NASCAR goes to Mexico this weekend and in this week’s Business of Motorsport Roundup you will find out why. I also have the fallout from the release of F1’s 2026 schedule, the latest motorsport legal news, sponsorship deals and partnerships plus much more!
Motorsport Industry News
Formula 1
Formula 1 has released their 2026 schedule and as widely predicted, Imola has been dropped and Madrid has taken its place, something that Imola organizers are NOT happy about.
Meanwhile in North America, fans on this side of the pond are shocked that the Canadian Grand Prix will take place on the same day as the Indy 500. Regardless of the fact that the date clash will only occur every 5 years (assuming the Canadian Grand Prix keeps the same date and does not move closer to the Miami weekend), some are accusing Liberty Media of flying too close to the motorsports sun. F1 for its part insist that the situation was not a deliberate slap at IndyCar.
“With races all over the world, F1 has been under pressure to create a more sustainably friendly and regionalized schedule that cuts down on cross-continental flights for the thousands of people who comprise its industry.?
With the 2026 schedule revealed, Stuart Codling of Autosport wonders what future F1 calendars may look. “Last year, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali spoke of there being 11 viable new venues expressing an interest in hosting grands prix. The list of ones with the political will and financial wherewithal to make it happen in a reasonable timeframe is rather shorter: Thailand, Rwanda, and the second Saudi Arabian circuit, Qiddiya Speed Park.”
General Motorsport Industry News
One of the most anticipated events in NASCAR Cup Series history is now just days away. Mexico City began welcoming the haulers Tuesday as the escorted convoy from Laredo, Texas, where teams staged after leaving Michigan International Speedway Sunday night, has officially crossed the border. RACER explains how NASCAR is both expanding its footprint and exiting its comfort zone while BlackBook Motorsport speaks to NASCAR’s executive vice president and chief venue and racing innovations officer Ben Kennedy who discusses the inspiration, challenges and expectations for the event.
The IndyCar Series is formally shifting its new chassis and engine introduction from 2027 to 2028. In a call with RACER on Thursday, a Penske Entertainment spokesperson confirmed IndyCar President Doug Boles has started notifying team owners of the new timeline that began to take shape towards the end of May.
While FIA’s made a number of significant decisions at their meeting in Macau, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem steered through a number of controversial governance decisions that some are arguing will make the governing body less transparent and more autocratic but is a significant political victory that will solidify his position in the upcoming FIA elections.
The World Rally Championship’s highly anticipated 2027 technical rules are edging closer to being completely finalized with the FIA approving refined bodywork regulations. Chief among them related to bodywork, including requirements for sustainable materials, homologation criteria and the definition and shape of inner volumes – with freedom surrounding this volume to allow manufacturers and constructors to create their designs with flexibility.
Quick Takes on the Business of Motorsport This Week
- Boosting Revenue for Sim Racing Centers in the US and Europe (Motorsport Prospects)
- Pirelli confirmed as exclusive supplier for the new era of FIA Formula Regional, as from 2026 (Pirelli)
- New documentary showcases Britain’s first Black, female race team owner (Autosport)
- What Defense Tech Firms Can Learn From Formula One (Air & Space Forces)
- Race Beyond Borders: UMA Bootcamp 2025 Offers Indian Engineers a Fully Sponsored Motorsport Journey (Business News This Week)
- Inspiring the Next Generation: How Atlassian Williams Engineers are Unleashing Innovation to Shape the Future of STEM (Williams F1)
- Building grassroots motorsports in the Philippines (The Manila Times)
