#and I know F1 teams are probably trying some succession planning and lots of new brands hopping on seem geared to younger fans

[sainz100]

Carlos Sainz | F1 London Live in 2017 | x x x x x

[azaffranist]

To think that Frozen 2 could've been so DARK. You think that kids would be psychologically damaged if Elsa had actually died, having grown emotionally attached to her over the past six years?

First off, sorry about the delay anon! I researched some more information about the topic before tackling this ask.

I was hoping the documentary would maybe give a little insight into this to understand those endings better, but sadly (and unsurprisingly) they didn’t. I wouldn’t expect them to talk about Elsa’s death because that’s scandalous, but at least I expected them to talk about A Place of Our Own, a scene and a concept that got cut late into development. So late, it’s actually in the Frozen 2 artbook. I’m not gonna go full conspiracy theorist because that’s pointless, but we know for sure they decided not to talk about the most controversial topics like Arendelle’s destruction or Hard Nokks. Which is understandable, but I’m not entirely too happy with that, lol.

I actually got new information about F2′s original/early plots. So far, I haven’t been able to find the link to the source (will definitely update the post if I do): allegedly, a storyboard artist called Jeff Ranjo, who also worked in F1, said in an animation symposium around early 2019 that he found the original script of F2 to be so dark that he couldn’t take it anymore and therefore left the team. His name is in the ending credits because he had worked for a while on the movie before quitting.

Jeff Ranjo is not some random dude. Jeff Ranjo is the artist behind pieces such as this. I’m sure everyone recognizes this unique artstyle.

Nevertheless, I haven’t found the source. It’s not easy to, because I’m not sure what animation symposium it was. There’s tons of them, and it’s something that he happened to mention, as it wasn’t focused on Frozen 2. So we’ll take this for now with a grain of salt, and I hope to update in the future if this is confirmed real or not.

But - it is good to consider when we’re talking about this, and it ties in with what we’ve talked about. Frozen 2′s original plot most likely was, according to multiple sources not related to each other, dark. And we know why. 

As for your question (wow that took a long time!) I’m glad you asked it because it’s something that we haven’t discussed much. I think it would’ve simply been devastating. For a multitude of reasons. Something to note before going into detail, though, is to establish what we mean by “Elsa’s death” - some of the information we got points to her dying but in some versions, her presence would still be represented by the Unity Snowflake (with a chance to come back in a third movie). I don’t know what you guys think but that doesn’t scream “alive” to me. That’s... kind of dead with a touch of magic. So keep that in mind when I’m talking about dead Elsas.

Kids wouldn’t have taken it well. Most adults would’ve sort of... accepted it. But I know we as fans wouldn’t have taken it well, either. These characters are important to us. They’re role models. They represent the struggle many of us have gone through. And Elsa is one of the most relevant characters when it comes to that. Her powers in the first movie resonated with all sorts of people, because at the end of the day, they were a metaphor that we were free to interpret however we want. Mental illness, queerness, disability, being “different” - you name it. What’s vital is that because of this, all sorts of people connected with Elsa. And seeing her die would’ve hurt. A lot.

And well, it’s obvious that kids would’ve been deeply hurt by this. The younger audience already didn’t enjoy Elsa vs Nokk. They didn’t like at all when Elsa froze. And something interesting to note, the final version toned this all down a little bit. Elsa’s freezing and thawing was originally accompanied by a much, much sadder soundtrack. They removed Elsa’s last breath, maybe in an attempt to make her death feel less “final”. We know shots in the Dark Sea fight were cut and this is painfully apparent in the last movie. Here’s what I’m talking about.

So, if the movie was modified down to removing Elsa’s last breath as to not upset kids (kids were, unsurprisingly, still upset by it) just imagine what would’ve happened if Elsa didn’t come back. Sure, apparently there was gonna be a snowflake, but... that doesn’t scream alive to me, again.

The merch would’ve flopped. What kid would want the doll of a dead character for Christmas? And we’re sleeping on the fact that Olaf was not gonna come back as a consequence, either. In terms of popularity with kids, Elsa is obviously number one, especially among girls. Olaf is number two, and boys’ favorite.

So, yes. It would’ve been devastating. If Anna had died in F1, while it would’ve hurt lots, it wouldn’t have hurt as much, because it’s the first movie of a franchise that’s just starting out. But F2 is the sequel to a movie that was showered in love and that received 2 shorts thanks to its popularity. As you said, kids (and adults too!) got attached to these characters over the span of six years. And to see them die would’ve been soul crushing. I know plenty of kids would’ve grieved them as if they were a real person. In fact, I would have too.

Were they gonna die, like, absolutely, 100% permanently, and not come back ever? No, I don’t think so. In fact they were probably setting up F3. Yes, it’s true it wasn’t gonna happen right after F2 - but after F2′s huge monetary success, I’m not afraid to say that I would see it happening soon. 2 years from now, 3, 4 even. But definitely not six. The reason F2 took so long is because F1 was supposed to be standalone movie, but it was so well received it got a sequel. That’s how things work in this world. If it brings money, Disney will try to milk it.

But that doesn’t change the fact F2 seemed like it was gonna end with a not-very-alive Elsa and a definitely-dead Olaf. This would’ve led to people being furious, sad, but I don’t doubt some would sort of like it for being different. What I think, though, is that because this ending seemed to be planned with much more anticipation, the plot’s quality would’ve been better. That’s something you just sort of deduce by logic, honestly.

