Indy Car Press Releases

Honda Racing Report
Sunday, May 20, 2012

Mike Conway and Wade Cunningham Qualify for Indianapolis 500

LONG, HARD HOURS BY ECR CREW PAYS OFF IN SUNDAY

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

The first day of qualifying for the 2012 Indianapolis 500 mile race. We would get on the track today, but we didn't have any plans to qualify. The plan was to skip the morning warm-up, as running between 8am and 10am, at least for today, accomplishes nothing for us. We're not going to find that last little bit of speed to contend for the fast 9 or even the top 24, and we're not going to learn anything that could apply to what is looking to be an extremely warm race day next weekend, so there's not much point in using up a set of tires, putting miles on our engine, or tweaking the car at all.

News From Jay Howard Racing: 2012 Indianapolis 500

The Evolution of the No. 20T ECR Fuzzy’s Vodka Chevrolet Last Night and This Morning

After Saturday’s qualifying crash in turn two, the Ed Carpenter Racing team began preparing the backup No. 20T car for Sunday’s time trials .

The crash occurred approximately at  3:30 p.m. and the team began construction of the backup machine around 4 p.m.

First was the collection all of the damaged parts and equipment in the garage area, then plan the strategy for the construction of the backup car.

Attached are photos of the team building the No. 20T car.

BRISCOE ADDS TO TEAM PENSKE’S LEGACY WITH HIS FIRST INDIANAPOLIS 500 POLE POSITION

Chevrolet Racing V-6 IndyCar

Post Pole Day driver qualifying quotes and transcript of press conference featuring Fast Nine at the conclusion of the day’s on-track activities:

RYAN BRISCOE, NO. 2 IZOD TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET – POLE WINNER: THE MODERATOR:  Not sure your own teammates saw this coming, no discredit to you, but they didn't see it and here you are.

Andretti Autosport Sweeps Three of the Top Four Qualifying Spots

Even though the pole position for the 96th running of the Indianapolis 500 went to a rival team, Andretti Autosport swept the second, third and fourth positions in today's qualifying sessions. All five Andretti drivers qualified today, and each secured their best-ever starting spot in the biggest race on the IndyCar calendar.

Disappointment ran deep in the AJ Foyt Racing garages this evening as both cars were bumped out of the top 24 starters for the Indianapolis 500. The troubles began this morning when the No. 41 ECat/ABC Supply car did not pass pre-qualifying tech inspection (height discrepancy) and was sent to the back of the qualifying line which meant they had to qualify in the hotter part of the day. The team fixed the minor infraction and Cunningham went out to qualify after teammate Mike Conway put the No. 14 ABC Supply Honda solidly in the race with a 223.1 four lap average speed.

If you watch Sam Schmidt Motorsports’ four-car Firestone Indy Lights team on any given race weekend, you will see four teams working seamlessly as one.

On Pole Day for the 96th running of the Indianapolis 500, rookie Josef Newgarden showed the strength of his Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) team and the depth of his own skill by qualifying in the seventh position.

Ryan Briscoe Puts Chevrolet on the Pole for the 96th Running of the Indianapolis 500

In the Show: Hildebrand Qualifies 18th for 96th Indianapolis 500

IZOD IndyCar Driver Simona De Silvestro Announces Winner of Charity Helmet Design Contest

With just minutes remaining in qualifying on Saturday, James Jakes left no doubt he deserved to be in next Sunday's Indianapolis 500. After narrowly missing qualifying for last year's race, he was able to find an extra mile-an-hour of speed on his second qualifying attempt of the day. The Indy rookie locked himself into the 33-car field for the 96th running of the Indianapolis 500 next Sunday afternoon.

Honda Racing Report
Saturday, May 19, 2012

TOUGH DAY FOR ED CARPENTER AND THE FUZZY’S TEAM

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

Chevrolet Racing IndyCar V-6

Fast Friday, as they call it these days. We're getting extra boost. Everybody else is as well, so we don't really expect to close the gap. If we do, we do. If we don't, we don't. We're concerned about us and about
our program. Our job is not to worry about the things outside of our control, but to focus on those things that we can control and improve. We'll gladly accept the extra boost (and we'd love to keep it for the race),
but apart from that, it's business as usual. Honestly, we're pretty sick of hearing about it, so our de facto answer, as suggested by team principal Jason Peters, to the query of "Do you guys think you'll get more boost?" is "We don't need more boost. We just need more cowbell!" Perhaps some enterprising fans can seize on this thought?

'AMERICA'S GOT TALENT' STAR MANDEL

Scott Dixon, winner of the 2008 Indianapolis 500 and a two-time IZOD IndyCar Series champion, led the Honda-powered field Friday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on "Fast Friday", the final day of practice prior to qualifying for this year's 500-mile race.

TEAM PENSKE SHOWS ITS SPEED ON FAST FRIDAY IN INDIANAPOLIS

Chevrolet Racing V-6 IndyCar

Hildebrand Finishes Fast Friday Eighth on the Final Speed Chart

CARPENTER POSTS GOOD SPEED AT INDY IN ‘FAST FRIDAY’

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

KV RACING TECHNOLOGY SPENDS FAST FRIDAY

A number of well-known local performers – including some legendary Motor City acts – will add to an impressive entertainment lineup at the June 1-3 Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix.

Immediately after his return to the USA after Brazil’s Sao Paulo Indy 300,
Simon Pagenaud began preparing hard for the next race on his program: the
legendary Indianapolis 500, highlight of the IZOD IndyCar Series calendar. The
Indy500 is part of world motor racing’s heritage and one of the sport’s
undisputed classics. Along with the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Monaco Grand
Prix (both of which Simon has already contested), the American race is an event
that every professional driver dreams of competing in one day. This year is the
Frenchman’s first attempt at the event and, as is the case with all Indy500
novices, his schedule kicked off with last week’s Rookie Orientation Program.
The first phase of this process consists in covering 10 laps of the track at a
speed of between 320 and 330kph. Drivers then go on to complete 15 laps at a
speed of between 330 and 338kph, before finally being asked to do 15 more
laps at a minimum speed of 338kph. Simon Pagenaud successfully met all three
obligations and his next mission will be to secure the best possible starting
position on Pole Day, Saturday.

Team Penske got back to business Thursday, using the six-hour practice session at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) as its last opportunity until Sunday to run through race setups in preparation for the 96th Indianapolis 500.

After teams and drivers practiced diligently for six straight days at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, they will be trying to hit curve balls when practice resumes Friday for the 2012 Indianapolis 500.

It was Team Penske’s Will Power, No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet, leading the way for Chevrolet in today’s practice for the 96th running of the Indianapolis 500 with a fast lap of 40.5529 seconds/221.932 mph. A total of 12 Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 drivers participated in the six-hour session today, which was incident-free.