Today’s IZOD IndyCar Series, Firestone Indy Lights and Mazda Road to Indy headlines:
1. Pocono technical penalty update
2. If You Missed It: INDYCAR Conference Call with Carlos Munoz and Helio Castroneves
3. Teen owner/driver Di Leo aims high:
1. Pocono technical penalty update: There were no technical penalties issued following the IZOD IndyCar Series race at Pocono Raceway on July 7.
2. If You Missed It: INDYCAR Conference Call with Carlos Munoz and Helio Castroneves: Earlier today, Firestone Indy Lights driver Carlos Munoz and IZOD IndyCar Series driver Helio Castroneves participated in an INDYCAR Conference Call to discuss the Honda Indy Toronto 2 in T.O. doubleheader and the Firestone Indy Lights Toronto 100 on the streets of Toronto’s Exhibition Place this weekend.
AN INTERVIEW WITH CARLOS MUNOZ:
Q. The next race for Firestone Indy Lights is Toronto. You raced there last year. What do you think about the circuit in Toronto and what do you expect from your competitors on Saturday?
CARLOS MUÑOZ: It’s a nice circuit. I like it a lot. Last year was my first time. I like it. I was really fast. The car was really good. Qualifying was a little strange because it was raining. Unfortunately I did a mistake on the race and I crashed. But I think I’m more confident this year. I think also the car is stronger. We worked a lot over the winter testing. We will see for sure. All the Schmidt guys will be up front and they raced on the circuit in Star Mazda. They are going to be strong, for sure.
Q. I know that you’re focusing on the Firestone Indy Lights championship. How important is it for you to gain maximum points each weekend to get that championship this year?
CARLOS MUÑOZ: It’s real important for me. Especially because this is what America have, the Indy Lights program have, that if you win, you allowed to go after the IndyCar. Firestone, Mazda everyone helps you.
Also I need to have a championship. Also to have a championship also is motivate you for the mind mentally to move up.
For the team, Michael, the whole Andretti team, everybody wants to win this championship in Indy Lights because it’s been a lot of years without winning it. So they really think they have a shot to do it and they want me to win the championship, and focus next year on a full-time season in IndyCar.
AN INTERVIEW WITH HELIO CASTRONEVES:
Q. Helio, talk about your season. You’re the only driver to complete every lap of every race so far, have 10 top-10 finishes in 11 races. Are you happy with the way the season is going so far?
HELIO CASTRONEVES: Yes. Whenever you’re leading the championship, when it’s by 1 point or 100 points, it’s always good news. Of course, we still have a long way, eight more races to go, a lot of points in the game. We’ve got to keep doing what we’re doing because right now, it’s keeping us up there.
Q. We return to street courses this weekend, have a doubleheader at Toronto. Talk a little bit about the doubleheader format that was started at Detroit and how you prepare yourself to race at Toronto.
HELIO CASTRONEVES: Since we already had one (doubleheader) in Detroit, the Dual in Detroit, we certainly understand how it works. But because we’ve been through one, we know it’s not going to be the same. I believe people going to re-adjust from one race to another.
The Toronto track is a traditional place, very, very tight. The track is very technical, as well. Plus we’re going to be standing start (for Race 1), so it’s also another trick, something else for us to think about. But in the end of the day, we know what we need to do. Hopefully we put ourselves in good qualifying so we can start at the front.
Q. I know you are in New York for the Turbo premiere. We saw you this morning on The Today Show. How excited are you to show your daughter the movie and be associated with the movie?
HELIO CASTRONEVES: It’s great to have Mikaella. Now people can’t make fun of me going to animated movies. Turbo is not only going to make kids happy but adults happy as well.
It’s very interesting, it’s touching everyone. It’s cute. You know, there is a lot of action. We going tonight to the premiere. We’re really excited we have this great opportunity not only for the drivers but it’s special for the IndyCar Series. It’s a great trampoline, let’s put it this way, so people have knowledge what is an open-wheel car, Indy 500 especially.
It’s all good things. I’m really excited to be able to be part of this experience and hopefully people enjoy it.
3. Teen owner/driver Di Leo aims high: Matthew Di Leo doesn’t wish to be the next Paul Tracy, though some of the former CART champion’s attributes are being emulated by the fellow Canadian.
Motivation, intertwined with a solid work ethic and perseverance, already are paying dividends for the Innisfil, Ontario, resident, who’s the lone owner/driver in Firestone Indy Lights. Oh, and he’s only 18 years old.
Di Leo, who graduated from Innisfil Secondary School in late June, will be competing on the Exhibition Place circuit in the No. 56 black and orange MDL Racing Firestone Indy Lights car. He debuted in the series at Long Beach in April after two seasons competing in the USF2000 Championship – a rung on the Mazda Road to Indy ladder program.
Fostering his dream to reach the IZOD IndyCar Series came years earlier in a grandstand watching the Toronto Indy car race unfold.
“My dream has been to be a race car driver. Watching Paul Tracy when I was a kid at Toronto got me so pumped, with the Canadian home crowd cheering him on,” said Di Leo, who began his quest in karting at age 9. “It was a great experience for me and I wanted to be a race car driver and represent Canada in a great way. It’s the same today.
“I’m so excited to be racing in my hometown. Hopefully, I’ll be racing there in IndyCars.”
Ambitious but not lacking counsel, Di Leo knows it will take a modest amount of seasoning before attempting to leap to the IZOD IndyCar Series. He’s already accelerated his career by moving from USF2000 to Firestone Indy Lights, leapfrogging the middle rung on the ladder system, the Pro Mazda Championship. Adding the responsibilities of team ownership was another big step.
Di Leo finished fifth in the USF2000 standings in 2011, with a podium finish in Baltimore. He returned to the series in 2012 with his own team, MDL Racing, and recorded four podiums en route to placing fourth in the championship. Graduating to Firestone Indy Lights has been another form of education.
“My mechanic, Adam Kretschmer, has been such a great influence in that he’s often said anything is possible and if you really put your mind to it you can do anything in racing and in life,” said Di Leo, who debuted with a fifth-place finish on the Long Beach street circuit. “That’s a good attitude to have, and one I’ve reminded myself of often.
“It was a big step – a scary thought in itself — to being a USF2000 team owner to an Indy Lights team owner and driver. Being a driver in Indy Lights is a big step and it’s had its challenges, but I’ve received lots of support from everyone.
“I was confident in my engineer, my mechanics and my parents to make a decision that was best for me so I trusted them and made the leap of faith to Indy Lights. It was almost like I was thrown to the wolves because I didn’t get in much testing or practice time, but I learned a lot at Long Beach.”
He’s participated in on-track testing in the interim, getting comfortable in the 450-horsepower car honing all facets of his race craft and in preparation for the Toronto race weekend. Short term, Di Leo plans a full season in Firestone Indy Lights in 2014. Long term, he dares to dream.
“The Mazda Road to Indy is so great because it literally shows you the steps to get to IndyCar, and everyone associated wants to help you get there with scholarships and prize money and seminars to make your dream become reality.
“So a full season in Indy Lights next year is what I’m hoping for. You have to get your toes wet before jumping into Lake Ontario.”
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The next IZOD IndyCar Series race is the Honda Indy Toronto on July 13-14 on the streets of Toronto’s Exhibition Place. The race will be televised live at 3 p.m. (ET) by NBC Sports Network 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 Toronto 100 at 11:30 a.m. on July 13 on the streets of Toronto’s Exhibition Place. NBC Sports Network’s coverage of the Pocono 100 from Pocono Raceway will be telecast at 4:30 p.m. (ET) on July 12
