Racing Updates + more : )
#1
04-20-2009, 11:21 AM
Racing Updates + more : )
THE BIG STORY
Helio Castroneves, his sister and attorney, were acquitted of federal tax evasion charges Friday in Miami. Castroneves then flew to Long Beach and took over the No. 3 that Will Power drove on Friday. Power moved into a third Team Penske entry Saturday and won the pole while Castroneves qualified eighth, then crashed. He finished seventh in Sunday's Toyota Grand Prix, won by Dario Franchitti.Mark Martin became only the fourth NASCAR Cup race winner past age 50 in Saturday night's Subway Fresh Fit 500k at Phoenix International Raceway.
Also: Lesa Kennedy, Bill France Jr.'s daughter, will succeed Jim France as CEO of International Speedway Corp. on June 1… The FIA International Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Brawn and other teams' rear diffuser design… Paul Tracy will drive for the KV team in the Indy 500, while Davey Hamilton will be in a Dreyer & Reinbold car… Paul Gentilozzi will enter a Jaguar in ALMS' GT2 class later this season… A.J. Allmendinger will continue with Richard Petty Motorsports in 2010.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
Mark Martin got his third pole of the season with a 133.814 mph lap Friday at Phoenix. Saturday, he led 78 of the opening 79 laps. The first yellow came for Sterling Marlin's spin, and Martin got out of the pits first. Dale Earnhardt Jr. had to make an extra stop because of loose lug nuts and dropped to the back for the restart. On the second caution, for debris, Kurt Busch got out of the pits ahead of Martin's Chevrolet. David Stremme spun on lap 138 and Jimmie Johnson lost nine spots in the pits as a lug nut fell off. Jeff Gordon banged with Denny Hamlin and had to pit to fix his left-front fender. Gordon also had an extra stop later due to a missing lug nut. Michael Waltrip bumped Robby Gordon into the wall. Earnhardt Jr., out of pit sequence, became the leader. Later, Tony Stewart led, then Martin got around. His lead over Stewart went away when Earnhardt wrecked on lap 302 of 312. Ryan Newman stayed out while others pitted, but Martin quickly repassed him. Martin, whose last victory was in 2005 and 97 races ago, finished .734 second ahead of Stewart. Busch was third, followed by Johnson and Greg Biffle. Martin averaged 108.042 mph with six yellows for 29 laps. It was the fifth consecutive win at Phoenix by Hendrick Motorsports. Other over-50 drivers to win in Cup include Harry Gant, Bobby Allison and Morgan Shepherd. Gordon (25th) leads Johnson by 85 points.NASCAR Nationwide Series
Greg Biffle got Roush Fenway Racing its 100th series win in Friday night's Bashas' 200 at Phoenix. Carl Edwards led 79 of the first 97 laps but went to the garage with a broken valve spring and finished 33d. Biffle's Ford didn't take new tires while others pitted on a late caution, but a multi-car wreck with 15 laps remaining meant a restart with just six laps to go. Another yellow brought the lap total to 203 but Biffle held off Jason Leffler's Toyota by .338 second. Brad Keselowski was third. Kyle Busch had his own problems but finished 10th and took the lead by 47 points over Edwards. Biffle averaged 92.965 mph with nine yellows for 43 laps.NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series
Jack Beckman, Morgan Lucas and Eddie Krawiec won in Sunday's Summit Racing Equipment Southern Nationals, near Atlanta. In Funny Car, Beckman's Valvoline/MTS Dodge Charger got around Ashley Force Hood's Ford Mustang for his first win of the season. Beckman ran 4.128 seconds, 303.43 mph vs. Hood's 4.157, 248.39 mph. Beckman qualified seventh. Ron Capps leads Beckman by 79 points. In Top Fuel, Lucas went 5.231, 162.86 mph to Spencer Massey's 5.418, 145.25 mph as both cars struggled for traction. Tony Schumacher has a 39-point gap over Antron Brown. In Pro Stock, Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Mike Edwards will meet in Monday's finals, delayed by rain. Ron Krisher qualified the Valvoline Chevrolet Cobalt fourth but lost in the first round. In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Krawiec's Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines powered to a 6.902, 192.91 mph win over Douglas Horne's Buell, 6.949, 191.13 mph. Matt Smith leads Andrew Hines by 40 points. The wins were the first for Lucas and Krawiec.IndyCar Series
