The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series continues in Las Vegas for the Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube as the drivers are cashing out on who will make it to the top. All bets are off for this one.
As the green flag waved, the action in Sin City is underway. Stage 1 saw Christopher Bell trigger the first caution of the race with a flat right rear tire followed by Chris Buescher losing his right front wheel and a red flag.
As Kyle Larson won Stage 1, Stage 2 saw Bell spinning at Turn 2 and another stage win for Larson. As the final stage kicks in, the drivers are going all out until Corey LaJoie spins in turn 2 and makes contact with the outside wall.
Screengrab from NASCAR
After the action in Vegas, Kyle Larson wins the Pennzoil 400 of the NASCAR Cup Series!
The next race is at Phoenix for the Shriners Children's 500 this Sunday, March 10th.
The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series continues in Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Ambetter Health 400 as the drivers still making their early strides after their Daytona hangover.
As the green flag waved, the action in Atlanta was underway. Stage 1 saw Martin Truex Jr. trigger The Big One after making contact and spinning Austin Dillion in the process, followed by Chris Buescher spinning in Turn 4 on Lap 26, and Denny Hamlin making contact with Kyle Busch and spins from 6th on Lap 54. As Michael McDowell wins Stage One, Stage Two saw a climactic mess as Chris Buescher smashed through the wall with Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin fell victim to it. With Austin Cindric winning Stage 2 under caution, the final stage saw Kyle Busch colliding with Kaz Grala, Daniel Hemric scraping the wall, a red flag-triggering disaster when Chase Briscoe and Denny Hamlin collided while 4-wide and crash, and a three-wide photo finish no one saw coming.
Screengrab from NASCAR
At a rate of 0.003 seconds, it's official that Daniel Suarez won the Ambetter Health 400 of the NASCAR Cup Series.
The next race is at Las Vegas for the Pennzoil 400 presented by Jiffy Lube this March 3rd.
Originally scheduled a day before Presidents' Day until weather change pushed the schedule to Presidents' Day, the Daytona 500 signals the start of the oval racing season from the world of NASCAR.
The 2024 season welcomes the new look of the Ford Mustang and Toyota Camry stock cars joining alongside the now-discontinued Chevrolet Camaro-based stock car, making this season worth salivating for Ford and Toyota fans but tearful for Chevy fans.
After an opening salvo by Dwayne Johnson, the green flag was waved, and oval racing season has begun. In Stage 1, seven cars were involved in the first caution of the season after Brad Keselowski bumped John Hunter Nemechek in the high line, triggering a chain reaction. As Chase Elliott wins Stage 1, Stage 2 saw Ryan Preece slapped with a penalty for speeding on pit road followed by Ryan Blaney overtaking Austin Cindric for the stage win. As the final stage approached, a red flag was triggered when William Byron got into Brad Keselowski and spun him into Joey Logano, triggering The Big One which claimed 18 drivers.
Screengrab from NASCAR
A chaotic end to the first race of the 2024 season saw Ross Chastain and Austin Cindric clipped while William Byron took the white flag when the caution came out, meaning the winner goes to Byron himself.
The next race is at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Ambetter Health 400 this Sunday, February 25th.
Wherever I see variants of the C8 Corvette grouped together, they remind me of the Republican Space Rangers from the GTA series because, even though they're space age by design, they still pack the beating heart of a trigger-happy Republican. I mean, hey. How about those Republicans?
With three variants of the 8th-generation Corvette gathered in Forza Horizon 5, it's time to get to know these variants before making the Phoenix Rumble.
First up is the starter; the C8 Corvette Stingray. Now as a mid-engined supercar, the all-new Corvette is capable of taking on the world's best sportscars with its radical styling, futuristic interior, and its newly-built 6.2L LT2 V8 engine mounted in the middle, which produces up to 495HP of power and 470lb-ft of torque, while mated to a double-clutch gearbox for the first time.
Next up is the C8 Corvette Z06, the Redneck equivalent of the Porsche 911 GT3. By using most of its know-how from the C8.R racing machine, the Corvette C8 Z06 is a track weapon capable of slithering through the road and track with its race-inspired dynamics, available Brembo carbon ceramic brakes, and the Z07 Performance Package.
Powering the C8 Z06 is a smaller but more powerful 5.5L V8 naturally aspirated engine that produces 670HP of power and while mated to a standard 8-speed AT, it does 0-60mph in 2.6 seconds.
