Double Clutchin’-Just Give Me a Race And a Radio And I’ll Be Fine
July 6, 2008
First of all, let me be honest and let you know straight up that this will not be a really in-depth analysis of the race, because I didn’t get the chance to see the race Saturday night. Due to the death of my uncle, I was coming back from Indiana while Read more
Briscoe and Wilson lead the field to green at the Glen
July 5, 2008
Ryan Briscoe set the fast time of the final qualifying session today at Watkins Glenn and will be on pole for tomorrow’s Camping World Grand Prix at the Glenn. The young Aussie put his road racing skills on display and clocked his fastest lap at 135.787 mph.
Starting next to Briscoe is the Newman/Haas/Lanigan owned Dallara driven by Justin Wilson. The NHL team won the first road race of the year in St. Petersburg, and they look to have their gear in top form again at the Glenn. Wilson’s teammate, Graham Rahal, didn’t fare as well. The kid crashed again, and wasn’t able to make it into today’s final qualifications. He will start 18th.
Thank You for Not Sharing.
July 5, 2008
Yesterday, Hendrick Motorsports announced that Mark Martin will run the full schedule in the #5 car in 2009, and again part-time in 2010. No surprises there, although Hendrick and Martin say they can’t figure out how the story broke so quickly as most of the deal was done through text messages.
What was uncertain, though, was how and if Brad Keselowski would fit into the new format. It was speculated early on that, since Martin had shared a ride this year at DEI with Aric Almirola, he would consider the same arrangement at Hendrick Motorsports. Read more
Martin is the perfect fit for Hendrick!
July 5, 2008
Mark Martin will run the Hendrick Motorsports #5 full time next season, taking what may be his final shot at winning the Sprint Cup Championship. I don’t expect Martin Read more
Silverstone friday: Massa crashes, Ecclestone announces British GP moving to Donnington
July 4, 2008
Formula 1 returned to Silverstone this weekend for the British Grand Prix for the second to last GP to be held at the historic circuit. Bernie Ecclestone announced this weekend that the British GP will be moving to Donnington Park starting in 2010.
The loss of Silverstone is a great one for the history of the sport. Silverstone has been a part of Grand Prix racing since the late 1940’s and hosted the first Formula 1 World Championship GP in 1950.
Breaking News: Martin to drive in Hendrick’s #5 car
July 4, 2008
Just a week after Hendrick Motorsports announced that Casey Mears will not return as their drive of their #5 Chevy, the super-team revealed today that Mark Martin will replace Mears and run a full schedule in 2009.
The News-Press: Martin to drive for Hendrick
This is an interesting move by Hendrick who has a tendency to hire “young guns”, but clearly Martin has delivered results in his long run in NASCAR. Martin has finished second in the Cup championship several times, but this move to Hendrick gives him another dream shot.
MotoGP battle heats up at mid-season
July 4, 2008
July brings us the middle of summer, and for MotoGP fans, it also marks the mid-season point for the series schedule. And as the summer temperatures are heating up as fast as the points battle in MotoGP.
Early in the season Dani Pedrosa and Valentino Rossi looked as if they would make the championship a two-horse race Pedrosa has had an incredible season to this point, and has put in some dominating performances. He absolutely blew the rest of the field away in Barcelona, and his riding has been flawless. Rossi strung together three consecutive wins, and seemed poised to pull ahead in the standings. But an early crash in last week’s race at Assen was a set back, and he currently sits second in points.
Welcoming Randy Moss To NASCAR
July 3, 2008
Because when I think NASCAR; I think Randy Moss. In what may be the strangest marriage since Lisa Marie Presley and Michael Jackson; New England Patriots’ Wide Receiver Randy Moss, has decided to purchase himself part of a NASCAR truck series. Read more
Open Testing Would Have its Drawbacks
July 3, 2008
NASCAR is evidently considering going “wide open” with its testing policy. As it stands now, NASCAR mandates so many tests per year at their sanctioned tracks, and typically most teams show up for the tests. Teams can test any time they want at tracks that are not NASCAR sanctioned.
While there may be good things about the plan, I think it would completely hinder the process of trying to save the teams money. It would also drive the “haves” and the “have-nots” even farther apart in performance.
If NASCAR allowed teams to test at their own discretion, I can see a scenario like this: Multi-car, multi-million dollar budget teams will start testing weekly to gain a competitive edge. Eventually, all the big-budget teams will follow suit in order to keep up. In order not to burn out the weekend crews, new employees will have to be hired specifically for testing. More transporters will be needed. Teams will likely also have to employ separate drivers and engineers for the sole purpose of testing.
On the good side, this would create a lot more opportunities for people trying to break into NASCAR. On the bad side, the costs would be astronomical, and there is no way a small, single-car operation could keep up. Were a team like the Wood Brothers to try to keep this pace, their employees would all be asleep at the wheel, pardon the pun, by the time the most important part of the week came around.
More testing would also mean additional burning of fuel, a touchy subject right now if there ever was one. Why give any more ammunition to critics who are already calling us wasteful with the fuel supply?
More testing costs would inevitably mean teams asking for more sponsor money, and in this economy, along with asking for more fuel, how feasible is that? Until things start looking up, I think it would be wise for NASCAR to keep testing in-house.
Breaking News: NHRA Shortens Racing Distance To 1,000 Feet
July 2, 2008
As the investigation continues into the tragic accident that took the life of driver Scott Kalitta, NHRA announced today that beginning at the Mopar Mile High Nationals in Denver, Colorado, both the Top Fuel and Funny Car classes will race to 1,000 feet instead of the traditional 1,320 feet or one-quarter mile. This is an interim step that is being taken while NHRA continues to analyze and determine whether changes should be made to build upon the sport’s long standing safety record, given the inherent risks and ever-present dangers associated with the sport. Read more