July 26 2010
DIXON WINS WILD EDMONTON RACE
HINCHCLIFFE WINS ON HOME SOIL
EDMONTON, Alberta (Sunday, July 25, 2010) - Scott Dixon was surprised, Helio Castroneves was steaming and Will Power continues to lead the IZOD IndyCar Series championship standings though he was thwarted again in seeking his third consecutive victory.
Dixon prevailed in the 95-lap race on the 1.973-mile, 14-turn City Centre Airport circuit courtesy of a black flag issued to race leader Castroneves for blocking on a Lap 92 restart.
Castroneves and Power entered Turn 1 side by side, with Castroneves hitting the apex a car length ahead. As Dixon slipped past Power into second place, race chief steward Brian Barnhart immediately called Castroneves for blocking his Team Penske teammate.
The black flag call was radioed to the No. 3 car, but Castroneves failed to take the drive-thru pit lane penalty. Following the race, he was penalized 20 seconds and placed at the end of the lead lap (10th). A black flag cannot be appealed, according to Indy Racing League rules.
Castroneves overtook Power, the pole sitter, in Turns 1-2 of Lap 78 and recorded his fastest race lap on 79 (1 minute, 2.3139 seconds) to put a 1.5-second gap between him and Power. It appeared that Castroneves would go on to his second victory. His first of the season - at Barber Motorsports Park in mid-April -- derailed Power's bid for a series record-tying third consecutive victory.
But a full-course caution was called on Lap 89 after the No. 78 car driven by Simona de Silvestro ran out of fuel and pulled off course in Turn 7. Castroneves led the field into Turn 1 of the restart, with Power making a bid to regain the lead he had for 76 laps.
Power recovered to finish second, while Dario Franchitti finished third and Ryan Briscoe was fourth. Andretti Autosport's Ryan Hunter-Reay finished fifth.
Also on July 25, James Hinchcliffe outdueled J.K. Vernay to claim his second Firestone Indy Lights win in the Edmonton 100.
Hinchcliffe, who won his first race on home soil, closed to 55 points of the championship leader Vernay heading to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Aug. 8.
Martin Plowman finished third in the No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing car for AFS Racing Andretti Autosport - his season high on a street/road circuit. He's the only driver in the series to finish in the top 10 in all races and the only one to complete every lap.
The following rules in the IZOD IndyCar Series rule book were applied concerning Helio Castroneves' penalty:
Drivers were warned by Brian Barnhart during the pre-race drivers meeting on blocking: "You have plenty of options on where to put your car and we should not have any defending or blocking. Again we will be visually dividing the braking point through the entry into the corner in half. You can only be on the inside half if you are attempting to pass someone. If you are on the inside half because you are under attack from someone else, it is blocking. Don't move your car in reaction to a following car and don't impede the progress of a car with a run on you."
Rule 9.3 (B) A driver must not alter his/her racing line based on the actions of pursuing Drivers or use an abnormal racing line to inhibit or prevent passing. Blocking will result in a minimum of a black flag "drive through" penalty.
Rule 7.1 (B) (4) (C) (4) The senior official shall determine the type and length of any black flag. The penalized car shall proceed to pit lane as directed by Officials and may return to the Race only upon the declaration of Officials. In the case of the Driver Violating the Rules, no work may be performed on a Car during the execution of a black flag penalty. Should any such work occur, the conditions of the penalty are unfilled and the penalty procedure must be executed again in its entirety on a subsequent lap. The penalty may not be protested and/or appealed.
Rule 9.2 (A) Race Procedure Penalties are a result of on track conduct and are generally imposed during on Track activity. If the imposition of a penalty is near or at the end of on Track activity and Driver/Car does not fulfill it, the Senior Official may reposition the Driver/Car in the posting of results or apply the penalty to subsequent on Track activity to reflect the fulfillment of the penalty. The penalty including without limitation any repositioning in a posting is non-protestable and/or appealable.
During pre-race ceremonies, it was announced that Honda Canada and driver Paul Tracy has raised more than $112,000 for Make-A-Wish Canada through a program in which fans in Toronto and Edmonton have had the opportunity to sign the race suits worn by Tracy in the two Canadian events.
HONDA EDMONTON INDY POST-RACE NOTES:
· This is the Scott Dixon's second victory of the season. He previously won at Kansas Speedway in May.
· Scott Dixon won for the second time in three starts at Edmonton City Centre Airport. He won the first IZOD IndyCar Series event in 2008.
· The win was Dixon 23rd career IZOD IndyCar Series, extending his record for most wins.
· Will Power, finished second, his sixth podium of the season.
· Dario Franchitti finished third, his sixth podium of the season.
HONDA EDMONTON INDY POST-RACE QUOTES:
SCOTT DIXON (No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, winner Honda Indy Edmonton): "Brian always says that if you're blocking going into any corner and you are on the right side - especially into Turn 1, you're going to get a penalty. We get told every week, so you could see something was going to happen. We had a great run with the Target car and kept it in a typical line. It was a tough day. The Target car was pretty loose. I can't believe that we won."
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Team Penske, finished 10th): "I never moved my line. I actually did move him outside. When you go side by side like that with your teammate and they just take it away from you, it's just absurd."
WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske, finished second): "I got a run on him and he blocked me. I would say a black flag is a pretty harsh penalty, but it is what it is. It was just one of those racing things. When you're leading on the last restart you want to keep the lead."
ALEX TAGLIANI (No. 77 Bower & Wilkins/Hot Wheels): "It was an unfortunate incident for the no.77 Bowers & Wilkins Hot Wheels car. I think our first stint was a good one. We went long saving fuel and doing the best thing with what we had. I think we could have finished in the top ten but it was just an unfortunate incident in turn 1 that ended our day. We made up six positions and the Fazzt guys did a really good job. Our strategy was good, our car was better than it had been so I think a top ten finish was in our reach." (About incident with Kanaan): "I think Turn 1 was the best place to pass. I got an opportunity and I took it. I think Tony (Kanaan) braked on the inside of Turn 1 and left the rubber line wide open. When I exited Turn 1, I felt like I left him a lot of room and stayed close to the wall. Then I felt a touch from behind on the right rear, got spun around then got hit on the left side. I'm disappointed. The whole Fazzt team is disappointed. This isn't the way we wanted things to go here in Canada. We had realistic expectation coming in but didn't leave with the results we had hoped for. This teams works hard and we'll regroup and look to do better at the next few races."
MARCO ANDRETTI (No. 26 Team Venom Energy): "We had to give 110 percent with the Venom car today and things just didn't go our way. Once we get on the right side of circumstance and once things actually go our way the 26 car will be pretty tough to get around."
TONY KANAAN (No. 11 Team 7-Eleven): "I've raced a long time and I understand bad days, but this one was right up there with the longest of them for us. We have a lot of work to do to try and get better."
RYAN HUNTER-REAY (No. 37 Team IZOD, finished fifth): "Coming out of here with a top five almost feels like a victory. The guys did a great job and it was another good points day for us. We just didn't really have it this weekend. But, sometimes a team is measured by how well they do at a time when they're missing a little something and I think Team IZOD showed what it is made of."
DANICA PATRICK (No. 7 Team GoDaddy.com): "It was a good effort by the #7 GoDaddy.com team. Overall the weekend was really rough and disappointing for not only me, but for the whole Andretti team. It was just a chain of events that led us to this finish, so we'll look to do better in Mid-Ohio."
HIDEKI MUTOH (No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic): "The race wasn't good for us. We started on the red alternate Firestone tires and the balance was good but we just couldn't find any grip. On the next set somehow the pressure in the rear tires didn't come up for maybe 15 laps. After that the car was very good at one point but I spun and lost some positions. On the final stint we put primary tires on and the car balance was loose again so it was very hard to stay on the track. I couldn't fight."
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Team Penske, finished 10th): "Obviously, I disagree with the decisions made by the race officials on the last restart in today's race, but there is no excuse for my actions after the checkered flag. I apologize to my team, our sponsors, the fans and the entire IZOD IndyCar Series community for my behavior. My actions were totally wrong and I acted inappropriately to some people who are my friends and people I respect very much. Obviously, I am a very emotional person and today I let my emotions get the better of me and I'm very sorry for that."
PAUL TRACY (No. 15 Make-A-Wish KV Racing Technology, finished sixth): "It was a good finish for the Honda Canada - Make-A-Wish - Motegi Wheels - KV Racing team today. Our goal was to make money for Make-A-Wish these last two weeks and they raised over $112,000 for the two races. It feels great to help the kids and the families. My second goal was to have a good time. Then we wanted a good finish and we pulled it off today. It feels so good to race in front of the Canadian fans. They really enjoy their racing. Both Toronto and Edmonton support these events so well. It is tough to come in as a spot driver and perform well. This place is so hard and physical on a driver. So coming from 15th and finish sixth feels very good. I just wish we could get the car figured out earlier in the weekend to get a better starting spot. I think we can race with the leaders if can do that. Overall, today was good for the whole KV Racing team. I just wish I could race again this year."
MARIO MORAES (No. 32KV Racing Technology, finished seventh): "It was a good race for our KV crew. I was trying to be patient with the tires in the first stint. We were able to run long on fuel in the first stint and that helped you. I am happy with the top-ten finish after the problem we had in qualifying. We had some great pit stops and a great team effort in the race. Now, I hope we can continue that momentum into Mid-Ohio."
E.J. VISO (No. 8 PDVSA-Jet Aviation-KV Racing Technology): "It was definitely a tough race. I made a couple of mistakes early in the race. But overall, my PDVSA - KV Racing crew did a great job with a strong qualifying performance. The car was good in the race. We were in a fuel conservation mode and I lost a few positions. I considered it a racing incident with Simona (de Silvestro). She didn't give any space and I think she didn't see me. So we banged tires. The officials gave me a driving through penalty and that didn't help us going back in the pack. But we recovered well and we got back to eighth. We want to be ready for Mid-Ohio now after the team did a good job this weekend."
MARIO ROMANCINI (No. 34 Conquest Racing): "I am very disappointed as everybody knows that this might be my last race because we don't have any sponsors, so I really would like to have had a good result. We had a good pace during the race but unfortunately it's such a bad luck as it is the third race in a row that I can't finish. In Toronto, someone took me out and here I got involved in an accident that I could not avoid, with Tagliani spinning in front of me. Other than that,we had a great weekend and I hope I can be back in the car soon and maybe I can do some more races this year".
BERTRAND BAGUETTE (No. 36 Conquest Racing RACB): "I think we had a consistent race today. On my first stint I was able to gain some positions and then I got stuck in traffic and I worked on saving fuel. On my second pit stop I lost some positions but I was on black tires and my car had a good balance and I was following Tony Kanaan all the time, which I consider a good reference, but unfortunately I couldn't improve my track position. Overall it was a good weekend and now I am looking forward to our next race in Mid Ohio."
RAPHAEL MATOS (No. 2 HP de Ferran Dragon Racing): "Taking into account the incident on the second lap, I'm happy we were able to salvage some points and finish in 13th. It's so frustrating that Paul compromised our race. The guys did a great job in the pits to help recover. Overall, I'm very frustrated, as we had the pace to finish much higher but, again, I think it was a great effort to come back after that set back."
JUSTIN WILSON, No. 22 Z-Line Designs: "The Z-Line Designs car was improving in our first stint and I was able to drive the car the way I had wanted. Right after our first stop my right rear shock broke and I was just trying to control the car and not get into anyone. We will have a look at why the shock failed and continue on. I'm looking forward to testing at Mid-Ohio next week to prepare for the race."
TOMAS SCHECKTER, No. 24 MonaVie: "It was a really tough race today. I think that I misled everyone and pointed them in the wrong direction with the car. We had to come in and make an early stop to change the front wing, I really don't know what went wrong there. Overall it was a really tough day and I just tried to hang in there the whole race. I just have to thank MonaVie and Dreyer & Reinbold Racing for the opportunity. We can definitely leave Edmonton with some positives like qualifying well and hopefully we can take that on to some more races."
TAKUMA SATO (No. 5 Lotus - KV Racing Technology): "It was a good day for the Lotus - KV Racing Technology team. I enjoyed racing here and the race itself was very exciting. There was a lot of side-by-side and overtaking on this circuit, which I experienced a lot of today. On the last stint, I was so frustrated being stuck behind a lapped car. Its okay for a few corners or even a lap, but it held me up for so long, almost 15 laps. We tried to speak to their team to ask them to move over but for some reason it wasn't happening. On the last restart, my teammate PT (Paul Tracy) went wide and onto the grass. I was alongside him when he came back on track forcing me wide and nearly losing it, but I managed to hold on and and keep position. Later TK (Tony Kanaan) hit me from behind and spun me round, so I lost a couple of positions on that lap, but he did apologize to me after the race. That was a shame but it was still a good day for the Lotus team."
RYAN BRISCOE (No. 6 Team Penske, finished fourth): "It was a tough race because I nicked the wall only a few laps into the race and bent the rear toe link. From that point on the car was a handful, especially on the restarts. When the tires were clean and hot, the car was still very fast and I was able to get by the Ganassi cars. Unfortunately, I just couldn't hold them off on the restarts. It was disappointing that we couldn't battle for the win today but I'm happy that we were able to hold on and get a good finish."
EDMONTON 100 (Firestone Indy Lights) POST-RACE NOTES:
· This is James Hinchcliffe's second Firestone Indy Lights win. He won earlier this year at Long Beach.
· Both of Hinchcliffe's wins were flag-to-flag. This is the fourth time this season the race winner has lead flag-to-flag (Long Beach, Iowa, Toronto, Edmonton).
· Rookie J.K. Vernay finished second, his seventh podium finish in eight starts this season.
· Martin Plowman finished third, his best road/street course finish in 2010.
· Plowman continues to be the only driver to finish in the top 10 of every Firestone Indy Lights race this season. He is also the only driver to complete every lap of every race in 2010.
EDMONTON 100 (Firestone Indy Lights) POST-RACE QUOTES:
JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 2 Xtreme Coil Drilling TMR, winner Edmonton 100): It's obviously a fantastic feeling. It's the first time I've managed to win here in my open wheel career. To get it finally done -- I've come close a couple times, come close here a couple times. To finally get it feels extra special. That cool-down lap was a lot of fun, seeing all the fans in the stands. And thanks to all them for coming out because it's such a great event. It certainly wasn't easy. JK made me work for it, that's for sure.
J.K. VERNAY (No. 7 Lucas/CJ/Sam Schmidt Motorsports, second): It was a great race with James. Did a great race, no mistakes, nothing for me to pass. Since the start I was behind him. I really tried to push hard and to take him. But he didn't give me a real chance, I have to say. And it was really good. Canada looks good for me. One victory, one second place. So I think it's good. We have to continue like that for the next race and trying to push hard and to work with my engine. But it was great. And just yesterday, I mean, qualifying is really important. And in Toronto I was in front for half a tenth and here I'm behind half a tenth again. So it's racing. And we hope to come back in the first position for the next race.
MARTIN PLOWMAN (No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinkles/KEP Printing, third): I think there's a lot of hard work. We're pushing for the first win, trying to hold that consistency, just a one race win. So this year we're just building a lot of momentum with the team and I'm growing confidence all the time with my engineers and we're getting faster. Starting to challenge for the podiums and front rows now. One of these days we're going to get it, I hope.
CHARLIE KIMBALL (No. 26 Levemir FlexPen, fourth): "It was really good. It was very and a ver physical track. I got hung up behind my teammate and he's driving the same car as me, so there was no way I could pass him. The last five laps, I had a vibration, so I was really just holding on at the end."
DAN CLARKE (No. 40 Wasteco Deans Knight Special, fifth): "It was a good weekend. I'm happy for the top-five finish. It shows how much this team has improved over the last two months."
The Next IZOD IndyCar Series race is the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio on Aug 8 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The race will be televised by VERSUS at 3 p.m. (EDT). The next Firestone Indy Lights race is the Mid-Ohio 100 on on Aug 8 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
IZOD IndyCar Series Honda Indy Edmonton results
EDMONTON, Alberta - Results Sunday of the Honda Indy Edmonton IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 1.973 mile Edmonton Airport Circuit, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (3) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
2. (1) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
3. (4) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
4. (5) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
5. (8) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
6. (15) Paul Tracy, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
7. (14) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
8. (6) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
9. (13) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
10. (2) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 95, Running
11. (16) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 94, Running
12. (24) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 94, Running
13. (10) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 94, Running
14. (20) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 94, Running
15. (21) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 94, Running
16. (23) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 93, Running
17. (11) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 93, Running
18. (18) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 92, Running
19. (12) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 90, Running
20. (22) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 90, Running
21. (9) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 88, Running
22. (7) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 87, Out of Fuel
23. (19) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 52, Contact
24. (17) Mario Romancini, Dallara-Honda, 52, Contact
25. (25) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 4, Handling
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 01:50:37.0551
Winners average speed: 101.666
Margin of Victory: 2.6688 seconds
Cautions: 4 for 10 laps
Lead changes: 4 among 3 drivers
Lap Leaders: Power 1 - 34, Dixon 35, Power 36-77. Castroneves 78-94, Dixon 95.
Point Standings: Power 420, Franchitti 370, Dixon 349, Briscoe 324, Hunter-Reay 316, Castroneves 305, Kanaan 291, Wilson 252, Andretti 244, Wheldon 243.
Firestone Indy Lights Edmonton 100 RESULTS
EDMONTON, Alberta - Results Sunday of the Edmonton 100 Firestone Indy Lights event on the 1.973-mile Edmonton City Centre Airport circuit, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (1) James Hinchcliffe, 50, Running
2. (2) JK Vernay, 50, Running
3. (3) Martin Plowman, 50, Running
4. (4) Charlie Kimball, 50, Running
5. (5) Dan Clarke, 50, Running
6. (8) Sebastian Saavedra, 50, Running
7. (7) Stefan Wilson, 50, Running
8. (9) Adrian Campos Jr, 50, Running
9. (6) Gustavo Yacaman, 50, Running
10. (10) Philip Major, 50, Running
11. (11) Pippa Mann, 50, Running
12. (12) Rodrigo Barbosa, 50, Running
13. (13) Carmen Jorda, 6, Mechanical
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 58:33.2721
Winners average speed: 101.085
Margin of victory: 1.2273 seconds
Cautions: 1 for 3 laps
Lead changes: 0
Lap Leaders: Hinchcliffe 1-50
Point Standings: Vernay 335, Hinchcliffe 280, Plowman 253, Kimball 252, Saavedra 239, Wilson 202, Yacaman 187, Clarke 184, Major 184, Campos 165.
July 25 2010
EDMONTON, Alberta - Qualifying Saturday for the Honda Indy Edmonton IZOD IndyCar Series
Event is on the 1.973-mile(s) Edmonton City Centre Airport circuit, with starting position, car number in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, time and speed in parentheses:
1. (12) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 1:00.7126 (116.991)
2. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 1:00.7891 (116.843)
3. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.2395 (115.984)
4. (10) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.2481 (115.968)
5. (6) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.3799 (115.719)
6. (8) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.6122 (115.282)
7. (78) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.5438 (115.410)
8. (37) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.5596 (115.381)
9. (22) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.5887 (115.326)
10. (2) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.7015 (115.116)
11. (06) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.1935 (114.205)
12. (24) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.8751 (112.967)
13. (5) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 1:01.9181 (114.713)
14. (32) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.1324 (114.317)
15. (15) Paul Tracy, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.3264 (113.961)
16. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.1465 (114.291)
17. (34) Mario Romancini, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.4191 (113.792)
18. (19) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.2203 (114.156)
19. (77) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.5240 (113.601)
20. (36) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.5193 (113.610)
21. (7) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.5795 (113.500)
22. (4) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.7397 (113.211)
23. (14) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 1:02.7511 (113.190)
24. (11) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, No Time (No Speed)
25. (18) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, No Time (No Speed)
EDMONTON, Alberta - Qualifying Saturday for the Edmonton 100 Firestone Indy Lights event , with starting position, car number in parentheses, driver, time and speed in parentheses:
1. (2) James Hinchcliffe, 1:06.2160 (107.267)
2. (7) JK Vernay, 1:06.2269 (107.249)
3. (27) Martin Plowman, 1:06.2707 (107.179)
4. (26) Charlie Kimball, 1:06.3802 (107.002)
5. (40) Dan Clarke, 1:06.7234 (106.451)
6. (10) Gustavo Yacaman, 1:06.7522 (106.405)
7. (28) Stefan Wilson, 1:06.7741 (106.371)
8. (29) Sebastian Saavedra, 1:06.9172 (106.143)
9. (22) Adrian Campos Jr., 1:07.2857 (105.562)
10. (49) Philip Major, 1:07.4408 (105.319)
11. (11) Pippa Mann, 1:08.1569 (104.212)
12. (18) Rodrigo Barbosa, 1:08.9418 (103.026)
13. (4) Carmen Jorda, 1:09.1981 (102.644)
POWER TAKES POLE FOR HONDA EDMONTON INDY
EDMONTON, Alberta (Saturday, July 24, 2010) - Will Power earned his sixth PEAK Performance Pole Award of the season (the fifth on road/street courses), slipping past Team Penske teammate Helio Castroneves by 0.0765 of a second in the Firestone Fast Six session on the 1.973-mile, 14-turn City Centre Airport course, for the Honda Indy Edmonton.
Scott Dixon, the 2008 race winner, in the No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing car had a best lap of 1:01.2395 in the Firestone Fast Six and will start next to teammate Dario Franchitti (1:01.2481) on Row 2. Team Penske's Ryan Briscoe (1:01.3799) and E.J. Viso, making his first appearance in the Firestone Fast Six this season in the No. 8 PDVSA KV Racing Technology car (1:01.6122), will be on the third row.
Rookie Simona de Silvestro will start a season-high seventh in the No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds/HVM Racing car, and Andretti Autosport's Ryan Hunter-Reay also will be on Row 4 in the No. 37 IZOD entry.
Also on July 24, James Hinchcliffe earned the pole for the Edmonton 100, edging championship points leader J.K. Vernay late in the qualifying session.
Hinchcliffe, the driver of the No. 2 TMR-Xtreme Coil Drilling car, recorded a best lap of 1 minute, 6.2159 seconds. It's the fourth time this season that Hinchcliffe will start on the pole and fifth time on the front row.
Martin Plowman (1:06.2707) in the No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing car for AFS Racing Andretti Autosport will join teammate Charlie Kimball (1:06.3802), driving the No. 26 Levemir FlexPen entry, on Row 2.
The chief mechanics for Team Penske's No. 3 and No. 6 cars are not in Edmonton this weekend due to injuries sustained away from the track.
Sean Hanrahan, chief mechanic for No. 3 Helio Castroneves is not at Edmonton after surgery for a hernia this week. Rick Rinaman, who served as chief mechanic on the car prior to this season, is filling in as chief mechanic and as outside front tire changer on the car. Hanrahan is expected to return to chief mechanic duties at Mid Ohio.
Matt Jonsson, chief mechanic for No. 6 Ryan Briscoe, remains out of action with a broken right ankle. Jonsson, who served as chief mechanic at Toronto, is not in Edmonton. John Stanchina, who was the outside front tire changer on the car last week in Toronto, will return as chief mechanic and outside front tire changer on the car Jonsson is expected to return to chief mechanic duties at Mid Ohio.
Firestone Indy Lights driver James Hinchcliffe is doing double duty this weekend. The Canadian is serving as a driver analyst for the Honda Indy Edmonton public address system during IZOD IndyCar Series practice and qualifying.
"I've done some television and radio work in the past and was the color analyst at the Indianapolis 500 this year for the IMS Radio Network," he said. "I'm happy to lend my expertise to the event when I can. Obviously, driving the TMR car takes priority.
IZOD IndyCar Series entrant FAZZT Race Team and Canadian driver Alex Tagliani are lending their support to Montreal-based non-governmental organization ONE DROP. The ONE DROP logo has been on display on the No.77 FAZZT Bowers & Wilkins Hot Wheels at the Honda Indy Toronto (July 17-19) and Honda Indy Edmonton (July 23-25)
Established in October of 2007, ONE DROP—an initiative of Guy Laliberté, the founder of Cirque du Soleil®—fights poverty through its projects aimed at supporting access to water in developing countries and raising each and every one's awareness of water-related issues worldwide.
ANDRÉ AZZI (FAZZT Race Team owner): "As CEO of Fazzt Race Team, I am so proud to be associated with ONE DROP. It's sad to know that in 2010, people around the world still lack access to safe water. Our hope is to help raise awareness and get race fans in both Canada and the United States, as well as our international followers, to support water for all."
ALEX TAGLIANI (driver, FAZZT Race Team): "Our goal is to use our team, the sport we love and our visibility amongst IndyCar fans to help bring attention to this vital issue and make the world just a little bit better for everyone. We're blessed to be able to go racing or enjoy it as a fan, but it's also nice to have the opportunity to do something important for others as well. We hope to an impact even just by educating people and letting them know about what ONE DROP is all about."
LILI-ANNA PEREŠA, executive director, ONE DROP): "We very much appreciate the support of the FAZZT Race Team in spreading our message and supporting safe water for all. Water and poverty are closely linked. When populations have easy access to water, they have more time to devote to activities that enable them to improve their living conditions. Health, equality between men and women, a decent income and food security all depend on having access to water."
John Cummiskey, team manager of de Ferran Dragon Racing, is wearing the CF-18 Hornet patch presented to him by Capt. Brian Bews during last year's Edmonton race weekend.
Capt. Bews ejected from his CF-18 Hornet as the plane plunged toward the ground during a practice session July 23 for the Alberta International Air Show in Lethbridge. Capt. Bews remained in a Saskatchewan hospital July 24, listed in stable condition. The Defense Department is investigating the crash.
Capt. Bews was among the guests of de Ferran Dragon Racing at the City Centre Airport in 2009.
PEAK PERFORMANCE POLE QUALIFYING NOTES:
Will Power won the pole for the Honda Indy Edmonton, his sixth pole of the season. He also won the pole at Edmonton in 2009.
This is Power's fourth consecutive front row start.
Helio Castroneves will start second. Castroneves has started no worse than third in three starts at Edmonton.
Scott Dixon will start third, his 43rd consecutive top-10 start, further extending the series record.
Dario Franchitti will start fourth, his seventh consecutive top-five start of the season.
Ryan Briscoe will start fifth, his sixth top-five start of the season.
E.J. Viso will start sixth, his best start of the season. His previous best start in 2010 was ninth at St. Petersburg. This is the first time that Viso has qualified for the Firestone Fast Six in 2010.
Simona De Silvestro will start seventh, her best start of the season. De Silvestro missed the Firestone Fast Six by .146 of a second. Her previous best start was 11th at Sao Paulo.
Raphael Matos will start 8th, his best starting position of the season. His previous best was 11th at both Watkins Glen and Toronto.
Tomas Scheckter will start 12th, his best qualifying effort of the 2012 season.
PEAK PERFORMANCE POLE QUALIFYING QUOTES:
WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske): "It's awesome to get the Verizon car on the pole again. All the points count and I know here it's important to be at the front because it is tough to pass. If all the strategy goes well, like it did last year, it makes it easier to win. It's a long day tomorrow. We have a good starting spot and we have to keep going to win this championship." (What makes you so good at this track?): "We've all work really hard. Obviously, last year the cats were really good. But this year, I had trouble trying to beat my teammate. It's good to see two Team Penske cars on the front row."
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Team Penske): "We had a very good lap out there and I just made a little mistake and this place is about not making mistakes. Will is making us better - me, Ryan and the team. He's pushing hard and I'm pushing hard, too. It's a shame we couldn't make it, but we're getting closer. We can win the race from (second)."
DARIO FRANCHITTI (No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing): "We just missed it a little bit. Ultimately, it wasn't a bad (Firestone) Fast Six for us."
E.J. VISO (No. 8 PDVSA-Jet Aviation-KV Racing Technology): "It was a good run today and a good qualifying effort against very tough guys. We put in so much effort to go up against the Penske and Ganassi drivers that we didn't have a set of stickers that we could use in the last run. We needed another two or three tenths from a set of stickers and we could have qualified in P4. We're happy. It's a tough race and a long race and we have the resources to finish up with those guys."
TAKUMA SATO (No. 5 Lotus - KV Racing Technology): "The first group was the toughest group today. I didn't get a good feeling during the first run with the primary tires. However, when we went to the alternate tire, the car was getting better and it looked like it was all coming together. Unfortunately the times were so close that we missed the top-12 by just a tenth. I tried everything we had but we just couldn't find the grip so I'm very disappointed we didn't make it through to Q2 today."
MARIO MORAES (No. 32 KV Racing Technology): "Unfortunately, my KV Racing car had some understeer in qualifying. We couldn't put a lap together to reach the Top 12. We just missed at the end of session. Overall, our balance in the car is pretty good for the race. I hope to get a good start and move up in the race."
PAUL TRACY (No. 15 Make-A-Wish KV Racing Technology): "We were put in the hardest group possible today. There were three Penskes, a Ganassi car, Wilson and others. That group was just stacked with a lot of fast guys. It's a shame because we just didn't have enough to transfer to the second round. We missed by a little today. It's tough to start 15th on Sunday. I really wanted to start further up in the grid for the Make A Wish, Honda Canada and Motegi Wheels people. We had been a top-seven car all weekend leading into qualifying. I'm disappointed for everyone. We'll have to drive through the field again in the race."
DAN WHELDON (No. 4 National Guard Panther Racing): "A lot of the things we've learned from the Soldiers in the National Guard are really helpful on a day like today - it's their 'never give up' and 'never say die' attitude that gets them through tough situations and that's what everybody on the National Guard Panther Racing team is going to strive for as we look forward to tomorrow's race. We've learned some key things in the last two days here in Edmonton and myself and everybody on this team are going to work hard tonight and tomorrow in the warm-up to improve the No. 4 car so that we're a factor in the race. We've overcome some challenges in each of the past two IZOD IndyCar Series races and the fans that will be here tomorrow and the ones watching on TV are going to see the same effort during the race tomorrow."
MARIO ROMANCINI (No. 34 Conquest Racing): "After the morning practice, we got a pretty good balance and I was happy with the car. But in qualifying when we tried the red tires, the balance changed a lot, and the car was very lose and we missed quite a lot of time because of that. It wasn't so bad for us as P17 is the best position start so far in the season, so we can't complain a lot, but based on what happened this morning, we were expecting to be a bit better, but the race is going to be long tomorrow, and I think we will have a solid race car."
BERTRAND BAGUETTE (No. 36 Conquest Racing/RACB): "The qualification session was a little bit better for us. On the first set of tires it wasn't so good, but then we did some few good modifications for the second set. Unfortunately, I hit the wall on my second lap and I damaged the left corner of my car; and after that it was harder for sure. I still did my best driving the car, but without that damage it would be a lot quicker. We are P20, the race is long and quite physical so everything is possible".
HIDEKI MUTOH (No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic): "We improved a lot overnight; it was a significant improvement. Then we had a good practice session and ended fourth fastest and I was quite happy, balance-wise so we kept the same balance in qualifying but the temperature went a lot warmer and the balance changed. We tried many things during the qualifying session to try to find a better balance but we just didn't find it in the limited time. It was good to get back in Round 2 after not making it the past two events. It was good news for me and I was trying to get into the next round for the top-six but it was difficult because the balance changed a lot. In Toronto we found a good race setup and although it's not the same layout here at all but I think we can apply it here. It's going to be a tough race. My arms are already banged up a little."
DANICA PATRICK (No. 7 Team GoDaddy.com): "Coming off of a strong weekend in Toronto, we were hoping to keep the momentum going into Edmonton for the GoDaddy.com car. I was in a really tough qualifying group, and I didn't have the speed to make it into the top six today. The first couple laps of tomorrow's race will be very important, and hopefully we'll come out with some clean laps."
TONY KANAAN (No. 11 Team 7-Eleven): "It was a tough day for Team 7-Eleven and for the whole team. Sometimes when you're struggling as a team, you try to do too much when you get in the car, and that's what happened. I'm driving the car, so I'm the only one to blame. You try to set the world on fire because you trust in yourself and have a lot of confidence that you can make a difference. Sometimes you go over the limit."
RYAN HUNTER-REAY (No. 37 Team IZOD): "We definitely recovered a little bit since yesterday, but we're still struggling with something. We're not satisfied with our qualifying effort overall as a team. But, I know the IZOD guys will give me a great race car. I always know when I wake up in the morning on race day that I've got a shot to put that thing in the top five. We'll do our best at getting a good race car under us tomorrow, but eighth today was like a home run."
RAPHAEL MATOS (No. 2 HP de Ferran Dragon Racing): It was a good qualifying session today. It was great to advance to the second round. We made some improvements to the car between the first and second rounds. We're missing a little bit, but we are close on the set-up and we keep getting closer. This is a physically demanding track and that will make for a long race, but I have been training really hard and I feel really fit. So I'm hoping that will help me in the race tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it.
MARCO ANDRETTI (No. 26 Team Venom Energy): "We really needed to take advantage of the Firestone reds today and unfortunately we just weren't able to find the grip we needed. Track position is crucial at a place like this so it's frustrating for the Venom car to start where we are. We'll do what we can to make the best out of the race tomorrow."
ALEX TAGLIANI (No. 77 Bowers & Wilkins/Hot Wheels): "It wasn't so much that the group one draw was so competitive it's that we just weren't competitive like we should be. It's no secret that we've been struggling to find a set up all weekend. We're a bit lost at the moment with a car that has a lot of understeer, is very nervous with some push. I just feels really unstable and just doesn't have any bit even with the Firestone red tires on. The way the car feels on the track, I would have been very surprised if we had made it out of our group to battle for the Firestone Fast 6. We're not going to give up. The Fazzt guys will keep working to find something to make the no.77 Bower & Wilkins Hot Wheels car better and we'll also try to be creative with our strategy for the race. Until that checkered flag drops we're going to fight."
JUSTIN WILSON (No. 22 Team Z-Line Designs/DRR): "The Z-Line Designs car was quick and I would have thought I was running P2 if the crew hadn't told me my lap times and position. I lost a bit of rear grip on my final two laps and unfortunately we missed the Firestone Fast Six by a couple of tenths. I think we have a good race car and will go over the data tonight and work out a game plan for the race. I'm looking forward to tomorrow and hopefully we can pick up positions throughout the race."
TOMAS SCHECKTER (No. 24 MonaVie/DRR): "Today was a lot better. Considering the fact that I have only been on road courses for only about four or five days this year, we definitely are getting better and developing the car and getting the time that we need. We didn't want to do any more so after we made the top-12 we saved two sets of the Firestone Firehawk Alternate (red sidewall) tires. I'm really pleased with the MonaVie car and it really seems to suit the Firestone Firehawk "red" tires, so I'm really looking forward to tomorrow."
RYAN BRISCOE (No. 6 Team Penske): "It's really exciting as usual. This track, it's exciting. It's really fast and bumpy, but you can really attack the bumps and push the car hard. It's a lot of fun out there. My car wasn't really to my liking. We made probably too many changes going into qualifying just trying to find an extra couple of 10ths and sort of went backwards a bit. It was a little disappointing for me. I thought we would have a shot at pole today, but we didn't have the speed. It was good to get in the Fast Six. It was tough to get through Q1. It was just really good. I mean, no yellow flags at all, so the whole field was very consistent on such a challenging track. But fifth is good. I started on the front row the last two years and it didn't work out for me, so maybe starting fifth will help."
SIMONA DE SILVESTRO (No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds/HVM): "Starting seventh with some of the big guys in front of us is something pretty special. We put two sets of reds (Firestone alternate tires) on in the first session. I think if we would have had a fresh set of reds in the second session we would have been a bit quicker. But the whole team at HVM can be really happy. They've worked really hard all weekend, and now we just have to try to move forward and I think it could be a good race for us. If we can duplicate what we did in Toronto -- moving forward in the race -- I think with this starting position it's going to be good."
VITOR MEIRA (No. 14 ABC Supply Co./A.J. Foyt Racing): "It's not a weekend we were expecting to be honest. We came out of Toronto with a decent result, it wasn't an optimum weekend there, but we learned a bunch of things. We unloaded here and it wasn't good, we have been chasing a moving target here. We don't know where to pinpoint where the problem is. We're trying things, very aggressive things. We're going through every piece of information, but so far, we have not figured out what we can improve. We're talking about a second here, so it's not a small detail. Maybe it's a lot of small things or one big thing but we'll keep our heads down and keep working. We have one practice left to get it right."
SUNOCO POLE QUALIFYING QUOTES:
JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 2 Xtreme Coil Drilling- TMR, SUNOCO Pole Award winner): "It never hurts to start up front, but it was a little bit too close there. As I said to my engineer Lee Dykstra, it's a little bit of payback for Toronto, where we sort of sat up at the top and then J.K. (Vernay) pulled it out on us at the end. But credit to him, he's been super quick all weekend. He's such a tough competitor. A huge thanks to Team Moore. This is sort of (team co-owner) Tom Wood's hometown here so to get a pole at the home race is great."
MARTIN PLOWMAN, (No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing, qualified third): "That was a really tough qualifying session. The times were extremely close. At one point, I was two-thousandths from pole. I put in another quick lap, but we ran out of time. The top three were separated by less than half a tenth. When it's that close, it's just about who gets it that day. I think I got the best out of the car today. I know we have a really strong race car, so it's going to be a great race tomorrow."
