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IZOD IndyCar Series Tests New Chassis at Indianapolis

On April 4, nine IZOD IndyCar Series drivers took to Indianapolis Motor Speedway to test the new chassis and perfect it for the Indianapolis 500 in May.

Topping the charts was Andretti Autosport driver Marco Andretti with a time of 41.1664 seconds.

“On our own, it’s pretty similar (to the old car),” Andretti says. “But I think in traffic right now, their creating a lot turbulence and you lose a lot of grip so we’re trying to make that better.”

Kanaan would end up second on the charts, 0.04 seconds behind Andretti. Kanaan had tested the previous version of the new car last year at Indianapolis and Auto Club Speedway, however says this test was much better.

“It was more balanced than it was last year,” Kanaan says. “We worked on it, we talked about it. Some people criticized (the car) at the end of last year, but it’s a new car and we have to figure it out. Dallara did a great job, along with (IndyCar vice president of technology) Will Phillips and the people at IndyCar. It’s going in the right direction.”

Kanaan added that he went out of the pits flat right away, saying the aero kits are much better.

Teams can change the aero kits, but must utilize the new rear-wheel guards. These are both safety and they promote more downforce while creating less drag.

Beyond that, they could experiment with the rear-wing mainplane angle, underwing stakes and sidewall extentions and the wickers on the front- and rear-wing mainplanes.

“The configuration we have now is the one we intend to come back with in May,” Phillips says. “We need to look at what comes out of today and see if anything further needs to be changed. We’ll get some feedback from teams and drivers (regarding) what the car is like in traffic and what it’s like on their own.”

Kanaan and Andretti joined fellow Chevrolet powered drivers Ed Carpenter, JR Hildebrand and Helio Castroneves. Driving cars powered by Honda were Scott Dixon, Takuma Sato, Mike Conway and Justin Wilson. The group recorded a total of 495 laps on the day.

Helio Castroneves says the test was important for his team to continue to learn the car.

“Like anything else you have to develop it, and right now that’s what we’re doing,” the three-time Indianapolis 500 champion says. “Every time we are at this place it’s extremely important because you find out what to do and what not to do.”

The final package that has been put together by Dallara for teams to work with was tested in both scale model and full size testing in the wind tunnel in an effort with IndyCar and Dallara. They put the package together based on the testing done by Kanaan and Dario Franchitti.

Now it’s about perfecting that package to be the team to come out on top in May.

“Springs, ride heights … just trying to get the aero to the right attitude of these corners,” Wilson says. “It’s just a steep learning curve the first time out on the track. Once you’re behind the wheel, it feels similar to the old car through the corners.”

April 5, 2012
Kyle Busch is a Big Name But He Hasn’t Won the Big Races

Kyle Busch has won a lot of races. One hundred to be exact, across NASCAR’s top three series.

[media-credit name=”Brian Douglas” align=”alignright” width=”246″][/media-credit]Looking through that long list of wins though, there are accomplishments that are notably absent when it comes to the Sprint Cup Series. Of Busch’s 22 career NSCS wins, he has yet to win at any of the marquee events or win a championship. Friday at Indianapolis, the site of one of NASCAR’s biggest races, Busch said a driver doesn’t necessarily need wins at Indy or Daytona but it makes them look good.

“I don’t know that you need them, but certainly it helps the prestige of your career a little bit more,” said Busch about the big races.

“I feel like Daytona is number one, Indy is number two, Charlotte I would go with number three. I haven’t won at any of the big three yet. I’m certainly looking forward to the day that I can.”

Busch has come close in each of those races and says that he would like to win one of them sooner rather than later. For all the Richmond and Bristol races that he’s won, Busch has sat on the sidelines as others have celebrated what some consider the most important victories.

“It’s something that I’ve really looked towards trying to win those races since I was a young guy and even before I started here,” said Busch on Friday. “You watch guys like Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt and Rusty Wallace and those guys work so hard to win these races. It only comes around once a year so it takes you 365 more days before you get your next opportunity.”

Sunday will be Busch’s seventh attempt to win the Brickyard 400 where his best finish is fourth in 2007. Last year he finished eighth after spinning early and on Sunday he’ll start from the 29th position.

