A week ago, Jimmie Johnson took advantage of a yellow flag with 26 laps to go (and a little bit of luck) to win. Last Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, there was another late-race yellow. But this time, strategy more than luck contributed to Johnson winning his second straight.
Jeff Gordon led for most of the race but when the yellow flag came out, he went into the pits and opted to change only two tires. Johnson changed four and the extra grip turned out to be the difference.
“It came down to pit stops,” Johnson said. “I thought the race was going to come down to pit stops and got a good restart. It kind of turned out that way, although the four tires helped us more than anything.” (Autosport)
Formula One: Winter Testing Ends
The teams have now completed their winter testing and will go to race in Bahrain in two weeks with what looks like a very tight, competitive grid. The top eight drivers are within half a second of each other. (The New York Times)
Formula One: Mario Andretti Turns 70
Mario Andretti, winner of the Formula One world title and the Indianapolis 500, turned 70 on Sunday. He plans to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Formula One at the Bahrain Grand Prix. (The New York Times)
MotoGP: Rossi Dominates Testing
To say that Valentino Rossi has been impressive in preseason testing would be an understatement. At the latest test session in Sepang, Malaysia, Rossi broke the track record, which he set last season in qualifying on pole. “I did this with an old tire but we also got the chance to try a very good new tire from Bridgestone today, which I hope we will use from the first race,” he said. (MotoGP.com)