CHARLIE KIMBALL (No. 26 Levemir FlexPen, qualified fourth): "That was a great effort by everyone. Qualifying is really close. We didn't quite have that last couple of tenths to put it on pole. I know the #26 Levemir® car will be quick on lap 50 tomorrow, when it really matters. I think we should be ready to go have a good race tomorrow."
SUNDAY'S SCHEDULE (All time local):
9:20 - 9:40 a.m.
Firestone Indy Lights warmup
10- 10:30 a.m.
IZOD IndyCar Series warmup
12:30 p.m.
Firestone Indy Lights Edmonton 100 pre-race
1 p.m.
Firestone Indy Lights Edmonton 100 (50 laps
3 p.m.
IZOD IndyCar Series Honda Indy Edmonton pre-race
4 p.m.
Honda Indy Edmonton (95 laps), VERSUS (Live)
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 25 with the Honda Indy Edmonton at Edmonton City Centre Airport. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 5 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 212. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Edmonton 100 on July 25 at Edmonton City Centre Airport.
July 24 2010
POWER LEADS OPENING DAY OF PRACTICE AT EDMONTON
EDMONTON, Alberta (Friday, July 23, 2010) - The drivers who have earned the six PEAK Performance Pole Awards on street/road courses this season gave a preview of what's to come in the first round of IZOD IndyCar Series qualifications July 24 for the Honda Indy Edmonton. Of the top 12 on the combined practice time sheet July 23, eight are in that first group.
"It will be the toughest qualifying session of the year," said Will Power, the defending race winner who topped the field with a quick lap of 1 minute, 1.6689 seconds (115.176 mph) in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske car over the two hours of practice on the 1.973-mile, 14-turn City Centre Airport circuit.
Teammates Ryan Briscoe was two-tenths of a second behind and Helio Castroneves was third with a best lap of 1:02.0152. The top 11 cars were separated by less than a second.
"It's great to see the Verizon car on top in practice, but I'm not quite happy with it," said Power, who is seeking his third consecutive victory. "The Penske team is very strong again here and with how competitive the field is now we have to work extra hard. We're feeding off each other and see if we can be 1-2-3 again tomorrow."
Also on July 23, Martin Plowman topped the time chart in Firestone Indy Lights practice for the Edmonton 100.
Plowman, driving the No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing car for AFS Racing Andretti Autosport, jumped to the top of the chart with two minutes remaining in the hour-long session with a lap of 1 minute, 7.1508 seconds (105.774 mph).
James Hinchcliffe, who has started on the front row of all three street circuits this season, transferring the pole start at Long Beach into his first Firestone Indy Lights victory, was second quick (1:07.3366; 105.482 mph) in the No. 2 TMR-Xtreme Coil Drilling car.
Charlie Kimball (1:07.3765), series points leader J.K. Vernay (1:07.8383) and Adrian Campos Jr. (1:07.8491) filled out the top five.
DAY 1 NOTEBOOK:
The IZOD IndyCar Series will compete in the Honda Indy Edmonton, a 95-lap race at 4 p.m. (MT) Sunday (live on VERSUS). The Firestone Indy Lights series will compete in the Edmonton 100, a 50-lap race at 1 p.m. Sunday.
Live timing and scoring reports from the Honda Indy Edmonton and Edmonton 100 are available on the Internet at www.indycar.com. The live timing and scoring module provides statistical information, including track segment speeds, lap information and much more.
Feature stories, reports, driver quotes and notes, and photos will be posted on the site each day. More detailed information, including media advisories and VNF coordinates, is available at media.indycar.com.
IZOD IndyCar Series technical information for the Honda Indy Edmonton:
Honda overtake assist
Overtake assist was introduced to the series in August 2009 and will make its debut at Edmonton City Centre Airport in the Honda Indy Edmonton.
The system employed by Honda Performance Development is an ECU software alteration. It is activated by the driver via a button on the steering wheel and provides an extra 200 RPM (about 10 horsepower) to the Honda Indy V-8 engine. Parameters are updated before each race weekend to meet the circuit layout.
For the 1.973-mile, 14-turn Edmonton City Centre Airport course:
20 uses
18 seconds duration each use
10-second recharge period between uses
Firestone Firehawk tires
Each car receives six sets (24 tires) of primary tires and three sets (12 tires) of the alternate (red-sidewall) tires.
Firestone Racing has developed an all-new primary tire specification for Edmonton this year, while the alternate was previously used at Barber Motorsports Park. The primary is on the more durable end of Firestone Racing's road/street course spectrum, while the alternate is in the mid-range of its tire lineup. The rain is the softer rain, and is the only rain tire we will be using for the 2010 season.
AL SPEYER (Executive Director of Firestone Racing): "This track is one of the bumpiest and fastest of the road and street course races, so we are bringing a durable primary tire to withstand the challenge. The alternate spec is a few steps softer than the primary, so it should create a noticeable difference in speed and durability."
Aero package
Edmonton is in the road course/short oval category of aero packages for the IZOD IndyCar Series. Here are mandatory and optional items for teams:
Rear wings: Tire ramps and sidepod extensions are optional.
Front wings: Wing flaps are open development area. Maximum of two elements per side is permitted and a divider is mandatory.
Andretti Autosport driver Danica Patrick is among the three top female sports stars in the nation, according to an annual Harris Interactive poll. Tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams are Nos. 1 and 2.
Team Penske has won the pole in Edmonton each of the past two seasons (Ryan Briscoe in 2008 and Will Power in 2009) and it's earned three podium finishes and one victory (last season with Power).
"It's a very tough, fast circuit and the No. 3 Team Penske car has done well, finishing second the last two years," Helio Castroneves said. "I love the fans in Edmonton. They appreciate our racing and they always seem to draw a big crowd."
Penske Racing earned its 150th open-wheel racing victory as Power won on the Toronto street circuit. Sixteen drivers have combined to produce the record number of wins since 1968.
Tony Kanaan of Andretti Autosport and Justin Wilson of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing incorporate cycling into their workout regimens. On July 21, they rode in Colorado with triathlete Julie Dibens, who the 2009 champion in both Xterra and 70.3 triathlons. Kanaan will compete Oct. 30 in the Rohto Ironman 70.3 in Miami.
JULIE DIBENS (Professional triathlete): "It's great to see how other professional athletes can be so passionate about
Xtrac, a global leader in motorsport transmissions, this weekend marks its 2 millionth mile run in IZOD IndyCar Series races, practices and tests as it prepares its specification for a lightweight transmission for the new chassis being introduced in 2012.
The UK- and U.S.-based gearbox manufacturer has been an exclusive supplier to the series for the past 10 years.
"Passing this momentous milestone marks a highly successful decade and longstanding relationship with one of the greatest race series in the world," Xtrac president and managing director Peter Digby said. "We now look forward to submitting our proposals for a new lightweight transmission and would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Dallara for winning the contract to supply the new chassis. We have already indicated to the series' promoters that we are willing to relocate to the new Speedway (Ind.) redevelopment area, which is very close to our existing facility in Indianapolis where we've been based since 2003."
As a major international customer, the IZOD IndyCar Series typifies for Xtrac the global nature of its business and represents a significant contract that has been successfully renewed six times since 2000 and which extends to the end of 2011.
The targeted minimum weight of the IndyCar Safety Cell is 1,380 pounds - almost 200 pounds lighter than the current car.
"This will require a significant weight saving for the transmission without compromising reliability and our well-established low running costs," Digby said. "This will be an interesting and exciting challenge for our technical capabilities, and we'll draw heavily on our experience in other premier motorsport series.
"It's serious business, but it's also tremendous fun and deeply satisfying designing a gearbox able to handle the prodigious power of a 650 horsepower race car capable of reaching speeds in excess of 230 mph," Digby said. "We also applaud the ICONIC's mission to reach out and challenge the automotive and aerospace industries to join in and enhance the relevancy of the series with advanced and innovative technology. We are fully supportive of technology transfer between industry sectors as demonstrated by our recent success at transferring motorsport technology into the military sector."
Kevin Martin toured the IZOD IndyCar Series garage area July 22 much like Danica Patrick did during the opening night of the Taste of Edmonton - incognito.
The Olympic gold medal-winning skip of Team Canada, however, was the center of attention (and it wasn't because of the gold medal from the Vancouver Games he was toting) of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing assistant engineer Daniel Louks, who just happens to be president of the Circle City Curling Club. Indianapolis? Who knew?
"It's always something I've been interested in and now it's one of my passions," said Louks, who attended the Games in February specifically to watch the curling competition. "We've been trying to get more people in Indianapolis involved. It's a sport you can play at almost all ages and it's a great way to get people active in the winter. It's less an individual sport; it's a full-on team sport. A lot of the things that interested me in racing apply to curling."
Martin, an Edmonton resident, is grand marshal of the Honda Indy Edmonton.
"I don't get star-struck very often, but it was pretty cool."
Martin received tutorials about the speed and technology of the cars and multi-functional steering wheels from IZOD IndyCar Series drivers Justin Wilson and Will Power.
"To be asked by Northlands to serve as grand marshal for both the Capital EX Parade and the Honda Indy Edmonton is a huge privilege," he said after leading the annual parade watched by more than 200,000 people lining the streets July 22. "I'm really looking forward to be able to tell the world's best and fastest open-wheel race drivers to start their engines."
De Ferran Dragon Racing's Raphael Matos received some coaching from longtime friend and former open-wheel champion David Empringham during last week's Honda Indy Toronto. They used to work together in the Atlantic Series. Matos swept the Atlantic doubleheader at Edmonton in 2007
RAPHAEL MATOS (No. 2 HP de Ferran Dragon Racing): "He is the kind of guy who pushes me very hard and he sees the specific areas I am lacking. He made me focus on one problem at a time. You cannot fix all the problems in the car at once. You have to fix the main issue and go from there. That really helped me focus on what was working and better communicate what I was feeling with the engineers."
Target Chip Ganassi Racing's Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti are two of nine current IZOD IndyCar Series drivers to make at least four starts on airport courses (CART previously held races at the Burke Lakefront Airport in Cleveland). Of the nine, Franchitti and Dixon are among only four to have recorded a victory: Franchitti in Cleveland, 2001; Dixon in Edmonton, 2008; Paul Tracy in Cleveland, 1993, 2005, 2007; Will Power in Edmonton, 2009.
Defending Honda Indy Edmonton winner Will Power has ties to Edmonton though he hails from Australia. Power's paternal grandmother, Jean Ella (Buchan) Power, was born in Brandon, Manitoba, but grew up and worked in Lethbridge, Alberta. Power's grandmother met Doug Power while he was stationed in Edmonton for flight training for the Edmonton Air Force. They were married in Montreal in 1944.
Ryan Hunter-Reay and Mario Andretti will be at the IZOD Haskell Invitational on Aug. 1 - along with vintage Indy cars - at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, N.J.
Medical update from Dr. Michael Olinger, IRL medical director: Sam Schmidt Motorsports driver Pippa Mann, who suffered a broken bone in her left hand during the Toronto race weekend, has been cleared to drive in the Firestone Indy Lights Edmonton 100.
Canadian Web hosting company BlackSun (www.blacksun.ca) will be sponsoring Team Moore Racing in the Edmonton 100 during the Honda Edmonton Indy event July 23 to 25. TMR, which is co-owned by Calgary native Tom Wood, fields cars for Canadian James Hinchcliffe and Spaniard Adrian Campos Jr.
"BlackSun is excited to be on the TMR car again this year," BlackSun chief executive officer Steve Rogoschewsky said. "The race weekend will also be a re-branding of our 'FAST, Reliable, Web Hosting' slogan, in conjunction with the 'accelerate your business' initiatives that have recently been announced at BlackSun."
Walker Racing's Dan Clarke is making his first Firestone Indy Lights start in Edmonton, but he has two prior starts Edmonton City Centre Airport. Clarke recorded a pair of top-10 finishes in Champ Car races in 2006 and 2007.
FIRESTONE INDY LIGHTS POST-PRACTICE QUOTES
MARTIN PLOWMAN (No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing, fastest of the day): "We rolled out of the truck pretty much where we needed to be. I was confident with the guys in the setup here. We've tested at circuits similar to this and the car was on rails. This circuit was very green to begin with, so I don't think it's representative of where we need to be in qualifying. We were constantly in the top two or three with the used tires. We tried a set (of sticker tires) at the end, but we didn't get up to speed with the new tires. We still have time to get on the new tires. We still have some work to do but I think we can be challenging for the podium, if not the win."
JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 2 Xtreme Coil Drilling -TMR, second fastest): "It's always great to come back here. I like the circuit, since the first time I came here. It's fast flowing. I have to thank the (IZOD) IndyCar (Series) drivers for going out first this morning, it was really kind of them. The track had a good amount of grip for a Friday first practice. The cars are pretty close. We are still having some of the same issues we had at the beginning of the weekend in Toronto. We saw what happened to us in the race there, so we are going to try and fix those in a hurry. But this really isn't a bad place to start the weekend.
CHARLIE KIMBALL (No. 26 Levemir FlexPen, third fastest): "I forgot how fun this place is to fun to drive. It's a blast for sure. The No. 26 Levemir® car was quick right out of the box. We ended up P3, but we have a few more adjustments to make. I know exactly what we want to do. The team did a great job getting it ready right after Toronto last weekend. We're going to have a lot of fun this weekend."
The flames that briefly engulfed the No. 11 Team 7-Eleven car on the City Centre Airport pit lane during last year's race was "one of the scariest moments of my career," Andretti Autosport driver Tony Kanaan recalls.
Quick action by pit crews and safety workers to douse the car and driver with water, along with Kanaan having the presence of mind to stop the car, was credited with minimizing damage and preventing potential serious burns.
"I said that I wanted to have a different kind of a shower this year," Kanaan jokes. "I want to have a champagne shower."
The fuel hose spewed ethanol on the car as it pulled away from the pit stall and a spark ignited the fuel.
"We always look back on incidents like that to find out what really happened," Kanaan said. "I've been around a long time and between the crashes and some accidents that have happened, you always go 'Wow, that was close.'
"Thank God our equipment is very safe, the driver's suit and the helmet did its job and I just burnt a tiny bit of my hand and my face."
Honda Performance Development has been testing a first gear lockout system, in which sensors on the fueling hose and car will disengage the gears until there is appropriate separation between the two. It is expected to be introduced yet this season.
Kanaan, with a victory at Iowa Speedway in June and coming off a fourth-place finish in the Honda Indy Toronto, enters the Honda Indy Edmonton in seventh place in the standings.
HPD parts and services division expands to Canada
Honda Performance Development is expanding its Honda Racing Line program to make HPD parts and services available to amateur and entry-level professional racers in Canada.
Launched in July 2009, the Honda Racing Line is a program targeted at licensed participants in sanctioned amateur and entry-level professional racing. Licensed Canadian competitors may register for the Honda Racing Line through HondaRacingLine.com.
Former Firestone Indy Lights driver and Indianapolis 500 competitor PJ Chesson became a father July 22. Cash Alan Chesson weighed in at 6 pounds, 10 ounces.
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES POST-PRACTICE QUOTES
WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske, fastest of the day): "The Verizon car is doing great, but we still have some work to do on the car to make it better. I don't have the feeling in the car that I had earlier in the day. The track is coming up to grip and I'd like to get a better feel for the car because the field will get faster and tomorrow will be the toughest qualifying session of the year."
RYAN BRISCOE (No. 6 Team Penske, second fastest): "I'm really happy with the Team Penske car right now. It's a good start to the weekend. I love this track. It is just so exciting. You're out there really pushing hard, jumping over curbs, it's just a lot of fun. It's good to be out there. The balance feels pretty close like we were use to last year."
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Team Penske, third fastest): "This is a good start for Team Penske, finishing the second practice 1-2-3. The No. 3 car group was struggling through some technical issues, but we figured out what the car needed and we are confident going into tomorrow's practice and qualifying. It's great to be back in Edmonton. I love this place."
DARIO FRANCHITTI (No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, fourth fastest): "The Target boys have done a good job and improved the car since last year when we were here. I need to do a slightly better job and hopefully we'll be up there in the mix for the race on Sunday."
SCOTT DIXON (No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, sixth fastest): "We worked on mostly just general setup today in both sessions. It seems as thought we were chasing the track. At the end of the second session today traffic played a bit of a role so we're looking forward to qualifying tomorrow."
RAPHAEL MATOS (No. 2 de Ferran Dragon Racing): "It was a complicated session today. We tried some things in the first session that didn't work, but we were able to recover during the second session. We made some huge improvements. We've got a reasonable start and are heading in the right direction, but we need to work further overnight."
MARCO ANDRETTI (No. 26 Team Venom Energy): "The Venom car didn't roll off quite as strong as we'd hoped it would. But we made good use of practice today, and we're chipping away at it. We'll use tomorrow's morning session to re-evaluate what we've learned and should be in better shape for qualifying."
HIDEKI MUTOH (No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic): "The track is a little bumpier than last year but that is what we would expect. The track is getting more grip in each session but we aren't gaining as much as we would like with each lap. We made a lot of changes, some good some bad, during the session. At one point I felt one change made the car better but at the same time I think the track got more grip so now I'm not sure if the lap time was because the setup improved or if it was the track. We're going to make a big change overnight that we hope will give us more grip."
RYAN HUNTER-REAY (No. 37 Team IZOD): "Practice 2 was just a messy session (with all the traffic). We never put a lap together on new tires. The good news is we've got some more speed in the car, but it's a question of how much. We have a lot of homework to do tonight. It's going to be a pivotal discussion to see what we can do find the speed we need."
TONY KANAAN (No. 11 Team 7-Eleven): "This is a tough track for us, for sure. We're a lot better this year than we have been, but we need to find a lot more. We have a lot of work to do. Ryan and I are trying to put our heads together and we're going to figure something out. It's not going to be easy. We'll make a plan together; we'll start on different paths in the morning and then meet somewhere before qualifying."
DANICA PATRICK (No. 7 Team GoDaddy.com): "The time sheets don't show much, but we are making progress with the GoDaddy car. The track was really green this morning, but was better this afternoon. It was hard to get a solid feel on the car during the second session because of traffic, but we are headed in the right direction."
EJ VISO (No. 8 PDVSA - Jet Aviation - KV Racing Technology): "We have a pretty complete car after the first day. The grid is so tight and this is one of those places that you have to push so much harder to pick up positions. You have to go over the limit sometimes. Putting all of the sectors of the track together is difficult too. This is a bumpy and unstable track, so it is very hard to run consistent laps here. It is even difficult to find the reference points under braking since you are going up and down in the cockpit. Your vision gets blurry. Overall, I think we have a good car going into qualifying. The track was slippery early but it should be good for qualifying on Saturday afternoon."
TAKUMA SATO No. 5 LOTUS - KV Racing Technology): "It is indeed a pretty unique track. It's my first time here on the Edmonton City Centre Airport track. It is so wide and extremely bumpy but we expected this. We made steady progress throughout the practice session and as my confidence grew, the car got better over the bumps. The end of the session was quite busy, but we were able to get in a good run which is important before qualifying tomorrow."
MARIO MORAES (No. 32 KV Racing Technology): "Overall, the day was good. Unfortunately, at the end of the second practice session despite new tires, we weren't really able to get in any runs because of the yellow flags. However I was able to get my fastest time on my last lap even though there was traffic. The car felt good, and I think we are capable of having a top-10 qualifying tomorrow."
PAUL TRACY (No. 15 Make-A-Wish - KV RACING TECHNOLOGY): "We had an overall good day today with the Make A Wish - Honda Canada - Motegi Wheels car. Everyone kind of went to plan in the morning. We were in the top-six in the morning practice and we had a little issue with the car in the afternoon. We started on old tires and we went through some good changes. Plus they were a lot of yellows (flags) and we couldn't get a good stint of laps together. At the end, I was able to squeak in one good lap in for a top-ten clocking. With a little more time in the afternoon, I believe we would have better and closer to the top-five. This is a tough track on a driver and car. But I'm pleased with the first day of running here at Edmonton. And the crowd looked big today. That is great for this event."
Justin Wilson, No. 22 Z-Line Designs: "The Z-Line Designs car feels pretty good. We just need to keep working on it. We tried a couple of things during practice, which helped. We need to look through the data and try to understand if everything was improving and look at what we need to change. There is a lot of information to study before tomorrow and hopefully we can make some more improvements. We ended up 7th and that's not exactly where we want to be. We are just one or two good changes away and we need to make sure that we find those changes."
Tomas Scheckter, No. 24 MonaVie: "The MonaVie car is getting better. Today, we just kept working at it and kept improving. Again, this is a tough track, especially when I haven't been doing a lot of the road courses. The team is doing a great job and we will look at it some more tonight. The times are extremely close, so if we can improve a little bit we will be good for tomorrow."
SATURDAY'S SCHEDULE:
9:15 - 10 a.m. - Firestone Indy Lights practice
10:15 - 11:15 a.m. - IZOD IndyCar Series practice
2:15 - 3:15 p.m. - Firestone Indy Lights Sunoco Pole Qualifying
3:30 p.m. - 4:50 p.m. - IZOD IndyCar Series PEAK Performance Pole Qualifying (Knockout qualifying and Firestone Fast Six.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 25 with the Honda Indy Edmonton at Edmonton City Centre Airport. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 5 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 212. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Edmonton 100 on July 25 at Edmonton City Centre Airport.
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines:
1. Dallara's U.S. tech home will be inviting
2. Barber recognized for environmental excellence
3. Conway gets in some laps -- on simulator
4. Scheckter back in No. 24 MonaVie car for Edmonton
5. Of note
1. Dallara's U.S. tech home will be inviting: Dallara Automobili envisioned establishing a U.S. facility that would serve as a technology center, engineering classroom, visitor destination and magnet for other auto racing-related industries. It will come to fruition with Dallara's selection July 14 to manufacture the IndyCar Safety Cell beginning in 2012.
A multi-million dollar brick-and-glass facility in the final design stages will be a cornerstone of the Main Street redevelopment in Speedway, Ind., a few hundred yards from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Indy Racing League headquarters.
The facility will house the Dallara USA technical center, as well as areas for Indy Parts Inc. (the official Dallara spare parts distributor), the Indy Racing Experience (two-seater and single-seater IndyCar programs), Experiential Marketing Inc. (show cars and promotional activities) and the Indy Engine Group (high-performance engine shop).
Plans also include an interactive area, co-sponsored by Hewlett-Packard, where fans can:
• Use an interactive touch-screen wall to learn how an IndyCar is designed and manufactured.
• See the assembly area and watch IndyCar chassis being assembled.
• View the operation of the state-of-the-art vehicle dynamics simulator.
• Drive a scaled down version of the race car simulator.
• Take a ride in a street-legal race car.
• Participate in a pit stop competition.
Future plans also include a restaurant, along with facilities for meetings and parties.
"Dallara are really looking forward to being a part of the community," said Sam Garrett, U.S. technical liaison for Parma, Italy-based Dallara Automobili. "We've been discussing the possibility of opening a U.S. location for several years. The contract to supply the new IndyCar chassis is the catalyst that finally allows it to happen."
Discussions have been ongoing between Dallara and several Indiana universities regarding the promotion of an engineering curriculum with an emphasis on motorsports, including internships, connection with Formula SAE events, and using the simulator to train engineering students in controlled and repeatable conditions.
"These engineers can then learn to make quick decisions when time is tight, to dig into a lot of data to find the appropriate synthesis, to interact with the driver in real-time situation under pressure and under unexpected but programmable scenarios," Garrett said. "This is applicable to both road and race cars."
Formula SAE is a student design competition organized by SAE International (formerly Society of Automotive Engineers) that has been held since 1979. The concept is that a fictional manufacturing company has contracted a design team to develop a small formula-style race car. Each student team designs, builds and tests a prototype based on a series of rules whose purpose is both to ensure onsite event operations and promote clever problem solving.
Dallara principals Gianpaolo Dallara and Andrea Toso are Formula SAE design judges.
The IndyCar Safety Cell will be the core of the next generation of IZOD IndyCar Series car. Entrants and constructors, including Dallara, will have the opportunity to "dress" the rolling chassis in aero kits (front and rear wings, sidepods and engine cover) for the series' diverse set of racetracks that they will market to teams. The rolling chassis will cost $349,000 - a reduction of almost 50 percent of the current race car.
"Dallara welcomes diversity in the look of the car," Toso said. "IndyCar is no more a de facto spec formula. Third-party companies, including sponsors, engineering centers, race teams, race car manufacturers, automotive manufacturers, can submit to the IRL their design and have the teams race it. The design includes the main bodywork parts and the front and rear wings.
"This diversity aims at promoting interest from the fans, favoring engineering research into more efficient bodywork shapes and creating a strong marketing platform for all partners."
Also, beginning in 2012, Dallara will offer a $25,000 credit to the Firestone Indy Lights champion for any Dallara parts or services to be used to assist the driver in advancing to the IZOD IndyCar Series.
Already, Town of Speedway officials say three other auto racing-related manufacturers have inquired about locating near Dallara's building. In November 2009, the commission broke ground on its first construction project. The $10 million Main Street project is part of a $500 million plan for 400 acres of multi-use development.
"Dallara will encourage and welcome other manufactures, shops and motorsports industry suppliers to expand their business around its facility in Speedway, to create a 'motorsports valley' for exchanging the know-how and developing activities to increase more jobs in engineering and motorsports industries," said Stefano de Ponti, Dallara Automobili's director of U.S. operations.
2. Barber recognized for environmental excellence: Barber Motorsports Park, which played host to its first IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights race weekend in April, has received certification in Environmental Planning from the Audobon Cooperative Sanctuary Program - the only motorsports park in the world to hold such certification.
The program is designed to help landowners preserve and enhance the environmental quality of their property.
"We welcome Barber Motorsports Park's commitment to managing their property in an environmentally-sensitive manner," Audubon International staff ecologist Jim Sluiter said.
3. Conway gets in some laps -- on simulator: IZOD IndyCar Series driver Mike Conway, recovering in the United Kingdom from injuries suffered in a crash in the Indianapolis 500 on May 30, last week began driving in a racing simulator as part of his workout regimen.
"It is great to be back in the cockpit after the accident seven weeks ago," said Conway, who the same day had the cast from his left leg removed. "It's the first time I put weight on (the foot) so I was surprised how well I could hit the brakes. I am pleased to say that I have feeling in my foot and it felt good."
4. Scheckter back in No. 24 MonaVie car for Edmonton: Tomas Scheckter, who competed in the Honda Indy Toronto for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, will drive the No. 24 MonaVie entry this weekend in the Honda Indy Edmonton.
He'll team up with Justin Wilson, who earned the PEAK Performance Pole Award in Toronto in the No. 22 Z-Line Designs car.
5. Of note: "The Early Show" segment with anchor/reporter Erica Hill getting a ride in an Indy Racing Experience two-seater and driving an Indy car on the Honda Indy Toronto street circuit will air July 28 on CBS…Andretti Autosport driver Danica Patrick is among the three top female sports stars in the nation, according to an annual Harris Interactive poll. Tennis siblings Venus and Serena Williams are Nos. 1 and 2. Patrick was also selected as one of 30 women who are "Utterly Inspiring Role Models" by Forbes.com. Also included on the list were Melinda Gates, Michele Obama and Oprah Winfrey. ... Olympic curling gold medalist and Edmonton resident Kevin Martin will be the grand marshal of the Honda Indy Edmonton. … KV Racing Technology driver Paul Tracy said the impetus for his weight loss was seeing himself in early shots of his SPEED Channel series "Battle of the Supercars." The show, which co-stars rally and drifting standout Tanner Foust, debuts July 22 at 10 p.m. (ET) ... USF2000 driver Zach Veach is featured in the latest issue of Amazing Kids.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 25 with the Honda Indy Edmonton at Edmonton City Centre Airport. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 5 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 212. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Edmonton 100 on July 25 at Edmonton City Centre Airport.
July 19 2010
HONDA INDY TORONTO
TORONTO (Sunday, July 18, 2010) - Will Power claimed his fourth IZOD IndyCar Series win of 2010, taking the Honda Indy Toronto, after overtaking polesitter Justin Wilson on a late-race restart.
Wilson looked to be on his way to victory with 20 laps left in the 85-lap event on theExhibition Place street circuit. But Will Power overtook Wilson on Lap 72 of a restart on the 1.75-mile, 11-turn circuit and went on to a 1.7-second victory over Dario Franchitti.
Ryan Hunter-Reay was third, Andretti Autorsport teammate Tony Kanaan finished fourth and Graham Rahal - making his season debut with Newman/Haas Racing -- was fifth. Danica Patrick finished sixth - the same as last year.
Also on July 18, J.K. Vernay pulled away from the field over the final 10 laps to win the Toronto 100. It was the fourth win of 2010 for the French rookie, who has led the Firestone Indy Lights point standings since the start of the season.
Dan Clarke, driving the No. 40 Wasteco Deans Knight Special, was second (his best finish of the season) and Gustavo Yacaman finished third (also a season best) in the No. 10 Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing entry.
DAY 3 NOTEBOOK:
TORONTO 100 POST-RACE NOTES:
•This is the fourth career Firestone Indy Lights victory for series rookie J.K. Vernay. He also won the first two races of this season, at St. Petersburg and Barber Motorsports Park and at Watkins Glen earlier this month.
•Series points leader J.K. Vernay has led laps in four races this season - St. Petersburg, Barber Motorsports Park, Watkins Glen and Toronto. He won all four races.
•Winner J.K. Vernay recorded his six top-three finish in seven starts this season. His only result off the podium came in May in the Firestone Freedom 100 at Indianapolis, where he finished 13th.
•James Hinchcliffe failed to finish in the top five for the first time since the season opener at St. Petersburg, in which he was involved in a first-turn accident after starting from the pole.
•This is the first career podium finish for both Dan Clarke and Gustavo Yacaman. Clarke's previous best was fourth place at Indianapolis earlier this year. Yacaman's previous best finish was 4th at Milwaukee in 2009.
TORONTO 100 POST-RACE QUOTES:
J.K. VERNAY (No. 7 Lucas/CJ/Sam Schmidt Motorsports, winner Toronto 100): "The beginning of the race is very difficult because in the first corner, the inside part of the track was very slippery. I touched James. I didn't want to do that but I had no choice. After that, my front left suspension was a bit broken. It was really difficult. I had to change my driving style to manage my tire. When my engineer told me ten laps to go, I knew I would be OK. I just wanted to push and make a big gap. I saw James crash on the last lap. I feel sorry for him but I can't say it's not a good thing for me in the championship."
DAN CLARKE (No. 40 Wasteco Deans Knight Special, finished second): "It is great to be on the podium again. I would have been happy with third after the year we've had. I've never actually finished in my previous races at Toronto. I was going to happy with third. I got a good run on Hinchcliffe on the back straight of the last lap. It was the closet I had ever been to him and I knew I could get him then. He kept it high in the breaking zone and I thought, fair enough, I have it. Then he just slid on. I know how it feels to do that. But I'm very happy for Walker Racing. We're going to celebrate now."
GUSTAVO YACAMAN (No. 10 Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing, finished third): "This is my maiden podium, we really were struggling at the beginning of the year, it's a new car, new team but we did a great job this weekend. Everyone on the team worked together and succeeded as a team which that is the way to go. This race is really challenging, it's a really long race and physically really challenging. You're just bouncing off of every wall and so close to them. I've never been closer to the wall in my life before, not even on an oval. But I'm just really excited, the car was really good and the guys just did an overall awesome job."
CHARLIE KIMBALL (No. 26 Levemir FlexPen, finished fourth): "That was a lot of fun. It was a really long, hard, hot race. The #26 Levemir car was good from green to checkered. I could fight all day; I could have gone another 10-15 laps for sure. The car was only getting better. All the credit goes to the AFS Racing/Andretti Autosport guys. Except for a mechanical issue during qualifying, we were in the top five all weekend. On to Edmonton and, if not a win, definitely a podium finish."
STEFAN WILSON (No. 28 Bryan Herta Autosport, finished fifth): " It was a great race. It was difficult weekend for the number 28. We had been set up and were struggling to find the right direction to go all weekend. We qualified badly, ended up p10 but we worked really hard every day to try and improve the car and I think it paid off, we had a really fast car out there. I'm really pleased with the performance this weekend. The race was a little difficult; I made a mistake and went down the run-off barrier and had to spin the car around so I dropped at least 40 seconds to the leaders then had to work so hard to get back up with them."
MARTIN PLOWMAN (No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing): "This was my worst finish in this season, but it was probably one of the best races I've run in the last two years. I lost a wing on lap 2 but my team did a fantastic job to get me back out there. I stayed on the lead lap, and didn't lose a lap after that. I think I had the fastest car out there, I had quite a few good passes, and then when that full course yellow came out it was great because that allowed me to bunch up to the rest of the field. I made a few more passes on the restart and overall it was a fantastic way to end a bad start. I want to thank IZOD and everybody that was involved, because this is easily one of my favorite events of the year."
SEBASTIAN SAAVEDRA (No. 29 William Rast/Bryan Herta Autosport, finished 14th): "It's very disappointing, coming from last year which was such a victory for me, then coming to this year which is such a disappointment for me. It's hard for us and hard for the points. We were looking forward to the championship but we'll keep fighting with several races to go."
HONDA INDY TORONTO POST-RACE NOTES:
• This is Will Power's fourth win of the season. He previously won at Sao Paulo, St. Petersburg and Watkins Glen.
• Power has won back-to-back races twice this season (Sao Paulo - St. Petersburg, Watkins Glen-Toronto)
• This is Team Penske's 41st win in the IZOD IndyCar Series, further extending a record for most wins by a team.
• 2010 race winner Dario Franchitti finished second, his fifth podium finish of the 2010 season.
• Ryan Hunter-Reay finished third, his sixth top-ten finish of the season.
• Tony Kanaan finished fourth, his best finish on a road/street circuit this season.
• Graham Rahal, in his first race of the season with Newman/Haas Racing, finished fifth, a season best finish. Rahal's previous best finish this season was ninth at St. Petersburg and Iowa.
• Danica Patrick finished sixth, her best finish on a road/street circuit this season. Her previous best road/street finish was seventh at St. Petersburg.
WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske, winner Honda Indy Toronto): "I'm just really happy to be in the Verizon car." (About his start going from 2nd to 6th): "I saw Ryan and Helio going for a big move and I didn't want to be taken out so I just said well that's enough and got out of the way. It's such a wild race that a lot of stuff plays out." (About restart on lap 71): "I knew just from the marbles and the pick -up that the restart was going to be really slippery. I saw him make a mistake coming off the straight so I got a run on him and pulled it off."
GRAHAM RAHAL (No. 02 NHR/Quick Trim): "It feels really good to be back with Newman/Haas Racing and finish fifth with Quick Trim on board. A top-five finish is a great way to start off and move forward. The guys worked really hard this weekend. When we showed up the car wasn't close. In the race it was a lot better. It will be great going to my home race next at Mid-Ohio coming off of some momentum like this. The car was only put together Monday and left Tuesday afternoon without an engine. For us to throw this together and be as successful as we have been in the first outing hopefully means it will only get better from here. It's definitely comforting to come back. When I sat in the car for the first time it was really good. I was right at home just with different colors on the car. Literally, I came here and just jumped in the car. The seatbelts fit; the mirrors were right. It was almost too good. Even on a normal weekend you have to adjust something so that was great. (About contact with Ryan Briscoe): "I was a lot quicker than Ryan and I had a really good run down the back straight. I got on Push to Pass right out of the corner and he just blocked me. He blocked me all the way into the braking zone and he broke on the inside and I wasn't expecting him too so I just punted him. He was against the wall and I was waiting for him to move out. Then he hit the brakes before he ever moved. That's what happened and I hate hitting anybody; that's not my style. But seriously, if you've got a run on someone like that and they're blocking you, that's what's going to happen."
HIDEKI MUTOH (No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic): "At one point in the race I was quite happy but when we changed to option tires on the first stop, it was very hard to get up to speed on restarts so I gave up a lot of positions there. We're going to look at our tire pressures and temperature to understand that. I was only able to pass one car. It was a very tough race but we came back in one piece which is important for the quick turnaround for Edmonton. Graham's fifth place finish is very good news for the team. I can also check his data for his restarts and any changes he made to his car during the race which will be good information to have for our next run."
MARIO ROMANCINI (No. 34 Conquest Racing): "It was a very unlucky day. We had decent speed on the warm up and the car was good in the race. We had a problem in the first pit stop, but I think we had very good chances to recover because of all the accidents in the end. We were still very competitive but I don't know what Mario was thinking when he did that move, as he was more than five cars length behind me so I think he just missed his brakes and took me out. It is a shame and I sorry for my guys, as we were having our best weekend so far and I am truly ashamed that we couldn't finish our race here so now we have to think about Edmonton and hopefully it will get better there."
BERTRAND BAGUETTE (No. 36 Conquest Racing/RACB): "It was quite a disappointing race for me. I did a good start and at the first stint I was P12 or 13, and then we missed a little bit on our first pit stop and I went to P17. Scheckter was behind me and he tried to attack me few times and at the last time I tried to brake later to keep him behind but it was obviously too late and I just hit the tires and had to stop there and wait for the marshalls to push be back and restart the car, so I lost one lap due to that. I was my mistake and it could be a race where we could finish P9, so now we are going to focus on Edmonton next week"
MARCO ANDRETTI (No. 26 Team Venom Energy): "It was another long day for the Venom car. We just didn't have it today. It really came down to an attrition race and I think that has a lot to do with where we finished. But, that said, it was nice to see all four Andretti (Autosport) cars finish inside the top eight."
