🏎 Back in Bahrain

The ultimate motorpsorts sendoff - F1, NASCAR and IndyCar take to the track

March 02, 2023

"The best 5 minutes in motorsports"

- Money Lap

Good morning! This is the week we've all been waiting for... Clear your weekend plans because F1, NASCAR, and IndyCar are all set to hit the track. Formula 1 kicks off its season with the Bahrain GP, while NASCAR heads to Vegas and IndyCar commences in St. Petersburg. Stay up-to-date with the latest happenings, examine the odds and trends in this week's Motorsports Money Line, and don't forget to join our fantasy leagues! Get ready to immerse yourself in a weekend of high-speed entertainment!

Why did the electric car finish the race early?

*Answer at the bottom

As always, at the bottom, we'd appreciate your feedback in our poll.

Money Lap Fantasy by eRacr

Formula 1 is back and with that so is F1 Fantasy! There have been some changes to the overall format this year that can be reviewed here. Be sure to join and set your lineups before Q1 on Saturday!

Our fantasy league is so popular we hit our max capacity! Don't worry though, we're working on getting the limit raised. Be sure to keep checking back to join for exclusive prizes throughout the season! (We'll add a drop week or two to account for the missed weeks due to the capacity limit.)

Standings

Motorsports Moneyline

Bahrain Driver Odds (provided by BetMGM)

-135 Max Verstappen

+400 Charles Leclerc

+800 Sergio Perez

+900 Lewis Hamilton

+1000 Carlos Sainz

Las Vegas Driver Odds (provided by BetMGM)

+550 Kyle Busch

+700 Kyle Larson

+800 Joey Logano

+800 Ross Chastain

+1000 Ryan Blaney

Trending Up 📈

Max Verstappen - Verstappen and Red Bull continued their dominance in this year's pre-season testing. He will be the man to beat until proven otherwise.

Kyle Busch - The hometown hero looks to defend his most recent win at Auto Club this weekend in Las Vegas. Busch and RCR has proven that they can compete outside of just superspeedway racing with a strong showing in Fontana. Busch is the current statistical favorite heading into Vegas.

Trending Down 📉

Lando Norris - McLaren and Lando struggled in last week's testing at Bahrain. They have quite a bit of catching up to do before they are able to be considered to compete for wins this year.

Tyler Reddick - Reddick came into the 2023 season with high hopes as he switched from RCR to the 23XII team. However, his season has started off less than impressive. He currently sits dead last in NASCAR Cup Series points.

F1

Could this be F1's Most Competitive Season Yet?

The 2023 Formula 1 season could see intense competition in the midfield, according to Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing. Brown predicts that the spread of competitiveness could resemble that of IndyCar, where the whole field is closely matched. He believes that convergence is starting to take place with the sport's latest technical regulations entering their second year. Red Bull currently appears to be the class of the field, but Brown is confident McLaren can catch up over the course of the season, despite a tough pre-season campaign.

“I think that’s what’s exciting, is Formula 1’s going to get to the point where maybe there’s four or five different teams that can win and the spread will be ‘one weekend they’re at the front, then the next weekend another team’s at the front’, but everyone just needs to catch Red Bull at this point.”

Zak Brown - CEO, McLaren Racing

All Aboard Alonso Hype Train

Aston Martin's success in pre-season testing ahead of the 2023 F1 season has generated excitement that the team may contend for the front of the grid. Reports suggest the Aston Martin AMR23 car is 95% new and has been significantly improved upon last year's model, while the company has invested heavily in its facilities and talent, leading to speculation that it could challenge Red Bull for the top of the pack. Fernando Alonso, who signed with Aston Martin in 2021, is seen as part of the team's long-term project, but the impressive progress of the team may allow him to compete with the top teams sooner than expected.

Red Bull Squashes Sales Rumors

Reports emerged during pre-season testing that the Red Bull shareholders were considering selling AlphaTauri, the team that finished ninth in the constructors’ championship last season. However, AlphaTauri team principal Franz Tost has been reassured by Red Bull GmbH CEO Oliver Mintzlaff that the shareholders have no intention of selling the team. AlphaTauri, formerly known as Toro Rosso, provides opportunities to young and developing drivers within the Red Bull camp, and has run the likes of Sebastian Vettel, Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo in the past.

