Source: http://anotherindycarblog.wordpress.com/2013/07/02/a-ramble-on-tires-push-and-the-future/
Tuesday
A Ramble on Tires, Push and the Future
As the season reaches the halfway point the future of indycar is starting to look quite bright. Something as simple as an in-depth look at the odd link between downforce, pushy racecars and tires, a bone of contention in their … Continue reading
Monday
Ana Carrasco To Stay In Moto3 For 2014 With RW Racing
Ana Carrasco will have a second season in Moto3. The 16-year-old Spaniard has signed a one-year deal with Dutch Moto3 team RW Racing GP to race their Kalex KTM in 2014.
Carrasco had a positive rookie season in Moto3, ending the year with points in two races, as well as scoring the best result for a female rider in 18 years when she finished 8th at Valencia. But her performance was overshadowed by her teammate at Team Calvo, where Maverick Viñales became world champion. Despite being teammates, the two were on very different bikes, Viñales racing on a fully-factory supported KTM, where Carrasco competed on the basic KTM Moto3 bike.
Team Calvo had expressed an interest in retaining the services of Carrasco for 2014, but to do that, she would have to being money to fund the ride. Carrasco had been raising sponsorship through a Spanish website, but it was not enough to get her seat.
Jaime Alguersuari Philippe Alliot Cliff Allison Fernando Alonso
Sunday
It?s Your 2013 Exit Interview: No. 29 Tony Stewart
Welcome to From the Marbles' 2013 driver reviews. Here, we're going to critique, praise and bloviate about the top 30 drivers in the 2013 NASCAR season. It's time for Tony Stewart.
Thanks for stopping by, Tony. It's a good thing you had accrued all that sick time since you joined us and you're able to cash it in right now. You can't take it with you when you go, and we're glad that you had a legitimate medical reason for the withdrawal.
But we're not going to talk about that gnarly leg injury of yours in detail. We get squeamish around blood and open flesh. Please don't show us any pict... Aw crap. Why did you show us that picture? BRB, gotta puke.
OK, as we were saying. Your performance this year was sub-par, though it was getting better in August. You did pull that Dover win out of nowhere after Juan Pablo Montoya once again decided that success wasn't for him. Though to be fair, that Jimmie Johnson guy absolutely handed that win to Montoya on a platter, who ended up giving it to you because it had an ingredient he didn't like. We've never known you to pass up food, so you seized on that like a hyena on a rotting wildebeest.
And that was a good thing too, because hyenas sometimes don't know when their next meal is coming from, so they gorge themselves to feel full as long as possible. That win ended up tiding you over for a while -- and I still hope it is. We didn't wear meat-scented cologne on purpose today. We didn't want you getting any delusions.
You also supervise your own department -- though we have some formal request letters from Gene Haas here that seem to contradict that -- and we're interested to see how your decision to reassign Steve Addington to the Phoenix Racing chapter turns out. Michael Waltrip's area did have a lot of layoffs recently, and you seem to be taking a liking to their former folks. We're glad that in such an aggressive time of expansion that you're able to keep a lot of people in-house.
However, we do ask of you one small favor. If you ever win another title, please don't get rid of Chad Johnston as soon as you do. This pattern of constant turnover is going to start wearing on our human resources department and they're already bracing for Kurt Busch's arrival to your area. Think of them, Tony. Think of them.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Previous Reviews: No. 30, Dave Blaney
Saturday
It?s Your 2013 Exit Interview: No. 18 Aric Almirola
Welcome to From the Marbles' 2013 driver reviews. Here, we're going to critique, praise and bloviate about the top 30 drivers in the 2013 NASCAR season. Almirola already?
Aric, you've shown steady improvement throughout your six Cup seasons, and your second full season was an appropriate follow up on your debut last year.
We're really not sure what the expectations are. Setting them at winning races and making the Chase may be a tad too high given your team and your experience in the Cup Series, but at the same time, "not finishing 30th" is way too low too. If we split the difference, we'd say that 2013 was a fruitful season.
You had six top 10s, the most you've ever had, and for a while there you were in the Chase discussion. Heck, you were in the top 10 for two weeks after Talladega and Darlington in the spring. But the Daytona crash in July knocked you to 19th and that was that.
