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The Fastest Lap

  • A question

    Number of comments: 3
    Am I the only one who is slightly disappointed that there won't be a breakaway championship with the big F1 teams? After seeing a tentative schedule yesterday I was rather looking forward to this.' [...]
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    Posted: June 24, 2009, 2:07pm EDT
    by Nicebloke

  • The FIA/FOTA split

    Number of comments: 3
    I've stayed pretty quiet on this issue as there are a number of other motorsport bloggers who are far more knowledgeable and insightful about it than I am. Let me just just share a few of my opinions on it...
    F1 has been pretty entertaining the last couple of seasons,' [...]
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    Posted: June 19, 2009, 12:39pm EDT
    by Nicebloke

  • Le Mans is coming soon

    Number of comments: 0
    I'm totally fucking excited, even if it's one more year that I'm not there. I've established a pattern of going to the race on any year that ends in a 7 or a 4 ('94, '97, '04 and '07). That means it will be a [...]
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    Posted: May 28, 2009, 2:40pm EDT

  • Motorcycle racing is dangerous

    Number of comments: 3
    Well, duh. Except it's pretty amazing how many riders are on the sidelines right now thanks to injury...
    Regis Laconi, WSBK, DFX Ducati: injured in South Africa, being replaced by Lorenzo LanziSylvain Guintoli, BSB, Crescent Suzuki: injured at Donington, replaced by Michael RutterJohn Hopkins, WSBK, Stiggy Honda: injured at Assen,' [...]
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    Posted: May 27, 2009, 8:37pm EDT
    by Nicebloke

  • Long Beach

    Number of comments: 0
    Didn't the Indycar race at Long Beach look great? It reminded me of 1995, with all the top US open-wheel drivers and some notable foreigners going toe-to-toe in a nice big field of brightly-colored cars in front of a sizable crowd. It really feels to me like Indycar racing is' [...]
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    Posted: April 21, 2009, 2:02pm EDT

  • The diffuser thing

    Number of comments: 0
    The FIA have decreed that Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams were within the rules when they ran with their "double-decker" diffuser for the first two F1 races of the season. This is great news, because it sets up much excitement for the rest of the season.

    There is no [...]
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    Posted: April 15, 2009, 1:34pm EDT

  • Plato shows BTCC who's boss

    Number of comments: 1
    Jason Plato very nearly didn't have a drive in the BTCC this year after SEAT cancelled their factory program. Luckily at the last minute he ended up in a Chevrolet Lacetti (probably ex-WTCC but I'm not sure).

    Good thing too, because he put on one hell of a show [...]
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    Posted: April 08, 2009, 3:24pm EDT

  • Rally spectators get the info they want

    Number of comments: 0
    Having been to a couple of WRC events in the past, the issue of deciding which stages to see and where on those stages to go can be really tricky. I've got hundreds of megabytes of maps, stage descriptions and video accumulated for that very reason.

    Rally Deutschland and' [...]
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    Posted: April 06, 2009, 12:39pm EDT

  • Unemployment up in Indycar too

    Number of comments: 0
    As the supposedly great state of California inches towards 10% unemployment (and as the start of the Indycar season approaches this weekend), I spent a moment thinking about all those poor saps who want (or have been connected to) fulltime Indycar rides. You know, people like Frank Perera, AJ Foyt [...]
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    Posted: April 02, 2009, 4:25pm EDT

  • I told you so

    Number of comments: 0
    Check it.

    I win. [...]
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    Posted: April 01, 2009, 5:40pm EDT

  • Bookies everywhere agree - it's Jenson

    Number of comments: 1
    I took a look at the betting lines on this weekend's Australian F1 Grand Prix over at Sports Interaction, and was pretty amazed at what I saw:
    Button - 5:1Raikkonen - 6:1Alonso - 8:1Massa - 8:1Barrichello - 8:1Hamilton - 11:1Kubica - 13:1Heidfeld - 23:1
    Vettel - 26:1Trulli - 30:1Glock' [...]
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    Posted: March 24, 2009, 12:46pm EDT

  • V8 Supercars get mangled

    Number of comments: 0
    Watching the debut round of the Australian V8 Supercars championship this weekend reminded me of one particular aspect of these cars:

    When V8 Supercars crash, they produce the most mangled wrecks in all of racing.

    Most race cars these days [...]
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    Posted: March 23, 2009, 2:40pm EDT

  • Hotness

    Number of comments: 2
    The new Acura P1 car. Extremely good-looking car. And the sister car to the one pictured here grabbed pole at Sebring today, so it's quick too.

    It is blessed relief from the new Audi which looks like someone painted up an old WR prototype in' [...]
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    Posted: March 19, 2009, 4:39pm EDT

  • Lapping Laguna Seca

    Number of comments: 0
    In the period where this blog lay dormant, from September 2008 until February 2009, I had the pleasure of getting my Subaru WRX STi out to not just one, but two track days.

