The new contracts take effect at the start of the 2014 season and run through 2021. FOX's rights fees will go from a per-season average of about $257 million to $495 million. The deal also clears the way for FOX to use baseball for a new national sports cable channel it is planning to launch in the summer of 2013.

FOX also received broad rights to baseball highlights that could be used for a sports news program similar to ESPN's "SportsCenter." While FOX has declined to comment on its planned channel, people familiar with the matter said the company will convert its niche sports channel called SPEED into a broad-based sports network.

Besides baseball, Fox will also put NASCAR racing, college football, soccer and Ultimate Fighting on its cable channel. The working name for the channel is Fox Sports 1.

UPDATE: The curveball in a new FOX deal is the impact the network's change of SPEED into Fox Sports One, a new all sports channel that will carry Major League Baseball, college football and basketball and other sports in addition to NASCAR programming. Hoping to keep up with the likes of the ABC/ESPN, NBC/NBC Sports Network as well as CBS/CBS Sports Network pairings, FOX plans to flip the current motorsports and automotive channel into its own general sports cable network. As of now ancillary NASCAR programming such as practice, qualifying and support events like the Camping World Truck Series would be mixed into the revamped channel's content line-up. There is word FOX will also stream NASCAR programming beginning next season, ala the "Watch ESPN" initiative that will allow mobile device access for thousands of viewers. Assuming FOX comes to terms, the remainder of the new NASCAR television package is a bit fuzzier. While it appears ABC/ESPN and TNT will return to the negotiating table, the NBC's interest is a wild card. Desperate for content to help build its fledging sports net, the Peacock folks are eyeballing a return to the business of stock car racing. The Nationwide Series, currently an ABC/ESPN property, could be in play for NBC as well as the Truck Series should FOX decide to back off the amount of NASCAR programming for its cable sports network or the "World Wide Leader" scale back its stock car investment. CBS or perhaps niche outlets like "The History Channel" might also dip their toes into the negotiations.(CBS Sports)(10-3-2012)

Stenhouse car adjusted for final run with exhaust coming out of rear of car.

I imagine it would be hard to bump draft if exhaust pipes in rear instead of sides. #nascar

A better look at Stenhouse car with exhaust pipes coming out of back

Drivers say it is more dicey to push draft because front bumpers are curved, easier to hook someone.

I wanna know how it sounds

MONTREAL — A Montreal-based motorsports company — and corporate sister of the firm that promotes Montreal’s Grand Prix event — has declared bankruptcy.

Octane Motorsports Events Inc., presided over by François Dumontier, owes creditors across the country over $5.4 million according to bankruptcy filings.

Dumontier, also president of Octane Racing Group Inc., promoter of the Formula One Grand Prix du Canada, did not respond to an interview request Thursday.

One of the biggest creditors is a numbered Quebec company that is a Dumontier family trust. It is owned almost $3 million, according to filings.

The bankruptcy has also left scores of Montreal-area companies with stacks of unpaid bills; among them, Garda Canada Security Corp., Omnison, and Consortium Echo-Logique.

Robert Megeney, president of Event Labor Works whose outstanding Octane Motorsports accounts top $27,000, said he hopes for the best outcome in the bankruptcy proceedings.

“At this point in time, we are just going with the flow,” he said.

Octane Motorsports was best known as promoter of Edmonton’s IndyCar race.

On Sept. 21, Edmonton city officials announced that Octane Motorsports had informed them that it would not produce the IndyCar race in July 2013 as planned.

In a news release, Octane said that to survive, the event needed a promise of more spectators and more support from local businesses, and that the company wasn’t confident that would happen.

“Despite our tight management policies and all our efforts to offer to the fans a world-class spectacle, we were not able to make this event profitable and nothing allows us to hope for a better profitability next year,” Octane stated then.

The Octane Group of companies has worked on the organization and promotion of more than 70 motorsports events around the world, according to its website.

(Moved from the race thread, as this is probably a more appropriate place for it)