CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – Hawkeye Downs has been witnessing a young talent lately.

Tallan Chandler is a 15-year-old driver who’s leaving his mark at the track.

He’s beaten a couple of former NASCAR drivers, including Landon Cassill and Kenny Wallace. Cassill had high praise for Chandler.

“I haven’t raced against a teenager like that in a while. But I can tell you that I’ve been him before and he’s a tremendous talent and has won a bunch of races,” said Cassill.

The young phenom is noticed by drivers much older than him.

“Before we even race, they say that they heard I’m a good driver, and I’m the one that they have to race against. Then after the race, they’re surprised and it’s a good feeling,” said Chandler.

He comes from a racing family where his father and grandfather were always into it. That made things come naturally.

“As soon as he got into power wheels, he was doing donuts and drifting. So we knew he really liked the cars,” said his father, Nathan Chandler.

“We made a track around my backyard and my dad and all his brothers would go out there and race me just like I was one of them,” said Tallan Chandler.

Chandler plans to continue racing at Hawkeye Downs and maybe move to dirt racing.

Copyright 2025 KCRG. All rights reserved.

Motorsport enthusiasts take note: On Sunday night, Piloti, the performance-driven luxury footwear brand, will bring select race cars to River Park at the Mart to mark its debut at the Chicago Collective.

The brand was created in 1999 in Southern California by a footwear designer and motorsport fan who saw some white space in the driving shoe market. The footwear was adopted early on by celebrity drivers including Jay Leno, Patrick Dempsey and David Letterman, and by 2006, professional racers had also jumped on board, with Ron Fellows, the champion of 24 Hours of Le Mans, among them.

Piloti’s claim to fame is that the footwear not only looks stylish, but it features a sole that allows the wearer to feel the pedals, making it ideal for both the track and the streets. The shoes also feature the company’s proprietary Roll Control Heel technology that distributes force evenly for enhanced support, stability and control.

Piloti’s success led to its purchase by Canadian Tire in 2014, which allowed it to expand its footwear offering as well as its team, car, driver and track sponsorships. In 2020, Piloti got involved in the popular Formula 1 series with a sponsorship of Scuderia Alpha Tauri, the same year it also snagged six footwear awards. The following year, Windsong Brands, a Connecticut-based private equity firm that also owns Tommie Copper, Swims, Cloudveil and a slew of other labels, added Piloti to its stable.

Since then Piloti has added limited apparel and accessories to its offering, including Ts, polos and vests. But footwear remains its core product. The shoes are engineered first for driving precision and then refined for comfort and classic style. Since 2016, they have been created from premium leather and suede in Italy’s top-rated tannery and also feature an Onsteam antimicrobial lining.

Top sellers include the Drift, a driving shoe in Italian nubuck with a gum bottom for a superior grip; the Shift, more of a comfort shoe in suede, and the Avenue, a luxury sneaker with a cork or compressed recycled foam and EVA insole. Other models that are gaining fans are the Icona, a true fitted driving shoe with a multidirectional tread and last shape; the Compass, a sneaker-like style with carbon fiber panels, a wheel-inspired tongue stabilizer and red hand-stitching, and the Drift Mid, a high-top version of the Drift with laser-perforated details for breathability and a hand-stitched heel inspired by taillights.

The footwear retails for $150 to $350 and is targeted to automotive enthusiasts. There are also plans for expand into other categories in the future, including leather outerwear, with a planned fall 2026 launch.

“Our roots are on the racetrack, but our eyes are on the future,” said David Sweedler, Piloti’s president. “Chicago Collective is the perfect place to share our evolution — bringing together the design, heritage, and innovation that define Piloti. We’re here to connect with retailers and buyers who are looking for something truly distinctive for their customers.”

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Turner Motorsport has been thirsting for another IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship win going on a year now. This week’s stop at Road America may provide just the right place to quench that thirst.

It was at last year’s Motul SportsCar Grand Prix on the renowned Wisconsin road course that Patrick Gallagher and Robby Foley steered the No. 96 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 to the Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) class victory.

In a postrace interview after garnering his first series win after several near misses, Gallagher boldly proclaimed, “It’s a bad day to be a Spotted Cow,” a reference to the local favorite beer he expected many on the team to celebrate with at the nearby Siebkens Resort watering hole – another local favorite – that night.