    The first was at Laguna Seca, a track I knew pretty damn [...]
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    Posted: March 18, 2009, 2:33pm EDT

  • The winner takes it all

    Number of comments: 0
    Man, I've gone three years without quoting Abba on this blog. Damn you FIA!

    Mornings for me, like most people I guess, are tough. I have to grapple with wardrobe decisions (something I hate), try to eat a bowl of generally disgusting high-fibre cereal, face up to yet another' [...]
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    Posted: March 17, 2009, 1:07pm EDT

  • A quick look at the calendar

    Number of comments: 0
    This weekend sees the WRC in Cyprus and World Superbike in Qatar, both of which should be worth watching.

    However, starting next week things get really cracking. The Sebring 12 Hours in the ALMS and V8 Supercars' season-opening Clipsal 500 are amongst the highlights of the motorsport year, and' [...]
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    Posted: March 12, 2009, 12:53pm EDT

  • Brawn can do it

    Number of comments: 0
    I'm going to go out on a limb here...

    The former Honda F1 team might actually not suck this year. Here's why:

    Two drivers who are proven race-winners. Being stuck in that awful Honda for so long might have shortened some peoples' memory as to how talented Button' [...]
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    Posted: March 10, 2009, 2:23pm EDT

  • Daytona again

    Number of comments: 0
    Weren't we just here? For some stock car race that I half care about? And before that, some sportscar race that I kind of take an interest in? Well, now it's a motorcycle race that is vaguely interesting. Every year the Daytona 200 should kick ass, and every year it [...]
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    Posted: March 05, 2009, 5:09pm EST

  • Not a good start

    Number of comments: 1
    Aston Martin's attempt at overall victory at Le Mans reminds me of the first few lines from the first song of Tenacious D's debut album: "I don't like that - so far, off to a bad start."

    The car has yet to even run and Aston Martin Racing and' [...]
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    Posted: March 03, 2009, 6:14pm EST

  • Take that, Europe

    Number of comments: 2
    "BOOM!!!"

    That's the sound of an American bombshell dropping into the predominantly European World Superbike paddock. Anyone need a quick reminder about who invented Superbike racing...?

    Okay, I admit that I'm English, but I'm never going back and the USA is my home, so I'm just going [...]
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    Posted: March 01, 2009, 8:41pm EST

  • It's back

    Number of comments: 1
    What is back? I was going to say World Superbike, but my plans are that this blog is also back. Inspired by my good buddy John Dagys' new blog, I'm going to try to get this one up and running again.

    To be honest, it's been hard to' [...]
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    Posted: February 28, 2009, 6:01pm EST

  • Here we go again

    Number of comments: 3
    Time to finally break radio silence, and what a way to do it: a rant about this whole AMA situation.

    For those unfamiliar with the situation, the AMA Superbike championship has been the top US motorcycle racing series for many years, featuring the participation of all four Japanese manufacturers. [...]
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    Posted: September 11, 2008, 12:26pm EDT

  • Update

    Number of comments: 0
    As you can tell, this blog has been very quiet lately. A combination of factors, including other things that are demanding much of my attention and brainpower, as well as a general lack of inspiration to write are to blame. The midseason also tends to be less contentious than the [...]
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    Posted: August 18, 2008, 12:57pm EDT

  • Beard

    Number of comments: 4
    An extremely important topic is under discussion today on the Midweek Motorsport podcast: have there ever been any major motorsport champions who had beards at the time of achieving their championships?

    It appears that the answer is no, making me wonder whether having extensive sideburns is causing me [...]
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    Posted: July 30, 2008, 5:03pm EDT

  • The Onion meets Jalopnik

    Number of comments: 3
    How the fuck did I miss this? From the depraved mind of Evo columnist and Top Gear script editor Richard Porter, Sniff Petrol is like The Onion for the automotive world. I've already wasted many minutes this afternoon trying to catch up. One of my favourite features is David' [...]
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    Posted: July 23, 2008, 7:24pm EDT

  • The annual US MotoGP review post

    Number of comments: 3
    Since 2001 I haven't missed Laguna Seca's July motorcycle race weekend, with four years of World Superbike followed by 4 years of MotoGP. The transition from WSBK to MotoGP in 2005 was a tough one. On the one hand we were totally excited to see those amazing bikes and [...]
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    Posted: July 23, 2008, 2:08pm EDT

  • A racing companion

    Number of comments: 6
    For most people (particularly men) who follow motorsport, it's a lonely pursuit. Unless they have equally enthusiastic friends who are into the sport, they're forced to find internet forums where they can have rewarding, meaningful discussions and engage in discourse about their hobby. I can imagine this could get frustrating.
    [...]
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    Posted: July 21, 2008, 3:59pm EDT

  • Audi, building their brand

    Number of comments: 0
    Last week I took part in something called the Audi Driving Experience. This was a totally free event up at Sears Point. Let me say right off that this was a clear attempt to sell some 2009 Audi A4s, but beyond that it was clearly much more, [...]
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    Posted: July 21, 2008, 1:13am EDT

  • Been kinda quiet...

