Two-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Josef Newgarden was the fastest of 33 drivers on the 2.5-mile oval during the 8.5-hour Indy 500 Open Test last week. On the first day of the scheduled two-day test, Newgarden turned a top lap of 227.686 mph in the No. 2 Team Penske Shell Chevrolet. Newgarden turned his top lap with about 50 minutes remaining in the afternoon practice, when cars circulated in hectic packs, simulating what will be seen on Race Day, Sunday, May 28. Indianapolis-area native Conor Daly jumped to second in the final minutes of the afternoon session Thursday with a lap of 227.466 in the No. 20 BitNile Chevrolet. 2008 Indy 500 winner Scott Dixon was third overall at 226.788 mph in the No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing PNC Bank Honda, followed by last Sunday’s Long Beach winner Kyle Kirkwood at 226.727 in the No. 27 Andretti Autosport AutoNation Honda. Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Sato rounded out the top five at 226.265 in the No. 11 Honda, as the second Chip Ganassi Racing driver in the top five. Testing was to resume on Friday, but the session was canceled due to a forecast of heavy rain in the area. (Thank you to INDYCAR Media)
(Walt Kuhn/Penske Entertainment)Conor Daly was second-quick in the No. 20 BitNile Chevrolet.
(Chris Jones/Penske Entertainment)Scott Dixon is always a factor at Indianapolis; he was third-quick on Thursday at 226.788 mph.
(James Gilbert/Getty Images)
Kyle Busch (No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet) sliced and diced through the field and outlasted his competitors in two wreck-marred NASCAR Overtimes to find Victory Lane in the NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500 on Sunday at Talladega Superspeedway. It was his second win this season for Richard Childress Racing and the 62nd of his career. In the second overtime, Bubba Wallace (No. 23 Toyota) spun from the lead after contact from Ryan Blaney (No. 12 Team Penske Ford), opening the door for Busch to get in front before the caution flag came out. Blaney finished runner-up, with Chris Buescher (No. 17 RFK Ford), Chase Briscoe (No. 14 Ford) and Brad Keselowski (No. 6 RFK Ford) rounding out the top five. Next up is Dover Motor Speedway for the Würth 400 on April 30. Watch Talladega race highlights here. (Thank you to NASCAR.com)
The Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas in Austin, Texas, (April 16th) proved that anything can happen in MotoGP™ as Alex Rins (No. 42 LCR Honda Castrol) capitalized on a crash by Francesco Bagnaia (No. 1 Ducati Lenovo Team) to become the first rider to win a race on a Honda in 2023, in just his third Grand Prix for the Japanese manufacturer. Luca Marini (No. 10 Mooney VR46 Racing Team) continued the podium streak for the VR46 team after fending off Yamaha team leader Fabio Quartararo (No. 20 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP™), who picked up his first podium of 2023. Watch the Race Highlights here. More to come. (Thank you to motogp.com)
(Photo of Alex Rins by AE Special Contributor Whit Bazemore)
We're sure Alex Rins and his team partied far into the night in Austin on Sunday.
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