Category: NTT Indy

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Friday, Aug. 4, 2023) – Jacob Abel again showed why he’s a title contender this season in INDY NXT by Firestone, leading the opening practice for the Music City Grand Prix in mixed conditions Friday on the street circuit in downtown Nashville.

Abel, from Louisville, Kentucky, was quickest in the 45-minute session at 1 minute, 22.6592 seconds in the No. 51 Abel Motorsports car. Abel has been one of the breakthrough drivers this season in INDYCAR’s development series, climbing to third in the championship, 43 points behind leader Christian Rasmussen.

Drivers were forced to dig deep into their bag of skills during this session. Rain shortly before practice forced drivers to start on Firestone rain tires, with drivers switching to Firestone slicks as the damp, bumpy track dried.

“Really interesting conditions all session,” Abel said. “We got full wet, basically, and then drying and then full dry there at the end. We got to experience the track in all different kinds of states, so some good knowledge for the rest of the weekend.”

Abel will try to earn his first career INDY NXT by Firestone victory in the 35-lap race at 10:10 a.m. ET Sunday (live, Peacock, INDYCAR Radio Network). Up next is another practice at 10:35 a.m. ET Saturday, followed by qualifying at 2:05 p.m. (both live on INDYCAR LIVE, INDYCAR Radio Network) on the 11-turn, 2.1-mile temporary circuit that includes two crossings of the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge per lap.

Irish driver James Roe ended up second at 1:22.9877 in the No. 29 Topcon car fielded by Andretti Autosport, but his session had a costly end. Roe hit the concrete barrier in Turn 8 on his last lap, inflicting heavy damage to the left front of the car. Roe was unhurt.

Ernie Francis Jr. finished a strong session third at 1:23.0896 in the No. 99 HMD Motorsports with Force Indy car, with Hunter McElrea fourth at 1:23.1181 in the No. 27 Smart Motors car fielded by Andretti Autosport.

Kyffin Simpson rounded out the top five at 1:23.1214 in the No. 21 HMD Motorsports with CGR car. Championship leader Rasmussen was sixth at 1:23.2336 in the No. 6 HMD Motorsports with DCR machine.

Roe wasn’t the only driver caught by the unforgiving concrete retaining walls of the circuit. Rookie Nolan Siegel, second in points, hit the barrier in Turn 3 approaching the bridge with about eight minutes left in the session. Siegel was unhurt, but his No. 39 HMD Motorsports with DCR car suffered heavy left-front damage.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
BIG MACHINE MUSIC CITY GRAND PRIX
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
TEAM CHEVY RACE ADVANCE
AUGUST 4-6, 2023

CHEVROLET RACES INTO MUSIC CITY WITH MOMENTUM FOR THE BIG MACHINE MUSIC CITY GRAND PRIX

DETROIT (August 3, 2023) – Racing into Music City this weekend, Nashville hosts its third annual Big Machine Music City Grand Prix on the temporary street circuit downtown. Seeking the first win for Chevrolet on the 2.17-mile, 11-turn track full of unique features, the Bowtie brand has one NTT P1 Pole Award (Scott McLaughlin – 2022) as well as one podium (Scott McLaughlin – 2022) and 34 laps led (McLaughlin – 22 laps, 2022, Josef Newgarden – 12 laps, 2022).

With the Team Chevy drivers and teams navigating the one-of-a-kind course that sees

553 yards of bridge exclusive to INDYCAR and 300 feet of pit lane, the track offers tight racing around Nissan Stadium and over the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge while blending three loves of Nashville – music, food, and racing.

Josef Newgarden, the driver of the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet, calls Music City home and looks forward to racing in front of a hometown crowd saying, “It’s great to get back to Nashville. For me, it’s special being a home track event. We’ve got some good momentum, but I don’t know that it will translate fully to Nashville. The tough thing about INDYCAR is that (the tracks) are all are so different. The tracks that we go to, this street circuit is 180 degrees from what we had in Iowa. The second GP race in Indianapolis will be a totally different challenge again. It’s about being flexible. I think if we can have a good run here on these last five races, then we can still challenge for this championship. I’m feeling really confident in what Chevrolet has done for us, and we’re going to try and put all that work to use this weekend.”

“Chevrolet is heading to Nashville with momentum after a successful double race weekend in Iowa,” said Rob Buckner, IndyCar Program Manager at General Motors. “As is always the case in the NTT INDYCAR Series, going from a very fast short oval to a tight, technical street course presents a new set of demands for both the driver and his Chevrolet-powered car.

“With the additional consideration of high heat and humidity, not to mention the long run over the bridge and the twisty sections on both sides of the river, our Chevrolet engineers have been working closely with our Chevrolet teams to arrive with a package as close as possible when they roll off the transporter. The track can present a lot of different options on the amount of downforce you can run. There have been lots of time spent looking at both previous races’ data to see where we can improve. Working to score a W on the last street course of the season.”

The Big Machine Music City Grand Prix race weekend on the streets of Nashville kicks off with practice Friday, Aug. 4 at 4 p.m. ET. The second practice of the event takes place Saturday at 11:40 a.m. ET, with qualifications following at 2:45 p.m. ET. The Big Machine Music City Grand Prix takes the green flag Sunday, Aug. 6 live on NBC at 12 p.m. ET. All practice and qualifying will be live on Peacock, INDYCAR Radio, and SiriusXM Channel 160.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING (QUOTES):

Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“This weekend will be a test to a lot of the training we’ve done in the offseason just because of how humid and hot it will be, as it usually is every single year. It’s a very tough, physical race because of the heat, and it’s also a bumpy and challenging track. Nashville has probably been the track where we haven’t quite reached our potential either due to getting hit or having other issues.”

Felix Rosenqvist, No. 6 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

”It’s super cool to be back in Nashville. It’s obviously one of the most fun cities in the Midwest and the U.S. It’s really a growing city, and it’s awesome to be here representing the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. I love the track layout; there have been some dramatic events there in the past. This is my third time coming here, and it’s one of those where you have to survive until the end because there’s so much going on, especially in the restarts. We’ll see if we can be a little quicker this year and have a good weekend.”

Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

”Nashville is such an electrifying city, and that energy really translates to the track. The blend of music, culture and passionate fans creates an atmosphere that’s unparalleled. This race has become a flagship event on the NTT INDYCAR SERIES calendar, and we all feel that prestige and excitement. Every year, the race always seems to be chaotic and a bit of a coin flip, but hopefully we are on the right side of it come Sunday for our final street course race of the year.”

Gavin Ward, Race Director at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:

“We hope the rest of the field will be following our Arrow McLaren Chevrolets over the Cumberland River and through the streets of Nashville come Sunday. Street circuits haven’t been our strongest discipline this season, but we’ve got some fresh ideas and new developments to try as we aim to have some fun and build a better race team week-after-week. When it comes to race strategy, Nashville has proved it can reward the gambler. So, teams are really going to need to know when to hold ‘em and know when to fold ‘em this weekend.”

Ryan Hunter-Reay, No. 20 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:

“The Music City Grand Prix presents another opportunity for us as a team to push forward and improve on our 2023 season. We have some positives to draw upon from our Toronto race weekend. Hopefully, we can apply those findings to the BITNILE.COM cars on a similarly bumpy street circuit in Nashville!”

Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:

“It’s going to be an exciting weekend in Nashville! There is definitely a chance to us to get the BITNILE.COM car into the Top 10 and get some points. It’s a cool track, very bumpy, and there is always a lot of stuff happening. Staying out of that stuff is going to be important! It’s going to be a really warm weekend so living Florida and being used to the heat all the time should help. I just love the city of Nashville. Being able to drive there for the third time already is so exciting, it doesn’t feel like it’s been that long but it has!”

Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:

“I would say the key to getting around Nashville is being able to hit your marks, and be consistent like on every street course. The thing with Nashville is you also have to drive a very uncomfortable race car to go fast, that meaning it’s a very bumpy track and you have to be comfortable with being shook at 180 miles an hour consistently.”

Benjamin Pedersen, No. 55 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:

“The key to Nashville is having a package for the car that can allow it to turn really well in the low-speed corners and a car that is very compliant over bumps. I have been preparing by doing a lot of heat training, along with my normal training and sim time.”

