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Justin Bell wrings out McLaren F1 GTR at Mid-Ohio

A supercar as raw as the McLaren F1 needs a talented driver to get the most out of it. All the more so for the racing version. Fortunately Justin Bell is just such a driver. The son of five-time Le Mans winner Derek Bell is a proven race winner in his own right, taking GT2 class titles in the FIA GT championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In fact he came third overall (teamed up with his dad and '88 winner Andy Wallace, taking second in the GT1 class) at Le Mans in 1995 behind the wheel of the McLaren F1 GTR. And thanks to BMW (whose engine powers the McLaren) and GoPro, he's been reunited with the beast at Mid-Ohio, one of the finest road courses America has to offer. Because this video is a GoPro promo, the action-cam company strapped its devices on all over the legendary supercar-turned-racer from Woking, inside and out. The resulting footage is sports car racing like you've never seen it before. Check it out in the video below. Just don't mind Justin's grunting and occasional NSFW language. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: GoPro via YouTube McLaren Coupe Racing Vehicles Videos gopro mid-ohio mclaren f1 gtr

Watch the McLaren Speedtail in motion

We were all pretty excited to see the reveal of the McLaren Speedtail last week, looking like something the Silver Surfer rode in on. But now, on YouTube, tucked away amid the jumble of videos of talking heads offering commentary on the still images of the hypercar, is one little snippet of video of the Speedtail actually moving under its own power. It's moving very slowly, being driven out the doors of the also-futuristic McLaren Technology Centre HQ in Woking, England, by senior designer Alex Alexiev, who apparently supplied the video to the McLaren dealership in Newport Beach, Calif. You can hear the engine at high idle. You can see Alexiev in the center seat, the front aero wheel covers remaining stationary, and the taper of that long, long tail as the car heads off into the English countryside. There's not much more to it than that. But the chance to see the Speedtail in motion for the first time, even if it's a 250 mph car going just 2 mph, whets the appetite for seeing a whole lot more. McLaren Speedtail View 17 Photos Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Design/Style McLaren Coupe Performance Supercars Videos McLaren Speedtail

Lewis Hamilton needs to step up in his 200th F1 race

LONDON — Lewis Hamilton will start the 200th grand prix of his Formula One career in Belgium this weekend, but the triple world champion has smaller but more significant numbers on his mind. Refreshed from an August break in the Caribbean, including a trip to Cuba in his role as UNICEF ambassador, the Mercedes driver is 14 points behind championship leader Sebastian Vettel as he revs up for the second half of the season. A fifth victory of 2017 for the Briton would put the pressure back on Ferrari's Vettel, and Hamilton can celebrate another milestone by bagging pole position on Saturday at the long and fast Spa-Francorchamps circuit. That would see Hamilton, who sportingly relinquished third place to team mate Valtteri Bottas in Hungary before the summer shutdown, match the record of 68 poles set by Michael Schumacher with Ferrari in 2006. Mercedes has won the last two Belgian Grands Prix, with now-retired 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg triumphant from pole last year after Hamilton won in 2015. Nobody will be taking anything for granted, however, after Ferrari's one-two win in Budapest at the end of July. "On paper, people will assume that Spa should suit our car because it is a circuit where aerodynamic efficiency is extremely important," Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said. "But assumptions are dangerous — we have seen too many times already this season that the form book can be rewritten from one weekend to the next. So we will be making no assumptions." Hamilton has won twice before at Spa, as has Vettel, but the track — a classic blast from the past — has not been particularly kind to him. In 2008, when he won his first title, the Briton was demoted from first to third after the race for cutting a chicane, with then Ferrari rival Felipe Massa savoring victory instead. Spa can often be a lottery, with its capricious weather, and rain could be a boon for Red Bull's Belgian-born Dutch teenager Max Verstappen, who can count on plenty of local support in what amounts to a home race. "I just love the track and it'll be nice seeing so many orange (Dutch) fans in the grandstands," he said. "Spa is my favorite track of the year. You have to get everything right but when you get a good lap it's very rewarding." Belgium could also be good for Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, who arrives with a new contract for 2018 in his pocket.