IMSA: DeltaWing out, Boris Said with broken rib after CTMP incidents - MotorSportsTalk

The DeltaWing Coupe showed its best speed of the season during Friday practice for the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship round at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, ending sixth fastest and just 0.6 off the overall leading Morgan Nissan P2-spec Prototype.

Unfortunately the good vibes only lasted for that first session. Near the end of the second session and on the front straight, a fuel line rupture triggered a fire that caused delamination too extensive to repair the car outside of the team’s shop in Braselton, Georgia. That’s caused the team to withdraw from the rest of the weekend.

Driver Andy Meyrick was on board at the time and emerged mercifully unscathed from the incident. Meyrick even poked fun at it on Twitter, first with his “I’m OK” tweet and then a Starbucks tweet Saturday morning.

Wow.that was scary,big fire but no major injuries and just under observation in the medical centre pic.twitter.com/srVx5Cflp5

— Andy Meyrick (@AndyMeyrick) July 11, 2014

Great banter from Starbucks this morning given what happened yesterday !! Made me smile pic.twitter.com/5EPgn3g8Mo

— Andy Meyrick (@AndyMeyrick) July 12, 2014

Meyrick entered the weekend with great momentum on the strength of consecutive wins in the Blancpain Endurance Series, with co-drivers Steven Kane and Guy Smith in the Bentley Continental GT3.

Meanwhile co-driver Katherine Legge was no doubt looking for better luck as she celebrates her birthday this Saturday.

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Elsewhere, and reports of this have been slower to get out, but Marsh Racing’s Boris Said suffered a broken rib after an incident in Turn 1 on Friday.

Said, who co-drives the No. 31 Corvette DP with Eric Curran, was evaluated and released from an area hospital. The best I’ve seen describing the accident was Corvette Racing’s Tommy Milner, who competes in the GT Le Mans class.

@RyanEversley Crashed in T1. Think something broke. Hit drivers left entering T1. Still no further update other then went to hosp. for eval

— Tommy Milner (@TommyMilner) July 12, 2014

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ANAHEIM, California – Hunter and Jett Lawrence are two of the most popular riders on the Monster Energy Supercross circuit, with fan bases that established and grew immediately when they came to America to ride for HRC Honda. Connecting with those fans came naturally for the charming Australian brothers, but it has not come without cost.

“It’s cool they’re there and it’s one of the things we try to do is give the fan that interaction,” Hunter told NBC Sports during Supercross Media Sessions ahead of the 2023 season. “It’s why we do ride days, meet-and-greets, press conferences – all that stuff, because it’s exciting for them. We are trying to bridge the gap so they get personal interaction. Because that’s all they’re after. It’s all about getting that fan to think, ‘I know that guy. I didn’t meet him, but I get him. I get his humor.’ ”

There is no artifice in either brother. Their fan appeal is directly attributable to who they are at their core. And it’s that very genuineness that has throngs of fans standing outside their hauler, waiting for just a moment of their time.

“It’s about being yourself – talking to people,” Hunter said. “It’s not like I turn it on or turn it off; it’s just about being yourself. This is who we are, this is who you get and this is how it will be. You can’t portray something you’re not. If you keep saying you’re an orange, but apples keep popping out, it’s only a matter of time [until they figure it out].”

The key word is ‘throngs’, however. One person wanting just a few moments of time is incidental. Dozens are an entirely different matter.

“It’s tough in Supercross because it’s such a long day,” Hunter said. “The recovery side of it’s tough to do everything. We get stuck outside the grid; we can’t be there for like 10 minutes. We’re stuck there for like an hour. It gets overwhelming at times.

“You feel bad because you want to sign everything, but you’re still here for a job. Every race day is like that. We do the best we can, but there are so many people who wait out front. They’re screaming for you. Even when we’re coming off the sessions, they’re already yelling before you put your bike on the stands. You don’t even get time to take you helmet off.”

It can be a double-edged sword. Personality is only one part of the equation. A much bigger part of the brothers’ fan appeal comes because of their success. Hunter finished second in the last two Supercross 250 West title battles and third in the past two Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championships.

Jett won the last three titles he competed for, including last year’s 250 East Supercross Championship and the last two Motocross contests.

“I think they expect me to have nothing else to do on a Saturday and that I have unlimited energy,” Jett said. “But, I’m trying to recover for the next race.”

It’s a matter of timing. Jett has gained a reputation last year for handing out hundreds of donuts before the races during Red Bull fan appreciation sessions. And after the race, once the business at hand has been settled, Jett is equally available to the fans.

“After the race it’s fine; I’ll stay behind.” Jett said. “My job is done on the racing side of things, but until that last moto is done, my main thing is dirt bikes. The fans come along with it. The fans are part of the job, but main job at hand is the racing side of things. After the race, I’ll stay there for an hour or so. It’s a lot calmer.”

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