News for the Week of May 23, 2016 – May 29, 2016

Rossi wins classic 100th Indy 500 – Andretti Autosport with Bryan Herta Autosport’s rookie Alexander Rossi brilliantly executed a late fuel strategy plan to win The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. The rest of the Top 5 was Munoz, Newgarden, Kanaan, and Kimball. It was a race full of drama as Montoya crashed early, Karam hit the wall in Turn 1 while in the Top 5, Hunter-Reay and Bell collided in the pits while each were in the Top 5, Castroneves suffered damage from a Top 5 position, and accidents in the last half of the race constantly affected strategy. Kanaan, Newgarden, and Munoz traded the lead late before each had to make a final pit stop. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (5/28/2016)

Indy 500 Race Morning Photo Gallery – The Open Wheel’s Parker Hall’s photo gallery from a pre-sunrise arrival to Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the morning of The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race is a must see. Check it out at the link. IMS is a beautiful place at “night”! – The Open Wheel – (5/28/2016)

300,000 attend 60th IPL 500 Festival Parade – An estimated 300,000 people attend the 60th IPL 500 Festival Parade on Saturday before The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. Every driver in the field was at the event. “I’m ready to relax and get in the race car,” said James Hinchcliffe. “That’s kind of our decompress for the week here. It’s been pretty busy, obviously, but for all the right reasons so no complaints. And it’s awesome to see such a crowd here today and I can’t wait to see what the crowd’s going to be like tomorrow.” – WTHR – (5/28/2016)

Trackside podcast 5/27/16 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 5/27/16 is a great listen as always. The show is live from the 9th Annual Carb Night Burger bash and the pair are joined by a large number of drivers. – 1070 The Fan – (5/28/2016)

Kohler to sponsor Road America race – “Kohler Co. will be the title sponsor for the Verizon IndyCar Series’ return to Road America, which will be known as the KOHLER Grand Prix. The green flag will fly on the event at approximately 12:15 pm CST on June 26.” More at the link. – INDYCAR – (5/28/2016)

Castroneves and Team Penske No. 3 crew win pit stop challenge again – Team Penske’s No. 3 crew for Helio Castroneves won the TAG Heuer Pit Stop Challenge for the eighth time on Carb Day at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. They defeated Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ No. 7 crew for Mikhail Aleshin in the final. – INDYCAR – (5/27/2016)

Stoneman wins Freedom 100 thriller over Jones – Andretti Autosport’s Dean Stoneman beat Carlin’s Ed Jones to the finish line by just 0.0024 of a second in the Indy Lights Freedom 100 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Top 5 was Stoneman, Jones, Kellett, Blackstock, and Hargrove. Full race results here. – NBC Sports – (5/27/2016)

Kanaan fastest in Carb Day Indy 500 practice – Chip Ganassi Racing Team’s Tony Kanaan’s lap at 226.280mph was the fastest lap of the final practice for The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race on Carb Day. The rest of the Top 5 was Munoz, Dixon, Power, and Hunter-Reay. Pippa Mann crashed coming out of Turn 4 and suffered significant damage. She was almost immediately checked, released, and cleared to drive by the medical center. Full practice results here. – INDYCAR – (5/27/2016)

Jones wins pole as Freedom 100 Lights field set by points – “Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires championship leader Ed Jones will start from pole position in tomorrow’s Mazda Freedom 100 Presented by Cooper Tires at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Dubai, UAE-based Englishman, driving for the Carlin team, had posted the fastest two-lap average, at 197.078 mph, among the eight drivers who made their qualifying runs on the famed 2.5-mile oval before proceedings were interrupted by the threat of lightning from a fast-approaching thunderstorm, followed soon afterward by heavy rain. When it became apparent the weather would not clear until much later in the afternoon, Race Director Tony Cotman made the decision to abort the session and set the grid for tomorrow’s race according to current championship positions, per the rulebook.” See the starting grid here. – Indy Lights – (5/26/2016)

Dale Pelfrey regains full control of Team Pelfrey – “One of the largest teams in the Mazda Road to Indy paddock, Team Pelfrey, is pushing into one of the most important race weekends of the year with a revised team structure, and ready to continue the great on track results. Dale Pelfrey,founder and owner of Team Pelfrey, has re-acquired control of the team with the focus of bringing all of his teams under the same roof, providing a direct line from entry level open wheel racing all the way to the Verizon IndyCar Series.” More at the link. – NBC Sports – (5/26/2016)

