This year both kind and cruel to me. The majority of the cruel elements came from the world of racing. It’s no secret that I’ve had several downs than ups in that field and rather than discuss about it in detail, I want to bring some positivity in this blog.
In my latest blog, I wanted to share my motorsports works from an extremely tumultuous year.
Like last year, I’ve decided to split up my favorite photos into two as I create content outside of racing. All of those non-racing photos is part of my livelihood and survival.
When I’m at the track, I constantly have to prove my worth and just hope I gain a huge following. What I hope to accomplish from sharing my best racing works is hopefully garner more supporters that can lead to greater opportunities.
That way, I can continue covering racing after February 2024 in addition of all the other projects I do in the state of Washington.
If you haven’t followed my Instagram account, I’d recommend you to do so. It’ll be the best way to see my works as the year unfolds. Don’t forget about supporting my photography business as I’m still trying to keep it running in 2024.
Without further ado, here’s my 25 favorite motorsports photos and the stories behind each of them.
S(n)o(w)Cal Views?
Only my presence can result in bizarre occurrences. The final race weekend (as we know it) at Auto Club Speedway decided to have snow for an hour. Of all places, snow in Southern California was the last thing I expected in my life.
I’m not a snow guy, much less into that culture, so I apologize. When the snow arrived, it gave me a chance of turning an ultimate lost day in photography and capture the madness. I’m glad that I did made most of the rarity.
Emphasis on the Number
If there’s any perks of the car number being forward since 2022, it can make fancy shots better when the number is the main focus. As seen here with Ross Chastain trying to fend off a hard charging Kyle Busch in the final Cup race at the two-mile oval.
Pre-Qualifying Banter
I rarely get to capture candid stuff in motorsports because of my other role being a writer. However, with my future in covering racing being an absolute unknown, I wanted to capture shots like Bubba Wallace and Chase Elliott having a humorous conversation at Phoenix Raceway. If I do continue past February 2024, I sure hope to concentrate on shots like this more often.
Before the Championship Madness
With pyro galore in the background, Kyle Larson waves to the crowd prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix. Larson ended up finishing third in the final standings, but of all the Championship 4 shots during driver intros, Larson’s is the best one because of its framing and pyro illustrating the pre-race pageantry.
The Long Wait Was Worth It
After 12 years of trying, Josef Newgarden finally accomplished the final piece of his legendary career in May. Newgarden won a chaotic and controversial 107th Indianapolis 500 in a one-lap shootout over Marcus Ericsson and Santino Ferrucci. No question, Newgarden was pumped up to finally win the one race that’s alluded his INDYCAR career.
A Month of Speed
I’ve seen this visual shot over the years and I’ve always wanted to give this shot a go. Finally, I had the chance to cover an INDYCAR race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway grand prix circuit. This shot was taken during Friday morning practice as Pato O’Ward was storming past the circuit with little clouds occupying the weather conditions.
Dirt to Phoenix
Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell made their names in dirt racing. More often than not, they’ve had great battles but in 2023, we finally saw multiple battles between them on the paved circuits. It was a treat when both battled hard for position during the playoffs, including the Championship Race at Phoenix. Bell’s day would come to an end several minutes later, ending his title bid.
The Golden Session
A sequel to a similar shot I had of Joey Logano during Friday evening’s practice, I was able to capture Ryan Blaney hitting the track during golden hour. I felt like this was a bit better than the one of Logano. Albeit, Blaney wasn’t the first car to hit the track if you really want a difference.
Life After JGR
I’d like to think the stunning visual of Kyle Busch’s burnouts coming out with red clouds symbolized he is indeed back to his winning ways. By back, I do mean genuine happiness that’s been lacking during the final years Busch drove for Joe Gibbs Racing.
The victory at Fontana took a lot of steam off his mind as he extended his streak of winning at least once a season to 19, breaking Richard Petty’s mark in the process. Pending on the track’s future, history could look back at Busch being the final Cup winner at Auto Club Speedway. As I like to say often, time will tell.
The Final Golden Hour
A career that began at Mesa Marin in 1995, Kevin Harvick wrapped up his near three-decade NASCAR national touring career at Phoenix in November. As a way to bid farewell, Busch Beer had the 2014 Cup Series champion’s name on the No. 4 Ford Mustang.
A callback to the 2019 season when Busch did a clever promotion of putting Harvick on the No. 4 Ford Mustang because namely Kyle Busch being in the title hunt that year. Only this time in 2023, it’s a way of saying thank you.
Naturally, I wanted to get shots of the back bumper during the final practice session of Harvick’s career. It made for a nice visual as he was trailing Carson Hocevar (42) and Joey Logano (22).
Early Championship Vibes
For the first time in the Post-Split Era of American Open Wheel Racing (2008-Present), the INDYCAR championship was decided early. In the penultimate round of the championship trail at Portland, Alex Palou put on a master drive and locked up his second title in three years.
In a year where off-track drama overshadowed his dominance, all eyes were on the Spaniard’s elation as he became the first driver since Sebastien Bourdais in 2007 (Champ Car) to celebrate a title before the finale.
Eyes on the Future
A month removed from retiring in NASCAR, 2004 Cup Series champion Kurt Busch shared a memorable bond with his nephew Brexton Busch (Kyle’s son) during pre-race at Phoenix Raceway. Brex has grow a lot since being hoisted up in the air by his father Kyle. Now, he can barely be carried by his uncle Kurt. Time flies so fast!
