Norris McDonald's Auto Racing Blog

Button lost Sunday Grand Prix on Saturday

POWER WINS INDYCAR SNOOZER; KESELOWSKI ON A ROLL; OSWEGO CLASSIC NEXT SUNDAY

Jenson Button took a lot of years to get going and is now in the sweet spot of his career but the biggest problems he’s encountered lately have originated within his own team.

It’s reminiscent of a famous quote from the old New York goalie Gump Worsley, who replied – when asked which team gave him the most trouble – “the Rangers.”

Button finished third in the Grand Prix of Belgium on Sunday – Red Bull-Renault teammates Sebastien Vettel and Mark Webber were first and second – but could have challenged for the win or at least a runner-up spot if he hadn’t started 13th.

And the reason he was back in the second-half of the field at the start is because he never made it out of Q2 in Saturday qualifying because of a “misunderstanding” he had with his race engineeer.

Button thought he had three laps in which to set a time when he only had two. How this happened is anybody’s guess. Said the ever-diplomatic Button:

“My engineer did say before I went out, not that I recall it but I believe him (my italics), that you’ve got two laps to do. It was a miscommunication. It shouldn’t have happened, but it did. We messed up.”

So instead of starting, perhaps, in the top six, Button he was able to make it to the podium from 13th. Pretty good.

(Not as good as Michael Schumacher, of course. The seven-time world champion who was celebrating 20 years in F1 this weekend started 24th – last – because he crashed in qualifying when a wheel came off his Mercedes. He made it all the way up to fifth by the end of the race so it’s obvious he still has magic in him.)

Button, who drove one of the greatest Grand Prix races of his – or anybody’s – career when he won the Canadian Grand Prix at Montreal in June, has never been out of the top six this season when he’s been able to finish.

The two times he didn’t came when his team sent him on his way during the British Grand Prix without a wheel properly attached (it fell of, natch) and a hydraulic problem did him in at the next race in Germany.

But he’s got two victories, a second and three thirds in the other races, which means that without “misunderstandings” or "miscommunication" or incompetence, he’d maybe be higher than fourth in the standings.

Of course, nobody can hold a candle to Vettel, who’s now 92 points clear in the standings. After seeming to take a couple of races “off” just before the summer holiday break, the defending world champion returned to battle at Belgium and won the pole and the race, showing the world that although he might be human on occasion, he’s the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world of motorsport when he has to prove it.

Webber, who signed a contract to continue racing with Red Bull through 2012, battled back from a lousy start (he always seems to have trouble getting off the line, doesn’t he?) to finish second to his teammate.

At 35, he continues to have huge balls. He and Fernando Alonso, who eventually finished fourth for Ferrari, were heading toward Eau Rouge together at about a million miles an hour and somebody had to lift or else they were both going to go into orbit.

As it was not going to be Webber, who was on fire, Alonso did the smart thing and eased off, preferring to fight (and live) another day.

Notebook jottings:

– F1 might have Monaco but nothing is more grand than a traditional road course like Spa-Francorchamps. And Spa these days is looking manicured, complete with lawn on both sides of the tarmac. Simply beautiful.

– Poor Lewis Hamilton. He’s showing serious signs of suffering from Paul Tracyitis (a malady in which the sufferer’s brains periodically turn to cement).

He was holding off an attacking Kamui Kobayashi and, thinking he had the corner, moved ever so slightly to his left before turning in. The problem was that Kobayashi hadn’t surrendered the corner completely and was still there, so KA-POW.

This sense of entitlement has bitten Hamilton previously. “I’m coming through, so get outta my way,” seems to be his motto.

He ran into Button in Montreal (I still can’t believe he tried that pass when – and where – he did) and bulldozed his way past Pastor Maldonado on Saturday during qualifying (which angered Maldonado to the point that he banged wheels with Hamilton later and earned himself a five-spot grid penalty as a result).

Here’s hoping Hamilton puts his thinking cap on really tight from now on or else one of these times he’s going to hurt himself.

(He made a start in that direction last night when he tweeted that he’d seen the replay and realized it was his fault. “I didn’t give Kobayashi enough room,” he said. “Apologies to Kamui and my team.”)

– Bruno Senna showed the world what the Renault can do (something the dismissed Nick Heidfeld couldn’t) and qualified seventh. He also showed the world what he can do when given a good car to drive.

Unfortunately, he has to work to do on his race craft; he went barreling into the first turn way over his head and it’s lucky he didn’t take out half the field.

The nephew of the great Ayrton Senna finished 13th in the race but will be well worth watching from now on.

– F1 might have been on vacation for three weeks but there was all sorts of press-release journalism going on in an attempt to keep it in the public eye (most ignored, except by the hard-core racing sites).

The big story was speculation that Michael Schumacher would retire again at the end of 2011. What made it nuts was when commentators started guessing who would take his place at Mercedes. The favourite seemed to be Paul DiRestra.

Speculate all ya want, folks. Michael is not going anywhere. In fact, I won’t be surprised if he signs a contract extension with Mercedes to go past 2012.

Other racing:

– INDY CAR: The IZOD IndyCar Series race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., started with Will Power on pole, Helio Castroneves second, Ryan Briscoe third, Dario Franchitti fourth and Scott Dixon fifth. The race ended exactly the same way.

I had a nap in the middle.

James Hinchcliffe of Oakville started sixth and finished seventh. Actually, he finished eighth but moved up a spot when original sixth-place finisher Giorgio Pantano (subbing for Justin Wilson) was penalized 10 finishing positions for blocking.

Alex Tagliani of Montreal started 12th and finished 20th. Danica Patrick started 25th and finished 21st – a lap behind. Top woman was Ana Beatriz in 13th. Simona de Silvestro missed the race because she wasn’t allowed back into the United States, following a trip home to Switzerland, a problem that hopefully will be cleared up soon.

