Category: Auto Racing

Green Flag Luncheon Starts St. Pete Grand Prix Weekend

thepitwindow

Promoters Kim Green (at mic) and Kevin Savoree welcome guests to the start of race weekend

If the crowd at the Chamber of Commerce Green Flag VIP and Media is any indication, the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is on track for a record crowd. I have attended this event for three years now, and today;s attendance was by far the largest I have seen. The city of St. Petersburg has fully embraced this event.

Eight Indycar drivers and drivers from all the support series running this weekend attended. Indycar drivers at the lunch included Colin Braun, Jack Harvey, Sting Ray Robb, Santino Ferrucci, Pietro Fittipaldi, Agustin Canapino, Scott Dixon, and Alexander Rossi.

Lis Boggs from Bridgestone/Firestone presented a check ofr $10,000 to Kids Spark Education Foundation in memory of Gil de Ferran.

Rossi and Dixon shared some of their misadventures flying Spirit Airlines. Dixon said his flight needed three attempts to take off.

Grand Prix staff I spoke with said that ticket sales are ahead of last year, which saw a record attendance.

Notes

Canapino seems more relaxed than he was at this time last year. He is excited about his second season in Indycar, and he believes he learned a lot in 2023. he is eager to work with teammate Romain Grosjean.

The Lionheart will debut on Max next week at 9 pm Eastern March 12.

The coveted blue envelopes are ready for mailing. Story up in a bit.

I will have my race preview up tomorrow morning.

Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding Fast Facts

thepitwindow

From Indycar:

Note: A digital copy of the 2024 INDYCAR Media Guide is available for download by clicking here. It is also available in the media guide section of the INDYCAR Content Site at http://content.indycar.com. A limited number of printed copies will be available beginning this weekend at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding.

Race weekend: Friday, March 8 – Sunday, March 10

Track: Streets of St. Petersburg, 1.8-mile, 14-turn temporary street circuit (clockwise) through downtown St. Petersburg, Florida, including a runway of Albert Whitted Airport

Race distance: 100 laps / 180 miles (NTT INDYCAR SERIES) | 45 laps / 81 miles / 55 minutes (INDY NXT by Firestone)

Push-to-pass parameters:NTT INDYCAR SERIES: 150 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 15 seconds per activation. | INDY NXT by Firestone: 150 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 15 seconds per activation

Firestone tire allotment: NTT INDYCAR SERIES: Six sets primary, four sets alternate to be used during the event weekend. Teams fielding a rookie driver may use one additional set of primary tires. Teams must use one set of primary and one set of new (sticker) alternate tires for at least two laps in the race. \\INDY NXT by Firestone: Three new sets to be used during the event weekend with one new set used for qualifying and another new set used during the race. A carryover set from the preseason testing may be used during the first practice.

X (formerly known as Twitter): @GPSTPETE, @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCAR
Instagram: @gpstpete, @IndyCar, @INDYNXT, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCAR
Facebook: @GPSTPETE, @IndyCar, @INDYNXT, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCAR
TikTok: @IndyCar, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCARYouTube: @INDYCAR, @greensavoreeracingpromotions
Event website: www.gpstpete.com/
INDYCAR website: www.indycar.com

2023 race winners: NTT INDYCAR SERIESMarcus Ericsson (No. 8 Huski Chocolate Chip Ganassi Racing Honda)INDY NXT by FirestoneDanial Frost (No. 68 HMD Motorsports)

2023 NTT P1 Award winner (NTT INDYCAR SERIES): Romain Grosjean (No. 28 DHL Honda), 59.5532 seconds, 108.810 mph
2023 INDY NXT by Firestone pole winner: Louis Foster (No. 26 Andretti Autosport), 1 minute, 05.1103 seconds, 99.523 mph

Qualifying records:NTT INDYCAR SERIESWill Power, 59.3466 seconds, 109.189 mph, Feb. 26, 2022 (set in Round 2 of qualifying)INDY NXT by FirestoneDavid Malukas, 1 minute, 4.6491 seconds, 100.233 mph, April 23, 2021

