All posts by Joey Barnes

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief INDIANAPOLIS – Brian Belardi got his first taste of the emotions that come with attempting to qualify for the Indianapolis 500. The co-owner of the No. 33 Foyt with Byrd/Hollinger/Belardi entry endured a 24 hours that saw driver James Davison crash on Friday, only to come back and take the final spot among the field of 33 on Bump Day qualifying on Saturday. The four-lap average of 224.798 mph (2 minutes, 40.1439 seconds) around the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway was enough to keep him on theRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief INDIANAPOLIS – It was the drama everyone missed, but it wasn’t the outcome expected as the return of Bump Day for the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500 claimed James Hinchcliffe. The 31-year-old Canadian, who is currently fifth in the Verizon IndyCar Series championship standings, was knocked out of the field of 33 with 18 minutes remaining in the session. He went out for a second attempt, but a vibration on the warm-up lap drew concern and returned to the pits with 11 minutes remaining. FromRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief The crown jewel of Formula 1 is looming with the Monaco Grand Prix. FIA Race Director and Motorsport Industry Association ambassador Charlie Whiting is the leading man when it comes to standards on and around the track, and the streets of Monte Carlo are no exception. He breaks down some of the ins and outs in the work that goes into building up a temporary street circuit as they ready for the race on May 27. Our friends from Mobil 1 The Grid have put together videoRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief INDIANAPOLIS – Zachary Claman De Melo has been officially announced as the replacement for the injured Pietro Fittipaldi at Dale Coyne Racing for the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil. After making his Verizon IndyCar Series debut at ISM Raceway (formerly Phoenix International Raceway) last month, Fittipaldi was originally slated to make his first run at the Brickyard. However, he was injured after a heavy crash during FIA World Endurance Championship qualifying for the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps in Belguim onRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Max Verstappen enjoyed a solid day at the office after successfully overcoming front wing damage to claim the final spot on the podium for Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix. The third-place result at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is easily his best performance of the 2018 Formula 1 season, which saw the 20-year-old Dutchman retire twice in the opening four races and only muster a previous best of fifth (Chinese Grand Prix). “I always feel quite good on this track and today has been a nice turning point afterRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Robert Kubica made his official return to a Formula 1 race weekend for the first time since 2010, ending 19th quickest in Friday morning practice ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix. The outing at was less than ideal as Kubica was 3.362 seconds off the pace, but still managed to place ahead of Williams teammate Lance Stroll by 1.246 seconds at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. Stroll also crashed with half an hour to go the session. Overall, the first of three scheduled opening practice sessions for 2018Read More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Sahara Force India Formula 1 Team will hand the keys over to three junior drivers for the upcoming in-season test in Barcelona on May 15-16. The Silverstone-based squad will feature reserve driver Nicholas Latifi and development pilot Nikita Mazepin in one car. Mercedes junior driver George Russell will be in a second car and will provide help for Pirelli in part for tire development. The run will be Latifi’s first outing in the VJM11 after being pulled out of preseason testing in February due to illness.Read More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief The Verizon IndyCar Series is four races into their 2018 season and the universal aero kit has elevated the spectacle with improved passing and elevated the overall racing product by putting the car back into the drivers’ hands. Marco Andretti (Andretti-Herta Autosport), Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing), Graham Rahal (Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing) and rookie Robert Wickens (Schmidt Peterson Motorsports) are among those that have enjoyed a solid start to the year and break down why the new car is such a game-changer for the sport. OurRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Kevin Magnussen spared no expense in his belief that the Haas F1 Team are right in the thick of the midfield battle with the likes of Renault and McLaren. The 25-year-old Dane has scored 11 points through the opening three races, which sits him 10th in the Formula One World Driver’s Championship. The flipside is that he is the only driver to provide points for the American team, with Romain Grosjean yet to finish in the top 10. As it stands heading into Baku for theRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief With three races into the 2018 Formula One season, everything is still just as unclear as the day it began. An incredible performance by Aston Martin Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo put him as the star of the show at the last round in China, with momentum also on his side as the defending race winner for the last year’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Our friends from Mobil 1 The Grid have brought the affable Aussie on to explain how he captured the remarkable victory last season inRead More