After 15 lead lap finishes last year, you finished on the lead lap 24 times in 2013. Another good improvement. Though the speed that you all had at the beginning of the year disappeared. Not only did that crash create a hole to dig out of, you really didn't even have a stepladder to try to get out of it. The only top 10s after it were at Loudon and Kansas.
You know what could make you endearing in our eyes? A full embrace of your NASCAR live chat nickname "Almirola by Morning." Consider that the missing link and all of your problems will go away if you put that above the window of your car. We're that serious about our chat names around here, and we pride ourselves on our originality. It's better than "Cuban Missile," and we're not in the Cold War no more.
Plus, "Almirola by Morning" fits perfectly with your boss's hat.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Previous Reviews: No. 19 Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 20, Jeff Burton, No. 21 Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 22 Marcos Ambrose, No. 23 Denny Hamlin, No. 24 Casey Mears, No. 25 Mark Martin, No. 26 David Gilliland, No. 27 Danica Patrick, No. 28 David Ragan, No. 29 Tony Stewart, No. 30 Dave Blaney
Friday
Thursday
Wednesday
With Johnson dominant, Cup contenders? press conference is a mild affair
The final Chase for the Sprint Cup championship press conference of 2013 played out like an off-brand kids' movie: pleasant, utterly predictable, with nary an unexpected turn anywhere. But that's what happens when your final weekend is edging away from "race" and toward "coronation."
Three years ago, Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick utterly mind-screwed Denny Hamlin. Two years ago, Tony Stewart played psychological ninja on Carl Edwards. Last year, Johnson tried to rattle Brad Keselowski. This year? Johnson holds a 28-point edge over Matt Kenseth, and as the challenger noted, only a miraculous misfire could keep Johnson from his sixth championship:
"Obviously we're not going to make up the deficit on performance. I think Jimmie could run 28th through the grass or with three wheels on," Kenseth laughed. "He's going to have to have a mechanical problem or crash to make something happen. We'll have to be up in the top five to hold on to second or to overtake Jimmie if he has a problem."
"Realistically the only things we can control are what we do," said Harvick, who's 34 points back. "It's definitely a really, really long shot. But we'll control the things that are in our control and see how it all falls."
Kenseth and Harvick didn't even try to mess with Johnson's head. Why bother? It's not like either of them could get in there, and it's not like they could do much damage if they did. Johnson said all the right things, keeping distractions and locker-room quotes to a minimum. And he says hasn't even begun to think about that championship.
"I'm just focused on getting in the car and doing all that I can on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, minimizing the stakes, all those types of things," he said. "I've really tried hard not to go down that road and think about those things. I think it would be a mistake."
There were a few surprises, none related to the competition itself. One came in the news that the reigning Sprint Cup champion would get a Hall of Fame vote, a nice nod to linking the present with the past.
The drivers were all asked about the Chase itself, and while Johnson was pleased, Kenseth naturally wished for a little more latitude in the points department. Harvick gave an interesting answer, echoing many fans:
"Things I don't like about it are the same racetracks year after year," he said. "I think it would help our schedule, it would help some of the racetracks, help build some excitement around some different racetracks. I think there needs to be a road course in it. I think there definitely needs to be some things mixed up in it. I think the format is great, but I think the tracks need to change on a yearly basis."
Festivities at Homestead kick off on Friday, with the season-ending Ford EcoBoost 400 coming Sunday afternoon.
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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Tuesday
Phoenix is Bobby Labonte?s final race of 2013
Could Sunday be the final race of Bobby Labonte's Sprint Cup Series career?
The 2000 Cup champion hasn't announced plans for next season, and with almost every full-time team set for next season, unless Labonte can snag a part-time role or hitch on with a new team, Phoenix may be his 718th and last start. (Though don't be surprised if a team puts Labonte in its car for the Daytona 500 for the use of the Past Champion's Provisional.)
It's been a trying season for Labonte and JTG-Daugherty Racing. The team brought AJ Allmendinger on board for what it deemed to be a second opinion earlier this season. Allmendinger's first race was at Michigan in June, while Labonte was able to catch a ride with Phoenix Racing to keep his consecutive starts streak intact.
However, two weeks later at Kentucky, Allmendinger was in the No. 47 again and Labonte didn't have a ride and the streak ended at 704 races. Allmendinger is scheduled to drive the No. 47 at Homestead and signed with the team to drive in 2014.
Over Labor Day weekend, Labonte was scheduled to drive for Phoenix again at Atlanta, but broke his ribs in a cycling accident and missed three weeks.