When it comes to Daytona and Charlotte, where he’s 0-6 and 0-8 respectively, Busch has been much closer to victory lane. On a few different occasions he’s had the car to beat in the Daytona 500 but fell victim to big wrecks or bad drafting. At Charlotte the problem hasn’t been the car but pit stops and rain.

At this point being close is better than being way off the mark. Considering that it took Dale Earnhardt 20 years to win the Daytona 500, Busch doesn’t have to get caught in the numbers or what races he has yet to win. His time will come.

Yet because he is said to have the talent of a Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson and hasn’t been able to match them, it’s been an interesting story. Gordon and Johnson have won all three of NASCAR’s premiere races as well as a championship. Busch’s former teammate, Tony Stewart, has won at the Brickyard and won a championship but hasn’t won the Daytona 500 or at Charlotte.

Busch though doesn’t believe that a Daytona win or championship defines a career. For instance his older brother Kurt has won both a championship and at Charlotte but hasn’t won the Daytona 500 at or Indy. He though, is a champion whereas Kyle only has a Nationwide Series title to his name.

That’s not too shabby but when his name is mentioned so are all the accolades and praise. It’s Kyle Busch that’s constantly being compared to the greats in the sport and the talks are all about how many races he could win.

When Busch’s career is complete he’ll have won plenty of races, but it has yet to be seen if he’ll be a champion of the big ones. Winning those races just sets a driver apart from the rest, it adds to the resumes and their value. Some would say it even puts them among the greats, where Busch hopes to be.

“Certainly there’s drivers that have won the Daytona 500 that characterize themselves as a Daytona 500 champion,” said Busch.

“Guys that have won a Brickyard 400 title clarify themselves the same way. Or a NASCAR championship and in this case, a Sprint Cup champion, they call themselves a champion. I’ve got a Nationwide Series championship and obviously, that’s about all I’ve got to my credit right now. One day I would like to have all of those.”

July 30, 2011
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Finds Himself Needing A Touch Of Lady Luck These Next Three Races

With seven races remaining until the start of the 2011 chase for the Sprint Cup Championship, it’s beginning to look like déjà vu once again for NASCAR’s most popular driver, and time has been slowly creeping on him. No longer is Hendrick Motorsports driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. comfortably sitting within the top-10 in points, instead he finds himself fighting to hold on to the final position until the green flag waves in Chicago to start the chase.

[media-credit name=”Greg Author” align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]A mere seven points is the lifeline between another disappointing season, or in his case a possible major fail when you look back to five races ago when he was on top of the world sitting third in the point standings. The 51 point lead was enough to keep his fans planning ahead for a possible return to the post season party, which he hasn’t been a part of since 2008.

The roller coaster ride that Earnhardt has endured while driving for one of NASCAR’s most successful organizations, is enough to give his legion of fans an ulcer the size of the heart this 36 year-old Kannapolis, North Carolina native drives with. Fan loyalty, along with anyone else who has taken an interest trying to dissect what is happening with Earnhardt, have come up with some pretty good explanations as to why he is having so much trouble trying to get win No. 19 along with a possible championship.

There will always be those who will either show some compassion for what he is going through, and just like a double edged sword where the sharpest edge is the one that does the most damage, which comes in the form of the harsh comments from the nay-sayers. It’s not hard to look around and see that Earnhardt is NASCAR’s most popular driver, but the only advantage with that accolade was the fact he got a free entry into this season’s all-star race.

Other than that it hasn’t helped him to add to his win column, or more importantly get the consistency back he had while driving in the early years for Dale Earnhardt Inc. A lot has changed since Earnhardt came over to HMS, along with the excuses why this third generation driver can’t put together a solid season and prove that he is legitimate championship contender.

In reality there is no magic wand that can be waved over his team, and sugar coating is no longer an option, as well as the hypothetical scenarios that are talked about each time Earnhardt finishes outside the top-10. Hendrick Motorsports has given Earnhardt the ingredients he needs to succeed in the sports top tier series, and how many drivers in the sport today have gone through three crew chiefs in the past four seasons to try and help improve their driver?

