INDYCAR News for the Month of October 2019
Arrow McLaren SP confirms Askew and O’Ward for ’20 – “Arrow McLaren SP today announced its driver line-up for the 2020 NTT IndyCar Series season. 2018 Indy Lights Champion Pato O’Ward and 2019 Indy Lights Champion Oliver Askew will both compete in the full 2020 season for the newly announced entity.” Full release at the link. – Arrow McLaren SP – (10/30/2019)
—
Arrow McLaren SP confirms end to Hinch relationship – “Arrow McLaren SP and James Hinchcliffe have parted ways ahead of the 2020 IndyCar season. We want to thank James for his passion and commitment to the team over the last five years and we wish him all the best for the future.” Full release at the link. – Arrow McLaren SP – (10/30/2019)
—
Miller’s Mailbag 10/30/2019 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (10/30/2019)
—
Trackside podcast 10/29/2019 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 10/29/2019 is a great listen as always. – 1070 The Fan – (10/30/2019)
—
Report: Askew and O’Ward in at Arrow McLaren SP; Hinch out – RACER’s Robin Miller and Marshall Pruett are reporting Arrow McLaren SP are set to announce Oliver Askew and Patricio O’Ward as their drivers in the 2020 NTT IndyCar Series. That leaves James Hinchcliffe out of a seat for next season. Full story at the link. – RACER – (10/29/2019)
—
Arrow McLaren SP unveils logo – Arrow McLaren SP has unveiled their new logo as they’ve officially transitioned to their unified program for the 2020 NTT IndyCar Series. Check it out at the link. – Arrow McLaren SP – (10/25/2019)
—
IMS announces Luke Bryan for Legends Day concert – “Award-winning country music superstar Luke Bryan will headline the Firestone Legends Day Concert on Saturday, May 23, the day before the 104th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. The concert, which also will feature additional acts to be announced, starts at 3:30 p.m. on the Firestone Stage inside Turn 4 of the IMS oval. Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. (ET) Friday, Nov. 1 at IMS.com, by calling 800-822-INDY or 317-492-6700, or by visiting the IMS Ticket Office at the IMS Administration Building.” Full release at the link. – IMS – (10/23/2019)
—
Report: Cannon moving to CGR No. 9 – RACER’s Marshall Pruett reports Michael Cannon has moved to Chip Ganassi Racing to be Scott Dixon’s new race engineer for the team’s No. 9 entry in the NTT IndyCar Series. Full story at the link. – RACER – (10/23/2019)
—
Miller’s Mailbag 10/23/2019 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (10/23/2019)
—
Trackside podcast 10/22/2019 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 10/22/2019 is a great listen as always. – 1070 The Fan – (10/23/2019)
—
VeeKay fastest in all six sessions at Chris Griffis test – Rinus VeeKay tested an Indy Lights car with Belardi Auto Racing this past weekend at the Chris Griffis test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and led all six sessions. Full results here. – Indy Lights – (10/21/2019)
—
O’Ward out at Red Bull, promises news soon – Patricio O’Ward has tweeted that he will not race with Red Bull in Japan for the remainder of the Super Formula season and promises news about his future soon. Full tweet at the link. – Patricio O’Ward – (10/18/2019)
—
Trackside podcast 10/16/2019 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 10/16/2019 is a great listen as always. Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden, and Dennis Bickmeier are guests on the show. – 1070 The Fan – (10/17/2019)
—
Miller’s Mailbag 10/16/2019 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (10/16/2019)
—
AutoNation now primary sponsor of COTA event – The NTT IndyCar Series event at Circuit of The Americas is now known as the AutoNation INDYCAR Challenge on the circuit’s tickets page. – COTA – (10/15/2019)
—
RTI Chris Griffis test set for this weekend – “The tires and engines have barely cooled down after a rousing final weekend for all three open-wheel development racing series that comprise the Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires on the West Coast, yet an intriguing mix of veteran and rookie drivers will converge this week on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Grand Prix course, anxious to begin preparations for the 2020 season. Almost three dozen drivers representing a dozen nations are on the entry list for the two-day test on Saturday and Sunday, October 19/20.” Full details at the link. – Indy Lights – (10/15/2019)
—
Newgarden and Dixon test at Richmond on Tuesday – Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon are testing at Richmond Raceway on Tuesday in what’s now the third on-track test of the new INDYCAR Aeroscreen. – INDYCAR – (10/15/2019)
—
VeeKay scores second test with ECR – “Just a month after Rinus VeeKay’s dominant display at Laguna Seca to cap off the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires season, the 19-year old will again have an opportunity to sample Indy car machinery. The Dutchman will get a second test outing with Ed Carpenter Racing, this time at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on October 15th.” Full release at the link. – Rinus VeeKay – (10/10/2019)
—
Miller’s Mailbag 10/9/2019 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (10/9/2019)
—
Trackside podcast 10/8/2019 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 10/8/2019 is a great listen as always. – 1070 The Fan – (10/9/2019)
—
Ganassi announces third car for Ericsson for ’20 – “Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) announced today that 29-year-old Swede Marcus Ericsson will join the team’s NTT IndyCar Series program in a third car, the No. 8 Honda beginning in 2020. He will team up alongside five-time NTT IndyCar Series Champion, Indianapolis 500 and 46-time winner Scott Dixon of New Zealand, and 2019 Rookie of the Year and fellow countryman Felix Rosenqvist.” Full release at the link. – CGR – (10/8/2019)
