Corvette Z06 GT3.R, TF Sport set for their first race at Sao Paulo DETROIT (July 8, 2024) – In a season full of firsts for the Corvette Racing program, this weekend in the FIA World Endurance Championship presents another new opportunity with the running of the Six Hours of Sao Paulo from Brazil’s Interlagos circuit.

TF Sport and its pair of Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs are set for their first race in South America as the WEC leaves the European continent after three consecutive rounds.  The six-driver lineup continues on as it has for the previous four FIA WEC rounds – Tom Van Rompuy, Rui Andrade and Corvette factory driver Charlie Eastwood in the No. 81 Z06 GT3.R while Hiroshi Koizumi, Sebastien Baud and factory driver Daniel Juncadella are in the No. 82 Corvette. Both TF Sport entries are coming off solid runs at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where both Corvettes completed the full 24 hours.  The results marked a key achievement in the first year of the Z06 GT3.R, which has shown increased reliability since the first races of 2024 at Daytona and Qatar.

CORVETTE RACING MEDIA INFORMATION Corvette Racing media information is updated and available ahead of the Six Hours of Sao Paulo – the fifth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship.  Materials include Corvette Racing event advance and quotes, Corvette Racing stats and figures, Corvette Z06 GT3.R racecar comparisons, Corvette Racing Fast Facts, factory driver biographies and Corvette Racing photography, among other items.

The 15-turn, 2.677-mile Interlagos track will be the 38th different circuit on which a Corvette Racing entry will compete in its 25-year run. In addition to being a new track to the Corvette Racing program, Interlagos is the shortest track on the WEC schedule. The layout features a number of mid- and high-speed corners, which should ideally suit the characteristics of the first-year Z06 GT3.R. This won’t be the first time a Corvette competes at Interlagos in WEC competition. Larbre Competition campaigned independent Corvette C6.Rs in 2012 and 2013 with a runner-up GTE Am finish in the former. The Six Hours of Sao Paulo is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, July 14. MotorTrend TV will air live television coverage with streaming coverage on the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S. – all beginning at 10 a.m. ET.. Radio Le Mans also will stream audio coverage of Saturday’s final practice and qualifying, plus Sunday’s race.

TF SPORT PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTESDANIEL JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “Sao Paulo is a really cool event. It’s a place WEC hasn’t been in some time. Going back to Brazil for racing is always cool. I raced there in 2008 in Formula BMW where I have some good memories. I have not so great memories from the last time I was in Sao Paulo! I was in Formula One where I went off and crashed in the Force India car. Nevertheless it’s a cool place. I like the track a lot. It has a really good mix of fast corners and tight sections, and I think many of those sections should suit our Corvette. So I’m excited for this. WEC has been a cool season so far even though we haven’t achieved yet the results we were hoping for at the start. It’s another event where we can turn things around and have some fun. Hopefully we’ll have a fast and clean car for the race and then go fight at the end.”

SEBASTIEN BAUD, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “I can’t wait to go to Brazil for the next WEC round. With TF Sport and Corvette Racing, we continue to gain momentum and a better understanding of this magnificent Corvette GT3 car! My teammates and I are motivated to achieve a great result there on such a legendary circuit like Interlagos. It will be a totally new track and event for me, so for sure there is a lot to discover. So I will have to be even more vigilant and attentive to be able to perform to the best of my abilities for the team. I’m ready for it.”

2024 FIA World Endurance Championship PointsLMGT3 Drivers Standings1. Morris Schuring/Richard Lietz/Yasser Shahin – 752. Aliaksandr Malykhin/Joel Sturm/Klaus Bachler – 753. Augusto Farfus/Darren Leung/Sean Gelael – 734. Erwan Bastard/Marco Sorensen – 425. Michelle Gatting/Sarah Bovy – 4118. Daniel Juncadella/Hiroshi Koizumi/Sebastien Baud – 1023. Charlie Eastwood/Rui Andrade/Tom Van Rompuy – 7 LMGT3 Teams Standings1. No. 91 Manthey EMA – 752. No. 92 Manthey PureRxcing – 753. No. 31 Team WRT – 734. No. 777 D’Station Racing – 425. No. 85 Iron Dames – 4114. No. 82 TF Sport – 1017. No. 81 TF Sport – 7

 

by Colby Trotter

HAUBSTADT, IN (July 7, 2024) – Back like he never left, Tyler Erb has returned to Victory Lane with the DIRTcar Summer Nationals. 

