INDYCAR NEWS AND NOTES – Sept. 3, 2013

Today’s IZOD IndyCar Series, Firestone Indy Lights and Mazda Road to Indy headlines:

1. Briscoe to join test on Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course

2. Baltimore result shows depth of IZOD IndyCar Series field

3. Hawksworth to test with Rahal Letterman Lanigan

4. Inside the numbers – Grand Prix of Baltimore 

1. Briscoe to join test on Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course: Ryan Briscoe will join Graham Rahal in testing Sept. 4 on multiple configurations of the infield road course of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The test is being organized by IMS and INDYCAR officials to gather information about the current course layouts as the Indianapolis Motor Speedway considers changes and upgrades. Speedway officials plan to invest nearly $100 million in the facility as part of a long-term master plan that could include modifications to the road course to allow it to accommodate INDYCAR testing or racing in the future.

Drivers will utilize Turn 1 of the oval and the existing Turn 1 of the road course. Spectators can watch the on-track activity from the South Terrace grandstand and Turn 2 viewing mounds.

Briscoe, who advanced 11 positions relative to his starting spot to finish 12th in the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race on the 2.5-mile oval in May for Chip Ganassi Racing, will drive the Chevrolet-powered No. 4 National Guard Panther Racing car. It will be his first experience on the road course.

“I thought Sonoma would be the last time I would be driving an IndyCar for some time, so to get the invite to be part of this test is really cool,” said Briscoe, who has competed in seven IZOD IndyCar Series races this season (six with Panther Racing) and most recently finished 17th at Sonoma Raceway on Aug. 25. “It’s always special to drive at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway – whether it’s on the oval or any other course. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Rahal, who will drive the Honda-powered No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing car, competed on the IMS road course in Formula BMW and Indy Lights.

Both are coming off races this past weekend on the 2.04-mile, 12-turn Baltimore street circuit — Rahal in the Grand Prix of Baltimore presented by SRT and Briscoe in the American Le Mans Series event.

“As we look to the future of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the goal is to make changes to the road course that provide the most flexibility for its potential use and create a layout that is entertaining for our fans and enjoyable for our drivers – whether it is for INDYCAR testing or racing, sports cars, MotoGP or other uses,” said J. Douglas Boles, Indianapolis Motor Speedway president.

The only other time an IndyCar was tested on the IMS road course was in the fall of 2011 when two-time Indianapolis 500 champion Dan Wheldon tested the current IZOD IndyCar Series Dallara chassis that debuted in 2012. Wheldon ran the 13-corner layout in clockwise direction only during the test session, which was used to develop the car, not for track information purposes.

2. Baltimore result shows depth of IZOD IndyCar Series field: Five different IZOD IndyCar Series teams were represented in the top five and eight in the top 10 of the Grand Prix of Baltimore presented by SRT on Sept. 1.

Justin Wilson, who overcame early brake issues and being spun late in the grueling 75-lap race on the 2.04-mile, 12-turn street circuit, isn’t surprised. The depth of competition has been the strongest he’s witnessed in years.

“Every weekend you know you have a chance,” said Wilson, who started fourth in the No. 19 Boy Scouts of America car for Dale Coyne Racing. “You just have to make the most out of it and not make any mistakes. It’s a tough championship. So many good drivers and so many good teams, you need everything to go just right.”

There have been 10 different winners, including four for the first time. Of the 32 drivers who have competed in more than one of the 16 races this season, 15 have recorded podium finishes and 21 have scored at least one top five.

The latest addition to the list of podium finishers is Josef Newgarden, the 22-year-old Tennessee native who was the runner-up to Simon Pagenaud at Baltimore.

Newgarden, who won the 2011 Firestone Indy Lights race on the Baltimore course, qualified a season-best fifth in the No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing car. It was an adventurous race for all 24 competitors on a humid day, with Newgarden running fourth on Lap 20, losing three positions after brushing the concrete barrier in Turn 12 and dropping to 19th place after pit stops.

“I don’t know how I finished second to be honest,” said Newgarden, who registered two other top-five finishes this season. “I got hit probably six or seven times in the rear. I know I slammed into people myself from getting hit. I don’t even know how to describe this race to anybody. I think everyone had some good and bad luck.

“Fortunately, the good luck cycled at the end of the race for us and we finished off great.”

On the sixth caution of the race, Newgarden was up to fifth place. Two laps after the Lap 67 restart, he moved to third and overtook Marco Andretti for second on Lap 70.

