Quad and Motorbike Action this Weekend
This Sunday 22 May, at the Dauntsey, grass circuit in Wiltshire will witness the QRA British Quad Dirt Track Cross championships and the M and S Truck Rentals British Solo Dirt Track.
Just with additional riders in a race and on Grass Track machines, it is the 2nd round of the Solo championship, which is raced on an oval circuit like speedway.
As former Swindon Robins Speedway Ace Steve Masters will be on his case, the series leader Dan Berwick from Kent will have his work cut out.
Darren Drew and young Ben Millichap who made an impact in round one, British Masters Qualifier Scott Creswell as well as the in form Simon Phillips will be the other contestants. Veterans Kevin Akers and Dave Abbott as well as youngster Luck Tuck are the other locals to watch out for.
The present Quad Oval championship leader and champion of the Grand Final at the recent Dirt Track round at Oxford Stadium, Danny Smith will give solid competition, although QRA British Quad Beach Cross champion Michael Nash is eager to add the inaugural British Dirt Track Cross Championship title to his honors.
The Quads are accomplished of outstanding speeds with some recently out pacing WRC Rally cars at an event, although they only bear a resemblance to those seen on the farm. To the Wiltshire countryside, these rider active machines will without doubt be bringing color and spectacle.
With the prices being Adults £10, Concessions (Students and OAPS with ID) £7, Children 12-16 years of age £3 and Children 11 and under GO FREE, the first race will be at 11.45am, practice from 10am.
2011 AMA Supercross – An Overview
The second to last round of the 2011 AMA Supercross will get underway at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah on Saturday.
With only nine points separating the top four riders heading into the penultimate round, the 2011 SX season has brought some of the tightest racing in years. Ryan Villopoto aboard the Monster Energy Kawasaki KX450F is leading the nine point pack. Two-Two Motorsports Honda rider Chad Reed is five points behind Villopoto.
Reigning Supercross Champion Ryan Dungey trails Reed by a point, and three points behind Reed is two time Supercross Champion, James Stewart (San Manuel Yamaha).
The Monster Energy AMA Supercross series is visiting Salt Lake City’s Rice Eccles Stadium for the third year in row. As a mixture of sleet and rain is expected in the forecast the weekend is shaping up much the way it did in 2010. As the series embarks on its last outing before the season finale in Las Vegas the conditions should offer a great spectacle.
If there are any changes now that Two-Two Motorsports’ Chad Reed has the full weight of Factory Honda in his arsenal, it will be interesting to see. The Aussie benefitted from injuries to Honda riders Josh Grant and Trey Canard as the team decided to back Reed rather than bring in an outsider this late in the game.
Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing Series – Preview
In the SuperLite Championship for the Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing Series, Rodeo Ford of Goodyear, Arizona unites Chad George. The race will be held at Speedworld Off-Road Park in Surprise Arizona on April 16-17.
Chad has taken the SuperLite championship by storm and he is a 4-time off-road UTV winner. In the 2010 Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing Series, he won numerous podium finishes and found himself battling for the title fight during the final race. For 2011, he battles in both Pro-Modified UTV class and SuperLite Championship.
Brian Deegan has signed an agreement with Ford Motorsports. In the Global RallyCross Championship, he will race a Ford Fiesta and take on the Lucas Oil Off Road Series in a Ford F-150 SVT Raptor.
Pro Lite driver Jimmy Stephensen has his sights set determinedly on the top of the podium, as the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series (LOORRS) shifts into high gear for Rounds 3 and 4 this weekend. After two podium finishes in as many races this season, the Ironclad Energy + Hydration / Discount Tire Nissan driver has plenty of impetus behind him coming into Surprise, Arizona.
Stephensen declared that the at the season opener in Firebird, the opposition was ferocious and there are a lot of new trucks and drivers to compete against. He added that in Pro Lite this year, Deegan, Brandt, Ampudia, Currie, Cameron Steele, and Kyle Leduc are all running and he feels delighted to be on the podium both days.
