Luca Mars will make his Rolex 24 at Daytona debut in the LMP3 class with JDC-Miller MotorSports co-driving their #85 entry in the twice around the clock classic!

This not only marks the 16 year old rising star's first foray into the biggest North American sports car race of the year, but also his debut in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

The chance for Luca to run with the JDC-Miller MotorSports team was something not to be passed up when the call came. While the team has a long history in nearly every major class in IMSA, including running the LMP3 in Prototype Challenge and WeatherTech in 2022, they are best known for competing at the top tier of the sport in the DPi class and soon the LMDH class in their Porsche 963.

Luca Mars: "I have to give a huge thanks to the guys at JDC-Miller MotorSports for working hard to help get me in the LMP3 car to compete in my first Rolex 24 race at Daytona. To work with a team of their caliber at the biggest race of the year is really exciting!"

John Church: "We are very excited to work with Luca! We have watched his career develop over the last few years and we are excited to have him in the Daytona lineup. We see good things coming for Luca."

Hot off of a successful test at Daytona just last week in their Duqueine DO8, the team brings a package to Daytona that they are confident in and comfortable with. The team also has had very impressive runs at Daytona recently in the DPi class where in 2022 they qualified P1, finished P2 in the Roar Before the 24 and eventually finished on the Podium in the Rolex 24.

John Church: "Our team brings a lot of experience to this effort. With the success we've had here in DPi the last few years combined with having our Prototype Challenge crew put our LMP3 car on Pole here last year, we are very confident in our crew and team."

Mars will be pulling double duty at Daytona combining the WeatherTech effort with his recently announced IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge program with KohR Motorsports. Both programs kick off at the Roar Before the 24.

Luca Mars: "I'm really looking forward to experiencing my first 24 and I hope we can bring home a win! It will be a very busy couple of weeks between Pilot Challenge and WeatherTech but I'm confident that we have great teams in both paddocks and I'm ready to learn all I can from both of them."

Race for RP continues their involvement with Luca, coming on board for the Rolex 24 in addition to their long standing support of his IMPC effort.

Lucas Oil Products rings in the new year by celebrating its 15th annual title sponsorship of the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals Presented by General Tire, at the Tulsa Expo Raceway located inside the SageNet Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The beloved quarter-mile clay track contest, now in its 37th year, attracts elite drivers from stock car, open wheel, late models and drag racing, making the Chili Bowl a rare single event where fans can see their favorite athletes from across motorsports compete on the same track in an action-packed, exceptional face-off. The annual championship event will air live on MAVTV Motorsports Network and stream live on MAVTV on FloRacing on Saturday, January 14 at 10:30 p.m. EST with an encore presentation airing on MAVTV Motorsports Network on Sunday, January 15. 

“The coveted Golden Driller trophy represents so much of what we love about racing,” said Scott McLemore, Director of MAVTV Programming and Production. “Hoisting up that trophy as the Chili Bowl champion has been the start of many legendary racing careers, and we are incredibly fortunate to be able to share those stories with fans through our title sponsorship as well as the MAVTV Motorsports Network and our live streaming partner FloRacing. It’s a racing event like no other, elite drivers versus upstart amateurs, and an exceptional kick-off to the 2023 racing season.” 

Exceeding 300 entries for the ninth consecutive year, this year's Chili Bowl Nationals is expected to be another record setting event. Drivers include 46 former A-Feature starters, 62 Chili Bowl Rookies and a growing number of international competitors including Michael Pickens, the nine-time New Zealand Midget Champion. 

"The Chili Bowl is one of my favorite racing events of the year - it's thrilling to see newcomers and legends from across motorsports compete in the nation's heartland," said Brandon Bernstein, Director of Partnership Marketing at Lucas Oil. "Not only does the Chili Bowl give motorsports fans some much-needed wintertime racing excitement, but it also sets the tone for the racing season to come. Every team wants to kick off the year with the Golden Driller in the trophy case." 

Fans not able to attend the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals presented by General Tire can watch every lap live plus behind the scenes coverage on MAVTV on FloRacing. The broadcast starts January 9 with coverage of qualifying and runs until the championship events on January 14. MAVTV Motorsports Network will air a special encore presentation of the race on January 15. Local air times available at MAVTV.com.

People lie, cheat, steal and even kill for a variety of reasons, one of which is to go motor racing, a particularly expensive and egotistical sport. This intriguing book, the result of years of research, encompasses not just those who have been ‘driven to crime’ in order to pay for their sport but also characters within motor racing who have been involved in wrongdoing, sometimes through no fault of their own. 

• Stories of motorsport chicanery from all over the world, including:

• Fraud: Southern Organs (lay preachers who faked suicide and hid on a remote Scottish island); Jerry Dominelli (a Ponzi scheme that funded top-level racing Porsches); Jean-Pierre Van Rossem (self-styled stock-market guru who bankrolled an F1 team); Dominic Chappell (serial bankrupt racer brought down after purchasing a British department store); David Thieme (the Lotus sponsor who vanished).
• Murder: David Blakely (the driver killed by his lover Ruth Ellis); Franco Ambrosio (F1 sponsor of Shadow and Arrows); Elmer George (American racer who married into Indy ‘royalty’); Ricardo Londoño-Bridge (Colombia’s first F1 driver); Mickey Thompson (1960s American drag-racing icon); Nick Whiting (casualty of the biggest gold bullion heist in British history). 
• Swindles: James Munroe (accounts manager who embezzled his way to a racing McLaren F1 GTR); Lord Brocket (jailed for staging the theft of his classic cars, including Ferraris); Andrea Harkness (stripper who ripped off NASCAR).
• Drugs: Ian Burgess (sometime British F1 racer); Randy Lanier (drug-smuggling IMSA champion); John Paul Sr. and Jr. (talented son dragged into a racing father’s drug-running); Vic Lee (super-successful team owner with a dodgy transporter); the Whittington brothers (more misdeeds in IMSA circles).
• Other misdemeanors: Roy James (Great Train Robbery getaway driver); Bertrand Gachot (jailed after road rage in London); Juan Manuel Fangio (kidnapped by Cuban rebels in 1958); Colin Chapman (the unresolved ‘DeLorean Affair’); ‘Spygate’ (Ferrari design secrets passed to McLaren).

