05/07: Lloyd Climbs To Head Of Indy Rookie Class At 223
There's a daily evolution of the 2.5 miles of asphalt racing ribbon
that can be a driver's friend or foe. Find yourself betwixt, and
there is uncertainty at best. Experience in the form of laps logged
on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is the tonic.
That's what the 10 hours of the Rookie Orientation Program/refresher
program - incorporated into the Month of May track time - are partly
designed to do. (indianapolismotorspeedway.com)
___________________________________________________
04/21: 'Dreams do come true'
TOKYO - Thank you, Bryan Herta.
A few hours and 4,500 miles (flying "AirTranica") after becoming the
first female to win a major closed-course auto race, Danica Patrick
was recalling to a media horde at the Long Beach street race a
conversation with her Andretti Green Racing teammate last July at
the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course as being particularly insightful.
Now, it's also relevant.
"I was on the front row for the first time on a road course, which
was great, and he said, 'You know, when you win your first race
you're going to go, 'I wasn't doing anything different that day, it
just happened.' I wasn't doing anything that different (at Twin Ring
Motegi), it just happened. He was right." (IndyRacing.com)
_________________________________________________________
04/16: Indy 500: 39 Entries for 92nd Race
The Indianapolis 500 field is rounding into shape with the annual
rookie-orientation program just a few weeks away (May 4-5). There
are 39 official entries, exactly the number Indy Racing League chief
steward Brian Barnhart told Honda officials to expect.
One of the most interesting entries is Penske Racing's No. 77 car,
the same number used by 2006 Indy winner Sam Hornish Jr. in NASCAR.
Penske officials didn't list a driver and haven't ruled out Hornish,
but it appears that this car is his option if they choose to attempt
the double-header with the Sprint Cup race at Lowe's Motor Speedway
on the same day.
Thirty-two cars have drivers assigned, including Alex Lloyd, who won
last year's Indy Lights title. Lloyd will be on loan from Ganassi
Racing in the No. 16 car of Rahal Letterman Racing. Including Lloyd,
there are 12 rookies; if they all make the race, it would be the
most rookies for the event since 13 first-timers competed in 1997. (AutoWeek.com)
__________________________________________________
03/11: Tagliani's IRL Move on Hold
Alex Tagliani says the recent unification of open-wheel racing has
put his 2008 plans on hold.
Tagliani says prior to the merger announcement, he was ready to sign
a deal with PKV Racing. But everything changed on February 21st. (tsn.ca)
- Walker Racing Won't be Making Switch from Champ Car to IndyCar
Series
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -Walker Racing won't be making the switch from
Champ Car to IndyCar after all.
Walker Racing said in a statement Sunday that it had been unable to
find new sponsorship partners and would not field an IndyCar team
due to a lack of funding. The program officially closed Friday, the
statement said.
"It's a great pity that the team has had to abandon our IndyCar
program,'' owner Derrick Walker said in the statement. (sportsillustrated.cnn.com)
_________________________________________________________
03/05: Rubicon Race Team sign Papis for Indy 500
Max Papis to pilot Rubicon Indy 500 entry
INDIANAPOLIS (March 4, 2008) -- Driver Max Papis has been tabbed to
pilot the Rubicon Race Team entry and attempt to qualify for the
92nd Indianapolis 500 on May 25.
Papis, widely regarded as one of the most versatile race car drivers
in the world, will attempt to make his third start in the famed
"Greatest Spectacle in Racing" in a Dallara/Honda/Firestone car
owned by Jim Freudenberg and Jason Priestley and prepared by Sam
Schmidt Motorsports. Traveling to the brickyard with Papis will be
his personal sponsor GEICO. GEICO will be prominently displayed on
the rear wing of the car, as well as the top of the sidepods, top of
the nosecone and the tire ramp, along with Max's drivers suit and
the pit crew uniforms. (motorsport.com)
______________________________________________________________________-
03/04: Aussies Look to Seal Gold Coast IndyCar Race for 2008
My normal testing recap will be posted a bit later than usual
tonight, since I have some non-racing business to attend to.
However, before I take off for a while, I wanted to pass along that
the leaders of the Gold Coast Indy 300 in Surfer’s Paradise,
Australia are now en route to Indianapolis to nail down a deal with
the Indy Racing League to stick their event on the 2008 IndyCar
Series schedule.
In this press release that was put out today, officials from the
Rexall Grand Prix of Edmonton (Alberta, Canada) will also be joining
the Aussies and the IndyCar officials in a forthcoming meeting that
should finalize their races’ participation in this season’s
campaign. (mvn.com)
- Grand Prix of Houston Canceled
Less than two weeks after losing its marquee race, the Grand Prix of
Houston has canceled its race weekend for 2008.
