Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Formula1Fancast/~3/uyhDs-CDQ28/five-moments-that-defined-2013
Friday
FIVE Moments That Defined 2013
Sebastian Vettel glided almost effortlessly toward his sixth straight victory and his fourth consecutive world title on Sunday, celebrating with a series of spectacular doughnuts in front of his adoring (yes, really) fans in New Delhi. Love him or loathe him, there is absolutely no question he and the Red Bull Racing team deserve their [...]
Thursday
Sutil: Teenage ?kids? aren?t ready for F1 | F1 Fanatic Round-up
In the round-up: "You need to be a grown up in F1" - Sutil ? Di Resta and Anthony Hamilton go to court ? Ecclestone refutes F1 sale charge
Source: http://www.f1fanatic.co.uk/2013/10/31/f1-fanatic-round-up-3110-2/
Harry Blanchard Michael Bleekemolen Alex Blignaut Trevor Blokdyk
Wednesday
5 Hour Energy returning to sponsor Clint Bowyer in 2014
Michael Waltrip Racing can breathe a public sigh of relief after 5 Hour Energy announced via its Facebook page Friday morning that it would return to the team to sponsor Clint Bowyer in 2014.
"This week the 5-hour ENERGY� team met after the New Hampshire race to discuss our future with Michael Waltrip Racing," the post said. "While our original plan was to announce the status of our sponsorship at the end of the year, this timeframe left many concerned about their future. There are scores of passionate fans, numerous charitable organizations, and hundreds of hard-working MWR employees and their families who are directly impacted by 5-hour ENERGY?s NASCAR sponsorship."
"After several internal discussions and meetings with MWR, we are prepared to announce our decision ahead of schedule. 5-hour ENERGY� will be back as a sponsor of MWR and Clint Bowyer for 2014. We look forward to another great year of competitive racing. Go 15!"
The president of 5 Hour, Brian Henderson, was at New Hampshire and according to the AP said "There's a lot of talk about integrity,'' he said. ''When the guy who's in charge can say, 'I can do whatever I want and I'm going to do it and I just did,' I wonder about integrity. I want to make sure we can win in this sport, OK?'' He then walked off.
Those comments looked to be in reference to NASCAR president Brian France, who in the wake of the MWR race manipulation allegations at Richmond, added Jeff Gordon to the Chase as a 13th car.
MWR was accused of having Bowyer and Brian Vickers slow down to ensure Joey Logano finished ahead of them at Richmond after Bowyer spun late in the race. That got Martin Truex Jr. into the Chase before he was penalized by NASCAR the following Monday. Last week, NAPA made the decision to leave Michael Waltrip Racing at the end of the season.
NAPA was a full season sponsor for Truex. With the return of 5 Hour, the team now has two of its three cars funded, but is still looking for sponsorship for Truex.
Tuesday
Monday
FIA Ethics Committee dismisses Ward?s complaint
The FIA Ethics Committee, which met on Friday in Paris, has dismissed David Ward’s complaint. The committee said that “nothing in what the Committee saw or heard gives any hint that any ethical regulation of the FIA has been breached by Mr Todt or any of the parties implicated”. It also rejected the claim that […]
Source: http://joesaward.wordpress.com/2013/10/23/fia-ethics-committee-dismisses-wards-complaint/
Sunday
Travis Kvapil will drive No. 93 car as scheduled this weekend following arrest
Travis Kvapil's driving duties will be unchanged after his Tuesday evening arrest. BK Racing says that it's standing by its driver after he was arrested and charged with assault and false imprisonment.
?After discussions with NASCAR and the Kvapil family, BK Racing has elected to support Travis and his family,? co-owner Ron Devine told FOX Sports on Thursday. ?It?s the right thing for Travis and his family to let the system take its course.
?He has the ability to set aside the issues and focus, and he?s prepared to race this weekend.?
The arrest and charges from the domestic dispute came after Mooresville police responded to a 911 call from Kvapil's residence. According to police and court records via the Sporting News, Kvapil "allegedly pulled his wife into a bedroom by her hair and struck her in the head as she tried to pull away." The charges are misdemeanors, and neither party was under the influence of alcohol.
