"Racing"

The first round of the 2011 Formula 1 season has been and gone.

The Australian GP was dominated by Sebastian Vettel, with Lewis Hamilton in second. This was the order coming out of the first corner on the first lap and stayed that way to the end. 

The surprise of the race was Vitaly Petrov finishing in third!

The unsurprises of the race were the success of the KERS, the DRS and the racing in general. The KERS, (the Kinda E-relvant, but the racing so dull we need to, Recover it System) meant so much the race winner did not even have it... the DRS "overtaking" system (Drivers can't Race on their own System), meant so much, pardon, the DRS "what" system... and the amazing standard of what little racing there actually was... Barrichello got it totally wrong in a "that's never going to work" move, well at least he's still young and not one of the most experienced drivers in the field... but at least Jenson Button had the balls to attempt to go round the outside of another car only to find he was never going to make it, had to cut across the next corner and got a penalty for his "efforts". Oh dear!

In the world of NASCAR, a 400 mile race at California threw up some surprises and some not-so-surprises of its' own. What started an average race, the not-so-surprising part, ended a stunner, the surprising bit! Kyle Busch, who led most of the race, was trying to hold on while Jimmie Johnson did everything he could to take it. at the same time Kevin Harvick got physical saying "I don't think so" and beat them both... and all that in the last two laps! A great ending!!

Pity they didn't have KERS or DRS movable rear wings though...

That would have made all the difference...

Now Thats What I Call A Vodafone Freebie!

Cool!

Not Just a Stretch of... Concrete

A couple of weeks ago I expressed concern over the upcoming changes at Phoenix. I hoped that changing the layout and bringing in progressive banking doesn’t rob NASCAR racing of one its most “characterful" tracks.

Bristol is “the” short track... Or it was. I loved the old Bristol. Everything about the track was fast, dramatic, action packed! It was a place where you needed the patience of a saint, and the front bumper strength of a Greek god. Never has the term “moving up the field” meant so much as overtaking involved “moving” your opposition “up” out of the way... something about “ratteling” and “cage” comes to mind... can’t think why...

Anyway, the track changed a couple of years ago with a the laying of a new “progressive banking” surface. The idea was to introduce two racing grooves to Bristol for the first time. You could run on the bottom, the shorter way around but slower in the turns due to the shallower banking, or run up high, the longer way round but faster due to the steeper banking.

It works too! Bristol does have two grooves now. The drivers can run side-by-side at Bristol however much of the Bristol myth is built around the last lap contact, the boos, the cheers, the “ratteling” of the “cage”.

This last lap drama has been missing since the new banking was put in, which is odd as you would hope that two good racing grooves would mean lots of close two wide finishes, but so far it has not hapened. However the track does produce good racing, better even than the old one-groove surface.

Did NASCAR loose one of its most iconic tracks with the resurfacing or did it gain another?

I like the new Bristol. I want to love it I really do... maybe in time.

What Happens In Vegas, Stays In Vegas??

If you are were a Chevy driver on Sunday, you’ll be hoping this is the case. Tony Stewart had the best car in the race, and with one bad pit stop threw the race away. The Hendick drivers had an average day with the previous weeks winner Gordon in the wall, the 48 not really a front runner, while Earnhardt put together a top 10 run... or to put it another way, Earnhardt Jr ran well all day and finished in the top 10! To be fair JPM’s 42 Impala had a very good day too with a third place finish...

Toyota had also better hope that what happens’, stays’... The top Camry driver was “Rowdy” Busch and his day ended early. The top finishing Toyota was Martin Truex in sixth.

Ford however had better hope that what happens in Vegas’ stays around all season long. While the Ford Fusion of Carl Edwards won the race, the RPM Motorsport car of Marcos Ambrose also ran well finishing fourth!

Las Vegas wasn’t the greatest race ever, but it does show that anything can happen, and probably will!

Oh, another person who will want to carry the momentum gained in Las Vegas forward, after a fourth place finish is Danica... Good Job!! 

Next up, an off week, then Bristol... mmm Bristol!!

Another Cool Taxi Ride!!

After the V8Supercar "road test", and Brian Vickers taxi ride in New york, now Tony Stewart has had a go!

TAXI!!



For the other vides please go to...

http://jameswright42.blogspot.com/2010/12/bored-with-no-racing-part-1.html

Not Just A Stretch of Tarmac!

Race tracks have characters, personalities, they are individual.

Martinsville is the flat short track with the paperclip turns. Bristol the high speed, high banked short track. Richmond, another short track, is totally different from the rest.

Even the road race circuits are individual from each other. Infineon a hilly hard hitting rollercoaster ride, Watkins Glen a more delicate, fast flowing example of right and left turns.

Some tracks on the NASCAR “circuit” are a bit too similar for their own good; Texas, Charlotte and Atlanta for example. Daytona and Talladega are very similar on paper but each has it's own personality. In this case that’s a good thing as one 'plate track would not be enough, and three probably too many.

Phoenix is a track all on its own, unlike any other. A strange combination of fairly flat banking, flowing turns and a tight kink on the back straightaway. Phoenix works. A handling track, sure. Not much grip, sure. Good for two wide racing, sure. Individual, definitely!

Unfortunately after last Sundays Sprint Cup race the track is due to be not only resurfaced, but also redesigned. New variable banking, wider turns and a less dramatic kink out back will be covered in new sticky tarmac.

The combination of a tight, tricky, slick but very racy 1 mile race track and a 312 miles short race made for a good race last Sunday. Another “storyline” to start the season... Jeff Gordon breaks his winless streak!

At a time when NASCAR are attempting to put the “character” back into the sport I hope the changes to Phoenix won’t rob the sport of one of its most characterful pieces of tarmac!