NBC Sports telecast: Race, noon ET Sunday, NBC (live). Leigh Diffey is the play-by-play announcer for NBC’s coverage of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Marty Snider, Kevin Lee and Georgia Henneberry are the pit reporters. Universo will provide a Spanish-language telecast.
Peacock Live Streaming: All NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice sessions, qualifying and races as well as INDY NXT by Firestone races will stream live on Peacock, NBC’s direct-to-consumer livestreaming product.
INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the anchor alongside driver analyst Davey Hamilton. Nick Yeoman and Jake Query are the turn announcers. Michael Young, Ryan Myrehn and Jonathan Grace are the pit reporters. The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg race and all NTT INDYCAR SERIES practices and qualifying sessions air live on network affiliates, SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation 218 and SiriusXM NBC Sports Audio 85, racecontrol.indycar.com and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA. All INDY NXT by Firestone practice and qualifying sessions and races are available on racecontrol.indycar.com, the INDYCAR App and SiriusXM 218.

At-track schedule (All Times Local/Eastern Time):
Friday, March 8
1:35-2:10 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone practice, INDYCAR LIVE
2:45-4 p.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice, Peacock

Saturday, March 9
8:25-9:10 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone practice, INDYCAR LIVE
9:35-10:35 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice (Limited guarantee of 45 minutes of green flag time), Peacock
1:05-1:35 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone qualifying (Two groups, 12-minute session with green flag of one timed lap), INDYCAR LIVE
2-3:30 p.m. – Qualifying for the NTT P1 Award (three rounds of knockout qualifying), Peacock

Sunday, March 10
9:10-9:40 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES warmup, Peacock
10:10 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (45 laps / 81 miles / 55 minutes), Peacock (Live)
Noon – NBC Sports on air
12:23 p.m. – “Drivers, start your engines”
12:30 p.m. – Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding (100 laps / 181 miles), NBC, Universo and Peacock (Live)

“WHAT TO LOOK FOR” AT ST. PETERSBURG:
1. Will track record fall? 
While the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season awaits the arrival of the 2.2-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 engine with hybrid technology after the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, teams will push the limit until then with enhanced possibilities of track records with lighter chassis components prepared for the hybrid addition. They include a lighter, 3D-printed titanium aeroscreen top frame. Without compromising overall strength and durability, the new INDYCAR top frame saves seven pounds from the previous model. Additionally, a switch to a magnesium gearbox casing and bellhousing – located between the INDYCAR SERIES combustion engine and the gearbox and will house the hybrid assist unit – will provide additional weight savings
.2. Dixon seeks his first win on the streets of St. Petersburg. 
Who wouldn’t take Scott Dixon’s resume as an NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver?He has six NTT INDYCAR SERIES championships, which trails only the seven INDYCAR SERIES titles collected by A.J. Foyt. His 56 wins rank second on the all-time INDYCAR SERIES victory list, behind Foyt’s 67, but the streets of St. Petersburg might be his kryptonite.
It is one of five tracks on the schedule where Dixon is winless and the one where he has the most starts (19).Still, Dixon has been successful on the streets of St. Petersburg. Dixon has four runner-up finishes at the circuit and has an average finish of 7.63 in his 19 previous starts. He has finished in the top 10 in his last eight starts.3.
Power Plays Poles at Will. 
Will Power is the greatest qualifier in modern INDYCAR SERIES history, as his 70 career poles are the INDYCAR SERIES record.The tale of Power’s qualifying success can best be told through the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, where he has won nine of the last 14 poles.
The only drivers to score a pole in the last 10 years in St. Petersburg not named Will Power are Takuma Sato in 2014, Robert Wickens in 2018, Colton Herta in 2021, Scott McLaughlin in 2022 and Romain Grosjean last season. In total, Team Penske has won the pole position in 11 of the past 17 St. Petersburg races.Power has scored at least one pole position in each season since 2009, including two NTT P1 Awards last year. It’s almost a sure bet that Power will add to his record this season, and don’t be surprised if it starts during NTT P1 Award qualifying Saturday afternoon.
4. Split practice to be trialed. Deployed on a trial basis in St. Petersburg, the field will be split into two groups following a 20-minute “All Cars” session to begin Practice 1.Following the 20-minute “All Cars” session, each group – split by odd and even numbered pit boxes – will receive two 10-minute segments on an alternating basis.
As in qualifying, the clock in Segments One and Two will stop for the first red flag condition of each practice segment.

