Andretti Sports Marketing helped bring INDYCAR back to the oldest motor racing circuit in the world, The Milwaukee Mile. The schedule was VERY condensed so we only saw the Firestone Indy Lights and IZOD IndyCar Series compete as opposed to the full Mazda Road to Indy program and USAC that we saw last year, but the organization, promotion, and execution of the event was far more effective than last year’s event. What a great two days of racing! Here are the photos from the Firestone Indy Lights practice, qualifying, and…
Read MoreMonth: June 2012
Episode 142 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Shaun and Doug as they discuss the IZOD IndyCar race from Texas Motor Speedway. We also talk about rulings and penalties for Justin Wilson and teams going forward from the Texas post race inspection. This weekend the series heads to Milwaukee and Doug is on station to talk IndyCar and Mazda Road to Indy. Sit back and enjoy the show, and as always, thank you for listening!
Read MoreIndycar-Ryan Briscoe: “Yeah, it’s been tough.”
There’s no doubt Team Penske’s been the hottest team in the IZOD Indycar Series paddock this season. Out of seven races so far, Penske drivers have taken five poles and four wins. Most of the attention has gone to points leader Will Power and Helio Castroneves’ attempt to win his fourth Indianapolis 500 title. Penske drivers been at the front of Chevrolet’s charge back into the IZOD Indycar Series, leading the way in Chevy’s utter dominance of the first four races of the season and only recently being matched on…
Read MoreGRC – Event 2 Review: Texas
Another excellent contribution from rally fan and fan of OpenPaddock.net, Mike Shaw (@oregonwings). Do you love motorsports as much as us? Why not contribute your thoughts and opinions? We’d love to post and share them! Round 2 of the GRC takes place at Texas motor speedway in conjunction with the IndyCar event. A little bit longer course is laid out this time vs. the one in Charlotte. It is still 100% tarmac, but the one thing everyone is talking about is the return of the large jump. This time it…
Read MoreOpEd – What’s the Cost for Victory
So how much does it cost in addition to the normal operating expenses associated with running a team and fielding equipment to win an IZOD IndyCar Series race? Apparently, only a mere $7500 and five entrants points. There should be a giant bonanza of feel-good stories after the great racing at the Texas Motor Speedway, first 1.5-mile high-banked oval the series has run since last year’s race in Las Vegas, and race which culminated in victory for the small operation of Dale Coyne Racing and fan-favorite driver Justin Wilson. Wilson…
Read MoreIndyCar – Firestone 550 Had it All, and Then Some
On Saturday we were treated to the second of our five ovals on the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule, and man was it awesome! This was truly a race that had it all! We had great racing that did not require cars to be all over each other for the full race, and we had mechanical failures, meaningful passes, and some drivers a little hot under the collar when it was all said and done. INDYCAR was able to do something though that I have been preaching for the last…
Read MoreIndyCar – Firestone 550 Highlights
Global Rallycross Championship – Event 1 Review
Contributed article by Mike Shaw (@oregonwings) — So the first round of Global Rallycross Championship took place two weeks ago at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Unusually this GRC event was 100% tarmac instead of the 50/50 tarmac and dirt split. Apparently the folks at Charlotte didn’t like the idea of a couple of tons of gravel and dirt being dumped onto their precious asphalt and being ground in by 600 plus horsepower fire breathing 4wd rally cars. That meant the 70ft gap jump present at all rounds last year was missing…
Read MoreIndyCar – Powering Towards the Championship
The IZOD IndyCar Series starts a stretch of three ovals this weekend at Texas Motor Speedway and with it, the prospect of a championship shift. Will Power currently leads the championship by 36 points over Target Chip Ganassi driver Scott Dixon. One could look at this stretch of three races as the point in the season where Dixon really takes the fight to his Penske rival. However, the number and type of ovals on the schedule this year will really benefit Power and may see him take the lead back…
Read MoreIndycar-Detroit Grand Prix-Dixon Dodges Ditch Disaster
Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon absolutely dominated the competition on Belle Isle to handily win the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix. Dixon not only won the race, but he also won pole and led every lap. As most everyone predicted, there wasn’t much happening up front between Dixon’s dominance, the tight ARMCO and concrete canyons of the Belle Isle Circuit, the neutered track layout and EJ Viso doing a fabulous job holding up traffic for 27 mind numbing laps. Oh, then the track started coming apart. It’s a…
Read More