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By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Denny Hamlin headed into Martinsville Speedway with high hopes to overcome mistakes from recent visits at the half-mile oval, but Sunday’s STP 500 proved no different for the defending Daytona 500 champion. Hamlin, 35, had five wins in 20 previous races at Martinsville, including 16 top 10 finishes, but he acknowledged earlier in the week that recent mistakes have hurt his chances to secure wins. Sunday proved to be no different. From the start of the race Hamlin was a man on the move, but itRead More

Nico Rosberg’s dream start to the 2016 season continued as the German took his second consecutive victory and his first in Bahrain and his first at the Gulf circuit. Kimi Raikkonen took his fifth second place with Lewis Hamilton recovering to third after a first-corner collision. Before the start there was disappointment for Ferrari as Sebastian Vettel, set to start from third, slowed on the formation lap with smoke billowing from the back of his car. His failure to start, the first of his career, meant a space opened onRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Staff Writer The Verizon IndyCar Series ran their second event on the schedule, and the first oval event of the year last night. Target Chip Ganassi driver, Scott Dixon, won the race in a dominating fashion leading the final 155 laps at Phoenix International Raceway. Allow me to share some observations of what we witnessed on Saturday Night. 1 ) The Aero Package isn’t quite right    As a few drivers and team owners predicted, the racing became largely processional with the cars becoming strung out. DriversRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Heading into Saturday night’s Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix, Mikhail Aleshin appeared to have a top 10 within reach, until mistimed strategy and a spin coming to pit road ended the Russian’s chances and left him with an ill-fated result of 17th. Aleshin, 28, was out to prove early on that his No. 7 SMP Racing Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda could keep up with the daunting pace Chevrolet teams set in qualifying at the Desert Mile. The Russian started 13th and was one ofRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief In his Verizon IndyCar Series oval debut, Max Chilton hung with some of the best in the business en route to a stellar seventh place finish in the Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix at Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday night. Chilton’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammate, Scott Dixon, soared to his 39th series win, but it was the former Formula 1 driver that had other drivers, notably Graham Rahal, impressed by his performance. “I was just happy Chilton didn’t get me because, my God, ChiltonRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Staff Writer Earlier this evening, the Verizon IndyCar Series made its much-anticipated return to Phoenix International Raceway. When all was said and done, it was Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon standing tall in victory lane at the Diamond Desert West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix. “It was tough, definitely one of the toughest races on these short ovals.” said Dixon, a four-time series champion, “The car was super-fast. I think we had the best car out there on strategies and pit stops.” Dixon was followed to theRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Kyle Busch, come get your clock. Leading a race-high 123 of 255 laps, Kyle Busch pulled off an overtime victory in Saturday’s Alpha Energy Solutions 250 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway and filled a major hole in his resume by securing the coveted grandfather clock that goes to the victor. “I’ve got a couple owners’ ones, but never one of my own,” said Busch, who got an excellent launch on the final restart and won the two-lapRead More

AVONDALE, Ariz. – Kyle Kaiser and his Juncos Racing team put on a clinic today when the top tier of the Mazda Road to Indy open-wheel development ladder, Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires, made its return to the Phoenix International Raceway oval following a 10-year hiatus. Dubai-based Englishman Ed Jones, 21, pushed as hard as he could for the Carlin team but never quite had the pace to challenge for the lead. RC Enerson, 19, from New Port Richey, Fla., completed the podium in this afternoon’s Indy Lights GrandRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service Who provides Denny Hamlin his most formidable competition at Martinsville? No, it’s not Jimmie Johnson, who has won eight times at the fabled short track. And it’s not Joey Logano, who has won the last three poles at Martinsville. Denny Hamlin’s stiffest competition at the .526-mile speedway is Denny Hamlin, because, all too often, the driver of the No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota has beaten himself. “I don’t know how many pit road penalties I’ve had here at this race track, or whyRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service MARTINSVILLE, Va. – If there’s anyone who should know just how much racing at Martinsville has changed over the years, the man with all the answers is the King. The unparalleled master of short track racing in NASCAR’s premier series, Richard Petty accumulated the most wins (15), most top fives (30) and most top 10s (37) at the .526-mile speedway. But in Petty’s day, success at Martinsville — site of Sunday’s STP 500 (1 p.m. ET on FS1) — was as much about runningRead More