(Photo by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore)
Twenty-six-year-old Marc Marquez (No. 93 Repsol Honda Team) extended his lead at the top of the MotoGP championship again as he won the start-delayed Monster Energy Grand Prix České republiky to become the fourth-ever rider to reach 50 premier class victories. Marquez becomes only the fourth rider to achieve this number in the premier class of World Championship racing. He is the first Spaniard to achieve this, with Valentino Rossi (No. 46 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) currently with the most premier class wins at 89. Marquez’ next target is fellow five-time premier class Champion, Michael Doohan, who won 54 Grand Prix races in his time; all of which were with Honda. Andrea Dovizioso (No. 4 Ducati Team) took second place at Automotodrom Brno, while Jack Miller (No. 43 Pramac Racing Ducati) finished third. Next up for MotoGP is the Red Bull Ring in Austria next weekend.
Editor-In-Chief's Note: We hope you are enjoying the superb photography and insider's perspective of MotoGP racing by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore. MotoGP has become my personal favorite form of motorsport, and to have someone with Whit's talent share his visual art and deep knowledge of MotoGP is truly special for us and we really appreciate it. By the way, you may recognize Whit's last name; Bazemore began making a living from drag racing when he was sixteen years old, and he is a two-time U.S. Nationals winner and still the fifth-fastest Funny Car driver ever at 333.25 MPH.
-PMD
Twenty-six-year-old Marc Marquez (No. 93 Repsol Honda Team) extended his lead at the top of the MotoGP championship again as he won the start-delayed Monster Energy Grand Prix České republiky to become the fourth-ever rider to reach 50 premier class victories. Marquez becomes only the fourth rider to achieve this number in the premier class of World Championship racing. He is the first Spaniard to achieve this, with Valentino Rossi (No. 46 Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) currently with the most premier class wins at 89. Marquez’ next target is fellow five-time premier class Champion, Michael Doohan, who won 54 Grand Prix races in his time; all of which were with Honda. Andrea Dovizioso (No. 4 Ducati Team) took second place at Automotodrom Brno, while Jack Miller (No. 43 Pramac Racing Ducati) finished third. Next up for MotoGP is the Red Bull Ring in Austria next weekend.
Editor-In-Chief's Note: We hope you are enjoying the superb photography and insider's perspective of MotoGP racing by special AE contributor Whit Bazemore. MotoGP has become my personal favorite form of motorsport, and to have someone with Whit's talent share his visual art and deep knowledge of MotoGP is truly special for us and we really appreciate it. By the way, you may recognize Whit's last name; Bazemore began making a living from drag racing when he was sixteen years old, and he is a two-time U.S. Nationals winner and still the fifth-fastest Funny Car driver ever at 333.25 MPH.
-PMD
(Mazda)
Harry Tincknell took the lead for the first time an hour and 14 minutes into the race in the No. 55 Mazda Team Joest RT-24 P DPi/Michelin he co-drives with Jonathan Bomarito and went on to win the two-hour, 40-minute IMSA Road Race Showcase at Road America on Sunday. But Tincknell had his hands full in the final two laps of the race, with Dane Cameron (No. 6 Acura Team Penske ARX 05-DPi/Michelin, co-driven by Juan Pablo Montoya) hot on his tail. Tincknell even ran wide exiting Turn 5 on the final lap, briefly opening the door for Cameron to pull alongside. There was slight, side-to-side contact between the two cars heading into Turn 6, but Tincknell kept the lead. He then won a final drag race uphill to the finish line, taking the checkered flag just 0.227 seconds ahead of Cameron to secure Mazda Team Joest’s third consecutive IMSA WeatherTech Championship victory. The race would run its entire distance without a full-course caution. “Fantastic race,” Tincknell said. “I couldn’t believe it. On the cooling down lap, I had tears in my eyes. I couldn’t believe we had done it. All weekend we had been there, or thereabouts, but never the ultimate pace. I think we saw that a little bit in qualifying. Honestly going into the race today, I thought P3 would be a really a strong result, but it was very clear very early on the Penskes weren’t pulling away. Once we got into third and on the back of the Penskes, I thought maybe there was a chance." It was the second win of the season for Tincknell and Bomarito in the No. 55 machine, as they scored the first victory for the Mazda DPi program two races ago in the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen along with endurance co-driver