A week of practice led us to believe that the Chevys were going to be fastest but the Hondas could stay in touch and star up front. However, when wheels were turned in anger, it was all Chevy, all day. Surprisingly, though, it wasn’t the Penskes or Andrettis who had been dominating practice who won the pole but Ed Carpenter who will start P1 for the Greatest Spectacle in Motorsport.
Sports
F1 Spanish GP: Send Them Home Happy
When putting on live events, most promoters and performers have a simple philosophy: “Send the fans home happy.” Well, Fernando Alonso and Scuderia Ferrari certainly did that at yesterday’s Spanish Grand Prix as the Spanish driver and local hero took his second career win in the Spanish Grand Prix.
F1 Power Rankings: Spanish Grand Prix
After four flyaway races to start the season, the Formula One World Championship returns to Europe to start the heart of the season. The European season runs from May through to mid-September will separate the pretenders from the contenders. Given that we’ve had a pretty varied set of results for the first four races, a little settling into a groove is probably due.
IndyCar – Sao Paulo Indy: Re-Elect Hinch
It used to be that we didn’t expect much passing from a street race but that’s changed since the introduction of the DW12. That was never more evident than yesterday in Sao Paulo when an absolutely epic IndyCar race ended with a pass for the win on the final turn of the last lap to give the Mayor of Hinchtown, James Hinchcliffe, his second win of the season.
IndyCar – Long Beach GP: Break On Through
It’s been almost twelve years since Takuma Sato last won a race. That was the legendary Macau Grand Prix in November 2011. AJ Foyt Racing hasn’t run a race since an oval race in Kansas in July 2002. All it took for the two to break their losing streaks was to find each other as Takuma Sato picked up his first IndyCar win by taking the chequered flag at the Grand Prix of Long Beach.
F1 Bahrain GP: Yes, They’re Still Running This Race
Since the Arab Spring protests that started in 2011, Formula One’s stop in a country with protests has been very controversial. Many think that the race should be cancelled because a Grand Prix is just a way to legitimize the Bahrain government because of the economic impact of the race. Other’s think that making a decision based on political reasoning isn’t something F1 should do because it’s a sport.
Still, the race took place again amid the protests. For the second year running we had an all Renault engine podium and it was actually the exact same podium in the exact same order as last year as Sebastian Vettel picked up his second straight Bahrain Grand Prix win.
F1 Power Rankings: Bahrain Grand Prix
Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone likes to claim that the World Championship isn’t used for nor is allowed to be used for political purposes. However, the Formula One World Championship returns to the Kingdom of Bahrain, the land that the press covering the Arab Spring forgot. From the sounds of it, things haven’t gotten better for the people of Bahrain.
I’ll write a bit more about that during my race and news recap. For now, here are this round’s Power Rankings, assuming that this race is allowed to go ahead. Since Bernie appears to be oblivious to how Bahrain’s leadership is using the Grand Prix to portray a positive public image, let’s just assume there will be a race this weekend.
F1 Chinese GP: Time for Tyres
The talk about tyres has been growing since Pirelli took over as the sole tyre manufacture in Formula One. This weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix saw tyres and pit strategy play a significant part. Fernando Alonso won the race but he certainly wasn’t what people were talking about. Even on the podium, the drivers were talking amongst themselves about the effect the tyres had on the race.
F1 Power Rankings: Chinese Grand Prix
After a couple of weeks off, the 2013 Formula One World Championship returns to action with the Chinese Grand Prix. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I really hate the schedule’s two weeks on, two weeks off, two weeks on, two weeks off schedule to start the year. Still, I don’t hate it as much as Adrian Sutil must hate returning to the scene of the crime.
IndyCar – GP of Alabama: Bouncing Back
The first round of the season at St. Petersburg didn’t go well for many of the expected championship contenders. Will Power’s race was derailed when he was hit by J.R. Hildebrand. Dario Franchitti was the first car out after hitting the wall on cold tires. And Ryan Hunter-Reay had a mechanical problem that relegated him to an 18th place finish.
This week at the Barber Motorsports Park, two out of the three were able to turn their seasons around. Franchitti finished 25th for the second consecutive race but Power was able to finish fifth. However, it was the defending champion Ryan Hunter-Reay who picked up his first win of the season.
The Lowdown 