So it is all over. The first gravel test of 2011 and an all too familiar ending for fans of the WRC. Sebastien Loeb claimed victory south of the border and in pretty dominant fashion. The weekend was not without its issues however. Here are a few points I was able to take away from Round 2. Tires Michelin had a rough showing this weekend. While the brand has been away from rally’s top flight for sometime, there were a number of punctures on the hard rocks of Mexico. The…
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Episode 78 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Shaun and Mike as they talk this weeks hot INDYCAR news. Texas Duels, FAZZT/Schmidt race team, and all the rest! We also briefly recap the 100 Acre Wood Rally and preview Rally Mexico. The crew makes their fantasy Rally championship predictions and the all important country queen comes up for grabs again. So sit back and enjoy the weeks important motorsport news!
Read MoreRally – L’Estage Wins 100 Acre Wood, Hanson Maintains Championship Lead
FROM: RALLYCAR: Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard have won the 2011 Rally in the 100 Acre Wood after a flawless drive from start to end. L’Estage set a blistering pace early on, winning ten of the event’s fifteen special stages and finishing 17.7 seconds ahead of international rally ace David Higgins. This victory was a particularly sweet one for L’Estage, who celebrated his birthday on Saturday, the second and final day of the rally. Subaru Rally Team USA’s David Higgins and co-driver Craig Drew placed second overall, netting their first…
Read MoreRally – 100 Acre Wood Post News Conference
INDYCAR – Pastrana Answers the $5M Question…
So earlier this week we had the Vegas announcement talking about a five million dollar prize to a non INDYCAR driver. So what type of drivers would that bring out? Openpaddock.net’s Doug Patterson caught up with the rally champion at a special one off rally this weekend as part of the RallyCar series. The 100 Acre Wood rally in Salem Missouri is one of the bigger events on the Rally America schedule and Pastrana left straight from a NASCAR race on Thursday to compete. This is what he had to…
Read MoreiRacing – Daytona 500 Wrap-up
So nearly a week after the Daytona 500 via iRacing, I have finally calmed down enough to put my thoughts on a post. For those asking, yes the race was in fact 500 miles and I spent a good three weeks prepairing for NASCAR’s crown jewel event. This particular event was not as easy as one would think. While we are turning left and the draft effects the way you drive, the setup is crucial. I started with picking a setup off of the iRacing forum and giving it a…
Read MoreRally – Stobart Goes Big for Mexico
The M-Sport Stobart team had a weekend to remember in Sweden with Mads Ostberg giving the team their best ever result of 2nd. The team also led a rally for the first time ever. So what is the next logical step? Go even bigger in Mexico! The team is set to run with four M-Sport Stobart powered Ford Fiestas. Mads Ostberg and Henning Solberg are the nominated points drivers for the first gravel test of the year. Joining them in a non points capacity will be Matthew Wilson and Evgeny…
Read MoreIndy Lights – Belardi Auto Racing Finalizes Driver Roster
Today, Belardi Auto Racing announced that Jorge Goncalvez would join Anders “The Viking” Krohn to round out their 2011 Firestone Indy Lights driver roster. Jorge has made it to the Firestone Indy Lights series through a somewhat unique route. While he has has some experience in karting, beginning in 2006, he also started racing cars that same year. He ran one race in the Formula Renault 1.6 Panam GP Series and made the podium! Not bad for your first time out. He then moved to Formula Renault Campus France in…
Read MoreINDYCAR – Wheels Fall Off for De Ferran Dragon
When the news broke a while back that Tony Kanaan had signed with De Ferran Dragon Racing, we here at the site were very excited at the variable that would add to 2011. TK is obviously a very talented driver who made charging through the field into a game last season. What would he be able to do in 2011 and for a team that had seen a best fourth position out of former driver Raphael Matos? It all ended on Tuesday night when Tony Kanaan was released from De…
Read MoreRally – Red Bull Skoda Ready to Attack SWRC
One of my top story lines for Rally Mexico is going to be the arrival of the Red Bull Skoda outfit and 2010 IRC champion Juho Hanninen. A seat that was previously held by Patrik Sandell now goes to one of the top all around drivers in rally and they will be looking to win south of the border. Skoda is currently fielding one factory level entry with their man Juho at the wheel while a second car will be fielded by Baumschlager Rally Racing. Hermann Gassner jr will be…
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