With round one of the 2013 IZOD Indycar Series down, the field now leaves the Albert Whitted Airport circuit in sunny St. Petersburg, FL for the luxurious Grand Prix Circuit at Barber Motorsports Park in Leeds, AL. We learned a good bit about 2013 in St. Pete, but increased speeds and grip at Barber should prove to separate the contenders from the pretenders as we get the real feel of how the season should play out. These rankings are nothing more than my personal opinion, and not always reflective of…
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Episode 181 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadIt’s “We love Canada night” on Open Paddock! Hinch and Hargrove mount Canadian invasion in St. Pete. Kevin and Mike2 talk about the IndyCar season opener, the full gambit of Mazda Road to Indy races at St. Pete as well as the SCCA Pro Pirelli World Challenge. Mr. Whitesell leads us through the chaos that was the F1 Malasian GP, and Mr. Shaw closes out the show with all things rally. Sit back, crack open a ice cold Labatt Blue, and enjoy! Oh, and…
Read MoreIndyCar-No Runoff Needed: Mayor Hinchcliffe Takes GP St. Pete
In an outstanding display of racecraft, James Hinchcliffe took his first IZOD IndyCar Series victory on the Albert Whitted Airport Circuit in St. Petersburg, FL today. Hinch managed to hold off defending race champion Helio Castroneves for over 20 laps near the end of the event, giving Andretti Autosport its first win in St. Pete. Completing the podium was Marco Andretti in the #25 RC Cola Andretti Autosport Chevrolet. After starting 4th, Hinch ran up near the front of the field all day. Helio Castroneves ended the day with most…
Read MoreEpisode 180 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadMike Whitesell takes the reins as Kevin is swept off to Oz by the tornados and gives us a review of F1’s season opener in Melbourne and a preview of IndyCar’s opener at St. Pete. Doug reviews the USF2000 season opener at Sebring, and Mr. Shaw points and laughs at us for starting our seasons so darn late as he recaps the week’s news from the world of rally.
Read MoreIndyCar-2013 Social Media Guide
Here we are at the start of the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Season, so it’s time to make sure all your social media bookmarks and follows are up to date. I’ve put together this handy 2013 Season Social Media Guide to help you all Twitter your Facebook and Instagram your Pinterest. As always, you’ll want to start your Social Media bookmarking with us! Open Paddock on Facebook Open Paddock on Twitter And hows about giving me a follow on Twitter as well! Kevin Neely on Twitter Indycar Website Facebook Twitter YouTube Flickr…
Read MoreIndyCar-Round 1: Honda Grand Prix of St. Pete Preview
What: Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Where: Albert Whitted Airport Circuit, St. Petersburg, Florida When: 12:30pm EDT on Sunday, March 24 (TV: NBC Sports Network) Who: Helio Castroneves, defending race champion, looks to defend his race title on the Streets of St. Pete against 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series Champion Ryan-Hunter Reay, four-time series champ Dario Franchitti, perrenial road and street course ace Will Power and the rest of the IZOD IndyCar Series field. Storylines Ryan Hunter-Reay begins his title defense on a very hit-or-miss track. Even though he finished…
Read MoreIndyCar – Barber Test Wrapup
Any shock at who finished at the top of the speed charts? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? Once again, Verizon Team Penske’s Will Power was the machismo of the circuit by dominating all sessions at the magnificent 2.3 mile Barber Motorsports Park circuit. Will finished the two day testing session with a fast time of 1:07.1329 (123.337 mph for you speed junkies.) Power turned a total of 128 laps in two days in the #12 Verizon Chevrolet. Second in combined testing was James Hinchcliffe in the #27 GoDaddy Andretti Autosport Chevrolet with…
Read MoreEpisode 179.1 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast Barber IndyCar Test Special
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadOn Episode 179, you heard Kevin Neely give a run-down of the happenings during the Media Day portion of the IZOD IndyCar Series’ Open Test at the Barber Motorsports Park. On this special supplemental episode of the OpenPaddock.net Podcast Kevin fills us in on the on-track action from Tuesday and Wednesday.
Read MoreIndyCar-Preseason Test Day 2: Driver Talk
Sebastien Bourdais, driver of the #7 McAfee Dragon Racing Chevrolet Open Paddock: Sebastien, how’s the car feeling to you today? Sebastien Bourdais: We’re slowly starting to get some direction, but it’s been a challenging test so far. It’s a really different animal than last year. The track is about three seconds faster. Whether it’s the track, the tires or the combination, I really don’t know what’s going on. It really is a different game and we’re struggling. I’ve never experienced high levels of grip like that, ever! OP: Actually everybody…
Read MoreEpisode 179 – OpenPaddock.net Podcast
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Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadWith rednecks revving their engines outside Mr. Neely’s hotel room and the soft, but ominous, purring of what sounds like a velociraptor every now and then in the background, we present Episode 179 of the OpenPaddock.net Podcast! Kevin Neely and our photographer Brian McKay report from Day 1 of the IndyCar pre-season open test at a very wet and soggy Barber Motorsports Park. Mike Shaw gives us a recap of this weekend’s WRC Rally Mexico in which Ken Block put in a surprising performance.…
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