Off track racing: Jari-Matti Latvala Leads Day 1 of Rally de Portugal
At the end of Day 1 of Rally de Portugal, Jari-Matti Latvala leads a four-way lead battle. Over teammate Mikko Hirvonen, the Ford driver has an 11.5 second lead.
On Thursday afternoon, Hirvonen succeeded the super special stage in Lisbon and in spite of running first on the gravel stages, he held onto his lead through the opening two stages of Friday.
Ogier won stages three and four to take the lead from Hirvonen going into midday service. In 2010, he triumphed in Portugal. With Hirvonen third and Latvala fourth, just six seconds covering the top four. Reigning world champion Sebastien Loeb of France concluded the morning loop in second.
On SS5, Ogier and Latvala took a joint stage win, with Latvala leaping up to second place, permitted Ogier to widen his lead. Going into the final stage of the day, Latvala then won SS6 to trim Ogier’s lead to 1.8 seconds.
After the opening day of the Rally of Portugal on Friday, Sebastien Loeb was off the pace. To add a more positive road position for Day 2, he dropped back on the final stage of the day.
Latvala said that he is not scared of what is happening right now, even though it might not be the perfect position for him. He added that this time it would have been the greatest time to slow down.
Henning Solberg and Matthew Wilson, M-Sport Stobart drivers, lie fifth and sixth respectively. Albeit in Super 2000 trim, for the Motorsport Italia team, Armindo Araujo claimed an extraordinary seventh on his home event, where he is debuting the new Mini rally car. Ahead of Kimi Raikkonen, who lost time to a puncture on his Ice 1 Citroen on SS5, Federico Villagra is eighth in his Munchi’s Ford. Khalid Al Qassimi is in top ten in his Team Abu Dhabi-entered Fiesta.
The betting odds for the WRC drivers are available. The best odds are: Sebastien Loeb 3/4, Mikko Hirvonen 5/2, Sebastian Ogier 11/2, Jari-Matti Latvala 6 and Petter Solberg 14.
NASCAR: Danica Patrick Makes history
At Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Danica Patrick made history. She recorded the highest finish ever for a female driver in a NASCAR race. On the concluding lap, her accomplishment stole the limelight from Mark Martin, who slipped past Brad Keselowski. In the Sam’s Town 300, Martin earned his 49th career NASCAR Nationwide Series triumph.
Brad had cut a tire on the concluding lap and struck the wall, even though he appeared to be cruising to be triumphant. Mark moved away Brad’s car and sprinted to the checkered flag. In the closing laps, he had been trying to preserve fuel. Ever since Sara Christian concluded sixth in a race in 1949, Danica finished fourth and set a record for the highest finish by a female. It was her most excellent record in 16 career Nationwide Series starts.
Comparisons to women drivers were sidetracked by Patrick. She said that all she tries in NASCAR is to be triumphant in the race and does not think about achieving top finishing position for a female.
In the late 1980s, Shawna Robinson won three of NASCAR national touring race. Robinson competed in the NASCAR Goody’s Dash Series and the Darlington Dash Series. Four-cylinder compact cars contended in the series. Driving in a short-lived oval track series for “big rig” trucks, Robinson first gained national interest. In the Dash series, she was a rock-solid contestant and she finished third, a couple of times in series points. She landed in a competitive ride, now the Nationwide Series, by attracting enough attention for her superlative driving skills, but unfortunately the sponsorship dried out and her endeavor got short-circuited.
NASCAR – Daytona 500 – TRG Motorsports to Enter Lally
According to TRG Motorsports owner Kevin Buckler, as Richard Childress Racing has secured the owner points from the TRG Motosports No. 71 car, Paul Menard is locked into the Daytona 500.
Buckler said in a phone interview that TRG Motorsports will enter the Daytona 500 with driver Andy Lally and plans to run the full season, will get the points from the Richard Petty Motorsports No. 98 car.