A court date regarding the charges has been set for November 19. NASCAR released a statement Thursday:
"NASCAR does not condone the actions with which Travis Kvapil has been charged and we are disappointed to learn of this incident. We have been in close communication with the race team and are in the process of gathering as much information as possible," the sanctioning body said in a statement. "NASCAR takes this matter very seriously and will continue to monitor the situation as it moves forward."
So, yes. Go forth and race, Kvapil.
However, it must be said again, this is the sanctioning body that suspended Jeremy Clements two races for saying a racial slur at Daytona, as it violated NASCAR's code of conduct. Does this matter not violate the code of conduct?
Per those discussions that Devine referenced above, NASCAR and BK Racing must know something that we do not via the information available and the charges to allow Kvapil to race this weekend. That's the only explanation, as this was deemed a serious enough incident and there was enough information for charges to be filed.
Mike Harmon wasn't suspended when he was charged in the saga of Jennifer Jo Cobb's hauler, so there is a NASCAR precedent that's already been set this year. However, it's fair to say that the situations that Harmon and Kvapil were in are quite different. A hauler is not a person, and there's enough finger pointing with the hauler drama to make your head spin.
The right decision, given the code of conduct that NASCAR has referenced both in the Clements and Nelson Piquet situations, is to have Kvapil on the sidelines for the remainder of the season, or until the situation is resolved, whichever comes first. A domestic dispute like this is much more serious than a slur or a stolen hauler -- the charges prove that.
Rubens Barrichello Michael Bartels Edgar Barth Giorgio Bassi
Ben Spies Retires From Racing,
Ben Spies is to retire from motorcycle racing. The shoulder injuries the Texan suffered in the past year have cast doubts over whether his shoulders will ever be strong enough to race a motorcycle again, and so Ducati and Spies have come to a mutual agreement for Spies to terminate their contract after just 1 year. Spies' retirement leaves the second seat at Pramac Ducati vacant for 2014.
The trouble started for Spies during his difficult second year with the factory Yamaha team. After a series of strange mechanical issues and a few crashes, which led to his decision to leave the team, Spies had a massive highside in the wet at Sepang, in which he badly damaged his right shoulder. He had surgery to fix that injury late 2012, in the hope of being ready to test at Sepang with the Pramac Ducati team. Riding that soon after such major surgery proved to be a mistake, and after the Austin round of MotoGP, Spies decided to pull out. A brief return at Mugello followed, and then a return to full fitness at Indianapolis in August. Another huge highside damaged saw Spies damage his left shoulder, and be forced to pull out for the rest of the season.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/MotoGPMatters/~3/EGUv4VRZjfI/ben_spies_retires_from_racing.html
Saturday
2013 Motegi MotoGP: Provisional Revised Weekend Schedule Announced
A provisional revised schedule for the Japanese Grand Prix in Motegi has been announced, with individual qualifying sessions to take place later this afternoon. Moto3 and Moto2 will have hour long sessions while the premier class will get an hour and fifteen minutes. It certainly has the potential to be a captivating day as riders and teams will be scrambling to rapidly sort out their set ups while also determining grid positions for tomorrows races.
It has also been announced that forty minute practice sessions will occur on Sunday morning for Moto3 and Moto2, while the MotoGP class will get fifty minutes. These sessions will in theory be extended warm ups and the races will then run according to the original timing schedule.
Full details of the revised outline can be seen below, they are according to local time:
Friday
Texas Motor Speedway to build world?s largest HD video board behind backstretch
The race to have the largest high-definition screen keeps going and going.
Texas Motor Speedway announced Monday that it will have the largest HD video board in the world in 2014 when it unveils a new screen behind the backstretch grandstands in time for its spring race weekend April 3-6, 2014. The video board will be 20,633 square feet, more than four thousand square feet bigger than the video board on the backstretch at Charlotte Motor Speedway, currently the largest high-definition video screen in the country.
