By David Morgan, Associate Editor Close, but no cigar. On a day that featured plenty of chaos, Pato O’Ward kept his nose clean and found himself at the right place at the right time to be in contention for the win in Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, only to have the win snatched from his grasp at the last minute. Running behind leaders Romain Grosjean and Scott McLaughlin, O’Ward cycled into the lead when the two collided and took each other out, setting the stage for what looked toRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer What was shaping up to be a fantastic battle for the race win went straight to hell in a heartbeat. Both pole sitter Romain Grosjean and defending Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg winner Scott McLaughlin crashed on Lap 72, bringing out the final full course caution. McLaughlin was able to continue his race, but the contact ended Grosjean’s afternoon after leading a race-high 31 of 100 laps. After making their final pit stops, McLaughlin just exited ahead of Grosjean, who pitted the lap before him.Read More

By INDYCAR ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Marcus Ericsson dodged multiple incidents in a chaotic season-opening race for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, winning the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding on Sunday in a day overflowing with drama. 2022 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Ericsson earned his fourth career NTT INDYCAR SERIES victory by 2.4113 seconds in the No. 8 Huski Chocolate Chip Ganassi Racing Honda over runner-up Pato O’Ward in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. Ericsson, who started fourth, took the lead when O’Ward slowedRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service LAS VEGAS — Austin Hill ran down rookie pole winner Chandler Smith from three seconds back, passed him as the cars approached the white flag and held on to win Saturday’s Alsco Uniforms 300 NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  The victory was the second of the year for Hill, who won the season opener at Daytona International Speedway. The driver of the No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet won for the first time at Las Vegas and for the fourthRead More

By INDYCAR ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Romain Grosjean led an Andretti Autosport sweep of the front row in qualifying for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding on Saturday, winning the NTT P1 Award for the second time in his career. Grosjean, from France, led the Firestone Fast Six with a best lap of 59.5532 seconds in the No. 28 DHL Honda on his final trip around the 14-turn, 1.8-mile temporary street circuit that hosts the opening race of the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. Teammate ColtonRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service LAS VEGAS — Joey Logano, winner of three of the last eight NASCAR Cup Series races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, will start from the pole position in Sunday’s Pennzoil 400 Presented by Jiffy Lube after topping 186 mph Saturday in the final round of qualifying.  Logano toured the 1.5-mile track in 29.024 seconds (186.053 mph) to earn his first Busch Pole Award of the season, his second at Las Vegas and the 27th of his career.  Logano’s No. 22 Team Penske Ford was .141Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Less than 24 hours ago, Hendrick Motorsports announced that Chase Elliott would be out of the car for the weekend at Las Vegas after suffering a leg injury while snowboarding in Colorado. On Saturday morning, the team provided an update on the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series champion and the path forward for the No. 9 team while he recovers. Hendrick Motorsports president and general manager Jeff Andrews explained that Elliott had suffered a fractured tibia in the accident and successfully underwent a nearly three-hour surgery onRead More

By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service LAS VEGAS — Kyle Busch revels in changing circumstances.  Five days after winning at Auto Club Speedway in his second NASCAR Cup Series race in a Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, Busch powered his own Kyle Busch Motorsports Chevy to victory in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series.  Despite a couple of twitchy moments in traffic, Busch dominated Friday night’s Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, leading 84 of 134 laps and beating runner-up Zane Smith to the finish line by 4.981 seconds. Read More