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INDYCAR Announces Paretta Autosport

January 20, 2021 by ponycargirl Leave a Comment

Sandwiched between the United States holiday celebrating the life of slain Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., and January 20 when a new US president will be inaugurated, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES announced a new team formed by Beth Paretta. Paretta Autosport, a team geared towards motorsports opportunities for women, is entering the 105th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge with Simona De Silvestro as the driver of the Chevrolet-powered number 16 car.

This won’t be Paretta’s first time putting together a woman-focused INDYCAR team. She formed Grace Autosport to enter the Indy 500 in 2016 with the goal of giving visibility and opportunity to women and girls in STEM careers (science, technology, engineering, and math). While Grace Autosport had all of the necessary components to race – including driver Katherine Legge, who at the time was also piloting the Nissan Delta Wing in the North American Endurance Cup – Paretta ended up pulling out after not being able to secure a viable race car.

Driver Simona De Silvestro has a deep resume in motorsports, having raced four full seasons in the INDYCAR series and winning 2010 Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year. At the 2013 Grand Prix of Houston, the Swiss driver earned her first INDYCAR podium, placing second in the first race and becoming the third woman in the series with a podium finish. The other two women? None other than Danica Patrick and Sarah Fisher. Since her last full INDYCAR season in 2013, De Silvestro has been a test driver for Formula 1 and competed in Formula e and Supercars Championship, among others.

This is all part of an INDYCAR and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway “Race for Equality & Change” initiative announced in July of 2020. A $1 million fund was set up to support diversity in the driver pool, the SERIES workforce, promoters, and vendors, as well as fan engagement. INDYCAR isn’t the only North American series to realize a certain homogeneity in the sport. NASCAR faced a rather public reckoning in early 2020 after banning the Confederate Flag from their races. Penske Entertainment Corp. President and CEO Mark Miles said in July, “As our country has grappled with systemic issues related to race, equality and access to opportunity, we’ve been doing a lot of listening, learning and reflecting. Race for Equality & Change’ will create a more diverse and inclusive INDYCAR community that fundamentally transforms our sport.”

Also part of this initiative, the “Force Indy” team was announced in early December 2020. Team Principal Rod Reid is in the process of testing drivers, focusing on Black American men and women, to race in the 2021 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship. 

While the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES calendar is still subject to change depending on the ongoing Corona virus pandemic, it is tentatively slated to start April 11 at Alabama’s Barber Motorsports Park. 

You can follow both teams on Instagram: 
@forceindy99 
@parettaautosport

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Indy 500 Postponed

March 26, 2020 by ponycargirl 1 Comment

PRESS RELEASE:

INDIANAPOLIS, Thursday, March 26, 2020 – The Indianapolis 500 Presented by Gainbridgehas been rescheduled for Sunday, Aug. 23 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, officials from INDYCAR and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) announced today. The 104th edition of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” will air live on NBC, with the official green flag time to be announced at a later date.

The GMR Grand Prix will transition to Saturday, July 4 on the IMS road course as part of a historic double-header featuring the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and NASCAR. This first-of-its-kind racing event also will be televised by NBC on Independence Day.

The Indianapolis 500 was originally scheduled for Sunday, May 24, in its traditional spot on the calendar during Memorial Day weekend. The GMR Grand Prix was scheduled to be run on Saturday, May 9.

“The Month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is my favorite time of year, and like our fans, I am disappointed that we have had to reschedule the Indianapolis 500,” Roger Penskesaid. “However, the health and safety of our event participants and spectators is our top priority, and we believe that postponing the event is the responsible decision with the conditions and restrictions we are facing. We will continue to focus on ways we can enhance the customer experience in the months ahead, and I’m confident we will welcome fans with a transformed facility and a global spectacle when we run the world’s greatest race.”

“Memorial Day weekend has always provided Indianapolis 500 fans an opportunity to honor the men and women who have fought and sacrificed for our nation’s freedom,” Penske Entertainment Corp. President and CEO Mark Miles said. “This August, we’ll also have a unique and powerful opportunity to honor the contributions and heroism of the doctors, nurses, first responders and National Guard members serving on the front lines of the fight against COVID-19. We’re grateful for the patience of our fans as we’ve navigated this situation, and we extend our thanks to NBC for its terrific partnership and diligent work to maximize broadcast coverage with this new schedule.”

On-track action in August will begin at IMS with practice sessions on Wednesday and Thursday, Aug. 12-13, followed by Fast Friday on Aug. 14 and Indianapolis 500 Qualifications on Saturday and Sunday Aug. 15-16. Each day of qualifications will be televised on NBC, providing more network coverage of qualifications for fans than in 2019. A full broadcast schedule will be released soon.

The following week’s schedule will begin with hot pit-stop practice sessions on Thursday, Aug. 20 and include Indy Lights practice and qualifying. The Indy Lights Freedom 100 race, a significantly expanded Indy 500 Pit Stop Challenge and final Indianapolis 500 practice will take place on Friday, Aug. 21 as part of Miller Lite Carb Day, followed by the public drivers’ meeting and full-field autograph session on Saturday, Aug. 22 as part of Legends Day presented by Firestone.

As a result of the schedule changes at IMS, the INDYCAR races scheduled for Aug. 16 and Aug. 22 have been rescheduled. The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio is now scheduled for Aug. 9, and the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway is now scheduled for Aug. 30. An updated 2020 NTT INDYCAR SERIES calendar is available at this linkand can also be found at the bottom of this release. 

GMR Grand Prix Makes Historic Move

The GMR Grand Prix will take the green flag Saturday, July 4, before the first NASCAR Xfinity Series race on the IMS road course – the Pennzoil 150 at the Brickyard. The unique holiday racing lineup will mark the first time that the NTT INDYCAR SERIES will compete at the same track on the same weekend as both the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series.

Immediately following the live telecast of the GMR Grand Prix on July 4, NBC will air the first NASCAR race on the IMS road course with the Xfinity Series cars in action at the Pennzoil 150 at the Brickyard.

“For very good reason, this historic pairing will be circled on the calendar of every motorsports fan,” Indianapolis Motor Speedway President J. Douglas Boles said. “We appreciate our friends at NASCAR for their flexibility and support in this matter and will work with them on a memorable, exciting weekend of racing action.”

Tickets already purchased for the Indianapolis 500, GMR Grand Prix and associated on-track days such as Miller Lite Carb Day and Crown Royal Armed Forces Qualifying Weekend will be valid on the rescheduled dates. Individuals already in possession of those tickets should use them for entry. To learn more about the adjusted on-track schedule, review customer FAQ’s and submit questions, fans can visit www.ims.com/COVID19.

Important Indy 500 Race Weekend Concert Update

All concerts scheduled for the original Race Weekend in May have been canceled. This includes REO Speedwagon and Styx on Friday, May 22, Luke Bryan on Saturday, May 23 and Martin Garrix on Sunday, May 24.

This decision was made to provide the maximum flexibility possible to complete the Indianapolis 500 by Sunday, Aug. 23 and provide room for any contingency plans necessary. IMS appreciates the understanding of fans and regrets that the COVID-19 situation has caused the cancellation of these events.

Fans who made concert-specific purchases will be able to access a credit for any IMS event, including the Indy 500, or choose to receive a refund. IMS concert customers will receive further communication on how to exercise their ticketing options.