Lastly and obviously the most controversial Corvette of all is the C8 Corvette E-Ray, the first hybrid AWD Corvette in history. The E-Ray features a 6.2L LT2 V8 engine that is mated to an electric drive unit powering both front and rear wheels, making it a four-wheel-drive supercar, a Corvette first. It produces a total power output of 655HP and while mated with an 8-speed transmission, it has a 0-60mph time of 2.5 seconds and a quarter-mile time of 10.5 seconds. The ZER Performance Package comes with high-performance Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S ZP summer-only tires as well as chassis tuning and other performance enhancements.
With three C8 variants introduced, it's time to hit the trio around the Horizon Mexico festival site to see which one is the best. Let's roll the tape.
And now the results...
C8 Corvette - 1m14.041s
C8 Corvette Z06 - 1m10.120s
C8 Corvette E-Ray
It looks like The Commander beats Butch and Dick after all. The Z06 is proven to be the most potent of the three even though this isn't its final form.
Be it the starter Stingray, the track-focused Z06, or the hybrid E-Ray, the eighth-generation Chevrolet Corvette is truly a radical evolution of America's sports car. Even with its space-age design, it still packs the beating heart of a trigger-happy Republican who loves to use unreasonable force against the world. Hey, how about those Republicans?
Speak of the devil, looks like the international community called. Looks like they want to challenge the C8 Corvette in due process. Could this mean a new age of motoring warfare? Stay tuned.
Before the roaring twenties, Chevrolet brought back the Blazer name for their Camaro-inspired crossover that behaves...like pretty much most crossovers do. Now, the fully-electric Blazer takes center stage, giving prospects plenty of choices to work out with this...crossover.
2024 Chevrolet Blazer EV
With prices starting at 56,715 US Dollars plus additional costs, the first-ever Chevrolet Blazer EV is part of General Motors' electric propagation to beat Tesla at its own game. Although the results aren't typical yet, this fully electric Blazer sparks plenty of unanswered questions but there's one question that deserves to be answered; what's it for?
2024 Chevrolet Blazer EV interior
Beginning with the styling, the Blazer EV's exterior design shares nothing in common with its ICE-powered equivalent, perhaps Chevrolet wanted the EV version to have a different approach compared to its ICE version or perhaps they want to coexist until the times demand that one of them has to go, probably the one with the ICE in it. Still, despite all the developments, the Blazer EV is progressive by design, and as for the interior, the diagonal displays give drivers the impression of driving a sports car, except it isn't. It's a fully electric crossover built for daily purposes as long as the battery charge decides where to go next and when.
2024 Chevrolet Blazer EV
Running on the hallmark Ultium platform and powered by an 85kWh battery pack, the Blazer EV's electric powertrain produces 288hp of power output for AWD variants and has an EPA-estimated driving range of 279 miles in one full charge. Later variants such as the rear-wheel-drive RS can get up to 324 miles while those who demand more will have to wait until Spring 2024 for the SS variant with Wide Open Watts performance mode, unleashing all 557 horsepower at its disposal, sprinting from 0-60mph in under four seconds.
Of course, being a crossover, the Blazer EV is nothing near exciting to drive almost everywhere but it's about as civilized as most EVs should be. As for safety, the Blazer EV comes standard with Chevy Safety Assist consisting of Automatic Emergency Braking, Front Pedestrian Braking, Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, Forward Collision Alert, Following Distance Indicator, and IntelliBeam Auto High Beams. It even comes with the rather controversial Super Cruise technology giving autonomous driving through 400,000 miles of compatible roads in the US and Canada. Yes, you can really let AI do almost all of the driving for you. Scary.
Calling the Blazer EV one of the most important models in General Motors' electrification push is a risky gamble but living consistently with its petrol-powered equivalent is like living with a rock and a hard place for commoners like us. This is the new normal we live in and the Blazer EV fits like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle.
The Chevrolet Camaro and the Dodge Challenger are set to be euthanized by year's end and here in Gran Turismo 7, it's time to have one last drive with these two soon-to-be-euthanized muscles.
The sixth-generation Camaro and the third-generation Challenger were proven to be worthy adversaries to the Ford Mustang. With their time almost up, it appears that the Ford Mustang will have no one to compete with until the future Dodge Charger. As the world prepares to say goodbye to these two, let's have a quick look at these two.
Beginning with the Camaro ZL1 1LE, this is basically a Republican response to Porsche's 911 GT3 because the 1LE Package transformed the Camaro ZL1 into a potent track toy built to tackle not just on drag strips but on racetracks like a proper sports car. Although it's banned on European roads, it lapped the Nurburgring Nordschleife in 7 minutes and 16.04 seconds. The secret to its track-honed performance is its large deflector, rear wing, diffuser, bespoke suspension setup, Michelin tires built for this car, and a 650HP 6.2L supercharged V8 engine mated to a 6-speed manual.
