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From press release

The 13th annual Targa Newfoundland concluded Friday on the St. John's waterfront after a grueling 5 days of stages throughout the Avalon, Burin, and Bonavista Peninsulas.

The Legros & Motti Avalon North Leg of the event ran through the familiar stages of North West Brook, Freshwater, and then ending up in what has become the official last stage of the Targa, Brigus.

The winner of Open was the team of Mike Davenport and Brad Benson in their Subaru STI. The team won last year as well, so they will be seeking another win in 2015 and look forward to the challengers who want to knock them off the top spot.

In the Modern division, the father and son team of Brian and Matthew Oldford finally won the division after not finishing the previous two. A thrill of winning such an event in their home province makes it even more special.

The Classic division winner was pretty much not in doubt from Leg 2 onward. The Ford Mustang of Indiana natives Jack Rogers and C J Strupp crossed the line with a huge margin in overall time over the 2nd place finishers of Mark Bovey and Miles Markovic in their GMC 1500 pickup.

In Grand Touring, Equipped division, John Hume Sr. and Craig MacMullen in their Mini GP stayed on top and won after leading the division almost from the start. Their team mates, also driving a Mini GP, placed 2nd as Cody Morch and Nicole Troster pulled off the 1-2 finish for the Hume Media Inc. team.

In Grand Touring, Unequipped, the ‘Racing Reverend' Canon David Burrows and Jason Fancey in their Scion tC came out on top after leading for most of the event.

Several other individual awards and team trophies were also presented at the awards reception on Friday night. The President's Manufacturers' award is given to the manufacturer-backed team with the best member position. This year's trophy was awarded to Scion.

The Kenzie Cup for Marque Teams, which represents the three highest placing cars of the same marquee in any of the divisions, went to MINI in 2014.

The Jerry Churchill Memorial International Team Trophy went to Canada Hume Media whose vehicles are all registered in the same country and who had the best average team position.

From press release

It was a difficult race for McLaren's Kevin Magnussen in Singapore.

The rookie managed to score a point by finishing 10th, but suffered physically for it, getting burned by his inexplicably hot seat.

"It was a very, very tough grand prix," the Dane said. "During the race, I don't know if there was something wrong with the car, but my seat started getting very hot.

"Without that, I think we could have done better than 10th, but at least we got that one point. It's better than nothing.

"It was the hardest point I've ever earned," he added.

Kevin Magnussen, McLaren MP4-29 (Photo: WRI2)

Team boss Eric Boullier applauded Magnussen's fighting spirit.

"(Magnussen) was subjected to severe bodily discomfort as his car's cockpit began to overheat, necessitating his holding his arms aloft, first one then the other, in an effort to direct cooling air down his sleeves and inside his race-suit.

"In the end, after an impressively plucky drive in extremely challenging conditions, he was able to score a single point for the team.

"It was scant consolation, of course it was, but it's indicative of his tremendous fighting spirit, and I commend him for it."

Adapted from GMM

Ferrari has split from the pack and declared its support for three-car teams in formula one.

Amid rumours up to three or four teams are in financial peril, Bernie Ecclestone said in Singapore that the sport would fill the grid gaps by requiring top teams to move from two to three-car operations as soon as 2015.

"We'll know after the next two or three races, but it (the three car plan) is being looked at," said the F1 supremo.

It is feared two-decade-old Sauber and backmarker Caterham are the most at risk of collapsing, but Marussia is also in obvious strife and reports of unpaid bills regularly emerge about the Lotus team.

Force India co-owners Vijay Mallya and the jailed Subrata Roy, meanwhile, are also having high-profile financial problems.

If some teams do ultimately collapse, however, it is possible that three-car teams will be the solution to dwindling grid numbers.

Most team bosses are not keen.

Most bosses are against three-car teams, but not Ferrari (Photo: WRI2)

"I hope it never comes to that," said Mallya.

It is expected that if the three-car solution is triggered by the grid dropping below 20 cars, it is the top teams like Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren that are most likely to add a third runner to their respective garages.

Dominant giant Mercedes, however, is not keen.

"For us, the cost would amount to around 32 million euros to have a third car," Toto Wolff is quoted by Speed Week.

His counterpart Eric Boullier, however, said McLaren would "maybe" run a third car "to keep the grid at a decent number".

