Brandon Sheppard continues to lead the championship chase into the doubleheader weekend 

CONCORD, NC (April 23, 2024) – The World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models are headed westbound and down for a pair of unpredictable and exciting tracks. 

Colcord, OK is the site of Arrowhead Speedway – making its debut with the Late Models for a Friday night battle under the lights in the Fujita 50 on April 26. Then, the Series makes the trek to Wichita, KS for the sight of racing from 81 Speedway on Saturday, April 27.

Both races boast a $15,000 payday. 

If you can’t make it to the tracks, you can watch every World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model race live on DIRTVision.  

Here are the storylines to look out for: 

Locked In Shepp – Brandon Sheppard has visited Victory Lane with the World of Outlaws CASE Late Models at 81 Speedway twice in 2022 and 2017. He was also the last Series winner in Oklahoma in 2017. 

After weeks of being disappointed with his qualifying efforts, Sheppard is coming off a strong couple of days in Alabama after scoring the Simpson Quick Time Award on Saturday at the Talladega Short Track. 

The New Berlin, IL driver will be poised to repeat that effort again this weekend as he still chases his first win of the season with the World of Outlaws. 

Mad Max’s Mojo – On Friday night, MD3 Rookie of the Year contender Max McLaughlin picked up his maiden World of Outlaws CASE Late Models win at the Talladega Short Track in just his fifth start with the Series during a preliminary Feature. 

It was no easy task either for the Mooresville, NC driver, having to pass Newport, TN’s Jimmy Owens, then holding off Martinsville, IN driver Ricky Thornton Jr. to pick up his first win in the rain-shortened Feature. 

While the prelim Feature does not officially count as an official Feature victory, “Mad Max’s” added boost of confidence will have him hungry to find Victory Lane again this weekend for a true Feature win. 

Erb’s 81 Fun – 2022 World of Outlaws CASE Late Models champion Dennis Erb Jr. won the first point-paying Series race at 81 Speedway last year, out dueling Nick Hoffman to score his 14th career triumph. 

Erb has liked the Kansas facility, giving him room to work around multiple grooves to challenge and find speed to win a race. 

With the new adjustments in Fox Shocks giving the Carpentersville, IL’s #28 machine a better start than last season, he and crew chief Heather Lyne look forward to chasing a back-to-back feat on Saturday night. 

Oklahoma! – The World of Outlaws Late Models return to Oklahoma for the first time in seven years on Friday – this time for their debut at Colcord, OK’s Arrowhead Speedway.  

The only driver in the Series to have won at the facility is Marshalltown, IA driver Ryan Gustin on July 6, 2013. 

The state-of-the-art 3/8-mile facility has garnered the interest of drivers and fans alike as the first Super Late Model race awaits drivers with 50 laps and a $15,000 check.
When the World of Outlaws last visited Oklahoma, Brandon Sheppard picked up the victory at Salina Highbanks Speedway in 2017. 

WHEN AND WHERE  

Arrowhead Speedway in Colcord, OK 

81 Speedway in Wichita, KS 

ABOUT THE TRACK   

Arrowhead Speedway is a 0.333 mile semi-banked clay oval 

81 Speedway is a 0.375 mile dirt oval 

TRACK RECORD  

81 Speedway – 15.718 by Mike Marlar on 10/22/22    

ONLINE  
Arrowhead Speedway at https://arrowheadspeedway.com/ 

81 Speedway at https://www.81speedway.com/ 

ON THE INTERNET  
World of Outlaws CASE Late Models Series  
X – Twitter.com/WoOLateModels – @WoOLateModels  
Instagram – Instagram.com/WoOLateModels – @woolatemodels  
Facebook – Facebook.com/WorldofOutlawsLateModelSeries  
YouTube – YouTube.com/WorldofOutlaws  
DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com – Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month    

AROUND THE TURN  

The World of Outlaws CASE Late Models head north to Wisconsin for the Dairyland Showdown at Mississippi Thunder Speedway, May 2-4. For more information, CLICK HERE. 

FEATURE WINNERS: (4 Drivers)  
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins  

1. Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 2 
2. Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 2
3. Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 1 
4. Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 1 
    

HEAT RACE WINNERS (12 Drivers)
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins  

1. Chris Madden – Gray Court, SC – 4 
2. Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 4 
3. Cade Dillard – Robeline, LA – 4
4. Mike Marlar – Winfield, TN – 4
5. Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 3 
6. Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 3 
7. Dale McDowell – Chickamauga, GA – 2 
8. Ricky Thornton Jr – Martinsville, IN – 2
9. Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 1 
10. Shannon Babb – Moweaqua – IL -1 
11. Dennis Erb Jr – Carpentersville, IL – 1 
12. Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 1 
13. Tyler Bruening – Decorah, IA – 1 
14. Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 1 
15. Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 1 
16. Garrett Smith – Eatonton, GA – 1 

LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINNERS (6 Drivers)  
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins  

1. Max Blair – Centerville, PA – 3 
2. Jimmy Owens – Newport, TN – 2 
3. Dustin Sorensen – Rochester, MN – 2
4. Tanner English – Benton, KY – 1
5. Ashton Winger – Hampton, GA – 1 
6. Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 1 
7. Dennis Erb Jr – Carpentersville, IL – 1 
8. Cody Overton – Thomson, GA – 1 
9. Frank Heckenast Jr – Frankfort, IL – 1 
10. Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 1 
11. Chase Junghans – Manhattan, KS – 1 
12. Boom Briggs – Bear Lake, PA – 1 
13. Tripp Gerrald – Versailles, KY – 1 

PODIUM FINISHES (10 Drivers)  
Rank – Driver – Hometown – Podiums  

1. Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 4 
2. Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 3 
3. Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 3 
4. Chris Madden – Gray Court, SC – 2 
5. Cade Dillard – Robeline, LA – 1 
6. Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 1 
7. Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 1 
8. Kyle Bronson – Brandon, FL – 1 
9. Ricky Thornton Jr – Martinsville, IN – 1 
10. Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 1 

FOX FACTORY HARD CHARGER (4 Drivers)  
Rank – Driver – Hometown – H.C.  

1. Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 2 
2. Max Blair – Centerville, PA – 2 
3. Ricky Thornton Jr – Martinsville, IN – 1 
4. Chris Madden – Gray Court, SC – 1 

SIMPSON RACING PRODUCTS QUICK TIMES (4 Drivers)  
Rank – Driver – Hometown – QTs   

1. Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 2 
2. Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 1 
3. Tim McCreadie – Watertown, NY – 1 
4. Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 1 

MD3 ROOKIE OF THE RACE AWARD (2 Drivers)  

Rank – Driver – Hometown – Wins  

1. Cody Overton – Evans, GA – 4 
2. Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 1 
3. Daniel Hilsabeck – Earlham, IA – 1 

BILSTEIN REDRAW POLE AWARD (4 Drivers)  

Rank – Driver – Hometown – Poles  

1.Cade Dillard – Robeline, LA – 2  

1. Trey Mills – St. Augustine, FL – 1
2. Chris Madden – Gray Court, SC – 1 
3. Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 1 
4. Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 1 
5. Mike Marlar – Winfield, TN – 1 

CASE FEATURE LAP LEADERS (7 Drivers)  
Rank – Driver – Hometown – Laps Led  

1. Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 48 
2. Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 47 
3. Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 40 
4. Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 29 
5. Chris Madden – Gray Court, SC – 27 
6. Ricky Thornton Jr – Martinsville, IN – 16 
7. Cade Dillard – Robeline, LA – 15 
8. Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 6 

2024 World of Outlaws Late Model Schedule & Winners  

1. Friday, Jan. 19/Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Devin Moran 
2. Saturday, Jan. 20/Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Hudson O’Neal 
3. Thursday, Feb. 15 /Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Nick Hoffman 
4. Friday, Jan. 19/Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Devin Moran (2) 
5. Friday, Apr. 12/Farmer City Raceway/Farmer City, IL/Nick Hoffman (2) 
   6. Saturday, Apr. 13/Farmer City Raceway/Farmer City, IL/Bobby Pierce
   7. Friday, Apr. 19/Talladega Short Track/Eastaboga, AL/ Dylan Knowles & Max McLaughlin (prelims) 

