On the 2nd day of November (AKA Movember because it is the Moustache month), the reigning World Champion All Blacks began their tour of duty starting with Japan in Tokyo where 4 new All Blacks made their test debuts (The players where Dominic Bird, Frank 'The Tank' Halai, Jeff Toomaga-Allen (The guy who replaced the injured Joe Moody) & one of Sam Whitelock's brothers, Luke) and the 1st time that both teams have played in the Land of the Rising Sun & outside of the Rugby World Cup (They previously met on both occasions, 1 in 1995 where New Zealand pounced the Japanese in South Africa 147 - 15 & the other in 2011 where the AB's pummeled them again 83 - 7 in the Tron) but in the end, the All Blacks were indeed the dominating factor in the match, beating Japan 54 - 6 (Well, I call that a low-scoring affair) with tries scored by young winger Charles Piutau (Who got both by scoring his 1st & 2nd international test tries, but his form had been improving by now), another young openside flanker Sam Cane followed by winger turned centre Ben Smith, then captain Richie McCaw before lock Jeremy Thrush crossed over for his 1st ever test try then another young winger Frank Halai did get his try on debut before fly-half/fullback Beauden Barrett did however score (He was indeed a prolific try scorer such as the ones he did against both France & South Africa).
And after that, the AB's have certainly booked a long-haul flight to France from Japan but one of the key players was in trouble as Julian Savea had fallen ill because he was battling with influenza, causing him to miss that match against Les Bleus meaning that Charles Piutau had taken Savea's place but the rugby community was in mourning as former Samoa captain Papali'itele Peter Moemoe 'Fats' Fatialofa (One of the 1st Kiwi based players to play for Samoa) had passed away from a cardiac arrest back in Samoa where he was supposed to do a radio interview but several thoughts & prayers where laid down as well as tributes being paid about him (Remember, he was the keeper of the Ranfurly Shield when Auckland won the shield as well as leading his beloved Samoa team by making it to the quarterfinal stages in 1991 following a shock upset against Wales 16 - 13 back in Cardiff, launching a new Pacific Island Rugby era).
But enough with the Peter Fats tribute as the All Blacks (Who wore the white jerseys when France, who wore blue, have gone back to it's original, darker roots) took on France in a rematch of the 3 match test series back in June at Stade de France in Saint-Denis, but after 80 minutes, NZ were just too strong by beating the French 26 - 19 & retained the Dave Gallaher Trophy but during the match both teams have traded penalties only in the 1st half until in the 2nd half, where Charles Piutau did get the 1st try of the game & of course, in the 64th minute, Kieran Read (Arguably the best No.8 in world rugby) did touch it down after getting the speed but France came so close when Brice Dulin got the try for France & Morgan Parra provided the conversion but the oh my goodness moment in the 80th minute when the All Blacks have been awarded both a penalty & the game after a French player had been caught using his hands in the scrum (Just like France had killed the game in the 2011 Rugby World Cup final when South African referee Craig Joubert handed the All Blacks both the penalty & the World Cup after 24 years of get rich & die trying).
And after the French game, the All Blacks head over to England to gain revenge against them by launching their Twickenham assault (But dont worry, we did play down rumors especially the AB's coach (Steve Hansen) that we are quite frankly, the best in the world rugby business), and we did, by winning the game 30 - 22 & regain the Hillary Shield (From the English) after a close-quarters battle for 80 minutes (Great tries being scored there by Julian Savea (He was back after overcoming with the flu when he was falling ill): not once (2 minutes post kick-off) but twice (In the 61st minute) & Kieran Read (He did manage to score just like he did against France) & hey, guess what! Dan Carter not only becomes the 5th All Black ever to reach 100 tests, joining the likes of captain Richie McCaw (The 1st All Black centurion to do so because that was during the 2011 RWC tournament), Mils Muliaina, Keven Mealamu & Tony Woodcock; but unfortunate there for Carter as he gets replaced by Aaron Cruden after spending 25 minutes of his 100th rugby test of a lifetime.
