What We Know So Far: MotoGP

 

Lorenzo Land!:

  It’s Jorge Lorenzo’s world, the rest of the riders are just living in it.  Lorenzo has been truly dominate, winning 6 out of 9 races!  He has been having a career season, benefited by Rossi’s injury and Ducati’s problems.  Still, he’s been nearly flawless, finishing first or second in every race!  He’s effectively won the title half way through the season, with the only possible way to lose being injury, or a massive issue with the engine rule.

I Claim This Series in the Name of Spain:

  Dani Pedrossa has been inconsistently good this year as well.  He has 2 wins and 5 podiums, but also has 3 finishes outside of the top 5, including a DNF at Laguna Seca.  Because of this, he’s about 70 points behind Lorenzo in second.  In both of his wins, Pedrossa was able to beat Lorenzo by a good margin.  He’d be able to contend for the title if only he didn’t have the consistency issues that have always plagued him.  Between him and Lorenzo, the Spanish have won every race but one, the opening round run by Valentino Rossi.  And, Spain itself will host 4 rounds of MotoGP, with Portugal hosting another.  Not only that, but every 125cc race has been won by a Spaniard, and Toni Elias has 3 wins and the points lead in Moto2.  Spain is conquering the MotoGP, when will the Austrians, Americans, and Italian’s strike back? 

Rossi is Inhuman:

  At Mugello, Valentino Rossi was injured when he highslided during practice.  He broke his leg, and was already recovering from a shoulder injury during a Motocross training accident.  He wasn’t expected back earlier than Bruno, at the earliest.  Some thought it might take him until Indy, or even latter.  Rumors said he’d just sit the season out.  So when did he return?  Sachenring, a month earlier than the earliest expected return date.  And when he returned, he finished 4^th, battling hard with Casey Stoner for the podium.  And at the next round, Laguna Seca, he finished 3^rd.  Despite his injuries, Rossi has finished every race but one within the podium, and the only race outside the podium was Sachenring, where he finished 4^th.  Rossi is showing why he’s considered one of the greatest ever to race MotoGP.  He’s very likely to be able to win again before the year is up, and with the two week break between Laguna and Bruno, he should be even better than he was at the last race. 

 

Hayden’s Back:

  The 2006 World Champion is possibly the most underrated riders in MotoGP.  After three challenging years after winning his title, Nicky has found his consistent form again! He has 5 top 5 finishes, 4 of which are top 4 finishes.  He’s been really close to getting a podium, but has just lost out…  There was concern about his future in a factory ride, but his good runs plus Stoner leaving is going to allow him to continue with Factory Ducati, with Hayden fans hoping the move in 2012 to 1000cc again will benefit him. And, his strong runs likely have helped convince Valentino Rossi that the Ducati’s aren’t just bike that Casey Stoner can run, which brings us to…

Silly Season Shakes Things Up:

Silly season has been pretty down in most racing series, but not MotoGP.  We know for sure that Casey Stoner will move to Honda.  It’s expected that Honda will expand to a 3 bike team, because Andrea Dovizioso is high enough in points to have his contract extended, same for Pedrossa.  The biggest story though, is Valentino Rossi.  He is expected to announce shortly that he will be joining Ducati for the next season, replacing Casey Stoner and re-uniting with former teammate Nicky Hayden.  Rossi will be joining Ducati for an increase in pay, as well as not having to deal with Jorge Lorenzo, who he’s not enjoyed being teamed with, and a bit more of the “number one” status.  Also, the mixture of Ducati, the famous Italian brand, and Valentino Rossi, who’s also Italian, is a marketing dream, and is believed to be considered a major positive for the series as a whole.  For the American fans, this will mean the moving of Ben Spies up to Factory Yamaha, which means, we may have another American World Champion within a few years!  Lorenzo, as is often the case when you win 6/9 races, will stay with factory Yamaha. 

Engine Rule= Insanity:

  MotoGP has an engine life rule, restricting each rider to a maximum of 6 engines for the year.   The idea was the infamous “cost savings”.  If you’ve ever wondered why I’m not too positive about “cost savings” in other series (NASCAR, Indycar,) this rule is a great example.  Firstly, the rules designed to save money, however, it has caused teams to try and maximize the power/reliability ratio, which isn’t cheap.  Tech 3 demonstrates another issue, which is that the satellite teams, which cannot afford to do the more expensive research, now are more down on power than before!  If that weren’t enough, Suzuki is about to run out of engines, and is believed to be given extra engines, because otherwise Suzuki is likely to pull out. 

Bike Count….:

   Bike count, for all the great things about MotoGP, this is not one of them.  With only 17 bikes, the car count is hovering around Champ Car levels.  Of course, unlike Champcar, there’s actual money in many of the teams on the grid.  Still, with the injuries, and teams being allowed to skip a few races before being forced to field a bike, bike count has been a precarious thing for the MotoGP.   The controversial “Claims Rules engine teams” may help alleviate this issue, but with non factory teams having not won a race in the 800cc era, this really isn’t that surprising.  I really don’t know the solution, but something needs to be done, because while no one wants to see Lotus, HRT, and Virgin, Champ Car esque car counts aren’t good either.

Injuries: 

  This year has caused multiple injuries, with Rossi, De Puniet, and Aoyama all having been injured.  Which has caused issues with bike count.  Being fairly new to MotoGP, I’m really not sure what the cause for these injuries are, it could be just bad luck, or maybe riders pushing harder, I do not know. 

A Development Series done right!

Moto2 is Successful:

  Moto2 was a controversial and highly debated change to the development ladder.  However, by all accounts, it’s been very successful.  I’ll come clean, I haven’t seen much of it, but it has been competitive and has a VERY high bike count, unlike the MotoGP.  Moto2 would be an example of a develompent series done right, if you want the oppisite argument, there’s no need to go further than NASCAR’s Nationwide or Trucks series.  The racing is supposed to be very good and there is no Lorenzo completly dominating. 

USGPx2:

  While F1 may or may not be returning to the US for 2012 (seriously, what is it with racing and 2012?!?!?), MotoGP already has 2 USGP’s, the USGP@Laguna Seca and theIndyGP@Indy.  This is a great thing for American race fans, and they are both run at unique locations; with Laguna Seca being run on a county park, and the Indy GP being run on the roval at Indy.  There have been some rumors of the IndyGP not returning, hopefully if this were to happen, MotoGP would move to another track, like VIR, Mid Ohio, or Road America.  Or, it just stays where it is.  Since I believe it’s making money for IMS, which is losing money rapidly with Indycar, it’s likely to stay, at least I hope so…

When the Most Successful and Most Popular are one and the same

Rossi’s Importance:

  When Rossi was out with his injuries, both ratings and attendance dropped.  It showed how reliant the series is on Rossi as its main star, one who appeals to people of all nationalities, for their popularity.  What is going to happen when Rossi retires or worse, leaves for WSBK?  This question probably won’t come up for a while, as he wants to become number 1 in all time wins, so he’s likely to stick around for a few more years.  However, what’s going to happen if he switches to WSBK???  MotoGP’s going to need Hayden, Pedrossa, Spies, Lorenzo and Stoner to be able to become bigger stars to continue the series momentum.

