Weekend Motorsports Preview: F1 is Back in Britain

This weekend is fairly light in terms of racing, especially looking at international championships. The biggest race of the weekend is certainly the Formula 1 British GP from Silverstone. Other races taking place this weekend include the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series from Watkins Glen, New York, and the MotoGP Dutch Grand Prix from Assen. 

Formula 1

The biggest race of the weekend by far is the British Grand Prix from Silverstone. The British GP has been on the Formula 1 calendar since 1950, in fact it was the first race held during the first Formula 1 season. While the British GP has been held at other tracks in its history, Silverstone is certainly its home. The race will cover 52 laps over the 5.891km layout

Qualifying is scheduled for 1pm GMT (8AM EDT) on Saturday June 29, and the race will start at the same time on Sunday June 30.

It appears that it is Red Bull's race to lose this year. Sebastian Vettel has won three of the seven races so far this season. With a 36-point lead in the championship, there is no way for Vettel to lose his lead in this race. 

The rest of the spots in the championship are wide open. Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen in second and third place respectively are separated by eight points. Mark Webber is in fourth, 11 points away from Raikkonen. 

With 201 points in the World Constructors' Championship, Red Bull leads the championship, and there is no way for it to lose its lead. Ferrari and Mercedes are still racing for second place in the championship with 11 points separating them.

Daniel Ricciardo was fastest in Friday's first practice session in a very wet session, but only 11 drivers went out during the 90-minute session.

In the second Friday practice session, Nico Rosberg led. It was a much drier session, and Rosberg was followed by Mark Webber and Sebatian Vettel on the timing sheet. Felipe Massa had a big incident during the session and destroyed his front suspension.

NASCAR

NASCAR heads to the Kentucky Speedway for a 400-mile, 267-lap race around the 1.5-mile circuit. The race begins at 7:30pm EDT (11:30pm GMT) on Saturday June 29. 

Jimmie Johnson is still leading the championship with a 25-point lead over Carl Edwards.

WTCC

The World Touring Car Championship holds two, 11-lap races on a 4.8km street circuit in the Boavista district of Porto, Portugal. Both races will be held on Sunday with one at 11:20am (10:20am GMT) and the other at 5:05pm (4:05pm GMT).

Yvan Muller still has a stranglehold on the championship with a 113-point lead over Gabriele Tarquini in second place.