Charlotte Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway are both owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc.
TMS also says its screen is 79 percent larger than each video board at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys. And of course, this being Texas and all, it'll be named "Big Hoss."
"The 1080p screen will consist of nearly 4.8 million pixels, display 281 trillion colors and feature a 140-degree horizontal viewing radius to provide rich, high-definition imagery for race fans in every frontstretch seat and suite of the state's largest sporting facility," the speedway said in a release. "For those fans in backstretch seating, Panasonic also will be installing an 18'x24,' 1080p HD video board on the infield side of the backstretch for their viewing pleasure."
Thursday
Happy Hour: Looking to the future and looking to the Dodgey past
Throughout the week you can send us your best questions, jokes, rants and just plain miscellaneous thoughts to happyhourmailbag@yahoo.com or @NickBromberg. We'll post them here, have a good time and everyone's happy. Right? Oh who are we kidding, this is NASCAR. No one is ever happy.
As Geoffrey Miller and I discussed on the award-winning Chrome Horn podcast, the Travis Kvapil story has disappeared in the wake of the Charlotte race and the NASCAR schedule unveiling. Of all the stories to have a short shelf life, the one that doesn't need one seems to have one.
Not that we want to be talking about a driver being charged with domestic violence by any means, but this is something that shouldn't have been pushed aside so quickly. Want more on that? Listen to the podcast.
Hey, there's also the news of Todd Parrott, the highest profile crew member to be suspended because of NASCAR's substance abuse policy. While I understand NASCAR's no tolerance policy completely, this news combined with the no news on Kvapil makes it impossible not to go "Hmm..."
Oh, real quick! We've professed our love for Steve Wallace's songs before, and every listen of his song here through October will be donated to cancer research. Keep on writing the racing songs, Steve.
Now, let's talk about the schedule, shall we? And those communists at NBC. Let's start with a doozy.
I'm a nascar fan but I. Won't watch it on nbc that is a leftist leaning they hate American thAt want are rights and freedoms but the goverment controled network they got there heads so far up Obama ass that if he stops they will come out his mouth. I will not watch anything on nbc.
- Donald
Please note that we did not touch up anything that Donald wrote in this email. The cleanest line of copy was the "Sent from my iPhone" tagline at the bottom. Donald can blame fat fingers for his typing, but I'm not sure what he can blame for his ridiculous thinking.
----------------
FUNNY--NO ONE ever mentions as to how Brad K. did so well last year--out of the chase this year. How can you "experts" be so stupid? The reason is D-O-D-G-E. Most everyone wants them out , and,as usual, they got their wish. DODGE is the reason Brad won last year-against HUGE odds. No one wanted DODGE to win--they did everything they could to stop him--but 2 Dodges in the whole field in 2012--One guy named Brad--WINS "all the marbles" as you say. Now he drives Ford--the results speak for themselves in 2013. I should be writing your editorials--it's SO easy to see why Brad did lousy this year. Did you EVER think what would happen in Nascar if Dodge had as many entries as GM, Ford, & "Rice burner"? They would run away with the field as they do in Canadian Tire series in Ontario, Canada. This is WHY the other 3 manufacturers have tried SO HARD to get Chrysler out of NASCAR. This is NOT NEW. They've been trying since back in the '60's when the vaunted Hemi took over . GM & Ford were so mad--they pulled the "money strings" with the NASCAR management to get this engine outlawed. So, here we are again--Chrysler gets back in in 2001--took them 11 years to get Chrysler back out of it. It's so plain --you dummies can't see it!!!!!
- Dan
Maybe I'm insane, but no one wanted Dodge out of racing. It was a matter of financial commitment and the ability of teams to find other manufacturers with more resources.
There's also absolutely no basis of comparison for "Dodge is the reason why Penske missed the Chase this year with Brad." They had an EFI problem earlier in the season, and then a crash and Richmond and so on and so forth. Is that stuff going to happen regardless of manufacturer? Likely.