Unlike Lagano, the REAL Sliced Bread

Ben Spies, The Real Deal: 

  Spies came into the season with a lot of hype, and he’s handled himself well.  With a slight slump after the first round, he’s been a top 5 rider, which is pretty good considering he’s on a Tech 3 bike and fairly new to the tracks and a rookie.  He and DePuniet have been battling for the “Best of the Rest” and with De Puniet injured, Spies will likely win both “Best of the Rest” and Rookie of the year.  So far, the highlight was Silverstone, where Spies came in third, wining his first podium.  He was in contention for a podium at Laguna, but a slight issue caused him to slide and fall down to 6th. 

Alien Invasion:

  The “aliens” of Stoner, Rossi, Lorenzo, and Pedrossa have continued to dominate, although Stoner has struggled badly, he seems to be returning to form, with 4 podiums in a row.  Lorenzo has taken his game to the next level, admittedly helped by Rossi’s injury, although either way, he’s been flawless, as I noted earlier, every finish has been first or second so far this year.  The question moving forward is can Hayden, Dovizioso, or Spies move into their ranks over the next few years?  And can a non alien win a race?  If one’s going to do it, it’ll be between Dovizioso, Hayden, or Spies. 

Conclusion:

  This is my first season of watching MotoGP, and I’ve really enjoyed it.  The level of competition is extremely high, and there is actual on track passing, something I’m not used to seeing in Indycar(on road/street courses)/F1!  Although Lorenzo is dominate, there’s still been very good racing on track, with unexpectedly strong performances from Dovizioso, Spies, and Hayden.  The only thing that could make it better is to see Spies or Hayden winning, which hopefully will happen next year, or at least a more competitive championship battle.  Unlike the other series I follow, I’m VERY optimistic about where MotoGP is going to go in the future, as long as the “Claims Rule Engine” team thing doesn’t cause a massive issue.  I’m having a great time watching and covering MotoGP and WSBK, and I’ll do a recap about WSBK after Silverstone this weekend.  For better MotoGP coverage, go to MotoMatters, Road Racer X, and Asphalt Rubber.

Pre Race Picks and Predictions: Silvestone, Hungaroring, Pocono, Iowa

WSBK: Silverstone

  WSBK races this weekend at Silverstone, site of the MotoGP and F1 race in the UK as well.  The “new” Silverstone is a high speed track; similar to Monza, and thus those who were successful at Monza should be good here as well.

  The biggest news during the off weeks was Valentino Rossi’s test on a Yamaha WSBK at Bruno, the day after the race, where he put down VERY competitive times, despite his injuries, and seemed to give fairly good feedback to the team.  This has created a little controversy within that team and the motorcycle road racing world, with questions about how good of job the current riders are doing, especially because Spies won the title last year and this year they’re not doing too well.  The counter point to this is that Rossi being Rossi is what led to all of the positive comments from the Yamaha team.  Whatever it is, there’s going to be some extra scrutiny over this team this weekend.

  Attendance will be interesting to look at, because the MotoGP wasn’t especially well attended.  With fairly competitive British riders, can WSBK outdraw the MotoGP?  Also, Can BMW finally win? This track is similar to Monza, where they were strong.

Winner…Max Biaggi:  Max Biaggi has really become a force on the WSBK tour, and the Aprillia is a powerful bike.  He’s not been great so far on the time charts, but when it comes to race time, he’ll be the driver to beat. 

Likely…James Toseland:  James Toseland is in some trouble.  He struggled badly with Tech 3, and yet Ben Spies has been fairly respectable on that bike.  He returned to WSBK, a former champion in a championship winning team, and hasn’t performed as hoped.  With the issues with Rossi testing his bike and being very quick, he’s going to need to produce.  And so far, he’s doing pretty good this weekend.  Both Yamaha riders have been fairly strong all weekend, so he’s got a fairly good chance to win.

Darkhorse…Troy Corser:  BMW was good at Monza, so they should be good here.  So far this weekend, he’s been fairly strong, and so, they should have a fairly good chance at being successful, and giving BMW their first WSBK win. 

Formula One, Hungaroring:

  F1 arrives at Hungaroring under the shadow of the Team Order’s controversy.  Red Bull, which struggled some in Germany, has been dominate in practice, while Ferrari and McLaren are struggling.   Rain may be in the forecast, which could cause a somewhat interesting race.

Winner…Sebastian Vettel:  Red Bull, is there any more that needs to be said?

Likely…Mark Webber:  Red Bull’s “number two” driver.

Darkhorse…Lewis Hamilton:  Very poor in practice, but maybe something good will happen in the actual qualifying or race. 

NASCAR Sprint Cup, Pocono:

  I hate to beat on a dead horse, but how can you not talk about the fines controversy.  As expected, driver interviews have become even more Kool Aid filled and dull.  Also, Newman’s fine came as a result of his criticism of Restrictor plates, while Hamlin’s twitter account was a major part of his fine.  Which is sad, because Hamlin’s twitter is one of the few driver twitters that’s interesting to read, most are just PR bull**t, especially from NASCAR drivers.  All the drivers were defending the fines, which isn’t surprising considering they’d have been fined if they’d disagreed! 

  Back to the race… um… well, it’s Pocono, so… yeah.  Not much to look forward too.  We were just here like a month and a half ago, and it sucked, which, fans can see whether or not the drivers say it.  The biggest issue is that NASCAR mandates the gear ratio’s and stuff, keeping any interesting things from happening on track, but again, NASCAR is perfect and stuff, that’s all we’ll here in the interviews. 

Winner…Denny Hamlin:  The muzzled Hamlin still is the flat track expert.  While he wasn’t great in the first race, I’m pretty confident in him.  Besides, he needs to earn 50K back from NASCAR. 

Likely…Jimmie Johnson (NASCAR Lapdog):  The NASCAR Lapdog, as I’ve nicknamed him, due to his comments on the subject of fines, is sadly also very good at Pocono.  Hopefully he doesn’t dominate, because then the TV ratings might drop to Indycar levels…

Darkhorse…Juan Montoya:  He’s ran really well at Indy, and this track is similar. Can he FINALLY get a win on an oval????
 

NASCAR Camping World Trucks, Pocono:

   The Trucks will take the field at Pocono for the first time.  Sadly, the nature of Pocono and the lower HP nature of the Trucks probably won’t mix well.  Denny Hamlin and Kasey Kahne have entered this race.  Not to give away too much that I’ll be writing about latter, but, it’s like if Dani Pedrossa and Jorge Lorenzo ran the 125cc’s, or Lewis Hamilton ran F3…

Winner…Denny Hamlin:  Another chance to earn his 50K back!  Also, NASCAR Sprint Cup driver and Pocono expert in the third tier series…

Likely…Kasey Kahne:  Cup driver, third tier series…

Darkhorse…Ron Hornaday:  Veteran Truck driver, may be able to resist the Cup drivers, however unlikely.

NASCAR Nationwide, Iowa Speedway:

  The Nationwide Series travel’s to the land of Pressdog!  Some Sprint Cup drivers are actually flying over to race…. All I can say is GP2 doesn’t have Hamilton or Vettel for a reason, because they’d win every race! 

Winner…Kyle Busch: 

Likely: Carl Edwards:

Darkhorse: Brad Keselowski:

How to Save Open Wheel

 

Go watch the Top Gear Senna tribute.  Here’s a link.  If you haven’t watched it, STOP READING THIS AND GO SEE IT, CLICK THE LINK NOW!!!  Okay, good, you’re back.  You better have seen this video.  Now, go watch/remember the last few open wheel races you watched, Indycar or F1, and compare.  Yeah…. So maybe we’ve been focusing on the wrong things, in both F1 and Indycar.  Maybe team orders, blocking, “relevance”, multi chassis versus spec, maybe NONE of it really matters.  Maybe why open wheel is struggling goes beyond the split, goes beyond the lack of an American GP, goes beyond any of that.  What open wheel, BOTH Indycar and F1 is missing is that element of speed.  It’s missing the raw power and strength of the mid 80’s through early 90’s.  I’m not saying Indycar’s are easy to drive, or that NASCAR is harder, but, look at how Senna’s driving, and compare that with what you saw at Edmonton and Hockenhiem. 

