auto racing

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Racing's Dick Trickle Phoned in Own Suicide

'I'm the one,' he calmly told 911

(Newser) - Longtime racing driver Dick Trickle not only killed himself yesterday in a North Carolina cemetery at age 71, he matter-of-factly called 911 beforehand to let police know where they would find his body, reports TMZ . The dispatcher initially didn't realize Trickle was referring to himself until he clarified, "...

Johnson Wins 2nd Daytona 500; Patrick Is 8th
 Johnson Wins 2nd Daytona 500 
Feb 24, 2013 3:56 PM CST

Johnson Wins 2nd Daytona 500

Danica Patrick was first woman to lead the race

(Newser) - Danica Patrick made history up front at the Daytona 500 today, only to see Jimmie Johnson make a late push ahead of her and reclaim his spot at the top of his sport. It was the second Daytona victory for Johnson, a five-time NASCAR champion who first won "The...

28 Fans Injured in Chilling Daytona Crash

Kyle Larson's car sends debris flying

(Newser) - More than two dozen NASCAR fans were injured today when large chunks of debris, including a tire, sailed into the grandstands when a car flew into the fence on a frightening last-lap accident in the second-tier Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway. As emergency workers tended to injured fans...

C'mon, Danica, Women Deserve Better

Patrick's sexist commercials are a step backward for women drivers: Laura Helmuth

(Newser) - The thing that Laura Helmuth loves best about auto racing is that it's the one sport in which women get to compete against men as equals. Which is why Danica Patrick's decision to become a "GoDaddy Girl" and make a "series of stupid, sexist ads"—...

Formula One Driver Loses Eye in Crash

Maria de Villota's car collided with a stationary truck

(Newser) - Formula One driver Maria de Villota lost her right eye at a test event in Britain yesterday, when her car crashed into a stationary truck, CNN reports. De Villota, daughter of former F1 driver Emilio de Villota and one of just two female drivers contracted to an F1 team, was...

Franchitti Wins 3rd Indy 500
 Franchitti Wins 3rd Indy 500 
May 27, 2012 2:40 PM CDT

Franchitti Wins 3rd Indy 500

Dario Franchitti takes advantage of Takuma Sato crash

(Newser) - Dario Franchitti won the Indianapolis 500 today for the third time, taking advantage when Takuma Sato crashed on the final lap. The Japanese driver went for the lead going into the first turn, pulled even with Franchitti but got too low, and it sent him into the outside wall. Sato'...

After Fire, Rain, Matt Kenseth Wins Daytona 500

It was a crazy night involving lots of Tide laundry detergent

(Newser) - Well, NASCAR certainly knows how to make a prime-time impression. Rain, fire, and Tide laundry detergent all factored into a Daytona 500 that will go down as the most bizarre in NASCAR history. And oh, yeah, Matt Kenseth picked up his second Daytona 500 title. The first Daytona 500 to...

Disney World's New Ride: Luxury Speedsters

Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Porsches, and more coming to speedway

(Newser) - From the Pirates of the Caribbean to the Ferraris of Florida—one ride at Disney World will get a lot more horsepower in January. The park plans to add "exotic driving" to its repertoire, reports the Orlando Sentinel . Along with two Ferraris (which go from zero to 60 in...

IndyCar CEO Had Promised More 'Carnage'

IndyCar had purposely been upping danger to add excitement

(Newser) - In a June interview that seems eerily prescient in light of Dan Wheldon’s death , IndyCar Chief Executive Randy Bernard promised more “carnage and wrecks” in the upcoming races. IndyCar, struggling to compete with the more popular NASCAR, was attempting to make its races more exciting by increasing the...

On Final Night, Wheldon, Wife Got His-and-Her Tattoos

'He was just a fun, fun guy,' friend says

(Newser) - Dan Wheldon spent the final evening of his life doing something you might expect in Las Vegas: getting his-and-her tattoos with wife Susie, reports the Las Vegas Review-Journal . The couple had "DW" and "SW" tattooed on their wrists at Huntington Ink inside the Palms around 10pm last night,...