CHEVROLET AT NASHVILLE (V6 era, since 2012):

Wins on the streets of Nashville: 0

Pole Awards in Nashville: 1

2022: Scott McLaughlin

Podiums in Nashville by Team Chevy since 2012: 1

Laps Led in Nashville by Team Chevy since 2012: 34

2023 CHEVROLET BY THE NUMBERS:

193: NTT INDYCAR SERIES races as V6 engine supplier since 2012 return to INDYCAR.

111: Wins in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES since 2012.

124: Earned poles since 2012.

7: Manufacturer Championships since 2012.

7: Driver/entrant champions since 2012.

12: Indianapolis 500 victories by Chevrolet at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

5: Indianapolis 500 wins by Chevrolet since 2012 in the V6 2.2-liter twin turbo direct injected era.

26: Wins by Will Power since 2012 – all with Chevrolet power – most of any driver with the same manufacturer.

14: Consecutive seasons with at least one win by Will Power, including the past 11 with Chevrolet power.

9: Wins from the pole by Will Power with Chevrolet power since 2012, most by any driver.

46: Pole starts by Will Power since 2012 in a Chevrolet-powered car, most of any driver.

*Will Power’s career total of 70 poles makes him the all-time pole winner in INDYCAR.

About Chevrolet

Founded in 1911 in Detroit, Chevrolet is now one of the world’s largest car brands, available in 79 countries with more than 3.2 million cars and trucks sold in 2020. Chevrolet models include electric and fuel-efficient vehicles that feature engaging performance, design that makes the heart beat, passive and active safety features and easy-to-use technology, all at a value. More information on Chevrolet models can be found at www.chevrolet.com.

Single Day tickets go on sale to the public tomorrow at 10 a.m. PT

PORTLAND, Ore. (Aug. 1, 2023) – BITNILE.COM has been announced as the title sponsor of the annual NTT INDYCAR SERIES event at Portland International Raceway (PIR), Sept. 1-3, 2023. The Labor Day weekend motorsport festival headlined by the 110-lap penultimate race of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season will be called the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland.

Starting at 10 a.m. PT tomorrow (Aug. 2), Single Day tickets go on sale for the three-day event at PIR featuring non-stop action with 10 total races from five different series. Ticket prices start as low as $25 for Single Day General Admission and $70 for Single Day Grandstand seats. Three-day tickets remain available for purchase and offer the best value. Fans should visit raceportland.com/indycar to buy tickets for the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland weekend.

BITNILE.COM, owned by BitNile Metaverse, Inc., is a rapidly growing virtual world with over 1.4 million engaged users. Earlier this year, the platform debuted social gaming with the launch of roulette, offering users an opportunity to play for fun or real money prizes, and the site also allows gamers the opportunity to drive on virtual race tracks including the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. BITNILE.COM also sponsors Ed Carpenter Racing, an NTT INDYCAR SERIES team that will be represented by Indianapolis 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay and Rinus VeeKay in the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland.

“I firmly believe that the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland embodies the essence of innovation and technology, mirroring the cutting-edge nature of the metaverse world we operate,” stated Milton “Todd” Ault III, executive chairman of BitNile.com and Ault Alliance. “By sponsoring this thrilling event at Portland International Raceway, we aim to share our passion for technological advancement with the world, creating an electrifying experience for IndyCar fans both at the track and in the metaverse.”

The 2023 BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland marks the 29th running of this event, adding to the rich history of open-wheel racing in the Rose City. The NTT INDYCAR SERIES headlines the weekend and takes the green flag Sunday, Sept. 3, in a late-season race that could decide and finalize the championship chase. The series points leader after the completion of the past four Portland rounds (2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022) has gone on to claim the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship.

“We are thrilled to welcome our new title sponsor and partner BITNILE.COM to the team!” said Jerry Jensen, general manager of Green Savoree Portland, which owns and operates the event at PIR. “BITNILE.COM is already such a great supporter of IndyCar racing through their sponsorship of Ed Carpenter Racing. With this new partnership, we look forward to growing this event, building off a strong foundation of classic IndyCar races dating back to 1984, with invaluable support from BITNILE.COM.”

This year’s field will feature returning race winners Scott McLaughlin (2022), Alex Palou (2021) and Will Power (2019). The grid is anticipated to also boast other notable drivers such as 10-year Formula One veteran Romain Grosjean and, including Power, eight Indianapolis 500 winners: this year’s winner Josef Newgarden, four-time winner Helio Castroneves, 2008 winner and six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Scott Dixon, Marcus Ericsson, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Simon Pagenaud and Alexander Rossi.

The three top open-wheel development series that feed into the NTT INDYCAR SERIES will also race at PIR on Labor Day weekend. INDY NXT will battle on Sunday, Sept. 3, for 35 laps on the 1.964-mile, 12-turn permanent road course. Drivers from USF Pro 2000 Presented by Cooper Tires and USF2000 Presented by Cooper Tires will contend for championships as both series conclude their seasons with tripleheader races across the weekend. Additionally, the U.S. Touring Car Championship will add exciting sports car action to the event lineup.

Children 12 and under receive free general admission to the event. This also includes complimentary access to the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Paddock throughout the weekend when accompanied by a ticketed adult. PIR is located less than a tenth of a mile from a public transit stop – the Delta Park/Vanport MAX Station on TriMet’s MAX Yellow Line – making a trip to the track exceptionally affordable for families.

For all ticket pricing, grandstand locations and additional festival information, visit raceportland.com/indycar. Stay up to speed on the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland on social media all year long by following #PortlandGP.

About BitNile Metaverse, Inc.:

Founded in 2011, BitNile Metaverse (Nasdaq: BNMV) owns 100% of BNI, including the BitNile.com metaverse platform. The Platform, which went live to the public on March 1, 2023, allows users to engage with a new social networking community and purchase both digital and physical products while playing 3D immersive games. In addition to BitNile.com, Inc., BitNile Metaverse also owns three non-core subsidiaries either directly or indirectly: approximately 66% of Wolf Energy Services Inc. (OTCQB: WOEN) indirectly; 100% of Zest Labs, Inc. directly; and approximately 89% of Agora Digital Holdings Inc. directly. BitNile Metaverse also owns approximately 70% of White River Energy Corp (OTCQB: WTRV).

About BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland:

Portland International Raceway (PIR) is the home of the BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland. PIR is a 1.964-mile, 12-turn permanent road course owned by the City of Portland and operated under Portland Parks & Recreation. Opened in 1960 to host sports car and drag racing, the 268-acre property hosts over 550 events annually including automotive and motorcycle road racing, motocross, cruise-ins and other special events including the Rose Cup Races. PIR has been the site of many memorable INDYCAR races. Al Unser Jr. won the inaugural one in 1984, and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES returned in 2018 after an 11-year absence with 2017 and 2020 Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Sato taking the checkered flag. The Father’s Day race of 1986 featured Mario Andretti passing his son Michael on the last lap and winning by 0.070 of a second. The closest three-way road racing finish in INDYCAR SERIES history took place at PIR in 1997 when the top three were covered by just 0.055 of a second. In 2021, Alex Palou’s victory in Portland propelled him to win the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship. The Grand Prix of Portland is owned and operated by Green Savoree Portland, LLC, which also promotes NASCAR Xfinity Series’ Pacific Office Automation 147 event at PIR (June 2-3, 2023) and whose affiliates own and operate three additional INDYCAR SERIES races: Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding (March 3-5, 2023), The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Presented by the 2023 Accord Hybrid (June 30-July 2, 2023) and Honda Indy Toronto (July 14-16, 2023).

For more information, visit raceportland.com, ‘like’ its Facebook page @PortlandGP or follow updates on Twitter @Race_Portland and Instagram at @Race_Portland using #PortlandGP.

IRIS Clarity Isolates Voice, Removes Noise from Race Communications for Global INDYCAR Broadcasts

INDIANAPOLIS (Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023) – Leading AI voice isolation specialist IRIS Audio Technologies (IRIS Audio) is working with the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, North America’s premier open-wheel racing series, to eliminate background noise in real-time from the broadcasts of one of the loudest and most extreme sporting environments.

The NTT INDYCAR SERIES, which consists of 17 races across the United States and in Canada, is broadcast to millions of viewers globally. With IRIS Clarity, IMS Productions, which produces INDYCAR broadcasts, now provide crystal-clear radio transmissions, placing viewers right at the heart of the race action whether they are watching live on TV, using the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA or following the action across INDYCAR’s social media channels.