Option 1

  What ICONIC should have done, and what the FIA needs to do is go back to this.  For Indycar, the solution needs to be more horsepower less downforce.  Whether it’s an inline 4, or V10 Turbo Diesel, they’ve got to get the horsepower up, and the aero down.  And by going retro, I’m NOT saying take away the safety.  Go retro, but add the modern safety advances to the cars.  Now on ovals, there is some concern, especially Indy and the 1.5’s.  I suppose then limit fuel intake, but the biggest thing is to raise the catch fences, or perhaps come up with a new form of preventing cars from flying into the stands, which are needed anyways, look at Conway and  Edwards and Keselowski’s wrecks.  1000HP cars flying around the road and street courses might actually make them something people would watch, instead of the two hour parades we’ve got now. 

Option 2

  If that’s too expensive, which I kinda doubt, then the other option is cut weight and only raise horsepower a little, to say 700HP.  The biggest advantage of a smaller car would be better racing at the smaller and more narrow tracks, such as Mid Ohio, and you’d be able to get the effect of 1000HP without the price of developing 1000HP.  The issue is how much does it cost to develop lighter parts?  I’m not sure, because going retro would probably mean reducing wing weight. 

Option 3

In fact, to go really retro, Indycar could go to the wingless tubular design of the early rear engine cars.  Then, you’d save a lot of weight, because there’d be no wings, and, as an added bonus, we’d differentiate ourselves from F1.  And before I read “well that’s not safe” again, we’re using 2010 safety technology and materials on this thing.  The thing about taking this rout is speeds will probably drop, even with more horsepower/power to weight ratio, or at least stay the same, because these cars won’t turn as well.  That actually could be a good thing, as we’d possibly get less “flat out” because there’d be a LOT less downforce. 

F1 option 1

F1 option 2

Now onto F1.  Here, we don’t have to worry about cost, or ovals.  So just reduce back to 80’s or early 90’s aero and HP, and we’re all good.   And just like Indycar, the other option is to go way back and do the cigar shaped wingless rear engine cars, again, it will cause a reduction in speed, but also put the driving back into the hands of the drivers!  And, obviously, dump all of the electronic drivers aids. 

  Back to Indycar.  The cost is an issue, because Indycar teams aren’t very well funded.  However, even if a few teams went away, even if car count dropped to 22-20, if the racing on track is good, does it matter?  Look at MotoGP, they only have 17 bikes on track, but they’re the second largest racing series in the world!   Although I will concede, 17 bikes is a fairly significant issue.  And I’m not convinced that raising horsepower or reducing weight will cost that much money ESPECIALLY if it coincides with a reduction in spending on aero, which as we’ve seen looking into “open kit” is fairly expensive. I’m not an expert, but honestly, I’ve not heard anyone discuss these ideas, either. 

  Look, I don’t know exactly how to make this work.  I’m not 100% sure how to “go retro” for open wheel, but what I DO know is that it would make Indycar and F1 interesting!  It would break the current formula of no passing parades run by mid powered open wheel cars we’ve been seeing in both series.  For F1 the only thing that makes this hard is the politics of F1.  For Indycar, yes, this is risky.  Yes, it may be hard.  But let’s face it, Indycar is slowly rotting away.  I like Randy Bernard, I think he has the potential to take Indycar back to being a major sport, but, improvements have to be made to get there.  What people loved about Indycar was its speed and power, people were attracted to the amazing amount of skill required to drive these cars.  With these purposed changes, Milka Duno couldn’t even go around the track, she’d wreck EVERY time she entered the car, and that’s a GREAT thing!  When and if Indycar can recapture that element of speed, then it will grow.  NASCAR will NEVER be able to say it’s the “toughest, hardest, whatever they want to say” racing in the world.  It’s not a complete fix, but it WOULD make a major difference, in fact, I don’t know of another single change that would have THAT much positive effect.  And that’s why it should be done, because when Indycar’s this far down, only something drastic is going to get things back on track.

Breaking News: Hamlin and Newman were the drivers fined!

Why the f*ck did Newman get fined????

  According  to ESPN, the drivers fine were Ryan Newman and Denny Hamlin.  As you know, if you read my article on the subject a few days ago, or follow me on twitter, I’m not a fan of this.  And after hearing the drivers who were fined, I’m even less supportive.  I’m not surprised it’s Hamlin, after his comments on the “debris” cautions.  And yet, when you go back, he DIDN’T say they were fake, he said a debris caution could be called at any time, because he felt there were always debris, and he understood why NASCAR would do it!  He was actually being DIPLOMATIC with his comments!  As for Newman, I’m at a complete loss.  I really don’t remember anything especially critical from him.  The only thing is he was rather critical of the lack of penalties for Edwards, but I think anyone with half a brain WAS critical of NASCAR for that!  

  So expect the post race interviews to get EVEN more boring.  Everyone’s now going to spew more NASCAR Kool Aid than before, so we’ll get more of how wonderful the racing is, how great NASCAR is, how it’s the toughest, greatest, fastest, most impressive form of racing ever invented, how they came up with every innovation in the racing world, how they’re the leader in green tech in racing, despite clearly NOT being that, ect.   So yeah, I’d suggest just don’t put any driver interviews on the TV shows anymore, because you’re probably going to get even less interesting interviews than you were before, and we still weren’t getting anything good.  

  I’ve heard the defense of this, I mean, the “official” NASCAR writers are 100% behind this, but then again, they’d be behind ANYTHING NASCAR did, so really, I’m not impressed.  It bothers me that neither Hamlin or Newman were that critical, again, Hamlin didn’t say they were throwing fake cautions, or even say he felt it was wrong!  In fact, I was personally critical of him for saying he didn’t feel it was that bad!  As for Newman, again, I’m not sure what he even said, except that he was critical of the lack of fines for Edwards!  So if that’s too much for NASCAR, than really, we’re screwed.  I mean, there will be NOTHING interesting in the driver interviews!  I’m wondering if a driver says Rossi and Hamilton make more than any NASCAR driver if they’ll get fined… or even admits to watching something non NASCAR.  Also, the way the “mainstream” NASCAR writers are all defending this is a little shameful!  At least pretend not to be NASCAR kiss asses!  It’s so obvious NASCAR’s controlling them, it’s really not funny.  Hence, I don’t read a ton of NASCAR stuff anymore because it’s all so NASCAR driven, if I wanted press releases I’d read the press releases!  

Wonder how good Hamlin would be in Indycar....

This just plays into the idea of NASCAR being the “BeachFront Mafia”, which is a term that Johnny and The Duke from the Livefastracing podcast used, and it REALLY fits here.  It gives those of us who watch Indycar, MotoGP, WSBK, ALMS, ect. more ammo to mock them, which is nice I guess.  The Newman thing makes ZERO sense at all, and is pretty ridiculous.  Also, this sort of plays into the narrative that NASCAR is getting desperate, it really is starting to look like they’re panicking, and after seeing the Brickyard half full, well, they may have cause to panic.  Too bad instead of trying to fix the problems, they just make them worse and try and say how great things are.  All I hope is they piss Newman and Stewart off enough to leave, and then Bernard is smart enough to find a way to get them over to Indycar.  Then, I’ll thank NASCAR for helping Indycar.