Dario Franchitti qualified second to Will Power but led the final 30 of the 85 laps Sunday at Long Beach. It was his first open-wheel win since trying NASCAR last year. Franchitti finished 3.3 seconds ahead of Power. Tony Kanaan was third. The winner averaged 84.491 mph with five yellows for 18 laps. Franchitti is 15 points ahead of Power, who is not scheduled to compete at Kansas.American Le Mans Series
Gil de Ferran and Simon Pagenaud teamed in an Acura to win Saturday's 76-lap race in Long Beach by one second over the other Acura of David Brabham and Scott Sharp. The finish came under yellow after Boris Said's engine caught fire. Sharp led until he stopped to hand-over to Brabham, when the team was penalized 20 seconds for a pit violation. The winners led the final 31 laps. Third overall and first in P2 was the Acura of Adrian Fernandez and Luis Diaz Jr. Corvette ended its run in GT1 with Olivier Beretta and Oliver Gavin winning. In GT2, Patrick Long and Jorg Bergmeister won in a Porsche 911 GT3 RSR.Formula One
Sebastian Vettel delivered the Red Bull-Renault team its first victory in Sunday's rainy Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai. Vettel started on the pole as the race began behind the safety car due to rain and standing water on the track. Vettel beat teammate Mark Webber by 10.9 seconds after 56 laps. He averaged 96.61 mph. Jenson Button was third in a Brawn-Mercedes. Button leads Rubens Barrichello (fourth) by six points. Valvoline Winners Last Weekend
Greg Biffle, NASCAR Nationwide Series, Phoenix. Jack Beckman, NHRA Funny Car class, Atlanta. Racer of the Week
Mark MartinWins from the pole in Phoenix.Yes, He REALLY Said That
Dale Earnhardt Jr., on his new diet. "Just cutting out a lot of nonsense like ice cream and chips, I feel… more confident and better energy-wise."This Weekend
NASCAR goes fast in Talladega, with Saturday Nationwide Series racing and Cup on Sunday. The Trucks run in Kansas Saturday with IRL on Sunday. The Rolex Series goes in Virginia. Formula One visits Bahrain.
#2
04-20-2009, 11:24 AM
Bonus Infor
Car Care Tips
Maintenance is the key to a trouble free vehicle. Here's some advice on how to keep your car running and looking its best.
Read on
NASCAR Pushes Loose
To better understand what drivers and announcers are talking about, find out what's behind the terms most often heard on NASCAR broadcasts.
Read about it
Finding a First-Rate Mechanic
The key to finding a top mechanic may be right in front of your eyes. Just look for the blue patch on the shoulder of qualified mechanics across the country.
Learn more
Maintenance is the key to a trouble free vehicle. Here's some advice on how to keep your car running and looking its best.Read on
NASCAR Pushes Loose
To better understand what drivers and announcers are talking about, find out what's behind the terms most often heard on NASCAR broadcasts.Read about it
Finding a First-Rate Mechanic
The key to finding a top mechanic may be right in front of your eyes. Just look for the blue patch on the shoulder of qualified mechanics across the country. Learn more
Last edited by Space; 04-20-2009 at 11:25 AM. Reason: EnJoy...Knowledge is Power : )
#3
04-20-2009, 08:01 PM
Monte Of The Month -- September 2009
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: providence, RI
Posts: 1,614
I CANNOT WAIT FOR TALLADEGA!!!!!!!!!!!!
can you tell i'm excited?? it's gotta be one of the most exciting races of the season and i will not miss it for anything, even work. sitting on the edge of my seat for 4 hours straight. a guy can be damn near last with 3 laps left and still have a shot to win the race. so much fun!! i'm sure you can all guess who my pick to win will be...
can you tell i'm excited?? it's gotta be one of the most exciting races of the season and i will not miss it for anything, even work. sitting on the edge of my seat for 4 hours straight. a guy can be damn near last with 3 laps left and still have a shot to win the race. so much fun!! i'm sure you can all guess who my pick to win will be...
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