lil Tumblr exclusive)

[armotorblog]

ARMotors - Independent garage for repair & service of premium cars dubai. Porsche, Bentley, Ferrari, Audi, Rolls Royce, Maserati, Land Rover, Lamborghini. ARM® journey started in 2008 with a team of 5 dynamic & dedicated petrolheads, driven by an overwhelming passion for automobiles. Now we are an indomitable team of 55 members, serving over 10+ European luxury & sports vehicle brands on a facility of more than 29000 sq ft and 25 car lifts.

Today ARM® is the largest independent high-end car service and maintenance workshop catering to luxury cars like Porsche, Ferrari, Bentley , Maserati , Aston Martin , Lamborghini , Audi , Land Rover , Rolls Royce and McLaren . This luxury sports car workshop is located in Dubai, UAE with the dedication to providing state-of-the-art services for different brands of premium cars.

P531-279, Saih Shuaib 2, Dubai Industrial City, Dubai, UAE

[viper-motorsports]

Bounding over the Pflanzgarten, Audi Sport Team Land’s N°29 Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO started the 2020 6 Hour ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen from pole yet had to fight through to the last lap to earn the win.

[komkommertijd]

Toronto Log Day 1

July 7, 2019

Looking at the date today and realizing that it’s really been a year since my summer holiday adventure feels so unreal but I really am motivated to start this little series here today. A few days ago I made a post asking about who would be interested in reading about the weird things I got up to while abroad and I was so happy when I received some answers - I’d probably write this anyway even without anyone paying attention to it, because this is mostly still a thing for myself to relive all the happy moments, but it’s nice knowing that someone cares.

This entire thing started back in 6th grade when I accidentally started getting addicted to sports of all kinds of forms. Ice hockey has always seemed cool to me and it felt fairly easy to get into it. I don’t know why or how it happened but from day one until today, I’ve always supported the same team in the NHL, despite all the pain it inevitably comes with. The Toronto Maple Leafs just had something about them, looking back I’m pretty sure that this “something” is Mitch Marner, that made me want to get into the sport more. Ever since then, my love for the city started growing and it is still always expanding day by day.

Toronto just drew me in, in a way no other city ever managed to, so when I turned 14, the idea of going on an exchange trip slowly started forming in my head. My English at the time was good for the average 8th grader and I had the best teacher ever that year, who further encouraged me to spend some time abroad - he even talked to my mother about it when she dropped me off for a field trip one day. 

I already knew that I wanted to go to either Canada or Australia, but obviously it’s not the smartest idea to send a young kid on a day-long plane trip on their own and Australia seemed like the smarter option to visit for an entire year instead of just a few weeks during summer break. When I stepped up to info points at a language exchange fair in my Maple Leafs jersey, it was pretty clear where this was going to go. 

The months leading up to the trip were a weird combination of excitement and anxiety, getting a passport, doing a language test, booking a flight. I still remember receiving the email of my eTA being approved barely six days before leaving the country. 

After a road trip from the most Eastern end of Germany all the way to Frankfurt Main, plus staying a night at my godmother’s place, right after the last day of school, the big day finally came. The airport in Frankfurt is the largest one in Germany and therefore quite overwhelming when one is confronted with it for the first time. To make things worse, the police had to close some part of the airport so I had to find a way around that area to get to the baggage drop-off. The lines divided into flights to the US and flights to the rest of the world, so my mom got in line with me and my brother. The worst thing was saying goodbye to them in front of the safety check and I swear I cried harder than ever before.

The fear of being on my own settled slightly after I survived the security check and got in line to get my passport checked but inevitably returned when I noticed that boarding would start soon and I had no idea which gate to go to. The guy behind the counter was really nice, telling me to have fun in school in Canada before I was allowed to leave. I arrived at my gate literally right when boarding started and somehow got to my designated seat without too much trouble. It was my first time ever leaving Europe, ever flying on my own and spending more than three hours on a plane, and I was weirdly hyped. I survived the eight hours on my way across the Atlantic Ocean with some actually tasty food, three cups of coke, half a liter of water and not a single toilet break.

Seeing the CN Tower during the landing approach made me a lot more emotional than I wanted to be. It’s still surreal to think that all of this actually happened and seeing the skyline live for the first time is something I’ll remember forever. It was warm when I got out of the plane at around 6 pm and tried hacking the airport WiFi to text my mom that I arrived safely (it was 12 am in Germany, sorry mom). Going through the procedure of declaring my goods was something new entirely and I guess I would’ve died there if my English wasn’t on a general level of acceptance. The guy filling out my form looked at me like I was trying to prank him when I told him that the only real good I was sneaking into the country was mustard (the present for my host family because my home town produces one of Germany’s most well-known mustards, it’s weird) and he struggled with trying to read my German papers about the travel details but ended up figuring out that I wasn’t lying about staying three weeks to waste my summer vacation in school on the other side of the world. 

I somehow found the woman in charge of coordinating our shuttles to our host families or the student’s residence, depending on where each of us chose to stay, and followed her outside into the mess that was the traffic right in front of YYZ. I met another German girl there and started talking to her for a while until we got scolded for not talking in English. The Italian students continued arguing about God knows what while I tried to calm myself down as I watched an Audi drive by - a bit of familiarity 6.5 thousand kilometers away from home. 

My legs were cramping and my sweatpants started feeling a bit sticky in the unexpected warmth of the evening and when I dragged my way too huge suitcase up the driveway of a house in Etobicoke, not too far away from the airport, it all started feeling a bit too real. My Brazilian host family welcomed me with open arms and to this day I’m glad that I got to stay with them, considering all the horror stories I got to hear the following weeks from other students.

I shared a room with Alicja, a Polish girl my age from Warsaw, who reminded me a lot of one of my classmates at first and turned out to be quite a lot more similar to me in some ways than I would’ve expected. We ate our first dinner together and tried to figure out how the hell to get to Adelaide Street East in the middle of downtown Toronto before I spent an hour trying to understand the TTC and almost getting a panic attack about how to use the PRESTO card, which occupies some space in my wallet to this day.

Luckily, our host mother sent us some directions for the following day and provided us both with a token each to get to school after we exchanged numbers and set up a group chat. We figured out that getting to school would take us an hour and a half at least, so we strategically set our alarms to 6:45 am to catch the right bus at 7:20. I was exhausted when I crawled into bed that night with my left leg still cramping once in a while but not jetlagged at all, which seems concerning in hindsight. I struggled with plugging my phone charger into the adapter plug before plugging that into the actual socket and shivered for quite a while before being able to fall asleep - our air-conditioning was broken for some reason and provided us with true Canadian winter vibes (it’s the only way for me to validate the “I survived Canadian cold” button on my backpack). 

It felt weird, falling asleep in a bed in a country so far away from home with no one I know around, in a comfortable bed with my favorite pillow that I take everywhere tucked under my head. I arrived, finally, after dreaming about it for so long, and despite not seeing literally anything but the suburbs and some streets so far, it oddly felt a lot like coming home.