The first three drivers are employed by Penske Racing. The last time the team had a sweep was in 1994 when Paul Tracy won at Nazareth, followed by Al Unser Jr. And Emerson Fittipaldi.

It was also a particularly good weekend for the Captain. His driver, Brad Keselowski, won the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Bristol, Tenn., on Saturday night.

– NASCAR: Earlier this month, Brad Keselowski crashed at Road Atlanta and broke his ankle. Since then, he’s won twice and had a second and a third in four races.

This puts him very close to a place in the Chase for the Championship with just two “regular season” races to go – at Atlanta Motor Speedway over Labour Day and at Richmond, Va., the week after.

He won the race at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night over Martin Truex Jr. Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Jamie McMurray were the others in the top five.

On Friday night at Bristol, Kyle Busch won the Nationwide Series race by inches over Joey Logano. Elliott Sadler was third. It was Busch’s 50th trip to Victory Lane in that series, making him the all-time leading winner.

– OSWEGO SPEEDWAY: Indy 500 veteran Joe Gosek won the Oswego Speedway track championship Saturday night by finishing second behind first-time winner of a 45-lap feature at the Steel Palace, Dave Danzer.

Randy Ritskes, formerly of Brockville, finished third in the race Saturday and second in the championship.

Next weekend will see the 55th Budweiser International Classic 200 for supermodifieds get the green at or about 4 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.

Indy veterans Davey Hamilton and Bentley Warren are expected to be in the field (although maybe not Warren, who's 71 and not feeling 100 per cent these days).

Canadian drivers expected to try to qualify include Dave McKnight Jr. of Brampton and Gary Morton of Stouffville.

F1's back - Schumacher, Webber fastest

Formula One is back after its three-week summer vacation and the glorious circuit of Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium is the setting.

Weather in that part of the world in late August is chancy and that was the case today with showers interrupting both practice sessions.

Michael Schumacher, who is celebrating 20 years in F1 this weekend, kicked off the “second season” in grand style by setting fastest time in the first practice.

However, the Mercedes duo of Schumahcer and Nico Rosberg were the only two drivers to set a time before the rains came and so their one-two times at the top of the chart were significantly faster than the rest of the field, which had to tip-toe around in the wet (1:54.3 for Schumacher compared with third-fastest Jenson Button who went around in 2:02.7).

In the second practice, everybody scrambled to set a time before it started to rain again and when the showers returned, Mark Webber was on top of the charts with a 1:50.32. He was followed by Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button.

Let’s hope Saturday is brighter in Belgium. Spa is a wicked fast track and Eau Rouge is the most exciting series of turns in the sport but the cars and drivers have to be able to operate at top speed for them to be truly appreciated.

Here’s a link to Autosport’s detailed report of how the sessions played out.

F1 qualifying can be seen tomorrow (Saturday) on TSN at 7:55 a.m. and the Grand Prix of Belgium will go Sunday, same time and same channel.

While I’m at it, here are other TV times and the channels for this weekend’s racing:

— NASCAR Nationwide at Bristol, tonight (Friday) at 7:30 on TSN2 (pre-race at 7).

— NASCAR Sprint Cup at Bristol, Saturday night at 7:30 on TSN.

— IZOD IndyCar Series at Infineon Raceway in California, Sunday afternoon at 4 p.m. on TSN2.

Remember, TV times for all racing programs can be found at www.racefantv.ca

Speaking of IndyCar,  HVM Racing has asked Simon Pagenaud (is he the new Super Sub?) to step in and set up their car today at Infineon Raceway in California after Simona de Silvestro ran into trouble with border officials while attempting to return to the United States from Switzerland, where she'd gone to visit her family.

Cross fingers that whatever happened can be cleared up quickly. Meantime . . .

IndyCar issued a very strange media release Thursday afternoon in which it announced that Will Power had been fined $30,000 for insubordination as the result of his public display of anger after he crashed at New Hampshire Motor Speedway several weeks ago (you remember: they tried to restart the race when it was raining and Power flipped the double bird at race officials.)

But there was a twist (maybe somebody thought this would get headlines): if Power didn’t want to pay the fine, he could “work it off” by agreeing to make a number of public appearances on IndyCar’s behalf, presumably to tell everybody what a bad boy he’d been.

Really.

As a result of Danica Patrick’s media conference (I’m over my snit, by the way; I’m sorry to see her go but I still like her) and the very peculiar offer made to Power, this is what I wrote to a friend this morning:

“I’m feeling very pessimistic today about the future of IndyCar. Who in their right mind thought it would be a good idea to have Power make public appearances to ‘work off’ his fine? ‘Hi everybody. My name is Will Power and I’m an IndyCar driver. I’m also a jerk.’

“The $5 million offer to have five non-regulars race at Las Vegas has officially fallen flat on its face. Half the field can’t afford the new car. Nobody’s heard from Chevy about who’s going to run their new engine (other than Penske) and – like her or not – they’ve now officially lost their biggest star.

“I know everybody’s putting on a brave face. But where do they go from here? What do they do to turn this thing around? Or can they?”

This blog (other than the Monday roundups) will be hit and miss for the next couple of weeks. I’m off on vacation. And to cheer up.

See ya, Danica - may all your tires go flat

It’s official.

 After months of rumour and speculation – and denials and lies – Danica Patrick announced today that she will drive full-time for Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the NASCAR Nationwide Series in 2012 and up to a dozen Sprint Cup races for Tony Stewart.

So we knew all that. We’ve known it for months. It’s been no secret. So if you want more of the details of her media conference today in Phoenix, click here.

But this is what I want to know: Why did she make the announcement now? Who benefited from this? Nascar, maybe, but what do I know? I can tell you this, though. the IZOD IndyCar Series sure didn't.