The global edgy and artistically fashion forward backpack and streetwear brand Sprayground, is pulling up to the races in an unforgettable collection with the iconic sportscar company Porsche that’ll be sure to spark a sense of adventure. This collection, which includes a backpack and a duffle bag, pays homage to the iconic Porsche 911 Carrera. The design captures the purist and timeless aesthetics of this classic sportscar, combined with Sprayground’s eclectic and unique style design, including its collectible art-piece shark mouth design. Sprayground and Porsche have created the perfect travel flex with this collection, showcasing functionality and quality, while still bringing the essence of adventure to the forefront. The design also encompasses vibrant colors of turquoise, orange, yellow and red, with classic comic additions like the speech bubble, dollar signs and cartoon smoke. Sprayground created astriking and ground-breaking collection for fans of the German sportscar brand and streetwear fashion enthusiasts.

Sprayground is known for its artistic and bold collections from Star Wars and Avatar, to Formula 1 and the NBA. This new uniquely-designed collection in partnership with Porsche will be no different. This exclusive collection will be released across Porsche Dealerships globally this month. Visitwww.sprayground.com or @sprayground, for more updates on any upcoming projects.

For the past two years, MAHLE Powertrain has worked with INDYCAR to develop an innovative, first-of-its-kind hybrid system for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES to provide on-demand acceleration at the driver’s request.

With several milestones now met by MAHLE Powertrain, INDYCAR, in collaboration with Chevrolet and Honda Performance Development, will provide continued development and production of the hybrid system in time for the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season.

The new hybrid system is an important extension of the INDYCAR’s objective to be the most sustainable motorsports series in the world. In 2023, the series will use 100% renewable race fuel in its race cars, while the teams' support transporters will use 100% renewable diesel fuel as they move from their race shops to the event circuits. The hybrid system developed by MAHLE Powertrain demonstrates how innovative technology can also help the wider transportation and industrial sectors achieve their decarbonization goals.

“We are delighted to have supported the NTT INDYCAR SERIES to develop the new push-to-pass hybrid system,” said MAHLE Powertrain Managing Director Hugh Blaxill. “We’re particularly appreciative of the expertise and support we have received from INDYCAR, HPD and Chevrolet during the system’s development, much of which took place during the significant global supply chain issues that demanded even closer collaboration between ourselves, the entire INDYCAR team and our suppliers to help resolve.

“I would like to thank the MAHLE Powertrain team for their hard work and dedication to reaching this milestone, and we look forward to watching the hybrid system perform on track to deliver the exciting racing that INDYCAR fans enjoy.”

INDYCAR President Jay Frye said: “We appreciate the innovative solution initiated by MAHLE Powertrain and their hard work in the development of our new hybrid system. We are also grateful for Chevrolet and HPD, as well as the INDYCAR team, for their close collaboration in this important project and continued work as we proceed toward implementation for the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season.”

The 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season will begin Sunday, March 5 at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding. Coverage will be available on NBC and simulstreamed on Peacock. Coverage also will be available from the INDYCAR Radio Network with audio available on the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA.

Autel Energy, a global manufacturer of electric vehicle (EV) charging equipment, has partnered with Legacy Clean Energy (LCE), a minority-owned business in Charlotte, NC, to provide EV charging solutions for businesses and underserved communities throughout the nation. 

LCE provides comprehensive EV charging solutions for vehicle dealers, public and commercial fleet managers, municipalities, rideshare operators, and a variety of parking applications where AC or High-Power DC charging infrastructure is required. LCE tailors its menu of services to meet individual customers' success criteria and financial objectives. These services include EV charging hardware and software procurement, infrastructure plan, design, and installation, hardware and software commissioning, and activation.

"As a member of the historically disadvantaged and underserved minority community, I want LCE to become a strong voice for my community regarding matters of clean energy," said Donny Smith, LCE's CEO.

Autel, which entered the EV charging solutions industry just this September, has already established itself as a leader in innovative AC and DC charging solutions by developing products with elegantly streamlined designs, industry-leading efficiency, and cutting-edge technologies.

Autel's offerings include:

• World-class charging hardware for AC home and commercial applications.
• V2X bi-directional charging.
• Hi-Power DC Charging products with capacities from 40KW to 480KW.

Autel's commercial products include dynamic communication protocols and robust feature sets on a highly efficient and flexible network.

"As a key member of the EV market, Legacy Clean Energy's faith and trust in Autel Energy is a humbling endorsement of our products and technologies and a testament to our high standards for quality and after-sales customer experience. Autel's decision to partner with Legacy Clean Energy reflects our continued investment in building diversity within our strategic partnership space. We are beyond excited to welcome Legacy Clean Energy into the Autel Energy family of partners!" said Andrew Byrne, Autel's North American Sales Director.