    Number of comments: 2
    Yes, it's true, I've been very neglectful of this blog for the past couple of weeks but I've compiled a decent list of excuses to justify my lax approach:
    I got engaged to my longtime (9 years) partner K. Despite the fact that being so very anti-wedding we've decided to [...]
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    Posted: July 19, 2008, 6:06pm EDT

  • Watch out

    Number of comments: 0
    Timekeeping has always been an integral part of motorsport, and as I've become more interested in watches lately I've become much more aware of how closely linked the two industries are. These relationships seem to always be win-win: watch manufacturers gain credibility by associating themselves with the glamorous, sporty and [...]
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    Posted: July 01, 2008, 12:53pm EDT
    by Nicebloke

  • NASCAR first-timer's report

    Number of comments: 0
    I popped my NASCAR cherry last weekend, by going up to Infineon not just once, but twice.

    Saturday morning I went up with a friend who does some design work for one of the drivers and had managed to snag us a couple of credentials. Having free entry makes [...]
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    Posted: June 30, 2008, 8:22pm EDT

  • The NASCAR report

    I popped my NASCAR cherry last weekend, by going up to Infineon not just once, but twice.

    Saturday morning I went up with a friend who does some design work for one of the drivers and had managed to snag us a couple of credentials. Having free entry makes [...]
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    Posted: June 24, 2008, 8:35pm EDT

  • Carolla talks Top Gear USA

    Number of comments: 0
    Popular Mechanics has the first major interview with Top Gear USA Clarkson-alike Adam Carolla on its website. In it Carolla debunks the myth that he'll have to be nice to cars from companies who advertise on the network, and mentions a few cars he'd like to drive on the [...]
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    Posted: June 24, 2008, 7:53pm EDT

  • Street racing

    Number of comments: 8
    I'm reading a fascinating book right now called "The Driver". It's written by Alex Roy, a guy who became famous for setting the fastest time ever to complete the Cannonball Run, the drive from New York to Los Angeles. There's plenty of info about the origins of the' [...]
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    Posted: June 23, 2008, 7:22pm EDT

  • Becoming NASCAR Nation

    Number of comments: 0

    Yes, it's true: I get to go to my first NASCAR race this weekend. I'll admit it's not a real NASCAR race since it features that very strange animal, a right-hand corner. Still, NASCAR put it on the Sprint Cup schedule so the drivers' loss [...]
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    Posted: June 20, 2008, 9:44am EDT

  • Weekend Menu - Week 25

    Number of comments: 0
    I'm seeing a race this weekend, but more on that later. Here's the menu:
    Magny Cours, France: F1, GP2, Porsche SupercupMid-Ohio Sportscar Course, OH: Grand AmSears Point, CA: NASCAR Sprint CupDonington Park, England: MotoGP, 125 / 250cc GPMilwaukee Mile, WI: NASCAR Nationwide Series and Craftsman TrucksIowa Speedway: Indycars, Indy Pro [...]
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    Posted: June 20, 2008, 9:33am EDT

  • How to do Le Mans

    Number of comments: 4
    We didn't go to Le Mans this year, but here's how we made up for it:
    Listened to coverage of qualifying whilst watching the Eurosport live streaming video via a European proxyMoved the TV to the bedroom so that when we woke up on Saturday morning we just needed to [...]
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    Posted: June 17, 2008, 3:09pm EDT

  • Someone peed in their pasta

    Number of comments: 3
    Remarkable events have unfolded before anyone even turned a wheel in anger at Le Mans.

    When the entry list was first published, many people questioned the inclusion an LMP2-spec Lucchini prototype entered by veteran Italian team Racing Box. The chassis was old and slow and other more [...]
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    Posted: June 12, 2008, 1:30am EDT

  • BMW: Toyota's worst nightmare

    Number of comments: 2
    Back in December 2006, I wrote a post about how Toyota should really be so much better than they are, not just in F1 but in all forms of motorsport. Here we are, 18 months later, and Toyota's generally poor showing in F1 has been brought into stark contrast' [...]
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    Posted: June 08, 2008, 8:26pm EDT

  • World Superbike at Miller, a spectator perspective

    Number of comments: 2
    We all know what happened in the races at Miller last weekend, so here's some non-racing observations from my first trip to this new track...

