IndyCar Category

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter AVONDALE, Ariz. – JR Hildebrand’s return to the cockpit ended very sweetly with his first podium in nearly six years. While still nursing a broken bone in his left hand, the driver of the No. 21 Fuzzy’s Vodka Chevrolet was on pace throughout the entire day and came home in third place, his best finish since finishing second in the 2011 Indianapolis 500. “I’m excited to get the result for the team,” said Hildebrand. “The car was bitchin’. At the end of the race, I know weRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Staff Writer Reigning Series Champion, Simon Pagenaud, finally has his first oval-track win in the Verizon IndyCar Series. During Saturday night’s Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix, the driver of the No. 1 Menard’s Team Penske Chevrolet was able to stretch his fuel longer than his competitors and pit later. A fortuitous yellow gave Pagenaud a one-lap advantage after much of the field had pitted under the green. From that point, he never looked back, leading the final 114 laps en route to victory 9.1028 secondsRead More

By INDYCAR AVONDALE, Arizona (Saturday, April 29, 2017) – Simon Pagenaud picked one of the Verizon IndyCar Series tracks richest in open-wheel history to earn his first oval victory. The reigning series champion drove away from the field in the final half of the Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix at Phoenix Raceway, winning by 9.1028 seconds over teammate Will Power and assuming the points lead after four races of the 2017 season. DESERT DIAMOND WEST VALLEY PHOENIX GRAND PRIX: Box score Driving the No. 1 Menards Team PenskeRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter AVONDALE, Ariz. — Verizon IndyCar Series points leader Sebastien Bourdais and a handful of other drivers were eliminated in a first corner accident in tonight’s Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix. Mikhail Aleshin, who qualified seventh, lost control of his No. 7 Lucas Oil Honda going into turn 1 and spun into the path of Max Chilton. Bourdais spun trying to avoid the mess but also spun and found himself in the Turn 2 wall. He was then collected by the spinning car ofRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter AVONDALE, Ariz. — So far, Sebastien Bourdais’ move back to Dale Coyne Racing has gone better than expected. The four-time Indy car champion scored a come-from-behind win at the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and followed that up with a second-place finish at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Combined with a steady drive to eighth place at the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, the four-time Indy car champion finds himself leading the points heading into tonight’s Desert Diamond West ValleyRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter AVONDALE, Ariz. – Cast off, gloves on. JR Hildebrand is glad to be back this weekend at Phoenix Raceway. Hildebrand was forced to sit out last week’s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama after he broke his left hand in a last-lap accident with Mikhail Aleshin at the 43rd Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach three weeks ago. If breaking a bone in his left hand wasn’t bad enough, the incident came just three months into his full-time return to the Verizon IndyCar Series. “It’sRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter AVONDALE, Ariz. – Helio Castroneves rose to the occasion and claimed his second straight pole for the Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix at the Phoenix Raceway. Driving the No. 3 REV Group Team Penske Chevrolet, the Brazillian pulled off a blistering fast 194.905 mph two-lap average to claim his 49th career Indy car pole. By doing so, Castroneves eclipsed his previous single lap track record of 19.0997 with an even quicker lap of 18.8701 seconds (194.975 mph). Castroneves was a clear .1728 secondsRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief JR Hildebrand was cleared Tuesday and will return to the cockpit of the No. 21 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet in this weekend’s Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix. The 29-year-old from Sausalito, California, sustained a broken bone in his left hand in a last lap accident with Mikhail Aleshin at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on April 9. Hildebrand was not cleared to drive last weekend’s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park, forcing his Ed Carpenter Racing teamRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Staff Writer The Verizon IndyCar Series will make its return this weekend to the Valley of the Sun for the Desert Diamond West Valley Phoenix Grand Prix. The race weekend is scheduled for April 28-29, 2017 About the Race The race will be round four of seventeen for the Verizon IndyCar Series. Phoenix will be the first oval track event of the season, in a schedule that features six oval races. IndyCars returned to the track last season after an absence of 11 years. The defending raceRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Staff Writer The Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama for the Verizon IndyCar Series has concluded, and Josef Newgarden has now notched his first win as a Penske driver. He was able to pull off a daring pass on four-time Series Champion, Scott Dixon, to take second, and then inherited the lead when leader Will Power experienced a tire issue. Let’s take a look back on some of the stories coming out of the weekend at Barber Motorsports Park. 1 )  Great Day for the South WheneverRead More