Auto Racing – Page 93 – The Pit Window by Mike Silver

Molson Coors Extends Partnership with IMS, INDYCAR

January 17, 2024 thepitwindow

The announcement we’ve all been waiting for.

From IMS and Indycar:

INDIANAPOLIS (Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024) – Molson Coors – a global leader in brewing beverages for all of life’s moments – has extended its multiyear partnership with Indianapolis Motor Speedway and INDYCAR.
The beloved and iconic beers produced by Molson Coors will continue as the Official Beer of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, Brickyard Weekend, IMS, INDYCAR and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES
.“We are delighted to see Molson Coors continue this decade-long relationship with INDYCAR,” Penske Entertainment Corp. President and CEO Mark Miles said.
“The momentum and growth of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES is due, in part, to valuable partnerships and activations with iconic brands. It is gratifying to begin 2024 with this terrific news, and we look forward to continuing our upward trajectory with Molson Coors for many years to come.”
Other components of the partnership extension include:
Continued sponsorship of Miller Lite Carb Day, a high-octane party featuring some of the most exciting action on (and off) track with the final day of practice for the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge and the Miller Lite Carb Day Concert featuring a national recording act to kick off race weekend.
Expanded title sponsorship of the Coors Light Snake Pit, an epic EDM concert staged in Turn 3 during the Indianapolis 500.
“For more than 45 years, Molson Coors has been a key part of the festivities surrounding the Indianapolis 500 and other events at the Racing Capital of the World,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said.
“As we look forward to a new year of exciting action on and off track at IMS, there’s no chiller partner to ensure our fans can continue to celebrate both at home and at IMS. Help us cheers to many more years together.”
The extension of the partnership between IMS and Molson Coors continues a bond that started in 1977 when Miller Brewing Company first sponsored the Indianapolis 500 Pit Stop Challenge. Miller’s first involvement at the Indianapolis 500 came in 1973, when Miller High Life sponsored the car driven by Jim Hurtubise.
“We are so excited to extend our partnership once again with IMS, INDYCAR and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES,” Molson Coors Vice President of Marketing Activation Bill Averill said.
“For nearly half a century, Miller Lite and Coors Light have helped celebrate motorsport’s greatest moments both on and off track. We can’t wait to fuel this historic partnership for years to come.”
Coors has been involved with IMS and the Indianapolis 500 since 1996, when it started sponsorship of the Pit Stop Challenge. Coors also has sponsored Carb Day and other Indianapolis 500 activities since then.
For more than two centuries, Molson Coors Beverage Company has been brewing beverages. From Coors Light, Miller Lite, Molson Canadian, Carling, and Staropramen to Coors Banquet, Blue Moon Belgian White, Vizzy Hard Seltzer, Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy, Miller High Life and more, Molson Coors produces many beloved and iconic beer brands. While Molson Coors’ history is rooted in beer, Molson Coors offers a modern portfolio that expands beyond the beer aisle, as well.
To learn more about Molson Coors Beverage Company, visit molsoncoors.com.
The 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season begins Sunday, March 10 at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding. Coverage will be available via NBC and Peacock with audio coverage provided by the INDYCAR Radio Network, SiriusXM channel 218 and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA.
Tickets for the 108th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, all Month of May events at IMS – including Miller Lite Carb Day and Coors Lite Snake Pit – as well as Brickyard Weekend are on sale at IMS.com.

SRX Postpones Season

January 12, 2024 thepitwindow

Superstar Racing Experience, a six-week summer racing series started in 2021 by Tony Stewart and Ray Evernham, will not have a 2024 season. The announcement below says it is “postponed,” but it likely will not be back.

The announcement from SRX:

Social media speculation has run the gamut from Paul Tracy’s excessive crash damage to Ray Evernham’s new IROC revival. The truth may be somewhere in between. I don’t think a new series which has announced just one race at a yet to be determined track or date, would kill off an established series.

It was a fun series which provided me entertaining racing to fill in the down time between other events. Moving to Thursday nights I thought was a great idea, as there was no other racing going on that evening.

Ferrucci Returns to Foyt

January 10, 2024 thepitwindow

Just a day before Content Dat A. J. Foyt Racing announced that Santino Ferrucci will return to car 14 for 2024. This leaves just the two cars at Dale Coyne Racing without confirmed drivers.

Content Days today and tomorrow will feature media availabilities with all full time drivers.

The news release from Indycar:

Popular veteran Santino Ferrucci will drive A.J. Foyt’s No. 14 Sexton Properties Chevrolet in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES in 2024.