- F1 on the Big Screen: When the Thrill of Speed Meets the Magic of Cinema (Gerardo Figueiredo Junior)
- Silverstone Festival Celebrates 75 Years of F1 by Supporting Sir Jackie Stewart’s Race Against Dementia (Silverstone)
- Western Springs Speedway advocates meet with council after 517-day wait (SpeedCafe)
- FloSports, NASCAR add $50,000 to purse for Virginia Triple Crown (NASCAR)
- Dunlop and FIM renew partnership for 6 Days in Italy 2025 (PMW)
- Skip Barber Racing School and Griiip Launch Game-Changing Tech Partnership to Accelerate the Future of Motorsport Training (CBS 4)
- FIA launches expanded Women in Motorsport Mentoring Programme (FIA)
- Fast Money: How COVID, Netflix helped F1 finally crack America (Financial Review)
- SEMA joins FIA (RACER)
- Tim Cook Reveals Apple’s Vision for Movies and TV: Why Spending Millions on Blockbusters Like ‘F1’ Is About More Than Selling iPhones (Variety)
- ‘F1’ Haptic Movie Trailer Uses iPhone Vibrations to Mimic Racing Action (Car and Driver)
- What star producer Bruckheimer wants fans to understand about F1 movie (The Race)
- Former F1 team boss Guenther Steiner eying MotoGP team CEO role, confirms investment talks (The Athletic)
- Famous Le Mans 24 hour is steeped in British tradition (The Connexion)
- Innovation in the Fast Lane: Lessons from Motorsport and Cybersecurity (Trend Micro)
- More than Equal promotes Tom Stanton to CEO (BlackBook Motorsport)
- Beyond the Grandstands: Today’s Motorsports Events Call for More Modern Ticketing (iSportConnect)
Highlights from the Sustainable Motorsport Roundup
The Toyota GR LH2 Racing Concept Hydrogen racer has been introduced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans hydrogen village and I have the details in this week’s Sustainable Motorsport Roundup. I also have news of Formula E’s Season 12 schedule, Formula 1 making progress on regionalizing their calendar and a surprise appearance by the unreleased electric Porsche Cayenne.
Motorsport Law Roundup
A look at some of the legal and regulatory issues and analysis in Motorsport this week
Kaufman & Canoles provide the key takeaways from the NASCAR antitrust lawsuit and the recent ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals. “Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals vacated the injunction. The teams have the ability to appeal this decision to a panel of appellate judges, and if the decision is not overturned, the consequences could be significant.”
A former NASCAR team owner appeared in North Carolina federal court Wednesday to enter a guilty plea for his failure to pay payroll taxes, according to a U.S. Department of Justice statement. Read more at Law360.
Littleton Chambers discusses their role in the recent Motorsport UK National Court decision to overturn a 2025 GT Championship disqualification. “The National Court upheld the finding of breach of Article 49 but accepted the submission that the sanction of disqualification was wholly disproportionate and accordingly substituted that sanction with a fine.”
In 1987, the highly popular Canadian Grand Prix was canceled as two prospective title sponsors battled in court for the right to promote the race, both of them Canadian breweries. Planet F1 has the details here.
Motorsport Sponsorship, Partnership News and Analysis
The latest motorsport sponsorship deals, partnerships and related analysis that were announced this week
- ‘F1 The Movie’ is a marketing bonanza, with a host of blue-chip brands aligning with the film (Sports Business Journal)
- How F1 Movie Ups the Ante on Brand-Narrative Integration (Business of Speed)
- Formula 1 sponsorship tops $2billion for the first time (Autosport)
- Consumer brands predicted to drive F1 team sponsor growth (Sport Business)
- Steering through complexity: a global sponsorship strategy for Formula One (The Sponsor)
- Phorm Energy Joins Hendrick Motorsports; Sponsoring William Byron (Toby Christie)
- Stay Like a Champion: Hilton and McLaren Racing Launch an Immersive F1-Inspired Suite in London (Travel & Tour World)
- Goodwood locks in TAG Heuer for Festival of Speed (SIG)
- F1 and Nestle announce KitKat activations for Mexican GP (Autosport)
