LEGO McLaren MP4/4 with Ayrton Senna minifig arriving in March to grace F1 fans’ shelves

Ayrton Senna is the undisputed legend of motor racing and he could have achieved timeless greatness (not that he has already not achieved the feat) hadn’t it been for that fateful corner at the Imola Circuit in Italy during the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. Hence, Ffor a Formula-1 fanatic, any memorabilia or piece of history that recalls the legend’s memories is a prized possession.

For such fans, LEGO Speed Champions and Technic lineup will add to the proud collection in the form of the McLaren F1 MP4 Ayrton Senna LEGO set. The set comprising of 693 pieces will go on sale from March 1, 2024 for a suggested price tag of $80. Highlight of this set is the Senna minifigure on a podium holding the winner’s trophy with a plate displaying the photo and quote,  alongside the McLaren in action mode.

Designer: LEGO Group

The main focus here is the successful F1 MP4/4 car powered by the Honda turbocharged engine that was used during the 1988 Formula 1 season. Ayrton alongside his teammate Alain Prost pushed this beast to its limits in a spectacle of racing craft dominating the competition winning 15 out of the 16 races during the season. Ayrton stole the limelight with eight wins for the team, securing his place as the world champion, while Alain just missed the bar winning seven races.

The MP4/4’s reliability and pure performance made it one of the most dominant cars in the history of F1 to date. Of course, one can attribute that feat to the skill of Ayrton who showed some of the most mind-blowing driving craft during the season. Coming back to this LEGO build, it looks like Shell is again on good terms with the LEGO Group after a lull of a decade. You can spot the Sheel and Honda logos while the controversial Marlboro branding has been given a pass.

The 1:8 LEGO model is 553 mm long, 257 mm wide, and 125mm high. It comes with functional suspensions, a steering wheel, a V6 engine, a turbo compressor (with intercooler radiators), snorkels and exhaust blowing under the rear diffuser. What more could you ask for?

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Lenovo introduces kiss-activated Formula 1 trophy

I unexpectedly started watching Formula 1 racing last 2019 as I watched it live in one of the last races before the world closed for a couple of years. I saw Sebastian Vettel lift the trophy and it was my first time to see a driver kiss the trophy (although that is a common practice in other sports of course) and my thought was, I hope someone cleaned it beforehand. If you watched the Japan Grand Prix awarding ceremony last September 24, you might have seen something different when Red Bull’s Max Verstappen lifted his trophy.

Designer: Lenovo

Lenovo, the sponsor of the Japan Grand Prix and the upcoming USA Grand Prix in October, partnered with a design firm to come up with a truly unique prize for the respective winners. It’s a trophy that is “activated” by a kiss from the winner, since they always kiss it anyway. The winning driver will be guided to a certain spot in the trophy by indicator lights that say “Kiss Me” and when they finally lock lips with their precious, it will light up with the colors of their national flag. So at the Japan Grand Prix, we saw the trophy light up with the Netherlands colors. It doesn’t seem to do the same for the constructor’s trophy and for the 2nd and 3rd placers so it’s something special for the winner.

They used a touch-sensitive micro-switch technology to create this unique thing for the races that they sponsored. The trophy itself is actually shaped like the air intake on the F1 cars according to Lenovo. And to represent the brand’s own logo, there’s a parametric pattern found on the trophy. F1 enthusiasts and anyone interested will also be able to see the kiss-activated trophy again on October 21 at the awarding ceremony for the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.

The lights on the trophy seemed a little faint though when Verstappen took to the Podium so it didn’t look so impressive at first glance. And it seems to remain lighted only for a few seconds so it was kind of anti-climactic. Hopefully the one that we’ll see in Austin later this month will have a bit more pomp and circumstance to it.

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McLaren Racing’s life-sized LEGO Formula-1 car drops for the Australian GP 2022

If you thought the F1 cars showcasing their superiority on the race circuits are cool, just go and watch this full-scale LEGO version that has got the McLaren Racing teammates flummoxed already!

The Australian Formula-1 Grand Prix is breathing down our necks, and the early part of the season is already hotting up with the midfield closely bunched up in performance. McLaren Racing with its cool papaya livery is also getting into the groove of things so far. Apparently, this going to be the leading driver, Daniel Riccardo’s home race. So, we can expect McLaren to come full guns blowing. LEGO Australia and the Formula-1 racing team have collaborated to make the race special for the two race drivers, and the whole paddock as well with a surreal life-sized LEGO McLaren F1 car.

Designer: McLaren Racing and LEGO Australia

This jaw-dropping replica of the 2021 season Formula-1 car is nine times the size of the collectible LEGO version which was an instant hit. Yes, the LEGO Technic McLaren Formula 1 Race Car I’m talking about. The 1:1 LEGO version is on another level altogether owing to the amount of effort and time it took to create. After painstaking 1,893 man-hours of putting together 288,315 LEGO bricks of this 5.7-meter-long, 2.4-meter-wide brick-built, the end result is undeniably awe-inspiring.

The creation comes with five separate components to take realism a notch higher. There are four wheels, car body, suspension and the crucial halo introduced a few years ago. McLaren revealed the LEGO F1 car today with Daniel Riccardo and Lando Norris looking more than just eager to test the removable halo and steering wheel. According to Niels Henrik Horsted, head of product at LEGO Technic, “We never stop trying to excite and inspire our fans by pushing the limits of possibility through the technology and designs produced, both on the racetrack and with LEGO building.”

