10 Things You Might Have Missed From Last Weekend's Motorsport Action

In another busy weekend of motorsport - which included IndyCar, Nascar and MotoGP - here are 10 things for you to catch up on:

The 2014 IndyCar season came to a close at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, with Tony Kanaan taking the race victory after starting from seventh on the grid. He became the 11th different winner of the season, matching the North American single-seater racing record that was set in CART series in 2000 and 2001.

Kanaan’s Target Chip Ganassi Racing team-mate Scott Dixon took the chequered flag 3.676 seconds behind him, with Ed Carpenter - 2012’s victor at the Auto Club Speedway - finished in third place.

2. Power crowned IndyCar champion

The IndyCar championship was decided yet again at the season finale, with Will Power and Helio Castroneves battling it out for the top spot after a thrilling year of racing. Power started from 20th, he moved up a position as Mikhail Aleshin did not race following his huge Friday crash, and put in a smart but aggressive drive to finish ninth.

It proved to be enough to take his first IndyCar title, following three near misses, with pole-sitter Castroneves coming home in 14th after a drive-through penalty due to a pit entry error. “It’s surreal. It’s just a fantastic way to finish the season,” Power said after the race.

3. Marquez back at the front

After failing to win or score a podium for the first time in 2014 at the last race in the Czech Republic, Marc Marquez returned to his winning ways at the 12th round of the MotoGP season at Silverstone. He started from pole but dropped behind Jorge Lorenzo off the line.

The Spaniard found his way through with seven laps to go but a mistake a little while later let Lorenzo back in front. Following a close battle, Marquez managed to reclaim the lead and took the chequered flag seven tenths clear to secure win number 11 of 2014.

4. Rossi’s new record

‘The Doctor’ Valentino Rossi set a new record last weekend at Silverstone for the most starts in the premier class of Grand Prix motorcycle racing. He lined up on the grid for the 246th time and was rewarded with a strong third place finish – his first podium at the British circuit.

Kasey Kahne scored his first win of the 2014 Nascar Sprint Cup series at the Atlanta Motor Speedway last weekend, after taking the lead with two laps to go following a late restart. The race actually went 10 laps over its scheduled distance due to late crashes.

Kahne also secured a spot in the Chase for the Nascar Sprint Cup. Matt Kenseth finished second, with Denny Hamlin and Jimmie Johnson third and fourth. Carl Edwards and Danica Patrick completed the top six.

As mentioned above, the Oral-B USA 500 at Atlanta actually ran 10 laps over the scheduled 325-lap distance thanks to a late crash involving several cars on the first attempt at a green-white-chequered race finish.

Meanwhile, in a rather bizarre moment, several drivers reported an animal running across the circuit during the race. It turned out to be a squirrel who obviously wanted to get some TV airtime.

The Nascar Nationwide series was also in action at Atlanta Motor Speedway, with Kevin Harvick dominating Saturday’s Great Clips 300 to benefit Feed The Children. He eventually led 159 of the 195 laps to take his third win at the circuit. Joey Logano finished second, with Kyle Larson in third.

8. F1 prepares for Monza

The Italian Grand Prix is one of the most historic races on the F1 calendar and the sport is currently preparing to return to the super-fast Monza circuit this weekend. Lotus technical director Nick Chester believes we could see top speeds of 360kph (224mph). The fastest speed ever recorded in a race was 372.6kph (231.5mph) by Juan Pablo Montoya at Monza in 2005.

9. British GT takes on Brands Hatch

The popular Avon Tyres British GT Championship returned to the track last weekend at Brands Hatch in the UK. The penultimate round of the 2014 season was won in GT3 by the number 31 Trackspeed Porsche 997 GT3 R of David Ashburn and Nick Tandy, while in GT4 the number 404 Aston Martin of Ross Wylie and Jake Giddings emerged victorious.

10. Ricciardo receives prestigious award

Daniel Ricciardo travelled to the small village of Brisighella in Italy last weekend to receive the prestigious Trofeo Bandini. He becomes the 21st recipient of the trophy and joins a long list of F1 greats such as Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso and his team-mate Sebastian Vettel.

It is named after Lorenzo Bandini, who raced in F1 for Ferrari before being tragically killed in a crash at the 1967 Monaco Grand Prix. It is awarded annually to a driver or person involved in motorsport for a commendable performance.