Right after the announcement, she left right for Infineon Raceway in California, where the Indy cars are racing this weekend and where she is still employed by Andretti Autosport.

Do you think she’s going to be welcomed with open arms in that paddock?

Do you think she’s going to enjoy hearing the non-stop boos that will be directed her way from fans in attendance and on social media from now until the end of the IndyCar season in October?

Most important, do you think Andretti Autosport is going to do much more to prepare her car for a race beyond backing it off the trailer?

This was really a dumb thing to do because the timing was all wrong.

Why not wait till after the last checkered flag of the IndyCar season at Las Vegas in October? I could have written her script:

“I want to thank everyone I’ve worked with in Indy cars since I joined the series, starting with Bobby Rahal who gave me my first big chance as well as Michael Andretti. But the time has come for me to move on and while I regret I didn’t win the Indianapolis 500, I now have my sights set on Daytona. I wish everybody here in IndyCar, Randy Bernard and the rest of the drivers and teams, the best of luck and – who knows? – I might still see you at Indy sometime and since life takes strange twists and turns, I might even be back here in future.”

Now, that would have been a classy exit.

Doing what she did today (or her sponsor, GoDaddy, made her do) lacked class. Yes, she’s going to big league stock car racing but she didn’t have to throw the IndyCar Series under the bus on her way out.

I’m a big Danica Patrick fan. Or have been. And I knew this day was coming. If the announcement had come at the end of the season, so be it. But there are still five races to go and I’m angry at her for doing this now.

I hope when she gets to California that all the tires on her car are flat.

And if I had a GoDaddy account, I’d cancel it.

Kyle Busch loses licence for 45 days

NASCAR star Kyle Busch lost his licence for 45 days this week because of a speeding ticket he received in May.

Busch the Younger was at the wheel of a $400,000 Lexus and got himself a little carried away, going 128 miles an hour in a 45 zone.

He stopped immediately and cooperated with police. He was most apologetic

But here’s the rub.

In North Carolina, as is the case everywhere else, the officer cited Bush on two charges - for speeding and for reckless driving. This is a standard plea-bargain ploy: the defendant agrees to plead guilty to the first charge in exchange for having the second charge dropped. You see this sort of thing all the time. The prosecutors get their guilty pleas the easy way and don’t clog up the court system.

But that wasn’t the case this time and Bush’s lawyer spent most of the 30 minutes he spoke in defence of the driver by pointing out to the court how the particular prosecuting attorney in this case hadn’t given Bush that option, even though he’d offered that sweet little deal to all sorts of other people.

Now, Busch’s lawyer didn’t come out and say it but I will: that prosecutor is a NASCAR fan and he doesn’t like Kyle Busch and that’s why he let both those charges stand.

In any event, the judge passed sentence on Busch for the speeding infraction and simply ignored the more serious charge of reckless driving.

Want to bet that the judge is a Kyle Busch fan?

So you had a Kyle Busch hater and a Kyle Busch fan facing off. One a prosecutor and the other a judge.

Guess who won?

In the process, Kyle Busch won too. Kinda.

If you would like to read more about the cut and thrust that went on inside that courtroom, here's a link to the full story.

Here’s a surprise. African-American race driver Willy T. Ribbs is on the comeback trail. He’s going to get back into a race car – an Indy Lights car, to be precise – for the race at the Baltimore Grand Prix on Labour Day weekend.

The IZOD IndyCar Series and the American Le Mans Series will be racing through the streets of Baltimore then and the show will include support series like the Indy Lights.

Ribbs, 56, is an experienced road racer who raced in CART back in the 1990s. In fact, he was sponsored for a time by Bill Cosby. In recent years, he’s formed Willy T. Ribbs Racing with his friend and business partner Chris Miles of Starting Grid, Inc.

"Even though I have been out of the car for 10 years, I have never 'officially' retired," Ribbs said. "Chris said he got the idea for me to race again when he heard Wally Dallenbach say during an IndyCar broadcast that he was going to drive a Lights car in Edmonton.

"For whatever reason, Wally didn't do it, but the more Chris kept talking to me, the more I got pumped up about racing again and Baltimore is the perfect place to do it. I'm sure the consensus will be that I should not be racing against these young guns, but as Chris reminded me, when the [Sprint] Cup boys come down and race in the Trucks and Nationwide Series, no one seems to mind. So I told Chris, 'Done deal, I'm in!' "

Miles, a principal in Willy T. Ribbs Racing, facilitates opportunities for minority participation within all facets of the motorsports industry through his company, Starting Grid.

Finally, NASCAR announced Wednesday that the No. 11 team of Marty Gaunt out of Barrie, which competes in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series,  has been penalized as a result of rules violations committed last Saturday during the race at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal.

The team was found to be in violation of Sections 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing); 12-4-I (car, car parts, components and/or equipment used do not conform to NASCAR rules); and 20E-5.10.1A (Carburetor Eligibility: The carburetor must remain as supplied by the NASCAR-approved supplier – Unapproved carburetor modification; power valves.) of the 2011 NASCAR rule book. The violations were discovered during post-race inspection on Aug. 20.

Jonathan Davis, crew chief of the No. 11 car, has been fined $5,000, suspended from NASCAR until the fine is paid and placed on NASCAR probation until Sept. 21.

Car owner Gaunt and driver Jason Bowles of Ontario, Calif., who finished third in the race behind winner Andrew Ranger of Roxton Pond, Que., and second-place finish Alex Tagliani of Montreal, have been penalized with the loss of 100 championship owner and 100 championship driver points, respectively.

IndyCar race results appeals denied

Gee, what a surprise.

As expected, the appeals of the results of the Indy car race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway two weeks ago (that was when the chief steward ruled that a restart that saw a change in the finishing order of the race hadn’t really happened) were denied today by a three-member panel hand-picked by the chief steward.

