Indianapolis 500 Mile Race

IZOD IndyCar Series 2012

27/05/2012 by PeteS2K

The fifth round of the 2012 Indycar Series is the main event of the year, and after the traditional month of May build up, Sunday will see the 96th running of the Indianapolis 500. Ryan Briscoe will start from pole position after qualifying with an average speed of 226.484 mph. Championship leader Will Power is in the middle of the 2nd row in 5th position and Indy 500 rookie Rubens Barichello will line up in an impressive 10th place. At the rear of the 33 car grid is another F1 old boy and Indy rookie Jean Alesi who qualified with a worryingly slow speed of 210.094mph. The event will also see several tributes to last years winner Dan Wheldon including Bryan Herta taking last year's winning car out on track. Wheldon's win last year will serve as a reminder that the 500 isn't over until you cross line, so be sure to watch all the way the chequers!

Monster Energy Grand Prix de France

FIM Road Racing World Championship 2012

20/05/2012 by PeteS2K

Round 4 of the MotoGP World Championship sees the bikes head off to the Bugatti Circuit at Le Mans and after qualifying Dani Pedrosa is leading the way. It's been Casey Stoner however who has written all the headlines before the race after announcing he will be retiring at the end of the year. Stoner was consistently at the top of the time sheets in qualifying, but a late fall on the drying track means he will start behind Pedrosa in 2nd place. Jorge Lorenzo is a threat and, as always, is keeping the Hondas honest at the very front. Once again the Tech3 of Cal Crutchlow and Andrea Dovizioso are knocking on the door of the podium and they continue to put pressure on works rider Ben Spies.

Grande Prémio de Portugal Circuito Estoril

FIM Road Racing World Championship 2012

06/05/2012 by PeteS2K

The 3rd round of the MotoGP championship takes place at Estoril and following on from his victory in Jerez last week, Casey Stoner will once again be looking to hold off the ever present challenge of Jorge Lorenzo’s Yahama. Stoner’s Honda teammate Dani Pedrosa will pushing for his 1st win of the year after picking up two podiums in the opening two rounds British rider Cal Crutlow has impressed with two strong 4th place finishes and, if he tidies up the few mistakes he’s made in the opening laps, the former World SuperSport champion could well be on the MotoGP rostrum for the first time. At the other end of the scale the Ducati riders, especially Rossi, continue to struggle and some very poor performances from American Ben Spies on the second works Yahama means the pressure is mounting already. Away from the top class, young Italian rider Romano Fenati took his maiden Grand Prix victory in Moto3 at Jerez in what was only his second GP. This 16 year old was considered one to watch for the future, but he has proved already that he is one to watch now!

WEC 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps

World Endurance Championship 2012

05/05/2012 by PeteS2K

After joining forces with the American Le Mans Series for the opening round at Sebring, the WEC is in Europe for round 2 at the fantastic Spa-Francorchamps. However, the expected arrival of the works Toyota cars into the championship has now been delayed until the Le Mans 24 following a heavy testing crash put the team's schedule back. Audi will be looking to take advantage of this as they field twelve drivers in four cars, two of which will be hybrid powered. Whilst the LMP1 class may be a little one-sided, there is plenty of competition for the LMP2 and the GT honours. However, Status Grand Prix have been forced to withdraw their LMP2 entry after Alex Sims crashed hard at the end Thursday’s second free practice session. The 6G impact at the top of Eau Rouge left the team without enough spares to rebuild the car.

São Paulo Indy 300

IZOD IndyCar Series 2012

29/04/2012 by PeteS2K

In the last race before the traditional Month of May and the Indianapolis 500, the Indycar Series moves to Brazil and the streets of São Paulo. Will Power goes in to the race as heavy favourite after winning the last two events and taking the championship lead. He'll face competition however from the Brazilian drivers of Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan, Ana Beatriz and series newcomer Rubens Barrichello who will be looking to impress in front of their home crowd.

MotoGP Gran Premio bwin De Espana

FIM Road Racing World Championship 2012

29/04/2012 by PeteS2K

After a 3 week break MotoGP returns for the second round of the championship in Jerez. Jorge Lorenzo will be fighting with fellow compatriat Dani Pedrosa for top Spanish honours whereas Casey Stoner will be hoping he's got over his arm-pump problems from Qatar that cost him the race win. British rider Cal Crutchlow looked fast in qualifying and will no doubt be pushing for his first podium. As usual the top class MotoGP will be preceded by the Moto3 & Moto2 World Championships.

Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach

IZOD IndyCar Series 2012

15/04/2012 by PeteS2K

After a great race in Alabama, Indycar moves to the Californian streets of Long Beach. Unluckily the majority of teams face an uphill struggle this weekend following problems in a recent test session; every Chevrolet powered car has been forced to change engines and faces a 10 place grid penalty. Combine this with the continued struggles of the Lotus cars, who also face penalties, expect the Honda teams to be at the front when the green flag drops. Who will be there when the chequers fly is a different matter as the narrow streets of Long Beach will heavily punish the smallest of mistakes.

Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar

FIM Road Racing World Championship 2012

08/04/2012 by PeteS2K

The new season of MotoGP gets started under the lights of the Losail circuit in Qatar, and whilst Moto2 stays the same, it's all change in the other two classes. Gone are the 2-stroke 125cc bikes having been replaced by the new Moto3 class that uses 4 stroke 250's. In the top class the engines have been increased to 1000cc which will hopefully improve the racing. Look out the Maverick Viñales in Moto3 and it should be Stoner vs Lorenzo in MotoGP. As for Moto2, that will be it's usual chaotic self, so it's anybody's guess!

Honda Grand Prix of Alabama

IZOD IndyCar Series 2012

01/04/2012 by PeteS2K

For the second race of the year IndyCar moves to the Barber Motorsport Park in Alabama, and, after taking his first victory in over a year, Helio Castroneves will be looking to build on his win at the season opener in St Petersburg. Defending series champion Dario Franchitti will be hoping to improve on last week's disappointing 13th place finish, as will F1 refugee Rubens Barrichello who managed only 17th on his debut. Last year's race at Barber was won by Will Power, so look out for another strong showing from the Australian title contender.

Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

IZOD IndyCar Series 2012

25/03/2012 by PeteS2K

It's time for a fresh start in Indycar! Things get started on the streets of St Petersburg, which as the adopted home of Dan Wheldon seems only fitting after the tragic events at the season finale in Las Vegas. It will be an emotional weekend at the track where Dan won in 2005, he took the lead at Turn 7 in that race and in his honour the road there has been named Dan Wheldon Way. Also named in Dan's honour is the new car for this season, the DW12.The fight for the title will likely be between the Ganassi (Honda) of Dario Franchitti and Will Power's Penske (Chevrolet). Joining Tony Kanaan in the KV Racing Technology team is his 'brother' and F1 legend Rubens Barrichello. With the increased downforce and carbon brakes the DW12 brings this year to Indycar, it couldn't be a better time for Rubinho to make the switch. I have no idea who will be victorious around St Petersburg. I'm just going to sit back and enjoy finding out who Holly Wheldon will be presenting the winner trophy to.

Where have all the good men gone?

Ex-F1 drivers make their way to the World Endurance Championship

08/03/2012 by PeteS2K

Formula 1 is a difficult place for a driver to get to, and often when they do get there, the stay is not a long or prosperous one. So what happens to the talent that the F1 gods reject? This year eight drivers with experience in the big leagues will be fighting it out for a different crown as the World Endurance Championship gets under way.