A tightening top five in the standings headline a rare April visit to The Sprint Car Capital of the WorldKNOXVILLE, IA (April 23, 2024) – There’s never a bad time to visit Knoxville Raceway. And for the first time in a dozen years, the historic half mile is ready to welcome the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars in the month of April.“The Sprint Car Capital of the World” is the destination for the Premier Chevy Dealers Clash (April 26-27). The trip will be the first two of eight scheduled nights at Knoxville for the World of Outlaws in 2024.It’s only April, but it’s never too early to start padding the notebook for August’s NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationalspresented by Casey’s – offering up Sprint Car immortality, a $190,000 winner’s check, and more than a million dollars in total purse money. RELATED: Vote for the Knoxville Nationals as USA Today’s Best Motorsports RaceA huge field of stars from all over the country is expected to fill the Knoxville pit area this weekend with plans to chase a pair of $12,000 paydays and prepare for “The Granddaddy of ‘Em All.”BUY TWO-DAY KNOXVILLE TICKET PACKAGE HERE BUY FRIDAY KNOXVILLE TICKETS HERE BUY SATURDAY KNOXVILLE TICKETS HERE WATCH LIVE ON DIRTVisionLet’s look at the weekend’s top storylines:TOP FIVE IS TIGHT: The 2024 World of Outlaws championship battle appears primed to stay tight all the way to Charlotte, NC when #AllDirtRoads lead to the World Finals. The top five tightened this past weekend, and only 68 points separate the leading five drivers.David Gravel continues to lead the way despite a crash at Paducah cutting into his advantage. He’s been the most consistent driver in 2024 behind the wheel of the Big Game Motorsports #2 having already bagged eight podiums and 12 top fives through 15 races.Donny Schatz sits second – 34 markers behind Gravel – amid his pursuit of an 11th championship. With only two finishes outside the top 10 so far this season, it’s the most consistent he and the Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing team have looked in recent years.Giovanni Scelzi holds down the third spot after leading the points earlier in the season. A DNF at 81 Speedway to conclude March put an end to his perfect stretch of top 10s, but Scelzi and KCP Racing have since rebounded with six straight finishes of ninth or better.Logan Schuchart and Shark Racing have been quietly consistent all season, leading them to the fourth spot only 12 points behind Scelzi. The Hanover, PA driver owns a 6.8 average finish this year and hasn’t finished worse than 12th.Carson Macedo completes the current top five, four markers behind Schuchart. The Jason Johnson Racing #41 continues to shake off a forgettable start at the 2024 DIRTcar Nationals. In the 11 races since the season opening event, Macedo hasn’t missed the top 10 and owns a 4.45 average finish.SCHATZVILLE: It’s impossible to head to Knoxville without viewing Donny Schatz’s mind-blowing résumé on the Marion County Fairgrounds that he’ll look to add to this weekend.His Knoxville Nationals success is well documented with 11 triumphs in the sport’s most prestigious race, one away from Steve Kinser’s record of 12. He’s also been on the podium a whopping 20 times in “The Granddaddy of ‘Em All.”But the Knoxville success isn’t limited to the Nationals for Schatz. The 10-time Series champion has topped 11 World of Outlaws Features at the Iowa oval in months not named August. He’s the second most recent April winner with the Series, topping a spring visit back in 2007. The Fargo, ND native has also won in May, June, and October at Knoxville.ROOKIES IN RHYTHM: Michael “Buddy” Kofoid and Bill Balog are separated by 22 years of age, but they’re united in being rookies on the World of Outlaws tour. And lately they’ve been united in being two of the fastest cars on track.Kofoid is one of, if not the hottest drivers among the World of Outlaws roster at the moment. He’s reeled off four consecutive podiums and 10 consecutive top 10s aboard the Roth Motorsports #83. The Penngrove, CA driver has qualified for the finale in both of his Knoxville Nationals attempts, picking up Rookie of the Year honors in 2022 before grabbing a top 10 last year. He nearly won at the half mile last year, finishing second with the All-Star Circuit of Champions.Balog has logged four consecutive finishes of sixth or better including a runner-up at Paducah, his first Series podium since 2019. The “North Pole Nightmare” has plenty of Knoxville experience with tastes of success here and there. He’s been in the top 10 in multiple Knoxville Nationals prelims.The chase for the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year currently sees Kofoid holding a 102-point advantage over Balog heading into Knoxville.APRIL ABSENCE: This weekend is set to end a 12-year drought of April World of Outlaws action in Knoxville. But before this recent absence the half mile was a common stop of the tour in the spring.The World of Outlaws have contested 43 Knoxville Features in the month of April. The first was April 21, 1979 and topped by Sammy Swindell. The Germantown, TN legend also claimed the most recent on April 28, 2012. Swindell has won the most in April with 13 checkered flags. The only driver that will be in the pit area this weekend with an April World of Outlaws win on the black zook clay is Donny Schatz.This weekend will reignite the tradition of the country’s greatest Sprint Car drivers visiting the Marion County Fairgrounds in the spring.KNOXVILLE KNOWLEDGE: Knoxville has always offered some of the toughest local competition in the country for the World of Outlaws to face and expect this weekend to be no different.Brian Brown headlines the crop of Knoxville regulars. “Blackjack’s” 65 overall Knoxville victories rank second behind only the legendary Danny Lasoski. Among those wins are a trio with The Greatest Show on Dirt including one last June.Two-time and defending Knoxville track champion – Austin McCarl – will be in the hunt to secure his first World of Outlaws win at his home track. The Altoona, IA native is a former Knoxville Nationals pole sitter (2022), and last year he sat on the pole of night one of the Premier Chevy Dealers Clash before earning his third career World of Outlaws top five.Plenty of more local talents are likely to join the field this weekend including Knoxville’s own Riley Goodno, Tasker Phillips (Pleasantville, IA), McKenna Haase (Des Moines, IA), Chris Martin (Ankeny, IA), Cole Mincer (Burlington, IA), and more.THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCEWHEN AND WHERE Friday-Saturday, April 26-27 at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, IAON THE INTERNETWorld of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series X – @WorldofOutlaws Instagram – @WoOSprint Facebook – Facebook.com/WorldofOutlawsSprintCarSeries YouTube – Youtube.com/WorldofOutlaws DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com – Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/monthCURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (15/82 Races):1. David Gravel – Big Game Motorsports #2 (2110 PTS) 2. Donny Schatz – Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing #15 (-34 PTS) 3. Giovanni Scelzi – KCP Racing #18 (-52 PTS) 4. Logan Schuchart – Shark Racing #1S (-64 PTS) 5. Carson Macedo – Jason Johnson Racing #41 (-68 PTS) 6. Michael Kofoid – Roth Motorsports #83 (-108 PTS) 7. Sheldon Haudenschild – Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing #17 (-154 PTS) 8. Bill Balog – B Squared Motorsports #17B (-210 PTS) 9. Brock Zearfoss – Brock Zearfoss Racing #3Z (-314 PTS) 10. Landon Crawley – Sides Motorsports #7S (-388 PTS)NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (10 Drivers): 3 Wins – David Gravel, Sheldon Haudenschild 2 Wins – Donny Schatz 1 Win – Brad Sweet, Tyler Courtney, Brent Marks, Giovanni Scelzi, Carson Macedo, Rico Abreu, Brady BaconFEATURE LAPS LED (13 Drivers):94 Laps – David Gravel 77 Laps – Sheldon Haudenschild 56 Laps – Giovanni Scelzi 55 Laps – Carson Macedo 54 Laps – Rico Abreu 42 Laps – Donny Schatz 26 Laps – Brady Bacon 25 Laps – Brad Sweet 13 Laps – Anthony Macri, Michael Kofoid 11 Laps – Bill Balog 3 Laps – Brent Marks 1 Lap – Tyler Courtney SIMPSON PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS QUICKTIME AWARDS (8 Drivers):4 Quick Times – Carson Macedo 2 Quick Times – Brent Marks, Michael Kofoid, Giovanni Scelzi, David Gravel 1 Quick Time – Landon Crawley, Brian Brown, Aaron ReutzelHEAT RACE WINNERS (20 Drivers): 8 Heat Wins – David Gravel 6 Heat Wins – Giovanni Scelzi, Sheldon Haudenschild 5 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo, Michael Kofoid 4 Heat Wins – Brent Marks, Rico Abreu 2 Heat Wins – Brian Brown, Tyler Courtney, Landon Crawley 1 Heat Win – Corey Day, Justin Peck, Bill Balog, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Brock Zearfoss, Logan Schuchart, Bill Rose, Ryan Timms, Donny Schatz, Danny Sams IIITOYOTA DASH APPEARANCES (30 Drivers):12 Dashes – David Gravel 11 Dashes – Giovanni Scelzi 10 Dashes – Carson Macedo 9 Dashes – Sheldon Haudenschild, Michael Kofoid 7 Dashes – Rico Abreu, Bill Balog 5 Dashes – Brent Marks, Donny Schatz, Landon Crawley, Logan Schuchart 4 Dashes – Tyler Courtney, Brian Brown 2 Dashes – Brad Sweet, Aaron Reutzel 1 Dash – Anthony Macri, Justin Peck, Zeb Wise, Corey Day, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Brock Zearfoss, Bill Rose, Ryan Timms, Garet Williamson, James McFadden, Logan McCandless, Ayrton Gennetten, Brady Bacon, Emerson Axsom, Danny Sams IIIMICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (12 Drivers):1 LCS – Austin McCarl, Bill Balog, Corey Day, Kasey Kahne, Koty Adams, Jace Park, Anthony Macri, Landon Crawley, Logan McCandless, Garet Williamson, Brock Zearfoss, Kevin NewtonKSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (12 Drivers):2 Hard Chargers – Carson Macedo, Logan Schuchart, Donny Schatz 1 Hard Charger – Aaron Reutzel, Jace Park, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Brock Zearfoss, Chase Randall, Chris Windom, Noah Gass, Austin McCarl, Giovanni ScelziPODIUM FINISHES (15 Drivers):8 Podiums – David Gravel 5 Podiums – Donny Schatz, Carson Macedo, Michael Kofoid 4 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild 3 Podiums – Brad Sweet, Rico Abreu, Giovanni Scelzi 2 Podiums – Tyler Courtney, Brent Marks 1 Podium – Justin Peck, Anthony Macri, Aaron Reutzel, Bill Balog, Brady BaconTOP 10 FINISHES (36 Drivers): 14 Top 10s – Giovanni Scelzi 13 Top 10s – Donny Schatz, David Gravel, Logan Schuchart 12 Top 10s – Michael Kofoid 11 Top 10s – Carson Macedo 9 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild, Bill Balog 6 Top 10s – Tyler Courtney 5 Top 10s – Brent Marks, Rico Abreu 4 Top 10s – Anthony Macri, Brock Zearfoss 3 Top 10s – Brad Sweet, Brian Brown, Aaron Reutzel 2 Top 10s – Ryan Timms, Chase Randall, Cole Macedo 1 Top 10 – Justin Peck, Kasey Kahne, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Zeb Wise, Corey Day, Cory Eliason, Landon Crawley, Jacob Allen, Chris Windom, Garet Williamson, James McFadden, Joe B. Miller, Kraig Kinser, Ayrton Gennetten, Brady Bacon, Emerson Axsom, Scotty Milan2024 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS:No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)1. Wed, Feb 7 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Brad Sweet (1) 2. Thurs, Feb 8 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (1) 3. Fri, Feb 9 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Tyler Courtney (1) 4. Sat, Feb 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Sheldon Haudenschild (1) 5. Mon, March 4 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Donny Schatz (1) 6. Fri, March 15 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Brent Marks (1) 7. Sat, March 16 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Giovanni Scelzi (1) 8. Sat, March 23 / Kennedale Speedway Park / Kennedale, TX / Carson Macedo (1) 9. Sat, March 30 / 81 Speedway / Wichita, KS / Rico Abreu (1) 10. Fri, April 5 / US 36 Raceway / Osborn, MO / David Gravel (2) 11. Sat, April 6 / Arrowhead Speedway / Colcord, OK / Sheldon Haudenschild (2) 12. Fri, April 12 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / David Gravel (3) 13. Sat, April 13 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Donny Schatz (2) 14. Fri, April 19 / Paducah International Raceway / Paducah, KY / Sheldon Haudenschild (3) 15. Sat, April 20 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Brady Bacon (1)For the full 2024 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car schedule, CLICK HERE.

OCALA, FL (April 23, 2024) — The second four-wide national event of the 2024 NHRA Mission Food Drag Racing Series will take place this weekend at the Bellagio of Drag Strips, zMAX Dragway, when the Charlotte Four-Wide Nationals begins with two rounds of qualifying on Friday. Josh Hart and the TechNet/R+L Carriers Top Fuel dragster team will be looking to keep their final quad streak alive and focus on grabbing one more win light. Since Hart began racing at the unique four-wide format in 2021 he had qualified in the top half of the field and raced to the final quad three years in a row.

Josh Hart and the TechNet/R+L Carrier Top Fuel dragster ready for Charlotte, photo credit Auto Imagery/Gary Nastase

“We have done well at the Charlotte Four-Wide Nationals and this year I feel good heading into the race,” said Hart, who will be flying the red, white and blue of TechNet this weekend. “We made some progress in Las Vegas and I think we can carry that over to zMAX Dragway. There are a ton of motorsports fans in the Charlotte area and I love it when new fans come to the ropes and get to see our TechNet/R+L Carriers Top Fuel dragster up close.”
Hart is also looking to join a short list of Charlotte winners who have won in the fall at the Countdown national event and at the spring four-wide nationals. Only three Top Fuel drivers have accomplished this feat and Hart would like to join Antron Brown, Steve Torrence and Cory McClenathan. Hart won the Carolina Nationals fall race during his rookie season in 2021.

“It would be cool to join that list of Top Fuel drivers to have won in both the spring and fall at zMAX Dragway but really I just want to get back into the winner’s circle,” said Hart. “This team is too good to not have more wins. It is tough out here for sure, but we are working to put ourselves in a position to hopefully go on a run starting in Charlotte. We have a tune up that can run with anyone and if I do my job on the starting line, we can win some races.”

Hart’s skill on the starting line when it comes to reaction time has been making major positive strides in the past two seasons. The fourth-year pro is currently the second quickest “leaver” (quickest reaction time) behind Justin Ashley and just in front of Brown, Shawn Langdon and Top Fuel rookie Tony Stewart.

“I have been working really hard on improving my reaction times the past two season,” said Hart, who regularly collects wins throughout the season on hole shots. “These race cars are so close on the performance side it comes down to the drivers in a lot of situations which I love. You have to really focus and block out all the distractions. Four-wide racing adds another element to the equation with the addition of more cars. It makes it challenging and fun.”

The past three years in Charlotte have seen Hart and the TechNet/R+L Carriers Top Fuel team qualify No. 4, No. 6, and No. 5 on the all-concrete track. Overall, in his six previous appearances he has never qualified in the bottom half of the field. Successful starting positions have been a key to race day win lights in Hart’s opinion.
“We you can start in the top half of the field that is a good indication that your race weekend has been consistent every day for the most part,” said Hart. “We want to come off the trailer on Friday and make two good runs that get us in the top half of the field. That gives my crew chief Ron Douglas some freedom to get aggressive on Saturday and fine tune a set up for race day. We only have three rounds of racing at four-wide races and I think that adds to the excitement.”

