Source: http://www.16thandgeorgetown.com/2012/11/miles-named-hulman-and-company-ceo.html
Thursday
Wednesday
2013 Preseason Preview: No. 11 Greg Biffle
As we count down to the 2013 Daytona 500, we're also counting down how we think the Chase will play out this season as predicted by Nick Bromberg, Jay Busbee, Jay Hart and Geoffrey Miller. So sit back, relax, and watch the 2013 Chase unfold before your very eyes. Though you should be warned, we picked Carl Edwards to win last year.
2012 Finish: 5th. Two wins (Texas and Michigan)
2013 Predictions:
Bromberg: 10th
Busbee: 9th
Hart: 12th
Miller: 7th
Crew Chief: Matt Puccia
When we last saw Biffle: He was proclaiming his Chase contention after winning at Michigan in August. It wasn't an outlandish claim; Biffle had just recorded his second victory of the year and had inherited the points lead, which he kept until the points reset for the Chase. But after starting the Chase in fifth, finishes of 13th, 18th and 16th in the first three races knocked him back to 11th and out of the title hunt.
Big Question for 2013: The first time that Biffle was a Sprint Cup Series points leader was in 2005, when he held the lead for a race after Sonoma. That year, he finished second. Last year was the second time, and he led twice for a total of 14 races. In the two years after 2005, Biffle finished 13th and 14th. By no means does that mean that Biffle will immediately fall out of the Chase this year, but a big part of his 2012 success hinged upon his ability to stay on the lead lap and avoid a single DNF. Some natural regression is to be expected, but how much will it be?
Track most likely to win at: An intermediate track. 11 of Biffle's 18 career wins have come at tracks 1.5 or 2 miles in length, and if we extend the category to Darlington, it jumps to 13. If you're playing fantasy NASCAR this year, you know where to utilize The Biff.
Track most likely to require a miracle to win at: Martinsville. In 20 starts, Biffle has three top 10s: a seventh and two tenth place finishes.
How Biffle could win the Chase: Simply put, it's by taking the first 26 races of last year and extending the run of good form another 10 races. The first time Biffle had finished outside the top 10 for three consecutive races was in the first three Chase races. Had he avoided that, he would have been in the championship conversation at the end of the year.
How Biffle couldn't: The luck of 2011 strikes again and that regression that we talked about earlier is large. That year, Biffle was fast, but had just three top fives and 10 top 10s to show for it thanks to, among other things, a fuel can that didn't engage fully at Las Vegas and pit road miscues and a kiss of the wall at Charlotte.
A Haiku:
The Biff. He's real fast.
Is he fast enough to win?
Or will he be slow?
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Bentley Continental Flying Spur
Following the updates offered for the Continental GT and the Continental GTC models, Bentley is also offering an update for its Flying Spur model. Just like with the other models, the Flying Spur will receive both exterior and interior changes, while the engine only received some minor upgrades.
Just like with the other two Continental models, the Flying Spur will receive a tricked out exterior with a more aggressive front fascia, a vented hood, and new headlights. For the rear, the luxury full-size vehicle will get a new trunk-mounted spoiler, slimmer taillights, and a revised exhaust system. The interior will feature even more luxury, thanks to the addition of higher-quality materials and improved technologies.
The new Flying Spur will be about 110 pounds lighter than the previous model, and, according to Bentley it offers no less than 600 new parts.
Updated 02/20/2013: This review has been updated with the official details, images and specs. Hit the jump to read more about the new Bentley Continental Flying Spur.
Bentley Continental Flying Spur originally appeared on topspeed.com on Wednesday, 20 February 2013 11:00 EST.
Source: http://www.topspeed.com/cars/bentley/2014-bentley-continental-flying-spur-ar122218.html
Getting a Sprint Cup championship was hard; holding onto it could be even harder
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The 2012 Sprint Cup championship was decided 89 days ago about 290 miles south of here, but for Jimmie Johnson, the battle to get into Brad Keselowski's head rolls on. Getting to the top is hard enough, Johnson suggested; staying there could be even harder.
"Once you are a champion, at any point following that when you don?t run like you should for a period of time, the questions will come," he said. "That is when any driver and team is tested. It just depends on when that moment in time is. Brad and (crew chief) Paul (Wolfe) are both very strong together. I don?t see it affecting them and preventing them from succeeding, but they will be reminded often that you have to go out there and earn each and every week. It?s not a layup."