And now, onto the All Blacks last assignment as they take on the luck of the Irish whip & if NZ win, that will be the 1st time ever this has happened in the professional era of rugby union to end 2013 undefeated (14 wins in a row this year), but the All Blacks was on the recieving end after the match had been started already as Irish scrum-half Conor Murray scored the 1st try of the game (Jonathan 'Jonny' Sexton did convert after the try but I was like: Oh man, I cannot believe this) as the Irish are looking for an upset since they never won against the All Blacks (Who lost twice in Ireland, 1 against Munster in '78, the other: Australia during the RWC semi in '91) for like 108 years, but this is not looking good for NZ as Ireland score another try by the hooker Rory Best as the home fans went wild but the men in green are on top 14 to nil after a Jonathan Sexton conversion but the All Blacks were thinking of a comeback & oh, this is terrible stuff for New Zealand as Rob Kearney intercepts the ball after Israel Dagg lost the ball forward, all the way to the try line (And yeah, one of the commentators Justin Marshall suspects that the All Blacks were in trouble meaning that they won't catch Kearney for that one but let god sort'em out) but the only disappointment for the Irish was Sexton's conversion attempt struck the posts but nek minnit, the All Blacks managed to come back in style when Julian Savea had scored before Cruden had to make a simple conversion by bouncing back from a dreadful start moments before Ireland had been awarded a penalty after Wyatt Crockett was the one who took a player down as Jonny Sexton did go for goal stretching their lead 22 to 7 before halftime.
2nd half got underway but in the 52nd minute, Ireland got penalised for obstruction as Devin Toner gets Crockett out of the way by handing a simple kick for Cruden (Ireland still lead by 12 after a successful penalty attempt) & in the 64th minute, prop Ben Franks did get it down for the try despite the Welsh ref Nigel Owens blows the whistle, thinking that Ben Franks got it down so the referee tells the touch judge that it is a try so Owens says that the try was good moments before Aaron Cruden gets the conversion while the men in green were attempting to charge down a conversion attempt but in the dying stages of the game (Well this is more like the Kiwis beating England in the Rugby League World Cup Semifinal at Wembley) when Ireland led 22 - 17, as the relentless attack from New Zealand as Dane Coles makes the pass to Ryan Crotty to tie the game, but WOW!! what a pass & the match winning try but they would have to go the video for that because that looked forward as the TMO thinks that he told the referee to award the try because the pass looked a bit fine as the ref blows the whistle for the try but a conversion kick to come for the 100% record as Cruden misses the conversion attempt but he may get another go at it (Because that is according to the rules) as Ireland went early as they attempted to charge it down but Cruden did get a 2nd chance as the conversion attempt is over but that's it, it's all over as the All Blacks beat Ireland by 2 points (Well, we almost tasted an Irish Curse if Ireland won) to end the year undefeated (The All Blacks unbeaten 2013 season is way more better than the RWC 2011 victory) & for the 1st time ever, this has been happened in the professional era of rugby union (Yeah, the All Blacks did join the likes of Lorde, Lydia Ko, Scott Dixon & Steven Adams as part of a Kiwi non-sporting/sporting success for 2013 (Not for both Emirates Team NZ & the All Whites (Too bad they lost to Mexico meaning that we have to wait until the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Mother Russia) & hopefully the Kiwis if they lose) but actually Lorde is a musician), so enter the new Invincibles (Oh yeah but we are indeed...history seekers).