The appeals panel thanked everybody for their “excellent” presentations but said that, in the end, the chief steward has all the power and can do whatever he wants.

Or something like that.

This is like 2002, when Paul Tracy won the Indianapolis 500 and the chief steward – the same guy, by the way – ruled that he hadn’t. When Team Green appealed, it was told it couldn’t appeal the decision of the chief steward.

So, why bother?

Here is the text of the media release sent out by the IZOD IndyCar Series a few minutes ago:

INDYCAR announced today that the top three finishing positions of the Aug. 14 MoveThatBlock.com Indy 225 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway were upheld during a protest hearing Aug. 23 in Indianapolis.

The hearing was conducted by a panel consisting of Jerry Gappens, Rollie Helmling and Jeff Stoops. As Senior Official and pursuant to IZOD IndyCar Series Rule 12.4, INDYCAR President of Competition and Operations Brian Barnhart (Norris note: a.k.a.. the chief steward) elected to have a panel resolve the protests filed by Newman/Haas Racing and Target Chip Ganassi Racing.

The protests were denied based on these grounds, according to a signed statement from the panel:

"After hearing the excellent presentations by each of the participants in the protest hearing and after reviewing and being sympathetic with each of their positions, the Protest Panel was unanimous in its decision. It is this Protest Panel's conclusion that INDYCAR Senior Official Brian Barnhart had the authority under the governing 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series rulebook to render the decision that was made. We also agree that his decision to abort the restart and set the finishing positions that existed before the attempted restart to be an exercise of reasonable discretion. The protests as to Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc. d/b/a Target Chip Ganassi Racing car number 9 and Newman/Haas Racing, LLC car number 2 are hereby denied."

Per Rule 13.1 of the IZOD IndyCar Series rulebook, the decision may be appealed by 5 p.m. (ET) of the second business day following the release of the decision.

As I said at the beginning, this was "as expected." This was a whitewash from the start, as I pointed out in a post here entitled "Appeals panel suspect."

POSTSCRIPT:

Newman-Haas Racing issued the following statement late this morning:

Newman/Haas Racing released the following quotes today regarding the decision by the IndyCar Series panel to deny the protest filed by the team following the race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on August 14.

Carl Haas, owner of Newman-Haas Racing:

"The IndyCar Series granted us a hearing and has been very cooperative in providing us with requested information enabling us to adequately present our case.  We feel that we gave the panel proof that Oriol was the winner of the event when the checkered flag ended the race.  Naturally we are very disappointed in the panel's ruling that five laps of the race be struck from the results but we appreciated the opportunity to state our position."    

Oriol Servia, driver of the No. 2 Telemundo entry for Newman-Haas Racing:

“I am very proud of Newman/Haas Racing and how they proved that the restart procedure was correct and that we were leading when the yellow came out.  The panel resolution doesn't deny that.  Their resolution states that Brian Barnhart has the power by the rulebook to make certain decisions at his discretion, and that is what happened.”

Auto racing: Is new Austin F1 race in trouble?

Now, when have we heard this sort of thing before?

Work has stopped – apparently – on the Circuit of the Americas outside Austin, Tex., where the U.S. Grand Prix is tentatively scheduled for June, 2012, but will likely be moved to November, once the final schedule is issued.

Organizers had posted a video a few weeks ago showing what seemed to be a flurry of construction activity taking place at the facility — but if you looked really closely there were only a handful of trucks and other earth-moving machines out there.

In any event, when construction stopped, anonymous telephone calls to the Austin newspaper suggested the project was out of money and that the workers hadn’t been paid.

Not true, said a spokesman for the track. It was a “planned stoppage” and that because they were ahead of schedule, everybody would have to wait for their money for a few days because there was a timetable for when payments would be released by the bank.

“We’re matching the (bank) draw schedule to the construction schedule,” the spokesman said.

Now, there are a lot of people in that community who are dead set against this project and they could very well be pranksters spreading these rumours.

On the other hand, I also believe that where there’s smoke, there’s fire.

Recall the debacle called U.S. F1. That was when a couple of guys decided they were going to start a Formula One team and build their own car and do it in the heart of NASCAR country, in Charlotte, N.C.

They went on TV and gave press conferences and distributed videos (see above) and worked like the devil to show the world they were serious about the project and knew what they were doing. In fact, when suspicions started to be raised and questions asked, they invited the world’s motorsport media to Charlotte to show the reporters that everything was going according to plan.

And then, one day, they walked out of that building and turned out the lights and announced that it was all over.

Could something like that be happening again?

Have we been down this road before?

Canadian is dominating in Europe

ROBERT WICKENS HAD A GREAT WEEKEND AT SILVERSTONE IN ENGLAND

When Robert Wickens of Guelph and Toronto swept last weekend’s World Series by Renault double-header at Silverstone in England, he did what no other racing driver had achieved since the series was started in 2005: he won both poles as well as both races – a spectacular achievement.

The 22-year-old Canadian, who’s the official reserve driver for the Marussia-Virgin Formula One team, leads the championship with 198 points, 34 more than second-place Jean Eric Vergne of France.

About his third and fourth victories of the season, Wickens said this:

“It feels fantastic to have a weekend like this. Hopefully we can keep this going.  I set myself a personal goal of five wins this season so I’m getting close.  It would be great to achieve that, but I’m focused on the championship. All in all it’s been an amazing weekend and with so many people here it had a fantastic atmosphere. I even spotted someone wearing a Toronto Maple Leafs sweater!”

There was no admission charged for the Renault Formula 3.5 weekend, so an estimated 120,000 British racing fans turned out at Silverstone to watch the young Canadian dominate his class.