Labonte hasn't won since 2003, so for many newer NASCAR fans, his past accomplishments may be overlooked. However, whenever he is eligible for the NASCAR Hall of Fame, his career will serve as a fascinating barometer for how voters will consider the standards for drivers.
Through his 717 starts to date, Labonte has 21 wins, 115 top fives and that 2000 championship. Is that enough to be in the Hall of Fame? For reference, Dale Jarrett, a 2013 inductee, finished with 32 wins and a Cup title, but Jarrett also won the Daytona 500 three times.
Is any driver who wins a Cup title a Hall of Famer? Labonte's inclusion or exclusion may answer that question. What do you think?
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Monday
Sunday
Althea Racing Return To The Ducati Fold: Will Field Niccolo Canepa As EVO Entry In 2014 WSBK Campaign
The Althea Racing team is to switch back to Ducati from Aprilia for the 2014 World Superbike season. After their split with Ducati over development of the Panigale at the end of 2012, the Italian team are to return to the Bologna factory fold and race the Panigale in 2014.
They will do so on a different footing to their previous relationship with Ducati, however. Next season, Althea will race the Panigale 1199R as an EVO entry in WSBK, the subclass set up to allow a more affordable entry into World Superbikes. With WSBK looking set to switch completely to EVO rules in the next few years, having a strong partner to help develop the Panigale within the restrictions set by the EVO rules - basically, a Superstock-spec engine in Superbike-spec chassis - will help Ducati prepare for the future. Given how well the Panigale has performed in Superstock form wherever it has been able to use the Ducati ECU, the bike should suit the EVO rules well.
The signing of Niccolo Canepa to race the Panigale with Althea is indicative of how close the cooperation with Ducati is likely to be. Canepa has a long history with Ducati, having functioned as a test rider for the Italian factory for a number of years, and having won the Superstock 1000 title on a Ducati in 2007, and raced Ducatis for the majority of his career.
Saturday
Friday
Iowa Rain Out Causes Pit Crew Problems
On a normal NASCAR weekend when the Truck Series and/or Nationwide Series run companion to the Cup cars, there are a lot of pit crew members who double or triple dip. Crew members make some extra cash and get more reps, and the teams get top talent pitting their cars. But this last weekend presented [...] 
TheNASCARInsiders.com
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Thursday
Wednesday
Driver in car crash that killed Paul Walker drove in the Pirelli World Challenge
Fast and the Furious actor Paul Walker was killed in a car crash on Saturday and the driver of the car was Roger Rodas, who has driven in the Pirelli World Challenge.
Rodas and Walker were Porsche enthusiasts and owned Rodas' race team, Always Evolving, together. The Porsche Carrera GT they were in crashed after they drove the car from a charity event. Authorities said that when they arrived, the car was engulfed in flames.
?Him and his buddy, his brother in arms at heart, just decided to joyride, take a spin," Antonio Holmes, a friend of Walker's who was at the event, told the Santa Clarita Valley Signal. "Something we all do. We're all car enthusiasts. ... We?re all here driving, enjoying each other, and God must?ve needed help."
Rodas drove in the GTS Series this season in the Pirelli World Challenge with and finished second in the Porsche Drivers Cup Series last year with two wins for Always Evolving, the team that he and Walker started per his bio on the PWC site, Rodas was a wealth adviser for Merrill Lynch.
This year in the PWC GTS Series, he was 13th in the points standings and competed in 10 of the series' 14 races. His highest finish was fifth place at Toronto.
The Sports Car Club of America is the largest amateur motorsports club in the United States and throughout its series it is a mixture of drivers who have another career (like Rodas) or who have made driving their primary endeavor. The PWC is sanctioned by the SCCA Pro Series and "The purpose of Pirelli World Challenge Championships is to provide teams, manufacturers and aftermarket suppliers a competitive production-based race series in which to prove their products."
The road racing series runs on weekends at tracks with larger series. The 2014 PWC season will kick off at St. Petersburg, the same weekend as the IndyCar Series' season-opening race of the season.
Rodas was friends with Los Angeles Clippers PG Chris Paul and the Asomugha Foundation, started by NFL defensive back Nnamdi Asomugha, was one of the foundations that Always Evolving supported.
