INDYCAR News for the Month of April 2022

Ilott quickest in Final Practice at Barber – Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Callum Ilott was quickest in Final Practice for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park with a lap of 1:07.0906. The full Top 5 was Ilott, Palou, Ericsson, Dixon, and Rossi. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/30/2022)

Lundqvist takes Lights pole at Barber – HMD Motorsports with Dale Coyne Racing’s Linus Lundqvist’s lap of 1:12.5713 earned the pole in Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires qualifying at Barber Motorsports Park. The full Top 5 was Lundqvist, Pedersen, Robb, Rasmussen, and McElrea. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/30/2022)

VeeKay earns pole at Barber – Ed Carpenter Racing’s Rinus VeeKay’s lap of 1:06.2507 in Firestone Fast 6 qualifying earned him the pole for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park. The Firestone Fast 6 order was VeeKay, O’Ward, Palou, McLaughlin, Rossi, and Rosenqvist. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/30/2022)

Frost fastest again in Lights Practice 2 at Barber – HMD Motorsports with Dale Coyne Racing’s Danial Frost was fastest again in Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires Practice 2 at Barber Motorsports Park with a lap of 1:12.3734. The full Top 5 was Frost, Pedersen, Lundqvist, Robb, and Rasmussen. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/30/2022)

VeeKay leads Practice 2 at Barber – Ed Carpenter Racing’s Rinus VeeKay’s lap of 1:05.9264 led Practice 2 for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park. The full Top 5 was VeeKay, O’Ward, Herta, McLaughlin, and Grosjean. Rossi had a major incident in the session and his Andretti Autosport team will have major work to do to be ready for qualifying later. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/30/2022)

Herta tops the charts in Practice 1 at Barber – Andretti Autosport’s Colton Herta topped the charts in Practice 1 for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park with a lap of 1:06.5149. The full Top 5 was Herta, Palou, Rossi, Grosjean, and McLaughlin. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/29/2022)

Frost fastest in Lights Practice 1 at Barber – HMD Motorsports with Dale Coyne Racing’s Danial Frost was fastest in Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires Practice 1 at Barber Motorsports Park with a lap of 1:12.6511. The full Top 5 was Frost, Rasmussen, Lundqvist, Pedersen, and McElrea. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/29/2022)

OpenWheel.com’s Barber preview – OpenWheel.com’s preview of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES 2022 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama is available at the link. – OpenWheel.com – (4/29/2022)

Team Penske unveils new No. 3 Gallagher livery – “Gallagher, a global insurance brokerage, risk management and consulting services firm, today announced a new, multi-year partnership with Penske Entertainment and Team Penske…Gallagher will serve as the primary partner on the No. 3 Gallagher Dallara/Chevrolet driven by defending NTT INDYCAR SERIES Rookie of the Year, Scott McLaughlin for two events – Detroit on June 5 and during the Gallagher Grand Prix in Indianapolis in July.” View the livery on our No. 3 livery page here. Full release at the link. – Team Penske – (4/29/2022)

Gallagher and Penske Entertainment announce partnership – “Gallagher, a global insurance brokerage, risk management and consulting services firm, today announced a new, multiyear partnership with Penske Entertainment, which will span across various assets within the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and branding within the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The partnership includes entitlement sponsorship of the Gallagher Grand Prix NTT INDYCAR SERIES event on Saturday, July 30, part of the historic Brickyard tripleheader road racing weekend on NBC that includes races for the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series. In addition, Gallagher will sponsor a Team Penske entry at two upcoming NTT INDYCAR SERIES events.” Full release at the link. – IMS – (4/29/2022)

Barber entry list – The official INDYCAR entry list for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES 2022 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park is available at the link. – INDYCAR – (4/29/2022)

Report: 33rd Indy 500 entry set to be announced – RACER’s Marshall Pruett reports Cusick Motorsports and DragonSpeed have worked out a deal for a Chevy-powered entry to be driven by Stefan Wilson for the 106th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. Full story at the link. – RACER – (4/28/2022)