Does Technology and Relevance Matter in Racing?

  Does technology and relevance matter for racing?  With the announcements of the Indycar chassis and engine regulations for 2012, that question has been brought to the front of the Indycar racing world.  There are a lot of fervent defenders of tech and relevance, and there are a lot of apathetic people who just don’t care.  The ALMS is built on technology and relevance, while NASCAR is built on resisting it for as long as possible.  For years, Indycar was built on technology too, but since the split, and the loss of money/fans, that’s gone away.

  The biggest point of conflict is whether fans care or not, or rather, whether it will attract more fans to have more tech/relevancy in racing.  And in the end, the point of contention is the ALMS.  Here’s my opinion, while the ALMS’s TV ratings aren’t very strong, they DO have a VERY loyal fan base, as their attendance proves.  Look how many people they have show up at Laguna Seca, Sebring, Mid Ohio, Road America, Lime Rock, and Road Atlanta!  Yes, it’s not going to do anything to get more “casual” fans, but guess what?  At this point, we HAVE NO casual fans, so why not reach out to the hardcore fans that are not into Indycar?  Also, get those ALMS people to come to Indycar races, and the attendance grows by a ton!  If we could just get them to come to some of the ovals, we’d have a better chance of getting and keeping good oval dates. 

  This is a bit of a tangent, but I know that there are ALMS / motorcycle road racing fans, some of whom watch NASCAR, who have completely soured on Indycar, and that’s not good.  Again, there may not be a ton of them, but guess what? If we got a majority of them back into Indycar, maybe we’d get the ratings up to a somewhat more acceptable level, and then maybe we’d get some more attention, and then start picking up fans new to racing.  Of course, to get those fans, relevance and technology isn’t the only thing needed, better road and street races would help, because compare Edmonton to the USGP at Laguna and the Lime Rock ALMS race, and tell me which one was better. (My answer: Laguna)

Notice the differant brands

 

The other part of relevance that matters is it can get manufactures money, which is good for everyone.  Look at ALMS, not great TV ratings, yet still, they’ve got GM, BMW, Ferrari and Porsche involved in GT2 BECAUSE of the relevancy!  Right now, for Indycar and NASCAR, most of the manufactures money comes from marketing, while in sportscar, it can also come from R&D.  Also, in NASCAR, the manufactures actually pay the teams money for the association!  So if done right, it could help bring money into the series, which it desperately needs. 

  Now, all that said, I’m not really a fan of production engines.  If it’s the engine’s from the Mustang, Corvette, Porsche 911, Ferrari California, BMW M3, or similar pony, muscle, supercar, or performance car, then it’s okay, but to use a production engine taken out of say a Ford Focus or Honda Civic?  That basically kills the glamour and prestige of the series.  And since the 2012 rules state Inline 4 or V6, that’s about all we’d get.  Also, if the technology get’s out of hand, we get F1, where two teams win every race…. Oh, wait, we’ve got that already… 

Now if this car's engine was used...

 

 What matters most?  What will attract the most fans?  In the end that’s engine makers, especially someone like Ford (Mustang engine) Chevy (Corvette/Camero engine), BMW, Audi, Porsche, ect, because people identify and care about those brands.  Potentially Indycar could become the battleground between the Japanese, American, and European car makers.  That said, having some chassis competition does add something interesting to watch, which, with races like Edmonton, Mid Ohio, and Infineon, we need as much as we can get.  Besides, if we could boost attendance by 10,000-20,000 at every event, that would be pretty significant, especially since some of the ovals have only gotten 20,000 people. So yes, having technology and having relevance does matter, because while it won’t attract TONS of fans, it will attract some, and as long as it doesn’t get in the way of the racing (like F1) then it’s not going to drive anyone off, either.

The Lone Italian

One year ago I wrote about Vitantonio Liuzzi, the driver who had seemingly been forgotten by the world of Formula 1. Stuck in the role as test driver at Force India, racing in the now defunct A1GP series for Italy. It looked like a highly capable driver wouldn’t get his chance in F1 after his unfair treatment at Red Bull and Toro Rosso.

How things chance in one single year.

Not long after my post Felipe Massa was involved in an horrific accident in which he almost lost his life, he ultimately went on to miss the rest of the season. After the failing of Luca Badoer in Valencia and Belgium, it was Force India’s Giancarlo Fisichella who was called in till the end of the season. This gave Liuzzi the promotion he had deserved.

However things just haven’t went for the Italian, a mixture of bad luck and occasional lapses in concentration have seen him struggle since he took up the role.

In Belgium and Italy last season the conditions were perfect for Force India and they were quick, very quick. Fisichella got pole at Spa-Francorchamps. Adrian Sutil was 2nd at Monza, and despite not racing since October 2007, Liuzzi was 7th as well. He was on course for points as well, but his car decided not to play ball with him. Transmission issues in the end forced him out.

That bad luck seems to have lasted with him since then. While Sutil has gone on to finish in the points on a regular basis, Liuzzi has had mixed results. While some have been good and showed his promise, others have made him look like he isn’t suited to a Force India job.

He has only retired twice all season, one of them being an engine failure. The other time he lost it under breaking in China and took out Kamui Kobayashi and Sebastien Buemi. Liuzzi also ruined his car in qualifying for the German Grand Prix, forcing him to start down in 21st. This subsequently ruined the rest of the race, although on a whole, even Adrian Sutil struggled in Hockeneheim.

Whenever the glimpses of talent look like they are emerging, it is snatched away almost immediately. He secured an amazing 5th place in Canada only to find himself facing the wrong way after the first few corners from contact with Felipe Massa.

Pressure is mounting on Liuzzi and he should know that, no doubt eager to get in that seat is Paul di Resta. The flying Scot. Rated by many people, me included, and his time is almost certainly about to come. But it shouldn’t be for replacing Liuzzi, at least not in the middle of this season.

Vitantonio Liuzzi’s time will come. I will guarantee at one point this season he will start to perform. When he is on the money and on form he gets results in the bag, which the Force India will allow him to do. No doubt when Belgium and Italy come he will be able to get that Force India high into the points assuming reliability is on his side.

My fear however is that Liuzzi might need to perform at Hungary if he wishes to keep his seat. The lack of opportunities for next season might see the only opportunity to come at whichever new team comes in. If he is unable to go there and has no Force India role, it might be the end for him in Formula 1.

It is the worst case scenario for sure and hopefully it won’t end up like that for Liuzzi. The Italian is good enough for Formula 1, it seems Formula 1 doesn’t see it that way.

NASCAR Fines it’s Drivers For Speaking their Minds!

 

As I stated yesterday, last weekend was not kind to the racing world.   Well, it just got worse.  According to the AP, NASCAR has fined two of its drivers this year for being critical of the sport.  Now, this is not completely shocking, because NASCAR has a reputation of trying to keep all of the drivers positive, as the pre race meeting a couple years ago proved.  But this is the AP reporting the story, with fines attached.  So if you’ve ever wondered why NASCAR drivers are so boring to listen to in interviews or read on twitter, now you know.  The first hints this might be going on this year was when NASCAR mentioned during the off season how they “wanted everyone on board.”  Basically, NASCAR hopes if their drivers, PR Writers also known as journalists, and TV commentators say the racing is great, they can fool everyone into thinking it is.  As ratings and attendance have shown, this isn’t working.