But Ferrari has made clear it is more than happy with the idea of three cars bearing the fabled Prancing Horse logo running around the calendar next year.

"It's not about the survival of F1," a team spokesman told the Spanish sports daily AS, "but for the show.

"With all due respect, people would prefer to see three more Red Bulls, Ferraris and Mercedes than the other cars," he reportedly added.

From press release

Lewis Hamilton made the most of Nico Rosberg's troubles in Singapore to take the lead of the drivers' championship back from his teammate.

Photo: WRI2

From 22 points back, Hamilton leaped ahead of Rosberg, who retired on lap 13 with an electrical problem, and now holds a three point advantage with five races to go.

"It was great to come here after winning in Monza and start the final leg of the season with such a competitive car," the Brit said.

Red Bull was quick in Singapore, but ultimately Hamilton was able resist the pressure from Sebastian Vettel, who held the lead momentarily after Hamilton's final stop.

Photo: WRI2

"I knew (Vettel) was on a two-stop strategy and that his tires were old. I went for it down the back straight. The gap was pretty small and maybe I could have chosen another point on the circuit.

"But I luckily squeezed through and made it stick."

Photo: WRI2

Rosberg's problems surfaced during his installation lap prior to the start. Mercedes opted to change steering wheel, but the tactic failed to fix the problem.

Having been forced to take the start from the pit lane, the German battled an uncompetitive car for his first stint and eventually retired right after his first stop, with the gearbox stuck in neutral.

Mercedes apologized to Rosberg and promised to work on its reliability.

Race results* - Singapore Grand Prix (round 14 of 19)
1 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes W05) - 60 laps 2.00'04"795
2 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull RB10-Renault) - 13"534
3 - Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull RB10-Renault) - 14"273
4 - Fernando Alonso (Ferrari F14-T) - 15"389
5 - Felipe Massa (Williams FW36-Mercedes) - 42"161
6 - Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso STR9-Renault) - 56"801
7 - Sergio Perez (Force India VJM07-Mercedes) - 59"038
8 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari F14-T) - 1'00"641
9 - Nico Hulkenberg (Force India VJM07-Mercedes) - 1'01"661
10 - Kevin Magnussen (McLaren MP4/29-Mercedes) - 1'02"230
11 - Valtteri Bottas (Williams FW36-Mercedes) - 1'05"065
12 - Pastor Maldonado (Lotus E22-Renault) - 1'06"915
13 - Romain Grosjean (Lotus E22-Renault) - 1'08"029
14 - Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso STR9-Renault) - 1'12"008
15 - Marcus Ericsson (Caterham CT05-Renault) - 1'34"188
16 - Jules Bianchi (Marussia MR03-Ferrari) - 1'34"543
17 - Max Chilton (Marussia MR03-Ferrari) - 1 lap

Fastest lap of the race: 1'50"417 by Lewis Hamilton

Photo: WRI2

Retirements
Jenson Button
Adrian Sutil
Esteban Gutierrez
Nico Rosberg
Kamui Kobayashi

Drivers' championship
1.Hamilton 241; 2.Rosberg 238; 3.Ricciardo 181; 4.Alonso 133; 5.Vettel 124; 6.Bottas 122; 7.Button, Hulkenberg 72; 9.Massa 65; 10.Perez, Raikkonen 45; 12.Magnussen 39; 13.Vergne 19; 14.Grosjean, Kvyat 8; 16.Bianchi 2.

Constructors' championship
1.Mercedes 479; 2.Red Bull-Renault 305; 3.Williams-Mercedes 187; 4.Ferrari 178; 5.Force India-Mercedes 117; 6.McLaren-Mercedes 111; 7.Toro Rosso-Renault 27; 8.Lotus-Renault 8; 9.Marussia-Ferrari 2.
*Unofficial results

From GMM

Even in the midst of Fernando Alonso's anger and warnings, rumours about his future just will not go away.

Speaking with foreign-language reporters on the eve of the Singapore grand prix weekend, the Spaniard flew into a rage when faced with the latest wild speculation about his impending Ferrari exit.

Hinting that the leaks are coming from within Maranello, Alonso had said on Thursday: "If I do say something, I will do it in a few weeks time and somebody will not like what it is."

Still, the rumours keep coming.

The latest are being heard from the Japanese corners of the paddock, just two weeks ahead of the country's own grand prix at Suzuka.