Enhanced Health and Safety Measures at IMS

IMS and INDYCAR officials will continue to work closely with local, state and federal health representatives to ensure a safe and healthy experience for spectators. Enhanced measures that will be in place once activity resumes at IMS include:

•Increasing housekeeping staff at the track to elevate frequency of cleaning and disinfecting high-touch surfaces

•Using cleaning products that meet current EPA and CDC guidelines for registered disinfectants to be used against COVID-19

•Educating all employees on CDC prevention guidance, including proper handwashing technique and requesting that all vendors communicate strict hygiene protocol to staff

•Increasing public hand-sanitizing stations in high-traffic areas, containing sanitizer that meets or exceeds the CDC standard for alcohol content

•Reducing required hand-to-hand interactions between customers and staff at concession areas and other key IMS locations

Updated 2020 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Schedule

Saturday, May 30 

Streets of Detroit Race 1 

Sunday, May 31

Streets of Detroit Race 2 

Saturday, June 6

Texas Motor Speedway 

Sunday, June 21

Road America 

Saturday, June 27

Richmond Raceway 

Saturday, July 4

Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course 

Sunday, July 12

Streets of Toronto 

Saturday, July 18

Iowa Speedway 

Sunday, Aug. 9

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 

Sunday, Aug. 23

Indianapolis 500 Mile Race 

Sunday, Aug. 30 

World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway

Sunday, Sept. 13

Portland International Raceway 

Sunday, Sept. 20

WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca 

TBD Expected Finale

Streets of St. Petersburg

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F1 and INDYCAR Launch Virtual Racing Series

March 21, 2020 by ponycargirl Leave a Comment

It started in the wake of Formula E suspending its season for two months, then Formula 1 cancelling the Australian Grand Prix because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Jean-Eric Vergne (JEV), the two-time ABB FIA Formula E Champion, posted a modest proposal on social media and tagged other drivers: “To all my fellow friends racing drivers who won’t race in the next 2 months: should we create an online championship and race?” A day later, JEV posted a graphic with the tag “Not the AUS GP” – Real F1 Drivers vs. Top Gamers. The first driver announce was McLaren Driver Lando Norris, then former McLaren driver Stoffel Vandoorne (currently with the Mercedes Formula e team), along with Mercedes development driver and former Formula E driver Esteban Gutierrez and more curiously, Thibault Courtois (goalkeeper for Real Madrid) following suit. Veloce Esports, JEV’s sponsor, would be host of the live event on their YouTube channel and Twitch March 15, 2020.

Jean-Eric Vergne, 2018 NYC EPRIX

Thanks to Instagram’s logarithms that always show me things I would actually want to see 17 hours after they have happened, I missed the livestream but the entire event can be watched here. I’ll admit to being a complete stranger to Esports – gaming is not my thing, so on the outset I was surprised at the level of detail, including race stewards behind the fence and nervous team engineers in the pit garage. The 29-lap the e-race had some exciting moments, though there was a strange glitch at the race start when the light went green but the cars just sat on the grid for several seconds. Missing is the onboard banter (which seems to be in a separate video), the excitement of real-life pit-stops, and the general drama of F1 and its various personalties, but the after-race interviews and banter tries to make up for that. And hey, Williams finished in the points, hopefully a good omen for the 2020 season when real racing finally gets started. Of the real drivers, Lando Norris finished 6th after working his way up from a start at 19th, Gutierrez finished 10th after a DQ in qualifying when his system crashed, and Vandoorne came in 15th. Nineteen year old Hungarian esports driver Dani Bereznay won both pole and the race. His comments afterwards echo all of our sentiments, I think: “…I’m a huge Formula 1 fan myself as well, so I just want to see the real teams and cars and guys racing out there as soon as possible, but at least from this negative we did some kind of positive results a the end of the day…”

Team roster for Not The AUS GP:
Mercedes: Stoffel Vandoorne – Esteban Gutierrez 
Red Bull: Tiametmarduk – Veloce Hyperz
Toro Rosso: Super GT – Jimmy Broadbent
McLaren: Lando Norris – WillNE
Alfa Romeo: Dani Bereznay – James Baldwin
Racing Point: James Doherty – Thibaut Courtois
Williams: Sacha Fenestraz – Tom Martinez
HAAS: Louis Delétraz – Ryan Tveter
Renault: Jarno Opmeer – Simon Weigang

Early on March 20 Formula 1 announced its own F1 Esports Virtual Grand Prix series to be broadcast on Formula 1 YouTube, Twitch and Facebook channels. The first e-race will be the Bahrain Virtual Grand Prix 8pm GMT Sunday, March 22. Not surprisingly these races will not have actual championship points for the drivers. The Virtual Grand Prix is a separate event from the Not The BAH GP, which will be at 6pm GMT on the Veloce Esports channel. Both events will announce the competitors soon, but it’s safe to say that the F1 version will have more current F1 drivers, and the Veloce version will have a different variety of drivers (including Williams’ Nick Lafiti) and e-sports champs.

With the racing season from regional tracks to prominent series like F1 postponed and cancelled globally, it’s not surprising that INDYCAR and NASCAR would also take a cue from the success of this hastily organized Veloce e-race. Hours after the F1 announcement, INDYCAR sent out a press release announcing the first race of the INDYCAR iRacing Challenge on Saturday March 28, 2020 at 4pm EST. The IndyCar virtual racing will start out with six races to be streamed live on indycar.com as well as YouTube, Facebook Live, and Twitch for the next six Saturdays. The actual venue will be voted on by fans and the winner will be interviewed on Instagram afterwards by Katie Hargitt. The entry list will be announced in the coming week. (Read the full press release here.) NASCAR is launching the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series for fans Sunday, March 22, 1:30pm EST, limited to FS1 and the FOX Sports app. The race will feature NASCAR notables such as Dale Earnhardt Jr.,  Bobby Labonte, Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski, Joey Logano, Denny Hamlin, Chase Elliott, Clint Bowyer, Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Bubba Wallace and more at iRacing virtual Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Lemonade from lemons; this could be a fun diversion while we are all practicing social distancing and hoping the best for friends and family. 

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Statement from INDYCAR

March 13, 2020 by ponycargirl Leave a Comment

INDYCAR Press Release

“After careful consideration, including regular communication with our event promoters, health officials, and the city administrations in our respective race markets regarding COVID-19, we have made the decision to cancel all NTT INDYCAR Series events through April. This begins with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg which was to begin today and run through Sunday, March 15 and continues through the AutoNation INDYCAR Challenge at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas which was to take place April 24-26.  Although we are disappointed to delay the start to this INDYCAR season and will miss our incredible fans who support us each year in St. Petersburg, Birmingham, Long Beach, and Austin, the safety of our fans, participants, staff, partners, and media will always remain our top priority.  We will continue to coordinate with public health experts and government officials as we determine the appropriate plans for resuming our schedule.”

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Coronavirus Cancels Motorsports

March 13, 2020 by ponycargirl 2 Comments

As the COVID-19 – the illness commonly referred to as coronavirus – has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), the cancellations in the world of motorsports are piling up. Here’s a list of cancellations and postponements as of March 23, 2020:

Trans-Am Speedfest: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca May 1-3 POSTPONED

World RX of Portugal: POSTPONED. “Due to the Portuguese government declaring a state of emergency and the suspension of all sporting events in Portugal in light of global health concerns… this year’s World RX of Portugal on May 2-3 has been postponed.   …We will provide further updates as soon as we have them.”

Lime Rock Park: CLOSED. “This closure will remain in effect through April 30, 2020, unless earlier modified, extended, or terminated by Governor Lamont. This closure will affect all daily track rentals and events previously scheduled at the facility. Lime Rock staff will continue to work within the “Stay Safe, Stay Home” policy and will be available to answer calls and concerns during this time. The decision to reschedule any major events will be made at a future time. Our current intention is to run all major events for the 2020 season.”