Olivier Pla. It was the team’s third straight win, as Tristan Nunez and Oliver Jarvis won the most recent DPi race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on July 7. “It was just a flat-out race, no cautions,” Bomarito said. “It was managing traffic, managing rear tire wear, managing fuel numbers. And pushing like crazy the whole time trying to keep pace with Penske, build gaps in traffic. We had no AC in the car at one point. It was super-hot and very physical. Just a tough race. We really had to work for that one today. To come through again on top, we were talking about it on the way (to the post-race news conference). This one almost feels more special because (at) Watkins we had the pace, and it was kind of ours to lose. We just had to fight so hard. It’s almost a little more of a rewarding feeling in the end. What an amazing day.” With Cameron and Montoya taking a close second, they may have taken another crucial step in winning the season-long WeatherTech Championship war. Their runner-up result was their sixth consecutive podium finish, helping extend their lead in the DPi championship standings to seven points, 239-232, over defending champion Felipe Nasr and Pipo Derani with two races remaining on the season. Nunez and Jarvis combined to deliver the third straight double podium for Mazda Team Joest with a third-place showing in the No. 77 Mazda Team Joest RT-24 P DPi/Michelin. The consecutive podiums have helped them vault them into third following Sunday’s race. (Thank you to IMSA Media, as always.)
Harry Tincknell took the lead for the first time an hour and 14 minutes into the race in the No. 55 Mazda Team Joest RT-24 P DPi/Michelin he co-drives with Jonathan Bomarito and went on to win the two-hour, 40-minute IMSA Road Race Showcase at Road America on Sunday. But Tincknell had his hands full in the final two laps of the race, with Dane Cameron (No. 6 Acura Team Penske ARX 05-DPi/Michelin, co-driven by Juan Pablo Montoya) hot on his tail. Tincknell even ran wide exiting Turn 5 on the final lap, briefly opening the door for Cameron to pull alongside. There was slight, side-to-side contact between the two cars heading into Turn 6, but Tincknell kept the lead. He then won a final drag race uphill to the finish line, taking the checkered flag just 0.227 seconds ahead of Cameron to secure Mazda Team Joest’s third consecutive IMSA WeatherTech Championship victory. The race would run its entire distance without a full-course caution. “Fantastic race,” Tincknell said. “I couldn’t believe it. On the cooling down lap, I had tears in my eyes. I couldn’t believe we had done it. All weekend we had been there, or thereabouts, but never the ultimate pace. I think we saw that a little bit in qualifying. Honestly going into the race today, I thought P3 would be a really a strong result, but it was very clear very early on the Penskes weren’t pulling away. Once we got into third and on the back of the Penskes, I thought maybe there was a chance." It was the second win of the season for Tincknell and Bomarito in the No. 55 machine, as they scored the first victory for the Mazda DPi program two races ago in the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen along with endurance co-driver Olivier Pla. It was the team’s third straight win, as Tristan Nunez and Oliver Jarvis won the most recent DPi race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on July 7. “It was just a flat-out race, no cautions,” Bomarito said. “It was managing traffic, managing rear tire wear, managing fuel numbers. And pushing like crazy the whole time trying to keep pace with Penske, build gaps in traffic. We had no AC in the car at one point. It was super-hot and very physical. Just a tough race. We really had to work for that one today. To come through again on top, we were talking about it on the way (to the post-race news conference). This one almost feels more special because (at) Watkins we had the pace, and it was kind of ours to lose. We just had to fight so hard. It’s almost a little more of a rewarding feeling in the end. What an amazing day.” With Cameron and Montoya taking a close second, they may have taken another crucial step in winning the season-long WeatherTech Championship war. Their runner-up result was their sixth consecutive podium finish, helping extend their lead in the DPi championship standings to seven points, 239-232, over defending champion Felipe Nasr and Pipo Derani with two races remaining on the season. Nunez and Jarvis combined to deliver the third straight double podium for Mazda Team Joest with a third-place showing in the No. 77 Mazda Team Joest RT-24 P DPi/Michelin. The consecutive podiums have helped them vault them into third following Sunday’s race. (Thank you to IMSA Media, as always.)