TONY KANAAN (No. 11 Team 7-Eleven): "We did a great job today we what we had. The guys had great stops and we, unfortunately, benefited from people's mistakes, but that's just the race. I've made some mistakes in the past that has cost me the race, but all in all, not bad."
DARIO FRANCHITTI (No. 10 Air Wick): "Our Airwick car today was pretty good. It was all just about track position; I had to pit a lap early so Justin and Will jumped up ahead when they went a lap longer. This week we just didn't run quite quick enough, we were fast in practice, but wasn't quite fast enough to beat Will in the race. Just wasn't to thank my guys cause they did a great job, and here we are in second."
RYAN HUNTER-REAY (No. 37 Team IZOD): "We had a pretty tough pit stop, but I think a lot of people had a hard time, with the track and with marbles and everything. It was like qualifying the whole time. With all the chaos and all the yellows that was going on it I almost lost it four or five times. But it was a great finish for Andretti Autosport, it's a great team and I'm just happy to race with this fresh outlook for the rest of the season and everything. It's looking good from so we'll just keep plugging away."
DAN WHELDON, No. 4 National Guard Panther Racing: "t was disappointing that I made a mistake and didn't get a great start; I was on the inside going into Turn One quite deep and then the field bottled up and I made contact. That was my fault, but then the entire National Guard Panther Racing team made a comeback and made a big improvement here compared to last year. We all just continued to get better as this weekend went on and learned a lot of things that are really going to help us moving forward."
VITOR MEIRA (No. 14 ABC Supply Co./A.J. Foyt Racing): "Crazy race! Considering where we started, we got the position where we finished by being smart. The ABC Supply team did a very good strategy—couldn't be better. The pit stops were good and the car was picking up lap by lap but the incident with Simona killed my front tires. We were faster than the cars around me but on the restart, I got a good run off two and tried to make a move on her but it was hectic under braking to turn three. Everyone started to brake early and she braked early and I had nowhere to go so I had to lock it up and hope for the best. We crashed there but got away lucky cause she stopped me from going straight off. But it killed my front tires and that's how we lost our top-10 position in the last three laps. But the team did a very good job on the pitstops and strategy."
EJ VISO (No. 8 PDVSA - Jet Aviation -KV Racing Technology): "I got hit by (Dan) Wheldon in Turn 3 at the start and dropped several positions. But our pace was then good and I thought our car was coming along very well. Our strategy was good too. We were getting into position to move up in the race. I was racing closely with Tag (Alex Tagliani) and (Raphael) Matos. Tag took Matos wide and couldn't avoid clipping Matos' wheel. He spun and I got hit. We changed the rear wing and I went back out to at least finish today. It wasn't what we wanted but we got to the checkered flag. I thought our pace with No. 8 PDVSA car was pretty good. We'll get ready for Edmonton now."
PAUL TRACY ( No. 15 Make A Wish - KV Racing Technology): "I think we could have been a top seven or eight, but several things didn't fall our way. We struggled the first little bit with the handling. The car seemed to come alive at the end. My pace was as fast as the leaders and I was pretty happy with that. The yellow flags hurt us in the end. We want the first one and then get some green flag laps to get a little space for our second pit stop. But the three yellow flags put us in a bad position for our strategy. We felt we could run with the leaders if we got a break. We led some laps and got some good air time for Make-A-Wish, Honda Canada and Motegi Wheels. We had to deal with too much traffic after the first stop, and I tried to dive under Simona (de Silvestro) in turn three. The rear end got loose and I stalled. That put us back a lap. Then at the end, the car was quick. I learned a couple of things in driving the car today that help with the handling. I just wish we could have qualified better. But we learned some things today and we'll get better for Edmonton next week. This was a great week back home with all of the appearances for Make A Wish and Honda Canada. I was hoping for a better finish though."
MARIO MORAES (No. 32 KV Racing Technology): "I think we should turn the page on this weekend. It was tough for our KV Racing team. We can look forward to the Edmonton race. I feel badly for (Takuma) Sato. I wasn't expecting him to be in that spot on the track. He was in my blind line and it was similar to Helio (Castroneves) and PT (Paul Tracy) last year. So the two cars came together. Later in the race, the car felt pretty good but we need to get ready to improve for Edmonton. We just need to forget about this weekend now."
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Team Penske): "It's very sad. We had an awesome car and I think we could've fought for the win. (Meira) just broke very early going into the turn and I just didn't anticipate that. It's really too bad. The Team Penske crew had a great pit stop and we were looking strong. We'll regroup and come back with a better result next week at Edmonton."
SCOTT DIXON (No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing): I made a bit of a bobble coming out of Turn 1. The cars in front of me were kind of messing round, they missed it a little bit. I followed a bit too hard and Ryan (Hunter-Reay) had a bit of a run. I held my typically line, moved over to the left, and he dove under. I had to go somewhere. He was just carrying way too much speed and hit the front of my car and put us in the tires. Before that, the car was pretty quick. We had troubles early on in the race but we definitely came back. Thought we could have had a shot at fourth or fifth but it didn't work out.
RYAN BRISCOE (No. 6 Team Penske): "That was just really unfortunate to be taken out by a non-championship contender. The Team Penske car was definitely capable of a top-five finish today and we lost a lot of valuable championship points. We were able to finish, but now we'll just have to put our heads down and get to work next weekend in Edmonton."
DANICA PATRICK (No. 7 Team GoDaddy.com): "It's a great confidence-booster not only for me, but the whole #7 GoDaddy.com team. It's the best finish we've had on a street course this season. We were really happy with the way the car was performing throughout the whole race. This is a good way to end a great weekend since we head to another road course next week in Edmonton. Overall, we were strong as a team with the four of us in the top 10."
TAKUMA SATO (No. 5 Lotus - KV Racing Technology): "It was an exciting start and I was able to battle with other drivers and gain a few places. Then I was following my teammate (Mario) Moraes. I caught up very rapidly on him out of turn two and pulled alongside of him on the back straight. We went into the braking area in turn three, but I guess he didn't see me out there and made contact which unfortunately ended my race. It is so disappointing."
The Next IZOD IndyCar Series race is the Honda Indy Edmonton on July 25 at Edmonton City Centre Airport. The race will be televised by VERSUS at 5 p.m. (EDT). The next Firestone Indy Lights race is the Edmonton 100 on July 25 at Edmonton City Centre Airport.
IZOD IndyCar Series
Honda Indy Toronto
TORONTO - Results Sunday of the Honda Indy Toronto IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 1.755-mile Streets of Toronto circuit, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (2) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
2. (5) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
3. (4) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
4. (8) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
5. (14) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
6. (12) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
7. (1) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
8. (10) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
9. (21) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
10. (15) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
11. (26) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
12. (22) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 85, Running
13. (24) Paul Tracy, Dallara-Honda, 84, Running
14. (20) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 84, Running
15. (19) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 84, Running
16. (16) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 84, Running
17. (9) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 84, Running
18. (7) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 83, Running
19. (13) E.J. Viso, Dallara-Honda, 82, Running
20. (6) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 71, Contact 21. (11) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 64, Contact 22. (17) Mario Romancini, Dallara-Honda, 31, Contact 23. (23) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 26, Contact 24. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 21, Contact 25. (18) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 15, Contact 26. (25) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 8, Handling
Race Statistics
Winners average speed: 83.451
Time of Race: 01:47:15.2554
Margin of victory: 1.2757 seconds
Cautions: 6 for 21 laps
Lead changes: 6 among 5 drivers
Lap Leaders: Wilson 1-17, Tracy 18-31 Franchitti 32-53, Power 54, Kanaan 55-56, Wilson 57-71, Power 72-85.
Point Standings: Power 377, Franchitti 335, Dixon 299, Briscoe 292, Hunter-Reay 286, Castroneves 285, Kanaan 273, Wilson 240, Wheldon 233, Andretti 225.
Firestone Indy Lights
Toronto 100
TORONTO - Results Sunday of the Toronto 100 Firestone Indy Lights Series event on the 1.755-mile Streets of Toronto circuit, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses,
driver, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (1) JK Vernay, 50, Running
2. (3) Dan Clarke, 50, Running
3. (4) Gustavo Yacaman, 50, Running
4. (7) Charlie Kimball, 50, Running
5. (10) Stefan Wilson, 50, Running
6. (9) Tonis Kasemets, 50, Running
7. (8) Martin Plowman, 50, Running
8. (13) Pippa Mann, 50, Running
9. (14) Rodrigo Barbosa, 50, Running
10. (2) James Hinchcliffe, 49, Contact
11. (11) James Winslow, 49, Running
12. (12) Philip Major, 46, Running
13. (5) Adrian Campos Jr, 43, Running
14. (6) Sebastian Saavedra, 33, Mechanical
15. (15) Carmen Jorda, 22, Off Course
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 58:52.0083
Winners average speed: 89.439
Margin of victory: 1.7469 seconds
Cautions: 2 for 4 laps
Lead changes: None
Lap Leaders: Vernay 1 - 50
Point Standins: Vernay 295, Hinchcliffe 227, Kimball 220, Plowman 218, Saavedra 211, Wilson 176, Yacaman 165, Clarke 154, Campos 141, Mann 138.
July 17 2010
HUNTER-REAY TOPS SESSION AS TEAMS OPEN PRACTICE AT TORONTO
TORONTO (Friday, July 16, 2010) - Ryan Hunter-Reay remains one of the drivers to beat when the IZOD IndyCar Series visits a temporary street circuit.
The Andretti Autosport driver, who won the last time the series visited a street course -- at Long Beach in mid-April -- raced to the top of the time chart with a lap of 1:02.1433 (101.668 mph) late in the second practice session as IZOD IndyCar Series teams opened preparations for the Honda Indy Toronto on the 1.75-mile, 11-turn circuit at Toronto's Exhibition Place.
Justin Wilson, driving the No. 22 Z-Line Designs car for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, was second quick (1:02.1839; 101.602) and Helio Castroneves in the No. 3 Team Penske car was third (1:02.2550; 101.486).
It's another tightly packed field as the top 13 cars were separated by less than a second.
Also on July 16, Toronto native James Hinchcliffe topped the time chart in the lone practice session for Firestone Indy Lights teams on the Exhibition Place course.
IZOD IndyCar Series technical information for the Honda Indy Toronto:
Honda overtake assist
Overtake assist was introduced to the series in August 2009 and will make its debut on the streets of Toronto in the Honda Indy Toronto.
The system employed by Honda Performance Development is an ECU software alteration. It is activated by the driver via a button on the steering wheel and provides an extra 200 RPM (about 10 horsepower) to the Honda Indy V-8 engine. Parameters are updated before each race weekend to meet the circuit layout.
For the 1.75-mile, 11-turn Exhibition Place course:
15 uses
16 seconds duration each use
10-second recharge period between uses
Firestone Firehawk tires
Each car receives six sets (24 tires) of primary tires and three sets (12 tires) of the alternate (red-sidewall) tires.
The primary specification for Toronto is new in 2010, while the alternate spec is making an encore performance at the venue. The alternate spec was also used earlier this season at St. Petersburg and Long Beach.
The primary spec features new compounds and a slight tire construction change from the '09 Toronto spec, but is designed to mirror the performance of the Firestone primary spec used at the previous street-course races this season. The alternate tires are identical in construction to the primaries but contain a softer tread compound to provide more grip and faster lap times, yet will trade off compound durability in exchange for those shorter-term advantages.
Aero package
Toronto is in the road course/short oval category of aero packages for the IZOD IndyCar Series. Here are mandatory and optional items for teams:
Rear wings: Tire ramps and sidepod extensions are optional.
Front wings: Wing flaps are open development area. Maximum of two elements per side is permitted and a divider is mandatory.
Carmen Jorda and Tonis Kasemets will race for Andersen Racing in the Firestone Indy Lights race this weekend in Toronto. Both drivers last competed in the series' race at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach in April.
Jorda, a native of Alcoy, Spain, finished 10th in that event driving for the Palmetto, Fla.-based team but then sat out the three races. The 22-year-old who lives in Miami will be sponsored by ASAP Sports, NTGS.es, iHOLA!, Air Europa and pepetravel.com for the 50-lap Firestone Indy Lights race on Sunday morning that precedes the Honda Indy Toronto IZOD IndyCar Series race later that afternoon.
Tonis Kasemets, 36, is a native of Parnu, Estonia who lives in Mundelein, Ill. He finished sixth in the Long Beach Firestone Indy Lights race with Team PBIR. That was his only previous start in Firestone Indy Lights, but he drove in five Champ Car World Series races in 2006 for Rocketsport Racing. He was second in the Toyota Atlantic Championship in 2005. Kasemets' effort will be sponsored by Flexovit, a manufacturer and marketer of high-productivity abrasive products for the industrial, welding, and construction trades. Additional support will be provided by Northcentral Construction of Fond du Lac, Wis., and a local hotel, the Novotel Toronto North York located at 3 Park Home Ave. in North York, Toronto.
"We're very pleased that Carmen is back with us for Toronto and the remainder of the year, and we know that she is very excited to be back behind the wheel again," said team co-owner Dan Andersen. "This is her first season racing in America and racing in Firestone Indy Lights, and she is determined to learn as much as possible at every event so she can compete for the championship next year."
"We also welcome Tonis for this 'one-off' appearance," Andersen continued. "I have known him for many years, and have watched him produce excellent results on a shoestring budget. He is one of those very talented drivers who deserves a chance, and it is our pleasure to have him in one of our cars at Toronto. I know he will run at the front."
"It's good to be back in the saddle again," Kasemets said. "Dan and I got to know each other in two-liter cars, and we've known each other for a long time. We've always tried to keep in touch, and perfect timing brought us together to do this race.
"I've driven at Toronto in both Champ Car and Atlantic, so I'm familiar with the track," he added. "Walt Preston [Andersen Racing's Firestone Indy Lights engineer] and I have known each other for quite some time too. We're both old school, so we'll try to come up with a good set-up, have some fun and get some good results.
Open-wheel racing on the streets of Exhibition Place will receive facelifts each of the next two years.
The silver anniversary race in 2011 will have infrastructure and safety enhancements thanks to a $770,000 federal investment grant.
In 2012, the IZOD IndyCar Series' new cars will make their first appearance on the circuit.
"Basically, the grant is going to allow us to replace a substantial amount of the barrier and fence," said Kevin Savoree, co-owner of Green Savoree Promotions. "Kim Green and I have to match those funds. Most of the barrier and fence here is 24 years old. Obviously, there have been so many advancements in design and technology of barriers and fencing. It's going to be much safer for the drivers and fans, and it's going to allows us to move in and move out much faster so less headache for the commuters in Toronto.
"We needed to tackle a development program and what that grant allowed was to advance our construction plans by a few years. It was a win-win-win for everybody."
Green Savoree Promotions also owns the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, which has grown each of its six years to be a destination race for fans in late March or early April (depending on where it lands in the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule). This is the second year in a row of the Honda Indy Toronto, which features the IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights. It's also the second year the event has been run by Green and Savoree, former co-owners of Andretti Green Racing.
With their feet on the ground and notepads spilling over with ideas and input, they are encouraged by the sponsor support and what they've seen and heard from the ticket-buying public.
"In the racing vernacular, when you race somewhere you know what kind of setup to come back with the next year," Savoree said. "There were a lot of lessons we learned last year and applied the Honda process of reflection and went back to our offices here in Toronto and basically implemented a lot of changes.
"We used local vendors for the construction of the racetrack and it's been just seamless. We also changed media agencies, ticketing agencies - a lot of things we learned even to the detail for the caterers for our suites. We're looking forward to an exciting weekend from a commercial standpoint."
Reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti renewed acquaintances with Neil Lennon in Toronto of all places. Lennon, a star player for Celtic FC back in the day and now the Scottish Premier League team's manager, met up with the fellow Scot at a pub.
He brought along team captain Scott Brown and up-and-coming midfielder James Forrest. Franchitti, a lifelong fan of Celtic FC, presented Lennon a Target Chip Ganassi Racing crew shirt. Celtic FC played a friendly against Manchester United at the Rogers Center on July 16.
FIRESTONE INDY LIGHTS POST-PRACTICE QUOTES:
JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 2 Xtreme Coil Drilling Team Moore Racing): "We've had a good street course car all year obviously at St. Pete and Long Beach so I knew we'd have a strong baseline. But this track is a little bit different; it has an interesting mix of high- and low-speed corners that are a little tough to set up for and it seems to get bumpier every year so that throws us another curveball. It's also hot, so it was a slippery mess out there. I don't think the car is perfect yet. I think there's time in it and time in me, and that first session doesn't mean much but it's a good way to start off the weekend." (About wanting to win in his home): "Watkins Glen was the one that got away, but I've been saying that was a lucky win for J.K. Sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. He was lucky. We were good. Luck runs out, but you don't run out of good. J.K. has been quick on the road courses all year so it's by no stretch going to be easy. They have a good package and we have a good package, so it just comes down to who makes the fewest mistakes."
J.K. VERNAY (No. 7 Lucas /CJ/Sam Schmidt Motorsports): "I'm quite happy because I didn't know the track and the other drivers who are fighting for the championship know the track quite well, especially Hinchcliffe. The track is good, really quite bumpy, but we're improving everything and learning, so in light of that I think everything really went very well."
MARTIN PLOWMAN (No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing): "Finishing P3 was not a bad way to start the weekend. I knew coming into this weekend that the team has had a strong car here. This is a track I really like. Overall the car was good this session. I just feel that the conditions didn't really suit our setup really well. Once the track grips up, it will come to us. We'll keep working hard and see what we can do tomorrow
CHARLIE KIMBALL (No. 26 Levemir FlexPen): "It was a good first practice, exactly what we needed. We made some big changes to the car, which definitely helped. We got caught out on the checkered right at the end, and the grip on a road course is always crazy the entire time. I know the No. 26 Levemir FlexPen car will be quick. We have a little more work to do tonight. We're pretty close now, just a little bit more to come."
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES POST-PRACTICE QUOTES
RYAN HUNTER REAY (No. 37 Team IZOD): "It was a good day and it's good to be back in Toronto. I love this place and it is great to see the fans turn out here in Toronto on Friday. The last street course we were on was Long Beach and the car was good. This is our first street course since then and our car is still good. Tomorrow is a new day. Most teams took new tires at the end of that session and so did we. We will see where we stack up, but I think we will definitely be top five tomorrow. I am pleased with how we started our weekend."
JUSTIN WILSON (No. 22 Team Z-Line Designs/DRR): "It's always good to come back to Toronto. It's a track that I really like and always have fun driving on. It's obviously not the smoothest track we drive on but I think that adds character to the course. I want to thank everyone on the Dreyer and Reinbold Team who worked on the Z-Line Designs car; they gave me a good car today. It works really well and feels really good, but obviously we have plenty of room to improve. We have one area that we need to change, but hopefully after making those improvements tonight we'll be able to go a little faster tomorrow."
RAPHAEL MATOS (No. 2 HP de Ferran Dragon Racing): "We've had a reasonably good day. We had a few issues with the throttle sticking and that compromised the balance of the car a little bit, but it all worked out. The car was quite competitive and we know the track will continue to improve from a grip standpoint for qualifying tomorrow. We are just going to keep pushing and hopefully make the right changes for tomorrow."
MARCO ANDRETTI (No. 26 Team Venom Energy):"We struggled pretty badly in practice today. We went our own way set-up wise rather than using a similar set-up as my teammates. It didn't go as we had hoped, but the up side is that now we know exactly what we need to do. We'll make some changes and hopefully have the Venom car headed in the right direction tomorrow morning."
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Team Penske): "It was good work by Team Penske today. It's great to be back in Toronto and racing in front of these fans. We changed some things on the car from last year and it responded much better. We had two good practices but tomorrow is the real deal. We'll keep working hard and see what happens tomorrow in qualifying."
RYAN BRISCOE (No. 6 Team Penske): "It was a pretty good day. The Team Penske car is very close on balance and we're almost there. Today was really about managing our tires. I would have liked to run more laps, but we were saving our tires for qualifying and the race. Overall, we're pretty happy with the car and I'm looking forward to running with new tires tomorrow."
WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske): "It is tough out there. The competition is so tight. No one really has a big advantage here. You have to be up on the wheel and really drive the car hard. The Verizon car is pretty good right now, although we do have a bit of work to do in order to get it right where it needs to be for qualifying."
GRAHAM RAHAL (No. 02 NHR/Quick Trim): "It's nice to be back in an Indy car. It was a bit of a struggle this afternoon. We can't seem to figure out what it is the car wants and I'm a little bit lost to be honest. I don't really know too much of what we're looking for. But this is similar to our Friday here last year and we qualified third, so hopefully it will play out that way again this year. But it is nice to be back in the car. Every time I get back in car it feels so good, especially here in Toronto, a place I really do enjoy. I'm looking forward to tomorrow; I think we have a lot to gain. I'm hoping to put the Quick Trim car up front in qualifying."
HIDEKI MUTOH ( No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic): "The track is very slippery which is the same as last year. I think we made good progress today. Each session, I went fastest and I understand the reason why I went faster which helps us know the direction to continue in. Now I have a teammate in Graham and fresh data to compare to which is helpful. Our position doesn't look too good but I think we have potential. Today is only the first day and I have one more practice session before qualifying so I think we will be ready. I lost the backend of the car in Turn 1 and couldn't stop before hitting the wall. I'm sorry to create extra work for the guys."
PAUL TRACY (No. 15 Make A Wish - KV Racing Technology): "We started out pretty well this morning, but we had a little issue with the car in the afternoon. We really only got about five laps of running. We got the car back out to the pits with about two minutes to go, but we weren't going to get the tires up to temperature in that amount of time, so we didn't run. Right now, we'll baseline off of E.J.'s car in the morning. Our cars were pretty similar to begin with and he ended up in the top seven today. He thinks the changes they made were quite good. That puts us up an extra set of tires on the rest of the field for Saturday. We'll be ready to go in the morning."
E.J. VISO (No. 8 PDVSA - KV Racing Technology): "I am happy as we have been making progress with the car each session. This is definitely a very tough place to race. It is a very unstable and bumpy track. You need a good car here, but you need to drive the track very precisely. There is a lot of direction change on this circuit. I have been working very closely with Bill (Pappas, engineer) and we have been improving the car with every run. The track was very slippery in the early portion of that session with the other cars running ahead of us. But in the last half of the session, the track felt like it was getting better and gaining more grip. We are looking for a good run on Saturday."
VITOR MEIRA (No. 14 ABC Supply/A.J. Foyt Racing): "I think today went pretty good. I had a bunch to learn since it was my first time here and we made more good changes than bad so I think we're on the right road. The car was good here last year and it's good again this year but we have to tweak it for the tires which are a little bit different from last year. We're trying a few more things in the practice session before qualifying tomorrow. In the afternoon session today, I only got one clear lap and it wasn't my best lap. Traffic was definitely an issue this afternoon so I don't think our placing is a true indicator of where we are with the car."
TONY KANAAN (No. 11 Team 7-Eleven/Nestle Pure Life): "The day was OK for Team 7-Eleven. Me and Ryan worked really well together today. We had the same strategy today, but tried a couple different options to see what was going to work. Obviously, his is working pretty well, so that makes me feel good. We'll keep working tomorrow morning and see what happens."
DANICA PATRICK (No. 7 Team GoDaddy.com): "We made a few changes from the first practice session to the second and we were able to find some speed. I think the changes that we made gave us a much better idea on where we need to go for tomorrow. Overall I'm happy with today's practice sessions and hope we have a strong qualifying run tomorrow for the GoDaddy car. "
MARIO MORAES (No. 32 KV Racing Technology): "Overall it has been a good first day. I am pleased to be back here in Toronto, I really enjoy the track. We unfortunately didn't find the right balance, but we will work on some things overnight and hopefully have a better day tomorrow."
TAKUMA SATO (No. 5 Lotus - KV Racing Technology): ""It was a tough day. The circuit is extremely bumpy and slippery, especially on the concrete patches which made it very difficult to predict the setup of the car. Today was all about learning this unique track as quickly as possible. Tonight we will go over the data and hopefully improve the car for qualifying tomorrow."
SATURDAY'S SCHEDULE (all times local):
6 a.m. Garages open
8-8:50 a.m. Firestone Indy Lights practice
9:10-10:10 a.m. IZOD IndyCar Series practice
11:40 a.m. -12:30 p.m. Sunoco Pole Qualifying for Firestone Indy Lights
12:50-2:20 p.m. PEAK Performance Pole Qualifying and Firestone Fast 6 for IZOD IndyCar Series
July 16 2010
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES EMBRACES INNOVATION FOR 2012
Slashes barrier to entry to encourage competition
INDIANAPOLIS – The future is here, and it’s innovative, open and competitive.
The IZOD IndyCar Series unveiled July 14 its new car strategy for the 2012 season and beyond, featuring a rolling chassis with an enhanced safety cell produced by longtime series partner Dallara that will be covered in changeable bodywork created by various manufacturers.
Known as the IndyCar Safety Cell, it will be manufactured at a new facility in Speedway, Ind., and will serve as the base of the new car. Various manufacturers can produce the aero kit to dress the car with different body work, including front and rear wings, side pods, engine covers and more.
This new chassis strategy, unveiled at a ceremony at the Indianapolis Museum of Art, is based on a recommendation from the ICONIC (Innovative, Competitive, Open-Wheel, New, Industry-Relevant, Cost-Effective) Advisory Committee. The strategy is focused on the attributes of safety, raceability, cost-effectiveness, efficiency, relevant technology, American-made, green and modern looks.
The chassis completes the outline of the technical package for the IZOD IndyCar Series for 2012 and beyond. The ICONIC committee recommended June 2 an engine package featuring specifications of a maximum of six cylinders as well as maximum displacement of 2.4 cubic liters. The ethanol-fueled engines will produce between 550 and 700 horsepower to suit the diverse set of tracks in the IZOD IndyCar Series, will be turbocharged to allow for flexibility in power and will feature an Overtake Assist system providing a time-limited gain of up to 100 horsepower on select tracks.
“Once again, the ICONIC Advisory Committee has done a tremendous job to tirelessly seek opinions from manufacturers, teams, drivers and fans to devise this exciting new car strategy that best represents all the attributes that make this sport so unique and compelling,” said Randy Bernard, chief executive officer of the IZOD IndyCar Series. “This car puts everything all of our stakeholders want on the racetrack: safety, competition on and off the track, diversity, efficiency and more.
“The new car also is a cost-effective package that positions the series for tremendous growth and enhances the series’ relevancy to future automotive technology, while respecting the tradition of innovation in open-wheel racing.”
Significant features of the new IZOD IndyCar Series car:
•The rolling chassis manufactured by Dallara to IndyCar specifications will cost $349,000, with a complete car costing $385,000. This is a 45 percent price decrease from the current IZOD IndyCar Series formula. The IndyCar Safety Cell is designed for use on all types of tracks on which the IZOD IndyCar Series competes, eliminating the need for separate chassis.
•Each team can race two different aero kits from any manufacturer during the season, with a maximum price of $70,000 for each kit. The IZOD IndyCar Series must approve all aero kit parts before production. All approved aero kit parts must be made available to all teams and undergo safety testing approved by the IZOD IndyCar Series.
•The targeted minimum weight for the new car is 1,380 pounds, nearly 200 pounds lighter than the current formula. This will make the car more efficient, another trend that will define the future of the automotive industry. The actual minimum weight of the car will be determined once variables with suppliers, including engine weight, are determined.
•The IndyCar Safety Cell will feature improved visibility, head, leg and back protection and advanced padding and ergonomics. Another unique safety concept is the wheel interlock prevention system, which will allow cars to run side-by-side while limiting the chance for wheels locking and the subsequent risk for cars getting airborne.
“Our goal was to maintain the IZOD IndyCar Series as the fastest and most versatile racing in the world,” said Brian Barnhart, president of competition and racing operations for the IZOD IndyCar Series. “This strategy achieves the different looks that fans wanted while maintaining the close, intense racing that occurs at every IZOD IndyCar Series event, whether on a superspeedway, short oval, road course or street circuit. A new car also levels the playing field, giving more teams a chance to succeed and generating more excitement for our fans.
“The significant reduction in the price of the new car is very important, as it helps to maintain economic stability for our teams as we transition to a new car. It also creates a more attractive avenue for new teams to enter the series.”
The new car will provide the proven safety record and world-class build quality of Dallara while revolutionizing the sport by creating opportunities for multiple manufacturers – even those not currently involved in race car engineering and design – to produce parts of the car.
“This unique and groundbreaking concept embraces innovation and competition, very much in keeping with IndyCar traditions, while at the same time achieving the impossible, reducing the cost of entry and competition,” said ICONIC Committee member Gil de Ferran, co-owner of De Ferran Dragon Racing and 2003 Indianapolis 500 winner. “By the use of standard parts and supply rules the IZOD IndyCar Series ensures the cost are under control and teams have access to the latest and greatest. By encouraging multiple manufacturers to supply bodywork parts and, essentially, brand the cars, the IZOD IndyCar Series brings in the innovation and competition many of us were looking for.”
Said ICONIC Advisory Committee member Tony Purnell, founder of Pi Research, former technical representative to the FIA and former head of Ford’s Premiere Performance Division: “We are delivering the best of both worlds to our fans and teams by creating new looks in a cost-effective manner. The innovation bred by this new formula is not limited to traditional racing manufacturers. It’s our goal to reach out and challenge the automotive and aerospace industries.
“Come on Ford, GM, Lotus, Ferrari. Come on Lockheed Martin, Boeing, General Electric. Come on you engineers working in your garage or in small shops. We’ve done our best to provide a framework for all of you to showcase your technical prowess without a need for a major raid on your piggy banks. We want you guys involved, all of you.”
As part of the new chassis strategy, the IZOD IndyCar Series will increase its technical staff and facilities significantly, positioning the series as a leading-edge technical organization in worldwide motorsports.
The IZOD IndyCar Series formed the ICONIC Advisory Committee is tasked with reviewing, researching and making a recommendation to the league on the next generation IZOD IndyCar Series engine and chassis. ICONIC Committee members include Barnhart, Tony Cotman, de Ferran, Eddie Gossage, Rick Long, Purnell and Neil Ressler. It is mediated by retired Air Force Gen. William R. Looney III.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING ABOUT 2012 IZOD INDYCAR SERIES CAR STRATEGY
INDIANAPOLIS – Quotes from selected IZOD IndyCar Series drivers, team owners, manufacturer representatives and other officials about the 2012 car strategy unveiled by the IZOD IndyCar Series (in alphabetical order):
“The ICONIC group has come up with a smart way of bringing diversity and a new look to the 2012 IndyCar while keeping longtime partner Dallara, who has the expertise and an incredible amount of knowledge of the technical specifications of the IZOD IndyCar Series. Obviously as a team owner, I will have a lot of questions regarding this new concept, and I want to be reassured that the new rules around this car will guarantee a good operating cost control and a good open competition in between teams. It is also good to see that the state of Indiana is behind the project.”
Eric Bachelart, Owner, Conquest Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“I think it’s great that the IZOD IndyCar Series is continuing with Dallara. They provide a great product, and they’ve shown they are capable of producing an elite race car. It’s also good for the teams as it provides some continuity. This car will take some big steps forward in both safety and performance while also keeping in mind cost-effectiveness and efficiencies. I’m excited, and I’m looking forward to seeing and racing the finished product.”
Ryan Briscoe, Driver, Team Penske, IZOD IndyCar Series
“It’s pretty exciting to see the future car for the IZOD IndyCar Series. We’ve had a lot of thrilling moments on the track in the Dallara IndyCar, and I’m looking forward to racing the next-generation car. It will be great to see other manufacturers involved in the sport through the aero kits, and I think that will create some interest and competition that will be good for IndyCar racing overall.”
Helio Castroneves, Driver, Team Penske, IZOD IndyCar Series
“Dallara produces some great cars, so it’s good that the series is able to continue their working relationship with them. With the cars being produced in Indianapolis, it will help cut costs and produce jobs, which will help everybody. The car looks great, and the racing will be as close as ever with the increased engine power on the road courses. I can’t wait to see the car in the flesh!”
Mike Conway, Driver, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“I think it's great that everything is far more open now, be it engineering or engine manufacturers or to bring different-looking cars to the fans. At the end of the day, I think the fans will like it and believe it’s a step in the right direction.”
Scott Dixon, Driver, Target Chip Ganassi Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“Lotus Racing congratulates the IZOD IndyCar Series on this exciting news and supports the ICONIC Advisory Committee's recommendation on the revolutionary concept of a standard safety cell with various manufacturers producing aero kits. We look forward to seeing more details on this future car strategy, and hopefully, allow our involvement in the IZOD IndyCar Series.”
Tony Fernandes, Team Principal, Lotus Racing (Formula One), CEO Air Asia
“Cutting the cost of the chassis by 40 percent is a game-changer for the sport. After spending countless hours working with the ICONIC Committee, it became very clear that only one chassis supplier could be chosen because of the economics. For the fans, we’ve ensured that team owners currently in the sport can continue to participate, and we can entice new teams to join affordably. When is the last time you ever heard of the cost of a high-tech race car – the fastest in the world – dropping?” (About the fans’ voice in the decision): “The fans were a major influence in this decision. They made it clear that they wanted to see some variety in the cars, and the ICONIC committee constantly factored that desire into the consideration. In a perfect world, we would have recommended multiple chassis providers, but the research-and-development costs alone would have caused the price of the cars to inflate astronomically instead of reducing them. That would have been bad for the health of IndyCar racing. The committee and the IndyCar Series technical staff have developed the concept of ‘clothes,’ which can be changed to allow different looks for the car. It’s a smart, affordable way to offer variety while providing a known, proven, safe race car that will provide wheel-to-wheel racing action at more than 200 miles per hour. We think it’s a great compromise to provide the fans with what they demand and ensure the long-term vitality of IndyCar racing.” (About serving on the ICONIC Committee): “It was an honor to serve with retired Air Force General (William) Looney (committee mediator) and the other six members of the ICONIC Committee. It was an interesting process to see how this diverse group – some of whom I had never met before – mesh and work easily to reach this recommendation. We spent so much time together that I have made some rewarding, lifelong friendships with people that I can trust for advice and wise counsel. I commend Randy Bernard and the IndyCar Series technical staff for this process because it ensures buy-in from everyone within the industry. Anyone who does not get on board and help row this boat in one direction clearly has another agenda. While I know we won’t agree on everything that comes up down the road, I do know that anybody that loves IndyCar racing needs to work together from this day forward. The series may be hesitant to say it, but the day is here for everybody that loves IndyCar racing to link arms and help each other out. Anybody who doesn’t want to do that needs to find something else to do with their time.”
Eddie Gossage, President, Texas Motor Speedway, ICONIC Advisory Committee Member
“Today’s IRL announcement is the embodiment of our vision for the Town of Speedway – a vision of racing, innovation and community. Dallara is an excellent fit for Speedway because we share a mutual dedication to the racing industry and advanced technology. We are excited to welcome them as our newest neighbor. As the home to ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,’ the Indianapolis 500, we are proud to be a part of the continued success of the motorsports industry in Indiana and the world.”
Scott Harris, Executive Director, Speedway (Ind.) Redevelopment Commission
“The announcement is definitely creating a lot of buzz. I think the new design addresses a lot of key issues that face IndyCar racing into the future. From my perspective, competition on levels beyond just team and driver are immensely important to increasing how much people care about what's going on out on the racetrack. Having said that, maybe from a driver's perspective, I think the new car still needs to be capable of going 230 at Indy and needs to be able to set new track records on road courses. Very much looking forward to what's happening going forward.”
J.R. Hildebrand, Driver, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“Everyone at IZOD is very excited about today’s announcement because the chassis decision encompasses all of the characteristics that attracted us to the IndyCar Series as a title sponsor. The design represents innovation, speed, technology and performance, all of which are attributes of the IZOD brand. The new car, with the extra 100-horsepower push-to-pass capability, will create even greater moments of speed and competition, which is unbelievable. And the fact that they were able to accomplish all of this while keeping the costs contained and the drivers safe is a real tribute to the ICONIC committee and their forward thinking. We think this will bring the sport to whole new level of competition.”
Mike Kelly, Executive Vice President, Marketing, Phillips-Van Heusen, parent company of IZOD brand
“This is a great day for all of us in the IZOD IndyCar Series. I couldn't think of a better manufacturer than Dallara to make the Safety Cell, and, of course, make that product in Indiana. Add to that the fact that there will be development around that cell is fantastic. It's what fans and competitors alike have been wanting, and in 2012, we will have exactly that but at a much lower cost than what we are running now. In most aspects of life and business, it costs more to get what you want, but somehow the ICONIC committee has managed to achieve the right product at a substantially lower price. I can't wait for 2012.”
Alex Lloyd, Driver, Dale Coyne Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“I am extremely excited about the new IndyCar. I have spent the first two years learning about IndyCar, the dynamics of the car and working on my race craft. The new car will be an equalizer for everyone because we will all be starting from scratch. I think the competition level will be closer because with the less-expensive car, the teams with less funding will be able to compete at a higher level. The car will be faster, which will make it fun to drive, and with the stronger Safety Cell, it will be safer, too. That means the drivers will be more confident to push hard and will provide better races for the fans. It's a new era for the IZOD IndyCar Series, and I'm excited about it.”
Raphael Matos, Driver, De Ferran Dragon Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“I think it’s great to have Dallara as a partner. I can speak directly about their safety, feedback and technology. I’ve been driving Dallaras since 1999, in Formula 3. So I’m glad this happened. I’m glad they are involved. I’m glad the concept is similar to what they issued on the press releases. From what I hear and what I know, it’s going in the right direction. I’m really excited. Really exciting times for the IZOD IndyCar Series. I’m glad to be part of it on this historic time for the series. Not only do we have the new engine coming out, we have the new car now, we have the Centennial Era for the Speedway. So it’s really exciting times.”
