Peacock Debuts at Indy Open Test

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Photo from Indycar Twitter

Indycar sent the following release regarding the open test at IMS Thursday and Friday. No fans allowed on the grounds. Peacock will have its first live streaming of Indycar. Peacocok costs $.99 per month. If you get it just for the Indycar season, it is less expensive than NBC Gold was. I believe Peacock is free if Xfinity is your cable provider.

The news release:

Nearly a full field of NTT INDYCAR SERIES participants will begin preparations for the 105th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge during an open test Thursday, April 8 and Friday, April 9 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Thirty-two car-and-driver combinations are scheduled to participate in the two-day session, which will stream live to race fans exclusively via NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, Peacock.

The open test at IMS creates a marquee launch for INDYCAR action on Peacock, featuring NBC Sports talent, exclusive content and interviews previewing the 17-race NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. Fans can sign up here for one week to view both days of testing at IMS, and enjoy live coverage of NTT INDYCAR SERIES qualifying and practice sessions, as well as coverage surrounding the 105th Indianapolis 500, Indy Lights races, race day warmups and full-event replays of the 2021 season on Peacock Premium for $4.99 per month.

“IMS and INDYCAR are working closely with NBC Sports to deliver what should be an exceptional show on Peacock during these two very important days of testing,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “Having the NBC Sports broadcasters, production quality and exclusive content will deliver an engaging viewing experience that builds even more anticipation for finally coming ‘Back Home Again’ to IMS in May.”

Said INDYCAR President Jay Frye: “The NTT INDYCAR SERIES offers the most competitive and daring racing on the planet. Peacock gives our most loyal fans access to key practice and qualification sessions while also showcasing our series alongside a compelling roster of major global sports leagues and competitions.”

A full stream of the test also will be available to international fans via the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA. Details on further global coverage of NTT INDYCAR SERIES race weekends, beginning with the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama presented by AmFirst on Sunday, April 18, will be provided soon by INDYCAR.

The IMS test will be held from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. (ET) Thursday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday. There will be no on-site public access. IMS remains focused on planning and preparing to host spectators during the Month of May. An advisory regarding media access will be forthcoming.

Star-Studded Field Set To Turn Laps at IMS

Reigning “500” champion Takuma Sato of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and six-time NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing headline the list of participants testing. Sato and Dixon were the top two finishers in last year’s race, held Aug. 23 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and they have combined to win Indy three times (Sato in 2017 and 2020, Dixon in 2008).

Nine former “500” winners have plans to test, including three-time champion Helio Castroneves (2001, 2002, 2009) in a car fielded by Meyer Shank Racing. Juan Pablo Montoya eyes his third “500” victory with as many teams. Montoya’s prior victories came with Chip Ganassi Racing in 2000 and Team Penske in 2015; this effort is with Arrow McLaren SP.

Other past “500” winners participating will be Chip Ganassi Racing’s Tony Kanaan (2013), Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Hunter-Reay (2014) and Alexander Rossi (2016), and Team Penske’s Will Power (2018) and Simon Pagenaud (2019). The record for former winners in a single “500” is 10, set in 1992.

Marco Andretti, who won the NTT P1 Award for pole at last year’s event, will be part of Andretti Autosport’s five participants. Andretti became the first member of his family to win the pole at Indy since his grandfather Mario in 1987. Mario won three “500” poles in his illustrious career.

Simona De Silvestro will make her return to IMS in the No. 16 Chevrolet of Paretta Autosport, a new NTT INDYCAR SERIES team. The Swiss driver last competed in the race in 2015. Pietro Fittipaldi, whose grandfather Emerson twice won the “500,” also will participate in the test in a bid to earn his first starting position in the famed event.

Honda will have 17 entries testing, Chevrolet 15.

Official practice for “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” begins Tuesday, May 18, with more than 33 entries competing for a starting position. NTT P1 Award qualifying will be held Saturday, May 22 and Sunday, May 23. The “500” is Sunday, May 30.

