Tag: NTT Indycar Series

Herta Stays Ahead of the Pack

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Colton Herta has just one more session to lead as he turned the quickest time in this morning’s 30 minute warmup session.

The tune-up was interrupted about halfway through when Toby Sowery spun and stalled facing the wrong way off of turn 10. Even if he had been able to restart the car on his own, it would have been difficult know when it would have been safe to move because he was in a blind spot.

Results

Herta Takes Toronto Pole as Andretti Sweeps Front Row

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Qualifying results for the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto were obvious since Friday. Colton Herta had the fastest car, and his teammates weren’t far behind.

Herta won the pole for tomorrow’s race, and teammate Kyle Kirkwood will start next to him. Marcus Ericsson did not quite make the fast Six after suffering an engine issue on Friday,

Herta also won the pole for Race 1 in Iowa last week

“We just need to (do) the same,” Herta said of maintaining his advantage on the 11-turn, 1.786-mile temporary street circuit. “This (car) has been a rocket ship all weekend (and) really has (been) the past few races. Luck hasn’t turned our way for a win yet, and I’m hoping it’s here tomorrow.”

Bad luck in races as plagued the 26 car all season, but tomorrow looks like Herta’s best chance for a win this season. The Andretti team is winless in 2024.

Strange Brew

Scott McLaughlin is the only driver in the top five of the standings to advance to the Fast Six. Alex Palou starts 18th, Will Power starts ninth, Scott Dixon starts 15th, and Pato O’Ward starts 14th.

Palou had gone quick enough to advance, but he was penalized for impeding O’Ward. The two time series champion was trying to get around a slower car when O’Ward approached on a hot lap. I didn’t think Palou had anywhere else to go, but race control didn’t consult me on this one.

Thus, we have a starting field with some fast cars that will try to move though a talented field on a tight track. It should be a fun race.

Special shoutout– Theo Pourchaire, who travelled virtually since midnight Eastern time to get to Toronto to fill in for Alexander Rossi. His first laps on this track, which he had never seen, were qualifying laps. Pourchaire will start 26th, which was pretty much expected, but what an effort.

It’s more proof that race car drivers are wired differently from you and me.

Results

Herta Leads Practice; Rossi out for the Weekend

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Colton Herta led the first practice for Ontario Honda dealers Indy Toronto. Indycar used the split format that debuted in St. Pete, a 45 minute practice for all cars followed by two 10 minute session, one each for half of the field.

During the main session, Will Power and Agustin Canapino spun and stalled but were able to refire their cars and kept going.

In group two of the mini rounds Alexander Rossi hit the re barrier hard on the right front. He was seen and released in the care center, but his right thumb is broken, and Rossi will not drive the rest of the weekend.

Linus Lundqvist plowed into the same barrier with about three minutes left in practice. Lundqvist is fine, but the car suffered significant damage. The session did not resume.

The fortunate thing for Rossi is that the next race is four weeks away thanks to NBC’s Olympic coverage. I will have some thoughts on that during the break.

“Overall, the car was really nice,” said Herta, who has a pair of top-three finishes on street circuits this season and won the pole for last month’s Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear. “(It) feels like the same car that we brought last two years, which we’ve had podium results. And so hopefully that bodes well for us.”

Notes

Could this be the weekend Herta finally catches a break? It seems as if bad luck is a constant Andretti global crew member.

Marcus Ericsson had an engine issue during practice.

Track management did a great job cleaning up the backstretch after the flooding earlier in the week.

I like the battery icon on NBC’s telemetry much more than the green lightning bolt and red arrow. Maybe they could just show the battery icon all the time. It’s not like when the cars run out of battery they are done, like Formula E.

Results

The next practice is at 10 am Eastern tomorrow on Peacock, with qualifying at 2:45 pm.

Toronto Preview

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The final street course of the 2024 season will be the third type of track to test the hybrid system. As expected, there have been issues with the system, and I hope in the final six races of the year the problems can be ironed out. The championship race has tightened up, with four drivers separated by just 57 points. Alex Palou still leads, but 2024 will not be the runaway that last year was for him.

Exhibition Place is a very nice venue for an Indycar event. The race into the first turn with the Princes gate looming is one the more recognizable features of the track. The long high-speed backstretch on lake Shore Drive ends with a slow right-hand turn into turn 3.

