Tag: Weather Tech Raceway Laguna Seca

Today’s schedule: All times Eastern

5:30 pm-6:45 pm- Indycar Practice 1

Another Indycar season comes another all too quick end Sunday in Monterey at one of the nicest tracks on the schedule. The track has made several improvements with a new p[edestrian bridge and a complete track repaving.

There is still plenty to play for this weekend as Indycar wraps up its 2023 season. Rookie of the Year, Leaders’ Circle, and third place in the standings all need to be decided. The track record is in definite jeopardy Saturday.

Repaved Track- Faster Speeds

The track has been completely repaved, and the times at yesterday’s open test show the results. Nine drivers bettered Helio Castroneves’ qualifying record of 1:07.722 set in 2000. Will power led the way with a lap at 1:07.2762.

“Very nice, very smooth,” Power said after the session. “A lot of grip. Yeah, it’s incredibly fast. Yeah, it will be a mid-six (1:06.5) in quali by the time it’s all said and done. Rubber down, mid-six.”

The full results:

Rookie of the Year

Marcus Armstrong leads Agustin Canapino by 26 points and just has to finish ahead of Canapino to win the title. A top 10 finish would be sufficient.

The rookie chase this year has been unusual. Armstrong leads despite not driving in the five oval races. Canapino is spending his first year in open wheel cars.

I think Armstrong will win the title. He signed yesterday to stay with Ganassi and drive full time.

Third Place

Josef Newgarden holds third place with 470 points. Pato O’Ward is nine points behind, and Scott McLaughlin is 22 points back in fifth. The third spot is up for grabs but given Team Penske’s strength here. i look for Newgarden to keep the position.

O’Ward’s best hope is to win the race.

Race to the Top of the Bottom

The 78 car of Agustin canapino is just two points out of the last spot for the just under $1 million reward for the top teams. The 60 which will be drive3n again by Tom Blomqvist, tenuously holds the final spot.

The 29 of Devlin DeFrancesco and the 30 with rookie Juri Vips sit just ahead. The 30 has only an eight point lead over the 78. Keep an eye on these foru cars in qualifying and the race.

With the championship decided, the final money spot is something to focus on this weekend.

Notes

Will Power has a streak of winning at least one race in 16 seasons. Will he keep the streak intact? Three other drivers- Alexander Rossi, Pato O’Ward, and Colton Herta-won in 2022, but have not seen Victory Circle this season.

NBC will have a 55-minute pre-race show Sunday beginning at 2:30 pm Eastern. The green flag is at 3:26 pm Eastern

from Indycar:

Track: WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, an 11-turn, 2.238-mile permanent road course in Monterey, California Race distance: NTT INDYCAR SERIES: Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey 95 laps / 212.61 miles | INDY NXT by Firestone: INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 & 2 (each) 35 laps / 78.33 miles / 55 minutes 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: Seven 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. Note: Teams will be allotted four sets of tires for Thursday’s Open Test. Teams fielding a rookie driver may use one additional set of primary tires.  INDY NXT by Firestone: Three new sets to be used during the event weekend. A carryover set from the Portland event may be used during the first practice. X (formerly known as Twitter): @WeatherTechRcwy, @IndyCar, @INDYNXT, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCARInstagram: @weathertechraceway, @IndyCar, @INDYNXT, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCARFacebook: @WeatherTechRaceway, @IndyCar, @INDYNXT, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCARTikTok: @IndyCar, #FirestoneGP, #INDYCARYouTube: @INDYCAREvent website: www.weathertechraceway.comINDYCAR website: www.IndyCar.comINDY NXT by Firestone website: www.indynxt.com 2022 race winners:NTT INDYCAR SERIESAlex Palou (No. 10 NTT DATA Chip Ganassi Racing Honda)INDY NXT by FirestoneRace 1: Sting Ray Robb (No. 2 Andretti Autosport)Race 2: Christian Rasmussen (No. 28 Andretti Autosport) 2022 NTT P1 Award winner (NTT INDYCAR SERIES): Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet), 1:11.6127, 112.505 mph 2022 INDY NXT by Firestone pole winners:Race 1: Sting Ray Robb (No. 2 Andretti Autosport), 1:15.7209, 106.401Race 2: Christian Rasmussen (No. 28 Andretti Autosport), 1:15.3618, 106.908  Qualifying records:NTT INDYCAR SERIESHelio Castroneves, 1:07.722, 118.969 mph, Sept. 8, 2000INDY NXT by FirestoneMax Chilton, 1:14.2329, 108.534 mph, Sept. 12, 2015 NBC Sports race telecast: Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey 2:30 p.m. ET Sunday, Sept. 10, 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 Dillon Welch 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, while NBC’s race telecast of the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey will be simulcast on the streaming service. The INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey will be streamed on Peacock, with practice and qualifying being shown on INDYCAR LIVE. INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the anchor alongside analyst Davey Hamilton. Jake Query, Nick Yeoman, Michael Young are the turn announcers. Ryan Myrehn and Alex Wollf are the pit reporters. The Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey race (3 p.m. ET Sunday), INDY NXT Grand Prix of Monterey doubleheader (3:20 p.m. ET Saturday and 12:45 p.m. ET Sunday) and all NTT INDYCAR SERIES and INDY NXT by Firestone practices and qualifying sessions air live on network affiliates, SiriusXM 160, racecontrol.indycar.com and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA. At-track schedule (all times local): Thursday, Sept. 711 a.m.-4 p.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES Open Test Friday, Sept. 8 1:15-2:05 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone practice 1, INDYCAR LIVE 2:30-3:45 p.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice 1, Peacock Saturday, Sept. 9 9:05-9:35 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Qualifying (Two 12-minute sessions / Session 1 determines the lineup for Race 1, Session 2 determines the lineup for Race 2), INDYCAR LIVE 10-11 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice 2 (45 minutes limited guarantee), Peacock 12:30 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 “Drivers Start Your Engines”12:35 p.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 1 (35 laps / 78.33 miles / 55 minutes), Peacock 2 p.m. – Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey NTT P1 Award qualifying (three rounds of knockout qualifying), Peacock Sunday, Sept. 10 9-9:30 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES final practice, Peacock 9:55 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 2 “Drivers Start Your Engines”10 a.m. – INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Race 2 (35 laps / 78.33 miles / 55 minutes), Peacock 11:30 a.m. – NBC on air 12:19 p.m. – Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey “Drivers, start your engines” 12:26 p.m. – Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey (95 laps/212.61 miles), NBC (Live) Race Notes: Alex Palou became the first INDYCAR SERIES champion since 2007 to clinch the series title before the finale with his win at Portland International Raceway and looks to cap his dominating 2023 in style at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, where he won in 2022.There have been seven winners in 15 NTT INDYCAR SERIES races in the 2023 season. Marcus Ericsson (Streets of St. Petersburg), Josef Newgarden (Texas Motor Speedway, Indianapolis 500, Iowa Speedway-1, Iowa Speedway-2 ), Kyle Kirkwood (Streets of Long Beach, Streets of Nashville), Scott McLaughlin (Barber Motorsports Park), Alex Palou (Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course-1, Streets of Detroit, Road America, Mid-Ohio, Portland), Christian Lundgaard (Streets of Toronto) and Scott Dixon (Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course-2, World Wide Technology Raceway).The Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey will be the 26th INDYCAR SERIES race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, but just the fourth since 2004. Teo Fabi won the first INDYCAR SERIES race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in 1983. Alex Palou, Colton Herta and Helio Castroneves, who won at the track in 2000, are the only former winners entered in this year’s race.Thirteen INDYCAR SERIES drivers have won at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca from the pole – Teo Fabi (1983), Bobby Rahal (1985), Danny Sullivan (1988), Rick Mears (1989), Danny Sullivan (1990), Michael Andretti (1991 and 1992), Paul Tracy (1994), Alex Zanardi (1996), Bryan Herta (1998 and 1999), Helio Castroneves (2000), Cristiano da Matta (2002), Patrick Carpentier (2003) and Colton Herta (2019 and 2021).Team Penske has won six times at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Penske’s winning drivers are Danny Sullivan (1988 and 1990), Rick Mears (1989), Paul Tracy (1993 and 1994) and Helio Castroneves (2000). Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing has three wins with Bryan Herta (1998-99) and Max Papis (2001). Chip Ganassi Racing also has three wins with Alex Palou (2022), Alex Zanardi (1996) and Jimmy Vasser (1997). Twenty-one drivers entered in the event have competed in past INDYCAR SERIES races at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Helio Castroneves has six starts, most among the entered drivers. Nine entered drivers have led laps at the track (Colton Herta 174, Helio Castroneves 92, Alex Palou 67, Will Power 23, Josef Newgarden 5, Felix Rosenqvist 5, Romain Grosjean 4, Scott Dixon 2 and Callum Ilott 1 .INDY NXT by Firestone notes:The INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey doubleheader will be the series’ 27th and 28th races at WeatherTech Raceway at Laguna Seca. Previous INDY NXT by Firestone winners at Laguna Seca include Bryan Herta, Andre Ribeiro, Greg Moore, Tony Kanaan, Cristiano da Matta, Scott Dixon, Townsend Bell, Spencer Pigot, Rinus VeeKay and Kyle Kirkwood. Current NTT INDYCAR SERIES rookie Sting Ray Robb and current INDY NXT by Firestone point leader Christian Rasmussen split the Grand Prix of Monterey doubleheader in 2022.Christian Rasmussen of HMD Motorsports is enjoying a dominant season, leading the series in wins (four), laps led (240 of 475) and top-10 finishes (11) through 12 races. Rasmussen, a native of Denmark, owns a 65-point lead over second-place Hunter McElrea of Andretti Autosport. Rasmussen can clinch the season championship by leading by at least 54 points on Saturday or maintaining his lead on Sunday.Push-to-pass could play a key strategic role at Laguna Seca as INDY NXT by Firestone drivers will have a bank of 150 seconds to use an added 50 horsepower to assist in overtaking, similar to the drivers in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. The maximum amount of time for each press of the overtake system is 15 seconds.Matteo Nannini, Reece Gold, Nolan Siegel and Louis Foster became first-time winners earlier this season. Will another talented prospect like Jacob Abel, James Roe, Kyffin Simpson or Ernie Francis Jr. score a first INDY NXT win in 2023 at Laguna Seca?