Tag: Blog
IndyCar – State of the Series Rebuttal
It was just around an hour ago that Randy Bernard and the heads of INDYCAR delivered their State of the Series address. The event was a little bit cheesy but at the end of the day was a fan experience. The main purpose of this address was to layout the very short term goals and accomplishments the series has been able to achieve. I will say that seeing the leadership and some drivers/team owners was a breath of fresh air given the way we left them in 2011. While in…
Read MoreWRC – Sandell Completes Fine Debut in MINI WRC
Patrik Sandell has finished eighth at Rally Sweden today and the highest placed local driver on his debut in the MINI John Cooper Works WRC. The Swedish driver finished the day in the same position he started and extended his lead over the chasing driver, Prokop. It has been a very strong debut for the Swede in his first outing in a World Rally Car with only established and far more experienced WRC drivers ahead of him. Sandell was in eighth position after stage one and, except for one stage,…
Read MoreWRC – Ford and M-Sport Secure 50th World Rally Victory in Sweden
Ford World Rally Team drivers Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila won Rally Sweden today by 16.6sec after a tense finale to this second round of the FIA World Rally Championship. Victory in a Ford FiestaRS World Rally Car was Ford’s sixth consecutive success at the only true winter rally of the season. It was Latvala’s second win in Sweden, and it came despite his comfortable lead being slashed when he hit a rogue rock and punctured a tyre with just two more speed tests remaining before the finish. Team-matesPetter Solberg…
Read MoreRally – MINI Monte carlo Leg 2 Release
Valence (FR), 19th January 2012. After day two of the Monte Carlo Rally, and another 131.76 kilometres of stages, Dani Sordo (ES) and Carlos del Barrio (ES) were still fighting with Petter Solberg (NO) for the second podium position and had snatched the place back as the cars returned to Valence for the last time. Meanwhile the MINI WRC Team’s French crew, Pierre Campana and Sabrina de Castelli, were still in seventh after a trouble free day. In his MINI John Cooper Works WRC number 37, the same number carried…
Read MoreWRC – Junior Squads Get a Face Lift
For the first time in a couple seasons, 2012 will see proper “junior” squads making a return in the World Rally Championship. These teams are often manufacturer efforts put forth to develop the future stars of the WRC. Jari-Matti Latvala and Sebastien Ogier are a couple of the most recent graduates from Ford and Citroen respectfully. These teams are rarely given the chance to compete for victories, but will see some of the best and brightest pushing the car to the absolute limit. The goal is to leave that lasting…
Read MoreWRC – MINI Fails to Register for 2012
The more things change, the more they stay the same for some people. During Subaru’s dying days in the WRC, Prodrive was the subject of much criticism in how they performed and worked with the Japanese marque. While the prospect of Prodrive leading the BMW backed MINI was almost too good to be true, a major mistake has occurred and MINI are not in the 2012 championship fight at the moment. 19 Dec 2011 was the final day for teams to register. This date was presented by the FiA after…
Read MoreWRC – Ford Standoff Maybe Nearing an End
As soon as the WRC season ended, it was time to prepare for the short turn around that is the 2012 campaign. However, the future of M-Sport and Ford’s involvement in the World Rally Championship was brought into question as the latest deal between the two came to an end. Mikko Hirvonen left the team to pair with eight times champion Sebastien Loeb and dark days loomed for fans of the blue oval. Recent events in the media have shown that perhaps the standoff between Ford and M-Sport have come…
Read MoreEpisode 103 – Openpaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Shaun and Mike as they talk about the weekend at Spa. Always a fantastic race and this weekend’s only real saving grace. They breeze over Sonoma as both were sound asleep but get into INDYCAR news and notes for the week. The 2012 landscape is becoming a bit more clear and they talk about it. Also a brief rundown of the latest IRC round and a victory for Jan Kopecky and Skoda on their home turf. Sit back as always and enjoy the…
Read MoreINDYCAR – Probation Continues Lack of Credability Trend
Well it looks as the INDYCAR series has answered whether contact is good for the sport or not. Yesterday the governing body handed out some probation rulings against Mike Conway, Ryan Hunter-Reay, and Alex Tagliani for avoidable contact issues. The rulings mostly cite the Canadian leg of the championship but in Hunter-Reay’s case, it goes all the way back to Barber. I was baffled yet again to see the fans of the series try and make sense of the calls. It is impossible to make sense of something that never…
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