“The team definitely had a little party down at Siebkens afterwards,” Gallagher confirmed Monday during a media teleconference previewing the 2025 race weekend. “It’s just a great place to win in and get to enjoy time with all the guys and girls on the team that make it happen.”

There hasn’t been much for Gallagher and the Turner team to celebrate since, as they work to come to grips with the updated EVO version of the BMW M4 GT3 this season. While he and Foley remain consistent in their efforts in their third season together, the results have ranged from fifth to ninth place through the first six races.

Entering the weekend, the duo sits fifth in the standings. They’re only 12 points behind fourth, but over 300 behind leaders Russell Ward and Philip Ellis in the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, who they finished second to in the 2024 championship.

Their first two years together featured six podium showings in addition to the Road America triumph.

“I think we’ve just been learning the EVO car and getting a little better every week,” Gallagher said. “I think we’re maybe a little bit behind, but it seems like we’ve made up ground each week. It’s all the same people (on the team) and we’re just getting better, so I think we’ll be back to the podium and hopefully fighting for wins in the future, and I’m hoping it’s the near future that could happen.”

In an effort to change their fortunes, Gallagher has even resorted to growing a mustache.

“It looks ridiculous,” the Ohioan said with a laugh, “but we’ve got to try something.”

One thing Gallagher and longtime friend Foley don’t worry about as they strive to return to victory lane is support from owner Will Turner and the team. The boss has their backs.

“They believe in us and they’re behind us, and there’s not a lot of pressure there, per se, other than to just push the ball forward,” Gallagher said. “Being good friends with Robby and Will definitely makes it easier when it’s going not well. It’s not going bad, but we certainly aren’t getting everything that we want right now.

“I think I’m in a good spot with the car now,” he added, “and just having people believe in you and not be worried about, is this gonna continue or do they think it’s us, we don’t have any of that. So, the chemistry inside the team is great and I am thankful for that.

“And as well as just going racing with your best friend is pretty wild to think about. Most of the ways that these GT cars get paired up with gentlemen drivers is just not the most likely circumstance. So, I’m trying to enjoy it, even when we are running it, you know, fifth or sixth.”

Where they may be able to excel beyond pace on track is from the strategy box, courtesy of Turner’s longtime strategist Don Salama. With unusually long fuel runs paying dividends both in the most recent GTD race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and in GTD PRO at Road America last year, it’s worth watching when the No. 96 car makes its last scheduled stop here.

“Going into a race with him if he asks you to hit a fuel number, you just do it, you don’t even think twice about it,” Gallagher said. “You know that it’s the right call and you know, even if you don’t understand what they’re doing in the moment, you know that they’re up to something.”

Gallagher, Foley and the Turner team will see if more Spotted Cow awaits at the conclusion of Sunday’s race that streams live at 2 p.m. ET on Peacock in the U.S., as well as internationally on IMSA.tv and the IMSA YouTube channel. Qualifying airs on the same streaming outlets starting at 5:35 p.m. Saturday.

Mobil 1 has launched a new four-part online mini docu-series that provides a never-seen-before insight into the operations of the highly successful Porsche Penske Motorsport team in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

Mobil 1 is the world’s leading synthetic motor oil brand and is a technical partner to the Porsche Penske Motorsport team. The Mobil 1 x Porsche Penske Motorsport series dives into what it takes to win at the pinnacle of world endurance racing, hearing from the key team players and drivers who make it all happen. From exotic Hypercars and sprint-style stints to razor-thin margins, performance is crucial to winning races and Mobil 1 is at the very heart of it.

The team explains in their own words the preparation required to achieve high performance at grueling races such as the world-famous 24 Hours of Le Mans. They also touch on the synergies required to unlock the full potential of a WEC Hypercar. From precision driving and team strategy to hybrid power and thermal management—every element must work in perfect harmony.

The series also gives insight into the driver’s world, from sharing a race car and adapting to the unexpected, to staying focused for hours out on track while managing a race that’s always evolving.

Tomek Young, Global Motorsports Technology Manager, ExxonMobil:

“Sports car racing provides Mobil 1 with the ultimate testing ground to develop innovative lubricants and continues to challenge us to explore new technology solutions as the sport evolves at a rapid pace. The FIA World Endurance Championship and our partnership with Porsche Penske Motorsport is a perfect example, particularly in this era of the Hypercar class whereby hybrid technology stands at the forefront of innovation. Mobil 1 is more than a logo, it’s about more than going 200mph on the racetrack. Mobil 1 is about motion and helping people move better, whether you’re an everyday driver or a world champion racing driver. We hope this series helps give motorsport fans a closer glimpse into what it takes to achieve success at the highest level.”

