🏎 Byron goes Back to Back

The Hamlin-Chastain Saga continues

March 14, 2023

"The best 5 minutes in motorsports"

- Money Lap

Good morning! Enjoy another edition of Money Lap! This week we'll break down another Hendrick domination in Phoenix, preview the Saudi Arabian GP and more!

Last week we had our NASCAR Fantasy entry limit raised so you can now join again to compete for awesome prizes throughout the year. And don't forget to tune in tonight to cheer on the eRacr team in the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series at 9:00pm ET on twitch.tv/iracing

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F1

Red Bull's Advantage Blurred by Cost Cap Penalty

In an interview, Red Bull team principal, Christian Horner, says that it is crucial for his team not to have any major issues with their car due to the cost cap penalty that limits its development time. The FIA imposed a reduction in wind tunnel and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) time on Red Bull due to minor overspending last year. This leaves Red Bull with less opportunity to work on the aerodynamic aspects of its car compared to its rivals. Despite starting the year with a comfortable one-two in Bahrain, Horner warns that the overall level of Red Bull's advantage won't be known until more races have been run.

Hamilton - "Mercedes Should take Responsibility"

Lewis Hamilton has said that Mercedes did not listen to his feedback regarding what he needed from the 2023 car, and has to take responsibility for its poor performance in the Bahrain Grand Prix. Hamilton finished fifth, with Mercedes nearly a second per lap off the pace of Red Bull. Hamilton has suggested that accountability is key, and that Mercedes must admit that it didn't listen to his comments. He added that although Mercedes has not got it right this time or last year, the team can still turn it around. Hamilton also noted that the new car is a much better experience to race with compared to the 2022 design.

“It’s about owning up and saying, ‘Yeah, you know what? We didn’t listen to you. It’s not where it needs to be and we’ve got to work.’ We’ve got to look into the balance through the corners, look at all the weak points, and just huddle up as a team. That’s what we do."

Lewis Hamilton

Aston Martin Ahead of Schedule

Aston Martin's Formula One team is exceeding expectations and has, based on the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend, the second-best car in F1. The team is currently in season three of a five-year plan to become a front-runner in the sport. While it may be a struggle to maintain second place, the team's performance has broken free of the midfield and joined the lead group. The team has poured vast resources into the effort, and after an interregnum as Racing Point, it became Aston Martin in 2021. The team's growth has been remarkable, with personnel numbers growing from 400 to over 700.

More F1

👀 Why the Saudi GP could provide a more exciting race than Bahrain... Can Ferrari challenge Red Bull?

🎟 Las Vegas GP sells out Paddock Club tickets... Another sale date has been announced for standing-room tickets

🚧 McLaren cautiously optimistic that they can get season back on track... After a disastrous start in Bahrain, McLaren sees glimmer of hope in race pace

NASCAR

Repeat in Phoenix for Byron, Hendrick Motorsports

William Byron won his second consecutive NASCAR Cup race by overtaking Kyle Larson on the final lap of overtime at Phoenix. Larson led for 201 laps, but lost out on a podium finish as he was pushed to fourth place. Reddick finished third, with Ryan Blaney taking second behind Byron. Byron's victory means he moves to fourth in the overall drivers' standings, while Alex Bowman retains the lead despite finishing ninth at Phoenix.

Denny Delivers Payback

Denny Hamlin has admitted that he intentionally made contact with his rival, Ross Chastain, during Sunday's NASCAR Cup Series event in a bid to take revenge for previous incidents between the two drivers. Although he acknowledged that his actions had a negative impact on his team's performance, Hamlin claimed that he wanted to move on from their past conflicts and get back to racing with Chastain. The two drivers have since had a conversation where they discussed putting their hostilities behind them and starting afresh.

Button Joins Stacked Entry List for COTA

Jenson Button, the 2009 Formula 1 champion, is set to make his NASCAR Cup Series debut at the Circuit of the Americas, driving the #15 Rick Ware Racing Ford Mustang with support from Stewart-Haas Racing. He will compete against 2007 F1 champion Kimi Raikkonen in a third Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet. This comes ahead of Button's planned assault on the Le Mans 24 Hours in a Next Gen Cup car prepared by Hendrick Motorsports. Button has competed in a variety of disciplines since stepping away from F1 full-time in 2016, including DTM, British GT, and Extreme E, and won the 2018 Super GT championship.

Confiscated Parts Don't Slow Down Success for Hendrick

Hendrick Motorsports Vice Chairman Jeff Gordon stated that NASCAR taking parts from all four cars Friday "was weighing on our minds coming into (Sunday) and certainly will continue." NASCAR confiscated hood louvers (air vents) from the cars of William Byron, Kyle Larson, Alex Bowman, and Josh Berry, stating that they will evaluate the parts further this week at the R&D Center in Concord, North Carolina. Hendrick officials have been in contact with NASCAR about the hood louvers, and Gordon says they will continue to be transparent with the organization. Despite the parts confiscation, all four Hendrick cars finished in the top 10, with Byron winning his second consecutive victory.

Drake x Dale

More NASCAR

5️⃣ There have been five former F1 drivers who have competed in NASCAR... Jenson Button looks to add his name to the list after COTA

✌️ Two big names just added to the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Entry List for Richmond... NASCAR Hall of Famer and former Cup Series Standout to driver for Sadler Stanley Racing

IndyCar

Harvey Still on Hold

RLLR driver Jack Harvey has not yet been cleared to race by the IndyCar medical team after his hard crash during the March 5 season opener in St. Petersburg, Florida. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing announced that Juri Vips was testing in place of Harvey, and an IndyCar spokesman confirmed that Harvey will be evaluated again before the April 2 race at Texas Motor Speedway.

GLOBAL MOTORSPORT

Take a trip to far away motorsport lands

🏆 Tony Stewart Racing starts off 2023 with a win... Matt Hagan wins in the TSR funny car to kick off the season

🔒 Toyota locks out first two spots in Sebring... Full results from WEC in opening at Sebring International

🎮 Retired WEC driver tries his hand in the Peugeot simulator... Drivers now have to 'wrestle with the wheel' more than he ever had to

eNASCAR

Round #3 Atlanta Motor Speedway

Tune in tonight for Round #3 of the eNASCAR Coca-Cola iRacing Series Championship. The eRacr duo of Kollin Keister and Collin Bowden will hit the track in Hotlanta tonight at 9:00pm ET. The Pre-race show will kick things off at 8:30pm ET at twitch.tv/iracing

Memes

ONBOARD OF THE DAY

Peugeot 9X8 Hypercar 2022 Monza Onboard

Let's go to Monza for a quick lap onboard a Peugeot 9X8 Hypercar. Ride along as the no. 93 rips along the Italian circuit in FP1 of the 2022 6 Hours of Monza.

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