The event took a hit Feb. 22 when the Indy Racing League and the
Champ Car World Series merged to unify American open-wheel racing.
After scrambling to save the April 25-27 event, Grand Prix of
Houston owner Michael Lanigan decided to cancel the entire race
weekend, citing cost effectiveness. (chron.com)
__________________________________________________________
02/22: George, Series Owners Sign Unification Agreement
Indy Racing League founder and CEO Tony George and owners of the
Champ Car World Series have completed an agreement in principle that
will unify the sport for 2008.
Gerald Forsythe, co-owner of Champ Car, signed an agreement in
principle Feb. 22 in Chicago, joining his partner, Kevin Kalkhoven.
George signed the agreement Feb. 21.
Details of a news conference about the agreement will be
forthcoming. When scheduled, the news conference will be shown live
on indycar.com. (IndyRacing.com)
_____________________________________________________________
01/24: IRL Expands Qualifying Procedure to Four Laps at All Oval
Races
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indy Racing League will use a four-lap
qualifying procedure similar to the Indianapolis 500 at all its
oval-track races this season.
The pole winner and lineup at those events will be determined by the
overall times for all four laps, rather than the fastest of two
qualifying laps as in the past. The format for road and street
courses will remain unchanged, with single-lap qualifying for all
cars followed by a 10-minute group session with the six fastest
qualifiers to determine the pole position. (USAToday.com)
- Priestley to Return to Racetrack as Indy Team Co-owner
Jason Priestley can't stay away from auto racing.
The former Beverly Hills 90210 heartthrob, seriously injured in a
racing accident in 2002, is co-owner of a new race team that plans
to enter a car in the Indianapolis 500 in May.
"Dude, this is going to be so fun," Priestley said Monday. (chron.com)
_________________________________________________________________
12/05: Mutoh, Briscoe Get in Extended Track Time With New Teams
HOMESTEAD, Fla. – Hideki Mutoh lingered in the garage during the
lunch break at Homestead-Miami Speedway, chatting up almost every
Andretti Green Racing team member in sight. An IndyCar Series rookie
for the 2008 season, Mutoh didn't wish to miss opportunities to
strike up relationships.
"It's really exciting and I'm really pleased to join with this
team," said Mutoh, who was joined at the speedway by team co-owners
Michael Andretti and Kim Green. "People are very kind and it will
take time to get used to everything. That will come. I'm very
comfortable in the car. I'm following the program." (IndyRacing.com)
|
|
Driver |
Car |
|
Marco Andretti |
26 |
|
Townsend Bell |
23 |
|
Enrique Bernoldi |
36 |
|
Ryan Briscoe |
6 |
|
Ed Carpenter |
20 |
|
Helio Castroneves |
3 |
|
Scott Dixon |
9 |
|
Milka Duno |
23 |
|
Sarah Fisher |
|
|
A.J. Foyt IV |
2 |
|
Jay Howard |
24 |
|
Ryan Hunter-Reay |
17 |
|
Bruno Junqueira |
18 |
|
Tony Kanaan |
11 |
|
Alex Lloyd |
|
|
Darren Manning |
14 |
|
Vitor Meira |
4 |
|
Mario Moraes |
19 |
|
Hideki Mutoh |
27 |
|
Danica Patrick |
7 |
|
Frank Perera |
34 |
|
Will Power |
8 |
|
Graham Rahal |
06 |
|
Buddy Rice |
15 |
|
Marty Roth |
25 |
|
Tomas Scheckter |
|
|
Oriol Servia |
5 |
|
EJ Viso |
33 |
|
Dan Wheldon |
10 |
|
Justin Wilson |
02 |
|
Date |
Track |
Winner |
|
March 24 |
Homestead |
Wheldon |
|
April 1 |
St. Petersburg |
Castroneves |
|
April 21 |
Japan |
Kanaan |
|
April 29 |
Kansas |
Wheldon |
|
May
27 |
Indianapolis |
Franchitti |
|
June 3 |
Milwaukee |
Kanaan |
|
June
9 |
Texas |
Hornish Jr. |
|
June 24 |
Iowa |
Franchitti |
|
June
30 |
Richmond |
Franchitti |
|
July 8 |
Watkins Glen |
Dixon |
|
July
14 |
Nashville |
Dixon |
|
July 22 |
Mid-Ohio |
Dixon |
|
August 5 |
Michigan |
Kanaan |
|
August
11 |
Kentucky |
Kanaan |
|
August 26 |
Infineon |
Dixon |
|
September 2 |
Michigan |
Kanaan |
|
September
9 |
Chicagoland |
Franchitti |
|