RACER Q&A 4/27/2022 – RACER’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (4/27/2022)

Trackside podcast 4/26/2022 – 107.5 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 4/26/2022 is a great listen as always. – 107.5 The Fan – (4/27/2022)

Indy 500 qualifying procedure revisions announced – “The most pressure-filled four laps in racing have become even more challenging for those looking to qualify well and win the pole position for the 106th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. INDYCAR officials have announced adjustments to PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying on Saturday, May 21 and Sunday, May 22, which sets the field for “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” on Sunday, May 29 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway…After Day One of qualifying from noon-5:50 p.m. (ET) Saturday, May 21, Day Two will include two rounds of qualification attempts to decide the first four rows, including pole position. Starting in reverse order of speeds based on Day One, each of the top 12 drivers will have a guaranteed attempt to post a traditional four-lap qualifying time starting at 4 p.m. The fastest six will advance to the Firestone Fast Six at 5:10 p.m. to determine positions one through six and compete for the NTT P1 Award for pole. The slowest six will fill out starting positions seven through 12 according to their recorded time. In the Firestone Fast Six, each entrant is again guaranteed one attempt and will qualify in reverse order based on their Top 12 qualification results. The fastest wins pole position, which includes a $100,000 prize, with the remaining five drivers filling out the remainder of the first two rows.” View a graphic summarizing the changes here. Full release at the link. – IMS – (4/26/2022)

Daly to serve as driver analyst for 3 SRX races on CBS – “CBS Sports has unveiled its all-star announce team for the 2022 Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) season. Coming off a strong inaugural season, SRX will return for six consecutive Saturday nights in primetime beginning Saturday, June 18 (8:00 PM, ET) on the CBS Television Network and streaming live on Paramount+…Conor Daly will make his SRX debut and call three races as a driver analyst – Five Flags Speedway on June 18, South Boston Speedway on June 25 and Nashville Fairgrounds on July 9.” Full release at the link. – CBS Sports – (4/26/2022)

RLL and High Rock Vodka announce partnership and new livery for No. 15 – “High Rock Vodka and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) today announced an expansive strategic partnership making High Rock the Official Celebratory Partner of RLL and associate sponsor for Graham Rahal throughout the 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. High Rock Vodka will serve as primary sponsor for Rahal’s No. 15 Honda for Race 1 of the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Weekend doubleheader at Iowa Speedway on July 23. In addition, High Rock branding will adorn the No. 15 engine cover at the 106th running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 29. High Rock branding will also appear as an associate sponsor on Rahal’s driver suit throughout the season.” View the livery on our No. 15 livery page here. Full release at the link. – RLL – (4/26/2022)

Andretti and Enevate partner for new livery for No. 28 at Barber – “Andretti Autosport welcomes Enevate to its partnership portfolio for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. Enevate, a pioneering battery innovation company featuring extremely fast charge and high energy density battery technologies for electric vehicles (EVs) and other markets, will be featured on the No. 28 Enevate/DHL Honda driven by Romain Grosjean.” View the livery on our No. 28 livery page here. Full release at the link. – Andretti Autosport – (4/26/2022)

Team Penske announces new partnership and livery for No. 3 at Mid-Ohio – “Team Penske will renew its partnership with EnerSys® (NYSE: ENS), the global leader in stored energy solutions for industrial applications, for the 2022 season…The EnerSys high-performance battery brand, Odyssey® battery, will be featured as a primary partner for several races this season on the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet driven by 2021 INDYCAR SERIES Rookie of the Year, Scott McLaughlin. The No. 3 ODYSSEY® Chevrolet will make its 2022 debut during the series race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Sunday, July 3.” View the livery on our No. 3 livery page here. Full release at the link. – Team Penske – (4/26/2022)