PS: Requiescat In Pace Fats
(1959 - 2013)
Wednesday, 27 November 2013
Wednesday, 6 November 2013
Rush Movie Review (+ Other News Including the All Black & Indycar Spirit)
Well, it has been a great but terrible/wayward day of setbacks such as Emirates Team NZ missing out on bringing the America's Cup home by losing to Oracle Team USA who went down to win all 8 races to defend the Auld Mug & truimphs such as the All Blacks winning the Rugby Championship...again (Just like last year + Brilliant super All Black tries scored by Ben Smith, Liam Messam (Twice), Beauden Barrett & Kieran Read), beating South Africa in Johannesburg by 38 points to 27 for only the 4th time at Ellis Park as well as maintaining the AB's Rugby Championship record to still 100% (A record total of 12 out of 12 victories so far in the history) + SBW's Sydney Roosters claim the NRL Premiership in 11 years, beating the Sea Eagles of Manly-Warringah 26 to 18.
But last week, me & Poppa finally went to see the movie about the ultimate rivalry in Formula 1 between James Simon Wallis Hunt (Played by Chris Hemsworth who appeared on the Avengers as Thor, Norse God of Thunder) & Andreas Nikolaus ''Niki'' Lauda (Played by Daniel Brühl) called Rush which is set during the 1976 Formula 1 Season but the movie starts when both highly skilled racing drivers who first develop a fierce rivalry (Although they were close friends off the track) in 1970 at a Formula 3 race at the Crystal Palace circuit in England, when both their cars spin out before Hunt eventually wins the race.
James Hunt AKA Hunt The Shunt is a brash young Briton with a tendency to vomit before every race, while Niki Lauda (The Austrian) is a cool, calculating technical genius who relies on precision. After a fallout with his father, Lauda takes a large bank loan and buys his way into the BRM Formula 1 team, meeting teammate & friend from Switzerland, Gianclaudio ''Clay'' Regazzoni for the first time.
Meanwhile, Hesketh, the fledgling racing team Hunt drives for, enters Formula 1 as well when Lauda then joins Ferrari (One of the best teams in the F1 business) with Regazzoni and wins his first of his 3 F1 world championships in 1975 but Hesketh closes down shop after failing to secure sponsorship, but Hunt makes a decision to go to McLaren (However, I did react in the movie that after James Hunt left Hesketh because I was explaining that Hunt is going to McLaren) after Emerson ''Emmo'' Fittipaldi departs the team. During this time, Hunt marries supermodel Susie Miller, while Lauda begins his relationship with socialite Marlene Knaus.
The 1976 F1 World Championship begins with Lauda dominating the first two races while Hunt struggles to catch up before Hunt wins the Spanish Grand Prix, but is immediately disqualified following a post-race inspection rules that his McLaren was illegal & too wide. Struggling to comply with F1 rules & regulations, McLaren suffers a series of setbacks on the next few races, and Hunt's situation is further investigated (Dealt with) when Suzy is discovered to have a relationship with movie director Richard Burton. Following his divorce, he regains his competitive spirit and his disqualification in Spain is overturned, reinstating the points he lost and putting him back into championship contention. Meanwhile, Lauda marries Marlene in a private ceremony but starts to have fears about the concerns of both, his marriage & on his racing career which put him up like a lightning bolt.
At the Großer Preis auf Deutschland, Lauda requests the sports governing body FIA to boycott the race due to wet weather conditions on a race track which is considered very dangerous at the Nürburgring (AKA The Green Hell by Sir Jackie Stewart) containing a total of 160 corners (According to the stats that the Nürburgring is considered be the most challenging and demanding circuit in the entire universe); the urgency is revoked by majority of the racers after Hunt convinces them that Lauda fears losing the points race meaning that the event would go ahead despite dangerous conditions. Both Hunt and Lauda start the race with wet tires, which proves a costly disadvantage due to most of the circuit becoming dry, but on lap 2, both drivers pit for a tyre change, but halfway through lap 3, Lauda's Ferrari (Which had a suspension arm issue), snapped to the right and spun through the fencing into an enbankment when the car bounced back onto the track, before the Ferrari managed to burst into flames and is further struck by other cars on the circuit, resulting a serious accident. After being pulled out of the flaming wreckage, he is airlifted to the Bundeswehr hospital in Koblenz with 3rd-degree burns to his head and toxic fumes in his lungs but from there, he was flown to the Trauma Clinic in Ludwigshafen, home to Germany's most advanced burn ward at the time, where he fought for his life for the next few days & for the next 6 weeks, Lauda is treated for his injuries while he watches his rival Hunt dominate the races in Austria (At the Österreichring) & the Netherlands (At Zandvoort) in his absence, but Lauda had to wait against his doctor's orders that he returned to the sport as World Championship leader behind the wheel of his Ferrari and after his near fatal accident in Germany at the Gran Premio D'Italia to finish fourth upon his return while Hunt fails to finish the race.
