2016 Motörsports Thread - The FAN Center Of Racing

[cool]

RIP Bryan Clauson Only 27.

[Lupin the Third]

I saw the video of the crash last night, and I read the news this morning. I feared the worst after seeing that, but it's still saddening, nonetheless. And still so young and a bright future in racing ahead of him.

It's things like this that keep you honest with yourself when you get in the car before a round of racing, but you still have to push it to the back of your mind.

[Deleted]

In other news, NASCAR has stated what they believed caused Derrike Cope's car to explode in this past Saturday's Xfinity Race:

WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. -- Elton Sawyer, NASCAR Vice President of Officiating and Technical Inspection, said Sunday morning that the odd explosion involving Derrike Cope's car Saturday at Watkins Glen International was a result of excessive brake heat with little place to escape forcing a dramatic tire failure.

Cope's No. 70 Chevrolet slowed to a stop in a cut-through area at the 2.45-mile road course's chicane during Saturday's Zippo 200 for the NASCAR XFINITY Series. The front end of the car then sustained severe damage in the blowout, sending up a cloud of brake dust and bringing out the last of the race's eight caution flags.

Sawyer said that Cope's No. 70 had made contact with another car one or two laps before the incident, causing a vibration and brake issue on his car's right-front corner. When his brake pedal started to lose its effect, Cope indicated he was looking for a place to pull off the course.

The contact broke the brake caliper where it attached to the spindle, Sawyer said, creating excessive heat to melt the bead on the right-front tire's inner sidewall.

"As soon as the vehicle comes to a stop, you've got all that radiant heat and it's just sitting there at the soft point of the sidewall, which is where it basically explodes," Sawyer said.

Sawyer said that NASCAR did not take the car back to its Research & Development Center in North Carolina, releasing the car to the team after at-track investigation and adding that competition officials would review the issue further.

"We'll look into it as we always do," Sawyer said. "We'll get back and get with the guys at the R&D Center and say, 'here's what happened.' We've got plenty of photographs and documentation, so we'll look into it. But I think it's when you're at a high-speed place where there's high braking, like a Martinsville, we see beads all the time. The situation here was when the vehicle came to a stop, there's no air moving, so it's probably the biggest issue."

Cope was evaluated and released from the infield care center after the incident.

"In 35 years of racing, I don't think I've ever seen that transpire before," Cope told NBCSN after Saturday's evaluation. "We were just trying to survive and get through this thing so next week we could kind of work on this thing. I lost the brake pedal going into Turn 1, and I knew something happened to a piston or whatever so I just went easy down there and got off the end down there and started coming to a stop, and the whole thing just blew the hood off. And I don't know really what it was. It looked like the shocks were all intact and the tires were up, so I don't know really what exploded."

The incident was also a new one on Sawyer, too, who competed for parts of 20 seasons in the NASCAR XFINITY Series.

"That may be the first," Sawyer said. "We see tires blow all the time, but they're at speed, they go down, so we don't usually see it in a static situation like that."

[cool]

I had a feeling It had something to do with the tire or brakes.

[EoE: Workin On My Night Cheese]

Esteban Ocon will replace Rio Haryanto at the Manor F1 team until the end of the 2016 season. Guess the money ran out from Indonesia.

[Ishmeal Loves BBL Bayley]

O'Donnell says NASCAR will look at post-race celebrations (via Jayski and NBC Sports)


Citing a "trend we don't like to see," a NASCAR executive hinted Tuesday of a rule change that would soon curb post-race victory celebrations. Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer, made the comments on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio two days after Denny Hamlin's victory celebration at Watkins Glen forced him to walk to victory lane. "It's a trend we don't like to see," O'Donnell said of winning cars damaged in victory celebrations. "We want to see a celebration, and we think that drivers can celebrate without doing that. So, you'll probably see us sooner than later put something in place that covers us for that as you kind of head into the last quarter of the season. Again not there yet. We're talking to a lot of the teams about it, but I think everybody is on board with the direction we want to go in." Section 8.5.2.1.c in the Sprint Cup Rule Book states that "the first-place vehicle may engage in appropriate celebratory activity (such as a victory lap, burn-out(s) or donuts) prior to reporting to victory circle." Any damage during a victory celebration, though, could impact NASCAR's ability to properly inspect the winning car afterward and ensure that everything was legal with the vehicle. Questions have been raised before about excessive celebrations that damage the winning car and how that could impact NASCAR's post-race inspection process. In March 2015, a NASCAR official told NBC Sports that if series officials believed that such damage from a celebration affected inspection after the race that they would address the matter.

