Juan Pablo Montoya to Race for Arrow McLaren SP at Next Year’s Indianapolis 500

Posted on December 12, 2020 by Tom Castaneda

Juan Pablo Montoya is heading back to the track…

The 45-year-old Colombian racing driver, a two-time Indianapolis 500 winner, will return to the iconic event next year driving for Arrow McLaren SP.

Montoya last raced the Indy 500 in 2017. He won “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” as a rookie in 2000 and again 15 years later to give him a pair of victories in five career Indy 500 starts.

The announcement that he’ll drive a third entry for Arrow McLaren reunites Montoya with McLaren, the team for which he drove in Formula One in 2005 and 2006.

“I’m very excited to be joining Arrow McLaren SP for the Indianapolis 500,” Montoya said. “I have some great history with McLaren from my F1 days and I’m looking forward to making some more at next year’s Indianapolis 500.”

Montoya will be teammates with Pato O’Ward and Felix Rosenqvist, the full-time IndyCar drivers for Arrow McLaren. Montoya will be paired with veteran engineer Craig Hampson at Indy.

“Arrow McLaren SP is thrilled to have a driver of Juan’s caliber join the team for next year’s Indianapolis 500,” said Arrow McLaren SP co-owner Sam Schmidt. “His experience will elevate the entire team, including our young, talented lineup of Pato and Felix.”

Montoya has won in F1, CART, IndyCar, IMSA and NASCAR and has championships in CART and IMSA.

Fernando Alonso to Drive for McLaren at This Year’s Indy 500

Posted on March 1, 2020 by Tom Castaneda

Fernando Alonsois back in the race…

The 38-year-old Spanish race car driver will race at this year’s Indy 500 with McLaren‘s new IndyCar team.

It’ll be Alonso’s third attempt to win the famous race, the final part of a ‘Triple Crown,’ which includes the Monaco Grand Prixand Le Mans 24 Hours. He has won both the other events on two occasions.

Were Alonso, who won the Formula One World Championshipin 2005 and 2006 for the Renaultteam, to achieve the feat, he would become just the second driver to do so, following Graham Hill‘s success in the 1960s.

Alonso drove for McLaren’s Formula Oneteam on two occasions, in 2007 and an infamously uncompetitive stint between 2015 and 2018. He stepped away from F1at the end of the latter spell and is yet to return.

“I am a racer and the Indy 500 is the greatest race in the world,” Alonso said.

“I have maximum respect for the race and everyone who competes in it, and all I want is to race against them and give my best.”

Alonso attempted to win the Indy 500 with a poorly-managed McLaren entry last year. A catalogue of errors culminated in the two-time F1 champion failing to qualify for the event.

He fared better on his debut in the race in 2017, qualifying fifth and leading a chunk of the race until an engine issue ended his race prematurely.

McLaren has stepped up its involvement in the series, entering a full-time outfit called SP Arrow McLaren for 2020. Alonso will partner the team’s full-time drivers, Pato O’Ward and Oliver Askew, for the event.

Alonso will race the team’s Chevrolet-powered car, having been blocked in his attempts to race for aHondaoutfit.

Alonso was scathingly critical of the Japanese manufacturer during his final stint at McLaren and it has since decided he will never race one of their cars — he since won the Le Mans 24 Hours and World Endurance Championshipwith Toyota, a Honda rival.

Fernando Alonso Open to Returning to Formula One in 2021

Posted on December 1, 2019 by Tom Castaneda

Fernando Alonsoisn’t ruling out a comeback…

The 38-year-old Spanish racing driver, regarded as one of the greatest Formula One drivers in the history of the sport, says he’d be open to a return to F1 in 2021 if the right opportunity came along.

The two-time World Champion, who contested 17 seasons of Formula One, left F1 at the end of 2018 after four frustrating years at McLarenwithout a victory or podium appearance.

Alonso has turned his attention to other pursuits outside of F1 since, winning the Le Mans 24 Hourswith Toyotain 2018.

Alonso is set to take part in the Dakar Rallyin January 2020 and will then set his sights on winning the Indy 500on his third attempt — he led for a spell on his debut at the Brickyard in 2017, but ultimately failed to finish following a Hondaengine issue. On his return last year a catalogue of McLaren errors in the build-up meant he failed to qualify for the race itself.

