Autoweek Racing Weekend Wrap-up for November 4, 2012 — SPOILER ALERT

HOME   |   CAR NEWS   |   CAR REVIEWS   |   RACING   |   AUTO SHOWS   |   VIDEOS   |   COLLECTOR   |   SUBSCRIBE Sunday, November 04, 2012                  Jimmie Johnson beat Brad Keselowski on a final green-white-checkered restart to win at Texas.... Johnson edges Keselowski at Texas, increases points lead Jimmie Johnson won from the pole in the AAA Texas 500 at Texas Motor Speedway, but Brad Keselowski didn’t make it easy, finishing second after some fender-to-fender contact that had the crowd on its feet. Johnson dominated the first half of the race, leading the most laps, but as the sun went down and the track cooled, he lost his advantage. Keselowski and Kyle Busch took turns leading, ...   Kimi Räikkönen wins Abu Dhabi GP; Alonso second, Vettel third Kimi Räikkönen scored the first win of his Formula One comeback season in Abu Dhabi after Lewis Hamilton retired from a comfortable lead on Sunday. However, the real star of the race was Sebastian Vettel, who took an impressive third after starting from the pit lane. Vettel finished just a...   You know it's not your day at the track when ... Kevin Harvick's No. 29 Chevrolet was damaged before the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Texas Motor Speedway when a skydiver's sandbag crashed into the car during the pre-race ceremony. The damage forced the crew to send the car back to the garage for repairs before Sunday's race had even started....   Adrian Newey takes RB6 and vintage Leyton House March out for a spin: Video Few know the changing face of Formula Once race cars more than designers like Red Bull Racing's chief technical officer Adrian Newey, who recently had the unique opportunity to get behind the wheel of two ground-breaking Formula One cars separated by two decades. Newey took a trip to Silverstone ...   Alonso not disappointed despite gaining little on Vettel at Abu Dhabi Fernando Alonso kept his Formula One title challenge on track with a superb second-place finish in Abu Dhabi, having started only sixth on the grid. The Spaniard insisted that he wasn't disappointed to have gained only three points on his title rival. Sebastian Vettel seemingly faced such an...   Superb Räikkönen silences critics with win in Abu Dhabi Kimi Räikkönen silenced any remaining critics by scoring a popular victory for Lotus in a thrilling Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The Finn holds a solid third place in the world championship with two races to go. Räikkönen jumped ahead of Pastor Maldonado and Mark Webber at the start, and then gained...   Brilliant Vettel salvages podium finish from pit lane Sebastian Vettel put in an amazing drive to third place in the Formula One Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after starting the race from the pit lane. Vettel got some help, however, by retirements ahead and by safety cars.The German made good progress in the early laps, benefiting from some first lap...   Räikkönen, Alonso, Vettel meet the media following thrilling Abu Dhabi GP Podium finishers Kimi Räikkönen, Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel met the media following Sunday's Formula One race at Abu Dhabi that was won by Räikkönen. Here's the complete transcript of that press gathering, as supplied by the FIA: PODIUM INTERVIEWS (Conducted by David...   Short-Track Roundup: World of Outlaws crowns champions in Charlotte Jimmy Owens, who won his second straight Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series title this season, stole the show before an overflow at the sixth annual Peak Motor Oil World of Outlaws World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. Owens dominated the World of Outlaws Late Model...   Keselowski does not want to waste Cup title opportunity Brad Keselowski was teammates with Jimmie Johnson for a handful of races a few years ago, and once drove a car owned by Dale Earnhardt Jr. Johnson won an unprecedented five consecutive Sprint Cup championships before that streak ended last year. Keselowski is wrapping up only his third full...   Alain Prost working to get French Grand Prix on 2013 F1 schedule Four-time World Champion Alain Prost and Philippe Gurdjian, the former Formula One promoter at Le Castellet (aka Paul Ricard) racing circuit in the south of France, are urgently exploring all avenues to replace the postponed 2013 event in New Jersey with a revived French Grand Prix. Gurdjian ...   