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F1 in pictures Ferrari Lotus McLaren Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing Renault

2011 Italian Grand Prix in pictures

2011 Italian Grand Prix

Here’s your pictorial reminder of what went down at the 2011 Italian Grand Prix. Unusually, this includes a few pics of Mark driving around in his busted car as well. Seems most teams don’t like showing broken cars when the driver is mostly at fault. There’s been a few exceptions, though, and we’re always keen to share them when they arise.

Lotus, Mercedes GP and Renault didn’t come to play with many pics from Sunday’s action. We’ve used a few Saturday fillers for you, which we prefer not to do. However, we can’t have you miss out on your fair share of pics.

There’s 80 pics in all this time around, all waiting for you after the break. Knock yourselves out!

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Lamborghini Motor Shows

Frankfurt 2011: Lamborghini Gallardo LP 570-4 Super Trofeo Stradale

Lamborghini Gallardo Super Trofeo Stradale

The Lamborghini Gallardo LP 570-4 Super Trofeo Stradale; it’s the most extreme Gallardo ever, according to Lamborghini and, with that long name, it’s a sub-editor’s nightmare. It’ll be a boy racer’s dream, of course, and the rear wing lifted straight from the racing version seals the deal.

Really, who can say no to the car’s dashing good looks and 5.2 litre V10 complete with 570hp (419kW) powering all four wheels? Not us. If you want one, you’d better be quick—only 150 Super Trofeo Stradales will be made—it’s the final swansong for the evergreen Gallardo.

The car weighs in at 1340kg, the same as previous Superleggerra models and a bit more than originally reported. It’s still 70kg lighter than a regular Gallardo and has only 2.35kg to shift for every horsepower on offer. A 100km/h dash takes just 3.4 seconds and you’ll need only 10.4 seconds to make it to 200km/h. Keep that foot planted and you’ll soon reach the 320km/h v-max.

In honour of Italy’s racing heritage the Super Trofeo Stradale is available in the special Rosso Mars paint you see in these pictures. Other colour options are Grigio Telesto (dark grey) and Bianco Monocerus (white). If you’re ready to part with even more cash you can keep the shiny black roof.

There’s more pics and more detail from Lamborghini after the break. Start saving!

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Audi Motor Shows Motorsports

Frankfurt 2011: Audi A5 DTM

Audi A5 DTM

Audi has just unveiled its new A5 DTM racecar. Pretty crazy looking thing it is, too. That’s the style in DTM, of course and this new ‘R17’ will hit the tracks in 2012.

The A5 DTM has around 340kW (460hp) thanks to its race-tuned V8 engine. Gear shifts are taken care of by a new 6-speed transmission, pneumatically operated with steering wheel paddles. In line with new cost reduction measures the gearboxes are expected to last 24,000kms.

You wouldn’t believe it by looking at them, but aero packages for the 2012 DTM machines are also less extreme than in the past.

There’s more images after the break, as well as Audi’s press release.

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Ford WRC

Mikko Hirvonen wins Rally Australia

Mikko Hirvonen wins Rally Australia

Mikko Hirvonen has capped off a great trip down under by winning Rally Australia. The event was held over the weekend at Coffs Harbour on the NSW north coast. Even better for Ford was the fact Jari-Matti Latvala competed strongly and came home in second place.

In fact, Latvala lead for much of the final day and team orders meant he handed the win to his teammate who is better placed in the drivers’ championship.

The Fiesta drivers were able to get through a tricky first day with only minor damage after slippery conditions ended the winning hopes of Citroën pair Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier. The two Sebastiens were able to get going again on day two, but time penalties put them well out of contention. In fact they finished the rally in tenth and eleventh.

That meant factory Fords clawed back some valuable points on the lead Citroëns in the manufacturers’ championship, bringing the gap back to 62 points.

Hirvonen was also able to displace Ogier from second in the title race and is now 15 points behind Loeb.

It was Hirvonen’s second race win for 2011 and follows his win at Rally Sweden to kick start his year.