Elsa and Olaf dying would’ve hurt people. I really wish to know exactly how it went, because execution matters. Some things sound one way on paper but feel completely different onscreen because of the execution. And I hope we learn the truth one day.

[formulatrash]

Basically just wanted to ask for literally anything about Mitch Evans (I am a kiwi and a truly embarrassingly big fan 😔) Also how does fe get its circuits - does the city in q approach them or the other way round etc. (this is also bc I dream of a race in NZ I am highly biased 😂)

A New Zealand track has actually been proposed, in Auckland. It got quite a long way through the negotiations process in 2019 but things fell apart at some stage due to city planning permission issues and event permits so FE couldn’t get it to work into the calendar at the time. 

The way it works is sort of either way round, FE do approach some places - or they’re approached by sponsors. So, say, Paris was a direct negotiation between the city, the FIA and Alejandro and then Julius Baer basically own Punta del Este or something so that’s through them. 

(Uruguay is a very left wing country that mysteriously has private banking tax haven Punta del Este on one corner and like, try not to think too hard about it I guess! Pay with Visa for 15% off...)

Then there’s specific bids that are backed by a city - usually by notable people who have the ear of politicians to whatever degree. For instance, some significant players in motorsport including the major players at Laureus Sport Foundation have formed a holding company for a bid for a Cape Town Eprix.

So the answer is: it’s complicated. Unlike F1, because the fees are not so astronomical, the bids rarely come from government - the exceptions are probably Saudi Arabia and the stop-start process that has been some proposals in Brazil and Azerbaijan. (both abortive) There was also a Sarajevo bid I would have been really delighted to see go further but never seemed to get anywhere, which I think had government support.

It’s radically different from most motorsport because of course there’s no circuit to bid for the race. The circuit only exists if it gets one - the complexity of street racing. So unlike, say, Silverstone looking at the finances and working out if it wants to renew its F1 deal, the holdings company for the London Eprix exists in abstract limbo without an event and permissions this year. 

I hope that kind of explains it? 

Something about Mitch... hmm, I talk about him a lot and I’m never sure what I’m repeating but Mitch is super clever. He has this slightly bro persona from being a GP2 chicken bucket fuckboi but he’s really, really clever. Most drivers are way smarter than they come across in interviews because they’re essentially trying to get away with saying not very much so you get their like, screensaver personality rather than the dude who 10 minutes ago was looking at 500 lines of faintly-printed numbers to see exactly where the diff twitched during FP2. 

But Mitch is sort of unabashedly smart about things and he likes explaining them - I think he’d probably be quite surprised himself by people saying that, because he’s distinctly un-nerd-ish but that actually just makes him better at giving answers about technical questions. 

He’s really keen for the championship to restart - he was in contention, last year and it’s painful that a battery failure on the final lap of the final race lost him third place in the standings but that’s how motorsport is. But Mitch could actually, really take the title this year - in a bit of a GP3 2012 recreation vs Antonio. 

Which is very cool to see, for a driver who started his very first race in Formula E knowing his second car didn’t work so he couldn’t finish it - but has stuck with and developed in and worked on the team. He’s fiercely loyal to Jaguar and a big part of why their programme has been so progressively successful.

[meaningofmotorsport]

Verstappen and Newgarden are on a roll! - Saturday Racing Round Up

F1

Instead of losing time to Mercedes over the past week, it looks as though Red Bull may have gained time on them, as even with a poor lap, Max could get his car well ahead of the Silver Arrows, and be best placed for the race tomorrow! It won’t be easy, but if he can get through Lap 1, and have no reliability issues, it could be three in a row for him!

There was a glimpse at McLaren’s qualifying pace last Saturday, when Lando got 4th, which became 3rd. This time though, they went even better, as he barely missed out on pole! It was an incredible effort by him and the team, although the race will be tougher, as the cars around him are much faster in race trim, so another 5th could be on the cards for him! It was also a very good day for Perez, who finally managed to get in front of the Mercedes, however, there is still a big gap to Max! Can he hold up the Mercs tomorrow?

The suggestion is that Mercedes have improved their straight line speed this time around, to try and close the gap, yet today at least, it did not work for them! Neither could get close to the top, and failed to improve on their final runs! I still think that Lewis could get 2nd in the race, but it won’t be easy, especially against Perez, and without some drama, the win looks out of reach! Bottas was right with Hamilton, which is good to see, however with the exploits of another driver on the grid, will it be enough to stay at Mercedes?

With the drama that was happening around them, it almost went unnoticed that Alpha Tauri got both cars well into the top 10. This is brilliant for both drivers, and it will be interesting to see how their race pace is, as the teams behind them, we know are really fast on a Sunday! One of those is Aston Martin, who used their upgrades to great effect, with a better qualifying effort with both drivers. Sadly, Vettel has a 3 place grid penalty for blocking Alonso, which is deserved, but could ruin his race!

You have to be impressed with how George bounced back from adversity, as he gets Williams their first ever Q3 appearance since Monza 2018! Absolutely spectacular performance, and not only that, he also does it on the mediums, beating much faster cars on the same tyres! Talking of that, Ferrari had a woeful day really, as they were beaten on pure pace by a Williams. We know that their race pace is electric, but when you are that far back, with no tyre advantage really, I can’t see them getting a tonne of points!

Alonso was unlucky as I said before, and the penalty doesn’t make up for what could have been another great day for him! His teammate though, has been pretty diabolical, on a par with Ricciardo, but he doesn’t have the excuse of a new car and team!