Trained on tens of thousands of hours of noise and human voice, IRIS Clarity’s AI-powered software can identify and isolate the voice and remove all noise in real time from all forms of digital communication. To achieve this with INDYCAR, IRIS Audio’s United Kingdom-headquartered team had to overcome multiple technology challenges, including individual race car setups, and catering to the wide variety of racetracks on the INDYCAR schedule, from high-speed ovals to complex street courses, which impact signal strength and audio quality depending on transmitter positioning.

The solution comes in the form of a custom IRIS Clarity plug-in for Dante, a computer network created by Audinate and used by IMS Productions that transmits audio with utmost fidelity. A significant upside to this implementation is that IRIS Clarity now works on all Dante-supported applications, including arenas and stadiums, recording studios, conference centers, theaters and more.

Jacobi Anstruther, CEO and Founder of IRIS Audio said: “We continue to be motivated by bringing our innovative technologies to the forefront of human performance. INDYCAR is the perfect arena to showcase and challenge our engineers. This is a great opportunity to demonstrate how clarity in mission-critical communications is not only vital for success and performance but also instrumental to experiencing the action in real-time.”

The partnership with INDYCAR follows IRIS Audio’s earlier audio partnerships with more integrations of IRIS Clarity to follow across a range of sporting and other use cases where mission-critical communications are essential to performance.

Kevin Sublette, IMS Productions President, said: “We are focused on getting viewers closer to the action, and there is nothing like listening in to the driver and pit crew audio to understand how a race is unfolding. With IRIS Clarity, we are able to do just that by removing the background noise and getting clearer audio from the drivers and race teams. We have been working to perfect the implementation since the start of this season and gave our partnership the green light after a successful weekend at the recent Indy 500.”

Rob Reng, CTO and Co-Founder of IRIS Audio said: “This was an extremely fun and challenging project to bring IRIS real-time voice isolation to an exciting and high-performance use case. IRIS technology paired with Dante audio transmission allows us to bring the audience right into the excitement of each race by clearly transmitting driver communications, letting them hear every important moment with Clarity. It’s a fantastic showcase of how portable our SDK is, and how dozens of concurrent channels can be processed with AI technology on a single computer — something that simply wasn’t possible before IRIS.”

About IRIS Audio Technologies

IRIS Audio Technologies is an audio technology company with a mission to enable the world to Listen Well. Our suite of patented products leverages decades of research into the effects of sound on the brain, prioritising focus, productivity, and wellness for all. By harnessing the science of sound, IRIS Audio dramatically improves how people experience audio across all digital platforms, from video meetings to streaming, podcasts to audiobooks, and multiple sectors including call centres, public services, and motor racing.

Lundqvist will substitute for Simon Pagenaud in the No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda

Pataskala, Ohio (31 July 2023) – As Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) heads to the fourth street circuit on the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES calendar, the Ohio-based team will welcome Linus Lundqvist to its lineup alongside Helio Castroneves for the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix on Sunday (12:00pm ET, NBC, SiriusXM Ch. 160).

Lundqvist is stepping in for Simon Pagenaud, who continues to recover from a practice accident at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course earlier this month. While he continues to improve, he has been advised by the INDYCAR Medical Team to not participate in this weekend’s event in Nashville.

Following the Mid-Ohio accident, MSR has continued to campaign the No. 60 Honda-powered entry, with the team’s IMSA Championship winning driver Tom Blomqvist making his INDYCAR debut on the streets of Toronto while Conor Daly stepped in on short notice to compete in both the Mid-Ohio race and the Iowa Doubleheader.

Now, the 2022 INDY NXT by Firestone Champion will make his NTT INDYCAR SERIES race debut with MSR as he heads back to a track that he has seen much success at. Lundqvist excelled in INDY NXT competition, scoring third in the championship in his rookie campaign in 2021 and backing that up with a run to the title in 2022 on the strength of five wins and nine podium finishes.

In addition to his success in INDYCAR’s feeder series, Lundqvist has had two INDYCAR tests this year at Texas Motor Speedway and Sebring International Raceway.

Lundqvist heads into the Nashville event with some recent familiarity of the track, having swept the 2022 event with a pole and victory.

In honor of heading to the ‘Music City,’ the No. 60 machine will once again carry the all-new SiriusXM Channel, CARRIE’S COUNTRY – XM Ch. 60 – which is a specialty channel with music curated by the eight-time GRAMMY winner, Carrie Underwood.

Lundqvist will join INDYCAR SERIES veteran Castroneves who will drive the No. 06 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda around the 2.17-mile street course. Castroneves has shown well in his two outings in Nashville, finishing ninth in 2021. Last year’s event saw Castroneves start from the back of the field following an engine change, but the Brazilian driver worked his way up to a 13th place finish.

The sister MSR car driven by Pagenaud, finished inside the top ten in 2022, finishing ninth after starting 13th.

The Big Machine Music City Grand Prix will air live on, Sunday, August 6th on NBC starting at 12:00pm ET. All Practice sessions and Qualifying can be viewed on Peacock. SiriusXM will also host live IndyCar Radio coverage on SXM Ch. 160.

Meyer Shank Racing Team Quotes:

Linus Lundqvist:

“This is a moment I’ve been dreaming of literally since the start of my career. I could not be more excited about the prospect of finally making my NTT INDYCAR SERIES debut; I am extremely grateful to Meyer Shank Racing for this opportunity. This will be an incredible experience, but also the toughest challenge of my life. Sitting on the sidelines all year, it would be a massive task to join any championship towards the end of the season – let alone the NTT INDYCAR SERIES on the streets of Nashville. There’s been very little time to prepare, but I feel like the sheer excitement of this moment will make up for some of that. Of course, working alongside Helio – one of the true legends of this sport – will also be a huge asset. Last but not least, I would like to wish Simon Pagenaud a continued speedy recovery. While fully aware of everything I have to learn this weekend, I will do my very best to make him and everyone else on the team proud in Music City.”

Helio Castroneves:

“I’m super excited to head back to Nashville, it’s such a fun city and it has such great energy. The race has always been interesting and it’s very important to stay clean and consistent. We’ve had a pretty good car there the last two years, so I’m hoping that when we go back we’ll be even better. It will be an interesting weekend to have Linus with us as well, he is new to all of this, just like Tom (Blomqvist) was in Toronto. There will be a lot to learn for him, so we’ll see how he adapts.”

New Agreement in Place for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Hitting the Streets of Nashville August 4 – 6
Tickets Start as Low as $41 for General Admission and $52 for Reserved Grandstands

NASHVILLE, TN – July 25, 2023 – American Honda Motor Co. and Big Machine Music City Grand Prix have signed an agreement to make the popular automaker the Official Vehicle and Pace Car of the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix in Nashville through 2024.

Honda’s agreement provides them with a highly-visible presence at the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix, promotional rights, trackside signage, hospitality and other assets during race weekend. Honda will provide all on track vehicles for pre-race events, on track safety and the 2023 Honda Civic Type R will serve as the Official Pace Car during race weekend.

“American Honda is proud to be partnered with the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix to help bring exciting racing action to the streets of Nashville,” said Chuck Schifsky, Motorsports Manager, American Honda Motor Co. “As one of the newest races on the NTT INDYCAR calendar, the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix has quickly become one of the most thrilling events of the year for fans and drivers alike.”

The action-packed marquee three-day festival weekend features the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, along with INDY NXT, GT America, GR Cup, the Big Machine Spiked Cooler Trans Am TA2 Series, and Stadium SUPER Trucks along with some of the biggest names in entertainment.

“We are excited to have Honda on board as our newest partner for our event,” said Jason Rittenberry, President & COO, Big Machine Music City Grand Prix. “Their long history with INDYCAR and their desire to reach our market made Honda the perfect choice for us. The Middle Tennessee Honda dealers have embraced this partnership as well and have some exciting promotions running to support our event.”

Less than two weeks away from the race, fans are encouraged to plan in advance and get their tickets while they last. All single day tickets include free admission to the concert on the coinciding day.

SEE SINGLE DAY TICKETS PRICING
Three-day tickets and premium packages also remain on sale and provide the greatest value and access to all on-track activities featuring the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and concerts each night.

