Nhra Roundup
At Bandimere Speedway in Bandimere, Colorado, Jeremy Lookofsky found himself in his third consecutive final and won his second race in three weeks, beating Mazda's up and coming Vince Tiaga with a run of 10.451 @ 129.53. "It's a great day to get a win since it's my birthday," said Lookofsky, who was also the number one qualifier with a 10.321 @ 131.18 in altitude. "I'm just trying to gain the points to come into [the next race in] Las Vegas with a comfortable lead. It's great to qualify number one and finish number one ."
| BANDIMERE SPEEDWAY BANDIMERE, CO |
| Pro FWD | |
| Winner | Marty Ladwig |
| 8.166 @ 183.32 | Chevy |
| Runner-up | Jason Hunt |
| 12.113 @ 106.49 | Chevy |
| Hot Rod |
| Winner | Chuck Seitsinger |
| 8.615 @ 168.16 | Honda |
| Runner-up | Ron Lummus |
| 8.791 @ 163.87 | Pontiac |
| All Motor |
| Winner | Jeremy Lookofsky |
| 10.451 @ 129.53 | Honda |
| Runner-up | Vince Tiaga |
| 11.619 @ 107.47 | Mazda |
| Sport FWD |
| Winner | Chris Lucarelli |
| 10.730 @ 135.69 | Honda |
| Runner-up | Arturbo Ortiz |
| foul | Acura |
Hoosier Home
Honda's sixth U.S. factory to go up in Decatur County, Indiana.
Fifty miles southeast of Indianapolis will be the home to Honda's new $550 million auto plant producing 4-cylinder vehicles. It will open in the fall of 2008, employ 2,000, and build up to 200,000 vehicles, upping Honda's total U.S. output to 1.6 million units. Those are big numbers.
Environmentally speaking, Honda's goal is a tiny number-zero, as in it wants the new factory to be a "zero waste to landfill" factory. To accomplish that goal, Honda will use advanced methods of energy and emission reduction.
And as part of an infrastructure improvement package developed in cooperation with local and state government officials, the state of Indiana and the community has agreed to make various highway improvements in the area, provide site and infrastructure improvements and funds to train new Honda associates.
But why Indiana?
"We believe the great state of Indiana has what we need to continue this success," said Koichi Kondo, president of American Honda and CEO of Honda's North America operations, explaining that the Midwest's centrality is ideal for suppliers and customers. One thing he left out-and this is just us-the chicks are great.
Power Rangers
Mugen Power teams up with Courage Competition to fight for Le Mans supremacy.While all eyes were on the diesel-engined Audi R10s at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, two Mugen-powered LMP1 racecars took their first steps toward the top step of the podium. The two cars fronted by Courage Competition of France started fifth and tenth on the starting grid. Neither the number 12 nor number 13 cars from Mugen Competition made it beyond the night, dropping out because of mechanical failures, but they marked the beginning of an unusual friendship.
In the past, Mugen has typically teamed up with Japanese chassis builder Dome in endurance races, like the 24 Hours. This is the first time it has teamed with Courage, which has a long history at Le Mans, with victories in the LMP2 class. For Mugen, it has given the team three years to win in LMP1. It's a tall task, but this is Mugen's strongest push into Le Mans competition.
The engine powering the Courage LC70 is a Mugen 4.5-liter MF458S putting out 650 hp. It is connected to a Courage-designed 6-speed sequential gearbox with a semi-automatic paddle-shift system. The Courage chassis is a one-piece carbon-fiber aluminum tub. The body is a carbon-Kevlar honeycomb. It is a brand new chassis, developed with the new Courage LC75 chassis, a client-chassis for the LMP2 class.