One of the biggest news stories of 2009 revolved around the “crash gate” episode. We are all familiar with the story of Nelson Piquet Jr. intentionally crashing so that teammate Fernando Alonso could take victory. Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds were both blamed for the incident and received a lifetime ban and 5 year ban from FiA competition. The verdict on the appeal filed by Flavio and Pat was released today and the fiery Italian boss may be back a lot sooner than Max Mosley had hoped at the time…
Read MoreAuthor: Shaun
Dakar – Day 3 Highlights
Dakar – Day 2 Highlights
Le Mans – Pugs Snub ACO
French Manufacturer Peugeot has announced that at this time, the new International Cup is “not in the plans” for 2010. While the announcement is not official, it certainly continues the bad news for the LMP series across the globe. The announcement was made after arch rivals Audi stated their intention to enter two cars in the championship. Problems with the French manufacturer are to blame for the snub as the board has approved the budget for this year’s Le Mans 24 Hour and work for the 2011 challenger. This is…
Read MoreDakar – Day 1
Episode 20 – Open Paddock Podcast
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Mike and I this week as we usher in a new year and discuss the return of Schumacher. We also bring up some other interesting F1 points and how they have a lot in common with the drug bums. We also preview the first race of the 2010 season as our offseason is over it is time to talk Dakar 2010!
Read MoreRally – Pastrana Takes Flight!
Rally – WRC Safari in 2012
One of the largest complaints I have been hearing in regards to the FIA World Rally Championship is the lack of legacy events. Kenya and the Safari Rally are hoping to change a little of that in 2012. The Safari Rally was one of the most beautiful on the calendar and a fan favorite for many years. The event was eventually cut due to lack of funding, but due to some inner workings of the FIA, the event may once again grace the WRC calendar. The event has been on…
Read MoreFeatured – Happy Holidays from OP!
Myself, Mike, and Doug would like to wish all of our subscribers, readers, and fans a very happy and safe holiday weekend. We here at the OP are most thankful for the folks who come day in and day out to the site and fuel the conversation and the passion that is all the series we cover. If it was not for you the fans, this site would have dropped off a few months after it started. We appreciate your views, opinions, and posts that we recieve everyday. We look…
Read MoreLe Mans – Strakka is Acura Powered
While the Acura LMP2 program may be dead here in America, it has found new life in Europe as Strakka Racing has become the first team to acquire the car outside of the US. The car seen great sucess under the Fernadez Racing team as it took the LMP2 championship against the Dysin Mazdas. The car was shown to have some weak spots in development towards the middle of the season but put on a great show for the season finale at Laguna Seca. The car made a testing debut…
Read More