alexander rossi Tag

By Adam Tate, Managing Editor Manor F1 reserve driver and 2015 GP2 runner up Alexander Rossi took to the wheel of the No. 98 Andretti-Herta Autosport machine for a tough but solid debut in his first IndyCar race during today’s Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. He finished a lap down in 12th place. A result that perhaps fell somewhat short of expectations, but one that only confirms the quality of Rossi’s talent as a newcomer to IndyCar. A difficult qualifying session saw him struggle on Saturday and start today’s race backRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter & NASCAR Contributor Juan Pablo Montoya dominated the final half of the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg to take his second consecutive win in the season opening event for the Verizon IndyCar Series. Montoya mostly ran in arrears to his Team Penske teammate Simon Pagenaud for the opening 46 laps of the race as the Frenchman pulled out to a sizable lead over the course of the opening stint. Following the first round of green flag pitstops, Pagenaud continued to keep his teammate at bay for theRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter & NASCAR Contributor Will Power claimed his sixth pole at the Streets of St. Petersburg in the waning seconds of the Firestone Fast Six Session while Team Penske swept the top four spots for the second year in a row, and with a stomach flu no less. Power first broke his own track record in Q1 with a lap of 1:00.5768 and come the second session he made an astonishing lap of 1:00.0658, nearly a half second quicker his track record set a year agoRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter & NASCAR Contributor Will Power recovered from crashing out of the first practice session to click off the fastest lap of the day in the final seconds of a delayed practice session at the Streets of St. Petersburg. A portion of the racing surface in turn 3 came apart just nine minutes into the session. That brought out the red flag for nearly 45 minutes while the track was repaired. Once the action restarted, 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon led for much of theRead More

By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter & NASCAR Contributor Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud led a rather uneventful first session for this weekend’s Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. The Frenchman set fastest lap of the session (1:01.7246s) with 10 minutes remaining in the session. “It’s the first practic eof the year, so it’s nice to start of nicely,” said Pagenaud. “There’s still a lot of work do.” Pagenaud’s lap was just .0624s quicker than the Honda of A.J. Foyt Racing’s Jack Hawsworth. Pagenaud’s teammate and three time St. Pete winner Helio Castroneves wasRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Contributing Writer American driver, Alexander Rossi, who is preparing for his Verizon IndyCar Series debut this weekend in St. Petersburg, has suddenly found some extra work on his plate. Rossi was announced as the official reserve driver for the Manor Formula One Team in 2016, making Rossi the first driver to have roles in both of the top-tier open-wheel series concurrently. The Manor team has worked with Rossi on a schedule that will allow him to fulfill his duties at Andretti Autosport while attending eleven Grands Prix withRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Contributing Writer The time has nearly arrived for the Verizon IndyCar Series to drop the green flag on their 2016 season. The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will take place the weekend of March 11-13, 2016. The scenic track, located on the harbor of Tampa Bay, has been on the IndyCar calendar since 2005 opening the season each year since 2011. St. Petersburg has hosted professional racing on various street courses on-and-off since 1987, when the city first hosted the SCCA Trans-Am Series. The current version ofRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Contributing Writer As the teams and drivers prepare for a new season, one of the most exciting aspects of the 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series is going to be the impressive class of Rookies for the new season. Looking down the list of entries there are no Francesco Dracones or Milka Dunos out there, but a field packed with talent from top to bottom. In that field, there will be three young drivers competing for the Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors. Having been raised in suburban Indianapolis, 24-yearRead More

Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter Andretti Autosport unveiled their 2016 liveries for its Verizon IndyCar Series teams. The cars of rookie Alexander Rossi, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Marco Andretti and Carlos Munoz will share a common theme element in their respective paint schemes. Each car will carry a color stripe starting at the front of the cockpit and running through the end of the cars, giving nod to Mario Andretti’s livery in the 1972 Indianapolis 500. The design became the basis for Mario Andretti’s helmet scheme, which Marco continues to use to this day. “AsRead More

Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter Gabby Chaves will fill in for Schmidt Peterson Motorsport in this weekend’s Verizon IndyCar Series test at Phoenix International Raceway. Mikhail Aleshin, who was scheduled to make his first appearance in his return to IndyCar, is unable to make it due to last minute work visa issues. “While we wish Mikhail was able to participate in this test with us, we’re confident that he’ll get up to speed quickly when he returns,” said SPM General Manager Piers Phillips. “Gabby had a solid rookie season and we appreciate hisRead More