Who knows what tomorrow will bring, other than probably a dry race! That McLaren is fast on the straights, so could put Max under pressure on Lap 1! Behind those two, with cars out of position all down the field, we could see a crazy midfield again, with rapidly degrading tyres!

IndyCar

Newgarden is starting to take the mantle from Power, as the qualifying master of the series, as he racks up his 14th pole! All weekend he has been fast, and will want to overturn the misfortune at Road America, and get Penske a win! He will be the favourite, but anything can happen in this series!

Herta and Dixon will be his biggest challengers I feel, as both have success here before, and need to build some momentum behind them, having not won in a while! If the tyres go off as fast as we think they will, the undercut could be their biggest friend!

Power and Rossi are going crazy just to get a win on the board, so, on a tight track like this, they could get forceful, which could go either way for them! My money would be on Power, as he has looked better all year, and could learn a lot from his teammates pace!

Palou was a surprise to not reach the fast 6, given his speed all weekend, but he barely missed out. One advantage of that may be less wear on his tyres, however I am sure he didn’t plan it! Hinchcliffe did well to reach Round 2, and needed that result, with his future in the series under threat! It is a similar story for Hunter Reay, although he has performed better of the two of them over the year!

Grosjean and O’Ward were the two big names to lose out in the first part of qualifying, both made mistakes on crucial laps, although they didn’t seem to have the pace either to challenge for pole! Pagenaud got unlucky with a spin for Harvey, which cost him a spot in the next round. It may have cost Harvey more though, as he was so fast in that session, but lost his best lap!

This track at Mid-Ohio has produced both intriguing strategies and brilliant overtaking moves over the years, so tomorrow could be another great race for IndyCar!

-M

Thank you very much for reading this article! To keep up to date with when they go out, and to see my reactions to races and other news, follow me on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/MeaningofMotor1

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[andrewuttaro]

New Look Sabres: GM 33 - NSH - Jack for Hart

4-3 Regulation Win

Sometimes this team sucks ass. Sometimes it’s fun. In the career of Jack Eichel the results tend toward the latter. Since his sophomore season we have patiently awaited his arrival as a bona fide superstar in the NHL. We have awaited the evidence to shift from why to why not on face of the franchise. We have arrived at the nexus of the Eichel Sabres. Every goal you can think of Jack Eichel can do: tip-in, tight-angle, slapshot, snapshot, Ovechkin office, blueline, boards, up close, far back, you name it he does it. The Buffalo Sabres success or failure runs through Jack Robert Eichel. You thought his 19th and 20th goals were fun last game, well here comes 21 and 22, baby! Say it with me: Jack Eichel for Hart. Jack Eichel for MVP! We’ll get into how he took over this particular game in a minute. For right now allow me to direct your attention to the team around him. Zach Bogosian asked for a trade. All joking about what Bogo is or isn’t on the ice aside his numbers are brutal and his time with this team has been ruined by injury. Trading him will be difficult if it happens. Rasmus Ristolainen this season is proof winning can make you forget where else you want to be. However the reported request begs another question: What is the plan for this season for the Front Office? I have reason to believe, for several reasons, Jason Botterill and the Front Office of this organization targeted 2020-2021 to be their first season truly gunning for the playoffs. John Vogl replied as much to me in an Athletic subscriber Q&A and others, well informed and not, have suggested as much on social media. Whether it was Botterill’s plan from the moment he walked in the door in 2017 or not we may never know. Now, 2.5 years into the second rebuild we’re… uh… in a playoff spot with not a lot of faith we’ll still be in one come April? The other piece here is that there will be an absurd amount of cap room available in the summer. It’s the ideal opportunity to really make some big moves. Perhaps that’s the reason names like Zemgus Girgensons, Johan Larsson, Jake McCabe and yes maybe even Rasmus Ristolainen are still on the team. He’s just skating an entertaining-enough roster to get to this coming summer with no intention of seriously pushing for a playoff spot. I have feelings on this theory of course but more on that later. We got a real slobber-knocker of a game tonight to talk about.

The Nashville Predators sit in a similar situation to the Sabres. They’re just kinda middling as well: a game below .500 fighting for a playoff spot. Both these teams wanted the two points tonight and both teams came out showing their intent to go get it. There was a goal scored in the first minute of this game just like Tuesday. This time it was for the other team. A weird zone entry for the Preds that you’re justified in thinking might be offsides and suddenly Matt Duchene is dangling the pants off everything that stood in his way. Even Linus Ullmark was no match and got deked out before the goal, 1-0 Nashville. It took about 15 minutes but the clap-back energy that is present in this team when they’re at their best arrived when a weird Ristolainen move up in front of the Predators net gave Jimmy Vesey the last touch on a tap-in equalizer. It can not be understated how fast paced this game was from the very first period. When Colton Sissons hammered home a long distance five-hole tally late in the first frame it seemed the home team was out-running itself, still flying to defensive positions. Then period number two came. The Jack Attack arrived in force. A long pass to Sam Reinhart got to the Captain who sized up his options and moved in on Juuse Saros. He shot it top shelf in a tight situation. It was very frankly arousing. The 1980s style graphics and music made it feel surreal and I wasn’t even in the building. Especially as the night went on the building got louder and louder. It wasn’t even a sellout but somehow it doesn’t need to be: when the team is fun so is the building. Take note, Terry.