The R+L Carriers team raced into the second quad two weeks ago at the Las Vegas Four-Wide Nationals and for their effort they will be racing the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Four-Wide specialty race during Saturday’s qualifying sessions. The race will be a repeat of the second quad race from Las Vegas with $10,000 and three championship bonus points on the line for Hart and the rest of the Top Fuel competitors.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 23, 2024) – Progressive American Flat Track, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, returns to action this weekend with the Mission Texas Half-Mile presented by Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda and Roof Systems of Dallas at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, on Saturday, April 27. The series’ stop in Dallas-Fort Worth is one of the most significant annually due to its immediate proximity to the home bases of several of Progressive AFT’s partners and teams, including Mission Foods, Roof Systems of Dallas, TX, and Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda. That naturally celebratory atmosphere will be elevated into another stratosphere in 2024, as the round will take place alongside the Goodguys 14th LMC Truck Spring Lone Star Nationals presented by TREMEC, which will feature over 2500 classic vehicles among numerous other attractions, at the sprawling Texas Motor Speedway. Reigning Grand National Champion Jared Mees (No. 1 Rogers Racing/SDI Racing/Indian Motorcycle FTR750) comes into this weekend’s high-profile Mission SuperTwins showdown with a great deal going in his fashion. Not only is Mees’ the sport’s all-time winningest rider in the Half-Mile discipline with a remarkable 37 such victories to his name, he’s also triumphed in the series’ most recent three stops at Texas Motor Speedway (2018, 2019, 2022), its most recent Half-Mile (Black Hills HM, ‘23), and its most recent race full-stop (Senoia ST). However, he also returns to Texas looking up at two rivals in the early 2024 point standings. Chief rival Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT), who is determined to rip the torch free from Mee’s throttle hand if necessary, currently leads the way on the strength of finishes of first, second, and third in the season’s opening three races. And slotted in between Daniels and Mees is the on-form Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750), who would like nothing more than to move into the points lead with a win at his team’s home race this weekend. Several other riders will be in contention for the win as well, headlined by two-time premier-class champion Briar Bauman (No. 3 Rick Ware Racing/KTM/Parts Plus KTM 790 Duke) and joined by fellow Mission SuperTwins race winners Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing Indian FTR750), Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 JMC Motorsports/Fairway Ford Ohio Indian FTR750), Johnny Lewis (No. 10 Moto Anatomy X Powered by Royal Enfield 650), and Bronson Bauman (No. 37 Fastrack Racing Mission Foods KTM 790 Duke). Others to keep close tabs on include fourth-ranked Brandon Price (No. 92 Memphis Shades/Corbin/OTBR Yamaha MT-07), the Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda duo of Dan Bromley (No. 62 Big Red Super Twins/Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda Transalp) and Morgen Mischler (No. 13 Big Red Super Twins/Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda Transalp), and highly rated rookies Trevor Brunner (No. 21 Mission Foods/Zanotti Racing KTM 790 Duke) and Max Whale (No. 18 Latus Motors Racing/Liqui Moly Harley-Davidson XG750R). Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER The early ‘24 Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER title fight has taken on pretty much the same shape as the previous two. Following three rounds, double defending champion Kody Kopp (No. 1 Rick Ware Racing/Parts Plus KTM 450 SX-F) is firmly in control and well on his way to ending this season’s campaign as the undisputed most decorated rider in class history. And that means the remainder of a talent-laden field must rise up and meet Kopp’s challenge or risk serving as a backdrop to history. An elite handful of riders in the pack have proven they have the skills to go bar-to-bar with Kopp on any given night. It’s just a matter of doing so as consistently as the Rick Ware Racing ace. Second-ranked Dalton Gauthier (No. 79 D&D Racing/Certified KTM 450 SX-F) has the tools to do so as evidenced by the Parts Unlimited AFT Singles class crown included on his lengthy résumé. And third-ranked Tom Drane (No. 59 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) showed himself to be equal to the task during a torrid second-half run in 2023. Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R) was victorious in Texas a year ago, albeit at Devil’s Bowl Speedway. But no 450 rider has been as successful at Texas Motor Speedway as Shayna Texter-Bauman (No. 52 Rick Ware Racing/Parts Plus KTM 450 SX-F), who boasts wins at the track in 2017 and 2019 among her category-leading tally. Others would likely be content to first finish atop the box this weekend and go from there, a list of pilots that starts with Chase Saathoff (No. 88 JPG Motorsports Honda CRF450R), who still seeks a maiden victory despite logging numerous podiums and battling up front on a week-in, week-out basis, and includes the likes of James Ott (No. 19 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450) and, Aiden RoosEvans (No. 26 FRA Trust/ATV’s and More Yamaha YZ450F). Fan activities will get underway on Friday, April 26, with Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda Pre-Party where fans, riders, and team crew can get together at the dealership from 5:00 p.m.- 8:00 p.m. local time to enjoy food, fun, and a storewide sale. There will be plenty to keep spectators entertained at the event on Saturday off the track as well, including numerous vendors, plenty of food and beverage options, live music courtesy of Texas-based rock & roll/dance party band Time Thief, face painting and character drawings for kids, extensive motorcycle parking, and a fireworks display at the end of the evening. A special Goodguys General Admission Combo ticket is available HERE for just $55 (kids 12 and under $13), which includes Saturday admission to the Goodguys 14th LMC Truck Spring Lone Star Nationals and General Admission to the Mission Texas Half Mile that evening. Standalone General Admission Grandstand tickets can be purchased for $35 (kids 12 and under $5), while Reserved Grandstand tickets are $45 (all ages). The Pit Pass Upgrade can be added to either option. A climate-controlled experience including Pit Pass access is available either through individual Indoor Suite tickets ($150) or by reserving a Private Indoor Suite ($2000) that can accommodate up to twenty people. New for 2024 is the Opening Ceremonies Trackside Fan Experience ($150 all ages). This ticket option provides reserved seating with Pit Pass access, a guided tour of, and photo opportunities at, the infield podium and start/finish line, infield viewing of Opening Ceremonies and the heat races, and a track talk and photo opportunity with 2016 Grand National Champion Bryan Smith. Visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/texas-half-mile-86387 to reserve your seats today. Gates will open for fans at 4:00 p.m. ET (1:00 p.m. PT) with Opening Ceremonies scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m. ET (5:00 p.m. PT). You can catch the livestream of all the weekend’s racing activities on FloRacing. Motorsports fans can subscribe to FloRacing to enjoy over 1,000 live motorsports events in 2024. FloSports is available by visiting https://flosports.link/aft or by downloading the FloSports app on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire and Chromecast. FOX Sports coverage of the Mission Texas Half-Mile, featuring in-depth features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Sunday, May 5, at 11:00 a.m. ET (8:00 a.m. PT). For more information on Progressive AFT visit https://www.americanflattrack.com.

CONCORD, NC (April 22, 2024) – The 2024 lineup of events for the American Sprint Car Series National Tour continues to evolve and come into place, with the most recent update coming in the month of August.

Originally a two-night run in July, the trip north now encompasses six nights, starting in Kansas and Nebraska before heading north to Montana.

Dodge City Raceway Park has taken Friday, Aug. 16. Racing then moves to Lincoln County Raceway (North Platte, Neb.) for the tour’s first visit on Saturday, Aug. 17. Both nights are in conjunction with the ASCS Western Plains Region.

Northbound from there, the first stop in Montana is Big Sky Speedway in Billings for the first time since 2019 on Friday, Aug. 23, and Saturday, Aug. 24 for the $12,012 to win Harvey Ostermiller Memorial. Back on the lineup for the first time since 2015, Electric City Speedway in Great Falls will take Friday, Friday, Aug. 30, and Saturday, Aug. 31, during the 28th annual Montana Roundup. All four nights are co-sanctioned with the ASCS Frontier Region.

Further updates to the 2024 schedule are forthcoming and will be posted once confirmed.

The 2024 season marks the 33rd season of competition for the American Sprint Car Series. Spearheaded by the American Sprint Car Series National Tour, the ASCS Nation includes Regional Tours encompassing Wing and Non-Wing competition.

Live coverage of the National Tour can be found exclusively at http://www.DIRTVision.com.

For other news, notes, and information on any of the tours under the ASCS banner, log onto http://www.ascsracing.com, follow on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (@ascsracing).New August Swing:
Friday, Aug. 16 – Dodge City Raceway Park
Saturday, Aug. 17 – Lincoln County RacewayFriday-Saturday, Aug. 23-24 – Big Sky Speedway
Friday-Saturday, Aug. 30-31 – Electric City Speedway

SALISBURY, NC (April 22, 2024) – The Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota is returning home in May to kick off a week of motorsports activities in North Carolina. Millbridge Speedway – which hosted the Series’ inaugural race in 2022 – will again be the site of the DIAEDGE Double Down Showdown, Tuesday-Wednesday, May 21-22. The biggest stars in dirt Midget racing will be in attendance, inlcuding 2023 Xtreme Outlaw champion Jade Avedisian – the first women to win a national championship in dirt racing – Oklahoma’s Cannon McIntosh, who swept the two Millbridge races last year, 2022 Xtreme Outlaw champion Zach Daum, and local standouts Trevor Cline and Ethan Mitchell – both from Mooresville, NC. With the race leading up to NASCAR’s Coke 600 weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway, the two-day event also tends to bring out some of the biggest names in racing to compete, such as NASCAR Cup Series drivers Chase Briscoe and Carson Hocevar. EVENT INFO Date – Tuesday-Wednesday, May 21-22 Location – Salisbury, NC Times (ET) – 2PM Pit Gates Open 5PM Grandstand Gates Open 6:30PM Hot Laps & Qualifying -Racing to followTickets – Available at track How to Watch – If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision. Last Race Video Recap (May 23, 2023) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-r5WFm2Q4o Previous Xtreme Outlaw Winners at Millbridge – 2023 – Cannon McIntosh on May 23 & May 24 2022 – Gavan Boschele on May 24, Taylor Reimer on May 25

Cruz Pedregon

NHRA Four-Wide Nationals – Charlotte

Pre-Race Report

News of note: 

·       Cruz had a dominating performance that resulted in a Charlotte four-wide win in 2018 when he passed the legendary Don Prudhomme for fifth-place all-time wins in his 36th Funny Car victory. 

Quotes for the upcoming Charlotte Four-Wide race– 

Cruz Pedregon, two-time Funny Car World Champion

We made a test run Monday in Las Vegas after the race. With that run, we learned what we needed to learn and we’re ready to go to Charlotte. The car ran a 3.98 which was in line with what all the top cars were running last weekend. We made adjustments to the clutch, and the car made a flawless run. We’re looking ahead now and are ready to go for Charlotte. We’re working toward consistency, which is why we tested after Vegas to prepare for Charlotte.

Overall, I feel good about the direction of the team, headed up by Jason (Bunker, Crew Chief) and Johnny (West, Assistant Crew Chief). We’ve got a great team with eager young guys who are ready to win. We’ve qualified in the top half three of four events so far this year which shows we’re connecting and making improvements as a team. 

Name on the side of Cruz’s car – Snap-on Nitro Franchisee Steven Ward

·       Check out the side of Cruz’s car for the name of Snap-on Nitro Franchisee Steven Ward.

·       It’s his first time meeting Cruz, so he’s stoked to see his name on the side of the Snap-on Makers and Fixers Dodge^®.

·       Steven had a distribution route prior to his work with Snap-on and has always been a fan of the brand.

·       He’ll be at the track this weekend with several of his regular customers.

·       As Cruz’s primary sponsor, Snap-on is asking NHRA fans like Steven to follow Makers and Fixers on Instagram and acknowledge Makers and Fixers like him by sharing their own stories @Makersandfixers or makersandfixers.com.

Follow Cruz and Snap-on on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram

To see the latest Cruz news, like his Facebook page, on Twitter, and Instagram.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 22, 2024) – Progressive American Flat Track, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, is pleased to announce SUPER73, the American lifestyle adventure brand specializing in electric motorbikes, will return for the fourth consecutive year and serve as the Official Electric Bike of Progressive AFT for the 2024 season. With its perfectly balanced blend of retro design sensibilities and cutting-edge technology, SUPER73 has created waves in the e-bike market since its introduction in 2016. The brand successfully developed products to help fuse motorcycle heritage with youth culture through its class-defining style, innovative technology, and grin-inducing riding experience. It has quickly grown into one of the most recognizable electric vehicle brands in the world. Now entering its fourth season as the series Official Electric Bike, SUPER73 is rooted in motorcycle culture and boasts a long-time association with dirt track motorcycle racing. That connection continues to grow stronger thanks to several initiatives associated with the expanded partnership. This year’s Mission SuperTwins champion will receive a brand-new SUPER73. Additionally, a versatile fleet of SUPER73 models, complete with parts and accessory support, will travel to each round for use at the track by Progressive AFT staff and officials. As part of the brand’s broader strategy to promote the series, SUPER73 will be on site at the Ventura Short Track along with other select Progressive AFT events, enabling fans to check out, demo, purchase, or even win SUPER73 electric bikes at the track. “We’re excited to partner with SUPER73 again this year,” said Gene Crouch, CEO of AMA Pro Racing. “Seeing how enthusiastically the paddock and fans have embraced their products, it’s easy to understand why SUPER73 has developed such a loyal, passionate customer base.” For more information on SUPER73 visit https://super73.com. The 2024 Progressive American Flat Track season will resume with its first Half-Mile of the year with the Mission Texas Half-Mile presented by Al Lamb’s Dallas Honda and Roof Systems of Dallasat Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, on Saturday, April 27. Visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/texas-half-mile-86387 to secure your tickets today. For more information on Progressive AFT visit https://www.americanflattrack.com.

