Fourteen-time NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Funny Car champion John Force will be the guest speaker Wednesday night at the fourth annual Speedway Children’s Charities Mel Larson Night of Champions Dinner presented by AutoTrader.com.
This year’s event will honor American automotive and motorsports legend Carroll Shelby and will be held in the Bellagio Hotel & Casino’s Grand Ballroom in Las Vegas.
“Carroll sets the bar very high for everyone else in motorsports,” said Force, who has 126 NHRA Funny Car final-round wins to his credit. “He is truly a legend and I feel honored to be a part of any function that honors him and his accomplishments. We have a lot in common. We’re both racers; we’re both Ford guys and we’re both big storytellers. It’ll be great to get together with him again in Las Vegas.”…Â Details
The American Le Mans Series, a professional sports car endurance racing series based on the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans, will be featured on ABC this weekend with a live telecast of the Acura Sports Car Challenge of St. Petersburg. The race airs Saturday, April 4, at 1:30 p.m. ET.
The race, which will be contested on the St. Petersburg, Fla., downtown street circuit… Details
Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Al Unser Jr., a consultant and driver coach for the Indy Racing League, shared his insights about IndyCar Series drivers for 2009.
Marco Andretti
“Marco is with a great team. With teammates like Danica (Patrick) and Tony Kanaan, they have the depth to bring Marco a second win. I feel like he really wants to bring another Indy 500 win to the Andretti family that has eluded them for so many years. He’s got the car, he’s got the team, and he’s got the talent. It would be a great thing to see an Andretti win the Indy 500, and Marco has the capability to get that done.â€
Stanton Barrett
“Team 3G is a good team. Owen Snyder is the crew chief on that car. He was my crew chief when I won my first Indy 500 and my first national championship. Stanton has a good team, and he seems to catch up on stuff on the car really quick. He comes from a stock car background, so he’s spent most of his life in NASCAR. He uses his head when he drives, he thinks about it. He’s going to run well. He’s a contender for Rookie of the Year. He’ll give Raphael Matos a run for his money.â€
Ryan Briscoe
“Ryan is definitely one of the favorites to win … Details
In a law enforcement first, Ohio cops this month arrested a man for drunk driving on a motorized bar stool. That’s right, a motorized bar stool, which can be seen below in a police evidence photo. According to cops, Kile Wygle, 28, crashed his bar stool near his Newark home earlier this month and called 911 due to his injuries. When an officer arrived and asked Wygle what happened, he answered, “I wrecked my bar stool.” According to a Newark Police Division report, a copy of which you’ll find here, Wygle’s homemade ride is powered by a Briggs & Stratton lawnmower engine. Wygle noted that the bar stool could hit nearly 40 miles per hour…Â Details