2016 Indy 500 “milk list” released – Every year the American Dairy Association Indiana polls the drivers of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race for what type of milk they would prefer to drink in victory lane. Check out the 2016 list at the link. – American Dairy Association Indiana – (5/26/2016)

Lilly joins DCR as co-sponsor of Daly’s No. 18 in 500 – Dale Coyne Racing announced on Thursday morning that Lilly Diabetes will be a co-primary sponsor on their No. 18 car for Conor Daly in The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. See the livery at our No. 18 livery page here. – Dale Coyne Racing – (5/26/2016)

Stefan Wilson writes on “Justin’s Advice” – Indy 500 rookie Stefan Wilson wrote a piece for The Players’ Tribute called “Justin’s Advice” regarding his relationship with his brother Justin both on and off the track. This must read is too good to shorten. – The Players’ Tribune – (5/26/2016)

Piedrahita fastest in Freedom 100 Lights practice – Team Pelfrey’s Juan Piedrahita was fastest in Freedom 100 practice Thursday morning at Indianapolis Motor Speedway with a lap of 197.957mph. The rest of the Top 5 was Veach, Enerson, Jones, and Serralles. Full results at the link. – The Open Wheel – (5/26/2016)

IMS unveils 101st Indy 500 logo and ticket reorder plans – “On the heels of yesterday’s historic sellout announcement, Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials unveiled the 2017 Indy 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil logo today alongside an exciting “Race to Renew” campaign for current ticketholders. The red, white and blue logo captures the patriotic nature of America’s greatest Memorial Day Weekend tradition and projects the forward motion that drives both the Indy 500 and the Verizon IndyCar Series onward.” See the logo and full reorder plans at the link. – IMS – (5/26/2016)

20 years since first dueling Indy 500/U.S. 500 – NBC Sports’ Tony DiZinno has put a nice perspective piece on how fortunate American open wheel racing is to be unified again 20 years after the infamous split. He recaps the craziness of the dueling 80th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race and the inaugural U.S. 500. Very interesting read. – NBC Sports – (5/26/2016)

Trackside podcast 5/25/16 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 5/25/16 is a great listen as always. – 1070 The Fan – (5/26/2016)

The Open Wheel’s Indy 500 preview – The Open Wheel’s official preview for The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race is available at the link. The piece by our own Dylan Reynolds contains all of the relevant info for the weekend, stats, prior history, predictions, and much more. – The Open Wheel – (5/25/2016)

Miller’s Mailbag 5/25/16 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (5/25/2016)

IMS announces 500 sellout and lifts local TV blackout – On Wednesday morning Indianapolis Motor Speedway announces that they had sold out of all types of tickets for The 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race and would lift the local television blackout. The traditional evening replay locally will still go on as scheduled. “All suites, reserve seats and infield general admission tickets for the 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 are sold out,” said IMS president Doug Boles. “There’s no event in the world like the Indianapolis 500.”The race will air live on RTV-6, an ABC affiliate, and re-air in the evening as has happened through the years.” – Indianapolis Star – (5/25/2016)

Trackside podcast 5/24/16 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 5/24/16 is a great listen as always. Defending Anderson Little 500 Champion Chris Windom joins the show to talk about the other racing going on in Indiana this week in the buildup to the race. – 1070 The Fan – (5/25/2016)

Family of Dave MacDonald to attend Indy 500 for first time since ’64 accident – Curt Cavin of The Indianapolis Star reports that former Indy 500 participant Dave MacDonald’s wife and son will attend their first Indianapolis 500 Mile Race since MacDonald died after injuries suffered in a tragic crash in 1964. Cavin does a great job of telling some of the stories from that day and subsequent events leading to their present trip. Definitely worth a read. – Indianapolis Star – (5/24/2016)

IMS considers lifting of local TV blackout with absolute sellout – “Indianapolis Motor Speedway will consider lifting the local television Indy 500 blackout if the race sells out, an IMS official confirmed to 24-Hour News 8.” That would require a sellout of general admission tickets in addition to the reserved tickets that have already sold out. “It’s too soon to say what’s going to happen, but we have unprecedented demand,” Hulman & Company CEO Mark Miles said. “And so every day, and more than once a day, we’re looking at sales for the general admission that goes in the infield. We want to be careful about the total number that we sell, and that’s because it has to be a great fan experience, it’s gotta be safe.” – WISHTV – (5/24/2016)

