The Historic Endurance Rallying Organization (HERO) will take over the short- and medium-distance events organized by the Endurance Rally Association (ERA), as recently announced by organization officials.

HERO’s takeover of ERA events will provide continuity for the ERA’s portfolio, which includes the Baltic Classic, Blue Train Challenge, Classic Safari Challenge, Road to Saigon, Flying Scotsman, Trans America, Himalayan Challenge, Peking to Paris Motor Challenge and more.

The union will also encompass over 25 rallies globally, with nearly half of the events taking place across multiple continents. Respective management teams are already working together, with both parties said to be committed to making the transition as seamless as possible for stakeholders.

HERO is a multi-service historic motoring platform and is responsible for several well-known UK and European rallies.

ERA, founded by the late Philip Young in 1988, is a pioneer organization of long-distance endurance rallying in four continents.

Following a national talent search and annual combine event in May, NASCAR and Rev Racing announced the latest participants in the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Pit Crew Development Program.
 
Seven former collegiate athletes were selected based on strong, individual performances during a series of crew member assessments and strength and agility drills at the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Pit Crew Combine in Concord, North Carolina, on May 25.
 
NASCAR Drive for Diversity provides opportunities for multicultural and female athletes to “go pro” in NASCAR following college careers in football, basketball, track and field, and other sports.

This year’s participants will relocate to North Carolina and train as tire-changers, carriers and jackmen with Rev Racing with hopes of joining more than 50 NASCAR Drive for Diversity alumni working in the sport’s national series.

In September, the seven athletes selected to the program will begin 12 months of pit crew training with Rev Racing.

Since the pit crew program’s inception, more than 90 athletes have participated in NASCAR Drive for Diversity with 25 currently working at the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series level.

The new participants in the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Pit Crew Development Program include:
 
Name — Hometown — University — Primary Sport
Brandon Banks — High Point, N.C. — University of N.C. at Charlotte — Football
Evan Clay — Franklin, La. — Morehouse College — Football
Jarren Davis — Jacksonville, Fla. — Bethune-Cookman University — Football
Keiston France — Amelia, Va. — North Carolina A&T State University — Tennis
Ernest Holden — Hampton, Va. — Norfolk State University — Football
Jerrick Newsome —Memphis, Tenn. — Alcorn State University — Basketball
Joshua Patrick — Decatur, Ga. — North Carolina A&T State University — Football

In related news, NASCAR announced teams will only be allowed windshield wipers during wet conditions next season.

“We’ve typically let them run the wiper blade whether it was dry or whether it was not. Ironically, that’s on our list for 2019 rules, and we will tell them when they can and when they can’t run the windshield wiper blade,” NASCAR Senior Vice President Scott Miller relayed on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio on Monday.

SCORE International confirmed a four-race schedule for the 2019 SCORE World Desert Championship.

Already known as the ‘Desert Racing Capital of the World,’ Ensenada has added another jewel to its crown in the form of a new race at the growing sea-side port on the Pacific side of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula.

The inaugural Lucerna SCORE Baja 400 in Ensenada, the newest event on the SCORE World Desert Championship schedule, will be held September 18–22, 2019 and marks the third SCORE race to be held in Ensenada.

The Lucerna SCORE Baja 400 is being held in 2019, between the vastly popular SCORE Baja 500 and the venerable season-ending SCORE Baja 1000.

All three Ensenada races on the 2019 schedule will start and finish in front of the iconic Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center on Mexico Highway No. 1.

2019 SCORE World Desert Championship Schedule
April 3-7 — 33rd SCORE San Felipe 250 — San Felipe, Mexico

May 29-June 2 — 51st SCORE Baja 500 — Ensenada, Mexico

Sept. 18-22 — Inaugural Lucerna SCORE Baja 400 — Ensenada, Mexico

Nov. 19-24 — 52nd SCORE Baja 1000 — Ensenada, Mexico

Renault has announced that Bob Bell will move to a more strategic role within the squad as the team’s racing technical advisor, as announced by Formula 1.

