The Honda MotoGP factory team is finalising a deal with Castrol to replace Repsol from the 2025 season, Motorsport.com has learned.

Although it was an open secret for months, Repsol executives formally informed Honda of their intention not to extend their sponsorship deal – which expires at the end of this season – on the Sunday of this year’s San Marino Grand Prix.

With a brief statement sent just after the MotoGP race, the Spanish company put an end to 30 years of a relationship that began losing strength following the departure of Marc Marquez from the Japanese squad at the end of last year.

Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda Team

Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images

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Repsol’s financial contribution to HRC was considerably reduced once the Spanish rider’s departure to Gresini was confirmed, a circumstance that was reflected in the evident loss of the oil company’s logo on the RC213V, going from occupying a central place to moving to the underside of Joan Mir and Luca Marini’s bikes.

In fact, if the Honda manufacturer’s factory squad has continued to identify itself as the Repsol Honda Team, it has been thanks to a gesture of goodwill from the Japanese brand, which, in any case, has raced with its bikes decorated mainly in the corporate colours (red, blue and white), rather than black.

The Honda/Repsol partnership began in 1995 and has since produced a total of 15 riders’ titles, 10 constructors’ titles and 183 race victories.

With the break-up now just a few months away, Motorsport.com has learned that Honda has already agreed a deal with Castrol for the British oil company to fill the gap left by Repsol from next season onwards.

Castrol is one of the main partners of the LCR team, owned by Lucio Cecchinello, which has the fuel and lubricant company as a main sponsor on the side of the garage currently occupied by Johann Zarco.

The new partnership with the factory team does not, however, jeopardise the existing one with LCR.

While the relationship between Castrol and the Tokyo-based manufacturer’s factory team will not reach title sponsor status by 2025, the relationship could go further depending on a number of factors.

Lando Norris has conceded that “driving like a muppet” at the start of the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix ultimately led to the controversial battle with Max Verstappen.

The Red Bull driver made a lunge up the inside of Norris into the first corner, forcing both wide and allowing Charles Leclerc through into the lead on the way to an eventual dominant victory.

While Verstappen’s move could have brought repercussions for its forceful nature, the fact it was on lap one meant the race stewards dismissed the case.

When the duo met again at the end of the race with Norris trying to take the final podium spot, the three-time champion again pushed his title rival wide and, despite both running off-track, it was the McLaren that was penalised for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.

While much ire was directed towards the decision post-race, Norris held his hands up for leaving space for Verstappen to attack into the first corner, which eventually led to the late-race tussle.

“Turn one, I didn’t do the correct thing but I feel like what happened at the end of the race was more on my side. Otherwise, it was a good battle, and I enjoyed it. We just didn’t come out on top because I didn’t do a good enough job.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, battle into turn 1

Photo by: Steve Etherington / Motorsport Images

“If I defended better in turn one and wasn’t driving like a muppet, then I should have led after Turn 1, and we shouldn’t have this conversation in the first place…”

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella was very careful not to direct anger towards Verstappen in his comments after the race, underlining his frustration was with the stewards and the state of F1’s rules.

Norris was also full of respect for his rival, insisting: “I think Max drove very well.

“It’s very hard to do what we’re doing, and it’s hard when you’re side by side, you’re completely one side of the track to guess where your braking marker is.

“You’re going quicker than you have before because you use the battery, the tyres are older, there’s different bumps, there’s a lot of dirt, we’re battling and fighting hard… so I respect the battle that we had, it was a good one, it was enjoyable, I think it was respectful.”

Three FIA Formula 3 race winners are among numerous drivers from the series to step down a level of the single-seater ladder to enter next month’s Macau Grand Prix.

F3 cars have traditionally contested the Macau World Cup event, but organisers revealed earlier this year that they would swap to Formula Regional machinery for the 2024 edition on 17 November, saying it was “a natural consequence of the evolution of the junior single-seater landscape”. 

Several F3 frontrunners were unimpressed by the move at the time, with series runner-up Gabriele Mini among those believing the event could suffer as a result.

