F1- British GP Preview
The 2011 British Grand Prix at Silverstone will sport a new look for teams, drivers and fans.
Will Power Looks For His Second Straight Win in Toronto
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[/media-credit]There are times that one driver’s misfortune can turn into another’s good fortune and that was the case for Will Power. When Helio Castoneves was on trial for tax evasion charges, Roger Penske was looking for another driver to potentially replace him.
As they say, the rest is history, but since getting together with Penske, that now has him working with both Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe.
“Both very good drivers,” Power commented. “I think that we all have a good relationship and work very well together. I think that we get the most of the car that we can because of each other’s feedback.”
It has also brought lots of success, including a special win at Sonoma last year.
“I think most my memorable win would have to be Sonoma last year after breaking my back there a year earlier and coming back and having a perfect weekend winning that race,” he said.
So far this year, things have been quite solid for Power as in the nine races this season, he has three wins, four poles, six top fives and seven top 10s.
“It’s been quiet, in one way, a little bit mixed up,” he said. “We’ve had a few different winners, but its just proven to be very tight, very competitive, and it’s a lot of fun. I’m enjoying it actually, more relaxed this year.”
The last race for the IndyCars didn’t work out that good for Power, however, as he wrecked on lap 90 after having contact with another car early on pit road.
“You don’t want to have two bad races in a row,” he said when asked if there’s added pressure this week. “It’s always possible, but I think I just need to put my focus on this weekend and forget about what happened, which I’ve done.”
Power’s chances at going back-to-back look strong as he led the final practice for the IZOD IndyCars on Friday.
“I think is great for racing because it has a slippery surface, very long back straight,” he said of the Toronto course. “It’s always good to put a good show on and it’s a track that you can come back from a lap down to win so it’s a place that everyone enjoys coming to.”
Through his experience in racing, Power has learned many lessons, though the one he calls the top lesson is patience.
“I think patience is definitely something in IndyCar that you really need,” he said. “I think that is the key to winning a championship – being patient at the right time. Its always about having a good balance between patience and aggression.”
Dario Franchitti and Will Power Lead IZOD IndyCar Practices at Honda Indy Toronto
[media-credit id=4 align=”alignleft” width=”150″][/media-credit]In preparation for the Honda Indy on July 10th, the IZOD IndyCar Series hit to the streets of Toronto for a pair of practices.
In the first practice, it was Dario Franchitti leading the way with an average speed of 102.619 and was followed by Penske Racing driver Helio Castroneves with a speed of 102.51.
“Overall, it was a good day for the Penske Truck Rental team,” Castroneves said. “Right off the bat, the car had good balance and good speed here in Toronto. We didn’t put on new tires at the end of the last practice – I wanted to, but my new strategist (John Erickson) is already working on trying something different so I listened to him! I love the yellow car and the yellow suit of Penske Truck Rental. It reminds me of Dancing With the Stars. Let’s hope we have the same kind of result this weekend.”
Team Penske put Erickson in place as the strategist for Castroneves for the first time this weekend in Toronto. Erickson was working with Will Power, who will now be teamed up with Tim Cindric. Finally, Clive Howell will continue to focus on his duties as team general manager.
Ryan Hunter-Reay rounded out the top three at an average speed of 102.458mph.
“We were third-quick in the first session, so we had a good morning – and I think we were having a good afternoon,” he said. “The DHL/Circle K/Sun Drop car was feeling pretty good; we were in the top five until we decided not to take new tires like most of the top 10 did. But, we’ll just save those for tomorrow and hopefully it will pay off for us.”
Justin Wilson and Power was fourth and fifth, followed by Scott Dixon was sixth, followed by Alex Tagliani, Takumo Sato, Tony Kanaan and Mike Conway. James Hinchcliffe, who calls the Honda Indy his hometown race, was the quickest rookie in 11th.
The first practice saw no on track incidents.
In the second practice, Power led the way with an average speed of 104.330.
“The Verizon car is good, but we are still not quick enough,” he said. “We put tires on there at the end of the second practice and no one else did. We are just a bit off the pace. We still have a few things in mind to improve the car. It is great to be in Toronto, though, and relaly good to see all the fans.”
He was followed by Ganassi Racing driver Dixon with a speed of 104.145 as the top 15 cars were quicker than Franchitti’s first session quickest lap.
“It’s definitely cool to be back at a street course, especially Toronto,” he said. “It’s a fun circuit. It’s definitely different than the last four races with all left hand turns and now coming back to a bumpy circuit. The track seems to be a little bumpier, especially going into turn 1 and maybe down the back straight as well. It’s created a few new issues that we haven’t had before. The times actually seem surprisingly quicker. Even on the primary tires, we only seems to be five-tenths off the quick times of the options.”
