Dear Anton: Miss you (sort of)

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Mr. Anton H. George
Team owner
Vision Racing
c/o City Centre Airport race course
Edmonton, Alberta

Dear Tony,

You didn't miss much here on Sunday in Indianapolis, at the track you used to rule. But we sure missed you.

A race without much action is bad enough, let alone one on a track without a face -- without someone for everyone to blame.

The 16th Allstate 400 at the Brickyard was a dog. I know, I know: What's new?

But a faceless Indianapolis Motor Speedway, operating on an eerie sort of autopilot without you, made it even more forgettable.

For better or worse, we had grown accustomed to your smirks and scowls with the ups and downs of this place these past 20 years when you had reigned, before your mother and three dear sisters threw you off the throne and under the bus last month.

A Chat With F1 World Champ Mika Häkkinen. Who Loves NASCAR.

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The door opens, and in walks Mika Häkkinen, twice Formula 1 world driving champion, winner of 20 Grands Prix during his ten-year career (1991-2001), and the racing foe seven-time champion Michael Schumacher says he admired and feared most. I’m in Stuttgart, Germany, to drive the new 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG sedan, and the maker has arranged for its now-retired superstar (Häkkinen won his championships driving Benz-powered McLarens) to sit down for a brief chat.


The Finnish-born Häkkinen, now 40, looks fit, tanned, and relaxed. As we make introductions, he says he’s already driven the E63 (I drive it tomorrow), and after his flat-out laps around the Nurburgring he found it “a brilliant car. Difficult to find the limit. The car was really well balanced.”

NASCAR vs. Formula One

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People often ask me questions about the differences between Formula One and NASCAR and in reality comparing the two sports is almost pointless, as aside from the high speeds, there is little similarity. In simple terms though, let’s have a look at the differences and some similarities between the two codes.

Both sports have a long history: NASCAR’s being born from the exploits of bootleggers in the prohibition era, who modified their cars to outrun the police. Eventually, semi-organized racing became increasingly popular particularly after the Second World War. However, the organizers often made more money than the drivers who invested the time, the costs associated with running the vehicle and the risk, leaving the drivers out of pocket.

Brian Ickler makes NASCAR Nationwide Series Debut

Words: Matt Kartozian
Photos: Durka Durka Photo
November 8, 2008
Avondale, AZ

Rising star Brian Ickler made his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut at Phoenix International Raceway driving the #55 for Robby Gordon Motorsports.

It was a weekend of ups and downs for Ickler at the Hefty Odor Block 200. He finished 22nd in the first round of practice, but in the 2nd round he moved all the way up to 11th. Things went downhill again during qualifying as Ickler finished 34th out of 43 and in his own words “Messed up big time in qualifying and barely made the show”.

At the start of the race Ickler looked good and was consistently picking off cars and he worked his way up from the back of the field. Near the mid point of the race he blew a right rear tire going into turn 3 and rode it up into the wall causing significant damage. He spent the rest of the race fighting the car and just trying to get it around the track and to the checkers.

Carl Edwards brought his car home for the win while Ickler finished in 34th.

“It was not the finish we wanted but we gained some experience with radial tires and what not. I just gotta talk Robby into to letting me drive another one of these things soon.”

Ickler future plans include racing Late Model at the Snowball Derby in December, and a return to the desert at the BITD Parker 425 and possibly Vegas to Reno in 2009.

Two-time Cup champ Johnson to race former F1 ace Schumacher

http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/columns/story?seriesId=2&columnist=smith_marty&id=3154388

LONDON -- Many Formula 1 racing fans scoff at the very thought of NASCAR, consider it no more racing than a Monster Truck rally, and perceive it as a dog 'n' pony show contrived from corporate marketing that belongs on the main stage at the county fair. Conversely, many NASCAR fans fly the single-digit salute at F1, pay it little -- if any -- mind, figure it's a glorified homecoming parade at 200 mph staged in some faraway land they can't even pronounce.

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AP Photo/Terry Renna

Jimmie Johnson calls his head-to-head battle with Michael Schumacher a "great opportunity to race against the best in the world."

