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…
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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 MoreEpisode 141 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Mike and Shaun as they cover the IZOD IndyCar Series from Belle Isle in Detroit. It was a rough weekend with plenty of blame to go around. Shaun launches a tirade against the team owners and Mike tries to bring sanity back to the show…but it is too late. We also talk aero kits and China. Are we going to China? Are we not? We discuss. We also have the brief wrap up of events going on around the world. Enjoy the show!
Read MoreIndy Lights – Belle Isle Recap
Who says you can’t pass at Belle Isle? No one told the Firestone Indy Lights drivers that! On a weekend that ended on a sour note as the aging circuit began to disintegrate half-way through the IZOD IndyCar Series race, the Firestone Indy Lights series proved that Belle Isle could provide good, exciting racing. Qualifying: The car-count woes continue to plague the Firestone Indy Lights series as only 14 entries signed up for the Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix at Raceway at Belle Isle Park. Of those fourteen, only…
Read MoreRally – 2012 STPR Review
The following article is a contribution by Mike Shaw, @oregonwings. Have something you’d like to contribute? Send us an email! After all, our motto is “Motorsports commentary for the fans, BY the fans!” As expected there was drama in the woods this weekend at the Waste Management Susquehannock Performance Trail Rally®. STPR isn’t a long rally, but it is no less exciting. With its wide nicely cambered and sweeping gravel roads, its many drivers’ favorite event. The flowing nature of the stages allows for high speeds and corner cutting, but…
Read MoreRally – Photos from the 2012 STPR
Tom and Brenda survived the severe weather on Friday, although their camp site was quite battered. They were able to recover on Saturday and continue taking some fantastic images of the 2012 Susquehannock Performance Trail Rally. We’ll have a full review of the event soon, but for now congratulations to Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard for overcoming Day 1 cooling issues and taking the overall win. O’Sullivan and Putnam took the Super Production victory, and Duplessis and Kihurani survived the 2WD battle with the Aussies.
Read MoreRally – 2012 STPR Preview
Editor’s Note: Mike Shaw is a regular visitor to OpenPaddock.net and rally fan. His contributions to our rally coverage began with his articles summarizing the rally action and fan experience from this year’s Oregon Trail Rally, and he continues his contributions here with coverage of the Susquehannock Performance Trail Rally. Be sure to check back regularly throughout the weekend for new articles and give him a follow on Twitter, @oregonwings. 2012 Susquehannock Performance Trail Rally Preview – Round 4 of the Rally America National Championship Although the Open class seems…
Read MoreIndycar-Power Rankings After Round 5 of 16
Around 1/3rd of the way through the 2012 IZOD Indycar Series schedule, and we’re still seeing tight competition all the way through the grid. Yes, every race this season has been won by a “Red Car,” Will Power has won three of five races, and Penske/Ganassi cars have dominated Pole Position. It doesn’t feel like the overwhelming dominance by the “Red Cars” this year like it has in the past though. Perhaps it’s masterful drives by guys like James Hinchcliffe, Simon Pagenaud and the post-Lotus Oriol Servia. Maybe it’s the…
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