Shawn Courchesne | Auto Racing

History Making Day For Graham Rahal In The IndyCar Series

A little more than a week ago Graham Rahal couldn’t even get a glimmer of light shined upon as the spotlight shone down on the newly integrated IndyCar Series during the division’s opener at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Rahal was forced to sit out of the first event of the IndyCar Series season at Homestead-Miami March 29 because a test crash earlier in the week left his Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing team with no equipment for the second generation driver.

On Sunday though Rahal took center stage on the streets of St. Petersburg, Fla. and showed that the refugee teams and drivers from the ChampCar World Series may not be as far back from their IRL counterparts than once thought.

News And Notes From Around The Scene

A season of honoring past Modified Champions begins April 6 when the Whelen Modified Tour kicks off its 2008 season with the running of the Icebreaker at Thompson International Speedway.

At each Modified Tour event this season NASCAR plans to recognize every past Modified champion. The Icebreaker will see Frankie Schneider, Donny Lia and the late Richie Evans celebrated.

Schneider was the 1952 NASCAR Modified division winner and is the oldest living former champion.  Evans won 9 Modified titles over a 13-year span including the first Whelen Modified Tour title in 1985. Evans had already clinched the title in 1985 when was killed during a practice session at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. Lia, who is now running on the Craftsman Truck Series, won the Whelen Modified Tour championship last season for Mystic car owner Bob Garbarino.

Our Little Piece Of Interweb Real Estate Is Growing Up So Fast

They said it couldn't be done.

A racing blog, at the Hartford Courant? Nobody is going to look at that.

Ok, so maybe it's just a few select friends hitting refresh over and over and over and over again, just don't tell the management types here our little secret.

Yes, its a big day at our treasured little piece of undervalued web space here, our little blog is growing up.

Close Quarters Has Dario Franchitti's Eyes Wide Open At Bristol

Some have described Sprint Cup Series action at Bristol Motor Speedway like racing jets in a gym.

Close quarters competition is something Chip Ganassi Racing’s Dario Franchitti has experienced plenty during his days at the highest levels of open wheel racing, but never quite like anything that comes with the close confines of the hair over a half-mile oval at Bristol.

“It’s a fantastic race track, said Franchitti, in his first season for Ganassi after winning the Indianapolis 500 and IRL IndyCar Series title last season. “You can see the white’s of the fans eyes, it’s just incredible.”

New Support For Female Racers Trying To Climb The Ladder

Women looking to make their way up the racing ladder have a new place to turn to help ease the financial burdens that come with trying to make it in racing.

Project Podium is the newest initiative from the Women In Winners Circle Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by former racer Lyn St. James which is designed to empower young female drivers and help further their professional careers.

Project Podium will offer racing scholarships to female drivers in all forms of motorsports. The unique part of the scholarship program is that it will award funds equal to what a driver can prove they’ve raised through acquiring sponsorship.

Norwalk's Scott Sharp And Rahal Letterman Racing Settle Lawsuit

Rahal Letterman Racing announced Friday that they have reached a settlement with Norwalk driver Scott Sharp and The Patron Spirits Company in regards to the breach of contract suit filed by the team in November.

A release from the team said the parties have reached an amicable settlement in their breach-of-contract case claims against each other.

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Sharp joined Rahal Letterman to race for the team in the IRL’s IndyCar Series prior to the start of the 2007 season and was 8th in the IndyCar Series standings with 3 top-5 finishes and 10 top-10 finishes. Sharp finished sixth in the Indianapolis 500 in 2007, his best career finish in 13 starts in the event.

Back From The Dead?: IndyCar Series - ChampCar Merger Becomes Reality Friday

After more than a decade apart, a span the all but killed it, Indy style open wheel racing in the United States will reunify into one major division in 2008.

Officials of the Indy Racing League and owners of the Champ Car World Series have agreed in principle to unify the two divisions for the 2008 season.

Champ Car co-owner Kevin Kalkhoven signed the merger agreement with IRL CEO and founder Tony George on Thursday and his Champ Car partner Gerald Forsythe followed suit Friday.

Details of the agreement have yet to be announced by the IRL.   

"This is a great day for open-wheel racing and one that I and my Rahal Letterman Racing team have looked forward to for a long time,” said IRL team owner Bobby Rahal. “I applaud all of those that made this possible, but want to especially recognize all of those that made sacrifices and concessions to secure the future of open-wheel racing. I truly believe that this is the first step toward restoring open-wheel racing and the Indianapolis 500 to not only where it once was, but beyond."

Serving Up A Heaping Helping Of What's In My Head

Just throwing it all in a pot here and mixing it up. Get ready to ride the rollercoaster of what goes through my head while thinking that racing season is still too far away.

. . . I hate name changes and it’s going to be a bad year for name changes. Not only with the new Sprint Cup Series, but there's also the Nationwide Series and then there’s the Camping World East Series. None of them are exactly rolling off the tongue just yet. Give me until at least August before I’m used to them.

Joey Logano Earns Second Team All-American Honors; Donny Lia On The Third Team

Seventeen year old Middletown native Joey Logano has been named to the 2007 All-American Auto Racing Team by the American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association.

The AARWBA has named an All-American team since 1970.

Logano was named to the second team in the touring series category.

Logano, a developmental driver for Joe Gibbs Racing, captured the Busch East Series title this season, becoming the first rookie to accomplish the feat. In the process Logano became the youngest driver ever to win events in both the Busch East and NASCAR West divisions, winning in his series debuts in both divisions. Logano won 5 Busch East series events and finished in the top-10 in 10 of 13 races.

Rahal Letterman Racing Files Suit Against Scott Sharp

Rahal Letterman Racing on Wednesday announced that it has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Miami, Fla. against driver Scott Sharp and sponsor Patron Spirits.

The suit alleges that Sharp, a Norwalk native, breached a multi-year contract with Rahal Letterman Racing. According to a release from the team, the terms of Sharp’s contract with the team, along with sponsor Patron, were that they would compete with Rahal Letterman through the 2008 IndyCar Series season.

According to the release, Sharp is pursuing opportunities with other teams.