Montoya Carries Iconic Number and Colors on 500 Ride

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Photos from ArrowMcLarenSP Twitter page

Juan Pablo Montoya will drive car number 86 in the 105th running of the Indianapolis 500 in a car trimmed with the famous McLaren papaya orange. The 86 commemorates the 50th anniversary of the 1971 pole winning McLaren of Peter Revson, who stunned the crowd with his average time of 178.696, which beat out Mark Donohue for the pole. Revson finished second in the race to Al Unser.

Peter Revson prepares for his qualifying run in 1971
Top view

Montoya, 500 winner in 2000 and 2015, will also drive in the May 15 race on the IMS road course.

Arrow McLaren SP is the third team Montoya will have driven for in the 500. He won the 500 while driving for Chip Ganassi in 2000 and for Team Penske in 2015.

The three car AMSP effort at Indy, with full time drivers Pato O’Ward and Felix Rosenqvist, should be a strong contender in May.

IMS Test Signals Unofficial Start of Season

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Photo: The Festival Camaros lined up in front of the yard of bricks

It is now less than two weeks until the 2021 NTT Indycar Series begins. The season unofficially begins Thursday with a two day test for all Indianapolis 500 participants at IMS. All full time teams are expected to take part, as well as the new Paretta Autosport team with Simona de Silvestro driving. and the Dale Coyne/Rick Ware number 52. More on the Coyne car later. The test is open to fans in the turn 2 mounds.

The four drivers who took part in the hybrid simulation test qa week and a half ago, felt that passing should be improved. Indycar frilled in the hole in the floor and added strakes. This week will be a better test of the improvements with a larger number of cars.

Notes

Cody Ware tested at Texas last week and will take his rookie test at IMS this week. Ware was rumored to drive the 52 at the Indianapolis 500 when the team was announced, but those rumors cooled. Now it appears Ware will be the driver for the 500..

Doug Boles was the weekly guest on the Marshall Pruett Podcast last Wednesday. Boles said that an attendance decision is about 15-20 days away, which is right around the time of the season opener at Barber. Numbers in Indiana and Marion County are ticking upward at the moment. We will just have to wait and see.

As far as support events for the race, Boles said there is a plan for some music piece, but the race is the priority. he also said that no matter the COVID situation, masks will probably be required.

The entire podcast is at this link:

The Week In IndyCar, April 1, with Doug Boles

I was disappointed to learn from the Texas test that the upper groove still has the NASCAR traction compound on it and that the drivers still consider it a “no-go zone”. Last year’s race in June featured very little passing because the track had just one groove. Texas is now another track where great Indycar racing has been ruined by NASCAR modifications.

Later this week, watch for my season previews.

Paretta Autosport Gets Rocket Pro TPO Sponsorship; Some Notes of Fan Interest

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Paretta Autosport, the all female team which began last July as part of Indycar’s Race for Equality and Change, today announced Rocket Pro TPO as the main sponsor for their one off Indianapolis 500 entry. 500 veteran Simona De Silvestro will drive the car. The team is expected to participate in the open test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway April 8 and 9.

“Having Rocket Pro TPO come onboard as our primary sponsor for this year’s Indy 500 is a perfect partnership,” said Beth Paretta, CEO/team principal of Paretta Autosport. “We are both huge proponents of highlighting the power of women, while also using technology and speed to be the best at what we do. I cannot wait for what we will be able to accomplish as a team – both on and off the track.”

Rocket Pro is a division of Rocket Mortgage. The press release also noted,

“Together, Rocket Pro TPO, Paretta and De Silvestro will partner on the ‘Rocket Accelerator’ multimedia campaign. The group will use unique and innovative ways to amplify women in the mortgage lending and racing spaces by showcasing female leaders who are thriving in these industries.”

Paretta Autosport has a technical partnership with Team Penske.

Notes

Single day tickets for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg went on sale today.

Fans will be allowed to view next week’s open test at IMS from the turn 2 mounds.

The Road to Indy has Spring Training at barber motorsports today. Good news for the return of Indy Lights- 13 cars are entered for the tes.

