While Formula One wends its way from Baku to Miami, Mercedes-AMG Motorsport celebrates a successful start to the 2023 International GT Open.
- From Baku to Miami: F1 embarks on marathon programme
- Toto Wolff as teacher on the Harvard Business School MBA course
- A brace of wins in the International GT Open at Portimão
- News snippets: Results and Facts & Social Media News
Formula One is back after its spring break. Following three weekends devoid of F1 action, the top class of motorsport returned to the Baku City Circuit for the start of an intensive bout of activity, with five races crammed into the short period of six weekends. It began with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, which also featured the first sprint race of the 2023 World Championship season. The event also had a modified format, with a separate, second qualifying session for the F1 Sprint. In the latter, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton finished fourth and seventh. They came away from Sunday’s main race also in the points, with a P6 for Lewis and a P8 for George.
From Azerbaijan, the team proceeds directly to Miami, where the fifth round of the season is scheduled for this weekend. This will be the second time that a Formula One Grand Prix has been hosted by the Miami International Autodrome. Last year’s debut race was won by Max Verstappen, with pole position going to Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc. George and Lewis finished the first ever Miami race in fifth and sixth place. The track has been resurfaced in time for this year’s race.
Toto Wolff as teacher on the Harvard Business School MBA course
Always keen to gauge the talents of the future, Toto Wolff, Team Principal and CEO of the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team, is continuing in his special role at Harvard Business School. As an Executive Fellow and guest lecturer, Wolff will teach alongside Professor Anita Elberse in the school’s MBA programme. In this capacity, he will share his insights on high-performance leadership, organisational culture and personal effectiveness with MBA students, helping the school to educate and inspire the leaders of tomorrow. During the 2021 F1 season, Anita Elberse, a professor at Harvard Business School, reciprocated by taking a look behind the scenes at the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team. The outcome of her visit was a case study entitled ‘Toto Wolff and the Mercedes Formula 1 Team’, which Wolff now uses as the basis of his lectures delivered to MBA students on campus. The two of them also collaborated on a well-received Harvard Business Review article titled ‘Number 1 in Formula 1’, in which Professor Elberse sums up Wolff’s leadership philosophy in six lessons aimed at helping managers to develop a winning culture. In January 2024, Wolff and Elberse will co-deliver a short course for first and second-year MBA students: ‘Mercedes F1: Leading a High-Performance Team’.
A brace of wins in the International GT Open at Portimão
Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing made a successful start to the 2023 International GT Open. At the season opener on the rollercoaster circuit in Portimão (Portugal), both race wins went to Mercedes-AMG customer teams. Round 1 on Saturday was won by Fabian Schiller (GER) and Al Faisal Al Zubair (OMA) in the number 77 car fielded by Al Manar Racing by GetSpeed. Third place went to Mexico’s Diego Menchaca and his Argentinean team-mate Marcos Siebert in the #17 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Team Motopark.
In the second race on Sunday, Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing went one better with a one-two finish. On this occasion, Menchaca and Siebert prevailed ahead of Schiller and Al Zubair. The brace of wins also ensured that Mercedes-AMG teams now occupy the two top spots in the overall standings. The second of seven race weekends on the International GT Open calendar will take place at the end of May on the legendary Spa-Francorchamps race track in Belgium.
News snippets: Results and Facts & Social Media News
GTC Race: In the GTC Race curtain-raiser at Hockenheim, Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing outfits claimed two class victories. Kenneth Heyer and Marcel Marchewicz (both GER) sharing the cockpit of the #99 équipe vitesse finished fourth overall in the one-hour GT60 powered by Pirelli race on Saturday, thereby securing victory in the PRO category. Heyer also won his class in the first sprint race on Sunday, taking third place on the overall podium.
Special Touring Car Trophy: Run in conjunction with GTC Race, the Special Touring Car Trophy also got its 2023 season underway at Hockenheim. Josef Klüber (GER) won the second race on Sunday in the number 15 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of équipe vitesse. He finished the first race in third place. Croatia’s Franjo Kovac driving the #200 Mercedes-AMG GT4 of Besagroup Racing took the runner-up spot in his class on both days.
GT World Challenge America: On the second weekend of the 2023 Fanatec GT World Challenge America powered by AWS at NOLA Motorsports Park, Colin Braun and George Kurtz (both USA) lifted a winners’ trophy. The duo in the number 4 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Crowdstrike by Riley won the second race over the 90-minute distance on Sunday. There were also two class wins for Anthony Bartone and Andy Pilgrim (both USA) in the #43 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of RealTime Racing.
GT America: The third race weekend of the 2023 GT America powered by AWS was contested at NOLA Motorsports Park. The outcome was a one-two and a one-two-three for Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing. Memo Gidley (USA) driving the #101 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of TKO Motorsports won both races. His compatriot Jason Daskalos in the #27 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of CRP Racing finished second in the first race and third in the second. Second place in race two went to George Kurtz in the #04 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Crowdstrike by Riley.
GT4 America: NOLA Motorsports Park also hosted the second event of the 2023 GT4 America. Michai Stephens (USA) and Jesse Webb (CAN) narrowly missed out on victory in the only race of the weekend. After a photo finish, the duo in the #34 Mercedes-AMG GT4 of Conquest Racing/JMF Motorsports were runners-up, just 0.001 seconds behind the winners.
GT World Challenge Australia: Triple Eight Race Engineering celebrated podiums in both rounds of the second weekend of the Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS at Wanneroo Raceway near Perth. Prince Abu Bakar Ibrahim (MAS) and Jamie Whincup (AUS) steered the #88 Mercedes-AMG GT3 to second place in the first race. Their team-mates in the number 888 car, Prince Jefri Ibrahim (MAS) and Richie Stanaway (NZL), finished third in the second race. There were also two class wins for Mark Griffith (AUS) driving the #19 Mercedes-AMG GT4 of Team Nineteen Corporation.
GT Cup Championship: On the second race weekend of the GT Cup Championship at Brands Hatch, Sam Maher-Loughnan (IRL) and James Wallis (GBR) in the #50 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Drivetac Powered by Track Focused was in outstanding form, with a victory and a second place from the four races. Sebastian Morris (GBR) and Gustavo Xavier (SUI) in the #42 Mercedes-AMG GT4 of RAM Racing enjoyed three class wins.
ESET Cup Series: Czechia’s Libor Milota made a podium appearance in two of three rounds at the second event of the 2023 ESET Cup Series hosted by the Hungaroring in Budapest. Milota finished fourth, second and third in the number 2 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of GT2 Motorsport. The ESET Cup Series will be visiting other venues in 2023, including Spielberg, Most, Brno and the Slovakia Ring.
National GT Challenge, Italy: On the opening weekend of the National GT Challenge at Mugello, Stefano Valli (RSM) in the #1 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Gruppo Piloti Forlivesi team won both rounds.
South African GT Championship: In the South African GT Championship race at Red Star Raceway, Andrew Culbert (RSA) driving the number 123 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of BigFoot Express Racing finished fifth overall and third in his class.
Additional information, entire press article(s), directly from its original source: Daimler AG