    Event management was virtually flawless: Getting in and out of the facility was a piece of cake on all three' [...]
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    Posted: June 05, 2008, 1:07pm EDT

  • Weekend Menu - Week 22

    Number of comments: 1
    I'll be at Miller this weekend, but here's what else is on elsewhere:
    Mugello, Italy: MotoGP, FIM 250/125ccLamia, Greece: WRC Acropolis RallyCroft, England: BTCC, Porsche Carrera Cup GB, Formula Renault UKPau, France: WTCC, F3 EuroseriesMiller Motorsports Park, UT: World Superbike, AMA SuperbikeEnsenada, Mexico: Baja 500 (SCORE)Milwaukee Mile, WI: Indycar and [...]
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    Posted: May 28, 2008, 2:01pm EDT

  • Miller World Superbike

    Number of comments: 0
    My friend Chris and I fly out Friday morning for Salt Lake City, to go see the return of World Superbike to the USA. It should be a terrific weekend. Naturally I've been thinking a lot about what lies ahead and I reckon I've been hit by some divine inspiration [...]
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    Posted: May 27, 2008, 2:44pm EDT

  • The Nurburgring 24 Hours

    Number of comments: 1
    It's weird to be out of town attending a wedding in Portland and to be listening to the Radio Le Mans coverage of the fabulous Nurburgring 24 Hours and watching streaming video on the event's website. It simply reinforces my opinion that 24 hour races are [...]
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    Posted: May 24, 2008, 6:27pm EDT

  • Load of Bull

    Number of comments: 5
    This may seem a little bit obvious, but Red Bull spend a lot of money on motorsport advertising, sponsorship and promotion.

    It hit me this weekend, as everywhere I looked I saw the iconic logo and typeface, whether it was at Sears Point for the AMA Superbike round to [...]
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    Posted: May 20, 2008, 12:44pm EDT

  • Close finishes

    Number of comments: 0
    Followers of World Superbike and World Supersport have had an absolute ball in the last two weeks. If you add up the finishing gaps of the top three riders in World Superbike's two races at Monza, and the top six in the Assen World Supersport race, you'd get a scant [...]
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    Posted: May 12, 2008, 6:24pm EDT

  • Weekend Menu -Week 19

    Number of comments: 0
    I've been a bit lax the last two weeks publishing the menu, so here's this week's:
    • Istanbul, Turkey: F1, Porsche Supercup, GP2
    • Darlington Raceway, SC: NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series
    • Monza, Italy: World Superbike and Supersport
    • Barbagallo, Australia: V8 Supercars
    • Spa, Belgium: Le Mans Series
    • Douglas, Isle of Man: Manx Rally
    • Albacete, Spain: FIM Endurance [...]
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    Posted: May 08, 2008, 6:22pm EDT

  • Irish road racing claims another victim

    Number of comments: 3
    The sport of "real road racing" has claimed another victim, with the death of Martin Finnegan this weekend in the Tandragee 100 in Northern Ireland. This genre of motorcycle racing is well-known for its inherent danger thanks to the myriad of deaths at the Isle of Man TT over [...]
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    Posted: May 07, 2008, 12:51pm EDT

  • An interview with 0-60's editor

    Number of comments: 1
    Yesterday I introduced you to 0-60 Magazine. Today, I chat with its editor...

    Brian Scotto is the kind of guy you want to hate, given that his day job involves driving and talking about fast cars, but can't because he's such a nice chap. More importantly you're not [...]
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    Posted: April 30, 2008, 9:34pm EDT

  • 0-60, the savior of the US car magazine

    I love Evo magazine. I've mentioned it before, and I'll mention it again and I don't apologize for it, because it's been my go-to car magazine for years. Its photography and design work, along with the high-quality paper it arrives on make it a pleasant [...]
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    Posted: April 30, 2008, 3:43pm EDT

  • Shuntorama

    What a weekend for big accidents. We saw two entirely different yet highly disturbing crashes, both of which illustrated the potential danger of the sport, as well as the incredible ability of modern race cars to protect its occupant when things go wrong.

    Here's exhibit A. Stephane Ortelli's LMP1 [...]
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    Posted: April 28, 2008, 1:14pm EDT

  • The value of grassroots

    Number of comments: 1
    I attended my first race event of 2008 today, the second round of the AFM season. AFM is the main sanctioning body for motorcycle circuit racing in Northern California, and they race at Infineon (that's Sears Point to most of us), Buttonwillow and [...]
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    Posted: April 27, 2008, 8:59pm EDT

  • Dakar sans duneage

    Those of us who are dyed-in-the-wool fans of Dakar (and who felt truly gutted by the cancellation of this year's event) have something to cling to, as right now the Central European Rally is in full swing. Imagine all the usual Dakar cast members throwing their multi-million dollar toys [...]
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    Posted: April 25, 2008, 5:59pm EDT

  • Let the Danica post-mortem begin

    Number of comments: 4
    I like to think of myself as a social liberal, generally nodding and agreeing with much of what I read on sites like Salon.com and hear on NPR. Social liberals are also generally required to be sypathetic to the principles of feminism, so sign me up there too.

