CHEVROLET IN THE NTT INDYCAR SERIES
103RD RUNNING OF THE INDIANAPOLIS 500
INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY, INDIANAPOLIS
INDIANAPOLIS 500 MEDIA DAY
SELECTED QUOTES FROM DRIVERS
MAY 23, 2019
Pippa Mann, No. 39 Driven2SaveLives Clauson-Marshall Racing Chevrolet, met with members of the media at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to discuss the May 26 race and other topics. Selected quotes:
WHAT HAS BEEN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LAST YEAR AND THIS YEAR?
“The car was sitting in the garage with a Chevy Bowtie engine in the back and was ready to roll out. If we would have been allowed, as we normally are, to roll out and do the install check at 11 a.m. before the veterans’ refresher at 1, we were ready to do that. Last year, trying to turn the car around after the GP of Indy we barely made it out there in time before the end of the veteran refresher session full stop. Last year our car was very good in traffic, but unfortunately when we tried to trim it out, for several reasons why, it didn’t pan out. This year, we were cognizant of the fact that we don’t care what the overall time sheet says every day. We have no interest in a big tow. We’re going to be real smart and go about our business and I think when you pull up the no-tow timesheets of every day, that’s exactly what we did.”
WHO HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST INFLUENCE?
“Certainly my biggest influence in terms of coming the U.S. and wanting to Indy car race was Sarah Fisher. She was the first female racer who I had ever heard of getting in a big, fast open-wheel car and running up front. Then when I started to learn more about IndyCar, obviously Danica Patrick was the person at the time but I started to learn more about Janet Guthrie and Lynn St. James and how those women paved the way for someone like me to try to follow in their footsteps.”
IF YOU GAVE ADVICE TO A YOUNG WOMAN SEEKING TO BE IN MOTORSPORT, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
“I think as a woman coming into this business you have to be incredibly determined, possibly even more so than your male counterparts. If you do a good job and you’re with the right people, those people won’t care what your gender is. The race car doesn’t know what your gender is, but there is still a very small and very loud portion of the population of the fan base that sort of has a problem with us being here. They make themselves heard. I think having the resilience and the ability to overcome that, ignore that, having the resilience of almost having to carry the weight of all the other female drivers on your shoulders at times, because whereas James Hinchcliffe is allowed to go out and represent James, it seems whenever one of us takes to the racetrack we’re sort of forced to go out and represent all of us. So, you have to have pretty broad shoulders to carry that weight. Last year, not qualifying for the Indianapolis 500 I thought that was it. One-off driver, didn’t make the race, that’s when the girl factor plays into it. Because you have all these people say that you’re never going to be able to do it. To have that prophesy come true for them, I think it’s harder to overcome as a female because your effectively fulfilled that prophesy. You carry that extra weight with you. Be determined, broad shoulders, be prepared to work extra hard.”