Carlin confirms Indy Lights entry, which provides series a huge shot in the arm

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Trevor Carlin’s powerhouse organization will add a U.S. program in 2015, with a new entry into the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires championship.

Racing director Carlin noted this will be the realization of the team’s U.S. long-term ambitions.

“We’re extremely excited to be taking the Carlin team to the U.S. and embarking on this new challenge into the Indy Lights series,” he said in a release. “We’ve had one eye on the U.S. for some time now and the time is right to widen our focus. We’re seeing more and more drivers look across the Atlantic from categories such as Formula 3 and GP2 Series to careers in Indy Lights and IndyCar and it makes sense as a European team to offer that route to our customers.

“While we remain completely focused on our race programs in Europe, it is also important to take on new challenges and projects that maintain our momentum as a company of people,” he added. “By offering new opportunities we are able to offer strong team members new goals and challenges internally and retain them within Carlin. By no means do we underestimate the challenge ahead but we believe we have a great team of people to help us be competitive in Indy Lights. We see this as an important new chapter for Carlin and the entire team are excited for the future.”

The team’s operations will be based in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. and feature both U.K. and U.S. personnel.

A MAJOR GET FOR INDYCAR/INDY LIGHTS

To put Carlin’s place in the European junior formula ladder into proper American stick-and-ball perspective, a comparable example would be Alabama football. Nick Saban’s team contends for national championships every year, and has produced a gluttony of current National Football League stars.

Or to put Carlin’s place in perspective on the American racing scale, it’s the competitive European equivalent of Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ Indy Lights program – which has won a half dozen championships and promoted more than that number of drivers into IndyCar over the last decade.

The Farnham, Surrey-based team has previously worked with drivers such as Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Riccardo and Nico Rosberg, as well as 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series drivers Will Power, Charlie Kimball, Josef Newgarden, Takuma Sato, Mikhail Aleshin, Graham Rahal and Carlos Huertas in the junior stages of their careers.

That level of talent already has come through Carlin’s doors. The driver or drivers who get the next opportunity will be welcomed into a world-class, championship-winning operation and vault to instant title contender status.

More notable even than the talent who have already driven for Carlin is the fact Carlin himself sees the value in North American racing, and the Mazda Road to Indy ladder system. Because if there’s one thing that IndyCar and Indy Lights racing has lacked in the last decade or so, it’s new blood in terms of teams.

There has not been a new full-season IndyCar team since Ed Carpenter launched his eponymous Ed Carpenter Racing in 2012. The previous two new teams before that were two other drivers branching out into team ownership, in Bryan Herta (2010) and Sarah Fisher (2008). Because it makes sense to have economies of scale, Fisher’s and Carpenter’s teams have now merged.

The lack of new blood in Indy Lights has been even greater. Until this new year with the new Dallara IL15 chassis, Schmidt Peterson, Andretti Autosport, Belardi Auto Racing and Team Moore Racing were the only four teams even keeping the series afloat on a full-time basis. New teams? About as rare as rain in a desert.

That Carlin sees the European junior open-wheel formula in transition, and with the American ladder so much more clearly defined – and, on the whole, cheaper – is nothing but a positive for IndyCar, Indy Lights and the Mazda Road to Indy on the whole.

This is one of the biggest pieces of news for IndyCar this offseason, and should be treated as such. Meanwhile Carlin’s team deserves massive thanks, and a warm welcome to these shores.

Saturday’s Motocross Round 3 at Thunder Valley: How to watch, start times, schedules, streams

Watch Motocross Thunder Valley
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The Pro Motocross series heads to Thunder Valley in Lakewood, Colorado for the 19th consecutive year with no active winners in the 450 division but with plenty of storylines to watch.

Jett Lawrence has set a blistering pace in the first two rounds of the season by winning all four motos and as the most recent winner in the 250 class on this track, Thunder Valley has been incredibly kind. In fact, this week’s Hangtown by the numbers points out this is his fifth-best track.

Chase Sexton will sit out another round as he battles a concussion and illness, which gives Cooper Webb an opportunity to grab the No. 1 seed in the SuperMotocross World Championship that debuts this September. Last week, Webb made up 40 of the 68 points needed for the top spot after missing two rounds at the end of the Supercross season with a head injury suffered at Nashville.

JETTING TO THE LEAD: Jett Lawrence wins second Pro Motocross race in second try

The 250 class continues to be dominated by Hunter Lawrence. He has swept the podium in moto finishes and won both overall races of the season. Last year, he was second in the 250 Motocross race at Thunder Valley and will be a fun rider to watch.

Here are the pertinent details for watching Round 3 of the 2023 Motocross season at Thunder Valley in Lakewood, Colorado:


(All times are ET)

BROADCAST/STREAMING SCHEDULE: TV coverage of Round 3 will begin Saturday at 12 p.m. ET streaming on Peacock with an encore presentation Monday at 2 a.m. ET on CNBC. The Race Day Live show (including practice) will begin on Peacock at 12 p.m. ET Saturday.