In an interview with Sky Sportsahead of this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Alonso said he’s still happy to consider a return to the F1 grid.

“I’m doing Dakar in January which is a big challenge and next year hopefully Indy is in the plan again,” he said. “I’ll try and do a little bit better than this year!

“We will keep it open in the future, maybe Formula One in 2021, maybe hyper car in the WEC [World Endurance Championship.]

“I think in 2021 that is the reason why I keep open the possibilities. Maybe things mix up with the new rules so let’s see if an opportunity comes.”

Sergio Perez ThisClose to New Deal with Force India for 2018

Posted on August 21, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

It looks like Sergio Perez may be staying put…

The 27-year-old Mexican driver is thisclose to agreeing to a new deal to stay with Force India for 2018, according to team officials.

At the Hungarian Grand Prix ahead of Formula One‘s summer break, Perez said he wanted to have his future resolved by the Belgian Grand Prix at the end of the month.

The Mexican said he was keen on staying with the Silverstone-based outfit for a fifth campaign, following another successful season.

Force India heads into the second half of 2017 occupying fourth place in the constructors’ standings as it looks to equal its best-ever finish in F1. Having only missed out on points with at least one of its cars on one occasion this year — at May’s Monaco Grand Prix — Force India is 60 points clear of nearest rivals Williams and 83 behind third-placed Red Bull, while Perez is the highest placed driver outside of the big three teams in seventh place in the drivers’ championship.

Perez has been linked with a possible switch to Renault or Ferrari over the past year but has already begun talks to extend his spell at Force India alongside teammate Esteban Ocon, who joined the team on a multi-year deal at the end of 2016.

Alonso & Montoya to Face Off Once Again at This Year’s Indy 500

Posted on April 25, 2017 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a race back in time for Fernando Alonso and Juan Pablo Montoya…

The 35-year-old Spanish Formula One racer and the 41-year-old Colombian IndyCar Series driver will roll back the years and battle together once again at the Indy 500 on May 28.

Alonso is missing the Monaco Grand Prix to drive at the Brickyard, which will see him race against a number of familiar faces — including Montoya, who also made his Formula One debut at the 2001 Australian Grand Prix.

Despite spells with Williams and McLaren, Montoya never replicated Alonso’s title-winning success in F1 and had to make do with seven grand prix victories.

Montoya came into F1 having won the Indy 500 and CART championship in 2000 and has won the prestigious oval race more recently, in 2015. Alonso holds the Colombian in high regard from their days together in F1.

“I take Juan Pablo as one of the best drivers in the world, one of the most talented drivers I ever competed against,” Alonso said. “So to come here and drive together in the super speedway will be a massive thing for me.

“Hopefully I can learn as much as I can… I’m watching a lot of his onboard cameras because I think he’s one of the best out there. So really looking forward to talk to him and have some dinners with him at Indy because any tips would be welcome for him.”

Montoya says the chance to race Alonso, the 2005 and 2006 world champion, again was something he would not have expected at this stage of the Spaniard’s career.

“If you would have told me I was going to win a race ever against Alonso, it would be an endurance race or something, not in Indy to be honest,” Montoya said. “I think it’s great. I think having Fernando is going to be a really good day for motorsports, not only for IndyCar, but I think the attention overall for seeing Fernando and myself and everybody running Indy is going to be really big.”

Montoya says Alonso will have a steep learning curve if he wants to get to grips with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in time for the race.

“The biggest challenge is going to be first he has never done a race that is that long, and the traffic. He is going to have to learn and understand the traffic. I think if he is patient enough through the week and builds to it, I think he will be fine.

“He is a really good driver. He has really good teammates. People have run at Indy before and run well. There is no reason why he shouldn’t run well.”

Massa to Come Out of Formula One Retirement & Return to Williams

Posted on December 23, 2016 by Tom Castaneda

Felipe Massa won’t stop revving up as originally planned…

The 35-year-old Brazilian former Formula One racing driver has agreed to a deal to come out of retirement and return to Williams as Valtteri Bottas‘ replacement, according to multiple reports.

Massa had planned to retire from Formula One following this year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and received an emotional send off at his home race in Brazil last month.

