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By: Sam Tremayne, David Evans, Jamie O'Leary, Pablo Elizalde, Dan Cross, Glenn Freeman, Connell Sanders Jr, Ben Anderson, Matt Beer

Summary

Status: Stopped
NASCAR - Chicagoland: The rain has passed over and the jet dryers are back on track. But it's going to be a long wait as there's a lot of water to clear, and it may well have to continue under the lights local time.

With the European evening drawing to a close, AUTOSPORT Race Centre Live is going to say farewell for the weekend too. Check the site later for the latest on events at Chicagoland.

Thanks for your company this weekend, we'll be back for a special American edition of Race Centre Live from Austin and New Hampshire next Sunday.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: The field comes into the pits as the rain starts to properly hammer down and the crowd reach for their coats.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Yellow out for rain, just as newcomer Cole Whitt spins the Swan Toyota.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: We're 100 laps into a race that hasn't yet come alive. Here's the order:

1 Kenseth; 2 Keselowski; 3 Logano; 4 Johnson; 5 Kyle Busch; 6 Gordon; 7 Earnhardt; 8 Truex; 9 Logano; 10 Bowyer.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: From monitoring various teams' radio traffic, it seems the next band of rain is either 15 minutes away, half an hour away, not coming until 15 minutes before the scheduled end, or won't be a problem at all...
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Johnson is now fifth, with Kenseth leading by a second over Keselowski, Logano and Kyle Busch following those stops.

Johnson is politely peeved over the radio. Crew chief Chad Knaus mollifies him. It's all very civilised at Hendrick.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Turns out it's even more painful - looks like there might not have been a lugnut problem at all, but the NASCAR observer thought there was and held the car.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Green flag pitstops start, with Johnson and Keselowski in first.

The five-time champion has a lug nut problem and the pitstop takes nearly 20s. That's going to hurt.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Johnson has moved into a three-second lead over new pursuers Matt Kenseth and Brad Keselowski.

Logano has just passed Kyle Busch for fourth.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Back to green on lap 37. Jimmie Johnson leads Kyle Busch as they emerged from the pits first. Logano is down to sixth.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Uh-oh... caution being extended due to rain at Turn 3...

But just for one more lap, it seems.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Here's the yellow, and the race order is 1 Logano; 2 Keselowski; 3 Johnson; 4 Montoya; 5 Biffle; 6 Stenhouse; 7 Gordon; 8 Kahne; 9 Kyle Busch; 10 Edwards.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: It's drizzling again but NASCAR isn't worried it's going to turn into anything troublesome.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: We're 19 laps in and Logano is into the backmarkers. He's keeping a lead of about a second over Penske team-mate Keselowski.

There's going to be a yellow at lap 30 to give teams a chance to assess things on the post-rain track.
Bruno Spengler

Bruno Spengler


DTM - Oschersleben: A bad day for DTM champion Bruno Spengler gets worse, as he picks up a grid penalty for the next round for clashing with Robert Wickens today.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Keselowski has reclaimed second from Montoya.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: One note of moderate interest: midfielder Josh Wise was dumped to the back for the start as a punishment for not turning up to the driver introduction ceremonies.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: The finally starts, poleman Joey Logano making a clean break in the lead as Juan Pablo Montoya jumps Brad Keselowski for seecond,
NASCAR - Chicagoland: The scheduled race distance is 267 laps, but the forecast for the rest of the day is pretty mediocre.

If the rain comes back after half-distance, the race can be declared, although NASCAR has been keen to get full events in when possible this year, even if that means some very late nights.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Approximately 15 people off the telly and a policeman give the 'start your engines!' command. At last, we're going racing in Chicago.
Chase

Chase


NASCAR - Chicagoland: Here they are, the 13 drivers contending for this year's title. No Truex, but with added Gordon and Newman. And Dale Earnhardt Jr in a cosy jacket.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: OK, stay poised. Command to start engines is a few minutes away yet as the jet dryers haven't quite finished their work. Another five minute pause, we hear.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: The national anthem is sung so the start isn't far away. And in what is surely also a good sign, this week's Voice/X Factor/something else off the telly veteran doing the anthem singing didn't insert 870 superfluous notes into every line of it...
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Word is we're going to be racing in about half an hour...
NASCAR - Chicagoland: A race might happen soon! Cars are scheduled to roll out to pitlane in the next few minutes.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: For now at least, the jet dryer is gallantly plugging on around the speedway.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Good news: the drizzle has ceased sufficiently for the jet dryer to get on track. Potentially bad news: forecasts predict a load more rain will turn up very soon.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: The now 13-strong Chase field just lined up for a new official picture.

So we've had the original 12, Truex out/Newman in, and now Gordon in as well.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Stewart-Haas Racing's ever-sharp Twitter feed is probably spot on: "After driver intros, Jet Dryer media availability will begin here @ChicagolndSpdwy"
NASCAR - Chicagoland: One thing is sure, though - for an organisation sometimes accused of glossing over rule-bending, NASCAR hasn't shied away from laying down the law this time.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: It's been a wild week for NASCAR.

To summarise, there are 13 drivers in the 12-man Chase for the title, and you're no longer allowed to deliberately cause cautions, deliberately take rivals out, make phantom pitstops to manipulate races or collude with other teams to do likewise.

So that's that sorted.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Drivers are heading out to do pre-race introductions, but they're doing so under umbrellas. It's pretty murky overhead.
NASCAR - Chicagoland: Meanwhile in Chicago, the Sprint Cup teams are looking at the sky as it is currently raining slightly, and the Air Titan is not on track to dry it up.
ERC - Poland: Here's our wrap-up after the end of the rally.


BTCC - Rockingham: Andrew Jordan has extended his lead at the top of the standings after winning race. Full report and results are online.
ERC - Poland - SS13 results:

Stage: 1 Kajetanowicz; 2 Kopecky +1.1s; 3 Kosciuszko +2.8s; 4 Bouffier +4.6s; 5 Holowcyzc +18.0s.

Finish: 1 Kajetanowicz; 2 Bouffier +23.3s; 3 Kopecky +1m28.4s; 4 Kosciuszko +2m14.1s; 5 Holowcyzc +3m15.5s.
ERC - Poland: "I did my best," claims Bouffier at the finish. "I tried to push as much as I could.

"We had a small technical problem, but I did my best. I'm looking forward to the next one (rally)."
ERC - Poland: "I am rally happy," says Kajetanowicz. "I have a fantastic team.

"I think it is the best day in my life, well not the best day, maybe the second best day."
ERC - Poland: Silly question, of course he can't. But a valiant effort by the Frenchman at the end who completes the stage in 14m46.3s, which therefore means Kajetanowicz is the Rally Poland victor!
ERC - Poland: Kajetanowicz sets a time of 14m41.7s. Can Bouffier (somehow) go 20s quicker?

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