    However, [...]
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    Posted: April 21, 2008, 2:55pm EDT

  • British Superbike - it didn't snow

    After the disappointment of the first round of British Superbike being postponed due to snow (check out the utterly bizarre pictures of Brands Hatch buried in the white stuff), it was great to watch round two play out at Thruxton today.

    So what did we learn?

    Cal [...]
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    Posted: April 20, 2008, 10:19pm EDT

  • Weekend Menu - Week 15

    Number of comments: 1
    This weekend in the world of motorsport:
    • Hockenheim, Germany: DTM, F3 Euroseries
    • Rockingham, England: BTCC, Porsche Carrera Cup GB, Formula Renault UK
    • Dubai, UAE: GP2 Asia, Speedcar Series
    • Shanghai, China: A1GP
    • Zolder, Belgium: Belcar
    • Knockhill, Scotland: British GT
    • Okayama, Japan: SuperGT
    • Nurburgring: VLN
    • Estoril, Portugal: MotoGP and 125/250GP
    • Salem Speedway, IN: ARCA/Remax Series
    • Phoenix Raceway: NASCAR Sprint Cup and [...]
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    Posted: April 09, 2008, 3:43pm EDT

  • Indycar - go to your room!

    Imagine the scene: an angry teenager has a fight with his parents and storms out of the house with the obligatory "I HATE YOU!" The clock ticks by and the parents move on from anger and transition into the worried phase. They start calling around to the boy's friends' parents. [...]
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    Posted: April 07, 2008, 4:46pm EDT
    by Nicebloke

  • Weekend Menu - Week 14

    Now we're up and running! A big weekend of racing lies ahead, including the start of British Superbikes and the Le Mans Series.
    • St. Petersburg, FL: American Le Mans, Indycar Series and the Indy Lights Series
    • Valencia, Spain: World Superbike and World Supersport
    • Bahrain: Formula 1, GP2, Speedcar and Porsche Supercup
    • Catalunya, [...]
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    Posted: April 04, 2008, 12:49pm EDT

  • Brace yourselves for US Top Gear

    Over at my favourite automotive pro-blog Jalopnik, Top Gear is highly-revered. So when some idiot from New Jersey comes by throwing down Clarkson impressions in a most nauseating fashion, you can bet there will be much knashing of teeth.

    Best comment on the video comes from 1300ccsoffury who [...]
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    Posted: April 02, 2008, 6:50pm EDT

  • Max Mosley - it is my OPINION that you are a piece of....

    Number of comments: 2
    ....shit.

    This is disgusting

    For a less inflammatory version, go here.

    Okay, let's be perfectly clear, just so I don't have lawyers on my admirable-helping-underserved-youth-non-profit-job-salary-earning ass: in no way am I representing any of this post as FACT, but I personally FEEL that Max Mosley [...]
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    Posted: April 01, 2008, 6:04pm EDT

  • These guys are gods

    Number of comments: 1
    Watching yesterday's MotoGP from Jerez in widescreen thanks to the BBC's great production values once again showed how unbelievably talented top-shelf motorcycle racers are. Some of them are even utterly cool dudes, to wit Colin Edwards. And Motorcycle Moment of the Year couldn't have gone to a nicer guy than [...]
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    Posted: March 31, 2008, 2:07pm EDT

  • Max

    Number of comments: 3
    I wrote a post earlier today about the story published in News of the World in which they alleged that Max Mosley was involved in a sordid S&M and Nazi-style roleplay session with prostitutes . I even published the post, stuffed full of as many disclaimers as I could think [...]
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    Posted: March 31, 2008, 2:33am EDT

  • David Leslie, 1953-2008

    Number of comments: 2
    I'm sure the motoring press will carry decent, well-researched obituaries for Scottish touring car driver David Leslie, so there's no need for me to go into any great depth about his career. He was a great driver who enjoyed a reasonable amount of success in the BTCC, as well as [...]
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    Posted: March 30, 2008, 8:10pm EDT

  • Max Mosley - it is my OPINION that you are a piece of shit


    This is disgusting

    For a less inflammatory version, go here. I was going to post a link to an article about it from The Times, but it appears as though in the 30 minutes since I looked at it, and now, it has been removed from [...]
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    Posted: March 30, 2008, 6:04pm EDT

