AUGUST 26, 2015

(Photo by Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Justin Wilson greets the fans during pre-race festivities for the ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway. Wilson suffered a traumatic head injury from flying debris in Sunday's IndyCar race at Pocono Raceway and died Monday evening. Wilson was 37 years old and is survived by his wife, Julia, and young daughters Jane and Jessica. Wilson was from Sheffield, England, but he spent recent years living in the Denver suburb of Longmont, Colo. A huge loss for his family, his friends who knew him well, and the sport of motor racing.

The official announcement from INDYCAR posted Monday evening at 9:00 p.m. :

INDIANAPOLIS (Aug. 24, 2015) - INDYCAR announced that driver Justin Wilson, who enjoyed success in multiple motorsports series during a two-decade professional career, died today from a head injury sustained in the Verizon IndyCar Series race Aug. 23 at Pocono Raceway. He was 37.

"This is a monumentally sad day for INDYCAR and the motorsports community as a whole," said Mark Miles, CEO of Hulman & Co., the parent of INDYCAR and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "Justin's elite ability to drive a race car was matched by his unwavering kindness, character and humility - which is what made him one of the most respected members of the paddock. As we know, the racing industry is one big family, and our efforts moving forward will be focused on rallying around Justin's family to ensure they get the support they need during this unbelievably difficult time."

Wilson was struck by debris from a single-car crash on Lap 180 of the 200-lap race on the 2.5-mile triangular oval. Wilson was attended to by the Holmatro Safety Team and airlifted to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Allentown, Pa.

A native of Sheffield, England, Wilson recorded seven career Indy car victories - the most recent in 2012 at Texas Motor Speedway - and eight pole starts in 174 races. He totaled 711 career laps led, including two in the Aug. 23 race. He competed in Formula One in 2003 with Minardi and Jaguar, and his initial F1 points were scored that year in the U.S. Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. He co-drove a Michael Shank Racing sports car entry to the overall victory in the 50th anniversary Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2012.

Wilson, a road cycling and mountain biking enthusiast, also was an ambassador for dyslexia, a learning disorder characterized by difficulty reading that challenged him as a youth. He often would speak to groups at the racetrack and visit schools near INDYCAR race venues.

Wilson is survived by his wife, Julia, and two daughters. His younger brother Stefan is an accomplished race car driver who has competed in the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indy Lights. Funeral arrangements are pending. In lieu of flowers, a fund has been set up for the Wilson children. Donations may be sent to: Wilson Children's Fund, c/o INDYCAR, 4551 W. 16th St., Indianapolis, IN 46222.

(Photo by Bret Kelley/IndyCar)
Ryan Hunter-Reay (No. 28 Andretti Autosport DHL Honda Turbo V6) powers into Turn 1 during the ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway. He won the race, but the terrible news about Justin Wilson overshadowed Hunter-Reay's victory.

(Photo by Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Josef Newgarden (No. 67 CFH Racing Hartman Oil Chevrolet Turbo V6) steams down the front stretch during the ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway. He finished second on Sunday.

(Photo by Chris Jones/IndyCar)
Juan Pablo Montoya (No. 2 Team Penske Verizon Chevrolet Turbo V6) finished third on Sunday, extending his championship points lead heading into the Verizon IndyCar Series season finale in Sonoma, California, on August 30th. Montoya heads to the 2.385-mile, 12-turn Sonoma Raceway road course with a 34-point advantage over Graham Rahal, the third-year Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing driver, whose car was involved in contact on a Lap 93 restart. Scott Dixon, Helio Castroneves, Will Power and Newgarden also remain eligible for the Astor Cup.

(FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy)
Team Peugeot-Hansen teammates Timmy Hansen (No. 21 Peugeot 208 WRX) and Davy Jeanney (No. 17 Peugeot 208 WRX) secured a one-two at the NAF World RX of Norway, round eight of the FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy. Hansen's dominant win marks the fourth podium in a row for the Swedish-based squad and Team Peugeot-Hansen now leads the Teams' Championship. Third place was taken by independent driver Robin Larsson in his No. 4 Larsson Jernberg Racing Audi A1 Supercar.

(Photo by Matthew T. Thacker/NKP ©2015), courtesy of Ford Racing)
Joey Logano (No. 22 Team Penske Shell Pennzoil Ford Fusion) held-off Kevin Harvick (No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Budweiser/Jimmy John's Chevrolet SS) to win NASCAR's Irwin Tools Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway last Saturday night. It was a typical slam-bang affair that delivered exactly the kind of action that Bristol is famous for. Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing FedEx Ground Toyota Camry) finished third. Read more about the race and get more NASCAR news here.

(Art Fleischmann/Motorsport.com)
The GT Le Mans and GT Daytona machines had the track to themselves in Sunday’s Oak Tree Grand Prix, a TUDOR United SportsCar Championship race at the 3.27-mile Virginia International Raceway natural terrain road course. Patrick Pilet and Nick Tandy (No. 911 Porsche North America 911 RSR) dominated the race by leading every lap, winning overall and in GTLM. The duo finished 27.267 seconds ahead of Joerg Bergmeister and Earl Bamber (No. 912 Porsche North America 911 RSR) in the factory Porsche team car. Pierre Kaffer pressed hard at the end, finishing just 0.575 seconds behind in third place in his No. 62 Risi Competizione Ferrari F458 Italia, co-driven by Giancarlo Fisichella. And Bill Sweedler and co-driver Townsend Bell (No. 63 Scuderia Corsa Robert Graham/Royal Purple Ferrari 458 Italia, shown below in Friday practice) earned their first victory in the GT Daytona (GTD) class since their win at the inaugural race of the TUDOR Championship, the 2014 Rolex 24 At Daytona.

(Art Fleischmann/Motorsport.com)