However, the change has not stopped a host of this year’s F3 racers from appearing on the 27-strong entry list that has now been announced, and these drivers include championship frontrunners Oliver Goethe and Dino Beganovic.

Red Bull junior Goethe finished seventh in the standings after foregoing his slim chance to take the title by skipping the Monza finale and instead replacing F1-bound Franco Colapinto with MP Motorsport in F2. He will now continue with the Dutch squad for another Macau attack after taking ninth in last year’s GP. 

Ferrari Driver Academy member Beganovic, meanwhile, will again race for Prema, and rounding out the F3 victors so far signed up is Mari Boya (Pinnacle), who was fourth in Macau in 2023. 

Mari Boya, Campos Racing, Sebastian Montoya, Campos Racing and Oliver Goethe, Campos Racing

Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images

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Other F3 competitors entered include 2022 British F4 champion and McLaren junior Alex Dunne, who moves across to Prema from MP, and Noel Leon (Pinnacle).

Multiple current Formula Regional European Championship drivers have also been confirmed, including James Wharton (ART) and Tuukka Taponen (R-ace), who are second and third in the points ahead of this weekend’s Monza finale.

Meanwhile, progressing to Formula Regional competition will be Italian F4 dominator Freddie Slater, who is this week tackling the final shootout for the Silverstone Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award.

Alongside the FIA F3 and FRECA drivers and F4 graduates, Super Formula Lights race winners Rikuto Kobayashi and Jin Nakamura (both with TOM’S) are among a Japanese contingent tackling the event. 

“I am really happy to see so many of the most talented junior drivers and teams committed to the FIA FR World Cup,” said FIA single-seater committee president Emanuele Pirro. 

“This event has always been one of the toughest and more rewarding challenges on the pathway for young drivers as they progress towards the ultimate goal of Formula 1 and our other FIA World Championships, and to have so many different former champions of F4 and Formula Regional coming to Macau really brings the spirit of this historic race.”

There are still two unconfirmed drivers on the entry, with both MP and PHM having a seat available.

In Tennis terms the Central European Rally represented the first real match point moment for Thierry Neuville in his relentless 12-year quest to lift the World Rally Championship title.

The scene was set perfectly. An asphalt rally where being first on the road is advantage, featuring stages in Germany not a million miles from his and his Hyundai team’s home. But one thing that the WRC can guarantee in spades this season is unpredictability. 

As has often been the case for Neuville – a five-time championship runner-up – the Belgian was made to wait for glory again as fate intervened while on course for a career defining moment. Neuville only needed to outscore team-mate Ott Tanak by two points to seal rallying’s ultimate prize. But after a wild Sunday, where even world champions made errors, it was his nearest rival that triumphed to take the title fight to next month’s Japan finale.

“Obviously we came here with the hopes of winning the drivers’ and co-drivers’ titles in Germany, and a lot of supporters came down to line the stages to live an incredible moment with us, but unfortunately it wasn’t to be,” said Neuville.

The phrase “it wasn’t to be” was apt for several drivers as the Central European Rally was in the words of eventual winner Tanak a “very demanding rally.” It was demanding on several levels with crews completing stages in the Czech Republic, Germany and Austria. Throw in multiple surface changes, unpredictable weather and increasingly dirty roads and you have the perfect recipe for an unpredictable rally.

The start was however predictable as Toyota’s Sebastien Ogier ended Thursday’s two Czech stages following the ceremonial start in Prague with a 0.9s lead over Neuville, who was sporting some cosmetic damage to his right front wheel arch from hitting a bale in the super special. The surprise was the driver in third spot as Hyundai’s Andreas Mikkelsen, who had previously struggled to tame the i20 N on asphalt, come to the fore. A decision to go his own way on set up rather than following Neuville and Tanak helped the Norwegian, who is facing an uncertain future for 2025, come alive. 