Trackside podcast 5/23/16 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 5/23/16 is a great listen as always. The pair breaks down all of the excitement from an exciting qualifying weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. – 1070 The Fan – (5/24/2016)

Rosenqvist fastest in Lights Test 2 on IMS oval – Belardi Auto Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist’s lap of 198.051mph was the fastest lap of the second Indy Lights practice session for a promoter’s test on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval on Monday. The rest of the Top 5 was Veach, Enerson, Alberico, and Stoneman. Full results at the link. – The Open Wheel – (5/23/2016)

Newgarden fastest in Monday Indy 500 practice – Josef Newgarden’s lap of 227.414mph was the fastest lap of a wild practice session at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Monday. The rest of the Top 5 was Kanaan, Dixon, Karam, and Mann. All 33 cars took to the track but Hawksworth’s day was done early as black smoke and a fire shot out the back of his car in Turn 3 in the middle of the session. Outside of that there were no incidents regardless of the action-packed activity on the track such as this. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (5/23/2016)

Veach fastest in Lights Test 1 on IMS oval – Belardi Auto Racing’s Zach Veach’s lap of 201.455mph was the fastest lap of the first Indy Lights practice session for a promoter’s test on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval on Monday. The rest of the Top 5 was Kellett, Enerson, Rosenqvist, and Urruita. Full results at the link. – Indy Lights – (5/23/2016)

ABC’s Indy 500 qualifying coverage grabs 0.71 & 0.89 TV ratings – ABC’s coverage of qualifying for The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race drew a 0.71 TV rating on Saturday and 0.89 on Sunday. – ShowBuzzDaily – (5/23/2016)

Florence Henderson named Grand Marshal for 100th Indy 500 – “Florence Henderson, a beloved part of Indianapolis 500 Race Day for a quarter-century, will serve as the Grand Marshal of the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil. Henderson, a native of Dale, Indiana, will complete various official duties as Grand Marshal including greeting drivers and dignitaries on the pre-race stage, delivering the “drivers to your cars” message over the public-address system and riding in a Grand Marshal Parade Car at the front of the field prior to the start of the race.” – IMS – (5/23/2016)

Storylines abound after qualifying for 100th Indy 500 – NBC Sports’ Tony DiZinno posted an excellent piece on some of the excellent storylines in play after an exciting qualifying session for The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. Check it out at the link. – NBC Sports – (5/23/2016)

Hinch wins the pole for 100th Indy 500 – James Hinchcliffe won the pole in dramatic fashion for The 100th Running of The Indianapolis 500 Mile Race with a 4-lap average of 230.760mph. The rest of the Top 5 was Newgarden, Hunter-Reay, Bell, and Munoz. Tagliani crashed in the session (see story below). Montoya ran over a trash bag slowing his first run but was granted a second attempt due to encountering debris on the track. Full starting grid here. – INDYCAR – (5/22/2016)

Hinchcliffe fastest in Saturday Indy 500 qualifying – Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ James Hinchcliffe was fastest in Saturday qualifying for The 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race with a 4-lap average speed of 230.946mph. The rest of the Fast 9 gunning for the pole on Sunday will be Hunter-Reay, Power, Castroneves, Bell, Newgarden, Aleshin, Munoz, Pagenaud. Everyone will qualify again on Sunday to set their final starting position between 1-9 and 10-33. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (5/21/2016)

NAPA to sponsor Andretti Autosport No. 98 for Indy 500 – “Iconic auto parts retailer NAPA AUTO PARTS, in conjunction with NAPA’s major supplier NAPA Balkamp and their supporting vendor partners, has joined with three-time Indy 500 champion Andretti Autosport to sponsor the No. 98 Indy car driven by Alexander Rossi in the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500. Rossi’s No. 98 machine is fielded via collaboration between the Michael Andretti-led organization and Bryan Herta Autosport.” See the livery on our No. 98 livery page here. – NAPA – (5/20/2016)

Chris Pine to waive the green flag for Indy 500 – “Chris Pine, star of the globally celebrated “Star Trek” movie franchise, will wave the green flag to start the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil.” “In addition to all our stars on the track, the 100th running will feature a major lineup of stars off the track,” said Indianapolis Motor Speedway President J. Douglas Boles. “We’re thrilled to welcome Chris Pine to our flag stand, where he will officially get our epic race under way by waving the green flag.” – INDYCAR – (5/19/2016)

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