There are a lot of guys on the team making this fun little stretch of hockey go. Brandon Montour is at full potential. He was probably the best defenseman on the ice the same night Rasmus Dahlin came back. What do you know: Rasmus Ristolainen now has seven points in eight games. Winning solves a lot of our grievance doesn’t it? Also great: Marcus Johansson. There were several rushes and neat zone entries that ran through the super center. Johansson has quickly become the wildest dreams for a second line center Jason Botterill had when he asked for Patrik Berglund. This game was too fun to bring up stuff like that. The returning Rasmus Dahlin got a puck to Henri Jokiharju at the blueline about 14 minutes into the second period. Joker took the shot and it got a tasty touch from Eichel in the slot to redirect it in. Go-ahead goal 3-2 Sabres. The clap-back was on fire. But Nashville has clap-back in spades as well. One opportunity for the visitors beat Ullmark only for the outstretched stick of the Captain to block it. This game was an F1 duel. Four minutes left in the second period and the Preds were in a sustained cycle of zone time. Ryan Johansen got a sneaky rebound the snuck over Linus Ullmark’s outstretched left pad. It was equal again at 3-3. That was probably the most merited score I’ve seen through forty minutes this season. This game, especially the middle frame was just so incredibly even. It was back and forth by the eye-test and 50/50 in most every statistical category as well. Victor Olofsson said it in postgame: “We have confidence because we’re playing like we were earlier this year… we changed the way we play in games like this… we took momentum.”

The fabulous rookie was the decider in this game. Olofsson is becoming the Swedish Artemi Panarin. YES, I’M COMPARING OLOFSSON TO PANARIN! He took over the lead in goals among rookies with a goal off his own rebound. Sam Reinhart kept the puck in the offensive zone and fired a long pass to Brandon Montour on the left boards. Montour put it net-front to Olofsson who took a shot and missed. The rebound bounced around behind the net and he collected it himself to put up and in behind Saros. It was now 4-3 Buffalo and something special unfolded. While there were select chances for Nashville, the defensive play ticked up like everyone was playing penalty kill. The Preds kept getting tied up in the neutral zone, a tale I remember vividly going the other way in an early December game with Nashville last season. This Buffalo team, much like the other one, has found the way to not only winning close games, but forcing the other team to work hard if they hope to have a chance. As the minutes and seconds in regulation ticked away you could see the visitors get more frantic. The Predators ended up outshooting the Sabres 39-32 but thanks to Linus Ullmark continuing to inspire confidence in front of him and a whole team that has discovered their defensive prowess, the goals category remained in favor of Buffalo. Even when Nashville pulled their goalie it seemed as thought they were just taking a series of slappers in the general direction of the Sabres net. None would go, the Sabres won their third straight for the first time since the fast times back in October. Buffalo honored the old Aud and the high scoring 1980s with real gunslinging kinda of a game.

So what is this fun for? It appears this team has arisen from a slump like few teams of recent years were able to. Now that is sorta appears they can, will they pursue the much-pined-for playoff berth? Long time readers of the blog will know exactly my feelings on the 2020 scenario I led this postgame with. I want playoffs now and I think this franchise needs playoffs now! I think this team was good enough to do it last season! Yeah, I’m bullish on that. However, the Alex Galchenyuk rumor, from the mouth of Darren Dreger mind you, disrupts the 2020 theory just a little bit. Galchenyuk, a reclamation project for sure, is an attempt at adding legitimate top six talent. If you get 50% of what Galch was two seasons ago, hell if you get his normal point production, you have a complete top six. Not only that but you have a top six more or less proven to be what this Coach would want to play on night-to-night basis. Love it or hate it Ralph Krueger has always come back to that same top line. Does this team plus a Galchenyuk move not look like a team trying to make the playoffs this season? Once more, how many of us twitter GMs have prognosticated that this team is one top six player away from being something great? Not great like not losing most games, great like could make the playoffs and have a fighting chance once they get there. Games as exciting as tonight are ultimately nothing but memories if they don’t contribute to a point total that can get you a spot in the dance. What does the Front Office think of this season? They can make a decisive statement with a trade, will they?

Believe it or not this was the Sabres first win against the Preds at home since 2008. It was only the second home win against the Predators in Sabres history. That’s an interesting stat. The stats that mattered tonight though are leads. The Sabres defended their last one for eleven and a half minutes against the Predators. That’s hot. More leads: Jack Eichel passed Alex Ovechkin to reach second in the league in goal scoring with his two goals while Victor Olofsson passed Cale Makar for the rookie lead in goal and points. Unreal. As crazy as this is right now the December schedule has no mercy for us. Now the Sabres fly off on a three-game road trip of the Islanders, the Leafs, and the Flyers. That’s not a cake walk. We have a strong MVP candidate on our hands and a very decent Calder Trophy candidate as well; but all our fawning has to mean something or you minus well just call this a rerun. Let’s end on a fun note though, this game merited it: When the Sabres played their last game at the Aud in April 1996 none of Jack Eichel, Rasmus Asplund, Casey Mittelstadt, Henri Jokiharju and Rasmus Dahlin were born yet. It’s a new age in Buffalo. It’s a New Look Sabres!

Thanks for Reading.

P.S. Yes, I know there are also reports Botterill has put a trade on the backburner since the winning resumed. Let’s just hope that’s not the case and move on. Enjoy nice things while you have them: the Sabres are three points up on a playoff spot.

[eddiejpoplar]

Why is Tavo Hellmund North America’s F1 Hero?

Tavo Hellmund, the lean, dimpled, gimlet-eyed Texan who deftly negotiates the uptight, ultra-sophisticated, almost sinister world of Formula 1 on a daily basis, recently quit chewing tobacco.

