Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/andrewbenson/2012/09/hamilton_saga_nearing_endgame.html
Thursday
Warped Wednesday: Let?s eliminate short tracks, they?re unbecoming of drivers
Welcome to Warped Wednesday. On this, we'll put out the rush to judgment mat, go a little too far and have a little fun. Will it be funny? Sometimes. Will it be crazy and largely unbelievable? Probably. Will not everyone get it? Definitely.
Can you believe the immaturity that we saw over the weekend at Richmond International Raceway in both the Nationwide and Sprint Cup Series? The actions that took place after both races were inexcusable and not fitting of professional drivers.
Let's start with Nelson Piquet Jr. and Brian Scott. Who spins another driver near the entrance to pit road and then kicks him in the groin? Though don't think for a second that excuses Scott, who angrily and unconscionably aggressively walked towards Piquet after the race to confront him about the incident.
At least Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch showed some brains and removed their helmets like dignified adults before they engaged in their childish shouting match over which baby stole the other baby's "A" block to spell out "Poopyhead" on the carpet. Men, if you have a problem with each other, you need to go sit down in the hauler over a relaxing beverage and talk it out with proper grammar and without foul language. You're getting paid like Downton Abbey stars, so you should probably start talking like them.
Because these men (and women) are professionals, they should be upheld to professional standards of conduct. What would happen if you kicked a co-worker in the private parts after a report didn't go over well at a meeting? I will let you ponder on that for a brief moment before you answer.
What's the catalyst in all of this? Short track racing. We've seen it time and time again and Bristol and it's spread now to Richmond. Who won Friday night's Nationwide Series race? Wait, you don't know? My point exactly. These callow displays of petulance are distracting from the real story of racing, and that should be the racing itself.
It's not a popular opinion, but if you want the focus to turn back to the racing and the product on the track, there's no better way to do it than to eliminate short-track racing altogether. That way, these drivers won't be at risk of embarrassing their sponsors with temper tantrums six times a year because of the inevitable contact that comes at a short-track.
If we replace Bristol, Richmond and Martinsville with intermediate tracks, the drivers will have room to spread out and this unsophistication will be minimized. Sure, it may happen from time to time at an intermediate track -- what we saw after the race at California was an outlier, and it's certain to not happen again anytime soon -- but these competitors will be put in the best position to please their sponsors like a vanilla air freshener.
It may not be what the puerile spectators who watch NASCAR want, but it's best for the image of the sport and the multi-million dollar sponsors who support it. Without them, there may be no NASCAR.
The James Allison mystery
The destination of former Lotus F1 Team Technical Director James Allison remains unknown, and it seems that the original stories suggesting that he had signed a deal with a rival team may have been wide of the mark, which helps to explain why everyone was previously denying having signed a deal. If no deal was […]
Source: https://joesaward.wordpress.com/2013/05/23/the-james-allison-mystery/
Tony Bettenhausen Mike Beuttler Birabongse Bhanubandh Lucien Bianchi
Raikkonen: I Have Two Options
Lotus driver Kimi Raikkonen has revealed that he has two options ahead of the 2014 season. The Finn has been heavily linked with a switch to Red Bull, with the Constructors? Champions believed to be looking for a replacement for Mark Webber. Meanwhile Lotus are also adamant that he will be staying put, although they [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Formula1Fancast/~3/Pr3l1JTpCV0/raikkonen-i-have-two-options
Wednesday
Twizy Renault Sport F1 Concept Car
Twizy Renault Sport F1 concept car, when I reach Electrical anabolic This was anticipated by Renault surprise a few days ago … A vitamin-Twizy, which has been integrated regenerative braking system more aggressive style used in Formula 1. An apparatus has also changed its aesthetic by incorporating some aerodynamic appendages composed exagerad�simos skirts, front spoiler, [...]
Source: http://www.autocarblog.co.uk/465-twizy-renault-sport-f1-concept-car.html
Juan Manuel Bordeu Slim Borgudd Luki Botha JeanChristophe Boullion
The Chrome Horn Episode 12: Darlington
New Chrome Horn, new intro! Join yours truly and Geoffrey Miller as we were slated to talk Darlington but ended up talking a lot about the All-Star Race.