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Harry Blanchard Michael Bleekemolen Alex Blignaut Trevor Blokdyk
Tuesday
Dale Earnhardt Jr. finishes second behind that pesky Jimmie Johnson
FORT WORTH, Texas -- The national crisis that would be a winless 2013 Sprint Cup Series season for Dale Earnhardt Jr. almost came to an end once again Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway.
Jimmie Johnson just got in the way. Again.
For the third time this season, Junior finished second to Johnson. It happened in the first race of the season at Daytona, at Dover in September and Sunday, as Junior, nor anyone else, could come close to the speed that Johnson and his team had.
Johnson led 255 of the race's 334 laps. But Junior, who started seventh, was also up front for nearly the entire day.
"The Chicago deal is regrettable," Junior said. "We'd love to go back and do that over again, but as soon as that happened, we really changed our aproach and it was more about trying to win a race."
"Winning a race would really lift all the team's spirits. You work all season long not to go winless and not getting to go to victory lane. So I know how much the guys want the win on the team, so that's what we're working for now."
The Chicago deal that he refers to is when he blew an engine in the Chase's opening race, which left him 53 points out of the lead. Now, with two races remaining, Junior's only lost nine additional points to the lead, thanks to six top 10s in the succeeding seven races.
But there's still that win lingering. After winning at Michigan last year to break a four year winless drought, Junior's too close to have another streak like that, right?
"I think it's a matter of being close. You know, it's not -- we're not running second by making mistakes," he said. "We're not giving away wins. So I feel like we're just really getting close to cracking through and just trying to maintain the momentum with two races to go is going to be tough. But that's what we're focusing on."
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Mike Beuttler Birabongse Bhanubandh Lucien Bianchi Gino Bianco
Monday
Sunday
Saturday
Power Rankings: Matt Kenseth reclaims the top spot
It's time for Power Rankings! After every race, we'll opine about who we think is at the top of the Sprint Cup heap and how and why they got there. Remember, this isn't scientific, as our formula is the perfect blend of analytics and bias against your favorite driver. So let's get on with it now, shall we?
1. Matt Kenseth (LW: 2): Really, why hasn't someone taken the Matty Ice nickname from Matt Ryan and given it to Kenseth? I know we have Flatline, but I can't be the only person that wants to call him Matty Ice. Regardless, we're going to stick with the cliche "Kenseth did what he had to do" at Martinsville line because it's true. It would just be a shame if either Kenseth or Johnson had a mechanical failure over the next three races to make what's been a fight that looks destined to go all 10 rounds a TKO.
2. Jimmie Johnson (LW: 1): I know we talk a lot about Johnson's Martinsville success, but his fifth place finish Sunday was his 16th worst out of 24 starts. Let that sink in. That's crazy. Anyway, Texas Motor Speedway is billing that the battle between Kenseth and Johnson is the tightest NASCAR points race with three to go. And while that is correct, they're tied. Can't really top that, can you?
3. Jeff Gordon (LW: 5): Gordon is trying his best to keep the hope alive that we'll have a treasure trove of "driver added to field by commissioner's selection wins Chase" stories. It's not going to happen, but it's fun to think about. Also fun to think about, Gordon's win total when he retires. Sunday was No. 88. What are the chances he gets to 100?
4. Kevin Harvick (LW: 4): Wow, so the comparison that I had for Harvick in last week's Power Rankings about party guy turned out to be kind of accurate. Except I didn't think that he'd turn on the people he came to the party with. They're sticking with him, at least until the party's over. And that's cool with you, because once the party's over, it's not your problem any longer.
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (LW: 6): Junior's running well and had another top 10 at Martinsville. It's just that his Chicago engine failure has ruined the Chase and the torrid pace set by the top two drivers has left him helpless to the championship. Is he the best case for a Chase mulligan? Because he's Junior, maybe not, because of the conspiracies some fans would concoct.
6. Kyle Busch (LW: 3): That car sure faded over the last part of the race and after being near the front all day, Busch ended up 15th. At least he had a better day than his brother, who spun while trying to make a pass and ended up 18th. If Kyle Busch was a Kid Rock song, which one would he be? Why did I ask that question?
7. Clint Bowyer (LW: 8): So it looks like the funny rawhide is back. That's good to see, though it'd be awesome if he made some poison oak jokes and we could all laugh about it. His crew chief Brian Pattie had one of my favorite in-race radio quips of the year Sunday when he told Bowyer to drive the car hard and not loaf around like a certain midwestern-born Camping World Truck Series driver.