With thanks to the Ford World Rally Team team you can watch a highlights clip below with coverage form all three days of competition.

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Ferrari Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing

2011 Italian GP: Post-race press conference

2011 Italian Grand Prix

The fat lady is  preparing her vocal chords and we expect she will be singing Sebastian Vettel’s tune at the next Grand Prix. That’s right, following yet another peerless drive from Vettel to win the 2011 Italian Grand Prix, he can formally wrap up the 2011 drivers’ title at Singapore in a couple of weeks if results go his way.

In Monza overnight Vettel’s only concerns came following a bullet-like start from Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) to steal the lead. The Safety Car quickly came out after Tonio Liuzzi’s (HRT) slip’n’slide move on the grass cleaned up a few midfield runners.

When the lights went green Vettel had the Ferrari in his sights and pulled a sterling move on the outside of Curva Grande to reclaim the lead. The 24-year-old is silencing the doubters who claim he cannot race wheel-to-wheel when the going gets tough. He may still have a bit to learn in that regard, but his last two races have shown he is head of the class.

In all of the chaos around him Jenson Button (McLaren), who had a poor start, quietly worked his way into second place with a mature drive. Again Alonso struggled on the harder tyres and held on for third, denying Lewis Hamilton’s (McLaren) late race charge for a podium place.

It was a bad day for the Australians, with Daniel Ricciardo (HRT) stalling on the start line. He was able to eventually get going again and complete a total of 39 laps but he was “not classified” so it was a data gathering exercise for the team and no more. Mark Webber (Red Bull) meanwhile put himself between a rock and Felipe Massa’s Ferrari and lost his front wing in the process. A few corners later, with parts of the wing lodged in his undertray, he lost steering and went off into a tyre barrier ending his race.

Webber’s DNF has relegated him from second to fourth in the drivers’ standings. He’s on 167 points, behind Button (167pts, ahead on wins), Alonso (172pts) and the 2011 champion-in-waiting Vettel (284pts).

More from the top three after the break.

[Pic: Ferrari]

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McLaren

Merdad messes with McLaren MP4-12C

Merdad MehRon GT

The Merdad Collection is better known for playing around with high-powered Porsche models and making them even more high-powered. Now, though, they’ve messed around with the newest supercar kid on the block; the McLaren MP4-12C.

The wilder Mac will be called the MehRon GT. We wonder if that’s just code for the reaction likely to be given by Ron Dennis. Merdad say there will be a GT3 version coming as well.

At the moment there’s no performance details, suffice to say we expect the Merdad Mac will go from damn fast to damn faster.

The bodykit won’t be to everyone’s liking, but as we’ve seen earlier today, it could be a lot worse. From some angles, the Merdad look has the aggression and purpose lacking from the donor car.

There’s more photos after the break and, as is usually the case, you can click on the pics to view as 2000px super images.

[Source: Merdad Collection]

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BMW

AC Schnitzer messes with 1M Coupé

ACS1 Sport Coupe

Renowned German tuning firm AC Schnitzer are bringing their version of the ultimate BMW 1 Series M Coupé to the Frankfurt Motor Show. They’ve called it the ACS1 Sport Coupé. Here’s a few pics that might make you think twice.

On the plus side they have upped power from 340hp to 400hp (250kW to 300kW). Brakes and suspension have been uprated, too, so you can be sure you’ll have the ability to better control that horsepower.

On the downside; well, just look at it. We reckon they’ve taken a great looking car from BMW and turned into a real shambles.

Just look at the interior. It’s horrible! What were they thinking with that iDrive controller cover. To us, it looks cheap and nasty.

What do you think? Have we got it wrong; is this ACS1 jobbie a fine example of performance and cosmetic perfection, or is it just butt ugly?

[Source: AC Schnitzer]

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Formula 1 McLaren Red Bull Racing

2011 Italian GP: Qualifying press conference

2011 Italian GP

Sebastian Vettel has put his Red Bull machine on pole position for the tenth time in 2011 after setting the quickest time (1:22.275) in qualifying at the Italian Grand Prix overnight.