The Dodge Challenger SRT Demon is the biggest upset Dodge delivered when it made a world premiere in 2018. Limited to 3,300 units, the Dodge Challenger Demon's supercharged 6.2L V8 engine produces a monstrous 840HP of power on 100 or higher-octane fuel, capable of hitting 0-62mph in 2.3 seconds, faster than any supercar it faces against. It's so fast, that the NHRA banned this vehicle.
Having gotten to know these two muscle cars that are soon to be heading to the great junkyard of the sky, it's time to have one last drive with the Camaro and the Challenger around the Daytona road track and unleash the soon-to-be-legendary performance that made them stand out. I expect this to be close.
(SPOILER ALERT: It is)
Let's roll the tape.
And now, the results...
Camaro ZL1 - 1m58.602s
Challenger Demon - 1m59.620s
From the track-honed performance of the Camaro ZL1 1LE to the "Run Like Hell" attitude of the Challenger SRT Demon, these two muscle cars proved their worth until the last drop, and now that they've served their purpose spectacularly, I can't think of a word to describe these two Mustang fighters who fought bravely to the end.
Still, I will credit the Challenger for being the biggest upset to the modern muscle era and the Demon is like the biggest comeback to Dodge. As for the Camaro, it's racing pedigree from NASCAR to Le Mans (thank you, Garage 56) will go down in history as one of the all-time greats.
The sun sets in the sky. Camaro and Challenger, say goodbye.
The Forza Horizon 5 American Automotive series update is littered with old-school American cars out from the junkyard and into the Horizon Mexico playground, a swarm of flies attracting a cesspool of vintage American cars.
As the American Automotive series update is wrapping up, let's check out the cesspool of old-school American cars that littered through the Horizon Mexico playpen.
The Wet Season playlist brought us the fifth-generation Plymouth Belvedere, the only model to come with the 426 Chrysler Hemi Engine and the one that scored Plymouth's podium sweep at the 1964 NASCAR race in Daytona, with one of them driven by the legendary Richard Petty.
The Storm Season playlist brought us the first-generation Pontiac Firebird, the first chapter of Pontiac's equivalent of the Chevrolet Camaro, as well as the second-generation Chevrolet Nova, in Super Sport trim with the Turbo-Fire 327 cu in V8 engine producing a power output of 350hp while mated exclusively with a 4-speed MT.
The Dry Season playlist brought us the Pontiac GTO "The Judge". Known for its funky logo and stripe decals, The Judge is powered by a 6.6L V8 Ram Air 3 engine that produces over 361HP of power output while mated to a Hurst shifter, heavy-duty suspension, wide tires, and a rear spoiler. It is the ultimate sports spec car made before the GTO was laid to rest.
Lastly, the Hot Season playlist brought us the fourth-generation Lincoln Continental luxury sedan, the first in the Continental lineage to feature suicide doors.
I've sent these junkyard dogs on a short trip through four new sprint races introduced in the American Automotive series update; the Línea Costera Sprint, the Aeródromo Sprint, the Marigold Sprint, and the Vista Del Mar Sprint. These four new sprint races will serve as the litmus test for these American vintage cars to flex their muscles as they scat through the competition in style. Want to see these dogs in action? Let's roll the tapes...
What do you think? Do these scavengers make you fall in love with old cars? I bet you are because your gut tells you to have fun with these junkyard dogs fresh from being junkyard scrap and into the Horizon Mexico sandbox but wait, there's more.
As it turns out, the vintage prize cars from the American Automotive update weren't the only stray dogs littering around the Mexican landscape. In fact, there's one junkyard dog to end them all...
What you're looking up here is the DeBerti Shop Rod, which is included in the game's American Automotive DLC Pack. Based on the 1961 Ford Econoline, it's been stripped off, lowered, made it right-hand-drive, and jammed with a Coyote engine paired to a Reid racing 4L80-E transmission with an ATD reverse manual valve body, producing 850hp of power output.
I got to sample it on an oval track to see if the Shop Rod from DeBerti is the hot rod in a van body. Let's roll the tape.
It's a hot rod, alright. A hot rod in a van's body.
This latest cesspool of old-school American cars proves that a game like Forza never stops jamming old cars to younger players who never heard of them. There are Gen Z players out there and showing them old cars is like slapping dog poo on their faces. In the end, this is how they roll.
