Source: http://www.16thandgeorgetown.com/2014/06/grand-prix-of-indianapolis-signs-title.html
Friday
Two-stop strategy works out for a win for Carl Edwards at Sonoma
Tire wear was a big factor at Sonoma on Sunday. But ultimately, track position proved to be more vital.
Carl Edwards worked his way to the front of the field in the second half of the race thanks to a two-stop pit strategy and held off Jeff Gordon for his second win of the season and Edwards' first-ever road course win.
Track position is always important at NASCAR's road courses, and crew chiefs typically work the race "backwards" to stop for tires and fuel as few times as possible. However, the tires were wearing so quickly over the weekend at the wine country track that it was possible the additional speed gained from fresh tires an additional stop could override a driver on older tires who had stopped twice.
Because of the timing of caution flags it didn't happen, as Edwards' final pit stop came before a caution flag on lap 72. As Edwards was still on the lead lap after pitting and drivers ahead of him hit pit lane under caution, he found himself near the front of the field. He took the lead off a restart on lap 86 and never lost it.
Throughout the entire race, Edwards didn't have one of the fastest cars. But it was consistent, and that consistency paid off as Gordon wasn't able to completely close the gap that Edwards had opened up off the final restart.
"Real tough. That last lap was ugly. I grew up watching Jeff Gordon do well here so to have him in my mirror is special," Edwards said.
"This team has been working very hard. The whole group has. It's very special to be a part of something like this.
And of course, Edwards' win adds kindling to NASCAR's most-burning off-track topic in 2014: Edwards' contract status. How does the victory affect Edwards' chances of re-signing with Roush, or does it have any affect at all?
Edwards' contract with Roush Fenway Racing is up at the end of the season and if he leaves Roush, Joe Gibbs Racing is a likely destination, as the team has a capacity for a fourth car. Before the race on Sunday, JGR President J.D. Gibbs told the AP that he couldn't comment on Edwards and the AP also reported Edwards has a stipulation in his Roush contract that prevents any announcement of a new contract with a different team from happening until September.
If nothing has been decided on the contract front, a second win can't hurt. Besides breaking a five-race winning streak for Hendrick Motorsports, Edwards is now one of five drivers to have multiple wins in 2014. He's guaranteed to be Chasing in September. And maybe we'll know his future team by then too.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Jay Chamberlain Karun Chandhok Alain de Changy Colin Chapman
Thursday
Wednesday
2014 NASCAR World Cup Group F: Can Ambrose jump Hamlin or Biffle?
Throughout the summer we're running our second NASCAR World Cup. Will Carl Edwards repeat? Or will someone else take the title? Click here for a NASCAR World Cup explanation and a list of all the groups.
Group F: Denny Hamlin (8th in points, 1 win), Greg Biffle (14th, 0), Marcos Ambrose (23rd, 0), Cole Whitt (31st, 0)
Michigan Matchups: Hamlin vs. Whitt, Biffle vs. Ambrose
Sonoma Matchups: Hamlin vs. Biffle, Ambrose vs. Whitt
Kentucky Matchups: Hamlin vs. Ambrose, Biffle vs. Whitt
With a road course in the group stage, Marcos Ambrose is a good sleeper, right? Well, we're not so sure, simply based on the schedule. If you look at the two ovals, the one driver you'd put Ambrose ahead of unequivocally would be Whitt. However, Ambrose draws him at Sonoma. If Ambrose drew Hamlin, or, even better, Biffle at Sonoma, he'd be looking at a very realistic chance of 2-1 and moving out of the group. Instead, he's favored at Sonoma, just by a lot, and not favored in the other two matchups.
That's why this group looks really chalky. Biffle has been consistent enough to stay near the front and minimize bad finishes. However, given the speed Ambrose has shown at Michigan at the repave, he could keep it close at Michigan. Biffle's favored, but it's not by much. We'll say that the winner of Ambrose and Biffle at Michigan gets the second spot.
Projected standings: Hamlin 3-0, Biffle 2-1, Ambrose 1-2, Whitt 0-3
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Tuesday
Unfiltered Race Notes: Dual in Detroit Race 2 2014
Welcome back for day two of the Detroit indycar racing Extravaganza! Let’s do this thing. –Prerace– Power is so melodramatic RHR… dude… get it together today HC losing pole, what a funny guy. so animated TAKU!!!! AJ looks at Taku … Continue reading 
Monday
Former Mercedes DTM boss Ungar starts new Caterham job
Former Mercedes DTM technical director Gerhard Ungar has now officially joined Caterham, as first predicted here on July 8. Ungar will work alongside Christijan Albers in a Newey-style ‘chief technical officer’ role, although his job title has yet to be … Continue reading 
Source: http://adamcooperf1.com/2014/07/27/former-mercedes-dtm-boss-ungar-starts-new-caterham-job/
Sunday
Carl Edwards leaving Roush at the end of 2014 while Greg Biffle is staying
INDIANAPOLIS ? Roush Fenway Racing will be a three-car team in 2015 and one of those cars will not be driven by Carl Edwards.