WEC TOTAL 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps: “…the decision has been taken to postpone the 7th round of the FIA World Endurance Championship’s 2019-2020 season… The promoter, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps and the RACB are working together to find a new 2020 date and, as soon as this is finalised, it will be communicated.”

Formula 1:
UPDATE 3: As of March 23, Azerbaijan GP is POSTPONED.
UPDATE 2: As of March 19, 2020, the Dutch GP and Spanish GP are POSTPONED while Monaco is CANCELLED.
Mandatory summer shutdown has been moved from August to March and April, and extended to up to 21 days.
UPDATE: As of March 13, 8:30 a.m. EST, Bahrain and Vietnam Grand Prix have been POSTPONED. The Formula 1 season will tentatively resume in May 2020. Additionally, the second round of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship, which were to have run at Albert Park during the GP weekend, will be POSTPONED to later in the year. (Note that the Chinese Grand Prix had already been POSTPONED in February.)
The Australian Grand Prix, supposed to have been run on Sunday, March 15, 2020 has been CANCELLED

Twelve Hours of Sebring: IMSA have POSTPONED the race to November 11-14, 2020.

ABB FIA Formula e: As of March 13, season is SUSPENDED for two months

INDYCAR: As of March 26, 2020, the Indy 500 has been POSTPONED to Sunday, August 23, 2020.
As of March 13, 2020, all NTT INDYCAR SERIES events have been CANCELLED through April. This includes the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

WRC Rally Mexico: Remaining stages CANCELLED March 14th to allow teams to travel home. Sebastien Ogier declared winner.

Rally Argentina:  2020 SpeedAgro Rally Argentina, originally scheduled for 23 – 26 April, has been POSTPONED. New dates will be announced soon.

100 Acre Wood Rally: As of March 13, 100 Acre Wood Rally is CANCELLED.

NASCAR:
FULL UPDATE:
Atlanta Motor Speedway: “With the health and safety of fans, staff, competitors, race teams and media our top priority, NASCAR and Atlanta Motor Speedway POSTPONED this weekend’s race activities to a yet-to-be determined future date.”
ARCA: This weekend’s ARCA Menards Series East race at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida has been POSTPONED.
Homestead-Miami: “As a result of the recent Coronavirus and taking necessary precautions to ensure the safety of our fans and industry stakeholders, NASCAR has decided to postpone the race events at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend and Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend.”
Whelen Modifier South Boston: “NASCAR and South Boston Speedway officials announced Friday that the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour opener has been POSTPONED INEVITABLY.“
NASCAR WHELEN EURO SERIES: After conversations with Circuit Ricardo Tormo and the local government, the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series season opener in Valencia, Spain has been rescheduled due to the ongoing concerns regarding the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus). The NASCAR GP Spain at Valencia, previously scheduled for April 25-26, will now take place on October 31st – November 1st. [POSTPONED]

The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach: The April 17-19 GP has been CANCELLED. “…various race sanctioning bodies and the Long Beach Convention Center to discuss the viability of rescheduling this event at a later time in the year. If that is not possible, then we look forward to presenting the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on April 16-18, 2021.”

Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg: CANCELLED.

NHRA: As per the the March 12 press release, “NHRA officials are postponing a portion of the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals. Some Sportsman racing will be contested this weekend without ticketed spectators, but the majority of the event has been POSTPONED to a later date.”

Formula D: The 2020 opening round is now CANCELLED. “For all Formula DRIFT Long Beach ticket buyers, information on refunds and/or credits will be forthcoming.”

Trans Am Series: The debut at Sonoma Raceway that was originally scheduled for March 14-15 is POSTPONED. New date will be announced soon. “As an additional precautionary measure, the upcoming SpeedTour Road Atlanta Grand Prix event at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta March 28–29 will be held WITHOUT SPECTATORS.”

Monster Energy Supercross: March 14 race at Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium has been CANCELLED.

FIA World Rallycross: “In light of the Generalitat de Catalunya’s decree to currently suspend all live sporting events in response to the evolving COVID-19 (coronavirus) situation, this year’s World RX of Catalunya-Barcelona on April 18-19 has been POSTPONED.”

Daytona 200/Daytona TT: “American Flat Track has postponed Bike Week At DAYTONA race events at Daytona International Speedway for March 14 and 15, which includes Saturday’s DAYTONA 200 presented by CoMoto and the DAYTONA TT. The 79th DAYTONA 200 will be held as part of Biketoberfest in October and the DAYTONA TT will be rescheduled on a future date. “

24 Hours of LeMans: POSTPONED to September 19-20, 2020.

Sonora Rally 2020: Ran as planned.

It should also be noted that outside of motorsports, the New York International Auto Show has been POSTPONED from April to August 2020. The Dallas Auto Show has also been postponed. Concrete dates for both will be announced soon.

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Press Release: PENSKE ENTERTAINMENT TO ACQUIRE HULMAN & CO INDYCAR ASSETS

November 4, 2019 by ponycargirl Leave a Comment

Penske Corporation, Hulman & Company News Conference

Monday November 4, 2019

Tony George

Chairman of the Board, Hulman & Company

Mark Miles

CEO, Hulman & Company

Roger Penske

Chairman, Penske Corporation

THE MODERATOR: Welcome to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the beginning of a new era for the speedway and for the sport of IndyCar. I appreciate all the distinguished guests that are here today and also our friends from the media that have joined us here this morning, along with all of those that also have joined us on the conference line, and of course we can’t forget the fans, the members of the racing community that are watching through live stream on IMS and IndyCar.com.

A press release detailing today’s important announcement is being distributed as we speak and will be available also online and hard copies available for all of you in this room today.

Carl Fisher first had the vision to build the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1909, some 18 years later, Eddie Rickenbacker purchased the speedway from Tony Hulman and Hulman & Company became the owners of the world’s most famous racetrack in 1945. The Hulman-George and the Hulman & Company families have been the stewards of this great speedway for 70 years and more, and today we’re excited to announce there will be a fourth owner-operator of this historic venue, this historic, iconic facility that hosts some of the biggest races on the planet, including the Brickyard 400, and of course the world’s largest motorsport event, the Indianapolis 500-mile race.

The board of directors of the Hulman Company have entered into an agreement to be acquired by Penske Corporation. Under the agreement, Penske Entertainment, a subsidiary of Penske Corp, will acquire all the principal assets of Hulman & Company, including the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the NTT IndyCar Series, and the IMS Productions.

The acquisition will close following the receipt of applicable governmental approvals and other standard conditions. Today we welcome key principals from both Hulman & Company and Penske Corporation here to discuss this historic announcement: Tony George, chairman of Hulman & Company; Mark Miles, President and CEO of Hulman & Company, and Roger Penske, founder of the Penske Corporation. We’ll hear from each of our guests this morning and then open it up for questions from the media.

Tony, I’ll start with you. This is a very historic day for the speedway, NTT IndyCar Series, IMS Productions, and in particular Hulman & Company and your family. Can you provide us some insight on the decision to sell the Hulman & Company and its iconic assets, and what led you to Roger Penske and Penske Corporation?

TONY GEORGE: Thank you all for being here. I would like to recognize my family that’s down in front. All of them are here, but specifically my sister Josie, my sister Kathi, my sister Nancy, who are on the board of directors as well as I see Jack Snyder here and John Ackerman, and I don’t know if I see any others, but I want to thank them for being here and for their support in this decision. It was an important decision for our family, especially at this time.

Over the course of business through the years, we’ve always looked at strategic opportunities, things we might be able to do to grow and expand our capabilities here. We’re a 169-, almost 170-year-old business, and we’ve been in a lot of different businesses during that time. We’ve been distillers, we’ve been brewers, we’ve been grocers, we’ve been produce, canned goods, just about everything, financials, utilities. But in 1945, in fact about two weeks, 10 days from now, it will be 74 years since that last transition of stewardship took place, and we’re very proud to have come together the last several months, I think, to make some very important decisions, one about an iconic asset that the family cares very deeply about, as well, and that’s Clabber Girl baking powder.