8. Jamie McMurray (LW: 6): Sneaky, sneaky, that McMurray. He finished in the top 10 a week after winning at Talladega and could be a surprise contender at Phoenix. He's also 24 points ahead of Brad Keselowski for the prestigious and never-remembered "highest finishing non-Chase driver" award.
9. Greg Biffle (LW: NR): Biffle gets this spot here because of the impressive drive he had without a rear bumper cover over the final laps of the race and the sleek sneak-spin-attack on Jimmie Johnson. If you're scrambling for Halloween party ideas, you could do a lot worse than plastering a bunch of 3M products all over yourself and randomly grabbing people by their collars and torquing them in the name of the Biff.
10. Kurt Busch (LW; 8): Busch could not have planned that spin any better to drive off with minimal damage. He was the guy at fault, but ended up with just a monstrous dent in the door while Mark Martin had an obliterated front end. If Jimmie Johnson has had a golden horseshoe you-know-where in previous chases, don't go looking for what the No. 14 team has. You could be scarred for life.
11. Carl Edwards (LW: 11): If Carl Edwards ever misses his backflip, will it make a thud similar to the one that was heard in Edwards' hometown when Missouri's Andrew Baggett's kick in double overtime clanked off the uprights? That was cathartic to type, I promise. Stick with me at Dr. Saturday for more college football stuff.
12. Ryan Newman (LW: 10): If drivers didn't have custom fitted seats, Sunday would have been the perfect opportunity for Newman to do the whoopie cushion or flaming bag of poo trick to Harvick's seat at Stewart-Haas after Homestead. Alas, we won't have the opportunity for that awesomeness so we'll instead have something else. Likely nothing.
Lucky Dog: Denny Hamlin didn't back up his hot talk after winning the pole with a win, but finished seventh. That's pretty much a win for Hamlin these days. So maybe he did back it up.
The DNF: Dang, David Ragan. After qualifying in the top 10, the engine on his car went sour and he finished dead last.
Dropped Out: Ragan
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Nick Bromberg is the editor of From The Marbles on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Friday
Thursday
Weekend Review? The Greatest Street Race EVER Edition
Yet another race in the books, and another finish for indycar lore. Depending on who you ask, the 2013 Indy Brazil 300 was either the race of the year, decade, century? or ever. I?m not sure I have the qualifications … Continue reading 
Wednesday
Bridgestone Press Release: Hiroshi Yamada Reviews The Highs And Lows Of The 2013 MotoGP Season
With the racing season done, Bridgestone issued a press release looking back over the 2013 MotoGP season with Bridgestone's Motorsport Manager Hiroshi Yamada. The review covers the high points and the low points of 2013, with Yamada praising the depth of talent in the series and hailing the arrival of Marc Marquez in the premier class. Yamada also briefly reviews the events at Phillip Island, where Bridgestone totally misjudged the state of the newly resurfaced track. There is also some news of the 2014 season, with Bridgestone still evaluating the soft tire options for the new Open class MotoGP machines. The arrival of more powerful bikes such as the Honda RCV1000R and the Yamaha FTR make producing a soft tire for the bikes a more complicated endeavor. The press release appears below:
Hiroshi Yamada looks back over the 2013 MotoGP™ season
After one of the most exciting MotoGP™ campaigns in recent years, Bridgestone Motorsport Manager Hiroshi Yamada looks back on the highlights from this year, and gives a brief glimpse of the world’s largest tyre manufacturer’s approach to the 2014 season.
Yamada-san, how would you summarise the 2013 MotoGP season?
“Overall, I think this season has been fantastic – one of the best ever for the series. All the riders were performing at a very high level and to witness Marc break record after record and Jorge defend his title with so much passion, I think it brought many new fans to MotoGP. Personally, I was very happy to see that despite our focus on producing safer, more user-friendly tyres, eleven Circuit Best Laps and ten Circuit Record Laps were set this year, showing the performance potential of our BATTLAX tyres.
“Also, to start the year with 24 riders – the largest grid since Bridgestone started in MotoGP – shows how the series continues to grow and when I heard that the overall attendance figure this year was the highest ever, it reaffirmed to me that the 2013 season was one of the best ever.”
Year:
2013 Luki Botha JeanChristophe Boullion Sebastien Bourdais Thierry Boutsen
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