(Yahoo/NASCAR)
Junior Johnson, whose career spanned the sport’s history from its moonshining roots to its modern era, has died. He was 88. Johnson was a hard-scrabble racer who honed his craft outrunning Federal Revenuers carrying loads of moonshine on the backroads of North Carolina. He was known as a fierce competitor on the track, and after retiring from driving he became one of the most successful - and innovative - car owners in NASCAR history. Johnson had been in declining health and entered hospice care earlier last week. His wife, Lisa, told The New York Times that Johnson had Alzheimer’s disease. Johnson was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in its inaugural Class of 2010. He won 50 races in NASCAR’s top division — the most of any driver without a championship — and added 132 victories and six championships as a team owner for many legends of the sport. Johnson won the second running of the Daytona 500 in 1960, then added two more triumphs in NASCAR's premier race as a car owner in 1969 and ’77. His all-out style — honed from years of hauling illegal liquor at breakneck speeds through the North Carolina foothills — took a toll on his competitors and his own equipment, earning him a reputation as the hardest of the hard chargers. Johnson was also known as the Wilkes County Wildman and heralded as “The Last American Hero,” after a brilliant 1965 essay in Esquire by author Tom Wolfe. “Junior Johnson truly was the ‘Last American Hero,’ ” NASCAR Chairman and CEO Jim France said in a statement. “From his early days running moonshine through the end of his life, Junior wholly embodied the NASCAR spirit. He was an inaugural NASCAR Hall of Famer, a nod to an extraordinary career as both a driver and team owner. Between his on-track accomplishments and his introduction of Winston to the sport, few have contributed to the success of NASCAR as Junior has. The entire NASCAR family is saddened by the loss of a true giant of our sport, and we offer our deepest condolences to Junior‘s family and friends during this difficult time.” (Thank you to Yahoo Sports.) (12/23)
Junior Johnson, whose career spanned the sport’s history from its moonshining roots to its modern era, has died. He was 88. Johnson was a hard-scrabble racer who honed his craft outrunning Federal Revenuers carrying loads of moonshine on the backroads of North Carolina. He was known as a fierce competitor on the track, and after retiring from driving he became one of the most successful - and innovative - car owners in NASCAR history. Johnson had been in declining health and entered hospice care earlier last week. His wife, Lisa, told The New York Times that Johnson had Alzheimer’s disease. Johnson was inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in its inaugural Class of 2010. He won 50 races in NASCAR’s top division — the most of any driver without a championship — and added 132 victories and six championships as a team owner for many legends of the sport. Johnson won the second running of the Daytona 500 in 1960, then added two more triumphs in NASCAR's premier race as a car owner in 1969 and ’77. His all-out style — honed from years of hauling illegal liquor at breakneck speeds through the North Carolina foothills — took a toll on his competitors and his own equipment, earning him a reputation as the hardest of the hard chargers. Johnson was also known as the Wilkes County Wildman and heralded as “The Last American Hero,” after a brilliant 1965 essay in Esquire by author Tom Wolfe. “Junior Johnson truly was the ‘Last American Hero,’ ” NASCAR Chairman and CEO Jim France said in a statement. “From his early days running moonshine through the end of his life, Junior wholly embodied the NASCAR spirit. He was an inaugural NASCAR Hall of Famer, a nod to an extraordinary career as both a driver and team owner. Between his on-track accomplishments and his introduction of Winston to the sport, few have contributed to the success of NASCAR as Junior has. The entire NASCAR family is saddened by the loss of a true giant of our sport, and we offer our deepest condolences to Junior‘s family and friends during this difficult time.” (Thank you to Yahoo Sports.) (12/23)
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)
Spaniard Marc Marquez (No. 93 Repsol Honda Team) finished off the 2019 MotoGP season in style by winning the final race at Valencia. That makes it an incredible twelve victories for Marquez this season. "It's been a perfect season," Marquez said. "It will be difficult to repeat." Twenty-year-old Fabio Quartararo (No. 20 Petronas SRT Yamaha) finished second after starting from the pole. The young French rookie sensation finished fifth in the overall standings. "Who imagined that at the end of the season we'd have six pole positions, seven podiums? I can't ask for more, really," Quartaroro said. The work never stops for MotoGP, as testing for next season begins Tuesday. (It was announced that Marc's younger brother, Alex Marquez, would join him on the Repsol Honda Team in 2020.) "Now it's time to enjoy it - Tuesday starts 2020 season - but anyway amazing to finish in this way," added Marquez. Jack Miller (No. 43 Pramac Racing Ducati) finished third in Valencia. (Thanks to BBC Sport.)