  For me, at least, most driver interviews are pretty pointless.  At least 80% of them are pure PR Kool Aid where everyone’s happy and everything’s wonderful, and it’s really tedious.  Taking this over to Indycar, it’s like why I don’t take what most of the drivers are saying about the chassis or the Helio penalty that seriously, at least when it’s on the record.  Now off the record?  That’s a different story.   Anyways, by openly fining the drivers, NASCAR is just trying harder to kill off the personality in racing.  It’s ridiculous, I mean, NASCAR’s too stupid to see it’s killing the sport, someone’s got to tell them otherwise!

  Before I hear the “well, NBA/NFL fine players for this too” argument, I don’t watch those sports, either!  Yeah they do that, but why should NASCAR copy the WORST elements of stick and ball sports?  Who wants to see a bunch of Jimmie Johnson driver bots out there running four hour parades in a circle/oval?  It’s the PERSONALITIES of people like Floyt, Petty, Allison, Person, Andretti, Mears, Unser, and ECT. Who BUILDT Racing!!!  That WAS WHY PEOPLE WATCHED!  If everyone’s just going on and on about how great NASCAR is, it’s both dishonest and boring!  If NASCAR doesn’t want driver complaining, how about they fix the issues with the racing!  Make it so people can actually adjust the cars and pass!  Shorten the races and change the points system so there’s less points racing!

  NASCAR wonders why its hardcore fans are leaving, well, perhaps this is it.   Right now, I’m watching Top Gear on BBC America.  What makes it fun is that they say interesting and controversial things.  They’re not stuck on some PR script, they’ll even make fun of British traffic laws/taxes and BBC decisions.  And because of that, it’s interesting.  Contrast that with the SpeedTV car shows.  I can’t speak for them all, and Battle of the Supercars with Paul Tracy looks interesting, but a lot of them are basically infomercials, where nothing critical is said and everything is positive and wonderful.  They have a car building/mechanic show right before or after the MotoGP races, not sure what it is, and they highlight some products, it’s sorta interesting, but it’s also CLEARLY just product pitching.  I already get the commercials during the show; I don’t exactly want one DURING the show!  That’s like what NASCAR’s becoming.  The drivers can’t say anything interesting or critical, why would anyone watch the post race? They say pretty much the same thing each week.  We want fun, we want spontaneity, we want controversy!  What we don’t want is 43 robots giving their pre programmed speech week after week, all saying how wonderful and great NASCAR is, when the reality is things are the exact opposite!

  Even more disturbing, Jim Hunter has been quoted saying he wants this to be an example to up and coming drivers.  Great! Time to train a whole new generation of boring, vanilla, Kool Aid filled driver bots.  I think Hunters quotes came from the Stewart controversy from a few years ago.   I’ve heard this from people who watch more of the lower tier Sportscar/open wheel stuff, and they agree, the newest generation of drivers are being trained into boring pr Kool Aid driver bots.  So what’s going to keep people caring about racing in the future?

  On a lighter note, the story says two drivers were fined, who were they?  I’m guessing it came from Harvick, Hamlin, Stewart, Kyle Busch, Juan Montoya, Dale Junior, or Kasey Kahne, as they’re about the only people with a shred of personality left.  If I had to guess exactly, Hamlin for the phantom caution statement and then, not sure… probably someone who criticized them for not punishing Edwards more, which actually means it might have been Gordon or Newman, although I’d still lean that it’s more likely Stewart, Harvick, Kyle or Juan, or of course, Robby Gordon….

  This is ridiculous.  NASCAR was the first racing I ever watched, and it was the series I cared most about until very recently.  But the fact is, it’s getting harder and harder to care.  It’s becoming WWE on wheels, with all the contrived bulls**t it’s still quite boring, the leadership is insanely out of touch, there’s not been a whole lot of positive stuff happening in the last few years.  I’m really starting to tire of it, funnily, for me the turning point was the 2008 “shut up and drive” meeting, and now these penalties are driving me further and further away, with eliminations in the chase being something I don’t even want to think about.  I’ll still probably watch, but honestly, this year, if I miss a race, I don’t really care too much, and I’m not sure how much NASCAR will be in this sites future.  Potentially still a lot; because I do like doing NASCAR writing with a different perspective than most people who write about it, but it’s just so ridiculous and fake, it’s like covering WWE… The REALLY ironic thing is how NASCAR always tries to wrap itself in the American flag, and then pulls stunts like this.  NASCAR seems DETIRMINED to kill all the personality and fun out of the sport, and Brian France can’t seem to realize what he’s doing to it, he’s happy because he’s too delusional to see what’s going on.  So expect the driver interviews to get even more happy and nice PR produced, I just hope they piss Tony Stewart off enough that he decks one of them in the face, and then takes his money and sponsorship over to Indycar.  If however you enjoy PR bulls**t, then you’ll love where NASCAR’s going!

Team Meeting, Weekend in Review: A Black Eye For Racing Edition

  I’m not going to do the usual format for Team Meeting this weekend.  Instead, I’m going to do more of a general impression of the weekend.  It was a down weekend for two reasons.  From a fan perspective, most of the good story lines failed, miserably, look at Massa, Montoya, Spies, Silvestro, and Wilson, and then there was a ton of bad officiating/team orders/management issues from the series themselves. 

  When Simona got speared by Viso, my heart completely sank.  I had already seen that movie TWICE with Montoya’s wreck at Indy and Spies going wide at Laguna.  To see it again, was shocking and horrifying.  I mean, Simona was able to be FAST, holding off RHR for a long time, eventually losing a spot, but still running 7^th, when Viso speared her, putting her into the tire wall and ruining the ONLY interesting storyline in an otherwise Big Two dominated race.  The Big Two held ALL of the top spots, it was incredibly dull, so to see the ONE thing that kept me interested taken out by VISO, who’s left an impressive trail of carbon fiber behind him this year, really upset me! 

  Spies’ issue wasn’t as bad, or as dramatic, and it was also his fault.  He got off to a good start, but he then slid back.  He recovered and was in 5^th chasing down Rossi in 4^th and Dovizioso in 3^rd, for what could have been his second podium.  Then, during a commercial break, he slid wide and lost a bunch of positions, which allowed Rossi to catch and pass Dovizioso.  It wasn’t as bad as Montoya or Silvestro, and it was Spies fault, but still, right after seeing Montoya bin it, and then to see Silvestro get speared by Viso an hour latter…

  Montoya’s thing was just painful.  VERY predictable “debris” yellow came out, bunching the field up and forcing a bunch of late race pit stops.  A lot of teams took two tires instead of four, thus Montoya started a lot farther back.  He struggled and then ended up hitting the wall, then slid down the field, taking Junior, who was having a fairly good run, out.  It was absolutely depressing, I’m a huge Montoya fan, and to see that for the SECOND TIME was horrifying, and hinted at what was to come.  It was Montoya’s fault, but if they had just not had that late race yellow… stupid “debris” yellows.   