But well, it all has come down to this as the championship deciding 1976 season cliffhanger closes in the land of the rising sun, Japan, as Niki Lauda has a 3 point lead ahead of James Hunt when the race is held at Fuji Speedway near Mount Fuji, in wet weather conditions after organisers agreed to run the race, but at the start, James Hunt took the lead with John Watson and Mario Andretti behind but Nek Minnit, at the end of the 2nd lap, Lauda returns to the pits by retiring from the race (Although there's nothing wrong about his Ferrari as he believed the weather conditions made the track way too dangerous), electing to stay with his wife Marlene instead of risking his life again on the circuit just like his near fatal crash in Germany last time; But now with Lauda withdrawn, James Hunt just needed to win the F1 World Driver's crown by finishing on the podium, but after facing stiff competition under grueling conditions (Hunt began to drop positions once the circuit began to dry out) and overcoming tyre issues (When Hunt's left rear tyre began to wear and he managed to pit), Hunt ended up 3rd on the podium, giving him enough points required to beat Lauda by a single point and win the World Driver's championship (Hunt was the last British F1 World Champion before Nigel Mansell in 1992 and McLaren's 1st British F1 World Champion), to his surprise, in all of a sudden.
After claming his 1st & only F1 WDC, James Hunt spends the rest of the year with fame, sex, and drugs, while Lauda (Who lost the F1 driver's crown but would eventually regain the championship from Hunt in 1977 & claim his last in '84), begins an interest in flying private planes but at a private airfield in Bologna, Lauda suggests Hunt to focus on the next racing season, but later on realizes that Hunt no longer has anything to prove, as Hunt continues to race until his retirement in 1979, and becomes a motorsport broadcast commentator with the legendary Murray Walker until he died in 1993 at 45 after drinking & smoking too much which caused the death.
And the end result: A fine absolute movie ending on a high note like a swashbuckling chapter because it wasn't even bad, it felt good after all (The beginning was like the start of a actual classic Grand Prix when Niki Lauda tried to risk his own life before the crash had happened, but moving on to the next scene 6 years earlier where James Hunt had been involved in an accident when she met his future wife, who was a medic off the track before becoming a supermodel).
