As headlines ring around the world hailing Red Bull Racing’s Sebastian Vettel on his world championship, there have been some very vicious headlines as well regarding Ferrari and their strategy that lost the title for Fernando Alonso. While I have distanced myself from Ferrari and latched on to Mercedes (Schumacher), I still think these attacks are ridiculous after you compare 2009 and 2010. For that very reason alone, Ferrari should be praised and their season should be viewed as successful. look back at 2009 for just a second. Felipe Massa…
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IndyCar – 2009 Highlights from The Glen
Firestone Indy Lights – 2009 Season Review – Battle for the Championship
Battle for the Championship Kentucky Speedway: The Kentucky 100 at the Kentucky Speedway was the 100th race for the Indy Racing League sanctioned Firestone Indy Lights series, although it looked like weather might put a damper on the celebration. The track was dry for the race, but qualifications were rained out resulting in the grid being determined by points. That gave the AFS/AGR team the front row. Wade Cunningham started from P4, right behind his nemesis from Iowa and championship contender Sebastian Saavedra in P2. JR Hildebrand, although being awarded…
Read MoreEpisode 19 – Open Paddock Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin us this week as we give out the first annual openpaddock.net awards. Car of the year, driver of the year, and the first annual OP lifetime of suck achievement award. We also go over all of this weeks hot news and keep you in the loop.
Read MoreFirestone Indy Lights – 2009 Season Review – Mid-Season Grind
The Mid-Season Grind The two oval races at Kansas and Indianapolis really took a toll on equipment. The devastation seen at Kansas put several teams out of contention for the remainder of the season including Guthrie Racing being banned for their harsh response Sean Guthrie’s endangerment of the Delphi Safety Crew. The first few races of the season saw strong grids with cars numbering in the mid-20s. After Indianapolis, the fields were significantly reduced averaging around 17 cars. This was a disappointing, but considering how many shards of carbon fiber…
Read MoreFirestone Indy Lights – 2009 Season Review – Spring Races
Introduction A dedicated feeder series to the primary American Open-Wheel Racing series has been in existance in one form or another since 1986. The American Racing Series began in 1986 to serve as a development platform for CART, since the Formula Atlantics series which had been around since 1965 had failed to race in 1984, and existed as two separate series, a Pacific and an Atlantic series, from 1985 to 1990. In 1991, the same year that the split Formula Atlantics championship merged back into a single national series, the…
Read MoreEpisode 18 – Open Paddock Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Mike and I as we discuss Le Mans and the International Cup. We also cover all the big motorsport conventions from this week and the great news that came from them. Britain again has a GP and we discuss it. We also talk rally feeder series and even mention Danica to NASCAR.
Read MoreIndyCar – Double Duty for Patrick
Just when I thought things had calmed down on the NASCAR front, I was made to eat my words. Danica Patrick announced today that she is going NASCAR while still focusing on IndyCar. The news should be no surprise considering ESPN has reported the living crap out of this story. In fact, ESPN rumored this so much that it actually became ridiculous and annoying. Yet here we sit weeks later and the news has finally been released. If all goes according to plan, Patrick will debut for the ARCA series…
Read MoreF1 – Rosberg Would Welcome Schumi
As speculation about a Schumacher return picks up steam, the man forgotten in all of this finally speaks. Nico Rosberg left Williams F1 in pursuit of a winning team and a championship. That was of course until the greatest F1 pilot in history started stirring the pot. Not all is bitter in the Mercedes garage however. Rosberg has been recently quoted as saying he would welcome Michael Schumacher to the german marquee’s team and would gladly share a seat with the seven times champion. Rosberg was quoted as saying to…
Read MoreIndyCar – Viso to Test DRR
E.J. Viso will be testing with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing on December 9th at the famous Sebring Circuit in a one day event. Hugo must really be tossing a lot of money in support of his Venezuelan talent, and DRR is taking all of it. With Venezuelan Milka Dunno already racing (or pretending) under the DRR flag, a much more talented Viso will be brought in to test new data systems and equipment. Viso, whom currently is without a drive will be looking for employment before season prep really takes…
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