Chip Ganassi Racing Tag

By INDYCAR INDIANAPOLIS – Seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson sat alone on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s pit wall Wednesday morning, preparing for his first NTT INDYCAR SERIES laps on the iconic oval. He said he went through a mental checklist, reminding himself of the lowered expectations of a first-timer working to complete the required three-stage Rookie Orientation Program for the Indianapolis 500. “Be smart and ease into things,” he told himself. Then the helmet went on, Chip Ganassi Racing’s crew fired the Honda engine, and away Johnson and hisRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer The NTT IndyCar Series wrapped up its 2021 campaign with 46th Annual Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach last Sunday. Initially, the race was intended to be held in April but was postponed until late September, but what better race to cap off the 16-round odyssey than the sport’s biggest street circuit. When the dust settled, Andretti Autosport continued its dominance on the streets. Only this time, it was Colton Herta who owned the competition and went on to score his third win of the year.Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor LONG BEACH, Calif. – When Alex Palou climbed behind the wheel of the No. 10 Honda for the first time during an offseason test at Barber Motorsports Park and bested his more experienced teammates, Chip Ganassi Racing’s newest hire caught the eye of his team owner. With speed right out of the gate, the team knew they had something special in the 24-year-old Spaniard, but didn’t know just how special of a season they were in for. “It’s pretty interesting,” Ganassi said of that first test.Read More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer LONG BEACH, Calif. – A lot has changed in the world since 2019. The three NTT IndyCar Series title contenders are no exception as their racing careers have also undergone change over the course of the past two years. When the checkered flag dropped at Laguna Seca that year, Josef Newgarden was celebrating his second INDYCAR title, which lifted a tremendous amount of stress off him. Current championship leader Alex Palou was racing in Japan’s Super Formula, along with Pato O’Ward, who was also racing inRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor LONG BEACH, Calif. – Sunday’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach is both a homecoming and a dream realized for NTT IndyCar Series rookie Jimmie Johnson. The Southern California native, who grew up attending races in Long Beach in his younger days before moving over to the stock car ranks and eventually winning seven NASCAR Cup Series championship, had long dreamed of being able to climb behind the wheel of an open-wheel car to compete in the annual IndyCar race on the streets of Long Beach.Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor And then there were three. After the checkered flag waved on Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, it became official that the battle for the 2021 NTT IndyCar Series championship will come down to three drivers – Alex Palou, Pato O’Ward, and Josef Newgarden. Palou retook the points lead last weekend with his victory in Portland and Sunday at Laguna Seca did exactly what he had to do in order to maintain his position atop the standings, finishing second on theRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer Five title contenders remain in the penultimate round at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca with two being the main fighters. Both championship leader Alex Palou and second-place Pato O’Ward made Saturday’s Firestone Fast Six with Palou besting him. After nearly missing Round 2, Palou will roll off fourth for Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey. He was 0.5323 seconds off pole sitter Colton Herta’s time. But the bigger picture is that he’ll be ahead of his title rivals, beating O’Ward by two spots. “We improved the carRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer The NTT IndyCar Series made its return to the Pacific Northwest Sunday for the running of the Grand Prix of Portland. Alex Palou ended up scoring the victory from pole, regaining the championship lead from Pato O’Ward. Here’s the latest photo gallery highlighting the 110-lap race.Read More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer PORTLAND, Ore. – Alex Palou capped off a marvelous weekend at Portland International Raceway with his third career NTT IndyCar Series victory. Not only he won from the pole, he regained the championship lead with just two rounds remaining. On top of leading 29 of 110 laps, Palou was able to utilize what he’s learned from testing at the 1.964-mile road course weeks ago. Simply being gaining track experience as other teams, such as Andretti Autosport’s Alexander Rossi, who finished second, wasn’t able to do. “ItRead More

By Luis Torres, Staff Writer PORTLAND, Ore. – A key ingredient that’s alluded Alex Palou is having strong qualifying speed that’ll earn him the NTT P1 Pole Award. That all changed Saturday afternoon at Portland International Speedway as the Spaniard clocked in at 58.7701 seconds, 0.0872 seconds quicker than Alexander Rossi. After dealing with grid spot penalties and race day heartbreaks, Palou is thrilled of having positive momentum. More so that he’s entering Sunday’s Grand Prix of Portland second in points, now nine markers behind Pato O’Ward with three rounds remaining.Read More