Vitor Meira, Driver, A.J. Foyt Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“Any time there is a new car, it’s great. We have been using this car eight years, so it would be good to have everybody start with a new car again. Dallara has produced a safe and reliable product, and I am sure that contributed to them being announced as the builder of the Safety Cell.”
Hideki Mutoh, Driver, Newman/Haas Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“We’ve just seen examples, but I think it’s the exact direction we need to go in, to entice more manufacturers to come in, both engine and chassis. The car’s a lighter, faster car, and it’s safer. I think as a driver, it’s exactly what you want to hear: ‘Faster, safer car.’” (From a driveability standpoint, what positives do you see with this direction?): “A lighter car is more nimble, makes it easier to pass people. With the turbo engine, you can increase that power to pass a lot, and make for better racing anyway, and more horsepower makes it tougher to drive. There’s more mistakes, more opportunities to pass. You couldn’t have asked for anything better. We have a one-make chassis now, and now we’ll have a common tub, which is safe. And you’re able to design your own bodywork.” (Can you imagine going 240 mph at Indianapolis in a car like that?): “I love competition, I’m not sure that it’s necessary to go 240 again. This year, gee, we were going 228, and it’s getting up there. I think it’s something you have to wait, see and watch it develop and see what horsepower works best where, because with a turbo you can adjust that. The thing I like is it will take its own direction with the design because it’s open.”
Will Power, Driver, Team Penske, IZOD IndyCar Series
“I think it’s very interesting with what they are doing with the innovative designs and the cost-effectiveness. I like the cost format as a driver who is involved with a lot of companies and speaking to them about sponsorship: This will help put it in the ballpark. I also hope that you will see bigger fields, and I hope these cars will go 230 to 240 mph in speed. I think that’s what I’m looking forward to. Also, I’m really happy that Dallara will be involved again. They are a great company. I been driving the Dallara chassis since I was 18 years old, and they always do a great job. I’m glad they are back onboard.”
Tomas Scheckter, Driver, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
“Firestone Racing is glad that a decision has been made and that this process has sparked a lot of great ideas and innovative thinking. Congratulations to Dallara – they were chosen over some tough competition, so they are deservedly happy. We have worked well with many chassis manufacturers and look forward to continuing a great relationship with Dallara. We would also like to recognize and thank all of the other chassis manufacturers that participated in this process. BAT, DeltaWing, Lola and Swift also contributed a wide variety of different and unique ideas that ultimately strengthened the entire process. I remain very confident that we have the experience and ability to design, develop, manufacture, deliver and service Firestone Firehawk racing tires better than anyone else for the next-generation IZOD IndyCar Series cars.”
Al Speyer, Executive Director, Firestone Racing
“I think it’s a very good decision. Sticking with Dallara is always a good thing. They have the experience, and they do a great job in every series in which they work. They did a very good job with the IndyCar. Giving teams the options about the aero kit is definitely going to make it more fun. Just more tools to work around and more things for the engineers and drivers. Definitely a positive change, and I’m looking forward to being a part of the series when all of these changes come around.”
E.J. Viso, Driver, KV Racing Technology, IZOD IndyCar Series
“The announcement sounds good. I think that the ICONIC committee has incorporated a lot of ideas and concepts that the people wanted. I think we will get the best of both worlds. Dallara makes a very safe rolling chassis and we know that the safety will be there, so I’m glad they are behind it. I think this introduces a new idea, and it will be interesting to see how it all works. One of my two points of concern was hopefully the new car will make it more exciting for the fans, and I think it will.”
Justin Wilson, Driver, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, IZOD IndyCar Series
July 10 2010
IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1. IZOD IndyCar Series Q & A - Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
2. IZOD IndyCar at Halfway Point: Competitive first half shows there's no margin for error
1. IZOD IndyCar Series Q & A - Dreyer & Reinbold Racing:IZOD IndyCar Series team owners Dennis Reinbold and Robbie Buhl and driver J.R. Hildebrand participated in a Q&A session to discuss the announcement that Hildebrand, the reigning Firestone Indy Lights champion, will make his IZOD IndyCar Series debut at Mid-Ohio on Aug. 8 and continue with the team at the following race at his home track at Infineon Raceway. Below are select quotes from their interview. The complete transcript and audio MP3 file are posted at www.indycar.com/media.
J.R. Hildebrand
· 22-year-old native of Sausalito, Calif., who will make his IZOD IndyCar Series debut next month.
· Will drive the No. 24 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing car.
· 2009 Firestone Indy Lights champion for Andretti Green Racing/AFS Racing (Now AFS Racing Andretti Autosport).
DENNIS REINBOLD: We're really excited to announce today that we are going to have J.R. Hildebrand join our team for the Mid-Ohio and Infineon races. As last year's Firestone Indy Lights champion, we're excited to have him in the car and work with him.
We've been talking to him off and on for the last couple of months. Finally got to the point where we were ready to put this together go out and run.
We're also going to do some testing with J.R., so it should be a very good program. We're excited to have him join our team.
ROBBIE BUHL: With myself being a driver that came out of the Firestone Indy Lights, it's always a great opportunity to give a driver that's won that championship an opportunity in IndyCar. Glad that all came about.
If Mike Conway is far enough along in his rehab, which he is aggressively taking with his leg, he's shooting to be back in a race car for Infineon. If that is the case, we will have a car available for him, as well.
July 7 2010
IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1. No let-up for points leader Power
2. Inside the stats - Watkins Glen
3. Return to Firestone Indy Lights sweet for Winslow
4. Vote for Tire-ific Move of the Race
1. No let-up for points leader Power: Will Power was having momentary difficulty managing the cumbersome laurel wreath and impressive Cameron Argetsinger Cup in Victory Circle at Watkins Glen International when he heard Penske Racing president Tim Cindric offer some advice - something to the effect of learning how to position the wreath when he got to Victory Circle following the Indianapolis 500.
"I'll remember that when I get there," Power said a few hours afterward as he followed tradition -- including one of his racing heroes, fellow Australian Jack Brabham -- by hanging the wreath behind the bar of the Seneca Lodge in the village. He was startled by the ovation as he entered the restaurant/hotel where auto racing stories flow as freely as the local red.
Power's victory in the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen - the first by a pole sitter in the six years of the event and the 54th time the pole winner has won in 194 Indy Racing League-sanctioned events - wasn't as easy as it appeared in the box score.
"It was a satisfying day because it was a hard-fought win," the Team Penske driver said. "I really had to push, I had to pass, I had to save fuel. I had everything in that race. I had to qualify well.
"It's funny. You have days where you win races and it's sort of a luck thing. Then there's days when you should have won. (This) was just a good race. It's very satisfying when you fight for it and you got someone on your tail right to the end."
Power overtook teammate Ryan Briscoe on Lap 44 of 60 and went on to his third victory of the season - the only IZOD IndyCar Series driver with multiple victories through nine of 17 races. He takes as 32-point lead in the championship standings over third-place finisher Dario Franchitti of Target Chip Ganassi Racing into the Honda Indy Toronto on July 18.
"That's not that much (of a margin)," said Power, who also leads the Mario Andretti Road Course Championship standings. "You could have a bad race, somebody wins, you're back behind again."
Following the race on the streets of Exhibition Place is the July 25 Honda Indy Edmonton on the bumpy City Centre Airport circuit. The road/street portion of the schedule concludes at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (Aug. 8) and Infineon Raceway (Aug. 22) before the closing round of four consecutive oval races.
"I realize you actually have to win races to win the championship," Power said. "The points spread -- that extra 10 points you get for winning - is important. With the guys I'm competing against, it's really tough. You can't relax. (Scott) Dixon, Franchitti, Helio (Castroneves), Ryan are all as quick as I am. So you got to win and you can't make any mistakes.
"It's a tough championship. I'm really enjoying the competition."
2. Inside the stats - Watkins Glen: Statistics to note following the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen, the ninth round of the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season.
• It was the fourth career win for Will Power and the 40th IZOD IndyCar Series win for Team Penske, a series record. It was team owner Roger Penske's first win at Watkins Glen since 1981.
• Will Power leads the race for the Mario Andretti Trophy (Road Championship) by 70 points over Ryan Hunter-Reay.
• Ryan Briscoe finished second at Watkins Glen for the second straight year.
• Raphael Matos matched his best result of the season. He was also fourth at Sao Paulo. Mario Moraes's fifth place was his best finish of 2010. It was his first top-five result on a road course since Infineon in 2009.
• Tony Kanaan had his worst finish since the 2009 Edmonton race (21st). The Brazilian had finished in the top 11 in every race this season.
•There were seven teams represented in the top-10 finishers for the fifth time in nine races. The seven teams were: Team Penske (Power, Briscoe and Helio Castroneves), Target Chip Ganassi Racing (Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon), de Ferran Dragon Racing (Matos), KV Racing Technology (Moraes), Panther Racing (Dan Wheldon), Andretti Autosport (Hunter-Reay), Dreyer & Reinbold Racing (Justin Wilson).
3. Return to Firestone Indy Lights sweet for Winslow: James Winslow didn't win the Corning 100, but a fifth-place finish at Watkins felt like a win to the English rookie.
After more than two months out of the car, Winslow had his best finish in Firestone Indy Lights despite starting from the back of the field due to an engine change after his car's original engine was damaged when he ran over a curb in qualifying.
"We totally transformed the car for the race," said Winslow, who last raced at Long Beach in April. "The car was fantastic. Full credit to the team for finding the setup. I found the car more comfortable, and I was able to push. "
Despite showing the ability to race with the frontrunners in his three previous starts in the No. 77 Focal Point/Sam Schmidt Motosports car, Winslow didn't have the finishes to match the potential of the car. His best finish prior to The Glen was seventh in the season-opening round at St. Petersburg.
At Watkins Glen, he was able to avoid the problems that plagued him early in the season and was able to put together a complete race, racing from 14th to fifth in the 30-lap event, which was won by his SSM teammate and series points leader J.K. Vernay.
"Towards the end of the race, I was catching (Martin) Plowman for fourth, and I thought there was a potential for a top-four finish, but Charlie Kimball got around me even though he was a few lap down and slowed me up and kept me from passing his teammate," Winslow said. "It's really frustrating, but that's racing, and I'm very happy with fifth place."
Winslow was quick to credit his crew, which went to Victory Lane at the Firestone Freedom 100 with Wade Cunningham earlier this year. He appreciated their ability to fix the issues he had with the car and improve it for the race and hopes to reward the crew with more top finishes.
"To come from being really slow to being top-four, top-three pace in the race gives me massive confidence for the next races," he said. "Now we have a confident team and a confident driver. Hopefully we can build on this and be on the podium the next race."
4. Vote for Tire-ific Move of the Race: Fans select the Firestone Tire-ific Move of the Race winner by voting on indycar.com after every race. This $10,000 prize is awarded to the driver best utilizing his or her Firestone tires to make a bold, dramatic move during the event.
Nominees for the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen are: Will Power for his Lap 44 pass of Ryan Briscoe to secure the win; Raphael Matos for his fourth-place finish despite telemetry problems; Dan Wheldon, who recovered from being spun on track to finish sixth.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 18 with the Honda Indy Toronto at the Streets of Toronto. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 12:30 p.m. (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 212. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Grand Prix of Toronto on July18 at the Streets of Toront
July 5 2010
POWER PROVIDES FIREWORKS ON FOURTH OF JULY AT THE GLEN
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (Sunday, July 4, 2010) - Will Power claimed Team Penske's first IZOD IndyCar Series victory at Watkins Glen International, winning the sixth Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen.
Series points leader Power, driving the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske entry, passed his teammate Ryan Briscoe with six laps to go and held off Dario Franchitti and Briscoe for his third IZOD IndyCar Series victory of 2010.
Briscoe passed Franchitti on the final lap to help Team Penske record its first 1-2 finish since Edmonton in 2009. Brazilians Raphael Matos of de Ferran Dragon Racing and Mario Moraes of KV Racing Technology completed the top five.
In all, there were seven teams represented among the top 10 finishers in the race.
Also on July 4, French rookie J.K. Vernay strengthened his Firestone Indy Lights championship points lead with a victory in the Corning 100 at Watkins Glen International.
Vernay, driving the No. 7 Lucas Oil/CJ/Sam Schmidt Motorsports car, overtook pole sitter James Hinchcliffe entering the "Bus Stop" on Lap 19 of the 3.4-mile, 11-turn circuit and went on to his third victory of the season.
Hinchcliffe, driving the No. 2 TMR-Xtreme Coil Drilling car, finished .2135 of a second behind. Sebastian Saavedra, who won at Iowa Speedway on June 20, finished third in the No. 29 William Rast/Bryan Herta Autosport car.
Andretti Autosport announced today that Team IZOD driver Ryan Hunter-Reay will run the rest of the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season after a group of team sponsors stepped up to fund the effort.
The team also unveiled a new charitable initiative connected to Hunter-Reay's No. 37 entry called "Racing For Cancer." The program, which was developed by Tom Vossman, chief executive officer of team sponsor Inland Industrial Services Group, will raise money for cancer research and other charitable causes in honor of Hunter-Reay's mother, Lydia, who lost her battle with colon cancer in November 2009.
Hunter-Reay was originally slated to run only a partial schedule with primary sponsorship from Phillips-Van Heusen and its IZOD brand, Andretti Autosport continued to seek additional funding to grow the program to fulltime status.
In addition to the efforts of Phillips-Van Heusen and its IZOD brand, Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Inland, AirTran Airways, Comfort Revolution, The Michael Fux Foundation, Exel and ICM-Ethanol USA all have rallied to keep Hunter-Reay on track in 2010.
The car will continue to sport the primary sponsor scheme of Team IZOD exception for the race Aug. 28 at Chicagoland Speedway and an event to be determined, where Ethanol USA will be the primary sponsor as it was June 20 at Iowa Speedway.
The "Racing For Cancer" program launched today at www.racingforcancer.org and will raise funds during the remainder of the 2010 season and beyond. Those funds will be donated primarily to two national charities - The Michael Fux Foundation and LIVESTRONG - and will drive marketing, promotional and awareness campaigns in support of The Michael Fux Foundation and its beneficiaries.
The Michael Fux Foundation, which has donated millions of dollars through its existing charity work, champions numerous causes, including Down's Syndrome, autism, cancer and heart diseases. The foundation works extensively with Miami Children's Hospital, which last fall unveiled the new Michael Fux Family Center, and also with the Children's Cancer Caring Center and "Operation Smile," among many others. The foundation will focus the "Racing For Cancer" funds on children who are unable to afford cancer treatment, primarily in the Miami area.
As part of their support for Hunter-Reay and Team IZOD's car number "37," and in honor of Hunter-Reay's mother, a number of Andretti Autosport team sponsors have committed to making $37,000 donations to "Racing For Cancer." The first official donation to the effort was made by Team 7-Eleven driver Tony Kanaan, who is also putting forth $37,000.
CORNING 100 POST-RACE QUOTES:
J.K. VERNAY (No. 7 Lucas/CJ/Sam Schmidt Motorsports, winner): "It was a really hard race. I didn't know the track when I arrived here. The track is so beautiful and so complicated. We improved practice after practice, and by the race, the car was just fabulous. (James) Hinchcliffe made a little mistake in the corner, and I was able to overtake him. It's just fantastic. The team did a great job. This is very good for the championship. Three wins for a rookie isn't bad."
JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 2 TMR-Xtreme Coil Drilling, second): "This was not the result we were looking for. There's no doubt that the No. 2 car was the fastest of the field. On that second lap of the restart, I got into the kitty litter put down for Stefan Wilson's motor. I said under caution that I was surprised that they were letting us go green with so much stuff on the track, but at the end of the day, it was there. I saw it; I knew it was there. I just tried not to drive down the inside of the track and get a good run. I got a bit sideways out of Turn 1 and gave JK (Vernay) the run. We were all over him at the end, but there was nothing we could do. It was just unfortunate. My boys deserved better."
SEBASTIAN SAAVEDRA (No. 29 William Rast/Bryan Herta Autosport, third): "It was a crazy start. The outside position is not a bad way to go because it is so wide going into Turn 1. We were able to go through it, but I lost my position with (Martin) Plowman in that corner. But I was able to get it back. From then on, I was able to maintain pace with the front. We were able to do our own race and just save the tires until the end. At the end with the last yellow, we were very close fighting each other. The amount of downforce needed at this track, it is not very easy to go through. So we're very happy with third place. It's very important points for the championship."
MARTIN PLOWMAN (No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing, fourth): "I have to say that this race was kind of like a victory. Coming into the weekend, I would have never been happy with fourth, but considering the weekend we've had and getting the damage early on in the race. We just had a really dogged performance and we never gave up. One day, we're going to get a win. But now we're happy with the points in the championship." (What happened to the car?): "Something broke at the rear of the car. On right-handers, it was fine, but turning left, it felt like I had a flat tire for the whole 30 laps."
FIRESTONE INDY LIGHTS POINTS STANDINGS (Unofficial):
1. J.K. Vernay 245
2. James Hinchcliffe 204
3. Sebastian Saavedra 195
4. Martin Plowman 192
5. Charlie Kimball 188
CAMPING WORLD GRAND PRIX AT THE GLEN POST-RACE NOTES:
•Will Power became the first driver to win this event from pole. Team Penske has won the pole each of the six years this event has taken place, but this is the team's first victory in this event.
•This is the third victory of the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season for Will Power. He also won the first two races of the season, at Sao Paulo and St. Petersburg.
•This is Will Power's second victory this season from pole. He also won from the top spot at St. Petersburg.
•This is Will Power's fourth career IZOD IndyCar Series victory. He has won this season at Sao Paulo, St. Petersburg and Watkins Glen. He won in 2009 at Edmonton.
•This is the first one-two finish this season for Team Penske. It's the second one-two by any team this season, as Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti finished first and second, respectively, at Kansas. The last time Team Penske finished 1-2 was in July 2009 at Edmonton, when Will Power and Helio Castroneves finished 1-2, respectively.
•This is the fourth major open-wheel victory at Watkins Glen for Team Penske. Bobby Unser won here in 1979 in 1980 and Rick Mears in 1981 for the team in CART events. This is the team's first IZOD IndyCar Series victory at this track.
•Ryan Briscoe finished second at this event for the second consecutive year.
•This was Ryan Briscoe's third podium finish this season. He won at Texas and finished third at St. Petersburg.
•Team Penske has led at least one lap in all nine IZOD IndyCar Series events this season. No other team has led in every race.
•Dario Franchitti finished third, tying a career best at Watkins Glen. He also finished third in 2005 and 2007.
•This was Dario Franchitti's fourth podium finish of the season. He won at Indianapolis, finished second at Kansas and third at Barber Motorsports Park.
•This was the 40th IZOD IndyCar Series victory for Team Penske, extending its series record.
•Raphael Matos finished fourth, tying his IZOD IndyCar Series career best also set this season at Sao Paulo.
•Mario Moraes finished a season-best fifth. His previous best was sixth at Long Beach.
•Scott Dixon finished eighth, only his second finish outside of the top six this season. He was 18th at St. Petersburg.
•The top 10 finishers today represented seven different teams.
•Takuma Sato was the top-finishing rookie today, in 15th.
•Adam Carroll finished 16th in his IZOD IndyCar Series debut.
•Tony Kanaan finished 21st, his worst result since finishing 21st in July 2009 at Edmonton.
CAMPING WORLD GRAND PRIX AT THE GLEN POST-RACE QUOTES:
WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske, winner): "There were two different strategies there, but I'm so happy to win it. I wanted it really bad; I really wanted to win. I can't stand when you're the quickest in qualifying and then you have a bad race. Honestly, it was the first race that I pushed on every single lap. Never once that I didn't push. We have to get the fuel number the whole race, so I had to push really hard while saving fuel. I had to get the lap time while saving fuel. It was just a difficult race, but it was great. I loved it."
RYAN BRISCOE (No. 6 Team Penske, second): "Will was strong. We had a lot more downforce in the car. I was just a parachute going down the back straighaway. Both of these guys just came from nowhere and drove around me. It was a little bit frustrating, but with the downforce I was able to look after my red tires a bit more than Dario (Franchitti). He was hanging on for dear life at the end, and thankfully his went off about a lap sooner than mine did so I was able to get him. It's a great way to bring home a Penske one-two."
DARIO FRANCHITTI (No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, third): "I was catching Will, but I used up my tires too much to catch up to him. Just overused them. Ryan was getting closer to me. I was trying to make a gap to him and made a mistake, and he got past me. I'm disappointed with the last lap, but it was a fun race. It's a fun place to race." (If your tires hadn't gone off, did you have anything for Will Power?): "I'm not sure anyone had anything for him. Will did a great job. When the tires started to go off, he did a better job of managing his tires. I don't know. I think he did a great job."
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES POINTS STANDINGS (Unofficial):
1. Will Power 327
2. Dario Franchitti 295
3. Scott Dixon 287
4. Ryan Briscoe 280
5. Helio Castroneves 273
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 18 with the Honda Indy Toronto at Streets of Toronto. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 12:30 p.m. (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 212. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Grand Prix of Toronto on July18 at the Watkins Glen International.
IZOD IndyCar Series
Camping World GP At The Glen
Watkins Glen, N.Y. - Results Sunday of the Camping World Grand Prix At The Glen IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 3.37-mile Watkins Glen International, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (1) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
2. (3) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
3. (4) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
4. (11) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
5. (9) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
6. (20) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
7. (16) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
8. (7) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
9. (2) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
10. (6) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
11. (25) E.J. Viso, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
12. (14) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
13. (8) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
14. (12) Paul Tracy, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
15. (5) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
16. (10) Adam Carroll, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
17. (19) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
18. (23) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
19. (17) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
20. (21) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
21. (13) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 60, Running
22. (18) Mario Romancini, Dallara-Honda, 59, Out of Fuel
23. (24) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 57, Running
24. (15) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 38, Contact
25. (22) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 22, Mechanical
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1:40:27.4391
Winners average speed: 120.768
Margin of victory: 1.2181 seconds
Cautions: 2 for 5 laps
Lead changes: 5 among 4 drivers
Lap Leaders:Power 1-18, Dixon 19-28, Power 29-38, Franchitti 39, Briscoe 40-43, Power 44-60.
Point Standings: Power 327, Franchitti 295, Dixon 287, Briscoe 280, Castroneves 273, Hunter-Reay 251, Tony Kanaan 241, Wilson 211, Whedlson 211, Andretti 201.
Firestone Indy Lights
Corning 100
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. - Results Sunday of the Corning 100 Firestone Indy Lights event at the 3.37-mile Watkins Glen International, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (3) J.K. Vernay, 30, Running
2. (1) James Hinchcliffe, 30, Running
3. (4) Sebastian Saavedra, 30, Running
4. (7) Martin Plowman, 30, Running
5. (14) James Winslow, 30, Running
6. (7) Philip Major, 30, Running
7. (5) Adrian Campos Jr., 30, Running
8. (12) Gustavo Yacaman, 30, Running
9. (11) Rodrigo Barbosa, 30, Running
10. (8) Anders Krohn, 30, Running
11. (11) Charlie Kimball, 26, Running
12. (2) Stefan Wilson, 13, Mechanical
13. (13) Dan Clarke, 1, Contact
14. (8) Pippa Mann, 1, Contact
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 58:48.4946
Winners average speed: 103.149
Margin of victory: .2135 of a second
Cautions: 2 for 6 laps
Lead changes: 1 among 2 drivers
Lap Leaders: Hinchcliffe 1 - 18, Vernay 19-30
Point Standings: Vernay 242, Hinchcliffe 207, Saavedra 195, Plowman 192, Kimball 188, Wilson 146, Major 146, Yacaman 130, Campos 124, Clarke 114
JULY 4 2010
POWER WINS FIFTH POLE OF 2010 AT WATKINS GLEN;
HINCHCLIFFE EARNS CORNING 100 POLE
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. (Saturday, July 3, 2010) - IZOD IndyCar Series points leader Will Power continued Team Penske's domination of qualifying by earning the pole for the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen . It was his series-leading fifth PEAK Performance Pole Award of the season.
Power's top lap of 1 minute, 29.3164 seconds, 135.832 mph in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske machine kept Team Penske's perfect pole record over the six years of this race at Watkins Glen International. Penske will seek its first victory in the event when the race starts at 3:30 p.m. (ET) Sunday, July 4 (live on ABC, IMS Radio Network).
Team Penske drivers swept the top three spots in the Firestone Fast Six shootout. Helio Castroneves qualified second at 1:29.4609, 135.612 in the No. 3 entry, while Ryan Briscoe was third at 1:29.9346, 134.898 in the No. 6 entry.
It was the first time this season one team has swept the front row in qualifying. The top three rows were separated by less than a second. Six different teams are represented in the first six rows.
Reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti qualified fourth at 1:29.9601, 134.860 in the No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing car, with rookie Takuma Sato fifth at 1:30.1410, 134.589 in the No. 5 Lotus-KV Racing Technology entry.
2009 Watkins Glen winner Justin Wilson rounded out the Firestone Fast Six at 1:30.2667, 134.402 in the No. 22 Team Z-Line Designs/Dreyer & Reinbold Racing car.
Also on July 3, James Hinchcliffe earned his third Firestone Indy Lights pole of 2010 by topping Sunoco Pole Qualifying for the Corning 100.
The Canadian recorded a lap of 1:37.3594 in the No. 2 Xtreme Coil Drilling -TMR car. He was followed by rookies Stefan Wilson (1:37.6394) and J.K. Vernay (1:38.1532).
The Corning 100 starts at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, July 4.
Anders Krohn will make his Firestone Indy Lights debut this weekend in the No. 4 Andersen Racing entry. Krohn, from Stavanger, Norway, is the first Norwegian competitor in series history.
Krohn, a 22-year-old nicknamed "The Viking," competes full time for Andersen Racing in the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear. He also has competed for the team in the Cooper Tires presents the U.S. F2000 National Championship.
Firestone Indy Lights, the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear and the Cooper Tires presents the U.S. F2000 National Championship are the three series in the Road to Indy developmental ladder system to the IZOD IndyCar Series.
***
IZOD IndyCar Series fans have selected racing icon Mario Andretti as Indy car road racing legend to be honored by the series.
Fans selected Andretti as the honoree for the road championship trophy with 44 percent of the vote through a poll on indycar.com, the official website of the IZOD IndyCar Series. Alex Zanardi was second with 25 percent of the vote. Other nominees were: Dan Gurney (12 percent), Al Unser Jr. (10 percent) and Mark Donohue (8 percent).
Andretti was one of the most successful Indy car drivers with 52 victories - second to A.J. Foyt on the all-time list- and a record 67 pole positions. He won four Indy car titles in his career and won the Indianapolis 500 in 1969.
Among his 23 road course victories were wins at Indianapolis Raceway Park (4), Mont Tremblant (4), Long Beach (3), Road America (3) Portland (2), Riverside (1), Cleveland (1), The Meadowlands (1) Caesars Palace (1) and Mid-Ohio (1).
A.J. Foyt was selected as the honoree for the oval championship in June by the vote of the fans.
MARIO ANDRETTI: "I was full of pride when I learned the road racing trophy would bear my name and that it was determined by a fan vote. It's the ultimate compliment years after I retired, to have the fans remember me this way. That's the really great thing about fans. They keep you humble and grounded. They let you know when you mess up and applaud your successes. And if you're fortunate along the way, you make a lot of friends for life. Throughout my career, there was a thrill in knowing and feeling that fans were connecting with me. They certainly knew that road racing was my passion since the 60s. I am honored to have this trophy in my name and cherish the opportunity that it gives me to have a lasting bond with this series. I am genuinely appreciative of all the fans who continue to acknowledge my part in racing history every day. In the future, I will certainly enjoy watching young drivers in pursuit of this trophy."
KV Racing Technology driver E.J. Viso talked about his crash in IZOD IndyCar Series practice this morning.
E.J. VISO: (About accident during morning practice): "We made a big improvement with the car today. The car was running nicely. I got a little wide in Turn 1 and was going through the grass area. I believe the skid plate under the car broke and lifted the front part of the car in the air. I couldn't steer the car at all. At that point, I was basically a passenger. I just couldn't do anything. I put my hands up by my helmet and took the hit into the wall. I feel badly for the crew because our PDVSA car was very good this morning. Now we have to go to the backup car for qualifying."
IZOD IndyCar Series driver Raphael Matos is featured in a story in the latest issue of ESPN The Magazine about how soccer shaped the sports careers of various world-class athletes. Other athletes featured in the story include Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash and Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney, who played collegiately at nearby Syracuse University.
An accompanying interview also was televised this morning on "SportsCenter."
Story link: http://insider.espn.go.com/insider/insider/news/story?id=5344098
Video link: http://insider.espn.go.com/insider/insider/news/story?id=5344015
Andretti Autosport driver Ryan Hunter-Reay and representatives from Team IZOD will conduct a press conference at noon (ET) Sunday in the Watkins Glen International Media Center.
PEAK PERFORMANCE POLE QUALIFYING NOTES:
•Will Power earned his series-leading fifth Peak Performance Pole Award this season. He also qualified first on road-street courses at St. Petersburg, Barber Motorsports Park and Long Beach, and on an oval at Iowa.
•Team Penske has started from the pole position in all six IZOD IndyCar Series races at Watkins Glen International (Helio Castroneves in 2005, 2006, 2007, Ryan Briscoe in 2008, 2009, Will Power in 2010). The team has not won this event.
•Team Penske extended its series record of eight consecutive earned poles. It includes poles won by all three drivers (Will Power - 5, Briscoe - 2, Castroneves - 1) and poles at all types of tracks (road courses, street circuits, short oval, 1.5-mile oval and superspeedway).
•Will Power has advanced to the Firestone Fast Six in all nine road-street course starts he has made for Penske, a streak that started in April 2009 at St. Petersburg. Power qualified in the top six in 2009 at St. Petersburg, Long Beach, Toronto and Edmonton, and he has been in the top six this season at Sao Paulo, St. Petersburg, Barber, Long Beach and Watkins Glen.
•Team Penske swept the front row in Peak Performance Pole Qualifying for the first time this season. Helio Castroneves and Will Power started 1-2, respectively, at Indianapolis, where each starting row is comprised of three cars. The last team to sweep the front row at an IZOD IndyCar Series event was Target Chip Ganassi Racing, with Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon first and second, respectively, at the 2009 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The last time Team Penske swept the front row was August 2009 at Chicagoland Speedway, an oval circuit. Ryan Briscoe won the pole, with Castroneves second.
•Team Penske became the first team to sweep the earned the top three starting spots in an IZOD IndyCar Series race since July 2009, when Will Power, Ryan Briscoe and Helio Castroneves started 1-2-3, respectively, at Edmonton.
•Tony Kanaan failed to advance to the second round of Peak Performance Pole Qualifying on a road/street course for the first time since July 2009 at Edmonton. He had advanced to at least the second round at six consecutive road/street course events since Edmonton.
•This was the second time that rookie Takuma Sato has advanced to the Firestone Fast Six this season. He qualified sixth in April at Barber Motorsports Park. He qualified a season-best fifth today.
•Just .9503 of a second separated the six participants at the end of the Firestone Fast Six.
PEAK PERFORMANCE POLE QUALIFYING/FIRESTONE FAST SIX QUOTES:
WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske, pole): "Yeah, it's awesome to have the Verizon car on pole again. We're certainly racking them up, but we've got to get the race win. It's such an advantage to get a win with the way the points are structured. We'll focus on tomorrow and see if we can get it done." (About qualifying): "It was hard. I was on it. I haven't driven so hard, because I haven't had such an advantage here. In the practice sessions, I was a little worried. I was thinking, 'Man, it's going to be tough to get pole.' But we worked hard, and we got it all together." (About Firestone tires): "The reds were so stuck. There was heaps of grip. Incredible." (About race strategy): "We've got to make a decision on what tires to start. It's going to be a difficult decision, just looking at what happened to Ryan last year when he had a few people with reds on and he had blacks." (About Penske pole streak): "It's fantastic. It just shows what this team's all about. It's a great team, a lot of teamwork."
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Team Penske, second): "It's a great effort for Team Penske, Tim Cindric and Will (Power) and Ryan (Briscoe). We all worked together, and here we are, 1-2-3. Certainly the competition is pushing us, but credit goes to my engineer Ron Ruzewski and the other ones, as well. Each one of us wants to win, but as Roger (Penske) says, in the end the team wins. Whoever is up there, it benefits the team."
SCOTT DIXON (No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing, seventh): "The Target car wasn't too bad. The balance wasn't too bad, either, overall, but we struggled through The Boot section of the course. The cars and competition are so close, so it will be tough to win from our starting spot but not impossible, by any means."
VITOR MEIRA (No. 14 ABC Supply Co A.J. Foyt Racing, 17th): "I think the lack of practice this morning because of the fuel pump problem hurt us a little bit maybe, and any little bit you give up in this series means positions. I think we're one step behind because of that. Not only that, we didn't unload like we have been unloading this year. We unloaded with the car far from where it needed to be, and we made huge improvements from yesterday to today, but we needed that little bit of track time because we needed to learn so much. It was unfortunate but A.J. and ABC have started here out of the top 10 and made great races, I have started here out of … well, actually I have not started here out of the top 10 … but we can make good things happen no matter where we start."
RAPHAEL MATOS (No. 2 HP Luczo Dragon, 11th): "This qualifying result was a big improvement from some of the last races, so that's a great positive. I'm a little disappointed we didn't get to move on to the Fast 6, but again, it's good to have improved from some previous events. We have learned a lot this weekend. We'll just keep working to continue that improvement. Tomorrow's race will be long and physical. We'll take what we've learned and use it to hopefully produce a good result tomorrow."
TONY KANAAN (No. 11 Team 7-Eleven, 13th): "We had a tough session. We have a good car, but we just made a poor choice during qualifying. I'm disappointed, but we'll be good tomorrow."
RYAN HUNTER-REAY (No. 37 Team IZOD, 16th): "That was very frustrating. We had a car capable of moving on, and Milka (Duno) cost us the lap. It's very frustrating. Every point in this series is so valuable and qualifying on the road courses is key. That said, I know we've got a good car. I love this track, and I've won here before. And you can win from 16th. We're just going to have to be very creative tomorrow with how we go about it."
MARCO ANDRETTI (No. 26 Team Venom Energy, eighth): "We were fighting too much understeer today to be as quick as we needed to make the Firestone Fast Six. I was definitely disappointed because the Venom car showed signs of good pace, but we went the wrong way and messed it up. I'm still optimistic about the race. We basically qualified our 'race car,' and it was very easy to drive. I think that's a good sign."
DANICA PATRICK (No. 7 Team GoDaddy.com, 21st): "I was feeling really confident going into qualifying this afternoon, but I just didn't have the speed I needed to get the GoDaddy car out of the first group. The field gets more and more competitive, and when you're just a tad off the pace, it can end up costing you more than ever. We'll try to make our way up through the field and hopefully have a strong result come tomorrow."
HIDEKI MUTOH (No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic, 14th) "After the yellow flag, I went back out on red tires. Then I was stuck behind Milka, and it was the second timed lap on the tires, which is the best lap over the life of the tire. It ended up costing us our second and third timed laps. For sure, there was more in the Formula Dream/Panasonic car because even on the last lap, which was a 1:31.1, there was still some left on the table; at least two or three-tenths of a second, which would have been good enough to get us to the next group of qualifying. Starting 14th isn't good, but we have two sets of new red Firestone alternate tires that others don't, so at least that is good for strategy."
MARIO MORAES (No. 32 KV Racing Technology, ninth): "Overall, it was a good qualifying. I think that the #32 KV Racing Technology car had very good balance. A couple of times I was in the top six, but the times were so close. I am happy with today, and tomorrow we will spend warm-up on race setup and then hopefully have a good race."
E.J. VISO (No. 8 PDVSA-Jet Aviation-KVRT, did not participate, will start 25th): "I am very disappointed that I couldn't qualify today. In practice, I was pushing hard and went wide at Turn 1. When I rejoined the track, I took a bump, which broke the skid pad and bent under the car. This caused my front tires to lift, and I lost steering control. It's a shame because the car was fast. However, it's a long race, and anything can happen. I am grateful to be here and to be able to get back in the car for tomorrow."
ADAM CARROLL (No. 27 Team Boost Mobile, 10th): "I'm much happier after the first practice. It's the usual scenario: a great track, new circuit for me, traffic and trying to push at the end. The track is getting better, and the car is getting better. It helps to speak with the guys with experience and get their point of view, as well. It's all coming together, so we're getting there. I'm looking forward to my first race with Andretti Autosport and Team Boost Mobile tomorrow."
PAUL TRACY (No. 24 Honda Indy Toronto/DRR): "We made huge improvements with the DRR/Honda Indy Toronto/Motegi Wheels car. I'm pretty happy. Last practice session we were P20, and I wasn't feeling that great about it. Yves, my engineer, and I made big a jump in qualifying, and we were able to advance into the fast 12. We wanted to improve on that, but we basically went a little bit quicker but not enough to go eighth, ninth or 10th, and we ended up 12th. But we are pretty happy with that. Obviously, we would've liked to be a little further up, but if we could get a top-10 result tomorrow, we will be happy with that."
