Takuma Sato Tag

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana — In an Indianapolis 500 qualifying day marred by bad weather and a serious accident from a top qualifying contender, Ed Carpenter Racing’s eponymous team owner came out on top. Ed Carpenter’s No. 20 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet was one of the last five cars to qualify for a chance to win the pole for the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 and poked the nose of his car to the top of the speed chart with a fourRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana- Predictions ahead of qualifications for the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500 can be difficult to make. Many teams didn’t show their complete hand in practice while others have all of their cards on the table. Either way, an attempt will be made at predicting qualifying results. Last Row (in no particular order): Buddy Lazier, Jack Harvey and Zach Veach Lazier was seven mph slower than the next slowest car. Harvey has had numerous issues since day one and Veach hadRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana- With the turbocharger boost raised for Fast Friday, the final pre-qualifying practice ahead of the 101st Indianapolis 500, Honda let their top chargers run wild as they secured 10 of the first 11 spots on the speed chart before rains came down to delay practice. Before the rain, Sebastien Bourdais drove his No. 18 Dale Coyne Racing Honda to the fastest lap with 233.116 mph his average around the 2.5 mile oval. The St. Petersburg resident was also fastest onRead More

By Takuma Sato, Driver Columnist In his third column for Motorsports Tribune, Takuma Sato talks about the tough times trying to tackle the Grand Prix of Long Beach, testing in Texas, unveiling his own brand of wine and having former Formula One opponent Fernando Alonso as a teammate at Andretti Autosport for the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500. From Long Beach to Texas Long Beach was a tough weekend and we were left with a disappointing outcome. There was a little bit of up and down run by us in practiceRead More

By Takuma Sato, Driver Columnist In his second column for Motorsports Tribune, Takuma Sato discusses some of the improvements made by Honda and Andretti Autosport as they prepare for the Grand Prix of Long Beach, and reveals some of the small rigors of what he did over the three-week break between races. Constantly Improving I’m really excited to return to Long Beach. To be honest, with no change in the aero package from last year to this year, we knew we were coming into an uphill battle on road and streetRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Staff Writer This coming weekend the Verizon IndyCar Series will continue their 2017 season with one of their crown jewel events, the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. About the Race This is round two of seventeen for the Series in 2017. The event is held on a temporary street circuit, one of five such races on the schedule. The race weekend is scheduled April 7-9, 2017. The defending race champion is Simon Pagenaud, who drives the No. 1 Penske Chevrolet. This will be the 34th raceRead More

By Takuma Sato, Driver Columnist In his opening column for Motorsports Tribune, Takuma Sato discusses his Andretti Autosport debut in the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and brings everyone up to speed with how he went from Formula 1 to competing in the Indianapolis 500. Debuting for Andretti Autosport It has been so exciting from the moment I joined the team. It was a long winter and off-season, but a lot of things have happened. However, from the IndyCar regulations to the time that I signed up to driveRead More

By Frank Santoroski, Staff Writer This past weekend, the stars and cars of the Verizon IndyCar Series were back on the track after a lengthy off-season.  The series did not disappoint, nor did Sebastien Bourdais who took the win in his first outing with Dale Coyne Racing in the No. 18 Sonny’s Barbecue Honda entry. Lets discuss five topics coming away from the “World’s Fastest Spring Break Party.” 1 ) Instant Validation Sebastien Bourdais began shopping for a 2017 ride very early. After three rather fruitful seasons with KVSH RacingRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — What a reunion. Sebastien Bourdais came from last on the grid to win the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in the first race since being reunited with engineer Craig Hampson – whom he won four titles with during his Champ Car days (2004-’07). An accident in qualifying left the Dale Coyne Racing driver starting last, but thanks to some excellent pit strategy and fast driving was able to drive his No. 19 Boy Scouts of America HondaRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Honda continued their dominance of Verizon IndyCar Series practice in preparation for Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg by taking the top six positions on the time sheet. The No. 9 GE LED Lighting Honda of Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon topped the charts with a lap of 1 minute, 01.6240 seconds (105.154 mph) ahead of James Hinchcliffe in the Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’s No. 5 ARROW Honda. Third was the No. 98 NAPA Auto Parts Honda ofRead More