  • Weekend Menu - Week 13

    The Indycar and BTCC seasons open this weekend:
    • Brands Hatch, England: BTCC, Formula Renault UK, Porsche Carrera Cup GB
    • Homestead-Miami, FL: Indy Racing League, Indy Pro Series, Grand-Am Rolex Sportscar Series
    • Villa Carlos Paz, Argentina: Rally Argentina (WRC and Production WRC)
    • Nurburgring Nordschleife, Germany: VLN
    • Jerez, Spain: MotoGP, FIM 125GP and 250GP
    • Martinsville, VA: [...]
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    Posted: March 26, 2008, 4:04pm EDT

  • Formula 1, Top Gear-style

    Number of comments: 5
    Rumours are flying in the UK that with the switch of F1 coverage from ITV to BBC next year, Top Gear's Richard Hammond is set to anchor the broadcasts. Furthermore, Jeremy Clarkson and James May, Hammond's co-presenters, may also wind up being [...]
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    Posted: March 21, 2008, 12:31pm EDT

  • Weekend Menu - Week 12

    Here's a list of the weekend's major racing:
    • Sepang, Malaysia: F1, Speedcar, GP2
    • Nogaro, France: FFSA GT
    • Nashville Superspeedway, TN: NASCAR Nationwide Series
    • Oulton Park, England: British F3, British GT
    • Mombasa, Kenya: KCB Safari Rally Kenya (FIA African Rally Championship)
    • Derry, Northern Ireland: Circuit of Ireland Rally (Irish Tarmac Rally Championship)
    [...]
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    Posted: March 21, 2008, 12:24pm EDT

  • What have we learned

    Number of comments: 1
    One final post before I put this whole car shopping thing to bed.

    It's been terrifically engaging to spend all this time deciding on a new car, and it's fair to say that I've learned a lot from the process.

    Gran Turismo 4 does a great job of [...]
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    Posted: March 20, 2008, 6:15pm EDT

  • Return of the virtual track test - now with 100% less virtual - Part 3

    Number of comments: 3
    And so to the top three cars on my shopping list. Remember that I first drove all candidates virtually on the magnificent Gran Turismo 4 Playstation game. At that time I was looking to learn about handling and get an idea of how quick the cars were. Back then, [...]
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    Posted: March 19, 2008, 12:25pm EDT
    by Nicebloke

  • New blog

    Just a quick shout out for a new racing blog, Starting Grid News. These guys (like me) cover all kinds of racing, which is great since it makes for an interesting read. Check it out! [...]
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    Posted: March 18, 2008, 2:03pm EDT

  • Return of the virtual track test - now with 100% less virtual - Part 2

    Number of comments: 1
    After using Gran Turismo 4 to track test cars I was considering buying, the time had come to do some real-world test drives. The lowest ranked cars can be found here.

    Sixth: Pontiac GTO: I originally hadn't considered one of these cars, but [...]
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    Posted: March 18, 2008, 12:33pm EDT

  • Return of the virtual track test - now with less virtual

    Back in the winter, when racing was scarce and the Playstation was looking dusty, I did a virtual track test of a number of cars I was considering buying, having switched jobs and putting myself in the place of being able to afford some new wheels.

    So it's [...]
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    Posted: March 17, 2008, 1:52pm EDT
    by Nicebloke

  • Weekend Menu - Week 11

    What a weekend ahead of us! ALMS starts their season with the magnificent Sebring 12 Hours, and Formula 1 finally sets us free from all the winter page-filling and mud-slinging and actually goes racing...
    • Sebring Raceway, FL: 12 Hours of Sebring (ALMS), Speed World Challenge, Star Mazda, IMSA GT3 Cup [...]
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    Posted: March 14, 2008, 12:27pm EDT

  • Groundbreaking in motorcycle racing

    Number of comments: 1
    It's worth noting two major shifts in motorcycle racing that are occurring this weekend:

    1. MotoGP is running its first-ever night race, in Qatar on Sunday. After numerous tests, there was virtually unanimous agreement amongst riders, officials, press and spectators that it works very well. Formula 1 will stage [...]
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    Posted: March 07, 2008, 1:16pm EST

  • The open-wheel spiderweb

    Much has already been written about the "reunification" of American open wheel racing, and I'm not sure I can add much to the chatter. But one thing that has struck me is the sheer reach and knock-on effect of the situation.

    When Tony George and Kevin Kalkhoven were trying [...]
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    Posted: March 06, 2008, 9:23pm EST

  • Weekend Menu - Week 10

    MotoGP is back this weekend, and AMA kicks off with the Daytona 200.
    • Daytona Speedway, FL - AMA Superbike and the Daytona 200
    • Losail, Qatar - MotoGP and 125 and 250cc GP
    • Atlanta Motor Speedway - NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide Series and Craftsman Trucks
    • Eastern Creek, Australia - V8 Supercars
    • Teretonga Park, New Zealand [...]
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    Posted: March 06, 2008, 9:18pm EST

