Rebuilding the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race Opening Up The Rules One aspect of the 500 that drew in crowds of fans, competitors, and manufacturers was that the rules were open enough for teams to build their own car and develop their own innovations. If the current culture of IndyCar racing had existed in mid-20th century, we would never have had seen diesel power, turbo chargers, that amazing gas turbine engine, and most amazing of all no wings. We would still be running front-engine, naturally-aspirated, carbureted roadsters all made by the…
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OP-Ed – Rebuilding the 500 – Part 1 of 5 – Intro
Rebuilding the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race An Introduction A few weeks back, I posted the article, The Role of a Series, arguing that most successful series throughout the history of motorsports, including American open-wheel racing, were successful because they had one marquee race that everyone in the racing world wanted to win. Sportscar racing has the 24-Hours of Le Mans, stockcar racing has the Daytona 500, Formula 1 has Monaco, off-road racing has the Baja 1000, and rally has the Dakar (Da Argentina now?). American open-wheel racing has always had…
Read MoreIndyCar – Mutoh to Stay, NHL to Field Three Cars
In one brief sentence, Curt Cavin just made my off-season! Ok, to be honest, the confirmation of the title sponsorship deal between IZOD and the IndyCar Series really made my off-season. This recent tidbit is just yummy gravy for me. It had been rumored, and still is, that Ryan Hunter-Reay, who has a personal services agreement with the new title sponsor IZOD, is close to a deal to drive for Andretti Green Racing. Its obvious that TK, Danica, and Marco aren’t going anywhere, which leaves my man Hideki Mutoh on…
Read MoreEpisode 14 – Open Paddock Podcast
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadJoin Mike and myself as we try and wrap our head around Toyota and Bridgestone pull outs. We talk about Renault and other ramifications of today’s huge news. We also talk RHR to AGR? as well as IndyCar title sponsor stuff. Gronholm may be back the WRC and Pirelli may not be. All huge news today and no signs of a slow down anytime soon.
Read MoreIndyCar – Danica Goes Tintoppin’
An ESPN article posted today stated that Danica was close to a two-year deal with JR Motorsports, Dale Earnhart Jr’s Nationwide team. While I don’t think this is a good move for Danica, especially not committing to a two-year deal, at least she’s with a quality team. …as quality as you can get in a car that still uses a carburetor. The only thing that I own that still uses a carburetor is my lawnmower! hmmm…. Danica to Lawn Mower Racing? That could be highly entertaining. I digress, though. She…
Read MoreF1 – Toyota Close Shop
During the last few races of the Formula 1 season, the eyes of the F1 world were shielded to the ugly side of the business. We had no court cases directly related to results, we had no he said she said, (except for Jarno Trulli running around like an idiot) and we had the bright flashy new Yas Marina in Abu Dhabi that I for one was very impressed with. Then the season ended and as the curtain came down, another came up that and behind it is a train…
Read MoreFeature – Germany Nations Champs!
This morning marked the start of celebrations at China’s Bird’s Nest Stadium for the annual Race of Champions event. Teams from all over the world were there in an attempt to unseat the German team comprised of seven time Formula 1 champion Michael Schumacher and this year’s F1 runner up Sebastian Vettel. All when home disappointed as Germany strikes again. The early stages seen the German’s in the toughest group with the likes of host nation China, Finland, Australia. The awesome duo took six of the first six races, easily…
Read MoreIndyCar – IZOD Becomes Title Sponsor
For at least a couple of years running, Terry Angstad has told us after each season that the IndyCar Series was close to inking a deal with a title sponsor. The problem is that deal never materialized. The rumor recently was that IZOD was being sought after to be the title sponsor for 2010 and beyond, and that they were close to inking a deal. Call me a skeptic, but I wasn’t buying it. Sure, I believed that the league was working towards a deal, but I wasn’t going to…
Read MoreLe Mans – Sharp Leaves Highcroft
It was announced just a couple weeks ago that Scott Sharp would be forming his own GT2 Ferrari team to compete in the American Le Mans series; however at the time he stated he would still drive the Patron Highcroft Acura in LMP1. Funny how quickly things change. Scott announced today that he will not defend his LMP1 crown and will instead race for his private entry team known as Extreme Speed Racing. The tea is further going to expand into a two car effort with Sharp and Patron CEO…
Read MoreF1 – Williams 2010 Drivers Confirmed
Williams has joined the ranks of Ferrari and Red Bull as the only current teams on the grid to have a full driver lineup for next season. The Grove based team officially announced Rubens Barrichello and Nico Hulkenburg as their all new lineup. The decision for an all new team comes after Nico Rosberg announced he would be leaving the team and Toyota engine contract was not resigned, all but giving Kaz Nakajima the boot. Barrichello comes in after a career reviving year with Brawn GP. The veteran who is…
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