Alonso wins in Spain as rivals fall off; other racing

I TOOK THIS IPHONE SNAP OF DALE CREASY JR. (LEFT LANE) AND CRUZ PEDREGON FACING OFF IN A MATCH RACE SATURDAY AT TORONTO MOTORSPORTS PARK NEAR CAYUGA. PEDREGON WON.

In a thrilling European Grand Prix at Valencia, Spain, this morning, Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso became the first repeat winner of 2012 due to a storming drive on his part and bad luck on the part of his major opponents.

After seven different drivers won the first seven races of the season, Alonso had to battle to the front after starting 11th - yes, he failed to make it into the final qualifying session on Saturday - in order to win his second race of the season.

Comeback kids, and former world champions, Kimi Raikkonen finished second for Lotus-Renault (he came back to F1 this season after driving in the World Rally Championship the previous two years) and Michael Schumacher was third for Mercedes. It was Schumacher's first podium since he returned to the sport three seasons ago. Full results here

Two-time world champion Sebastien Vettel was running away with the race - he had a 20-second lead at one point - but his Red Bull-Renault racer conked out on him on Lap 34 of the 47-lap contest. There was no immediate explanation for the engine failure.

Romain Grosjean was running second in his Lotus-Renault and it appeared to be only a matter of time before he would take the lead when the alternatore stopped working on Lap 41 and he was forced to retire.

And on the second-last lap, Lewis Hamilton's McLaren-Mercedes was assaulted by Pastor Maldonado's Williams-Renault and sent flying into a retaining wall, eliminating the winner of the last race, the Canadian Grand Prix, and allowing Schumacher to inherit third place.

Alonso was very emotional following the victory. He teared up during the playing of the Spanish national anthem and told interviewers later that his home race victory overshadowed everything else he'd done in his career.

The race featured incredibly intense and close racing, particularly in the early stages.

In other racing (of which there was a ton on Saturday):

- Ryan Hunter-Reay won the IZOD IndyCar race in Iowa that started Saturday and finished early today. The start was held up 40 minutes because of rain but it still began way too late in the day - another case of this series shooting itself in the foot.

Canadian James Hinchcliffe of Oakville crashed out, despite leading the event at one point. He was 17th; Alex Tagliani of Montreal also didn't finish but was classified 16th.

- Ex-F1 racer Nelson Piquet Jr. won the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Road America Saturday. Canadian Ron Fellows of Mississauga finished third but the Canadian everybody was talking about later was another ex-F1 racer, Jacques Villeneuve, who continued his battering ram ways of a year ago.

Saturday, he pushed not one but two drivers off the track - Elliott Sadler and Danica Patrick. Patrick, in particular, was upset because she was running the best race of her first full-time NASCAR season, in the top five all day, and her trip into the sandtrap on the last lap, compliments of Jacques (a move that Paul Tracy tweeted will now be known as the "Newtown horn"), dropped her to 12th.

- D.J. Kennington of St. Thomas won his second NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race of 2012 at Delaware Speedway near London on Saturday night, with defending series champion Scott Steckly of Milverton second and Jason Hathaway of Dutton, Ont., third.  The race had to be red-flagged at one point because the lights along the front straight went out. There were 22 cars in the field, one more than showed up at Mosport Speedway a week ago.

- Jeff Segal and Emil Assentato won the GT class in the Grand Am Rolex Sports Car race at Road America Saturday, which was won overall by Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas. Segal and Assentato's class victory in a Ferrari was the third of the season for the AIM Autosport team out of Woodbridge.

- At Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, In the Pirelli World Challenge Championship, Mike Skeen of Charlotte, N.C., won the first of two weekend in a Corvette. Johnny O’Connell of Flowery Branch, Ga., was second in a Cadillac. The GTS class saw Michael Galati from Olmstead, Ohio, take the top spot while his Kia Motors teammate Mark Wilkins of Toronto finished second. In Touring class, American Jeff Altenburg won the first of three weekend races while Markham's Gary Kwok took the top spot in the second. Andre Rapone of Thornhill won both races in the new B-Spec class in his Honda Fit.

Saturday's racing also saw the Ontario Formula Ford Championship hold its first of two races. In the F1600-A Class, Jack Mitchell Jr. of Clarendon Hills, Ill., won over Caitlin Johnston of Orangeville. 

In the final race of the day, Skeen finished first in the Porsche 944 Cup.  Mike Mallais of Scarborough was second.

- At Toronto Motorsports Park, near Cayuga, qualifying was held in a number of categories for today's Canadian Nitro Nationals elimination finals. 

Taking the No. 1 spot in Pro Modified Racing Association competition was Bruce Boland of Hamilton. Boland, a three-time champion, posted a 6.005-second, 238.05-mph pass with his 1941 Willys Pro Modified. Second in qualifying was Derek Hawker of Corbyville and third was Kenny Lang of Grand Pointe, Man.

In the Quick 32 Sportsman Series, Dave Leverentz of Irving, N.Y., took the No. 1 spot in Top Dragster with a 6.183-second, 223.02-mph run. James Lichty of Linwood placed second, followed by Rick Kopp of Burlington. 

On the Top Sportsman side of the Quick 32 Sportsman Series, two-time champion Kevin Wicke of Stratford qualified first with a 6.797-second, 203.09-mph effort in his Dodge Stratus. Mike Wagg of Waterdown placed second and Darryl McMillen of Goderich was third

In the PBSS series, Kevin McKay of Ingersoll rode his Pro Bike Suzuki to the No. 1 qualifying spot with a 7.711-second, 169.10-mph run. John Orfanidis of Toronto placed second with his Pro Bike entry. Dan Cryderman of Thamesville, Ontario, also in Pro Bike, qualified third. 

- Finally, in Round 2 of the Northern Summer Nationals for sprint cars, Justin Barger of Montrose, N.Y., won the main at South Buxton Speedway (Chatham area) Saturday night. Dustin Daggett of Grand Ledge, Mich., finished second and Travis Cunningham of Grimsby was third.  

Round 1 at Ohsweken Speedway (Brantford area) Friday night went to Jared Zimbardi of Salamanca, N.Y., with Chris Steele second and Bryan Howland of Auburn, N.Y., third.

Comments

[I luv chicken]

I know it's your job, but just a word of thanks,for the weekend round up. Good to have the various results available, after returning from a few days at the races.

[APP]

Saw the whole Villeneuve-Patrick debacle. First off, kudos to Jr. Nelson for winning a well deserved race. Not a bad kid and far less of a slime ball than his father was. As for JV and Danica. People want to dump on Danica but she did nothing wrong. I watched her post race comments and I give her a ton of credit for not dumping on Baldy more than she could have. That Amazon from ESPN, Jamie Little, tried to get her to bite and she didn't. Good for Danica. She impressed me. As for Jacques, his claim of Papis running him off and coming back slow on the track was so bogus it was laughable. That claim by Villeneuve and what he said and did were mutually exclusive. He embarrasses himself constantly. Jacques, the Iditarod would not take you now. Maybe Iberville has an opening for a zamboni driver this coming fall. Just don't hit the boars. Time to move on.

[Bertap Zudotokimoshio]

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