INDYCAR announces environmental initiatives including new Firestone tire – “Penske Entertainment announced a robust and innovative lineup of environmental impact initiatives this afternoon, aiming to dramatically reduce the carbon footprint for this year’s Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge and significantly boost sustainability efforts within the sport of INDYCAR. These steps are the latest and most comprehensive elements of a long-term strategy for the organization that has been developed over the last two years…The Firestone Firehawk guayule race tire will be used for the first-time during Miller Lite Carb Day’s INDYCAR Pit Stop Challenge and will make its competition debut as the alternate race tire in August at the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix. It is partially composed of a new sustainable natural rubber derived from the guayule shrub, which requires less reharvesting than traditional sources of rubber.” Full release at the link. – INDYCAR – (4/22/2022)

OpenWheel.com’s Indy 500 Open Test livery feature – OpenWheel.com’s livery feature with photos of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES 2022 Indy 500 Open Test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana is available at the link. – OpenWheel.com – (4/22/2022)

Newgarden posts fastest lap of Day 2 of Indy 500 testing – Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden’s lap at 229.519mph topped the charts on Day 2 of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Indy 500 Open Test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Top 5 was Newgarden, Sato, Kanaan, Dixon, and McLaughlin. Rinus VeeKay was fastest on the No Tow Report at 221.314mph. Full session results here. – INDYCAR – (4/21/2022)

Dixon tops Day 1 of Indy 500 testing after early finish due for a track evaluation – Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon’s lap at 227.187mph was the fastest time of Day 1 of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Indy 500 Open Test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Pit road exit incidents for Castroneves and Power/Herta after an early non-contact spin by Rossi led to the session being ended early to evaluate track conditions at pit exit. Full results at the link and results from the final all cars session here. – INDYCAR – (4/20/2022)

Ganassi reveals No. 1 car and American Legion sponsorship for TK – The American Legion livery for Chip Ganassi Racing’s No. 1 entry for Tony Kanaan to be driven in the 106th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race was revealed on Wednesday. View the livery on our No. 1 livery page here. – American Legion – (4/20/2022)

DHL “Delivered with Pride” livery returns to Andretti No. 28 – “The Andretti Autosport No. 28 DHL Delivered with Pride livery returns to the track, this time at the 106th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge with Romain Grosjean behind the wheel. The livery, which showcases a memorable DHL Pride rainbow logo, carries a message of diversity, equity and inclusion, helping to promote a sense of belonging both inside and out of the workplace.” View the livery on our No. 28 livery page here. Full release at the link. – Andretti Autosport – (4/20/2022)

RACER Q&A 4/20/2022 – RACER’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (4/20/2022)

Trackside podcast 4/19/2022 – 107.5 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 4/19/2022 is a great listen as always. – 107.5 The Fan – (4/20/2022)

Indy 500 Open Test details for 4/20 & 4/21 – “Wednesday’s action is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. (ET) with veteran drivers on the track for a two-hour session. At 1 p.m., drivers required to complete the standard Rookie Orientation Program or a refresher session can practice until 3 p.m. From 3-6 p.m., all eligible drivers may practice. Thursday’s session is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for all eligible drivers. The viewing mounds adjacent to the IMS Museum will be open to the public at no charge. All 13 hours of track action can be viewed live in the U.S. on Peacock Premium, NBC’s live streaming service. International fans can view the test on IndyCar Live!” Full release at the link. – INDYCAR – (4/19/2022)

Paretta Autosport partners with ECR for three races in ’22 – “Team Principal Beth Paretta, announced today at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that Paretta Autosport will return to the NTT INDYCAR Series to campaign in multiple races in 2022…Along with the KiwiCo and Chevrolet partnerships, Paretta has entered into a new technical partnership with Ed Carpenter Racing. Three-time Indy 500 Pole-sitter and team owner Ed Carpenter will supply a car and several crew members to augment the returning members of last year’s Indy 500 Paretta Autosport team…While Beth Paretta and Simona De Silvestro will be in attendance at the 2022 Indianapolis 500 and the Detroit Grand Prix, the team will make their 2022 racing debut at the historic Road America circuit on June 12, 2022. The team is also confirmed to compete at Mid-Ohio Sportscar Course on July 3, 2022 and the streets of Nashville on August 7, 2022.” Full release at the link. – Paretta Autosport – (4/19/2022)