It’s wise for Wickens, 22, to focus on the title. He’s just missed winning championships the last two years and critics maintain that to reach Formula One, he’ll have to soon win a major European series.

He raced his way to the runner-up spot in the FIA F2 Championship in 2009, again a multiple race-winner, before tackling the 2010 GP3 Series.  Another strong title-challenging campaign saw Wickens claim the runner-up position but more importantly, his 2010 efforts attracted the backing of Marussia Motors – Russia’s first supercar manufacturer and an owner in the Marussia Virgin Racing F1 team.

As test driver, he will attend all the remaining Grand Prix events that don’t conflict with his Formula Renault 3.5 Series commitments, which means he’ll be at Spa this coming weekend for the Belgium Grand Prix.

Round 8 of the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, the penultimate race weekend in this year’s championship, takes place in France at the Paul Ricard Circuit on Sept. 17 and 18th

The 23rd Annual Motorsports Hall of Fame of America Induction Ceremony in downtown Detroit will take place Wednesday evening and see seven American racing legends enshrined. Racing pioneer Ed Winfield, sports car driver (and brewery heir)  Augie Pabst, USAC champion and Indianapolis 500 driver Roger McCluskey, diverse drag racing legend Ed McCulloch, NASCAR icon Donnie Allison, Speedway motorcycle world champion Bruce Penhall and the legendary radio voice of the Indianapolis 500, announcer and broadcaster Sid Collins, will be inducted.

A Who's Who of U.S. motorsport will attend, led by Roger Penske whose delegation will include at least one of his drivers, Kurt Busch.

A new racing series will get the green flag this coming Friday night at Humberstone Speedway near Port Colborne. The Ontario Topless Sprints will feature sprint cars racing without wings and organizers are hoping for a significant turnout of cars from both side of the Canada-U.S. border.  For more information, please visit www.ontariotoplesssprints.com.

Scott Goodyear sent news out about one of his sons this past  week:  “Michael's karting is going well. Running in three class championships at (Mark) Dismore's track this season. We have three races left to complete the championship. He has won one of the classes so far, leading in another one, and is third in points in the other. We have a couple of National Events coming up, then the final three Dismore races in October.”

Well done. Michael sounds like he's a chip off the old block, doesn't he?

And finally . . .

I don't know who that guy at the far right of the photo is, but the rest of the folks reflect the past and the future of auto racing in Quebec. At left is Jean-Paul Cabana, a legend in stock car circles in that province. Beside him is Richard (Dick) Foley of Montreal, first Canadian to race in the Daytona 500 back in 1959. At right is Andrew Ranger of Roxton Pond, who won the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race last weekend at Circuit Gilles-Gilleneuve. Oh, and the person between Ranger and Foley is Eva Foley, Richard's wife.

Auto racing roundup; Is NASCAR coming to Toronto?

 
COURTESY OF EVA FOLEY

The picture above is of the first two Canadians to race in the Daytona 500 – Jim Bray of Brantford (left) who was the second (in 1964) and Richard (Dick) Foley of Montreal who was the first in 1959.

The two pioneers got together at Montreal this weekend where Bray had a car entered in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race on Saturday and Foley gave the field the green flag to start the race, which was won by former Champ Car and Formula Atlantic driver Andrew Ranger of Roxton Pond., Que., who’s now trying to carve out a career in stock cars.

Ranger, who won this race a year ago, scored his second victory in four Canadian Tire Series starts this season. In all, Ranger has won 14 Canadian Tire races in his career and it was his third at Le Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve.

Kerry Micks of Mt. Albert, Ont., was second and Jason Bowles of Ontario, Calif., finished third. Jeff Lapcevich of Grimsby and Alex Tagliani of Montreal were fourth and fifth.

Scott Steckly of Milverton, Ont., continues to lead the points standings after finishing seventh.

WILL MOSPORT BE ON NASCAR 2012 SCHEDULE?

Maybe.

But it sure sounds like it – if the track north of Bowmanville can be spiffed up enough to satisfy NASCAR.

Steve O’Donnell, who’s senior vice–president of racing operations for NASCAR, told NASCAR.com this weekend that if the August event at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve doesn’t continue, there are other Canadian facilities the sanctioning body might consider.

"We've gotten inquiries from a number of different venues, all with the desire for a Nationwide event in 2012," O’Donnell said. "We're weighing a lot of those options. The Canadian market is important to us."

Canadian racing legend Ron Fellows (Le Mans, ALMS, Grand Am Rolex, NASCAR, etc.) purchased Mosport in June, with two partners, and has let it be known the facility is open for big-event business and that includes NASCAR.

Said O’Donnell: "Ron's been in the industry for a long time and there's been interest from facilities in Toronto and other places in the United States as well," O'Donnell said. "So we're kind of weighing all those and making sure that No. 1, it fits for the fans and (that) it's in an event we think that the fans would want to see.

"Obviously it has to fit for the garage area and to make sure we think it's a benefit for them, and our television partners – so there are a lot of factors that weigh into the decision."

O’Donnell said Canadian race fans won’t have to wait long to find out if Montreal will continue on the schedule or whether other venues might be in play.

He said the 2012 Nationwide schedule would begin coming into much sharper focus – including the possibility of additional Canadian events – in a matter of weeks.

"Typically, we look at that mid-September time frame (for the following year’s Nationwide schedule to be released)," O'Donnell said. "We've got a number of agreements in place so you should start hearing some news fairly soon but usually mid-September is when we like to get that [schedule] out."

BUT COULD THAT ALSO MEAN TORONTO?

Okay, that was the real news. Now, let’s you and me have some fun.

1. Andrett-Green Racing (now Savoree Green) had a three-year agreement to run an Indy car race through the streets of the CNE and along Lake Shore Blvd. West. That agreement ended when this year’s race was held. As of this moment, there is no formal agreement in place to hold an Indy car race at the Ex next year.