But now this one is extra special to all of us because we’ve all grown up around it. Nancy and I, we came home from the hospital to home just right down the street here, so we’ve literally grown up around it. Our kids and grandkids have done the same. Bittersweet, but very exciting for us because we know that we’re passing the torch to an individual who has created an organization that is not only dynamic but it’s ideally suited, I think, to take over the stewardship, a corporation that is family-involved, much like ours. But with a track record that is really without compare.

We’re very excited to be in a place where our process took us to a point where we as a family all agreed we needed to have a conversation with Roger Penske. I approached him at the final race of the season, not wanting to distract from the task at hand, which was bringing home another championship, but I wanted to wish him well on the grid, and I just simply said, I’d like to meet with him and talk about stewardship.

He got a very serious look on his face and followed up after he clinched his championship with an email and then another email the next morning, and we set it up. I invited Mark to join us for that meeting, and kudos to both organizations who worked very closely together very quickly. It was a pretty easy — not easy by any means, but this isn’t their first rodeo, your first rodeo, your first rodeo. So they were able to execute around diligence very quickly, and it led to an announcement that miraculously — not many things are kept under wraps around here, but this was fairly well contained, and we were able to really, I think, present this to the world this morning.

That’s kind of the way it came about, and we’re just very thankful for the opportunity to be here today and to work towards this closing. Very excited about welcoming the Penske Corporation, Penske Entertainment as new corporate citizens.

THE MODERATOR: We’re thankful to be here with you, as well, today with you and your family. Thank you. Mark, I’ll ask you a question now. We’ve seen some great positive growth and momentum from the series over the last several years, of course, the Indy 500-mile race, seeing crowds of 300,000 plus year after year after year, and some great action of a competitive nature, what’s happening on the speedway across North America. With today’s announcement and the new era that’s beginning, how can that momentum continue and move forward in your eyes with the Penske Corporation?

MARK MILES: Thanks, everybody, for being here, and thank you, Tony, for all your support over the years and your comments today.

I know I speak for everybody. I think we have 260 people or so that work either at the speedway or INDYCAR or IMS Productions, and it’s fair to say that every day people understood that whatever progress we were making was based on what had come before us. So before we say anything about the last few years, we just want to recognize that it was really everything that came before us that gave us the opportunity to try to make more progress and to achieve more growth.

And I think Tony and perhaps other family members will continue to be involved, so I think that’s really important.

We will make great progress because to me this is an absolute hand-in-glove fit. Roger’s background in racing and his superb effectiveness of everybody that works in the Penske Corporation is pretty well-known to everybody, and as was said, he didn’t need a lot of diligence on the history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway or INDYCAR to know us.

So the most important thing I think in this transaction in making these arrangements was the convergence of really the transition from the phenomenal heritage we come from and the understanding of that with Roger to what is possible going forward. We are very proud of what’s happened over the last several years, and many of you are from Indianapolis. You know here that we had this unbelievable opportunity with the 100th running in 2016. I think the community really responded to that. And that gave us the chance to build from there, and so we’re still staying at a really good place in terms of attendance and all that — in terms of fan engagement here. And we’ve tried to be innovative in the events we bring here, and I think that will probably continue.

INDYCAR we’re just so proud of. It’s probably been a little bit more of an up-and-down history over the longer term, but there’s no question we have great momentum now. Every fan metric shows growth. We’ve kept our traditional longtime fans, and we’re growing the fan base and adding younger fans all the time.

It’s without a doubt in our minds the best form, most exciting form of racing on the planet, and with Roger and Penske Entertainment as our leaders now, we see nothing but more of that growth.

And I don’t want to forget IMS Productions. It’s a great company that has turned — has earned a reputation of being great storytellers, so they create a lot of content, not just for racing but for other customers, as well, and of course they are the nerve center for the television productions that allows Indy car racing and everything from the 500 to reach so many people around the world.

So the shorter answer to your question is we have a parent now that appreciates the history of the past, the history and the past, knows our business inside and out, gets things done. I love that Roger has said more often than not he cares about the talent, the people around him and how hard they work, how much we can get done, and I know that everybody at the Hulman & Company has felt that way for some time and looks forward to working for you, Roger.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Mark, and know that we have your interests in mind in keeping that momentum going. Believe us.

Roger, to you now. You and your race teams have had an incredible history, legacy here at the speedway and of course in the NTT IndyCar Series. Can you describe what this moment means to you personally and professionally as you sit here today?

ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think to everyone that’s here today and around the world listening to this iconic event, I really have to wind back to 1951 when my dad brought me here when I was 14 years old, and I guess at that point the bug of motor racing got in my blood I’d have to say, and to think about what it’s meant to our company, the brand that we’ve been able to build — it’s interesting, I talked to Mario Andretti today and AJ Foyt, and we all agreed what the Indianapolis 500 has meant to us as individuals and as a company, and certainly our company.

And I think that what it really says, that in the United States of America, if you work hard and you’re committed and you have a great group of people, you get great success. So today I hope my dad’s looking down at me and looking at this group and saying, Son, you did a good job.

I’ve got a big commitment here to take over certainly as the steward of this great organization and what’s been done here in the past for so many decades. It’s my commitment to the Hulman family. The fact that you would select us is an opportunity to take on this investment, it’s amazing, and I just want to thank Tony and everyone else that’s been involved in this.

Certainly Mark, you’ve got a great team. We don’t have a gymnasium full of people to bring here. When we buy a business, we look at the people, and the great thing is we’ve rubbed shoulders with many of the people here over the years, so we’ve seen this organization grow, and I certainly think that certainly, IMS Productions does a great job.

What’s happened today with the media partners, there’s just no question that we have the opportunity to grow, and (INDYCAR) will be one of the greatest series as we go forward.

I’m humbled today to say that, and I want to thank Tony, you again and the family for this opportunity, and Mark, I look forward to continuing to work with your team in the future.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Roger. Now let’s open it up to questions from the media.

With that, I’ll open it up to an orderly fashion here with the media, if you can state your name and where you’re from. There’s a microphone being passed around.

Q. Why is this important for you to take over this place, and are there some changes in mind that you’d like to make?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think we look at businesses that we invest in where we have domain knowledge, and I think the fact that we’ve been coming to this track for almost 50 years and seeing the growth of the series and understand the technology and it’s also a great business opportunity for us to grow it to the next level, and we look around this thousand acres and we say, can this be the entertainment really capital, not only the racing capital of the world but entertainment capital of the world in Indiana, and be able to support the state, the governor, the region, the city, the town of Speedway, and continue to grow it.

We’re going to invest capital. We know the economic benefit today that this race brings to the region is amazing, and we want to grow that. It’s important to us.

Q. Part of the speedway is the Indianapolis Motor Speedway nonprofit foundation and the museum. What are your plans moving forward with that part of the speedway?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, every time I get to go to the museum and get to see all the wonderful pieces of art there, it’s amazing. I can assure you that as part of our discussion, we’re going to support the museum the same way the Hulman family has done in the past.

Q. Tony, 1945, Tony took over this place. Great history, obviously, with his family. How difficult ultimately was this decision for you and the family?
TONY GEORGE: Well, it’s obviously emotional, emotionally difficult, hence the choking up. But we all love it, and we all care deeply for it. I think we all realize that as a family and as an organization, we probably had taken it as far as we can.