Joining the team last season, Ferrucci drove to a third-place finish in the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge after starting fourth to give the team its best performance since 2000 when Eliseo Salazar started and finished third in the “500.” Ferrucci’s performance continued his string of top-10 finishes in the Indy 500 which stands at five.

“I’m super stoked to be back with the team,” Ferrucci said. “It’s really good to start building some continuity with everybody, and I think it’s going to improve our results. My expectations for the year are to come out of the gate a lot more prepared than we were last year. Working with Penske, things are hopefully going to be a lot smoother, and I’m looking forward to being back at the Indy 500 again.”

Team President Larry Foyt echoed Ferrucci’s sentiments.

“I’m very happy to have Santino back,” Foyt said. “We worked well together, and he brings a good energy to the team. Obviously, we have our eyes set on the Indy 500, but we also had some good pace in other races but didn’t get the results. Together we are focused on moving up in the championship standings, and I believe we can achieve that.”

Connecticut native Ferrucci will be joined by sophomore driver Sting Ray Robb, who was signed last month to drive the No. 41 Chevrolet. The Foyt team is not planning to field a third car for the season, which begins with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding on Sunday, March 10.

iRacing, INDYCAR Sign Multiyear License Agreement

January 9, 2024 thepitwindow

Includes Rights to INDYCAR SERIES, Return of iRacing Indianapolis 500

INDIANAPOLIS (Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024) iRacing and INDYCAR are pleased to announce a multiyear licensing agreement – officially reuniting the two legendary brands.
The relationship, which dates back more than a dozen years, also includes Indianapolis Motor Speedway – and the return of the hugely popular iRacing Indianapolis 500 – to the gaming format’s Special Events calendar. This annual event has historically drawn thousands of participants, who race in a virtual version of the world’s most iconic race, known for its 200 laps of pure speed at the “Racing Capital of the World.” The community event allows sim racers from around the world to get a taste of what it is like to race at the famous oval at the Brickyard.
The return of a license has been highly anticipated by iRacing members and INDYCAR SERIES fans alike.
“The INDYCAR SERIES and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway are racing properties that need to be included in iRacing,” iRacing President Tony Gardner said. “There is no better way for fans to experience sim racing than on iRacing, and whether it’s the INDYCAR SERIES’ Indy 500, NASCAR’s Brickyard 400 or IMSA’s Battle on the Bricks, there is nothing like racing at Indianapolis. I am so pleased to be able to bring these events back to the iRacing community.”
In addition to the rebranding of INDYCAR SERIES events on iRacing, members will have access to series content for private events and leagues.
“We are very excited that our most avid gamers and fans will have full access to the INDYCAR SERIES through this licensing agreement with iRacing,” said Ben Hendricks, INDYCAR senior manager, eSports & emerging virtual experiences. “They are longtime partners, and we look forward to official INDYCAR SERIES racing on iRacing for many years to come.”
The new license agreement between iRacing and INDYCAR includes more provisions than previous iterations, allowing more flexibility to run events and series. Highlights include:

Return of the iRacing Indianapolis 500
INDYCAR SERIES branding of series on iRacing
Multiple leagues to run INDYCAR SERIES events on iRacing
License extension of Indianapolis Motor Speedway

The licensing agreement goes into effect immediately, and iRacing members will see the rebranding of series, cars and events over the coming days. Details of the iRacing Indianapolis 500 will be available later this month.

IROC Reborn- Will it Work?

January 9, 2024 thepitwindow

Yesterday’s news that Ray Evernham and Rob Kaufman purchased IROC, the International Race of Champions, excit4ed me. I loved the old IROC series. It was fun to watch.

For 2024, just one race with historic IROC cars is scheduled. Evernham owns several, and the race might be with the machines in his collection. No future plans were announced.

IROC ran from 1973-2006, and was owned by Les Richter, Roger Penske, and Mike Phelps. Until 1991 the schedule included at least one road race, but was exclusively an oval series from 1992 forward.

Mark Donohue won the first championship. Other champions included A. J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, Bobby Unser, Al Unser, Jr., Dale Earnhardt, Mark martin, and Tony Stewart.

While drivers from Indycar, Nascar, and Formula 1 participated, in its later years the series became heavy with nascar drivers, who dominated the championships. Al Unser, Jr. was the last non nascar champion in 1988.

The revived series enters an extremely busy racing calendar, and will need to carve i out its own niche. Tony Stewart’s Superstar Racing Experience has been very successful. How will IROC be different?