Mikkelsen’s bright start however faded by stage five (Sumavske Hostice 1 – 16.85 km). Having dropped to sixth overall, Mikkelsen drifted wide on the leaf covered road and clattered a fence that tore the front from his i20 N resulting in retirement. Mikkelsen did rejoin the rally on Saturday only for a puncture to end any hopes of Super Sunday points.

Andreas Mikkelsen had made a stunning start to the rally before dropping back

Photo by: Fabien Dufour / Hyundai Motorsport

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Hybrid power had been a talking point in the lead up to the event, with the WRC potentially set for another U-turn with its 2025 technical regulations by removing this element due to a recent change in the user guide issued by Compact Dynamics, the supplier of the control units. The new regulations came into force in Greece last month stating that on safety grounds hybrid units can no longer be reset and if they fail on event they must be replaced and sent to the manufacturer for a repair adding significant costs to the teams.

By stage four, nearly half of the Rally1 cars had suffered hybrid failures. Toyota’s rising star Sami Pajari, making his first Rally1 outing on asphalt driving a fourth GR Yaris was the first to lose the hybrid boost before Mikkelsen, and the M-Sport duo Adrien Fourmaux and Gregoire Munster lost the use of hybrid following a particularly hard landings from the same jump in the Strasin 1 – 26.69 km – the longest of the rally.

Although, the lack of hybrid was the least of Fourmaux’s concerns having been strangely 1m33.4s off the pace in seventh overall come the end of Friday. The frustrated Frenchman declared that he was struggling with “everything” on the car and that “something was wrong”, which required a thorough investigation.

“I’m happy to be at the end. It is easy to make a mistake and I knew that the only thing that was important was to make it to the end” Thierry Neuville, Friday

At the front though, Neuville, who has had to engage damage limitation mode starting first on the road for the last seven consecutive gravel rallies, was thriving with the road position advantage on asphalt. The Hyundai driver hauled himself into the rally lead by stage five before going on to extend his lead over Ogier to 6.4s on slippery roads that were hard to judge and made even worse by light drizzle. With Tanak a further 1.4s back in third and Toyota’s Elfyn Evans only 15.1s in arrears, the battle for victory was tight, but Neuville knew if he could maintain this display the world title would be his come Sunday.

“I’m happy to be at the end. It is easy to make a mistake and I knew that the only thing that was important was to make it to the end,” said Neuville.

But the rally gods chose not to shine on Neuville on Saturday as fog made the morning stages that straddled the Germany/Austria border wet, and like driving on ice. The conditions were responsible for several drivers making unscheduled trips to the scenery, including Neuville.

Neuville’s lead had been reduced to 0.8s after Tanak produced a stunning time to win stage nine but according to the 2019 world champion “Cyril [Abiteboul, Hyundai team boss] didn’t like our first stage time and we started to get some messages”. Abiteboul clarified that these messages were made with the manufacturers title fight against Toyota in mind, reminding Tanak of the risks he should avoid taking.   

Neuville took an advantage overnight into Saturday

Photo by: Fabien Dufour / Hyundai Motorsport

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Tanak’s effort briefly elevated his i20 N to second ahead of Ogier before the Estonian dropped his pace too much in stage 10 (Beyond Borders, 24.433km) and fell back behind the Toyota that was only two second behind leader Neuville.

Neuville this year has rarely made an error, a loss of concentration in Sardinia, being his only real mistake. It is why he is leading the championship having scored points in every round. However, in stage 12, the Belgian made two costly mistakes. A 360 degree spin after touching the wet grass was recovered quickly but moments later he careered off the road luckily onto a large grass run-off area. In an effort to return to the road, he became briefly stuck in a ditch. More than half a minute was lost as he dropped to fourth and effectively his hopes of sealing a world title had evaporated.

“It was two spins, I mean the first one was a basic spin and the second one the pacenote was too fast,” Neuville told Motorsport.com. “It was a long corner and you don’t see the exit very well because it is uphill and when I entered the corner, it turned more than my pacenotes told me.”  

