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Website review - GPUpdate - News from Formula One, GP2, A1GP and more

Published by Christine

This article was originally written for BellaOnline, but is republished here for posterity.

GPUpdate covers a few motorsports, including A1GP, GP2 and MotoGP, but their F1 site is what interests us. Their news is up to date and well written, with pictures to illustrate what is going on in the text. The archives are easy to navigate, although the ads can sometimes get in the way of the content.

One of the best things about this site is it's testing coverage. Formula 1 tests are notoriously lacking in information, with the occasional lunchtime update. Normally, we have to wait until the end of the day to see what's been happening. GPUpdate tend to have photos going up throughout the sessions, and keep us posted on the weather conditions as well. They also have a very good upcoming calendar to keep track of what tests are happening where and when. It's easy to miss or forget about tests, so this is a good way of keeping on top of things.

The one thing GPUpdate is missing, although perhaps isn't in their remit, is any in depth analysis. They're usually quick off the mark with a news story, but it doesn't go much further than reporting the facts. Sometimes this is useful because all you need to know is what's going on, but sometimes it would be nice to have a bit more background information to learn from. There are plenty of other places on the web to find this, though, so perhaps GPUpdate thought they would be better off concentrating on what they do best.

There are other features to the site though, as mentioned earlier, they have a great photo library. There is also a Fantasy F1 manager style game that takes place each season, and invites you to buy components to receive points and prizes. GPUpdate is also a reputable place to buy from, with a shop selling merchandise, tickets and many other things.

All in all, this site is good to have bookmarked, or tucked away in your RSS feed reader, as it delivers the news in a timely fashion. However don't expect too much more from it, otherwise the news might start getting slower!