Falken Motorsports added two new drives to its 2021 line-up. 

The company said the new joiners, Lance David Arnold and Alessio Picariello, will bring a strong mix of Nordschleife and Porsche experience for the current year.

Arnold is a 34-year-old German TV show presenter and a Nordschleife specialist with experience driving the Porsche 911 GT3 R at the Green Hell. He will join Falken’s long-standing driver Martin Ragginger and his fellow compatriot Klaus Bachler. Ragginger and Bachler led Falken to its first overall victory at the Nurburgring in 2018.

On the other hand, Picariello is a Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific driver and the winner of the LMGTE Drivers’ Championship in the 2020 European Le Mans Series. He will join Former DTM driver and Bathurst 12h winner Dirk Werner and 2018 Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland champion Thomas Preining in the second car. Werner and Preining are returning to the team for 2021 after finishing service with the works team.

The team is also welcoming Sven Muller’s return, who is an experienced Porsche driver with the works team. Muller will support the team with international GT race outings along with the Nürburgring event.

The team will race two Porsche 911 GT3 R cars and take part in seven rounds of the Nurburgring Endurance Series (NLS) and the legendary ADAC 24h Race at the Nurburgring. The season opener is scheduled for the ADAC Westfalenfahrt on March 27th.

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Nexen Tire has strengthened its position in the European original equipment (OE) market through a new partnership with Stellantis, supplying high-performance tyres for the Citroën C5 and C5 Aircross SUVs. The agreement highlights Nexen’s growing influence among global automakers.

The approved tyre, the N'FERA Sport (size 225/60R18 104V XL), is a summer tyre designed for superior high-speed stability, wet grip and braking performance – qualities that complement the Citroën C5 series’ dynamic driving experience. Produced at Nexen’s Czech Republic facility, the tyres meet stringent OE standards for quality, sustainability and supply chain efficiency.

The N'FERA Sport has earned widespread acclaim, securing top ratings in 2025 tests by leading European automotive organisations. Germany’s ADAC and AutoBild Sportscars awarded it a ‘Good’ rating, while Switzerland’s TCS deemed it ‘Very recommendable’. Austria’s ÖAMTC also recognised its strong performance, reinforcing its reputation as a premium summer tyre.

This collaboration reflects Nexen Tire’s strategic push to expand its OE business with top-tier automakers, further solidifying its global footprint in the competitive tire industry.

Edwin van der Stad, Vice President Europe Original Equipment at Nexen Tire, said, “We are proud to strengthen our partnership with Stellantis by being selected as an OE supplier for the Citroën C5/C5 Aircross. This collaboration highlights our technological capabilities and commitment to delivering high-performance, reliable tyres to global automakers.”

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The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., has started supplying its ADVAN V61 tyres for use as original equipment (OE) on the new Xiangwang S7, a plug-in hybrid SUV that was launched in China by GAC Trumpchi in March 2025. The EV will be equipped with 255/50R20 109V size tyres.

Yokohama Rubber's premium SUV tyre, the ADVAN V61, is part of their global flagship ADVAN brand line. Along with a high degree of fuel and energy economy, handling stability and quietness, the tyre provides ADVAN's renowned premium-grade driving performance, enabling heavyweight SUVs to travel long distances and drive comfortably in cities. The ADVAN V61 is offered as original equipment on a number of high-end SUVs, and a variety of sizes are available for the replacement market in addition to the size used on the Xiangwang S7.

Designed with families in mind, the Xiangwang S7 is a new plug-in SUV that offers a remarkable 1,150 km total driving range, a gradability of more than 40 percent, and an acceleration time of 5.8 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h. Furthermore, remote-controlled and automated parking are supported by its in-house intelligent driving system.

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The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., has started supplying its ADVAN Sport EV tyres for use as original equipment (OE) on the new HYPTEC HL SUV, an electric vehicle (EV) launched by Chinese EV manufacturer GAC AION in China in April 2025. The EV will be equipped with 255/50R20 109V size tyres.

The ADVAN Sport EV tyre is developed for high-end EV users based on Yokohama Rubber's ADVAN Sport V107 tyre. Yokohama Rubber has attained a level of low power consumption and quietness suitable for luxury EVs by employing a compound that has been shown to minimise tyre rolling resistance and adding a unique polyurethane foam dubbed SILENTFOAM to the inside of the tyre to reduce noise. Yokohama Rubber's exclusive ‘E+’ symbol is shown on the sidewall of the ADVAN Sport EV to signify that it possesses unique properties appropriate for electric vehicles.

The HYPTEC HL is a high-end SUV with a beautiful and dynamic appearance that draws inspiration from yacht design and comes with a long driving range and quick-charging feature. The SUV boasts a smart digital chassis, an intelligent driving aid system and a large passenger interior with a head-up display (HUD) and high-definition display.

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Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC) has selected the BluEarth 711L tyre from The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd. as original equipment (OE) for the Super Great heavy-duty truck. The Super Great, which started selling in Japan from December 2023 with a full model change, will be fitted with 245/70R19.5 136/134J and 275/80R22.5 151/148J tyres.

The BluEarth 711L is an all-season truck tyre that prioritizes and achieves exceptional fuel efficiency. For clients who often drive on highways, in particular, this will help lower their transportation expenses. In addition to achieving exceptional wear resistance, the tyres exhibit a high degree of balance between wet performance, snow performance, uneven wear resistance and silence.

By encouraging the use of its tyres as original equipment on new cars that require the newest tyre technologies, Yokohama Rubber is working to improve the technological capabilities of its tyres and increase the value of its brand in order to solidify its position in the commercial tyre industry.

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