The top 20 motorsport stories of 2010

As well as the on-track and on-stage efforts of the best drivers in the world, there were plenty of talking points that gripped fans and the media throughout the year.

Here, AUTOSPORT reveals the 20 most popular motorsport stories of the year outside of F1.

20. Le Mans: Group Lotus developing LMP2 car
September 28

Amid the row over the use of the Team Lotus name, Group Lotus announced a massive expansion of its motorsport strategy, which included the creation of an LMP2 car for the 2012 Le Mans 24 Hours. The car, designed by the chief engineer behind the Le Mans-winning 908 HDi FAP, will begin testing in 2011.

19. Le Mans: First shot of sportscar racing's future
October 29

In yet another scoop, AUTOSPORT revealed the first image of the Peugeot 2011 LMP1 prototype contender, including the new mandatory rear fin. The French car maker began testing at the Monza circuit as it evaluated the changes required by the 2011 Le Mans regulations.

18. WRC: Raikkonen crashes out of Mexico
March 5

In one of his several mishaps during his full debut season in the World Rally Championship, Kimi Raikkonen crashed out of Rally Mexico, rolling his C4 WRC off the road a mile from the end of the second run through the El Cubliete test.

17. Superleague: Van der Drift suffers multiple injuries
August 1

Chris van der Drift was very lucky to escape from his horrifying Superleague crash at Brands Hatch. He was still injured, however, with a broken ankle plus an injured shoulder and hand keeping him on the sidelines for weeks to come.

16. LMS: Audi calls on aces for R15 plus debut
April 5

Audi revealed a new colour scheme for its revamped R15 TDI plus car, which made its race debut in the hands of the 2008 Le Mans-winning crew Allan McNish, Rinaldo Capello and Tom Kristensen at Paul Ricard.

15. WRC: Mini confirms 2011 WRC programme
July 27

After weeks of speculation, Mini confirmed the existence of the Countryman World Rally Car for the first time - and that the Prodrive-built machine would run on selected rounds of the 2011 World Rally Championship before starting a full programme of events in 2012.

14. IndyCar: Kanaan: Patrick must change attitude
May 24

Tony Kanaan advised Andretti Autosport team-mate Danica Patrick to change her approach after the IndyCar star said it was not her fault to qualify poorly for the Indianapolis 500. She was later booed by some fans in the grandstands.

13. DTM: Coulthard tests DTM Mercedes
February 13

David Coulthard returned to the wheel of a racing car when he tested a DTM Mercedes at Alcazaba in southern Spain. Two months later, the Scot secured a racing seat to compete in the 2010 season with the German car maker.

12. IndyCar: Lola reveals details of 2012 IndyCar
February 16

Lola, which was one of the contenders for the deal to create the new generation IndyCar, revealed further details and images of its proposal. The car, less radical than the three rival contenders, eventually lost out to the Dallara machine.

11. GT: McLaren MP4-12C to race from 2012
December 17

Fifteen years after winning the Le Mans 24 Hours with its F1 GTR machine, McLaren confirmed its plans to bring its name back to sportscar racing, supplying the MP4-12C car for competition in the GT3 category. The car will start racing with European-based privateer teams from 2012.

10. NASCAR: Edwards admits crash was deliberate
March 8

Continuing with a feud that started in 2009, Carl Edwards admitted that he intentionally caused Brad Keselowski to crash in the closing laps of the race at Atlanta. Edwards tapped Keselowski into a spin, which resulted in a violent crash as the #12 Dodge got airborne and crashed against the barrier while turned upside down.

9. WRC: Raikkonen set to stay in rallying
July 15

Despite a difficult first full season in the World Rally Championship, Kimi Raikkonen admitted he was set to continue in the series for another year. At the time, the former F1 world champion was linked with a return to grand prix racing with Renault.

8. Le Mans: Audi claims win as Peugeot crumbles
June 13

Romain Dumas, Timo Bernhard and Mike Rockenfeller clinched their maiden Le Mans win as Audi secured a 1-2-3 in the legendary race. Peugeot looked set to dominate the event following an impressive qualifying and early part of the race, but it all crumbled for the French manufacturer.

7. IndyCar: IRL sets template for IndyCar future
July 14

The IndyCar series announced its biggest rules overhaul in recent history, revealing that teams would be allowed to run their own aero kits. Although the series would still be a single-chassis formula, teams will be able to develop their own packages for their cars.

6. F2: Teixeira walks away from aerial crash
May 2

Ricardo Teixeira was lucky to escape injury following a dramatic crash during the second Formula 2 race at Marrakesh. The Portuguese Angolan driver hit the back of Ivan Samarin's car and was launched skywards into a barrel roll, his car destroyed in the landing.

5. IndyCar: Swift reveals IndyCar proposal
February 9

Swift revealed its radical proposal for the new generation IndyCar chassis, joining Dallara, Lola and the DeltaWing. The Swift model was aimed at solving the problems caused by aerodynamic turbulence when following other cars, but in the end it would not be selected.

4. Le Mans: Audi reveals new R18 coupe
December 10

Audi's new Le Mans challenge was unveiled in early December. The R18, which replaces the Le Mans-winning R15 is powered by a 3.7-litre six-cylinder turbodiesel and was set to start testing ahead of its first Le Mans 24 Hours later in 2011.

3. DTM: Premat escapes horrific Adria crash
October 31

Alexandre Premat was another driver to have a lucky escape following a horrific crash during the DTM race at Adria at the end of October. The Frenchman's car was clipped by Maro Engel before hitting the wall at high speed, before it dug into the ground and rolled several times.

2. GP2: Exclusive: First shot of new GP2 car
July 5

AUTOSPORT exclusively revealed the new GP2 car with which teams will compete in the championship from the 2011 season. The new single-seater marked a radical visual departure from its predecessors, with an aero package that resembled that of an F1 car.

1. IndyCar: DeltaWing unveils IndyCar concept
February 10

The most radical concept for the future IndyCar Series chassis, the DeltaWing machine was revealed in February. Its shape was striking, with an extremely narrow front end and wide rear, and tyres largely enclosed by bodywork. Like the Lola, and the Swift, the DeltaWing lost out to Dallara.