500 Parade Cancelled; ‘Reverse Parade’ Takes Its Place

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The 500 festival Parade will not take place in downtown in Indianapolis the day before the 105th running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race. The parade has been a traditional pre-race event since 1958. The COVID pandemic cancelled the parade last year as well. More information can be found at 500 festival.com and IMS.com. Here announcements from the 500 festival and IMS about revised plans for May 29:

AES 500 Festival Parade | May 29 – The traditional in-person parade will NOT take place. Current ticket-holders will be contacted by the 500 Festival this week with more information. In collaboration with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, there will be a new community celebration event called “500 Spectacle of Homes,” in place of the traditional AES 500 Festival Parade. The 500 Spectacle of Homes will activate in neighborhoods across Indianapolis throughout the Month of May leading into Indy 500 Race Weekend and it will culminate with a “reverse parade” on Saturday, May 29. This will include a caravan of the 33 Indy 500 drivers who will make their way from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, throughout surrounding neighborhoods and downtown Indianapolis. Details for ways to participate will be shared soon.

‘500 Spectacle of Homes’ To Celebrate Month of May throughout Indianapolis

March 30, 2021 | By Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Special ‘Reverse Parade’ Planned for Saturday, May 29

Fans of the 105th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge are encouraged to show their anticipation and excitement for the Sunday, May 30 race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway by participating in a new, month-long activation showcasing civic pride and engagement: “500 Spectacle of Homes.”

The “500 Spectacle of Homes” will provide a focal point for celebrating this year’s “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” building on the tradition of community porch parties and reimagining the traditional AES 500 Festival Parade, which will not be held in 2021. Indianapolis-area fans are encouraged to participate in the city-wide celebration by decorating their yards and homes in race-themed fashion, similar to many of the floats featured in the traditional parade.

The celebration will culminate Saturday, May 29 – the day before the 105th Running – with all 33 starting drivers using event-themed 500 Festival event cars to complete a “reverse parade” through Indianapolis neighborhoods. The caravan will proceed from the Town of Speedway to downtown Indianapolis before the drivers and other dignitaries spread out through the city’s diverse neighborhoods to thank fans and recognize them for their inventive efforts to create the “500 Spectacle of Homes.”

Participating residents may submit their addresses to be included in a digital map for fellow race fans to drive by throughout the Month of May, similar to neighborhood holiday lights displays in December. Fans with home submissions will have the opportunity to win Month of May prizes.

In April, IMS.com will offer a hub filled with tips and inspiration, with IMS landmarks such as the Pagoda and the Yard of Bricks woven into the potential imagery. Residents are also encouraged to use their imagination regarding all things Month of May to create unique designs.

“This is a terrific way for fans to celebrate the Month of May and the Indy 500,” IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “Porch parties have become popular in recent years and are an example of the intense community spirit we have for IMS and its events. Decorating yards and homes for this neighborhood celebration will amp up the excitement even more. I look forward to seeing the creativity of our residents inspire our city throughout the Month of May and provide a fitting sendoff for our drivers ahead of the world’s greatest race.”

Said 500 Festival President and CEO Bob Bryant: “The spirit of the AES 500 Festival Parade continues in a new way. We are excited to work with IMS, the Harrison Center and community participants to once again showcase all 33 drivers in the 2021 Indy 500. We look forward to the return of our traditional community events next year and are appreciative of the flexibility from our stakeholders and IMS to find new ways to celebrate the Month of May.”

Décor items – such as yard signs and flags – will be distributed to several neighborhoods ahead of May 29 to encourage as much participation as possible. IMS will amplify the social posts of fans, using the imagery on IMS big screens and feeding NBC for its Race Day broadcast.

The activation is being planned by IMS, the Harrison Center and the 500 Festival. For more information, visit IMS.com. https://www.facebook.com/v2.0/plugins/comments.php?app_id=1570557269837095&channel=https%3A%2F%2Fstaticxx.facebook.com%2Fx%2Fconnect%2Fxd_arbiter%2F%3Fversion%3D46%23cb%3Df29364df5139abe%26domain%3Dwww.indianapolismotorspeedway.com%26origin%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.indianapolismotorspeedway.com%252Ff301093e63e56cc%26relation%3Dparent.parent&color_scheme=light&container_width=0&height=100&href=https%3A%2F%2Fdev.ims.com%2Fnews-multimedia%2Fnews%2F2021%2F03%2F30%2F500-spectacle-of-homes-to-celebrate-month-of-may-throughout-indianapolis&locale=en_US&numposts=5&sdk=joey&skin=light&version=v2.0&width=751

Mclaughlin in Pennzoil Car for 500

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Scott Mclaughlin will drive the number 3 Pennzoil Car in the 105th running of the Indianapolis 500. He will use the paint scheme which Helio Castroneves used in his last race with Team Penske.

