Sebastian Saavedra Tag

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS– Kyle Kaiser might have one of the best environments in which to grow during his journey in the Verizon IndyCar Series. After several years driving for Juncos Racing in the Mazda Road to Indy, the 2017 Indy Lights champion put together a strong 17th-place qualifying effort for his first Indianapolis 500. Despite not everything being perfect, the team knew the challenges ahead. “It’s the hardest race of the year I think because you have so much time to practice,” said Kaiser. “That sounds like ‘Wow,Read More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer The 2018 Rolex 24 at Daytona has achieved star power status with world championship-caliber drivers and manufacturers in the Prototype ranks in the second year of the DPi/LMP2 rules package. (what is a DPi? https://www.imsa.com/qa-2017-daytona-prototype-international-dpi-concept) The entry list has four manufacturers in the DPi ranks with Nissan (two cars), Mazda (two cars), Acura (two cars) and Cadillac (four cars) going up against 10 LMP2 cars from Oreca (six cars), Riley/Multimatic (one car) and Ligier (three cars). Let’s look at the Prototype portion of the entry listRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer After a Verizon IndyCar Series season filled with highs and lows, let’s look at some of the more memorable moments in 2017 both on and off track. 10. New teams on the horizon The year witnessed two new teams in the series with Juncos Racing and Harding Racing making their debuts at the Indianapolis 500. Ricardo Juncos has been a Mazda Road to Indy stalwart for the past few seasons and after returning to Indy Lights competition in 2015, the Speedway, Indiana-basedRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer The pressure was on Sebastian Saavedra. His part time Verizon IndyCar Series drive for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports was coming to an end after Saturday’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at Gateway Motorsports Park and the Colombian qualified 21st out of 21 cars. His crew stayed until midnight to make massive setup changes and it worked, resulting in an 11th place finish. “It was fine because I still didn’t know the place,” Saavedra said. “I felt like those first 20 laps I was stillRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer MADISON, Illinois — Looking ahead to the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series, temporary Schmidt Peterson Motorsports driver Sebastian Saavedra rediscovered his passion for IndyCar racing while filling in for Mikhail Aleshin on the streets of Toronto. “I mean, as of right now I want to stay here,” Saavedra said after qualifying for Saturday’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at Gateway Motorsports Park. “I was a bit more sports car prone before Toronto, then we did Toronto and that passion for speed just came toRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer Jack Harvey couldn’t catch a break. After losing two tiebreakers in the 2014 Indy Lights points standings and losing the 2015 Indy Lights championship in the final two races, the 2012 British Formula 3 champion didn’t have a Verizon IndyCar Series drive for 2016 or 2017 until this year’s Indianapolis 500. However, that situation has changed for Harvey as he has picked up the seat in the No. 7 Honda for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports at Watkins Glen International and at Sonoma RacewayRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer After being a lap down and needing both his front and rear wings changed, Will Power managed to turn an off-strategy run into another Verizon IndyCar Series win at Sunday’s ABC Supply 500 at Pocono Raceway. Tony Kanaan led the first lap as the field had many drivers gaining or losing several positions in the first ten laps. Helio Castroneves gained ten positions very quickly while Josef Newgarden gained eight positions in the first seven laps. However, Castroneves faded to 13th byRead More

Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (SPM) has announced Sebastian Saavedra as the driver of the No. 7 Honda for the next two Verizon IndyCar Series races. The Colombian will join teammate James Hinchcliffe at Pocono Raceway and Gateway Motorsports Park. The event at Pocono will mark the 27-year-old’s 64th career IndyCar start and third at the Tricky Triangle. Saavedra will once again be paired with race engineer Blair Perschbacher with whom he has won previously in the Indy Lights Championship. “I am very excited to be back with the SPM organization,” Saavedra commented.Read More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer On any street circuit gaining positions is difficult, but on the streets of Toronto, Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Hunter-Reay and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’s Sebastian Saavedra did that better than anybody by gaining ten and nine spots respectively from where they began the race. Hunter-Reay took the green flag in 16th place and moved to 14th following the opening lap incident between Scott Dixon and Will Power. The No. 28 DHL Honda then saw pit lane on Lap 21 before a caution for TonyRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Sebastian Saavedra returns to the Verizon IndyCar Series to pilot the No. 7 with Schmidt Peterson Motorsports for this weekend’s Honda Indy Toronto. Mikhail Aleshin, the usual full-time driver of the entry, will sit on the sidelines but be on hand for “support” according to a team release. Gary Peterson, owner and longtime supporter of Saavedra, will have his AFS Racing branding joining the No. 7 Lucas Oil SPM Honda. The move also reunites the Colombian with former Indy Lights race engineer Blair Perschbacher. Saavedra onlyRead More