WRC France, Houston IndyCar
Live Text
Sort by
ALMS - Virginia: Unusual trouble for the #55 BMW as the door refuses to close during the Bill Auberlen to Maxime Martin driver change.
The crew hurry out with a spare door. That's pretty impressive.
More GT drama: a 60-second penalty for the Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner Corvette for a clash with a GTC Porsche.
The crew hurry out with a spare door. That's pretty impressive.
More GT drama: a 60-second penalty for the Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner Corvette for a clash with a GTC Porsche.
Carl Edwards
NASCAR - Kansas: Carl Edwards was fastest in final Sprint Cup practice a little while ago, and the Nationwide race will soon commence with Austin Dillon on pole.
ALMS - Virginia: Pickett pits, Graf hands over to Lucas Luhr, and they the HPD comes back out in the lead.
Quick fire on the #02 Extreme Speed HPD as Johannes van Overbeek gets in during a pitstop.
Quick fire on the #02 Extreme Speed HPD as Johannes van Overbeek gets in during a pitstop.
ALMS - Virginia: Pickett now into the lead as Mowlem pits to hand the Dyson Lola-Mazda over to Guy Smith.
ALMS - Virginia: Graf tries to attack Mowlem for the overall lead as they come up to lap LMPC leader Chris Cumming and GTC Porsche.
Mowlem judges the three-abreast moment brilliantly, takes to the grass and emerges with a bigger lead. Bold but successful.
Mowlem judges the three-abreast moment brilliantly, takes to the grass and emerges with a bigger lead. Bold but successful.
ALMS - Virginia: Now Mowlem is off the road too! But his mistake is a smaller one, he just runs off-course briefly and allows Graf to get closer but stays ahead.
ALMS - Virginia: Replays show Graf was trying to lap a GTC Porsche, got onto the outside grass and spun. That puts Mowlem and Dyson into a 7s lead.
The LMP2 lead has changed too as Lazzaro surged past Tucker, but Lazzaro is now struggling to pass the DeltaWing ahead.
The LMP2 lead has changed too as Lazzaro surged past Tucker, but Lazzaro is now struggling to pass the DeltaWing ahead.
Crash
ALMS - Virginia: Leader Graf is spinning over the grass at the Oak Tree bend!
IndyCar - Houston: Peter Dempsey's car retires from third with a mechanical problem, and this race is going to finish under yellows.
Karam will be the winner, with Gabby Chaves and Conor Daly completing the podium.
Karam will be the winner, with Gabby Chaves and Conor Daly completing the podium.
ALMS - Virginia: Graf is stretching the Pickett HPD's legs up front and now leads Mowlem's Dyson Lola by 8s.
In LMP2, leader Scott Tucker has been rapidly reeled in by Anthony Lazzarro and Stefan Johansson, the latter an addition to Tucker's Level 5 line-up for this weekend.
In LMP2, leader Scott Tucker has been rapidly reeled in by Anthony Lazzarro and Stefan Johansson, the latter an addition to Tucker's Level 5 line-up for this weekend.
ALMS - Virginia: Kuno Wittmer in the Viper takes the GT lead from Olivier Beretta in the Risi Ferrari.
The Miller Porsche is the other car that hasn't stopped yet and runs third.
All the other GT cars are in one long, wild, brilliant train among the traffic.
The Miller Porsche is the other car that hasn't stopped yet and runs third.
All the other GT cars are in one long, wild, brilliant train among the traffic.
ALMS - Virginia: Replays show that Guasch and Booth tried to do a kind of Gilles Villeneuve/Rene Arnoux Dijon 1979 impression, but did it really badly and stuffed each other into the barriers.
Impressively, no full course yellow. Both cars are limping back to the pits.
Impressively, no full course yellow. Both cars are limping back to the pits.
IndyCar - Houston: On the Indy Lights commentary, Pippa Mann is talking about fortune cookies.
Meanwhile, Jack Hawksworth has been black-flagged for blocking, avoidable contact, AND taking a short cut. It's rare that you see a hat-trick of offences like that. And that's probably the end of the Brit's title hopes.
