LGH Racing

Often seen this year complaining about either another driver, a procedure, or an official call, Dario sure has become quite the villain. It has been hard to cheer on the guy that I first saw debut in 1997 for Hogan Racing in CART. And that he is on pace - unless Power beats him - to claim his fourth career Indy Car title (in five years) is hard to enjoy when the super Scot on Super Target’s super squad is a super bitch. His whines aside, he has been good at something: owning the series. He has been nothing short of dominant since his days at Team Kool Green. He has never slowed down, even if creeping up on forty, over the hill in racing speak. He continues to school young drivers, continues to give his endless effort at every race, has become quite a friendly character to the mics shoved in his face each weekend, when he’s not griping. There are a lot of things to like and hate about this guy. But either way, don’t blame him. He’s just being Dario, and Dario is good at one thing, winning in Indy Cars. He’s done it since 1998 and could continue as long as he has a ride. It is hard, but try not to lose sight of one simple fact that he is closing in on. We are in the midst of seeing something that only one driver has come within a sniff of accomplishing since Mario won his fourth Indy Car title in 1984. Sebastien Bourdais dominated Champ Cars from 2004-2007, so the fact that fields in today’s Indy Car Series are much deeper with talent makes it that much more impressive. This is historic stuff we are witnessing, and it is hard to appreciate when the driver is often viewed as a titty baby who needs to chill out. But don’t blame Dario, because he is just doing what he can to go as fast as he can with all the pressure that would be on someone in this type of situation. So, whether you like or hate him, enjoy this small piece of history, because who knows when we will see anything like it again?

Okay, so Sebastian Vettel is stinking up the “premier motorsport championship” this year. And yeah, at only 24 and on pace for his second consecutive title, he is on pace to break Schumi’s career records. But don’t blame Vunderkind, he is just doing what he has always done, go flat out. And yeah, it stinks. But it’s not his fault. Afterall, he is the only driver to win for Toro Rosso, the same team that American Scott Speed fizzled with. The track where he did it was even more impressive. Monza, the Mecca of F1 speed, where we all find out which grand prix car is the fastest and which driver has the most lead in his foot. It’s not Seb’s fault that he went faster than anyone else, and has done since. He should know better. But wait… Isn’t that the point of motor sport, to go the fastest? And that is all he has done ever since. This year he has amassed a 92 point lead over his teammate (and my current favorite driver) Mark Webber. Next is Alonso, mired in third, 102 points back. Unless Seb begins a string of DNF’s while either Webber or Alonso start a simultaneous string of wins, the season will be over by the second race of September in Singapore. By the way… the very next race, is Monza… you know, sight of Vettel’s first win, in the wet, at high speeds, in possibly the sixteenth best car on the grid. So now that he is in the best car, heading to Monza, don’t expect him to stop winning any time soon. And don’t blame him for being fast, dominant and confident. He’s just doing his job, and darn good at it. And don’t let him stinking up the show cause you to lose sight of the fact that we may be witnessing something very special. Something not every generation gets to see. This has potential for historical stuff. Something like Lotus did between the early 60’s and late 70’s, or McLaren in the 80’s and early 90’s. And don’t forget the past decade, where Ferrari had 6 driver’s titles in 8 years. That beverage company is in the beginnings of something that could be special, and it starts with Seb messing up the show.

ALMS @ Lime Rock on Espn2 at noon- LMP1: Dyson is my favorite
GT-Pro: Rahal BMW M3

F1 @ Silverstone on Fox at 11 am- Vettel is the top dog and should win, unless Button or Hamilton take it on their home turf.

Grand-Am @ Laguna Seca on Speed at 3- DP: Ganassi (why not?) GT:Speedsource Rx8 or Turner BMW M3

Indy Car at Toronto on Versus at 1- KV Racing’s TK or Will Power (bc he’s the street king)

NASCAR Cup at KY on the Taint (TNT)- Kyle Busch or Carl Edwards (prior experience in Busch on this new-to-cup track)