“Second place is a great result for our team,” Newgarden added. “I wouldn’t be an IndyCar driver without them. I’m so thankful for all the hard work they put in. We really haven’t had any reward yet over the last year and a half and I think this is great for everybody. We just have to go get a couple more now.”

3. Hawksworth to test with Rahal Letterman Lanigan: Jack Hawksworth, who earned his third victory of the Firestone Indy Lights season Sept. 1 at Baltimore, will test in a Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing car Sept. 17 at Sebring International Raceway.

“I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of an Indy car,” said Hawksworth, 22, of England. “I have been working toward this moment since the day I first jumped into a go-kart many years ago, and I feel ready to use all those years of experience now at the highest level.”

The victory from the pole was the third on a street circuit for Hawksworth, who vaulted from 40 points out of the championship lead to 11 points behind front-runner Sage Karam. Five drivers are within 35 points in the chase for the title with two races left.

Hawksworth, the 2012 Pro Mazda champion, has six top-three finishes and two poles in the 10 races. He won in his Firestone Indy Lights debut at St. Petersburg in March and led every lap en route to victories in Toronto and Baltimore. He leads the series in laps led with 168.

“Looking further ahead to 2014, I would obviously love to be in an IndyCar seat, and if that happens, my aim will be the same as it has always been – to maximize my potential and that of the team and score as many points as possible,” said Hawksworth, a 2012 McLaren Autosport Award finalist and British Racing Drivers’ Club SuperStar.

“My goal isn’t simply to compete in INDYCAR, it is to ultimately win INDYCAR races and championships – and I know without any doubt that I can.”

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing currently fields Honda-powered cars for Graham Rahal and James Jakes in the IZOD IndyCar Series.

“We are pleased to work with Jack on his first test in an Indy car and happy that he came to RLL for this monumental experience,” team co-owner Bobby Rahal said. “We have watched Jack from afar in Indy Lights. He is obviously a proven winner there and there is no reason to think that he couldn’t be competitive in Indy cars and be a future winner there as well. We are anxious to put Jack in the car at Sebring and see how he does.”

4. Inside the numbers – Grand Prix of Baltimore presented by SRT: Some numbers to note from the Grand Prix of Baltimore presented by SRT, the 16th race of the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series season.

1 – Driver who has led every race at Baltimore: Will Power

3 – Consecutive top-five finishes for Simon Pagenaud, to vault him to third in the point standings.

4 – Teams that have swept Firestone Indy Lights and IZOD IndyCar Series events in the same weekend: Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, Andretti Autosport, Panther Racing and A.J. Foyt Racing.

5.40 – Average running position of Simon Pagenaud during the 75 laps of racing.

6 – Leaders during the Grand Prix of Baltimore presented by SRT.

9 – Consecutive top-five starts by Will Power.

12 – Consecutive top-10 finishes for Helio Castroneves…Points separating the top four drivers in the Firestone Indy Lights point standings.

19 – Positions improved by Sebastien Bourdais (22nd to third) in the race, the most gained by any driver.

23 – Laps that James Hinchcliffe improved his position over the 75 laps of competition, most of any driver.

77 – Winning car number for Simon Pagenaud and Jack Hawksworth. Both race for Sam Schmidt, who co-owns Schmidt Hamilton Motorsports (Pagenaud) and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (Hawksworth).

154 – Consecutive Indy car starts for Scott Dixon dating to the 2004 race in Michigan. Dixon ranks sixth on the all-time list.

212 – Consecutive Indy car starts for Tony Kanaan dating to the 2001 CART race in Portland. Kanaan passed his team owner Jimmy Vasser’s record of 211 straight starts at Baltimore.

2003 – Laps completed by Helio Castroneves. He is the only driver to complete every lap of every race.

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The next IZOD IndyCar Series race is the Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston presented by the Greater Houston Honda Dealers doubleheader on Oct. 5 and 6 at Reliant Park. Both races will be televised live by NBC Sports Network (3 p.m. ET on Oct. 5 and 1 p.m. ET on Oct. 6) and broadcast by the IMS Radio Network, including on Sirius and XM Channels 211, www.indycar.com and the INDYCAR 13 App for most smartphones and tablets. The next Firestone Indy Lights race is the Grand Prix of Houston on Oct. 5 at Houston’s Reliant Park. The race will be televised by NBC Sports Network at noon on Oct. 6.