Meanwhile, Jack Hawksworth has been black-flagged for blocking, avoidable contact, AND taking a short cut. It's rare that you see a hat-trick of offences like that. And that's probably the end of the Brit's title hopes.
Crash
ALMS - Virginia: Big moment in the LMPC class as title contender Mike Guasch of PR1/Mathiasen and Ryan Booth of Performance Tech tangle.
ALMS - Virginia: We've just had the first pitstops in the penultimate race in American Le Mans Series history.
Klaus Graf holds a narrow overall lead in the Pickett HPD ahead of Johnny Mowlem in the Dyson Lola-Mazda, while in GT the Risi Ferrari and #93 SRT Viper chose to stay out during those stops so lead GT.
Bill Auberlen's BMW is the best of the GT cars that have pitted.
Klaus Graf holds a narrow overall lead in the Pickett HPD ahead of Johnny Mowlem in the Dyson Lola-Mazda, while in GT the Risi Ferrari and #93 SRT Viper chose to stay out during those stops so lead GT.
Bill Auberlen's BMW is the best of the GT cars that have pitted.
IndyCar - Houston: We've just seen a quote from Helio Castroneves about his catastrophic qualifying session earlier today, but it's really boring so we're not going to bother running it. Just make up your own quote about being 'really disappointed' but having faith because your team is the 'best in the business' and you'll be near enough.
Breaking news
IndyCar - Houston: Three 10-place grid penalties will be issued for today's IndyCar race, all for unauthorised engine changes. The victims are Dario Franchitti, Sebastien Bourdais and Graham Rahal.
IndyCar - Houston: Massive blow to Carlos Munoz's title hopes after his car slows to a stop behind the safety car. The Colombian looks distraught.
IndyCar - Houston: While AUTOSPORT was out talking to people in the paddock, the Lights race has gotten underway. At half distance Sage Karam leads from Gabby Chaves and Carlos Munoz. We're under full-course yellows right now after seperate accidents from Juan Pablo Garcia and Mathew di Leo.
Quote
IndyCar - Houston: Takuma Sato upon his arrival in the post-qualifying press conference:
"Excuse my voice. I've had too much singing."
"Excuse my voice. I've had too much singing."
Breaking news
Latvala
WRC - France: Here's the full story of how Latvala found himself in the lead of this weekend's fiercely contested rally.
Our coverage for the event continues tomorrow morning shortly before the first stage gets underway at 09:23 (08:23 BST).
Checkered flag
IndyCar - Houston: Sato on pole! Great effort from the Japanese driver. The remainder order was Dixon, Pagenaud, Hinchcliffe, Viso, Jakes, Conway, Kanaan, Kimball, Rahal (who has a 10 place grid penalty), Saavedra and Carpenter.
IndyCar - Houston: Sato, currently on provisional pole, returns to the pits with 90s remaining. If no-one can better his time, this will be a hometown pole for the AJ Foyt Racing team.
IndyCar - Houston: Correction - Carpenter did not hit the wall. He wandered into the path of Justin Wilson.
IndyCar - Houston: Ed Carpenter tags the wall and returns to the pits. That's his first incident since ... well, since yesterday.
IndyCar - Houston: Whatever else happens, Will Power will not be on pole for today's race: both Takuma Sato and Simon Pagenaud have just beaten his time.
Green flag
IndyCar - Houston: And out they go.
IndyCar - Houston: Drivers participating in Group 2: EJ Viso, James Hinchcliffe, Ed Carpenter, Mike Conway, Sebastian Saavedra, Takuma Sato, Scott Dixon, Charlie Kimball, Tony Kanaan, Graham Rahal, James Jakes and Simon Pagenaud.
Checkered flag
IndyCar - Houston: Chequered flag already? There was supposed to be a guaranteed 10 minutes of green flag time, and yet this group only got five. There will be something said about that later.