Love lost? Not so much. It's a lack-of-respect thing.Well, folks, listen up. Regardless of your respective allegiance, come Sunday evening you'll have unmistakable bragging rights. Why? Because the very best in NASCAR is set to strap in and square off against the very best in F1 -- in identically prepared cars -- as part of the 20th running of the Race of Champions Nation's Cup.Race organizers told ESPN.com on Thursday that Jimmie Johnson and Michael Schumacher will race head-to-head in Sunday's event.Back-to-back Cup champ vs. seven-time F1 title-winner. No excuses."It's one hell of a great opportunity to race against the best in the world, and as a driver that's what you're always looking for -- it's what you want," Johnson said Thursday while dining on sushi at Nobu London. "It's a different type of race. We're only going about 30 mph [average], so we'll have to be really technically sound. Hitting your marks will be key."Thirty miles per hour. That may seem mundane -- your granny drives that speed on the highway, after all -- but it's not. Far from it. Having covered this event last year in Paris, I will testify to its intensity and precision. These boys are here for three reasons: (1) It's fun as hell; (2) To beat the best in the world; (3) To win for their country. And they mean it. Go through the motions? Get embarrassed. "Everyone recognizes [Schumacher] as a champion, and after winning my second straight championship in NASCAR, I hope I'm perceived that way," Johnson said. "Beating him and helping Team USA win the Nations Cup would be the perfect ending to the best year of my career."If Johnson prevails over Schumacher, it will boost the perception of stock car racing overseas. Schumacher retired last year, but don't think for a minute he's lost anything behind the wheel. And rest assured, he wants to win this badly, too. Some say NASCAR and F1 don't pay mind to one another because they have completely separate goals. Whatever. Everybody wants to be king. Think about it. For a random guy here in London to pick up the paper Monday morning and see that a NASCAR guy beat one of the most celebrated drivers of all time would have to positively affect NASCAR. And though neither side will admit it, there is an unspoken rivalry between NASCAR and F1. Juan Pablo Montoya told me earlier this year that I was reaching for something that's not there. He'd know, so he's probably right. But it's the biggest thing in the States vs. the biggest thing in Europe. How could there not be a rivalry? All said, this faceoff is a race fan's dream scenario. Johnson and U.S. teammate Travis Pastrana will run head-to-head against Team Germany, for whom Schumacher is paired with Sebastian Vettel of F1's Scuderia Toro Rosso team.Johnson and Schumacher will be driving four-wheel-drive Fiat Grande Punto S 2000s in a two-lap sprint before handing the wheel over to their respective teammates.The ROC concept is akin to that employed by the former IROC in America -- pitting champion drivers from various forms of motorsport against one another in identical cars to determine who's best. But whereas IROC was run on ovals, the Race of Champions is staged on an asphalt track laid inside a stadium. After several years at the Stade de France in Paris, the event moves this year to London's hallowed Wembley Stadium. And ROC is broken down into two competitions -- a team competition in which eight two-man teams will battle for the Nation's Cup, and an individual competition in which every driver on hand races to be crowned best of the best.Nation's Cup comes first. USA vs. Germany. Johnson vs. Schumacher. But if you ask me, there's a lot more on the line than just Johnson vs. Schumacher. Marty Smith is a contributor to ESPN's NASCAR coverage. He can be reached at ESPNsider@aol.com.

2007 INDY CAR CHAMPION DARIO FRANCHITTI MOVING TO NASCAR

SEMA eNews, Vol. 10, No. 37 - Sep 13, 2007
2007 INDY CAR CHAMPION DARIO FRANCHITTI MOVING TO NASCAR AND OTHER RACING NEWS

HEAD WEST: The Champ Car World Series has announced a return to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca next season. The event does not add a race to the schedule, as it will replace the San Jose Grand Prix, which has run in the streets of San Jose the past two years. A date for the race has not been announced.

CHAMP ON THE MOVE: Dario Franchitti secured the IndyCar Series championship last weekend at Chicagoland Speedway, but the Scottish driver is reportedly heading to NASCAR and will drive the No. 40 Dodge for Chip Ganassi Racing in the Sprint Cup Series next season.

AGREEMENT: AT&T, NASCAR and Sprint Nextel reached an agreement that will allow Richard Childress Racing to run AT&T logos on its car, but the deal is contingent on AT&T being out of the sport by the end of the 2009 season.

RETIRING: Noted NASCAR team owner Robert Yates will retire at the end of the season, handing the keys to his race team to his son Doug. David Gilliland and Travis Kvapil will wheel the Yates entries next season.

STICKING AROUND: Thanks to an offer from rival team owner Ken Black to fly him to 10 events next season, four-time NHRA champion Gary Scelzi has decided to nix plans to take a sabbatical from drag racing and will return to the Don Schumacher Racing Funny Car camp full time next season.

MAKES: Joe Gibbs Racing officially announced its switch from Chevrolet cars to the Toyota Camry for the 2008 NASCAR Nextel Cup and Busch Series campaigns.

SHORT TRACK ACES: Jimmy Owens won the prestigious World 100 dirt-late-model race at Eldora Speedway, while Joey Saldana picked up the victory in the Gold Cup Race of Champions winged-sprint-car race at Chico, California. Todd Shute was the big winner at the IMCA Super Nationals.

NUMBER ONE: Tony Schumacher remained at the top of the NSSN Power Rankings, but Indy Racing League champion Dario Franchitti jumped to second in the countdown.

Source : SEMA News