Auditions

Several drivers will be using Toronto as an audition for a ride next season. Toby Sowery and Hunter McElrea, in the Dale Coyne cars, have a chance to demonstrate their skills. David Malukas does not have the Meyer Shank ride set for 2025 and needs good results the rest of the way.

Alexander Rossi and Rinus VeeKay also need to solidify a spot on next year’s grid. I am least worried about Rossi. Christian Rasmussen and Linus Lundqvist may also need some good finishes to secure a future spot.

Palou Still the Title Favorite

While Palou lost 13 points of his lead lat weekend at Iowa, he still has the advantage in the points race. Will Power, Pato O’Ward, and Scott Dixon have been busy swapping second place, and until one of them put some distance between themselves and the third place driver, Palou’s lead is safe.

While Palou still seeks his first oval win, he really just needs to get on the podium at the ovals and perform well this weekend and at Portland. He won Portland in 2023. I think he will win one of the four oval races left on the schedule.

Better Racing?

Fans hoping for better racing this weekend will probably be disappointed. Toronto traditionally does not have much passing, and that problem is compounded by the seeming inability of the cars to pass with the added weight of the ERS.

Solving the issue will be a collaborative effort with the series, drivers, Firestone, Dallara, and both OEMs working together to find an answer.

Who will win? I’m looking for Scott Dixon to win and retake second in the standings. Palou will finish in the top four, minimizing Dixon’s gain.

Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto Fast Facts

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From Indycar

  Race weekend: Friday, July 19-Sunday, July 21
Track: Streets of Toronto’s Exhibition Place, an 11-turn, 1.786-mile (2.874-kilometer) temporary street course
Race distance: Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto: 85 laps/151.81 miles/244.29 kilometers
Push to Pass parameters: 200 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 20 seconds per activation.
Hybrid energy deployment parameters: Unlimited activation with a maximum deployment of 305 kilojoules (kJ) per lap.
Firestone tire allotment: 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.
X: @HondaIndy, @IndyCar, #indyTO, #IndyCar
Instagram: @HondaIndy, @INDYCAR, #indyTO, #INDYCAR
Threads: @INDYCAR
Facebook: @HondaIndyToronto, @INDYCAR, #INDYCAR
TikTok: @INDYCAR, #INDYCAR
YouTube: @INDYCAR
Event website: www.HondaIndy.com
INDYCAR website: www.INDYCAR.com
2023 race winner: Christian Lundgaard (No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda)
2023 NTT P1 Award winner: Christian Lundgaard (No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda), 1 minute, 4.1567 seconds, 100.217 mph
Qualifying record: Gil de Ferran, 57.143 seconds, 110.565 mph, July 17, 1999 (Note: Josef Newgarden set a qualifying mark of 58.4129 seconds, 110.072 mph, for the current layout in 2019.)
Race telecast: Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto, 1 p.m. ET Sunday, July 21, TSN4 (Canada)/Peacock (USA) (live). Kevin Lee is the play-by-play announcer for Peacock’s coverage of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Dillon Welch and Charlie Kimball are the pit reporters.
Peacock live streaming: All NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice sessions and qualifying will stream live on Peacock, NBC’s direct-to-consumer livestreaming product in the United States, and TSN+ in Canada. The race telecast of the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto will be streamed exclusively on Peacock in the United States.
I
NDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the anchor alongside driver analyst Davey Hamilton. Jake Query and Alex Wollf are the turn announcers. Joel Sebastianelli, Drake York and DJ Clark are the pit reporters. The Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto race (1 p.m. ET Sunday), NTT P1 Award Qualifying (2:50 p.m. ET Saturday) and all NTT INDYCAR SERIES practices air live on network affiliates, SiriusXM 218, racecontrol.indycar.com and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA.
At-track schedule (all times local):
Friday, July 19
3-4:15 p.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice 1 (45 minutes for all cars, followed by two groups for 10 minutes each), Peacock/TSN+
Saturday, July 20
10:30-11:30 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Practice 2 (45 minutes of green flag running or 60 minutes), Peacock/TSN+
2:45-4:15 p.m. – Qualifying for NTT P1 Award (Three rounds of knockout qualifying), Peacock/TSN+
Sunday, July 21
10-10:30 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Final Practice, Peacock/TSN+
1 p.m. – Peacock/TSN4 on air
1:23 p.m. – Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto “Drivers, start your engines”
1:30 p.m. – Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto (85 laps, 151.81 miles), Peacock/TSN4/TSN+ (Live).