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Notes:The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding will be the 21st INDYCAR SERIES race on the streets of St. Petersburg, dating to 2003 and the 20th race promoted by Green Savoree Promotions. Marcus Ericsson won the 2023 race, while Romain Grosjean won the NTT P1 Award. Paul Tracy won the inaugural race on Feb. 23, 2003, under CART sanction, while Sebastien Bourdais started from the pole that year.The St. Petersburg INDYCAR SERIES race has been run every year since 2003 except for 2004. No driver has competed in every St. Petersburg race, but Scott Dixon has started 19 consecutive races.Will Power (2010 and 2014) and Josef Newgarden (2019-2020) are the only entered drivers to win at St. Petersburg more than once. Six past winners are entered: Power, Newgarden, Graham Rahal (2008), Colton Herta (2021), Scott McLaughlin (2022) and Ericsson.Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou arrives at the season opener as the defending NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion for the second time in three seasons. The two-time series champion will look to make history by becoming the first repeat champion since Dario Franchitti won three in a row for Chip Ganassi Racing from 2009-11.Team Penske has won at St. Petersburg 11 times, including seven of the last 12 races with Castroneves (2012), Power (2014), Juan Pablo Montoya (2015-16), Newgarden (2019-2020) and McLaughlin (2022).The 2024 season marks the 20th season of the Firestone Fast Six qualifying format. Since the format debuted at the 2005 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, 65 drivers have participated in Firestone Fast Six qualifying at 20 road and street circuits. Not surprisingly, NTT INDYCAR SERIES all-time pole record holder Will Power leads all drivers with 96 career Firestone Fast Six appearances, only one ahead of six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Scott Dixon.Career Firestone Fast Six AppearancesRANKDRIVERFAST SIXES1Will Power962Scott Dixon953Helio Castroneves664Josef Newgarden495Ryan Hunter-Reay456Dario Franchitti427Simon Pagenaud408Graham Rahal329Ryan Briscoe3110Tony Kanaan30Four drivers have won the race from the pole – Castroneves (2007), Power (2010), Herta (2021) and McLaughlin (2022). The St. Petersburg winner has qualified fourth in five of the last 20 races.Dixon is expected to make his 386th INDYCAR SERIES start, which is fourth on the all-time list. Dixon has made 322 consecutive starts heading into the weekend, which is the longest streak in INDYCAR SERIES history.· Rookies Colin Braun, Christian Rasmussen and Kyffin Simpson will make their NTT INDYCAR SERIES debuts at St. Petersburg. Veteran Pietro Fittipaldi is slated to race on the streets of St. Petersburg for the first time. The two other NTT INDYCAR SERIES rookies entered, Tom Blomqvist and Linus Lundqvist, debuted in 2023.INDY NXT by Firestone Notes:The expected 22-car field for the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg would be the largest INDY NXT by Firestone field at St. Petersburg since 2009 when 27 cars were on the grid.The 2024 season features a deep and talented field with INDY NXT race winners such as Nolan Siegel, Louis Foster and Reece Gold joining a promising rookie class that includes Myles Rowe (2023 USF Pro 2000 champ), Callum Hedge (2023 Formula Regionals America champion) and Caio Collet (Formula 3 race winner/Nissan Formula E reserve driver). Other contenders include returning drivers Jacob Abel, Josh Pierson, James Roe and Jamie Chadwick.INDY NXT by Firestone has added a new team for the second consecutive season. Miller Vinatieri Motorsports – co-owned by former INDYCAR SERIES competitor Dr. Jack Miller and former NFL standout Adam Vinatieri – will make its debut at St. Petersburg with driver Jack William Miller.Group qualifying will decide the starting grid on road and street circuits. Based on the best lap times from the practice session immediately preceding qualifying, the fastest driver in that session will choose which group will compete in the first of the two qualifying sessions. With 12 minutes allotted for each group (with a guarantee of one timed lap), the fastest driver between the two sessions will be awarded pole position with the drivers who finished behind that driver, in order and in that group, occupying the odd-numbered starting positions (3, 5, 7, etc.) for the race and the drivers who finished in order from the other group occupying the even-numbered starting positions (2, 4, 6, etc.). One driver and entrant championship point will be awarded to the fastest car in each qualifying group.Since 2005, a driver who won at least one of the races at St. Petersburg has won the INDY NXT by Firestone title six times, the most recent being Kyle Kirkwood, who won the first race of the doubleheader in 2021. 

