Reigning Formula 2 champion Theo Pourchaire will make his IndyCar debut on the streets of Long Beach with Arrow McLaren as the 20-year-old Frenchman becomes the latest replacement for injured driver David Malukas. Pourchaire said Friday that he was initially contacted about driving both Long Beach this Sunday and the road course at Barber, Alabama, next week. Arrow McLaren had repeatedly said Malukas would be healed in time for this weekend's race.
Mario Andretti said Friday he was deeply offended by the language Formula One Management used in denying his family and General Motors the opportunity to join the global motorsports series. The 1978 Formula 1 world champion posted on social media he was “devastated” when F1 rejected Andretti and General Motors in late January in their application to expand the current grid to accommodate a two-car American team. The F1 rejection came after a six-month review of Andretti's application and the reasoning for the denial was taken personally by both Mario and Michael Andretti, as well as GM, which plans to partner with Andretti in F1 under its Cadillac brand.
Formula 1 returns to China this weekend after a five-year absence. Despite his so-so results, Zhou is being promoted as a celebrity in China. Ahead of the first grand prix weekend in Shanghai since 2019, Zhou described it as more than a race for him, saying, "With a Chinese driver on the grid, we will write history.”