All posts by Joey Barnes

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief The Andretti Autosport No. 27 entry driven by Marco Andretti will see its primary sponsor for the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season change from hhgregg to United Fiber & Data. Originally set for a full campaign, hhgregg recently closed over 80 stores and has now filed for bankruptcy. “We’d like to wish Bob (Riesbeck) and the entire hhgregg family luck as they work through the current situation,” said Andretti Autosport CEO Michael Andretti in a team release. “We are blessed to have such loyal and dedicated partners; andRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief For the fifth consecutive season, Dale Coyne Racing will have Pippa Mann behind the wheel for the Indianapolis 500. The 33-year-old British driver will be competing in her sixth Indy 500 overall, joining Sebastien Bourdais and rookie Ed Jones for the three car effort by Coyne. “I’m very happy to be rejoining Dale Coyne Racing for my fifth consecutive year with the team at the 101st Indy 500,” said Mann via a team release. “Dale has invested heavily in the team over the winter, and it’sRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo will start the Australian Grand Prix from 15th position after being handed a five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change. The 27-year-old Aussie spun in Turn 14 during Q3 on Saturday and backed his RB13 into the barrier, causing significant damage to the rear. Since he didn’t officially turn a lap during the session, Ricciardo was previously set to start the race from 10th. The penalty pushes Force India’s Sergio Perez up to 10th and slid Nico Hulkenberg, Fernando Alonso, EstebanRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Jolyon Palmer has called out Renault after a rough Saturday came to a halt after a last place result in qualifying for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. The 26-year-old Brit took blame for his crash in second practice on Friday, which forced the team to rebuild the R.S.17. However, Palmer struggled with pace in FP3, ending the session 19th before the day worsened in qualifying. With a lap at 1 minute, 28.244 seconds, Palmer was well over a second off the next slowest car, which wasRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Formula 1 rookie Lance Stroll will take a five-place grid penalty after his FW40 required a gearbox change due to a crash in final practice. The 18-year-old Canadian lost control of his car on the exit of Turn 10. The backend made the initial contact with the wall, causing damage to the rear chassis, front wing and front suspension. The crash came towards the end of FP3, bringing out the red flag before ultimately sidelining the remainder of the session. Stroll was the subject of aRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Pascal Wehrlein has been ruled out for the remainder of the weekend for the Australian Grand Prix following concerns in Friday’s two practice sessions. The 22-year-old German was injured in a crash during the Race of Champions event in Miami in January, which forced him to miss part of preseason testing in Barcelona. The 2015 DTM champion, Wehrlein took himself out of the car for the remainder of the weekend due to concerns over his fitness level. “My fitness level is not as it should beRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Honda are aiming to bring an updated engine with increased power levels McLaren, with some positive gains made on the reliability front. Fernando Alonso ran a relatively trouble free day on Friday, finishing 12th in the second practice for the Australian Grand Prix. McLaren looked obviously down on horsepower to their competitors, but Honda revealed that work is being done to ensure a better power unit is in the plans, with the aim to bring is before June. Teams are set at moving to their secondRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Ferrari defended itself in how they have been more accessible for the media, something Liberty Media wants Formula 1 to be more engaged in moving forward. The Italian squad came under fire when they elected to have Kimi Raikkonen not speak to the press Thursday, but instead post a video to Twitter, while Sebastian Vettel spoke to the press. Maurizio Arrivabene, team principal at Scuderia Ferrari, discussed the actions on Friday and believes that they are doing their part to make it better for the fans.Read More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Before we discuss some of the changes hitting Mercedes, let’s take a look at some of what was accomplished under the old regulations. First off, they enter 2017 as the defending champions as a constructor, and as a driver’s champion with the Nico Rosberg.  The past three seasons have seen the German outfit capture three constructor titles, which were matched equally with driver’s championships, along with 51 victories. However, the stunning retirement of reigning F1 champion Rosberg put the team in a bit of a scramble.Read More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Simply put, Scuderia Ferrari did not meet the expectations of 2016. The Italian squad enjoyed three wins in their first campaign with four-time champion Sebastian Vettel in 2015, which brought title aspirations into last season. However, a surprisingly uncompetitive season by Ferrari standards left them with a rare season of zero victories. Solid chances for wins were squandered at Australia and Canada last season, and worse, Red Bull Racing overthrew them as main challengers to rival Mercedes. The new technical regulations are a welcomed site asRead More