All posts by Joey Barnes

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Renault Sport F1 Team announced that Jolyon Palmer will return for the 2017 season. The 25-year-old Brit and 2014 GP2 Series champion has endured a tough rookie campaign, but managed to score his first championship point in round 16 at the Malaysian Grand Prix last month. Palmer joins recently announced Nico Hulkenberg at Renault, giving the Enstone-based team a veteran presence to go along with its progressing driver. After several weeks of debate, Palmer expressed jubilation upon his announced return. “I’m over the moon to beRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief FORT WORTH, Texas – Kevin Harvick’s eventful evening that included a tangle with polesitter Austin Dillon, ended with a sixth-place finish in the AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway. The 1.5-mile oval has been plagued with bad weather on race weekends recently and Sunday proved to be no different, but once the event got underway, Harvick, who qualified third, looked like a contender for the win in the early stages. However, the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion lost pace to the Toyota’s of MartinRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief FORT WORTH, Texas – Ryan Reed and Darrell Wallace Jr. find themselves on the outside of the Chase bubble with one race remaining in the Round of 8 following Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge at Texas Motor Speedway. Wallace encountered a wealth of handling issues on his No. 6 Leidos Ford Mustang for much of the afternoon, managing to come home 11th and now sits seventh in the NASCAR Xfinity Series standings, 20 points out of the final transfer spot. “I actually thought we would beRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief FORT WORTH, Texas — Brad Keselowski went to the top of the timesheets during final practice on Saturday afternoon at Texas Motor Speedway. The 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion set a time of 28.319 (190.685 mph) around the 1.5-mile oval, bettering Martin Truex Jr. and Kyle Busch. Truex scored the best 10-lap average of all drivers at 184.413 mph. Here are where the Chase competitors ranked in final practice: 3. Kyle Busch 4. Joey Logano 8. Carl Edwards 10. Kurt Busch 15. Jimmie Johnson 18.Read More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief FORT WORTH, Texas – Blake Koch’s championship hopes took a hit Friday afternoon at the start of opening practice for Saturday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Challenge at Texas Motor Speedway. The 31-year-old Florida native was on his first lap at the 1.5-mile oval when the car veered right and hit the Turn 2 wall and severely damaging his No. 11 LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet. “Something broke on the car,” Kock said about the incident. The damage was enough to warrant the team to bring out the backupRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Kimi Raikkonen discussed the layout of the Circuit of the Americas, home of the United States Grand Prix, and admitted the design allows for great racing. The 3.427-mile, 20-turn permanent road course has been hosting Formula 1 since 2012 and has become a favorite among teams and drivers with its steep uphill opening corner, a mix of fast-flowing corners, continuous elevation changes, long straightaways and a triple-apex right hander to go along with a few heavy braking zones. In four attempts at the Austin-based track, theRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Ryan Newman will return to Richard Childress Racing after signing a multi-year extension that will keep him with the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet beyond the 2017 season. The 38-year-old Hoosier will be back for his fourth year with the organization and 16th in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. “I am pleased to continue driving for Richard Childress Racing,” Newman said. “Our goal to win a championship all but turned into a reality during our first year together. I feel like since then, we have some unfinishedRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Since the departure of Josef Newgarden to Team Penske, Ed Carpenter Racing has now become the best remaining option for drivers seeking a ride for the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season. A smaller team in numbers to industry giants such as Penske, Chip Ganassi Racing and Andretti Autosport, team owner and part-time driver Ed Carpenter has made the most of his organizations time in North America’s top open wheel series. Newgarden showed tremendous pace throughout the Month of May and the 100th Indianapolis 500 presented byRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief What a difference a year makes. Joey Logano and Kevin Harvick finished 1-2 in last year’s edition of the Bank of America 500, but this year both drivers saw their day end early on Lap 155 of 334 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The No. 22 Team Penkse Ford of Joey Logano hit the Turn 1 wall on Lap 117 after a tire went down, a problem that plagued him again moments later, but the heavy impact forced him to go to the garage for repairs. “IRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Sergio Perez appeared to have his third podium of the season in sight, but a mix of strategy relegated him further down the running order en route to finishing seventh in the Japanese Grand Prix. The 26-year-old Mexican had a strong start and pushed as high as third before falling in the clutches of Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo and the Ferrari duo of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen. The Sahara Force India driver was involved in several intense battles on the track, settling on aRead More