Power is on provisional pole at 1m01.1524s. Behind him are Bourdais, de Silvestro, Filippi, Andretti, Wilson, Hunter-reay, Servia, Newgarden, Castroneves and Vautier. That's a disastrous start for Castroneves.
Power is on provisional pole at 1m01.1524s. Behind him are Bourdais, de Silvestro, Filippi, Andretti, Wilson, Hunter-reay, Servia, Newgarden, Castroneves and Vautier. That's a disastrous start for Castroneves.
Green flag
IndyCar - Houston: The cars are back on track.
Quote
IndyCar - Houston: Tristan Vautier on his accident:
"I lost the car."
No kidding.
"I lost the car."
No kidding.
IndyCar - Houston: The two groups for qualifying were decided randomly. Drivers involved in this first group are Will Power, Justin Wilson, Luca Filippi, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Helio Castroneves, Dario Franchitti, Simona de Silvestro, Josef Newgarden, Sebastien Bourdais, Marco Andretti, and Tristan Vautier.
Red flag
IndyCar - Houston: The Frenchman lost control in Turn 10, and made heavy contact with the wall. He's fine, but there are lots of bits missing from his car.
Crash
IndyCar - Houston: ... and Tristan Vautier is in the wall.
Green flag
IndyCar - Houston: Qualifying is finally underway ...
WRC - France: What fantastic end to the day here in France as Latvala leads overnight by just 0.4s!
The final day of competition tomorrow is the shortest of the event and ends on the streets of Hanguenau, birthplace of Sebastien Loeb.
Will the rally ace be able to make up his five-second deficit and claim a home win? Find out tomorrow when things kick-off again at precisely 09:23 local time, which is 08:23 BST.
The final day of competition tomorrow is the shortest of the event and ends on the streets of Hanguenau, birthplace of Sebastien Loeb.
Will the rally ace be able to make up his five-second deficit and claim a home win? Find out tomorrow when things kick-off again at precisely 09:23 local time, which is 08:23 BST.
Checkered flag
WRC - France - SS14:
Stage: 1 Ogier; 2 Latvala +0.5s; 3 Loeb +0.6s; 4 Sordo +1.5s; 5 Neuville +2.1s; 6 Mikkelsen +3.1s.
Overall: 1 Latvala; 2 Sordo +0.4s; 3 Ogier +1.5s; 4 Loeb +5.0s; 5 Neuville +1m10.4s; 6 Neuville +1m10.4s.
Stage: 1 Ogier; 2 Latvala +0.5s; 3 Loeb +0.6s; 4 Sordo +1.5s; 5 Neuville +2.1s; 6 Mikkelsen +3.1s.
Overall: 1 Latvala; 2 Sordo +0.4s; 3 Ogier +1.5s; 4 Loeb +5.0s; 5 Neuville +1m10.4s; 6 Neuville +1m10.4s.
WRC - France: Hirvonen rounds off a rather muted day by posting the seventh quickest time of the stage.
"It's been a tough day," he says. "I've been struggling to have a good feeling, but at least we haven't made any mistakes."
The Finn starts tomorrow 2m43.1s off the lead in seventh.
"It's been a tough day," he says. "I've been struggling to have a good feeling, but at least we haven't made any mistakes."
The Finn starts tomorrow 2m43.1s off the lead in seventh.
WRC - France: Novikov remains in sixth place with his 3m43.8s. Mikkelsen is next through and sets a time of 3m38.7s.
Stopwatch
WRC - France: Fastest time has just been set by Ogier, which is a 3m35.6s and means the newly-crowned champion is just 1.5s behind Latvala in third overall!
"It's a great battle," admits Ogier. "We had a perfect day and we pushed very hard today. Now we have to continue like this tomorrow."
"It's a great battle," admits Ogier. "We had a perfect day and we pushed very hard today. Now we have to continue like this tomorrow."
By: Scott Mitchell, Sam Tremayne, David Evans, Matt Beer, Peter Mills, Jamie O'Leary, Mark Glendenning, Dan Cross, Pablo Elizalde
Published:
Lap:
