INDYCAR – SSM Engineer Leaves for Andretti

Curt Cavin reported yesterday that Alex Tagliani’s race engineer Allen McDonald had left his current SSM operation in favor of a return to Andretti Autosport. McDonald has a history with Andretti including winning the Indianapolis 500 in 2007 with Dario Franchitti. It was also reported that both Andretti and McDonald wanted this deal which further prompted Sam Schmidt to make some rather pointed comments at Michael in regards to his Shanghai tactics. The fact of the matter is while I respect the hell out of Sam Schmidt, he does not really have any room…

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Episode 90 – Openpaddock.net Podcast

Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin the boys this week as they rehash all of the excitement of qualifications. They also debate the 20,000 pound elephant in the room and interestingly enough…there is a disagreement. Sorry for those looking for all of the motorsports we usually cover but the 500 takes the cake this week as tornadoes in the area forced the show to break and restart after track drying. Sit back as always and enjoy the show!

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Featured – Top 10 Biggest Disappointments of 2010

So it has been some time since I have posted anything, and while 2010 is not completely over, I think we have some pretty solid contenders for top 10 disappointments of 2010. This feature is going to cover every series that we cover on the site. We all know that WRC, IndyCar, ALMS, F1, and even our beloved Rally America or Rally Car series has had some moments they would choose to forget, but we are not going to let them just yet. This list is not necessarily in the…

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F1 – Mercedes GP Statement on Appeal

Below is the statement released by Mercedes GP in regards to their withdraw of an appeal lodged against the FiA over the events that occurred during the end of the Monaco GP. While I believe the penalty was ridiculous given the track conditions were contrary to how the regulation was supposed to work, I do appreciate the FiA admitting that this regulation was untested and that they could see how the reg could be interpreted the way it was. On the final lap of the 2010 Monaco Grand Prix, MERCEDES…

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F1 – Thoughts on Malaysia GP

It has been told to me a number of times that the third race is usually the first “actual” race of the season. A time where we start to see clearly where the teams stack up against each other. Sepang would be this third race and I was able to pull away some interesting ideas while also gathering a clear understanding of who the real contenders would be. Red Bull Racing used this weekend to put on yet another clinic. This time they were able to get the job done.…

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F1 – Monster to Sponsor Mercedes GP Drivers

It would appear that Red Bull is no longer the only kid on the energy drink block as Monster has announced a deal that will see them sponsor Mercedes GP. Monster has global reach in terms of motorsport and sponsors the likes of Ken Block, Ricky Carmichael, and scores of other motorcross drivers. It only makes sense that the drink company would now make their presence known in the realm of F1 to further that global success. Below is the brief press release on the deal: On the day of…

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F1 – Bahrain Quali Results

While yesterday marked the first day in which cars took to the track for the 2010 FiA Formula 1 World Championship, today was the first day where we actually got to see who had what in terms of outright performance. Qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix was some of the most exciting action I had seen in terms of grid position in some time. Sebastian Vettel would claim his sixth career pole position in a most spectaculor fashion by beating second place Felipe Massa by a tenth of a second.…

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F1 – Rosberg Would Welcome Schumi

As speculation about a Schumacher return picks up steam, the man forgotten in all of this finally speaks. Nico Rosberg left Williams F1 in pursuit of a winning team and a championship. That was of course until the greatest F1 pilot in history started stirring the pot. Not all is bitter in the Mercedes garage however. Rosberg has been recently quoted as saying he would welcome Michael Schumacher to the german marquee’s team and would gladly share a seat with the seven times champion. Rosberg was quoted as saying to…

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