(Michelin Motorsport)Ryan Briscoe and Richard Westbrook (No. 67 Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GT/Michelin) repeated their win from 2018 in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTLM class at "America's National Park of Speed" while Dirk Mueller and Joey Hand (No. 66 Chip Ganassi Racing Ford GT/Michelin) made it a 1-2 in the IMSA Road Race Showcase for the Ganassi team. “I think we’ve always run strong here and I think we were unlucky not to win the first year (2016), too,” said Briscoe, who earned his 19th career IMSA win. “It’s just a track that really suits the Ford GT. The long, fast corners and obviously now, it was more about the consistency than outright speed. We always come here with a lot of confidence and know that we’re going to have a good shot at winning,” Briscoe added. “To get a 1-2 was just fantastic.” Hand passed Tommy Milner in the No. 4 Corvette Racing Chevrolet Corvette C7.R/Michelin co-driven by Oliver Gavin to move the No. 66 into second place with seven minutes left in the race. Milner stopped for a splash of fuel shortly after, allowing the No. 912 Porsche GT Team Porsche 911 RSR/Michelin with drivers Earl Bamber and Laurens Vanthoor to claim the final spot on the GTLM podium. With three races remaining in the WeatherTech Championship season, Bamber and Vanthoor lead the GTLM standings with 248 points. Teammates Patrick Pilet and Nick Tandy, who finished seventh Sunday in the No. 911 Porsche, are second with 234 points. Briscoe and Westbrook are third with 230 points, one ahead of No. 3 Corvette Racing drivers Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen. Zacharie Robichon and Matt Campbell (No. 9 Pfaff Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R/Michelin) won the GTD class. Bryan Sellers/Corey Lewis finished second in the No. 48 Paul Miller Racing Lamborghini Huracán GT3/Michelin and Bill Auberlen and Robby Foley placed third Sunday in the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M6 GT3/Michelin. (Thank you to IMSA Media, as always.)
(Formula 1)
Lewis Hamilton (No. 44 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) and Max Verstappen (No. 33 Aston Martin Red Bull Racing/Honda) staged a race-long duel for the lead, with Mercedes playing a strategy masterstroke and Hamilton doing his bit by brilliantly hunting down the young Red Bull driver to clinch a sensational victory. Verstappen led away from pole position, but Hamilton made things interesting by passing Valtteri Bottas (No. 77 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) at Turn 2 before setting off in pursuit of the Dutchman. Red Bull looked to have nailed the strategy when they pitted Verstappen six laps before Hamilton and ended up with a six-second lead, with both drivers running the hard tires. But then things got exciting. Hamilton hunted Verstappen down, launching an attack that almost clinched the lead. He backed off to cool his brakes, but then Mercedes rolled the dice and pitted him for an unscheduled second stop, fitting the medium Pirelli tires. Then Hamilton chased down Verstappen, who was forced to stay out because had he reacted to the stop he would have rejoined behind in second. That meant he had to make his hard tires last – but it was too tall an order - and with three laps to go, Hamilton made the pass to take the lead, going on to take his seventh Hungarian GP win. Verstappen was forced to pit for tires and came back out in second. He promptly set the fastest lap to get the extra bonus point, and crossed the line 17.7s behind Hamilton with Sebastian Vettel (No. 5 Scuderia Ferrari) finishing third. (Thanks to F1 media.)
(Getty Images)
Chase Elliott (No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet) held off Martin Truex Jr. (No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota) by .454 seconds to win the NASCAR GoBowling at The Glen on Sunday. It was Elliott's second victory of the season, his second at The Glen and the fifth of his career, becoming the first Chevrolet driver to win multiple races this season. “This is wild,” exulted Elliott, who outran Truex last year at WGI to pick up his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory. “Thank you, guys, that was pretty awesome. I’ve never been so far from home and thought I was at my house. Thank you. What a day!" I tried to do all I could,” Truex said. “Chase did an excellent job, just not making mistakes, and really all I could do was get to two car lengths—one-and-a-half at the closest in braking—and just try to force a mistake. But he hit his marks. His car was really fast in the key areas that you need to be, leaving a few of the key corners." Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota) finished third, 11.229 seconds behind Elliott at the finish. (Thanks to NASCAR media.)
