alexander rossi Tag

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

by Josh Farmer, IndyCar reporter Alexander Rossi has been officially confirmed as the driver of the #98 Andretti Autosport Honda for the upcoming 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series season. Rossi will get his first laps in an IndyCar during a rookie test next Tuesday at the Sebring International Raceway, rather than this weekend’s series test at the Phoenix International Raceway. “I’m very much looking forward to making my IndyCar Series debut this season and am proud to be racing with a team of such high caliber and pedigree as that of Andretti Autosport,” saidRead More

By Josh Farmer, Journalist Nearing the end of a somewhat quiet offseason for the Verizon IndyCar Series, the merger of Andretti Autosport and Bryan Herta Autosport has given us the most exciting silly season news to come all winter. Alexander Rossi is now the prime candidate to take over the #98 ride after not getting a ride with Manor F1 which went to Rio Haryanto. Rossi drove for Manor F1 in the five of the last seven races of the 2015 Formula One season, becoming the first American to compete in F1Read More

By Frank Santoroski, Contributing Writer While some may have been taken by surprise with the recent news that Andretti AutoSport will be absorbing Bryan Herta AutoSport into their organization, keener observers may have seen the writing on the wall. Indeed, Bryan Herta’s team was the smallest and most under-funded team on the 2015 grid, but their efforts showed tremendous potential with Rookie driver Gabby Chaves. Although it was a struggle at times for the team to keep afloat, they did manage to enter all 16 events on the 2015 schedule makingRead More

By Josh Farmer, Journalist First reported Robin Miller of RACER, Alexander Rossi is en route to Andretti Autosport’s shop in Indianapolis for a seat fitting in preparation for next week’s test at Phoenix International Raceway. Rossi was one of the drivers rumored to be in the fold to drive the #98 car formerly operated by Bryan Herta Autosport and now operated by Andretti Autosport. Earlier today, Manor F1 reported that Rossi would not be retained for a race seat at the team after Rossi drove for the team in the final fiveRead More