Possibly the only ingredient missing that Hendrick cannot give him is luck, and now is the time Earnhardt needs to borrow the lucky horseshoe from his teammate Jimmie Johnson that Kevin Harvick so reluctantly said he has hiding where the sun doesn’t shine. Heading into Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, Earnhardt will need as much help as he can get whether it be in the form of a horseshoe, or asking lady luck to shower him with a special blessing.

Either way something good needs to come within reach of the team in order to keep him from falling outside the top-10, and a possible chase berth, which could go a long way in putting into perspective the success he had earlier in the season. “We’ve got good cars. We’ve got a really really good team. We should be running better than we have been the last couple of week and we know it. We are just going to try and work really hard to get back where we were earlier in the season. It shouldn’t be that difficult,” Earnhardt said at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

With only two top-10 finishes, and a best finish of sixth in 2006 in 11 starts, crew chief Steve Letarte has his work cut-out if he expects to keep his driver focused enough to get past these next three races. “Dale (Earnhardt Jr.) runs well there, but the big thing we need to do is qualify better. The track is very, very hard to pass at.,” Letarte said during this week’s pre-race media release.

Letarte also added that, “Hopefully the tire will hold on. Pit strategy will be important. Indy is kind of like Daytona (Fla.) and Talladega (Ala.).” If you aren’t fast when you come off the truck, it’s very frustrating. It’s hard to find speed there. So we are trying to find some speed and make sure we are fast. We need to qualify well and start towards the front of the pack.”

Without being the breaker of bad news, stats or past performances don’t lie, and the next three races are crucial if Earnhardt expects to regain the momentum he had before his last five finishes of 21st, 41st, 19th, 30th, and 15th almost knocked him out of the top-10 in points. In 23 starts at Pocono, Earnhardt only has five top-five, and seven top-10 finishes, and Watkins Glen is no better with two top-five, and three top-10 finishes in 11 starts.

One race at a time and a touch from Lady luck could bring the Nation to their feet, and give them the hope they have been waiting for since his last chase appearance three seasons ago.

July 28, 2011
NASCAR and The Brickyard; A Perfect Match

When stock cars first graced the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1992 for a Goodyear tire test, the hallowed grounds of the speedway were rocked with a sound never heard before. Drivers were excited as were crews, fans and dignitaries from the speedway and NASCAR alike. Every driver wanted to be able to say, “I was the first driver to turn cross the yard of bricks, in a stock car!”

[media-credit id=22 align=”alignright” width=”225″][/media-credit]The drivers were sent out onto the speedway in numerical order, and since there was no number one car, Rusty Wallace in his number two Penske Pontiac was the first car to hit the speedway. Thinking that the warm up lap was going to be an easy cruise, Wallace never expected to see a car catching him. “I looked up in my mirror and saw this black car getting closer” Wallace said. That car was none other than the late Dale Earnhardt Sr.

Earnhardt passed Wallace down the front stretch and right then and there, is where the stock car competitiveness began at Indianapolis.

In 1994, NASCAR graced the grounds once again, but only this time, there was a race taking place. On Saturday August 6, 1994, the tradition began with the Inaugural Brickyard 400. The race was filled with a record number of lead changes for the speedway at the time, and some of the most side by side battles at the speedway. The race was won by none other than a driver that called Indiana his home, Jeff Gordon.

While the win was special for Gordon, drivers like Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Tony Stewart, had some extra incentive placed on winning at the Brickyard.

Earnhardt, a seven time cup series champion, wanted nothing more than to be the first driver to roll into victory lane at Indianapolis in NASCAR. After a lap two pounding of the turn four wall, Earnhardt wanted to become the first “man” to win the Brickyard 400. When the second annual Brickyard 400 finally got underway, Earnhardt began to show what kind of driver he really ways. After a late race pit stop, then leader of the race, Rusty Wallace, had troubles on pit road due to cars in front of him and multiple scares with loose tires. Wallace tried desperately to get out first, but when he got to the backstretch, that black car that passed him back in 1992, was right there again, and just like that time, he blew right passed him.
Dale went on to claim the victory indeed becoming the first “man” to win the Brickyard 400.