—
Barber aeroscreen test adds element of rain – Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud and Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Hunter-Reay had to drive in the rain during Monday’s aeroscreen test at Barber Motorsports Park and the drivers were impressed. “Honestly felt great in the wet!” said Pagenaud. “Visibility might even be better than it would with the helmet alone as water seemed to disperse better on the aero screen!” Full story at the link. – INDYCAR – (10/8/2019)
—
Daly off Arrow McLaren SP shortlist – RACER’s Marshall Pruett reports Conor Daly is no longer being considered for a 2020 NTT IndyCar Series seat with Arrow McLaren SP. “They told me they had decided to go a different direction,” Daly told RACER. “I knew I was on their shortlist, but as of now I’m no longer their main focus. I’m flattered they considered me.” Full story at the link. – RACER – (10/3/2019)
—
Aeroscreen test “deemed a huge success” – INDYCAR’s Curt Cavin has an excellent report on the Aeroscreen test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway that took place on Wednesday. Drivers Scott Dixon and Will Power were impressed. “I’m so impressed with how quickly all this came together,” Power said. “To have the first run in and really no major issues … it’s just little things that need to be worked on.” Dixon added: “It’s been an intense project and one that I think a lot of people have done their due diligence on to get it to this point. Today’s been pretty much seamless.” Full story at the link. – INDYCAR – (10/3/2019)
—
Aeroscreen test takes place at IMS on Wednesday – RACER’s Marshall Pruett reports Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon and Team Penske’s Will Power will test the current iteration of the aeroscreen on the oval at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Wednesday. Full story at the link. – RACER – (10/2/2019)
—
Miller’s Mailbag 10/2/2019 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (10/2/2019)
—
Trackside podcast 10/1/2019 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 10/1/2019 is a great listen as always. – 1070 The Fan – (10/2/2019)
—
Juncos names Pigot to IMSA lineup for Petit Le Mans – “Juncos Racing announced today Spencer Pigot will join the team for the final IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta next month. Pigot will pilot the No. 50 Cadillac DPi-V.R entry with American Will Owen and Austrian Rene Binder.” Full release at the link. – Juncos Racing – (9/26/2019)
—
Newgarden to demo IndyCar at NASCAR Charlotte “roval” event – Team Penske has announced Josef Newgarden will demo his No. 2 NTT IndyCar Series car on the road course at Charlotte Motor Speedway as part of festivities during their NASCAR event this weekend. Full story at the link. – RACER – (9/25/2019)
—
’19 NBC coverage of INDYCAR up 9% over ’18 – “NBC Sports’ first year as the exclusive media partner of INDYCAR resulted in a 9% viewership increase for the 2019 NTT IndyCar Series season vs. 2018, according to data from the Nielsen company and digital data from Adobe Analytics. The 16* races in 2019 averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 1.105 million viewers across NBC, NBCSN, NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app, up 9% vs. 2018 (1.011 million on ABC, NBCSN, digital). Eight races were broadcast on NBC this season vs. five network-broadcast exposures last year on ABC. NBCSN televised eight races this year as compared to 11 last year.” Full release at the link. – NBC Sports Group – (9/25/2019)
—
Miller’s Mailbag 9/25/2019 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (9/25/2019)
—
Trackside podcast 9/24/2019 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 9/24/2019 is a great listen as always. – 1070 The Fan – (9/25/2019)
—
The Open Wheel’s Laguna Seca livery guide – The Open Wheel’s livery guide of all the NTT IndyCar Series cars and drivers at the INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca is available at the link. – The Open Wheel – (9/22/2019)
—
The Open Wheel’s Laguna Seca photo gallery – The Open Wheel’s photo gallery of the INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca is available at the link. – The Open Wheel – (9/22/2019)
—
Newgarden wins ’19 title, Herta wins Laguna Seca race – Harding Steinbrenner Racing’s Colton Herta won the Firestone Grand Prix at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca from pole while Josef Newgarden earned the 2019 NTT IndyCar Series Championship with a P8 finish on the day. The full Top 5 was Herta, Power, Dixon, Pagenaud, and Rosenqvist. Rosenqvist clinched the 2019 Rookie of the Year honors. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (9/22/2019)
—
VeeKay sweeps Laguna Seca Lights weekend with Race 2 win – Juncos Racing’s Rinus VeeKay won Indy Lights Race 2 from pole at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca to complete a weekend sweep of pole positions and race wins. The full Top 5 was VeeKay, Askew, Sowery, Megennis, and Norman. Full results here. – Indy Lights – (9/22/2019)
—
Askew clinches title, VeeKay wins Lights Race 1 at Laguna Seca – Juncos Racing’s Rinus VeeKay won Indy Lights Race 1 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca from pole, but Oliver Askew stole the headlines by finishing fourth and clinching the 2019 series championship. The full Top 5 was VeeKay, Sowery, Megennis, Askew, and Malukas. Full results here. – Indy Lights – (9/21/2019)
—