AMSP unveils three new UNDEFEATED specialty liveries for the Indy 500 – “For the second consecutive year, Arrow McLaren SP and Vuse will partner with global sportswear brand UNDEFEATED, to collaborate on design and inspiration across the team for this year’s 106th Running of the Indianapolis 500. The unique partnership will see UNDEFEATED design all three Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolets, driver fire suits and the team garage for this year’s ‘Greatest Spectacle in Racing’. Arrow McLaren SP, Vuse and UNDEFEATED will look to elevate the partnership after last year’s first of its kind collaboration between a streetwear and lifestyle brand and an IndyCar team. This year James Bond, founder of UNDEFEATED, will lead the design of not one, but three racecars that will compete in this year’s Indianapolis 500.” Full release at the link. – Arrow McLaren SP – (4/19/2022)

Restart zone moving to start line rather than finish line for ’22 Music City GP – “A new restart zone will highlight several track modifications for the competitors while fans will enjoy some new entertainment options, including professional jet ski competition, during the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix INDYCAR weekend set for Aug. 5-7 at the Nissan Stadium campus. The most impactful competition alteration for all five series competing in the race weekend – the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, Indy Lights, GT America,Trans Am and Stadium SUPER Trucks – will be the shift of the restart zone. During last year’s inaugural Big Machine Music City Grand Prix, the restarts occurred at the finish line in front of Nissan Stadium but now will move to the long straightaway as the field exits the Korean Veterans Bridge and toward Turn 9. It will be the same zone that was used for the start of each race last season and should provide cleaner restarts and more immediate passing opportunities.” Full release at the link. – Music City GP – (4/18/2022)

INDYCAR & IMS extend TAG Heuer partnership – “TAG Heuer – a pioneer in motorsports sponsorship for more than 50 years – has renewed its multiyear partnerships with INDYCAR and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The timepiece manufacturer will continue as the Official Watch, Timepiece, Chronograph and Smartwatch of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. TAG Heuer also will remain as a presenting sponsor of the Hulman Terrace Club hospitality suites at IMS. TAG Heuer started its partnership with INDYCAR in 2014 and with the Indianapolis 500 and IMS in 2004.” Full release at the link. – INDYCAR – (4/14/2022)

INDYCAR TV viewership highest in 19 years through 3 races – “The NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach (GPLB) this past Sunday delivered the most-watched edition of the race in NBC Sports history…Viewership through INDYCAR’s first three races of the season is the best in 19 years. The GPLB (3:38-5:38 p.m. ET) averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 1.078 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, an increase of 13% compared to the 2021 INDYCAR average for races on NBC (954,000 viewers), excluding the Indianapolis 500. Viewership for the race peaked towards its conclusion (5:15-5:30 pm ET) with a TV-only audience of 1.251 million viewers. The race also posted a 0.64 household rating.” Full release at the link. – NBC Sports – (4/13/2022)

RACER Q&A 4/13/2022 – RACER’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (4/13/2022)

Trackside podcast 4/12/2022 – 107.5 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 4/12/2022 is a great listen as always. – 107.5 The Fan – (4/13/2022)

Johnson undergoes hand surgery, will be back for Indy open test – Jimmie Johnson announced he had hand surgery after the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach but confirmed he plans to be back in the car for next week’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES open test on the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. – Jimmie Johnson – (4/12/2022)

OpenWheel.com’s Long Beach photo gallery – OpenWheel.com’s photo gallery from the NTT INDYCAR SERIES 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on the Streets of Long Beach, California is available at the link. – OpenWheel.com – (4/11/2022)

Newgarden wins wild Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach – Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden held off a late challenge from Romain Grosjean and Alex Palou to win the 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach to take the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship lead. The full Top 5 was Newgarden, Grosjean, Palou, Power, and O’Ward. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/10/2022)

Herta quickest in Final Practice at Long Beach – Andretti Autosport’s Colton Herta was quickest in Final Practice for the 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach with a lap of 1:05.8645. The full Top 5 was Herta, Dixon, Ericsson, Pagenaud, and Power. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/10/2022)