Growing up in Indiana, Tony Stewart had always dreamed of winning the Indianapolis 500 in an Indy Car. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he would be racing at the Brickyard in a stock car. Stewart, who was one of the member of the Indy Car world who did not like stock cars coming to Indy, was in the middle of a successful Indy Car career when he was signed by Joe Gibbs Racing for 1999. Always being one of the favorites to win, Stewart placed even more pressure on himself. In 2005, that dream was finally a reality after holding off Kasey Kahne in a late race shootout to win his first Brickyard 400. Taking in the moment buy hanging on the fence, and grabbing a Coke from his family, Stewart had finally lived his lifelong dream of winning at the Brickyard.

Many other drivers have graced the checkered floor of victory lane in the Brickyard 400. Names such as; Elliott, Harvick, Jarrett, Johnson, Labonte and McMurray. Indianapolis is a place where the cream rise to the top more than any other racetrack on the NASCAR circuit. You cannot fluke your way into a good run here.

You must put the whole package together to be among the greats, as an Indianapolis winner.

With the vast amount of history the speedway brings, and how far the sport of NASCAR has come in just over sixty years, the two are a perfect match for each other. They both show the fruits and labors of the racing world over the years better than maybe any other combination out there.

While the racing may not be stellar by any standards, the element of winning at Indy is probably the most difficult. History takes center stage when you come to the Brickyard.

July 25, 2011
Sean Downes, NASCAR Newest Salesman, ‘Blown Away’ by the Sport

Growing up and living in the northeast, where franchises like the Yankees, Knicks and Rangers reign, Sean Downes, NASCAR’s newly appointed Managing Director, Business Development, candidly admits that stock car racing was not on his sports radar.

Yet, after attending his first race at Indy, he was ‘blown away’ by the sport.

[media-credit name=”NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”205″][/media-credit]“I was working for an agency and we had a client, The History Channel, who asked me to launch a new TV show using NASCAR,” Downes said. “Me, not knowing anything about the sport at the time, discouraged them.”

“So, they said ‘Sean, if you want this business, you’re going to do a NASCAR deal.’

“So, I did my due diligence and we did a three race deal with one of the race teams,” Downes continued. “And as a part of the deal, they negotiated a great rate for us and they said ‘Sean, the only thing we ask is that you come to a race.’

“In my mind there was no way I was going to one of those races because I simply, candidly had no interest,” Downes said. “So, the first race came along and we were the primary sponsor on one of the cars.”

“They called me up and said ‘Sean, are you coming to the race?’ Downes continued. “This was June 2005 and I told them that my son was about to be born and I couldn’t leave my wife in case she had the baby.”

“The second race came and it was July and they asked again if I was coming down from the race,” Downes said. “I told them again that my wife just had our second baby and I can’t leave her.”

“Then the third race came and it was August and they finally said ‘Sean, you are coming to the race,’ Downes continued. “This was at the Brickyard.”

“And from the moment I stepped onto the infield, I was simply blown away.”

“From the accessibility of the drivers, the relationships with the race team we had developed, the fans, the sensory overload, the smell of the gas, the roar of the engines and the tires screeching,” Downes said. “I was hooked.”

“And then I took a step back and looked at the business opportunities, as well as the role of corporate America in supporting this sport, and I knew I had to get involved,” Downes continued. “And within two months, I was working at NASCAR.”

Downes worked for the sanctioning body from 2005 to 2009, focusing on developing the official partners of NASCAR.

“I was there with NASCAR for three and a half years as Director of Partnership Marketing,” Downes said. “I was helping the official partners fulfill their contracts, leverage the relationship with the sanctioning body, and keeping a smile on their faces on a day to day basis.”

Although Downes left NASCAR for a stint at the Madison Square Garden, he stuck with the sport and continued his passion. And he kept up with his contacts in the sport he had come to love.

“I started talking to NASCAR this past May about a new role overseeing the sales effort here with a more integrated look at the sport and the opportunities in it,” Downes said. “So, I’m going from an account management role to out selling new business and new partnerships, bringing new official partners into the sport.”

“It’s our job and our duty to look at new categories to find companies that want to engage a very loyal fan base.”

Downes has two priorities for growth, focusing on companies involved in green industries and those involved in new technology.

