Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 Teams Head to Edmonton


Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 Teams Head to Edmonton
 
DETROIT – July 17, 2012 –With two-thirds of the IZOD IndyCar Series season in the books, the Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 teams return to Canada for the second consecutive event to compete in the Edmonton Indy.
 
The Edmonton City Centre Airport 13-turn, 2.224-mile temporary street circuit is the site of the 11th race on the 15-race 2012 schedule. The flat course has long straightaways with tight corners, and sits at an altitude of almost 2,200 feet above sea level.  The 2012 Edmonton Indy will be the eighth IndyCar race at Edmonton City Centre Airport. The race was held on a 1.973-mile temporary circuit from 2005-2010 and moved to a new 2.224-mile temporary circuit in 2011.
 
“Congratulations to Ryan Hunter-Reay and his Andretti Autosport team on winning their third consecutive race in Toronto,” said Chris Berube, Chevrolet Racing Program Manager for the IZOD IndyCar Series. “This weekend, Chevy returns to Canada to race on the Edmonton City Centre Airport temporary course.  Like all temporary courses, Edmonton will present a unique set of challenges. The Chevrolet team engineers, working in conjunction with our technical partners, have been working on adapting to the altitude the cars will be operating in, which is nearly as high as Sao Paulo, Brazil.  The altitude, coupled with the recently added push-to-pass feature, will increase the workload on the Chevrolet twin turbo V6 engine.
 
“With five races remaining on the schedule, we are approaching them one-race-at-a-time. But, at the same time, we remain focused on the ultimate goals: Chevrolet winning the IZOD IndyCar Series Manufacturers’ Championship, and a Team Chevy driver hoisting the Driver’s Championship trophy at the last race.”
 
Currently four Chevrolet IndyCar V-6 drivers occupy spots in the top-five in the driver standings.  With his Toronto victory, Ryan Hunter-Reay moved to the points lead followed by Will Power and Helio Castroneves.  James Hinchcliffe holds down fifth place in the points. Chevrolet holds the lead in the Manufacturers’ Championship standings by 13 points over second place.
 
Team Chevy driver Will Power is the defending champion of the Edmonton Indy.  Last year’s victory was his second win at Edmonton; his first coming in 2009. Sebastien Bourdais also has two wins at Edmonton, 2005 and 2007.  JR Hildebrand and James Hinchcliffe have both notched Edmonton wins in the Firestone Indy Lights Series.
 
Chevrolet competed previously in Indy-style competition as an engine manufacturer in 1986-93 and 2002-05 with V-8 engines, winning 105 races, that powered Chevrolet to six driver champions, and included seven Indianapolis 500 victories.