Maria de Villota, 33, Racer and F1 Test Driver

Link.

She was critically injured in the summer of 2012 while testing for the Marussia team. She lost her right eye Possible complications from the injuries are probably linked to her death.

Wrong Way Kimi!

Check out this mishap by 2007 F1 champ Kimi Raikkonen at the F1 finale at Sao Paulo on Sunday:

Luckily he didn't crash. Good driving.

United States Grand Prix 2012: My Thoughts.

Some thoughts from the race:

• Yes folks, Rick Perry and David Dewhurst presented the trophies to Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, the top two finishers at the USGP.
• Kudos to the management at Circuit of the Americas.  Without no flaws (as opposed to Indy), the facility was top notch and ready for racing.
• It's great that such a race was clean, no hard crashes, and no safety car periods (all 56 laps were green, maybe a local caution or two).
• Vettel will have to wait until Sunday at Rio to clinch his second driver's title, now only 20 ahead of Fernando Alonso.
• 120,000+ in attendance, but not one mention on ESPN on either its website or on Sportscenter. Sad, considering that ESPN used to do F1 races.
• Only two retirees including Mark Webber's late problems. Great for such a race. I wished all 24 would have ran at the finish (including both HRT cars).
• The celebrity factor seemed to be at Austin than at Homestead for the Sprint Cup finale and race weekend there. Patrick Dempsey (who is also a racer) was there, so was a bunch of others. Mario Andretti, former F1 champ, spoke to the top three finishers on the podium!
• SPEED TV's coverage was great.
• If you missed out on this race by watching NFL early action, shame on you. You suck.

Finally, all above is why I hope F1 returns to COTA in the years to come. Welcome back to America, F1.

Race Day!

Forget about the tomfoolery down at Homestead-Miami, this is world class shit here! Less than 90 minutes away! The return of Formula 1 to the United States is here. The practices, qualifying, tests and track preparation at Circuit of the Americas is kicking in and now the true test awaits us!

The race is LIVE in the US on SPEED. Formula1.com is where you must head for the live timing and scoring (you must register).

USGP 2012: Vettel on Pole! Race Sunday!

Saturday's qualifying session showed why once again defending Formula One driver's champion Sebastian Vettel is great in qualifying. The Toro Rosso driver nabbed another pole position in 2012, as he is P1 for Sunday's United States Grand Prix. All 24 drivers were above the 107% qualifying rate imposed by FIA.

Tune in and watch the race on Speed at 12:30pm Central Sunday. F1 is back in the USA.

Circuit of the Americas is Finally Open!

Circuit of the Americas in Travis County, Texas, is finally open for business. After weeks and months of preparations, the track's first weekend is here. It also marks Formula 1's first trip to the USA since Indy 2006. The first F1 race on a permanent course in the US since Watkins Glen in the late '70s.

There were some spins in both the practice sessions. Last year's F1 champion, Sebastian Vettel, was fastest in the first practice. I believe it was Lewis Hamilton who was fastest in second practice this afternoon.

There will be a third practice and qualifying session on tap Saturday. The race is Sunday LIVE on Speed.