Ticket options are available at www.musiccitygp.com/tickets. Other premium hospitality options can be purchased by calling (615) 270-8705 or via email at tickets@musiccitygp.com.

Tickets for the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix are digital, and all fans must adhere to the Nissan Stadium rules and regulations, including the clear bag policy. For a complete list of FAQs on ticketing and race weekend policies, please visit www.musiccitygp.com.

ABOUT THE BIG MACHINE MUSIC CITY GRAND PRIX
The Big Machine Music City Grand Prix is a three-day premier festival of racing and music from Aug. 4-6 featuring the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, INDY NXT by Firestone, GT America, GR Cup, the Big Machine Spiked Cooler Trans Am TA2 Series and Stadium SUPER Trucks.

Ticket Packages, Clubs and Suites are now available to watch the best INDYCAR drivers race for the Big Machine Music City Cup. Fans can choose their optimal grandstand seat to watch as the drivers compete in the 80-lap, 2.1-mile, 11-turn course which races around Nissan Stadium, over the Cumberland River, and curves around downtown Nashville. The adrenaline-fueled event will feature live music each day and culminate with a headline concert on Friday and Saturday nights. For a complete list of FAQs on ticketing, race weekend policies or for more information, please visit www.musiccitygp.com.

ABOUT HONDA
Honda offers a full line of clean, safe, fun and connected vehicles sold through more than 1,000 independent U.S. Honda dealers. The award-winning Honda lineup includes the Civic and Accord, along with the HR-V, CR-V, Passport and Pilot sport utility vehicles, the Ridgeline pickup and the Odyssey minivan. Honda’s electrified vehicle lineup includes the Accord hybrid, CR-V hybrid, and, in the future, Civic hybrid. The Honda Prologue SUV, Honda’s first volume battery-electric vehicle, will join the lineup in 2024.

Honda has been producing automobiles in America for over 40 years and currently operates 18 major manufacturing facilities in North America. In 2022, more than 99% of all Honda vehicles sold in the U.S. were made in North America, with more than two-thirds made in America, using domestic and globally sourced par

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
HY-VEE HOMEFRONT 250 PRESENTED BY INSTACART
NEWTON, IOWA
TEAM CHEVY RACE NO. 2 POST RACE RECAP
JULY 23, 2023

JOSEF NEWGARDEN AND CHEVROLET SCORE DOUBLE VICTORIES AT IOWA SPEEDWAY
Will Power Gave Chevy Second Podium Step with Runner-Up Finish

NEWTON, IOWA (July 23, 2023)

• Josef Newgarden with Chevrolet 2.2 liter V6 power scored back-to-back wins at the Hy-Vee Doubleheader Weekend at Iowa Speedway after starting 3rd on Saturday and 7th on Sunday
• The two victories are 4th and 5th wins of the season for Team Chevy in the NTT INDYCAR Series
• Chevrolet has 11 wins at Iowa Speedway
• Led 212 of the 250-lap race in the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet
• Took the lead on lap 31 and led remainder of way except through pit stop exchanges
• Two-time NTT INDYCAR Series Champion scored his 6th win on the .894-mile track
• Win is fifth straight oval track win for Newgarden including 2023 Indianapolis 500
• Equals AJ Foyt in 1964, and Al Unser, Sr. in 1968 and 1970
• Win was 29th victory of his career, tying Rick Mears on all-time-list
• All of Newgarden’s wins were behind the wheel of a Team Penske Chevy INDYCAR
• Newgarden now sits 2nd in the standings, 80 points down to leader with 5 races remaining
• Will Power, No. 12 Verizon 5G Team Penske Chevrolet, finished 2nd to give Chevrolet two podium positions for Race 2 after scoring a podium sweep in Race 1
• Power started on the pole for both races
• Was credited for leading 30 laps in Race 2 after leading 119 in Race 1
• Of the 5 cars remaining on the lead lap at the checkered flag of Race 2, two were Chevy powered
• Felix Rosenqvist, No 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, finished 4th
• Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 EXPEL Team Penske Chevrolet, finished 5th
• Up next on the 17-race NTT INDYCAR Series schedule is the Streets of Nashville on August 4 – 6, 2023

Josef Newgarden and his No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet team returned to Iowa Speedway with a vengeance scoring victories in both races of the Hy-Vee Doubleheader Weekend.

The wins were 5th and 6th for Newgarden at his favorite short track and the 11th and 12th wins for Chevrolet in the NTT INDYCAR Series at Iowa.

With podium finishes by Scott McLaughlin and Pato O’Ward on Saturday to sweep the podium and a runner-up podium by

Will Power on Sunday, Team Chevy scored 5 of the 6 spots available.

For the second consecutive year, Will Power won the NTT P1 Award for both races to push his career total poles to 70-the most of any driver.

The Series moves on to Streets of Nashville August 4-6.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING (QUOTES):

JOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 2 HITACHI TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET-RACE WINNER:

ON HIS RACE

“For us, we knew we had a great car, and the pressure was there because we wanted to execute on it and make sure it was a great weekend. I am happy now. When you finish the first race, its great to have a doubleheader, but you feel incomplete until you get through today. To be able to come back and do it again, and make our car a little bit better, I am super proud of the team. Luke and the entire group. Chad leading the boys, its just a fantastic effort from everyone. Hitachi has been with most of my victories I think, so to be with them and have them on the car is fantastic. And Team Chevy. We almost got a repeat of that 1-2-3 for Chevy. So, sorry we didn’t get that done but they were phenomenal this weekend.”

YOU SWEPT THE WEEKEND. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?

“Its very gratifying because I know how good our car is here. When you show up with a car like this, you have the pressure to execute and get the job done. If you don’t get the job done, you feel like you did something wrong. I certainly felt that after qualifying, but to be able to fix that and win a couple of races….its not so much last year that I am thinking of, it’s just purely this year we wanted to execute.”

TALK ABOUT THE CHAMPIONSHIP AND TAKING THAT TO THE HOMEFRONT IN NASHVILLE

“Look, I will speak about Alex (Palou) again. He is a tremendous competitor and its funny because he is actually my pickleball teammate, so we have a little bit of a relationship. But he is great to run against and is one of the best you are going to find in the world. So, I think what he has done this year, its easy to see why he has gotten the points gap. He’s been tremendous, his team has been tremendous, and I hope that we can close that. We have got to win more races in the 2 car to do it, but there is no doubt that he has been one of the best competitors that you can drive against. I am excited for the rest of the season and who knows what will happen. This is INDYCAR and things can change really quickly. So, let’s stick with it and see how it shapes up.”

WILL POWER, NO.12 VERIZON 5G TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET-FINISHED 2ND:

I AM LOOKING AT THAT FINAL RESTART AND OBVIOUSLY THAT WAS KEY

“Yeah, it was a very good restart. We struggled massively at the beginning and my engineer made a really good change. Taking wing out helped me so much. I had a really fast car, we just needed to pit a couple of laps early so that we could be P2 to Josef and I think we might have had a shot at it. It’s the best car that I have had here, and I was really happy with it and enjoyed the race. Not the first stint though. Man, I was like white knuckling it the whole time, so I am stoked to get the Verizon Chevy to P2. Its pretty tough to beat Josef here, but we will do it one day. We will get him.”

HOW TOUGH IS IT TO JUST BE THE DRIVER AND NOT THE STRATEGIST AND THEY ARE TRYING TO WORK TOWARD THE WIN?

“Yeah, I mean yeah. Those guys have done so well for me over the years, its just tough around here. You have to be real sneaky to call to pit, because if you pit, then everyone will just come at the same time. Yeah, mega day. I was thinking we were going to be struggling to be in the top 10, but it just shows how quickly that stuff can change. Stoked with all the team effort and everything. Bloody great.”

FELIX ROSENQVIST, NO. 6 ARROW MCLAREN INDYCAR CHEVROLET-FINISHED 4TH:

DID YOU THINK YOU WOULD BE FIGHTING FOR A WIN LATE IN THIS RACE?