2. The Indy car race has never come close to being anything like it was when CART was the sanctioning body. This year’s event drew in the vicinity of 25,000 spectators on race day. This race is not creating the excitement it once did.

3. The Ontario government granted $3 million to this race – a million bucks a year in public subsidy. There is no reason why this subsidy for a car race would not continue. Sure, somebody would have to apply for it, but it would probably be there.

4. The Quebec government turned up its nose when the promoters of the Montreal event asked for public money to continue to put on the event there, which is why the race this weekend might be the last.

5. There have been rumours for some time that the promoters of the Montreal stock car race and the Formula One race there (one and the same, by the way) want to promote a race in Toronto and it’s been assumed it would be an Indy car race. But with the absence of an agreement for an Indy car race (see above), and their relationship with NASCAR, the possibility of another kind of race in Toronto is very real.

6. However, Savoree-Green, with the help of $750,000 in public money, replaced the aged walls and fencing for this year’s Indy car race that had been in use since the first Molson Indy in 1986. The walls are significantly higher and stronger now. The last time I recall a circuit improvement of this magnitude was in 1992 when the original walls and fences at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway were replaced by higher walls and stronger fences. Shortly after that work was completed, it was announced that the Brickyard 400 for stock cars would be held in 1994. 

7. So, add up all of the above, and maybe even do a little reading between the lines, and I suggest that one way or another, the NASCAR Nationwide race that is likely on its way out of downtown Montreal might very well land in downtown Toronto next year.

Yes, instead of August in Montreal it would have to be July in Toronto but the Sprint Cup Series always has a break in the second or third week of July and that would be perfect because – natch – all of the top Sprint Cup drivers would want to drive in the first Nationwide race in Toronto, wouldn’t they?

(Allow me to suggest that if NASCAR came to the CNE and the promoters convinced Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Brad Keselowski and Kevin Harvick to join Danica Patrick - yep, she'll be running full-time in the Nationwide next year - and the rest of the Nationwide regulars, plus the usual Canadians like Ranger and Fitzpatrick, the 70,000 that used to show up on race day for the Molson Indy would look miniscule in comparison . . .)

Oh, and what would happen to the Honda Indy? Well, as I’ve been suggesting for the last while, it would (and should) go to Mosport where it would draw a huge crowd and everybody would be happy.

This has been whimsy, but if it happens, just remember that you read it here first.

CANADA’S 'NEXT F1 DRIVER' WICKENS WINS BIG

(and other weekend results and comments)

– Robert Wickens of Guelph and Toronto swept the World Series by Renault races at Silverstone in England this weekend. There was no admission for the Renault F3.5 headliner event, so 120,000 people watched the young Canadian win both poles and both races to regain the lead in the series.

– As everybody knows (or should know), Marcos Ambrose won the Nationwide Series race in Montreal at the weekend, with Alex Tagliani second and Michael McDowell third. Young Canadian J.R. Fitzpatrick of Cambridge was fifth.

Other Canadians: Ron Fellows finished 11^th; Jacques Villeneuve was 27^th, Louis-Philippe Dumoulin was 28^th, Maryeve Dufault was 30^th, Patrick Carpentier was 32^nd, D.J. Kennington was 40^th and Andrew Ranger was 41^st.

Okay, two observations about Ambrose’s victory.

First, I wonder about the calibre of drivers in that series. Ambrose was T-boned by Jacques Villeneuve (who’s resembled a battering ram every time he’s gone racing this year, it seems) and knocked around. Parts of his car were knocked askew. Yet he had time to deliver payback to Villeneuve (he spun him out) and get back to the front of the field before the race ended.

He’s either awfully good or else just about everybody else in that race was not so good.

Second, a part from his car – a spring – was seized by NASCAR afterward and the implication was that it was an illegal part. Which meant his team cheated. NASCAR’s policy is that the winner remains the winner and the team gets fined and loses points, if guilty.

But is that right? Is it fair? Cheating’s been going on forever but those questions must still be asked.

– Kyle Busch won the Sprint Cup race at Michigan, with Jimmie Johnson second and Brad Keselowski third. It was nothing special. With three races left before the Chase, Clint Bowyer, Keselowski, Denny Hamlin and Greg Biffle are on the outside looking in. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Tony Stewart are hanging on by their fingernails.

- Kevin Harvick won the Camping World Truck Series race at Michigan. It had more excitement than the Cup race.

– The American Le Mans Series must think it’s the IndyCar Series.

Muscle Milk Aston Martin Racing had one of its best days in racing, if not the best, at Road America on Saturday, taking its third victory in a row in a four-hour endurance race that was more of a sprint to the checkered flag that resulted in the closest finish in ALMS history.

Asked to do the impossible of "push hard and save fuel," Klaus Graf drove an amazing race to hold off a charging Guy Smith in the Dyson Racing Lola in the final 30 minutes of the race and capture the win by 0.112 seconds.

Wow.

Canadians: Tony Burgess of Toronto finished third in the Prototype 1 class and seventh overall; Kyle Marcelli of Barrie was 16^th overall and sixth in the Prototype Challenge class; Kenny Wilden of Oakville was 35^th overall and 16^th in GT.

In Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Racing, Jon Fogerty and Alex Gurney won the race at Montreal, with Max Angelelli and Ricky Taylor second and David Donohue and Darren Law third – all driving Daytona Prototypes.

Canadians: Mark Wilkins finished eighth in the AIM Autosport Riley-BMW GAMMA 88-sponsored No. 61. Paul Dalla Lana of Toronto was fourth in GT and 14^th overall.

– One of the most exciting races at Circuit Gille-Villeneuve this weekend was the Castrol Canadian Touring Car Series race that saw motor problems and other mechanical woes sideline a lot of the heavy favourites. In the end, Brampton auto dealer Bob Attrell won the Super Touring class.