  Then of course Wilson had a bad race, and I’ll get to Massa, who almost won an F1 race the year after his massive injury latter…  But on the positive side, Jaime McMurray won the Brickyard, and Valentino Rossi fought his way to the podium.  Rossi’s podium was impressive, especially because it looked like Laguna hard for him, and his injuries were challenging him.  Plus, he seemed to be fading, and then he came back and pushed up to 3^rd.  That was exciting to watch, and even though the race wasn’t a great one, it still was good, a LOT better than the other races that happened this weekend.  And while I’m not a fan of McMurray, his redemption this year has been pretty cool to see, he defiantly seems like a good guy, and a strong win at the Brickyard really is impressive, because that’s a HARD track to win at, it really vindicates him, because most of his other wins are restrictor plates, but that win was pure talent, and Montoya brain fade.  Also fun was the Lorenzo Land flag Lorenzo placed at Laguna, he dressed himself up in a space suit, and it was probably the highlight of the weekend racing wise. 

  Now onto what gave racing a complete black eye.  It started in Germany, with the Ferrari team orders, and Massa giving the win up to Alonso.  Now, I’ve heard the defense of this, from Varsha and some others, and they do have a really good point, but I’m still not a fan of team orders, although I’ll concede it can make things interesting, and although I didn’t watch the race, it sounds like Alonso would probably have overtaken him anyways.  But still, show that to a “stick and ball” fan and see what they say… not a way to get fans….

  After this, we go to Indy, where Brian France holds a press conference, and acts like his normal out of touch self.  He hinted strongly that we will be moving to WWE on wheels, or the eliminations in the Chase.  Then, he went on to talk about the new schedule, which he thinks “fans will like” despite unless a miracle happens, it’s going to have EVEN MORE cookie cutter tracks.  Finally, he insanely claims that there’s “no problems” with the HORRIBLE TV broadcasts….  If NASCAR really goes to “elimination format” for the chase, I’m not sure if I’ll cover it or not next year, because that’s ridiculous.  Onto the race, where the incredibly predictable “debris” cautions showed up and helped screw Montoya out of a win, can you say WWE on wheels???

  Now it’s onto Indycar, surely things can’t go that wrong here, right? Wrong! The race was incredibly boring; with the Big Two holding ALL of the top spot… the only bright spot was Silvestro, who then got taken out by Viso.  Eventually, Helio actually managed to pass Power!  Still pretty dull, as Big Two held all of the top spots.  Then on another restart, Power makes a very aggressive attempt to pass on Helio, fails, and falls to third, behind Dixon.  Then, a minute later, the black flag comes out for Helio!  Even the booth guys were confused as to why.  Helio stayed on track, Dixon couldn’t get near him and after the race, things got heated, with Helio losing it on camera.

  The blocking call makes ZERO sense.  I’ve read the press release Indycar sent out and the statement on Versus.com by Barnhart, and I still don’t get how Helio was blocking!?!?? I mean, seriously, what the f*ck!  I’ve seen multiple replays, and I cannot see HOW you can say that was a block or deserved that penalty!  I understood and supported the penalty in 08 at Belle Isle, because that was BLATENT.  But this is like Indy, when Rahal got a blocking penalty when he HELD IS F*CKING LINE, and still got hit with a “blocking” penalty.  Funny how Danica CHOPPED TK at Texas and DIDN’T get a blocking call…

  I mean, if that’s the standard for blocking, about half the field needs a black flag!  And if that’s “blocking” then what penalty should Viso get for cutting across the field to get to the pits on the restart to serve his penalty for spearing Simona???  What really gets me is how Barnhart allows a ton of ACTUAL BLOCKIGN not to mention those HORRIBLY spread out starts, and no one get’s penalized, but then he calls blocking on this!?!? I literally cannot fathom what Barnhart was thinking…  I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, PARK BRIAN BARNHART!!!!  He’s one of the worst race officials I’ve EVER seen!!!   The only way I can interpret the rules is that any running on the inside of the track is illegal, which is an INSANE rule to have.  I AM ALL FOR BLOCKING PENALTIES, but call them on BLOCKS!  It’s not like there’s a shortage of those!!! 

  That penalty capped off what had been an incredibly boring race.  The EVERY SINGLE BIG TWO driver was up front, until Helio was given a 20 second penalty.  That’s right, a complete Big Two domination.  Not only that, but they put over half the field a lap down, which always tells you it was a pretty dull race.  The only good story from Indycar to survive was Tracy, who finished 6^th, and after a trying year reminded us why he NEEDS and DESERVES a full time ride. 

   So what stories do the “mainstream” sports media have on racing? F1’s team orders, and Indycar f*ck up, more contrivances for NASCAR, and generally good storylines getting crushed.  What’s sad is the ALMS and MotoGP, who put on good races without massive issues, aren’t getting any attention.  It’s especially sad for MotoGP, because really, the MotoGP might have been the best race of the weekend, and they need to get more publicity, because it’s a GREAT series that I really want to grow in America, because it’s international road racing done RIGHT!  And the ALMS, considering they have about 4 LMP’s, put on a surprisingly good show, but all the talk is on something else….

  Just to cap of this disaster, NASCAR’s attendance at the Brickyard was bad, around 120,000-140,000, which while a lot of people, for Indy, considering NASCAR is supposedly the biggest racing series in the country, not so much.  There’s a lot of concern about Indy’s long term future in NASCAR, and that’s sad, because it’s really cool to see NASCAR at Indy, and it’s a track that really shows who’s a good driver.  Here’s something funny, the MotoGP this August might just outdrawn the Brickyard.  If that happens, well, that would be a pretty big disaster for NASCAR. 

  Seriously, this weekend of racing just wasn’t that good.  If I’m trying to sell a non race fan on racing, I really couldn’t use anything from Indycar, NASCAR, or F1 to do it.  I’d show them MotoGP, WSBK, and ALMS instead.  It’s too bad, because this weekend had a TON of promise, but in the end, it was pretty much a disaster, from Silvestro’s spearing by Viso, to Montoya’s wreck, to the purposed Chase changes, to the Indycar insanity, it’s just one of those race weekends you wish had never happened.

MotoGP Liveblog: Round 9, Laguna Seca

 

  Laguna Seca, famous for it’s corkscrew turn, is the site for the 9th round of MotoGP.  Today is a packed day of racing, with F1, Indycar, NASCAR, MotoGP, not to mention ALMS, Trucsk, and Nationwide yesterday.  Right now, I’m still recovering from the Brickyard 400, where Montoya lost another race he DOMINATED!!!!  So keep that in mind.  Plus, during comercial, I’ll be checking out the Indycar race from Edmonton, where Simona De Silvestro qualfied 7th!!! 

  Ben Spies has been strong, like expected, running consistantly in the top 6.  Rossi, though, is struggling some.  He has generally been behind Spies and in about the 6th posistion most of the weekend, although he moved into 4th during the warmup.  In qualifying, Jorge Lorenzo won another pole, just barely beating out Casey Stoner.  Joining them on the front row is Andrea Dovizioso, with his first front row start.  Pedrossa, Spies, and Rossi make up row 2.  Hayden and Edwards qualified 7th and 8th respectivly. 

  WTF! It’s time to go live!!!  My clock said I had ten minutes left….

  Uh oh… looks like it’s the SpeedTV motorcycle people who do the AMA instead of the usual world feed…. this could be bad… Seriously? Ralph Sheenen?? Why!!!

  Back to the preview.  Right now, Lorenzo and Pedrossa do seem to be slighlty ahead of the field.  Hopefully though, Hayden and Spies can overcome them and get the win.  The Tech 3 update definintly seems to be helping them be competitive, Spies has outpaced Rossi in some of the sessions.  Rossi’s injury to his shoulder seems to be causing more issues than his leg, especially on the Corkscrew.

