Pitstop: Duel in V8 Utes series

The NZV8 Utes series takes off this weekend at Ruapuna and it's tight at the top. In the last round, a tiebreaker was needed to separate Chris Pither and Caine Lobb. There are just 40 points between them and Pither has the edge. Defending champion Lobb knows he must repeat his success at Ruapuna last year to close the gap.

Race to season finale

New Zealand's MSC F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series resumes in Australia this weekend at Phillip Island. Steve Ross still leads but after two blistering rounds in New Zealand, Kenny Smith has cut that lead to 16 points. A good result this weekend could put Smith in front before the season finale at the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix meeting.

Trails season takes off

The motorcycle trails season is here with the opening rounds at the Beta Novogar North Island Moto Trails championships in Taranaki. Leading contender is current national expert grade champion Jake Whitaker, but expect Karl Clark and seven-time former national champion Warren Laugesen to keep him honest.

Paddon on track

Kiwi rally driver and winner of the Pirelli Star Driver competition, Hayden Paddon, has finished the first part of his training in Edinburgh. After both fitness and classroom evaluation, he goes to Italy to see the car he'll race in selected rounds of the P-WRC this season.

New F1 rules rule

Despite fierce calls to change the new Formula One rules introduced this year, the godfather of F1, Bernie Ecclestone, says no. The open race of 2010 was about as boring as motor racing gets, but Ecclestone says the rules can't be changed mid-season.