The long-rumored possibility of Edwards leaving the team following the 2014 season became a reality on Sunday morning when Roush announced that Greg Biffle had signed a contract extension with the team while Edwards would not return.
?I will always be thankful for Carl?s contribution and the role he played in many Roush Fenway wins and championships,? team owner Jack Roush said in a statement. ?We wish him well for the future. �In the meantime, we are excited about continuing our quest for a championship with Carl and the No. 99 team in 2014.?
When asked if Edwards gave him a reason for leaving the only Sprint Cup team he's driven for, Roush said Edwards didn't provide specifics. He also said that Edwards' decision to not return has been made for over a month.
"(Edwards) didn't give me his reason, you'll have to ask him about that," Roush said while adding that he didn't ask Edwards for it.
In the garage, Edwards once again declined to provide specifics about his future destination saying there were "a lot of moving parts" and added it was unfortunate that the announcement of his departure happened on the morning before a race.
Joe Gibbs Racing is seen as the likely landing spot for Edwards. With three cars currently�? Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Matt Kenseth�? the team can expand to a fourth car without changing its current driver lineup.
Wherever Edwards goes, he'll need a new primary sponsor. As part of its announcement Sunday, the team said that Fastenal would move over to the No. 17 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. next season. Biffle, Stenhouse and Trevor Bayne will be the team's three full-time drivers in 2015. Bayne will be driving the No. 6 next year and Roush President Steve Newmark said that barring any unexpected developments, the No. 99 won't be in use full-time by Roush next season.
Edwards, who is sixth in the points standings, has Roush's only two wins in 2014. Once considered the standard bearer for intermediate-length race tracks, the team hasn't had the outright speed of the Hendrick-powered and Team Penske cars this season.
He got his first break at Roush in the Sprint Cup Series in 2004, jumping in the No. 99 for Jeff Burton, who left the team during the season. In nine full seasons and parts of two others, Edwards has 23 race wins, including nine in 2008. In 2011, he tied with Tony Stewart atop the points standings but lost the title via tiebreaker because Stewart had more wins.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Saturday
Live: 2014 Hungary GP3 race one | F1 Fanatic Live
Follow the 2014 Hungary GP3 race one on F1 Fanatic Live.
Source: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2014/07/26/live-2014-hungary-gp3-race-one-2/
Friday
Thursday
Double points ?really artificial? ? Rosberg | F1 Fanatic Round-up
In the round-up: Rosberg adds to criticism of double points ? No New Jersey race in 2015, says Ecclestone... ? ...but Azerbaijan on for 2016
Source: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2014/07/25/f1-fanatic-round-2507/
Eugenio Castellotti Johnny Cecotto Andrea de Cesaris Francois Cevert
NASCAR World Cup 2014 Week 1: Group E is strong while G is weak at Michigan
The first week of the NASCAR World Cup was not upset-free and there was some distinct disparity between groups.
Groups D and E lived up to our expectations at Michigan. All of the drivers in Group D finished in the top 16 while Group E was even better. Kurt Busch was the slacker in the group and he finished 13th.
Group G was pitiful, however. Thanks to the spin by top seed Denny Hamlin and the struggles of Roush Fenway Racing at Michigan, no one in the group finished higher than 20th. And because of the spin, Hamlin became the biggest upset victim in the first round of group play, losing to Cole Whitt by a single position.
Other upsets included Casey Mears over Kyle Busch because of Busch's left-rear hub issue and Michael Annett over Austin Dillon.
As a quick refresher, each driver is matched up against the other three drivers in his or her group for Michigan, Sonoma and Kentucky. Then, like the World Cup, we'll take the top two from each group starting at Daytona and play a knockout round all the way through Pocono in August where we'll crown a champion. Here are the complete rules.
Below are the results from Michigan. The winners are in italics and all finishes are in parenthesis. The standings are embedded below.
Group A
Jimmie Johnson (1) vs. Brian Vickers (42), Aric Almirola (31) vs. Danica Patrick (17)
Group B
Kyle Busch (41) vs. Casey Mears (24), Kevin Harvick (2) vs. Jamie McMurray (12)
Group C
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (7) vs. Martin Truex Jr. (37), Austin Dillon (30) vs. Michael Annett (21)
Group D
Matt Kenseth (14) vs. Joey Logano (9), Tony Stewart (11) vs. Justin Allgaier (16)
Group E
Brad Keselowski (3) vs. Paul Menard (4) , Clint Bowyer (10) vs. Kurt Busch (13)
Group F
Denny Hamlin (29)� vs. Cole Whitt (28), Greg Biffle (20) vs. Marcos Ambrose (25)
Group G
Carl Edwards (23) vs. Ryan Newman (15), Kasey Kahne (5) vs. David Gilliland (26)
Group H
Jeff Gordon (6) vs. A.J. Allmendinger (22), Kyle Larson (8) vs. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (27)
NASCAR World Cup 2014: Michigan
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Wednesday
Hulkenberg enjoying ?my best year in F1? | 2014 F1 season
Nico Hulkenberg has described his 2014 campaign as his best so far in Formula One.