One, it isn’t good for him. Two, his wife and kids didn’t much care for it. Three, it frees him from the need to, multiple times a day, search for an empty can in which to spit tobacco juice. Four, giving up a habit he had since college might make him look less like a typical Texas goober, all hat and no cattle, to the globetrotting zillionaires who play high-stakes hands in the game of F1.

But there is no Four; Hellmund doesn’t give a rat’s ass about appearance. He doesn’t wear a hat, has no cattle. What he does have is a nice touch for finding money, locating facilities, creating cooperation among those who seldom do, and delivering not one but two F1 races to North America—first, the U.S. Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas near Austin, Texas, a track he first sketched out on a napkin and named over the phone as he spoke with a friend.

Second, there would be no Mexican Grand Prix, staged with enormous success at the old, historic Autódromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City, had Hellmund not engineered the deal and overseen reconstruction of the track.

In 2015, for the first time since 1992, F1 returned to Mexico City. The crowd, 335,850 over the three-day weekend, was “like being at a football game,” said world champion Lewis Hamilton after the inaugural race. “The fans have been amazing. I’ve never seen anything like this.”

So that’s what Hellmund, 52, did to rate a Forbes.com profile headlined “Formula One’s Billion Dollar Man,” which is roughly the value of the two F1 contracts he secured. And he did it while operating well under the radar.

Hellmund was born in Mexico City on February 24, 1966, seven weeks early, in a hurry even then. After his parents split, he lived with his mother in Austin but often visited his father, who remained in Mexico City. That would be Gustavo Hellmund-Rosas, who Hellmund inherited his motorsports passion from. Hellmund-Rosas raced; he bought one of those red, white, and blue American Motors Javelins Roger Penske campaigned in the Trans-Am series, took it to Mexico, and ran it in a similar series there. The younger Hellmund also inherited his knack for motorsports promotion.

The Mexican GP’s mega revival

His father assembled a credible but unsuccessful effort to bring F1 back to Mexico City in 1980, so he moved to Plan B: a pair of CART IndyCar races (CART promoter of the year in 1980) and some IMSA sports car races. Bernie Ecclestone, then the F1 czar,  negotiated the rights to the Mexican Grand Prix with Hellmund’s father, and F1 returned to Mexico City in 1986. Air pollution regulations helped kill the race after 1992, and it didn’t return until Hellmund helped bring it back.

The younger Hellmund spent summers in Mexico City and helped with every aspect of the IndyCar and IMSA races and also the 1986 World Cup. Inevitably he began driving, first in karts. “Never at the top level, but I probably should have,” he says. He contested the Skip Barber series, “which was the first place I could really measure my ability against others and see if I had what it took to seriously go for it.” He won in SCCA racing, as well as in late models on short ovals, and he was good enough to take the next step. Also during summers, Hellmund worked for Ecclestone, a longtime family friend, at the Brabham F1 team, which Ecclestone owned. He moved to Europe in order to become the next Dan Gurney or Mario Andretti. He did not.

Tavo Hellmund in F3 and working on the Brabham team.

“I knew if you were serious about getting a shot at F1, you had to go there,” he says. He settled in Cambridge, England, which is where a lot of young racers ended up because it was located roughly in the center of several important tracks. Neighbors and friends included future stars Hélio Castroneves, Cristiano da Matta, Rubens Barrichello, and Mário Haberfeld. “They called it the ‘University of Auto Racing,’ and it was,” Hellmund recalls. “A lot of F1 champions went through there.”

Hellmund early on showed flashes of talent, but budget constraints prevented continuity. He scored poles and wins in Formula Ford and had solid runs in Formula Vauxhall Jr. (quicker than Dario Franchitti in some) and in British Formula 3. But the competition was insane.

“In the U.S., it seemed like there were two types of young drivers: fast and poor, or rich and slow,” he says. “I expected the same in Europe. I was wrong. There were rich guys who were very, very fast, groomed from birth to be a race car driver.” Eventually, Hellmund got tired of trying to do more with less. “I went back to Austin, licking my wounds.”

Maybe Hellmund had one last shot at the pros: He built a little shop in the back of an Austin junkyard, bought a NASCAR Chevrolet race car from Tim Beverley, borrowed an engine from NASCAR champion team owner Rick Hendrick, and went to California to compete in the NASCAR Winston West race held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in May 2001. “We towed out there with a dually pickup truck and had the car on an open trailer,” Hellmund says. “They didn’t want to let us in. They thought we were there for some vintage car race.”

The crew was all-volunteer. “My quickest pit stop took 51 seconds,” Hellmund says. But he won the FoodsCo NASCAR Challenge, beating drivers such as Brendan Gaughan, 2002 series champion Eric Norris, and the legendary Herschel McGriff.

The next step: Bernie Ecclestone (center) is gone from Formula 1, but Tavo Hellmund, always his own man, embraces the future with new F1 owner, Liberty Media.

By 2004, where Hellmund had been and where he was going collided. He had started a company, Full Throttle Productions. He promoted several NASCAR and USAC National events with his wife, Aryn, winning promoter of the year for the Texas Racefest event in 2006—the only event that ever combined a NASCAR Grand National race and a USAC National Midget race on the same weekend. He tried to race in the NASCAR portion of the event but was spread too thin. “The race sold out, but I realized you can’t race and promote at the same time,” he says. “I had to make a choice.”