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)
Marquez tasted the champagne twelve times in the 2019 MotoGP season, an incredible run.
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)
Spain's three-time MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo (No. 99 Repsol Honda Team), 32, finished thirteenth in his final race before retiring. He was bathed in rapturous applause after the race. The above photo was taken in Austin in 2017.
Spaniard Marc Marquez (No. 93 Repsol Honda Team) finished off the 2019 MotoGP season in style by winning the final race at Valencia. That makes it an incredible twelve victories for Marquez this season. "It's been a perfect season," Marquez said. "It will be difficult to repeat." Twenty-year-old Fabio Quartararo (No. 20 Petronas SRT Yamaha) finished second after starting from the pole. The young French rookie sensation finished fifth in the overall standings. "Who imagined that at the end of the season we'd have six pole positions, seven podiums? I can't ask for more, really," Quartaroro said. The work never stops for MotoGP, as testing for next season begins Tuesday. (It was announced that Marc's younger brother, Alex Marquez, would join him on the Repsol Honda Team in 2020.) "Now it's time to enjoy it - Tuesday starts 2020 season - but anyway amazing to finish in this way," added Marquez. Jack Miller (No. 43 Pramac Racing Ducati) finished third in Valencia. (Thanks to BBC Sport.)
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)Marquez tasted the champagne twelve times in the 2019 MotoGP season, an incredible run.
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)Spain's three-time MotoGP champion Jorge Lorenzo (No. 99 Repsol Honda Team), 32, finished thirteenth in his final race before retiring. He was bathed in rapturous applause after the race. The above photo was taken in Austin in 2017.
Editor-In-Chief's Note: We certainly hope you're enjoying the superb photography and insider's perspective of MotoGP racing by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore. MotoGP has become my personal favorite form of motorsport, and to have someone with Whit's talent share his visual art and deep knowledge of MotoGP is truly special for us, and we really appreciate it. By the way, you may recognize Whit's last name; Bazemore began making a living from drag racing when he was sixteen years old, and he is a two-time U.S. Nationals winner and still the fifth-fastest Funny Car driver ever at 333.25 MPH. -PMD
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)
Spaniard Maverick Vinales (No. 12 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP).
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)
World champion Marc Marquez (No. 93 Repsol Honda Team).
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)
Twenty-year-old Fabio Quartararo is the 2019 MotoGP Rookie of the Year after delivering a sensational, season-long performance.
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)Spaniard Maverick Vinales (No. 12 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP).
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)World champion Marc Marquez (No. 93 Repsol Honda Team).
(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)Twenty-year-old Fabio Quartararo is the 2019 MotoGP Rookie of the Year after delivering a sensational, season-long performance.
(AFP/BBC Sport)
Lewis Hamilton (No. 44 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) dominated the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to end the season in which he won a sixth world drivers' title on a high. The Mercedes driver led from pole position and cruised off into the distance, not threatened by anyone behind. It was his 84th Grand Prix victory. In a flat-out boring procession, Max Verstappen (No. 33 Aston Martin Red Bull Racing, powered by Honda) took a comfortable second. Charles Leclerc (No. 16 Scuderia Ferrari) ran second in the early laps, ahead of Verstappen, but slipped back to third. Leclerc held off an attack from Valtteri Bottas (No. 77 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) in the closing stages, the Finn right on his gearbox on the final lap, after an excellent race from the back of the grid. Leclerc was at risk of losing third place because the FIA discovered before the race that the amount of fuel Ferrari said was in his car was different from the amount that was when it was checked. But after a post-race investigation, Ferrari was fined €50,000 for what had been a 4.88kg discrepancy and the result stood. (Thanks to BBC Sport.) (12/11)
Lewis Hamilton (No. 44 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) dominated the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to end the season in which he won a sixth world drivers' title on a high. The Mercedes driver led from pole position and cruised off into the distance, not threatened by anyone behind. It was his 84th Grand Prix victory. In a flat-out boring procession, Max Verstappen (No. 33 Aston Martin Red Bull Racing, powered by Honda) took a comfortable second. Charles Leclerc (No. 16 Scuderia Ferrari) ran second in the early laps, ahead of Verstappen, but slipped back to third. Leclerc held off an attack from Valtteri Bottas (No. 77 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) in the closing stages, the Finn right on his gearbox on the final lap, after an excellent race from the back of the grid. Leclerc was at risk of losing third place because the FIA discovered before the race that the amount of fuel Ferrari said was in his car was different from the amount that was when it was checked. But after a post-race investigation, Ferrari was fined €50,000 for what had been a 4.88kg discrepancy and the result stood. (Thanks to BBC Sport.) (12/11)