Franchitti was third in the session, followed by Hinchcliffe and Kanaan. Wilson was sixth, followed by Oriol Servia, Ryan Briscoe, Castroneves and Danica Patrick.
The second practice saw two full course yellows. The first was eight minutes into the session when Tagliani spun mid corner in turn 8, making contact with the outside retaining wall. He was then struck by Graham Rahal, briefly lifting the car off the ground. Due to the wreck, Tagliani suffered rear wing damage while Rahal had front wing damage. The second incident was when Sebastian Bourdais stopped on course in turn 8. After being re-fired by the Holmatro Safety Team, he was able to make it back to pit lane. There was also local caution, which saw Ana Beatriz spin in turn 2.
Qualifying will take place Saturday afternoon at 12:50pm EST, with the race taking place on Sunday July 10th at 2pm ET.
NCAT: Jason Bowles Wins The Pole For The Streets of Toronto 100
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- Jason Bowles ready to go out and practice.
Jason Bowles, the one lone non-Canadian driver in the 33 car field, won the Keystone Light Pole Award with a lap of 1 minute, 16.260 seconds to break Andrew Ranger’s track record.
“It was a good lap,” he said. “When we first went out, there was a little bit of speedy dry on the track, so it was a little bit tricky to get through that section on the second lap. But the car’s pretty good. It’s good to have Fuel Doctor on board this week and get the pole for them, our first one of the year. My guys have brought me a great car. I think it’s going to be a great race. Andrew and Scott will be tough tomorrow. We’re going to go out and I think we’re ready.”
The pole marks the first NASCAR Canadian Tire Series pole for the driver from Ontario, California. Bowles has been a successful road course racer as he has nine K&N Pro Series West wins on road courses.
Ranger, who set the record at 1:16.659 last year, qualified second for this weekend’s race with a fast lap of 1:16.526.
“Well, I think its been alright,” he said. “I think we have a really good car. Jason is a little bit quicker than us, but its going to be a good race tomorrow. It’s a long race, a lot of things can happen here in the streets in Toronto. But above that, I think we’ve got a really good car for tomorrow.”
The pair, Bowles and Ranger, finished 1-2 in last year’s race with Ranger coming out the winner.
Points Leader Scott Steckly, meanwhile, qualified third with a lap of 1:17.002.
“It was just another qualifying run,” he said afterwards. “Toronto isn’t one of our best tracks, that’s for sure. We put a lot of extra resources in it trying to get better here and car’s been good here so far so we’re just happy to be starting upfront.”
Kerry Micks and Don Thomson Jr. rounded out the top five. Defending series champion D.J. Kennington qualified sixth, followed by Robin Buck, Peter Klutt, J.R. Fitzpatrick and Jeff Lapcevich. Louis-Phillippe Dumoulin was the highest rookie in 11th.
After crashing during practice, John Farano, Noel Dowler and Ray Courtemanche Jr. did not attempt to qualify as they were still repairing their cars. Hugo Vannini and Kennington were also involved in wrecks, however both made a qualifying attempts with Kennington ending up 6th and Vannini in 30th. Kennington’s team continued repairs after qualifying, which could see Kennington starting at the rear as a result of unapproved changes.
Many teams experienced mechanical difficulties during practice as Micks stalled during practice, Mark Dilley made an engine change although he qualified 14th and Jason White changed a drive train before qualifying 18th. None of the above will have to drop the rear as their changes were made before qualifying and therefore don’t fall under the Canadian Tire Series Impound procedure.
The race is set for 2pm EST on Saturday, with it being shown on TSN on July 17th.
Stefan Wilson Leads Firestone Indy Lights Practice For Toronto 100
At the end of the only practice for the Firestone Indy Lights, it was Andretti Autosport driver Stefan Wilson at the top with a speed of 96.254 mph.
“We just went out there to see how the car was reacting, and the car was good straight out of the box,” Wilson said. “The track can change from year to year, so you never know how it’s going to be for the first practice. We had a few things nailed down that we wanted to try; some worked, some didn’t. I think we found some things that will help us move forward in a good direction for the rest of the weekend here in Toronto.”
Rookies Estban Guerrieri (95.863) and Josef Newgarden (95.428) were second and third, respectively.
“For myself, it’s very important to find the right way in the track because there are plenty of bumps, but yes it was fun,” Guerrieri commented.
Daniel Herrington and Peter Dempsey rounded out the top five. Dempsey’s deal with Andretti Autosport just came together in the middle of the week has a lot of people watching him to see how he’ll do.
“My first practice went as well as we had expected,” he said. “It’s great Stefan was quickest out there because it gives us some good stuff to work off of. I felt pretty comfortable with the car. Adapting to a new car, especially on a street course that’s a little bumpy, is always a bit difficult. Overall we were pretty happy with practice. We aimed for a top five and that’s where we finished.”
