IndyCar Category

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Kyle Larson is becoming a well-traveled man as he splits his time between Indianapolis and North Carolina between his full-time duties in the NASCAR Cup Series and his first attempt at the Indianapolis 500. On Sunday, that meant starting the day rocketing around Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the second day of Indy 500 qualifying, where he had advanced into the Fast 12 after Saturday’s first day of time trials. Larson posted the fifth-fastest time in the Fast 12 at 232.788 mph to move on to theRead More

By Kirby Arnold, Special Contributor SPEEDWAY, Ind. — Scott McLaughlin led a historic performance by Team Penske on Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, winning the pole position for the Indianapolis 500 with an effort that hadn’t been accomplished in 36 years.  McLaughlin, Will Power and Josef Newgarden swept all three front-row spots for Team Penske, repeating what had only been done once in the history of the race, in 1988 when Penske drivers Rick Mears, Danny Sullivan and Al Unser Sr. qualified 1-2-3.  Running last among six drivers who advancedRead More

By Kirby Arnold, Special Contributor SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Team Penske continued its show of strength Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, its three drivers recording the fastest speeds on the first day of qualifying for the Indianapolis 500. Will Power led the field with a four-lap average of 233.758 mph, followed by Scott McLaughlin (233.332 mph) and Josef Newgarden (233.293 mph) to comprise an all-Penske parade at the top of the speed chart. Alexander Rossi of Arrow McLaren was fourth-fastest at 233.069 mph and Kyle Kirkwood, 232.764 mph for Andretti Global,Read More

By Kirby Arnold, Special Contributor SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Operating without key personnel after suspensions because of the push-to-pass scandal, there’s one thing Team Penske isn’t lacking at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  Speed.  Penske’s three cars posted the top three four-lap speeds Friday in preparation for Saturday qualifying for the Indianapolis 500.  Josef Newgarden averaged 234.063 mph in his mid-afternoon simulated qualifying run, Scott McLaughlin 233.623 and Will Power 233.451.  After one more short practice Saturday morning, qualifying will lock the fastest 30.  The Fast 12 will return Sunday for two roundsRead More

By Kirby Arnold, Special Contributor SPEEDWAY, Ind. — Practice for the Indianapolis 500 was a mix of qualifying simulations, race setups and, of course, rain on Thursday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  Pato O’Ward drove his Arrow McLaren Chevrolet to the fastest speed of the day at 228.861 mph, with Wednesday’s fast runner Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske second at 227.316 on the 2.5-mile track. Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing was third at 226.828.  After two days of rain and little track time since practice began Tuesday, teams put inRead More

By Kirby Arnold, Special Contributor SPEEDWAY, Ind. — Team Penske floated to the top of the speed chart Wednesday when Indianapolis 500 practice resumed on another soggy day at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Rain again was the major story in a session that started about five hours late and ended a few minutes early because of wet conditions.  Scott McLaughlin drove his Team Penske Chevrolet to the fastest lap of the day, 229.493 mph on the 2.5-mile oval, teammate Will Power was second (228.767) and defending champion Josef Newgarden fourth (227.675). ColtonRead More

By Kirby Arnold, Special Contributor SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Kyle Larson got his feet wet, literally, when practice began Tuesday for the 108th Indianapolis 500. Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion driving for Arrow McLaren this month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, drove only two slow laps before a day-long rain settled over the 2.5-mile oval and washed out the remainder of the session after 23 minutes. “The weather is getting in the middle of things today, but once we get through today, it should be good,” said Larson, who willRead More

By INDYCAR INDIANAPOLIS – Alex Palou capped a perfect start to the Month of May by winning the Sonsio Grand Prix on Saturday from the pole on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. Two-time and reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Palou drove his No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda to a 6.6106-second victory over the No. 12 Verizon Business Team Penske Chevrolet of fellow two-time series champion Will Power. It was his second consecutive win in this event on the 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course at IMS, which leads into the Indianapolis 500Read More

By INDYCAR INDIANAPOLIS – Alex Palou started his defense of his 2023 Sonsio Grand Prix victory in the best way possible Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, winning the pole for this year’s race. Two-time and reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Palou earned his fourth career NTT P1 Award and his first since the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear last June. His best lap today in the Firestone Fast Six was 1 minute, 9.0004 seconds in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. SEE: Qualifying Results The pole on the 14-turn, 2.439-mileRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor The fallout continues. In the aftermath of the penalties handed down by the NTT IndyCar Series to Team Penske for its Push to Pass infractions in the season opener at St. Petersburg, the team has made the call to levy penalties of its own to a number of key personnel heading into the Month of May. On Tuesday morning, the team announced that it had completed an internal investigation into the matter and after finding “significant failures in our processes and internal communications” the decision hadRead More