Herta earns pole at Long Beach – Andretti Autosport’s Colton Herta earned the pole for the 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach with a track record lap of 1:05.3095. The full Firestone Fast 6 order was Herta, Newgarden, Palou, Rosenqvist, Rossi, and Grosjean. Full qualifying results here. – INDYCAR – (4/9/2022)

Grosjean fastest in Practice 2 at Long Beach – Andretti Autosport’s Romain Grosjean’s lap of 1:05.6520 was fastest in Practice 2 of the 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on the Streets of Long Beach, California. The full Top 5 was Grosjean, Herta, Power, Rossi, and Pagenaud. Johnson had another incident in the session a day after suffering a fracture in his hand due to an incident in Practice 1. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/9/2022)

Pagenaud leads Practice 1 at Long Beach – Meyer Shank Racing’s Simon Pagenaud led Practice 1 of the 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on the Streets of Long Beach, California with a lap of 1:07.1991. The full Top 5 was Pagenaud, Rossi, McLaughlin, Newgarden, and Ericsson. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (4/8/2022)

OpenWheel.com’s Long Beach preview – OpenWheel.com’s preview of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on the Streets of Long Beach, California is available at the link. – OpenWheel.com – (4/8/2022)

Long Beach entry list – The official INDYCAR entry list for the 2022 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on the Streets of Long Beach, California is available at the link. – INDYCAR – (4/7/2022)

ECR unveils Indy 500 livery for No. 33 – “Ed Carpenter Racing announced today that the team will race towards “Making Alzheimer’s Just A Memory” for the duration of the 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. In a continuation of a program that began at Texas Motor Speedway. BitNile Holdings, Inc. (“BitNile”), as a significant shareholder of Alzamend Neuro, Inc. (“Alzamend”), has made a commitment to ECR to have the No. 33 compete as the Alzamend Neuro Chevrolet. ECR team owner Ed Carpenter will drive the No. 33 Alzamend Neuro Chevrolet in the remaining oval races this season, including the 106th Running of the Indianapolis 500.” Full release at the link. View the livery on our No. 33 livery page here. – ECR – (4/6/2022)

RACER Q&A 4/6/2022 – RACER’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (4/6/2022)

Trackside podcast 4/4/2022 – 107.5 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 4/3/2022 is a great listen as always. – 107.5 The Fan – (4/4/2022)

Harvey cleared to drive at Long Beach – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing confirmed on Thursday that Jack Harvey, driver of the team’s No. 45 entry, has been cleared to drive at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach following his incident at Texas Motor Speedway. – RLL – (3/31/2022)

ECR unveils new Building Tomorrow livery and fundraiser for No. 21 – “Ed Carpenter Racing announced today a partnership with Building Tomorrow, an international not-for-profit organization supporting literacy and numeracy in Uganda, for the GMR Grand Prix. Through the generosity of a longtime Building Tomorrow supporter, defending race winner Rinus VeeKay will compete in the No. 21 Building Tomorrow Chevrolet on May 14, 2022 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Together, Building Tomorrow and ECR have launched “Ride with Rinus,” where any contributor who donates $75 can have their name added to VeeKay’s car.” Full release at the link. View the livery on our No. 21 livery page here. – ECR – (3/30/2022)

RLL unveils new iPacket livery for No. 15 – “Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) announced today that iPacket, a leading provider of digital vehicle presentation and delivery solutions for the automotive industry, has joined the team as the primary sponsor of Graham Rahal’s No. 15 entry for the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 in Madison, Ill. on August 20. iPacket will also be a full-season associate sponsor of the entry and Official Vehicle Marketplace of the team in 2022.” Full release at the link. View the livery on our No. 15 livery page here. – RLL – (3/30/2022)

RACER Q&A 3/30/2022 – RACER’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (3/30/2022)

Trackside podcast 3/29/2022 – 107.5 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 3/29/2022 is a great listen as always. – 107.5 The Fan – (3/30/2022)

INDYCAR News From Last Month