Backstretch Motorsports

Conquest Racing and Alex Tagliani are heading to Texas this week looking to build on their Indy 500 performance registered a couple of weeks ago. The team put in a strong run starting from the back of the field to gain 22 spots and finish 11th in their first oval race of the season. Thanks to his performance, Tagliani also took home Indy 500 Rookie of the Year honors.

The 2009 Indy 500 Chase Rookie of the Year, Alex Tagliani, kept busy last week. After attending the Indy 500 Victory Banquet on Monday night, Tag was home less than 24 hours before heading to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Alex spent time in Edmonton doing promotional work for the upcoming IndyCar Series’ Rexall Edmonton Indy race. [read more...]

LONG BEACH, Calif. (Sunday, April 19, 2009) - Dario Franchitti drove a strong race and benefitted from two well-timed pit stops to win the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. The victory was the ninth of Franchitti’s career and the 25th for Target Chip Ganassi Racing.

Franchitti started second but lost two spots in the first turn of the 85-lap race. He moved back up to second on Lap 15 before pitting on Lap 16. The stop for tires and fuel proved to be fortuitous as contact by Mike Conway brought out a full-course caution two laps later. As the rest of the field cycled through pit stops, Franchitti took the lead on Lap 32. [read more...]

HAMPTON, GA. — The other Busch won this one. Big Brother. Kurt. The Busch that won a championship before his little brother hit the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series scene a few years ago.

Last week in the Busch Brothers’ hometown, Las Vegas, it was young Kyle winning the race.

Sunday, in Atlanta, it was Kurt’s day to shine and shine he did. Literally driving the wheels off his Miller Lite Penske Dodge, Kurt led a whopping 234 of the 325-lap Kobalt Tools 500, banging into the outside retaining wall several times in the process.

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Qualifying Fast Facts
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Shelby 427

Coors Light Pole Winner: Kyle Busch
Age: 23
Team : No. 18 - M&M’s Toyota
Owner: Joe Gibbs
Crew Chief: Steve Addington

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The battle that everyone expected at Petit Le Mans powered by the Totally New MAZDA6 lived up to its billing. Audi remained unbeaten at Road Atlanta as Allan McNish, Dindo Capello and Emanuele Pirro spotted the field two laps at the start of the race but came back for a stunning victory in the 11th annual 1,000-mile/10-hour endurance classic.

McNish and his Audi R10 TDI crossed the finish line 4.512 seconds ahead of Peugeot’s Christian Klien and the Peugeot 908 HDi that he drove with Stephane Sarrazin and Nic Minassian. A record weekend crowd of 113,000 witnessed the week-long fight between the top two powers in sports car racing.

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LEXINGTON, Ohio, Saturday, July 19, 2008 - Helio Castroneves put himself in the perfect position to chip away at the 63-point deficit in the IndyCar Series championship point standings. The series all-time leader in poles added No. 25 to his career tally during PEAK Motor Oil Pole Qualifying for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by Westfield Insurance.

Castroneves advanced through the first two qualifying elimination rounds to the Firestone Fast Six for the 13th time in 14 IndyCar Series road/street races. In that session, he lapped the 2.258-mile, 13-turn circuit in 1 minute, 7.2480 seconds, 120.878 mph to earn his second consecutive pole of the season and his second consecutive pole at Mid-Ohio.

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Audi returned to its dominating style at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course with a 1-2 finish in the Acura Sports Car Challenge on Saturday with Lucas Luhr and Marco Werner taking the first overall victory for the R10 TDI since April. Luhr crossed the finish line 7.717 seconds ahead of teammates Emanuele Pirro and Dindo Capello.

Luhr drove the last 1:55 with the same set of Michelin tires and one more stop for fuel. Werner started fifth on the grid but moved up to third on the first lap, was second on the third lap and took the lead for good when Werner passed pole-sitter Gil de Ferran’s Acura ARX-01b a minute later.

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WEST ALLIS, Wis., Sunday, June 1, 2008 - Ryan Briscoe persevered through 225 laps on a crowded 1-mile oval at Milwaukee to earn his first career victory in the IndyCar Series and the 300th victory in motorsports for team owner Roger Penske.

Briscoe started 11th in the 26-car field. He doggedly made his way through the field, finally passing Indianapolis 500 winner Scott Dixon for the lead on Lap 177.

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Romain Dumas and Timo Bernhard gave Porsche and Penske Racing their second straight victory at Miller Motorsports Park with a 1-2 finish for the two Porsche RS Spyders. Dumas took the checkered flag in front of Patrick Long in the Larry H. Miller Utah Grand Prix presented by the Grand and Little America Hotels.

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Timo Bernhard stole the thunder from Gil de Ferran and de Ferran Motorsports at Miller Motorsports Park with a stunning pole position run for Porsche and Penske Racing in qualifying for the Larry H. Miller Dealerships Utah Grand Prix presented by the Grand and Little America Hotels. Bernhard turned a lap of 1:31.050 (120.514 mph) in the Porsche RS Spyder he will share with Romain Dumas.

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