Race notes: The Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto will be the 12th race of the 2024 season. There have been six different winners in 11 NTT INDYCAR SERIES races this season. Pato O’Ward (Streets of St. Petersburg and Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course), Scott Dixon (Streets of Long Beach and Streets of Detroit), Scott McLaughlin (Barber Motorsports Park and Iowa Speedway-1), Alex Palou (Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca), Will Power (Road America and Iowa Speedway-2) and Josef Newgarden (Indianapolis 500) have all won in 2024.
The Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto will be the 38th INDYCAR SERIES race held on the streets of Toronto’s Exhibition Place. Christian Lundgaard earned his first INDYCAR SERIES win in 2023 on the streets of Toronto.
Scott Dixon is the winningest active INDYCAR SERIES driver at Toronto with four victories (Dixon won both races in 2013, the 2018 race and the 2022 race). Michael Andretti has the most wins at the track with seven. Dixon, three-time Toronto winner Will Power (2007, 2010, 2016), Josef Newgarden (2015, 2017) and Christian Lundgaard (2023) are previous race winners entered this year.
ACTIVE RACE WINNER WINS SEASONS
Scott Dixon 4 2013 Race #1, 2013 Race #2, 2018, 2022
Will Power 3 2007, 2010, 2016
Josef Newgarden 2 2015, 2017
Christian Lundgaard 1 2023

Drivers who have won poles at Toronto entered in this year’s race are Will Power (2011, 2015), Scott Dixon (2013 Race 2, 2016), Josef Newgarden (2018), Colton Herta (2022) and Christian Lundgaard (2023). The polesitter has won the race eight times since the first race in 1986, most recently by Lundgaard last season.

ACTIVE POLE WINNER POLES SEASONS
Will Power 2 2011, 2015
Scott Dixon 2 2013 Race #2, 2016
Josef Newgarden 1 2018
Colton Herta 1 2022
Christian Lundgaard 1 2023

From 2009-19, the eventual NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion won the Toronto race six times. Dario Franchitti won in 2009 and in 2011. Ryan Hunter-Reay won in 2012, Scott Dixon swept both races in 2013 and won the single race in 2018, and Josef Newgarden won in 2017. Seven other drivers have claimed the INDYCAR SERIES championship in the same season they won at Toronto: Bobby Rahal (1986), Al Unser Jr. (1990), Michael Andretti (1991), Alex Zanardi (1998), Cristiano da Matta (2002), Paul Tracy (2003) and Sebastien Bourdais (2004).
Twenty drivers entered in the event have competed in past INDYCAR SERIES races at Exhibition Place. Scott Dixon and Will Power (17) have made the most starts at Toronto among the entered drivers. Eleven entered drivers have led laps at the track (Dixon 242, Power 162, Josef Newgarden 120, Christian Lundgaard 54, Graham Rahal 29, Scott McLaughlin 28, Rinus VeeKay 18, Colton Herta 17, Pato O’Ward 3, Marcus Ericsson 1 and Felix Rosenqvist 1)
.Chip Ganassi Racing has won eight times at Toronto: Michael Andretti (1994), Alex Zanardi (1998), Dario Franchitti (2009, 2011) and Scott Dixon (2013 both races, 2018, 2022).
Team Penske has five wins at the track: Paul Tracy (1993), Will Power (2010, 2016), Josef Newgarden (2017) and Simon Pagenaud (2019). Team Penske has 10 pole positions at the track: Danny Sullivan (1988, 1990), Emerson Fittipaldi (1993), Helio Castroneves (2000), Gil de Ferran (2001), Will Power (2011, 2015), Simon Pagenaud (2017, 2019) and Josef Newgarden (2018).
Scott Dixon has finished on the podium in six of his last 13 starts at Toronto and has 11 consecutive top-10 finishes. He has 11 top-five finishes in his 17 Toronto races … Will Power has finished on the podium in five of his 17 Toronto starts.Milestones: Scott Dixon will attempt to make his 334th consecutive start, extending his record streak.