CONCORD, NC (April 22, 2024) – The World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series will visit two new tracks and return to two Pennsylvania thrillers during its May northeast swing.

First, the Series will make its debut at Ohio’s Raceway 7 on Thursday, May 16. It’ll also be the World of Outlaws Late Model’s first Ohio stop of the season.

Then, three straight days in Pennsylvania. The World of Outlaws will return to Bedford Speedway for the first time since 2009 on Friday, May 17, before making the trek to Marion Center Raceway for the third straight year on Saturday, May 18. The Series will wrap up the four-day weekend with its debut at Path Valley Speedway on Sunday, May 19.

RACEWAY 7 EVENT INFO
Date – Thursday, May 16
Location – Conneaut, OH

Times (ET) –
Gates Open 5:30pm

Tickets – Available at track
How to Watch – If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.

BEDFORD EVENT INFO
Date – Friday, May 17
Location – Bedford, PA

TImes (ET) –
Gates Open 5pm

Tickets – Available at track
How to Watch – If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.

Previous World of Outlaws winners at Bedford –
2009 – Tim Fuller on Aug. 14
2008 – Steve Francis on Aug. 29
2007 – Chub Frank on Sept. 21

MARION CENTER EVENT INFO
Date – Saturday, May 18
Location – Marion Center, PA

TImes (ET) –
Gates Open 5:30pm

Tickets – Available at track
How to Watch – If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.

Last Race Video Recap (May 19, 2023) –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbJnGLAlQIA

Previous World of Outlaws winners at Marion Center –
2023 – Ryan Gustin on May 19
2022 – Dennis Erb Jr. on May 20

PATH VALLEY EVENT INFO
Date – Sunday, May 19
Location – Spring Run, PA

TImes (ET) –
Gates Open 5pm

Tickets – Available at WorldofOutlaws.com.
How to Watch – If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.

• Release
• Photos

April 21, 2024 — LONG BEACH, CA

• Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon takes victory at Long Beach 
• Colton Herta, Alex Palou round out all-Honda podium in front of Honda’s home crowd
• Honda powers four of top five finishers at the beach

It was an incredible win at Honda’s home race for Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon, as the six-time series champion powered his #9 Honda Indy car to victory today in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. 

Dixon needed to save fuel through the latter half of the race as Josef Newgarden, Colton Herta and Alex Palou chased him down. After defending from Newgarden for several laps, the Penske driver was removed from podium contention as some mild contact from the rear from Herta in the hairpin. That light contact put Newgarden’s car into “anti-stall” mode, allowing Herta and Palou to get by. 

From there, Dixon needed to continue to save fuel to the finish, crossing the line less than a second ahead of Andretti Global’s Herta.  Dixon’s Chip Ganassi teammate and defending NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Alex Palou finished third, making it an all-Honda podium affair

Other Honda drivers in the top 10 include Marcus Ericsson (P5), 2023 Long Beach Grand Prix winner Kyle Kirkwood (P7), and polesitter Felix Rosenqvist (P9).

Acura Grand Prix Long Beach Honda Race Results

1st Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
2nd Colton Herta	Andretti Global Honda
3rd Alex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
5th Marcus Ericsson	Andretti Global Honda
7th Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Global Honda
9th Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
12th Marcus Armstrong	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
13th Linus Lundqvist-R	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
17th Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
19th Kyffin Simpson-R	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
20th Nolan Siegel-R	Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
22nd Tom Blomqvist-R	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
23rd Christian Lundgaard	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
24th Pietro Fittipaldi	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
25th Jack Harvey	Dale Coyne Racing Honda

R – Rookie

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturers’ Championship (unofficial, after 2 of 17 rounds)
Chevrolet                      162 points
Honda                          154 points

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Drivers’ Championship Standings (unofficial, after 2 of 17 rounds)                                

1. Josef Newgarden, Team Penske	87 points
2. Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing	-12
3. Colton Herta, Andretti Global	-15
4. Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing	-24
5. Will Power, Team Penske	-26

Quotes
Scott Dixon (#9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) winner of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, his first win of 2024, and 20th consecutive season with at least one victory: “We went into the race thinking there would be more cautions, but those didn’t come. So I didn’t really follow the fuel number that we needed during the first part of the race, and that almost caught up with us later. But it’s a credit to the team that they were able to react and adjust. This is an Acura/Honda home race, with all their associates here, so huge thank you to everyone at HRC and Honda. Obviously, that mega fuel mileage from Honda is what got us to victory, so that was huge. I love winning here. This is big.”

Colton Herta (#26 Andretti Global Honda) finished second: “So we knew Scott was having to save fuel, and that allowed us to close up to him. But I think I used up my tires doing so, because I really didn’t have anything for in in those final laps. So congrats to Scott, but our Gainbridge Honda was on rails today. It’s always so cool to be here at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach; and to have Honda finish 1-2-3 is even better. [on the late race contact with Josef Newgarden] I just misjudged it. I carried too much speed into the hairpin and got into the back of him. Which wasn’t terrible, but I think he got anti-stall from his rear tires lifting. That really killed his run. I feel bad for him, I have a lot of respect for Josef and don’t want to race him that way. But that’s just how it happened today. I’ll definitely keep it in the back of my mind for the future.”

Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished third: “It was a tough race. I think Josef, Colton and I were all very close. But Scott was on a different strategy, and I think only he could made it work like that. I’ve very happy with a podium finish. Maybe we could’ve done a little bit better without the lapped traffic, but honestly, I’m happy to get that first podium with DHL and proud that a Ganassi car won today.”

Koji Watanabe (President, Honda Racing Corporation) on today’s podium sweep for Honda at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach: “I’m very, very happy. A Honda power 1-2-3 podium sweep at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, fantastic! Thank you to everyone at HRC and our teams. Thank you to our fans. Thank you all very much.”

Fast Facts

• Today’s 1-2-3 podium sweep for Honda is the company’s 17th win at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in 24 appearances here. This includes victories in 10 of the last 15 races; and a seven-year victory streak in Championship Auto Racing Teams competition, against multi-manufacturer competition, from 1996-2002.
• This is Honda’s 281st championship series win in Indy car from 511 races since the manufacturer entered Indy car competition in 1994; and 181st win against multi-manufacturer competition.
• The racing arm of American Honda, Honda Performance Development, was renamed Honda Racing Corporation USA (HRC US) in January to reflect the new role of the company in Honda’s global racing efforts. With this change, HRC US will take on an increased role in Honda’s global motorsports activities.

Next
The NTT INDYCAR SERIES now heads east for next weekend’s Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix, April 26-28 at Barber Motorsports Park near Birmingham, Alabama.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES ACURA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH STREETS OF LONG BEACH LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA TEAM CHEVY RACE REPORT APRIL 21, 2024 CHEVROLET FINISHES THE ACURA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH WITH FIVE IN THE TOP-11 Josef Newgarden, driver of the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, led Team Chevy at the checkered flag in a tough Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, finishing fourth his 200th career NTT INDYCAR SERIES event and 149th with Chevrolet. The two-time series champion and defending Indianapolis 500 winner led for 19 of the 85-lap race.Will Power, Team Penske teammate to Newgarden and driver of the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet, finished sixth, after showing strength and pace all weekend. He started the race in second position, on the Streets of Long Beach. The former champion and Indianapolis 500 winner took the lead in the first corner and led the race for 15 laps.Rounding out the top-11 and representing Chevrolet, Romain Grosjean, driver of the No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet, finished eight, and Alexander Rossi, driver of the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet finished 10th. Additionally, Théo Pourchaire, driving the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, finished 11th in his first NTT INDYCAR SERIES race after starting 22nd.Pourchaire, the French rookie who was tapped to drive to fill in for injured David Malukas, had to opportunity to learn and prepare for Long Beach by spending a session in the Chevrolet simulator at the General Motors Tech Center in Charlotte.Josef Newgarden paced the morning warm-up session for Team Chevy, finishing the 30-minute practice third with his fastest lap of 01:07.1814 seconds. TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 RACE RESULTS:4th    Josef Newgarden6th    Will Power8th    Romain Grosjean10th  Alexander Rossi

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING:Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet:“It was just unfortunate to finish back. I was thinking we were going to get a run on (Scott) Dixon there. Just couldn’t quite get him. The Hitachi Chevrolet team did a great job. I can’t be more proud of the work we did. Fast car, great pit stops. They were aces all around. It was a good team effort. Top-five, we’ll have to take that today.” On the incident with Colton Herta…“That seems pretty black and white to me, but I’d ask the question to everybody else. If it were in the reverse, I’d expect to be penalized.” A win and a pole are still pretty good so far. How do you feel on the progress so far this season?“Yes, great. The team did amazing. Just amazing.” Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet:“Obviously very disappointing to DNF with an Odyssey Battery Chevy that was so fast. I got us off on the wrong foot by missing a key corner in qualifying, losing a couple of tenths a second. We were much better than an 11th-place car in qualifying. Then you look at the race and we were on the same strategy as (Scott) Dixon and looked to be in a good spot for a solid day. The gearbox issue that ended our day was just the final straw. Again, disappointing to say the least but we head to Barber next looking for a second win there.” Will Power, No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet:“Rough. We had an incredibly fast Verizon Chevy. Had a choice to take the yellow and take tires and have massive fuel save and go hard, but we made the most of what we had there. We didn’t have any green tires to run in those fuel save stints, so we didn’t have any defense against (Scott) Dixon. Otherwise, it would have been fine to do exactly what he did. Disappointing with how far we started up, but still a top-six. All you can do is maximize each day and move on to the next one.” Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“First, I’m sorry to the Arrow McLaren team. I limited our ability to push for strong results today – at least for two cars. I take full responsibility for a rough race, but it will be a quick turn to Barber where we’ll re-group and look to bounce back.” Théo Pourchaire, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“It was a crazy, crazy race. I enjoyed it. My first INDYCAR weekend is done now. We had a strong performance, so I’m super happy. I have to thank the onsemi Arrow McLaren Chevy team for the car. The car was awesome today. I was the biggest mover of the race, which is amazing from 22nd to 11th. Super happy with that. I have to thank the whole INDYCAR organization. The championship is amazing. The racing is here. Long Beach is a crazy good place, and I hope to be back in the future there. I learned much more in the race, it’s crazy. Every five laps in a row, many pit stops, out laps, in laps, saving fuel, overtaking cars, and I enjoyed it. The performance was great. It’s pure racing in INDYCAR. Physically, it’s tough. I’m quite tired right now, but it was a dream come true to do an INDYCAR race for me, with McLaren. Such a legendary brand and racing team. I’m quite emotional, but it’s amazing. I don’t realize it yet, but I’m super happy.” Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“We had a tough weekend dealing with some unique situations. We made some good steps overnight, into the warm-up and into the race. There will always be a check-up when you start that far back and, unfortunately, Pato (O’Ward) didn’t have anywhere to go. It was just one of those accordion moments. We shifted into recovery mode from there and the team did a good job to hang in and get us into the top 10.” Christian Rasmussen, No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:“Yeah, it was tricky. I feel like we’ve had a good weekend so far. We’ve got up to speed quick in our practices. Not the qualifying we wanted, but the race was unfortunate. Tapped the wall out of (turn) 11. Thought the car was fine. My steering wheel was a little bit off, but I thought it was a bent toe link, but then when I went into (turn) four, I think it just completely snapped and it went around. Not how I wanted to end the day. I’m sorry to the boys, and it’s going to be a quick turnaround to Barber, but we’ll come back stronger.” Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:“That was a tough race. We chose to start on the greens, and I hoped I could pass some guys. Then, I felt like the pace was pretty good on greens. Unfortunately, lost a bit of time on that first pit sequence. Then, couldn’t really hold on all the way throughout that second stint on greens, but still pretty good I’d say. Then, at the end, there were some guys where everybody was on different strategy. Hoped to make up some more ground, but I really struggled on the blacks. It was just pretty hard to drive at that point. Still moved up, but wished I could’ve made it into the top-12 in the No. 21 Chevy. Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet:“The race was what it was. We took a gamble with the pit stops. Everyone can always Monday quarterback, but we kind of figured we either end up in the top-10 or 21st. We ended up 21st. The Sexton Properties Chevrolet is in one piece, and we move on to Barber.” Sting Ray Robb, No. 41 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet:“We have concluded the Long Beach Grand Prix on somewhat of a high note. Really proud of the Pray.com Chevrolet team. We had some really good pit stops that were clean. We made up a few spots along the way on strategy and made up some spots in the end based off of that early racing stint and avoiding the attrition. Super proud of the team and super proud of the progress we made through the weekend. We needed a clean day, and today was that clean day. Now we can build momentum heading into Barber. I want to thank the Pray.com crew. We’re here pretty much on the front porch here in California, having them here with their support and cheers. We’re looking forward to the next one.” Romain Grosjean, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:“P16 to P8, it was a great Long Beach Grand Prix for us. Agustin (Canapino) had a great race as well. It was a great race for us as a team. We can be proud of that. We improved a lot from St. Pete, and I’m happy that we were able to show such a strong outing on the track. Can’t wait for next weekend in Barber.”  Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:“Another 15th for us. We are really happy. The execution was really, really good. Unfortunately, the strategy wasn’t the best at the end. We had bad luck, honestly, with the strategy. The execution as perfect. Thanks to the whole team for the excellent pit stops. The pace was incredible. We finished 15th in a really difficult race. Very high level for everybody. Top-15, more points, and we are really happy. Hope for more in the next race.”

