Highcroft Racing, the team that has won back-to-back titles in the ALMS LMP2 class and still seeks an LMP2 class win at Le Mans, will be coming to the IZOD IndyCar Series in 2011! This first year, they will be competing at select events only in preparation for launching a full-season effort in 2012 when the new chassis and engine come to the series. This is fantastic news, if you ask me. Its exciting enough that we’re getting another quality team coming to IndyCar Racing, but seeing that team come…
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IndyCar – Highcroft Looking to IICS
So what do you do when you have won two American Le Mans series titles? Take your program IndyCar racing of course. The back to back champions Highcroft Racing are preparing for a select program for the 2011 season. While nothing is wrote in stone, the team has the ambition and will look at a couple of rounds for next year. Who said that all of the news after the finale had to be bad? Duncan Dayton had this to say in a SPEED article posted yesterday: “We are aware…
Read MoreEpisode 59 – Openpaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadApologies for the late arrival. The show is 24 hours old but I left all of my important server uploading info on an external drive that I left at the hospital. #EpicFail! We take a good look at the season finale as well as the pecking order that is the IZOD IndyCar series. Silly season rumors are everywhere for IndyCar and the WRC, while we talk a little bit about Petit. Great discussion and a little comedy makes for a really long show time,…
Read MoreIndyCar – Good News for Ryan Hunter-Reay
There’s been a lot of negative press for the league since the championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, most of it centering around Andretti Autosport and their sponsors. We already know that 7-Eleven will step down as a primary sponsor of the #11 in favour of being an associate sponsor on the #7 car. We also already knew (even if it wasn’t officially announced) that the IZOD sponsorship for the #37 car was going to end. Around the twittersphere and various forums, there’s been much hand-wringing and gnashing of teeth, and…
Read MoreIndyCar – Serious Silliness Afoot
I wish there was a better way to put it, but TK getting screwed over and losing 7-11 sponsorship has thrown a serious wrench into the wheel in regards to the silly season. Mainly because Michael Andretti has told TK he can now shop around for another ride if he likes. News had broken that 7-11 was leaving the primary role on the 11 car and continuing to be associate sponsor on the #7 machine piloted by every body’s favorite swimsuit model/racer. So lets take a look at some POSSIBLE…
Read MoreIndyLights – Vernay Wins the Firestone Firehawk Cup
As we mentioned in the podcast, all JK Vernay had to do to win the Firestone Indy Lights Championship and the Firestone Firehawk Cup was to turn a wheel in competition at Homestead. He did so, and took the title in his rookie year in the Firestone Indy Lights. The question now is what is next for this young hot shoe? Will he run another year in Firestone Indy Lights, or will he find a ride with an IZOD IndyCar Series team, or move on to some other series entirely?…
Read MoreIndyCar – Game, Set, Match to Franchitti
After dominating nearly every road circuit this year, Power’s lack of oval experience and skill caught up to him in the end. Dario Franchitti’s consistency all season long, as his strong performances on the oval circuits , allowed him to chase down Will Power and take the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series Championship for the second year in a row. Even more impressive is to consider that Dario spent the 2008 season experimenting with NASCAR, but the year prior, 2007, Dario again won the championship. That means Dario has won the…
Read MoreIndyCar – Breaking: Dario Takes Pole in Miami! *UPDATE*
IZOD IndyCar Series qualifying has just concluded down at Homestead-Miami and Dario Franchitti has struck the first blow this weekend as the championship comes down to the wire. The championship contenders were late on to the track, but Will Power would take pole position from teammate Ryan Briscoe giving him that crucial one point for pole. Not to be out done, Dario would come out and lay down a blistering pace of over 213 mph! This would give Dario the point and reduce Will Power’s championship lead to 11. The…
Read MoreEpisode 58 – Openpaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadWe said last week that some pretty crazy stuff would have to happen for a podcast and well….you have downloaded it have you not? Mike and Doug fly solo this week (scary) and bring you news about HVM as well as Lotus. Doug feels bad that the new IZOD Indycar Series trophy is stacked..literally! They also cover WRC, Petit Le Mans and a number of other junior open wheel series. So sit back and enjoy the ramblings of Mike and Doug’s excellent adventure!
Read MoreOpEd – Will the real Lotus please stand up?
Group Lotus, Team Lotus, Lotus Racing, Lotus Motorsports, Lotus Cars, Lotus Engineering… we have a whole field of Lotus and its downright confusing to us fans! To add to the confusion Group Lotus is suing Lotus Racing over the rights to use the name Team Lotus. …er? what? Yeah, that’s how I felt at first to. It would be simpler if one group was the production car wing of the larger parent company and the other group the motorsports wing. However, that’s not exactly how it is. Group Lotus has…
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