Photo: WRI2

Suzuka, of course, is owned by the Japanese manufacturer Honda, who have been repeatedly linked with a big-money effort to sign Alonso to McLaren for 2015 as the highly-anticipated works F1 collaboration kicks off.

Speed Week reports that Japanese sources are saying Honda is prepared to 'move mountains' behind the scenes at Suzuka early next month to convince Alonso to leave Ferrari.

The report said Honda is apparently fully prepared to buy out the remainder of his lucrative Ferrari contract to make it happen.

Crisis-struck Ferrari, however, having already parted with big names like Domenicali, Marmorini and di Montezemolo in 2014, will not want to now lose Alonso.

"Without Fernando Alonso," Mercedes team chairman Niki Lauda is quoted as saying, "Ferrari would be nowhere."

From GMM

Russia is pressing ahead with its preparations for next month's inaugural grand prix in Sochi.

That is despite the highly controversial and divisive Ukraine crisis, the recent MH17 atrocity, and new anti-Russian punitive sanctions by the US and Europe.

In Sochi on Friday, Russian teen Sergey Sirotkin will drive the Sauber in practice, reportedly as part of the struggling Swiss team's 'Russian rescue deal' that may in fact have been heavily delayed over the past months.

Asked whether the more intense sanctions imposed by Europe had hurt the deal, team boss Monisha Kaltenborn said in Singapore: "It's not affecting it."

Also defiant in the face of the sanctions are the Russians themselves, who insist that the new facility at the former winter olympic park is now ready for F1 mid next month.

"The sanctions will not affect the racing," deputy Russian prime minister Dmitry Kozak told the major news agency Itar Tass.

Also confident about Russia's inaugural race, to take place the week after the forthcoming Japanese grand prix, is Russian automobile federation chief Viktor Kiryanov.

He said: "The officials that were here a week ago said that the track is well prepared.

"There were small flaws, but the organisers have eliminated them and today I can say that we are ready for the grand prix in Sochi," Kiryanov announced.

General Motors is recalling some Cadillac and Impala cars while Chrysler Group called back some Jeep and Dodge SUVs, according to government reports.

This month's advertising launch for VW's redesigned 2015 Golf puts the car at the center of a zany online video on Funny or Die.

BMW is learning that what distinguishes the ultimate driving machine can be a matter of taste.

Ford is concentrating on the 2.3-liter engine and other high-tech features in intensive training sessions designed to educate dealership salespeople.

From GMM

Toro Rosso intends to give Max Verstappen his F1 weekend debut in Japan early next month.

Earlier, it was expected that the second Red Bull team's confirmed 2015 rookie, who is still just 16, would debut in Friday practice sessions later this year.

But team boss Franz Tost said in Singapore that, after the Dutchman completed a test in Italy last week, he is now scheduled to drive at as soon as Suzuka next time out.

Everyone will be watching when Max Verstappen makes in F1 debut (Photo: WRI2)

"He did 396 kilometres (in the test) without any problem," said the Austrian.

"People were really impressed with his performance and now it's in the hands of the FIA whether he gets a super licence to do the Friday session in Suzuka.

"We will prepare him step by step and I am convinced that he is the correct driver for us for 2015," Tost added.

By Friday at Suzuka, Verstappen will be a few days over the age of 17.

Adapted from GMM

F1's intended clampdown on performance communications between teams and drivers has been dubbed 'Radio Ga-Ga' up and down the bemused paddock.

After the teams protested the speed and extremity with which Bernie Ecclestone and the governing FIA wielded the radio axe, it was agreed on the eve of practice in Singapore that messages related to car performance would now be allowed.

"Formula one's curious reputation for disposing of something simple and replacing it with something far more complex is in robust health," said Paul Weaver, correspondent for the Guardian newspaper.

It means that while radio calls about the performance of the car will still be allowed, messages about driver performance must no longer be uttered over the radio.

"This could be the most confusing radio story since Guglielmo Marconi bewildered everyone by banging on about electromagnetic radiation and wireless telegraphy more than a century ago," Weaver added.

When Hamilton asked for an update about his rivals' pace, his race engineer replied: "We'll just continue with our programme and discuss this when we get back in the garage." (Photo: WRI2)

Earlier, when all performance-related messages were going to be banned, Mercedes' title-warring drivers Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton welcomed the news.

But with the watered-down ban in effect on Friday, they just sounded confused.