Dan, do you also still think the Hemi was being run in NASCAR? Maybe that was Penske's secret last year. Brad had a Hemi engine!
@NickBromberg Do you think the rumored schedule changes for 2015 will really be that dramatic or this just NASCAR over hyping stuff again?
? Chris Nulty (@RealChrisNulty) October 17, 2013
How sad is it that wondering about overhype is a completely warranted and natural reaction to anything in NASCAR these days?
I like to think that it is, and I'm optimistic that there will be some significant shifts. Will they be as significant as a lot of people want them to be? Likely not, and therein lies the problem.
There are so many fans who want a complete -- or near complete -- overhaul of the NASCAR schedule that anything that the sanctioning body does will come up short in the minds of a vocal minority.
And look, it's not possible for NASCAR to throw everything away and start over again. There are too many ties that bind to make it happen and too many people to please. And with so many tracks tied to two Cup dates, there isn't a ton of flexibility.
But while there's not a ton, there's some. And I'm hoping that NASCAR takes advantage of it. But be forewarned, brace yourselves for the cacophony from the echo chamber about race manipulation if the NASCAR season ends with a restrictor plate race. That could be nauseating.
Wednesday
Surprise as Kvyat lands Toro Rosso seat for 2014
Toro Rosso has confirmed that Daniil Kvyat will replace Daniel Ricciardo next season. The 19-year-old Russian will partner Jean-Eric Vergne, who will be in his third year with the team. Kvyat is currently second in the GP3 series, and has … Continue reading 
Source: http://adamcooperf1.com/2013/10/21/surprise-as-kvyat-lands-toro-rosso-seat-for-2014/
Tuesday
Happy Hour: Looking to the future and looking to the Dodgey past
Throughout the week you can send us your best questions, jokes, rants and just plain miscellaneous thoughts to happyhourmailbag@yahoo.com or @NickBromberg. We'll post them here, have a good time and everyone's happy. Right? Oh who are we kidding, this is NASCAR. No one is ever happy.
As Geoffrey Miller and I discussed on the award-winning Chrome Horn podcast, the Travis Kvapil story has disappeared in the wake of the Charlotte race and the NASCAR schedule unveiling. Of all the stories to have a short shelf life, the one that doesn't need one seems to have one.
Not that we want to be talking about a driver being charged with domestic violence by any means, but this is something that shouldn't have been pushed aside so quickly. Want more on that? Listen to the podcast.
Hey, there's also the news of Todd Parrott, the highest profile crew member to be suspended because of NASCAR's substance abuse policy. While I understand NASCAR's no tolerance policy completely, this news combined with the no news on Kvapil makes it impossible not to go "Hmm..."
Oh, real quick! We've professed our love for Steve Wallace's songs before, and every listen of his song here through October will be donated to cancer research. Keep on writing the racing songs, Steve.
Now, let's talk about the schedule, shall we? And those communists at NBC. Let's start with a doozy.
I'm a nascar fan but I. Won't watch it on nbc that is a leftist leaning they hate American thAt want are rights and freedoms but the goverment controled network they got there heads so far up Obama ass that if he stops they will come out his mouth. I will not watch anything on nbc.
- Donald
Please note that we did not touch up anything that Donald wrote in this email. The cleanest line of copy was the "Sent from my iPhone" tagline at the bottom. Donald can blame fat fingers for his typing, but I'm not sure what he can blame for his ridiculous thinking.
----------------
FUNNY--NO ONE ever mentions as to how Brad K. did so well last year--out of the chase this year. How can you "experts" be so stupid? The reason is D-O-D-G-E. Most everyone wants them out , and,as usual, they got their wish. DODGE is the reason Brad won last year-against HUGE odds. No one wanted DODGE to win--they did everything they could to stop him--but 2 Dodges in the whole field in 2012--One guy named Brad--WINS "all the marbles" as you say. Now he drives Ford--the results speak for themselves in 2013. I should be writing your editorials--it's SO easy to see why Brad did lousy this year. Did you EVER think what would happen in Nascar if Dodge had as many entries as GM, Ford, & "Rice burner"? They would run away with the field as they do in Canadian Tire series in Ontario, Canada. This is WHY the other 3 manufacturers have tried SO HARD to get Chrysler out of NASCAR. This is NOT NEW. They've been trying since back in the '60's when the vaunted Hemi took over . GM & Ford were so mad--they pulled the "money strings" with the NASCAR management to get this engine outlawed. So, here we are again--Chrysler gets back in in 2001--took them 11 years to get Chrysler back out of it. It's so plain --you dummies can't see it!!!!!
