Barber Motorsports Park Tag

By David Morgan, Associate Editor BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – What a difference a day makes. After struggling throughout the weekend at Barber Motorsports Park, including a dismal 16th place qualifying effort, Josef Newgarden was back to his typical form in Sunday’s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama, though it took a “creative” effort from the Hendersonville, Tennessee native to make it a reality. “I’m happy about it,” said the driver of the Fitzgerald USA Team Penske Chevrolet. “It’s really good for points. Without the caution, we would have finished eighth, so weRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – “It’s tough out there,” Graham Rahal said after making his second-place qualifying run for Sunday’s running of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park. Those four words can sum up just how treacherous the challenging 2.3-mile, 17-turn natural terrain road course has been this weekend for almost every driver in the field. From drivers making off-track excursions into the gravel traps and tire barriers in nearly every practice session to the major teams stumbling in qualifying on Saturday, theRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – Last season was a struggle for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing as both Takuma Sato and Graham Rahal will admit, but after sweeping the front row for Sunday’s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park, the team served notice that they are well into the midst of a comeback. Sato, driver of the No. 30 Mi-Jack / Panasonic Honda for the team, blitzed the Fast Six with a lap of one minute, 8.5934 seconds (120.711 mph) to score his first poleRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – The opening day of NTT IndyCar Series practice for this weekend’s running of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park was a bit treacherous, to say the least. With overcast skies and rain threatening during the first of two scheduled practice sessions, several drivers found themselves making off track excursions on the mix of wet and dry pavement around the 2.3-mile, 17-turn road course, bringing out a number of red flags in the process. When all was said andRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer BIRMINGHAM, Alabama– The 2019 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama has two practice sessions in the books and quite honestly, nobody really knows what to expect for the third round of the 2019 NTT IndyCar Series at Barber Motorsports Park. With a forecast changing about as rapidly as the track’s direction, it’s almost as if nobody knows where to go for the right setup, nor does anyone have any clue about the Firestone red sidewall (alternate) tires except for maybe James Hinchcliffe since he was thirdRead More

By INDYCAR The IndyCar Series is adding a new, part-time team for the 2019 season, one with a championship pedigree and an eye toward full-time INDYCAR participation in 2020. DragonSpeed announced today that it will compete in five races next season, including the 103rd Indianapolis 500, powered by Chevrolet engines and with driver Ben Hanley. Founded by team principal Elton Julian in 2007 to compete in sports car series around the world, DragonSpeed won the 2015 Pirelli World Challenge GTA championship and 2017 European Le Mans Series LMP2 title. InRead More

By David Morgan, NASCAR Editor, IndyCar Contributor BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – For the first time this weekend, I was finally able to step foot inside an IndyCar paddock. Not only would it mark my inaugural open wheel race to cover as a credentialed media member, but it would also be my first time to see an IndyCar race in person…ever. I have seen plenty of races on television, but as I’ve learned over the years of covering NASCAR races, seeing it in person can change your whole perspective. After a weekendRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Torrential rain provided damped spirits for both Charlie Kimball and Will Power, as separate incidents dashed their afternoons during Sunday’s portion of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham. Rain was expected to plow the 2.3-mile road course without much leeway that it’ll light up, forcing the Verizon IndyCar Series to move its starting time to 3:08 p.m. EST. The brave 23 drivers accepted the daunting challenge and once the race went green after the opening lap, the actionRead More

By INDYCAR BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Monday, April 23, 2018) – Josef Newgarden raced on cruise control in today’s completion of the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama presented by America’s First. Even a return of rain late in the race didn’t prevent the Team Penske driver from collecting his third Verizon IndyCar Series win at Barber Motorsports Park in the past four years. Newgarden drove the No. 1 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet to a 9.9607-second victory at the hilly 2.3-mile, 17-turn permanent road course, despite increasingly treacherous track conditions as rainRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Contributing Writer BIRMINGHAM, Alabama — The rain-postponed Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama was chaotic for all involved, but few endured as many ups and downs at Marco Andretti. Andretti’s topsy-turvy Alabama affair started with a strong seventh-place qualifying effort, but the challenge of the rain and Barber Motorsports Park course threw Andretti off-course shortly into Sunday’s initial 23-lap effort. With track position lost and heavy rains descending upon the circuit, Andretti’s Andretti Herta Autosport team hinged their bets on strategy. They brought Andretti’s No. 98 HondaRead More