The three time Australian Supercars champion revealed the car in this video this morning.

I think.its time to retire the term yellow submarine. Just because the car is yellow and sponsored by Pennzoil doesn’t make it the yellow submarine. That was a special car driven by Johnny Rutherford. The chassis was unique. This is a spec Dallara.

IMS Mass Vaccination Clinics Resume Tomorrow

Thursday is the first day of three April weekends of mass COVID vaccination clinics at IMS. THE first clinic was a resounding success with more than 16,000 shots dispensed. The goal for the April clinics iss 96,000 vaccinations. Ad of today, Indiana residents age 16 and older are eligible for the vaccine.

Daly Sports Stealth Livery

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U.S. AIR FORCE, ED CARPENTER RACING UNVEIL NEW B-2 SPIRIT STEALTH BOMBER LIVERY 
Conor Daly’s No. 20 U.S. Air Force Chevrolet Revealed at Whiteman Air Force Base, Home of the B-2 
Download: Web / Hi-Res
(INDIANAPOLIS) March 30, 2021 – Ed Carpenter Racing and the U.S. Air Force are proud to unveil Conor Daly’s No. 20 U.S. Air Force Chevrolet for the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. In a brand-new design for 2021, Daly’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES car celebrates the U.S. Air Force’s B-2 Spirit stealth bomber. The No. 20 was painted in ECR’s race shop and features a pattern of silver, blue and black silhouettes of the only stealth bomber in the world.
A group of select Airmen from the 509th Bomb Wing were the first to see the 2021 U.S. Air Force Chevrolet two weeks ago. Daly and members of the Ed Carpenter Racing team travelled to Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, to meet the men and women who maintain, support and operate the aircraft and displayed the No. 20 car alongside the inspiration behind its design, a B-2 Spirit. The 509th Bomb Wing and its fleet of B-2s serve as part of the U.S. Air Force’s conventional and strategic combat force. Whiteman AFB is the only operational base for the strategic stealth bomber.
“The Air Force’s liveries have traditionally drawn inspiration from the fighter aircraft community, but air power is about much more than fighter aircraft,” said Major Jason Wyche, Chief, National Events Branch, Air Force Recruiting Service. “The B-2 plays a critical role in the defense of our nation, bringing massive firepower to bear, anywhere in the world, in a short amount of time. The B-2 is an iconic aircraft, so we are really excited to unveil this design highlighting the stealth bomber and the Airmen supporting that mission.”
The B-2 Spirit is a multi-role bomber capable of delivering both conventional and nuclear munitions. A dramatic leap forward in technology, the bomber represents a major milestone in the U.S. bomber modernization program. Its low-observable, or “stealth,” characteristics give it the unique ability to penetrate an enemy’s most sophisticated defenses and threaten its most valued and heavily defended targets. First flown in 1989, it will continue to provide a strong, effective deterrent and combat force well into the 21st century.
Daly, 29, is continuing a partnership with the U.S. Air Force that originated four years ago. Beginning as a one-off 2018 Indianapolis 500 entry, Daly and the U.S. Air Force have grown to be synonymous in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Daly competed in the full 2020 schedule, splitting his talent between two teams. Daly drove the No. 20 U.S. Air Force Chevrolet for Ed Carpenter Racing during the road and street course events and the No. 47 in the Indianapolis 500. While ECR team owner Ed Carpenter raced the No. 20 on ovals, Daly stepped into Carlin’s No. 59. In addition to four Top 10 finishes, Daly earned his first career pole position at Iowa Speedway. Known for a desire to sharpen his skills by racing in different disciplines, Daly has recently competed in USAC Midgets, Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
“To be able to pay tribute to one of the most outstanding aircrafts in the U.S. Air Force fleet is really incredible. The B-2 Spirit represents some of the greatest technology in the modern world and some of the most impressive air power. For it to be on our NTT INDYCAR SERIES car means a lot to myself and ECR, we hope it’s as powerful as the B-2,” Daly stated. “We have such incredible cars every year. We’ve showcased the history of the fighter jet, which is so fitting since our cars look like fighter jets. Now, we’ve got the B-2 on our car in a really cool pattern. We really hope the fans love it as much as we do!” 
The 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule consists of 13 road and street course events, all of which will feature Daly in ECR’s No. 20. The B-2 Spirit design will make its race weekend debut in the season opener at Barber Motorsports Park on April 17-18. It will also race at St. Petersburg, Belle Isle, Road America, Mid-Ohio, Nashville, Portland, Laguna Seca and Long Beach. Though Daly will sport a special edition livery for the 105th Running of the Indianapolis 500, the B-2 scheme will first be seen on-track on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval. The B-2 car will be branded as the No. 47 during the open test on April 8-9, which will again be Daly’s Indy 500 number. The official design of the No. 47 will be unveiled in April.
Download: Web / Hi-Res
About the U.S. Air Force The mission of Air Force Recruiting Service is to inspire, engage and recruit the next generation of Airmen and Space professionals. We are looking for America’s best and brightest to fill nearly 30,000 opportunities in more than 200 Air Force specialties, as well as more than 300 space professionals in space-specific career fields in fiscal 2021. Additionally, our total force partners, the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard are collectively hiring more than 19,000 part-time Airmen. Our military recruits to retain, providing tough, highly technical training that gives our future servicemembers the right skills to sustain the combat capability of America’s Air Force and protect our nation’s interests in space. For more information about Air Force and U.S. Space Force benefits and opportunities, go to www.airforce.com.
About Ed Carpenter Racing Ed Carpenter Racing (ECR) will be entering its 10th season of NTT INDYCAR SERIES competition in 2021. The Indianapolis-based race team has proven its versatility by collecting seven wins across each type of track the series competes on – street and road courses, short ovals and speedways. ECR is led by IndyCar’s only team owner/driver, Ed Carpenter, three-time pole winner for the Indianapolis 500 (2013, 2014 and 2018). In 2021, Indiana natives Carpenter and Conor Daly will share the No. 20 Chevrolet as Carpenter drives the oval races and Daly takes over for the road and street course events. Both will be entered in the Indianapolis 500 alongside 2020 Rookie of the Year Rinus VeeKay, full-time driver of the No. 21 Chevrolet. ECR made its eSports debut in the 2020 iRX World Championship with Jim Beaver eSports. More information may be found at http://www.edcarpenterracing.com/.