Got any questions for us to use in the mailbag or the podcast? Hit us at HappyHourMailbag@Yahoo.com.
Click here to download the podcast or here to listen to in your browser. And we're now on iTunes! Find us in the Podcast section right here and subscribe. Listen!
Tuesday
2013 Le Mans Moto2 QP Result: Tricky Conditions Provide Mixed Results
Summary of qualifying and results for Moto2:
Andrea de Cesaris Francois Cevert Eugene Chaboud Jay Chamberlain
Memoirs of a medical man
As you may know the FIA Formula 1 medical rescue coordinator is now Dr Ian Roberts. He took over the role this year from Dr Gary Hartstein, an associate professor of anesthesia and emergency medicine at the University of Li�ge Hospital in Belgium, who was previously the FIA Medical Delegate for the Formula One World […]
Source: http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2013/05/17/memoirs-of-a-medical-man/
Brawn: Lowe Will Help Us Improve
Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn believes that Paddy Lowe can help the German squad build ahead of the 2014 engine regulation changes. Lowe will join Mercedes in June, after being allowed to terminate his McLaren contract early. Brawn is confident that recruiting Lowe will help them ahead of the switch to V6 engines: “I am [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Formula1Fancast/~3/48EvtZz7o1M/brawn-lowe-will-help-us-improve
Colin Chapman Dave Charlton Pedro Matos Chaves Bill Cheesbourg
Bungling the tyre row will give F1 a tainted title fight | Comment
F1's response to the Spanish Grand Prix has been knee-jerk and risks tainting the battle for championships.
Source: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2013/05/18/f1-bungled-call-tyres/
They cite security is not up to Mercedes Benz
With just three stars, Mercedes goes home thinking about how to solve the problems of the quote after passing crash tests Euro NCAP. And it is even a commercial vehicle derived from Renault Kangoo leads the star on the front and, it must be said, I’ll come. The poor performance of the quote is no [...]
Source: http://www.autocarblog.co.uk/456-they-cite-security-is-not-up-to-mercedes-benz.html
Monday
Felipe Massa: ?Clearly we can still improve??
Felipe Massa conducted a spectacular demo with a Ferrari F60 on the streets of Warsaw today, running 20 laps of a makeshift track. The Brazilian also took the time to sum up Ferrari?s season so far, stressing that qualifying still … Continue reading 
Source: http://adamcooperf1.com/2013/05/18/felipe-massa-clearly-we-can-still-improve/
What Did We Learn At Daytona? Nothing.
If you read or hear any media member say this week that Jimmie Johnson is on his way to a sixth title, or that Danica Patrick is a contender, or that the Gen 6 car needs to be tweaked, know one thing: they don’t have a clue. Did Jimmie win the 500? Yes. Did Danica [...] 
TheNASCARInsiders.com
Follow the Insiders on Twitter or be a fan on Facebook!
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheNascarInsiders/~3/Tq3m8hayrAA/
Rubens Barrichello Michael Bartels Edgar Barth Giorgio Bassi
Raikkonen Not Happy With P2
Kimi Raikkonen has revealed that he won?t be happy until he is top of the Drivers? Championship. The Finn competed for the title last season, despite winning just one race, and has started 2013 in a similar fashion, by consistently finishing near the top of the order but struggling for race wins. Although he is [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Formula1Fancast/~3/LpRvNrRJ0Nc/raikkonen-not-happy-with-p2
Memoirs of a medical man
As you may know the FIA Formula 1 medical rescue coordinator is now Dr Ian Roberts. He took over the role this year from Dr Gary Hartstein, an associate professor of anesthesia and emergency medicine at the University of Li�ge Hospital in Belgium, who was previously the FIA Medical Delegate for the Formula One World […]
Source: http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2013/05/17/memoirs-of-a-medical-man/
Slim Borgudd Luki Botha JeanChristophe Boullion Sebastien Bourdais
A Car of Tomorrow Renaissance
I read a post the other day over at Autoextremist�(a fantastic automotive blog)�about the optimism surrounding the introduction of the Gen 6 car even in the face of continuing struggles for NASCAR, and it got me thinking about the recent evolution of our race cars. In the post, Mr. De Lorenzo talks about NASCAR’s unwillingness [...] 