Making his first Hell Tour start since winning at Red Hill Raceway on June 30, Erb made his return in the Week 4 finale Sunday night at Tri-State Speedway, leading all 30 laps of the Feature for his eighth Summer Nationals win of the season. 

After competing with the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series this past weekend as part of the Gopher 50 at Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, MN, Erb decided to make the nine-hour drive to Haubstadt, IN, for a dramatic return to the Hell Tour. The driver from New Waverly, TX, said after the race, he’d not slept for over 30 hours but still wanted to come run with the Summer Nationals despite his lack of sleep. 

“I’ve done this race before and I always thought this place was really cool and I’ve never had the opportunity to come back,” Erb said of why he made the long trip. “If I would’ve sat there all day and watched this race I kind of would’ve been disappointed in myself because it’s just a little of mind over matter. I’ve done dumber things, so this didn’t seem like the dumbest idea I’ve ever had.” 

In his return, Erb started from fourth on the grid and at the drop of the green flag, he was side-by-side with polesitter Rusty Schlenk going into Turns 1 and 2. Down the backstretch Schlenk, Erb and Tanner English were three-wide and coming out of Turn 4 all three were side-by-side again with Erb crossing the start/finish line first to take the lead. 

“At the drop of the green they spun the tires and I drove in between them,” Erb said. “Then Rusty bummed the cushion, and it was still kind of crumby and greasy so I turned and left pretty good and then in (Turns) 1 and 2 kind of same thing, I just bummed in there with [Schlenk] and when he came out of sight I just started easing up and felt him on my quarter panel and drove off.” 

Once he got by Schlenk, Erb began to set the pace around the 1/4-mile oval and was over a second ahead of second-place English with 10 laps-to-go. On Lap 23, Erb started to hit lapped traffic, allowing English to get closer on the high side, but he never got close enough to challenge Erb as he drove the Best Performance Motorsports No. 1 away and finished over a half-second ahead of English. 

“I knew at some point the top would be good,” Erb said. “The way the shape of the track is, you can kind of see who’s behind you, so in traffic I moved up and I feel like I could’ve drove a lot harder and I just didn’t feel the need to. 

“Tanner is a good racer. If he would’ve showed me a nose we would’ve raced hard, and I don’t know what would’ve happened but it didn’t get to that and it was a good night.” 

Along with his runner-up finish, English took home the Week 4 points title after winning twice and finishing in the top-five four times during the week. Before the week began, it had been two years since English had won a Hell Tour race, and this week, he proved he can still win at the highest level. 

“We’ve definitely been struggling and we turned it around,” English said. “Really last week was when we turned it around but this week, we really capitalized on it. We had some really good competition and I think we’ve all stepped our game up and everybody is getting better.” 

UP NEXT 

The fifth and final week of competition in the 39th DIRTcar Summer Nationals begins Tuesday, July 9, with a visit to Shadyhill Speedway in Medaryville, IN, racing alongside the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals. 

Tickets for all five events in Week 5 will be on sale at each track on race day. If you can’t make it to the track to watch in person, stream every lap live on DIRTVision. 