Source: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2014/07/22/hulkenberg-enjoying-best-year-f1/
Tuesday
Hamilton?s Season Back On Track?
Lewis Hamilton got his title charge back on track with a win at the British Grand Prix after Nico Rosberg?s car failed for the first time this season. After qualifying in sixth on the grid, the Englishman drove like a champion with the British public cheering on their hero. For the first time this season, [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Formula1Fancast/~3/uxSueOvQAoU/hamiltons-season-back-on-track
Luki Botha JeanChristophe Boullion Sebastien Bourdais Thierry Boutsen
Monday
Carbon Fiber Brough Superior Moto2 Bike To Make Debut At Silverstone
Despite some early promise, there has been much complaining of a lack of innovation from chassis builders in Moto2. the bikes have followed the same basic layout as all modern race bikes since the late 1980s: aluminium twin spar chassis and conventional suspension arrangements.The only real interest has come from wildcards. At Le Mans, the French Promoto Sport team raced their Transfiormer chassis, with some solid results. Beyond that, the bikes have been pretty much identikit.
At Silverstone, another interesting wildcard will get its first public running. The British round of Moto2 will see the Brough Superior make its debut in a competitive race, after making an appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed last year. The bike is a rebrand of the design by John Keogh and Taylormade Racing, discussed on MotoMatters.com last year. The bike uses a monocoque chassis design made fully from carbon fiber, with integral fuel tank. The front suspension is a single wishbone with damping in the forks, while the rear swingarm is also fully carbon fiber. The radiator has been moved to the rear of the bike, to allow the machine to be narrower and free up space in front of the engine.
Rubens Barrichello Michael Bartels Edgar Barth Giorgio Bassi
Sunday
Hamilton heading for pitlane start despite Mercedes safety claims
Lewis Hamilton is likely to start the German GP from the pitlane as Mercedes plans to switch him from Brembo to Carbon Industrie discs for the race. That would be a change of car specification under parc ferme conditions, and … Continue reading 
Ernesto Brambilla Vittorio Brambilla Toni Branca Gianfranco Brancatelli
Saturday
Here's what it looks like with a sports car and a stock car on a road course
Ever wondered how a stock car handles on a road course compared to a sports car? Here's a rare chance to see them on the track at the same time.
Kurt Busch and his Stewart-Haas Racing team were testing at Road Atlanta Tuesday in preparation for Sonoma. Also there were two Porsche road racing teams testing too.
Busch's car is the gray car in front and the Porsche is the car behind. You can see how much earlier Busch has to brake and that he's slower in the corners, but also how much the stock car accelerates quicker than the Porsche. Pretty cool, eh? Maybe we can arrange a test session between a Sprint Cup car, a Tudor USCS car, an IndyCar and an F1 car to see the differences between all four of them. Big chance of that happening, right?
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Friday
Rumormill: Ferrari LaFerrari Spider and FXX Confirmed for 2015
The Laferrari FXX and the LaFerrari Spider have been in the rumormill for quite some time now. The FXX has already been spotted testing on the Nurburgring track, but unlike McLaren, Ferrari has yet to confirm a track-only LaFerrari is underway. Same goes for the LaFerrari Spider, which is rumored to join its coupe sibling sometime in 2015.
However, a new report coming from CAR suggest both LaFerrari spin-offs are set for a 2015 launch. Production is likely to commence as soon as the last of the 499 LaFerrari coupes leaves the assembly line, with both supercars to be built in very limited quantities. Much like the previous, Enzo-based special-edition Ferraris, both LaFerrari derivatives will be offered to the company’s most exclusive customers.
CAR also reveals Ferrari is currently working on no less than nine new vehicles, but until we can get hold of more information on that matter, let’s have a closer look at the LaFerrari FXX and LaFerrari Spider.
Click past the jump to read more about the Ferrari LaFerrari Spider and FXX.
Rumormill: Ferrari LaFerrari Spider and FXX Confirmed for 2015 originally appeared on topspeed.com on Wednesday, 16 July 2014 16:00 EST.
Thursday
Dale Earnhardt Jr. had to pump gas to pay off his first speeding ticket
Dale Earnhardt made Dale Earnhardt Jr. work off his first speeding ticket.
Junior said Tuesday on the Dan Patrick Show that he got it while driving home. He and his dad had left separately, so he was ahead of the elder Earnhardt when it happened. His dad then drove past him pulled over and stopped at a gas station to wait for Junior, who pulled in behind him.
"He says 'Did he write you a ticket?' I said 'Yeah' he says 'Looks like you need to get a job.' So I went down to a gas station up the road from the house and applied for a job there. Pumped gas for several months to pay for that ticket."
Junior also said his first truck was a 1988 Chevrolet S10 pickup. And he just had a replica of that truck restored.
It's a fantastic interview and worth the listen the entire way through. Junior talks about his relationship with road course racing (hint: he's not in love with it) and that he stayed up until 5:00 a.m. Monday morning celebrating his win at Pocono.
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