If a member of the ownership group from the previous year becomes a member of the ownership group of another team for the upcoming year, NASCAR allows for offseason points transfers. From last year, teams in the top 35 in owners points are locked into the field for the first five races of this season.
A former TRG partner named Thomas Pumpelly took the owner points with him to Richard Childress Racing and “divested himself” from the organization. Of Paul Menard’s No. 27 team, he is now technically listed as the “owner”.
No. 71 had no owner points, therefore at Richard Petty Motorsports; the organization went and got Menard’s old No. 98 points. The team said that it has “partnered” with Petty. For years, Veteran motorist Andy Lally has raced during Daytona International Speedway, winning three vital events, except in Daytona 500.
For the third time, Lally won the GT Class in the Rolex twenty-four during Daytona. Lally is upon trial the starting mark in the Daytona 500 interjection to TRG’s top-35 owners points finish final season, although he has only 8 Sprint Cup starts.
At the “World Center of Speed”, Lally will make his first Sprint Cup Series start when he takes the green flag on Sunday, February 20. Having competed in the 2008 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series season-opener, the Northport, N.Y. native is no stranger to the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway. On the 3.56-mile Daytona road course, he may be better known for his three wins.
NASCAR in Favor of Simpler Method to Awards Points
According to a source, NASCAR is in favor of a simpler method that awards points per finishing position and it is considering scrapping the points system it has used since 1975. If the simpler method gets approved then 43 points would go to the race winner. One point fewer for each ensuing position down to one point for the 43rd-place finisher.
The current system gives 175 points to the winner, devised on a napkin over drinks at a Daytona bar in 1974, and decreases in increments of five points. For the last-place finisher it is three points down to 34 points, and gives bonuses for leading a lap and most laps led.
Before the season begins next month, the overhaul could be implemented.
NASCAR managing director of corporate communications, Ramsey Poston said that in a recent series of town hall meetings, the sanctioning body has bounced several new competition ideas around to drivers and car owners.
In a news conference scheduled Friday at Daytona International Speedway, NASCAR president Mike Helton and vice president of competition Robin Pemberton will address 2011 rule changes. For the upcoming Speed Weeks program, topped by the Feb. 20 Daytona 500, a large number of Sprint Cup teams will be here Thursday through Saturday testing. Any changes to the points system are expected to come Jan. 26, although NASCAR is expected to announce some competition changes Friday, as its executives will continue meeting with team owners, executives and drivers over the next eight days.
NASCAR officials Bob Latford, Joe Whitlock and Phil Holmer devised the base formula for the current points system. They are the ones who jotted numbers on cocktail napkins inside the Boot Hill Saloon on Main Street in 1974.
NASCAR: Ray Evernham Reunites With Rick Hendrick
In a business deal, Ray Evernham has reunited with former boss Rick Hendrick that will not allow Evernham to remain an analyst for ESPN’s NASCAR coverage. For the Hendrick Companies, Ray Evernham Enterprises has been retained to consult. It is a management company formed in 2005 to oversee strategic initiatives for Hendrick, which is one of the largest automobile dealers in the United States.
On the motorsports side, Evernham will not be involved. As a crew chief for Hendrick Motorsports, in the 1990s, he won three Sprint Cup championships with Jeff Gordon. Special projects will be developed by Evernham related to Hendrick’s various business entities. It will include development of high-performance vehicles for retail consumers, made up of Hendrick Performance brand.
Hendrick said that Ray would be of great help in ensuring on behalf of customers and dealers that the Hendrick Performance parts and cars will have a racing pedigree. At REE, he has assembled a terrific group of people. For the organization on projects like this, Hendrick believes that he sees a lot of opportunity for them. They will be a valuable resource for the organization.
Evernham said that over the years, he and Rick had many conversations about their passion projects and both had so much of crossover with what they enjoy working on. Whether it is with performance parts and cars, both had a sense of opportunity to do some unique things.
