Indianapolis Motor Speedway Tag

By INDYCAR INDIANAPOLIS – Alex Palou finished a close second in the 2021 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge and qualified second Sunday for this year’s race, but he jumped to the top spot in practice Monday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, continuing a magical Month of May for Chip Ganassi Racing. Reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Palou led with a top lap of 229.441 mph in the No. 10 NTT DATA Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. He was the pacesetter of four Ganassi team cars in the top five. SEE: Practice Results Six-time seriesRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Never in the storied history of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway has a pole winner driven faster than Scott Dixon did during Sunday’s final day of qualifying to set the field for the 106th running of the Indianapolis 500. Rocketing around the 2.5-mile track at an average of 234.046 mph, Dixon was the final car to head out and make his qualifying run, crossing the finish line to eclipse Scott Brayton’s pole record from 1996 to score his fifth pole position for the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing,”Read More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor No attack, no chance. Takuma Sato put his motto to the test on Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as he battled his way inside the top-12 to advance on to the second day of Indianapolis 500 qualifying. After claiming a spot inside the top-12 during his first qualifying run at an average of 232.196 mph, Sato, who has been among the fastest drivers all week, had his run invalidated by the sanctioning body when it was determined he interfered with Marco Andretti’s qualifying attempt, setting theRead More

By INDYCAR INDIANAPOLIS – It was a very good time either to be powered by a Chevrolet engine or drive for Chip Ganassi Racing on the first day of PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying for the 106th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on Saturday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Chevrolets propelled the three fastest qualifiers, led by Rinus VeeKay’s four-lap average speed of 233.655 mph in the No. 21 Bitcoin Racing Team with BitNile Chevrolet, while all five of Ganassi’s Honda-powered drivers ended up in the top 12 and will advance toRead More

By INDYCAR INDIANAPOLIS – Takuma Sato continued his domination of the speed chart this week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, completing a sweep of all three practices by setting the pace once again in tricky conditions on Fast Friday for the 106th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. But on the eve of PPG Presents Armed Forces Qualifying, the oldest and youngest drivers in the field also are contenders Saturday to lead the group of 12 drivers advancing to the second and third rounds of qualifying Sunday, with a possible shot at theRead More

By Kirby Arnold, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS – Chip Ganassi Racing rolled out strong this week when practice began for the Indianapolis 500, with all five drivers among the fastest 10 after Day 1, Scott Dixon running second both days and former NASCAR star Jimmie Johnson in the top five twice.  With qualifying Saturday and Sunday for the May 29 race, it’s setting up to be a strong month for the Ganassi team. We spoke Thursday morning with Mike Hull, the team’s longtime managing director, about several topics concerning the 500Read More

By INDYCAR INDIANAPOLIS – There’s a pattern forming after two full days of practice for the 106th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge: Takuma Sato and Scott Dixon are really fast. Sato and Dixon were 1-2 on the speed chart Thursday for the second consecutive practice at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Two-time Indy 500 winner Sato led at 227.519 mph in the No. 51 Nurtec ODT Honda, with six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion and 2008 “500” winner Dixon second at 227.335 in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. “We’reRead More

By Kirby Arnold, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS – Sage Karam rolled out of the garage comfortable and fast Tuesday morning in the first Indianapolis 500 practice at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But that doesn’t mean all is perfect in the preparation of his Dreyer & Reinbold Racing Chevrolet for the May 29 race.  This is Indy, after all, where the mental stress of figuring out how to go faster can be worse than act of steering into Turn 1 at more than 230 mph. The dilemma of the moment: Should the teamRead More

By Kirby Arnold, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS – Inside the garage at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, nearly a dozen engineers and mechanics hovered over a project that looked like a complex erector set and hardly the sleek race car it would become. Nearby, body panels lay in the Indiana sun – an engine cover here and sidepods there, with the undertray and wings not far away. Incomplete as it was, Don Cusick and his wife Carolyn stood outside admiring the creation like it was the most gorgeous newborn ever. “I get aRead More

By David Morgan, Associate Editor Since its implementation 2020, the NTT IndyCar Series Aeroscreen hadn’t been subjected to a wet weather race, so there was still a big unknown on how it would perform in the rain ahead of Saturday’s GMR Grand Prix at Indianapolis. After two hours of racing in inclement conditions on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course, drivers and teams got their answer and the reviews were mixed. “I’ve never seen anything like that before,” said fifth place finisher Conor Daly. “It was like the water just stayed inRead More