Neuville, now resigned to bringing the car home, wasn’t the only driver to be caught out. Ogier who inherited the lead survived a small moment, but admitted “it was easy to make a mistake” while M-Sport duo Fourmaux and Munster both enjoyed trips into fields, now with working hybrid units.

Fourmaux’s was the most spectacular as he skidded onto the grass and brushed the trees. However, the mysterious issue with his car came to light. M-Sport had made wholesale changes overnight but didn’t change the front differential which had developed a fault leaving that effectively reduced the Puma to a rear wheel drive only version. 

“As soon as there is dirt [on the road] it is hard to get it to go straight. It is undriveable,” said Fourmaux, whose day came to an end when he lost the rear of his Puma in stage 10 and the impact required a wheel change. Although damage to the hybrid cooling package put him out of the rally until Sunday where he produced much better speed.

The battle for the rally victory turned into a three-way fight. Tanak reduced Ogier’s advantage to 1.1s after stage 13 before Ogier reeled off two stages wins to end the day with a slender 5.2s margin, while an under the weather Evans was third, 14.0s in arrears. It was looking very good for Toyota in the manufacturers’ battle with Ogier picking up 18 provisional Saturday points and Evans 13.

Toyota was attempting to claw back ground in the manufacturer’s championship, with Ogier and Evans leading the charge

Photo by: Toyota Racing

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The WRC’s new points system is complex and divides opinion, but it has certainly ensured that Sundays are no longer sedate affairs – a conveyer belt of action and chaos is a better description as crews fight for 12 crucial Super Sunday points.

Hyundai has been the master of this new discipline while it has been a weakness for Toyota. The latter proved true as another ‘black Sunday’, as Toyota team principal Jari-Matti Latvala calls them, unfolded.   

First Toyota lost Pajari who had been highly impressive to head into Sunday sitting in fifth position. However, the young Finn came into left hander in stage 15 (Am Hochwald, 12.17km) too fast resulting in his GR Yaris finding a ditch and being pitched into a roll. 

“I think it was a soft roll but I don’t know why it happened, in my opinion my pacenote was okay and there was nothing really surprising on that corner,” said Pajari. 

With every pass, the stage became increasingly dirty, aided by the placement of anti-cut devices or the lack thereof. Efforts to curb cutting this year had been praised by the drivers earlier in the event but conditions were evolving fast in the opposite direction for the leading runners.

“I feel angry with myself in the moment and I’m very sorry for the team” Sebastien Ogier after crashing

This would prove to be the downfall of rally leader Ogier as the eight-time world champion made costly mistakes for the third event in succession. Ogier lost the rally lead in the first pass through (Am Hochwald, 12.17km) where he misjudged the braking at a junction and ran onto the grass, handing a 1.9s advantage to Tanak. 

This gap was reduced to 1.5s before the second pass that proved even more damaging. Six hundred metres into the penultimate stage of the rally Ogier was caught out on the dirt at a fast right and clattered into the trees. Normally a master of controlling his emotions the accident provoked screams of anger as he clambered out of the car. It was the only stage where route note crews were not allowed to pass to provide up to date road evolution information to the drivers.

“I feel angry with myself in the moment and I’m very sorry for the team, I tried my best,” said Ogier. “It was really my main target to help them achieve the manufacturers’ title. I think I was doing a good job so far but unfortunately it is a third weekend in a row that has not gone my way. It is a tough time.”

Ogier’s rally came to an abrupt end with a crash on an unscouted stage

Photo by: Toyota Racing

With the shockwaves caused by Ogier’s accident, Abiteboul once again reminded Tanak of the risks at stake and his driver duly delivered a steady Power Stage time, missing out on the bonus points, to seal a 21st WRC victory and perhaps one of the toughest of his career.

“We have seen every day that so much is happening and in some stages it [drama[ is happening for many cars clearly it is very demanding rally. It is never easy but I’m happy to come out without mistakes,” said Tanak, who took the victory by seven seconds from Evans, with Neuville third.