When sleeping dogs lie, they'll come back to cause havoc another day and these junkyard dogs proved their point. We can expect more junkyard dogs littering around Horizon Mexico even before 2023 ends and 2024 begins and what a living nightmare our Gen Z players will experience.
The Rossion Q1 and the Noble M400 are basically two sides of the same coin but when you drive these two noble works, the differences proved their worth.
Having obtained the Rossion Q1 from Forza Horizon 5's American Automotive series update's Hot Season playlist, it's now time to explain what's all about the Q1's connection with the M400.
Beginning with the M400, one of the DLC cars in the game, it picks up where its M12 predecessor left off. While most components are derived from the M12, the M400's 3.0L V6 twin-turbo engine produces 21% more than the M12, delivering 425hp of power and 390ft-lb of torque. With its lightweight bodywork, it has a power-to-weight ratio of 400hp.
Now, let's talk about the Rossion Q1, which I recently won at the American Automotive update Hot Season Playlist. The Q1 is basically a re-skinned version of the Noble M400 but with a few alterations occurring inside and out. Using a South African-made Noble chassis before assembly in Florida, the Q1 features a new fiberglass body, a concealed roll cage where the M400 was previously exposed, new suspension, and a turbocharged V6 3.0L engine sourced from Ford, producing 450hp of power and capable of going 0-60mph in almost three and a half seconds.
Having familiarized with the two visually similar noble works, it's time to find out which side of the same coin is superior. Could it be the M400 or its Q1 carbon copy? Let's roll the tape and find out.
And now the results...
Q1 - 2m24.461s
M400 - 2m22.943s
Wow, the gap between the two nobles is around two seconds, a noble feat for the two nobles but as stated, the superior one is the Noble M400. Nothing beats the original.
Yes, the Americanized Noble, the Rossion Q1, is inferior compared to the "original" Noble M400 but they've showcased the noble works they've done on the road and on the track, even in Horizon Mexico. They may be two sides of the same coin but they've proved their worth as noblesses.
Forza Horizon 5 introduced us to some of the coolest electric cars in its roster and for the American Automotive series update, a new addition to its electrified fleet has arrived.
I wonder what electric car is this? I know this is American made but what's the make and model?
Lucid? Never heard of it.
This is the Lucid Air, the fully-electric luxury sedan that served as the maiden voyage of the California-based Lucid Motors. I got this car from the update's Wet Season playlist and I now have the chance to have a word with a superior long-range electric sedan that raked numerous awards and accolades, including MotorTrend's 2022 Car of the Year.
From concept to reality, Lucid Motors' maiden offering, the Air, is a fully electric luxury sedan that features a clean minimalist design, spacious interior, cutting-edge technology, and electrified performance that exceeds expectations.
At launch, the Lucid Air is offered in base, Touring, Grand Touring, and the limited-run Dream Edition with its electric powertrain bolted to a 900-volt battery pack that produces a massive 1111hp of power for the Performance version while the Range version of the Dream Edition has a driving range of 520 miles in one full charge.
Following the success of the Lucid Air, the flagship Sapphire version was unveiled, featuring a Lucid-first three-motor electric powertrain capable of producing over 1200hp of power, making it the most powerful production four-door sedan in the world. It will sprint from 0-60mph in less than two seconds and has a top speed of over 200mph. It even comes with stiffer front and rear springs, unique damper settings, stiffer bushings, and a unique tuning for ABS, traction, stability control, electronic power steering, carbon ceramic brakes, Michelin PS4S tires developed for this car, and torque vectoring, among others.
The Lucid Air, depending on variants, comes with DreamDrive driver assistance systems with Level 2 and Level 3 semi-autonomous driving capabilities, using 32 sensors that include the world’s first HD lidar sensor on an electric vehicle.
I love how Lucid Motors gave the idea of their own performance brand by turning left just like most American liberals do because blue is the American leftists' image color and for the sake of well-being, the Sapphire transforms the Lucid Air into an impotent superhero that prefers peace through fighting than fighting through peace. Although it has spartan driving manners because of the bulk of its electric propulsion system, it feels just right to drive on the road and the performance really translates to supercar-beating performance. It's as silent as a Silent Suzuka and it gets you in its Silent Scope, the Lucid Air Sapphire will leave you out of the blue.
Having got my lucid rhythms on, it's time to send the Lucid Air Sapphire on a shipyard scenario as curated by a certain Games Master. I will tell you the map code after this but in the meantime, let's roll the tape.