“Green is going to be a huge initiative for us,” Downes said. “We’re also looking at technology and the different opportunities in working with best in breed technology companies.”

“So, we’re going to have a person stationed in California to cultivate relationships with the top companies in Silicon Valley.”

In this tough economy, Downes knows he has his work cut out for him, especially being based out of NASCAR’s New York City office. Because of that, he has a variety of strategies for making inroads with new potential partners.

“It’s a combination of cold calling and creating awareness and educating people,” Downes said. “NASCAR is not a sport in the northeast that is known.”

“So, it’s sitting with top marketers to educate them about the sport and the possibilities and opportunities there,” Downes continued. “But it’s also leveraging relationships we have in the industry.”

“Sports marketing companies are critical to our success,” Downes said. “We have an industry marketing team that helps the teams and the tracks look for partners but at the same time, when we’re talking to companies we’re also talking with them about a fully integrated activation program.”

But most important, when Downes is now asked if he is headed to the race track, he answers only in the affirmative.

“I’m headed to the Brickyard next race weekend,” Downes said.

July 24, 2011
Indianapolis 500: Dixon Leads Final Practice, Briscoe Wins Pit Stop Competition

On Miller Lite Carb Day, Scott Dixon led the final practice session with a quick lap of 225.474mph.

“It’s more of just a systems check,” Dixon said, who will start second on Sunday. “The car’s obviously been in a million pieces since we last drove them. It’s just to make sure they’re all functioning. We came in and did a few pit stops. Because of the lack of on-track time that we’ve had, we made a few changes. We tried some dampers, aero downforce levels, things like that. It’s obviously very cold and probably not very close or in line with what we’re going to run in on Sunday. All in all, it was pretty decent. The car was good. There was loads of traffic. There was lots of action going on out there with people speeding up and slowing down. It was pretty good for both Target cars.”

Pole Sitter Alex Tagliani was second on the speed charts at a speed of 224.739mph for Sam Schmidt Motorsports.

“Yeah, it was an amazing week that we had last week,” Tagliani said. “We’re really fortunate that we rolled the car off the trailer fast. The team has done a great job to fine-tune it. Every day we were out there, and we were strong. So it’s been a pleasure for me to drive a very competitive car. Today it was nice to be back on track. Obviously, we have a very different car that we’re going to drive in the race. And I feel the car is very racey. I love it in traffic. It got some consistency out of the car on the older tires. So I don’t know. It seems to me to be unreal and too good to be true sometimes. But I want to think that we deserve it. We did everything better than everyone else, and hopefully it will continue. All winter long, the team fine-tuned the car. They just put their love into it, brought it back this year. Same car, same aerodynamic package, same track, and the car did better. So Penske and Ganassi have done that 10 years in a row. They have done the particular program that we have done for one race 10 years in row: Have a good car and keep improving it every year. And we’re trying to close the gap in a year and a half. It’s not an easy task.”

With the single car operation, Tagliani has been turning a lot of heads, including Dixon’s.

“Tag has done a hell of a job this month,” Dixon said. “It’s good to see that it’s been working so well. You know, you’re never going to know until you get to the race. He’s a good friend, and I’m definitely proud to see what he’s achieved, obviously, with a start-up team and to be able to mix it up with the big teams.”

Tagliani says when he leads the first lap in the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 Sunday, it will mean a lot.

“I’ve been very appreciative of what’s happened to me as a driver,” Tagliani said. “But what we don’t want to forget is that we have the chance to participate in a historical event. And to just have the chance to qualify in it is already a big thing. Leading the field, I think it’s going to be something I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”

Meanwhile, Dixon’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Dario Franchitti was third at a speed of 224.658mph.

“We can always learn something from today,” he said. “It will be a lot different on Sunday. We think we know how to turn the car around for those conditions. It will be a tough race. I think there is less grip than last year, and that’s going to make it really interesting. The slower speed (start and restarts) will be better. We may be going 190 into the first turn on the start. Turn 2 will be Turn 1 speed from years past. Restarts, I still don’t agree with side-by-side, I think we’re just asking for a bit of marbles. Whatever happens will be interesting, it will be slick and interesting. Dixie (Scott Dixon) looks strong. He’s going to be tough. We’re pretty strong, but just like the month I had last year, he (Dixon) has been on a rail all month. I followed (Alex) Tagliani, and he looks pretty average in traffic. But when he gets off the corner, he really goes. He will be plenty tough to beat. There are a bunch of people you just know who will be there (challenging for the win). (Dan) Wheldon will contend, the Penske cars will be strong, and there will be others. It’s wide open.”

