Race Previews for this weekend

F1 goes Blazing Fast through Baku

Turns 8 through 11 run  within the Old City district in Baku, Azerbaijan

The Formula One silly season is in full swing, and there are plenty of outlandish stories swirling around the paddock. Silly season is a term that has been described as "foolish, but possibly true" in the different forms of motorsport. I heard a rumor that almost every number two driver at each team will have a new home in 2018 (very outlandish), or that Fernando Alonso will return to Ferrari, and that if Lewis Hamilton wins the drivers championship, he'll retire from the sport. That last one could be true. What else does Lewis need to accomplish? He most likely will be the all time pole winner in the sport by the Italian Grand Prix, He's won three drivers championships, and also is second in grand prix wins with 56 (Schumacher has 93) currently. Has Lewis become too complacent in F1? Or is he ready for a new challenge? I kind of hope he is ready for a change of scenery, especially if he decides to go racing elsewhere. Does anybody remember the seat swap that he did with Tony Stewart?

2011 Seat Swap with Tony Stewart at Watkins Glen, NY

Also, Tony's NASCAR team, Stewart-Haas Racing (yes, the same Haas as in Gene Haas), has a potential vacancy with their #10 car. Danica Patrick is currently the driver of that car, but rumors among many in NASCAR expect to see her race somewhere else in 2018. That could open the door for Hamilton to make the switch to stock cars. It won't be easy for Hamilton, but I do believe that he would bring a world audience with him and boost attention and awareness in NASCAR. Plus, the team could easily renumber the #10 into the #44 (Hamilton's racing number in F1). One more thing, Monster energy drink is the title sponsor for NASCAR's premier series, and also a sponsor of Hamilton and Stewart-Haas Racing. I think the stars could align positively for both parties in the near future.

Indycar gets "Kohler" at Road America

The long uphill front stretch at Road America

Set at America's greatest road course, Indycar was back at Road America this past Sunday for the Kohler Grand Prix. Road America has a picuresque setting as the course winds up, down, and around the rolling land of East Central Wisconsin (Elkhart Lake, WI to be exact). I have always ranked the track high up on my list of favorite road courses, most likely in the top three. But the track is no easy Sunday drive. For starters, a lap around the full course is 4.048 miles. That's a long lap! There is though a way to break the track into two circuits (not run concurrently). One circuit runs the front portion of the circuit (the frontstretch and down the Moraine Sweep, short cutting the track after Bill Mitchell Bend), while the other runs the backside (it starts after Bend, going down through Kettle Bottoms, into Canada Corner, through Thunder Valley, and turning after Bill Mitchell toward the Hurry Downs and Carousel). That's a lot of knowledge I just dropped on you, let me reel you back in.

Ringers in Wine Country

NASCAR headed west for the second time this season, specifically to Northern California's beautiful wine country of Sonoma. This weekend is notable for the amount of "ringers" racing. Ringers are drivers that are road course specialist who have achieved relative success and respect within non-oval racing series. There talent is what lured these drivers to run on the road courses of NASCAR. However, a transition away from these drivers has been constant in the past 10 years. Last season, only Boris Said ran at road courses for a full time Cup team. This weekend, there are six ringers entered for full time teams (#15 Kevin O'Connell, #23 Alon Day [the first Jewish driver to enter a Cup race], #33 Boris Said, #43 Billy Johnson, #51 Josh Bilicki, #55 Tommy Regan). It seems that Billy Johnson is getting the most publicity out of this group, most likely because he's driving the legendary Petty #43. But personally, I'm looking at another historic start this week for another minority group.

Alon Day sits next to his NASCAR Wheelen Euro Series car

This season we saw the first African-American driver in 11 years make a start in the Cup. Now, as we head to Sonoma, we will have the first ever Jewish driver start a Cup race. Alon Day is originally from Israel, and is a current member of the NASCAR Next program. I like this kid, he's got a lot of potential to do good in the sport. I truly hope that this isn't a one off deal for him. I don't have much information about him, but here's a link below to get to know him.

Getting to know Alon Day

The New Normal (For Now)

Hi everyone! Here's another update on my life with racing. As I stated in my previous post, I have taken a little bit of a break from writing on my blog. Personally, it's been rough on me. I really have missed sharing my analysis and opinions of the differing forms of motorsport throughout the world. Goodness gracious, there's a lot that has transpired! 

The biggest thing that has changed in my life is that I have now become a contributor for The Podium Finish. You can still get my perspective on NASCAR's hot button topics through the weekly series "Track Talk". I absolutely love being able to share my opinions with others close to my age, and (close to) knowledge of the sport. Not to toot my own horn, but I do know a lot! It's nice knowing that there are others out in the world that think like me, which is great. I don't feel so alone in my bubble of personality.

I want to get back into the groove of things with my blog, meaning that I want to be active on here! Hope to have some good insight for after the Sonoma & Iowa race weekend. For those of you who are hardcore NASCAR fans like, you'll like next week’s edition. I'm going to try and cover all three of the series. Tune in next week for it, and don't forget to check "Track Talk" on The Podium Finish website.