With a little luck, the racing may just get in the way of the arguing at this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix, where the 2016 Formula One season will resume at the Sakhir circuit. The new campaign got off to an exciting start at the Australian GP, where Mercedes' Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton fought back to defeat Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari, yet F1's feel-good factor almost instantly evaporated in the aftermath of the race. Controversies concerning anything from the retention of the unpopular new qualifying format to incoming television deals immediately overshadowed the most thrilling season opener in several seasons, but Bahrain—the scene of a modern classic just two years ago—could shine the spotlight on the on-track action....

NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced via Twitter on Saturday he will donate his brain for concussion research and indicated he wants to donate his organs, too. After retweeting a link to a Sports Illustrated article detailing that three former Oakland Raiders players will posthumously donate their brains for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) research, Earnhardt tweeted the following: Earnhardt has a personal connection to the research, as he's suffered several concussions during his career, per Cindy Boren of the Washington Post. He joins a long list of athletes and former athletes who have committed to donating their brains to science for CTE research, including George Atkinson, George Buehler and Art Thoms of the Raiders, U.S....

NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. announced via Twitter on Saturday he will donate his brain for concussion research and indicated he wants to donate his organs, too. After retweeting a link to a Sports Illustrated article detailing that three former Oakland Raiders players will posthumously donate their brains for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) research, Earnhardt tweeted the following: Earnhardt has a personal connection to the research, as he's suffered several concussions during his career, per Cindy Boren of the Washington Post. He joins a long list of athletes and former athletes who have committed to donating their brains to science for CTE research, including George Atkinson, George Buehler and Art Thoms of the Raiders, U.S....

As hard as this may be to imagine regarding a NASCAR track, the setting of Martinsville Speedway is pastoral. It is surrounded by meadows where, unfortunately, vehicles are parked on race days. Freight trains occasionally rumble past, parallel to the back straight. The culinary delicacy is the sloppy, mass-produced, innards-bombing hot dog. Last fall, the race was a bomb, too. Joey Logano got "the big payback" from Matt Kenseth, who blamed Logano for eliminating him from the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Kenseth's version of frontier justice was ramming Logano's Ford with his Toyota. Jeff Gordon, largely as a result, claimed the 93rd and final victory of his NASCAR career. At the conclusion of this spectacle, on November 1, 2015, NASCAR Execut...

As hard as this may be to imagine regarding a NASCAR track, the setting of Martinsville Speedway is pastoral. It is surrounded by meadows where, unfortunately, vehicles are parked on race days. Freight trains occasionally rumble past, parallel to the back straight. The culinary delicacy is the sloppy, mass-produced, innards-bombing hot dog. Last fall, the race was a bomb, too. Joey Logano got "the big payback" from Matt Kenseth, who blamed Logano for eliminating him from the Chase for the Sprint Cup. Kenseth's version of frontier justice was ramming Logano's Ford with his Toyota. Jeff Gordon, largely as a result, claimed the 93rd and final victory of his NASCAR career. At the conclusion of this spectacle, on November 1, 2015, NASCAR Execut...

Jenson Button may not have stood on the top step of a Formula One podium for almost four years, but the 2009 world champion's class remains undeniable. As well as leading McLaren to success on the good days, Button has become an invaluable asset to the team on the bad days—so much so they simply couldn't afford to discard the 36-year-old during their worst season in 35 years in 2015. And at the beginning of his 17th season in F1, Button has explained why he regards himself as the best driver on the grid because of his talent and work ethic at the circuit and his popularity within the paddock. As bold a claim as it might be, it is difficult to argue with Button's statement. Although one man who could rival the veteran as F1's best poun...

Jenson Button may not have stood on the top step of a Formula One podium for almost four years, but the 2009 world champion's class remains undeniable. As well as leading McLaren to success on the good days, Button has become an invaluable asset to the team on the bad days—so much so they simply couldn't afford to discard the 36-year-old during their worst season in 35 years in 2015. And at the beginning of his 17th season in F1, Button has explained why he regards himself as the best driver on the grid because of his talent and work ethic at the circuit and his popularity within the paddock. As bold a claim as it might be, it is difficult to argue with Button's statement. Although one man who could rival the veteran as F1's best poun...

The Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir will host its 12th Formula One race on April 3 when the lights go out for the 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix. The tiny Gulf state became a part of the F1 calender back in 2004. Michael Schumacher was the first man to ever stand on the top step of the podium in Bahrain, and since then, all the greats of the modern era have tasted the victory waard. That is, the local rosewater drink supplied to the top three; Bahrain does not permit the drinking of alcohol in public, so the traditional champagne is given a weekend off. Not everyone loves the Hermann Tilke-designed circuit, but it has produced at least some good racing—2014's Bahrain Grand Prix being the standout example. Here are five sets of facts ...

The Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir will host its 12th Formula One race on April 3 when the lights go out for the 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix. The tiny Gulf state became a part of the F1 calender back in 2004. Michael Schumacher was the first man to ever stand on the top step of the podium in Bahrain, and since then, all the greats of the modern era have tasted the victory waard. That is, the local rosewater drink supplied to the top three; Bahrain does not permit the drinking of alcohol in public, so the traditional champagne is given a weekend off. Not everyone loves the Hermann Tilke-designed circuit, but it has produced at least some good racing—2014's Bahrain Grand Prix being the standout example. Here are five sets of facts ...

Mercedes have won 33 of 39 races since the start of Formula One's hybrid V6 engine era in 2014, so it is difficult to find many faults with the team. If you wanted to point one out, though, it would almost certainly be their starts—especially since about the midway point of the 2015 season. Either Lewis Hamilton or Nico Rosberg have qualified on pole for 37 of those 39 grands prix, but several times at least one of them has suffered a poor start: both drivers last year at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone and the Hungaroring in Hungary, Rosberg at Belgium's Spa-Francorchamps and Suzuka in Japan, Hamilton at the Red Bull Ring in Austria, Italy's Monza and at the first race this year at Albert Park in Melbourne, Australia....