However, a surprise return in 2017 would answer the biggest question hanging over F1 today by paving the way for former teammate Bottas to replace retiring world champion Nico Rosberg at Mercedes.

Bottas currently tops Mercedes’ wishlist, but his 2017 Williams contract has so far prevented a straight switch to the world champions. Williams has been reluctant to let him go amid fears it will destabilize the team under next year’s new regulations, but Massa’s return would provide the continuity the technical side of the team is looking for.

A report on Brazil’s Grande Premio website said Massa signed a contract last Monday that gives Williams an option on his services if Mercedes goes ahead with the Bottas deal. Massa would partner with 18-year-old rookie Lance Stroll, who joins the team off the back of championship success in Formula 3.

Last week deputy team principal Claire Williams said she would only let Bottas go if a credible replacement can be found in time. That sparked rumours that Massa could return, with the Brazilian driver posting a cryptic tweet ahead of a family holiday on Friday.

If Massa does return next year it will be his 15th season in Formula One and his fourth consecutive year racing for Williams.

Alonso Cleared to Return to the Formula One Racing Scene

Posted on March 23, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a welcome green light for Fernando Alonso…

The 33-year-old Spanish Formula One racing driver has been cleared to race at the Malaysian Grand Prix after missing the Formula One season opener following a crash in testing.

The McLaren driver, a two-time world champion, has followed a “rigorous, specialized training program” since last month’s accident and he has been ruled fit after a final medical assessment by the FIA governing body.

Reserve driver Kevin Magnussen was 17th after taking Alonso’s place in the March 15 Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne. The Malaysian GP at the Sepang International Circuit is on Sunday.

Montoya Wins IndyCar Series Race at Pocono Raceway

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Juan Pablo Montoya is back at the top of the podium in the IndyCar Series.

The 38-year-old Colombian racing driver won the IndyCar race Sunday at Pocono Raceway, the highlight of a triumphant return to open-wheel racing after seven years in NASCAR.

Montoya won for the first time in the CART/IndyCar Series since 2000 and had his first major victory since he won a road-course race at Watkins Glen in NASCAR in 2010.

Helio Castroneves was second to make it a 1-2 finish Sunday for Team Penske. With double points awarded in the 500-mile races, Castroneves moved into a tie for the points lead with Team Penske teammate Will Power.

Carlos Munoz, Ryan Briscoe and Scott Dixon completed the top five.

Montoya, who won from the pole, took the lead for good when Tony Kanaanwas forced to pit for fuel with four laps left. Montoya took it from there and continued to stamp himself a player in the championship hunt. He moved to fourth in the standings.

“As soon as we signed him, I knew he would be an asset for us, and a headache,” Castroneves said.

Montoya, the 1999 CART champion and 2000 Indianapolis 500, winner took the checkered flag to the sight of hundreds of Colombian fans waving the flag and cheering him on.

It was just the kind of scene he pictured when he decided to head home to open wheel. Montoya wanted a competitive ride again after lackluster results driving for Chip Ganassi in NASCAR. He knew his open-wheel return would have a learning curve: Montoya last ran in CART in 2000, then left Formula One midway through the 2006 season for NASCAR.

After only two top 10s in his first seven starts, Montoya reeled off a third, second and seventh in his past three. Now, he has the win needed to erase any lingering doubts that has move back to open wheel was the right one.

Jonás Cuarón Earns His First BAFTA Awards Nomination

Posted on January 8, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Like father, like son…

Jonás Cuarón, the son of Mexican filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón, has earned his first BAFTA Awards nomination.

The Mexican filmmaker has been nominated with his father in the original screenplay category, for writing their blockbuster hit Gravity.

It’s one of the whopping 11 nominations the 3D sci-fi film earned from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, including Best Film and Best British Film.

Cuarón’s father also earned a Best Editing and Best Director nod, the latest nomination in that category for one of Entertainment Weekly’s 2013 Entertainers of the Year. He’s up against 12 Years A Slave’s Steve McQueen, American Hustle’s David O. Russell, Captain Phillips’ Paul Greengrass and The Wolf Of Wall Street’s Martin Scorsese in the director field.

Meantime, Cuarón’s longtime collaborator, Mexican cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, earned a Best Cinematography nod for his work on Gravity.