No less than seven race leaders dropped out because of blown engines or other mechanical difficulties, handing Attrell the victory. Jocelyn Hebert of Trois-Rivieres won the Touring Class race.

- Brett McCormick of Saskatoon, who won the Canadian Superbike Championship on Saturday at Mosport, had his bid for a perfect season in the series sponsored by Parts Canada fall short in the wet final round on Sunday.

According to an email from John Hopkins, one of the wildest Superbike races in many years saw Brantford's Jordan Szoke score his first victory when McCormick crashed on the final lap.

Matt McBride of Mississauga scored a career high second place finish Sunday behind Szoke  and Sherbrooke, Que.’s Francis Martin. 

Szoke, who saw his five-year reign nas national champion end on Saturday, was elated after the Sunday race. “This is one of the greatest wins of my career,” he said. “It’s tough seeing your number one plate taken away, especially after having it for so long but this will make the winter a little easier.”

Weekend racing preview: Boris Said in jail

No, no.

Boris Said – who was in the news a lot this week after he promised to put a “whuppin’ “ on Greg Biffle after they had a big crash at Watkins Glen (you can watch the video of Boris’s outburst here) – is not in jail and, in fact, will be racing in this weekend’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race in Montreal.

But he’s been in jail twice – once for real and once for fun.

In 2001, Boris showed up at Mosport for a Trans-Am race and was promptly arrested and thrown into the nearby Bowmanville jail.

It seems that Boris got into a beef over money and was sued in Ontario court. He kept skipping court dates, so a warrant was put out for his arrest. When he arrived at the race track on Friday, he found himself in handcuffs.

The jolly group that meets regularly on the hill near the second turn – Corner Two Racing, Inc. – began a campaign, complete with signs, to “Free Boris.”

Whether they had any influence or not is not known but somebody in Mosport management managed to get Boris sprung on Sunday in time for the race. He finished eighth (after starting 31st and last (he’d missed all the practice sessions and qualifying, after all) behind race winner Paul Gentilozzi.

You’d have thought he’d learned a lesson, but no.

The other time he “went to jail” was in 2003 when he was racing in NASCAR at Infineon Raceway in California. A guard at the nearby San Quentin prison invited Boris and his crew to take a tour of the maximum security facility.

While there, Boris stretched out on the injection table in the execution chamber, after which he quipped:  “The guard said, ‘I’m not supposed to let you do that – I’ve never seen anyone get up from there before.’ It was a creepy feeling.”

By the way, this will all change later today but in first practice this morning, Ron Fellows, Marcos Ambrose, Alex Tagliani, Boris Said and Jacques Villeneuve were the top five fastest for the Nationwide race. Andrew Ranger is the only Canadian who appears to be struggling, mired back in 37th,

Danica Patrick, meantime, who’s the only woman entered (Jennifer Jo Cobb rented out her ride), clocked in 19th. Forty-seven cars took time.

TV TIMES: The NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve will be telecast live Saturday at 12:30 p.m. on TSN. The Nationwide race pre-race show will start at 2 p.m. with the race itself getting the green flag at 2:30, also on TSN. The NASCAR Sprint Cup race from Michigan will take place Sunday on TSN with the pre-race at noon and the green flag at 1 p.m. No IndyCar this weekend but Formula One returns next weekend and it’s about time.

 GOOD NEWS: Richard Foley of Montreal, who raced on the beach at Daytona and then was the first Canadian to race in the Daytona 500 in 1959 when Bill France opened the big Speedway, will wave the green flag to start the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race Saturday in Montreal.

It’s about time that NASCAR honoured some of the early pioneers of NASCAR stock car racing in Canada. Yes, Quebec’s Jean-Paul Cabana waved the flag for the very first Nationwide race at Circuit Gille-Villeneuve three years ago, but he wasn’t a pioneer and he never raced in the big league.

Of course, they haven’t yet seen fit to invite Earl Ross to Montreal, either. Ross, to this date, remains the only Canadian to win a race at what was then the Winston Cup level. That was in 1974.

NOTES: The documentary Senna opens today (Friday) at the Varsity Theatre at the Bloor-Bay Manulife Centre. Better move fast, though, because I suspect it will only be there for the weekend. Bruce DeMara gave it a wonderful review and you can read it here. . . . D.J. Kennington, defending NASCAR Canadian Tire Series champion, will do double duty at Montreal. He’ll be in the Nationwide race as well as the Canadian Tire, joining Ranger, Fellows and J.R. Fitzpatrick driving in both races . . .

 TAKE A BOW: Stanley has made a guaranteed donation of $100,000 to Canadian Tire Jumpstart on behalf of Stanley and Stanley-sponsored Richard Petty Motorsports driver Marcos Ambrose, who is competing in the 2011 Nationwide Series race in Montreal.

Stanley’s involvement with the program is now in its second year, and includes participation in annual product promotions that will help support the Canadian Tire Jumpstart program. 

"Not only am I excited to race in Montreal in front of all the Canadian fans, but I am very happy to be racing for a worthy cause such as the Canadian Tire Jumpstart program where Stanley will donate $100,000 on our behalf” said Ambrose in a release. 

“If we can help kids achieve their goals in sports programs across Canada with support from great companies such as Stanley and Canadian Tire, that is a great accomplishment"

Canadian Tire Jumpstart is a community-based charitable program that helps kids aged 4 to 18 participate in organized sport and recreation activities such as hockey, soccer, dance and swimming.

