PR – ASCHENBACH WINS, GAPLES 9TH AT PIRELLI WORLD CHALLENGE SEASON OPENER IN ST. PETERSBURG

Josh Tons

St. Petersburg, FL – Blackdog Speed Shop drivers Lawson Aschenbach and Tony Gaples finished 1st and 9th, respectively, in the Pirelli World Challenge season opener at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. After inclement weather caused a cancellation of race one during the double header weekend, drivers were left to battle it out in what became the first race of the season on Sunday. Aschenbach slotted into 2nd place on the start and continued to pressure the leader throughout the race. After using a late race pass in traffic that…

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IndyCar – Sato Wins Pole Position

Mike Shaw

(Saint Petersburg, Florida) At the end of this afternoon’s multi-stage Verizon IndyCar race-qualifying session, Takuma Sato of A. J. Foyt Racing had posted the fastest time and earned the Verizon P1 Award. In his #14 ABC Supply car with Honda power, Sato’s fastest lap was 1 minute, 1.8686 seconds on the damp 1.8-mile city street course. The Japanese racer, who was second-fastest here last year, bested the rest of the ‘final six’ qualifiers: Will Power in the #12 Verizon car, Ryan Hunter-Reay in the #28 DHL car, his teammate Marco…

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IndyCar – Previewing the Saint Petersburg Grand Prix

Mike Shaw
Tony Kanaan Saint Petersburg Turn 3

(Saint Petersburg, Florida) The bay-front streets of downtown Saint Petersburg, in West Central Florida, between Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, are the setting for an eleventh Verizon IndyCar Series race — Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of Saint Petersburg. This city has hosted numerous races in various series, from SCCA Pro Racing’s Trans-Am Series, to American Le Mans Series, Champ Car, Formula Vee to Indy Lights. The course configurations have varied since racing began in the 1980s, but the course is east downtown, on the waterfront, between the Pier…

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IndyCar – Back On Track

Mike Shaw
sunshine and clouds in Saint Petersburg, Florida

(Saint Petersburg, Florida) We have windy, cloudy weather over Tampa Bay, where sailboats and powerboats abound, even on a Friday. This is a day of race car and truck practices for six race series, on a 1.8-mile track that winds through downtown and uses an airport runway. Canadian James Hinchcliffe was fastest in this morning’s Verizon IndyCar Series practice for Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix race. He said that his team had done its homework in the off-season and is “starting off on the right foot.” He said that this is…

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IndyCar – The Value of Constructive Criticism

Shaun

I will admit the idea from this article stemmed from a great conversation I was able to be a part of on Twitter yesterday afternoon. It all started with a simple tweet from @WhateverJoel: “Whatever happened to honest criticism of IndyCar? There’s too much cheerleading, or people with unrealistic expectations. As we begin the championship this weekend at St. Pete, the series has its standard momentum. Lots of buzz and excitement teamed with a new title sponsor and it would seem that everyone has a reason to be happy. The…

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F1 Soap Box – All the Noise About the Lack of Noise in F1

mike

Ron Walker, the promoter of the F1 race in Melbourne, has been making all kinds of stink about the quieter engines that graced the streets of Albert Park.  Even before the FIA excluded the Australian Daniel Ricciardo from his podium, the newspapers were printing vitriol about the lack of engine noise.  Add this to the fact that there is growing resentment from the citizens that the Queensland government continues to shell out an exorbitant $50 million a year to subsidize the race, it would be fair to say that the…

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Sports Car Wars return to Florida

Mike Shaw

(Saint Petersburg, Florida) This is the 25th anniversary season of SCCA Pro Racing’s Pirelli World Challenge Championships. And it begins this weekend in the Cadillac Grand Prix of Saint Petersburg Presented by StopTech. The Pirelli World Challenge (PWC) is the playground of many auto makers as Acura, Aston-Martin, Audi, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Ferrari, Fiat, Ford, Honda, Kia, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mini, Lamborghini, Nissan, McLaren, and Porsche use the 22-race series as a technology proving ground — and a marketing tool. Blackdog Speed Shop returns to the sports car wars to defend its…

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IndyCar – A Glance at 2014 Season

Shaun

Welcome to the start of the 2014 Verizon IndyCar series!! While I could sit and tell you every little thing that I think we should be on the lookout for, I won’t waste your time! Sadly, moving has dictated the schedule this week and is a key reason why I have missed the last two shows. I will be your Verizon IndyCar Series contributor this year and look forward to engaging with the fans over the next few months on our great series! The first major change comes from the…

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PR – Hyundai and RMR Join Forces Again for 2014 Red Bull Global Rallycross Championship

Mike Shaw

  HYUNDAI AND RHYS MILLEN FORGE FORMIDABLE NEW FORCE TO COMPETE IN 2014 GLOBAL RALLYCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES New Two-Driver Team Includes the First Female Driver in Global RallyCross: Top-Ranked Emma Gilmour of New Zealand Rhys Millen to be Full-Season Driver with 2014 GRC Title Sponsor Red Bull FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Mar. 24, 2014 – Hyundai and Rhys Millen Racing (RMR) are again joining forces to create a groundbreaking new team for the 2014 Global Rallycross Championship (GRC) series. For 2014, Hyundai and RMR continue their assault on dirt- and tarmac-based…

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