ALEX TAGLIANI (No. 77 FAZZT Race Team, 19th): "This type of result isn't what we had hoped for today. It's not good, but the positive is that we made improvements from yesterday and this morning, and the team found some things that made more sense around this track. We feel the pain of not having tested here due to the rain because what we found late this morning we would have had coming in to the race weekend if we had gotten our test day completed. Now we just have to regroup and make the same type of change on the car for tomorrow now that we know where we need to be and what the car likes on this track. So if we have a good car for the race, the rest won't matter. We'll have to go out and have good strategy, fight to move up front and have a good result."
DAN WHELDON (No. 4 National Guard Panther Racing, 20th): "We've been quick and competitive all weekend in the National Guard Panther Racing car, and we could tell something wasn't quite right during our qualification run. Once the Panther boys got back to the garage, they found a problem in the steering that was causing the car to scrub and obviously run slower. It's the precision and dedication on their part that helped discover the problem so quickly, and now we can focus on moving up and having a great race tomorrow."
SUNOCO POLE QUALIFYING NOTES:
•James Hinchcliffe earned his series-leading third pole this season. He also started first at St. Petersburg and Long Beach. He finished 15th at St. Petersburg after a first-turn incident and won at Long Beach. All three of Hinchcliffe's career Firestone Indy Lights poles have come this season.
•Rookie Stefan Wilson qualified a career-best second. His previous best was fourth on the oval at Iowa. His previous best on a road-street course was sixth at Barber Motorsports Park.
•Series points leader J.K. Vernay qualified third, his fifth top-three spot in six starts this season.
•Engineer Lee Dykstra has overseen the preparation of the last three pole winners at this event: James Hinchcliffe in 2010 (Team Moore Racing), James Davison in 2009 (Vision Racing) and Franck Perera in 2008 (Guthrie Racing).
SUNOCO POLE QUALIFYING QUOTES:
JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 2 TMR-Xtreme Coil Drilling, pole): "This track is just incredible. Getting a chance to drive here is just awesome. I really enjoy coming here. The team gave me a great car. A huge thanks to (engineer) Lee Dykstra. The car really let me push my limits and the limits of the racetrack. It was just so much fun to drive. Huge credit to the boys. It was really good."
STEFAN WILSON (No. 28 Bryan Herta Autosport, second): "I'm really pleased with the performance this weekend. We've been really strong all weekend. It's just a shame the No. 2 car is up there ahead of us. He's beaten me in both practices and now qualifying. I have to thank my guys. They've done a lot of work this weekend. We're working really hard right now to make gains in the championship. We've got a solid starting position for the race. We just now have to think about our race cars and make the right calls."
CHARLIE KIMBALL (No. 26 Levemir FlexPen, sixth): "I think we have a really good race car for tomorrow. It wasn't an ideal qualifying session. I made a mistake and spun, causing the yellow, so they took away my best lap as per the rules. But the car is really consistent. With a little work, the No. 26 Levemir FlexPen car should be on the podium."
MARTIN PLOWMAN (No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing, seventh): "That was a really tough qualifying session. All weekend we've been struggling to get a good bit of speed. We just haven't been able to quite get things together. For qualifying, I went out and drove my heart out. That last lap, I laid everything on the line and launched myself from P8 to P5. I know we have a very good race car. I'm looking forward to the race."
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES RACE START TIRE SELECTION:
•Primary (black): #12 Power, #3 Castroneves, #6 Briscoe, #26 Andretti, #27 Carroll, #2 Matos, #77 Tagliani, #4 Wheldon, #7 Patrick, #19 Lloyd, #8 Viso.
•Alternate (red): #10 Franchitti, #5 Sato, #22 Wilson, #9 Dixon, #32 Moraes, #24 Tracy, #11 Kanaan, #06 Mutoh, #78 de Silvestro, #37 Hunter-Reay, #14 Meira, #34 Romancini, #36 Baguette, #18 Duno.
IZOD IndyCar Series rules mandate the use of the alternate "red" tires for at least two green-flag laps during road/street course races.
SUNDAY'S SCHEDULE (all times local):
7 a.m. Garages open
9:30-9:50 a.m. Firestone Indy Lights warm-up
10:15-10:45 a.m. IZOD IndyCar Series warm-up
1 p.m. Firestone Indy Lights pre-race
1:30 p.m. Corning 100 Firestone Indy Lights race (29 laps)
2:30 p.m. IZOD IndyCar Series pre-race
3:30 p.m. Camping World Grand Prix at the Glen IZOD IndyCar Series race (60 laps, live on ABC)
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 4 with the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 3:30 p.m. (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Corning 100 on July 4 at the Watkins Glen International.
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. - Results of qualifying Saturday for the Corning 100 Firestone Indy Lights event on the 3.37-mile Watkins Glen International, with starting position, car number in parentheses, driver, time and speed in parentheses:
1. (2) James Hinchcliffe, 1:37.3594 (124.610)
2. (28) Stefan Wilson, 1:37.6394 (124.253)
3. (7) J.K. Vernay, 1:38.1532 (123.603)
4. (29) Sebastian Saavedra, 1:38.2258 (123.511)
5. (22) Adrian Campos Jr., 1:38.4672 (123.209)
6. (26) Charlie Kimball, 1:38.4997 (123.168)
7. (27) Martin Plowman, 1:38.5765 (123.072)
8. (10) Gustavo Yacaman, 1:38.6973 (122.921)
9. (49) Philip Major, 1:38.8110 (122.780)
10. (4) Anders Krohn, 1:38.8202 (122.768)
11. (40) Dan Clarke, 1:38.8716 (122.705)
12. (11) Pippa Mann, 1:39.4400 (122.003)
13. (18) Rodrigo Barbosa, 1:41.6055 (119.403)
14. (77) James Winslow, 1:43.9384 (116.723)
WATKINS Glen, N.Y. -- Results Saturday of Qualifying for the Camping World Grand Prix At The Glen IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 3.37-mile(s) Watkins Glen International, with starting position, car number in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, time and speed in parentheses:"
1. (12) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 1:29.3164 (135.832)
2. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 1:29.4609 (135.612)
3. (6) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 1:29.9346 (134.898)
4. (10) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 1:29.9601 (134.860)
5. (5) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 1:30.1410 (134.589)
6. (22) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 1:30.2667 (134.402)
7. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 1:30.1389 (134.592)
8. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 1:30.2042 (134.495)
9. (32) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 1:30.2644 (134.405)
10. (27) Adam Carroll, Dallara-Honda, 1:30.4886 (134.072)
11. (2) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 1:30.5276 (134.014)
12. (24) Paul Tracy, Dallara-Honda, 1:30.8414 (133.551)
13. (11) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.1934 (133.036)
14. (06) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.1723 (133.067)
15. (78) Simona deSilvestro, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.3268 (132.842)
16. (37) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.4333 (132.687)
17. (14) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.4088 (132.722)
18. (34) Mario Romancini, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.5797 (132.475)
19. (77) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.5218 (132.559)
20. (4) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.5988 (132.447)
21. (7) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 1:31.5329 (132.543)
22. (19) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 1:33.9832 (129.087)
23. (36) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 1:32.1888 (131.600)
24. (18) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 1:40.4911 (120.727)
25. (8) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, No Time (No Speed)
June 30 2010
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1. Wilson hopes to repeat at The Glen
2. AVIS partners with IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights
3. Winslow returns to SSM at The Glen
4. Yacaman completes first triathlon
1. Wilson hopes to repeat at The Glen: It's not often that a race car driver has the opportunity to exclaim "It was a perfect day for me."
A year of reflection and Justin Wilson reiterates his Watkins Glen International Victory Circle statement. Wilson led a field-high 49 (of 60) laps, including the final 15, and went on to present Dale Coyne Racing its first IZOD IndyCar Series victory.
"It was just a great day to go out there and be quick," said Wilson, who will attempt to successfully defend his title in the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen on July 4. "The car felt great. Everything went right - apart from we couldn't get a full tank of fuel.
"We could only get 19 gallons in the car every pit stop so that meant we were saving fuel like crazy the whole day until finally there was a yellow with 10 laps to go. That allowed us to save enough fuel so I could run flat out to the end. That's why I managed to pull away from the rest of the field (to a 4-second victory over Team Penske's Ryan Briscoe).
"That's what I was working with the whole time, but it worked for us as well."
Wilson won on the Belle Isle street circuit in '08 with Newman/Haas Racing in his first IZOD IndyCar Series season, but it wasn't as fulfilling for the Colorado resident who turns 32 on July 31.
"(The Glen) was more rewarding because I was able to overtake on track and be able to control the field as well," said Wilson, noting that there were eight lead changes among six drivers. "At Belle Isle, I got alongside Helio (Castroneves) before I got squeezed in toward the wall and had to back out and that's when (Race Control) deemed that to be blocking. At Watkins Glen, Ryan left me a little bit of road and I was able to complete the pass."
Wilson said he enjoys the 3.4-mile, 11-turn Watkins Glen course that has played host to Formula 1among multiple formulas for more than 50 years - mainly because it's related to courses he competed on in Europe. Off-season facility modifications (replacing the tire barriers in Turn 11and the Inner Loops with the SAFER Barrier and paving some runoffs) are welcome by drivers.
"I think it's one of the best tracks in the world," he said. "Having won there last year I'm going to say that, but it's just a great, fun track. There are a lot of fast corners and it hasn't lost any of its character with the safety improvements. That's key. When you come out of those fifth- and fourth-gear corners, you know when you've got it right. It's like, 'That feels good.' ''
He'll attempt to regain that feeling in the No. 22 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing entry. Wilson had three top 10s, including a pair of runner-up finishes, in the four early season road/street course package and is eighth in the championship standings. The Glen race weekend kicks off a five-race road/street course swing that will impact the championship order.
"I'm focused on this year, hoping we can go back there and be as competitive," said Wilson, who started alongside pole sitter Ryan Briscoe each of the past two years. "It's a different team, but I want to get back that same level of competition. Hopefully we can work it all out and repeat."
2. AVIS partners with IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights: AVIS has formed a multi-year partnership with the Indy Racing League to be the official rental car company of the IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights.
AVIS, which for 11 consecutive years has been named the leading rental car company in customer loyalty, will take an active role in promoting both series through e-mail campaigns, displays at select airport locations and other large-scale promotions. It also will offer a national sweepstakes program, which will provide a unique VIP experience to fans during an IZOD IndyCar Series race weekend.
Avis Rent A Car System and its subsidiaries operate about 2,200 locations, offering a diverse catalog, including Flex Fuel, of vehicles. Its speedy online reservation system is complemented by the use of the latest in technology, and it continues to explore innovation to offer value and reliability to customers.
The IZOD IndyCar Series, whose Honda engines are powered by 100 percent fuel-grade ethanol, is the first and only form of motorsports to utilize a renewable and environmentally friendly fuel source on a diverse mix of road and street circuits and ovals. It is recognized as the leader in motorsports safety and innovation and, with its partners, constantly pursues the advancement of the sport by incorporating the latest in technology.
"AVIS and the IZOD IndyCar Series share assets of speed, innovation, technology, diversity and green and we are pleased to welcome another great brand to our family of partners," said Terry Angstadt, president of the commercial division for the Indy Racing League.
Safety, reliability and customer service earned Avis top marks in April among car rental companies in customer loyalty by the Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index for the 11th year in a row. The annual study examined customers' relationships with 518 brands in 71 categories.
Included in the partnership is a discounted car rental rate that will be offered to members of IndyCar Nation, the official fan club of the IZOD IndyCar Series.
3. Winslow returns to SSM at The Glen: James Winslow and the No. 77 Sam Schmidt Motorsports team will return to Firestone Indy Lights at Watkins Glen International, team officials announced.
"I'm excited to get back into the car," Winslow said. "I haven't raced since April, so the almost three-month break has me itching to get back out there. The team overall has done a great job in my absence, but I'd love to get back out there and contribute some great results for the organization and for myself."
In three starts this season, Winslow has a best finish of seventh in St. Petersburg, though it's not the most accurate reflection of his talent. Despite starting deep in the pack at both Barber Park and Long Beach, Winslow has shown the ability to make passes happen where others couldn't and move through the field.
"I've shown my potential, but I want to get in some top finishes and avoid the bad luck we were plagued with before," Winslow said. "I think we could have had podium finishes at Barber Motorsports Park and Long Beach had luck not turned against us."
Winslow's No. 77 Focal Point/Sam Schmidt Motorsports car is the same chassis and crew that Wade Cunningham used when he won Schmidt's fifth Firestone Freedom 100 title back in May. Focal Point Lighting, a company out of Chicago, will serve as the primary sponsor of the car.
"James has shown he has the talent and ability to run competitively in this series," team owner Sam Schmidt said. "We're pleased to have him in the car again and give him another opportunity to run up front and hopefully score some top fives for us."
4. Yacaman completes first triathlon: Firestone Indy Lights racer Gustavo Yacaman didn't want to stop competing on a weekend away from racing. So the 19-year-old Colombian entered his first triathlon on June 26 at Morse Reservoir near Indianapolis.
"Racing is a very physical sport, very physical indeed," Yacaman said. "To be in shape, I always look for alternative ways. I don't just stick to the gym and lift weights. I really like to run and ride both mountain and road bike. Lately I have started to pick up swimming. So then I thought why not mix it all up and do a triathlon?"
Yacaman, who had previously competed in a duathlon (cycling and running) and a 10K road races, finished the 600-yard swim, 14-mile bike and 3-mile run in a time of 1 hour, 37 minutes and 3 seconds (seventh in his age group).
"I wasn't going for a win because I had never done one before, but the whole triathlon will help me prepare for the very physical road courses coming ahead," Yacaman said. "The heat, the intensity and the endurance are all things that I will need to be strong at during this races. Training this way is more exciting than just hitting the weights in the gym and it also feeds my competitive spirit."
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 4 with the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 3:30 p.m. (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Corning 100 on July 4 at the Watkins Glen International.
June 29 2010
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES TO RETURN TO NEW HAMPSHIRE MOTOR SPDWY
LOUDON, N.H. (Sunday, June 27, 2010) - The "Fastest Race in the World" will return to the Granite State in 2011 when the IZOD Indy Car Series returns to New Hampshire Motor Speedway officials announced today. The race will be held on July 30, 2011.
"We're pleased to restore an Indy car short oval to the schedule to further increase our diversity of venues," said Randy Bernard, chief executive officer of the Indy Racing League, sanctioning body of the IZOD IndyCar Series. "As evident last weekend in Iowa, our cars produce tremendous racing on short ovals. Additionally, New Hampshire Motor Speedway is strategically located in the Northeast, which fills a geographical gap in our schedule. I have to thank Bruton Smith and Jerry Gappens for giving us a great opportunity here at New Hampshire Motor Speedway."
Bernard was joined by Speedway Motorsports Inc., founder and chief executive officer O. Bruton Smith, New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch and Jerry Gappens, executive vice president and general manager of New Hampshire Motor Speedway in making the official announcement.
Two-time IZOD IndyCar Series champion and Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti demonstrated the more than 200 mph speed that New Hampshire Motor Speedway will see with a three-lap run during pre-race ceremonies.
"This is three year deal in the making," said Jerry Gappens executive vice president and general manager of the speedway. "As an Indiana native and a fan of open-wheeled racing, I strongly believe that the people of New Hampshire will embrace this new breed of speed much like they do NASCAR."
New Hampshire Motor Speedway played host to one of the five Indy Racing League events in its inaugural year (Aug. 8, 1996) with Scott Sharp taking the checkered flag. It also was the site of Robbie Buhl's first victory (Aug. 17, 1997) and Tony Stewart's third (June 28, 1998). CART sanctioned races on the variably-banked (2 to 7 degrees) oval from 1992 to '95.
One of the IZOD IndyCar Series most popular driver, Danica Patrick, was at NHMS this weekend behind the wheel of a stock car. She showed her enthusiasm at the series adding another oval to the Indy schedule.
" I think it is very positive addition to our schedule, especially because it is in the northeast," she said.
New Hampshire International Speedway, which opened in 1990, was purchased in 2008 by Smith from Bob and Gary Bahre and renamed New Hampshire Motor Speedway. It is about an hour north of Boston and, according to the most recent census, more than 18 million people live within two hours of the picturesque venue.
Tickets for the IZOD IndyCar Series at New Hampshire Motor Speedway go on sale Monday June 28, 2010. Prices range from $35-$75.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 4 with the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen at Watkins Glen I
June 25 2010
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES - June 24, 2010
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1. Tracy to sub for Conway at The Glen
2. Franchitti earns ESPY nod
3. Road to Indy series visit New Jersey
1. Tracy to sub for Conway at The Glen: Paul Tracy will compete in the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen on July 2-4 in the No. 24 Honda Indy Toronto car for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.
Tracy had previously announced that he would drive in the Canadian races in July -- the Honda Indy Toronto and Honda Indy Edmonton.
Tracy, the 2003 Champ Car World Series champion, will be making his ninth IZOD IndyCar Series start and his second at Watkins Glen International. He is one of the most successful drivers in Indy car racing with 31 career victories.
"It's obviously a good feeling to get more races, especially being able to race at The Glen and building up momentum before going into the Canadian events," said Tracy, whose sponsorship package for The Glen includes wheel manufacturer Motegi Racing. "It's also great to have the support of Honda Indy Toronto and Motegi Racing for this race as well.
"I'm really excited about working with Robbie Buhl again and to get to work with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. I've known Robbie from our early days in racing back when we competed against each other in the Indy Lights Series. It's very exciting to branch out with another team I haven't been with before and I'm looking forward to a good weekend."
Tracy will fill in for the injured Mike Conway at The Glen. Decisions have not been made on a driver for other races as Conway convalesces in the UK.
"We are very happy to have Paul drive for us," Buhl said. "He's a great driver and a big personality and we are thrilled to have him driving for us in Watkins Glen. We were extremely strong there last year and with Paul's racing experience and him being teamed up with Justin Wilson, we feel that we'll have an extremely strong package for the weekend.
"We obviously wish that Mike could be with us, but we just want him to have a quick recovery. Paul was a perfect fit and we couldn't be happier to have him behind the wheel."
Wilson is the defending race winner, having taken a Dale Coyne Racing entry to Victory Circle. He has a pair of runner-up finishes early this season in the No. 22 Z-Line Designs car.
2. Franchitti earns ESPY nod: Reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champion Dario Franchitti is one of five champion racers nominated for best driver at the 2010 ESPY Awards.
The two-time Indianapolis 500 winner is joined by NASCAR champions Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch and Ron Hornaday and NHRA top fuel champion Tony Schumacher in the category which will be awarded July 14 in Los Angeles.
The ESPYS will be hosted by Seth Meyers of "Saturday Night Live" and televised live (9 p.m. ET, ESPN). Voting for the award is underway at ESPN.com.
3. Road to Indy series visit New Jersey: While the IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights teams are taking a well-deserved weekend off, the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear and Cooper Tires presents the USF2000 National Championship powered by Mazda are racing at New Jersey Motorsports Park as part of the Mazda Motorsports Festival presented by VisitFlorida.com.
Conor Daly, the 18-year-old son of former Indy car and Formula One driver Derek Daly, has won the last four Star Mazda events and goes for a series-record fifth win at New Jersey, where he won in 2009. The field also features veteran AMA superbike rider Larry Pegram, who will make the jump to four wheels and race in the Expert class for drivers 30 and older.
Sage Karam looks to continue his successful run through the USF2000 calendar as the series contests a doubleheader at NJMP.
The 15-year-old from Nazareth, Pa., has won three of four races, so far, and aims to maintain his point lead over Patrick McKenna.
"Iowa was great, but New Jersey will be exciting because it's close to my hometown (Nazareth, Pa.), and we should have a lot of friends and relatives there," Karam said.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 4 with the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 3:30 p.m. (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Corning 100 on July 4 at the Watkins Glen Internation
June 24 2010
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1. Tight race brewing for oval championship
2. Teams gear up for road races with tests
3. Fisher joins campaign against drugged driving
1. Tight race brewing for oval championship: In a 250-lap sprint at Iowa Speedway, Scott Dixon went from 11 points arrears of leader Dario Franchitti to three points clear of his Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate in the A.J. Foyt Oval Championship standings.
Through four oval races on the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule, Dixon has 151 points after finishing sixth in the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer on June 20. Franchitti, the reigning series champion, led a field-high 69 laps and was looking to pad his points lead. But a gearbox issue with 50 laps remaining left the Indianapolis 500 champion in 18th place.
"We had a winning car, but it wasn't anybody's fault," he said. "The Target team did a great job. These things just happen."
But, he added: "We can't afford to be giving points away."
He knows that all too well. For the past four seasons, the overall championship has been decided in the final race. Franchitti has been involved in two (winning in 2007 and '09; both times outpacing Dixon).
Team Penske's Ryan Briscoe, the third man in the overall championship chase last year, is third in the A.J. Foyt Oval Championship standings with 137 points. Tony Kanaan, who won at Iowa Speedway in the No. 11 Team 7-Eleven car for Andretti Autosport, is fourth with 135 points. Team Penske's Helio Castroneves is fifth (121), while teammate Will Power - the overall points leader by 11 over Dixon - is eighth (102).
Franchitti is third (260) in the overall championship, Castroneves (251) is fourth and Briscoe (240) fifth.
"I know I'm 23 points behind so it makes the championship a little bit tight," said Castroneves, who was runner-up to Kanaan at Iowa. "That's what we're looking for."
The initial four oval races were run on a diverse lineup (2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway, 1.5-mile high-banked Texas Motor Speedway and Kansas Speedway, .875-mile Iowa Speedway). The three-pack of ovals (the season finale Oct. 2 at Homestead-Miami Speedway doesn't count in the standings) will be on 1.5-mile tracks, but each has characteristics that create challenges for drivers and engineers alike.
Next on the schedule are five road/street/airport circuits, beginning with the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen on July 4. Dixon is a three-time winner on the 3.4-mile natural-terrain course. Power is the points leader through four of the nine races to determine the road course champion. The Indy car legend who will be honored with that award will be announced during The Glen weekend.
2. Teams gear up for road races with tests: On the way to South Central New York for the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen (only another 312 miles), five IZOD IndyCar Series teams will stop off June 30 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for a road course refresher.
The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by Westfield Insurance on Aug. 8 at the 2.258-mile Mid-Ohio course is the fourth in a five-race road/street/airport circuit stretch that commences July 4 at Watkins Glen International. Teams are coming off four consecutive oval events.
"For us, it's a good opportunity," said Vitor Meira, who recorded a seventh-place finish June 20 at Iowa Speedway in the No. 14 ABC Supply car for A.J. Foyt Racing. "We don't get to test very much and in a season you have to pick your fights. It's hard to focus on one; there are so many - road courses, street courses, ovals big and small -- there's always room to improve.
"Where we think we have more to improve on is road courses. That's why we're going to Mid-Ohio. We're testing before we go to Watkins Glen and before Mid-Ohio and Infineon so we'll have the benefit of that day for many races."
Meira is scheduled to be joined by IZOD IndyCar Series points leader Will Power, Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe of Team Penske; Alex Lloyd and Milka Duno of Dale Coyne Racing; Raphael Matos of de Ferran Dragon Racing; and Adam Carroll, who will be undergoing his road course rookie test in anticipation of making his series debut with Andretti Autosport at The Glen. The facility will not be open to spectators.
Additionally, Dreyer & Reinbold's Justin Wilson was scheduled to get in laps on the 1.5-mile Chicagoland Speedway oval (weather permitting) on June 22-23 and Target Chip Ganassi Racing's Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti are scheduled to test at Sebring International Raceway on June 28.
"We haven't tested on an oval yet; we've just gone from race to race and there's a limited amount you can do on a race weekend," said Wilson, driver of the No. 24 Z-Line Designs car. "We just wanted to go there and learn some things. Once we get into the road courses in the second part of the season you don't want to change the car back, so it just fits in really well to do it now. "
Because of the cancelation of the Open Test at Kentucky Speedway on May 4, each full-season entrant has been granted an additional test day on a 1.5-mile oval at their discretion. They'll receive three sets of Firestone Firehawks. The sanctioning body also has worked with Infineon Raceway to make Aug. 13 available for testing. Race day on the 2.245-mile course is Aug. 22.
3. Fisher joins campaign against drugged driving: IZOD IndyCar Series team owner/driver Sarah Fisher joined Office of National Drug Control Policy director Gil Kerlikowske and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration administrator David Strickland on June 22 in Washington to kick off the national Anti-Drugged Driving Campaign.
"Americans are familiar with the terrible consequences of drunk driving and the dangers posed by texting or talking on a cell phone while driving," Kerlikowske said. "Now, as we approach the Fourth of July, one of the busiest periods on the nation's roads, the Office of National Drug Control Policy is teaming up with public- and private-sector partners across the nation to raise awareness of the dangers of another important public safety issue --drugged driving."
Fisher, who also taped a Public Service Announcement with Kerlikowske to be aired in the days leading up to the Fourth of July, addressed her message specifically to young people.
"Several studies have shown that too many young people get behind the wheel of a car after smoking marijuana or taking drugs," Fisher said. "They need to make smarter and safer decisions. I have been a professional race car driver since I was a teenager, and I can tell you that whether you are driving 20 mph on a city street or 220 mph at the Indy 500, you don't want to have impaired judgment or slow reaction time. To be safe, you need to be at your best."
ONDCP is working to increase the number of states with effective drugged driving laws.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 4 with the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 3:30 p.m. (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Corning 100 on July 4 at the Watkins Glen International.
June 21 2010
KANAAN RETURNS TO VICTORY LANE WITH WIN AT IOWA SPDWY
NEWTON, Iowa -- Tony Kanaan finally finished a race at Iowa Speedway.
The veteran Andretti Autosport driver won for the first time since June 2008, prevailing in the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer. Kanaan, who started 15th, overtook Helio Castroneves with 10 laps remaining on the .875-mile track.
E.J. Viso finished an IZOD IndyCar Series-high third and Ryan Briscoe was fourth.
Will Power, the pole sitter, finished fifth to regain the series championship points lead. Dario Franchitti, the leader entering the race, looked to be a contender until the No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing car had a gearbox issue with 50 laps remaining.
He had taken the lead from Castroneves a lap earlier.
It was a special weekend for John O'Gara. He was with extended family at the racetrack, race day also happened to be Father's Day and on June 19 he celebrated his 28th wedding anniversary with his bride, Jean.
O'Gara, the race strategist among other things for the No. 67 Dollar General car driven by team owner Sarah Fisher, has the opportunity to work side by side with son Andy and daughter Colleen.
"It's incredible to be able to follow him like I did growing up and to come to all the racetracks and root him on and to now be here on the other end," said Andy, who happens to be married to the owner/driver.
Both were part of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing for many years before leaving to start Sarah Fisher Racing in 2008. Sarah's 80th IZOD IndyCar Series start was cut short when the No. 67 car drifted up the track in Turn 4 and made light contact with the SAFER Barrier on Lap 95.
"Sometimes you don't appreciate it while you're here but when you get home and take time to think about what you're doing, where you're at and who's around you and it means a great deal to us," Andy O'Gara said.
There are two sons of famous racing fathers competing in today's race on Father's Day: Graham Rahal, who is driving the #24 Dad's Root Beer car for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, is the son of 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal. Marco Andretti, who drives the #26 Team Venom Energy for Andretti Autosport owned by his father Michael
In addition, there are three sets of fathers and sons working on the spotter's stand today: Former Indianapolis 500 polesitter Pancho Carter (Dale Coyne Racing) is joined by his sons Dane (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing) and Cole (de Ferran Dragon Racing); Glenn "Packy" Wheeler (Panther Racing) and his son Chris (Dale Coyne Racing); Rik Crews and his son C.R. (Both with KV Racing Technology.
About 115 Boy Scouts from Iowa were part of the pre-race ceremonies at Iowa Speedway.
They had the opportunity to get an up-close look at the No. 19 Boys Scouts of America car driven by former Scout Alex Lloyd. Boy Scouts of America is celebrating its centennial anniversary, and the program with Dale Coyne Racing focuses on the benefits of Scouting in a changing world.
"It's phenomenal to have organizations like the Indy (Racing League) behind the Boy Scouts and realize that this program is what we need in today's world," said Jim Fox, scoutmaster of Troop 111 from Grimes, Iowa. "We've even added merit badges that fit today's world - geocaching, inventing - but the basic core values haven't changed from 1912."
Brett Snyder of Muscatine, Iowa, a tire changer on the No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds/HVM Racing car, suffered a sprained ankle when struck by the car entering the pit stall during a stop in the first half of the race. ... Danica Patrick was running at the finish for the 24th consecutive race -- four off Scott Dixon's series record. Patrick posted her third consecutive top-10 finish. ... Dixon, who started in the top 10 for the 40th consecutive race, finished in the top 10 for the sixth race in a row. His five-race top 5 streak ended with a sixth-place finish
This is Tony Kanaan's first win of the season and the 14th of his IZOD IndyCar Series career. His last win was at Richmond in 2008.
This is Andretti Autosport's second win of the season. It won previously at Long Beach with Ryan Hunter-Reay.
This is Helio Castroneves' second podium finishes of the 2010 season. He was on the podium when he won at Barber Motorsports Park in April.
E.J. Viso finished a career-best third. His previous best finish in the IZOD IndyCar Series was fourth at St. Petersburg in 2008.
The third place finish for KV Racing Technology matches the team's previous best IZOD IndyCar Series finish. Driver Mario Moraes finished third for the team at Chicagoland in 2009.
DARIO FRANCHITTI (No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing): "I was leading at the time and the gearbox went. I was shifting from sixth down to fifth and came up with a box full of neutrals. We had a winning car today, but it wasn't anybody's fault. The Target team did a great job today. These things just happen."
TONY KANAAN (No. 11 Team 7-Eleven, winner Iowa Corn Indy 250): "I have to thank my team and the entire 7-Eleven crew. They did a great job. I had a great car. I have thank my teammates. Marco (Andretti) and Ryan (Hunter-Reay) came over after qualifying. I was very disappointed. I made a mistake during qualifying and I was pretty down. They talked to me for 45 minutes and cheered me up. Marco gave me a little bit of his setup and Ryan actually helped me with the setup, putting it together for today. It was a great job as a team and it feels good."
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Team Penske, finished second): "Team Penske did a great job. We finished fourth and fifth as well so all of our cars were in the front. Somehow the No. 3 car was always wearing out the left front. When I needed it the most, unfortunately it wasn't there. I'm not sure. Maybe that bump between Tony (Kanaan) and Scott (Dixon) might have caused something because it was very hard to set up the car during the race. I should be happy but with ten laps to go, it slipped right through my hands. We had great pit stops. The team did an incredible job. Tony did seem to have a better car. He could run everywhere but more consistent. It's a shame for us today, but for the championship it is very good.
E.J. VISO (No. 8 PDVSA-Jet Aviation-KV Racing Technology, finished third): "It's been a very tough year for the team. We all knew that we could get there. We have some very good people on the team and good drivers. We finished in the position we deserved to have. I hope this is the start of good things to come for the rest of the season."
RYAN BRISCOE (No. 6 Team Penske, finished fourth): "I'm so happy with this fourth place finish today. I was scared. That first stint, the car was very loose. I think the change with the wind direction today, it really (inaudible) my car in Turn 1 with the bump. I was in a lot of trouble, so come in fourth today is a great effort by Team Penske. We made a few changes during the pit stops and they gave me positions on the yellow stops. That was really good."
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues July 4 with the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 3:30 p.m. (ET) by ABC. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Corning 100 on July 4 at the Watkins International.
NEWTON, Iowa - Results Sunday of the Iowa Corn Indy 250 IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 0.894-mile Iowa Speedway, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (15) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 250, Running
2. (4) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 250, Running
3. (19) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, 250, Running
4. (8) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 250, Running
5. (1) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 250, Running
6. (2) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 250, Running
7. (13) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 250, Running
8. (12) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 249, Running
9. (17) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 249, Running
10. (9) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 249, Running
11. (10) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 249, Running
12. (6) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 248, Running
13. (14) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 248, Running
14. (21) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 247, Running
15. (3) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 244, Running
16. (23) Mario Romancini, Dallara-Honda, 244, Running
17. (22) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 237, Running
18. (5) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 212, Running
19. (7) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 177, Contact
20. (24) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 131, Handling
21. (20) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 128, Handling
22. (18) Sarah Fisher, Dallara-Honda, 92, Contact
23. (25) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 31, Handling
24. (11) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 0, Contact
25. (16) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 0, Contact
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1:42:12.4036
Winners average speed: 131.205
Margin of victory: 4.2030 seconds
Cautions: 4 for 51 laps
Lead changes: 16 among 7 drivers
Lap Leaders: Power 1-32, Andretti 33-44, Franchitti 45-54, Rahal 55-65, Franchitti 66-67,
Dixon 68-85, Franchitti 86-112, Dixon 113-115, Franchitti 116-119, Kanaan 120-135, Franchitti 136-145, Kanaan 146-180, Franchitti 181-195, Castroneves 196-198, Franchitti 199, Castroneves 200-239, Kanaan 240-250.
Point Standings: Power 274, Dixon 263, Franchitti 258, Castroneves 251, Briscoe 240, Kanaan 229, Hunter-Reay 225, Wilson 191, Andretti 184, Dan Wheldon 183
June 18 2010
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series headlines
1. Q&A with team owner/driver Sarah Fisher
2. Target Chip Ganassi team members receive '09 title rings
3. Duno to address students in Iowa
1. Q&A with team owner/driver Sarah Fisher: Sarah Fisher, who will compete in the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer this weekend at Iowa Speedway, participated in a Q&A session to discuss her career and status as the only female owner/driver in the IZOD IndyCar Series. Below are select quotes.
Q. When you started racing in the IZOD IndyCar Series 11 years ago, did you think you'd be here racing as an owner/driver?
SARAH FISHER: There have been a lot of ups and downs in my career, and I definitely didn't see myself here. I've had to rebound to where I am, which is fantastic. To own my own team, own my own cars and work with my own people is something I'm most proud of now.
Q. You're not running the full schedule and Sara Fisher Racing will run selected events for the rest of the year. Your plans have not changed, correct?
SARAH FISHER: We're going to do exactly what we planned. We have 10 races with the No. 67 car and five races with the No. 66 car. We're going to do all those events and try to grow it from there. Just because Jay (Howard) missed Indy doesn't mean we are going to do less for Service Central. We're actually going to try and do more. It's going to be a tough year because of that. But that's the risk you take when you decide to be a team owner. We have to do it because it's necessary for the big picture.
Q. What is the big picture for Sarah Fisher Racing? Is it two full-time cars?
SARAH FISHER: That would be nice. I think that would be a really big challenge for us now. It would be safe to say that our goal would be to field a full series-long one-car effort with two cars at Indy. I just don't think there are enough sponsorship dollars to do two cars for the whole season. I could be surprised.
Q. You were the first full-time female driver. There are now four women competing in the series and a fifth - Ana Beatriz - has run races, too. Did you ever imagine that when you started?
SARAH FISHER: No. I was just a silly little kid with Coke bottle glasses back then. What I really like about having more women in the field is that they are all quality drivers. Look at Simona (De Silvestro); she really earned her way up here. She's done a really good job in the series so far. Competing against the best drivers in the world is a goal of the series, and when we bring new people in it's nice to back that up.
Q. Even though you are as young as you are, you're sort of the "grand dame" of the sport.
SARAH FISHER: I know, and I'm not even 30.
Q. And you're still here after 11 years.
SARAH FISHER: It's all from being that approachable "girl next door" that I am. I have such a great fan following that supporters like Dollar General and Service Central, the sponsor of the second car, see that. They see a female entrepreneur going out there and trying to run with the big boys and they hope their customers and their employee can emulate that as well. To have the support now in my career is the best. When I was a driver only, it may have hurt me, but as an owner I get to take that to a new level.
Q. What does the future hold for Sarah Fisher?
SARAH FISHER: Being an owner. I'm almost 30 and I want to start a family. I see this team taking off without me in the driver's seat. I have to make sure that it can do that before I decide to do that. I love racing. Even if I wasn't driving an IndyCar, I'd be driving something. Once you start, you can't stop.
2. Target Chip Ganassi Racing team members receive '09 title rings: Target Chip Ganassi Racing employees gathered in the team's Indianapolis race shop this week to receive rings commemorating Dario Franchitti's 2009 IZOD IndyCar Series championship.
"Winning races together with Target has led to seven open-wheel championships with some terrific champions," team managing director Mike Hull said. "The Target bull's-eye has been with us from the start, so the branded ring that they have commissioned to commemorate Dario's championship is very special. It represents the dedication to finding new ways to win by every Target team member combined with the same ethic by each Target Chip Ganassi Racing team member. It continues to be a terrific combination that wins."
3. Duno to address students in Iowa: Milka Duno will address students June 18 at Grand View University (Viking Theater) in a program presented by the Iowa Department of Human Rights in conjunction with Duno's "Milka Way" Program.