Well, I got choked in the ending but I truly enjoyed how much of an electric performance sedan the Lucid Air Sapphire is. A bottle of Bombay, anyone?
As promised, I'll give you the map code to the shipyard I've played. Its code is...163 247 666. Go search it on the FH5 EventLab library.
Silence is in the air. The Lucid Air Sapphire is what happens when you turn an award-winning electric luxury sedan into a potent high-performance super saloon capable of doing things no electric saloon has done before. Its lucid rhythms made me out of the blue and I'm starting to fall in love with its...resolute atmosphere.
The Chevrolet Corvette, the Porsche 911, and the Nissan GT-R are the most dominant names in the world of sports cars because of their heritage, performance, and racing pedigree that made them the global superpowers feared and respected the world over.
Here in Forza Motorsport, let's get to know the three kings of the sports car realm starting with America's finest, the Corvette C8 Z06.
By using most of its know-how from the C8.R racing machine, the Corvette C8 Z06 is a track weapon capable of slithering through the road and track with its race-inspired dynamics, available Brembo carbon ceramic brakes, and the Z07 Performance Package.
Powering the C8 Z06 is a smaller but more powerful 5.5L V8 naturally aspirated engine that produces 670HP of power and while mated to a standard 8-speed AT, it does 0-60mph in 2.6 seconds.
With its naturally aspirated V8 engine, C8.R-inspired dynamics, and sleek aerodynamics, the C8 Z06 has evolved from a typical Corvette into a proper purist's sports car.
Now, let's get to know the Nissan GT-R NISMO, the ultimate version of the soon-to-be-legendary Japanese sports car that was known to be the best Heisei-era JDM sports car.
The result of Nissan's trial and error struggle to create a supercar that can compete against the world's best supercars, the GT-R NISMO, first launched in 2014, features track-honed aerodynamics akin to its GT3 racer and an improved 3.8L V6 Twin Turbo engine producing 600PS of power output, capable of lapping the Nurburgring Nordschleife in 7:08.679.
This is the 2020 Model Year GT-R and for this update, the GT-R NISMO features front fenders from the GT3 racecar, a new carbon-fiber roof, and improved dynamics.
It is said that the improved GT-R NISMO lapped Tsukuba in less than a minute.
Lastly, the Porsche 911 GT3 (992), which is the better version of the 992-spec Porsche 911.
The 992 911 GT3 is a real, no-nonsense sports car with real, no-nonsense performance drivers who can get hooked for more. Race-inspired aerodynamics aside, the 911 GT3 is powered by a 4.0L flat-6 engine that produces 510PS of power and 470Nm of torque while mated to either a 6-speed manual or a 7-speed PDK, which lets the GT3 accelerate from 0-100kph in 3.4 seconds, which is slightly quicker than the previous model.
It's got a double-wishbone front axle for the first time in a 911, a five-link rear axle, larger brakes, and extensive use of lightweight materials, among many others.
With such improvements, the new model lapped the Nurburgring Nordschleife in 6:59.927 minutes, which is an improvement from the previous GT3.
Now that we get to know about the three sports car kings, it's time to take them to the ideal playground to flex their muscles; the Yas Marina Circuit. It's been recently added to Forza Motorsport and I got the chance to bring them there, which is good timing for me because this weekend, the F1 23 season finale will be held there.
Yas Marina's changed since I let their predecessors loose in FM7 a couple of years ago. Although some of the familiar bits got changed, it's still the Yas Marina the world knows and enjoys. It's still the ideal playground for speedo boys to let their sports cars rip through the most technical corners in style.
Anyway, with the C8 Z06, GT-R NISMO, and the 992 911 GT3 gathered at what's known to be the final venue of the F1 season, it's time to settle which side of the globe is the best.
America, Europe, and Asia. Which one is the best? Let's find out with a one-lap time attack around the recently-added Yas Marina track in Forza Motorsport. Let battle commence.
And now the results...
C8 Corvette Z06 - 2m14.234s
GT-R (R35) NISMO - 2m19.394s
911 (992) GT3 - 2m20.282s
It looks like the Americans were the superior ones this time as the C8 Z06 trumps the GT-R NISMO and the 911 GT3 by a long shot in the revised Yas Marina track.
I guess the engineers behind the C8 Corvette were wise about transitioning to a mid-engine layout at the beginning and with the Z06, it's capable of tackling down the world's best, even though this isn't really its final form, if you catch my drift.
This Vette's got guts and it managed to show the world it's capable of taking all comers in the same way its C8.R equivalent crushed the final LMGTE AM Class title in style. GT3, here we go.
