Dan Istitene/Getty Images)

F1: Lewis Hamilton wins French Grand Prix from pole

By Michael EubanksJun 23, 2019, 11:59 AM EDT
Leave a comment

Lewis Hamilton dominated the French Grand Prix at Circuit Paul Ricard Sunday afternoon, leading every lap after starting from the pole en route to his sixth victory of the season.

The Mercedes driver would win take the cross the finish line 18 seconds ahead of second place finisher and teammate Valtteri Bottas.

“I’ve been racing a long time, but it never gets old,” Hamilton said following his victory.

“I couldn’t do what I do without this incredible team. We’re making history together. I’m really hyped”

The win is the tenth consecutive victory for Mercedes in F1, having won every race since the Brazilian Grand Prix last November. It is also the sixth consecutive 1-2 finish for the team – a F1 record.

Charles Leclerc would finish third, taking the final spot on the podium for Ferrari.

Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel were the remaining two drivers to finish on the lead lap, finishing fourth and fifth respectively.

Carlos Sainz would finish sixth, and although Daniel Ricciardo would seventh initially, he was assessed two five-second penalties by officals, which saw him drop to the eleventh position. Kimi Raikkonen, Nico Hulkenberg, Lando Norris, and Pierre Gasly would round out the top ten.

Full race results are below. The next race is the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring on June 30.

Follow Michael Eubanks on Twitter 

Karam, Daly get IndyCar rides with Carlin for Iowa

By Bruce MartinJul 16, 2019, 6:31 PM EDT
Leave a comment

NEWTON, Iowa – Sage Karam returns for the second-straight race and Conor Daly is back for another race with Carlin Racing at this weekend’s Iowa 300 NTT IndyCar Series race at Iowa Speedway.

For Karam, it’s his third start of the 2019 season and his second straight with Carlin. In his five starts at Iowa Speedway dating back to 2010, Karam has never finished outside of the top three, recording four wins (USF2000 – 2010, Indy Pro 2000 – 2011 and 2012, Indy Lights – 2013) and scoring his first NTT IndyCar Series podium in 2015 with a third-place finish.

“I’m really excited to be back again this weekend with Carlin and SmartStop Self Storage for the Iowa 300. Iowa Speedway has always been a good track for me in the past, so I’m really looking forward to getting back to work there,” Karam said. “Coming off of a very productive weekend in Toronto, I’m looking forward to applying everything I’ve learned and continuing to work with the team to get the best results possible. A huge thank you to everyone at Carlin and SmartStop Self Storage for a great opportunity to race at one of my favorite tracks.”

Daly is back in a second Carlin entry. Earlier this year, the popular driver finished 11th for Carlin in the DXC Technology 600 at Texas Motor Speedway on June 8. At Iowa, he will drive the team’s No. 23 Gallagher Chevrolet.

Daly finished 10th in the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge for Andretti Autosport.

Daly raced at Iowa in 2016 for Dale Coyne Racing (finishing 21st) and in 2017 for A.J. Foyt Racing (finishing 19th).

The combination gives Carlin two more drivers to gather additional feedback on the car. Max Chilton remains the team’s primary driver but announced recently that he will forego all oval races to concentrate on street and road courses.

That created opportunities for Karam and Daly.

“We were very impressed with Sage’s steady progression throughout the Toronto race weekend and his willingness to learn and adapt,” said Carlin Team Principal Trevor Carlin. “The fact that he hadn’t been on a street course since 2015 and was still able to come right out of the gate confident and constantly improving every session was extremely impressive.

“The SmartStop Self Storage Chevrolet looked great out on track and their group has been a pleasure to work with, so we couldn’t be more pleased to have them back this weekend in Iowa. Sage has done really well in Iowa in the past, so hopefully we can use his experience and our past success at Iowa Speedway to come away with a good result for the team and our partners at SmartStop Self Storage.”

The Iowa 300 at Iowa Speedway will take place on Saturday, July 20th at 7:15 pm ET and will be televised on NBCSN.