  • Weekend Menu - Week 9

    Number of comments: 1
    WTCC is back in action...
    • Curitiba, Brazil: World Touring Cars and International GT Open
    • Las Vegas, NV: NASCAR Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series
    • Leon, Mexico: Rally Mexico for the WRC and Production WRC
    • Daytona, FL: Moto-ST's Daytona 300
    • Phillip Island, Australia: World Superbike and World Supersport
    • Llandovery, Wales: MSA Tarmac Rally Championship's Tour of Epynt
    • Laughlin, [...]
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    Posted: February 28, 2008, 10:38pm EST

  • Driver donates organs

    Number of comments: 2
    The support series for Australia's V8 Supercars has suffered another fatality. Back at Bathurst in October 2006 Mark Porter was killed in one of the Fujitsu Series races, and on Monday Ashley Cooper succumbed to injuries he received in a Fujitsu race on Saturday at Adelaide.

    The silver lining [...]
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    Posted: February 27, 2008, 3:28pm EST

  • And World Supersport doesn't look too bad either

    A brief epilogue to my World Superbike preview earlier this week...

    It's worth noting that World Supersport might once again be worth a look. I followed it religiously back in 2002 and 2003 but kind of lost interest as some of the more competitive teams either left for World [...]
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    Posted: February 22, 2008, 2:21pm EST

  • Weekend Menu - Week 8

    Yay, V8 Supercars and World Superbike are back!
    • Adelaide, Australia: V8 Supercars Clipsal 500 and Fujitsu Series
    • Losail, Qatar: World Superbike and World Supersport
    • California Speedway, CA: NASCAR Sprint Cup, Nationwide Series and Craftsman Trucks
    • Bournemouth, England: Sunseeker Rally (MSA Gravel Rally Championship)
    • Durban, South Africa: A1GP
    • Salem, MO: Rally of the 100 Acre Wood [...]
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    Posted: February 21, 2008, 12:26pm EST

  • World Superbike Preview

    Number of comments: 1
    What a weekend we have ahead of us, as both World Superbike and V8 Supercars return to action. Today I'm going to take a quick look at what the former has in store for 2008.

    Championship changes
    Corona have departed as title sponsor, replaced by [...]
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    Posted: February 19, 2008, 9:28pm EST

  • The road course / NASCAR crossover trend

    Number of comments: 1
    Is this a good thing for racing? I'm still trying to decide whether it's okay that road course racing genres losing their drivers to NASCAR is something I support. During NASCAR's Daytona Speedweek Juan Montoya, Dario Franchitti, Robby Gordon, AJ Allmendinger, Jacques Villeneuve, Patrick Carpentier, Boris Said, Marcos Ambrose, Andy [...]
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    Posted: February 16, 2008, 8:20pm EST

  • Midweek Menu - Week 7

    Number of comments: 1
    It's the return of the Midweek Menu. This weekend:
    • Daytona Speedway, FL: NASCAR Sprint Cup (Daytona 500), Nationwide Series, Craftsman Trucks, and on Thursday the two Gatorade Duels to determine grid position for the 500
    • Sentul, Indonesia: GP2 Asia and Speedcar
    • Manfeild Autocourse, New Zealand: NZV8s
    The Gatorade Duels are always worth a [...]
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    Posted: February 12, 2008, 12:57pm EST

  • The M3 returns!

    Yesterday's announcement of BMW returning to the ALMS with the M3 is possibly the best racing news I've heard this year. I'm a huge fan of the iconic M-car, having always lusted after an original E30 since I was a teenager. I would still [...]
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    Posted: February 08, 2008, 12:33am EST

  • IRL wins

    Number of comments: 1
    Let's not beat around the bush: IRL wins, ChampCar loses.

    The IRL has:
    • A car count of 18, the majority of which look like solid, dependable entries
    • A TV package on ESPN2 and ABC that it is not paying for out of pocket
    • American drivers, some of whom have legitimate star [...]
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    Posted: February 06, 2008, 12:27pm EST

  • Aussie V8s' silly season a microcosm of racing economics

    Like it or not, the bulk of silly season activity in any genre of sport is driven by the sponsors that drivers and riders bring. If you have good backing, you'll have a decent chance of a sideways move at worst and an upwards one at best.