The 2010 world champion ended up with a comfortable lead over the McLarens of Lewis Hamilton (1:22.725) and Jenson Button (1:22.777). All of the top three made minor mistakes during Q3 and Vettel was the only one able to regroup and better his first flying lap in the final session.

Mark Webber qualified fifth (1:22.972) and really wasn’t that far off the pace, Sebastian Vettel aside; he remains in a class of his own.

Daniel Ricciardo (1:28.054) put his HRT on P23 ahead of teammate Tonio Liuzzi (1:28.231).

Sebastian Vettel is sitting pretty ahead of tonight’s race, but the McLaren duo won’t let him run away with the race without a fight. After the break you can read what the top three had to say.

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Porsche

Porsche 918 design process explained

Porsche 918 RSR

The Porsche 918 RSR was on show at the recent Pebble Beach Concours. Also on hand was Anthony Hatter, Porsche Design Manager, who was kind enough to talk us through the process of turning the 918 Spyder from showcar into reality.

Earlier this year Porsche announced it was ready to take orders for the 918 Spyder, which will be limited to 918 examples. Deliveries are expected in late 2013.

The video is all yours after the break.

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Formula 1 McLaren Motorsports

2011 Italian GP: Take a lap around Monza

To help you get ready for this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix here’s a couple of videos showcasing the famous Monza track. First we have Phil Prew, McLaren’s Principal Race Engineer, talking us through a lap. He also shows us where the two DRS zones will be for this race.

Then, after the break, you can watch a flying lap from inside a Ferrari 458 Challenge at full noise.

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Jaguar

Jaguar reveals C-X16 hybrid concept

Jaguar C-X16 concept

Jaguar has given us an official preview of its C-X16 hybrid sportscar ahead of next week’s Frankfurt Motor Show. Looks pretty flash, don’t you reckon.

Mainstream power peaks at a healthy 280kW (380PS) courtesy of a supercharged 3.0 litre V6. Thanks to that blower torque tops out at 450Nm. Green power can be accessed with a F1-style push to pass button on the steering wheel. Allowing sir to tap into a further 70kW/235Nm of electric power.

The C-X16 reaches 100km/h in 4.4 seconds. The combination of hybrid power and an 8-speed auto offers good in-gear acceleration and CO2 emissions are a reasonably green 165g/km; green for a sportscar that is.

Ian Callum, Director of Design, Jaguar Cars like his latest creation. “Jaguars have always been dramatically different. With the C-X16 we have moved the current award-winning design language on to the next generation, creating a car that is the very essence of future Jaguar performance,” he said.

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Lexus

Lexus LFA Nürburgring claims Ring record

Lexus LFA Nurburgring

Lexus has just released footage showing their LFA Nürburgring package lapping the Nordschleife in 7 minutes 14.64 seconds.

As is the way these days when a manufacturer sets a quick lap at the Ring a record of some sort is generally claimed. Lexus say their time is the “fastest ever recorded lap time for a road-registered series production car around Germany’s infamous Nürburgring circuit.”

Forget the semantics of claiming records for one moment and 7:14 is just plain fast. No other way to describe it, really. Lexus also say the LFA Nürburgring used to set the time was not modified in any way and even ran on the standard Bridgestone Potenza RE070 tyres it is delivered with.

The special edition model has improved downforce over the regular LFA and also has slightly more power; up from 412kW to 420kW. Just 50 will be made, leaving 450 standard LFAs in the total production run of 500 cars.

The time is no doubt a bitter sweet moment for the Lexus family after they lost respected test driver Hiromu Naruse at the wheel of an LFA Nürburgring development model in Germany last year. The 67-year-old was involved in a head on collision with a BMW test vehicle on a public road near the Nürburgring. Naruse was known as the “Godfather of the LFA”.

You can watch the full onboard video of the 7:14 lap after the break, as well as an official statement from Lexus.

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