Solberg impresses Peugeot in Monte

Peugeot Sport director Olivier Quesnel says he has gained a greater understanding of Petter Solberg from working with the Norwegian on this week's Monte Carlo Rally. Solberg drove a 207 S2000 for the first time on the Intercontinental Rally Challenge opener, but failed to finish after an alternator failure on the run back to the principality in the early hours of Saturday morning. The 2003 world champion had been in contention for a maiden Monte win before an errant tyre choice dropped him from second to seventh on day two

Source: http://www.inracingnews.com/3rdparty/solberg-impresses-peugeot-in-monte/

Jeffrey Michael Gordon Charles Robert Hamilton IV Charles Robert Hamilton V

NASCAR Drivers Must Declare for One Championship in 2011

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NASCAR drivers will have to declare which championship they want to contend for in 2011 -- choosing to earn championship points in only one of the three national touring series, Sprint Cup, Nationwide or the Camping World Truck Series, according to a posting from NASCAR's official Twitter account late Monday night.

NASCAR President Mike Helton will be addressing the media in a "competition update" on Jan. 21 during the open test session at Daytona International Speedway and there was no official statement regarding the format change. However, NASCAR.com is reporting that veteran driver Kenny Wallace confirmed the change in policy after receiving his 2011 licensing agreement from NASCAR last week.

According to Wallace, drivers are asked to place a check next to the series of their choice, meaning that while they may compete in multiple series, the days are gone for a Cup driver to also run for the Nationwide title and/or truck series title. Cup driver Brad Keselowski (above), for example, is the reigning Nationwide Series champion and will have to decide whether to defend his title or stay eligible to try to make the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.

It is still unclear how the points will be awarded to drivers competing in multiple series, but that issue and possible changes to the Cup series' Chase playoff format are both expected to be addressed next week in NASCAR's competition update news conference.

NASCAR Chairman Brian France has said repeatedly this season that he was open to changing the format in the Nationwide Series to better showcase the up-and-coming Nationwide Series-only drivers and to entice and reward teams to compete in NASCAR's triple-A series. And he has also hinted that he's open to "tweaking" the Chase format it he felt it would significantly improve the playoff feel.

 

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Source: http://motorsports.fanhouse.com/2011/01/10/nascar-drivers-must-declare-for-one-championship-in-2011/

Carl Michael Edwards III William Clyde Elliott Jeffrey Michael Gordon

Ford details Powershift dual-clutch tranny for 2012 Focus

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PowerShift six-speed transmission

The 2012 Ford Focus is an exciting piece of machinery for a variety of reasons. It puts the Focus on equal footing across the globe, along with being a stylish and well-equipped compact that should be an entertaining steer. On that last bit, Ford is hyping some of the new driver-centric technologies under the Focus' skin, beginning with the PowerShift dry-clutch six-speed automatic with its Torque Hole Filling Technology (THF). What's that? Ford's glad you asked...

When you're driving along in a car equipped with a traditional automatic transmission, you get a momentary lag after an upshift. This is known as the torque hole. Ford wanted to find a way to fill this gap, so with some trick computer modeling and enough math to last a lifetime, the Blue Oval engineers created a system where the engine and transmission talk to each other and prepare for potential torque holes. Additional torque is supplied to fill the hole and the resulting shifts are more seamless to both driver and passengers.

If you want even more geeky details, click past the jump for Ford's complete release.

[Source: Ford]

Continue reading Ford details Powershift dual-clutch tranny for 2012 Focus

Ford details Powershift dual-clutch tranny for 2012 Focus originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 Jan 2011 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2011/01/26/ford-details-powershift-dual-clutch-tranny-for-2012-focus/

Kurt Thomas Busch Kyle Thomas Busch Jeffrey Tyler Burton

Waltrip Marks 25th Daytona 500 Start with Special Ticket Offer

Michael WaltripDAYTONA BEACH, Fla. ? For Michael Waltrip, there?s no better way to spend the morning of the Daytona 500 ? NASCAR?s biggest and most prestigious race of the year ? than interacting with his fans and enjoying cupcakes and Coca-Cola products. As the two-time Daytona 500 champion approaches his 25th start in the 53rd...more»

Source: http://www.catchfence.com/2011/sprintcup/01/25/waltrip-marks-25th-daytona-500-start-with-special-ticket-offer/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=waltrip-marks-25th-daytona-500-start-with-special-ticket-offer

Kerry Dale Earnhardt Ralph Dale Earnhardt Sr

Loeb says he won?t race at Le Mans

Sebastien Loeb has ruled out racing in the Le Mans 24 Hours this year, despite speculation linking him with a return to the event. The seven-time world rally champion contested Le Mans with the Pescarolo team in 2005 and 2006, finishing second overall in the latter event.

Source: http://www.inracingnews.com/3rdparty/loeb-says-he-wont-race-at-le-mans/

Jeffrey Michael Gordon Charles Robert Hamilton IV Charles Robert Hamilton V

Q and A: Wilks on Monte Carlo

Guy Wilks made a successful debut with Peugeot UK by taking third place on the Monte Carlo Rally - but only after Peugeot arranged for Stephane Sarrazin to take a time penalty to drop behind him. After the finish, Wilks talked to AUTOSPORT about his week and the eleventh-hour controversy.

Source: http://www.inracingnews.com/3rdparty/q-and-a-wilks-on-monte-carlo/

Gregory Jack Biffle David Lee Blaney Michael Duane Bliss