Lastly, Rush star Daniel Brühl continues to earn awards recognition for portraying real-life racing legend Niki Lauda in Ron Howard‘s Formula One racing drama. Following his SAG Award and Golden Globe nods, the 35-year-old half-Spanish actor will take on Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips), Matt Damon (Behind the Candelabra), Michael Fassbender (12 Years A Slave) and Bradley Cooper (American Hustle) in the race for the best supporting actor trophy.

The British Academy Film Awards will take place on February 16 at the Royal Opera House in London, with the ceremony broadcast exclusively on BBC One in the U.K. and in all major territories around the world.

Here’s the complete list of BAFTA nominations:

BEST FILM
12 YEARS A SLAVE
AMERICAN HUSTLE
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
GRAVITY
PHILOMENA

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM
GRAVITY
MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM
PHILOMENA
RUSH
SAVING MR. BANKS
THE SELFISH GIANT

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER
COLIN CARBERRY (Writer), GLENN PATTERSON (Writer) Good Vibrations
KELLY MARCEL (Writer) Saving Mr. Banks
KIERAN EVANS (Director/Writer) Kelly + Victor
PAUL WRIGHT (Director/Writer), POLLY STOKES (Producer) For Those in Peril
SCOTT GRAHAM (Director/Writer) Shell

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
THE ACT OF KILLING Joshua Oppenheimer, Signe Byrge Sørensen
BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOUR Abdellatif Kechiche, Brahim Chioua, Vincent Maraval
THE GREAT BEAUTY Paolo Sorrentino, Nicola Giuliano, Francesca Cima
METRO MANILA Sean Ellis, Mathilde Charpentier
WADJDA Haifaa Al-Mansour, Gerhard Meixner, Roman Paul

DOCUMENTARY
THE ACT OF KILLING Joshua Oppenheimer
THE ARMSTRONG LIE Alex Gibney
BLACKFISH Gabriela Cowperthwaite
TIM’S VERMEER Teller,Penn Jillette, Farley Ziegler
WE STEAL SECRETS: THE STORY OF WIKILEAKS Alex Ginny

ANIMATED FILM
DESPICABLE ME 2 Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin
FROZEN Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee
MONSTERS UNIVERSITY Dan Scanlon

DIRECTOR
12 YEARS A SLAVE Steve McQueen
AMERICAN HUSTLE David O. Russell
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS Paul Greengrass
GRAVITY Alfonso Cuarón
THE WOLF OF WALL STREET Martin Scorsese

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
AMERICAN HUSTLE Eric Warren Singer, David O. Russell
BLUE JASMINE Woody Allen
GRAVITY Alfonso Cuarón, Jonás Cuarón
INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
NEBRASKA Bob Nelson

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
12 YEARS A SLAVE John Ridley
BEHIND THE CANDELABRA Richard LaGravenese
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS Billy Ray
PHILOMENA Steve Coogan, Jeff Pope
THE WOLF OF WALL STREET Terence Winter

LEADING ACTOR
BRUCE DERN Nebraska
CHIWETEL EJIOFOR 12 Years a Slave
CHRISTIAN BALE American Hustle
LEONARDO DICAPRIO The Wolf of Wall Street
TOM HANKS Captain Phillips

LEADING ACTRESS
AMY ADAMS American Hustle
CATE BLANCHETT Blue Jasmine
EMMA THOMPSON Saving Mr. Banks
JUDI DENCH Philomena
SANDRA BULLOCK Gravity

SUPPORTING ACTOR
BARKHAD ABDI Captain Phillips
BRADLEY COOPER American Hustle
DANIEL BRÜHL Rush
MATT DAMON Behind the Candelabra
MICHAEL FASSBENDER 12 Years a Slave

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
JENNIFER LAWRENCE American Hustle
JULIA ROBERTS August: Osage County
LUPITA NYONG’O 12 Years a Slave
OPRAH WINFREY The Butler
SALLY HAWKINS Blue Jasmine

ORIGINAL MUSIC
12 YEARS A SLAVE Hans Zimmer
THE BOOK THIEF John Williams
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS Henry Jackman
GRAVITY Steven Price
SAVING MR. BANKS Thomas Newman

