As the IndyCar teams continue to prepare for their 2014 season, Andretti Autosport took another step in the process when they unvieled their 2014 driver line-up and the paint schemes those drivers will be running. One of the biggest changes going into the season is that AA will be powered by Honda motors, rather than Chevrolet motors.
“We took a hard look at ourselves to see where we could improve,” team owner Michael Andretti told the Daily Tribune at the unveil. “I think we improved from 2011 to 2012 and I think we improved from 2012 to 2013 but we ran into some bad luck last year.
“We did some things with people in the organization and Ryan (Hunter-Reay) nailed it when he said that, for whatever reason, we were weak in some places. We’ve put a bigger focus in those areas.”
Honda is set to bring out a twin-turbo motor, which AA has helped develop over the off-season, to compete with Chevrolet’s twin-turbo.
“Chevy’s probably sitting there wondering if Honda is going to hit it right,” Andretti said per the Autoweek. “Right now you don’t know, and we won’t know until Indy [in May].
“I think on the road courses the [two manufacturers] are going to be pretty close like they were. But Indy is the place where it shows the horsepower.”
Marco Andretti will once again be behind the wheel of the No. 25 Honda, though with the blue and yellow Snapple colors. Last year, Andretti’s car with blue and red with the RC Cola brand. However, this year the Dr Pepper Snapple Group beverage group makes the shift to their Snapple signature juice. AA notes that this is the fifth different Dr Pepper Snapple product that Andretti has carried as he previously had Venom Energy Drink, Dr Pepper, Dr Pepper TEN and RC Cola.
Last season, Andretti showed a lot of promise throughout the year with a fifth place finish in points and two podiums, though failed to reach victory lane for the second straight season.
With Go-Daddy leaving at season’s end, James Hinchcliffe will no longer carry the bright green on his No. 27 car. Instead, he has switched to bright blue and white with new sponsor United Fiber and Data, which is a tech company founded by three members of the multi-platinum rock band LIVE and their Think Loud Development company.
Hinchcliffe went to victory lane three times last year, though wrecks and mechanical issues resulted in some poor finishes, resulting in a eighth place finish in points.
“We had a very up-and-down first half, and in the second half, we were a little more consistent,” Hinchcliffe said. “That’s the type of consistency we need. It was lessons learned last season.”
Ryan Hunter-Reay will once again carry the yellow and red colors of DHL on his car for the third straight year. Hunter-Reay will also be running his signature No. 28 on his car – which represents the 28 million people living with cancer worldwide. Fans will be able to help fight cancer by donating to Hunter-Reay’s charity “Racing for Cancer” and attending the annual event titled “The Yellow Party”.
After winning the championship in 2012, Florida native had a pair of wins this year, though ran into some tough weeks as he finished seventh in the final standings.
In the fourth car, AA will have a rookie on board as Colombian Carlos Munoz moves up to the IndyCar Series after a successful couple of seasons in the Indy Light ranks. Munoz ran the Indianapolis 500 last year for AA, finishing second to Tony Kanaan.
Munoz will carry the green and white colors of Cinsay, a Texas based company that is a leader in next-generation social video commerce technology. This fourth IndyCar entry for Andretti Autosport will once again be run as a joint effort between Andretti Autosport and HVM Racing. Munoz will use the No. 34 to pay tribute to former footballer Herschel Walker’s role in the program and to help carry on the tradition of excellence tied to the Heisman Trophy winner’s iconic jersey number.