Urs Kuratle, Director Factory Racing LMDh, Porsche Penske Motorsport:

“Winning in endurance racing demands more than speed — it takes trust, precision, and perfect harmony between man, machine, and materials. Our partnership with Mobil 1 goes far beyond supplying motor oil; it’s a shared commitment to performance under pressure, where every drop plays a part in keeping us competitive through the most extreme conditions in motorsport.”

Episode 1 – The Pedigree of Champions

Episode 2 – The Passion Behind Every Lap

Episode 3 – Preparation Makes the Difference

Episode 4 – The Poetry of Motion

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — (AP) — A North Carolina judge on Thursday issued a temporary restraining order preventing Rick Ware Racing from selling its NASCAR team to T.J. Puchyr as part of an ongoing legal dispute with Jimmie Johnson-owned Legacy Motor Club.

The order remains in place for 10 days and Legacy is required to post a bond of $5 million by end of business Friday. Rick Ware Racing’s attorneys had requested the bond amount be set at $150 million — the agreed purchase price between RWR and Puchyr, one of the founders of Spire Motorsports who now is a consultant to various race teams and sponsors.

Legacy is suing RWR over a dispute stemming from an agreement that Puchyr brokered for Johnson’s race team to purchase one of Ware’s two charters. The dispute is over which charter Ware agreed to sell and if the deal is for 2026 or 2027.

A charter is NASCAR’s version of a franchise tag and guarantees teams entry into every race, plus monetary assurances. Ware currently uses one of his charters to field a full-time car for his son, Cody, and leases a second charter to RFK Racing.

Before he entered into a deal to sell a charter to Legacy, he already had an agreement with RFK to swap the charters currently in play and lease the other one to RFK in 2026. Then, in 2027, Ware planned to sell a charter outright to Legacy, which has a major investment from Knighthead Capital Management, a private equity firm worth over $13 billion.

Legacy requested both a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order, in arguing Ware “has shown a willingness to lie to Legacy and to the Court about the status of the deal,” after Puchyr announced his plans in June to buy RWR’s NASCAR team.

Puchyr had negotiated the charter sale and Ware had previously stated he had no intention of selling or otherwise transferring the charters while the lawsuit was pending.

Mecklenburg Superior Court Judge Clifton Smith issued a verbal order entering a temporary restraining order Thursday that blocks any sale for 10 days. Smith will consider Legacy’s request for a preliminary injunction.

Mark Henriques, counsel for Rick Ware Racing, argued both Ware and Puchyr intend to honor any deals but cannot meet the current terms of the charter purchase for 2026 based on the existing deal to lease a charter to RFK next season. RWR and Puchyr have said the plan is to lease to RFK in 2026 and sell to Legacy in 2027; Legacy says if Ware is selling to Puchyr, the charters contractually should be sold to Legacy.

“What we know is that these promises were made and this backdoor transaction was apparently entered into and is apparently a binding agreement, although not yet closed,” Legacy attorney Keith Forst said. “There is really no harm to defendant whatsoever, and there is tremendous harm to plaintiff Legacy if this closing of these assets in fact happens.”

Ware’s attorney disagreed and argued that Ware is trying to stay in business as a one-car team fielded for his son. Puchyr has made clear he intends to keep Cody Ware in the lineup after he buys the assets from Rick Ware.

“My clients did exactly what they had the freedom to do, work out a deal that meets the needs of the entity, and enter into a binding transaction that covers the entire business and yet keeps Cody racing,” said Henriques. “They’re trying to have their cake and eat it too since they lost the first preliminary injunction.”

Trial is currently scheduled for January, but Legacy has filed a second suit against Puchyr for interfering with its deal with Ware. Legacy has also terminated its consulting agreement with Puchyr.

___

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

• “King of the Hill” is partnering with NASCAR driver Joey Gase to promote its new season on Hulu.
• Gase will drive two “King of the Hill”-themed cars at Iowa Speedway this weekend.

Beloved animated sitcom “King of the Hill” isn’t just returning to televisions next week after a 15-year hiatus.