“Yes and no. We have been strong here previously and I thought we all had a tough day as a team yesterday. Pato did a mega performance. Today the car was really good. Arrow McLaren and NTT Data, big thanks to them. We turned the car around really good, and we also found ourselves one lap behind at one point. From there on we had two really, really good stints in the middle. The last stint was initially pretty good, then we struggled a little bit at the end. The last restart, I don’t know. I will have to look at it but I felt like Will kind of pushed me up in the marbles and I was very lucky to finish the race because I was full locked and waiting to see where I was going to end up. So, yeah, never been more bummed about a fourth-place finish, but it was a good drive. Those last lap things can end up either way as we saw at Indy. Hell of a day for us and glad we have some momentum going.”

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN, NO. 3 XPEL TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET-FINISHED 5TH:

WHAT IS THE PHYSICAL TOLL ON THE SECOND HALF OF THE DAY ON AN OVAL DOUBLEHEADER?

“Its more mental than anything. I have no idea how I finished that last stint. I had burned the right rear off and I was just hanging on. It was a Sprint Car there. So, out on the cush and having a lot of fun, but I am happy to bring the XPEL Chevrolet back with two top fives. A podium is not a bad deal. I would have loved to have joined my teammates at the podium today, but we just tried something different, and it didn’t quite work.”

WE HEARD YOU TOWARD THE END ON THE RADIO JUST TRYING NOT TO CRASH. WHAT WAS THAT LIKE AND DID YOU KNOW AS YOU DROPPED BACK THAT IT DIDN’T MATTER AND WASN’T FOR POSITION?

“I had run out of tools. I was fully stiff on my front bar, fully stuffed on my rear bar, and I was all the way to the right in my weight jacker. I had zero tools left and I was just driving this thing. It was fun and I learned a lot and its not fun when you restart with the whole field behind you. But it is what it is, and I am learning every lap around these ovals and what I learned this weekend was huge and I can’t wait to come back here in the future.”

YOU DON’T COME FROM AN OVAL BACKGROUND BUT THIS IS YOUR 13TH OVAL AND YOUR SEVENTH TOP FIVE. WHAT HAVE YOU FOUND TO GET SO GOOD ON THIS TYPE OF RACING?

“Look, Team Penske builds great cars. They gave us three rocket ships as you saw this weekend. We probably tried a little bit too hard to undercut Josef and Will to get in front of them with that off strategy sort of move that we did mid-race. But yeah, I am very proud of the car that I drive, the people I drive for, and yeah, just very lucky. I count my lucky stars. Just speaking to some of the drivers at intros and they are a little jealous and they are scared to go up against us which is a nice thing about ovals. But there is a lot of respect there for sure.

PATO O’WARD, NO. 5 ARROW MCLAREN INDYCAR CHEVROLET-FINISHED 10TH:

TELL US ABOUT YOUR RUN TODAY PATO

“I don’t have an explanation on what happened today. We obviously went the wrong way, at least that is what it seems like. Obviously, the guys are going to do a sit down now and see if maybe we missed something in that transfer. But man, just the pure fact that we didn’t end up in an accident with just ourselves or somebody else, feels like a win. It’s just, I don’t know. You come into these weekends knowing usually where you have been in the past and a chance to kind of bounce back. Obviously, today, it feels like we just threw that away. I don’t have an explanation for that, and I don’t think any of us know what or why. It felt like it was the right direction, and as you can tell, I am just confused. Congratulations to Josef, he dominated. Absolutely destroyed everybody. Would have loved to have made him sweat a little bit and fight it out with him like we have in the past. But today was just a miserable day for us.”

ALEXANDER ROSSI, NO. 7 ARROW MCLAREN INDYCAR CHEVROLET-FINISHED 15TH:

ON HIS RACE:

”This was pretty much a lost weekend for us. With it being a doubleheader, double points, we needed to capitalize here, and it just didn’t happen. We were outside the window and just didn’t have the pace we needed to compete. We have a lot to look into before Nashville. We’re all hungry for more than what it showed this weekend.”

CALLUM ILOTT, NO. 77JUNCOS HOLLINGER RACING CHEVROLET-FINISHED 14TH:

“Pretty strong two days for us. 15th yesterday; 14th today. Nine positions gained yesterday; 10 positions today. Yeah, overall car felt great. A lot more comfortable today with the car than yesterday. So we made some big improvements. We just got really unlucky with the yellows. I was the last person for Newgarden’s pass on both of those last yellows and I lost I lost laps because of that. Otherwise, just before that I was fighting with other cars and yeah, it was looking quite good. So a little bit annoying; luck wasn’t on our side at all that sort of stuff. But race was good. And we did the best job we could. I think it was it was promising. So big thanks to the team. Thanks for Chevy. Thanks, Pete are on board with us this weekend. On to Nashville.”

AGUSTIN CANAPINO, NO. 78 JUNCOS HOLLINGER RACING CHEVROLET-FINISHED 26TH:

“Unfortunately, I touched the wall when I picked up the marbles which is a shame because we were really good battling with guys at that moment. I think today we had a car that could have run in top-10, maybe more. So, thanks to my team for the work they always do. Today is learning for me. It was my mistake.”

PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

Josef Newgarden

Will Power

THE MODERATOR: Joined by Josef Newgarden as well, back with another victory here. Driving the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet. Obviously sixth win here at Iowa. Fifth straight oval win, which ranks you up there with A.J. Foyt, 1964, the great Al Unser in ’68 and 1970. 29th career INDYCAR SERIES win now, which ties you with Rick Mears on the 13th all-time. Ain’t so bad.

First time the INDYCAR SERIES has had a double-header sweep since Scott Dixon did it in Toronto in 2013. You made it look easy leading 211 of the 250 laps, but I know it wasn’t. Your thoughts about another win here at Iowa?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: By no means easy. I think today was different. As we spoke about yesterday, I felt like today was going to have a different twist, and it did.

I think that’s why you saw the order slightly jumbled in the top ten. Just balance-wise with a hotter track you were getting different reactions from the car, and we needed to keep up with it.

I think the good thing is and the fortunate thing for us is that we have a really good baseline race car here. You know, it’s impossible to win around this place without a great car, and we always have it at this track. At least in recent memory we’ve always had it.

Yeah, it was great day. I feel really happy today. Yesterday felt incomplete. That’s the only way I can put it. When you have a double-header and you feel like you have a great car underneath you, finishing day one it just doesn’t feel finished. Today I feel like we’re done now. We can leave.

I’m much happier today, and really proud of the team. Excited for them. They deserve it. They put in a lot of work, and they deserve the results this weekend.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Josef Newgarden.

Q. You just said it was a different twist today. Does it mean the car was different than yesterday?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, the balance was different today. The tires were wearing out I think more aggressively, or let’s just say they were wearing quicker with the track temp elevated slightly more.

Balance was different. It was more difficult today to manage the front rear axle of the car relative to yesterday. Yesterday if you had one axle going off during the race, it stayed consistently sort of there. You can manipulate it on both ends of the car, but today it was both ends, and you could get yourself in a bad spot on either end of the race car today really quickly. It could flip stint to stint.

I think that’s what made it trickier, and that’s probably why you saw some people moving more today because it was easier to get it wrong, and you just had to be really on top of your tools to make sure that you didn’t let it get away from you.

Q. You talked about it a little bit in post-race on TV just about the satisfaction and relief almost of being able to get through this weekend and not being able to totally celebrate or appreciate yesterday’s win until today’s race was over with. What is that like after you got done talking to us going through your routine, going to bed last night? What emotions, what was that feeling like, that tension of not being able to be totally settled or happy with a great performance that you just had done?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I would say I just felt heightened. Similar to when you haven’t run a race on a normal weekend, you know, you are just heightened the night before.

I’m just focused. I’m focused on what’s going to be different. I watched probably four hours of video last night just figuring out what can be a little bit better, including the whole broadcast.

I just felt kind of on the chip just ready to go, like it’s just not done. It’s half of what the available points are, and so I felt really charged and ready to rock again.

But I wouldn’t say that’s different to a normal weekend. That’s how you feel leading up to a Sunday. So you get through Saturday, and you think, oh, what a great achievement, and it was, but it’s just not done yet. You can reverse everything the next day.

Now I feel good about it. We’re not reversing anything. We did the job, and now we can leave.

Q. Like winning pole on a Saturday, but not feeling like the weekend is totally done?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, I think that’s a good way to put it. Winning the pole is a big deal. It helps. Very satisfying, but it’s kind of just half the battle.

