All posts by Christopher DeHarde

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS– Kyle Kaiser might have one of the best environments in which to grow during his journey in the Verizon IndyCar Series. After several years driving for Juncos Racing in the Mazda Road to Indy, the 2017 Indy Lights champion put together a strong 17th-place qualifying effort for his first Indianapolis 500. Despite not everything being perfect, the team knew the challenges ahead. “It’s the hardest race of the year I think because you have so much time to practice,” said Kaiser. “That sounds like ‘Wow,Read More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — USAC racer Chris Windom will not participate in Friday’s Freedom 100 after an incident damaged his car beyond repair with the time available before Friday. The No. 33 Belardi Auto Racing entry was in Turn 2 when Windom lost control and barely collided with teammate Santi Urrutia. The damage Windom’s car sustained would not be repairable to the teams’ satisfaction for Friday’s 40 lap race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “He got a little loose in Turn 2 and obviously hit the wall,” saidRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS– Robert Wickens was turning his fourth practice lap on Monday’s post-qualifying practice session in preparation for the Indianapolis 500, but never made it around to the start finish line. The No. 6 Lucas Oil Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda got loose coming through Turn 2 asWickens chased the car up the track before making light contact with the right side of the car. However, the damage was done. The Canadian’s suspension was broken and the car then hit the wall on the backstretch, coming to aRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — Pole Day has come and gone in preparation for the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500. There were surprises and interesting happenings during the day so let’s take a look at them. First of all, Ed Carpenter scored his third Indianapolis 500 pole with a four-lap average of 229.618 mph, almost a full mph higher than Simon Pagenaud starting second. It was interesting to see Helio Castroneves fall so much on his Fast Nine qualifying attempt. The fastest driver in yesterday’s runs, the speedRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — Alexander Rossi will start the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500 after a rough outing during Sunday’s qualifications at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The run came as a shock since the Californian qualified 0.0342 of a second outside the Fast Nine during Saturday’s Bump Day of qualifications. The 2016 Indianapolis 500 champion’s speed of 227.454 would have put him on the fourth row of the grid had he maintained it. However, subsequent laps of 226.608 mph, 224.152 mph and 221.619 mph dropped his four lap averageRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — Pole Day Qualifying for the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500 begins shortly. Positions 10-33 qualify first before the Fast Nine Shootout. Each car is guaranteed at least one attempt. Scroll down for later attempts, this is being updated as each car completes an attempt. Qualifying order is reverse of Saturday’s results, the Fast Nine will not be filled in with car numbers until they qualify. James Davison in the No. 33 Belardi/Byrd/Foyt/Hollinger Chevrolet Lap 1: 227.226 mph Lap 2: 226.576 mph Lap 3:Read More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS– With Pole Day qualifying beginning soon for the Indianapolis 500, it’s time for some random qualifying predictions. Final Row: Conor Daly, James Davison, Zachary Claman De Melo. This is based on Carlin’s earlier no-tow speeds during the week being higher on the time sheet and that Davison and Daly will not put their equipment at too much risk to make the show. Rahal found .3 mph yesterday and if that goes across all three cars, they might have pulled themselves off the back row. RowRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — Bump Day was back at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday and in many ways it was a true throwback. Well, at least for those who saw it. Veteran IndyCar writer/historian John Oreovicz calculated that in the final 10 minutes and 35 seconds of qualifying that there were six minutes and ten seconds of commercials. Not ideal considering that the gun to end qualifying went off at 5:50 for TV’s sake for interviews when they had so many commercial breaks late. It was aRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — Qualifying for the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500 begins shortly. There are 35 cars going for 33 spots. Each car is guaranteed at least one attempt. Scroll down for later attempts, this is being updated as each car completes an attempt. First up is rookie Zachary Claman De Melo in the No. 19 Dale Coyne Racing Honda. Lap 1: 226.079 mph Lap 2: 225.677 mph Lap 3: 225.654 mph Lap 4: 225.480 mph Average: 225.722 mph-Provisional Pole Ryan Hunter-Reay in the No. 28Read More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — The final day of practice before qualifications for the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500 featured increased turbocharger boost pressure, wall contact and an Andretti on top of the speed chart. Marco Andretti’s No. 98 Andretti Autosport Honda turned a fastest lap of 231.802 mph around the 2.5-mile oval. Robert Wickens was second in his No. 6 Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda with a lap of 231.732 mph, but both of those laps were assisted with a tow off of cars in front of themRead More