[Also: Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch crash just minutes into Sprint Unlimited practice]
Easy enough. Some typical mind-games talk. But then Johnson turned up the heat: "Watching him on Sports Center following the race trying to drink a beer was not sure the best thing for our sport and how he handled that," he laughed. "But honestly, he and Paul (Wolfe, crew chief) did an amazing job ... What I was laughing about is Brad, as mature as he wants to portray himself as, he had some growing to do. Now he is in the spotlight as the champion, and I think we all sit back and chuckle at times at some of the things he says and does. He is a great guy. He has the best of intentions for our sport; for his sponsor; for his team. He just needs to mature a little. I'm sure people can look back on my '06 year and have plenty of things to point fingers at."
Keselowski laughed at the idea that he might be a little less than serious. ?There's nothing wrong with a little style, is there? Everyone likes a little style," he said. "I feel like I have a little style. I'm wearing white shoes. Who else wears white shoes? Dario [Franchitti], right??
White shoes or not, Keselowski knows exactly the kind of NASCAR symbol he wants to be. "I am going to be my own person and look out for what is best for the sport," he said. "I have always felt that way, whether I was a champion or not. I feel like every driver has a responsibility to make the sport better and all it can be. I might have a louder voice now, but I took it seriously before I was a champion."
-Follow Jay Busbee on Twitter at @jaybusbee.-
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Tuesday
Fernando Alonso: ?The car is on another planet??
Fernando Alonso professed himself happy with the Ferrari F138 after trying it for the first time in Barcelona today, noting that it was a much better starting point than last year. Alonso, who focussed on data gathering and tyre work … Continue reading 
Source: http://adamcooperf1.com/2013/02/19/fernando-alonso-the-car-is-on-another-planet/
Rolls-Royce Wants New Engines and Even a SUV for 2017
Maybe and especially thanks to the huge increase in sales lately getting Rolls-Royce BMW allows pressure to let them develop a little more freely. Because of this we learned that the leaders of the English company have in mind not only offer high luxury SUV, but extend the range of their vehicle engines not always [...]
Source: http://www.autocarblog.co.uk/423-rolls-royce-wants-new-engines-and-even-a-suv-for-2017.html
Williams shows the FW35 in Barcelona
Williams became the last team to unveil its 2013 car when it rolled the FW35 out onto the Barcelona pit lane this morning. The team opted to spend two extra weeks on R&D and devote the first Jerez test to … Continue reading 
Source: http://adamcooperf1.com/2013/02/19/williams-shows-the-fw35-in-barcelona/
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SP-Engineering gets a Nissan Juke R 1.000 horses to the wheels
By now we all know the peculiarities of the Nissan Juke R , a car that Nissan will market finally a disproportionate price in a limited edition only available for a few millionaires. It was hoped that, with a machine like this on the market, some other coach would be challenged to go a little [...]
Source: http://www.autocarblog.co.uk/397-sp-engineering-gets-a-nissan-juke-r-1-000-horses-to-the-wheels.html
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Monday
Cuba
Right, I’m back in action again and suitably relaxed after a pleasant sojourn in Cuba. Before I get back to F1, I’d like to write a little about that. It is not such a famous place for motor sport (which was one reason why it was chosen for the visit), but one can imagine that [...]
Kevin Harvick says fatherhood hasn?t dulled his edge on the track
On Thursday at Media Day, Kevin Harvick, a father since July, shared some of his perspective on how fatherhood has ? and, for racing purposes, hasn't ? changed him.
"I think having my son has really helped keep a new balance on life that you didn't really understand until you had a child," he said. "For me, I become so emotional and so attached to what happens on the racetrack, if it's going good, if it's going bad. Now you have this way of coming home and letting all those things go for two or three days, then you come back to the track and you hadn't thought about it all week and you're really focused at being at the racetrack."
[Also: Matt Kenseth and Kurt Busch crash just minutes into Sprint Unlimited practice]
But when something new comes into an already-full life, something else has to go. For Harvick, the decision to shutter his truck team at the end of the 2011 season was a necessary move. "Couldn't be dad, team owner and driver on Sunday and be successful, probably at any of them," he said. "We had to eliminate one. That new balance adds to your life, lets you be more focused and hopefully more competitive on the weekends."
2012 was a disappointment for Harvick; while he made the Chase, he never got out of the lower-top-10 range, and his lone win came in the season's penultimate race in Phoenix. He's a lame duck this year at Richard Childress Racing as he prepares to move to Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014.