Signs of Spring- St. Pete Track Build Begins

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Photo: A wall section goes into place on Dan Wheldon Way. Photo from GPSTPETE Twitter page

A welcome sight in downtown St. Petersburg, although a month later than usual, today was the first day of the track build for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. The race has been the traditional opening round of the NTT Indycar Series. Because of the pandemic in 2020, the race took place in August last year. In 2021, this will be the second race race of the year. The Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama will open the year April 18, followed by St Pete the following weekend.

St. Petersburg has quite an extensive heritage of street racing dating back to the 1980s. I wrote a piece about the early racing last October.

You can find it here:

https://thepitwindow.blog/2020/10/09/early-racing-in-st-pete-laid-groundwork-for-indycar/

On hand for today’s ceremonies A. J. Foyt racing driver Sebastien Bourdais, a resident of St. Petersburg. Bourdais won this race in 2017 and 2018

The event has a 20,000 fans per day limit. Three day tickets are on sale now at gpstpete.com.

VeeKay Reveals 2021 Livery

Ed Carpenter racing driver Rinus VeeKay revealed the livery for car 21 on Twitter this morning. The car is basically the same as lat year’s. Sonax is the main sponsor with help fro Netherlands grocer Jumbo.

The 2020 Rookie of the Year won his first pole and earned his first podium finish at the Harvest Grand Prix last Octoberat Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I think he will have a great season in 2021.