NASCAR CUP SERIES TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY GEICO 500 TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT APRIL 21, 2024

·       Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and the No. 47 Boost/Thomas’/Philadelphia Camaro ZL1 team collected their first top-five finish of the 2024 season at Talladega Superspeedway– leading Chevrolet to the finish with a fourth-place result in the NASCAR Cup Series GEICO 500.  ·       For the second consecutive race, Chevrolet earned five top-10 finishes in the final running order – recorded by drivers from four different Chevrolet organizations including JTG Daugherty Racing’s Stenhouse Jr. in fourth; Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman in fifth and William Byron in seventh; Beard Motorsports’ Anthony Alfredo in sixth; and Kaulig Racing’s Daniel Hemric in ninth. ·       Kyle Larson and the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 team continues to lead the NASCAR Cup Series’ driver points standings – leaving Talladega Superspeedway with a 15-point lead over second-place Martin Truex Jr.·       The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season continues at Dover Motor Speedway with the Würth 400 on Sunday, April 28, at 2 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on FS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10:  POS.   DRIVER4th      Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Boost/Thomas’/Philadelphia Camaro ZL15th      Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL16th      Anthony Alfredo, No. 62 Dude Wipes Camaro ZL17th      William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL19th      Daniel Hemric, No. 31 Cirkul Camaro ZL1

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE QUOTES:Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Boost/Thomas’/Philadelphia Camaro ZL1Finished: 4th “Not a bad day, but it was somewhat frustrating every now and then just kind of being gridlocked there but you know our team we came in with a plan. We stuck to our plan and glad that it all worked out. I feel like we’ve been close all year with different things and you know just nothing seems to work out so for it all to come together for the Thomas Bagels and Philadelphia Cream Cheese Camaro feels really good and we’ve got a really good month of racing coming up for us at really good racetracks that we enjoy and run well at so hopefully this will be a boost to our season and and kind of a Kickstart to get us going and just see what happens.” Stenhouse Jr. on his first top-five finish of the season: “It feels really good. I feel like we’ve been better as of lately than where we’ve finished. A lot of things have contributed to some bad finishes, so it feels really good to come out of here with a top-five finish. We did a lot of preparation this week of strategy, and I felt like we played everything perfectly. We saved the most fuel just about all day long. Our No. 47 Boost/Thomas’/Philadelphia Camaro was really good. I wanted to be up there battling for the win, but at this point, a top-five finish is nice.” Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1Finished: 5thHow did your day go here at Talladega Superspeedway? “Not amazing, honestly. Not that we didn’t have a good No. 48 Ally Camaro or good strategy, just kind of didn’t have the openings I needed at times. There was so much riding around saving fuel. And then when we finally all would go run around wide-open, there weren’t really many moves to make, and we were buried and stuck on the bottom. We just never had a hole to get up or do anything.  We ended up with a top-five finish. That’s great – obviously that’s great for the team. It wasn’t our best speedway race, but still a solid top-five.”  Anthony Alfredo, No. 62 Dude Wipes Camaro ZL1Finished: 6th“We had an awesome No. 62 Dude Wipes Chevrolet Camaro today. I’m really proud of Beard Motorsports and everyone on this team. They work really hard to come to a couple races a year, and when they do it, they do it right and they know they have a shot to win. So I take a lot of pride in being the one behind the wheel. I hope I can do a lot more with them.  We had an awesome Chevy today. We drove to the front and led some laps. At the end there, we were just kind of boxed-in. I couldn’t really do a whole lot, especially when that third lane formed. I wanted to join that party earlier, but I was just trapped on the bottom. I pushed as hard as I could. In typical Talladega superspeedway racing fashion, it got a little crazy coming to the line. I just yanked it hard left, flew through the grass and somehow opened my eyes and I crossed the line in sixth.” William Byron, No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1Finished: 7th“Today was just a lot of strategy, so I felt like we were just constantly trying to play the fuel-savings. My No. 24 Liberty University Chevy team did a really good job getting us out front for the stage finishes to give us a shot at the stage wins. In Stage Two, we just botched that a little bit, and in the final stage, we just got caught up by the caution and we didn’t have the track position at the end.  Still happy to come home with a seventh-place finish. We’ll go to Dover (Motor Speedway) and have a really good Chevy there.” Daniel Hemric, No. 31 Cirkul Camaro ZL1Finished: 9th“I’m really proud of how far we’ve come with this No. 31 Cirkul Chevrolet from Daytona, as far as speed goes. It’s hard to make gains there with everyone being so close. We qualified right at about 30th in Daytona, and then we came here and qualified inside the top 20, which is a big deal as we saw today with fuel saving. You have to have a faster racecar that lets you save more fuel. I’m proud of this team and to have had a clean race.” Ross Chastain, No. 1 Jockey Outdoors by Luke Byran Camaro ZL1Finished: 13th“Everything lined up OK there at the end. I wanted to be one more spot further forward – obviously one of those front couple of lanes on the bottom. We all just checked-up there. For me, I only know what happened from my seat, and I over-corrected big in the tri-oval. Hate that – we could have gotten across the line there in the top-five, but we had a shot. We’ll move onto Dover (Motor Speedway).” Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Tootsies Orchid Lounge Camaro ZL1Finished: 27th “Just disappointing. I thought we were in a good position in the end pushing Ross there at the end but I’m not sure what happened and we were spun. We battled through some issues today and we were pretty good in the end. I can’t wait to get to Dover.”

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES ACURA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH STREETS OF LONG BEACH LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA TEAM CHEVY RACE REPORT APRIL 21, 2024 CHEVROLET FINISHES THE ACURA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH WITH FIVE IN THE TOP-11 Josef Newgarden, driver of the No. 2 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet, led Team Chevy at the checkered flag in a tough Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, finishing fourth his 200th career NTT INDYCAR SERIES event and 149th with Chevrolet. The two-time series champion and defending Indianapolis 500 winner led for 19 of the 85-lap race.Will Power, Team Penske teammate to Newgarden and driver of the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet, finished sixth, after showing strength and pace all weekend. He started the race in second position, on the Streets of Long Beach. The former champion and Indianapolis 500 winner took the lead in the first corner and led the race for 15 laps.Rounding out the top-11 and representing Chevrolet, Romain Grosjean, driver of the No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet, finished eight, and Alexander Rossi, driver of the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet finished 10th. Additionally, Théo Pourchaire, driving the No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, finished 11th in his first NTT INDYCAR SERIES race after starting 22nd.Pourchaire, the French rookie who was tapped to drive to fill in for injured David Malukas, had to opportunity to learn and prepare for Long Beach by spending a session in the Chevrolet simulator at the General Motors Tech Center in Charlotte.Josef Newgarden paced the morning warm-up session for Team Chevy, finishing the 30-minute practice third with his fastest lap of 01:07.1814 seconds. TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 RACE RESULTS:4th    Josef Newgarden6th    Will Power8th    Romain Grosjean10th  Alexander Rossi

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING:Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet:“It was just unfortunate to finish back. I was thinking we were going to get a run on (Scott) Dixon there. Just couldn’t quite get him. The Hitachi Chevrolet team did a great job. I can’t be more proud of the work we did. Fast car, great pit stops. They were aces all around. It was a good team effort. Top-five, we’ll have to take that today.” On the incident with Colton Herta…“That seems pretty black and white to me, but I’d ask the question to everybody else. If it were in the reverse, I’d expect to be penalized.” A win and a pole are still pretty good so far. How do you feel on the progress so far this season?“Yes, great. The team did amazing. Just amazing.” Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet:“Obviously very disappointing to DNF with an Odyssey Battery Chevy that was so fast. I got us off on the wrong foot by missing a key corner in qualifying, losing a couple of tenths a second. We were much better than an 11th-place car in qualifying. Then you look at the race and we were on the same strategy as (Scott) Dixon and looked to be in a good spot for a solid day. The gearbox issue that ended our day was just the final straw. Again, disappointing to say the least but we head to Barber next looking for a second win there.” Will Power, No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet:“Rough. We had an incredibly fast Verizon Chevy. Had a choice to take the yellow and take tires and have massive fuel save and go hard, but we made the most of what we had there. We didn’t have any green tires to run in those fuel save stints, so we didn’t have any defense against (Scott) Dixon. Otherwise, it would have been fine to do exactly what he did. Disappointing with how far we started up, but still a top-six. All you can do is maximize each day and move on to the next one.” Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“First, I’m sorry to the Arrow McLaren team. I limited our ability to push for strong results today – at least for two cars. I take full responsibility for a rough race, but it will be a quick turn to Barber where we’ll re-group and look to bounce back.” Théo Pourchaire, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“It was a crazy, crazy race. I enjoyed it. My first INDYCAR weekend is done now. We had a strong performance, so I’m super happy. I have to thank the onsemi Arrow McLaren Chevy team for the car. The car was awesome today. I was the biggest mover of the race, which is amazing from 22nd to 11th. Super happy with that. I have to thank the whole INDYCAR organization. The championship is amazing. The racing is here. Long Beach is a crazy good place, and I hope to be back in the future there. I learned much more in the race, it’s crazy. Every five laps in a row, many pit stops, out laps, in laps, saving fuel, overtaking cars, and I enjoyed it. The performance was great. It’s pure racing in INDYCAR. Physically, it’s tough. I’m quite tired right now, but it was a dream come true to do an INDYCAR race for me, with McLaren. Such a legendary brand and racing team. I’m quite emotional, but it’s amazing. I don’t realize it yet, but I’m super happy.” Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“We had a tough weekend dealing with some unique situations. We made some good steps overnight, into the warm-up and into the race. There will always be a check-up when you start that far back and, unfortunately, Pato (O’Ward) didn’t have anywhere to go. It was just one of those accordion moments. We shifted into recovery mode from there and the team did a good job to hang in and get us into the top 10.” Christian Rasmussen, No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:“Yeah, it was tricky. I feel like we’ve had a good weekend so far. We’ve got up to speed quick in our practices. Not the qualifying we wanted, but the race was unfortunate. Tapped the wall out of (turn) 11. Thought the car was fine. My steering wheel was a little bit off, but I thought it was a bent toe link, but then when I went into (turn) four, I think it just completely snapped and it went around. Not how I wanted to end the day. I’m sorry to the boys, and it’s going to be a quick turnaround to Barber, but we’ll come back stronger.” Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:“That was a tough race. We chose to start on the greens, and I hoped I could pass some guys. Then, I felt like the pace was pretty good on greens. Unfortunately, lost a bit of time on that first pit sequence. Then, couldn’t really hold on all the way throughout that second stint on greens, but still pretty good I’d say. Then, at the end, there were some guys where everybody was on different strategy. Hoped to make up some more ground, but I really struggled on the blacks. It was just pretty hard to drive at that point. Still moved up, but wished I could’ve made it into the top-12 in the No. 21 Chevy. Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet:“The race was what it was. We took a gamble with the pit stops. Everyone can always Monday quarterback, but we kind of figured we either end up in the top-10 or 21st. We ended up 21st. The Sexton Properties Chevrolet is in one piece, and we move on to Barber.” Sting Ray Robb, No. 41 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet:“We have concluded the Long Beach Grand Prix on somewhat of a high note. Really proud of the Sexton Properties Chevrolet team. We had some really good pit stops that were clean. We made up a few spots along the way on strategy and made up some spots in the end based off of that early racing stint and avoiding the attrition. Super proud of the team and super proud of the progress we made through the weekend. We needed a clean day, and today was that clean day. Now we can build momentum heading into Barber. I want to thank the Pray.com crew. We’re here pretty much on the front porch here in California, having them here with their support and cheers. We’re looking forward to the next one.” Romain Grosjean, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:“P16 to P8, it was a great Long Beach Grand Prix for us. Agustin (Canapino) had a great race as well. It was a great race for us as a team. We can be proud of that. We improved a lot from St. Pete, and I’m happy that we were able to show such a strong outing on the track. Can’t wait for next weekend in Barber.”   Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:“Another 15th for us. We are really happy. The execution was really, really good. Unfortunately, the strategy wasn’t the best at the end. We had bad luck, honestly, with the strategy. The execution as perfect. Thanks to the whole team for the excellent pit stops. The pace was incredible. We finished 15th in a really difficult race. Very high level for everybody. Top-15, more points, and we are really happy. Hope for more in the next race.”