I think that Roger, his structure, his resources, his capabilities that he demonstrates is only going to take this to another level, so that’s what we’re all about. We’re supporting that continued — elevating this asset and staking a new claim on its future. We, with emotion, are happy to be here today.

Q. Roger, we’ve talked about the momentum. How do you build on the momentum? What’s on your wish list for let’s say the first 30 to 60 days?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think what I plan to do tomorrow, ironically, is to walk the entire facility and strategically sit down with the existing team and get their top 10. I always like to work from a top 10 and see the things that we can do to make it fan-friendly, certainly from a competitive perspective, I’m planning to really step down from being a strategist on the pit box. You won’t see me there on race day. I think I’ve got a bigger job to do now, is to try to see how we can build the series to the next level. It will be nice to bring another car manufacturer in. I know Jay Frye is working on that; can we have someone else come in to join the series.

I think we look at the speedway itself, the investment with the 100 million dollars that was put in a few years ago before the hundredth, I think you’ve seen a tremendous change, and we want to add capability as there are more fan zones, what can we use this for, can we run a 24-hour race here, can we run a Formula 1 race here. What are the things we can do? This is a great asset. Once the tradition had been broken in adding the NASCAR race, which obviously we’re going to get behind that in a big way because for 27 years they’ve run here. So I look at all of these across the board to see what can we do.

This business is not broken. This is a great business, and the leadership team that’s been here has done an outstanding job, and what we want to do is be a support tool.

We bought Michigan Speedway in 1973; it was bankrupt. We built California. We help with the promotion of the Grand Prix in Detroit. This is in our DNA, and I think with input from the media, certainly input from our sponsor partners and all the teams — I had a chance to talk to most of the teams today, the principals, and we’re looking forward to getting together with the car owners and seeing what we can do to make IndyCar even stronger, and I think that’s something that would be a priority for me.

Q. Mr. Penske, what can fans expect will be different in 2020 race and then going forward over the long-term?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, that’s an all-encompassing question. Number one, I want to be sure that we’re as good as we’ve been, and I’m going to count on this team here. Remember, I’m going to be the new guy in town, so we’re going to take those plans and see if we can add anything to it that makes it better. But I don’t think you build a business overnight. This didn’t get to 300,000 in three or four years, so we have to be rational on our investment.

But we’re interested in economic development in the community, the Hoosiers that support this all over the state want to see this become and still be the iconic race of the world. So we’re going to do this a step at a time, and I think that we’ve got here probably the next 60 days we’re hoping to close this very early January based on all the regulatory things we go through, and I think at that time we’ll have a had a chance to talk to all the leadership here and get some good input because this is obviously a chance for us just to add our support and our shoulder to make this better.

Q. Roger, what do you envision in terms of a management structure being put in place? I know you mentioned that you weren’t overflowing with personnel so far, but what do you envision as an either combined Penske Corporation, IMS/INDYCAR fusion of management and how far have you and Mark Miles and company wandered down that road?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think, as I said earlier, we have no intention of changing the management teams that are place today, and certainly we’ll have a board that we’ll announce at the time of the final closing of the transaction, and we hope to have a diverse group of people on there that know the business and can support the business, take us to the next step. That’s going to be part of our plan.

And we also, just to put it in perspective, we’ve offered the Hulman family members if they’d like to have an interest in the company that we would look at that during between now and when we get to the end of the closing.

Q. Just another one quickly on looking at the investments needed, Roger. You’ve always been one who you’ve never spent freely for the sake of spending, you’ve always said show me a business reason to invest and I’ll take that under consideration. Are there areas that you see now maybe less with IMS but more with the NTT IndyCar Series where you believe some infusion of funding would actually help move the series higher, faster, sooner, something to get it to some semblance of what it once was?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, let’s look at TV ratings are up, attendance is up, social media is up. We’ve got NBC as our partner, not only the network but also on cable. It couldn’t be better. The competition, you know it yourself, coming down to three or four drivers being able to win the championship at the last race. I think the racing product is excellent, and the fact that we have short ovals, big ovals, the Indy 500, then you have street courses and permanent road courses, I think the venues are well-balanced.

Look, it would be great to have another venue here in the U.S. this is a North American sport, including obviously Canada. I think what we have to do is be sure that we can get people that want to invest in the series with us, and to me, the product is good, I think the officiating, Jay Frye, Kyle Novak, certainly Arie Luyendyk and Max Papis from the stewards, that process is the best it’s been.

I think what we have to do is maintain our data equity and through social media and getting the sponsorships, I think when we sit down with the team owners and give them a chance, and we be very transparent with them and we’ll let them see how they think we can add to this sport because this has got to be done not just by us, it’s got to be done as a team effort, and to me, you can’t walk in here today and make an announcement like this. We’ve been wide open here for the last six weeks to try to get to this finish line, and I think now what I want to step back with our team and with Mark’s team and be able to look at the things that they see because they’ve been much closer to it than I am.

I can tell you what the garage area looks like and what pit one or pit two looks like. I like being in the winner’s circle, I do know what that looks like. That I do know. But I can’t tell you that — we’ll have, I think, as I say, a top 10 by the time we hopefully get to the closing at the end of the year.

Q. Mr. Penske, you talked about an investment. Everybody likes to know the details. Want to share the purchase price with us?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, we’re a private company and the Hulman Company is private. We don’t really discuss those at this time.

Q. Mr. Penske, Penske Entertainment is going to be a new core company that you create. Are you going to be spending more time in Indianapolis maybe from the Penske Corporation up in Detroit, or I mean, how are the logistics of that going to work? And also I have a question for Mr. George as a follow-up.
ROGER PENSKE: You can be sure that with an investment like this that I’ll be here other than the month of May for sure.

Q. Mr. George, when you think of the Hulman family legacy that has existed within the state of Indiana for 150 years or more and just the historic perspective of what the family has really meant for the state of Indiana, how can you even begin to put that into perspective?
TONY GEORGE: Well, I can’t say that I know for sure, but it’s an honor. It’s close to 170, and just this past 18 months or so, I had the opportunity, which I never took the time to do before, but that was to read a historical transcript of sorts – it’s really a book on the first 100 years of Hulman & Company, and that really shed a lot of — it opened my eyes to a lot that I didn’t know. Some of my sisters knew some of that lore and whatnot, but I wasn’t really familiar with it.

You know, that’s been kind of baking for the last 18 months or so. But you know, it is somewhat bittersweet, I said, because the 170-year-old company as we know it is coming to an end. But we’re very, very proud. We feel like we’re going to continue to be a part of it. Everybody who comes here has their own story, and there are memories and the accomplishments that make it special for them.

We’re just fortunate that our family and our family business has had a 73-year run being part of it and being a steward, and we continue to be grateful for the opportunity that we may have going forward, and I for one intend to take advantage of it. We’ll be here supporting the events with teams. Maybe our little team to expand to do other things, which we’re going to need to do. So if Roger has a 24-hour race, by George I think we’re going to try and be here. We may have to look at getting into NASCAR, too.

You know, those are all things.

I think once the momentum continues to swell here, I think it’s going to raise all boats, so hopefully, we’ll have that opportunity to continue to be involved and work right alongside Roger and his group and all of the teams and fans and media that come here to enjoy it.

ROGER PENSKE: We’ve got a couple of extra NASCAR cars, too, Tony. (Laughter.)

Q. I’m from the town of Speedway. We live here. We’re going to miss you, Tony and family. We’ve been talking about you for 100 years, so we have to change our conversation now. But Mr. Penske, do you have any message to the town of Speedway in anticipation of us welcoming you with open arms to this area?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, obviously the town of Speedway has been very important, surrounded this iconic track for the entire time it’s been here. What I would say that the growth and the ability to see what’s happened there is just part of what we see the momentum is around the track. I take my hat off to the city fathers and the people that are there. I of course represent Al son in one of our businesses, so I’ve been coming here a long time. To see the growth and what’s going on just makes me even feel better about the opportunities we have here, so I would say to the citizens and the people that live there and work there that we’re excited to be a partner.