A chief part of Bell’s new role, which he will fulfill on a part-time basis, will involve developing technical collaborations between the Renault team and other third parties, as well as maintaining several aspects of his current job, as Renault seeks to become F1 frontrunners once more.

Renault confirmed that Bell will not be replaced as the chief technical officer, with the team now establishing an alternative technical structure.

Bell, who’s been the chief technical officer for Renault since the team’s return to F1 in 2016, is currently in his 37th season of Formula 1, having begun his career working in McLaren’s aerodynamics department in 1982.

It’s also his third spell at Enstone, having joined Benetton first in 1997, and again in 2001 after a brief stint with Jordan. Bell came on board with Renault’s F1 return project after working as the technical director for Mercedes between 2011 and 2013, and then as a technical consultant for Manor Marussia in 2015.

(Photo courtesy of Formula 1).

TOCA, the series organizser of the MSA British Touring Car Championship, has announced that hybrid power will be introduced to the series within the evolution of the current technical regulations known as NGTC at the end of 2021.

It was confirmed after a meeting with the BTCC Technical Working Group (TWG) that a specified hybrid unit would be fitted to all cars as an addition to their current drivetrain. This will allow each car to have a reserve of supplementary hybrid power available during each race, which can then be used by drivers as part of their overall race strategy.

The detailed engineering aspects of the project will now commence in conjunction with the TWG, with finite technical decisions to be made over the following year and a half. The current NGTC regulations are already in the second half of its ten-year term.

A number of current cars may be fitted with hybrid units during the 2020-2021 season as part of the project’s test and development program.

“Different to hybrid development within the likes of Formula 1, this certainly shouldn’t—and won’t—be an ‘extreme’ technical exercise, but rather will be one which we will introduce within our NGTC technical regulations relatively seamlessly and very cost-effectively,” BTCC Series Director Alan Gow said.
 
“Just as importantly, by incorporating hybrid it keeps the BTCC absolutely relevant to manufacturers, sponsors and the public… with the added benefit of further enhancing our great racing.”

INDYCAR and Andersen Promotions has released a five-year plan for Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires.

The objective of the plan—shown to current and prospective entrants—is to increase team and driver participation in the top level of the INDYCAR-sanctioned Mazda Road to Indy development ladder, identify cost efficiencies for competitors and establish guidelines for advancing to the Verizon IndyCar Series.

The road map has a structure of four primary areas including a reduction in budgets for entrants, an increase in prize money paid to competitors, revised INDYCAR driver licensing guidelines, and the expansion of the Verizon IndyCar Series testing program.

Highlights of the cost savings plan include a reduction in new chassis pricing, a spare parts discount to new teams, a discount on Cooper tires and a reduction in engine lease pricing.

The increase in race prize money includes $50,000 to win the Freedom 100 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in addition to an increase in payout for the top three finishers at every event. The season champion's prize will be increased to $1.1 million built on a three-race Verizon IndyCar Series package for the following season that includes the Indianapolis 500.

Indy Lights remains the integral path to the Verizon IndyCar Series. The introduction of an Indy Lights team incentive program will be designed to encourage Verizon IndyCar Series teams to participate. With suppliers participating, new Indy Lights entries can save more than $100,000.

New teams for the 2019 season will see significant savings on offseason testing, including free entry to a two-day test at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, new Motegi Racing wheels at no charge and six free sets of Cooper tires. 

In related news, Mazda has announced that its support for Indy Lights, Pro Mazda and USF2000 will end at the conclusion of the 2018 season in September.

IndyCar issued a statement in response to the news, stating: “The Road to Indy program has staged great racing over the years while developing teams and drivers for the Verizon IndyCar Series, and that will continue with plans soon to be announced. Mazda has been a transformative partner, and IndyCar is appreciative of its many contributions.”

Iowa Speedway will host next year's Verizon IndyCar Series race under the lights for the first time in four years, as announced by INDYCAR. The Verizon IndyCar Series Iowa Corn 300 will take place the evening of Saturday, July 20, at the Newton, Iowa, oval track.

