PETTER SOLBERG WORLD RALLY TEAM Rally de Portugal 24 – 27 March 2011 From the dusty gravel roads in Mexico, we have travelled over the Atlantic and to the Algarve coast and Rally Portugal. We are ready for the third event in the 2011 WRC, Rally Portugal. Petter Solberg World Rally Team is already based in the service park just outside the Algarve Stadium in Faro. This year the event will kick off with a 3,27kms spectator stage in the historic part of Lisbon on Thursday afternoon. Shakedown will be…
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Episode 80 – OpenPaddock.net podcast
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadThe racing gods feel as though you have waited long enough! So for your consumption, here is the 80th Episode of the Openpaddock.net Podcast! The boys talk a bit of rally, sportscars at Sebring, and get into all things IndyCar/MRTI! A long episode to say the least, but sit back with your favorite beverage and enjoy the latest show! The time grows near… Editors Note: Appreciate everyone giving us some time between shows after the server migration. The issues are 100% solved and the…
Read MoreINDYCAR – TrackChicTV Barber Test Highlights
F1 – Shell/Spa Reach Deal for Future
While the troubles of Bahrain have brought into question certain aspects of the “new market” push from Formula 1, we got a dose of good news today for a classic F1 venue. Spa-Francorchamps is the best track in F1 period. I don’t care what critics say about Monaco or even Monza. The one race I have circled every year and the one that resides on my bucket list is the Belgian Grand Prix. It combines ultra high speed with really technical sections and is always a blast to watch on…
Read MoreRally – PR: Van Merksteijn Motorsport to Support Charity with “Drive for KiKa”
Van Merksteijn Motorsport is going to raise money for KiKa (Children Cancerfree) through its participation in the World Rally Championship. With the slogan “Drive for KiKa”, the team will set aside an amount of money per stage kilometer for this charity and it will approach the sponsors and partners of the team to contribute to this fund raiser as well. Van Merksteijn Motorsport will enter Peter van Merksteijn junior in ten rounds of the FiA World Rally Championship. For his participation in the WRC he has a Citroën DS3 WRC…
Read MoreRally – 2012 Calendar Problems Remain
Think back to about this time last year and we were discussing the same thing for the WRC. What is the calendar going to be and when will it be released? Are we going to drop the silly rally rotation rule the WRC has? As we know with the FiA however, the same problems always crop up and are never resolved. So here we sit in 2011 and we are waiting for the 2012 calendar. The events and dates are set to be announced later this month or early next…
Read MoreStar Mazda – Barber Testing: Final Session
Today, the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear wraps up its three days of pre-season testing at the Barber Motorsports Park. In their final session early this morning, JDC MotorSports’ Tristan Vautier picked up where he left off yesterday, posting blazingly fast times. Today, however, he didn’t start out with the breathing room he had during the previous sessions. Over the previous two day’s Vautier was the only racer to break into the 1:20 range. This morning, all three of the Juncos Racing drivers present for the test, Joao Horta,…
Read MoreStar Mazda – Barber Test Day 2: Second Session Times
The IZOD IndyCar Series teams and drivers were supposed to have a test from 1000-1200 CDT this morning, but the cold, wet track that the Star Mazda Championship drivers braved earlier this morning, proved too intimidating for them. The track went green as scheduled at 1000, but no one wanted to go out. Absolutely EVERYONE stayed in the pits! As a result, the testing schedule was hastily revised and the Star Mazda teams, which were originally slated to go out from 1300-1400 CDT, went out for a second morning session…
Read MoreRally – Marcus Grönholm to compete in Global RallyCross Championship
West Hollywood, CA (March 14, 2011 | GLOBAL RALLYCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP) – Two-time World Rally Champion Marcus Grönholm will travel to the United States to compete in the first round of the Global RallyCross Championship: The Revolution, taking place March 25-26 at Irwindale Speedway on the outskirts of Los Angeles. Grönholm, who will pilot a 600-hp all-wheel drive Best Buy Ford Fiesta in the contest, joins a list of top-ranked international motorsport and action sport stars racing in the Global RallyCross Championship. Also planning to compete are three-time X Games Rally…
Read MoreIndyLights – Newgarden Signs with Sam Schmidt Motorsports
We already knew that Josef Newgarden, @RacerOfTomorrow on Twitter, had made the bold move of declining his invitation to the FIA Young Driver Excellence Academy after his 2010 season in GP3 in hopes of securing a ride in the Firestone Indy Lights Series. Well, it seems that Newgarden’s gamble paid off big time as it was announced yesterday that he’ll round out the Sam Schmidt Motorsports Firestone Indy Lights full-time squad joining Victor Carbone and previously rumored, but not yet officially confirmed, Esteban Guerrieri. Bryan Clausen and Conor Daly will…
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