In 1999, Evernham left the Hendrick organization to form his own NASCAR team. For ESPN, he has most recently been a television analyst. The network confirmed that Evernham is leaving ESPN for his new role with Hendrick.
Rich Feinberg, vice president of motorsports for ESPN said that for the past three seasons, Ray has been a valuable member of the NASCAR team and he wished him all the best in his new role. He added that if Ray, ever wants to come back, ESPN would be happy to talk to him.
2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship Schedule Announced
Today, AMA Pro Racing announced its 2011 AMA Pro Flat Track Grand National Championship schedule, a series that will feature 22 races at 17 venues – an increase over last year. An addition that is sure to bring a smile to Northern California dirt track fans is the return of the Sacramento Mile.
Back on the schedule are some new venues and a few former events, in addition to offering more races. With the series starter being moved from its normal Wednesday, Thursday nights to Thursday and Friday nights, March 10-11, the season will open as always at Daytona.
A race inside the Southern Illinois Complex on April 2, the only indoor race on the schedule follows Daytona. For a TT at the Salinas Sports Complex on April 2, the series heads to Salinas, California. At Yavapai Downs in Prescott, Arizona, on May 1, the first of the miles will take place.
There is also a first-time event slated for the Hartford Motor Speedway in Hartford, Minnesota, in addition to the Southern Illinois Complex and the Salinas Sports Complex.
Patrick Grzebinski, who owns NAAS and his wife Rosanna Grzebinski said that the company is excited about expanding its involvement into dirt-track competition.
Grzebinski said that he is thrilled to be working with the AMA on the 2011 AMA Racing Dirt Track Grand Championships at the beautiful Du Quoin State Fairgrounds. With this popular and historic event, his first goal is to have a smooth transition and he and his organization intend to work hard to expand the popularity of dirt track and encourage racers from other disciplines to get involved in the sport. He added that he and his organization look forward to work with this fantastic group of people at their amazing facility.
The 2011 IndyCar Series – Honda Grand Prix Of St. Petersburg Starts Off the Season2011
On December 1, reserved 3-day and General Admission Tickets for the 2011 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg go on sale. With IZOD IndyCar, Indy Lights, Star Mazda and USF2000 and the SCCA World Challenge, the event weekend will feature the highest levels of open wheel racing, along with some of the biggest names in motorsport.
As the marquee attraction during race weekend, the IZOD IndyCar Series will start its highly anticipated 2011 season. For the first win of the season, some of racing’s most exciting drivers will return to compete. Will Power, winner of the 2010 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg; Helio Castroneves, Graham Rahal and Ryan Briscoe, past winners in St. Petersburg; Dario Franchitti, 2010 series champion; Dan Wheldon, local resident and winner of the inaugural 2005 Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and fan-favorites Tony Kanaan and Danica Patrick.
The price of the tickets ranges from $25 to $110. A general admission ticket for Sunday’s featured races is $40, while a single day general admission passes start at $25. For $45, three-day general admission passes can be purchased as well. For an adult single day pass, Paddock passes are also available starting at $30. In certain ticket categories, reduced rate tickets are offered to juniors, ages 12 and under. On March 1, 2011, Sunday, only reserved tickets will go on sale.
Vice President and General Manager of the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, Tim Ramsberger said, “Fans expect to see an exciting competition as part of the World’s Fastest Spring Break Party – that’s what keeps them coming back each year. We always aim to give the fans what they want by featuring a quality lineup of racing that includes the fastest cars and best drivers and teams in motorsport, along with all of the other boundless weekend activities and entertainment.”
On a 1.8-mile, 14-turn waterfront circuit is run in the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. The Mahaffey Theatre, adjacent downtown streets circling Pioneer Park, extending onto runways at Albert Whitted Airport and the soon-to-open Salvador Dali Museum are included in the picturesque St. Petersburg circuit.