http://motorntv.com en-us http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6217 The first doubleheader weekend of the 11-race 2008 Cooper Tires Presents The Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda season and the “stretch run” gets underway with this weekend’s Rexall Edmonton Indy twin-bill. While the first four races of the 35th Anniversary Atlantic season were each separated by a month or more, the final eight races of the championship will be run over the next 12 weeks before a champion will be crowned at Road Atlanta on Friday, October 3. The driver currently leading the championship—for the first time in his Atlantic career—is second-year racer Junior Strous of The Netherlands. http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6216 The much-anticipated debut by Randy Moss as a team owner in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series was punctuated with a successful 15th-place finish in the Built Ford Tough 225 at Kentucky Speedway on Saturday night. Willie Allen, the 2007 Craftsman Truck Series rookie of the year, piloted the No. 81 Rascal Flatts Chevrolet Silverado safely home for the inaugural race for the newly named Randy Moss Motorsports team. "This was really an incredible honor to be the driver for Randy Moss Motorsports in their debut, said Allen. “We had a decent night with the 15th place finish but I really would have liked to give Randy a little better finish in his debut. We struggled a little with the set-up in our Chevrolet but Eric Phillips (crew chief) really made some great adjustments on our pit stops and we got pretty decent there towards the end. I think we needed one more adjustment and we could have been in a position to get a top-ten finish. But in all, I think everyone would say that this was a successful night for Randy Moss Motorsports. I hope I get a chance to work with these guys again before the year is over." http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6215 The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) announced today a research and development collaboration with General Motors and 34 top utilities to facilitate integration of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the grid, a key step in providing the nation’s drivers an alternative to petroleum fuels. “The EPRI-GM-utility effort is the result of many years of work by EPRI and its members to advance plug-in hybrids and related infrastructure technology to a point of feasible implementation and eventual commercialization,” said Arshad Mansoor, EPRI’s vice president of Power Delivery and Utilization. “Seamless integration of PHEVs into the electric grid will require close collaboration between the automobile and electric sectors.” http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6214 Start your engines! Monster Jam®, the largest and most popular touring monster truck brand, owned and operated by Live Nation Motor Sports, Inc., is once again blowing the roof off traditional motor sports. With another record live event attendance season on the horizon expected to surpass the 4 million tickets mark for the second year in a row, year-round television broadcasts, an expanding international presence of touring Monster Jam shows and a growing online presence, the 2008 Monster Jam racing season is on track to become the brand’s most successful season in history! Driving the Monster Jam line is worldwide master toy partner Mattel, which continues its successful relationship with the motor sports brand. Through this expanded, multi-year agreement, Mattel will remain Monster Jam’s master toy partner through 2013. The world’s premier toy company manufactures an extensive and innovative line of replica Monster Jam vehicles based on more than 70 of the world’s most famous monster trucks -- from Grave Digger® and Maximum Destruction® to Monster Mutt®, El Toro Loco®, to Captain’s Curse® and Blue Thunder®. Mattel’s expanded product line will include die-cast and plastic monster truck vehicles in a variety of scales, including light and sound, radio control and electric racing monster truck vehicles. http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6213 This weekend, the IndyCar Series will make its debut at the Edmonton City Centre Raceway. HVM Racing, previously competing in the Champ Car World Series, has three starts at the course. HVM Racing, with driver Robert Doornbos, turned in the fastest lap during final practice last year at Edmonton. E.J. Viso, who will be making his first start at Edmonton, is fourth in the Bombardier Rookie of The Year Standings despite having one less start than most of his competitors. Viso is ahead of three drivers who have started every race. HVM Racing has finished equal or higher than their starting position in all but one event the team has competed in this season. The team averages an improvement of four positions. http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6212 The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) announced major changes to the 2008 AMA Sports Road Race Grand Championships, set for September 19-21 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio, intended to provide more track time, a streamlined class structure, better value and easier signup. "Everything from simplified signup to faster tech to better result reporting will greet our riders," said AMA Racing Senior Director Bryan Cohn. "Most important, all competitors will have more chances to circulate the world-class Mid-Ohio track. We've also restructured our program to better serve our core group, those competing on today's most-popular racing motorcycles, to give them even more opportunity to ride." http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6211 When asked, Del Worsham will admit that his 2008 Western Swing has not yet paid off in terms of the necessary round victories he needs to move into the Countdown playoff field. Though he qualified well at both Denver and Seattle, including a No. 2 spot last weekend Pacific Raceways, not far from Puget Sound, Worsham has been unable to turn on any win lights to this point, losing to Robert Hight on the mountain and Ron Capps in the woods. There were certainly a few unlucky moments in both situations, but in the larger view it can only be considered very lucky that Worsham enters this weekend's Fram-Autolite Nationals, in Sonoma, still only 27 points behind Jack Beckman, who currently holds down the 10th spot in the standings. http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6210 Scosche Industries (www.scosche.com), a leader of mobile electronics aftermarket accessories, is pleased to announce it is shipping a new Double DIN installation kit in March. The LN1329B is a Scosche “Custom Kit, Factory Fit” specifically designed to fit all 2000-2006 Lincoln LS and 2002-2005 Ford Thunderbird vehicles. The LN1329B dash kit offers a seamless installation of any aftermarket head-unit and will accommodate an ISO Double DIN mount. The kit is painted to match the factory dash color and contoured to match the exact factory contour for a seamless fit. http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6209 Rolls-Royce Motor Cars today confirmed details of a unique outdoor promenade performance of Toad of Toad Hall, to be performed by the Chichester Festival Youth Theatre in the company’s grounds at Goodwood, West Sussex. A cast of over 60 young people aged between 11 and 19 will play much loved characters including Ratty, Mole, Badger and, of course, the car-loving Toad. A play by A. A. Milne from Kenneth Grahame’s book The Wind in the Willows, Toad of Toad Hall will be set amongst the gardens, lakes and courtyard of the Rolls-Royce manufacturing plant and head office. The different scenes will be created in locations around the 42-acre site, including the Wild Wood, Ratty’s riverbank, the court room and the imposing Toad Hall. The audience will follow the production on foot, accompanied by a travelling band. http://motorntv.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6208 Native Australian Dave Grubnic, driver of the bright yellow, 8,000-horsepower DHL Top Fuel dragster, is hopeful that his visit to Northern California this weekend, July 25-27, will see an end to his 57-event streak without a victory as he and the rest of the competitors of the NHRA POWERade Drag racing Series compete at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., in the annual running of the FRAM Autolite NHRA Nationals in Sonoma, Calif. Grubnic’s most recent visit to the winner’s circle was in Gainesville, Fla., in 2006. His most recent trip to the final round was during the second event of the 2008 POWERade Drag Racing Series in Phoenix. Grubnic posted a runner-up finish in the Sonoma Valley in 2004 when he was defeated by his teammate Doug Kalitta in the final round. He also took home runner-up honors in Sonoma in 2001.