Meanwhile, F1 wasn’t long for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where it made its debut in 2000. By 2006, rumors flew that F1 was going to pull the plug, and as it turned out, 2007 saw the last F1 race at Indy. Hellmund’s mind went into top gear. He knew racing in general, F1 in particular. He knew promotion. He knew Austin. He knew the politicians. He knew Texas had a deep-pocketed fund to help finance sporting events. And most of all, he knew Ecclestone.

Hellmund says he had never asked the F1 dictator for a dime, even when he was the quintessential starving young American racer in Europe. But once he assembled a solid business plan, he finally asked him for something: the first meeting to discuss F1 in Austin. Ecclestone trusted Hellmund, a rarity in the series.

Job done: Ex-Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone and ex-Texas Comptroller Susan Combs are old news, but Circuit of the Americas, Tavo Hellmund, and Mexico’s race are thriving.

The motorsports world was stunned when, in May 2010, F1 announced it would return to the U.S. in 2012, and yes, it would do so in Texas. Hellmund was the man quoted in the official press release. To all but a handful of F1 insiders and a moderately larger handful of short-track race fans, he was an unknown quantity, immediately legitimized on the world’s largest motorsports stage.

Another announcement said the race would be held at Circuit of the Americas, a new 3.427-mile permanent road course. Hellmund and Full Throttle would supply the F1 contract and the path to the state funding; investors, most notably Texas car dealer Red McCombs, would supply the money to build the track.

Hellmund, a notoriously comprehensive and savvy planner, budgeted for everything. The track would cost $200 million to build, he told a friend, “and the F1 race should make us $5 million. That’s not a lot—the promoter and the track get less of the pie than you’d think—but we get a paid-for racetrack out of the deal with the state money.”

As hardcore F1 fans know, that’s not how it worked out. Serious issues arose between Hellmund and other investors who wanted more of the limelight, and Hellmund was essentially forced out of his own project. He sued, and part of the resolution included a provision that neither side would comment on the situation publicly. But a source familiar with the case suggests Hellmund, “ironically, might be the only person to make money on Circuit of the Americas.” Suddenly, with him gone, the cost to build the track essentially doubled, and the facility’s executive staff suffered from considerable turnover. The state’s Major Events Reimbursement Program, which kicks in more than $25 million annually to pay the $20 million sanctioning fee and other expenses, has drawn fire from critics wondering why taxpayers must so heavily subsidize a privately operated event. Indeed, the Austin event is the only F1 round in the world where a government contributes enormous amounts of money but doesn’t own any part of the event, track, or land.

All of which, of course, Hellmund left behind, by choice or not, thus freeing him to organize the Mexican Grand Prix, which has hit one home run after another since its 2015 debut.

As for Hellmund? Well, he’d like to go racing again. There’s a little unfinished business.

The post Why is Tavo Hellmund North America’s F1 Hero? appeared first on Automobile Magazine.

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Red Bull Vs. McLaren by breNdzz