- 1Password and the Red Bull Racing Pepe Jeans Academy Programme Unveil Bespoke Livery by Female Canadian Artist Ahead of 2025 Canadian Grand Prix (Business Wire)
- Brembo becomes Braking Technology Partner of 24 Hours of Le Mans (RACER)
- Qatar Airways is New sponsor for 2026 Australian Grand Prix (AutoAction)
- CasinoGame celebrates milestone motorsport sponsorship with Michal Dokoupil’s top-10 finish at 2025 Isle of Man TT (Asia Gaming Brief)
- Toni Breidinger’s Spectacular Rise with Coach Sponsorship Sets NASCAR Ablaze (M1 Sports)
- Arby’s has finalized a deal to become a top-level sponsor for the NASCAR Chicago Street Race (Adam Stern)
- Audi reportedly pens deal with Mercedes sponsor Adidas for F1 2026 (Motorsport Week)
- Marc Marquez leaves Honda. How MotoGP changes for fans, operators, sponsors and manufacturers (RTR Sports)
- NXT Gen Cup enters new partnership with MEYLE AG for 2025 (NXT Gen Cup)
- EUROGRIP Tyres Is ‘Technical Partner’ For Petronas TVS India One Make Championship 2025 (Passionate in Marketing)
- Droplight joins RLL as primary sponsor for Foster (RACER)
- Spectrum extends deal with MSR (RACER)
- Wella Professionals named as Official Partner of F1 ACADEMY (F1 Academy)
- Dorman Joins Spire Motorsports, Justin Haley at Pocono Raceway (Racing America)
- F1 ACADEMY partners with Gatorade to fuel the future of women in motorsport (F1 Academy)
The Business of Running a Race Team
Team & Manufacturer News
A roundup of the latest team news from around the world of motorsport
- Peugeot eyes new Le Mans Hypercar as part of long-term WEC focus (Autosport)
- Hyundai set to stay in WRC for 2026, question marks remain for 2027 (Autosport)
- Cusick Motorsports Boss Sees Bigger IndyCar, Indy NXT Footprint After Latest Indy 500 Run (Autoweek)
- Ram returns to NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2026 (RACER)
- NASCAR boss sets timeline for Dodge Cup Series return (SpeedCafe)
- Jessica Dane Interview: Steering Corvette’s GT3 programme into a new era (Motorsport Week)
- Trident Motorsport prepares to enter Italian Formula 4 (Trident)
- Steve Lauletta Details 23XI Racing’s Growth In 2025 (Forbes)
- McLaren GT3 EVO to compete in 24 Hours of Le Mans race on 30th anniversary of the marque’s iconic debut victory (PR)
- The minor differences between how F1’s backmarkers and front runners operate at the track (Autosport Plus)
- Why Audi is talking down its new F1 team (The Race)
- Mattia Binotto downplays expectations for 2026 Audi F1 power unit (Motorsport Week)
- How an American racing team used to winning in the US adapts to the challenge of Le Mans (Autosport Plus)
- AWA Prepared To Upset The Established GT Order… Again (Daily Sportscar)
- United Autosports’ Push For Multi-Class Glory (Daily Sportscar)
- Alpine aims to raise its game in second Le Mans for A424 (RACER)
Motorsport Movers & Shakers
Jim Farley is no ordinary CEO and is passionate about Ford’s new golden age of motorsport, as he told Autosport at Goodwood – where he was also racing a GT40. “I don’t think there’s a time in Ford’s history when we’ve competed in as many weekends and as many diverse events as we are now. This is absolutely the golden age of Ford motorsports.”
Massimo Rivola has brought F1 experience to MotoGP and Aprilia since 2019, and even managed to sign the 2024 world champion before a sensational contract flare-up. Motorsport Magazine got him to talk about cars, bikes, handling egos and crafting a winning brand.
“I arrived here, and I saw everybody a bit down,” he recalls. “In my first race I held a protest against Ducati and managed to bring onboard almost all the other manufacturers [at the 2019 Qatar GP and over Ducati’s controversial rear tyre ‘scoop’]. Perhaps some in MotoGP thought ‘ah, the phenomeno from Formula 1 wants to show up…’ but for me it was an important message to make inside the company.”
Author: Mark Boudreau
Mark is the publisher of Motorsport Prospects. As a lawyer, he applies his legal background and research skills to assist race drivers by showcasing the resources they need to make their motorsport careers happen.