Arrow McLaren Tabs Ilott to Sub for Malukas at St. Pete

thepitwindow

Arrow McLaren released the following announcement this morning:

Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team today announces Callum Ilott to drive the No. 6 Chevrolet in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season opener in the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg as David Malukas recovers from surgery on his left wrist. 

Callum made 36 starts with Juncos Hollinger Racing over the last three seasons, including five top-10 finishes. He also has experience in Formula 1 as he was a test driver for Scuderia Ferrari and a reserve driver for Alfa Romeo in 2021.

The team continues to evaluate options for its driver lineup for future tests and races as David recovers. 

Notes

In a just completed news conference, Ilott seemed excited to be back in an Indycar. He said he would be open to doing more races should his schedule permit, but his first priority this season is WEC.

Ilott was the finishing driver and finished second in the opening WEC race in Qatar last weekend.

He said that the ay he left Indycar was “slightly premature,” and he is glad to have a chance with a competitive team. This chance with McLaren “felt right.”

The team did not give an update on Malukas’ recovery. He is expected to return at Long Beach, leaving an opening for the Thermal exhibition.

Harvey, Siegel, Braun to Race for Coyne

thepitwindow

Dale Coyne Racing today named Indycar veteran Jack Harvey, Indy NXT driver Nolan Siegel, and sports car ace Colin Braun as drivers in a split program for the 2024 season.

Harvey will drive car 18 in 14 races. Siegel will take the wheel of the car for Thermal, Long Beach, the Indianapolis 500, and Toronto.

Colin Braun will drive the 51 at St. Pete and Thermal, with the possibility of more races later in the season.

Rick Ware Racing returns as a partner on the 51 car.

Coyne has signed INVST as a sponsor.

I wonder why Harvey was not given the opportunity to drive in the 500 after his banzai qualifying run last year. Siegel could drive at Indy in the 51.

The 51 still has an open seat for 16 races. I’m sure they will have a driver for the 500, but what about the rest of the season?

Three Seasons in One- Indycar 2024 Preview

thepitwindow

The long winter is over. It is opening week for the NTT Indycar Series. 2024 will be a season like no other. It is actually three seasons in one.

The first eight races or so will be he regular routine with the same cars and engines we have had for the past six or seven years. Around July, I’m guessing Mid-Ohio, the new hybrid energy recovery system will come on board. How much will the heavier cars change? Who will figure out how to best use the new system?

Penske, Ganassi, Andretti, and Arrow McLaren have been testing and developing the new power trains, and they should have an advantage early on, but then these are the teams that usually run up front, so the hybrid unit isn’t really going to change much. The other teams have their first hybrid test March 28 and 29 on the IMS road course.

The third season comes in the last eight races, when six races, including the season finale, are on ovals. There are double headers at Iowa and Milwaukee. The finale is now at Nashville Super Speedway, which hasn’t seen Indycar in 16 years. Only Scott Dixon, Will Power, Graham Rahal, and Ed Carpenter have raced there. Dixon has won three times there.

New Rules and Procedures

Some new wrinkles in restarts and practice begin at St. Pete next weekend.

Practice 1 has a new look in an effort to get more cars on track. The first 20 minutes will look like traditional practice, with the track available for all cars. Then half the field will have a 10 minute segment, followed by the 10 minutes for the other half of the grid. The first group gets another 10 minutes, followed by the second group.

This procedure should help in a couple of ways. It will allow drivers to get in more clean laps. It almost forces cars to be on track due to the limited segments.

The first 20 minutes may see more action, since each car will have just 20 minutes after that. usually the first 15-20 minute are when the rookies are out with their extra set of tires.

Restarts

When the field comes back to the green, cars will not be allowed to pass until they cross a white line somewhere past the final turn. The line’s location will differ at each track.

This rule hopes to avoid the chaos we saw last year on many restarts. I hope it works.

The Indianapolis 500 will have some new rules regarding defensive moves and about when the red flag can be used near the end of the race. I will reserve comment on the red flag until after the rules are published.

Catching Ganassi

Chip Ganassi Racing is the team to beat again. Last year Alex Palou won five races enroute to his second championship. Scott Dixon won three times late in the season, and Marcus Ericsson won once.