David Ostella was sixth, followed by Gustao Yacaman, Victor Carbone, Anders Krohn and Bruno Andrade. The practice saw no issues for any of the drivers.
Indy Lights qualifying will take place on Saturday at 11:45am EST with the race on Sunday at 12:15pm.
NOTES FROM THE NASCAR NATION: WILL WE SEE THE BEGINNING Of A NEW RACING TRADITION IN KENTUCKY?
Since 1875 the most prestigious racing event located in the state of Kentucky has been the annual Kentucky Derby. This spectacular race for thorough bred horses is a huge part of the state’s rich history.
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[/media-credit]Will we see the beginning of a new racing tradition in the state of Kentucky this Saturday night? It’s very possible that a new form of horsepower will take a prominent position in Kentucky’s top annual events. The stars and cars of NASCAR’s Sprint Cup Series will finally make their racing debut at the Kentucky Speedway. This is an event that has been a long time coming. A large contingency, from speedway executives to fans, wanted this event to become reality. But there were numerous obstacles along the way including difficulties with scheduling realignment and even some court house drama.
After a lengthy period of point-counter point, it’s finally time for the Sprint Cup Series to shine under the lights of the Kentucky Speedway. Because this is an inaugural event, the winner of the Quaker State 400 is going to collect bragging rights connected with leading some key Sprint Cup categories. That includes most Cup wins at this speedway, most laps led and someone will spend the next year holding the track’s qualifying record.
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THE VEGAS BREAKDOWN
So, who’s going to set new NASCAR records for the first time ever following the Quaker State 400? There are no previous stats from this speedway to refer to, but one good source for stats can be found among the driver numbers for intermediate race tracks. The Kentucky Speedway’s 1.5 mile oval is very similar to other race tracks of the same size on the NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule.
The clues for solving this riddle can also be found via the hard work of the professionals of the Las Vegas based World Sports Exchange, (WSE).
Topping the WSE rankings for Kentucky is Carl Edwards and his Roush Fenway Racing Ford at 7 to 1 odds. Edwards suffered an early race setback last weekend in Daytona and found himself falling from first to second in the standings. However, the deficit is only five points and he’ll be looking to make that up Saturday night. Edwards is strong on intermediate tracks, again around 1.5 miles in length, and has 17 wins on them along with a healthy average finish ratio, (AFR), of 12.0. The fact that he’s been a major player in Sprint Cup racing all season long is another reason why he’s always going to be a safe bet consideration.
In the 8 to 1 category is the duo of Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch. When it comes to racing on intermediate tracks, it’s very hard to top the team of Johnson and crew chief Chad Knaus. This championship tag team has 37 wins on these tracks along with an awesome AFR of 9.8. The car looked strong during Thursday’s first practice session. Johnson set a chart topping speed of 175.839 MPH. Johnson is currently sixth in the championship standings, 22 points out of first. He and Knaus will be working on that between now and the time the official Chase line up is announced on September 10th. The drive for championship number six is on.
By the time you read this you’ve probably already heard that Kyle Busch won Thursday night’s NASCAR Camping World Truck Series event at the Kentucky Speedway. He will be racing in all three of the NASCAR events this weekend and he will be looking to perform a trifecta sweep similar to what he accomplished at Bristol last August. Prior to the win in the truck series, he scorched the competition during the second Sprint Cup practice session with a lap of 178.849 MPH. This driver, and his Joe Gibbs Racing team is always a solid consideration to win a race.
The WSE has Kurt Busch ranked at 9 to 1 odds to win the Kentucky race this Saturday. That’s very possible. This is the most improved team in NASCAR Sprint Cup Racing. At fourth in the standings, only 16 points from the top, their Chase presence is looking stronger than ever.
At 10 to 1 odds you will find the duo of Denny Hamlin and Matt Kenseth. Hamlin’s championship hopes are somewhat at a crossroads right now and it’s time to solidify that position. He’s currently 11th in the standings only three points away from that coveted top ten. On a more positive note, he does have 11 wins and a 13.4 AFR on intermediate tracks. His one win this year will help with his wild card status, but the team known they can’t rely on that. It’s go time for Hamlin and company.
Matt Kenseth has 14 career wins, and a 13.5 AFR, on these so called “cookie cutter tracks.” This year he’s having a rock solid season with two wins and his fifth in the championship standings. He has a habit of blending into the pack during the first two thirds of a race without barely a mention of his name during a live broadcast. Then all of a sudden, in the latter stages of the race, there’s Kenseth taking on the role of a major player in the finish. He could very easily do that again Saturday night in Kentucky.