  I ran some laps at Laguna on MotoGP 09/10, which I hope to review eventually, and it’s a crazy track.  Very short, very narrow, very large elevation changes, and then the corksrcew.  Not to mention some very slow speed corners.  It’s tough, I cannot imagine trying to take a MotoGP bike out in real life.  It’s a lot of fun, though.  However, due to the difficult to pass nature, it may not be the best MotoGP race, but it should be good.

  Earlier I said Lorenzo and Pedrossa were ahead of the field, I meant Lorenzo and Stoner.  Confused them because Pedrossa’s been the only other person to win besides the Yamaha’s.

  My picks to win from my Pre Race Picks and Predictions article are looking okay.  I’m a little worried for Hayden, though, I’d have though he’d have more pace.  Spies is doing well, though, and of course Lorenzo has been pretty dominante.

  Roger Lee Hayden, Nicky’s brother, is riding replacement for Randy De Puniet.  In 07 he had a very good run here in a Kawasaki, but so far, he’s been struggling.  In race though, he should be able to get around the Suzuki’s.

Warm Up’s complete, no wrecks.

Start, Lap 1:  Spies gets great start, up to second, fighting up front, Pedrossa gets the lead.

Lap 2: Turns out the race is on a 10 minute delay for reasons I cannot comprehend.  So that means I’m off twitter as the brits are alraedy ahead of me….

Lap 3: Spies fighting both Rossi and Dovizioso.

Lap 3: Pedrossa leading Stoner and Lorenzo, they’re starting to pull away…

Lap 4: Uh oh, Spies lost some spots…

Lap 4: Luckily, no debris cautions here…

Lap 5: Rossi battling Dovizioso for 4th.

Lap 6: Comercial… seriously, why are we on this delay!!!!

Lap???: pass for second while we were on break by Lorenzo on Stoner.

24 laps to go: Rossi passes Dovizioso.

24 laps to go: No idea whats wrong with Spies, kinda disapointing… but, we’ve already seen this from montoya, and likely will see it at Edmonton too with Silvestro… not a good day for underdogs…

23 to go: Looks like from twitter JR Hildebrand is watching! Another reason to want him to be full time in Indycar!!! I should NOT look at twitter though… because I’m seeing a few spoilers…

21 to go: Kinda spread out.  Simonchelli passes Melandri!

21 to go: Pedrossa is OUT!!! He goes into the gravel trap.  He’s pretty screwed in the championship now.  And… we’re off to comerical.

  Okay, I’ll come clean, I knew that was about to happen, because I was following something for Indycar on twitter, and due to the delay, I saw Pedrossa’s fate…  Pedrossa is REALLY inconsistant, I mean, one weekend he’s top of the class, next he’s getting passed by everyone and pretty midpack.

  I really don’t like that the Speed people are calling the race, the World Feed do a better job.  I’ve always heard good things about Eurosport, but cannot confirm them.

  It’s Leigh Diffy in the booth, Shaheen is only in pre race and coming back from comercial.

16 laps to go: Rossi is getting chased by Spies and Hayden. 

16 Laps to Go:  Lorenzo dominating.

15 to go:  Fiat Yamaha bikes liveries look really nice.

And onto comercial.  Laguna’s a cool place, and I’m glad the US get’s two motogp rounds. But maybe somewhere else would be better for this round.  Not sure where though on the west coast is suitable.

12 to go: Spies passes Hayden and catches Rossi.

10 laps to go: Spies is really fighting with Rossi.

10 Laps to Go: Spies is all over Rossi

And… comercial break… 

  Pretty cool race.  Not the greatest MotoGP race ever, but pretty interesting.  The TV crew makes sure to find the battles so that even if Lorenzo is dominating, he’s not dominating the coverage.

  Somehow I wouldn’t be to trusting of an internet insurance agency…

5 laps to go: Spies fell off… ran wide, damn… another Montoya moment… Please Silvestro and Wilson and Hunter Reay, PLEASE don’t do this to me at Edmonton…

5 Laps to Go: Rossi passed Dovizioso for 3rd.  Spies down to 6th…

4 Laps to Go:  Suprised Stoner couldn’t hold it better with Lornzo.

3 Laps to Go:  replay of Dani’s wreck.  Looked bad.  Motorcycle racing to me is the most phyisically demanding, becuase when you wreck, it’s YOUR body that takes the impact…

2 laps to go:  Dovizioso wants to battle Rossi, catching up!

2 Laps to Go: Dovizioso not able to pass Rossi.

Last Lap: Dovizoiso and Rossi battling.  Dovi is very close, but can’t get by.

Last Lap: Lorenzo wins!

Last Lap: Rossi in 3rd.  Dovizioso ran wide in turn 11, where Spies did.

 Well, not the greatest race.  This is a trying day for the underdogs/drivers I’m supporting, with Montoya and Spies both having brain fades that cost them a good finish.  At least there were no “debris” cautions in MotoGP!!!  Still, the battle between Rossi and Spies and Rossi and Dovizioso was good, too bad the actual pass happened during break.  If it wasn’t clear before, Lorenzo has the championship.  I really don’t think even problems with the engine rule would keep him back, besides.  Now, onto Edmonton. Go Simona, Wilson, Hunter Reay!!!!  That’s it from Laguna.

  Oh, and Lorenzo plants the Lorenzo Land flag, dressed up in what looked like a space suit…  wonder what he’ll do for the title???

Pre Race Picks and Predictions: USGP@Laguna, Brickyard 400, IRP, Edmonton, Hockenhiem, and Lime Rock

 

MotoGP: USGP@ Laguna Seca

  MotoGP heads to Laguna Seca in California for the first of two rounds in the United States.  Laguna Seca is a very narrow and tight, not to mention short, track.  Laguna Seca is infamous for its corkscrew downhill turn, and has hosted races for the Champcar World Series, ALMS, Grand Am, and AMA, as well as the Monterey Historic Races.  I’ve not watched very many races there, but I have seen it in both Forza 3 and MotoGP 09/10, and it’s a pretty crazy track.  Unfortunately, it’s also incredibly difficult to pass on, due to the lack of straights and narrowness of the track.  That means qualifying is very important, although the MotoGP has a better time passing than say Champcar or ALMS.  A few years ago, Rossi put a very aggressive pass on Stoner for the win. 

   Because it’s the USGP, SpeedTV will have tape delayed qualifying, which is something they usually don’t have.  Also, the race will be live on SpeedTV at 5:00PM Sunday.  Due to Laguna Seca being run on a state park, and not having the money that other tracks have, there will be no Moto2 or 125cc races run as support races.   Instead, the AMA plays the undercard role.   

  Yamaha is giving their two American riders on Tech 3 an update for this weekend, which hopefully will help push them to the first win for a non factory team in the 800cc era.  Because Laguna is such a unique track, riders such as Nicky Hayden, Ben Spies, and Roger Lee Hayden, who all have had success in the AMA here, have an advantage over much of the field.  Nicky Hayden has two wins here, in the first two years this race was held.

Winner… Jorge Lorenzo:  Lorenzo has won a ton of races this year, and so he’s the clear favorite for this weekend too.  Last time he lost to Pedrossa, earlier this year, Lorenzo came back and won 3 races in a row. 

Likely…Nicky Hayden:  Hayden is known for his consistency, and after struggling badly over the last two years, this year he’s starting to come back.  He’s excellent at Laguna, and with Stoner leaving Ducati, he’s probably their number one rider, at least until Rossi get’s there next year.  Can Hayden get the first win for Ducati this year???

