https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CS57TEP-4g
Scott Speed and Andretti Autosport are now 2-for-2 in Red Bull Global Rallycross this season after the ex-Formula One and NASCAR driver captured the X Games gold medal at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.
Speed, driving the No. 77 7Up Volkswagen Polo, ran the table in today’s elimination rounds, winning his quarterfinal and semifinal heats before beating skateboarding icon Bucky Lasek and another F1/NASCAR veteran, Nelson Piquet Jr., in the final.
“This thing is so fast – it’s always so fast,” Speed told ESPN. “It’s just a matter for us to stay clean and if we can get out in front, they can’t catch us…Our car is so good, it makes my job easy.”
Speed opened the season with a win on NBC last month at Top Gear Festival Barbados.
In today’s final, Speed won the holeshot heading into the first turn with Liam Doran and Piquet following in second and third. Those front three plus Austin Dyne took the joker on the opening lap of the 10-lap final, but on Lap 3, Dyne sustained contact with Patrik Sandell in the hairpin when the latter tried to pass him on the inside.
Dyne was left with a broken suspension and could not continue. That brought out a Red Flag and also led to Race Control barring Sandell from the remainder of the final.
Speed, Doran, Piquet and Lasek lined up again for the restart with eight laps left, but Doran ran his Citroen wide in the rush to Turn 1 and fell all the way to last.
Meanwhile, Speed earned the holeshot again and went on a relatively easy cruise to the win, while Lasek picked up the silver medal in his Subaru after Piquet earned a black flag for running the joker twice (a no-no in GRC racing).
The resulting five-second, stop-and-go penalty knocked the Brazilian down to last behind Doran, but on the final lap, Doran lost control and spun out.
As he tried to get his wounded Citroen in gear, Piquet was able to beat him to the checkered flag for the bronze medal in his Ford.
Red Bull GRC returns to action on June 22 with Volkswagen Rallycross DC at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC. NBC will air the event LIVE at 2 p.m. ET.