Autosport Magazine
Magazine: Tributes to Murray Walker, plus Bahrain testing round-up
The motorsport world’s tributes to Murray Walker take centre stage in this week’s Autosport magazine, out today (18 March).
The legendary commentator’s knowledge and passion helped fuel the enthusiasm of motorsport fans for decades, which helps to explain why so many heartfelt comments – both from those working in the sport and the scores of enthusiasts – poured in following news of Murray’s passing last weekend.
Before the sad news came through, our analysis of Formula 1 testing in Bahrain was set to be our cover feature. That changed, but Alex Kalinauckas has still gone over all the laps by all the teams to find out who’s hot and who’s not ahead of the season getting under way at the end of the month.
He explains how, somewhat surprisingly, Red Bull won the 2021 testing war. But he also points out that Mercedes is likely to be stronger when qualifying begins for the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.
It’s 20 years since Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen, along with Juan Pablo Montoya, prepared for their first F1 season. All went on to great success but there was a fourth rookie who is often forgotten.
Enrique Bernoldi battled on with Arrows for two years before dropping out of F1. He tells James Newbold what happened – and what he’s been up to since.
This week also marks a sadder anniversary – the death of sportscar legend Bob Wollek, killed while riding his bicycle away from Sebring. Gary Watkins speaks to key figures who knew the remarkable Frenchman – and finds out why he was both a ‘marmite’ character and a driver who remained competitive well into his fifties.
It’s also our first free Engineering supplement of 2021. We remember the sparkling but brief career of Dino Toso, one of the architects of Alonso’s F1 titles, talk to new General Motors sportscar racing programme manager Laura Wontrop Klauser, and take a look at how Prodrive resurrected one of its famous World Rally winners.
Next week’s issue (25 March) is our traditional bumper 108-page F1 season preview, featuring a look at all the teams, expert analysis from Karun Chandhok and Tim Wright, and a look at the tech solutions to the new rules.
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