Fans who’re set to visit the circuit this weekend to witness the race in Melbourne will be in for this surprise too. The LEGO McLaren Formula 1 Race Car will be on the trackside, and fans can actually sit inside the cockpit to make their time special in every respect. For those who are not lucky enough to experience it in reality, the next best thing is to get the scaled-down Technic McLaren Formula 1 Race Car model which is once again up for backorder on the official website, and also available via global retailers.

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F1 engine makers are testing sustainable fuel

Motorsport governing body FIA has developed 100 percent sustainable fuel for Formula 1 cars. The organization and F1 aim to hit net zero carbon emissions by 2030, and sustainable fuels will play a key role in that. With its fuel, which is made from b...

Built for Formula1 as well as Le Mans circuits, the LMF1 concept is all about speed and endurance

What would it take to build the ultimate racecar? A racecar that can handle the breakneck speeds of an F1 race, but also withstand the grueling demands of the 24-hour Le Mans circuit? I don’t imagine there’s a single car that has fared well on both an F1 track as well as a Le Mans (hit me up if there is one), but that didn’t stop designer Robin Mazánek from creating the LMF1, a conceptual beauty made to dominate any sort of racetrack.

The LMF1 (a portmanteau of LM and F1) just like its name, is a fusion of styles and technology. Inspired by Formula 1 and endurance prototypes, the LMF1 sports a lightweight, aerodynamic, low-hung design with a closed-cockpit. Modeled after most Le Mans prototypes, the car measures at nearly 433 centimeters long, making it shorter than the conventional F1 car, but just as capable. Carbon-fiber paneling makes the car lightweight and sturdy, and helps use air to its advantage, creating just the right amount of downforce needed to give the car speed and control on the track. The air even helps cool the car’s insides, which features a hybrid turbo-engine for maximized range. A 1.6L turbo-engine helps generate electricity, which gets stored in the car’s batteries, supplying the electromotor with an extra surge of power. The car comes with a rear-wheel drive, and according to Mazánek’s calculations, tops off at 1000hp.

The LMF1 currently exists just as a fan-made concept that fulfills the childhood fantasy of many a gearhead. I don’t imagine any company’s ever taken up the challenge to build the ultimate undisputed race-demon that can stand up to F1 and Le Mans racers, but let’s hope someone eventually does!

Designer: Robin Mazánek

Bugatti’s most realistic Formula 1 race car was designed by a talented intern

The Bugatti Type 35 revival is a great example of two things – A designer’s ability to push boundaries and create concepts that capture their passions, and those concepts sometimes being powerful enough to actually pave the way forward for something bigger. Little did Andreis van Overbeeke know that his desire to see Bugatti compete in the Formula 1 series would result in him landing an internship at his dream company. The desire to actually see a Bugatti-branded F1 car pushed Andries to create a concept that he published on Reddit. The images ran their course, reaching Bugatti’s execs, who then went on to invite van Overbeeke to their headquarters in Molsheim, France, for an internship… resulting in a much more fleshed out concept car with the Type 35 revival. The image above shows the Type 35 revival in its glorious avatar standing right beside Bugatti’s own Vision GT vehicle – its spiritual predecessor.

The Type 35 Revival pays tribute to Bugatti’s eponymous winning racecar from the 1929 and 1930 Monaco circuit races. Styled with a similarly long nose and short tapered rear, the Revival echoes the iconic design cues of the 90-year old racecar, while carefully sticking to Bugatti’s signature details which include the horseshoe grille and that absolutely sweet blue and black paint-job. “The car has a powerful high revving internal combustion engine (see the exhausts on top) and was designed to be a fan car with a suckdown system (similar to the Chaparral 2J and Brabham BT46)”, says Overbeeke. He also pointed out that as a hat-tip to the company’s consecutive 3-year win at the Monaco circuits, the Type 35 Revival comes with a graphic of the Monaco racetrack on the side along with its laurels.

While the French automotive company isn’t planning on entering the F1 any time soon, the Type 35 Revival’s design isn’t just a concept for your eyes… You can actually take it for a spin in PlayStation’s Gran Turismo!

Designers: Andries van Overbeeke, Achim Anscheidt, Sasha Selipanov, Etienne Salomé & Frank Heyl.

This Formula 1 car-design bridges the gap between race-cars and fighter-jets

What’s the difference between an F1 car and a fighter jet? One of them has weapons.

Essentially, both vehicles are powered by incredibly capable and efficient engines, both focus on pure speed, aerodynamism, and minimal air-drag, resulting in forms that somewhat look similar… barring the presence of wheels on one, and wings on another. Andries van Overbeeke decided to bridge that gap a bit with his F1 car design that sports an almost jet-inspired outer form, with an elongated nose that cuts through the air like hot knife through butter, and a closed cockpit that doesn’t just resemble jet, it also complies with future F1 norms. The car makes use of high-performance metal alloys, with carbon fiber in limited places. Most load-bearing stress-absorbing components are generatively designed, to minimize mass while maximize performance, and by far the most interesting detail is the car’s nose, which comes with a unique hollow drill-shaped air intake that guides air into the car to keep it cool while it drives literally at breakneck speeds!

Designer: Andries van Overbeeke

ESPN2 will air 12 hours of esports coverage on April 5th

TV networks are already trying to fill the void in sports coverage left by the COVID-19 pandemic, but ESPN is going all-out. The broadcaster's ESPN2 channel is airing a 12-hour ESPN Esports Day on April 5th starting at 12PM Eastern, and there wi...