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Tag: Honda Indy Toronto

  • Will Power Cleared To Drive After Wreck at Iowa, Tests at Mid-Ohio

    Following a hard hit in the Turn 2 SAFER Barrier on June 25th at Iowa Speedway during Iowa Corn Indy 250 presented by Pioneer, Will Power was back at it behind the wheel, testing the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske car at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

    Following the wreck, Power suffered a minor concussion and in which per IndyCar rules, Power took the ImPACT (Immediate Post-concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing) test and was re-evaluated.

    “It’s good to be back out there in the Verizon car,” Power said, who enters Toronto second in the championship standings, 20 points behind Dario Franchitti. “It was a hard hit at Iowa, but I didn’t actually get knocked out or anything. I just had a headache for the first night and some neck soreness. I needed to get checked out by the INDYCAR officials and it was more precautionary than anything, but that’s good, because you can never be too careful.

    “Every driver does a test, called an ImPACT test, at the beginning of every season. It basically tests your reflexes, your memory and so on. Then you have to go back and do that test again if you have an incident like what we had in Iowa. I took the test (June 28) and the doctors cleared me to drive.”

    As a result of being cleared on July 28th, Power was on hand testing with Team Penske teammates Helio Castroneves and Ryan Briscoe, along with Dale Cyone Racing’s James Jakes. The IZOD IndyCar Series visits the 2.258-mile on August 7th for the 50th Anniversary Honda Indy 200.

    The next race for the IZOD IndyCar Series is the Honda Indy Toronto, July 8th-10th, which Will Power won last year.

    “I’m glad we got the chance to test here at Mid-Ohio to get ready for the road courses coming up,” Power said. “Now I’m looking forward to going back to Toronto next week and trying to defend our win there with Verizon Team Penske.”

    Before racing in Toronto, Power will also participate in another test New Hampshire Motor Speedway with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s driver Pippa Mann.

    IZOD IndyCar Series officials require drivers to take the ImPACT test at teh beginning of the year to set a baseline test as drivers are suspectiable to concussions and other head and neck injuries during crashess. Before a driver is allowed to enter an event, they are required to establish their baseline data by performing the 30-minute, computerized ImPACT test, which measures a range of neurocognitive functions including memory, reaction time, attention span and more. The test measures a driver’s cognitive abilities under normal, healthy conditions. If a driver suffers a head injryy, they are required to take the test and the doctors will compare the results with the baseline to determine the severity of the injury and best possible treatment.

  • Honda Canada VP Jerry Chenkin Addresses Media About IndyCar Series

    As part of the IZOD IndyCar Series Media Lunchon in Toronto, Honda Canada Vice President Jerry Chenkin was on hand to discuss Honda’s involvement and his thoughts on Randy Bernard so far during Bernard’s 16 months of being the CEO of the IZOD IndyCar Series. Here is the full statement from Chenkin at the luncheon:

    In just a little more than one year behind the IndyCar wheel, Randy Bernard has already initiated some fantastic things for the series making more interesting, I think you will all agree, and more fan friendly, with a new focus on a younger age bracket.

    At Honda Canada, we know and share similar challenges that Randy has tackled. First, our organizations are both proud leaders in increasingly competitive markets that are undergoing dramatic changes, which require a more proactive approach with more brand recognition than ever before. Second, we both faced with battling two complete different groups with unique needs – those that are loyal to our brands through consistency and familiar value and those within the younger demographic, seeking things that are new and unique to them.

    Three years ago, Honda Canada met with Kevin Savoree and his partners at that time – Michael Andretti was involved – and saw an opportunity to address both of these challenges by aligning ourselves with the premiere event in Canada, the Honda Indy. Now as sure as you all know, Honda’s racing and engine heritage speaks for itself so when the opportunity came to support IndyCar racing and remind our customers that Honda is not just any car company, we felt it was too good to ignore. After all, its fierce competition continues to drive our organization not only to create not only the best engines in the world, but the best cars, trucks, motorcycles, marine and power equipment as well.

    Today, we are exceptionally proud to see our name on the event that has the world’s best engines, fastest cars and the greatest drivers to drive.

    We’re also excited to see what Randy has in store for the IZOD IndyCar Series. In his previous role, Randy managed to take the brand of professional bull riders business from just $2000 to more than $20 million in just 10 years. In February of last year, Randy was named the CEO of the IZOD IndyCar Series.

    We presented him with a new set of challenges in a new arena, so to speak. He was drawn to the opportunity after recognizing the sport’s raw potential, a potential driven to its great competition and entertainment value that it provides for its fan. Since climbing behind the wheel for IndyCar, Randy has taken steps to set IndyCar apart from its competitors and reunite it with its heritage, with its IndyCar name and statistics dating back to its first Indy 500 in 1911.