All Change at Spinardi: New Name, New Team Principal and New Driver for 2027

Spinardi is set for a complete fresh start ahead of the 2027 VFC season. The team will not only undergo major personnel changes, but will also compete under a new name: Spinardi will become the Smile Power Racing Team.

There will also be a change at the top of the team. James Andrews will take over the team principal role from Daniel Scott for the upcoming season, while also continuing behind the wheel himself. Alongside him, Mike Bell will take over the second car. With that, the team heads into the 2027 season with a completely new structure and a new driver pairing.

Andrews: “I’m looking forward to joining Mike next year”

For James Andrews, the current season marked his return to a major league series after some time away, at least as a driver. Looking back, the future team principal draws a positive conclusion, even though the season has not always been easy:

"It’s been a fun year, my first major league series in some time, as a driver at least, been a lot of getting back up to speed but Daniel’s been a good teammate, and whilst we’ll still work together next year I’m sure, I wish him the best with Robin, and hopefully he can finally make his father proud of him, though that may be a tall order. I’m looking forward to joining Mike next year as a Smile Power entry, hopefully can put what I’ve learnt from this year into practice for the next, and hopefully move up the grid at least a short way. But still several races to go this year, hopefully can claim a few more points before the end, I’ve had some reasonable race pace but some bad luck at Canada and Austria, hopefully by changing teammates the Aberdonian curse will no longer catch me in its net."

With his new role, Andrews will not only take on more responsibility on the sporting side, but also lead a team that is looking to reinvent itself for the upcoming season. The move from the current Spinardi identity to the Smile Power Racing Team is therefore more than just a name change. It marks a clear fresh start with a new identity, a new team structure, and new ambitions.

Bell: “Its gonna be a fun venture”

Mike Bell is also looking forward to the upcoming season. After taking part in selected races during the current campaign, he rediscovered his interest in open-wheel racing in sim racing:

"It’s been pretty fun doing the odd rounds this season, when Daniel talked me into racing at Miami it really got me thinking about driving open wheelers in simracing again. To secure a seat for next season I made known my consideration to enter the world infamous Smile Power Racing team, and so immediately Robin and Daniel talked me into it.

Then James stepped up to the plate to run alongside me after coming so close to winning our Tour de France fantasy game he clearly has a taste for contending for championships which is hopefully gonna drag me along as well. Its gonna be a fun venture regardless and im looking forward to it."

With Bell, the new Smile Power Racing Team gains a driver who has already collected his first impressions during the current season and will now compete in the VFC on a permanent basis. Together with Andrews, the team has formed a driver pairing that looks interesting from a sporting perspective while already promising plenty of entertainment before the season has even begun.

For Daniel Scott, this marks the end of his role as team principal at Spinardi, while Andrews takes responsibility for the team’s new era. With Scott moving to Rookie Monsters and the team being renamed, a new chapter begins for everyone involved.

One thing is clear: hardly anything will remain the same at Spinardi for the 2027 season. New name, new team principal, new driver pairing — the Smile Power Racing Team heads into the upcoming VFC season with a fresh look and is likely to create talking points both on and off the track.