Duno, who will compete in the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer in the No. 18 CITGO/CANTV car for Dale Coyne Racing, will speak with students about the importance of education and how a strong academic background will serve them their entire life.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues June 20 with the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer at Iowa Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 1:30 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the AvoidTheStork.com 100 on June 19 at the Iowa Speedway
June 17 2010
de-silvestro-joins-the-torch-club
Simona De Silvestro made her debut in the IZOD IndyCar Series
aboard the # 78 Stargate Resistance entry
On a lighter side, Tony Kanaan told her she is now an inductee into “The Torch Club.” Here is an excerpt from one of her interviews:
excerpts and phhotos From a Speed TV article, http://auto-racing.speedtv.com/article/de-silvestro-the-torch-club
“The start was pretty good; the car was a bit loose, but we were moving towards the front. Passing people on the inside and outside; oval racing is a blast!!! First pit stop came and I was a bit long in my box, but luckily did not lose that much time, thanks to my team. We were closing up to Tagliani after I had moved up some positions. The car is getting looser, but I was holding on. I had made the car stiff on the rear to tried and curb my understeer but this might not have been the best situation to be in. We knew that I had to nurture the car to the next pit stop so I was just trying to make it. I had a few catches and then came the big one. They say on the ovals there are those racers who have crashed and those racers that are going to crash; I guess it was my time.
The IZOD IndyCar Safety Team is looking to make sure Saturday night's delay never happens again.
I hit the bump in turn 2 and the rear got loose and bang I was in the wall. Then it felt like forever for the car to stop and I saw a bit of fire. I pushed the extinguisher button but continued to see the flames. When I finally got to a stop, the fire got bigger and bigger and I knew it was time to get out of the car.
The safety crew came up to my car and everything seemed like it was in slow motion. One of the Safety Crew members jumped in and tried to help me get out; it took a while to get out and the fire was burning badly. I really appreciated the efforts of all the Safety Crew members and specifically Mike, who helped get me out and in doing so apparently suffered burns himself (Hope you get well soon Mike). Once out I was taken to the track’s care center.
I was alright, except for the hand; it felt like it was on fire. They took good care of me and put it on ice and put some strange cream on it, and that was very painful. My Dad in the meantime ran all the way from the grandstand and I think he needed more medicine than I did. I love you Dad!
It was all a bit scary and I was lucky to be ok. Everything was burned; my suit, my helmet, and my car were all in bad shape. It’s a shame that my first one had to turn into a fire ball. I'm sad for my team and we now have to work very hard to bounce back from this unfortunate situation.
Car looks pretty burned up
Simones helmet adter the fire
TK (Tony Kanaan) has informed me that I have now been inducted into "The Torch Club". This one is certainly the least favorite of any my memberships and I hope to never experience this again. Thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers for my well-being and support of my team. We really appreciate it!”
In 2010 Simona De Silvestro made her debut in the IZOD IndyCar Series aboard the # 78 Stargate Resistance entry as part of the Team Stargate Worlds/HVM Racing entry. Prior to that she stunned the North American open-wheel world in 2009. De Silvestro won 4 races In dominant fashion. In addition to her wins she also earned 4 pole positions, and an extraordinary 9 podium finishes in the 2009 Atlantic Championship Season. Her success was not only impressive but it was also record breaking.
De Silvestro, who is often referred as “the Swiss Miss” because of her Swiss upbringing, was the first woman is series history to have earned the most wins, pole positions, and led the most laps all in a single season. At the end of the season De Silvestro also had an extraordinary 9 podium finishes in the season. The results of her effort led to her finishing the season in 3rd place, proving to observers that she is on par to becoming open wheel racing's next shining star.
Learn more about Simona and her team at www.teamstargateworlds.com, www.simonadesilvestro.com, and www.hvmracing.com.
INDY RACING LEAGUE RELEASES RESULTS OF INQUIRY
INTO ITS SAFETY TEAM RESPONSE AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
INDIANAPOLIS (June 16, 2010) - Upon review of the on-track fire during the June 5 race at Texas Motor Speedway, the Indy Racing League discovered a procedural error in the packing of a fire hose on one of its trucks that caused it to malfunction as well as a breakdown in Safety Team protocol in its response to the incident.
"First and foremost, the Safety Team puts the highest priority on driver safety," said Mike Yates, track safety manager for the Indy Racing League. "Prior to every race, the Safety Team tests all hoses to ensure they're working. At Texas, there was an error in the re-packing of the hose after the test, which caused it to malfunction. We are modifying hoses on all the trucks beginning this weekend in Iowa to prevent this from happening again.
"Additionally, upon arriving at the scene of the incident, our protocol calls for Safety Team members to take pressurized canisters with water and Cold Fire to the car to extinguish the fire as a first response. In situations like this, decisions are made in a split second based on the severity of the incident. After critiquing the situation, we have determined that the canisters are a more efficient and effective way to quickly suppress on-track fires. This will be reviewed with all Safety Team members."
The Safety Team consists of approximately 24 highly-trained personnel with a minimum of 14 attending each event -- 2 trauma physicians, 3 paramedics and 9 firefighters/EMTs. Team members have an average of 20 years of experience in their respective areas.
"Our Safety Team is at the forefront of motorsports safety and over the years has set a very high standard in its response to all on-track incidents," said Brian Barnhart, president of competition and racing operations for the Indy Racing League. "We are always continually looking for ways to improve the way we operate. What happened at Texas was a result of human error and we will work diligently to prevent this in the future. The safety of our teams, drivers and officials on the racetrack remains our number one priority."
The Safety Team is divided into three response units. When an on-track incident occurs, the first team to arrive on the scene is responsible for the driver and his/her extrication from the car, if necessary. The second team begins track cleanup at the area of impact. The third team makes a complete lap around the track to check for fluids and debris that may have been dropped during the incident.
The Safety Team conducts frequent training sessions for its members and meets daily with track safety personnel during event weekends
June 16 2010
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1.Ethanol industry backs Hunter-Reay for Iowa race
2.Iowa Ag Secretary takes 2-seater to work
3.Drivers to toss first pitch at games
4.Twenty-four presses of Honda overtake assist for Iowa
5.Of note
1. Ethanol industry backs Hunter-Reay for Iowa race: Officials of ICM and Green Plains Renewable Energy -- industry leaders in the development and production of biofuels in the U.S. - received an ovation from the participants at the Fuel Ethanol Workshop in St. Louis when they announced a partnership to sponsor the No. 37 Ethanol USA-Team IZOD car of Andretti Autosport driven by Ryan Hunter-Reay in this weekend's Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer.
Hunter-Reay was sponsored by the U.S. ethanol industry in the 2007 and '08 IZOD IndyCar Series seasons.
"We're excited to be back in the IZOD IndyCar Series, and thrilled to renew our relationship with Ryan Hunter-Reay," said Dave Vander Griend, president and CEO of ICM Inc. "Ryan has demonstrated his tremendous skill on the racetrack, and is a passionate supporter of the U.S. ethanol industry."
Added Todd Becker, president and CEO of Green Plains Renewable Energy: "This partnership is a great platform to demonstrate the environmental and performance aspects of ethanol right in the back yard of the No. 1 ethanol producing state with over 84 million barrels of production. We continue to prove year after year that ethanol has become a permanent solution to breaking our dependence on foreign oil in a clean and responsible manner."
Hunter-Reay is sixth in the championship standings with one victory and three top-five finishes overall. He advanced six positions to finish eighth at Iowa Speedway in 2008 with Rahal Letterman Racing, driving the No. 17 ethanol car.
The IZOD IndyCar Series is the only form of motorsports to use a renewable and environmentally-friendly fuel (100 percent fuel-grade ethanol) to power its Honda Indy V-8 engines.
"I couldn't be more thrilled to be representing Ethanol USA in the IZOD IndyCar Series again for a race that's fueled by ethanol made in the United States," Hunter-Reay said. "Everyone talks about cleaner, greener energy, but this is one industry that has been consistently delivering on its promises."
2. Iowa Ag Secretary takes 2-seater to work: Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey joined representatives from Iowa Speedway and the Iowa Corn Promotion Board for breakfast in Des Moines and a quick trip to his statehouse office June 15 in the Indy Racing Experience street-legal two-seater.
"It was a fun ride," Northey said. "I definitely got some looks this morning. It's a fun chance to tell folks a little about the Iowa Corn Indy 250."
The IZOD IndyCar Series race at Iowa Speedway on June 20 is sponsored for the fourth consecutive year by the Iowa Corn Growers Association and Iowa Corn Promotion Board. The IZOD IndyCar Series is the only form of motorsports to use a renewable and environmentally-friendly form of fuel (100 percent fuel-grade ethanol) to power its Honda Indy V-8 engines.
"It certainly does send a message, especially when you're running 100 percent ethanol like these IndyCars do," said Dick Gallagher, who was among a group of corn growers who joined the secretary for breakfast. "It's very common to have E10 in your regular gasoline. But we're trying to increase the ethanol blends that we are using, and showing that IndyCars run on 100 percent ethanol sends a very clear message."
Iowa produced a record 10.75 billion gallons of biofuel last year, reducing demand for imported oil by 364 million barrels.
Northey enjoyed his morning commute to the Wallace State Office Building, but said he won't be trading in his flex-fuel vehicle.
"Probably my pick-up is a bit more practical for me," Northey said.
3. Drivers to toss first pitch at games: Firestone Indy Lights driver Charlie Kimball will throw out the first pitch before the Clinton LumberKings minor league baseball game against Wisconsin on June 16 as part of Novo Nordisk Diabetes Awareness Night.
The 25-year-old Kimball is in his second season of competing in the 13-race Firestone Indy Lights Series and competes with Type I diabetes.
"I'm pretty nervous about it," Kimball said. "Of course, since it's Class A baseball, they may sign me for the rest of the season if I do a good job."
Indianapolis 500 winners Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon will also make an appearance at a baseball game on June 16. The Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammates will throw out the first pitches before the Minnesota Twins-Colorado Rockies game at Target Field.
4. Twenty-four presses of Honda overtake assist for Iowa: IZOD IndyCar Series drivers will have 24 uses of the Honda overtake assist at their disposal for the 250-lap race at the .875-mile Iowa Speedway.
Each press of the button will activate the system for 10 seconds of added horsepower. There will be an eight-second reset period between uses. It will be the first time the Honda overtake assist has been used on a short track since it was introduced last August.
5. Of note: E85 for 85 cents a gallon and meet Marco Andretti? What a deal. The Andretti Autosport driver will greet patrons at the Kum & Go (2110 Guthrie St. in Des Moines) from 5:30-7:30 p.m. June 17. Premium unleaded will be offered for 10 cents off per gallon. … Jake McVey and Jessie James will perform on stage after the checkered flag of the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues June 20 with the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer at Iowa Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 1:30 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the AvoidTheStork.com 100 on June 19 at the Iowa Speedway
June 12 2010
IRL STATEMENT REGARDING TEXAS FIRE RESPONSE
INDIANAPOLIS issued on (Monday, June 7, 2010) - The Indy Racing League, the sanctioning body of the IZOD IndyCar Series, issued the following statement today regarding the response to the oil fire in Simona de Silvestro's car during Saturday's race at Texas Motor Speedway:
First and foremost, we make the safety of our competitors a priority when on the track. The primary hose on the series' safety truck malfunctioned, so the safety team had to go to the backup of the bottles. All equipment is checked prior to going on track before every race. We are examining why the hose malfunctioned to ensure this equipment failure will not happen again.
Our Safety Team consists of approximately 24 highly-trained safety personnel with a minimum of 14 attending each event - 2 trauma physicians, 3 paramedics and 9 firefighters/EMTs. Team members have an average of 20 years of experience in their respective areas. The safety team is recognized for its high standards and high performance and this problem will be addressed.
June 11 2010
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1. Rahal joins Dreyer & Reinbold for Iowa
2. Kanaan has 'Dream' night at Eldora
3. World Cup draws interest in IZOD IndyCar Series paddock
1. Rahal joins Dreyer & Reinbold for Iowa: Dreyer & Reinbold Racing announced that Graham Rahal will replace the injured Mike Conway in the No. 24 Dad's Root Beer custom-designed HOT WHEELS entry for the Iowa Corn 250 at Iowa Speedway on June 20.
Rahal, 21, most recently started seventh and finished 12th in the Indianapolis 500 for Rahal Letterman Racing. In two races on the .875-mile Iowa Speedway, Rahal has finished 11th and 10th with Newman/Haas Racing. He will be reunited with Justin Wilson, who drives the No. 22 Z-Line Designs car. They were teammates in 2008 at Newman/Haas Racing.
"We are thrilled to have Graham drive for us this weekend," team co-owner Robbie Buhl said. "We obviously wish that Mike could be with us, but we just want him to have a quick recovery. Iowa will be big weekend for DRR as we unveil the Dad's Root Beer one-off paint scheme designed by HOT WHEELS on Father's Day. Graham was a perfect fit and we couldn't be happier to have him behind the wheel."
For the Father's Day race weekend, Hot Wheels, Dad's Root Beer and Dreyer & Reinbold Racing wanted to create something special for fans. Conceived as a 1:64 scale model in the Hot Wheels 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series product line, the Hot Wheels designers brought Dad's Root Beer race car to the racetrack.
Rahal won in his debut on the streets of St. Petersburg in 2008, becoming the youngest winner in series history. In 2009, Rahal finished seventh in the IZOD IndyCar Series standings with five top-five and nine top-10 finishes. He also became the youngest pole winner in IZOD IndyCar Series history at St. Petersburg.
"Dreyer & Reinbold Racing has clearly done an impressive job this season and I really have to thank Robbie, Dennis (Reinbold), the team, and Dad's Root Beer for this opportunity to compete in Iowa," Rahal said. "I also want to wish Mike Conway a quick recovery and hopefully we can bring home a good result for him. I can't wait to get behind the wheel of the Dad's Root Beer custom-designed HOT WHEELS No. 24 car and hopefully contribute more success to Dreyer & Reinbold Racing."
2. Kanaan has 'Dream' night at Eldora: Four-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson stood in Victory Circle and IZOD IndyCar Series driver Tony Kanaan finished 24th in his dirt Late Model debut, but the real winners were four children's hospitals.
Johnson led all 30 laps of the Gillette Fusion ProGlide Prelude to the Dream charity race June 9 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio.
"By far, this is the craziest thing I have ever done," Kanaan said after climbing out of the 7-Eleven car. "I had a lot of fun. I can't describe it.
"I definitely put myself in a very difficult spot, not testing and never being on dirt in my life. In 35 years, I've never driven a car like this or on a surface like this. I really have to thank Tony Stewart. I hope the fans enjoyed it. I'm definitely going to practice and I hope to be back next year.
"The biggest thing I learned is that, while we think our racetrack changes a lot -- this is completely another world. I can drive with the brakes and the throttle at the same time, which I can't do in my IndyCar."
The event was presented live on HBO Pay-Per-View, with net proceeds from the telecast supporting four children's hospitals. The race was a team event with the field broken up into four groups, each representing a children's hospital:
• Team Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis: Clint Bowyer (captain), Ryan Newman, Jeff Gordon, A.J. Allmendinger, Justin Allgaier, Kenny Wallace and Ron Capps.
• Team Cincinnati Children's: Kasey Kahne (captain), Joey Logano, Tony Stewart, Bobby Labonte, Bill Elliott and Cruz Pedregon.
• Team Levine Children's Hospital in Charlotte, N.C.: Kyle Busch (captain), Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, David Reutimann, Dave Blaney, Marcos Ambrose and Travis Pastrana.
• Team St. Jude Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.: Denny Hamlin (captain), Carl Edwards, Ken Schrader, Aric Almirola, Ricky Carmichael, Ray Evernham and Tony Kanaan.
The finishing positions of the top-five drivers from each team were added together with the lowest team score winning 45 percent of the net money raised. Team St. Jude finished second with 48 points and will receive 25 percent.
3. World Cup draws interest in IZOD IndyCar Series paddock: Tomas Scheckter is hopeful of watching one or more FIFA World Cup matches in person. But even if he can't get back to his homeland, the IZOD IndyCar Series driver will be cheering for the South African squad and citizens.
It's the first time that the tournament has been hosted by an African nation.
"It's exciting times for South Africa," Scheckter said. "South Africa has been through so much for so long. We hosted the hosted the Rugby World Cup (1995) and now host the World Cup of soccer. It's super for the economy and people."
With an international collection of drivers and team personnel, the quadrennial tournament is a hot topic of discussion. Matches begin June 11 at 10 sites, with the championship decided July 11 in Johannesburg. The June 12 Group C opener between the United States and England has drawn particular attention.
"I'll definitely be following the World Cup; it's going to be quite interesting," said Dale Coyne Racing driver Alex Lloyd, a native of Manchester, England. "It kind of sounds strange being from the UK, but I'd probably root for the USA over the UK. I've become a little fonder of the U.S. living here for a few years, so perhaps I'll be a little bit torn."
Added Mike Conway, the second-year Dreyer & Reinbold Racing driver from Bromley, England: "England is going to be one of the favorites. They come on strong and they've got some great players. I think I'll stick with the UK winning (against the U.S.) but I don't think it will be easy."
It is the 19th FIFA World Cup -- the culmination of a qualification process that began in August 2007 and involved 204 of the 208 national teams - matches the 2008 Summer Olympics as the sports event with the most competing nations. Italy is the defending champion.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues June 20 with the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer at Iowa Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 1:30 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the AvoidTheStork.com 100 on June 19 at the Iowa Speedway.
June 10 2010
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1. IZOD IndyCar Series Q & A - June 9
2. Firestone Indy Lights teams head to Mid-Ohio for testing
1. IZOD IndyCar Series Q & A - June 9: IZOD IndyCar Series driver Alex Lloyd participated in a Q&A session to discuss the his 2010 season, so far, and next weekend's race at Iowa Speedway. Below are select quotes from his interview. The complete transcript and audio MP3 file are posted at www.indycar.com/media.
Alex Lloyd
· 25-year-old native of Manchester, England, competing in first full season in the IZOD IndyCar Series in 2010.
· Drives the No. 19 Boy Scouts of America-sponsored car for Dale Coyne Racing.
· Collected his first top-five finish at Indianapolis (fourth) and followed that up with an eighth-place finish at Texas.
· 2007 Firestone Indy Lights champion for Sam Schmidt Motorsports
· Leads Rookie of the Year standings by 20 points (119-99) over Mario Romancini.
Q. Alex, you've posted back to back finishes in the last two races, including a fourth-place at the 500. You have to be very confident heading into next weekend's race at Iowa Speedway.
ALEX LLOYD: We're all -the team -very, very happy. Things started off a little rough for us and I guess we started off a little behind the eight ball in terms of preparation because everything came together last minute. We suffered the first few races, but after Kansas, everybody knuckled down and really worked hard knowing we had to step our game up. We came to Indianapolis with a good package, and we knew that straight away from our first run.
Really the momentum we have going now is fantastic. We were really competitive the whole weekend at Texas. It was nice to get out of the car and be slightly disappointed with an eighth-place finish, because under all circumstances, it was a great race for us, but there were a couple of little things that happened that kept us from a top five, and we knew we were racing with the big guys. Doing that, two races in a row, is exciting and I can't wait to get to Iowa because our oval package seems really good right now. In fact, we're at Watkins Glen right now to see if we can get our road course package to the same level of performance. Things seem be going in the right direction now with the team and hopefully we can keep this momentum going for the race of the year.
Q. Next weekend is the race at Iowa Speedway, where you won the last time you raced there in Firestone Indy Lights Are you looking forward to getting back there?
ALEX LLOYD: I've got good memories of the place. It's going to be very different in an (IZOD) IndyCar Series car. There's just that extra speed around the tiny track that Iowa is. It's going to be very exciting. I've been told to expect it to be like flying a jet fighter through a gymnasium. It's that kind of experience. It was a little like that in the Indy Lights car. I can imagine it being three or four times that in the Indy car. But I do have good memories from being there. Obviously, when you've been in Victory Lane at a race track, you look forward to going back. It's been a little while now, that was 2007, but for sure, the first few laps will be used to get used to everything again but I can't wait. It was a fun track to drive, and I'm sure it will be extra fun in the Indy car."
Q. Talk about the "resurgence of Dale Coyne Racing" A lot of people may have written off the team when Justin Wilson and Bill Pappas left before the season, but you and the Boy Scouts team really seemed to gel.
ALEX LLOYD: One of the reasons why we had a slow start to the year is that the team changed a lot. Bill Pappas and Justin Wilson and a couple of other guys within the team left. It was really a new bunch of guys working together for the first time and trying to learn during the race weekends because we didn't have any testing prior the season. It was tough. It takes a while for thing to start to gel, and we had a little reshuffling before Indianapolis on how we were going to engineer the car and changed our plan with that. That seems to have paid off and seems to be working for us. At the same time, it's the continuity of working with these guys week in and week out, and there are really some good guys on the team. We have some smart guys who have been around and can give me a good race car."
Q. And now you're leading the Rookie of the Year standings. I know there is a lot of racing left, but what would it mean to you to be Rookie of the Year?
ALEX LLOYD: It would be a big thing. There's a good crop of rookies this year and one of my goals was to get that Rookie of the Year. The last couple of races have put us in a good position as we start getting towards the end of the first half of the championship. Obviously, there's a long way to go, but my other goal was to get the car in the top 10 in points. With the start of the year we had it makes it a little tougher. But we're chipping away at it, and if we keep getting the results we've been getting, then maybe it's still a possibility. We just need to keep doing what we're doing and there are a lot potential goals and good things that could happen this year. We just need to take it race by race and improve on our results and improving the package. I want to be like we have been the last two races for the rest of the year and be contenders for every race and qualifying up front and racing up front and being there and being in a position where we can get top-five finishes. If you're in that position week in, week out, then you're in position to win the race, and obviously, that's the ultimate goal. We need to keep putting ourselves in good positions and keep working on what we've got and not let this momentum slip away. I know from my side and from the team side we're going to do everything in our power to keep on this run.
2. Firestone Indy Lights teams head to Mid-Ohio for testing: Ten drivers from five Firestone Indy Lights teams will prepare for the upcoming stretch of road/street course races with a one-day private test at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course a few days before heading to the oval at Iowa Speedway.
Among the drivers expected at the 2.258-mile road course are the top seven drivers in the Firestone Indy Lights standings - points leader J.K. Vernay (Sam Schmidt Motorsports), Charlie Kimball (AFS Racing Andretti Autosport), James Hinchcliffe (Team Moore Racing), Martin Plowman (AFS Racing Andretti Autosport), Sebastian Saavedra (Bryan Herta Autosport), Stefan Wilson (Bryan Herta Autosport), Philip Major (Sam Schmidt Motorsports).
"We had a five week break between Long Beach and Indy and have another three weeks off between Indy and Iowa, so to get in the car and get seat time is good," said Hinchcliffe, who finished second in the Mid-Ohio 100 in 2009. "It's a road course test, but to get track time and get everyone on the team back at speed is a good thing, plus Mid Ohio is a cool track to drive on."
While outright speed may not be the ultimate goal of the test the added dimension of having most championship protagonists on track gives the test day a race feel, still the drivers know what their job is at the end of the day.
"It makes it a more productive day when all the frontrunners are going to be there," Hinchcliffe said. It makes it tough to compare yourself to others if you go on different second day, but at the same time, you don't want to show your hand. Still it's good to know where you stack up."
Also expected to join the test session is 2009 Star Mazda champion Adam Christodoulou, who will drive one of Andersen Racing's cars as part of a previously-announced announced an expansion of the Indy Racing League's 'Road to Indy' program in which the 2009 and 2010 Star Mazda series champion earns a test with a top Firestone Indy Lights team.
"I've been an open-wheel racer all my life, so I've very excited to get back behind the wheel of a single-seater for my test with the Andersen Racing Indy Lights team," Christodoulou said. "And the fact that my time in the car will take place during a private test with several top teams participating will give me a good comparison of my pace against other the top drivers in the series.
"The opportunities that arise from being part of the Star Mazda Championship, the Road to Indy and the MAZDASPEED Ladder are much greater than anything that exists in Europe. These programs have provided a huge boost to my career, and I would recommend them to any driver who is serious about advancing their ambitions to have a professional career in motorsports."
The test is being conducted in cooperation with Performance Friction, the exclusive brake pad and disc supplier to both the Star Mazda Championship and the Cooper Tires Presents USF2000 National Championship Powered by Mazda - the first two rungs of the Road to Indy ladder system. Performance Friction is also the overwhelming brake component choice for teams competing in the Firestone Indy Lights.
"With Andersen Racing's involvement in all steps on the Road to Indy ladder, we are delighted to work with Performance Friction and Star Mazda in making this exciting test program a reality," said Andersen Racing co-owner Dan Andersen. " So many Star Mazda drivers in recent years have successfully transitioned into Indy Lights, and now with the support of PFC, more drivers can sample the next step properly. We look forward to seeing what Adam can do at the wheel of one of our cars at Mid-Ohio."
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues June 20 with the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer at Iowa Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 1:30 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the AvoidTheStork.com 100 on June 19 at the Iowa Speedway.
June 9 2010
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES - June 8, 2010
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines:
1. Kanaan heads to Eldora for Prelude to the Dream
2. Andretti ready race at Le Mans
1. Kanaan heads to Eldora for Prelude to the Dream: Wednesday will be a busy day for Tony Kanaan, but it will certainly be worth it.
The 2004 IZOD IndyCar Series champion will test at Watkins Glen International that day in his No. 11 Team 7-Eleven car for Andretti Autosport, and then compete that evening in the Gillette Fusion ProGlide Prelude to the Dream charity race at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio.
"I'm thrilled to have the chance to compete in the Prelude to the Dream," said Kanaan, the first IZOD IndyCar Series regular to compete in the event hosted by 1997 IZOD IndyCar Series champion Tony Stewart. "It's an amazing lineup of drivers and we're all competing for such a good cause."
Kanaan, who advanced 22 positions to finish 11th in the Indianapolis 500 on May 31, will join drivers from all types of motorsports disciplines -- Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards, Travis Pastrana, Jimmie Johnson, Ricky Carmichael, Jeff Gordon and others - to race 2,300-pound Late Model stock cars on the dirt track. The field will be broken up into four teams (each representing a children's hospital), with drivers competing in hot laps, qualifying, heat races and a 30-lap feature.
Kanaan's team, captained by NASCAR star Denny Hamlin, will race for St. Jude Children's Hospital.
"It's very rare for me to get a chance to drive something other than my Team 7-Eleven IndyCar (Series car) and to not have to race with points in mind," Kanaan said. "I'm not saying I'm going to do anything crazy because the goal is to help my team win, but I'm definitely going to have some fun."
The Gillette Fusion ProGlide Prelude to the Dream will be presented live on HBO Pay-Per-View (7 p.m. ET) with net proceeds from the telecast benefiting four children's hospitals.
2. Andretti ready race at LeMans: It may be an off weekend for the IZOD IndyCar Series, but Marco Andretti will race for a third straight weekend in one of auto racing's most famous endurance races.
The Andretti Autosport driver will join Rebellion Racing for the 24 Hours of Le Mans racing a Lola P1 prototype with the team's Le Mans Series regulars Neel Jani from Switzerland and Frenchman Nicolas Prost, son of former Formula One World Champion Alain Prost.
"When I was contacted by the Rebellion Racing team I thought, 'Why not? I love those long stints even at night,' so I immediately accepted the invitation," the 23-year-old driver said.
Andretti, who posted back-to-back third place finishes at Indianapolis and Texas in his No. 26 Team Venom car, will be the fourth Andretti to compete at Circuit La Sarthe joining his grandfather, racing legend Mario Andretti, his father Michael Andretti and his cousin John Andretti.
"I am very excited to race at this famous track where my family has been very successful in the past," he said. "Last month, I tested with the team at the Paul Ricard in southern France and I quickly adapted. Even in the rain, I did some fast laps. I know we have a slight disadvantage not driving a diesel engine P1 class car like Peugeot and Audi, but a top five finish is realistic."
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues June 20 with the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer at Iowa Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 1:30 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the AvoidTheStork.com 100 on June 19 at the Iowa Speedway.
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES - June 7, 2010
Today's IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines:
1. Franchitti kicks off 500 Victory Tour in New York
2. Drivers to test at three venues
3. Franchitti takes overall and oval championship lead
4. De Silvestro cleared to drive
5. Vote for Tire-ific Move of the Race
1. Franchitti kicks off 500 Victory Tour in New York: It seems just about everywhere Dario Franchitti ventures these days he's greeted with the sounds of bagpipes. Not that the Indianapolis 500 champion minds.
Franchitti began his whirlwind Indy 500 victory tour June 7 in New York, joining national and local media outlets - and a bagpiper - for a lap around Central Park on an open-air double-decker bus. A second brief concert was conducted for the Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver and passers-by on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It was a good deal for the bagpiper; a couple of tunes for an autograph from the two-time 500 Mile Race winner.
"It was nice to see such a good turnout for the New York media tour," Franchitti said. "We're keeping busy and it's great to see such a high level of interest in the Indianapolis 500 and the IZOD IndyCar Series."
Next stops on the tour were interviews with Maxim, Men's Journal, GQ, Forbes and the Economist. Franchitti will be a guest on "The Late Show with David Letterman" on June 8 (check local listings), along with appearances on "The Daily Line" on VERSUS (11 p.m. ET June 7), "America's Nightly Scoreboard" on Fox Business (7 p.m. ET June 8) and assorted radio shows.
Franchitti earned $2.75 million for the May 30 victory in the 500 Mile Race, and followed up six days later with a fifth place in the Firestone 550K at Texas Motor Speedway to move into the lead in the IZOD IndyCar Series championship standings by three points over Team Penske's Will Power.
Franchitti will travel a few hours northwest of Gotham on June 9 to participate in a full day of testing at Watkins Glen International with 10 other drivers in preparation for the June 2-4 Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen. The session is open to spectators for free (10 a.m.-3 p.m.). The next IZOD IndyCar Series race is the June 20 Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer at Iowa Speedway.
2. Drivers to test at three venues: There's a break in the IZOD IndyCar Series race schedule this week, but that opens the door for testing at venues that will play host to upcoming events.
Hideki Mutoh, who has finished third and second the past two years at Iowa Speedway, will get in laps on the .875-mile oval June 9 in the No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic car for Newman/Haas Racing car.
"I feel very comfortable running there," Mutoh said. "High banking, small racetrack. I think that's the best combination."
Mutoh will be joined by Team Penske's Helio Castroneves and Will Power at Iowa, which plays host to the fourth Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer on June 20.
A few hours due east, Team Penske's Ryan Briscoe - the most recent race winner at Texas Motor Speedway -- will test at the 1.5-mile Chicagoland Speedway oval as part of a Firestone tire test. Briscoe beat Scott Dixon by .0077 of a second in the '09 race.
On June 9, Watkins Glen International will be open free for spectators to watch 11 drivers test on the 3.4-mile natural-terrain circuit. That list includes Adam Carroll, who will make his IZOD IndyCar Series debut at The Glen July 2-4 with Andretti Autosport.
"It gives me a proper chance and that's what it's all about," said Carroll, who was the lead diver for Team Ireland in its A1GP 2008-09 championship.
Also scheduled to hit the track that underwent modifications over the off-season to improve safety are Tony Kanaan of Andretti Autosport; Scott Dixon and recent Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti of Target Chip Ganassi Racing; KV Racing Technology's E.J. Viso, Mario Moraes and Takuma Sato; Dale Coyne Racing's Alex Lloyd and Milka Duno; Alex Tagliani of FAZZT Race Team; and Justin Wilson of Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, who was the 2009 race winner.
"Being able to test at The Glen is a big deal for us," said Lloyd, who followed his fourth-place Indianapolis 500 finish with an eighth place in the Firestone 550K at Texas Motor Speedway. "We're going to be able to get back in the swing of the road courses again obviously having this bit of a break with ovals.
"It will be exciting to try the car. We've had a bit of a shake-around within the team the past few races, which seems to be paying off, and I'm very keen to see how that translates to road courses."
3. Franchitti takes overall and oval championship lead: Dario Franchitti's fifth place at Texas - combined with the finishes of some other drivers - moved the Target Chip Ganassi Racing driver into the IZOD IndyCar Series championship lead.
Through seven of the 17 events, the Indianapolis 500 winner has 246 points. Team Penske's Will Power, the pacesetter through six events, is three points behind after a 14th-place finish. He started third and led four laps, but a late-race stop for fuel dropped him in the order.
Scott Dixon is third with 235 points, and Helio Castroneves remained fourth with 211. Race winner Ryan Briscoe advanced two positions to fifth (208 points - 50 for the victory, 1 bonus points for winning the PEAK Performance Pole Award and 2 bonus points for leading a field-high 102 laps).
Franchitti leads in points for the A.J. Foyt Oval Championship Trophy by 11 over Dixon heading to Iowa Speedway on June 20. Power, who won the first two races of the season, has a 42-point lead over teammate Helio Castroneves in the Road/Street Championship standings. The trophy namesake will be announced during the Watkins Glen International race weekend.
4. De Silvestro cleared to drive: IZOD IndyCar Series driver Simona De Silvestro was re-evaluated by Indy Racing League medical personnel June 7 and has been cleared to resume racing activities without restrictions.
Dr. Geoff Billows said De Silvestro suffered a minor burn on her right hand in a fiery accident when her No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds/HVM Racing car made contact with the wall on the backstretch during the Firestone 550K at Texas Motor Speedway on June 5.
5. Vote for Tire-ific Move of the Race: Fans select the Firestone Tire-ific Move of the Race winner by voting on indycar.com after every race. This $10,000 prize is awarded to the driver best utilizing his or her Firestone tires to make a bold, dramatic move during the event. Nominees for the Firestone 550K are:Ryan Briscoe for his dramatic and decisive pass for the lead on Lap 193; Danica Patrick for her most impressive performance this season, finishing second and Alex Lloyd who bounced back from a lengthy first pit stop to move from 21st place to eighth.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues June 20 with the Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer at Iowa Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 1:30 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Iowa 100 on June 19 at the Iowa Speedway
June 6 2010
BRISCOE TAKES CHECKERED FLAG AT TEXAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
FORT WORTH, Texas (Saturday, June 5, 2010) - Ryan Briscoe was denied of firing the six-shooters in Victory Circle at Texas Motor Speedway the past two years. Finally, the Team Penske driver got to have some fun.
Briscoe, who started from the pole, held off Danica Patrick to win the Firestone 550K. Marco Andretti finished third for the second consecutive race and Scott Dixon, the 2008 race winner, finished fourth.
Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Dario Franchitti was fifth, ending the two-year streak of the Indianapolis 500 winner repeating at Texas the same year.
Helio Castroneves, who started fifth in the No. 3 Team Penske car and was the 2009 winner at Texas, exited on Lap 129 when he attempted to overtake the No. 32 KV Racing Technology car driven by Mario Moraes on the frontstretch.
Wheels touched and the cars spun, with Bertrand Baguette in the No. 36 Conquest Racing RACB car having nowhere to go but between the spinning cars. He didn't fare so well. Castroneves was without radio communication with his spotter and the pit stand.
Simona De Silvestro suffered a minor burn on her right hand when the No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds/HVM Racing car made contact with the wall on the backstretch.
IZOD IndyCar fans have spoken and they believe four-time Indianapolis 500 winner A.J. Foyt should be recognized as the greatest Indy car oval driver.
Fans selected Foyt as the honoree for the oval championship trophy with 43.6 percent of the vote through a poll on indycar.com, the official website of the IZOD IndyCar Series. Rick Mears was second with 30.1 percent of the vote. Other nominees were: Mario Andretti (18.8 percent), Bill Vukovich (6.4 percent) and Ted Horn (1.1 percent).
Foyt was one of the most successful Indy car drivers with 67 victories -- 64 of which were on ovals. Of those oval wins, 24 came on dirt -- the most at the Indiana State Fairgrounds (6). Foyt scored most of his paved oval victories at Ontario Motor Speedway (5).
He had nine 500-mile victories: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (4), Pocono Raceway (4) and Ontario (1). He won his first race on the 1-mile dirt track at Illinois State Fairgrounds in DuQuoin, Ill., on Sept. 5, 1960 (and went on to win four more races there). He won his last race at Pocono on June 21, 1981.
The IZOD IndyCar Series will announce the honoree for the Road/Street trophy at its next road course event at Watkins Glen International in July.
A.J. FOYT: "This is an honor that I really appreciate for a couple reasons," Foyt said. "I've always liked ovals more than road courses -- the Indy cars didn't run that many road courses when I won most of my races. Second, it was voted on by the fans so that makes it pretty special to me. I like the challenges of the ovals -- you have to have everything right: the driver, the car and the team. If you make a mistake on a road course, you can make it up in the next corner or two. Make a mistake on an oval and you end up in the wall. Ovals are a lot less forgiving. I think the Oval champion will be the driver and team that make the fewest mistakes. To have my name on that trophy is pretty cool any way you look at it."
Indy Racing League CEO Randy Bernard isn't usually a man of few words, but that one sufficed after exiting the Indy Racing Experience two-seater at Texas Motor Speedway. Johnny Rutherford was the driver for four laps on the 1.5-mile, high-banked oval a few hours before the Firestone 550K.
Top speed was about 175 mph - about 40 mph slower than Ryan Briscoe's four-lap pole average - and Bernard felt the G forces that pinned him to the right side of the stretched Dallara.
In 15 years as CEO of the Professional Bull Riders, Bernard hadn't once boarded a mechanical bull. Three months into the IZOD IndyCar Series gig and he's taken a wild ride.
"I've never had an experience like that in my life," Bernard says. "I can't even fathom going faster than we did. I was blown away with how fast we were going, and to know that Johnny can still go that fast was amazing."
