Tag: Rally

Episode 168 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast

Doug Patterson

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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadKevin, Mike, Mike and Doug are happy to have Conor Daly as their guest tonight. Conor talks with the OP boyz about the different racing culture in Europe, having spent the past two years competing full-time in GP3. He also talks with us about his goals for 2013, his upcoming IZOD IndyCar Series test with AJ Foyt Racing, as well as a bit of rally. We need to start a campaign to get Conor into the X-Games RallyX event! Also, anyone have a car…

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Rally – Petter Solberg Speaks About WRC Exit

Mike Shaw

2003 World Rally Champion Petter Solberg’s announcement of his exit from the WRC has had the rallying community in a frenzy this week.  His legions of fans and supporters have been all over Facebook and Twitter trying to figure out what he is going to do in 2013 and wondering if he will ever return to the WRC. To assure his fans that he will still be doing some form of racing next year, Petter posted on his Facebook page the following statement: Hello everyone. First off, I want to…

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Rally America 2013 Schedule Released

Mike Shaw

Rally America has released their schedule for the 2013 season.  Of note are the return of two mid-west rallies to the schedule and the removal of the Olympus Rally.  This increases the total number events from six to seven.  The new season will kick off in just eight weeks time at the always exciting Sno*Drift Rally in northern Michigan. Although the absence of the Olympus Rally from the Rally America series is a bit upsetting to Pacific Northwest rally fans such as myself, the event will still run.  The Olympus…

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M-Sport Officially Partners with Qatar for 2013

Mike Shaw

As was speculated a few weeks ago, M-Sport has now officially partnered with Qatar and Nasser Al-Attiyah to create the Qatar M-Sport World Rally Team.  We could know by the end of the day who will be the drivers of this new team, in addition to Nasser Al-Attiyah.       From M-Sport Press Release: M-Sport are pleased to announce a new partnership with Qatar for the 2013 edition of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) which will see the Cumbria firm run three Qatari liveried Ford Fiesta RS WRCs under…

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Final Round of the 2013 Canadian Rally Championship

Mike Shaw

November 23rd and 24th will bring the noise of turbo charged four wheel drive madness to the forests northeast of Toronto for the Rally of the Tall Pines.  This two day event consists of large jumps and high speeds that many compare to the famous stages in Finland.  The Tall Pines Rally is the final round of the Canadian Rally Championship and the last event in the North American Cup. Antoine L’Estage and co-driver Natalie Richard already clinched the Canadian Rally Championship title at the previous Pacific Forest Rally when…

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Global Rallycross Championship Gets New Investors and CEO

Mike Shaw

      This week the Global Rallycross Championship closed a deal with a new investor to help take the series to the next level in 2013 and beyond. LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Colin Dyne and Europlay Capital Advisors, LLC, a structured investment group, have become majority shareholders of the Global RallyCross (GRC) Series. Colin Dyne, who will take over as GRC’s Chief Executive Officer effective immediately, brings significant experience and business acumen from the licensing, branding and racing arenas. Responsible for driving the development of the William Rast brand, Dyne also…

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What happened to Petter Solberg and where will he go now?

Mike Shaw

The 2012 season opened with high hopes for Petter Solberg.  After three seasons running a private team when Subaru dropped out of the WRC, Petter vowed last year to never run a private team again.  Petter was finding it difficult as a private owner to have the time required to work with sponsors, manage the team, and still test setups and study the stages to remain at the top level of the WRC.  Additionally, he had frustrations with his Citroen developed car not getting equal treatment as a paying customer as…

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Edpisode 164 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast

Doug Patterson

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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadKevin, Mike, and Doug stumble and stagger their way through the weekly news in Rally, Formula 1, and IndyCar. We recap Loeb’s unsurprising win at Spain, and preview the upcoming return of the USGP at COTA in Austin.

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Global Rallycross Championship – 2012 Season Wrap-up

Mike Shaw

Last week saw the final round of the Global Rallycross Championship at the Special Equipment Market Association (a.k.a. SEMA) show in Las Vegas.  This time the track was set up in a large parking area just outside the convention center.  It still had the big gap jump, but this time it was properly made of dirt instead of the death steel of the other rounds.  As was expected, Tanner Foust took the win in the final heat but that was only after a very close battle with Ken Block.  This…

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