Brawn's role at Mercedes not changed by Lauda Ross Brawn insists that his role as Mercedes team principal has not been affected by the arrival of Niki Lauda as part of the team's management structure. Lauda was brought in by Daimler AG to help conclude a Concorde deal with F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone and help lure driver Lewis Hamilton from...   Hamilton, Webber and Vettel meet the media following F1 qualifying in Abu Dhabi Pole winner Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull's Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel met the Formula One media in Abu Dhhbi after claiming the top three qualifying spots on Saturday. Here is the official transcript of that press gathering, as provided by the FIA: TV UNILATERAL What are your ...   Rivals unhappy after Ferrari mechanics break curfew for second time at Abu Dhabi The FIA Stewards decided in Abu Dhabi on Saturday that teams can use two of their four annual curfew "jokers" in one weekend without incurring a penalty. The six-hour curfew is imposed on Thursday and Friday nights and is designed to guarantee mechanics some sleep. All team technical staff have...   Veteran Harvick edges 18-year-old Ryan Blaney for NASCAR Nationwide win It was Kevin Harvick's race to lose—and he didn't—but the big story of the O'Reilly Auto Parts Challenge NASCAR Nationwide series race was the car that finished just 1.628 seconds behind him—18-year-old Ryan Blaney, who had never raced at Texas Motor Speedway before. Harvick's...   Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull penalized; Vettel moved to back of grid in Abu Dhabi Formula One points leader Sebastian Vettel will start the Abu Dhabi GP from the back of the grid after being excluded from qualifying for failing to have enough fuel for a sample left in the car. Like Lewis Hamilton in Spain this year, Vettel was investigated for stopping on track at the end of...   Ride with Red Bull in this interactive F1 video Ever wonder what it would be like to have a 360-degree view from inside a speeding Formula One car? Who hasn't. But, unless you have access to an F1 car and a track, you probably aren't going to get the chance to see the world fly by you at breakneck speed. However, the folks at Making...   Johnny Sauter scores Texas sweep in NASCAR Truck Series Johnny Sauter isn't known for his patience behind the wheel, but when you have a truck as good as his SealMaster Toyota was in Friday night's WinStar Casino 350 at Texas Motor Speedway, it's a little easier to wait for your openings. Add to that the fact that Sauter won the June NASCAR Camping...   Pocono fans upset with IndyCar over Bernard departure The fan feedback at Pocono Raceway was euphoric a month ago, when IndyCar announced its return after a 23-year absence. Now the fans are contacting the track to express their frustration over the departure of CEO Randy Bernard, who worked closely all year with Pocono in returning one of...   Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing turning to Hendrick for engines next year Earnhardt Ganassi Racing will use Hendrick Motorsports engines to power its NASCAR Sprint Cup cars next year, ending a four-year relationship with Richard Childress Racing and Earnhardt Childress Racing Engines. Team owner Richard Childress, who confirmed Earnhardt Ganassi Racing's departure,...   Jimmie Johnson, NASCAR aiding Hurricane Sandy relief effort Jimmie Johnson knows being unable to get into his New York apartment is a small inconvenience compared to what so many others are going through in the aftermath of ...   Ken Block gets fired up in Global Rallycross video Tanner Faust won his second consecutive event and took the 2012 Global Rallycross Championship at the final round at SEMA in Las Vegas, but that's not the coolest part of this video from Ford Racing. The best part...   Vintage footage from Nurburgring shows plenty of action Once in awhile you come across something so wild and unique, you have to share it. The video below is a perfect example. It's vintage footage from Nurburgring from the 1970s and it's spectacular. There is no audio, and the camera seems to have been mounted on one particular corner. For...   F1 team representatives talk ranges from engines to Niki Lauda at Abu Dhabi Formula One team representatives Andrew Green (Force India), Antonio Cuquerella (HRT), Rémi Taffin (Renault Sport F1), Ross Brawn (Mercedes) and Pat Fry (Ferrari) talked engines and other development issues on Friday in Abu Dahbi. Here is the official transcript of that press conference, as...   We have to keep pressure on Vettel, says Alonso Fernando Alonso doesn’t expect to be able to beat Red Bull on pace in Abu Dhabi, but wants to be close enough to put pressure on 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.