Results Saturday of the Firestone 550K IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 1.455-mile Texas Motor Speedway, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):
1. (1) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
2. (8) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
3. (10) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
4. (4) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
5. (2) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
6. (13) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
7. (24) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
8. (6) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
9. (15) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
10. (19) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
11. (14) EJ Viso, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
12. (7) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 228, Running
13. (18) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 227, Running
14. (3) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 227, Running
15. (16) Sarah Fisher, Dallara-Honda, 227, Running
16. (23) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 226, Running
17. (25) Mario Romancini, Dallara-Honda, 226, Running
18. (20) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 225, Running
19. (12) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 225, Running
20. (5) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 129, Contact
21. (9) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 129, Contact
22. (22) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 129, Contact
23. (17) Milka Duno, Dallara-Honda, 116, Mechanical
24. (26) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 97, Contact
25. (11) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 56, Contact
26. (21) Jay Howard, Dallara-Honda, 37, Mechanical
Race Statistics
Winners average speed: 159.508
Time of Race: 2:04:47.1555
Margin of victory: 1.4629 seconds
Cautions: 4 for 36 laps
Lead changes: 10 among 7 drivers
Lap Leaders: Briscoe 1-7, Franchitti 8, Briscoe 9-47, Franchitti 48-132, Tagliani 133-165, Power 166-169, Briscoe 170-189, Wheldon 190, Mutoh 191, Patrick 192, Briscoe 193-228.
Point Standings: Franchitti 246, Power 243, Dixon 235, Castroneves 211, Briscoe 208, HUnter-Reay 201, Wilson 179, Kanaan, 179, Andretti 169, Wheldon 164
June 1 2010
FRANCHITTI $2.75 MILLION in 2010 INDIANAPOLIS 500 VICTORY
De Silvestro earns $25,000 for Chase Rookie of the Year honors
INDIANAPOLIS, Monday, May 31, 2010 – Dario Franchitti earned $2,752,055 from an overall purse of $13,592,815 for his victory May 30 in the 2010 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.
Franchitti and the No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing team put together a near-perfect 500 miles at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Franchitti shared several emotional moments in Victory Lane with his team, family and friends after he took his second career victory in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” in his Target-sponsored Dallara/Honda/Firestone.
Franchitti, a Scottish-born resident of Nashville, Tenn., led six times for 155 laps in a command performance, but victory was far from guaranteed as the 200-lap event drew to a conclusion.
With just 20 laps to go, Justin Wilson led with three-time winner Helio Castroneves in second and Graham Rahal, the son of 1986 “500” winner Bobby Rahal, in third. Those three drivers then were forced to pit for fuel, and Franchitti took the lead on Lap 192 with Tony Kanaan chasing him down.
It appeared the race could come down to a duel between Franchitti and Kanaan until Kanaan had to pit for fuel on Lap 196. Franchitti went on to win under caution following a crash between Mike Conway and Ryan Hunter-Reay on the final lap.
2005 Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon finished second for the second consecutive year in the No. 4 National Guard Panther Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone, earning $1,007,305. Marco Andretti finished third in the No. 26 Team Venom Energy entry for Andretti Autosport, earning $630,505.
Alex Lloyd finished an Indy career-best fourth in the No. 19 Boy Scouts of America entry fielded by Dale Coyne Racing, earning $425,305, and Franchitti’s Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate, 2008 Indianapolis 500 winner Scott Dixon, finished fifth and earned $377,305.
Simona de Silvestro earned the prestigious Indianapolis 500 Chase Rookie of the Year Award, which includes a $25,000 bonus plus the Chase Rookie of the Year Trophy. De Silvestro finished 14th in the No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds HVM Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone.
The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race purse consists of Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IZOD IndyCar Series awards, plus other designated and special awards. Purse awards were announced and presented at the Indianapolis 500 Victory Celebration on Monday, May 31 at IMS.
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis 500 in 2011. First run on May 30, 1911, the “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” has grown to become the world’s largest single-day sporting event and its most prestigious auto race.
The 2011 Indianapolis 500 is scheduled for Sunday, May 29
MIKE CONWAY AND RYAN HUNTER-REAY MEDICAL UPDATE
Indy Racing League Director of Medical Services Dr. Michael Olinger gave the following update regarding IZOD IndyCar Series drivers Mike Conway and Ryan Hunter-Reay:
Mike Conway had surgery Sunday night to repair fractures to his lower left leg. He also has a soft tissue injury to his lower left leg and is anticipated to have another surgical procedure later this week. Additionally, Conway has a compression fracture of one of his thoracic vertebrae and is being fitted for a back brace, which he will wear for three months and will prevent him from racing.
Ryan Hunter-Reay is scheduled to have surgery today on his left thumb. After surgery, he will be fitted with a carbon fiber splint, which should allow him to participate at Texas Motor Speedway this weekend.
Further medical updates will be given when available.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues June 5 with the Firestone 550K at Texas Motor Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 8 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Iowa 100 on June 19 at the Iowa Speedway
IZOD IndyCar Series and Firestone Indy Lights headlines
1. Indianapolis 500 win pays back Ganassi's faith in Franchitti
2. Wilson auctions off Indy 500 helmet for charity
3. Vote for Tire-ific Move of the Race
1. Indianapolis 500 win pays back Ganassi's faith in Franchitti: An agreement scrawled on a cocktail napkin in late August 2008, unofficially welcomed back Dario Franchitti into the IZOD IndyCar Series with Target Chip Ganassi Racing.
Details after that dinner meeting in Detroit would be worked out later because Chip Ganassi and Dario Franchitti have understood each other for years. Both want to win, period.
It was the backstop of Franchitti venturing to stock car racing after winning the 2007 IZOD IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500 championships with then-Andretti Green Racing. He wished to explore new avenues to Victory Circle, and signed with Ganassi's organization.
The venture, however, was short-lived. Franchitti suffered a broken ankle in a Nationwide Series race and the operation was shuttered in June because of a lack of sponsorship.
In some respects, it was fortuitous. Franchitti arrived at Belle Isle in Detroit ostensibly to watch his brother, Marino, compete in an American Le Mans Series race and catch up with friends. He wound up agreeing to switch to Ganassi's IZOD IndyCar Series team to fill the vacancy of Dan Wheldon, who was departing for Panther Racing. Now the racer who outdueled Scott Dixon for the '07 series championship - on the final lap of the final race - would be his teammate.
"It all worked out perfectly," said Franchitti, who on May 30 presented Ganassi's team a fourth Indianapolis 500 victory. "I think it says a lot about Chip, the people he employs. The mind-set, whether it's here or down in Concord (N.C.), we're here to win. If you aren't interested in that, if you take your eye off the ball, he lets you know. That's all he cares about."
Franchitti, starting on the outside of the front row in the No. 10 entry (the first time in Indy 500 history that number has won), led 155 of the 200 laps. A crash on the white flag lap prevented him from taking the twin checkered flags at speed. His 2007 victory also was under caution - the race shortened because of rain.
"It's like comparing my two dogs," Franchitti said. "They are both different but they are both pretty cool. We need a third dog now."
Franchitti is the 18th driver to win the 500 Mile Race twice, joining - among others - Al Unser Jr. and Arie Luyendyk.
"If I thought Dario didn't know how to drive he wouldn't be driving the car no matter what happened in NASCAR," Ganassi said minutes after taking a swig of the milk in Victory Circle at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "I knew he knew how to drive. I knew he was the best driver available when that seat became available, and I told him that.
"His NASCAR experience, that was like a semester at sea or something that we did. We did it, and we're glad we did it, but we're glad we're back home, too. The guy's a champion. He's been there, done that. He knows what it takes. From the first day of practice up until five minutes ago, he's the consummate professional…He's the guy you want in the car in that situation."
2. Wilson auctions off Indy 500 helmet for charity: Dreyer & Reinbold Racing's Justin Wilson is auctioning off the helmet he used in the 2010 Indianapolis 500 to raise money for two charities supported by his No. 22 Team Z-Line Designs race team.
.Wilson's helmet, inspired by Wilson the Volleyball from the movie "Cast Away," is being sold on online auction site eBay with proceeds benefitting Racing for Kids, which uses the popularity of motorsports to focus public attention and funding on the health care needs of children, and Operation Helmet, which provides free helmet upgrade kits to servicemen deployed overseas.
"For the Indy 500, most drivers want to do something special with the paint scheme on their helmet, " Wilson said. "My idea started when Will Power kept shouting "WILSON!" at me like Tom Hanks with his volleyball in "Cast Away." So I decided to paint the top of my helmet like a volleyball.
(Helmet painter) Michael Corby and I then went down to Riley Children's Hospital and had some of the children put their hands in paint then put it on the helmet, and it came out great. "
Bidding on the helmet ends June 4. To bid on it, visit ebay.com and search "Justin Wilson Justin Wilson Helmet Used in 2010 Indy 500"
3. Vote for Tire-ific Move of the Race: Fans select the Firestone Tire-ific Move of the Race winner by voting on indycar.com after every race. This $10,000 prize is awarded to the driver best utilizing his or her Firestone tires to make a bold, dramatic move during the event. Nominees for the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race: Dario Franchitti for a dominating performance to clinch his second Indy 500 victory; Tony Kanaan for a stirring drive from 33rd to run as high as second; Marco Andretti for driving from 16th to finish third.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series season continues June 5 with the Firestone 550K at Texas Motor Speedway. The race will be telecast live in High Definition at 8 p.m. (ET) by VERSUS. The race will air live on the IMS Radio Network, XM channel 145 and Sirius channel 211. The race also will be carried on www.indycar.com. The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights season continues with the Iowa 100 on June 19 at the Iowa Speedway.
May 31 2010
FRANCHITTI CLAIMS SECOND INDIANAPOLIS 500 WIN
Dario Franchitti won his second Indianapolis 500 Mile Race under caution. No matter, the milk still tasted just as good.
Franchitti, who led 155 of the 200 laps, became the 19th multi-time winner of "The Greatest Spectacle In Racing" and his boss, Chip Ganassi, the first owner to win Indy and NASCAR's Daytona 500 in the same year.
Dan Wheldon, the 2005 winner who closed furiously as Franchitti slowed to save fuel in the final laps, was second for the second straight year, with Marco Andretti, third. Alex Lloyd was fourth, followed by Scott Dixon in fifth.
Franchitti, low on fuel, was heading to the Yard of Bricks when the Ryan Hunter-Reay and Mike Conway made contact between Turns 3 and 4. Conway's car went airborne and made contact with the catch fence. Conway, who waved to the crowd as he was being taken off the track, was airlifted to Methodist Hospital with leg injuries.
Polesitter Helio Castroneves saw his quest for a record-tying fourth Indy victory come to an end with an uncharacteristic mistake — stalling while leaving the pits on the 146th lap. It left him in need of a yellow-flag miracle at the end that never came, and he finished ninth after one last pit stop on the 193rd lap.
The six candidates for Chase Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year honors participated in a public question-and-answer session Saturday on the Coca-Cola Stage.
ANA BEATRIZ (No. 25 Ipiranga/DRR): "I want to thank Chase for putting this award together for the rookies to compete for. I'm very happy to be here because it was my dream to race in the Indy 500 one day. We put this deal with Dreyer and Reinbold Racing together at the last minute, so what we did in qualifying was very special. I'm very glad to have qualified on the first day. That was a very memorable day because of the stress that I was under. I was in and then I was out of the race and on my last attempt I was able to make it into the field. I'm very happy to be here."
SIMONA DE SILVESTRO (No. 78 Team Stargate Worlds/HVM): "I think the whole month has been pretty special. This place is just amazing. Qualifying is something that is pretty hard to do, and we saw a lot of people not make the race, which proves that this field is really competitive. Just to be a part of the Indy 500 is something that every driver dreams of, and it's unbelievable to be here. I can't wait for the race."
BERTRAND BAGUETTE (No. 36 Conquest Racing RACB): "We did a pretty good job with Conquest Racing. We had a great week, and I was very proud to make the field on the first day. We're going to have a quick car during the race, and I'm really looking forward to competing with these guys."
MARIO ROMANCINI (No. 34 Conquest Racing): "We had a very difficult day of qualifying. We had a mechanical problem on the first day and had to wait until Bump Day to get into the show. My team owner told me there was going to be a lot of pressure and tension, and that's exactly what happened. I was very happy with the solid effort that we put together near the end. We made a big decision to take a risk and go out after our time was near the bubble. I'm glad it paid off and now I'm just very excited for the race. I can't wait to see the grandstands packed with fans."
TAKUMA SATO (No. 5 Lotus-KV Racing Technology): "My most memorable moment so far this month has to be the impact of 250 Gs that I experienced in my crash. Being back at Indianapolis, after running in the wrong direction at 190 mph in an F1 car here, and now running in the correct direction at 224 mph is incredible. It's beautiful. It really is."
SEBASTIAN SAAVEDRA (No. 29 William Rast/Bryan Herta Autosport): "The crash that I had is something that I will never forget. Being in the Indianapolis 500 is something truly remarkable. When I found out that I made the big show, that was all that mattered to me. I'm looking forward to the race. It's going to be the biggest race of my life, and I'm going to enjoy every lap of it."
2010 Indianapolis 500 honorary starter Jack Nicholson wore a Los Angeles Lakers cap when he arrived today at the Speedway. Academy Award-winning actor Nicholson is a longtime Lakers' fan seen courtside at many Lakers' games. The Lakers defeated the Phoenix Suns, 111-103, on Saturday night to win the Western Conference finals and advance to the NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics.
The Honda overtake assist system will be used in the Indianapolis 500 for the first time this year.
The system, which was introduced last August at Kentucky Speedway, provides a 200 revolutions per minute and extra power (5-20 horsepower) boost for a prescribed time limit on all racetracks via a button on the steering wheel designed to complete a pass or defend one.
For the 500 Mile Race, Honda Performance Development has set the duration at 18 seconds for each of the 15 activations. There's a 10-second reset time between activations.
Two male spectators were treated for minor injuries at Clarian Emergency Medical Center and released after being struck by debris during the crash between Mike Conway and Ryan Hunter-Reay on the final lap of the race. The spectators were seated in the North Vista, East Section 47, Rows A and G.
One spectator received stitches for a cut in the forehead. Another spectator suffered a head laceration that required no stitches.
INDIANAPOLIS - Results Sunday of the 2010 Indianapolis 500 IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with order of finish, starting position in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, laps completed and reason out (if any):"
1. (3) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
2. (18) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
3. (16) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
4. (26) Alex Lloyd, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
5. (6) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
6. (23) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
7. (11) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
8. (2) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
9. (1) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
10. (5) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
11. (33) Tony Kanaan, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
12. (7) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
13. (27) Mario Romancini, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
14. (22) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 200, Running
15. (20) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 199, Running
16. (10) Townsend Bell, Dallara-Honda, 199, Running
17. (8) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Honda, 199, Running
18. (17) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 198, Contact
19. (15) Mike Conway, Dallara-Honda, 198, Contact
20. (31) Takuma Sato, Dallara-Honda, 198, Running
21. (21) Ana Beatriz, Dallara-Honda, 196, Contact
22. (24) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 183, Running
23. (32) Sebastian Saavedra, Dallara-Honda, 159, Contact
24. (4) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 147, Contact
25. (19) E.J. Viso, Dallara-Honda, 139, Contact
26. (29) Sarah Fisher, Dallara-Honda, 125, Contact
27. (30) Vitor Meira, Dallara-Honda, 105, Contact
28. (9) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 76, Handling
29. (12) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 72, Contact
30. (28) John Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 62, Contact
31. (13) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 17, Contact
32. (25) Bruno Junqueira, Dallara-Honda, 7, Contact
33. (14) Davey Hamilton, Dallara-Honda, 0, Contact
Race Statistics
Winners average speed: 161.623
Time of Race: 03:05:37.0131
Margin of victory: Under caution
Cautions: 9 for 44 laps
Lead changes: 13 among 8 drivers
Lap Leaders: Franchitti 1-30, Power 31-35, Franchitti 36, Briscoe 37-38, Franchitti 39-108, Scheckter 109-113, Franchitti 114-142, M. Andretti 143, Briscoe 144-146, Franchitti 147-162, Conway 163-177, Wilson 178-188, Castroneves 189-191, Franchitti 192-200.
Point Standings: Power 227, Franchitti 216, Dixon 203, Castroneves 199, Hunter-Reay 175, Wilson 167, Briscoe 155, Kanaan 151, Wheldon 142, M. Andretti 134.
May 29 2010
FRANCHITTI LEADS FINAL PRACTICE
CASTRONEVES TAKES PIT STOP CONTEST
CUNNINGHAM WINS THIRD FIRESTONE FREEDOM 100
INDIANAPOLIS, Friday, May 28, 2010 - Target Chip Ganassi Racing hopes Miller Lite Carb Day could be a good indication of Indianapolis 500 Race Day.
Dario Franchitti, who will start the 2010 Indianapolis 500 from the outside of the front row, topped the speed chart for the final practice session, the final opportunity for teams to fine-tune their cars before Race Day.
Franchitti, driving the No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing car, topped the speed chart with a quick lap of 225.574 mph (39.8983 seconds). Franchitti's teammate Scott Dixon (225.159 mph) and Verizon Team Penske's Will Power (223.575 mph) were right behind.
FAZZT Race Team's Bruno Junqueira was fourth at 224.898 mph in the No. 33 Bower & Wilkins/TorcUP car, while polesitter Helio Castroneves in the No. 3 Team Penske car was fifth (224.753).
Castroneves hopes that winning the IZOD Indy 500 Pit Stop Competition remains a good omen.
Castroneves, driving the No. 3 Team Penske Dallara/Toyota/Firestone, defeated Hideki Mutoh of Newman/Haas Racing in the championship round. His pit crew received the $50,000 first prize for its speed and accuracy.
The winner of the competition has gone on to win the Indianapolis 500 six times, including Castroneves' win last year. Penske Racing teams have won the pit stop competition a record 12 times, including the last five that it has been contested.
Also on Miller Lite Carb Day, Wade Cunningham became a three-time winner of the Firestone Freedom 100 edging Charlie Kimball by .4368 of a second.
The victory for Cunningham, driving the No. 77 Lucas Oil/BSS/Sam Schmidt Motorsports car, gave team owner Sam Schmidt his fifth win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in eight Firestone Freedom 100 starts.
Kimball moved within five points of series point leader J.K. Vernay, who finished 16th after an early mechanical issue. James Hinchcliffe, who started eighth in the No. 2 Team Moore Racing car, finished third.
ZZ Top headlined a concert to conclude the busy day
May 23 2010
Draw for todays Qualifying spots.
QP Car Driver Best Speed Best Date
1 43 John Andretti 224.324
3 14 Vitor Meira 224.562 21-May
4 41 A.J. Foyt IV 225.055 22-May
5 19 Alex Lloyd 225.433 22-may
6 8T E.J. Viso 225.046 22-May
7 29 Sebastian Saavedra (R) 224.210 22-May
8 18 Milka Duno 223.344 21-May
9 78 Simona De Silvestro (R) 225.206 22-May
10 5 Takuma Sato (R) 225.047 20-May
11 33 Bruno Junqueira - -
12 15T Paul Tracy - -
14 15 Paul Tracy 226.322 20-May
15 41T A.J. Foyt IV - -
16 30T Graham Rahal - -
17 34 Mario Romancini (R) 223.913 21-May
18 34T Mario Romancini (R) - -
19 5T Takuma Sato (R) - -
20 14T Vitor Meira - -
21 11T Tony Kanaan - -
CASTRONEVES TAKES POLE POSITION FOR INDIANAPOLIS 500 MILE RACE
INDIANAPOLIS, Saturday, May 22, 2010 - Helio Castroneves saved his best for last during qualifications for the Indianapolis 500.
Castroneves, the first of nine drivers to run during the final 90 minutes of qualifying, recorded a four-lap average speed of 227.970 mph to win the PEAK Performance Pole Award presented by AutoZone for the Indianapolis 500.
Sitting second to FAZZT Race Team's Alex Tagliani with 90 minutes left in the first segment of Pole Day qualifying, Castroneves and Team Penske withdrew the qualified time of the No. 3 Team Penske car for a shot at the top spot. With a four-lap average of 226.774 mph, he took the top position.
The designation gave Castroneves the first choice in the required qualifying run in Segment 2 of the new format. This time, he left spectators and the eight other challengers shaking their heads with a four-lap average of 227.970 mph -- more than 3 mph faster than his pole-winning speed last year. The run included a lap of 228.213 mph -- the fastest of the month.
But as the format was designed, drama ensued as 18 total attempts were made to steal Castroneves' thunder and the $175,000 payday to the pole winner. He wore a nervous smile as Team Penske teammate Will Power posted a four-lap average of 227.578 mph and others came close.
Power and Target Chip Ganassi Racing's Dario Franchitti (226.990), the 2007 race winner, also will start on the front row. Ryan Briscoe (226.554), Tagliani (226.390) and Scott Dixon (226.233), the 2008 winner, will share Row 2. Graham Rahal (225.519), Ed Carpenter (224.507) and Hideki Mutoh (223.487) will be on the third row.
In all, 24 drivers qualified for the May 30 race. The remaining nine spots in the field will be filled during Bump Day on May 23
INDIANAPOLIS - Results of qualifying Saturday for the 2010 Indianapolis 500 IZOD IndyCar Series event on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with Rank, car number in parentheses, driver, chassis-engine, time and speed in parentheses:
1. (3) Helio Castroneves, Dallara-Honda, 2:37.9154 (227.970)
2. (12) Will Power, Dallara-Honda, 2:38.1876 (227.578)
3. (10T) Dario Franchitti, Dallara-Honda, 2:38.5970 (226.990)
4. (6) Ryan Briscoe, Dallara-Honda, 2:38.9027 (226.554)
5. (77) Alex Tagliani, Dallara-Honda, 2:39.0178 (226.390)
6. (9) Scott Dixon, Dallara-Honda, 2:39.1277 (226.233)
7. (30) Graham Rahal, Dallara-Honda, 2:39.6319 (225.519)
8. (20) Ed Carpenter, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.3514 (224.507)
9. (06) Hideki Mutoh, Dallara-Honda, 2:41.0831 (223.487)
10. (99) Townsend Bell, Dallara-Honda, 2:39.9313 (225.097)
11. (22) Justin Wilson, Dallara-Honda, 2:39.9647 (225.050)
12. (2) Raphael Matos, Dallara-Honda, 2:39.9798 (225.028)
13. (32) Mario Moraes, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.0794 (224.888)
14. (21) Davey Hamilton, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.1053 (224.852)
15. (24) Mike Conway, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.2969 (224.583)
16. (26) Marco Andretti, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.3030 (224.575)
17. (37) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.3227 (224.547)
18. (4) Dan Wheldon, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.3821 (224.464)
19. (8T) E.J. Viso, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.4424 (224.380)
20. (23) Tomas Scheckter, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.5270 (224.261)
21. (25) Ana Beatriz, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.5402 (224.243)
22. (78) Simona de Silvestro, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.5511 (224.228)
23. (7) Danica Patrick, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.5584 (224.217)
24.(36) Bertrand Baguette, Dallara-Honda, 2:40.5785 (224.189)
May 22 2010
CASTRONEVES SETS PACE ON FAST FRIDAY AT INDIANAPOLIS
INDIANAPOLIS (Friday, May 21, 2010) - Helio Castroneves paced a frantic "Fast Friday" at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as IZOD IndyCar Series teams fine-tuned their setups in advance of Pole Day.
Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner and three-time Indy 500 pole sitter Castroneves recorded a lap of 39.7250 seconds (226.558 mph) in the No. 3 Team Penske car. Thirty cars were within a half-second of Castroneves, with 10 different teams represented in the top 15.
Castroneves' teammate Will Power was second at 226.429, with FAZZT Race Team's Alex Tagliani third at 226.153. 2008 winner Scott Dixon was fourth at 225.828 in a Target Chip Ganassi Racing car, with KV Racing Technology's Mario Moraes rounding out the top five at 225.806.
The top 24 spots in the 33-car starting field will be filled through traditional four-lap attempts. The times of the top nine cars based on time from Segment 1 will advance to Segment 2 for a 90-minute shootout for the PEAK Performance Pole Award presented by AutoZone and bonus points that could impact the season-long driver championship race.
Enticements include a $175,000 payout to the pole winner along with significant paydays for the other front-row starters, championship bonus points and, of course, the No. 1 position for "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" on May 30.
May 21 2010
From Back home in Texas
aXe
MY Favorite award at the speedway, as there is very little room for inventivness there now.
aXe
MEZZO MICROCHANNEL RADIATOR WINS SCHWITZER AWARD
INDIANAPOLIS, Friday, May 21, 2010 – Mezzo Technologies engineers Charles Becnel, Patrick Luke and Christophe Marques and Tino Belli of Andretti Autosport received the 44th annual BorgWarner Louis Schwitzer Award on May 21 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for their development of the Mezzo MicroChannel Radiator.
Designed to fit in the same space and use the same connectors as existing radiators, the Mezzo MicroChannel Radiator significantly reduces coolant temperature with reliable, robust performance. Earlier this year, the IZOD IndyCar Series approved the technology for use by all teams.
Mezzo Technologies, based in Baton Rouge, La., also has developed cooling systems for military and other automotive use.
“We’re a small company, and we’re much like family,” Luke said. “We’re just tickled to win this award. For the Indy racing (project), Tino found us.”
Increased cooling capacity results in better engine performance and greater horsepower. Unlike conventional radiators that rely on fin designs to transfer heat, the Mezzo MicroChannel Radiator uses nearly 5 miles of stainless steel micro tubes measuring less than 0.5 mm (1/50th of an inch) in diameter to reduce engine temperatures up to 8 degrees C (14 degrees F). A corrugated arrangement also increases heat transfer while keeping pressure losses low.
Developed by Mezzo Technologies in close cooperation with Andretti Autosport, the technology is now being evaluated by other race series, as well as the aviation industry.
Presented to engineers by engineers, the Louis Schwitzer Award rewards individuals with the courage and passion to explore and develop new concepts in racing technology. BorgWarner sponsors this prestigious $10,000 award, which is presented by the Indiana Section of SAE International. The winners' names are added to the Schwitzer trophy on permanent display at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum.
The award was initiated in 1967 to recognize automotive pioneer Louis Schwitzer. After working in the automotive industry for many years, Schwitzer founded the Schwitzer Corporation, which produced innovative cooling fans, water pumps and turbochargers. The Schwitzer Corporation joined BorgWarner in 1999. Throughout his career, Schwitzer enjoyed numerous technological accomplishments, supported higher education, led the IMS technical committee for many years and maintained a strong association with SAE.
Mezzo Technologies doesn’t have a longtime background with racing technology, but it joins the prestigious company of past Schwitzer winners, including such legends as Andy Granatelli, Dan Gurney, Colin Chapman, Bruce McLaren, Smokey Yunick, A.J. Foyt, Parnelli Jones, John Barnard and others.
“He was an amazing innovator and engineer,” Luke said of Schwitzer. “I don’t think we know the company we’re in, but I think everybody is Google-ing it back home. We’re tickled.”
2010 INDIANAPOLIS 500 QUALIFYING PROCEDURE
POLE DAY, Saturday, May 22
Positions available: 1-24
Format:
•11 a.m.-4 p.m.: The top 24 spots in the 33-car field will be available through traditional four-lap attempts. Each car will have up to three attempts during this time. The times of the top nine drivers from this first segment of qualifying will be erased at 4 p.m., with all of those competitors guaranteed to start no worse than ninth in the Indianapolis 500.
•4:30-6 p.m.: “The Fast Nine” then will be required to make at least one four-lap qualifying attempt, with optional attempts if time permits. Each driver’s best run during the 90-minute session will set their position within the top nine spots on the starting grid. If inclement weather prevents the 90-minute shootout for the “Fast Nine,” their times from the opening session will determine starting positions.
Front Row Bonus Money:
•Pole: $175,000 ($100,000 PEAK Performance Pole Award, $75,000 Indianapolis Motor Speedway bonus)
•Second: $75,000
•Third: $50,000
ARMED FORCES DAY/BUMP DAY, Sunday, May 23
Positions available: 25-33
Format: The final nine spots in the field will be earned through traditional four-lap qualifying from noon-6 p.m. Bumping will begin once 33 cars have qualified.
Qualifying Points: In a departure from the other 16 IZOD IndyCar Series races, in which the PEAK Performance Pole Award winner earns one bonus point, all 33 starting drivers will receive championship points. The pole winner will receive 15 points, with the other front-row starters earning 13 and 12 points, respectively. Drivers in Rows 2 and 3 will receive, in descending order, between 11 and six points. Positions 10-24 receive four bonus points, and 25-33 earn three points.
2010 INDIANAPOLIS 500 QUALIFYING PROCEDURE Q&A
Q: What happens if weather washes out the Fast Nine shootout before every driver gets a chance to make at least one attempt?
A: The position in the top nine starting spots for those nine drivers will be determined by their fastest runs during the 11 a.m.-4 p.m. segment.
Q: Can any drivers other than the Fast Nine make qualifying runs from 4:30-6 p.m. on Pole Day?
A: No.
Q: Must a driver in the Fast Nine withdraw their time from the mandatory attempt during the final segment if he or she chooses to make a second qualification attempt during that segment?
A: No.
Q: How will the qualifying draw for the Fast Nine segment be determined?
A: The driver with the fastest run during the 11 a.m.-4 p.m. segment will choose their position in the qualifying line at 4:10 p.m., followed by the second-fastest and so. The ninth-fastest driver will receive the final remaining slot in the line.
Q: Where does one of the Fast Nine drivers start if he or she can’t complete a run in the completed shootout due to a crash or a mechanical problem?
A: All nine drivers who qualify for the Fast Nine shootout based on their best runs from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. are guaranteed a starting spot in the top nine. The shootout from 4:30-6 p.m. determines their position in the top nine. If they don’t complete an attempt in the shootout, they will start ninth. If two drivers don’t complete an attempt in the shootout due to a crash or mechanical, then they will start eighth and ninth, respectively, based on their best run from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
Q: What happens if a driver crashes in the Fast Nine, and that car is destroyed? If that driver is forced to a backup car for the rest of the event, will he or she start ninth or 33rd?
A: All drivers who qualify are guaranteed a starting spot in the top nine on Race Day, even if they must change cars.
Q: What happens if Pole Day is rained out?
A: One day of qualifying would take place from noon-6 p.m. Sunday, May 23, with all 33 positions up for grabs. Each car would get the traditional three attempts that day. The pole shootout for the Fast Nine would not take place.
Q: What happens if Bump Day is rained out?
A: Qualifying would resume on the next available day for positions 25-33. There would be one attempt per car, which has been the procedure for a Bump Day rainout.
KANAAN TOPS RAIN-SHORTENED PRACTICE AT INDIANAPOLIS
INDIANAPOLIS (Thursday, May 20, 2010) - Tony Kanaan topped the speed chart as rain cut short preparations for the 2010 Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Kanaan recorded a lap of 39.6870 seconds (226.775 mph) in the No. 11 Team 7-Eleven car for Andretti Autosport while Paul Tracy, driving the No. 15 GEICO-KV Racing Technology car, bolted to second quick (226.322 mph). Hideki Mutoh was third (226.230), his second consecutive appearance in the top five in the No. 06 Formula Dream/Panasonic car for Newman/Haas Racing.
Marco Andretti (226.108) and 2005 race winner Dan Wheldon (226.106) also were in the top five, fourth and fifth, respectively. Helio Castroneves (226.080), the 2009 pole sitter, was followed by Team Penske teammate Will Power (226.836), Alex Tagliani (225.609), Graham Rahal (225.559) and Davey Hamilton (225.431).
2002 Indianapolis 500 polesitter Bruno Junqueira made his first appearance of the week at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Junqueira turned 14 laps on the 2.5-mile oval to shake down the No. 29 William Rast/Bryan Herta Autosport car for rookie Sebastian Saavedra at the request of team co-owner Bryan Herta.
Twenty-seven cars were within .5796 of a second of the top. Eight different teams were represented in the top 10.
May 19 2010
DIXON FASTEST AS PRACTICE RESUMES AT INDIANPOLIS
INDIANAPOLIS - After losing a day of practice to rain, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway re-opened for business on May 18, and teams/drivers quickly got down to business of turning laps around the famed 2.5-mile oval.
Dialing in race setups was the objective for most teams on a chilly day not conducive to big speed, with the focus turning to qualification simulations the next few days in preparation for the two-stage run May 22 for the PEAK Performance Pole Award presented by AutoZone. With the almost five hours available for the session, a few things began to come into focus -- primarily that the competition is exceptionally close.
• Five different teams were represented in the top five on the speed chart.
• The top 21 drivers were separated by 0.5755 of a second.
• No. 1 (Scott Dixon) and No. 36 (Milka Duno) were separated by 1.197 seconds.
• Drivers pounded out 1,590 laps (of a total for three days of 3,562).
Last year was the closest field in the history of the '500' at 3.0967 seconds. That record might not last long.
Dixon, driving the No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing car, posted a quick lap of 39.7265 seconds (226.549 mph) on the 2.5-mile oval. Mario Moraes was second quick (225.913 mph) in the No. 32 KV Racing Technology entry, and Marco Andretti in the No. 26 Team Venom Energy car for Andretti Autosport was next at 225.751.
The checkered flag flew eight minutes early after the No. 8 PDVSA KV Racing Technology car of E.J. Viso made contact with the SAFER Barrier at the exit of Turn 1. He was transported to Methodist Hospital complaining of back pain.
DAY 4 NOTEBOOK:
Andersen Racing has signed Arie Luyendyk Jr. to be Carmen Jorda's teammate in the Firestone Freedom 100 Firestone Indy Lights race Friday, May 28 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Luyendyk, 28,is the son of two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Arie Luyendyk. He has 62 career Firestone Indy Lights starts, with one victory. He started the 2006 Indianapolis 500.
His best finish in the Firestone Freedom 100 is third in 2004.
ARIE LUYENDYK JR.: "I am thrilled to be back in a race car, especially at Indianapolis. I have known Dan and John Andersen of Andersen Racing since my days in USF2000. I have always had a great relationship with them over the years, and now I'll finally have an opportunity to drive one of their cars. Indianapolis means more to me than I can express. I've come back to win, and I'm confident that Andersen Racing will give me a car that can make that a reality."
DAN ANDERSEN (Co-owner, Andersen Racing): "We are pleased to add Arie to our lineup at Andersen Racing. We've known him since he competed in USF2000, and we've watched his performances in recent years in Firestone Indy Lights with great interest. He clearly is a winner, and with the car we know we can give him at Indy, it's exciting to look forward to having some fun in the Firestone Freedom 100." INDIANAPOLIS (Monday, May 17, 2010) - Rain washed out practice for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, the first Indianapolis 500 practice day to be completely rained out since Thursday, May 8, 2008. Rain fell steadily on the Speedway throughout this morning, and IZOD IndyCar Series officials canceled the day's track activities at 2:30 p.m. (ET). MAY 17 2010
May 18 2010
FORMER WINNERS TOP SPEED CHARTS IN INDY 500 PRACTICE
The winners of the last three Indianapolis 500s topped the speed charts as preparations for the 2010 race continued May 16 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves, the 2009 winner, set the fastest lap of practice this month with a lap of 39.6395 seconds , 227.046 mph in his No. 3 Team Penske Dallara/Honda/Firestone. 2008 winner Scott Dixon was second fastest at 39.7875, 226.202 with his Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate and 2007 Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti third at 39.8152, 226.044.
The seven rookie drivers who hope to compete in the 2010 Indianapolis 500 - Bertrand Baguette, Ana Beatriz, Simona De Silvestro, Jay Howard, Mario Romancini, Sebastian Saavedra and Takuma Sato - completed the four phases of the Rookie Orientation Program,
The day also brought the first contact of the month of May when 2005 Indianapolis 500 Dan Wheldon hit the outside retaining wall at the exit of Turn 4. Wheldon sustained a bruised foot in the crash, but expected to be back in the car May 17.
Team Penske driver Ryan Briscoe talked Saturday about the condensed schedule and Team Penske's chances in the 2010 Indianapolis 500.
RYAN BRISCOE: (About schedule): "It's about the same amount of running time. I think we're about six or eight hours shorter than we've had in the past. Track time is about the same, but it's a bit busier and a little more intense. There is a little more strategy involved with getting qualifying and race setup all in one week. Now we squeeze it in to one week and almost do a reverse. We'll get ready for the race first and then later in the week we'll really focus on qualifying and get ready for Pole Day next Saturday. I really like the fact that all of the drivers are out here on Opening Day. It's exciting for the fans that the first cars to hit the track are guys like Helio, Franchitti, Dixon and others who have won the race before. I think it is more incentive for the fans to come out and see the pros." (On running well in last year's Indy 500): "Last year was really good for me, but I was a bit unlucky in the race and we fell back. We had to make an extra stop early in the race. So, it was a bit unlucky, but I feel really good. The team, obviously, is the class of the field here at Indianapolis. It's going to be tough. I'm sure Ganassi is going to be strong, as well. We're going to be right there. Hopefully, we'll get it right on Race Day."
Justin Penix, winner of the 2010 Purdue Grand Prix kart race, was the honorary starter today. Penix, from Indianapolis, is a junior at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) majoring in mechanical engineering technology.
JUSTIN PENIX: "It's an amazing feeling. I never thought I'd be able to do this. It will be interesting to see what it's like when the cars go by at over 200 mph." (On winning the Purdue University Grand Prix with his team from IUPUI): "I'm fortunate enough to be the president of the Motorsports Club at IUPUI. The club is for students to get involved and to get more hands-on experience with racing. We fielded two cars in the Purdue Grand Prix, and it was a lot of fun for everyone to get involved and get their hands dirty. We've ran the race for over 10 years now. We won it in 2008 and this year." (On working with Sarah Fisher Racing and having a brother employed at the IRL): "I'm helping Sarah Fisher throughout this month and the summer, as well. I'll be on Jay Howard's car. I'll be doing whatever they need. Hopefully I'll get some engineering work because that's what I want to do after I graduate. I want to be involved with a race team. And it always helps to have a brother involved here at the track and to help you out along the way."