The former iteration had active drivers in competition, while SRX employs mainly retired or semi-retired drivers with an occasional active guest star. Today’s drivers seem busier than they have ever been. Will they have time to participate in IROC? I can’t see how Kyle Larson can fit one more thing into jis calendar.

IROC ran mainly as a support race for many nascar events. Will they can continue to do this? Would IROC run at an Indycar event, perhaps on Carb Day at IMS? Or will they go the s=weeknight route as SRX does?

I think a weekday might work best for them if the series decides not to be a support race series again. , which would mean a night series, and a schedule that begins and ends either before or after the SRX season.

Whatever IROC decides, I am thrilled to see this series come back. It means more racing, and perhaps nmore exposure for Indycar.

Movie Review- Ferrari

January 4, 2024 thepitwindow

Photo image from Ferrari movie page

Ferrari focuses on one year, 1957, in the turbulent life of Enzo Ferrari. His only son, Dino, died the previous year. His marriage to Laura is on shaky ground due to his philandering. He has a son with his mistress, ad she is pressuring him to acknowledge him publicly. Also, according to the film, his car company is in financial peril.

Ferrari is portrayed as a cold hearted, prideful man who believes people are expendable. The town of Maranello treats him as a godlike figure. Even the priest praises him during mass, calling him a carpenter who works in metal.

There are two stories in the film-one involving the racing business, and the other about Ferrari’s personal life.

When Maserati brings driver Jean Behra to the local track to set a track record, Ferrari immediately brings his driver, Luigi Castellotti out to reclaim the honor. Castellotti dies in the attempt in a crash scene that is a bit exaggerated.

Ferrari immediately hires Alfonso de Portago on the spot because he now needs a driver.

Ferrari’s financial advisers tell him that he needs to win the Mille Miglia to avoid bankruptcy, and that the company needs to produce more passenger cars to stay solvent. They point to Jaguar as a successful car company that also races.

Ferrari’s response is “Jaguar races to sell cars. I sell cars to race.” I believe in reality that Ferrari was a better businessman than that.

We see the beginnings of what led to war with Ford six years later as Ferrari tells a reporter to write a false story saying that Ford has made an offer to buy his company so that he can extract a higher offer from Fiat.

The action in the Mille Miglia was great. It was fun to see the Maseratis and Ferraris of that era running again. Some of the cars were the real cars, and others were fabricated faithfully to resemble the actual vehicles.

The tragic crash during the race was handled about as gently as it could have been but it wis still horrific. Be prepared. I knew it was coming and it is still frightening.

On the domestic side, Laura Ferrari, played by Penelope Cruz in one of her best performances ever controls the company’s finance. She has a quiet anger, partly due to the death of her son, and partly because of Enzo’s wandering.

His mistress, Lina Lardi, continues to press Enzo to acknowledge their son publicly, making him the heir to the Ferrari company. He is reluctant to make the move for fear of angering Laura.

Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari and Penelope Cruz as Laura do outstanding work. I felt that Cruz really stole the show. Some of the racing scenes were very good, although the shots of a crowd of cars racing together through a small town were not realistic. The Mille Miglia began rally style, and the cars were never that close to each other.

I really liked the film, and I suggest that if you haven’t seen it yet, please read about the 1957 Mille Miglia before you go. Preparation for the scene near the end of the race will help.

Gil de Ferran- Racer, Gentleman

December 31, 2023 thepitwindow

A slow trickle of news Friday night soon became a tsunami of shock and grief, followed by a wave of tributes to Gil de Ferran, who died of a heart attack that afternoon. I was among those in disbelief.

I expected that I would need to write another obituary column at some point before I retire this column, but this was not one I thought I’d be writing. To be honest, I hope I don’t have to do another one while this space is active. I think that is what makes this such a shock.

de Ferran was 56, 20 years removed from racing in Indycar, and had built a great post driving career as a team owner, manager, and consultant. Everyone like de Ferran, known to be a class individual outside the car. He drove with a will to win, as evidenced by his two Indycar titles and the 2003 Indianapolis 500 victory.

I thought he was under appreciated as a driver, drowned out by the feats of fellow Brazilians Helio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan. In addition to his 12 Indycar wins, de Ferran had three top 10s in four Indianapolis 500s.

His closed course one lap record of 241.428 miles an hour, set in October 2000, at California Speedway, may never be broken. de Ferran’s ALMS Acura team won five races in 2009, including four in a row.