Dan Wheldon Scored Major Andretti Deal Hours Before Death
 Wheldon Scored 
 Big Deal Hours 
 Before Death 
racing tragedy
Oct 17, 2011 10:29 AM CDT

Wheldon Scored Big Deal Hours Before Death

Plus, drivers worried about safety before fatal race

(Newser) - Hours before he was killed in a 15-car pileup , Indy 500 champion Dan Wheldon had signed a major, multiyear racing team deal. Wheldon had scored the spot Danica Patrick is vacating, behind the wheel of Andretti Autosport's car No. 7, ESPN reports. He had been part of the team'...

Mercedes Gives Racing Fan Bionic Hand

Teenage F1 fan receives $40K prosthetic

(Newser) - Maybe this is just the first step toward a cyborg Formula One driver: The Mercedes F1 team helped outfit a 14-year-old fan born without a left hand a new high-tech prosthetic hand, reports the Telegraph . The British teen wrote to the head of the Mercedes Benz team last June, and...

Deadly Crash Could Spell End of Off-Road Racing

Feds weighing options after Mojave Desert crash kills 8

(Newser) - Off-road racing fans and promoters fear that the accident that killed eight people in the California desert Saturday night may end up killing their sport as well. The spectators were crushed when a driver lost control of his truck and skidded into a crowd just a few feet away, a...

Danica Patrick's NASCAR Debut Ends in Crash

She is uninjured but disappointed with 'tough day'

(Newser) - Danica Patrick's debut in NASCAR ended in a 12-car accident today at Daytona International Speedway. Patrick was running in the middle of the pack when several cars wrecked in front of her. She tried to duck low to avoid the spinning cars but was unable to dodge everything and slammed...

Legend Michael Schumacher Returns to F1 Full-Time

7-time champ, at 41, will drive for Mercedes

(Newser) - Legendary driver Michael Schumacher will return full-time next year to the Formula One circuit, where he won seven championships in the 1990s and this decade. The German, 40, retired after the 2006 season, and attempted a comeback for his former team, Ferrari, after one of its drivers was injured in...

At Aussie Auto Race, Fans Allowed Just 24 Beers a Day

Limit jumps to 36 light brews for 4-day Bathurst 1,000

(Newser) - Fans headed to a four-day event that’s a highlight of the Australian auto-racing calendar will only be allowed one case of beer per day—or 36 cans if it’s light beer. “Wine lovers have not escaped the heavy hand of the law either,” the Guardian notes...

Racing Legend Schumacher Will Return for Ferrari

7-time F1 champ fills in for injured Massa

(Newser) - Seven-time Formula One champion Michael Schumacher is making a comeback for Ferrari to replace injured driver Felipe Massa. Ferrari said today in a statement that the 40-year-old German had agreed to drive just until Massa's ready to return. "Though the Formula One chapter has long been closed for...

Freak Accident Nearly Kills Grand Prix Racer

Car part bounces off track, fractures Felipe Massa's skull

(Newser) - A Brazilian auto racer is in “life-threatening,” though stable, condition after a spring from another car bounced off the track and hit the driver in the helmet, knocking him unconscious as he drove into a barrier, the Independent reports. Felipe Massa’s surgery for multiple skull fractures was...

Castroneves Wins 3rd Indy 500
 Castroneves Wins 3rd Indy 500 
May 24, 2009 3:58 PM CDT

Castroneves Wins 3rd Indy 500

(Newser) - Helio Castroneves won his third Indianapolis 500 today, beating 2005 winner Dan Wheldon by 1.981 seconds and leaving Danica Patrick in third, the best finish by a woman at Indianapolis. With 10 laps to go, Castroneves' lead was 1.38 seconds, and he continued widening the gap the rest...

Two Crash on Lap 1 of Indy 500
 Two Crash on Lap 1 of Indy 500 
May 24, 2009 2:02 PM CDT

Two Crash on Lap 1 of Indy 500

(Newser) - Today's Indianapolis 500 had barely started when Mario Moraes drifted to the outside and made contact with Marco Andretti, sending both cars into the wall going into the second turn. "The kid doesn't get it, and he never will," Andretti said, blaming Moraes for the crash. "He's...

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