When Hamilton asked for an update about his rivals' pace, his race engineer replied: "We'll just continue with our programme and discuss this when we get back in the garage."

Rosberg also didn't know what could be discussed remotely, asking over the radio: "Are you allowed to tell me my teammate's laptime?"

While the answer might have been unclear to some, retired F1 veteran David Coulthard called the entire 'Radio Ga-Ga' affair "largely pointless".

The FIA's Charlie Whiting addressed the media in Singapore and explained that while coded messages are strictly forbidden, messages of encouragement to drivers - for example Hamilton's now famous 'Hammer time' - are still acceptable.

Coulthard told the Telegraph: "The teams will manage to communicate messages to the drivers one way or another."

Rosberg admitted: "Of course the teams will try to send the drivers hidden messages." (Photo: WRI2)

And even championship leader Rosberg admitted to Kolner Express newspaper: "Of course the teams will try to send the drivers hidden messages."

The driver steward at Suzuka next time out will be Coulthard's contemporary Mika Salo, and he said the 'Radio Ga-Ga' affair of the last few days has been "really weird".

"I think there should either be a complete ban, or no ban at all.

"The teams will just come up with codes and a number of other things that will now have to be looked at by the stewards," he told the Finnish broadcaster MTV3.

"In my opinion it's a strange rule because it's so difficult to police. We'll see what kind of mess I'm dealing with at the next race," Salo smiled.

From GMM

Felipe Massa has advised his former Ferrari teammate Fernando Alonso to stick with the Italian team for now.

But the Brazilian, who lost his seat at the end of last year and has appeared much happier in 2014 at Williams, has joined those in surmising that fabled Ferrari appears to be sinking into its crisis-struck state of the distant past.

In the past days, weeks and months, as Maranello had to acknowledge its slump had extended into the all-new V6 era, Ferrari has shed multiple names including Domenicali, Marmorini and now the iconic di Montezemolo.

"What is happening there is honestly not something that surprises me," Massa, who raced a Ferrari since he was the great Michael Schumacher's teammate in 2006, told the Spanish sports daily AS in Singapore.

"Honestly, I hope only for good things for Ferrari."

But, having alluded to the new era of implosion, AS nonetheless asked Massa if he would advise Alonso to jump ship and - like him - start a happier chapter elsewhere.

Fernando Alonso, Ferrari F-14T (Photo: WRI2)

"No," said Massa.

"It's different to me. If I was him I would not to go McLaren.

"Mercedes, yes. Red Bull, I don't know.

"He should only go to a team where he can win and I think Honda and McLaren will be a good chapter but not for winning next year."

Not only that, but Alonso quitting Ferrari after five years without adding a further title to his collection would be deemed a failure.

"Yes, maybe, you could say that," Massa agreed.

"But Alonso is not stupid, he knows what to do. I think he will continue in Ferrari next year, but you know anything can always happen."

Finally, Massa insisted he is not surprised that his successor at Ferrari, the 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen, has proved no match for Alonso in 2014.

"No," he said clearly, "because to be close to Alonso you have to do a perfect job. You have to be perfect. It is not a surprise to me."

From press release

Toyota Racing extended its lead in the FIA World Endurance Championship by taking pole position for the Six Hours of Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.

Anthony Davidson and Sébastien Buemi, who share the #8 TS040 Hybrid with Nicolas Lapierre, claimed pole position by more than a second. That earned a bonus point which extends their lead in the drivers' championship to 21 points.

Sébastien Buemi, Nicolas Lapierre, Anthony Davidson (Photo: WRI2)

The team celebrated its third pole position from four races this season, also earning a point which doubles its lead in the manufacturers' standings to two points.

Mike Conway took part in qualifying on his Toyota Racing debut. He, and Stéphane Sarrazin, claimed fifth position in the #7 they share with Alex Wurz.

#7 Toyota TS040 Hybrid (Photo: WRI2)

The WEC qualifying format requires two drivers from each car to set a minimum of two flying laps each. The grid is decided by the combined average of each driver's fastest two laps.

Earlier rain left parts of the circuit damp for the start of qualifying, so the #8 crew waited for three minutes before heading on track. That decision proved significant as the drying track saw lap times improve throughout the 25-minute session.