As I have said before, do not miss an opportunity to tell your heroes how much you appreciate them. many of them are at a track or two during the season. Also hug your loved ones.

Statements on Passing of Indy 500 Winner, INDYCAR SERIES Champion de Ferran

December 30, 2023 thepitwindow

2003 Indianapolis 500 Winner de Ferran Dies at 56

December 29, 2023 thepitwindow

From IMS. My thoughts will be up later this weekend.

INDIANAPOLIS (Friday, Dec. 29, 2023) – Gil de Ferran, who won the 2003 Indianapolis 500 and two INDYCAR SERIES championships, died suddenly after a brief illness Dec. 29 near his home in Florida. He was 56.
De Ferran edged Team Penske teammate and fellow Brazilian Helio Castroneves in a scintillating finish in the 2003 edition of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” earning his victory by .2990 of a second after passing Castroneves for good on Lap 170. De Ferran earned his sole “500” victory in the last of his four career starts in the race, as he retired as a driver after the 2003 INDYCAR SERIES season.
While de Ferran denied close friend Castroneves a record-setting third consecutive “500” win in 2003, de Ferran’s drive to victory circle was the third straight Indy win for Team Penske. He also finished runner-up behind Castroneves in 2001.
The Indianapolis 500 victory was the zenith of a remarkable career that also included INDYCAR SERIES championships under CART sanction in 2000 and 2001 while driving for Team Penske. In both seasons, de Ferran used a combination of speed, consistency and racecraft to win the championship despite not being the driver with the most victories. That encapsulated the meticulous, analytical approach to his craft that de Ferran showed during his entire career.
De Ferran ended his INDYCAR SERIES driving career with 12 victories and 21 poles, with his final win coming in his last career start, on Oct. 12, 2003, at Texas Motor Speedway. His first victory came as a rookie in 1995 at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca while driving for Hall/VDS Racing. He earned CART Rookie of the Year honors in 1995.
The Brazilian moved from Hall/VDS to Walker Racing in 1997 after Hall/VDS owner Jim Hall retired from the sport. De Ferran finished second in the CART standings in 1997 despite going winless that season. But he still gained notoriety that year by finishing second to Mark Blundell at Portland International Raceway by .027 of a second, the closest result ever in a CART-sanctioned event.
De Ferran’s career blossomed when he joined Team Penske for the 2000 season, pairing with Castroneves for the next four seasons. He won the first of his two-straight championships and made racing history during qualifying at California Speedway when he set the closed-course land speed record with a lap of 241.428 mph, a mark that stands today. De Ferran also earned Team Penske its 100th INDYCAR SERIES career victory in 2000 at Nazareth Speedway.
After his INDYCAR SERIES career, de Ferran mixed driving in sports cars and his budding career in team management with his usual blend of courtesy and class.
He joined the BAR-Honda Formula One team as sporting director in 2005, remaining in that role until 2007. Then de Ferran returned to the cockpit in 2008 in a factory-backed Acura LMP2 prototype in the American Le Mans Series as the owner-driver of his team, de Ferran Motorsports, sharing the wheel with future INDYCAR SERIES champion and Indianapolis 500 winner Simon Pagenaud.
The team climbed to the premier LMP1 prototype class as an Acura factory team in 2009, with five victories and seven poles en route to a runner-up finish in the standings.
De Ferran retired as a driver after the 2009 season and co-owned de Ferran Dragon Racing in the INDYCAR SERIES through 2011. During this time, de Ferran also served as a team owners’ representative on the ICONIC committee that evaluated designs for the next generation of INDYCAR SERIES chassis, with his immense technical and managerial acumen adding greatly to the process.
In July 2018, de Ferran was named sporting director for McLaren Racing in Formula One, a role he held until early 2021. In May 2023, he also was rehired by McLaren as a consultant and advisor.
De Ferran started racing in karting in Brazil, where he moved as a toddler with his family after being born in Paris. He advanced through junior open-wheel formulas in Brazil before moving to Great Britain to race.
He finished third in the 1991 British Formula 3 championship, behind only future F1 race winners Rubens Barrichello and David Coulthard. In 1992, de Ferran won the British F3 title for Paul Stewart Racing with seven victories. He raced in Formula 3000 (now Formula 2, one step below F1) in 1993 and 1994 for Paul Stewart Racing, finishing tied for fourth in 1993 and third in 1994 before moving to America to race in 1995.
De Ferran is survived by his wife, Angela, whom he met when she worked for Paul Stewart Racing; daughter, Anna; and son, Luke.