Sport & Leisure

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – December 5, 2025 – Toyota is turning its most hardcore motorsport know-how into two new dream machines: the GR GT, a road-legal race car, and the GR GT3, a full FIA-spec customer race car designed for people who genuinely want to win on Sundays and still enjoy the brand’s racing spirit the rest of the week.

Lead image suggestion: A low, wide, graphite-grey GR GT prototype speeding through a fast corner at sunset, with a GR GT3 in full race livery chasing behind it, motion blur on the track and heat shimmer around the cars to emphasize speed and drama.

Flagship sports cars with true racing DNA

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – December 5, 2025 – For anyone who ever had a 2000GT or the original Lexus LFA as a poster on their wall, Toyota and Lexus just handed you three new dream machines to obsess over: the all-new GR GT, the race-ready GR GT3 and the dramatic Lexus LFA Concept. Together, they’re not just show cars – they’re rolling proof that Japan’s biggest carmaker still believes in emotion, craftsmanship and goosebump-level performance in an increasingly electric, software-driven world.

Heritage reboot: what “Toyota’s Shikinen Sengu” really means

To understand these three flagships, you almost have to think like a shrine carpenter rather than a car engineer. Toyota frames them as part of “Toyota’s Shikinen Sengu,” inspired by a traditional Japanese ritual where a shrine is rebuilt every few decades to keep skills and spirit alive.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – December 5, 2025 – On a cool November weekend at Fuji Speedway, the air above Mount Fuji filled with the deep roar of NASCAR stock cars – and for thousands of Japanese fans, it felt like a piece of American motorsport had landed right in their backyard. The special showrun during the Super Taikyu season finale wasn’t just about noise and speed; it was about “cultural exchange between the U.S. and Japan through motorsports” and a new chapter in the relationship between the two car-loving nations.

NASCAR thunder over Mount Fuji

On November 16, day two of the Super Taikyu finale in Shizuoka Prefecture, six NASCAR machines shipped over from the United States took to the track. Behind the wheel were top drivers from both countries, including Kamui Kobayashi, trading their usual machinery for the raw, big-hearted character that makes American stock cars so addictive to watch.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – December 5, 2025 – In a heart-stopping desert finale at Rally Saudi Arabia, TOYOTA GAZOO Racing star Sébastien Ogier clinched a record-equalling ninth FIA World Rally Championship title, outpacing teammate Elfyn Evans in a last-day points shootout that kept fans guessing right up to the final stage.

Desert showdown for the crown

The brand-new Saudi Arabian round delivered everything you’d expect from a season decider: soft and sandy desert tracks, rough mountain roads, scorching temperatures – and three title contenders all wearing the same Toyota badge. Ogier, Evans and Kalle Rovanperä headed into the rally knowing the championship would be settled here, but the loose surfaces and brutal puncture risk meant they were fighting two battles: each other and the elements.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – December 4, 2025 – Holiday shopping is getting a full glam upgrade this year as TJ Maxx hits the road with the first-ever Maxxinista Express, a double-decker tour bus created for the brand’s most devoted superfans. Rolling into Los Angeles, Dallas and Miami this December, the experience turns a day of “Maxx-hopping” between stores into a festive, content-ready celebration of style, community and seriously good deals.

A holiday road trip made for Maxxinistas

The Maxxinista Express is more than a branded bus – it’s a moving love letter to shoppers who swap TJ Maxx hauls, compare “you won’t believe what I got this for” moments and share their finds on social media. The tour takes select fans on a full day of visits to three beloved TJ Maxx stores in each city, complete with surprises and themed challenges along the way.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – December 4, 2025 – Fans of Hello Kitty®, cuddly plush and over-the-top mall adventures are getting a new reason to smile: the immersive Build-A-Bear x Hello Kitty and Friends Workshop experience is going national. After a hugely successful debut in Los Angeles, Build-A-Bear Workshop and Sanrio® are opening two new themed Workshops at American Dream in New Jersey and Mall of America in Minnesota in early 2026.

From LA hit to nationwide fan destination

The first Build-A-Bear & Hello Kitty and Friends Workshop quickly became a must-visit spot in Los Angeles, drawing collectors, families and longtime Sanrio fans who wanted more than just another store visit. It proved there’s something uniquely powerful about choosing a character, stuffing it yourself and sealing it with the signature Heart Ceremony in a world filled with bows, pastel colors and iconic faces.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – December 2, 2025 – Standing just metres from a glowing lava lake, clipped into a rope 600 metres inside an active volcano, most people would be thinking about getting out as fast as possible – but for German adventure photographer and filmmaker Ulla Lohmann, that’s exactly where she feels most alive. For more than 25 years, she has chased eruptions, lava flows and extreme landscapes around the world, turning a childhood fascination with volcanoes into a dream career that blends travel, storytelling and science.

From childhood volcano fan to National Geographic storyteller

Ulla’s path into adventure photography started young. At eight years old, her father took her to Vesuvius, Campi Flegrei and Pompeii, where she fell in love with what she calls “the breath of the earth”. That mix of danger, history and raw power never left her.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – November 28, 2025 – At the Paris Nautic Show, two French icons are stepping onto the same stage as BENETEAU and Alpine reveal the new Gran Turismo 50 Alpine limited edition, a sport-luxury yacht designed for people who love performance on both land and sea.

Two French legends meet on the water

The Gran Turismo 50 is already the flagship of BENETEAU’s Gran Turismo line, but this new Alpine limited edition turns it into something even more special for style-conscious boaters. BENETEAU brings 140 years of boatbuilding expertise, while Alpine contributes its motorsport DNA and bold design language. Together, they’ve created a yacht that feels like a natural extension of a French performance car lifestyle.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – November 27, 2025 – Speedway Motorsports is proving that great racing starts with great workplaces, earning Sports Business Journal’s Best Places to Work in Sports Silver Medalist recognition for the second year in a row. For motorsports fans and jobseekers alike, the honor underlines how a company built around speed, sound and spectacle also invests deeply in its people and culture behind the scenes.

What it means to be a ‘Best Place to Work in Sports’

The recognition comes from Sports Business Journal’s 2025 Best Places to Work in Sports awards, based on a confidential employee satisfaction survey conducted by Quantum Workplace. More than 9,000 employees from 98 companies took part, rating their organizations across more than 40 culture factors including trust in leadership, perks and benefits, and internal communication.

SHERIDAN, WYOMING – November 25, 2025 – South America’s legendary gravel, deserts and high-altitude stages are getting a fresh dose of excitement in 2026 as Stellantis Motorsport launches the Rally Cup South America – a new trophy that lets privateers in Peugeot, Opel and Lancia Rally4 cars compete for glory across an entire continent.

One trophy, three brands, a whole continent of stages
With the Stellantis Motorsport Rally Cup South America, the brand is bringing its successful Rally4 formula to an even bigger audience. The new series is open to drivers competing in Peugeot 208 Rally4, Opel Corsa Rally4 and Lancia Ypsilon Rally4 machinery across national and regional championships. Instead of being tied to a single country, the Cup spans all of South America, uniting drivers from different federations in one shared ranking.