march 18, 2015

(Photo by Chris Jones/INDYCAR)
Will Power (No. 1 Team Penske Verizon Chevrolet) cranks through the Turn 8-9 Esses during the two-day Verizon IndyCar Series Promoter Test on the 2.38-mile road circuit at Barber Motorsports Park. Power set the quick time of the test on Tuesday morning with a lap of 1:07.3118.

(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Scott Dixon (No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing Target Chevrolet) was second quick during the two-day IndyCar test with a lap of 1:07.3996.

(Photo by Chris Jones/INDYCAR)
Stefano Coletti (No. 4 KV Racing Technology Chevrolet), a GP2 series veteran and IndyCar rookie, was third quick on Tuesday morning with a 1:07.5224.

(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Graham Rahal (No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Mi-Jack Honda) enters the hairpin during Tuesday's IndyCar Open Test at Barber Motorsports Park. Rahal posted the quickest lap among the Honda-powered entries with a lap of 1:07.6203.

(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Sebastien Bourdais (No. 11 KVSH Racing Team Hydroxycut Chevrolet) talks with Team Owner Jimmy Vasser and KVSH Racing engineers during Tuesday's Open Test sessions at Barber Motorsports Park. Bourdais turned in a lap of 1:07.5829.

Editor-in-Chief's Note: The Word is that Nissan is having massive troubles with its new GTR-LM NISMO front-mid-engined machine, to the point that it may not appear when promised. A crash-test that went very wrong has thrown a cloak of caution over the timing of the entire program, among other things. - PMD

(Photo by Harold Hinson/HHP for GM/Chevrolet Racing)
Kevin Harvick (No. 4 Stewart Haas Racing Jimmy John’s/Budweiser Chevrolet SS) reeled off another dominant NASCAR Sprint Cup win, this time at the CampingWorld.com 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. Harvick has been red-hot of late and Sunday was no different, as he led 224 of the 312 laps. It was Harvick’s second straight victory this season (his fourth straight at Phoenix) and the 30th of his career. It was also Harvick's seventh win at the Phoenix track. Harvick now has seven straight top-two finishes in the Sprint Cup series - dating back to last season - which is the longest streak since Richard Petty delivered eleven consecutive top-two finishes in 1975. Chevrolet teams swept the first five positions as Jamie MacMurray (No. 1 Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates Cessna Chevrolet SS) finished second, Ryan Newman (No. 39 Richard Childress Racing Caterpillar Chevrolet SS) third, Kasey Kahne (No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Farmers Insurance Chevrolet SS) fourth and Kurt Busch (No. 41 Stewart Haas Racing Haas Automation Chevrolet SS) finished a notable fifth after sitting out the first three races of the season. Harvick now has a 22-point lead over Joey Logano (No. 22 Team Penske Shell-Pennzoil Ford Fusion) in the early NASCAR Sprint Cup standings. Watch a NASCAR video here.

(BMW)

 BMW of North America has unveiled a special livery, which pays homage to the IMSA 3.0 CSL, for the two BMW Team RLL Z4 GTLM cars that will race in the 12 Hours of Sebring next Saturday. The reveal was part of the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance weekend in Northern Florida. 1975 12 Hours of Sebring winning drivers Brian Redman, Sam Posey and Hans Stuck, 1972 -1980 BMW Motorsport Manager Jochen Neerpasch and current BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt were on-hand when BMW ace driver Bill Auberlen drove the car onto the show field to the applause of showgoers and BMW Motorsport fans.

(Richard Prince/Corvette Racing)
Corvette Racing has entered the team’s Chevrolet Corvette C7.Rs in the GT Le Mans (GTLM) class for the 63rd Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Fueled by Fresh from Florida to be run this Saturday at Sebring International Raceway. The driver lineups remain the same as the season opener at Daytona eight weeks ago. Antonio Garcia, Jan Magnussen and Ryan Briscoe are together again in the No. 3 Corvette C7.R after winning the GTLM class in the Rolex 24 At Daytona. Oliver Gavin, Tommy Milner and Simon Pagenaud will wheel the No. 4 Corvette C7.R after a third-place finish in the Daytona 24 Hour race. “It’s a pleasure to return to Sebring - one of our favorite events each year," said Doug Fehan, Corvette Racing Program Manager. "It also is arguably the most physical race on our calendar for a number of reasons. Sebring is the roughest circuit on which we compete with severe bumps at nearly every turn, and the changes in track surface add to the difficulty. Given all of these elements, it can be very easy for competitors to lose focus in the course of 12 hours. Having said that, there is nowhere else we would rather race. The support we receive from the Corvette fans and owners is phenomenal. It definitely makes a difference!” Sebring is the second round of the 2015 TUDOR United Sports Car Championship. Coverage will alternate between FOX Sports 1, FOX Sports 2 and IMSA.com. Flag-to-flag radio coverage will be available via IMSA Radio.

(Ford Racing images)
Ford Performance and Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates unveiled new Ford EcoBoost livery for the No. 01 Daytona Prototype, which it will compete with for the remainder of the 2015 TUDOR United SportsCar Championship season. The No. 01 Ford EcoBoost prototype, driven full-time by Scott Pruett and Joey Hand, is powered by the Ford twin-turbo 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6, race-prepped by Roush Yates Engines. Scott Dixon will join Pruett and Hand for the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring, where he will attempt a sweep of this year’s longest and most prestigious endurance races here in the U.S. Dixon won the 2015 Rolex 24 for CGRFS and Ford Performance, with teammates Kyle Larson, Tony Kanaan and Jamie McMurray.

(Porsche)
Three Porsche 911 RSR machines – the Nos. 911 and 912 Porsche North America “works” cars and the No. 17 Team Falken Tire customer entry – will challenge for the GTLM class victory in the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring, part of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship calendar. In addition, eight Porsche 911 GT America customer cars will contest for the GTD class win. Porsche has more victories at Sebring than any other brand: 18 overall wins, 69 class victories and 207 lifetime top-ten finishes. 

(LAT Photo USA for IMSA)

The Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge will present an impressive field of 47 cars from 12 different automotive manufacturers this weekend at Sebring International Raceway. The Microsoft Visual Studio 150 goes green on Friday, March 20 at 1:05 p.m. ET and will be streamed live on IMSA.com. The race airs on FOX Sports 1 on April 5 at 9 a.m. ET.

Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc. Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, Inc. (CGRT) has announced the formation of a two-car team in the Supercar class of Red Bull Global Rallycross (GRC) with new partner Loenbro, an energy services and construction company that serves clients throughout the Rocky Mountain region and beyond. The drivers are Brian Deegan and Steve Arpin. Deegan - a 16-time X-Games medalist - will pilot the No. 38 RockStar Energy Drink Ford Fiesta ST, while teammate Arpin will be in the No. 00 ENEOS Ford Fiesta ST. Arpin will run the full 12-race calendar, with Deegan competing in seven races. The two will also compete in X Games Austin this summer as it returns to Circuit of the Americas from June 4-7. The two-car team will work out of CGRT’s Concord, N.C.-based shop that houses their NASCAR Sprint Cup and XFINITY Series programs.