Early Racing in St. Pete Laid Groundwork for Indycar
Early Racing in St. Pete Laid Groundwork for Indycar

Frye: Test Results Produce More Questions

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Photo: Pato O’Ward leads the group during testing at IMS Friday. -Joe Skibinski, Indycar

Jay Frye declared it a good day. It gave Indycar a direction although there is still work to do.

“When we came into this, we thought really at the end of the day that this would precipitate more questions than answers. That’s probably what happened, right. Which is fine. That’s what we expected,” the Indycar president told the media after the four var test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway Friday.

“We did learn a lot. But it did also create a lot of other questions,” Frye concluded.

The test, with drivers Scott Dixon, and Alexander Rossi representing Honda, and Josef Newgarden and Pato O’Ward driving Chevrolets, involved various versions of push to pass in an attempt to simulate what the hybrid component might look like in 2023.

Frye explained what Indycar was looking for.

I think today we’ve got a lot of data off the car in a direction on what approach to go with,” he said. “In the way that we have push to pass, with the hybrid system that would kind of be obsolete. You’ll have a bank of energy that you have with the hybrid system that once it will go away, that you will be able to recharge it so it will be on all the time basically. With push to pass there’s an amount of time or there’s an amount of pushes. That’s what we looked at today. We just gave the drivers for every 200 seconds, you’re going to go do a 20 lap run. Use it as you want it. Most used about half, so 100 seconds. It was interesting to see how it played out.”

“We thought they would have liked that for a longer time. This is new. We’ve never done this on an oval. We’ve tested it at Pocono, Texas and Phoenix before but that was with the old package. For this new one, it definitely is much better than it was before which is cool,” Frye concluded. He also noted that trap speeds which are normally around 230 mile an hour, were 236 miles an hour Friday.

The new, larger 2.4 liter 2023 engine, and the hybrid energy recovery system should give the cars 200 more horsepower in 2023. Frye said the series will not allow that much all at once, but adjust the and work up to 900 horsepower.

Alexander Rossi, Scott Dixon, and and Josef newgarden discuss what they learned in Friday’s test at IMS. Photo by Chris Owens, Indycar.

The Pit Window spoke with three of the drivers after the early end to the test day.

Scott Dixonliked some of the changes and noticed the increase in speed.

“Obviously there’s a lot of power and some of the durations are quite long,” Dixon said. “10 seconds at 70-80 horsepower, especially in a car that’s trimmed out. Your average lap speed could jump by several mph. There’s some good changes to see how you can apply that and to what effect or not effect on the tire and in regards to running in traffic.”

Dixon’s concern with the push to pass is how long a driver would be locked out of the system after using it. He prefers a shorter lock out time.

Alexander Rossi doesn’t think the push to pass would change anything on an oval.

“Yes it’s a pretty big horsepower boost with the push to pass,” said the Andretti Autosport driver. “We’re going to have to look at it to see if it changed anything for the better or worse. It’s definitely different. We got that test accomplished and have some hard data to look at for the future.”

Josef Newgarden was happy to help Indycar gather data and glad that he learned some tings.

“I thought it went well. When you learn something in testing you’re happy about it. I thought we learned some stuff today on our cars on how things works and how they could potentially work in use scenario.

“The horsepower bump was tunable. You could definitely raise the horsepower increase up or down so that jump in the performance off the corner could be bigger or smaller. The length of it is all adjustable. We ran through a couple of scenarios and a couple of configurations. It’s definitely noticeable. A couple of configurations were noticeable. If you want to run a system like that, it’s really what’s the right configuration to give to the field. I think that’s the type of info we were trying to arm INDYCAR with and now it’s on to them to see what we do in the future.”

Frye said that testing of the hybrid system would likely be in January and February of 2022.

Notes

It was wonderful to watch cars on the IMS oval again. It has been more than a year since I have seen the oval used.

Improvements made by Roger Penske are obvious. Most noticeable is the new video board on the back of the Pagoda. it spans the entire width of the building and the high resolution screen is fantastic.

The main thing is how clean the plaza and Victory Circle are. I was so used to how the areas appeared, but I now realize that they were long overdue for sprucing up.

Testing for the Indianapolis 500 is schedule for April 8 and 9, between the mass vaccination clinics at the Speedway. I assume the turn 2 mounds will be open as they were yesterday.