Weather main factor in seventh-, eighth-place finishes in wild Six Hours of Imola IMOLA, Italy (April 21, 2024) – TF Sport’s two Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs finished in points-paying positions Sunday with seventh- and eighth-place LMTGT3 finishes in the FIA World Endurance Championship’s Six Hours of Imola. It marked the second race in the FIA WEC for the first-year Corvette GT3 car and first trip to Imola for the Corvette program. In the end, the results were positive: TF Sport was one of two teams in the class to have both its cars finish in the top-10, and Chevrolet was one of two manufacturers to have multiple entries finish eighth or better.

Charlie Eastwood, Tom Van Rompuy and Rui Andrade led the way for TF Sport with a seventh-place finish in the No. 81 Corvette Z06 GT3.R, one spot ahead of the No. 82 Corvette of Daniel Juncadella, Hiro Koizumi and Sebastien Baud. The race featured seven full-course yellow periods – including two in the opening 40 minutes – and two safety car periods. There was chaos at the start with Van Rompuy getting the better of it by gaining four spots in his first two laps. He and Koizumi, who ran as high as ninth after starting 13th, drove nearly two hours at the start to firmly put both Corvettes inside the top-10 and eligible for points. Andrade and Baud were up next, although they had the worst of changing weather conditions just past the halfway point. Both kept their Z06 GT3.Rs on track throughout their stints in the challenging conditions – other teams weren’t as fortunate – before TF Sport elected to be the first LMGT3 team to opt for wet-weather tires. The team made the switch with two hours to go as Eastwood and Juncadella got in their respective Corvettes. Unfortunately the high level of grip in the track meant laptimes didn’t significantly differ between those cars that changed to wet tires and those who stayed on warm slick tires. The two Corvettes switched back to dry tires just outside the final hour but race traffic and a still-wet surface made challenging for the top-five too much to overcome. TF Sport’s next race in the FIA WEC is the Six Hours of Spa on Saturday, May 11.

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 TF SPORT CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It was a very interesting race. Weather played a massive role in it. The TF guys did a great job in making the right calls. The track has such high grip that even when the guys were on slicks, they were still able to generate a lot of grip and temperature when we were on the wets. It balanced out basically the same although I probably had a nicer experience than they did. All in all, P7 in the end. Not what we want but it was a pretty solid race on our side. We know what we need to get closer to the front.”

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 TF SPORT CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It was quite a hectic start of the race. A couple of GTs touched each other but I managed to surf through all the dangers and pick up three positions on the first lap. On the second lap, I think I found another position. We had a really good first and second stint with no issues. I really also tried to pay attention to track limits and tried to save a bit on the car in case we needed to fight later on. So we have a really good feeling.”

RUI ANDRADE, NO. 81 TF SPORT CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:  “It was definitely difficult to the end. As a driver getting out soon, you have to give the team good information. It was so difficult because half the track was completely wet and half the track was completely dry. Those were very stressful last few moments in trying to decide what was the right tire to be on. We decided to go on wets but it was definitely tricky either way.”

DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It was a bit of a wild race for sure. It’s a shame. We were looking very strong in the mixed conditions when the track was very difficult. I made up a lot of ground. We gambled on the strategy with an hour to go because we saw a car in the gravel and I pitted with 57 minutes left, and normally a stint is 45 minutes. So I had to cruise to the end and saved a lot of fuel to make it to the finish. It didn’t pay off this time, but it was good fun out there in these conditions. I enjoyed it and enjoyed driving the Corvette again.”

SEBASTIEN BAUD, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It was a crazy race. Our start with Hiro wasn’t too bad and we ran in the top-10. I felt really good in the first stint and I was happy with the car because I was fast. In my second stint, I was on the same tires with a full tank. It was much more difficult to push and I lost a little more time compared to my first stint. The feeling was very different because the car wasn’t the same driving with a full tank. Toward the end, we had a lot of rain in the last two corners but the first sector was dry. I had a little spin in the safety car queue but did not lose anything. But still it is not a mistake a good driver should make. I will continue to work with my engineer and my teammates to continue improving for the next race.”

No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R advances two positions from qualifying to score first point

IMOLA, Italy (April 21, 2024) – The No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R scored its first Hypercar point of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) season, advancing two positions from its qualifying spot to place 10th in the 6 Hours of Imola. A day after the sister No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R and No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R finished 1-2 in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship sprint race on the streets of Long Beach, California, Alex Lynn and Earl Bamber combined to drive another solid race by managing traffic and tires under difficult track conditions.Rain pelted sectors of the 3-mile (4.9 km), 21-turn Autodromo Internazionale Enzo and Dino Ferrari circuit, with Race Control declaring the course wet with 2 hours, 18 minutes left. Lynn, who qualified seventh in the season-opening race last month at Qatar and was behind the wheel in the 12-minute qualifying at Imola, started the race and endured a damaged rear wing sustained at the green flag and a right-rear tire puncture from debris on his second stint that forced an unplanned pit stop. With 3 hours, 23 minutes left, Lynn handed off to Bamber, who regained positions and was running 12th when the course was declared wet and the Safety Car on track for an incident. After pitting for Michelin wet tires with 2 hours, 4 minutes left, Bamber proceeded to gain three spots with on-track moves over the next 45 minutes. Bamber would run on one set of wet tires for a total of 1 hours, 26 minutes until pitting for energy and used slick tires with 38 minutes remaining as the track dried and battles for position heated up. Toyota spoiled the party for the “home” Hypercar entries by winning in Italy for the second consecutive year. Former Cadillac Racing drivers Mike Conway and Kamui Kobayashi teamed with Nyck de Vries in the No. 7 Toyota GRD10 to win by 7 seconds in the race that covered 205 laps. The facility, which hosted its first race in 1953 and last Intercontinental Le Mans Cup — precursor of the WEC — race in 2011, replaced Monza on the WEC calendar this year as the latter is undergoing scheduled work. Download: Cadillac Racing on-track images for editorial use Cadillac Racing will prepare for its next WEC race – May 10-12 at Spa-Francorchamps, where the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R qualified fourth and finished fifth in 2023. The race weekend is concurrent with the IMSA race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, where Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande will look to make it two wins in a row in the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R and successfully defend their victory from last May at the California road course.

Alex Lynn: “The start of the race first corner was quite busy and we unfortunately got hit from behind that caused some damage. Other than that, the pace seemed really strong. We also got a right-rear puncture, which was a shame. But I think today was by far our best day race-wise, so pleased with how we turned our weekend around a bit. Looking forward to Spa.” Earl Bamber: “We had good pace and to get one point is a start to the championship after Qatar. The car was fantastic on the wet, and we made the most out of it. It’s always a gamble when you switch from wets to slicks when the forecast is uncertain and only sectors of the track are wet, so all the teams were challenged on what strategy to use. Thanks to the crew and everyone for their efforts. On to Spa.”

Fidani, Bell advance nine spots to finish season-best sixth in wild GTD battle LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 20, 2024) – AWA’s Orey Fidani and Matt Bell continued their upward momentum in the new Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R with their best finish of the season – a sixth-place GT Daytona (GTD) finish Saturday in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. The pairing advanced from 15th in class at the start of the third round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship to knocking on the door of a top-five finish in a frantic and fraught 100-minute race around the Long Beach Street Circuit – the team’s first trip to the historic California circuit.

The gain of nine positions put a bow on a strong weekend for the AWA duo with Bell setting the fastest GTD time in Friday’s opening practice – the first for the first-year AWA and Corvette partnership. Fidani began Saturday 15th in class and drove the first 40 minutes for his first career action at Long Beach. He gained a position at the start and two more by the race’s first full-course yellow with just 12 minutes running. Despite falling back a couple of spots, Fidani’s laptimes continued to drop once the race went green again. The Corvette picked up another spot on the restart, and Fidani made AWA’s first pit stop just shy of the 40-minute mark. Bell rejoined in 14th and was immediately in the thick of a fight. He was hit from behind on his out-lap but managed to carry on and advance to 11th only a couple of laps later. Heads-up driving by Bell got the AWA Corvette firmly into the top-10 as the final turn on the Long Beach circuit was blocked by traffic and stalled cars. He came to a stop momentarily but drove through the chaos and into ninth place. Bell picked up three more spots to sixth before the race’s third and final full-course yellow with 15 minutes remaining bunched up the GTD field. The lead pack of six cars were single-file during the final eight minutes with the Corvette on the tail of the top-five. Bell and the Z06 GT3.R made solid gains through the corners and twisty parts of the circuit, which is notoriously difficult to make a pass. Nevertheless, the end result of sixth adds to the momentum heading into the team’s next race. AWA and the Corvette Z06 GT3.R program – including the two GTD PRO entries from Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports – will compete next in the Motul Course de Monterey from WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on Sunday, May 12.

OREY FIDANI, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “The race went really well based from where we started. The car was mega and easy to drive. We got up to sixth, and we’ll take that. I’m really happy with the finish from where we started from.”

MATT BELL, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “I’m really happy with that result. Our first effort at Long Beach as a team and pulling a top-six out of the bag is pretty strong. It was a great effort by the team. We executed the pit stop really well and jumped some cars. Unfortunately on cold tires on the out-lap, I gave a couple of those up. There was some rough racing from competitors but fair in the end, and I managed to get them back later on. The Corvette was absolutely glued to the track. I think we were the best car around the corners. We were lacking just a little bit of straight-line speed to challenge those top-five guys. But I’m really proud of the effort this week. It’s definitely our cleanest and best week in the AWA Corvette era. A big thanks to the team, big thanks to Corvette, General Motors and Pratt Miller. We’ll keep rolling into Laguna Seca.”

Cadillac V-Series.Rs go 1-2 for Cadillac’s sixth win on the circuit since 2017

LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 20, 2024) – Does the expression third time’s a charm applies to motorsports? Cadillac Racing, which came away with runner-up finishes after earning the pole in the two IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship marathon races, capitalized on a third pole start to win the sprint Saturday on the streets of Long Beach. Renger van der Zande and Sebastien Bourdais, driving the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R, held off the sister No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R driven by pole-sitter Pipo Derani and Jack Aitken by 0.564 of a second to secure Cadillac Racing’s sixth victory at Long Beach and 30th overall since joining the IMSA prototype class in 2017.