- Dan
Maybe I'm insane, but no one wanted Dodge out of racing. It was a matter of financial commitment and the ability of teams to find other manufacturers with more resources.
There's also absolutely no basis of comparison for "Dodge is the reason why Penske missed the Chase this year with Brad." They had an EFI problem earlier in the season, and then a crash and Richmond and so on and so forth. Is that stuff going to happen regardless of manufacturer? Likely.
Dan, do you also still think the Hemi was being run in NASCAR? Maybe that was Penske's secret last year. Brad had a Hemi engine!
@NickBromberg Do you think the rumored schedule changes for 2015 will really be that dramatic or this just NASCAR over hyping stuff again?
? Chris Nulty (@RealChrisNulty) October 17, 2013
How sad is it that wondering about overhype is a completely warranted and natural reaction to anything in NASCAR these days?
I like to think that it is, and I'm optimistic that there will be some significant shifts. Will they be as significant as a lot of people want them to be? Likely not, and therein lies the problem.
There are so many fans who want a complete -- or near complete -- overhaul of the NASCAR schedule that anything that the sanctioning body does will come up short in the minds of a vocal minority.
And look, it's not possible for NASCAR to throw everything away and start over again. There are too many ties that bind to make it happen and too many people to please. And with so many tracks tied to two Cup dates, there isn't a ton of flexibility.
But while there's not a ton, there's some. And I'm hoping that NASCAR takes advantage of it. But be forewarned, brace yourselves for the cacophony from the echo chamber about race manipulation if the NASCAR season ends with a restrictor plate race. That could be nauseating.
The Tattletale Issue
Let me just say this first: I don’t care that somebody threw the Penske guys under the bus. There, I said it. (Cue the “you work for Hendrick” trolling in 3…2…1…) Last week, after both Penske cars were busted by NASCAR at Texas for some creative rear-end components, Jenna Fryer wrote that NASCAR may have [...] 
TheNASCARInsiders.com
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheNascarInsiders/~3/TKI9I0UF9Q0/
Monday
Car No. 43 crew chief Todd Parrott suspended by NASCAR
Todd Parrott, crew chief for Aric Almirola and the No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports car, has been suspended by NASCAR for violating the sanctioning body's substance abuse policy.
"Todd Parrott, a crew member in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has been indefinitely suspended from NASCAR for violating the sanctioning body?s Substance Abuse Policy," NASCAR's statement said.
"On Oct. 17, Parrott was found to have violated Sections 12-1 (actions detrimental to stock car racing) and 19 (violation of the NASCAR Substance Abuse Policy) of the 2013 NASCAR Rule Book."
Parrott has 31 Sprint Cup Series wins as a NASCAR crew chief and was the crew chief for Dale Jarrett when he won the 1999 Sprint Cup Series championship with Robert Yates Racing.
RPM said that Sammy Johns, the team's VP of Operations and Competition, would take Parrott's spot atop Almirola's pit box.
"We have an expectation of all RPM employees to conduct themselves at the highest level of professionalism and within the competitive confines as set forth by NASCAR," Johns said in a statement. "We are very disappointed that one of our employees did not meet our expectations and we completely support NASCAR, their policies and final decisions when it comes to the substance abuse policy."
Parrott became Almirola's crew chief in September of 2012 when the team swapped crew chiefs for the final 10 races of the season.
- - - - - - -
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!