The odds on lame-duck drivers having success aren't good; everyone's got an eye on next year. But if Harvick does fall short this season, at least he won't be blaming his kid. That's good news.
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Sunday
Regan Smith and AJ Allmendinger likely to split full season for Phoenix Racing
Regan Smith will drive Phoenix Racing?s No. 51 for the Daytona 500 and will likely split the ride with AJ Allmendinger in 2013 according to Phoenix general manager Steve Barkdoll.
Both Smith and Allmendinger drove for the team at the end of 2012 after Kurt Busch left to start his sting with Furniture Row Racing before the end of the season. Smith was scheduled to finish out the season, but was called up to drive at Charlotte and Kansas for Dale Earnhardt Jr. Allmendinger was called in as his replacement and drove four races for the team while Smith drove two.
?It will be more than likely AJ at Phoenix and the next handful of races,? Barkdoll said. ?Regan, with his concentration on the Nationwide deal, he?s going to pick and choose the ones that he wants. ? I talked to AJ yesterday and he doesn?t have anything going right now and he did us a really good job.
Allmendinger had said the same publicly over the weekend at the Roar Before the 24 Grand-Am test. It?s a great opportunity for the driver who was suspended before the July Sprint Cup Series race at Daytona after testing positive for amphetamine.
Smith is running full-time in the Nationwide Series for JR Motorsports and will be unable to accumulate driver points in the Sprint Cup Series (though the team will still get owner?s points). Smith is the driver that Busch replaced at Furniture Row after last fall?s Talladega race.
The team is also looking to keep its association with Busch and wants to compete in the three Nationwide Series restrictor plate races with him, Barkdoll said. Busch won the July Daytona Nationwide Series race driving for Phoenix.
The team finished 27th in the owner?s standings in 2012. It?s highest finish came at Sonoma with Busch behind the wheel. He finished third.
2012 season in the rear view: Clint Bowyer
Vitals: 2nd in the points standings. 3 wins, 10 top 5s, 13 top 10s. 4 DNFs.
Moment to remember: Clint Bowyer's first season at Michael Waltrip Racing netted him his first road course victory and (surprisingly) his first victory at a 1.5 mile track in the Sprint Cup Series.
In June at Sonoma, Bowyer started sixth and was damn good, leading 71 of the race's 110 laps. He had Kurt Busch alongside him and Tony Stewart behind him when a caution to bring out a green, white, checkered restart flew, but easily pulled away from Stewart and Busch over the final two laps for the win.
In the fall race at Charlotte, Bowyer took the lead on lap 310 from Greg Biffle and made it to the end on fuel for the win. The victory moved Bowyer to within 28 points of leader Brad Keselowski with five races to go.
Moment to forget: This is only here because of the impact it had on Bowyer's Chase chances, because this sure as hell isn't a forgettable moment.
After Bowyer and Jeff Gordon made contact racing for position, Gordon took matters into his own hands (car? fender?) and took out Bowyer. And then that led to one of the greatest garage sprints in NASCAR history.
Bowyer left Phoenix 52 points behind Brad Keselowski, mathematically out of championship contention.
The impact of Gordon's retaliation to Bowyer's championship hopes was an afterthought to the chaos that had occurred. But when Jimmie Johnson had his issue at Homestead, that allowed Bowyer to slip into second place behind Keselowski.
Bowyer was running in the top 10 at the time of his contact with Gordon, and by virtue of his 28th place finish, likely lost about 20 points. His chances going into Homestead would have been slim, and he wouldn't have caught Keselowski regardless, but Bowyer would have been at the championship press conference and in the discussion. Instead, while he was storyline 1A at Homestead thanks to the conflict, his championship hopes were an afterthought.
The wrap: Speaking of afterthoughts, when we look back on the 2012 season in five or 10 years, will people instinctively think that Johnson finished second to Keselowski? That's not discounting anything that Bowyer did -- what he accomplished with a new team and the improvement that Michael Waltrip Racing made is one of the best stories of the year.
It's just that the championship battle moments, the duel at Texas, the comeback at Kansas, the turning point at Phoenix, all involved Keselowski and Johnson. Yeah, even the most casual fans of NASCAR will remember Bowyer for what happened at Phoenix, but hopefully they'll remember that he finished second too.
A brief respite
It may seem like an odd time to be doing this, but there is never much time off for the F1 journalists of the world. However there are also times in life when one needs to make time, so I am taking the next 10 days off in order to go on honeymoon. I will [...]
Source: http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2013/02/04/a-brief-respite-2/
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