Victor Meira was fourth at a speed of 224.480mph with Dan Wheldon rounding out the top five at 224.439mph.

Meanwhile, Ryan Briscoe’s No. 6 IZOD Team Penske team won the IZOD Indy 500 Pit Stop Competition as they defeated Dario Franchitti’s Target Chip Ganassi Racing team in the final round. His pit crew received a $50,000 first prize. Penske Racing has now won the competition a record 13 times, including the last six times in a row, though marks the first for Ryan Briscoe.

“I think what you saw now is a taste of what these guys are going to be doing for me in the race, and it’s so important,” Briscoe said. “I put so much pride in their pit stops, and I’m just lucky to have the best guys in pit lane. Helio has definitely been the favorite over the past few years, but I’ve got this guy (Matt) and I was never looking at who was beside me. We were really consistent, and after the first one we just wanted to keep repeating. They did it all. The Penske pride in the competition goes back a ways, so we don’t want to show up here and not be in the competition.”

Meanwhile for chief mechanic Matt Jonsson, it marks his second win as he led Sam Hornish Jr.’s team in 2005.

“This win means a lot,” he said. “It adds confidence for Sunday, of course, and we’re planning on doing the same thing on Sunday and trying to move up through the field. We win as a team and lose as a team, and that’s our job on Sunday, to try to move up the field. Ryan came in on a consistent speed, stopped right on his marks. That’s key for us. We don’t have to adjust; we just do the same thing every time. If everyone stays calm and collected, that’s the way it turns out to be: consistent.”

The winner of the competition has gone on to win the Indianapolis 500 six times, most recently with Team Penske’s Helio Castroneves in 2009.

May 28, 2011
Josef Newgarden Wins Firestone Freedom 100, Continuing Dream Weekend for SSM

If winning the pole for the Indianapolis 500 and Firestone Freedom 100 wasn’t enough for Sam Schmidt Motorsports, Josef Newgarden brought home the victory in today’s Firestone Freedom 100 for the team.

“It’s an unbelievable achievement for the team,” Newgarden said after his second win of the season. “I’m so grateful, and I have to thank Esteban because he helped me the whole race. It’s not really the way I wanted to win it, but I’ll take it.”

The Nashville, Tenn. native is the first American to win the race since Ed Carpenter won the inaugural race in 2003.

“The team was able to make me quick and I got up to speed right away,” Newgarden added. “This is the biggest win I think I have ever had. To win the Firestone Freedom 100 in front of this crowd at this famous racetrack is incredible. This has been a really fun experience trying to come in and absorb all of the information that my team has to offer.”

The 40-lap Firestone Indy Lights race finished under caution after a crash on lap 34 with a 1-2 for SSM as it was his teammate Esteban Guerrieri in second. This is the first 1-2 by teammates in race’s history as they have won six of the nine races so far this year now.

“It was fun for a while and a bit slow the rest of the race,” Guerrieri said. “It was a lot of yellows, we didn’t expect so many, but I’m happy to win second of course. What we were trying to do was work with my teammate, Joseph, to try to pull away and make the gap larger toward third. Then we could finish the race like me and him to race against each other, but unfortunately all the guys crashed.”

Victor Garcia finished third, followed by Stefan Wilson and pole sitter Bryan Clauson.

“I’m pretty happy to all my crew and I have to thank all of them because although we haven’t had a normal weekend it has been really good and we finished third,” Garcia said. “I think we could have won because we had what it takes to win, but we didn’t have the laps to do it.”

