Tag: Ferrari

Virginia International Raceway is on the eve of two big weeks at the rolling hills road course of Southside Virginia. The American Le Mans Series, and some really fun support races, are coming up on that first weekend of October. They are closing out September with the annual Heacock Classic showcase event.

For the Heacock, it is a weekend of classic history as owners and drivers bring their vintage beauties to the course to show them, drive them and race them. All sorts of classic street metal show up for the Heacock Classic making it an enthusiast’s party of art and color. The owners are proud to show them and love to talk to fans about the classics they cherish.

Heacock Insurance, the long time sponsor, offers coverage tailored to fit classic automobiles without tagging the wallet. It’s a perfect fit for VIR as the setting and the course really show off these fantastic examples of the glory days of automotive eye candy.

The Heacock Classic is also a perfect warm up for the following weekend. As fans have the opportunity to see the best of classic and vintage automotive history at the Heacock weekend and then return in just a few days to see the best of modern racing and style on the very same course.

The American Le Mans Series brings the speed and muscle of modern engineering to VIR for the weekend of October 5th. From the Prototypes to the GTs and the classes running with them, it is a flash of beauty and exotic badges on every lap. Ferrari, BMW, Aston-Martin, Porsche, Chrysler SRT…  Plus a host of support racing showcasing the best of sports car racing.

You might even see driver and movie star Patrick Dempsey wandering the paddock. He has driven the VIR course with Grand-Am and is now running GTC classes in ALMS.

The support races include the Lamborghini Super Trofeo. These races run the Lamborghini Gallardo, side by side and at speed, along the twists of VIR. That alone is worth the ticket to see such exotics let loose. Other races for the ALMS weekend include the Ariel Atom Spec races, the NARRA GT sports cars and the ITC Porsche Cayman races. The showcase ALMS Oak Tree Grand Prix combines the Prototype classes with GT and GTC running all at once for a full course, full on race to the flag. Only one race follows VIR for the series so this one is on the cusp for points leading to the championship.

Racing at Virginia International Raceway is an experience. The track follows the terrain of the southern Virginia countryside and the speed of the American Le Mans class of racing machines is amazing. The Heacock Classic is a trip through automotive and racing history. The two weekends coming up at VIR offers as much variety in racing as one can fathom.

If that’s not enough, on a side note, you can enjoy the American Le Mans on Saturday, October 5th, then make a full weekend of it with a short drive to Martinsville for the late model “Virginia is for Racing Lovers 300” on Sunday, October 6th.

Racing is on. Go get some!

PHOTOS: 2012 American Le Mans at VIR

Road racing. It was a full weekend of road courses from cheap chumps all the way up the ladder to NASCAR.

Grand-Am and American Le Mans were at Road America which is interesting on several levels. The two series are combining for 2014 and running the same weekend showcased both series in action. They were still split over Saturday and Sunday but fans were shown both through the paddock, practices and racing.

NASCAR Nationwide and Sprint Cup were racing Watkins Glen, the second road coarse on their schedule and the last for the season. There is still debate about a road course in “The Chase” but that is likely several laps away.

Grand-Am and NASCAR were given a bit of a shake for these races as Tony Stewart (Stewart-Haas #14) was injured earlier in the week in a sprint car rollover crash. This left the #14 without a driver at “The Glen” and points hole where Stewart was (11th before Watkins Glen). The rush to fill that seat landed on Max Papis who is currently driving Grand-Am but also has time in Sprint Cup cockpits. That left Papis’ seat as a fill-in at Road America which put Kenny Wilden in as a co-driver with Papis’ usual partner, Jeff Segal.

How did the replacements run? Segal and Wilden put the AIM Autosport Ferrari into a GT Class 4th place. Max Papis drove Stewart’s #14 to a 15th place finish which, all things considered, wasn’t too bad as he started 29th.

Kyle Busch won at “The Glen”. BMW was the big winner at Road America as Starworks put theirs in for the Prototype Class and Turner put theirs in for GT. (more…)

Half way through January and watching some beautiful, classic cars roll over the stage of the Barrett-Jackson auction on SPEED made us jump at another thought. The thought of the exotic and new cars taking Daytona by storm for the Grand-Am opening ROLEX 24.

They have already been out turning laps. Just as NASCAR rolls out and does some testing and adjustments in mid-January, Grand-Am does the same with the “Roar before the 24”. The ROLEX folks, however, are out that first weekend of January. The new year hangover is barely down to a throb and they are turning laps approaching 200 mph. They give NASCAR an extra week…

In the interim, SPEED has been airing the Barrett-Jackson auction showcasing people with loads of extra cash going after classic and collectable cars showcasing the best of the best days of Destroit. It is a fun diversion to watch. However, on the days leading up to the ROLEX 24 we had a discussion with ourselves… (more…)

Formula 1 in America.

It is still several weeks away, November 16-18. Four races separate then from now. This weekend the speed is in Japan. Fernando Alonso carries a 29 point lead on the way to the Land of the Rising Sun, thanks to three season wins combined with other good finishes…

The American race is one before the finale in Brazil. If points are tight it could be a game changer. The track is not just new to the F1 schedule it is new to everything. Everything from the race surface to the bathrooms is shiny, brand new. It was just last week the facility was “race certified” by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), which is the sanctioning body that oversees international motorsport.

Racing on a brand new circuit, with unfamiliar characteristics, is bound to be interesting. Combine that with the possibility of a tight points situation with one more race to follow and the break-in period could break someone’s chances. (more…)

Hey Virginia Race Fans!

…and North Carolina, for that matter…

Don’t go anywhere! There is more racing to be had this weekend! Richmond International Raceway put on a good show. Despite rain they held out and ran all 400 laps for the last race to the Chase with the Federated Auto Parts 400.

This weekend, however, Virginia International Raceway hosts the American Le Mans Series! On course as well are the IMSA GT3 Cup, Playboy MX5, USF2000 and the Cooper Prototype Lites series. Sports cars. Fast, sexy and ready to race… (more…)

England seems to have invaded Germany with weather. Just like Silverstone two weeks earlier, the Grand Prix of Germany was taken over by rain and wet conditions for practices and qualifying only to open with a dry, green track for race day. Formula 1 was primed for a good race as teams scrambled once again for set-up and tire use strategy. They all had a good stock of Pirelli dry tires as the wet conditions earlier left the smooth tires in the stacks.

The softer compound adds grip but the harder compounds give better wear. Tire strategy timed to have traction and speed in the final laps was on tap in Germany. The earlier rain had left no rubber on the course so holding or gaining through the 67 laps had to play within that strategy also. (more…)

Fernando Alonso and Ferrari became the first repeat winner in Formula 1 for the 2012 season. Up to the Grand Prix of Europe on Sunday, June 24th, there had been seven races and seven different drivers on top of the podium. Alonso made the run, caught the top spot for a second time in the season and took the points lead overall.

He is also Spanish so winning in Valencia made him a home turf hero.

Not too bad in a car that was criticized in many circles as an ugly duckling before the season was under way. The team tinkered it and Alonso has managed to pull every ounce of speed from it to get where they are. The car may have started the season as an unattractive prom date but they have dressed her up nice for two top runs. (more…)