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Lotus next F1 team to collapse?

With the big post-season game of musical chairs finally over, the FIA recently released the final entry list for the 2015 Formula One World Championship. And while most of it is exactly as we've reported along the way (with Sebastian Vettel switching to Ferrari and Fernando Alonso moving to McLaren), the list does have a couple of small surprises. Reigning champ Lewis Hamilton, for example, has opted to race under his own Number 44 instead of the Number 1 to which he is entitled, but it's the asterisks that are raising some eyebrows. Both the Caterham and Marussia teams (the latter listed as Manor Grand Prix Racing Ltd, the name of the racing outfit that technically owns the entry slot) are listed as "subject to confirmation," and while Caterham (unlike the liquidating Marussia team) is still fighting to recover in time for next season, its tentative listing comes as no big surprise. What is a surprise, however, is the inclusion of the Lotus F1 Team with the same caveat, prompting speculation that the Enstone-based outfit might not make the grid next year. Those schooled in F1 history will know that the Lotus team of today shares little in common with the British sports car manufacturer and engineering consultancy of the same name, or with the historic F1 team that previously raced under that banner. It started out as Toleman (the team with which Ayrton Senna got his start) before being bought out by Benetton (where Michael Schumacher won his first two World Champion titles). It was then taken over by Renault (where Alonso won his two titles) before Genii Capital took over and fostered a relationship with Lotus that allowed it to use the name. In a final breaking of ties with Renault, the team is switching to Mercedes power for next season. The Enstone team has struggled recently, however. From the title-winning operation it once was, Lotus dropped down to eighth place in the 2014 Championship, failing to land on the podium (let alone win a race) even once this season, suffering a dozen DNFs out of nineteen grands prix. Without factory backing, the team has struggled financially as well, and without an injection of funds, it could drop off the entry list altogether.

Lotus Evora 400 shows the new face of progress [w/video]

Lotus may have scrapped all the grandiose plans of the preceding administration, but don't think for one minute that it's going to just sit on its finely honed laurels. No, the British automaker plans to revitalize its existing lineup, starting with the new Evora 400. Based on the company's existing 2+2 sports car, the new Evora 400 features a revised version of the Toyota-sourced 3.5-liter supercharged V6 that now produces 55 more horsepower than the Evora S for a titular total of 400 hp and 302 lb-ft of torque. With revised aero, bodywork, electronics, differential, gearbox and brakes, the new Evora 400 debuting here at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show will now run to 60 in 4.1 seconds, reach a top speed of 186 miles per hour and lap the company's famously grueling test track six seconds faster than the previous model. If that's what resting on laurels looks like, we'll be taking our next vacation in Hethel, England. Featured Gallery Lotus Evora 400: Geneva 2015 View 15 Photos Related Gallery Lotus Evora 400 View 9 Photos Image Credit: Live photos copyright 2015 Drew Phillips / AOL Geneva Motor Show Lotus Coupe Performance Videos 2015 Geneva Motor Show lotus evora 400

Lotus F1 Team Breaks World Record For Longest Truck Jump

Lotus F1 wasn't content to make just any commercial for their technology partner EMC Industries. It had to be one for the record books. The video released over the weekend shows a truck breaking the world record for longest jump ever completed by a truck. The stunt was obviously geared towards publicity, but while they were at it, they set a Guinness World Record for the longest truck jump at 83 feet, 7 inches. The previous record, according to Guinness, stood at 50 feet, 6 inches, and was set on MTV's Nitro Circus on November 17, 2008, by Gregg Godfrey at Rocky Mountain Raceway in Salt Lake City. That record stood for six years, but (as best we can tell) was set without the trailer attached, or the F1 car tracking underneath - which only makes this latest stunt that much more impressive. Stunt driver Mike Ryan planned the jump and drove the truck off the ramp and over fellow stunt driver Martin Ivanov as he sped underneath in a Lotus F1 race car. And just so you know no CGI was involved, EMC industries included a making of video on their website.