    Beyond all [...]
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    Posted: February 05, 2008, 12:36pm EST

  • 2008 Predictions

    Number of comments: 1
    Now that we've looked back at my 2007 predictions, it's time for the 2008 version. In order to improve my terrible results, I'll be posting three predictions for each series. The first pick is the logical pick, whereby past performance, testing and other info indicate this is the best bet. [...]
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    Posted: February 04, 2008, 2:35pm EST

  • Getting ready for predictions

    Number of comments: 2
    This time last year I threw out some predictions, which I plan on doing again. Before that though, let's see how well I did:

    MotoGP
    Predicted: Dani Pedrosa. Actual winner: Casey Stoner. I wasn't far off, since Pedrosa took second, however he was very far behind Stoner and was [...]
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    Posted: February 01, 2008, 1:46pm EST

  • The life of the racing fan

    Number of comments: 2
    Getting up early to watch races. Scheduling non-motorsport weekend activities based on which races are on. Scouring the web for racing torrents. Driving vast distances to attend events. It's all part of being a dedicated racing fan, and with the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona and the Monte Carlo Rally, [...]
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    Posted: January 27, 2008, 1:21pm EST

  • Calendar

    Call it my own little contribution to the worldwide web: I've put together another motorsport calendar. This little project grew out of an Excel spreadsheet I had been keeping for a number of years, highlighting all the racing I wanted to follow. Once it transitioned into an Access database it [...]
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    Posted: January 27, 2008, 1:13pm EST

  • Racing's top dogs come out for the Daytona 24

    Number of comments: 1
    As much as I dislike the Rolex Sportscar Series, there's no doubt that they've done a good job of rebuilding the Daytona 24 Hours after its decline in the late 90s and early 00s. These days the Rolex 24 is something akin to summer (winter?) camp for top drivers of [...]
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    Posted: January 22, 2008, 7:40pm EST

  • One minute superbike

    The good folks over at Superbike Planet just posted a great YouTube video of Ducati Corse building one of their factory World Superbike 999R bikes shot in time-lapse.

    Makes the pathetic 2-hour long process to check the sparkplugs on my old CBR600rr look rather lame... [...]
     | Rate | Archive
    Posted: January 19, 2008, 12:57pm EST

  • RIP Ouninpohja

    The world's fastest rally stage, Rally Finland's Ouninpohja, has been axed for being too fast. The maximum recommended average speed on a gravel stage is 130km/h, or 81mph.

    Back in 2004, Petter Solberg blitzed the 33.01km stage in 15 minutes, 19 seconds. There's amazing video of this on [...]
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    Posted: January 15, 2008, 12:43pm EST

  • The AMA Superbike Sale

    The commercial rights for the AMA Superbike Championship are on the block, and not a moment too soon, given the massive mismanagement over the years. Moto journalist Dennis Noyes has an excellent series of articles about it over at the Speed Channel website. Check out part one and [...]
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    Posted: January 09, 2008, 3:53pm EST

  • Dakar is not dead

    The ASO, organizers of the Dakar Rally, are certainly up against it. Although the event is terrific and well-loved by the motorsport community, mainstream media tends to focus on the more negative aspects of the rally, including competitor deaths, civilian injuries and deaths, kidnappings and terrorist threats.

    This year [...]
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    Posted: January 08, 2008, 9:01pm EST

  • Status update

    Things have been somewhat quiet here lately, a combination of Christmas commitments, a slow news period in racing and a transition to a new job with a new computer on my part. Let it be known however that I'm not missing any of what's going on, chiefly the cancellation of [...]
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    Posted: January 06, 2008, 5:47pm EST

  • Gran Turismo virtual track test epilogue

    Being on a winter break, I decided to revisit my Gran Turismo track test exercise, and managed to improve my times in all eight cars. Interestingly, some gained more than others:
    • M3 - 1'41.859 (-1.905) - gains 2 spots
    • Merc E55 - 1'42.453 (-1.203) - same
    • Evo - 1'43.095 (-0.238) - loses [...]
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    Posted: December 31, 2007, 2:53pm EST

  • The Lappies 2007

    Number of comments: 1
    Time to hand out some gongs. I wouldn't be a legit blogger without coming up with year-end awards, so with slight apologies to Jimmy over at The Armchair Bike Fan blog, here we go....

    Race Car of the Year:
    Citroen C4 - In no other top international championship [...]
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    Posted: December 27, 2007, 5:45pm EST

  • Gran Turismo virtual track test Part 3

    Number of comments: 4
    Belly full of pizza, I got stuck into the second half of my track test of the cars on my shortlist for purchase in 2008. An overview of this madcap idea can be found here and the first half of the test here.

    [...]
     | Rate | Archive
    Posted: December 19, 2007, 12:41pm EST

  • Gran Turismo virtual track test Part 2

    Number of comments: 3
    We're off to the track! Yesterday I outlined my plan to track test the nine cars that are on the shortlist for my next car purchase, and to do it on the Gran Turismo 4 video game. Today, I took the first four of them out onto the track at [...]
     | Rate | Archive
    Posted: December 18, 2007, 2:37pm EST

  • Gran Turismo virtual track test

    Since we're in the off-season and racing news is somewhat thin on the ground, I think it's time for a little fun and games...

    I've been lucky enough to be offered a new job starting in the New Year, and it brings with it a very significant pay increase. [...]
     | Rate | Archive
    Posted: December 18, 2007, 2:33am EST
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