CHEVROLET RACING IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES
HONDA INDY OF ALABAMA
BARBER MOTORSPORTS PARK
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA
TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE
APRIL 2, 2019
Chevrolet seeks to continue winning streak in Alabama
· NTT IndyCar Series visits Barber for the 10th time
ᴏ 2.38-mile, 17-turn road course is driver, spectator favorite
· Team Chevy has won six of seven races at track since 2012
ᴏ Josef Newgarden has claimed three of the past four
· Chevy Racing drivers off to fast start to the season
ᴏ Newgarden is points leader; Will Power earns both poles
· Ben Hanley returns to Chevy lineup with DragonSpeed
DETROIT (April 2, 2019) – A victory and runner-up finish has initiated Josef Newgarden’s best start of his eight-year NTT IndyCar Series career.
This weekend, the Team Penske driver will seek to bolster his series points lead in the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park, where he’s won three of the past four races.
“Barber is an awesome track … it’s one of my favorite tracks we travel to on the circuit. It also helps that we’ve had some success there in the No. 2 Fitzgerald Chevy,” the 2017 series champion said. “But we’re hungry for more. This season is off to a great start for our team and Barber is a track we know we can continue that momentum at.”
Chevrolet Racing has won six of the seven races on the challenging 2.38-mile, 17-turn road course since its return to NTT IndyCar Series competition in 2012.
Ten drivers powered by Chevrolet’s 2.2-liter, twin-turbocharged, direct-injected V6 engine are entered in the 82-lap race April 7 (4 p.m. ET, NBCSN) at the scenic race course in Birmingham, Alabama, that has hosted an INDYCAR event since 2011.
Newgarden scored his maiden career victory in a CFH Racing Chevrolet at Barber Motorsports Park in 2015, starting fifth and leading a field-high 46 laps, including the final 20, of the 90-lap race. Teammate Simon Pagenaud, driving the No. 22 Menards Chevrolet this weekend, won from the pole in his 2016 championship season.
Newgarden earned a podium finish in that race and has won the past two years, starting seventh and first, respectively.
“We want to win races, but if we can’t win races, we need to at least be on the podium to keep this championship run up,” Newgarden added.
Teammate Will Power, who’s claimed the pole in both races this season in the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet, started with a third-place finish on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida. He then led 45 laps at the outset of the inaugural INDYCAR Classic at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, before a mechanical issue curtailed his opportunity to post career win No. 36 that would break a tie with Bobby Unser for seventh on the all-time list.
“Something broke in the rear driver line of our car, which led to a DNF in a race I think we had a great shot at winning,” he said. “I’m still really disappointed, but the team has been hard at work since they got back from the race to give me a No. 12 Verizon Chevy that will be really strong at Barber. We’ve shown to be strong at two different types of tracks to start the year – a street course and a permanent road course. So, we just want to keep that momentum going.”
Power won at Barber Motorsports Park in 2012 to give Chevy Racing its second consecutive victory to start the season.
Returning to the Chevrolet lineup this weekend is Ben Hanley, driving the No. 81 10 Star entry for first-year team DragonSpeed. Hanley finished 18th in the season opener at St. Petersburg.