Photo: WRI2

Qualifying results - Word Endurance Championship (WEC)
1.Davidson-Lapierre-Buemi (Toyota TS040 Hybrid) - Toyota - 1'49"093
2.Dumas-Jani-Lieb (Porsche 919 Hybrid) - Porsche - 1'50"283
3.Bernhard-Webber-Hartley (Porsche 919 Hybrid) - Porsche - 1'50"302
4.Fassler-Lotterer-Treluyer (Audi R18 e-tron quattro) - Audi - 1'50"340
5.Wurz-Sarrazin-Conway (Toyota TS040 Hybrid) - Toyota - 1'50"363
6.Di Grassi-Duval-Kristensen (Audi R18 e-tron quattro) - Audi - 1'51"456
7.Kraihamer-Belicchi-Leimer (Rebellion R One-Toyota - Rebellion - 1'54"665
8.Rusinov-Pla-Canal (Ligier JS P2-Nissan) - G Drive - 1'56"075
9.Howson-Bradley-Matsuda (Oreca 03-Nissan) - KCMG - 1'56"371
10.Sharp-Dalziel-Brown (HPD ARX 03b - Honda) - Extreme Speed - 1'57"262
(...)

From GMM

Jenson Button has acknowledged that McLaren's deliberations over its 2015 lineup could leave him without an alternative.

Amid the high uncertainty, an impression began to form at Monza recently that the British team would in fact not sign a top name like Sebastian Vettel or Fernando Alonso next year.

At the same time, it was said that veteran Button and his manager had been enjoying much more promising talks with team supremo Ron Dennis.

McLaren boss Eric Boullier, however, is giving absolutely nothing away in Singapore.

"Wait for the decision and the announcement," he told reporters.

Jenson Button, McLaren MP4-29 (Photo: WRI2)

Button agreed: "Patience is a virtue -- you all should be patient."

Boullier and Button's comments might be interpreted to mean that a decision has now been taken, and that the new policy of silence could mean an imminent announcement is pending.

But Button said: "There is still no answer."

And the 34-year-old admitted that the delay could compromise his entire F1 career.

"I think most (other) cockpits are already taken," he said.

So if McLaren does turn to someone else, Button could be left with the music stopped and little desire to accept whatever chairs are left vacant.

"I want to drive for a competitive team, otherwise as a world champion it would make little sense to keep going."

From press release

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton beat his teammate Nico Rosberg by only 0.007 second during qualifying for the Singapore Grand Prix.

That represents only 33.5 centimetres around the Marina Bay circuit.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W05 (Photo: WRI2)

"That was one of the most exciting qualifying sessions I can remember," said an enthusiastic Hamilton.

"I lost a lot of time at the beginning of my last lap and at that point I thought pole was lost. But I just kept going and managed to pull some time back."

Daniel Ricciardo, Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg (Photo: WRI2)

Despite losing to Hamilton by such a small margin, Rosberg was not dwelling on his performance: "When I heard that Lewis was that tiny margin quicker I thought 'damn'!

"I directly reviewed my lap and thought there were so many places to gain seven thousandths of a second - especially in the last corner.

"But in the end he did seven thousandths of a better job today, so fair play to him. P2 is still good for tomorrow's race and I'm focused on having a good start."

Nico Rosberg, Mercedes W05 (Photo: WRI2)

And in Singapore, Mercedes' rivals look closer than ever.

"From our point of view, it's clear that we don't enjoy the advantage here that we have had on previous weekends," admitted Toto Wolff.

"But this is a unique circuit and to produce a car which can be fast at every venue on the calendar is a big task, so we must be very pleased with a 1-2 front-row lockout."

