All posts by Luis Torres

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer On the 25th anniversary weekend of Mario Andretti’s 52nd and final INDYCAR Series win, his grandson Marco carried the famous black and white Newman-Haas colors that both Mario and Marco’s dad, Michael, drove for many seasons during Saturday’s Desert Diamond Phoenix Grand Prix at ISM Raceway. The hope of  charging to a third career win looked possible early on after jumping up four spots from his 20th-place qualifying effort at the start. Despite the early climb up the running order, the night didn’t provide theRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Saturday’s Desert Diamond West Valley Casino Phoenix Grand Prix at ISM Raceway saw just two cautions for 24 laps and two other incidents that didn’t warrant a yellow flag from on top of the flag stand. However, the incident proved detrimental to the outcome of four drivers, after each made contact with the SAFER Barriers after going up across the 1.022-mile oval. The first retirement of the race came at the hands of Verizon INDYCAR Series debutant Pietro Fittipaldi on Lap 40. After an impressiveRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Dale Coyne Racing will enter Saturday’s Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix at ISM Raceway in Avondale, Arizona with two cars in the top-10. Leading the field to the green flag will be Firestone St. Petersburg Grand Prix winner Sebastien Bourdais, claiming his first oval pole since The Milwaukee Mile in 2006. While the talk in the paddock is about the senior driver, Bourdais’ part-time teammate also made some noise after qualifying 10th. Pietro Fittipaldi, who’s making his Verizon INDYCAR Series debut, set aRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer JGL Racing announced Thursday that 19-year-old Tony Mrakovich of Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania will run two NASCAR Xfinity Series races in the No. 28 Extreme Energy Solutions Ford Mustang, beginning at Bristol Motor Speedway in the Fitzgerald Glider Kits 300 April 14th. “(Bristol) is one of the toughest tracks on the circuit,” said Mrakovich. “Some of the sport’s most prestigious names have gone to Victory Lane here, so if you can have a good day at Bristol, you’ve accomplished quite a feat. I’m so thankful for Extreme Energy’s supportRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Motorsports has its share of stories, especially when it unites two different families coast-to-coast during difficult time periods and raising awareness for autism. For one weekend at Auto Club Speedway, that was the case for the Lombard family from Simi Valley, California and Ryan Sieg Racing from Georgia. The two families partnered up, as Sieg’s No. 39 Chevrolet Camaro had Lombard Bros. Gaming, a three-year-old gaming company owned by brothers Joseph and Zachary aka “N2SC4R” and “MAGNUM05” on YouTube, became his primary sponsor in theRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Knoxville, Tennessee native and Xfinity Series regular Chad Finchum announced at a promotional event on Wednesday that he’ll be making his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series debut at Bristol Motor Speedway April 15 for Carl Long’s MBM Motorsports. It’ll mark MBM’s first Cup start since the 60th Daytona 500 when 66-year-old Mark Thompson finished 22nd. Finchum said he’s blessed that Long has confidence in him despite running 12 Xfinity Series races in a span of two years. “I’ve been blessed with opportunities to run NASCARRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Ryan Blaney came up short of capturing his second career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory in Monday’s STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway, finishing a season-high third place after a stage two victory and led 145 of 500 laps. The No. 12 Menards/Libman Ford Fusion started fifth and would stay inside the top-five for much of the afternoon. Blaney wouldn’t take the lead for the first time until Lap 137, when he gained two spots on pit road and took the lead from stage oneRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Pit strategy elevated Grant Enfinger’s strong start in his second full-season in the Camping World Truck Series, finishing fourth in the Alpha Energy Solutions 250 at Martinsville Speedway, won by John Hunter Nemechek. It marked the second straight fourth place finish for Enfinger’s No. 98 Champion Power Equipment Ford F-150 and dating back to last season, his fifth straight finish inside the top-10. ThorSport Racing had a strong day with all four trucks finishing in the top-10 in stage one, including the top three spots.Read More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Todd Gilliland came into Martinsville Speedway with a lot to prove after seeing his No. 4 Mobil 1 Toyota Tundra run by his dad David at Daytona, his boss Kyle Busch at Atlanta, and Spencer Davis at Las Vegas with neither scoring a top-10. The reason behind Gilliand missing the opening three races was NASCAR’s regulations prohibiting drivers under 18 years old competing on tracks 1.5 miles or larger. Gilliland doesn’t turn 18 until May 15th. Age aside, Gilliland had another battle in his seasonRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Wintry conditions was the word around the NASCAR garage Saturday instead of spring climate and racing action, as both the Camping World Truck Series race and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying have been impacted by inclement weather. With weather being a concern, the Alpha Energy Solutions 250 truck race started several minutes early to get as much racing possible. The 32-truck field managed to run 23 laps until it was halted for rain and snow. Not wasting time, NASCAR postponed the race until Sunday evening,Read More