Since Season 16 there have been TWO teams that have dominated Formula 1 in MRC. Those two teams are Redbull and Mclaren. Since S16 no other team has won the Constructors Title, and only one other team Jordan have been able to steal a Drivers Title from these teams. I thought I would get a hold of the team managers and drivers for both teams and see if they consider themselves direct rivals and perhaps get an insight to how both teams approached and achieved their successes. Redbull Team Manager (JordanF1) Q) As a viewer, it appears the last 5 seasons have almost been a head to head between the two great teams excluding interruptions by Jordan? When do you guys consider the Rivalry began? A) In fact, we do not consider any rivalry, we just try to do our best every season. Since we began in Formula One we had to deal with many good other teams but we never act just to respond to one or another, we are just here to do our best season after season. We never look at short terms objectives, some teams did and lost a lot. Q) As a Team Manager when preparing for a new season how much effort goes into making sure you can beat Mclaren? Do you guys watch the other teams around you as closely as you would Mclaren? A) Of course, we are looking what other teams are doing and sometimes we think the strategy of some teams are quite strange and curious. The last few seasons, we probably looked a little bit more what McLaren was doing, especially with the making of the new engine. They had quite a similar strategy to ours and I think we were the only two teams to do so, that is probably why we have at this moment the two best engines. McLaren is a great team, well managed and we are pleased to fight against them each season. Q) You've never finished lower than 4th in team championship, in Season 19 you finished below Jordan in 3rd place. How much do you attribute this sudden drop in form to trying to chase down Mclaren in the tightly fought Season 18? A) Each season is different and you'll never know what will exactly happen. The chance is an important part of the game and sometimes you have chance, sometimes you don't. Look at Rapido's last season; I think he just was unlucky because his car and ours were equal. In season 19 we were just unlucky because we had a good car and Alexandre was unlucky all the season. Last season Romain had a great Season and we managed to win with a big gap of almost 100 points. Since some seasons, good money managing has become important. Some teams have spent in a non-reasonable way targeting short terms goals. Growing slowly and steadily is the subject; look at what Williams did ... F1 Redbull Driver SatF1 aka Romain Louis Grosjean Jr Q) In season 16, Rapido and Grosjean began what has become a 6 season, looking to be 7 season long battle between each other thus creating the rivalry between Redbull and Mclaren. Grosjean took the title that season by a mere 10 points. How much of that season do you remember? Tell us about it? A) This season was so terrific for me. I was so afraid at the beginning because our leader had begun to lose skills and I was wondering if I could help him enough to stay at the top. I managed, this season to grab 9 victories, I was so happy race after race. Our leader, Philippe de Saint-Germain Jr decided to help me for my first title and that was what he did. I'd like to thank him for that again. Th title was finally easy to get even if the final score does not show it perfectly. This season will stay as my best season because we broke all records that season!! Q) In season 18, after two titles in a row for yourself and Redbull, Rapido and yourself were beaten to the title by Novikov in the Jordan even though Mclaren and Redbull teams finished 1st and 2nd respectively. Did you focus on beating Rapido too much this season and that allowed Novikov to sneak up on you both? A) I was not focused on anybody in fact. I just wanted to grab a new title and do the best possible for the team. That season, the chance was not our side in qualifications and Jordan manage to do better than us. Novikov did the best job and he totally deserved the crown. Q) Rapido has been a long-term rival in his Mclaren now for many seasons, you have managed to win 3 titles to his 2, although in season 19 and 20 he took back to back titles, how did you manage to turn that around in such dominating fashion in season 21 taking the title by 93 points? A) Between Rapido and me it is a long story. We first race against each other in F2 and despite I was very young, I managed to win the championship. He was already used to put too much risk Red Bull always gave me a very good car so I had no doubt I could win a third title at a moment or another. This moment came in season 21 and I must admit it was a very easy season for me and Red Bull. But things change all the time and this season will be clearly more difficult. Q) Of Redbulls eight drivers’ titles, you hold 3 of them, your previous teammate Saint-Germain Jr has 5 of them. Do you think you can equal or beat his record, and how much did you learn from him during your time as team mates? A) Philippe de Saint-Germain Jr will stay for me as the best driver ever. I won't be able to equal him and I guess nobody will be able either. PSG taught me everything in formula 1. During two seasons, he taught me race by race all possible strategies that could work in Formula one. F1 Redbull Driver promocourse aka Alexandre De Montferrand Q) For six seasons now you have partnered Grosjean at Redbull, in that time together you have both delivered the Team Championship two times. Although pivotal in helping to deliver those Championships you have had to watch Grosjean and Rapido share the majority of titles. You have arguably one of the hardest drives in F1, I mean no offence when I ask but has that been difficult for you, or are you playing a team role? A) I know Grosjean and the Manager of Jordan F1, Willy, from a long time (4 years ago) in another game as MRC. I never met them but between us we developed a friendship. So, when F1 has been introduced in MRC we have created the team Red Bull Vaillante F1. We decided that Romain will be the first driver and Alexandre the second. Jordan and Sat have more time to spend in the game as me. So, the most important is to win both titles at the end of season. We had plenty of success in our bet and Alexandre is satisfied. This season, Alexandre is luckier than Romain and we are at the beginning of the season. If Alexandre get a chance to win the championship, he will do his best and his partners will be satisfied. For the time being, it’s impossible to know which driver will be champion but we can already say that it will be between McLaren or RBV F1 drivers. The most important for us is that RBV F1 is the team reference in Formula One from the beginning, statistics speak for us and we are our proud of that. Q) In season 20 you finished 4th in the Drivers Championship, and then in season 21, you had your best Drivers Championship finish of 3rd place, and Redbull absolutely dominated the Team Championship that Season taking the title by a monstrous 126 points. Fast forward to the early stages of Season 22 and you again sit 3rd, ahead of your team mate Grosjean this time. What do you attribute to your rich form of late? And can you take the title? A) First, our team manager, Willy Jordan, is monstrous in each design of RBV car. It means, for pilots, the car is easy to drive in all circumstances. As I told you before, to be the second driver is not a problem for me. So, my obligations are to make a maximum of points when Romain has difficulties and for teams’ average. This season, I continue my normal way while Romain got problems at each qualifications or races. He has not had much lucky. In the same time, the opposition of McLaren is at a high level and we drive all often over the limit. I finish each race and that’s why I am at the second place of the championship. If I can win the title, I will do it. Q) You joined Redbull in Season 17 replacing MRCs most successful F1 driver to date, was there a lot of pressure