+ Here is some other news such as the reigning champion No.1 ranked All Blacks of New Zealand (According to Temuera ''Tem'' Morrison (AKA Dr Hone Ropata (A guy who is not in Guatemala anymore), Jake 'Da Muss' Heke, Jango Fett & the Galactic Republic Clone Troopers) that the AB's are like a Clone Army in a bid for Galactic dominance but of course he said that New Zealand was Once Were Warriors...nah brother...still warriors but he also said that they never lost a rugby game, because they just ran out of time) played their final test match in Aotearoa, deep in the heart of the south in Dunedin, in an indoor venue (Which is Forsyth Barr Stadium), against the Wallabies of Australia, beating them 41 - 33 (Including gr8 tries from Julian Savea, Sam Cane, Aaron Cruden & Kieran Read who is the Captain filling in for Richie McCaw for the 6th time this year) by absolutely roadkilling them 1...last...time...of...2013...but, this my friends, this...is...All...Black...Rugby & for...Scott...Dixon, for claiming his 3rd...Indycar...title, but Scott Dixon's Indycar Championship contention started when he took victory in Pocono + both victories in the streets of Toronto (Which is in Ontario, Canada), motivating his chances of grabbing a 3rd Indycar title (Although, he did not win in Lexington, Ohio as his winning run ended) but however, he thought he was going to take victory in Sonoma, California, moments before the officials have given Dixon a drive-through penalty after hitting one of Will Power's pit crew members, ending his chances of both, a win & his 3rd Indycar Championship, by ending up in 15th after rejoining 21st after serving a drive-through penalty then another setback in Baltimore, Maryland came when Power collided with Dixon and was sent spinning into the wall just before Dixon was later also penalized for interference and after the race, Dixon was 49 points behind with his nearest rival from Brazil, Helio Castroneves, but however, Dixon managed to come back with a victory in Houston, Texas (1st of 2 races) when Castroneves was in trouble by suffering mechanical issues as well as Dixon closed the championship deficit to 8 points with 2 races remaining but a day later, as the 2nd race of the doubleheader was marred by a huge crash involving Dario Franchitti (One of Scott Dixon's Teammates), Takuma Sato & Ernesto ''E.J.'' Viso. On the final lap (Moments before Scott Dixon finished 2nd behind the winner Will Power as well as taking the points lead for the 1st time, managing a 25 point advantage ahead of Castroneves (Who had another bad day by suffering gearbox problems, dropping him down to 23rd) with only 1 round remaining), Franchitti made contact by touching wheels with Sato, and his car was launched up into the catch fence, as debris on the track may have injured 13 spectators, while Franchitti was injured & taken to hospital (Like Niki Lauda did in the movie & real life) with a concussion, fractured ankle, and two spinal fractures while both Sato and Viso were uninjured by managing to walk away the impact and that Indycar crash reminds me straight out of a movie (Not like Rush where the huge accident was entirely different like there was no fire getting caught because there was no clear evidence of a Niki Lauda esque crash).
But well, it all has come down to this as the championship deciding 2013 Indycar Series season cliffhanger closes in Fontana, California at the Auto Club Speedway (Where the late Canadian Indycar racer, Greg Moore was killed in a fatal crash which sent the car into the wall way back in 1999 during a CART/Champ Car event) as Scott Dixon has a 25 point lead ahead of Helio Castroneves, but only Scott Dixon just needed to win the Indycar Series crown by finishing 5th or above, but in the end, Dixon not only ended up finishing 5th, collecting enough points required to defeat Castroneves by 27 points and win the Indycar Series title for only the 3rd time (He previously did that before in 2003 (When he entered the series after spending 2 years in CART/Champ Car as well as taking his rookie of the year honours way back in 2001, his debut year after claiming the Indy Lights title (Which is America's answer to Formula 3000 (Now GP2) in 2000) & 08 (When Champ Car got folded post re-unification, effectively ending the 12 year split which began in 1996 + Dixon also won the Indy 500 during his last, successful championship season) to his surprise, in all of a sudden.
And so, there it is, the end of an unforgettable but lengthy blog about the Rush movie + the All Black rugby & Scott Dixon stuff.
P.S. Oh, hang on, there is a late addition about the German Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel being crowned Formula 1 World Champion of 2013 for the 4th consecutive time (Vettel is indeed a record breaker, meaning that he is the sport's youngest ever, quadruple F1 World Driver's Champion, so that's how a driver feels) after winning the race in India (He was the pole man for that race but not only wanting to score another title by finishing 5th or above), only to get pinged by the stewards for a celebratory doughnut which is deemed to be illegal under the rules by repremanding him (Failing to go straight to Parc Ferme) as well as a fine worth $40k, but a week later, he won again in Abu Dhabi (He did not take pole position cause the poleman for that race was his teammate, retirement bound Australian, Mark Webber (Who had a fallout in Round 2 back at Lim/Sophie's home country in Malaysia following that Multi-21 Affair (Much more like the Len Brown/Bevan Chuang sexual scandal and of course, the highly controversial Roastbusters group), where Vettel took the victory by passing his teammate & ignoring team orders), equalling the number of consecutive victories set by Vettel's worthy predecessor, the great Michael Schumacher, of 7, but was once again celebrating by doing a burnout again before putting his Red Bull back to Parc Ferme to avoid getting penalised again.