Q. Roger, one of the few things that’s come up that people are questioning on this is conflict of interest. I noticed you said you’re going to step down from the pit stand; how will it work with a team owner running both the speedway and the series?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think as you look at the construct as we go forward, the sanctioning body and (NTT IndyCar Series) will be a separate company, and the other assets will be in the speedway.

And I think with the proper board — I think you have to ask our competitors at this point. Tony has been a car owner and we were talking about it today. I think Tony has said all along, Wilbur Shaw or Eddie Rickenbacker have been drivers, so there’s been some history, but I don’t want to leave this conversation without knowing that I understand the integrity, and there’s got to be a bright line, and to me I know what my job is, and hopefully I’ve got enough credibility with everyone that we can be sure that there is not a conflict, and I’ll do my very best to be sure that isn’t. If you think it is, I hope that — I know that you folks will tell me pretty quick. So I’ve got a lot of guys watching me.

Q. My second question is you have been on record as wanting guaranteed spots for INDYCAR regulars in the Indy 500, which is the second question that fans are asking. Is that something that you can now implement, or what is the process on rule changes going forward, and where do you stand on that?
ROGER PENSKE: I didn’t understand the question. Would you repeat it?

Q. Yes. The second thing that fans are quick to question is your position on guaranteed spots in the Indy 500. Now that you run the race and the series, is that something that you will try to implement?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, that’s been a discussion before, and I think that that will be a strategic discussion that will be taken up with the senior leadership here. I wouldn’t make a comment today one way or the other. I think it’s really up to Mark and Jay and the team to make that decision. I think some of the excitement has been in the past the fact that we had people that wanted to come into the race. We also have to understand people who commit to the entire season and take this series around the country, around the world potentially, we need to be sure they’re taken care of.

I think it’s a debate, but at this point, I wouldn’t comment one way or the other.

Q. Mark, you’ve been involved with Indy Sports Corp, you’ve been involved with the Super Bowl. How do you see this change of ownership and this legendary handover of this iconic site and this race affecting Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the overall sports agenda and world here in central Indiana?
MARK MILES: I think the news today has international implications that are very positive, but I think for Hoosiers, people here, it’s even more true. So we’re involved in the Super Bowl here. Roger chaired the Super Bowl in Detroit. He understands community and the importance of great corporate citizenship. I was talking to Roger a couple nights ago, and he was traveling to raise money for United Way in Michigan.

I know him to be a great corporate citizen. I know their company thinks that way. It’s just their mentality, and I think it can only be a really great thing. I think Tony said to have a new — an additional family as a corporate citizen here in central Indiana.

And then to have the resources and the knowledge and the ability to execute that they do will mean that this place will continue to grow and the series will continue to grow, and that can only be a good thing for the city and the state.

Q. This is a two-part question for Roger. You talked about having a commitment to NASCAR. Can you go specifically into what that means, and will NASCAR continue to have a date there long-term?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think you look at 27 years, there’s no reason to break that string of races. I had a chance to talk to Jim France late last night to tell him that we were going to have this conference here in the morning, and he obviously was excited. We’ve worked together. We were partners with ISC at Homestead. We actually sold our business to them back several years ago. So we have a very close relationship and certainly with Jim and with Steve Phelps and Steve O’Donnell and the entire France family. We would expect to take this for many, many years.

They need to run at Indiana. We want them to, and there’s no question that we’re going to look at opportunities to expand the relationship with them in the future.

Q. One thing you have talked about that you’re in favor of is running a double-header weekend, INDYCAR and NASCAR running on the same track in the same weekend. Is Indianapolis now a candidate for that to happen?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think it was interesting to see (Josef) Newgarden run around what they call the Roval here down in Charlotte several weeks ago, and I think it was pretty exciting. I think some of the fans had never seen an Indy car on an oval or a racetrack. Look, those are things, sitting down Tony will give us some of his input and certainly Mark and the team, are those things we can do, can we execute those so we bring value here to the speedway.

Look, we’ve got to break some glass on some of these things, don’t we. We’ve got to try some of this. I’m prepared to take a risk. No risk, no reward in many cases. Those are the things that Mark, with you and your team, that we’ll take a look at. But I wouldn’t say it’s out of the possibility.

Q. Roger, Tony had talked about how everyone has their own story here, and I know you know the tradition here is so important to so many people, from the name of the venue to not having lights at the venue to bringing in your own cooler. It goes all the way down the list. How do you balance progress while still being aware of the tradition and the heritage, and how much does that get tweaked moving forward?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think it’s important to know that one of the things that I care most about are the men and women in our armed forces and the first responders that we represent and compliment every Memorial Day, and then having the July 4th race, think about the two of those, we’ll continue to support that with our hearts, and certainly from a tradition perspective.

There’s nothing more to me, that gives me more feeling than to stand on the grid and see the flyovers and see the men and women in the services each year, so I can tell you we’re going to push harder on that to be sure we respect them and the tradition and the pomp and ceremony is certainly going to be top of mind.

Q. Will you explore night events in terms of racing at this venue?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I think we have to look as is the investment in lights or is the investment in something else we can do here to make the speedway and (INDYCAR) a going entity which gives us the results we expect.

Q. It’s obviously going to take up a lot of your time, so how much less time do you think you’ll be able to devote to your NASCAR team and possibly your INDYCAR team?
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I don’t know if there’s any more weekends than 52, but if there are, I’ll probably fill them up with some racing opportunities. My wife says, I tell her that this is my fishing trip and golf game. My golf game is not good these days anyhow. But look, I spent a lot of time at the tracks. I love it. I want to be there, and I think that’s a knowledge base for me, too. I’ll continue. The good news is that it’s a short flight here from Detroit to get to Indianapolis. We know a lot about it, and I think with the communications capability we have today, we can be connected from a business perspective.

But from a racing perspective, I’m committed 100 percent to our team. We’ve got over 500 people down in Mooresville where we have all our teams, and with Tim Cindric as our leader, I’ll be working with him just as I have in the past.

Q. You got dropped off here when you were 14 years old, and I wonder what your memories of that day were like, what you saw, what you heard, what you felt.
ROGER PENSKE: Well, I’ll tell you, it’s interesting. I’ll tell you a little story. My dad worked for a metal warehousing company, and they were a lap sponsor, so he got a couple of tickets, and we were invited to go to a luncheon, and I remember we got here, and we got to the house and everybody was gone. But out back was a — if you can believe it, was a show car, a front-end roadster, and I sat in it and got my picture in it. So that was one of the things that really made me start my interest. Then we came out to the track obviously and saw the race. Lee Wallard won that race in 1951, and I think I was here every single time until one of the poorer moves we made is when we split from the speedway and running here for a number of years, but I was I think here every year since then.

To me that was my first encounter with the speedway.

Q. Mark, I wanted to ask first of all, do you think having the Penske Corporation behind it, does that encourage more involvement from be it manufacturers or bigger corporate sponsors who have possibly dealt with Roger in the past and know that he’s a guy that gets the job done?
MARK MILES: We think so. Roger’s relationships and reach globally in a number of sectors, many sectors of the industry and sport, are remarkable. Some of us have to work really hard to get the right person to pick up the phone. Roger may short-circuit that a little bit, and not infrequently.