Qualifying results* - Singapore Grand Prix (round 14 of 19)
1.Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes W05) - 1'45"681 - Q3
2.Nico Rosberg (Mercedes W05) - 1'45"688 - Q3
3.Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull RB10-Renault) - 1'45"854 - Q3
4.Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull RB10-Renault) - 1'45"902 - Q3
5.Fernando Alonso (Ferrari F14-T) - 1'45"907 - Q3
6.Felipe Massa (Williams FW36-Mercedes) - 1'46"000 - Q3
7.Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari F14-T) - 1'46"170 - Q3
8.Valtteri Bottas (Williams FW36-Mercedes) - 1'46"187 - Q3
9.Kevin Magnussen (McLaren MP4/29-Mercedes) - 1'46"250 - Q3
10.Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso STR9-Renault) - 1'47"362 - Q3
11.Jenson Button (McLaren MP4/29-Mercedes) - 1'46"943 - Q2
12.Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso STR9-Renault) - 1'46"989 - Q2
13.Nico Hulkenberg (Force India VJM07-Mercedes) - 1'47"308 - Q2
14.Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber C33-Ferrari) - 1'47"333 - Q2
15.Sergio Perez (Force India VJM07-Mercedes) - 1'47"575 - Q2
16.Romain Grosjean (Lotus E22-Renault) - 1'47"812 - Q2
17.Adrian Sutil (Sauber C33-Ferrari) - 1'48"324 - Q1
18.Pastor Maldonado (Lotus E22-Renault) - 1'49"063 - Q1
19.Jules Bianchi (Marussia MR03-Ferrari) - 1'49"440 - Q1
20.Kamui Kobayashi (Caterham CT05-Renault) - 1'50"405 - Q1
21.Max Chilton (Marussia MR03-Ferrari) - 1'50"473 - Q1
22.Marcus Ericsson (Caterham CT05-Renault) - 1'52"287 - Q1
*Unofficial results

Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull RB10 (Photo: WRI2)

From GMM

Sebastian Vettel's bad season continued to get worse even at the Singapore circuit he humbled at the height of his dominant powers.

As the German and Red Bull struggle to get to the bottom of the reigning quadruple world champion's 2014 troubles, he has yet another different RB10 chassis at his disposal under the Asian city-state's popular lights.

But it was not the car, but the Renault 'power unit' that was not working in Friday practice, leaving Vettel without anything to drive at all.

And the news got even worse -- with Vettel already running low in his allocation of five units for the whole season, the Singapore engine was "lost" amid Friday's troubles, Renault chief Remi Taffin admitted.

"The engine was at something like half-life, so it was quite a surprise and quite a shame, because we still had a small chance to go through the season without introducing a sixth unit," the Frenchman added.

"With this failure, we will have to commit to a sixth ICE (internal combustion engine)."

The sixth engine will carry with it a ten place grid penalty, although it will not necessarily have to be served on the tight and twisty streets of Singapore.

"It was a Friday engine," team boss Christian Horner said when asked about Vettel's Singapore failure.

Vettel commented: "Ideally we would have used it in Friday in Japan too. Obviously we can't now.

More bad luck for Sebastian Vettel (Photo: WRI2)

When he managed a few laps at the end of the second practice session on Friday, it was with the Singapore 'race' engine on board.

Red Bull and Renault will now be looking at the forthcoming races and deciding where it can best afford to slide Vettel ten places down the grid.

Taffin said: "It is now a question of where we are going to strategically introduce it, instead of how we are going to avoid it."

Team boss Christian Horner said: "Sebastian does not seem to have much luck at the moment."

Vettel tried to sound pragmatic.

"We already knew that eventually we would have to use another one (a sixth engine) this year. So I don't think this changes too much of our planning."

But his former teammate Mark Webber has said this year that Vettel seems to have inherited his unlucky car of past seasons.

Vettel, however - although a strict adherent to the games of superstition - prefers to put the difference between his and teammate Daniel Ricciardo's 2014 seasons down to chance.

"I think there is no reason," he said.

"Of course, there is always a reason why something breaks, but I mean there is no explanation as to why it happens to one car and not the other."

From press release

Brad Keselowski and the No. 2 Miller Lite Ford team set a new track record at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on the way to earning their fifth pole of the season.

The performance marks Keselowski's eighth-career NSCS pole and the 12th front-row start for the team this season.

Photo: Chris Trotman/NASCAR via Getty Images

"I think Paul and the team brought a great car here, much like what we had in the spring race," said Keselowski.

"I think the temperatures and all those things are why you've seen an increase in speeds and certainly the guys have worked on horsepower and all those other things, but the cars are really good.

"This type of track is right in my wheelhouse, right in our team's wheelhouse. We had this race circled before the Chase started, and we felt decent about Chicago, but felt like this was a race of emphasis for us to get a win and get out of the first bracket."

Robert Laberge/NASCAR via Getty Images

Magna International shares tumbled the most in more than two years after the supplier said the offices of its Brazilian unit were visited in connection with an antitrust investigation.

A federal judge in Manhattan today ordered discovery to begin for some cases filed against General Motors in connection with its recall of millions of cars for a faulty ignition switch.