But last week, me & Poppa finally went to see the movie about the ultimate rivalry in Formula 1 between James Simon Wallis Hunt (Played by Chris Hemsworth who appeared on the Avengers as Thor, Norse God of Thunder) & Andreas Nikolaus ''Niki'' Lauda (Played by Daniel Brühl) called Rush which is set during the 1976 Formula 1 Season but the movie starts when both highly skilled racing drivers who first develop a fierce rivalry (Although they were close friends off the track) in 1970 at a Formula 3 race at the Crystal Palace circuit in England, when both their cars spin out before Hunt eventually wins the race.
James Hunt AKA Hunt The Shunt is a brash young Briton with a tendency to vomit before every race, while Niki Lauda (The Austrian) is a cool, calculating technical genius who relies on precision. After a fallout with his father, Lauda takes a large bank loan and buys his way into the BRM Formula 1 team, meeting teammate & friend from Switzerland, Gianclaudio ''Clay'' Regazzoni for the first time.
Meanwhile, Hesketh, the fledgling racing team Hunt drives for, enters Formula 1 as well when Lauda then joins Ferrari (One of the best teams in the F1 business) with Regazzoni and wins his first of his 3 F1 world championships in 1975 but Hesketh closes down shop after failing to secure sponsorship, but Hunt makes a decision to go to McLaren (However, I did react in the movie that after James Hunt left Hesketh because I was explaining that Hunt is going to McLaren) after Emerson ''Emmo'' Fittipaldi departs the team. During this time, Hunt marries supermodel Susie Miller, while Lauda begins his relationship with socialite Marlene Knaus.
The 1976 F1 World Championship begins with Lauda dominating the first two races while Hunt struggles to catch up before Hunt wins the Spanish Grand Prix, but is immediately disqualified following a post-race inspection rules that his McLaren was illegal & too wide. Struggling to comply with F1 rules & regulations, McLaren suffers a series of setbacks on the next few races, and Hunt's situation is further investigated (Dealt with) when Suzy is discovered to have a relationship with movie director Richard Burton. Following his divorce, he regains his competitive spirit and his disqualification in Spain is overturned, reinstating the points he lost and putting him back into championship contention. Meanwhile, Lauda marries Marlene in a private ceremony but starts to have fears about the concerns of both, his marriage & on his racing career which put him up like a lightning bolt.
At the Großer Preis auf Deutschland, Lauda requests the sports governing body FIA to boycott the race due to wet weather conditions on a race track which is considered very dangerous at the Nürburgring (AKA The Green Hell by Sir Jackie Stewart) containing a total of 160 corners (According to the stats that the Nürburgring is considered be the most challenging and demanding circuit in the entire universe); the urgency is revoked by majority of the racers after Hunt convinces them that Lauda fears losing the points race meaning that the event would go ahead despite dangerous conditions. Both Hunt and Lauda start the race with wet tires, which proves a costly disadvantage due to most of the circuit becoming dry, but on lap 2, both drivers pit for a tyre change, but halfway through lap 3, Lauda's Ferrari (Which had a suspension arm issue), snapped to the right and spun through the fencing into an enbankment when the car bounced back onto the track, before the Ferrari managed to burst into flames and is further struck by other cars on the circuit, resulting a serious accident. After being pulled out of the flaming wreckage, he is airlifted to the Bundeswehr hospital in Koblenz with 3rd-degree burns to his head and toxic fumes in his lungs but from there, he was flown to the Trauma Clinic in Ludwigshafen, home to Germany's most advanced burn ward at the time, where he fought for his life for the next few days & for the next 6 weeks, Lauda is treated for his injuries while he watches his rival Hunt dominate the races in Austria (At the Österreichring) & the Netherlands (At Zandvoort) in his absence, but Lauda had to wait against his doctor's orders that he returned to the sport as World Championship leader behind the wheel of his Ferrari and after his near fatal accident in Germany at the Gran Premio D'Italia to finish fourth upon his return while Hunt fails to finish the race.