Susie Wolff Takes on F1 Academy Series

Susie Wolff has been appointed as the Managing Director of the F1 Academy category, which is an all-female driver series aiming to develop and prepare young female drivers to progress to higher levels of competition. Wolff has a wealth of motorsport experience as a driver and team leader and launched Dare to be Different in 2016, aimed at inspiring the next generation of female drivers. As F1 Academy Managing Director, Wolff will spearhead the development of female motorsport talent and focus on creating a successful pathway to higher categories in the F1 pyramid. The inaugural F1 Academy season will run from April to October, visiting seven popular venues.

More F1

📺 F1 Expands coverage in the US for 2023 season... Will show a record number of races live on ABC and ESPN

💰 F1 teams secure record payment of over $1.1 Billion... Liberty Media playing the 'long game' ensuring stability and profitabilty for teams

NASCAR

NASCAR 🤝 LEGO

NASCAR has collaborated with LEGO to create a LEGO Technic kit of the NASCAR Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, which is now available for purchase worldwide. The kit, featuring the No. 75 livery to celebrate NASCAR's 75th anniversary season, contains 672 pieces and offers true-to-life features such as cockpit steering, an opening hood, and a replica V8 engine with moving pistons. The partnership aims to engage the next generation of fans and promote interest in engineering, with STEM build stations set up for kids to construct and race their own cars at all NASCAR-owned tracks in 2023.

Logano's Hair Raising Deal

Hair Club, a hair replacement company, is shifting its sports sponsorship strategy to work with athletes who need hair restoration services, such as NASCAR star Joey Logano. Hair Club's CEO, Mike Nassar, believes traditional sports sponsorships have not helped the company gain market share. Logano's agent helped set up the deal as Logano dealt with hair loss. Hair Club is also sponsoring former actor turned ARCA driver Frankie Muniz. The company has bought camera-visible banners and advertising space at NASCAR tracks like the L.A. Coliseum, Daytona Int'l Speedway, and Homestead-Miami Speedway. The deal with Logano is for at least two years.

IndyCar

It all Starts with St. Pete

The NTT IndyCar Series season starts with the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in Florida on Sunday, with a record 27 cars entered, the largest field for a season opener since 2001. The race will be broadcast on NBC and streamed on Peacock, while practices and qualifying can also be streamed on Peacock. The defending race winner is Scott McLaughlin, while six-time series champion Scott Dixon will be making his 369th start in pursuit of his first victory at St. Pete. The race will be run on a 14-turn, 1.8-mile street course through downtown St. Petersburg, Florida.

More IndyCar

🗣 Cold calls and sliding into the DM's... McLaren's unique approach to tackling hiring challenges

eNASCAR

Last night's eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series at the virtual Milwaukee Mile was a wild ride! What started as a tame affair quickly turned into a wreckfest with more caution flags than a traffic jam in rush hour. Things got heated when Elliott Sadler Esports driver Darik Bourdeau got tangled up in an incident and decided to dish out some bumper love to Garrett Manes of fgrACCEL. Unfortunately, his revenge tactics went awry, and he ended up unintentionally slamming into Vicente Salas of Williams eSports, sending him nose-first into the wall. Ouch! The eRacr duo of Collin and Kollin had a tough night, finishing in 32nd and 23rd place respectively, after getting caught up in the chaos. But the first-place trophy went to Michael Conti of Jr Motorsports, who crossed the finish line first and had previously announced it would be his last season in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing series. The action heats up again on March 14th at the virtual Atlanta Motor Speedway. Get ready to buckle up and pray for a few less caution flags!

GLOBAL MOTORSPORT

Take a trip to far away motorsport lands

🕵️‍♂️ Trans Am crash prompts investigation... National Trans Am race cut short after massive rollover

🇿🇦 South Africa's first single seater race in almost 30 years... Formula E's race in Cape Town was a major success

Memes

ONBOARD OF THE DAY

Cam Waters V8 Supercars Bathurst 2020 Onboard

Take a ride with Cam Waters on his qualifying lap ripping around Bathurst as he claims the pole position!

How would you rate this email?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS

*Answer

Because it had a short circuit!

Please send this to friends who want 5 minutes of everything motorsports delivered directly to their inbox multiple times a week!

Reply

or to participate.