I would say even the pole is less than that. It’s probably 25% of the battle. The wins are so much more. Yesterday truly only felt like 50% of the battle.

Q. Going into the final championship stretch of five races with four races on road and street courses. I know you’ve been a little bit up and down with one podium this year I think at Road America, a handful of top tens, but maybe not quite the strength or the consistency as Alex. What do you feel like you guys are going to have to get out of those last couple of races, and do you guys feel like you have that performance and the distance in the car to try and steal this one from him?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I think that’s the unknown. We have been a little bit too up and down across the board. We’ve talked about this before.

It’s just, yeah, I don’t think we have the consistency that we want as a team. When you look at every track type, we’re probably bouncing up and down a little bit too much.

There’s no doubt that the ovals, particularly the race package has been very strong for us. It’s hard to complain about our race cars on ovals these days. They’re very, very good.

It’s a complex schedule on the way out. We’ve got to do street course, road course, oval, back to two road courses, and yeah, it is a question mark. We definitely have to elevate our game on where we’ve been the first half of the year. There’s no doubt.

I think that Alex and his crew, they’re in a really good spot. They’ve had what appears to be a pretty consistent program. We’ve got to elevate to their level and just execute.

You just never know what’s going to happen. I think if we can be excellent on the back half of the schedule, then anything is possible.

THE MODERATOR: I have an apology to Graham Rahal, who swept the Detroit double-header in 2017. I was thinking I blamed someone who wasn’t here. Anyway, kudos to Nathan on that one.

Q. You were saying about the four hours of video. What was that made up of? I guess you watched the race broadcast, and was it…

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Just whatever we have. Whatever we record I’m watching or listening to, yeah.

Q. You mentioned in recent memory the car has been good here. You had obviously won races before the Aero screens came in. Do you think there’s any characteristics that the Aero screens introduced into the car, and that’s why you’ve been so good in this period after this?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I wouldn’t say so. I think this is — I think Iowa has stayed so consistent over the last, let’s say, four, five years. It’s the same challenge every time we’re here.

It moves around a little bit, right, year to year depending on temp, track condition, tires. Tire was slightly different this year. There were small differences, but I think the broad equation or the overall problem that you’re trying to solve here has not changed.

I would say other tracks have changed dramatically with the Aero screen. This has not been one of them. The only thing is it’s wearing out more and more. Degradation is just higher every year, but the thing you have to figure out is just the same every year. You know, how do you get the thing consistent?

It doesn’t take much. Everybody is struggling with it. And if you just get fractionally more consistent than the competition, then it can make a massive difference here relative to another track.

Q. I know last year this day was not a good one or anyone around you would want to really think about it or remember it. But emotionally or just personally, does this win today feel — have you thought about that day last year and what this win might mean to kind of correct that a little bit and just what that feels like?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I’m happy it didn’t happen again. You know, it was — to just answer the question, no, I have not thought about it much. I didn’t think about it last year or think that, hey, I want to come here and right the wrong. It wasn’t that sort of situation.

When I think back to it, what pops out in my head is more the work that had to go into make sure they let me stay in the race car the next weekend. That’s what stands out to me.

Obviously the win-loss was disappointing too for many reasons, but I just remember that the week after that, it was a heck of a journey trying to make sure that we were in the car.

But, no, I wasn’t thinking about it. As far as this weekend, the only thing that stands out is that — we talked about it yesterday, but just any person that I talked to, they just assume. They just assume, oh, you’re going to have a great weekend.

I just stay very vigilant with that because there is going to be a year. It’s bound to happen. We’re going to show up here, and we’re not going to be very good.

That’s okay. I’m expecting that to happen. I want to be able to get on top of it when it does hit us, but yeah, that’s the challenge that I think of when I come here.

Q. I guess now you can leave the leather helmet at home that you wore at Indy last year. You whacked 18 more points off the lead. You’re down to 80. If somebody had said to you entering the weekend you can get points lead down to 80, or a deficit, I should say, how would you have felt about that? And five races to go, is it doable?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, I mean, I would take it. I don’t know about you, but that’s a positive result I think leaving the weekend.

I would have liked it to reach 50 or 60. That sound better, but that’s not where we’re at, and I think we did a pretty good job given what was in our control this weekend.

I mean, it’s hard not to give kudos to Alex. I think he just did a great job. Clearly we seem to have the upper hand this weekend, and he had a great day today. You know, he maximized what he could, and I think that speaks to what he brings to his program. He maximizes his results. He minimized a loss today. You know, it could have be more, and he just made sure it wasn’t.

He is a tremendous competitor. Did a great job. I wish we gained more, but I’m not going to be dissatisfied with where we brought it to.

Q. Josef, when I asked Alex and Will when they were in here earlier, they told me that in the pre-race meeting that you guys were told with ten to go if there’s a caution, pits would not open with the attempt to try to get a green flag finish at the end. Was that your same understanding, and did you know that, or did that come to mind when that yellow flag came out with ten to go?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah. Yeah, that’s how I understood it too. It seems to be the most fair way to — it’s such a short track.

To procedurally do all the things that they want to do, just to give second, third, and so on place a chance at the end on a restart, I don’t like that, but I think if you’re looking at it from a fairness standpoint, if you’re going to let everyone have pit stops, then you have to — okay, we do that, but then we also have to move all the lap cars.

I don’t think they have enough time on this length of the track. That’s the situation that happened in 2018, and we ran out — we thought we were going to go green, and we pitted, and we didn’t. We just ran out of time.

I think the only way they can really approach this stuff is get the lap cars out of the way, we will go to the restart, and not allow anybody to pit. It’s probably the fairest thing can you do.

I didn’t love it. I would have preferred to keep the lap cars in between. But looking at it from a competitor, I think it’s the fairest way they can approach it.

Q. We’ve had a couple more laps. Say everyone gets a chance to pit and puts on fresh tires, obviously you dominated the race up to that point. Do you feel like you still would have had the car underneath you with the adjustments that you had made and the adjustments some other cars up close to you had made to fend folks off at the end if that had been the circumstance?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: So difficult to say. I have no idea. I would like to think, yeah, we would have been just fine, but this race can change quickly.

The balance can get away from you really fast. I think we managed our balance perfectly at the time we needed to. We needed to do it for 250 laps. If it was longer, it was 300, maybe we would lose out to somebody else, but it’s impossible to say.

Q. Following up on the caution with ten to go — you’re smiling.

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Caution with ten to go and I’m smiling?

Q. You’re smiling at me like I’m about to ask something —

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I don’t know what you are about to ask. I’m very curious what you’re about to ask. You’re giving me that cheeky smile, like…

Q. Is the red flag not an option the way it is at the Indy 500 if there is a late caution like that?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Definitely. I will say that procedurally this is what they said they were going to do. They also have the abandonment of procedures, so they could just do whatever they want; right?

I guess saying that, the red flag is the option. Yeah, maybe. Maybe. That’s definitely doable.

I don’t know in this type of — it’s hard to say. I’ll say this. Whatever they were going to do, I’m fine with it. We’ll race, and we’ll figure it out, and we’ll still try and win.

What they did today, we lived with it. I thought it was fair enough, but if they want to do it differently in the future, I’m all game for whatever anybody wants to do. Whatever is going to make everybody happy, that’s what we should be doing. Everybody, every person.

Q. The style of racing, did some of the offenders heed your advice today?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: No, but I think I probably made too much of a stink about it. I was worried about the reverse happening and it just getting worse. It didn’t get worse. It was the same situation as yesterday.

I knew that was probably going to be the case. Like I said yesterday, I was trying to be prepared today on what I could do within my control to manage it.

When you are out there and this stuff is happening, I can’t affect anybody else. The only thing I can do is just be more prepared, and I have felt more prepared today. I was ready for it, and whatever was coming my way, I was just going to handle it as it was.

Q. And your corn field comment after the race about buying a corn field, I mean, I know that they do grow corn in Tennessee, but not quite like in Iowa. But just the fact that this part of the country has done so well for you, and also, you came up driving go-karts at New Castle in Indiana in the Midwest. The whole midwestern thing really works for you.

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Bruce, I’m here to invest; okay? I’m ready. I’m going to buy some corn fields. I’m going to start producing for the country and doing my part. It seems like the right thing to do at this point with all the years I’ve spent here. I agree with you.

