Another busy weekend ahead highlighted by, for the final time, our very own Pukekohe SuperSprint. Information for that event can be found here.
In the United States, one of the closest ever IndyCar seasons draws to a close with Scott Dixon and Scott McLaughlin both a shot for the title. Hunter McElrea is also in action in the Indy Lights, where he sits third heading in to the final two races, both this weekend.
Heading offshore, Liam Lawson and Marcus Armstrong look to improve on a points-less Feature Race at Zandvoort, whilst Brendon Hartley and co will be back in action as the World Endurance Championship heads to Japan. Nick Cassidy will sit out the Six Hours of Fuji due to DTM commitments.
IndyCar draws to a close this weekend at the historic Laguna Seca racetrack in California. Kiwi’s Scott Dixon and Scott McLaughlin are two of five drivers still eligible to win the title in one of the closest open-wheel racing series North America has ever seen.
The race will cover 95 laps over 213 miles, covering 11 turns through the hills of California.
Dixon is the best placed of the Kiwis, only 20 points off the championship leader Will Power, tied on points with Josef Newgarden. Dixon has claimed two wins this season, his first at Toronto and then again at the Music City Grand Prix in Nashville.
In just his second full season in the series, McLaughlin has seriously impressed and has three race victories to his name, including last weekends Grand Prix of Portland. He also claimed the season-opener in St. Petersburg as well as at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
In support of IndyCar, the Indy Lights season will also conclude at Laguna Seca, with McElrea still sitting third in the standings following his fifth-place finish at the Grand Prix of Portland last weekend.
Linus Lundqvist looks set to claim the championship, a lead of 103 points seeing him only need five points to all but secure the title should second-place sitter Matthew Brabham of Australia win both races.
Second place is still on the cards for 22-year-old McElrea, who is only points behind Brabham. The Kiwi has impressed this year and recently re-signed with Andretti Autosport for the 2023 season. He claimed his maiden win at Mid-Ohio in early July, with the next following at the next event three weeks later in Iowa.
Brendon Hartley will be in action in the LMDh Hypercar class at the 6 hours of Fuji this weekend. Competing with local driver Ryo Hirakawa and Swiss driver Sebastien Buemi, the trio will be looking to replicate the success that saw them win this years iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Failing to finish at the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps hurt the chances of the team in the championship battle, however their double points victory at Le Mans saw them fight back into contention. They finished second last time out at the 6 Hours of Monza and trail championship leaders Andre Negrao, Matthieu Vaxiviere and Nicolas Lapierre by only 10 points with two rounds remaining.
DTM heads to Belgium this weekend for the sixth round of the series at Spa-Francorchamps.
Cassidy is a race contender in the series, evident by his seventh place at Nürburgring last time out, after starting 21st due to the cancellation of qualifying because of wet weather. He was unlucky to miss out in the second race that weekend, contact from Maro Engel seeing him unable to finish.
Racing for Red Bull AlphaTauri AF Corse, Cassidy has not been present at every round this season due to Formula E. With that competition now wrapped up, a late season charge could see the Kiwi shoot up the leaderboard, although a series victory remains almost out of reach with a deficit of 101 points to leader Sheldon Van Der Linde with only six races remaining.
This means Cassidy has nothing to lose, with individual race wins likely being the key focus for the Kiwi.
The F2 boys are back for the penultimate round of the 2022 season, and for the last time before a two month hiatus before the season ending event at Yas Island.
Felipe Drugovich can all but secure the title with a strong showing this weekend at Monza, with closest rival Theo Pourchaire only managing five points over the past two race weekends.
Marcus Armstrong had a good Sprint last weekend at Zandvoort, which saw him claim line honours in the shorter event. Liam Lawson also impressed to take home fourth. It was the third win of the year for Armstrong, all three coming in the shorter formats.
A difficult Feature Race hampered both New Zealand drivers, who were the unfortunate victims of untimely safety cars which saw them both finish outside the points.
Lawson currently sits fifth in the drivers standings, whilst Armstrong moves up to 10th after last weekends win.