But well, it all has come down to this as the championship deciding 1976 season cliffhanger closes in the land of the rising sun, Japan, as Niki Lauda has a 3 point lead ahead of James Hunt when the race is held at Fuji Speedway near Mount Fuji, in wet weather conditions after organisers agreed to run the race, but at the start, James Hunt took the lead with John Watson and Mario Andretti behind but Nek Minnit, at the end of the 2nd lap, Lauda returns to the pits by retiring from the race (Although there's nothing wrong about his Ferrari as he believed the weather conditions made the track way too dangerous), electing to stay with his wife Marlene instead of risking his life again on the circuit just like his near fatal crash in Germany last time; But now with Lauda withdrawn, James Hunt just needed to win the F1 World Driver's crown by finishing on the podium, but after facing stiff competition under grueling conditions (Hunt began to drop positions once the circuit began to dry out) and overcoming tyre issues (When Hunt's left rear tyre began to wear and he managed to pit), Hunt ended up 3rd on the podium, giving him enough points required to beat Lauda by a single point and win the World Driver's championship (Hunt was the last British F1 World Champion before Nigel Mansell in 1992 and McLaren's 1st British F1 World Champion), to his surprise, in all of a sudden.
After claming his 1st & only F1 WDC, James Hunt spends the rest of the year with fame, sex, and drugs, while Lauda (Who lost the F1 driver's crown but would eventually regain the championship from Hunt in 1977 & claim his last in '84), begins an interest in flying private planes but at a private airfield in Bologna, Lauda suggests Hunt to focus on the next racing season, but later on realizes that Hunt no longer has anything to prove, as Hunt continues to race until his retirement in 1979, and becomes a motorsport broadcast commentator with the legendary Murray Walker until he died in 1993 at 45 after drinking & smoking too much which caused the death.
And the end result: A fine absolute movie ending on a high note like a swashbuckling chapter because it wasn't even bad, it felt good after all (The beginning was like the start of a actual classic Grand Prix when Niki Lauda tried to risk his own life before the crash had happened, but moving on to the next scene 6 years earlier where James Hunt had been involved in an accident when she met his future wife, who was a medic off the track before becoming a supermodel).
+ Here is some other news such as the reigning champion No.1 ranked All Blacks of New Zealand (According to Temuera ''Tem'' Morrison (AKA Dr Hone Ropata (A guy who is not in Guatemala anymore), Jake 'Da Muss' Heke, Jango Fett & the Galactic Republic Clone Troopers) that the AB's are like a Clone Army in a bid for Galactic dominance but of course he said that New Zealand was Once Were Warriors...nah brother...still warriors but he also said that they never lost a rugby game, because they just ran out of time) played their final test match in Aotearoa, deep in the heart of the south in Dunedin, in an indoor venue (Which is Forsyth Barr Stadium), against the Wallabies of Australia, beating them 41 - 33 (Including gr8 tries from Julian Savea, Sam Cane, Aaron Cruden & Kieran Read who is the Captain filling in for Richie McCaw for the 6th time this year) by absolutely roadkilling them 1...last...time...of...2013...but, this my friends, this...is...All...Black...Rugby & for...Scott...Dixon, for claiming his 3rd...Indycar...title, but Scott Dixon's Indycar Championship contention started when he took victory in Pocono + both victories in the streets of Toronto (Which is in Ontario, Canada), motivating his chances of grabbing a 3rd Indycar title (Although, he did not win in Lexington, Ohio as his winning run ended) but however, he thought he was going to take victory in Sonoma, California, moments before the officials have given Dixon a drive-through penalty after hitting one of Will Power's pit crew members, ending his chances of both, a win & his 3rd Indycar Championship, by ending up in 15th after rejoining 21st after serving a drive-through penalty then another setback in Baltimore, Maryland came when Power collided with Dixon and was