“I’m pretty disappointed, really,” Wilson said. “I can’t believe that they had us driving around under the caution for so many laps. They (Anders Krohn and Jorge Goncalvez) were in bad shape. It looked like a really bad accident. There was debris everywhere. In my opinion, they should have red-flagged it and taken time to clean the track. Instead, we just drove around wasting time. The fans didn’t come out here to watch a parade of cars go around on the yellow flag. They wanted to see a race, and we never got to do it. Traditionally, this race has been won in the last 10 laps. I was biding my time, looking after my tires, and mine were looking the best of anyone out here. It was shaping up to be a good finish. If we had had a clear race and we weren’t just driving around under caution, we might have won it.”

“I fell back early there and really didn’t really do my job there at the beginning,” Clauson said. “I had a hard time figuring it out for a little while. I didn’t have enough green flag laps to make up for those mistakes early on. All the guys on the car did a great job; I had a great race car. I made a lot of moves on the high line, but it just wasn’t enough. It was a whole new ball game, a lot different than anything I’ve ever done. I could have done a little bit better, but all in all it was a great day.”

Clauson, who won the USAC National Driver’s Championship last year, started on the pole for his first ever Indy Lights Series race virtue of points after qualifying was rained out.

“This is huge,” he said. “It’s a whole new experience for me, from the starts to the restarts, to the draft, shifting in the middle of a race – that’s unheard of for me. It was a lot wilder than I expected, but it was a lot of fun.”

The caution came out on lap 34 after Jorge Goncalvez and Andres Krohn both wrecked simultaneously. While running three-wide, Krohn spun and made contact with the outside wall.

“We got a big run behind the draft,” Clauson said of the accident. “It looked like the 9 car got low. Everybody just ran out of room. We were going for it.”

“It was one of those races where absolutely everything happened,” Krohn said. “We were so fast, and we took the lead. It was so easy running it up there. Then a caution came out, and I just went to go to power and the rear slide around on me. After that point, we really didn’t have the speed because our tires were flat-spotted. Luckily another caution came out and we pitted for new tires, and then we were super, super quick. I think by the time our big crash happened we were up to fourth. It would have been the easiest thing to at least be on the podium or potentially win the race. I’m so disappointed for the guys at Belardi Auto Racing because we really had the fastest car today. We could run up, down low; it didn’t matter. We were so fast. It’s just a shame for the guys at Liberty Engineering and Logitrans that we couldn’t bring it home today. At the same time, I think we’ve shown people where our speed is, so hopefully we can come back next year and dominate this race.”

At the same time, Goncalvez’s car spun and made right-side contact with the SAFER Barrier, followed by heavy contact with he inside wall. Goncalvez was transported to IU Health Methodist Hospital for evaluation and was released about five hours year. Krohn, meanwhile, was checked and cleared at the IU Health Emergency Care Center.

“I’m so disappointed for the guys as Belardi Auto Racing because we really had the fastest car today,” Krohn said. “It would have been the easiest thing to at least be on the podium or potentially win the race. We could run up, down low; it didn’t matter. At the same time I think we’ve shown people where our speed is so hopefully we can come back next year and dominate this race.”

Meanwhile, history was made today as Chase Austin became the first African-American to compete in the Indy Lights Series.

“It was pretty cool,” Austin said after his ninth place finish. “We had little issues. The gearing was a little off, so I couldn’t really pass anybody by myself. The only way I’d get to pass anybody is when they’d check up in the corner. I just kind of had to be more ballsy than they were, which worked out for the most part. The car started going away a little bit in the end before we took that right rear tire. And just the cautions hurt us a lot on the restarts. But besides that, I have to thank American Honda, because without them we wouldn’t be here; Chris Miles and Willy T. for putting me in the car.”

With the win, Newgarden took over the championship lead with 151 points, while Guerrieri has 125 and Wilson has 121.

May 28, 2011
Bryan Clauson Wins Firestone Freedom 100 Pole as Qualifying is Rained Out

2010 USAC National Drivers Championship title holder Bryan Clauson may be making his first ever Firestone Indy Lights start, but the pressure will be on as he will start pole.

Clauson won the Sonoco Pole Award and its $5,000 prize for tomorrow’s Firestone Freedom 100 as a result of qualifying being rained out and the starting grid being set by points. The 21-year old from Noblesville, Indiana won the pole as the No. 77 Mazda Road to Indy car sat first in points, thanks to Conor Daly, who drove the first three events of the year.