At 11 to 1 odds you will find drivers Jeff Gordon and Kevin Harvick. As an elder statesman in the Sprint Cup Series, as well as a four time champion, Gordon has 40 wins on intermediate tracks and a healthy 12.1 AFR. He also holds a unique NASCAR status in winning the series’ debut races. He won the inaugural events at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1994, the inaugural race at the California based Auto Club Speedway in 1997 and he won the first ever Cup race at the Kansas Speedway in 2001. He’ll be looking to add the Kentucky Speedway to that list Saturday night.
Meanwhile Kevin Harvick is a nine time winner on intermediate tracks. However, the strength here lies in the fact that this Richard Childress Racing Team is looking more and more like Sprint Cup champions. His three wins, and six top five finishes, now has him on top of the championship standings.
Owner-driver Tony Stewart is ranked at 12 to 1 odds by the WSE this week. Traditionally, it’s always been believed that Stewart’s performance levels gets hot during the summer months. Summer is here and the temperature is plenty hot. It’s time for this team to get motivated, and do it quickly, if they’re going to making this year’s Chase line up. He’s still looking for his first win of the year and he’s currently 12th in the championship standings but is only four points from the top ten. On the plus side, Stewart is very solid at intermediate tracks with 20 wins and a 12.4 AFR.
Greg Biffle is riding in the same boat as Stewart. He’s 13th in the standings, looking for the first win of the season and has slid to 25 points away from the top ten. It’s go time for this Roush Fenway team. His career stats shows 15 intermediate track wins and a 15.4 AFR. Biffle is ranked at 13 to 1 this weekend.
It’s Junior time. NASCAR’s most popular driver is ranked 15 to 1 to win Kentucky. The focal point for Dale Earnhardt Jr this weekend will be the ability to halt the slide from the past two races. Granted he was caught up in racing situations that were both unavoidable and not of his making, but none the less the collateral damage was a slide from third to seventh in the standings. The one major strength is his crew chief, Steve Letarte, who is very good at keeping his driver calm and motivated during a race.
In the middle tier of this week’s WSE listing you will find drivers Clint Bowyer and Kasey Kahne ranked at 25 to 1 followed by Joey Logano at 30 to 1. Let’s pause and reflect on the Logano rating. Granted, he’s been having a tough season and the team hasn’t lived up to the pre season potential that everyone expected. First off, Logano has some strong momentum going for him following last weekend at Daytona where he won the Nationwide Series race and finished third in the Cup race. Also prevalent here is Logano’s Nationwide Series record at the Kentucky Speedway. He’s won the last three races there and won all three of them from the pole position. At 30 to 1 odds, Logano might make an interesting wager for those of you who like to roll the dice on long shot bets.
At 35 to 1 odds you will find the trio of Ryan Newman, Juan Pablo Montoya and Mark Martin. The 40 to 1 category features Jeff Burton, Martin Truex Jr, David Reutimann, and Brian Vickers. Closing out the WSE rankings this week are last week’s Daytona winner David Ragan, 45 to 1, and Jamie McMurray at 50 to 1. If you didn’t see the name of your favorite driver listed then he’s automatically placed at 8 to 1 by the WSE.
Now for this week’s disclaimer. NASCAR wants us to remind you that these odds numbers are for information and entertainment purposes. They neither encourage nor condone the placing of wagers on their races. But, if you’re going to do it anyway, then you will need the latest information from the professionals at the World Sports Exchange. I’m thinking some of you are already pondering those Joey Logano stats aren’t you?
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THE RACE BREAKDOWN
The Quaker State 400 will be 267 laps/400 miles around the Kentucky Speedway’s 1.5 mile oval.
The race has 48 entries vying for the 43 starting berths. 18 of those entries are on the go or go home list. These teams are not guaranteed an automatic starting berth because they are currently outside of NASCAR’s top 35 in owner’s points. These teams will have to rely on qualifying speeds to make the race.
That could be a problem due to weather. The Friday daytime forecast for Sparta-Kentucky calls for cloudy skies and a 40% chance of thunderstorms. Saturday race night has an improved forecast calling for clearer skies and 68 degrees.
The Kentucky Speedway is a 1.5 mile oval with 14 degrees banking in all four turns, 10 degrees banking in the tri oval but only four degrees in the straightaways.
The speedway does have a few bumps in its asphalt surface especially in turns three and four. This will be a challenge for crew chiefs to develop a good shock package prior to the race to help their car’s handling capabilities.
To accommodate the inaugural NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, the Kentucky Speedway added additional grand stand seating and can now accommodate 117,000 fans. On Thursday speedway officials declared Saturday night’s race a sell out.
The Quaker State 400 will be broadcast live by the TNT Network beginning at 630 pm eastern time. The race re air will be Wednesday, July 13th, at 12 pm eastern on SPEED.
