This Week In Action Motorsports: March 18-20, 2022

Image via Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR

Gear up for events from the biggest series in action motorsports with our weekend preview of the most exciting races in the world! From the premier open-wheel circuits in the world to both two and four-wheel events in the dirt, check in here each week to find out who’s running up front and how to watch.

IndyCar at Texas (Sunday, 12:30PM ET, NBC)

After a dominant performance in St. Petersburg, Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin has proven that he’s ready to shed the rookie stripes and compete for a championship in the 2022 IndyCar season, where he’ll look to wrestle the crown away from St. Petersburg runner-up Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing. It’s been quite some time since an eventual IndyCar champion has won the title without a strong finish in the Florida curtain-raiser, so don’t be surprised if that holds firm again this year.

Texas has been maligned over the past few years for the quality of open-wheel racing it produces, but between major efforts on the part of the series to open up a second groove and the high-banked oval debuts of both Romain Grosjean and Jimmie Johnson, there will certainly be no shortage of storylines.

Supercross at Indianapolis (Saturday, 7PM ET, CNBC)

Last week’s Monster Energy Supercross 450SX final at Detroit was absolute mayhem, with Cooper Webb, Chase Sexton, Jason Anderson, Dean Wilson, and Dylan Ferrandis all getting banged up. All but Ferrandis are expected to line up at Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday night, but between the amount of riders racing at less than 100% and Ken Roczen’s decision to step away, the 2022 factory field has taken quite a few hits in recent weeks.

As a result, Eli Tomac is running away with the championship lead, boasting a whopping 42-point advantage over both Anderson and Malcolm Stewart with seven races remaining. While the unlucky breaks have centralized around his competitors, it’ll take quite a few unlikely setbacks for Tomac to come back to earth. In the 250s, meanwhile, Jett Lawrence carries an eight-point advantage over Cameron McAdoo into Indy.

F1 at Bahrain (Sunday, 10:55AM ET, ESPN)

After a tumultuous offseason spent dealing with fallout from both the controversial stewarding call in last year’s finale to Nikita Mazepin’s status on the grid, F1 fans can finally get back to watching the real thing on Sunday with the Bahrain Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton looks to reclaim his crown for Mercedes-AMG after losing his bid for a fifth straight title to Max Verstappen in part due to what happened in Abu Dhabi, while the team’s minimal sidepod design in recent test sessions has caused quite a stir.

New technical regulations may even the playing field a bit, with both Red Bull and Ferrari receiving some hype of their own from early testing, but the driver lineup has seen few changes at the front of the grid; only George Russell’s long-anticipated move to Mercedes, as Valtteri Bottas replaces the retired Kimi Raikkonen at Alfa Romeo, impacts the front runners. Red Bull have retained Sergio Perez to partner Verstappen, while Ferrari’s duo of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz and the McLaren pairing of Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo remain unchanged.

Additional Broadcasts

·      IMSA 12 Hours of Sebring: Saturday, 10AM ET, Peacock; Saturday, 3:30PM ET, USA

·      Amsoil Championship Snocross at Deadwood: Saturday, 12PM ET, CBSSN

·      Best in the Desert UTV Legends Championship: Sunday, 3:30PM ET, CBSSN