The returning Takamoto Katsuta, benched for Rally Chile, finished fourth but impressed throughout and proved to be a life saver for Toyota after claiming the maximum 12 Super Sunday points. Despite Ogier’s late exit Toyota actually decreased Hyundai’s lead in the manufacturers’ title race to 15 ahead of the Japan finale but it could have been even closer.  

“For sure it was big big pressure before this rally and it was such a difficult moment I had last month, but I have had strong support from the team and the people around me,” said Katsuta, who finished ahead of M-Sport’s Munster, who recorded a career-best equalling fifth.

For Neuville, it wasn’t the title coronation he’d dreamt but he will take a 25-point lead over Tanak into a Japan decider, adding “It wasn’t to be this weekend. Sorry for the team for a small mistake but even world champions make mistakes.”

The WRC title battle is most certainly not over but its very much a case of championship point to Neuville. One thing that is for certain a Hyundai driver will win the championship for the first time. 

“I guess it depends how much Thierry wants it,” said Tanak. “If he is smart in Japan and does a good job then nobody has a chance, but we also have a responsibility for the manufacturers championship it is still a big job ahead of us so we can’t really focus only on drivers title.”

Tanak emerged victorious as team-mate Neuville picked up crucial championship points

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Three-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Andre Lotterer has been dropped from Porsche’s factory World Endurance Championship squad as part of a revamp of its 2025 LMDh line-up.

The veteran of the German manufacturer’s LMP1, Formula E and LMDh campaigns since joining from Audi in 2017, who is on the cusp of this year’s WEC title with Laurens Vanthoor and Kevin Estre, is one of three drivers leaving the twin arms of Porsche Penske Motorsport for next year. 

Frederic Makowiecki, like Lotterer part of the WEC Hypercar class squad since 2023, and Dane Cameron, winner of this year’s IMSA SportsCar Championship GTP title with Felipe Nasr, are also departing. 

What was described by Porsche as only a “tweak“ of its driver roster programmes involves reducing the full-time line-up from three to two drivers in the WEC. 

Vanthoor and Estre, who with Lotterer have a 35-point advantage going into next month’s WEC finale in Bahrain, will race as a duo next year aboard the #6 Porsche 963 LMDh in the regular six-hour races.

Michael Christensen keeps his seat in #5 PPM entry he has shared with Makiowiecki and Matt Campbell this year and will be joined by Julien Andlauer. 

The French Porsche factory driver has gained a seat in one of the factory cars after impressing at the wheel of the Proton Competition customer 963 in the WEC this season. 

#7 Team Penske Motorsport Porsche 963: Dane Cameron, Matt Campbell

Photo by: Michael L. Levitt / Motorsport Images

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Campbell will return to the IMSA ranks after a solo season in one of the WEC cars and will team up with Mathieu Jaminet in the #6 PPM car in North America.

Cameron’s seat alongside Nasr will be taken by Briton Nick Tandy, who moves over from the sister car he has shared with Jaminet for the past two seasons. 

Jaminet and Campbell will respectively join the #5 and #6 crews for Le Mans and, according to Porsche’s press statement announcing the changes, “selected races”. 

That can be taken to mean the 10- and eight-hour races in Qatar and Bahrain that will bookend the 2025 WEC season. 

Estre and Vanthoor have likewise been nominated to drive the #6 and #7 IMSA cars for selected races in IMSA’s Michelin Endurance Cup.

Frenchman Makowiecki, 43, is leaving Porsche after 11 seasons predominantly in its GT ranks, which included a GTE Pro class win at Le Mans in 2022 and an overall victory in the Nurburgring 24 Hours in 2018. 

He and Porsche have “agreed to conclude their collaboration”, read Porsche’s announcement. 

#5 Porsche Penske Motorsport Porsche 963: Frederic Makowiecki

Photo by: Marc Fleury

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It stated that Lotterer and Cameron’s contracts with Porsche expire at the end of this year, but did not specifically state that they are leaving the employment of the manufacturer. When contacted by Motorsport.com, Porsche was unwilling to clarify the drivers’ status.