ON THE FARM: When Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race got rained out at Watkins Glen , NASCAR driver Andy Lally and Grand Am Rolex Series driver Spencer Pumpelly (he drove at Mosport in the American Le Mans Series race in July) visited the nearby Farm Sanctuary, a facility for rescued animals.  Lally and Pumpelly are both vegan, which means they do not consume meat, milk, cheese, or eggs, and do not use any animal by-products, such as leather and wool. “I do it for ethical reasons,” explained Lally, in a release. Farm Sanctuary’s shelters in New York and California provide life-long care for nearly 1,000 cows, pigs, goats, sheep, chickens and other farm animals that were destined for the dinner table. Directions to the New York Shelter in Watkins Glen are available here.

Weekend racing preview: Boris Said in jail

No, no.

Boris Said – who was in the news a lot this week after he promised to put a “whuppin’ “ on Greg Biffle after they had a big crash at Watkins Glen (you can watch the video of Boris’s outburst here) – is not in jail and, in fact, will be racing in this weekend’s NASCAR Nationwide Series race in Montreal.

But he’s been in jail twice – once for real and once for fun.

In 2001, Boris showed up at Mosport for a Trans-Am race and was promptly arrested and thrown into the nearby Bowmanville jail.

It seems that Boris got into a beef over money and was sued in Ontario court. He kept skipping court dates, so a warrant was put out for his arrest. When he arrived at the race track on Friday, he found himself in handcuffs.

The jolly group that meets regularly on the hill near the second turn – Corner Two Racing, Inc. – began a campaign, complete with signs, to “Free Boris.”

Whether they had any influence or not is not known but somebody in Mosport management managed to get Boris sprung on Sunday in time for the race. He finished eighth (after starting 31st and last (he’d missed all the practice sessions and qualifying, after all) behind race winner Paul Gentilozzi.

You’d have thought he’d learned a lesson, but no.

The other time he “went to jail” was in 2003 when he was racing in NASCAR at Infineon Raceway in California. A guard at the nearby San Quentin prison invited Boris and his crew to take a tour of the maximum security facility.

While there, Boris stretched out on the injection table in the execution chamber, after which he quipped:  “The guard said, ‘I’m not supposed to let you do that – I’ve never seen anyone get up from there before.’ It was a creepy feeling.”

Kinda like lying down in a coffin, eh Boris? I wouldn't do that either . . .

By the way, this will all change later today but in first practice this morning, Ron Fellows, Marcos Ambrose, Alex Tagliani, Boris and Jacques Villeneuve were the top five fastest for the Nationwide race. Andrew Ranger is the only Canadian who appears to be struggling, mired back in 37th.

Danica Patrick, meantime, who’s the only woman entered (Jennifer Jo Cobb rented out her ride), clocked in 19th. Forty-seven cars took time. 

TV TIMES: The NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve will be telecast live Saturday at 12:30 p.m. on TSN. The Nationwide race pre-race show will start at 2 p.m. with the race itself getting the green flag at 2:30, also on TSN. The NASCAR Sprint Cup race from Michigan will take place Sunday on TSN with the pre-race at noon and the green flag at 1 p.m. No IndyCar this weekend but Formula One returns next weekend and it’s about time.

GOOD NEWS: Richard Foley of Montreal, who raced on the beach at Daytona and then was the first Canadian to race in the Daytona 500 in 1959 when Bill France opened the big Speedway, will wave the green flag to start the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race Saturday in Montreal.

It’s about time that NASCAR honoured some of the early pioneers of NASCAR stock car racing in Canada. Yes, Quebec’s Jean-Paul Cabana waved the flag for the very first Nationwide race at Circuit Gille-Villeneuve three years ago, but he wasn’t a pioneer and he never raced in the big league.

Of course, they haven’t seen fit to invite Earl Ross to Montreal, either. Ross, to this date, remains the only Canadian to win a race at what was then the Winston Cup level. That was in 1974.

NOTES: The documentary film Senna opens today (Friday) at the Varsity Theatre at the Bloor-Bay Manulife Centre. Better move fast, though, because I suspect it will only be there for the weekend. Bruce DeMara gave it a wonderful review and you can read it here. . . . D.J. Kennington, defending NASCAR Canadian Tire Series champion, will do double duty at Montreal. He’ll be in the Nationwide race as well as the Canadian Tire, joining Ranger, Fellows and J.R. Fitzpatrick driving in both races . . .

TAKE A BOW: Stanley Tools has made a guaranteed donation of $100,000 to Canadian Tire Jumpstart on behalf of Stanley and Stanley-sponsored Richard Petty Motorsports driver Marcos Ambrose, who is competing in the 2011 Nationwide Series race in Montreal.

Stanley’s involvement with the program is now in its second year, and includes participation in annual product promotions which will help support the Canadian Tire Jumpstart program. 

"Not only am I excited to race in Montreal in front of all the Canadian fans, but I am very happy to be racing for a worthy cause such as the Canadian Tire Jumpstart program where Stanley will donate $100,000 on our behalf” said Ambrose in a release. 

“If we can help kids achieve their goals in sports programs across Canada with support from great companies such as Stanley & Canadian Tire, that is a great accomplishment"

Canadian Tire Jumpstart is a community-based charitable program that helps kids aged 4 to 18 participate in organized sport and recreation activities such as hockey, soccer, dance and swimming.

ON THE FARM: When Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race got rained out at Watkins Glen , NASCAR driver Andy Lally and Grand Am Rolex Series driver Spencer Pumpelly (he drove at Mosport in the American Le Mans Series race in July) visited the nearby Farm Sanctuary, a facility for rescued animals.

Lally and Pumpelly are both vegan, which means they do not consume meat, milk, cheese, or eggs, and do not use any animal by-products, such as leather and wool. “I do it for ethical reasons,” explained Lally, in a release.

Farm Sanctuary’s shelters in New York and California provide life-long care for nearly 1,000 cows, pigs, goats, sheep, chickens and other farm animals that were destined for the dinner table. More about the New York Shelter in Watkins Glen here.