Go fast, turn left (and also right): The 2025 Running Motorsports Thread

[playthrough]

If I had a sawbuck for every time I heard/read about IndyCar closing in on a third manufacturer, I could field a car myself.

 

[wicked]

Steve Phelps said for years that a fourth OEM was on the horizon. He never specified in which series, folks should've read between the lines on the language.

Trucks have crate engines from Ilmor. All Dodge needs to develop is a body.

 

[Driftwood]

I don't see what any manufacturer gets out of being involved in NASCAR anymore. They need to just go ahead and abandon any pretense that the cars on the track are in any way connected to an automaker. You'd be better off becoming the official pace car or title sponsor to showcase your product.

 

[2muchcoffeeman]

Maybe a golf cart that looks like a Charger but not the real deal.

Conveniently, the next Charger is a golf cart that looks like a Charger.

(Although the new management seems dedicated to finding some kind of an internal combustion option for that platform.)

 

[Driftwood]

Who'da thunk putting this guy in charge would have led to problems.

Formula 1: Key figures barred from FIA meeting after refusing to sign NDA in dispute with Mohammed Ben Sulayem

Robert Reid, the FIA's deputy president for sport, and David Richards, the UK's representative, were among those denied access after refusing to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).

 

[2muchcoffeeman]

Some of you will not like this.

The average sports fan likely has no idea how many people actually watch NASCAR compared to other properties.

This past weekend, NASCAR's EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas in Austin averaged 4.1 million viewers on Fox—double the average viewership for Luka Dončić's Lakers debut game on Feb. 10. This follows Sundays where Fox got 4.6 million viewers at the Atlanta Motor Speedway and 6.8 million for the Daytona 500.

If you separate out football, which is the ratings king in the U.S., these numbers for NASCARmore than hold their own when compared to the rest of the sports landscape.

The NBA All-Star Game averaged 4.7 million viewers. On Christmas, the five NBA games combined to average 5.25 million viewers across ESPN and ABC (with Lakers-Warriors leading the way at 7.76 million). After that, the next highest-watched game this regular season so far was a later Lakers-Warriors on Jan. 25, which averaged 3.44 million viewers. …

NBA playoffs and the NCAA tournament deliver higher viewership, but it would come as a surprise to most people how NASCAR fares versus regular-season basketball.

In 2023, NASCAR signed a seven-year rights deal worth a total of $7.7 billion with Fox, NBC, Amazon Prime Video, and Warner Bros. Discovery that runs from this year through 2031.

As the fragmentation of the public's attention has occurred with the advent of social media and ubiquitous streaming options, NASCAR's viewership is not nearly at the levels it once was. This is true for virtually every non-football sport as well.

Nevertheless, NASCAR's viewership in the context of other sports has remained in a robust position.​

https://frontofficesports.com/nascar-is-more-popular-than-you-might-think/

 

[justgladtobehere]

On Point episode about Jordan lawsuit and NASCAR business in general.

https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2025/03/07/nascar-monopoly-michael-jordan-racing-motorsports

 

[Neutral Corner]

Friend of mine who knows I'm a Miata guy saw this today and sent me the picture. This is just wrong on SO many levels.

 

[Driftwood]

Mad Max? This dude headed to the Thunder Dome?

 

[playthrough]

A friend in high school had one of the OG Miatas and drove us around often, what a blast of a car and the exact right time to enjoy it.

 

[justgladtobehere]

The three anttenas make it.

A classmate in high school totalled a first generation Miata the first day she drove it. Had a new one by the end of the week.

 

[Driftwood]

Messy bug fun F1 season opener.