Lewis Hamilton (No. 44 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) and Max Verstappen (No. 33 Aston Martin Red Bull Racing/Honda) staged a race-long duel for the lead, with Mercedes playing a strategy masterstroke and Hamilton doing his bit by brilliantly hunting down the young Red Bull driver to clinch a sensational victory. Verstappen led away from pole position, but Hamilton made things interesting by passing Valtteri Bottas (No. 77 Mercedes-AMG Petronas) at Turn 2 before setting off in pursuit of the Dutchman. Red Bull looked to have nailed the strategy when they pitted Verstappen six laps before Hamilton and ended up with a six-second lead, with both drivers running the hard tires. But then things got exciting. Hamilton hunted Verstappen down, launching an attack that almost clinched the lead. He backed off to cool his brakes, but then Mercedes rolled the dice and pitted him for an unscheduled second stop, fitting the medium Pirelli tires. Then Hamilton chased down Verstappen, who was forced to stay out because had he reacted to the stop he would have rejoined behind in second. That meant he had to make his hard tires last – but it was too tall an order - and with three laps to go, Hamilton made the pass to take the lead, going on to take his seventh Hungarian GP win. Verstappen was forced to pit for tires and came back out in second. He promptly set the fastest lap to get the extra bonus point, and crossed the line 17.7s behind Hamilton with Sebastian Vettel (No. 5 Scuderia Ferrari) finishing third. (Thanks to F1 media.)
(Getty Images)Chase Elliott (No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet) held off Martin Truex Jr. (No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota) by .454 seconds to win the NASCAR GoBowling at The Glen on Sunday. It was Elliott's second victory of the season, his second at The Glen and the fifth of his career, becoming the first Chevrolet driver to win multiple races this season. “This is wild,” exulted Elliott, who outran Truex last year at WGI to pick up his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory. “Thank you, guys, that was pretty awesome. I’ve never been so far from home and thought I was at my house. Thank you. What a day!" I tried to do all I could,” Truex said. “Chase did an excellent job, just not making mistakes, and really all I could do was get to two car lengths—one-and-a-half at the closest in braking—and just try to force a mistake. But he hit his marks. His car was really fast in the key areas that you need to be, leaving a few of the key corners." Denny Hamlin (No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota) finished third, 11.229 seconds behind Elliott at the finish. (Thanks to NASCAR media.)
(Trans Am by Pirelli)
Chris Dyson (No. 40 Plaid Ford Mustang) dominated the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway last weekend. The race opened with drama up front between pole sitter Ernie Francis Jr. (No. 98 Frameless Shower Doors Ford Mustang) and Chris Dyson, and ended quietly with Dyson taking his second consecutive victory in the TA class by more than 23 seconds over Francis Jr. Adam Andretti finished third in the No. 86 Engineered Components Co/Anchor Bolt Chevrolet Corvette after a two-year hiatus from the series. “Any time you can come away with a win in Indy is special, this place is bigger than all of us,” said Dyson. “I think about all the history here, it’s a special day for us. I couldn’t be happier for the guys. We were beneficiary of good fortune and we just motored along. The Pirelli tires stayed under me and the EMCO gearbox was great. The crew was head and shoulders above the rest this weekend. This win is for them.” (Thanks to Trans Am media.)
Chris Dyson (No. 40 Plaid Ford Mustang) dominated the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway last weekend. The race opened with drama up front between pole sitter Ernie Francis Jr. (No. 98 Frameless Shower Doors Ford Mustang) and Chris Dyson, and ended quietly with Dyson taking his second consecutive victory in the TA class by more than 23 seconds over Francis Jr. Adam Andretti finished third in the No. 86 Engineered Components Co/Anchor Bolt Chevrolet Corvette after a two-year hiatus from the series. “Any time you can come away with a win in Indy is special, this place is bigger than all of us,” said Dyson. “I think about all the history here, it’s a special day for us. I couldn’t be happier for the guys. We were beneficiary of good fortune and we just motored along. The Pirelli tires stayed under me and the EMCO gearbox was great. The crew was head and shoulders above the rest this weekend. This win is for them.” (Thanks to Trans Am media.)