I really like Iowa. It’s actually a great little place. It’s not super busy out here, but it feels like a big event this weekend is what I’ll say. I think Hy-Vee has done a tremendous job at making this a destination.

I like to say it’s the Field of Dreams of racing. It really is. It’s a cool place to come and visit and spend a weekend, and Hy-Vee has made it an event. So it’s only gotten better from the first time I’ve been here.

Yeah, I’m going to partner with — I’m not even going to say it. I’m going to get myself in trouble. But, yeah, maybe.

Q. To kind of differentiate this race from yesterday’s race, would you rather see it be 300 laps to where it’s a little bit different procedurally, or are you fine with it staying two 250s?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Yeah, I don’t think that’s going to change the show. I almost think — gosh, I mean, whatever you say it’s going to be unpopular. I almost think you could put a little downforce on the cars again. I’ll just say it. I’ll say it.

I don’t want anyone to change it. I’m pretty happy with it the way it is, but if you really want to help the show, I think you put some more downforce back on the cars. It gets strung out pretty fast here, which is fun. I love it. As a race car driver, it’s a good formula. I would just put more horsepower, make them dig even more. That would be my request.

But if you are trying to appease people, you could probably put a little bit more downforce back on, close it up, and you would still get that degradation on the sort of back one-third of a stint, but just keep the group compressed a little bit longer into a stint is what I think we could do to maybe improve the show, if that’s what we’re looking to do.

Q. Or have one of them be a nice race?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: I’m never against a night race. I would run every race as a night race if it was my decision.

Q. Before the race weekend, it was my impression a lot of talk about tire degradation. So how was the whole weekend summarized with the tire situation? Was it worse? Was it bad?

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: It was slightly worse, yeah, for degradation. And by worse I don’t mean in a bad way. There just was more. I think naturally there was more.

Every year you come here and the track is a little bit older, you’re always going to experience slightly more. It wasn’t night and day different to last year. I would say it’s slightly more, but not night and day. Pretty similar race.

Q. (Off microphone).

JOSEF NEWGARDEN: Oh, yeah, no, no, no. I mean, the tire is strong and structurally great. There’s nothing wrong with that.

When it wears out, you just run a little bit slower, but it was very similar it last year. I would say you just have a tiny year-over-year increase.

THE MODERATOR: Congratulations. Josef Newgarden driving the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, now a six-time winner here at Iowa.

THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon. Wrapping up today’s Hy-Vee One Step 250 here at Iowa Speedway, and for that matter the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend. Again, Josef Newgarden will join us momentarily as will third place finishing driver Alex Palou, but joined now by Will Power, driver of the No. 12 Verizon 5G Team Penske Chevrolet.

Managing his best finish of the season with a second. It’s his fourth podium of the season, 98th of his career. Will, kind of a long weekend, but you made some points and a couple of good finishes there for you.

WILL POWER: Yeah, good weekend. Two poles, second. I feel like I had the car to really challenge at the end there.

We’re lucky to get the yellow. Probably should have pitted a couple of laps earlier. It probably would have put us in contention. Struggled the first two massively. Like, massively. Massively loose.

Yeah, once we fixed that, we were really strong again. That was really good. Yeah, good day, good day.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for Will Power?

Q. You’ve been on rolls before in your career, but you know, tracks that are just Will Power tracks. Will Power is going to win this race, and everybody else is fighting for second. It seems lately Josef has this place figured out. Is it almost exasperating that no matter what you do, he just seems to be that much ahead of everybody?

WILL POWER: Yeah, it is. I obviously look at it very closely. I felt like we actually finally had it once we made those adjustments to run with him.

We came into pits with him, but I had to wait for X and to pit. It was just bad timing on our part to not pit a couple of laps early.

Obviously risks with that, but not much. Here you have a two-lap window to make a yellow.

Just ovals in general, he has won every single oval that he has finished in a long time now, yeah.

Q. Will, do you see him taking a page out of your playbook from last year in making the most of any day?

WILL POWER: Yeah, I think it’s a points lead that’s not completely comfortable. Pretty comfortable to take a bit more risk. Yeah, he has won a championship before. He knows that. He is going to do what he does, which is pretty good.

Q. Can I go back to Will? A question. You just said earlier a minute ago if I understood it correctly that the car was very loose, and it could be fixed. Was there already an indication today in the morning in warmup that the car was loose?

WILL POWER: There was an indication, and we didn’t do enough. Yeah, yeah, it’s nuts how the adjustment just of the front wing how it transformed the car from just horrible to extremely good.

Q. Was curious how it was communicated to you over the radio on those final ten laps and whether you were surprised that the leaders on the lead lap didn’t get a chance to go through pit lane to take tires or anything over that final ten laps of the race?

WILL POWER: You weren’t allowed to take — yeah, you weren’t allowed.

Q. I didn’t know if you guys would have been expecting the pits —

WILL POWER: To open? There weren’t enough laps left so I guess they were thinking. I think they said that in the driver meeting that with ten to go, they’re just going to — kind of it is what it is, which is quite interesting because it’s like — it would have been a big battle if it was new tires. A bit less with the old tires. Kind of close, but it still would have been a fun restart.

Q. Say this happened five laps early, so 15 to go, maybe more time to allow the pits to open and still get a restart, do either of you feel like you had a car to take to Josef on fresh tires with the adjustments you guys have made over the course of the race to challenge him for a win, or would it have still probably been the same or similar results?

WILL POWER: Yeah, I really did. I was right within that last stint going into the pit stop, and I had to wait for Ericsson to pit, so it was going to be interesting.

My car was very, very strong middle to end of stint. And at the beginning, yeah, I had a great restart. Went from I think sixth to third and then just hung back and saved tires and went again and went to second.

Yeah, that’s the first time I actually thought, yeah, I could probably challenge this guy. A little bit last year, yeah, and today. Not yesterday.

Q. Will, you mentioned the Ericsson pit stop. They held you while he went in. How heads-up was that and then to realize, hey, Ericsson is coming in, there are some people that have penalties for unsafe releases. Let’s keep him here and —

WILL POWER: I was watching my mirror because I saw them set up, and I knew that he would be coming, so I sat there watching. There was confusion on the radio that I was, like, not going to have one of these.

It sucks because you just watched three, four — almost three or four seconds tick by. A chunk of time. Like, he came out, and I could hardly see him. I came in the pits right on him, on Josef.

Yeah, that’s the gamble. I just thought we were in a position to take a big risk and pit way early because we’re not really in the championship. Just go for a win. But I’m not on the stand, so I don’t know the situation. I don’t think anyone had pitted at that point, but that would have given us clear in and out and the undercut.277-1-1182 2023-07-22 22:01:00 GMT

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NEWTON, Iowa (Sunday, July 23, 2023) – The brooms are out.

Josef Newgarden completed a sweep of the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend doubleheader at Iowa Speedway by winning the Hy-Vee One Step 250 presented by Gatorade on Sunday, bookending his victory Saturday in the Hy-Vee Homefront 250 presented by Instacart.

Two-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Newgarden drove his No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet to his sixth career victory at Iowa by .7050 of a second over teammate and reigning series champion Will Power in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. The close finish came after a three-lap dash to the checkered flag due to a late caution period.

Newgarden has won all four oval races this season – including the 107th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on May 28 – and can complete a season sweep of circle-track events at the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline on Sunday, Aug. 27 at World Wide Technology Raceway. He has won six of the last seven oval races in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES over the last 12 months.

“We knew we had a great car, and the pressure was there because I think we wanted to execute on it and make sure it was a great weekend,” Newgarden said. “I’m happy now. When you finish the first race, it’s great to have a doubleheader, but you just feel incomplete until you get through today. To be able to come back and do it again, I’m so proud of the team.

“It’s very gratifying because I know how good our car is here. When you show up with a car like this, you’ve got the pressure to just execute and get the job done. When you don’t get the job done, you feel like you did something wrong.”

There’s even more history. Newgarden joined legendary four-time Indy 500 winners A.J. Foyt and Al Unser as the only drivers to win five consecutive oval races in the INDYCAR SERIES, as Newgarden’s streak started last August at WWTR. Foyt won seven in a row in 1964, and Unser won five straight in 1968 and 1970.