sent spinning into the wall just before Dixon was later also penalized for interference and after the race, Dixon was 49 points behind with his nearest rival from Brazil, Helio Castroneves, but however, Dixon managed to come back with a victory in Houston, Texas (1st of 2 races) when Castroneves was in trouble by suffering mechanical issues as well as Dixon closed the championship deficit to 8 points with 2 races remaining but a day later, as the 2nd race of the doubleheader was marred by a huge crash involving Dario Franchitti (One of Scott Dixon's Teammates), Takuma Sato & Ernesto ''E.J.'' Viso. On the final lap (Moments before Scott Dixon finished 2nd behind the winner Will Power as well as taking the points lead for the 1st time, managing a 25 point advantage ahead of Castroneves (Who had another bad day by suffering gearbox problems, dropping him down to 23rd) with only 1 round remaining), Franchitti made contact by touching wheels with Sato, and his car was launched up into the catch fence, as debris on the track may have injured 13 spectators, while Franchitti was injured & taken to hospital (Like Niki Lauda did in the movie & real life) with a concussion, fractured ankle, and two spinal fractures while both Sato and Viso were uninjured by managing to walk away the impact and that Indycar crash reminds me straight out of a movie (Not like Rush where the huge accident was entirely different like there was no fire getting caught because there was no clear evidence of a Niki Lauda esque crash).
But well, it all has come down to this as the championship deciding 2013 Indycar Series season cliffhanger closes in Fontana, California at the Auto Club Speedway (Where the late Canadian Indycar racer, Greg Moore was killed in a fatal crash which sent the car into the wall way back in 1999 during a CART/Champ Car event) as Scott Dixon has a 25 point lead ahead of Helio Castroneves, but only Scott Dixon just needed to win the Indycar Series crown by finishing 5th or above, but in the end, Dixon not only ended up finishing 5th, collecting enough points required to defeat Castroneves by 27 points and win the Indycar Series title for only the 3rd time (He previously did that before in 2003 (When he entered the series after spending 2 years in CART/Champ Car as well as taking his rookie of the year honours way back in 2001, his debut year after claiming the Indy Lights title (Which is America's answer to Formula 3000 (Now GP2) in 2000) & 08 (When Champ Car got folded post re-unification, effectively ending the 12 year split which began in 1996 + Dixon also won the Indy 500 during his last, successful championship season) to his surprise, in all of a sudden.
And so, there it is, the end of an unforgettable but lengthy blog about the Rush movie + the All Black rugby & Scott Dixon stuff.
P.S. Oh, hang on, there is a late addition about the German Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel being crowned Formula 1 World Champion of 2013 for the 4th consecutive time (Vettel is indeed a record breaker, meaning that he is the sport's youngest ever, quadruple F1 World Driver's Champion, so that's how a driver feels) after winning the race in India (He was the pole man for that race but not only wanting to score another title by finishing 5th or above), only to get pinged by the stewards for a celebratory doughnut which is deemed to be illegal under the rules by repremanding him (Failing to go straight to Parc Ferme) as well as a fine worth $40k, but a week later, he won again in Abu Dhabi (He did not take pole position cause the poleman for that race was his teammate, retirement bound Australian, Mark Webber (Who had a fallout in Round 2 back at Lim/Sophie's home country in Malaysia following that Multi-21 Affair (Much more like the Len Brown/Bevan Chuang sexual scandal and of course, the highly controversial Roastbusters group), where Vettel took the victory by passing his teammate & ignoring team orders), equalling the number of consecutive victories set by Vettel's worthy predecessor, the great Michael Schumacher, of 7, but was once again celebrating by doing a burnout again before putting his Red Bull back to Parc Ferme to avoid getting penalised again.
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