or were you given time to find your feet? A) That's true, I replace de St Germain but without any pressure. I am a partner in RBV F1 and all decisions are agreed on by all others. It was difficult at the beginning but now, I can say, I join the group of the best F1 drivers. I am proud of that. F1 Mclaren Team Owner and Driver Invictus aka Rocco Rapido Q) As a viewer, it appears the last 5 seasons have almost been a head to head between the two great teams excluding interruptions by Jordan? When do you guys consider the Rivalry began? A) We don’t really care about rivalry in that sense, we rather focus on our own car and our own performance. Our claim is to be do the best job and be on top, not just at end of the season, but in every race. If there’s anyone ahead of us at the finish line, it doesn’t matter if it is Red Bull or any other team. What then counts is that we couldn’t fulfil ambitions and need to work even harder on the next race. Q) As a Team Manager when preparing for a new season how much effort goes into making sure you can beat Redbull? Do you guys watch the other teams around you as closely as you would Redbull? A) There’s no effort caused by ensuring to beat Red Bull or any other team. There’s a maximum you can get out of the car and we’re trying to achieve this maximum. You might rather say we’re trying to beat (game) physics than anything else. Of course, we’re also watching every team that has the potential to reach the podium and win races on a regular basis. This isn’t applying to Red Bull only, also Jordan and most recently Williams have proven to be considerable threats to our victory. However, unless it might come to a real showdown at end of the season, it doesn’t afflict our plans or strategies at all. The strongest opponent we’re facing since past season still is fortuna herself, and even if she hasn’t always meant it too good with us during these past months, we strongly believe that she’ll open her heart for us once again. Q) Mclaren has now won 3 Constructors Titles(S18,S19 and S20), Rapido has taken 2 titles in that time(S19 and S20). Although early days now, you guys are on track to take a 4th Constructors title in S21 and more than likely the Drivers Title as well. This will move you one title ahead of Lamborghini and move a step closer to Redbulls 6 titles meaning you will have won 4 of the last 5 Constructors Championships. With one ageing Champion and a very promising youngster can you guys continue to pull in these titles? A) We don’t care about the past, but about what still lies ahead of us. We have great trust in all our current and future drivers and are positive that they’ll make their contributions to further titles. Q) In season 16, Rapido and Grosjean began what has become a 6 season, looking to be 7 season long battle between each other thus creating the rivalry between Redbull and Mclaren. Grosjean took the title that season by a mere 10 points. How much of that season do you remember? Tell us about it? A) It was a very close championship in the “good old times”, in those days overtaking was nearly impossible. The results of the qualifying were known in advance as the car and Red Bull mostly determined them was in the first row at almost every race. Therefore, it already was a small miracle that Rapido was only 2 or 3 points behind Grosjean before the last race. The qualifying was almost perfect, Rapido was beaten by his teammate Di Rado, but more important, he also was in front of Grosjean. Then our team had a surprising idea. There was a new race setting "Allow Teammate to Overtake", so we sent Di Rado with a 2-stop strategy on the track. Rapido had planned 3 stops. Because of this setting, Rapido should easily be able to pass Di Rado at the first few laps, and then Di Rado should block the whole field. Unfortunately, this idea was too brilliant for the game as MRC was obviously not ready for such considerations. Rapido was held up and lost a lot of time, making Grosjean win the race and become world champion. It was frustrating to lose the championship this way, however I still believe that S16 was Rapido’s best season. Q) You have been driving for Mclaren for many years now, after being runner up a few times and a 3rd place, you managed to take the Drivers Titles in Season 19 and 20, beating Grosjean to the titles by 26 points and 41 points respectively. That puts you guys at 2-3 in Grosjeans favour, how have you enjoyed the rivalry between yourself and Redbull? A) I don’t draw any specific comparisons to other drivers. Whoever wants to win must beat everyone else, that much it is. Q) In season 21, Grosjean fought back in commanding fashion to take the title by 93 points, you looked like you endured a difficult season. Did Mclaren put too much into trying to beat Redbull in Season 20 or was this difficult season a plan to come out strong for Season 21? A) Of course not. McLaren always has the same goal: to win both championships. It doesn’t matter if the rival is Red Bull, Jordan or any other team. Our car at S21 was at the same level as S22, but we suffered a streak of bad luck. However, this season luck seems to be a little bit more on our side so far. It’s almost like compensatory justice. Q) As Redbull and Grosjean appear to struggle by their standards from last season. You're new teammate Garcia appears to be giving you a solid run for your money here in Season 21, and you both look to be well in control of the Constructors Championship for Mclaren. Is this indicative of seasons to come or do you expect Redbull to fight back hard in Season 23? ( P.S Can you beat Garcia?  ) A) Of course, they will fight back and because of the numerous rule-changes, there are now many teams that can fight for victories. Nevertheless, I expect that McLaren and Red Bull will be fighting for both titles next season. Our new driver duo Morales Garcia and Novikov can compete against every opponent. P.S. yes! But it doesn’t matter to be #1 or #2 if it is a McLaren driver who wins the championship. May the best man win, or the luckier one... F1 Mclaren Driver kikemori aka Enrique Morales Garcia Q) You just joined Mclaren last season, and endured a difficult start by Mclarens standards as Redbull ran away with both titles. Mclaren and yourself have really hit top gear this season and you are really giving Rapido a run for his money on track. Can you beat him, will you be allowed to beat him? A) The main goal of the team is the constructor’s championship, therefore my goal at every race is to get the best possible result and if I must outrun my team mate to achieve so, the team won't have a problem with it since team orders doesn't exist, which is good. However, if at the end of the season we have already won the constructors championship and one of us is in the position to win the drivers’ championship I assure you that we will do what we need to make that happen. Q) Season 22 before the race at Canada, your level with Rapido on 101points each, Were you under much pressure for the season and did you expect such a solid start to the season? A) I don't have much pressure coming from the team since they have shown me that they have complete trust on me and I'm at 100% with them. I put myself the pressure on me, because I'm very demanding with myself and very ambitious. I would like to win every single race, get all the pole positions and fastest laps. I don't like to lose to even playing cards. I am looking forward to get good results this season and maybe to win a few more races. Redbull VS Mclaren History in Numbers Season 16 Redbull 1st Mclaren 2nd Grosjean by 10 points Season 17 Redbull 1st Mclaren 2nd Grosjean by 76 points Season 18 Mclaren 1st Redbull 2nd Jordan 3rd Novikov (Jordan) by 34 points Season 19 Mclaren 1st Jordan 2nd Redbull 3rd Rapido by 26 points Season 20 Mclaren 1st Redbull 2nd Rapido by 41 points Season 21 Redbull 1st Jordan 2nd Mclaren 3rd Grosjean by 93 points Points since Season 16 Grosjean - 1,836 Rapido - 1,671 Novikov - 1,384 Driver Titles since S16 Grosjean - 3 Rapido - 2 Novikov - 1 Constructors Titles since S16 Redbull - 3 Mclaren - 3