NBC Sports will have exclusive live coverage of races, qualifiers and heats for the record 31 events in SuperMotocross. The main events will be presented on Peacock, NBC, USA Network, CNBC, and NBC Sports digital platforms.

Peacock will become the home of the SuperMotocross World Championship series in 2023 with live coverage of all races, qualifying, and heats from January to October. There will be 23 races livestreamed exclusively on Peacock, including a SuperMotocross World Championship Playoff event. The platform also will provide on-demand replays of every race. Click here for the full schedule.

HOW TO WATCH SUPERMOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON IN 2023Full NBC Sports, Peacock schedule

Track Map

ENTRY LISTS: 450 division l 250 division

EVENT SCHEDULE (all times ET): 

Here are the start times for Saturday’s Motocross Round 3 at Thunder Valley in Lakewood, Colorado, according to the Monster Energy Supercross schedule from the AMA:

9:15 a.m.: Riders Meeting at AMA Semi
9:20 a.m.: Chapel Service at AMA Semi
10:00 a.m.: 250 Class Practice Grp B- 15 minutes (1 Lap Free)
10:20 a.m.: 250 Class Practice Grp A- 15 minutes (1 Lap Free)
10:50 a.m.: 450 Class Practice Grp A- 15 minutes (1 Lap Free)
11:10 a.m.: 450 Class Practice Grp B- 15 minutes (1 Lap Free)
11:40 a.m.: 250 Class Grp B Start Practice (Off Gate) 5 minutes
11:45 a.m.: 250 Class Practice Grp B- 15 minutes – Timed
12:05 p.m.: 250 Class Grp A Start Practice (Off Gate) 5 minutes
12:10 p.m.: 250 Class Practice Grp A- 15 minutes – Timed
12:30 p.m.: 450 Class Grp A Start Practice (Off Gate) 5 minutes
12:35 p.m.: 450 Class Practice Grp A- 15 minutes – Timed
12:55 p.m.: 450 Class Grp B Start Practice (Off Gate) 5 minutes
1:00 p.m.: 450 Class Practice Grp B- 15 minutes – Timed
1:45 p.m.: 250 Consolation Race
2:00 p.m.: 450 Consolation Race
2:30 p.m.: OPENING CEREMONIES
3:00 p.m. 250 Class Sight Lap
3:10 p.m.: 250 Class Moto #1
4:00 p.m.: 450 Class Sight Lap
4:10 p.m.: 450 Class Moto #1
4:50 p.m.: Halftime
5:15 p.m.: 250 Class Sight Lap
5:23 p.m.: 250 Class Moto #2
6:00 p.m.: 250 Winners Circle
6:16 p.m.: 450 Class Sight Lap
6:24 p.m.: 450 Class Moto #2

MOTOCROSS 2023 STANDINGS: 450 points standings | 250 points standings


2023 MOTOCROSS SEASON RECAPS

ROUND 1: Jett Lawrence wins in first 450 start at Pala
ROUND 2: Jett Lawrence remains perfect at Hangtown

2023 SUPERCROSS SEASON RECAPS

ROUND 1: Eli Tomac opens title defense with victory
ROUND 2: Eli Tomac ties Ricky Carmichael on Supercross wins list
ROUND 3: Eli Tomac holds off Cooper Webb again
ROUND 4: Chase Sexton wins Anaheim Triple Crown
ROUND 5: Eli Tomac leads wire to wire in Houston
ROUND 6: Cooper Webb breaks through in Tampa
ROUND 7: Cooper Webb wins again in Arlington
ROUND 8: Eli Tomac wins Daytona for the seventh time
ROUND 9: Ken Roczen scores first victory since 2022
ROUND 10: Chase Sexton inherits Detroit victory but docked points
ROUND 11: Eli Tomac wins in Seattle, ties Cooper Webb for points lead
ROUND 12: Eli Tomac earns 51st career victory to break tie with James Stewart
ROUND 13: Chase Sexton dominates Atlanta to continue surge
ROUND 14: Justin Barcia triumphs in the New Jersey mud
ROUND 15: Chase Sexton wins as Cooper Webb is injured
ROUND 16: Eli Tomac sidelined by injury as Sexton wins
ROUND 17: Chase Sexton caps off championship with finale win


NBC SPORTS’ COVERAGE OF SUPERMOTOCROSS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

Thunder Valley by the numbers
Beta Motorcycles joins SuperMotocross
Jeremy Martin injury update
Power Rankings after Hangtown
Results and points after Hangtown
Jett Lawrence wins second consecutive at Hangtown
Enzo Lopes re-signs with ClubMX

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