The victory is the fifth for Bourdais at Long Beach, who teamed with van der Zande to win on the 1.968-mile, 11-turn temporary street circuit in 2022. Every Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) race winner this season has started from the third spot on the grid. The No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R, which registered its second runner-up finish, has qualified on pole in all three races. In addition to the race win, leading 60 of the 68 laps and pole position, Cadillac Racing hybrid racecars paced the GTP field in both practice sessions. “Congratulations to the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R team and drivers Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande for winning the hard-fought race on the streets of Long Beach. It was a strong effort all around with pole sitter Pipo Derani and Jack Aitken in the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R earning their second runner-up finish in three races. A great day for Cadillac Racing at Long Beach,” said Mark Stielow, GM director of motorsports competition. Derani pitted from the lead for the lone time in the 100-minute race with 63 minutes left for energy and left-side tires and gave way to Aitken, who was making his debut on the circuit. Inheriting the lead from Derani, Bourdais brought in the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R a lap later for service and switch to van der Zande. The Chip Ganassi Racing team decided not to change Michelin tires, and van der Zande was able to get the advantage on the out-lap over Aitken. They ran 1-2 the final 48 minutes. “Our tires were pretty old at the end. I was just hanging on at the end,” said van der Zande, who upped his IMSA victory total to 20 and has won at least one win in each of his 11 seasons. “This team is fantastic. Thanks to Chip, the guys, Mike O’Gara, my teammate Seb … this is how to win races, and I’m enjoying it.”

Bourdais and van der Zande, who teamed with six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon to finish second in the 12-hour race last month at Sebring, moved to 58 points out of the GTP points lead. The No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R is third in points. A Cadillac DPi won five consecutive races at Long Beach through 2022 (no event in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic), including podium sweeps in ‘22 and ’21, to extend GM’s victory streak to seven in the event. A Chevrolet Corvette DP won the 2015 and ’16 races. Download: Cadillac Racing on-track photos for editorial use Cadillac Racing will look to successfully defend its victory May 12 in the 2-hour, 40-minute race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca when Bourdais and van der Zande took the victory. Derani and Alexander Sims placed third.No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R

Sebastien Bourdais: “It’s special. It’s win number five here for me at Long Beach. I’m super happy. We’ve had so many hardships and things just not working out. Our last win was Laguna Seca last year, so it’s been almost a year. I’m super happy for Cadillac, for Chip Ganassi Racing and for the boys. They work so hard and it feels like we deserve more than that a lot of the time. Hopefully this is the start of a new cycle for us. We had an excellent car, so I was a little frustrated that we were not able to get a better lap in during qualifying, but the strategy was perfect during our pit stop. The team did a great job to get us out front and Renger did the rest by holding the 31 off and bringing the car home to victory lane. It sure felt good to get this win for everyone in the shop and everyone from GM.”

Renger van der Zande: “We are very happy right now with the biggest trophy we could get — the first-place trophy. Chip Ganassi racing did a fantastic job again. Leading the race from the halfway point and making the right strategy call. We used only one set of tires and that was key to win this race. Our car has been fast all year so I am thrilled that we were finally able to bring home the win. The team deserves that. Our tires were pretty old at the end. Chip (Ganassi) asked me how were those tires, and I told him not so good. I was just hanging on at the end. This team is a fantastic team. Thanks to Chip, the guys, Mike O’Gara, my teammate Seb… this is how to win races, and I’m enjoying it.”

No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R

Pipo Derani: “If you look overall, this championship comes down to a little at the end. To be our second time on the podium, three pole positions so far… you try to accumulate as much points as you can and carry it all the way to the end. Obviously we would have liked to win, especially starting at the front here. It’s just one of those things here at Long Beach. If the guy behind does the complete opposite to you, he might come out ahead and that’s what happened today. We’re happy that it’s a Cadillac 1-2. We wish it was the other way around but we did the best we could. We’ll take the points and keep pushing forward.”

Jack Aitken: “It was a really tough one because once they have track position on the circuit, like any street circuit, it’s extremely difficult to pass without taking a huge amount of risk. I think the couple of yellows we did have during the second half of the race just helped Renger (van der Zande) take care of those tires and they lasted surprisingly well. Better than I think anybody expected from the start this weekend coming here with the soft. I think we had a great car all weekend. I think we’ve been really, really strong on pace since the start of the season, and it’s a bit frustrating to miss out on a win up to this point. But we had really good points, but at least if we’re going to get beat, at least it’s the other Cadillac. I enjoyed my fight.”

Cadillac V-Series.Rs go 1-2 for Cadillac’s sixth win on the circuit since 2017

LONG BEACH, Calif. (April 20, 2024) – Does the expression third time’s a charm applies to motorsports? Cadillac Racing, which came away with runner-up finishes after earning the pole in the two IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship marathon races, capitalized on a third pole start to win the sprint Saturday on the streets of Long Beach. Renger van der Zande and Sebastien Bourdais, driving the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R, held off the sister No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R driven by pole-sitter Pipo Derani and Jack Aitken by 0.564 of a second to secure Cadillac Racing’s sixth victory at Long Beach and 30th overall since joining the IMSA prototype class in 2017.

The victory is the fifth for Bourdais at Long Beach, who teamed with van der Zande to win on the 1.968-mile, 11-turn temporary street circuit in 2022. Every Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) race winner this season has started from the third spot on the grid. The No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R, which registered its second runner-up finish, has qualified on pole in all three races. In addition to the race win, leading 60 of the 68 laps and pole position, Cadillac Racing hybrid racecars paced the GTP field in both practice sessions. “Congratulations to the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R team and drivers Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande for winning the hard-fought race on the streets of Long Beach. It was a strong effort all around with pole sitter Pipo Derani and Jack Aitken in the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R earning their second runner-up finish in three races. A great day for Cadillac Racing at Long Beach,” said Mark Stielow, GM director of motorsports competition. Derani pitted from the lead for the lone time in the 100-minute race with 63 minutes left for energy and left-side tires and gave way to Aitken, who was making his debut on the circuit. Inheriting the lead from Derani, Bourdais brought in the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R a lap later for service and switch to van der Zande. The Chip Ganassi Racing team decided not to change Michelin tires, and van der Zande was able to get the advantage on the out-lap over Aitken. They ran 1-2 the final 48 minutes. “Our tires were pretty old at the end. I was just hanging on at the end,” said van der Zande, who upped his IMSA victory total to 20 and has won at least one win in each of his 11 seasons. “This team is fantastic. Thanks to Chip, the guys, Mike O’Gara, my teammate Seb … this is how to win races, and I’m enjoying it.”

Bourdais and van der Zande, who teamed with six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon to finish second in the 12-hour race last month at Sebring, moved to 58 points out of the GTP points lead. The No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R is third in points. A Cadillac DPi won five consecutive races at Long Beach through 2022 (no event in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic), including podium sweeps in ‘22 and ’21, to extend GM’s victory streak to seven in the event. A Chevrolet Corvette DP won the 2015 and ’16 races. Download: Cadillac Racing on-track photos for editorial use Cadillac Racing will look to successfully defend its victory May 12 in the 2-hour, 40-minute race at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca when Bourdais and van der Zande took the victory. Derani and Alexander Sims placed third.No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R

Sebastien Bourdais: “It’s special. It’s win number five here for me at Long Beach. I’m super happy. We’ve had so many hardships and things just not working out. Our last win was Laguna Seca last year, so it’s been almost a year. I’m super happy for Cadillac, for Chip Ganassi Racing and for the boys. They work so hard and it feels like we deserve more than that a lot of the time. Hopefully this is the start of a new cycle for us. We had an excellent car, so I was a little frustrated that we were not able to get a better lap in during qualifying, but the strategy was perfect during our pit stop. The team did a great job to get us out front and Renger did the rest by holding the 31 off and bringing the car home to victory lane. It sure felt good to get this win for everyone in the shop and everyone from GM.”

Renger van der Zande: “We are very happy right now with the biggest trophy we could get — the first-place trophy. Chip Ganassi racing did a fantastic job again. Leading the race from the halfway point and making the right strategy call. We used only one set of tires and that was key to win this race. Our car has been fast all year so I am thrilled that we were finally able to bring home the win. The team deserves that. Our tires were pretty old at the end. Chip (Ganassi) asked me how were those tires, and I told him not so good. I was just hanging on at the end. This team is a fantastic team. Thanks to Chip, the guys, Mike O’Gara, my teammate Seb… this is how to win races, and I’m enjoying it.”

No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R

Pipo Derani: “If you look overall, this championship comes down to a little at the end. To be our second time on the podium, three pole positions so far… you try to accumulate as much points as you can and carry it all the way to the end. Obviously we would have liked to win, especially starting at the front here. It’s just one of those things here at Long Beach. If the guy behind does the complete opposite to you, he might come out ahead and that’s what happened today. We’re happy that it’s a Cadillac 1-2. We wish it was the other way around but we did the best we could. We’ll take the points and keep pushing forward.”

Jack Aitken: “It was a really tough one because once they have track position on the circuit, like any street circuit, it’s extremely difficult to pass without taking a huge amount of risk. I think the couple of yellows we did have during the second half of the race just helped Renger (van der Zande) take care of those tires and they lasted surprisingly well. Better than I think anybody expected from the start this weekend coming here with the soft. I think we had a great car all weekend. I think we’ve been really, really strong on pace since the start of the season, and it’s a bit frustrating to miss out on a win up to this point. But we had really good points, but at least if we’re going to get beat, at least it’s the other Cadillac. I enjoyed my fight.”

April 20, 2024 — LONG BEACH, CA

• Felix Rosenqvist tops Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach qualifying for Honda, Meyer Shank Racing
• Sixth pole for Rosenqvist, first NTT INDYCAR SERIES pole for Meyer Shank Racing
• Honda drivers claim eight of the top-10 qualifying positions

Felix Rosenqvist returned to Honda power in the off-season, joining Meyer Shank Racing for the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES, and has continued his impressive start to the 2024 season, scoring pole position for Sunday’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

The pole for Rosenqvist comes on the heels of a third-place result in the non-championship Thermal Million Dollar Challenge event last month, and seventh in the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

Colton Herta, race winner here in 2021, will start fourth in his Andretti Global Honda; with teammate Marcus Ericsson qualifying fifth, and defending series champion Alex Palou starting sixth for Chip Ganassi Racing. In all, Honda drivers and teams claimed eight of the top-10 starting positions for tomorrow’s 49th running of the iconic street race.

Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach Honda Qualifying Results

1st Felix Rosenqvist	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
4th Colton Herta	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
5th Marcus Ericsson	Andretti Global Honda
6th Alex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
7th Christian Lundgaard	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
8th Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
9th Marcus Armstrong	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
10th Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Global Honda
12th Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
15th Tom Blomqvist-R	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
17th Linus Lundqvist-R	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
19th Pietro Fittipaldi	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
23rd Jack Harvey	Dale Coyne Racing Honda
26th Kyffin Simpson-R	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
27th Nolan Siegel-R	Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes
Felix Rosenqvist (#60 Meyer Shank Racing Honda) pole qualifier, his first NTT INDYCAR SERIES pole of 2024 and sixth career pole: “It was hard, man. Honestly, I didn’t think I had it as I did a massive ‘tank slapper’ coming out of Turn 5, but it worked out. What was the margin, four one-thousandths of a second? That’s INDYCAR man. Awesome power by Honda today and the whole Meyer Shank Racing team did a phenomenal job. Now let’s see what happens tomorrow.”
 
Colton Herta (#26 Andretti Global Honda) will start fourth: “Happy to be starting in the first two rows with Honda power, there’s a lot still in the car that we can build on for the race tomorrow.”

Marcus Ericsson (#28 Andretti Global Honda) qualified fifth: “That’s another Fast Six [final qualifying round] for us. The car felt good, good power today, and good driveability. We can definitely win from P5, so I’m excited for the race tomorrow. I can’t wait to go racing!”