The Verizon IndyCar Series has staged 12 races at Iowa Speedway since 2007, but only four have been hosted at night – the most recent in 2015 when Andretti Autosport driver Ryan Hunter-Reay won for an event-record third time. Night races also were held at the track in 2011, 2012 and 2014.

“INDYCAR races here are not only thrilling sports entertainment, but also a boon for the local economy. Our track provides some of the best racing you’ll see anywhere, which will be good for attendance. This is one of our crown jewels and a can’t-miss weekend,” Iowa Speedway President David Hyatt said. “Announcing our (2019) INDYCAR weekend in July allows our fans, local businesses and the City of Newton to plan ahead for what will be an exciting season of racing at Iowa Speedway.”

Officials will announce the complete 2019 Verizon IndyCar Series schedule at a later date.

(Image courtesy of INDYCAR, Iowa Speedway).

Some of the nation's finest LS & Gen 5 LT powered muscle cars, race cars, street rods, rat rods, and trucks will descend upon Beech Bend Raceway in droves in Holley's hotrod hometown of Bowling Green, Kentucky, for the Holley LS Fest set for September 7–9.

Just about “anything” powered by any these engines are invited to tear up the quarter-mile, drift track, autocross and more during the three-day festival devoted to LS/LT powerplants.

There’s an event for everybody, according to event organizers, including drag racing, autocross, 3S, drifting, road-course runs, a dyno competition, a burnout contest, a car show, and more.

Grand Champion and autocross are already sold out (waiting lists are available for each), but pre-registration is still open for the Drag Pack, Car Show Pack, and Track Days.

Pre-register for the LS Fest here. For tickets and event details, visit here.

(Photo courtsey of Holley, LS Fest).

Building off the success of its first Michigan event, Motovicity’s Speed Ring returns as one of the premier fall motorsports events in metro Detroit, September 22–23, at the M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan.

The Speed Ring weekend will host two race events, a time-attack event and a two-car head-to-head lap battle featuring a diverse mix of domestic and imported street cars modified into high-speed track monsters.

Competitors will bring production cars with upgraded horsepower, handling and aerodynamics to set the fastest lap possible during the race. Top teams from across North America will descend on M1 Concourse to show their mettle while competing for a lucrative cash purse.

Madison Heights, Michigan-based Motovicity Distribution, one of the leading aftermarket automotive performance distributors, created the Speed Ring in Southern California in 2016, before bringing the event “back home” near Detroit.

“Speed Ring is a spectacular event for both car enthusiasts and families, and we’re excited to host this event once again in the Motor City,” Motovicity CEO Brian Lounsberry said. “The racing is extremely fast but easy to follow as a spectator, plus we have a big midway of activities to experience between races.”

Tickets start at $10 and are on sale now. Kids under 12 are free with a ticketed adult.

Cloyes Gear & Products Inc. has announced the addition of two executives to its management team.

Tim Murphy has been named as vice president of sales. After five years as the account executive with Schaeffler Group USA, Murphy returns to Cloyes where he previously spent more than 29 years in sales and marketing roles.

As vice president of sales, Murphy is responsible for developing and implementing strategic sales plans that promote sales growth and customer satisfaction for the organization.

Brian Wheeler joins Cloyes as director of business development. In this role, Wheeler identifies and develops new business opportunities while expanding the presence of the company and its brands through marketing and communications.

Most recently, Wheeler served as marketing and communications manager for a leading building products manufacturer. Prior to that, he was director of global marketing and communications for Dayco Products LLC. He has served in several industry associations, including the Automotive Communications Council, the Automotive Press Association, the Auto Care Association Marketing and Communications Committee and the Young Auto Care Network Group.

“Tim and Brian both are passionate, proven aftermarket professionals who bring a wealth of sales, marketing and business development experience to the Cloyes team,” Cloyes CEO John Bohenick said. “We will leverage their experiences in the industry and their respective disciplines to further strengthen customer relationships, drive growth and increase overall awareness of the Cloyes brand.”