Autoweek Racing Weekend Wrap-up for August 5, 2012 — SPOILER ALERT

HOME   |   CAR NEWS   |   CAR REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   AUTO SHOWS   |   VIDEOS   |   COLLECTOR   |   SUBSCRIBE Sunday, August 05, 2012                  A crew member works on Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s car with storm clouds in the background at Pocono on Sunday.... UPDATE: 1 fan dead, 9 injured by lightning strike after Cup race at Pocono A lightning strike in the parking lot at Pocono Raceway after a rain-shortened NASCAR race Sunday killed one person and injured nine others, racetrack officials said. It wasn't immediately clear if all 10 people were actually struck by lightning in the parking lot behind the grandstands, nor was it known whether one or multiple strikes occurred during the thunderstorm. Two people...   Courtney Force breaks through in big way with NHRA Funny Car win For the first time in NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series history, two female drivers claimed Wally trophies at the same event. Courtney Force powered her Traxxas Ford Mustang Funny Car to the winner's circle for the first time in her career, and Erica Enders earned her second career Pro Stock...   Jeff Gordon wins rain-shortened race to get back into Chase picture Jeff Gordon, one of NASCAR racing's biggest rainmakers, got a shower just when he needed it in Sunday's Pennsylvania 400. Gordon didn't lead a lap under the green flag, but he notched a critically important victory at Pocono Raceway after an opportunistic move to the front after a restart on ...   Dixon wins IndyCar race at Mid-Ohio for fourth time It was Scott Dixon, again, on top at Mid-Ohio. The dominant IndyCar driver of recent years at this classic road course won for the fourth time in six years, the second in succession. Dixon's Ganassi Racing crew put him in front of Team Penske's Will Power on their final pit stop, and Dixon did...   Will Power calls IndyCar's new push-to-pass system 'stupid' IndyCar introduced a five-second delay for its push-to-pass system at Sunday's race at Mid-Ohio. Drivers could hit the overtake assist button before getting to a braking zone, then were given extra power when they reached...   IndyCar boss Bernard says series needs more races Look for an expansion of IndyCar's schedule by at least four events. At least that's the plan of the series' CEO, Randy Bernard. The 2012 schedule includes just 15 events, and Bernard said that's just not enough. "We have to have a minimum of 19 races. That's very important," Bernard...   Short-Track Roundup: Tony Stewart wins at Eldora as part of busy stretch on dirt Reigning NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart had a big and busy week on the dirt tracks. Stewart won a 360 sprint car feature at his own Eldora Speedway on July 28 and then hit paydirt in another 360 race at Ontario's Ohsweken Speedway July 30. Stewart followed up those wins with his...   Pobst scores back-to-back wins at Mid-Ohio in Pirelli World Challenge Randy Pobst proved to be an all-weather racer on Saturday, winning both legs of the Pirelli World Challenge at Mid-Ohio. Pobst was the winning driver in the GT class in the dry conditions earlier in and then again in the wet conditons on Sunday morning at the Cadillac Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Presented...   Luhr, Graf power Muscle Milk at Mid-Ohio; Vipers complete first ALMS test Both Vipers finished their first American Le Mans Series race, and that was the initial takeaway from Saturday's Mid-Ohio Sports Car Challenge at Lexington, Ohio. The overall winner was the No. 6 Muscle Milk machine of Pickett Racing, a fifth consecutive win for the car and a repeat of last...   Joey Coulter notches first Truck Series race win Pulling away after a strong restart with seven laps left in Saturday's Pocono Mountains 125 at Pocono Raceway in Long Pond, Pa., Joey Coulter notched his first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series victory, beating James Buescher to the finish line by 1.224 seconds. Coulter charged from third to ...   Loeb continues rally dominance with Rally Finland triumph Citroën's Sébastien Loeb won his third victory on Finnish soil following a near-perfect drive on this weekend's Rally Finland, round eight of the World Rally Championship. The win was No. 73 in Loeb's WRC career. Mikko Hirvonen was locked in a gripping duel for the top spot, but the Finn...   Ecclestone favors historic London route to Olympic Park for F1 venue With Formula One on its midseason break, where else for the boss to go than the Olympics? Bernie Ecclestone took a tour of the Olympic Park on Saturday, a month after hosting IOC President Jacques Rogge at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. F1, though, will never be an Olympic...   Castroneves escapes serious injury after crash in practice Helio Castroneves escaped serious injury in IndyCar's Saturday morning practice session at Mid-Ohio in Lexington, Ohio, when his steering wheel hit his left wrist after contact in turn two.. X-rays were negative, although the hand is swollen. IndyCar said the Team Penske driver has been...   Chase Austin to get Indy 500 chance with A.J. Foyt A.J. Foyt Racing will field Chase Austin in next year's Indianapolis 500. That news was delivered Saturday at Mid-Ohio by Foyt himself, who doesn't think Austin's lack of experience in these cars is a problem heading to Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Austin, 22, has only made four Firestone...   Team owner Bobby Rahal considering son Graham Rahal for 2013 IndyCar seat Bobby Rahal said Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing will pursue the hiring of Graham Rahal, who became free to explore IndyCar options this week when a contract with Ganassi Racing wasn't signed. The elder Rahal said his team hopes to have two...   Sadler increases Nationwide Series lead with win at Iowa It isn't how you start, but how you finish. After earning three straight poles at Iowa Speedway, Elliott Sadler finally has a finish to match. Sadler passed Justin Allgaier with 58 laps remaining and pulled away to win the NASCAR Nationwide Series U.S. Cellular 250 Saturday night at the 0....   Hackenbracht wins at Pocono Raceway to claim first career ARCA victory Chad Hackenbracht led the final 12 laps to win the ARCA race at Pocono Raceway. Hackenbracht won Saturday for the first time in 42 career ARCA starts. Brennan Poole finished second and Alex Bowman third. Frank Kimmel and Chris Buescher round out the top five. Hackenbracht made...   SRT Vipers make ALMS debut at Mid-Ohio SRT Motorsports made its long-awaited debut in the American Le Mans Series on Thursday, testing for the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Challenge. The two SRT Viper GTS-Rs hit the track for the first time after the manufacturer announced in April that it was bringing a two-car factory Viper program. This...   Danica Patrick looking for strong finish to NASCAR Nationwide season Midway through her first full year in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, Danica Patrick is looking for a figurative restart. Patrick has failed to go the...   GT1 promoter's new vision for series includes link with Blancpain Endurance Series Teams' and manufacturers' world titles could be awarded according to points scored in the Blancpain Endurance Series and a successor to the FIA GT1 World Championship planned for next season. Stéphane Ratel, the boss of the two series, has outlined his vision for a new Sprint Series to succeed...   Johnson predicts tough road back to Cup Series for Allmendinger Less than a week after A.J. Allmendinger was released from his Penske Racing contract, the former Penske Racing driver was still a topic of discussion at this week's series stop. NASCAR Sprint Cup Series drivers CLICK HERE TO UNSUBSCRIBE from the Autoweek Weekend Racing E-mails or to sign up for other Autoweek e-mail products. IMPORTANT: Please add Autoweek.com to your E-mail Address Book to ensure you will continue to receive our newsletters. Please DO NOT reply to this e-mail. You will not receive a reply if you use this e-mail address. Crain Communications, 1155 Gratiot Ave. Detroit, MI 48207.