Porsche Motorsport boss Thomas Laudenbach said: “I’d like to thank Dane Cameron, Andre Lotterer and Frederic Makowiecki for their incredible work over the past three years [since the 963 started testing in January 2022].

“All three have played a significant role in us being able to celebrate great successes with the Porsche 963 on both sides of the Atlantic – in just the second year of competition.”

PPM’s decision to go to two drivers for the regular six-hour WEC races follows a debate over whether three drivers should be mandated in Hypercar.

It was sparked by the Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac team choosing to use just two drivers in the six-hour WEC races this year. 

Running two drivers offers an advantage in terms of track time during practice and, potentially, a strategic benefit in the races. 

Moves for a change in rules, led by WRT BMW team boss Vincent Vosse, were rejected after they did not find backing from a majority of manufacturers. 

Porsche made play of Andlauer’s status as one of its former junior drivers: its statement pointed out that he will become the fourth former junior after Christensen, Jaminet and Campbell to join the PPM 963 squad. 

No reference was made to a potential third PPM entry at Le Mans next June, the right to which it has won after claiming the IMSA title. 

Laudenbach stated last week that he expected to take up the entry and run an additional car in the double-points WEC round, as Porsche did in 2023 and ’24. 

McLaren believes there is little point in asking the FIA for a right of review over Lando Norris’ punishment at the United States Grand Prix, despite its unhappiness at the sanction.

Norris was handed a five-second penalty in Austin after the race stewards deemed that he had overtaken Max Verstappen off the track as they battled for third place.

That sanction dropped Norris to fourth, behind his title rival, after the chequered flag and meant he lost further ground in the world championship battle.

The decision to punish Norris in an incident where Verstappen also ran off the circuit in a defensive move has triggered huge controversy and put a renewed focus on both the driving standards rules in F1 and the consistency of the stewards.

McLaren in particular feels it was a wrong call on two fronts – one in not taking into account the fact that Verstappen ran wide, and secondly in rushing the decision rather than waiting to speak to both drivers after the event.

McLaren team boss Andrea Stella said “The interpretation of this situation between McLaren and the stewards is the polar opposite.

“I am surprised the stewards didn’t even feel the need to discuss with the drivers after the race. It is an uncertain situation – so get the opinion of the drivers, and have the time to assess the situation with the level of details that is required when the situation is not so clear.

Andrea Stella, Team Principal, McLaren F1 Team

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

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“Where is the urgency to interfere with the result of a race, with a championship [on the line], just because you have to make the decision in 60 seconds? It is a question mark that I think the stewards should take constructively and positively. Is it really needed to take a decision so quickly and, in our opinion, so wrongly?”

But despite its strong feelings over the matter, McLaren thinks there is little point in trying to take things on and potentially get the decision looked at again.

Due to the penalty being an in-race decision, there is no scope within the regulations for a standard appeal – and the route towards a right of review request does not look to be of interest either.

Stella said: “The decision cannot be appealed so for us, the matter is closed.

“For us, the drivers, the team, now we close this chapter. But we hope the FIA and the stewards review the case so that in the future we have a better stewardship of the racing. We now move on to the next race.”

The door to a right of review petition remains open until Thursday, with there being a 96-hour window following an event for it to be lodged.

For a request for a review hearing to be successful, it would require McLaren to produce “a significant and relevant new element…which was unavailable to the parties seeking the review at the time of the decision concerned.”

One option could as, as Mercedes famously did after the 2021 Brazilian Grand Prix, to wait until the onboard footage of Max Verstappen’s car is released and potentially use that as the means to justify another look.

But Stella is sceptical about offering anywhere near enough of a step of new evidence that would be acceptable for the FIA – with it frequently having rejected petitions that have been submitted.

“I don’t think new and relevant evidence exists because the only evidence we have used so far to assess our interpretation, which is in disagreement with the stewards, is already available,” he said.

“So, if you open up the right of review, I don’t think it will ever be successful because you don’t need new evidence. It is just a matter of interpretation.”