Sunday
Brad Keselowski passes Kasey Kahne late for win at Charlotte
Last year's champion finally made it to victory lane this year.
After going winless for over a year, Brad Keselowski won Saturday night's Bank of America 500 at Charlotte after passing Kasey Kahne with eight laps to go and pulling away from the win.
With the win, Keselowski became the first non-Chase driver to win a Chase race since Kahne's win with Red Bull Racing in 2011. After winning the title last year, Keselowski missed the Chase this season, largely because that winless streak hurt his chances for the Wild Card.
The racing throughout Saturday evening's affair was, well, let's say a tad snooze-inducing. Clean air was once the name of the game and cars simply couldn't run side-by-side for an extended period of time.
However, when Kahne and Keselowski were together late, they produced the night's most riveting racing, even if it was just for a few brief moments.
"I love hard racing, and there are a handful of guys you can't race hard with in this deal because they freak out, Kasey's not one of them. He's an excellent driver and he ran me hard but he ran me clean and that's great racing," Keselowski said after the race in victory lane, perhaps taking a swipe at a certain driver he crashed while racing with last week.
Kahne had the lead on the race's final restart after taking two tires, and Keselowski restarted sixth with four tires. He quickly moved past Jeff Gordon and Matt Kenseth for second, and set his sights on Kahne and closed in on the Hendrick driver's bumper.
"I tried everything to keep him behind me," Kahne said. "He cleared me once and I got back by him, we just battled really hard and he did a really good job, he had a fast car at the end."
After Kahne got back by, Keselowski hung on his left rear quarterpanel entering turn one and cleared him. It was smooth sailing ahead for his 10th career Sprint Cup Series win.
Fred Agabashian Kurt Ahrens Jr Christijan Albers Michele Alboreto
Saturday
Friday
2013 Phillip Island Moto3 FP2 Result: Unwavering Vinales Leads The Way
An ultra consistent Maverick Vinales has set a new fastest ever lap for a Moto3 machine around the Phillip Island circuit on his way to topping Friday's second free practice session. His time of 1:38.198 put him two hundredths of a second ahead of both Jonas Folger and Zulfahmi Khairuddin in second and third places respectively. It was an extremely promising showing from Khairuddin following the disappointment of missing his home GP last week after being declared unfit to race. His team mate and morning pace setter Luis Salom was a further hundredth behind in fourth.
Ever improving FTR Honda rider Niccolo Antonelli ended the session in fifth place ahead of Mahindra's Miguel Oliveira and Alex Rins. Rins had a premature end to the session after encountering bike troubles following an off track excursion to avoid Niklas Ajo, who had crashed ahead of him. Brad Binder, Ajo and Alex Marquez rounded out the top ten.
Mбrio de Araъjo Cabral Frank Armi Chuck Arnold Rene Arnoux
Thursday
Clint Bowyer did yoga at Dover Saturday morning
It's been quite the stressful few weeks for Clint Bowyer and Michael Waltrip Racing. And yoga is supposed to be a stress reliever, right?
Bowyer did yoga Saturday morning at Dover as part of a fundraiser for Living Beyond Breast Cancer. Bowyer has pink on his car this weekend for breast cancer awareness and tried a little downward dog pose. And then got the microphone taken from him.
Clint is giving 100% effort. Instructor gave him the mic. Once he used the word a$ she took the mic #nascar pic.twitter.com/611Jl4NIaB
? Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) September 28, 2013
Unfortunately, he didn't take up Danica Patrick on her offer.
I have some yoga pants you can borrow @ClintBowyer. ? Danica Patrick (@DanicaPatrick) September 27, 2013
But thankfully no one was very close to him either.
Very difficult to get that comfortable while stretching certain regions without breaking a little wind. #Yoga
? Clint Bowyer (@ClintBowyer) September 28, 2013
We expect this to become a weekly tradition. If soda cookies can entice Tony Stewart to do the splits and Clint Bowyer's well on his way to becoming a yogi, Junior can take up yoga, right? We'll even be willing to purchase Diamond Dallas Page's DVD.
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