Yeah, I believe Roger will answer our call and have his own thoughts about all parts of how to grow this. But as he already mentioned, having a third OEM is one of our priorities and one of our goals, and I’m sure Team Penske and Roger will help.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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2019 ABC Supply 500 – More Racing, More Controversy

August 21, 2019 by ponycargirl Leave a Comment

Rain and more rain was predicted for the 2019 ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway, but the dark clouds weren’t just in the sky. The specter of Robert Wicken’s 2018 horrific crash into the fence at Turn 2 lurked overhead as NTT IndyCar Series teams set up in the paddocks and welcomed race fans for the weekend. The 2.5 mile (4.023 km) Tricky Triangle seems to have its own micro climate with weather unlike anywhere else in Pennsylvania. Saturday’s first practice was scuttled when low cloud cover prevented the MediVac from flying to the track, then a torrential downpour quashed Qualifying. A two-hour practice session was scheduled for the afternoon once the track was dried. Championship points determined the starting grid, putting Josef Newgarden in pole position followed by Alexander Rossi, Simon Pagenaud, Scott Dixon, and Will Power. A hopeful Tony Kanaan had the fastest lap in qualifying, a blistering 216.354 mph.

There was hope for Sunday’s race – more rain wasn’t predicted until late afternoon, giving the drivers just enough time to finish the 200 laps before thunderstorms were supposed to blow through. The race didn’t stick to plan, though, and after the safety car pulled away and the racing started, it was deja-vu “all over again”. Three deep in the corner in the first lap, Takuma Sato pulled forward on the high side of the turn and clipped Rossi, who then went into Ryan Hunter-Reay on the low side. Sato careened into the wall collecting Felix Rosenqvist, whose race car eerily rode along the wall but fortunately avoided barreling into the fence.  James Hinchcliffe – who can’t seem to catch a break at Pocono, and was also involved in last year’s Turn 2 crash along with Sato – hit the wall while trying to avoid the crash. Sato’s #30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan car turned upside down and was on fire, but he walked away after extracted. All except Rosenqvist were cleared by medical fairly quickly; Rosenqvist was alert and walking but went to hospital as a precaution. A 45-minute red flag delayed the race while the fence was once again repaired in Turn 2. Hinch returned to the race after being cleared. Despite the severe penalties for repairing the cars under caution, Rossi’s team fixed the car and re-entered the pit on Lap 75, and Hunter-Reay followed soon after.

Pagenaud snagged the lead early on, then his Team Penske mate Will Power took the lead in Lap 48, jockeying for the lead several more times during the race. By Lap 115, Power was in the lead followed by Dixon and Pagenaud. They would stay the top three until a full course yellow came out on Lap 126, quickly followed by a red flag to return to the pits because of lightning in the distance. The race was soon called and Power declared the winner as fans evacuated the stands. As the trophies were awarded in the cramped media center sans champagne and confetti, the violent storm arrived to unleash a barrage of hail.

While originally contrite about the crash, Sato holds firm that he didn’t turn into Rossi as he shot forward. Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing issued a rare statement supporting his insistence that on the cockpit camera footage, he didn’t move his hands to turn. Rossi begs to differ, and the debate continues. The controversy over the crash was immediate on social media. Robert Wickens tweeted, “How many times do we have to go through the same situation before we can all accept that an IndyCar should not race at Pocono. It’s just a toxic relationship and maybe it’s time to consider a divorce. I’m very relieved (to my knowledge) that everyone is okay from that scary crash.” Sage Karam also tweeted, “Glad to see everyone is ok. Never a good feeling when you see something like that especially when it’s your brothers. Think the answer is clear that we should not be here. In my opinion that question was answered awhile ago.”

Commenters weighed in in various forums echoing Wickens’ sentiment, even calling for a suspension or full ban on Sato from the sport. However, the response from the three winners in the post-race press conference was a bit more measured. Regarding the actual crash, Power said. “Looking at that replay, I don’t know what happened there, whether Sato got a seam or something, but man – you just can’t do that. The seams down the back there, like you’ll see cars move around a lot. And maybe that’s what happened. Being three wide is pretty tough, going in there and getting close because it’ll move half a foot, it moves six inches either way when you’re on them. It sucked too to see it in Turn 2 on the first lap, I feel bad for the guys that were taken out that were in the championship too, especially for Rossi. But man, you just gotta respect these places, you do, in every situation, you can’t screw around much.”

Regarding the question on whether INDYCAR should continue racing at Pocono, Dixon weighed in saying, “Honestly, I feel bad for Pocono, the group of people here work extremely hard… some of the race was fantastic, it’s getting some really good momentum and hopefully it does continue, but (it’s) down to weather and some mistakes that happened on track that honestly could happen anywhere… I think the drivers in a lot of situations could do a better job to help that situation. Honestly, I hope we come back and I want to say a big thank you to everyone here at Pocono, the fans and everyone that comes out because it’s definitely a tough place. Will can tell you how rewarding it is to win here because it is so difficult to get it right.” Power continued, “I agree, it’s a great oval for us. Obviously it’s an unfortunate accident that, like Scott said, could happen anywhere, they kind of got a bad rap for that. But the crowd’s up 15% every year we come back so it’s getting better… It’s a good race track, man, it’s a good track for racing and I really hope we come back, I do… it’s hard to find good ovals these days that suit our cars.” Pagenaud added, “…it is a fun track to drive on, and really unfortunate because we’re close to New York, it’s a great market for IndyCar… And personally I love superspeedways, I think it’s been a bad – exactly what they said, a bad set of circumstances – and obviously when you’re travelling at such high speed a crash is a big crash. Hopefully we can come back and keep working with the people at Pocono, as a driver I really enjoy coming here.” INDYCAR at this time has not announced whether or not they will renew at Pocono for 2020.






















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NYIAS in PHOTOS: Race Cars

April 22, 2019 by ponycargirl Leave a Comment

While there was a curious lack of rally cars on the show floor of the 2019 New York International Auto Show, there were still a few race cars to drool over.






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ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway

August 23, 2018 by ponycargirl 1 Comment

After the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio, five drivers had solid chances for the 2018 championship: four-time Verizon IndyCar Series champions Scott Dixon leading in points with Alexander Rossi, Josef Newgarden, Will Power, and Ryan Hunter-Reay in chase. Before the tenth lap of the ABC Supply 500 at Pocono, a shocking shunt on Turn 2 sent rookie Robert Wickens flying into the fence with only the car’s tub landing back on the track, bringing out the red flag and ending the race for the five drivers involved, including Hunter-Reay. Wickens was airlifted to hospital after Takuma Sato, Pietro Fittipaldi, Hunter-Reay, and Schmidt Peterson Motorsport team mate James Hinchcliffe were evaluated by medical staff and cleared.

How to even write about the race after that? Its importance pales in comparison to the health of the 29 year old driver hanging in the balance. At the time of publishing, Wickens has undergone spinal surgery, placing titanium rods and screws to stabilize a thoracic spinal fracture. Other injuries include a pulmonary contusion and fractures to his lower legs and right arm. 

Pennsylvania has been getting a lot of rain. So much rain, in fact, there have been destructive floods in the Pocono region. The rain didn’t spare INDYCAR the weekend; a light drizzle started at the end of afternoon qualifications. Verizon Team Penske Chevy driver Will Power’s qualifying run averaged 219.511 mph winning him his 53rd career INDYCAR pole, tying with A.J. Foyt for second and picking up a bonus point for being the fastest on the track. Then came a downpour, and the last practice was cancelled. Crucial in hindsight, perhaps, as Pocono isn’t called the Tricky Triangle for nothing; the 2.5 mile track’s three turns are modeled after turns at other famous tracks paired with long straightaways. Turn 2’s 9 degree banking after Indianapolis Motor Speedway is said to be the fastest. INDYCAR has been back at the family-friendly Pocono Raceway since 2013 after a 23-year absence, and at the start of the ABC Supply 500 weekend the series announced they will be back for 2019.

