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Two youngsters who have honed their skills in Europe in recent years staged a fine battle for the lead in this afternoon’s opening round of the Cooper Tires Winterfest, with Briton Jack Aitken (Team Pelfrey) narrowly holding off Andretti Autosport’s Weiron Tan at NOLA Motorsports Park. Aitken, 19, from London, England, returned to the Pro Mazda ranks following an impressive debut performance in last year’s season finale at Sonoma Raceway, where he finished fourth. His focus this year will be on a return to the Formula Renault Eurocup, but heRead More
Jake Eidson capped a glorious return to form for Pabst Racing by claiming a convincing victory in this afternoon’s opening round of the Cooper Tires Winterfest mini-series at NOLA Motorsports Park. The Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing pair of Aaron Telitz and Nico Jamin secured the other podium positions after a race-long battle.   Eidson, who finished third in the “regular season” championship in 2014, laid down a marker earlier in the afternoon by snatching the pole position with a best lap of 1:36.306 on the 2.75-mile, 16-turn roadRead More

Posted On February 19, 2015By Motorsports TribuneIn In the Gravel Trap

In the Gravel Trap: Episode XVI 02/18

  Adam Tate (Tribute Racing), Josh Farmer (Motorsport Monday), Christopher DeHarde (Motorsport.com), and Joey Barnes (Tribute Racing) gear up for the 16th instalment of “In the Gravel Trap” with the latest look into IndyCar media day, along with the NASCAR action from Daytona. Chevrolet has released its new aero-kits for the Verizon IndyCar Series, James Jakes is the new face at Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, and Chip Ganassi Racing gives its hotshoe development driver Sage Karam the nod for its fourth seat at the season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. DaytonaRead More
After a busy month of winter testing, Juncos Racing is set to kick off the 2015 Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires race campaign this week in the “Mazda Road to Indy” Cooper Tires Winterfest Championship. Juncos Racing captured the team and driver 2014 Pro Mazda Championships in addition to the 2014 Cooper Tires Winterfest Championship. Juncos Racing’s Pro Mazda drivers José Gutiérrez, Will Owen, Garett Grist, and Timothé Buret look to carry the momentum gained in preseason testing over to the first official championship of the 2015 season.Read More
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Denny Hamlin had their qualifying times disallowed by NASCAR and will have to start from the rear of the Budweiser Duels after failing post qualifying inspection. Earnhardt’s car did not meet the minimum height on the left front. NASCAR abandoned their ride height rules for all tracks with the exception of Daytona and Talladega, the only that require restrictor plates on the cars. The defending Daytona 500 champion acknowledged the violation via twitter, but later shared some optimism on starting from theRead More

Posted On February 15, 2015By Motorsports TribuneIn Monster Energy Cup

Gordon Wins Pole Final in Daytona 500 Appearance

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.—Jeff Gordon won a high-stakes game of “Beat the Clock” on Sunday, with the pole for his final Daytona 500 the ultimate prize. Gordon crossed the start/finish line to start his pole-winning lap as time expired in the final round of knockout qualifying at Daytona International Speedway. His time of 44.711 seconds (201.293 mph) was .035 seconds better than that of Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson, who secured the outside front-row starting spot for next Sunday’s 57th running of the Great American Race (1 p.m. ET on FOX).Read More
After being involved in a wreck during the opening round of qualifying that left his Daytona 500 primary car beyond repair, Clint Bowyer was left fuming with the NASCAR hierarchy. Bowyer led a group of drivers that included Bobby Labonte, and Denny Hamlin as the trio began to catch and get held up the previously damaged car of Reed Sorenson. The two made contact when Bowyer attempted to get under Sorenson going into turn one, sparking a crash that collected them along with the car driven by Labonte. The newRead More

Posted On February 15, 2015By Joey BarnesIn Monster Energy Cup

On Point: The Sprint Unlimited

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series kicked off their 2015 season with a Saturday night shootout at the 2.5-mile Daytona International Speedway. The Sprint Unlimited featured an abundance of cautions equipped with a pair of red flags, none of which could keep Matt Kenseth from Victory Lane at the end of the 75-lap event. Here are some key things to take away from NASCAR’s annual exhibition race. Matt Kenseth Still Has It, but Hasn’t Won Anything…Yet After a disastrous 2014 season that saw the Joe Gibbs Racing driver go winless (withRead More

Posted On February 15, 2015By Motorsports TribuneIn Monster Energy Cup

Kenseth Wins Dramatic Sprint Unlimited

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.—Matt Kenseth did what he couldn’t do all of last year — win a race. And Martin Truex Jr., runner-up in Saturday night’s 75-lap Sprint Unlimited exhibition race at Daytona International Speedway, did what he could do only once in 2014 — lead a lap. Coming to the finish line on the last lap, Kenseth blocked Truex’s move off Turn 4 and crossed the finish line in his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota .219 seconds ahead of Truex, who led four times for 28 laps after leadingRead More

Posted On February 14, 2015By Joey BarnesIn Monster Energy Cup

The 2015 Sprint Unlimited Preview

The 2015 NASCAR Sprint Cup season gets underway Saturday night at Daytona International Speedway for the Sprint Unlimited. The 75-lap event is a non-points exhibition race, but depending on who is at the front at the end could be a great indication of who will be strong for the upcoming Daytona 500. This year a field of 25 cars will take to the high-banks, considerably larger than last year’s 18. Even with one of the biggest fields in recent memory, four drivers will not participate in the race: AJ Allmendinger,Read More