“We didn’t get to qualify and get the pole but that’s part of being a part of a great team and having great teammates like Conor Daly to put us up front,” Clauson said. “Starting from the front kind of heightens your expectations a little bit. Now you don’t have to work traffic. I’ve got a couple teammates in the lead pack. We watched a lot of race tape with Wade (Cunningham) and saw how teammates can make things happen. Obviously, I want to win but the big key is being there at the end. The first few laps are going to be key.”

Clauson has only been able to turn eight laps on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway due to the rain-shortened practice this weekend, though did test on May 13th to prepare for the event.

“We felt a lot better after practice today than we did after our test earlier,” Clauson said. “We worked really hard on the test day and never quite got it right. The guys brought back a great race car for us. We didn’t get to qualify and get the pole, but that’s part of being a part of a great team and having great teammates like Conor Daly to put us up front. Starting from the front kind of heightens your expectations a little bit. Now you don’t have to work traffic. I’ve got a couple teammates in the lead pack. We watched a lot of race tape with Wade (Cunningham) and saw how teammates can make things happen. Obviously, I want to win, but the big key is being there at the end. The first few laps are going to be key.”

While competiting in the Firestone Freedom 100 during the afternoon, Clauson will also be running the Hoosier Hundred that night.

“It’s exciting,” he said. “They are both prestigious races in the state of Indiana. I look at the Hoosier Hundred as the second most prestigious race in Indiana after the Indy 500. It’s a race that has a lot of history, and a lot of dirt track heroes ran that race and were winners there. Doing both the Freedom 100 and the Hoosier Hundred in the same night is going to be cool. I think it’s great that the Speedway and the Fairgrounds have built a ‘BC’s Bandwagon’ ticket package around it. It’s an added bonus for an already-special day in my career.”

His Sam Schmidt Motorsports teammate Josef Newgarden will line up on the front row beside him as this continues a successful couple of weeks at Indianapolis for Sam Schmidst as he won the pole for the Indianapolis 500 last weekend with driver Alex Tagliani.

“I think we’re going to be in a strong position tomorrow, but we really wanted to qualify,” Newgarden said. “I think everyone wanted a shot at the pole and we didn’t get that opportunity. We proved in testing that we had a strong car. Sam Schmidt Motorsports is a good Indy Lights team and they have a lot of history in the series and a lot of experience and knowledge to draw from. The (IZOD) IndyCar Series side did a phenomenal job last weekend, and I’m confident that we can handle the job on our end.”

Sam Schmidt Motorsports’ success reins no surprise as they’ve enlisted driver coaching help from former Indy Lights champion Alex Lloyd and Wade Cunningham to serve as driver coaches to help their young drivers.

“Now that I’m racing ovals (for Dale Coyne), I can’t spend as much time with him as I’d like, but today is a good day since we have no track activity (for IZOD IndyCar Series.)” Loyd said. “I’m here to give them tips and tricks of the trade of racing at Indianapolis, how the race goes down, how to deal with traffic, things like that. The guys all know how to drive a race car. You don’t have to teach them how to drive. It’s more about remembering the experiences you had and trying to relate it to the nuances they are experiencing on the track.”

Andretti Autorsport’s Stefan Wilson and Team Moore Racing’s Victor Garcia will start third and fourth. Sam Schmidt Motorsports’ Esteban Guerrieri and O2 Racing Technology’s Peter Demsey wil make up the third row.

The race is set to be 40-laps in length tomorrow and will be shown on VERSUS at 12:30pm EST. It can also be listened to through the IMS Radio Network broadcast on indycar.com, Sirius 212 and XM 94.

Going into the event, teams only got 10 minutes of practice before the rains fell. Wilson led the brief practice sesson, turning a lap at more than 189mph.

“Kind of mixed feelings about how today went,” Wilson said. “Happy to be starting P3, but we were pretty quick on the test day, and I felt we had a decent chance to start on the front row and a shot at battling for the pole. But at the same time, I am happy to be starting at the sharp end of the grid.”

Wilson was followed in practice by Duarte Ferreira, Newgarden, Clauson and James Winslow.

Before the event begins tomorrow, teams will be given a 30-minute practice at 9 a.m.

May 27, 2011