More overnight showers left the track wet and the paddocks plagued with puddles. The morning of race day, all that could be heard was the track blowers drying the track, but the tarmac finally dried and was approved for racing. All of Team Penske took the front row – Will Power had pole with Josef Newgarden, Alexander Rossi, Hunter-Reay, Simon Pagenaud and Wickens rounding out the first three rows on the starting grid. Prior to driver introductions, spectators were treated to a parade of classic race cars. Country singer Lee Greenwood took the stage to sing the national anthem, the grid was cleared, and everyone waited for the drivers to start their engines. 

As the safety car peeled off into the pits for the green flag, Ed Carpenter Racing’s Spencer Pigot in the 21 car and Graham Rahal’s #15 RLL Racing turned each other around at the back of the pack – and the first yellow flag of the day. After racing resumed, Alexander Rossi passed Will Power to take the lead.

Under Lap 8’s red flag, the cars headed to the pits, and drivers were allowed to leave the cars. There was an instant pall over the Tricky Triangle, punctuated by the occasional roar of an engine revving to keep the cars ready to race. The track crew removed debris and repaired an entire section of the catch fence, while other drivers on the ground were interviewed and the crowd was updated when more news was released on the driver’s conditions. After nearly two hours, the track was once again ready for racing, though unapproved work on their cars during the red flag got drivers Graham Rahal and Spencer Pigot each a two-lap penalty.

For the remaining 192 laps, there seemed to be a concerted effort by all drivers to keep the rest of the race free of further incident. Will Power passed Rossi and briefly took the lead in leap 137, but Rossi passed him again and maintained the lead for the rest of the race. Power took the second spot on the podium, and Scott Dixon worked his way up to third from 13th on the grid.

Going into Saturday’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline at Gateway Motorsports Park in St. Louis, Missouri, there are now only 29 points between leader Scott Dixon and ABC Supply 500 winner Alexander Rossi. Newgarden is 36 points behind Rossi with 464 season points, and Power is in fourth with 449 points. 

Will Power in qualifying
Mario Andretti and Dick Vermeil

the track
Rossi wins


Will Power
Pitting during race
Takuma Sato

WP leaving pits
Last practice cancelled

Starting grid

Fan



Marco Andretti
Dark clouds over Turn 3


The race resumes after nearly 2-hour red flag
Scott Dixon


Double seater rides
Putting car to bed for the night

Simon Pagenaud

Waiting

Mario Andretti

Safety car as race restarts
What Turn 4?

Tony Kanaan


Scott Dixon


Rossi wins

Rossi on podium
Handing champagne to the team
Champagne spray

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A Few Words With Reigning Indy 500 Champion Takuma Sato

May 25, 2018 by ponycargirl Leave a Comment

On Sunday May 27, 2018, the Indy 500 will be raced for the 102nd time. When the dust settled on Bump Day, the 33 drivers that qualified wasn’t a surprise but the two that didn’t make it was definitely a disappointing shock. Pippa Mann in the #63 Dayle Coyne Racing kept losing speed, and James Hinchcliffe had issues as well and neither made the cut. Ultimately Hinchcliffe announced Thursday that all options were exhausted, ending all chances to race on Sunday – and will no doubt affect his current #5 position in championship points. Danica Patrick, in her final race before retirement, rounded out the top nine at 9th on the starting grid.

In the week leading up to the 2018 Indy 500, drivers traveled to different cities to publicize the race. Reigning champion Takuma Sato visited New York City where he was toasted by the Japanese Ambassador and talked with the media. I was able to chat with Sato, an all-around nice guy and consummate sportsman, for a couple minutes and ask him about the exciting last five laps of his win, what winning the race means to him, and what the competition in this year’s race looks like.

PCG: In last year’s Indy 500, I couldn’t breathe in those last five laps before you took the checkered flag. Can you speak to how important it was to you to win and take the [Borg-Warner] trophy to Japan?

Sato: Well, as I said on the stage here it was just an unbelievable experience and was really the significant moment in my life and it just feels amazing really and every single aspect was a huge experience for me. And like you said, yes, bringing the trophy to Japan is one of amazing story because not only my ambition but also for the entire Indycar and all winners in 83 years of history they’ve never done it in our strategy. So I think a lot of people’s commitment showing a lot of people’s appreciation is really truly showing that it is happening and I don’t know how to say, but it is just a dream come true.

So the last five laps was very touch-go move because for me… So 10 laps to go and Max Chilton, another driver leading the race and he by himself is really fast, so… I mean could overtake him but it was really risky because he was so fast. And I was just trying to figure out how I can overtake him as well as how I could protect him as well. So I was learning on quite a few laps. And Helio Castroneves charging me and he overtook me, impressive move in turn 3 on outside. When I saw it I knew that Helio is doing the same thing to Max. So instead of chasing Helio I basically let him do it.  And in fact, he overtook him two laps later and then he lost momentum – so Max lost momentum – that’s the time I could overtake him. Now it’s between Helio and I, right. So I could wait until last lap to overtake Helio, however if I do so, what if there is a yellow comes in, right? And that means I will be finishing in second before I challenge, and I didn’t want to make that happen. However, if I overtook with three laps to go he will re-overtake me and that would be the end of the story. So I was thinking, how do we do it? And five laps to me is the magic number. Because I overtake him, see how many laps he can take to come back and attempt, whether it was first lap or second lap, or third lap. And the only thing I didn’t know was whether he couldn’t or didn’t. If he didn’t that would be a problem because that means he could be out of sequence. However when I saw him make an attempt three laps later I overtook him which is two laps to and by that time I realized if I could hold the pace I could win because by the time I pull away he takes another two laps to come back which is checkered flag. So to me either way the five laps to go when I lead I can do very… how to you say in English?

PCG: Strategic?

Sato: Noooo… Flexible! Can be very flexible in any circumstance. So that’s the way I saw it. And it became as I saw it. And obviously this is a rare case because usually the reality doesn’t go to the way you planned it. But – that was the day I got so much luck, so much environment, physically I have a very fast car, and mentally I was so relaxed and strong and I was able to compete on the highest level with the guy I could trust one hundred percent because Helio Castroneves is the guy to beat for Indy 500 so I was very happy in that moment.

PCG: In this Indy 500, you will be racing with five previous winners. Are you looking forward to a really competitive race?

Sato: Yes! I’m really looking forward to it, in fact it’s going to be a really tough challenge, honestly speaking, of course, nothing is impossible so I will try my best but looking at the circumstances it will be extremely tough to do the race but I think it will be great. Obviously, Alexander Rossi, and Helio Castroneves, Ryan Hunter-Reay and Scott Dixon and myself… who else, I don’t know, but it can be anybody else. So I think it’s going to be a great show for sure and any of the result I think I will accept, however, hopefully I wish we can have a big smile after the race, yes.

PCG: After some of the issues in practice, are you feeling more confident going into Friday’s practice?

Sato: I think the honest answer is yes and no. Physically and mentally myself I am ready to take action, of course. The car, unfortunately we had some issues, we have some struggles, but I think the engineers work so hard and squeeze out the last one percent of speed for Qualifying 1 and Qualifying 2 showing a huge step forward so I believe we can build a car as competitive as possible to check the things on the fly on Carb Day and if that’s the case, I think a 16 spread has no meaning. I can move up and I can compete for the win and that’s what I want to do.

PCG: Thank you for your time and good luck!

Sato being interviews
Sato with the Japanese Ambassador
Champagne toast

 

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