Reduced drag and increased engine performance equal speed on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval, and Honda Performance Development COO and vice president Steve Eriksen believes its Verizon IndyCar Series entries in the 99th Indianapolis 500 Mile Race will have all three with its superspeedway aerodynamic bodywork platform and 2.2-liter, twin-turbocharged V-6 engine.
Team Penske announced today that it has partnered with Avaya as a team sponsor for the 2015 season in both the Verizon IndyCar Series and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Simon Pagenaud will pilot the No. 22 Avaya Team Penske Dallara/Chevrolet for at least four Verizon IndyCar Series events in his first season with Team Penske, including the 99th running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, May 24. Avaya will also adorn the side of the No. 2 Ford Fusion driven by Brad Keselowski in the Sprint Cup Series event at Kansas Speedway on Saturday, May 9.
INDYCAR announced the following post-event infractions from the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, which was held April 25-26 at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala.
Indiana racing legend and five-time Brickyard champion Jeff Gordon will drive a Corvette Z06 pace car to kick off the 99th Running of the Indianapolis 500, on May 24 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Josef Newgarden wasn't nervous with three-time Verizon IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon and a hard-charging Graham Rahal within striking distance in the closing laps of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. The 24-year-old Tennessee native held off both competitors and pulled away for his first Verizon IndyCar Series victory in his 55th start.
The 2015 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama will mark the fourth IndyCar Series race for the team at Barber Motorsports Park (BMP). A recent two-day test at BMP in March went well and Rahal was the fastest Honda-powered driver at seventh fastest over two days. Last year, Rahal started 18th on a wet track, ran as high as 10th, dropped four places after being hit by two cars and ultimately finished 17th.
“What we thought was an issue with the rear end of the car this morning in warm-up, we thought would go away in the race and unfortunately it didn’t and we struggled with keeping the rear of the car underneath us. It was a major struggle to balance and maintain it which is unfortunate because I was hoping today would be a day where we could make up some points and we squandered the opportunity.”
“I thought the crowd today was great but with this weather, why wouldn’t it be? We had a mechanical issue this morning and only got to run a handful of laps. The second practice was more of what I expected. Our car was good this morning but we just didn’t get to see it through before we had the issue. We are the fastest Honda but we have a little work to do to catch the Penske’s."
The 2015 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach (TGPLB) marks the first race for Steak ‘n Shake as a primary sponsor of an Indy car. The team announced in March that Steak ‘n Shake would be the primary sponsor of the No. 15 entry for Verizon IndyCar Series events in Long Beach, two events at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Detroit, and Mid-Ohio. Maxim Magazine branding will also be featured on the race car.
Josh Berry and the No. 21 eero team return to EchoPark Speedway this weekend for the Quaker State 400 after producing several strong performances at the track in recent seasons.
The event highlighted the history of North Wilkesboro Speedway as the first points Cup series race in 30 years returns to the historic track next weekend
The 2020 Cup Series champion from Dawsonville, Georgia, will make his first Truck start in three years and drive the No. 7 entry for Spire Motorsports at North Wilkesboro Speedway (July 18).
Noah Gragson and the No. 4 team head to the EchoPark Speedway in Hampton, Georgia, hoping to improve from a 27th-place finish at Chicagoland Speedway last week.