TheNASCARInsiders.com
Follow the Insiders on Twitter or be a fan on Facebook!
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheNascarInsiders/~3/kBBTXioYbPE/
Tony Bettenhausen Mike Beuttler Birabongse Bhanubandh Lucien Bianchi
Sunday
NASCAR upholds Penske penalties; team plans new appeal
NASCAR has upheld its ruling dealing severe penalties to the Penske teams of Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano. The Penske teams have indicated they will appeal the decision of the three-person panel to NASCAR's Chief Appellate Officer.
The Penske teams' penalties stemmed from violations of NASCAR's Sections 12-1, 12-4J and 20-12. Both teams' crew chiefs, car chiefs, engineers and competition directors were suspended for six races, including the All-Star Race in Charlotte. The crew chiefs were fined $100,000 apiece. And both teams lost 25 championship points.
The National Stock Car Racing Appeals Panel had the ability to uphold, reduce or increase the penalties. The panel heard the appeal beginning at 9 a.m. ET Wednesday, and rendered its verdict at 3 p.m. The violations stemmed from concerns about the rear-end housings of both the 2 and 22 cars at Texas in mid-April.
The appeal means that the suspended crew members could be permitted to continue with track activities, provided the appellate officer, John Middlebrook, defers the suspensions.
?We need to prepare for the worst and hope for the best,? Logano said in recent weeks. ?So we will prepare for the worst. We?ll obviously bring some extra people to try to have some overlap within our team to prepare for if the appeal doesn?t go the way we expect it to. So we need to always do that. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best, and we?ll get through this. Penske Racing has a lot of depth in the company. They?re very strong, and we will get through this.?
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Happy Hour: Talking all things Talladega
Throughout the week you can send us your best questions, jokes, rants and just plain miscellaneous thoughts to happyhourmailbag@yahoo.com or @NickBromberg. We'll post them here, have a good time and everyone's happy. Right? Oh who are we kidding, this is NASCAR. No one is ever happy.
Another really busy week in NASCAR. How do you think the sanctioning body fared in the Penske and Joe Gibbs Racing appeals this week? NASCAR was definitely not happy with the decision that the appeals panel made in the JGR case, but I that decision certainly seems to side with public opinion. There weren't too many people saying that the penalty was fair.
Oh, and there was that whole race at Talladega too. That's what you all wrote about this week. This might be the most, uh, passionate mailbag of the year. But it's Talladega, would you expect anything less?
I thought Talladega was excellent this weekend (except for the weather delay) and I'm tired of these drivers whining about the cars taking flight. Aren?t most of these guys engineers, physics 101 aerodynamic vehicles going fast can take flight. If you have a problem with that get another job, it?s that simple. The only way to ensure the cars don?t take flight is to slow down?NASCAR did that with the restrictor plates, anything else and its just normal highway traffic driving. The cookie-cutters suck because there is always 2 or three cars that drive away and the rest of the pack is racing for points. Talladega and Daytona are the only tracks where the winner truly isn?t decided until the checkers?its great! Plus, weren?t most of these drivers talking about how the new car was so much better that the COT a couple of weeks ago.
-Derrick
Well, Ryan Newman does have his engineering degree from Purdue, but you have to remember, he just had a car land on him at over 150 miles an hour. I don't care who you are, that's a tad traumatic, don't you think?
Where Busch's car was hit (the right rear quarterpanel) was the perfect spot for it to go airborne. Had he been hit further up the door, his car may not roll over. Does that mean it should be chalked up as "one of them racin' deals" and we move on? Of course not. But at the same time, like Derrick said, I'm not sure NASCAR will ever be able to glue these cars to the ground at all times at these speeds.
_____________________
Hey Jay. I'm 51 years old and never tried to do somting (sic) like this, don't do the new twitters, facebooks, etc. But if you could sometime, tell that candyass Ryan Newman the next time he is a little uncomfortable going back on the the track, just let me know and I'll
drive his old nag. Or if he's that scared, just put his (stuff) on the truck and leave. But if you can forward me his contact info, I'll gladly tell him.
-Wade
Fans ask drivers to be human and have personalities, and then when we get raw, human emotion out of them, like what we saw with Newman after the crash on Sunday, people react like this. I don't get it.