Fast Facts

• This weekend’s return of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES to Southern California marks the fifth year of Acura title sponsorship of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, and the 49th running of North America’s oldest and most successful street circuit event.
• The racing arm of American Honda, Honda Performance Development, was renamed Honda Racing Corporation USA (HRC US) in January to reflect the new role of the company in Honda’s global racing efforts. With this change, HRC US will take on an increased role in Honda’s global motorsports activities.
• Honda-powered drivers and teams have won the Grand Prix of Long Beach 16 times in 23 appearances. This includes victories in nine of the last 14 races; and a seven-year victory streak in Championship Auto Racing Teams competition, against multi-manufacturer competition, from 1996-2002.
• Honda’s most recent Long Beach success was scored last year in a dominating performance from Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood, who recorded his career-first INDYCAR victory from the pole, leading 53 of the 85-lap contest.
• In addition to the featured Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach NTT INDYCAR SERIES race on Sunday, Acura teams will take part in today’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race. Wayne Taylor Racing will field a pair of electrified Acura ARX-06 prototypes contesting the overall victory in the premier GTP division; while Gradient Racing will field Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 in the GTD category.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES ACURA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH STREETS OF LONG BEACH LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING REPORT APRIL 20, 2024 WILL POWER AND TEAM PENSKE WILL START FROM THE FRONT ROW WITH CHEVROLET FOR SUNDAY’S ACURA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH Will Power, driver of the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, will start on the front row in second for Sunday’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.Just 0.0039 seconds separated the pole winner from Power in second, in what is the tightest front row on a street course in NTT INDYCAR SERIES history, dating back to 2008.Power, along with Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden represented Chevrolet in the Firestone Fast-Six Saturday.Scott McLaughlin (fourth) and Newgarden (sixth) finished in the top-six of Group 2, transferring to the fast twelve.Power finished fourth in Group 1, transferring to the fast twelve and representing Team Chevy.McLaughlin paced for Team Chevy during second practice with his fastest lap of 1:06.7359 in fifth.Chevrolet completed second practice Saturday morning with five drivers in the top-10, including McLaughlin, Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Romain Grosjean (seventh), Power (eighth), Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Agustin Canapino (ninth), and Arrow McLaren’s Alexander Rossi (10th).Sunday’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach will mark Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden 200th NTT INDYCAR SERIES event, with 149 of those coming behind the wheel of a Chevrolet.Sunday sees Team Chevy take to the track for warm-up at noon ET on Peacock. The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach takes the green flag at 3 p.m. ET for the 85-lap, 167.28-mile event on USA Network. TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 QUALIFYING RESULTS:2nd    Will Power3rd     Josef Newgarden

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING:Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet:“The Hitachi Chevy was exactly where I needed it to be. It absolutely had pole-winning potential. I just did not nail the lap completely. Still, a great effort by Chevy and everyone on this No. 2 team. Felix (Rosenqvist), Will (Power) and I were so close in time; almost historically close. We can definitely make something happen in the race from the third position.” Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet:“As the race approaches, I’m focused on finding the right strategy to stay at the front. I’ll be sending the Odyssey Battery Chevrolet toward the front on the first lap and making sure we have good stops and in-and-out laps, make the right strategic moves at the right times. While luck and good fortune play a role, if we keep heads down and keep working to hopefully find themselves at the front of the race on Sunday. I’m optimistic about our chances for success.” Will Power, No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet:“I’ll take a top-six. Just getting back into the Fast Six again is a big deal for me. Working hard on my qualifying, been quick all year in practice, so super stoked to transfer. Obviously, it’s a bit when you miss out by that much, but Felix (Rosenqvist) must have done a phenomenal lap. I couldn’t pick anywhere where I made a mistake. It was about as good as I could do, so it’s cool to get the Verizon car on the front row again. It’s been a long time. We can certainly win from there. You’ve just got to be smart. You can never predict what’s going to happen. We’ll try and get a good start. We’ll try and stay in second and go from there.” Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“I wasn’t unhappy with it, to be honest. We’re just slow or not fast enough. No real explanation for that. I thought it was going to be fine, at least, to transfer, but I think we went the wrong way in P2 and went back to what we had yesterday, and I just think we missed the window a little bit. I wasn’t unhappy with the car at all, just not fast enough. The race is a different monster, so you try and get it as good as possible for what this race trends to be, which is usually fuel-save, sitting behind the leader kind of thing, unless it starts getting messy with yellows. We just need to focus on that tomorrow and make our way forward with pit stops and all that stuff. It’s a good thing we’ve got a fresh set of greens to use in the race tomorrow, I’d say. I’d be surprised if it’s a black (tires) race. If our race car is good, I can (win). We just need to make sure we get it at that position, and we get it in that window where I can really take advantage of the tools that I’ve got. For now, we just have to really dive in to see what, where we missed it, because it’s not a tenth, it’s three-tenths. It’s quite a chunk here.” Théo Pourchaire, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“Of course, I’m disappointed because I’m a driver and I always want to do the best job possible. It was my first ever INDYCAR qualifying session. It was really fun. I pushed the limits. That’s not as bad as I thought. Not so far from Pato (O’Ward), and he’s a really good driver. I have to look at the data to understand where I can find some time on him, but overall, of course, it’s the first INDYCAR qualifying. That’s fine. We’ll work hard. We will improve. Tomorrow is the race, so it’s a completely new thing for me.” What goals do you have now?“Starting so far back like this, I will just try to complete the race, learn as much as possible on the strategy, on the tire degradation, on the fuel saving. It will be new for me. Hopefully we can grab some positions. I will try to do my best and I think finishing in the top-15 or close to the top-10, that can be a good goal. Let’s focus on the race now. I will work a little bit on the data to see where I can improve, but overall, that was fun and I enjoyed it.”   Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:“We’ve had some moments where it was okay but struggling for grip. Not much we could do. It’s not there yet. We’ve been fighting the same problems since we rolled off, and we’ve had glimpses of it being better. It’s not just quite within the window that we need. We need to keep at it and see what we can do to make it better.” Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet:“Tough day for everybody on the No. 14 crew. Just fighting some gremlins inside the car, and in this series, it’s tight. It’s hard to lose practice and then qualify competitively with how tight the field is. Overall, some valuable things were learned to move into warm up and then the race tomorrow. Without a doubt, we should be able to advance without any issues.” Christian Rasmussen, No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:“Our balance on the black Firestone Firehawks was pretty good. When we switched to the green Firehawks, I couldn’t feel the car underneath me as well. It is unfortunate, we have had a strong weekend so far. We will focus on the positives and see what we can do about getting a little bit better on the greens. We’ll do our best to move forward during the race!” Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:“I think everyone hoped to be up there a bit further! We were pretty good on the black Firestone Firehawks, but we expected a bit more from the green tires. We have made good decisions so far and have a good plan for the race tomorrow. I look forward to passing some guys!” Romain Grosjean, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:“I think qualifying didn’t really go the way we wanted. I think we had a little bit more pace than where we show on track. It was probably a little bit conservative in the first part of qualifying, and we finished eighth. It was tight, and we didn’t think it would be that tight. We made some set up changes that were not the right ones, but I still think we should have been through. A bit more work to do for the race.”   Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:“We were in the worst group because I am only three tenths off on my fastest lap. I made a mistake on the last lap and I lost my fastest lap, but I only lost one position because the next lap was similar. I am three or four tenths off of the leaders. Not bad at all. I think our group is really competitive. We have good cars as we were ninth and 10th in practice. Not as good of a result in qualifying, but I think we have a chance to get good points tomorrow. Both Romain (Grosjean) and I have good cars, but in this INDYCAR it is so competitive.

WILL POWER, DRIVER OF THE NO. 12 VERIZON TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET – Qualifying Press Conference Transcript:THE MODERATOR: Wrapping up qualifying, we are joined by Will Power (indiscernible). WILL POWER: That’s been the story of the last two years. One of the data engineers said if we added up all the time you missed getting in the Fast Six, it would be 2/10ths. At St. Pete I missed the Fast Six by 21 thousandths. What was this one? THE MODERATOR: 39 10 thousandths. WILL POWER: One day I’m not going to be that far. We had a bunch of poles by 21 thousandths of a second. It ebbs and flows. That’s my experience over time. THE MODERATOR: Is there a section of the track… WILL POWER: There was not much left on the table. Like really, I know, every sector… The only thing I could say is a bit into 10 and the hairpin. You’re in the going to see a chunk anywhere. It’s going to be hundredths. That just shows how good of a lap Felix did, how tight it is in this series. THE MODERATOR: We’ll open it up for questions. Q. How long did it take for you to nail turn eight after what you went through this morning?WILL POWER: Pretty much my best on my last lap. Slowly got better and better and better and better. The last lap was the best. Q. Was the car completely back to normal after the repairs?WILL POWER: Yeah. All I was doing was damaging the toe link. I was so sideways, it bent the toe link. Done it three times. Just lights up out of there. It’s been (indiscernible). It’s much nicer. Used to have a big hump there. Now it’s really nice and smooth. A really cool corner. Yeah, not what the boys wanted to do. I felt bad, but yeah. Q. Obviously turn eight, the change to it, has made it a little bit different. How do you anticipate that affecting things tomorrow?WILL POWER: Yeah, it’s made it nicer. It just made it so you can get on the throttle earlier, so you have more power when you’re getting out near the wall. Yeah, I keep testing it. You should lift a little. You’ll crash otherwise. Q. We have seen continual opposite lock seemingly corner by corner practice and qualifying. You describe why we are getting so much of that. Is it tire, track, both?WILL POWER: I actually think it’s the right rear we have now. You can actually get away with being a little sideways and not lose time. It’s a more nimble car. You can hustle it more simply. Q. Will, you come in here clearly having more fun. How much is that a translation into your speed or are you having more fun because you’re faster?WILL POWER: I’m having more fun because I’m going faster, honestly. I’ve been quick all year, even in testing. Everywhere I have been quick. St. Pete qualifying I didn’t put it together. Went the wrong way on the setup. I have been quick. Super stoked to be in the top six. I’ve worked pretty hard in the off-season. I’ve continually worked hard my whole career. I’m still working extremely hard on all my driving details, constantly improving and evolving. It’s never ending for me. Enjoying it. Enjoying it. I love the competition. It’s tough extracting the most out of yourself. Yeah, you get to compete with different eras of guys. The young group will be around for another 20 year. Competing with the middle group, which is sort of Newgarden, Rossi. You have Dixon and myself. Q. (No microphone.)WILL POWER: I’m friends with all of them. I like ’em all. You do get pissed off with them at times. You just know that’s how it goes. It’s just tough competition. There isn’t a guy I dislike in the paddock. I feel privileged to race at this level with these guys. I feel like recently there’s a lot of respect on track. There’s a lot of respect for racing. Yeah, man, it’s a great situation to be in. You get paid to drive. Great community in INDYCAR. Very nice over here. Q. Seemed like in a sense you must feel fortunate to get into the Fast Six because there’s so much stacking up in the early sessions. Were there close calls for you? Did you feel like you were fortunate to get in because of the stacking up and traffic?WILL POWER: There wasn’t any in qualifying. You get a penalty if you do that. Yeah, in practice it’s always like that here. You just can’t get frustrated. It’s just going to be that way. I was in the pits most of the time (smiling). I didn’t have to deal with it. Kind of helped, I think. Q. You talked about the new changes to turn eight. Do you see that as a better opportunity to get a run and move going into nine?WILL POWER: Yeah, it’s hard to say. Will people make mistakes because it has a bit of a weird, like, grip transition? Maybe, yeah. It’s a very open entry. It can do like O’Ward does and just jam it in there, man, jam it in there. You’re going to have to deal with someone after. Yeah, it’s become a riskier corner to make a pass, to be honest. Used to have a curb there, so you had to slow it up and turn later. It’s a brave corner, I would say. That wasn’t your question, but I’m just putting that in there. Q. You talked about the difference in the weight of the car at the moment, waiting for the hybrid. Are we going to see some of that translate into the differences of the car for the 500 this year in terms of weight distribution?WILL POWER: The car we could say will be a long time at the 500 because they’re a bit lighter. Q. (No microphone.)WILL POWER: I think my pole will be like 236.5 will be my quickest lap. Averaging in the 35s. Yeah, that’s quick. Q. Will, what improvements do you feel you have made as a team and yourself in qualifying this year?WILL POWER: Yeah, it’s a couple of things. I think the engine’s better. I think Chevy did some really good work in the off-season. As a team, we’ve worked hard on street course setups and road course. Overall actually we were kind of disappointed with the season, even though the team won the 500. Yeah, we’re just stronger overall. I’ve personally worked hard. I’m sure the other two boys, they’re working hard as well. I think it’s all clicking well.