With all the shit people complain about, THIS is what NASCAR is worried about right now?

[Deleted]

Aug 10, 2016 11:25:44 GMT -5 Ishmeal Loves BBL Bayley said:

O'Donnell says NASCAR will look at post-race celebrations (via Jayski and NBC Sports)


Citing a "trend we don't like to see," a NASCAR executive hinted Tuesday of a rule change that would soon curb post-race victory celebrations. Steve O'Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer, made the comments on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio two days after Denny Hamlin's victory celebration at Watkins Glen forced him to walk to victory lane. "It's a trend we don't like to see," O'Donnell said of winning cars damaged in victory celebrations. "We want to see a celebration, and we think that drivers can celebrate without doing that. So, you'll probably see us sooner than later put something in place that covers us for that as you kind of head into the last quarter of the season. Again not there yet. We're talking to a lot of the teams about it, but I think everybody is on board with the direction we want to go in." Section 8.5.2.1.c in the Sprint Cup Rule Book states that "the first-place vehicle may engage in appropriate celebratory activity (such as a victory lap, burn-out(s) or donuts) prior to reporting to victory circle." Any damage during a victory celebration, though, could impact NASCAR's ability to properly inspect the winning car afterward and ensure that everything was legal with the vehicle. Questions have been raised before about excessive celebrations that damage the winning car and how that could impact NASCAR's post-race inspection process. In March 2015, a NASCAR official told NBC Sports that if series officials believed that such damage from a celebration affected inspection after the race that they would address the matter.

With all the shit people complain about, THIS is what NASCAR is worried about right now?

I'm kinda with NASCAR on this one. You want to make sure the winner was legit and if they destroy their car in celebration, they cannot do it. Reminds me of Jimmie and Chad (I think it was) a few years back talking about destroying the car celebrating over the radio. 

I want to see celebrations and guys having fun but also understand the other side. 

[Ishmeal Loves BBL Bayley]

Aug 10, 2016 13:08:19 GMT -5 @jinxed said:

Aug 10, 2016 11:25:44 GMT -5 Ishmeal Loves BBL Bayley said:

With all the shit people complain about, THIS is what NASCAR is worried about right now?

I'm kinda with NASCAR on this one. You want to make sure the winner was legit and if they destroy their car in celebration, they cannot do it. Reminds me of Jimmie and Chad (I think it was) a few years back talking about destroying the car celebrating over the radio. 

I want to see celebrations and guys having fun but also understand the other side. 

I actually had typed, then erased, a longer response in my post, that I agree with them. I just don't think this should be at the top of their list right now.

[cool]

Its Ridiculous I like the burnouts so do the fans, Just doing a victory lap is boring

[Deleted]

My brother texted me they are racing in the downpour at Mid-Ohio. This sounds crazy!

[burdette25159]

Tomorrow night is Saturday Nights Main Event Bristol style as the Sprint Cup boys return to action

[crash1984]

So looking at the forecast it does not look good for today. This may turn out to be Sunday Night Main Event.

[Father Dougal McGuire]

Add the Indycar Pocono race to the rained out list.

[cool]

Junior out for Michigan and Darlington as well.

[Deleted]

Aug 24, 2016 16:56:05 GMT -5 cool said:

Junior out for Michigan and Darlington as well.

Needs to throw in the towel on the year and focus everything on being 100% for next year.

[Father Dougal McGuire]

And in F1 news, Lewis Hamilton will more than likely start in the back after probably getting a 30 spot penalty for swapping engine errr power unit parts this week at Spa.

www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/37188288

[Deleted]

IndyCar at Texas will finally resume tonight. Will Power won at Pocono to move within 20 points of Simon Pagenaud in the championship. Should be a crazy one tonight.

[Deleted]

Hinch dominates the race, but Rahal gets the win with a last lap pass. Kanaan third.

[triplethreatmark]

Aug 27, 2016 21:54:05 GMT -5 @thickmcrunfast said:

Hinch dominates the race, but Rahal gets the win with a last lap pass. Kanaan third.

That race was f***ing bananas. Those last 30 laps were up there with last year's Fontana race for \ some of the best oval racing I've seen in a decade. I'm gutted for Hinch, but I kind of blame his strategist for that. I don't know why they didn't bring him in a for a new set of tires for those last 8 laps. Whatever though; I'm glad Graham won though.

[EoE: Workin On My Night Cheese]

Almost time for F1's return from the summer break as they take on the mighty Spa circuit in Belgium.