May 16 2010
CASTRONEVES LEADS AS PRACTICE OPENS FOR 2010 INDIANPOLIS 500
INDIANAPOLIS - Tony Kanaan wasn't the fastest driver during Opening Day of preparations for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, but he was one of the busiest.
The 2004 IZOD IndyCar Series champion shook down all five Andretti Autosport cars entered in the Indianapolis 500 before regular drivers Marco Andretti, John Andretti, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Danica Patrick took hold of their cars.
Defending race winner Helio Castroneves posted the fastest lap of the day of 39.7170 seconds (226.603 mph) on the 2.5-mile oval. Twenty-seven driver/car combinations recorded 451 incident-free laps before yielding to rookies and drivers undertaking a refresher course. None of the seven rookies attempting to qualify for the race completed all four phases of the Rookie Orientation Program, though Simona De Silvestro, Ana Beatriz and Takuma Sato successfully completed two of the four phases.
Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammates Dario Franchitti (226.535 mph) and Scott Dixon (226.237) - who won the 2007 and 2008 Indy 500s, respectively - were next on the list. Dan Wheldon, runner-up to Castroneves in the 500 Mile Race last year, was fourth (225.609) in the No. 4 National Guard Panther Racing car.
Ed Carpenter, competing in an IZOD IndyCar Series event for the first time since the '09 season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, was seventh quick (224.592 mph) in the No. 20 Panther/Vision Fuzzy's Vodka entry for Panther Racing.
DAY 1
All six Chevrolet Camaros that have served as Pace Cars for the Indianapolis 500 were lined up on pit road during opening ceremonies today for the 2010 Indianapolis 500: 1967, 1969, 1982, 1993, 2009 and 2010.
"Good Morning America" co-anchor Robin Roberts will drive the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS Pace Car to lead the field of 33 drivers to the start of the Indianapolis 500 on May 30.
A parade of 125 Chevrolet Camaros owned by Indiana residents kicked off Indianapolis Star Opening Day ceremonies this morning.
Seven drivers must complete the Rookie Orientation: #5 Takuma Sato (KV Racing Technology), #25 Ana Beatriz (Dreyer & Reinbold Racing), #29 Sebastian Saavedra (Bryan Herta Autosport), #34 Mario Romancini (Conquest Racing), #36 Bertrand Baguette (Conquest Racing), #66 Jay Howard (Sarah Fisher Racing), #78 Simona de Silvestro (HVM Racing).
The rookie drivers must complete four phases of ROP in order to be eligible for the Indianapolis 500. At least three of the phases must be completed during ROP today and Sunday. The fourth phase may be completed during practice later in the month.
The four phases of ROP include 10 laps at each of the following speeds:
200-205 mph, 205-210 mph, 210-215 mph, 215+ mph
May 15 2010
Indianapolis opening Day?
Dennis "aXe" Sylvia
Austin TEXAS
What if the speedway opened and the fans werent invited in? Well today a perfect day for watching race cars, The Firestone indy lights cars wer testing and no fans were allowed in? Just the crews and media were allowed in. What a shame the series that needs all the fan interest it can get and they werent invited to the testing?
I got lucky for this month and got a media card for one day only.
I watched the Lites and they were getting around pretty good, some VERY close side by side racing going on for just testing.
IZOD INDYCAR SERIES NEWS AND NOTES - May 14, 2010
Yacaman toped the Firestone Indy Lights Open Test at IMS: Gustavo Yacaman established himself as a contender for the Firestone Freedom 100 by leading a one-day Open Test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on May 14.
Yacaman turned a lap of 47.2493 seconds, 190.511 mph, in his No. 10 Cape Motorsport with Wayne Taylor Racing car around the famed 2.5-mile oval.
"I'm not surprised," Yacaman said. "(Engineers Nicholas and Dominic) Cape had a great car two years ago with J.R. (Hildebrand) and the car was really good. The credit goes to them. All I had to do was sit there with the pedal to the metal. "
While Yacaman gave the credit to pre Cape Motorsport with Wayne Taylor Racing team, he also had an ace up his sleeve. Yacaman received advice from Juan Pablo Montoya, when he visited the 2000 Indianapolis 500 winner at a NASCAR tire test at the Speedway in April.
"I think spending a few days with Juan really helped me a lot," Yacaman said. "I think he helped me get really comfortable with the car and he gave me some really good tips that showed up today. Hopefully we can keep this up for the race."
Pippa Mann was second fastest with a lap of 47.3125, 190.225 mph followed by Jeff Simmons (190.072), Charlie Kimball (189.864) and defending race winner Wade Cunningham.
Looking from the garages towards pit lane
I then went into the garages Aand THE USUAL SUSPECTS HAD ALL thier DUCKS LINED up and were ready to go,The PENSKE GANASSI AND ANDRETTI GROUPS WERE ALL SET UP IN THE RESPECTIVE GARAGES. Thier crews were mostly out on pit road setting up thier respective pit boxes.
Below Penske garages with 15 sets of mounted new tires!
You know Penske said something to the effect that Lucky is being prepared so when it comes by You are ready to get on board.
Those three teams are usualy just waiting for those opportunities.
I walked by the tech area and who was there? well the Penske car for Helio and the #10 car from the Ganassi team was also there, Boy talk about being ready.
Penske car for Helio waiting for tech inspection
Gannasi #10 coming out of teching
The surprise for me in the garage area was how ready the Sarah Fisher group looked. If that adage being prepared is the way to go then Sarahs team looks to be close to finding a win soon?
Sarah Fisher garages ready to go!
I walked by the garage area for the Vision team from last year and it was just short of being boarded up? No one was around to ask what was up there?
Vision garages from last year?
My pick to win this years big race is Will Power?
But dont count those other 2 teams out just yet, They are just as ready.
Ole Lady Luck will be the big decider, whom She smiles upon will put their car number at the top of this scoring tower when this race is over after the 500 miles of racing.
Scoreing Tower
I allmost forgot You also get this Chevrolet Pace Car for Winning
The Greatest Spectacle in Racing!
This is probably my first and last indy 500 report for this year.
Article and photos by
aXe
May 13 2010
INDY 500 PIONEER GUTHRIE THRILLED BY 2010 WOMEN’S MOVEMENTWhat
INDIANAPOLIS,– When Janet Guthrie was informed that Ana Beatriz was the fifth female entered in the Indianapolis 500, the racing pioneer reflected on how far women have progressed in the sport.
“Frankly, I thought it would take longer than this,” Guthrie said. “I thought it would take two generations, and it only seems to have taken one.”
Guthrie, who graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in physics and started competing in sports cars, is the first female to compete in the Indianapolis 500. She started 29th and finishing 26th in 1977. She fared better in 1978, advancing six positions to finish ninth. Guthrie was an owner/driver in her final Indianapolis 500 in 1979, with a 14th-place start and a 34th-place finish (a year in which 35 cars took the green flag).
Lyn St. James would follow Guthrie’s path to Indianapolis, competing from 1992 to 2000, with a high finish of 11th in her inaugural race. Sarah Fisher was a rookie in St. James’ final Indy 500 and is in her third season as an IZOD IndyCar Series owner/driver.
Danica Patrick became the first female to lead laps in the Indianapolis 500 during her rookie campaign in 2005 and went on to finish fourth. Patrick’s third-place finish in last year’s race is the highest by a female. Milka Duno of Venezuela has competed in the past three Indy 500s, with a high finish of 19th in 2008.
This year, Simona De Silvestro of Switzerland and Beatriz of Brazil join female veterans Duno, Fisher and Patrick for the first day of practice May 15. Guthrie believes both drivers are prepared to make the jump to the world’s biggest race.
“I have watched Simona’s first races with very great interest,” Guthrie said. “So far, luck has been against her. It has been said that between being good and being lucky, one might rather be lucky. Simona has shown a lot of talent and so has Ana Beatriz. My impression of Ana Beatriz is she really knows what she is doing. She is very capable.”
Guthrie also has followed – and at times advised -- Fisher during the transition from driver to driver/team owner.
“She certainly has her hands full as an owner/driver, and I keep my fingers crossed for her all the time,” Guthrie said.
All five women have benefitted from the exploits of Guthrie, St. James and Shirley Muldowney in the male-dominated world of auto racing.
“Both Janet Guthrie and Lyn St. James are having a bigger impact now than when I first started because I was 19 and stubborn,” said Fisher, who will attempt to qualify for her ninth 500 Mile Race. “It was hard for me because I hadn’t really grown up yet to take a step back and look at it big picture. Now being able to share what I do with both Janet and Lyn – Janet wrote the foreword to my book, and Lyn took part in it, too. They have both been really good to bounce off with ideas and share where my business is going. They’ve learned a lot in racing.”
Guthrie will attend the Indianapolis 500 Old Timers Hall of Fame Banquet on Thursday, May 27 and will be at the National Auto Racing Memorabilia Show on Saturday, May 29 but will not be at the track on Race Day.
“Even now, all these years later, since I didn’t quit willingly, I ran out of money, it’s a little painful for me to be around it,” Guthrie said. “I never have liked to be there as a hanger-on. That doesn’t suit me.”
That’s the way it is with pioneers. When Apollo 11 began its journey to the moon on July 16, 1969, Charles Lindbergh – the first aviator to cross the Atlantic Ocean – did not attend the launch. Guthrie does acknowledge a sense of pride in the number of cars that will have a woman behind the wheel.
“I’m very glad to see it,” she said. “I thought it was going to take longer than that. I’ll be watching with the greatest interest, for sure.”
2010 Indy 500 tickets: Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30, are on sale now. Race Day ticket prices start at just $20.
Fans can order tickets online at www.imstix.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Online orders can be made at any time. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday.
Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information
JEWEL TO SING NATIONAL ANTHEM at 2010 INDIANAPOLIS 500
INDIANAPOLIS, Wednesday, May 12, 2010 – Multi-platinum singer-songwriter Jewel will perform the national anthem before the start of the 2010 Indianapolis 500.
Jewel has sold 27 million albums worldwide since her smash debut in 1995, “Pieces of You,” which went platinum 12 times. She has won an American Music Award and an MTV Video Music Award and has been nominated twice for a Grammy Award.
Her ninth studio album, “Sweet and Wild,” is set for release June 8 on the Valory label.
“We’re pleased to welcome Jewel to the Indianapolis 500 to sing ‘The Star-Spangled Banner,’” said Jeff Belskus, president and chief executive officer of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corp. “We pay honor to our veterans throughout pre-race ceremonies at the ‘500,’ so Jewel is an ideal choice to sing our national anthem due to her continued support of U.S. military personnel.”
Jewel has performed at USO concerts for American service personnel around the world.
The 2010 Indianapolis 500 is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. (ET) Sunday, May 30 and will be broadcast live on ABC and the IMS Radio Network.
May 12 2010
INDY 500 FANS CAN JOIN IN FUN AT 38th ‘LAST ROW PARTY’ ON MAY 28
INDIANAPOLIS, Tuesday, May 11, 2010 – After a full schedule of activities at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Miller Lite Carb Day, Friday, May 28, race fans can eat, drink and laugh as three Indianapolis 500 drivers share the hot seat at the 38th Last Row Party.
The Last Row Party, scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. (ET) at the pavilion at Brickyard Crossing Golf Course, honors the drivers starting on the 11th and final row of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” with a dinner and roast. Brickyard Crossing is located at 4400 W. 16th St., adjacent to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Turn 2.
Tickets are $40 per person, or $375 for a table of 10, which includes entertainment, dinner, soft drinks and three beer tickets for party goers age 21 and older. A cash bar is also available. For reservations, call (317) 631-6400 or e-mail jlabalme.indypress@att.net. VISA or MasterCard are accepted.
One of the “500’s” best events for fans, Last Row Party attendees can mingle with Indianapolis 500 drivers, share a laugh at the drivers’ expense and support a great cause. Popular Indianapolis radio personality and comedian Dave “The King” Wilson will serve as host. The event benefits the Indianapolis Press Club Foundation, which annually presents thousands of dollars in scholarships and cash prizes to journalism students attending colleges and universities in Indiana.
Since 1973, the Last Row Party has paid tribute to the resilient drivers claiming the 31st, 32nd and 33rd spots in the Indianapolis 500 field. Many open-wheel racing legends have occupied a space in the back row of the Indianapolis 500 field, including former “500” winners Mario Andretti, Gordon Johncock, Johnny Rutherford, Tom Sneva and Al Unser.
Drivers Nelson Philippe, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Alex Tagliani were the 2009 Last Row Party honorees and instant crowd favorites.
The back-row qualifiers will be awarded special jackets, checks for 31, 32 and 33 cents, respectively, and have their names affixed to a trophy honoring all 11th-row starters. A highlight of the evening’s festivities is the Press Club Foundation’s silent and live auctions of racing and other sports memorabilia, tickets to major sporting events, vacation trips, restaurant gift cards and entertainment gift certificates, with proceeds benefitting the IPCF’s scholarship efforts.
2010 Indy 500 tickets: Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30, are on sale now. Race Day ticket prices start at just $20.
Fans can order tickets online at www.imstix.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Online orders can be made at any time. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday.
Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information.
April 24 2010
Editor, I took My Grand kids to this event last year it was great a must do for the kids.
Den
CENTENNIAL ERA BALLOON FESTIVAL RETURNS TO IMS MAY 8 WITH AT&T
Gin Blossoms to headline concert at free, family-friendly event
INDIANAPOLIS, – After a successful, popular debut in 2009, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s Centennial Era Balloon Festival presented by AT&T again will kick off Indianapolis 500 Mile Race activities for 2010 on Saturday, May 8.
The 2010 Centennial Era Balloon Festival presented by AT&T will offer entertainment for every generation of the family, with a balloon race in the morning, late-afternoon live music featuring the Gin Blossoms and a balloon “glow” and fireworks in the IMS infield that evening.
Admission for Saturday afternoon and evening activities is free.
“We’re pleased to welcome back AT&T as the presenting sponsor of the Centennial Era Balloon Festival,” said Jeff Belskus, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation president and chief executive officer. “Their support was instrumental in the success of last year’s festival, and we look forward to an even better event this May. The addition of the Gin Blossoms as the headline concert act adds even more appeal to a day of fun for everyone at IMS.”
The Founders Race, with a field of 33 balloons (honoring the traditional number of starters for the Indianapolis 500) will launch at 7:30 a.m. (ET) May 8 – the same time the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon begins downtown.
More than 35,000 runners will circle the famed IMS oval during the “Mini.” The runners and spectators lining Indianapolis streets will enjoy the colorful sight of balloons overhead.
Due to the Mini-Marathon, the IMS infield will be closed for the Founders Race balloon launch, but a number of vantage points are available around the IMS perimeter for fans to watch the balloon ascension.
The Speedway’s public gates will open at 5 p.m. Live music on the Coca-Cola Music Stage kicks off at 5:15 p.m. with opening act Red Moon, followed by the Gin Blossoms. The Centennial Era Balloon Festival presented by AT&T “glow” is at 8 p.m., and the grand-finale fireworks display is set for 9:15 p.m.
The Founders Race will take place Sunday, May 9 if weather forces cancellation on Saturday.
“The inaugural Centennial Era Balloon Festival in 2009 was a tremendous success, and we were proud to have our AT&T Real Yellow Pages brand serve as presenting sponsor,” said Rhonda Bieda, area marketing manager, AT&T Advertising Solutions. “For 2010, everyone at AT&T is excited to partner with the Speedway to make this year’s event an unforgettable experience for IMS fans and our customers.”
Centennial Era Balloon Festival presented by AT&T concert headliners Gin Blossoms exploded onto the popular music stage in 1992 with their major-label debut album “New Miserable Experience,” which went platinum and spawned hit singles such as “Hey Jealousy,” “Found Out About You” and “Allison Road.”
The band enjoyed more success with the 1995 hit single “Till I Hear It From You,” which appeared on the soundtrack for the film “Empire Records,” and the 1996 release of their second album “Congratulations…I’m Sorry” and the single “Follow You Down.”
Gin Blossoms disbanded in 1997, began touring again in the early 2000s and produced a new studio album, “Major Lodge Victory,” in 2006 and enjoyed renewed popularity with hits “Learning the Hard Way” and “Heart Shaped Locket.”
The Centennial Era Balloon Festival presented by AT&T pays tribute to the first competitive event to take place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway: a helium gas-filled balloon competition on Saturday, June 5, 1909, more than two months before the oval was completed.
IMS tickets: Established in 1909, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway has long prevailed as an icon of motorsports excellence. In 2009, the Speedway began the three-year celebration of its Centennial Era, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the facility in 2009 and the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race in 2011.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.imstix.com at any time. Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more informati
April 22 2010
FOUR WINNERS, 40 ENTRIES IN TALENTED 2010 INDIANAPOLIS 500 FIELD
Four women could start ‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’ for first time
INDIANAPOLIS, Wednesday, April 21, 2010 – Four past winners and four IZOD IndyCar Series champions are among the drivers named to the 40 entries filed for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Seventy-eight cars comprise the 40 entries. It’s the second consecutive year with 40 entries on the list, the most entries since 2002. It’s also the seventh consecutive year in which the number of entries has climbed or held steady.
Defending Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves (2001-02, 2009) leads the list of past winners, which also includes Scott Dixon (2008), Dario Franchitti (2007) and Dan Wheldon (2005). Castroneves will attempt to become just the fourth four-time winner in the illustrious history of the race, joining A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears.
Series champions include Dixon (2003, 2008), Franchitti (2007, 2009), Tony Kanaan (2004) and Wheldon (2005).
Thirty-four drivers have been named to the 40 entries filed this year for the 33 starting spots in the world’s most prestigious auto race. This guarantees plenty of dramatic action on both qualifying days, Pole Day on Saturday, May 22 and Armed Forces Day/Bump Day on Sunday, May 23, which feature an exciting new format.
The 2010 Indianapolis 500 is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. (ET) Sunday, May 30 and will be broadcast live by ABC, the IMS Radio Network and XM 145/Sirius 211. Indianapolis Star Opening Day is scheduled for Saturday, May 15.
There is outstanding depth and quality in this year’s field. Besides four past race winners and four series champions, 15 of the 34 drivers named to entries have won at least one race in either IZOD IndyCar Series or Champ Car World Series competition.
Four women could start in the Indianapolis 500 for the first time, as 2005 Chase Rookie of the Year Danica Patrick, Milka Duno, Sarah Fisher and Simona De Silvestro were named to entries.
Plenty of young talent that recently advanced through the Road to Indy ladder system also will be on display, as the field includes three of the last four Firestone Indy Lights champions – Jay Howard (2006), Alex Lloyd (2007) and Raphael Matos (2008). Other recent Firestone Indy Lights graduates on the entry list include 2002 series champion A.J. Foyt IV, Marco Andretti, Ed Carpenter, Hideki Mutoh, Mario Romancini and Sebastian Saavedra.
Six drivers comprise a strong rookie crop: Firestone Indy Lights champion Howard, Firestone Indy Lights race winners Romancini and Saavedra, former Formula One driver Takuma Sato, and IZOD IndyCar Series rookie regulars Bertrand Baguette and De Silvestro.
Andretti Autosport is involved in five entries, more than any other team. The team, which won the 2005 and 2007 Indianapolis 500, filed four entries and is co-entrant along with NASCAR legend Richard Petty on another entry.
DRIVERS (34)
Former race winners (4): Helio Castroneves (2001, 2002, 2009), Dan Wheldon (2005), Dario Franchitti (2007), Scott Dixon (2008).
Former pole winners (4): Bruno Junqueira (2002), Helio Castroneves (2003, 2007, 2009), Tony Kanaan (2005), Scott Dixon (2008).
Rookies (6): Bertrand Baguette, Simona De Silvestro, Jay Howard, Mario Romancini, Sebastian Saavedra, Takuma Sato.
Youngest: Sebastian Saavedra, 19.
Oldest: Davey Hamilton, 47.
Most previous starts: John Andretti, 10.
2010 Indy 500 tickets: Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30, are on sale now. Race Day ticket prices start at just $20.
Fans can order tickets online at www.imstix.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Online orders can be made at any time. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday.
Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information.
April 14 2010
POLE SHOOTOUT, BUSY BUMP DAY HEADLINE NEW ‘500’ QUALIFYING FORMAT
‘Fast Nine’ to make thrilling late-day run for pole Saturday, May 22
INDIANAPOLIS, Wednesday, April 14, 2010 – An exciting new qualifying format for the Indianapolis 500, featuring a 90-minute “shootout” in which the nine fastest cars make a dramatic, late-day run for the pole, will debut Saturday, May 22 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
A substantial increase in prize money also will be offered to the pole winner, with money also awarded to the other two front-row qualifiers. IZOD IndyCar Series points also will be awarded after qualifying to all 33 drivers who earn a spot in the starting field.
“This new format for Indianapolis 500 qualifying will deliver even more action and intensity for fans,” said Jeff Belskus, president and chief executive officer of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Corporation. “Drivers will go all out during the first session on Pole Day to get a chance to make a run for the pole. Then they’ll need to dig even deeper to find the speed for the pole in the last 90 minutes. Plus there still will be plenty of spots up for grabs on Bump Day, with all of the dramatic, last-minute bumping that generations of fans have loved about Indy.
“This is going to be a fantastic weekend of qualifying. I can’t wait to see it unfold.”
The top 24 spots in the 33-car field will be available through traditional four-lap attempts from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. (ET) on Pole Day. Each car will have up to three attempts during that time.
The times of the top nine drivers from the first segment of qualifying will be erased at 4 p.m., with all of those competitors guaranteed to start no worse than ninth in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” on Sunday, May 30.
“The Fast Nine” then will be required to make at least one four-lap qualifying attempt between 4:30-6 p.m., with one additional, optional attempt if time permits. Each driver’s best run during the 90-minute session will set their position within the top nine spots on the starting grid.
If inclement weather prevents the 90-minute shootout for the “Fast Nine,” their times from the opening session will determine starting positions.
The winner of the PEAK Performance Pole Award presented by AutoZone will earn $175,000, an increase of $75,000 from 2009. The second-fastest qualifier will earn $75,000, with the final front-row starter earning $50,000.
In a departure from the other 16 IZOD IndyCar Series races, in which the PEAK Performance Pole Award winner earns one bonus point, all 33 starting drivers will receive championship points. The pole winner will receive 15 points, with the other front-row starters earning 13 and 12 points, respectively. Drivers in Rows 2 and 3 will receive, in descending order, between 11 and six points. Positions 10-24 receive four bonus points, and 25-33 earn three points.
“The rewards of the qualifying format help to make the Indianapolis 500 the most important race on the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule,” said Brian Barnhart, president of competition and racing operations for the sanctioning Indy Racing League. “Teams and drivers in the shootout will have to make a decision after their initial run in the ‘Fast Nine’ segment whether they want to attempt to move up on the grid with a final attempt. Not only would they potentially have a higher starting position, but they would accumulate more bonus points that could come into play later in the season in the driver championship.”
On Bump Day, Sunday, May 23, the final nine spots in the field will be earned through traditional four-lap qualifying from noon-6 p.m. Bumping will begin once 33 cars have qualified.
2010 Indy 500 tickets: Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, scheduled for Sunday, May 30, are on sale now. Race Day ticket prices start at just $20.
Fans can order tickets online at www.imstix.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Online orders can be made at any time. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday.
Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information.
April13 2010
INDY RACING LEAGUE ANNOUNCES APPOINTMENTS
TO ICONIC IZOD INDYCAR SERIES ADVISORY COMMITTEE
INDIANAPOLIS (April 13, 2010) - The Indy Racing League announced today appointments to its ICONIC (Innovative, Competitive, Open-Wheel, New, Industry-Relevant, Cost-Effective) IZOD IndyCar Series Advisory Committee.
The advisory committee, tasked with reviewing, researching and recommending a future IZOD IndyCar Series chassis and engine platform to the Indy Racing League, will feature the following industry representatives:
Brian Barnhart: As president of competition and racing operations for the sanctioning Indy Racing League, Barnhart is responsible for development, innovation, safety development and implementation, medical, officials, technical specifications, event logistics and is an IZOD IndyCar Series representative on the board of directors of ACCUS, the U.S. representative to the FIA. Prior to joining the Indy Racing League, Barnhart served in various mechanical roles on Indy car race teams from 1982-94, including Galles Racing, Penske Racing and Patrick Racing and worked with legendary drivers A.J. Foyt, Al Unser Jr. and Emerson Fittipaldi.
Gil de Ferran: The 2003 Indianapolis 500 winner served as sporting director for the Honda Racing Formula One team. He formed de Ferran Motorsports in 2008 to compete in the American Le Mans Series as a driver/owner and now in the IZOD IndyCar Series through a partnership with Luczo Dragon Racing. De Ferran, who competed in CART/Champ Car and the IZOD IndyCar Series, became known as the "professor" because of his reputation as a technically astute driver. His technical feedback abilities and engineering background earned him vital development roles with all the major manufacturers instrumental in his career. De Ferran was elected to the advisory committee by his fellow team owners, while all other representatives were appointed.
Tony Purnell: Purnell is the former team principal of the Jaguar Racing Formula One team as well as a former Technical Consultant to the FIA. He is the founder of Pi Research. By the late 1990s, Purnell had built the company into a highly successful global electronics business. In 1999, the company was purchased by the Ford Motor Company and Purnell was appointed to head Ford's Premiere Performance Division, a role that was followed by his senior positions in Formula One. Purnell is a visiting professor at Cambridge University's Engineering Department.
Eddie Gossage: As a top promoter in sports, Gossage has made Texas Motor Speedway one of racing's premier venues. He was named vice president of the speedway in 1995 and charged with building the 158,000-seat complex located in the nation's fifth largest media market, Dallas/Fort Worth. He was named president of the facility in February of 2004. Gossage has promoted 20 IZOD IndyCar Series races at Texas Motor Speedway and was named the Indy Racing League's "Promoter of the Year" in 2001. Prior to his tenure at Texas, Gossage served as vice president of public relations at Charlotte Motor Speedway and manager of the motorsports division of Miller Brewing, overseeing its NASCAR, Indy car, sports cars and drag racing programs.
Neil Ressler: A former chairman of Jaguar Racing in Formula One, Ressler served various roles at the Ford Motor Company during his tenure, including senior research scientist, principal design engineer in the Suspension and Steering Division and director of quality and product systems before taking charge of core product development. Eventually he was named head of advanced vehicle technology, looking at the future development of the automobile. Ressler served as vice president and chief technical officer of research and vehicle technology with responsibilities for Advanced Vehicle Technology, Scientific Research and Environmental and Safety Engineering.
Tony Cotman: A two-time Indianapolis 500-winning team member, Cotman served as team manager for Team Green in CART in 1998, winning 11 races in three years. In 2001, he was promoted to vice president of racing operations, guiding a three-car program for Team Green and eventually a four-car program when the team became Andretti Green Racing and moved to the IZOD IndyCar Series. From 2005-07, Cotman served as vice president of operations and race director for the Champ Car World Series, where he oversaw the implementation of a new chassis. He served as the Indy Racing League's vice president of competition until 2009 before leaving to form NZR Consulting, focusing on race circuit design, safety and management. He continues to serve as a member of the FIA circuits commission and is still active in the league as race director for Firestone Indy Lights.
Rick Long: Beginning with the 1973 Indianapolis 500 in support of the Turbo Offy program, Long has been involved in the development of high-performance racing engines. His experience extends to the Turbo Cosworth, Judd and Turbo Buick engines used in Indy car competition. In 1996, Long and Herb Porter founded Speedway Engine Development, Inc. (SEDI), which served as the OEM builder for GM's Chevy and Buick engines in the IZOD IndyCar Series, controlling the selection of internal components as well as the tolerances used during assembly. Through a proactive program of applied development, dynamometer testing, and trackside support, the SEDI team "fine tuned" the engine to achieve the maximum potential for performance and reliability. Today, SEDI is the sole builder and supplier of engines to Firestone Indy Lights and also supports the engine programs of several USAC Sprint, Silver Crown and World of Outlaw teams.
"I feel that this advisory committee best represents a group of experts that encompass the key areas of car development, and I'm confident that they will do their best to come up with an objective recommendation on the future car that is in the best interest of the sport," said Randy Bernard, chief executive officer, Indy Racing League. "Their goal is to keep in mind key attributes like safety, competition, industry-relevance and cost-containment while evaluating avenues for the future chassis and engine. This is one of the most important decisions the Indy Racing League will make this decade so I want to be sure we do our due diligence before committing to any future direction."
The committee will be mediated by retired Air Force Gen. William R. Looney III and will report its recommendation to Bernard, who will make the final decision on the series new chassis and engine.
In addition to featuring a variety of racing experts, the advisory committee will reach out to drivers, team owners, sponsors and promoters for feedback on the future car as well as utilize fan research in making its recommendation.
April 10 2010
EXCITEMENT, DRAMA, FUN TO REACH TOP SPEED IN MAY AT IMS
INDIANAPOLIS, Friday, April 9, 2010 – Indianapolis 500 fans can enjoy two full weeks of action, drama and excitement during May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with a great mixture of racing and music leading into “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” on Sunday, May 30.
There will be 12 days of on-track action during the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, starting on Indianapolis Star Opening Day, Saturday, May 15 and continuing through Race Day for the IZOD IndyCar Series’ marquee event.
Daily practice is scheduled for seven consecutive days from Indianapolis Star Opening Day, Saturday, May 15 through Fast Friday, May 21. Veterans and rookies will be on track each of those days, creating plenty of 220-mph traffic for fans to enjoy.
Qualifications will be filled with drama, as there are just two days of time trials. Pole Day Qualifications are scheduled for Saturday, May 22, and the remaining spots in the 33-car field will be determined on Bump Day, Sunday, May 23.
Track activity will resume Thursday, May 27 with practice for the Firestone Freedom 100 Firestone Indy Lights race. Miller Lite Carb Day is Friday, May 28, featuring a schedule packed with the final Indianapolis 500 practice, the Firestone Freedom 100 race, the annual Pit Stop Challenge for Indianapolis 500 teams and the Miller Lite Carb Day Concert featuring ZZ Top.
The 2010 Indianapolis 500 is scheduled for 1 p.m. (ET) Sunday, May 30.
Leading the varied storylines for the 2010 race will be Helio Castroneves’ attempt to become just the fourth driver to earn four Indianapolis 500 victories, joining legends A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears. Castroneves earned his third Indy victory in May 2009 for Team Penske.
Other on-track storylines include the possibility of a record five women vying for spots in the starting field of 33 and one of the highest car counts in the last decade.
Activity in May at IMS will begin for the second consecutive year with the Centennial Era Balloon Festival on Saturday, May 8. The public can enjoy a popular evening “glow” featuring colorful hot-air balloons from across the country, a concert and fireworks from 5-9:15 p.m. The event is free.
Tickets for the 2010 Indianapolis 500 are on sale now. Race Day tickets start at just $20. Practice day admission is $5 each day except May 27, which is free. Pole Day, Bump Day and Miller Lite Carb Day admission is $10 each day. Ages 5 and under are free for general admission, including Race Day. Everyone in a reserved seat on Race Day must purchase a ticket.
American Family Insurance 500 Festival Community Day admission is $7, with ages 6 and under free. The family-friendly event on Wednesday, May 26 features a full-field autograph session and chance to drive your own car or motorcycle around the track.
Fans can order tickets online any time at www.imstix.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday.
2010 INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY MAY SCHEDULE
Saturday, May 8
CENTENNIAL ERA BALLOON FESTIVAL (Gates open 5-9:15 p.m.)
Founders Race, 7:30 a.m.; Concert/glow/fireworks, 5-9:15 p.m.
Saturday, May 15
INDIANAPOLIS STAR OPENING DAY CEREMONIES, PRACTICE (Gates open 9 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Veterans, noon-2 p.m.; Rookie Orientation Program, 2-6 p.m.
Sunday, May 16
PRACTICE (Gates open 9 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Veterans, noon-2 p.m.; Rookie Orientation Program, 2-6 p.m.
Monday, May 17-Thursday, May 20
PRACTICE (Gates open 9 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Noon-6 p.m. (All Drivers)
Friday, May 21
FAST FRIDAY PRACTICE (Gates open 8 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Noon-6 p.m. (All Drivers)
Saturday, May 22
POLE DAY QUALIFYING (Gates open 7 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Practice, 8-10 a.m.; Qualifications, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
Sunday, May 23
BUMP DAY QUALIFYING (Gates open 8 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Practice, 9-10 a.m.; Qualifications, noon-6 p.m.
Monday, May 24-Tuesday, May 25
NO TRACK ACTIVITY
Wednesday, May 26
AMERICAN FAMILY INSURANCE 500 FESTIVAL COMMUNITY DAY (No Track Activity, open 9 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Thursday, May 27
FIRESTONE FREEDOM 100 PRACTICE, QUALIFYING (Gates open 9 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Practice: 9-9:45 a.m. and 11:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m.; Qualifying: 3-4 p.m.
Friday, May 28
MILLER LITE CARB DAY (Gates open 8 a.m.-6 p.m.)
Indianapolis 500 Final Practice: 11 a.m.-noon; Firestone Freedom 100: 12:30 p.m.; Pit Stop Challenge: 1:30-3 p.m.; Miller Lite Carb Day Concert featuring ZZ Top: 3:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 29
PUBLIC DRIVERS’ MEETING (No Track Activity, gates open 8 a.m.-5 p.m.)
10:30 a.m., Tower Terrace
Sunday, May 30
2010 INDIANAPOLIS 500 MILE RACE (Gates open 6 a.m.)
Start, 1 p.m.
April 8 2010
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (April 7, 2010) - In preparation for the 2010 Indianapolis 500, Vision Racing and Panther Racing are pleased to announce that the two IndyCar teams have entered into a collaboration for the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing" with two Panther Racing entries; the No.4 National Guard Honda Dallara driven by Britain's Dan Wheldon and the No.20 machine piloted by American driver Ed Carpenter.
"I am very pleased that we have this opportunity to partner with an excellent organization. This collaboration with Panther Racing will allow two teams that want nothing else but to compete and strive for success in the upcoming Indianapolis 500 and the opportunity to do so to the best of their abilities," explains Vision Racing Team Owner, Tony George. "With this partnership between teams and drivers, we will also be able to maximize the potential of both parties and field what I am sure will be a very formidable two-car effort. There are close personal and professional relationships within our two organizations that should allow us to put forth a cohesive effort we will all be proud of and have high expectations for achieving results."
"We looked at a lot of opportunities for the Month of May, and as strong as Vision Racing has run the last few years, we felt like partnering with them made a lot of sense for us," expressed John Barnes, CEO and co-owner of Panther Racing. "I feel that Ed (Carpenter) is a threat to win at any race he runs, and he's proved that to this league in the last two or three years. His addition to the National Guard team along with Dan Wheldon is going to make our entire team stronger. I honestly hope this isn't a one-and-done deal, and we very much look forward to the opportunity of expanding this and running more IZOD IndyCar Series races together this season."
Six-year IndyCar Series veteran Ed Carpenter will make a return behind the wheel of the No. 20 that he has driven since Vision Racing's inception in 2005. The 29-year-old Indianapolis resident finished the 2009 season by earning his career best finish of second, matched his career best start of fourth, led 35 laps and drove to six top-ten finishes.
"I am very excited not only to be returning to the Indianapolis 500, but also working with Panther Racing," says Ed Carpenter who finished fifth and eighth in the last two runnings of the Indianapolis 500. "John Barnes has been a family friend for a long time, and I very grateful for this opportunity. I feel that with my experience, Vision Racing's experience and Panther Racing's experience and success at Indianapolis that we will be a very competitive duo. It has been very hard watching from the sidelines so far this season, and I am very motivated to compete for my first win."
Panther Racing, who boasts 15 IndyCar Series wins and two league championships, is currently ninth in the championship standings with driver Dan Wheldon after the first two races of the 2010 season. The team has also finished runner-up in each of the last two Indianapolis 500s; in 2008 with Vitor Meira and again last year with Wheldon.
"I believe the addition of Ed Carpenter and Vision Racing to the National Guard Panther Racing group is phenomenal," added Wheldon who earned three top-five and nine top-10 finishes last season. "Ed's always been very quick, especially around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and I'm very much looking forward to being able to have a teammate of his caliber. I know we'll work together well and be able to move the team forward, which will give us both a chance to win the Indianapolis 500. And it's also very positive to have Vision's involvement in the Panther program. I'm excited about being able to use some of their expertise and it's great to see them back on track. "They're a team that was very close to their first IZOD IndyCar Series victory in Kentucky last year, and this partnership will get all of us one step close to victory lane."
Vision Racing returns to IZOD IndyCar Series competition for the Indianapolis 500 as a result of this partnership with Panther Racing after suspending racing operations on January, 28, 2010 until such time that sponsorship could be secured.
"It has been an exceptionally long and extended off-season for Vision Racing that has recently had us turning our attention solely to the Indianapolis 500. The challenge of putting together a sponsorship package to enable Vision Racing to run the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule proved to be much more difficult than anticipated but our intention is to be back competing full-time in the future," explained George. "Taking part in the 2010 Indianapolis 500 has been a priority and while we have yet to solidify a sponsorship lineup for the No. 20 Panther-Vision entry for Indy, it is our expectation to be able to make some sponsorship announcements in the coming weeks."