This was Newgarden’s 29th career victory, tying him with four-time Indy 500 winner and fellow Team Penske legend Rick Mears for 13th on the all-time INDYCAR SERIES win list. Newgarden also became the first driver to sweep an INDYCAR SERIES doubleheader since Graham Rahal in 2017 in Detroit.

Newgarden’s victory also polished off a sweep of the weekend for Team Penske, as the team led every on-track session. Newgarden won both races and led practice Friday, while Power won the NTT P1 Award for both races and led the warmup this morning.

Championship leader Alex Palou finished third in his No. 10 The American Legion Honda. Palou’s lead over second place Newgarden slimmed to 80 points with five races remaining in the season. The Spaniard, who finished eighth Saturday, led by 117 points entering this doubleheader weekend. Still, he extended his streak of finishing in the top eight to all 12 races this season.

“I didn’t expect to be on the podium, honestly,” Palou said. “This is a place where we struggle, we don’t really have the package that we would like and that I struggle also personally. We got a lot of confidence today, but there’s still a lot to improve.”

Felix Rosenqvist finished fourth in the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, with Scott McLaughlin rounding out three Team Penske cars in the top five in the No. 3 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet.

Newgarden cantered to a 3.375-second victory over McLaughlin on Saturday. But a second trip to the winner’s circle this weekend wasn’t as easy Sunday even though Newgarden led far more laps – 212 of 250 – after starting seventh than the 129 trips he paced Saturday from the third spot on the starting grid.

It appeared Newgarden would cruise to another dominant victory late in the race, as he was well ahead of Rosenqvist and had lapped the field all the way to sixth place. But Ryan Hunter-Reay side-swiped the SAFER Barrier in Turn 4 in the No. 20 Bitnile.com Chevrolet on Lap 240, triggering the third and final caution of the race.

The five cars on the lead lap were moved to the front of field under caution, creating a three-lap dash to the checkered on the restart at the end of Lap 247. Newgarden got a smooth jump into Turn 1 and never trailed. Pole sitter Power passed Rosenqvist for second, and 2021 season champion Palou completed his Sunday salvage job by passing Rosenqvist and McLaughlin to earn his seventh podium finish of the season.

Newgarden took less time to pass teammate and NTT P1 Award winner Power for the early lead today than Saturday. He first got to the front and took control of the race on Lap 31, never trailing thereafter except for during pit cycles.

Newgarden will split $10,000 with Team Penske and his chosen charities, SeriousFun Children’s Network and Wags and Walks Nashville, for his victory as part of the PeopleReady Force For Good Challenge.

The next NTT INDYCAR SERIES race is the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix on Sunday, Aug. 6 on the streets of Nashville, Tennessee – Newgarden’s hometown. Live coverage starts at noon ET on NBC, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network.

Hy-Vee One Step 250 presented by Gatorade Race Results

1. (7) Josef Newgarden, Chevrolet, 250, Running
2. (1) Will Power, Chevrolet, 250, Running
3. (12) Alex Palou, Honda, 250, Running
4. (16) Felix Rosenqvist, Chevrolet, 250, Running
5. (2) Scott McLaughlin, Chevrolet, 250, Running
6. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 249, Running
7. (5) Colton Herta, Honda, 249, Running
8. (3) David Malukas, Honda, 249, Running
9. (10) Marcus Ericsson, Honda, 249, Running
10. (11) Pato O’Ward, Chevrolet, 249, Running
11. (17) Kyle Kirkwood, Honda, 249, Running
12. (20) Romain Grosjean, Honda, 249, Running
13. (21) Christian Lundgaard, Honda, 249, Running
14. (24) Callum Ilott, Chevrolet, 248, Running
15. (18) Alexander Rossi, Chevrolet, 248, Running
16. (8) Helio Castroneves, Honda, 248, Running
17. (15) Conor Daly, Honda, 248, Running
18. (14) Rinus VeeKay, Chevrolet, 248, Running
19. (22) Jack Harvey, Honda, 247, Running
20. (6) Graham Rahal, Honda, 247, Running
21. (19) Devlin DeFrancesco, Honda, 246, Running
22. (27) Santino Ferrucci, Chevrolet, 245, Running
23. (4) Ed Carpenter, Chevrolet, 244, Running
24. (25) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Chevrolet, 237, Contact
25. (13) Takuma Sato, Honda, 237, Running
26. (23) Agustin Canapino, Chevrolet, 236, Running
27. (28) Benjamin Pedersen, Chevrolet, 193, DQ
28. (26) Sting Ray Robb, Honda, 152, DQ

Race Statistics
Winner’s average speed: 133.527
Time of race: 01:40:25.7356
Margin of victory: 0.7050
Cautions: 3 for 37 laps
Lead changes: 8 among 6 drivers

Lap Leaders:
Power, Will 1 – 30
Newgarden, Josef 31 – 55
Rosenqvist, Felix 56 – 57
Newgarden, Josef 58 – 147
Dixon, Scott 148
Ericsson, Marcus 149 – 151
Newgarden, Josef 152 – 195
McLaughlin, Scott 196 – 197
Newgarden, Josef 198 – 250

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Point Standings:
Palou 477, Newgarden 397, Dixon 357, Ericsson 330, O’Ward 329, McLaughlin 329, Power 316, Herta 276, Lundgaard 275, Rossi 265, Kirkwood 237, Rosenqvist 233, Grosjean 212, Ilott 185, VeeKay 183, Rahal 182, Malukas 176, Armstrong 156, Ferrucci 151, Castroneves 143, Canapino 132, DeFrancesco 128, Harvey 124, Daly 120, Robb 92, Pedersen 90, Pagenaud 88, Sato 65, Hunter-Reay 62, Carpenter 40, Kanaan 18, Andretti 13, Blomqvist 5, Enerson 5, Legge 5

NEWTON, Iowa – (July 23, 2023) – Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) drivers Helio Castroneves and Conor Daly chased each other home Sunday, wrapping up the NTT INDYCAR SERIES weekend doubleheader at Iowa Speedway with a pair of top-20 finishes at the .875-mile oval in Newton, Iowa.

Castroneves (No. 06 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda) started a season-best eighth for the second of the weekend’s 250-lap races that made up the Hy-Vee One Step 250, marking his best qualifying result since he gridded sixth at Mid-Ohio a year ago. Daly (No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda) earned the 15th position on the 28-car Iowa grid, giving MSR its best combined qualifying result of the 2023 season.

The Brazilian fell back four positions in a swarming start, but ran in the top half of the grid for the first half of the race. Castroneves lost a lap to the leaders after his first pit stop, but gained it back after a Lap 88 caution period and restarted from the 14th spot. From there, Castroneves was able to hold serve in the middle of the pack throughout the final 100 laps and finished 16th. The result, when paired with his 14th-place run Saturday, gives the four-time Indianapolis 500 winner his best back-to-back finishes of the campaign.

Daly – who made his third start for the injured Simon Pagenaud in the MSR No. 60 machine – also lost a lap early but got his lap during the early caution as his teammate did. Daly was 19th at the race’s halfway mark but made a pair of late-race passes to climb into 17th at the checkered flag.

After back-to-back race weekends, the MSR squad will get a week off before heading to Nashville, Tennessee for the August 6, Big Machine Music City Grand Prix. Sunday’s race will air live on NBC, beginning at Noon Eastern Time. Qualifying will take place Saturday at 2:45 and can be followed live on Peacock and Sirius XM Channel 160.

Driver Quotes:

Helio Castroneves:

“Tough day, both days. But there wasn’t really much we could do. The car just couldn’t hold the rear tires very well. We tried to make some changes to improve on the entry. But the apex to entry just wasn’t good. Traffic was very difficult for me. To be honest this second race was more about survival then yesterday’s race. I know we can do better, but this is not going to knock us down. We’ll look at areas to improve for the next race.”

Conor Daly:

“We struggled a little in the middle of the first stint and that kind of put us back. Towards the end we were super fast. We passed guys that were running in the top 10. We just lost a bit too much ground in the beginning and we had to tune the car. Every stop we made the car get better and by the end of the race – just like yesterday – it kept getting better and better. It’s nice to feel as you go, you are making moves. We were never on the defensive, we were always moving forward. With a day where there weren’t a lot of DNFs and a lot of really fast cars running around, we were right in the fight and finished right with our teammate.”