I don’t think the team will win nine races again in 2024. Team Penske will give them a run for their money again. Andretti Global and Arrow McLaren should be in the mix this season as both teams have fortified their lineups.

Andretti has trimmed down to three cars and should build on the ir two wins from Kyle Kirkwood in 2023.

Arrow McLaren added David Malukas to their stable, which should help his career immensely.

Other team oves that could pay off this year –

Felix Rosenqvist at Meyer Shank. I felt Rosenqvist was overshadowed and underappreciated at Arrow McLaren. he is the team leader at MSR and I think he will thrive there.

Christian Rasmussen at Ed Carpenter Racing. Rasmussen is someone who should push Rinus VeeKay more. I’m still puzzled by VeeKay’s overall lack of progress, and I hope his new rookie teammate will help him get improved results.

Going Backwards

Dale Coyne Racing is beginning the season on the back foot. We are just four days from opening practice and the team has not named any drivers. Jack Harvey tested for two days in the past couple of weeks, and Colin Braun had a day in the car last Tuesday. I guess we’ll see who shows up Friday.

Look for this team to be at the back of the pack all year.

Winners

My predictions for the year. I apologize in advance for ruining these drivers’ seasons.

Championship- Scott McLaughlin

Indianapolis 500- Pato O’Ward

Rookie of the Year- Kyffin Simpson

First Career Win- David Malukas

Number of different race winners- 9

I will have my St. Pete race preview up later in the week.

Firestone GP of St. Pete Schedule- First Look

thepitwindow

An early look at the Indycar and Indy NXT schedule for next weekend. All times Eastern.

Friday, March 8

1:35 p.m. – 2:20 p.m. INDY NXT by Firestone Practice 1
2:45 pm. – 4:00 p.m. NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice 1

Saturday March 9

8:25 a.m. – 9:10 a.m. INDY NXT by Firestone Practice 2
9:35 a.m. – 10:35 a.m. NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice 2
1:05 p.m. – 1:35 p.m. INDY NXT by Firestone Qualifying
2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. NTT INDYCAR SERIES Qualifying

Sunday March 10

9:10 a.m. – 9:40 a.m. NTT INDYCAR SERIES Warm-up
10:10 a.m. – 11:05 a.m. INDY NXT by Firestone (45 Laps) Race
11:40 a.m. NTT INDYCAR SERIES Driver Introductions
12:30 p.m. Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP
Funding (100 Laps)

McLaren Extends O’Ward’s Contract

thepitwindow

Image from Arrow Mclaren Racing

From Arrow McLaren:

McLAREN RACING EXTENDS CONTRACT WITH PATO O’WARD

“McLaren has become home for me, and I am proud that I’ll be racing in papaya for a few more years at least”

Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team logo

https://mclaren.bloomreach.io/cdn-cgi/image/format=webp,quality=80/delivery/resources/content/gallery/mclaren-racing/images/social-media-logos/vector-3.png

McLaren Racing today announced that Pato O’Ward has signed a multiyear contract extension with the Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team ahead of the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season.

Pato, 24, is entering his fifth full season in the series, all with Arrow McLaren, and has established himself as one of the sport’s top drivers. Since joining the team, Pato has made 64 race starts and secured four wins, five poles, 20 podium finishes and three top-four finishes in the series championship.

Last season, Pato and the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet finished fourth in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship after claiming seven podiums, including four runner-up finishes. He also became eligible for his super license after reaching the points threshold following the season, leading to his appointment as a 2024 McLaren Racing F1 Reserve Driver. Pato will fulfill his reserve driver duties for the team following the INDYCAR season.

Pato remains one of the most popular figures in the series, driving significant fan engagement through social media and at-track activations throughout the country.

Gavin Ward, Team Principal, Arrow McLaren, said:

“This is a big day for the team and for Pato. It’s been great to see Pato and the team grow together. We’re thrilled to continue racing with him and I look forward to showing the racing world what we can achieve as a group. Having this done and dusted before the start of the season means the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet crew can go into the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg free from distraction and with one goal in mind: to execute each race weekend to the fullest of our potential.”

Pato O’Ward, Driver, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, said:

“I couldn’t be more excited to sign this deal with the team. I have to thank Zak and Gavin, the partners and all who were involved in making this happen, especially before the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season starts so we can focus on racing and winning. McLaren has become home for me, and I am proud that I’ll be racing in papaya for a few more years at least.”