On this week’s OpenPaddock Live, we ranted about the “story that would not die”, the rumors continued to fly and Tony Hulman George was seeking to purchase INDYCAR. When we saw Curt Cavin of the Indianapolis Star writing about it, we knew that there was more to the story that just hearsay, but a concern that Mr. Cavin raised was that as a member of the Hulman & Company Board of Directors, he couldn’t be both buyer and seller. Then today, we received the following press release from IMS announcing…
Read MoreAuthor: Doug Patterson
Motorsports enthusiast since ...well... always. Grew up watching Mario and AJ, took my first lap around IMS in the tour bus in 1977, fell in love with anything that went fast.
Currently, I work as a professor of astronomy and physics at a college in the suburbs of Kansas City, http://staff.jccc.edu/dpatter/, and own a photography business, Patterson Prints, with my wife. http://www.pattersonprints.com/
Star Mazda – Chavez On Pole at Road Atlanta
The final round of the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear takes place this afternoon at the Road Atlanta circuit outside of Braselton, GA. Jack Hawksworth, pilot for Team Pelfrey and 2012 champion, has stepped out of the car this week and is coaching Ryan Tveter who is taking his place in the #82. Jack has dominated the season, but there’s been one driver who has been consistently on his heels and on the podium, Gabby Chavez. Gabby drives the #19 CLARO/Marca Colombia/Tecpro Mazda car for JDC MotorSport and sits…
Read MoreStar Mazda – Zach Veach Interview at Road Atlanta
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadBrian McKay, one of our photographers here at OpenPaddock, is down at Road Atlanta this weekend, and it pulling double-duty for us. Since he’s the only one there for us, he’s working his magic with glass and film (ok image sensor), and he’s serving as our on-site reporter. Today he caught up with Andretti Autosport driver, Zach Veach to talk with him about his experience testing the Firestone Indy Lights car last week at the Chris Griffis Mazda Road to Indy Open Test at…
Read MoreIndyLights – Firestone Indy Lights 2013 Schedule
INDYCAR released the race schedule for the 2013 Firestone Indy Lights season. We already knew the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule, so the details of the Indy Lights schedule really comes as no surprise. One thing I am rather surprised at is the absence of the Circuit Trois-Rivières from the schedule. Instead of racing in Canada, the Firestone Indy Lights series rejoins the IZOD IndyCar Series at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course the first weekend in August. This is going to make track time during the already jam-packed weekend at Mid-Ohio…
Read MoreEpisode 160 — OpenPaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadIf you missed it last night on ETV Live!, we had the honor of speaking with the newly signed pilot of the #9 Firestone Indy Lights racing machine for Belardi Auto Racing, Mr. Peter Dempsey. Peter shared with us his experiences struggling to find a stable ride through the end of 2011 with Andretti Autosport, racing and coaching in 2012 at Indianapolis and Detroit this past season with Younessi Racing, and ending the 2012 season with Belardi. We also asked him to do some…
Read MoreRally – WRC Musical Chairs
By Mike Shaw, Rally Reporter: As the WRC season nears its end, drivers and teams start the process of playing musical chairs in hopes of landing the next championship. The stakes are especially high for 2013 as it has the potential to be a huge turning point for the sport. At least it had the potential, as suddenly the number of available seats has been drastically reduced for 2013. Late last week we heard the official, although long rumored, exit of BMW / Mini as an official works manufacturer. The…
Read MoreSCCA – Kansas City Region’s First Rallycross
First of all, let me say, HOLY CRAP WAS THAT A TON OF FUN!!! This past weekend the Kansas City Region of the Sports Car Club of America held its very first rallycross event. It was a new experience for everyone as only five out of the thirty participants had ever rallycrossed before. Most of the competitors were very experienced autocrossers, and there were a few like me who have only scant experience at autocross and none at rallycross. Fortunately, we did have the help of a few knowledgeable and…
Read MoreRally – Leo Parente Asks, Is the WRC Better Off Without Loeb?
If you don’t already watch Drive’s Leo Parente and his SHAKEDOWN show on YouTube, then log out of WoW, put the pizza rolls down, and go subscribe! Its some of the best and unvarnished motorsports commentary you’re going to find. This week, Leo asks the question that we had touched on during last week’s show on ETV Live, “Will the 2013 WRC Season be more exciting without Loeb?” Shaun’s response was an emphatic yes, and I couldn’t bring too much argument. Regular listener and contributor, Mike Shaw, argued that the…
Read MoreIndy Lights – Dempsey Signs With Belardi for 2013
The engines and tyres have barely had time to cool down from the The Chris Griffis Memorial Mazda Road to Indy Test that took place yesterday and today on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway infield road course and we’re already seeing driver signings for 2013. Peter Dempsey has had a tough few years in the Mazda Road to Indy program, his last full-season ride being with AIM Motorsports for the 2009 Star Mazda season. In 2010, he returned to his native Ireland and ran Formula Ford events for his father’s team,…
Read MoreUSF2000 and Pirelli World Challenge Are Solid with Green-Savoree
While I thoroughly enjoy the IZOD IndyCar Series and American Le Mans Series races at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, I must admit that my favourite parts of the weekend are the USF2000 and World Challenge races. The USF2000 races this year have seen a huge increase in participation level, with grid sizes routinely in the high 20s and sometimes in the 30s. The SCCA World Challenge has also seen a high level of participation in its three classes. The variety of machines, Championship, Formula Continental, and Formula Enterprise cars…
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