CINEMATOGRAPHY
12 YEARS A SLAVE Sean Bobbitt
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS Barry Ackroyd
GRAVITY Emmanuel Lubezki
INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS Bruno Delbonnel
NEBRASKA Phedon Papamichael

EDITING
12 YEARS A SLAVE Joe Walker
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS Christopher Rouse
GRAVITY Alfonso Cuarón, Mark Sanger
RUSH Dan Hanley, Mike Hill
THE WOLF OF WALL STREET Thelma Schoonmaker

PRODUCTION DESIGN
12 YEARS A SLAVE Adam Stockhausen, Alice Baker
AMERICAN HUSTLE Judy Becker, Heather Loeffler
BEHIND THE CANDELABRA Howard Cummings
GRAVITY Andy Nicholson, Rosie Goodwin, Joanne Woodlard
THE GREAT GATSBY Catherine Martin, Beverley Dunn

COSTUME DESIGN
AMERICAN HUSTLE Michael Wilkinson
BEHIND THE CANDELABRA Ellen Mirojnick
THE GREAT GATSBY Catherine Martin
THE INVISIBLE WOMAN Michael O’Connor
SAVING MR. BANKS Daniel Orlandi

MAKE UP & HAIR
AMERICAN HUSTLE Evelyne Noraz, Lori McCoy-Bell
BEHIND THE CANDELABRA Kate Biscoe, Marie Larkin
THE BUTLER Debra Denson, Beverly Jo Pryor, Candace Neal
THE GREAT GATSBY Maurizio Silvi, Kerry Warn
THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG Peter Swords King, Richard Taylor, Rick Find later

SOUND
ALL IS LOST Richard Hymns, Steve Boeddeker, Brandon Proctor, Micah Bloomberg, Gillian Arthur
CAPTAIN PHILLIPS Chris Burdon, Mark Taylor,Mike Prestwood Smith, Chris Munro, Oliver Tarney
GRAVITY Glenn Freemantle, Skip Lievsay, Christopher Benstead, Niv Adiri, Chris Munro
INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS Peter F. Kurland, Skip Lievsay, Greg Orloff
RUSH Danny Hambrook, Martin Steyer, Stefan Korte, Markus Stemler, Frank Kruse

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
GRAVITY Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, David Shirk, Neil Corbould, Nikki Penny
THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton, Eric Reynolds
IRON MAN 3 Bryan Grill, Christopher Townsend, Guy Williams, Dan Sudick
PACIFIC RIM Hal Hickel, John Knoll, Lindy De Quattro, Nigel Sumner
STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS Ben Grossmann, Burt Dalton, Patrick Tubach, Roger Guyed

BRITISH SHORT ANIMATION
EVERYTHING I CAN SEE FROM HERE Bjorn-Erik Aschim, Friederike Nicolaus, Sam Taylor
I AM TOM MOODY Ainslie Henderson
SLEEPING WITH THE FISHES James Walker, Sarah Woolner, Yousif Al-Khalifa

BRITISH SHORT FILM
ISLAND QUEEN Ben Mallaby, Nat Luurtsema
KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES Megan Rubens, Michael Pearce, Selina Lim
ORBIT EVER AFTER Chee-Lan Chan, Jamie Stone, Len Rowles
ROOM 8 James W. Griffiths, Sophie Venner
SEA VIEW Anna Duffield, Jane Linfoo

THE EE RISING STAR AWARD (voted for by the public)
DANE DEHAAN
GEORGE MACKAY
LUPITA NYONG’O
WILL POULTER
LÉA SEYDOUX

Alonso Moving Forward with Plans to Start Cycling Team

Posted on December 21, 2013 by Tom Castaneda

Fernando Alonso is moving full (10) speed ahead with plans to create a cycling team…

The 32-year-old Spanish Formula One driver says his plan to start a cycling team is “going well” after meeting with International Cycling Union president Brian Cookson.

Alonso announced in September that he’d look into create his own team to race in 2015 after plans fell through to buy now-defunct Euskaltel-Euskadi.

Alonso tells Europa Press “there is still a year to go, but things are going well. I am pleased with the steps that have been taken.”

The Ferrari driver spoke with Cookson, who was in the Spanish capital to award Joaquim Rodriguez the trophy for the World Tour’s best cyclist of 2013.

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