Issue #636: Ogier Steps Up

Headlining this week’s edition is the FIA World Rally Championship as Sebastian Ogier celebrated his 200th event in the series with victory in WRC Rally Chile BioBio, while Oliver Solberg and Elliot Edmondson were crowned WRC2 champions. David Ledbitter provides a rundown on the action. There was more racing action as Marc Marquez moved another significant stride towards clinching a seventh FIM MotoGP title in Misano as he edged out Marco Bezzecchi to win the San Marino Grand Prix. Henry Cheal has your report on the weekend’s two-wheel action. This week’s Start Your Engines column sees Taylor Powling and Jack Oliver Smith discuss what is going on with the FIA’s proposed return to V8 engines in Formula 1. The previous F1 round saw Lewis Hamilton make his Italian Grand Prix debut as a Ferrari driver. Andy Shaw, who was there to witness the momentous occasion, gives us a brilliant account of his amazing weekend at Monza. Red Bull revelled in a dominant showing on Ferrari’s home soil at the same venue Max Verstappen had labelled his car a “monster” 12 months earlier. Taylor highlights the reasons behind the remarkable turnaround. But while Verstappen prevailed, McLaren’s team orders stole the headlines, prompting Jack to question whether the Woking-based squad’s “papaya rules” approach can survive as the races tick down in the intra-team title contest between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. And, as always, we have all the usual news, views and stories in this week's edition of the most widely read weekly motorsport magazine in the world!