Darkhorse…Ben Spies:  No non factory rider has won a race in the 800cc era.  Can Spies end this trend?  If he’s going to do it, this may be his best shot.  He’s got experience at Indy and Valencia as well, but Laguna’s not a high speed track, which is something the Tech 3 bikes struggle with.  As long as the updates work well, Spies has a fairly good chance at doing well, if he’s going to get a win this year, now’s the time to do it.  Qualifying will likely determine his shot, if he’s top 5, watch out, but if he is lower than 5^th or 6^th, that’s probably too much ground to make up.   Free Practice one went well for Spies, finishing 5^th, and putting down very competitive times.

NASCAR Sprint Cup: Brickyard 400 at Indy

  The Brickyard 400 is, despite what some NASCAR writers like to say, the second biggest race of the year for NASCAR.  Sadly, due to the way NASCAR’s COT and gearing rules work, the race itself isn’t probably going to be that great.  However, EVERY driver who’s won at Indy in NASCAR is a driver who’s contended for titles and won multiple races in their careers, so success here is a good measure of talent.  The future of the Brickyard 400 is starting to get a little bit less positive, though, as since the tire disaster of 2008, ticket sales have been down, and with the general loss of interest in NASCAR, that could lead to this race’s attendance not making it as worthwhile to IMS.  However, for years the Brickyard 400 has been a massive money maker, and I’m guessing they’ll stick with it, unless things really start to go downhill. 

 Last year, Montoya lead a majority of the race, only to have a pit road speeding penalty, which allowed Jimmie Johnson to win.  Johnson has in fact won the last two races here, while his teammate Jeff Gordon has won four races here, including the first NASCAR race run here. 

Winner…Juan Montoya:  Montoya dominated last year, and while he’s not had the same consistency he had last year, he’s still got a lot of speed.  Not only that, but he did very well in the first practice.  A win here would deficiently help prove how good of driver Montoya is to the NASCAR people.  As long as the bad luck that’s been trailing Montoya this year doesn’t strike, he should be able to get his first NASCAR oval win.

Likely…Jimmie Johnson:  Jimmie Johnson comes into Indy on a streak of two Brickyard 400’s in a row.  He’s got the team and speed to win this race, but going against him is the collective will of almost the entire NASCAR fan base, who probably never want to see him win again.  If it turns into a JJ domination, expect ratings to be pretty bad, as it will be about as much fun as watching paint dry. 

Darkhorse…Denny Hamlin:  Denny Hamlin has never won the Brickyard, but he’s won a lot at Pocono and other flat tracks, so it’s not much of a stretch to see him winning this weekend.

Indycar: Edmonton

  Edmonton is an airport street race, much like Cleveland.  Unlike Cleveland, it’s not produced great races.  The future for Edmonton is in doubt, although the city council appears to want to continue to run the race.  Due to it being run on an airport, there’s a lot less to run into compared to most races, as last year’s race, which had only one yellow flag at the very end, proved.  It’s strange that Indycar runs a race on the same weekend as the Brickyard 400, because many of the Indycar media/IMS employees are stuck in Indy, and cannot cover the race. 

  Luckily, this race is on Versus, so we may actually see the start!  Last year at Edmonton, Will Power dominated, and that was when he was a Penske Part timer.  Edmonton was a good race for Paul Tracy in 08, as he finished in the top 5 and was pretty competitive.  Due to the nature of the track, this shouldn’t’ be as expensive to KV as most other weekends have been.  The Indy Lights field is incredibly small this weekend as well, not sure why, probably traveling costs. 

Winner…Will Power:  Will Power dominated last year when he was in a part time Penske role, now he’s full time and the championship leader.  If Power runs well, he can clinch the Road Course Championship, and since he’s won the last two races, there’s no reason to think he won’t do it again.

Likely…Justin Wilson:  Justin came so close to winning last weekend, but Power passed him on a restart and he then spun it, ruining what could have  been a great finish.  But, he’s still one of the best on the road courses, and so hopefully he’ll rebound and help break up the Big Two/Big Three. 

Darkhorse…Ryan Hunter Reay:  RHR has already won a race, Long Beach, managing to beat Will Power, which is pretty impressive.  Also impressive is he’s second in road course points, and is 5^th in overall points.  As long as he can avoid any team or driver errors which have plagued his team, he should be able to contend for his second win this year. 

ALMS: Lime Rock

  Lime Rock is another very narrow and short racetrack.  Due to the addition of the GTC and LMC class, the traffic during the race is expected to be very high, and should make it fairly interesting to watch.  The nature of this track favors smaller and lighter cars over brute power, and will require a driver’s full concentration to get through the traffic without incident.  I don’t follow LMC or CTC, so the picks will only be for LMP and GT

LMP:

  Winner…Patron Highcroft:  This Acura LMP2 car is has won the last three ALMS races, so think of it like Lorenzo and Power, same thing applies here. 

Likely…Dyson Racing:  The Dyson Lola’s are interesting cars, with a very different engine than most teams, as well as being a coupe instead of open top.  They’ve struggled a bit with mechanical issues which may be their biggest weakness going into this weekend.

Darkhorse…Drayson Lola:  The Drayson Lola team is at a disadvantage this weekend because they’re based off a LMP1 car, which means it’s heavier than its LMP2 based competitors.  However, traffic and attrition could play into their hands; hence they’re my Darkhorse pick. 

GT:

Winner…Flying Lizards Porsche:  I think Lime Rock should be good for the Porsche’s from Flying Lizard, as they won at the somewhat similar Laguna Seca and the also narrow Long Beach.

Likely…Risi Ferrari:  The Risi Ferrari’s have been strong, but more on the larger tracks, winning both Sebring and Miller, which puts them at a disadvantage at Lime Rock.

Darkhorse…Corvette:  The Corvette’s haven’t been having the season they’d like, but with the possibilities of attrition and traffic, they’ve got an outside chance at a win this weekend.

NASCAR Nationwide: IRP

  Instead of running at Indy, the Nationwide and Truck series run at the short track, IRP, which usually hosts USAC races.  Going into IRP is the Edwards/Keselowski rivalry, which got more heated with Edwards wrecking Keselowski again last week.  Both drivers are on probation, so they probably will play nicer, however, due to the fact IRP is a short track, there’s still a very good chance that something might happen.  I’ll go out on a limb here and predict a Sprint Cup driver to win.

Winner…Kyle Busch:  Busch in a Gibbs car, and unlike Edwards or Keselowski, not on probation.

Likely…Brad Keselowski:  On probation, but it’s a short track, so…. Edwards may want to watch out, especially if he’s leading on a GWC and Keselowski’s second.  Still don’t see why he got probation last week…

Darkhorse… Carl Edwards:  He’s a Darkhorse because he got in more trouble with NASCAR than Keselowski after last week’s incident.  Still, it’s a short track, and this is where you’re supposed to do you’re payback, not at Atlanta and Gateway!   

Camping World Trucks: IRP

  Honestly, the truck series is becoming kinda pointless.  Really they need to merge trucks and nationwide to make a stronger second tier series.  Anyways here’s the picks.

Winner…Kyle Busch:  A top tier Cup driver in third tier NASCAR…

Likely…Timothy Peters:  A good short track racer on a short track.

Darkhorse…Austin Dillon:  He won at Iowa, another short track, a second win so soon after his first would really show he’s becoming a good driver. 

Note, F1 picks coming latter.

F1: Hockenheim

Winner: Sebastion Vettel

Likely: Mark Webber

Darkhorse: Lewis Hamilton