_____________________
What to say about Talladega? I don't enjoy watching a race, seeing drivers work all day to put themselves in position to win, and then have some joker wipeout half the field with an ill timed move. I think Newman was spot on. This is getting old. Maybe we should remove Talladega from the schedule
-Dean
Hasn't racing, at no matter the track, always been about being in the right circumstance? Sure, crashes at Bristol and Martinsville don't tear up as many cars as they traditionally do at Daytona and Talladega, but there's always an innocent bystander or two that gets caught in someone else's mess.
But yeah, I do get see the point that taking out the field in by half in a crash is tiresome. And it certainly had to be for fans of Kasey Kahne, Kevin Harvick and Tony Stewart, who all saw themselves taken out in Talladega's first crash just like at Daytona.
This letter below is my favorite one. I just don't know where to begin, though it's been edited slightly for a low blow. Did it come from the comments?
_____________________
Most of us want to see Ryan and Kurt put those two little boys, Stenhouse and Yeley, in the sandboxes in every race from here on out. If I was those two drivers I would wreck Stenhouse and Yeley at every opportunity I had on a track. No doubt those little boys will get their due in the future.
NASCAR had any professional judgment they would fine and park Stenhouse and Yeley...maybe million bucks apiece and a dozen races. That was just damn plan stupidity on a super speedway track. Had to know that was not going to go. If you make that move little boy Stenhouse, you have to go...but his new girl friend likes little boys now...maybe somebody should nail her car like what Yeley and Stenhouse did to Kurt and Ryan. Yeley and Stenhouse could have killed or permanently injured some drives with those idiotic moves.
-James
James (and anyone who shares the same opinion that James does, although it's likely a tiny number of you), what the hell are you talking about? What did Ricky Stenhouse do wrong when he took the outside lane down the backstretch? What did JJ Yeley do wrong when they made contact? The laps were winding down and drivers knew that they had to get to the front as soon as they could.
Stenhouse saw a lane and he took it. It just so happened that it closed up on him and then a bunch of other drivers got involved. Had it been a veteran that made that move, would you feel the same way? And shouldn't you be saying the same thing about Kyle Busch?
By the way, see that green car in the picture above? Danica Patrick was involved in that crash.
_____________________
I haven't seen anything on NASCAR about using practice as qualifying at Talladega. Earlier this year at Vegas qualifying was rained out, and they used points from last year. What is happening ? Are there any cut and dry rules with NASCAR?, or, are they just making it up as they go along? Thank you, and I look forward to your comment.
- William
Through the first three races of the season, NASCAR uses the previous season's owner points to set the field and the garage stalls. Now, it's the current season's owner points.
Why is that important? At Las Vegas, there were no track activities on Friday. No official practices or qualifying or anything. That meant that NASCAR had no practice speeds to go on to set the field, so owner's points were used and Keselowski was on the pole. At Talladega, NASCAR was able to run practice, so the speeds from the first practice were used.
In short, if there's a practice, the first session's speeds will be used in the event of rain washing out qualifying. If there's not a practice, the owner's points are used.
Video: Hot Wheels Releases a 22-Minute Video to Find the World's Best Driver
Hot Wheels, the company that specializes on building miniature toy cars, has been regarded as a company that loves to think outside the box.
Whether its commissioning world-record stunts, or building tracks with double loops, the toy manufacturer has proven time and again that it can think of just about anything to promote and market itself to its demographic of choice.
This time, it’s done it again, except in a totally different way.
It made a movie - a 22-minute short film, to be exact - to find out the World’s Best Driver. In what can be best described as a novel approach in its goal, Hot Wheels commissioned different teams - aptly named Red Outrageous, Yellow Powerful, Blue High Tech and Green Superfast - to compete in a series of challenges at the Hot Wheels test facility in an undisclosed location.
We’re not going to keep you waiting any longer because the movie definitely warrants your time. Be advised, though, the kind of racing you see in it isn’t exactly the kind you’d want to do on any normal race track.
Just sayin’.
Click past the jump to watch more of Hot Wheels’ stunts over the years
Video: Hot Wheels Releases a 22-Minute Video to Find the World's Best Driver originally appeared on topspeed.com on Saturday, 18 May 2013 18:00 EST.
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