Indy Hits Different
Bump Day was in full effect when Jack Harvey made the 33-car grid for the 107th Indianapolis 500 in a last-minute ditch effort. As Harvey was relieved, it was bittersweet as the driver he bumped out of the field was his teammate Graham Rahal. Reasons like this one is why I like to describe Indy as the title of the image says.
The Phoenix Rattlesnake
Leading up to Championship Weekend, Cole Custer was nicknamed “Stone Cole,” a play on WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin. Once Custer won the Xfinity Series championship at Phoenix, Custer did the traditional victory lane beer bash. A moment he’ll never forget.
Pack of Wolves
Phoenix Raceway’s “Dogleg” is both praised and polarized. In this scenario, a race restart is an example where all bets are off as William Byron was fending off everyone in the field.
It’s a fascinating shot seeing how the competition use every single bit of the track surface to gain any sort of ground. Sometimes, they can go six to seven-wide because of how open Phoenix is and there being no rules about going below the yellow line like at superspeedways. All of that is what makes the mile oval unique and depending who you ask, for better or worse.
One Off Look
As mentioned earlier, Graham Rahal was bumped out of the 107th Indianapolis 500 grid. Four days later, Rahal was back in the race as he filled in for the injured Stefan Wilson.
Due to the change, Rahal was in unfamiliar territory. He was driving a Chevrolet instead of a Honda for the first time in his INDYCAR career. You’d have to go back to 2008 when Rahal drove a car not powered by Honda. A one-off deal does lead to moments like this shot when he shook the car for the first time.
Championship Elation
Ryan Blaney brought Roger Penske his fourth NASCAR Cup Series championship at Phoenix Raceway. For a family like Ryan’s, it was a long time coming as his father Dave never had a true shot of being a title contender. However, none of that mattered as Ryan and his No. 12 crew were elated of winning NASCAR’s grand prize.
All Eyes on Chase
No fans, no cars. Just Chase Elliott walking around the temporary quarter-mile oval at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Track walks are a time of peace and tranquility for the drivers and it was no different on a sunny Saturday morning in SoCal.
A Game of Inches
Kyle Larson sure likes utilizing every inch of the track possible. Auto Club Speedway was no different for the 2021 Cup Series champion as you can put a string of hair between the No. 5 Chevrolet and the turn three wall. That’s how close Larson was driving towards the wall on a cold Sunday afternoon in California.
Turn 4 Gold
The final corner at Phoenix Raceway during sunset may be my new favorite angle to shoot. You can capture the sun slowly setting as Cole Custer was nearly done completing his practice lap. I don’t really have to describe much as to why I love this shot.
Rocket Pan
“Rocket” Rinus VeeKay storming around Portland International Raceway during Saturday morning’s practice session. It’s probably my favorite pan shot I’ve taken thus car because of the color variants and sharp VeeKay’s car turned out. Most importantly, it’s center perfection!
Embracing the Snow
I’m glad track firefighter Katelyn Greathouse enjoyed the snow at Auto Club Speedway. It’s not often you see snow at a race track and moments like this image was special. It’s the big reason why I was happy to make most of what was a lost day in terms of learning the ins and outs of shooting photos at the two-mile oval.
Past Meets the Present
I love the Marlboro chevron liveries! It’s probably my favorite livery design of all-time. So when Arrow McLaren announced they were honoring the rich history of McLaren in the 107th Indianapolis 500, the throwback liveries were going to create a conversation. Perhaps the best livery of the year was Felix Rosenqvist’s throwback to Alain Prost’s 1984 Monaco Grand Prix victory.
Although it’s papaya orange instead of red, it still made for a bad ass livery. It became more bad ass to me that I was able to capture this image of Rosenqvist leading the pack at Indianapolis Motor Speedway during practice. You simply cannot beat the Marlboro chevron design!
Coliseum Beauty
As I now like to say the Licorice Pizza aesthetic, sunsets in Southern California is total vibe! What made it more beautiful was a wide shot of the entire temporary oval with the field storming around the Coliseum during the Busch Light Clash main event.
Championship Reflection
Following the initial championship celebrations, Ryan Blaney had a bit of time to reflect on winning his first NASCAR Cup Series championship. After 38 grueling weeks, Blaney certainly earned the opportunity to reflect before doing an onslaught of on-track championship interviews. It only seem fitting to select this as my favorite racing image of this year and it was a no-brainer.
There you have it! My favorite motorsports images from 2023. It was a rough year covering races as several streaks ended as far as venues I’ve normally covered.
However, if there’s a plus side to look back upon in racing this year, I would say it’s my strongest in terms of what I’ve captured. I’ll have a better idea next month if I’ll stick with this claim.
For now, the best way to support my business outside of racing is via donation. I’m trying to make this local photography business work as best as possible.
For what I do, non-racing content is the main ingredient for survival.
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As much as racing defines me as a photographer, there’s more to me than covering motorsports.
For now, I have two more blogs before we ring the new year. Those being my favorite photos outside of racing and the 100 songs I felt the vibe in 2023.
Hope you stick around and check those posts when published. Those who’ve supported me during difficult times, I can’t thank you enough!
Until we meet again, doubt me if you insist, prove me wrong if I give consent.
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