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view results here) 

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 1-Tyler Erb[4]; 2. 96-Tanner English[3]; 3. 27M-Rodney Melvin[13]; 4. 8-Dillon McCowan[15]; 5. 91-Rusty Schlenk[1]; 6. 50-Ryan Missler[2]; 7. 42-Chad Finley[9]; 8. 75-Daniel Adam[10]; 9. 99-Dylan Thompson[5]; 10. 28B-Carson Brown[16]; 11. 51-Devin Shiels[12]; 12. 10J-Jordan Bauer[17]; 13. 15-Clayton Stuckey[8]; 14. S21-Seth Daniels[6]; 15. 8A-Rob Anderzack[14]; 16. 71R-Rod Conley[21]; 17. 49-Billy Green[11]; 18. 2-Charlie Cole[24]; 19. 33AJ-Austin Lay[23]; 20. 16-Rusty Griffaw[20]; 21. 38-Thomas Hunziker[22]; 22. 30-Mark Voigt[19]; 23. 1M-Connor Meade[18]; 24. 33-Kye Blight[7] 

Trent Young Outduels Lucas Lee in Closing Laps to Win Summit Modifieds at Tri-State 

With two laps-to-go, Trent Young said, “I knew I had to go for it.” 

Coming out Turn 4 on Lap 24, Young ripped the high side around Turns 3 and 4 behind race-leader Lucas Lee and Austin Wayne-Self and decided to put his car between both. As Young was splitting the two cars, Self slid up the track and made contact with the rear of Young’s car and spun on the frontstretch. Before the yellow flag was thrown, Young had nosed ahead of Lee at the start/finish line to take the lead for the upcoming restart. 

Now, all Young had to do was survive a green-white-checkered finish. He did just that, getting a great jump on the restart and taking the checkered flag for his second DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals win in three days. 

“I had the car to do it, I just hadn’t got the opportunity,” Young, of Crofton, KY, said. “I got stuck on the bottom every restart and just had to fall in line and the last one just worked out. Lucas knew the other car was pressuring him, so he wasn’t looking for me on the top, he was looking for him and I just used that to my advantage.” 

For most of the race, Young stayed patient around the high side of the 1/4-mile oval, swapping between fourth and fifth place until on a Lap 21 restart, he made his way to third with his sights set on Self and Lee. 

The next circuit around, Self tried a slider on Lee, but Lee crossed it over coming out of Turn 2 and down the backstretch. The intense battle Lee and Self were having allowed Young to get closer as he got to the tail of Self out of Turn 4. 

Once Young got close enough, he tried a slider on Self out of Turn 2, but Self crossed it over. Then coming out of Turn 4, Young got even with Self and took the runner-up spot from him at the start/finish line. 

After taking the second spot on Lap 24, Young jumped the cushion in Turn 1, allowing Self to get ahead of him on the bottom. Going down the backstretch, Young gained momentum on the outside before he made the winning move coming out of Turn 4. 

“I just kept trying to bide my time,” Young said. “I knew I was pretty fast and they was getting really wild in the top three or four so I kind of just wanted to ride and see how it played out. I got stuck on the bottom on every restart and just had to fall in line.” 

UP NEXT 

The final week of the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals starts Tuesday, July 9 at Shadyhill Speedway in Medaryville, IN, racing alongside the DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Models. 

Tickets will be on sale at the gate and if you can’t watch it in person, catch all the action on DIRTVision. 

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view results here) 

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 10Y-Trent Young[3]; 2. 12L-Lucas Lee[1]; 3. 95K-Levi Kissinger[5]; 4. 16C-John Clippinger[22]; 5. 50-Tyler Weiss[6]; 6. 55-Justin Jones[8]; 7. 67-Chris Moore[13]; 8. 35S-Zach Fair[9]; 9. 94-Austin Rettig[15]; 10. 54-Zachary Hawk[18]; 11. 69L-Josh Lemke[10]; 12. 1L-Mike Lentz[14]; 13. 91K-Cody Kibby[17]; 14. 3F-Rob Fuqua[19]; 15. 11-Brian Ashby[12]; 16. 23Z-Austin Wayne Self[7]; 17. 24-Jarod Deckard[21]; 18. 787-Cody Zobrist[16]; 19. 81C-Christopher Cole[4]; 20. 3G-Bryce Graber[20]; 21. 7-Mark Lamont[2]; 22. 14-Dalton Lane[11] 

JULY 7, 2024

Bowman Caps Off Chevrolet’s Weekend Sweep at the Chicago Street Race

·       Enduring wet conditions and a chaotic finish in the rain-shortened Grant Park 165 at the Chicago Street Course, Alex Bowman and the No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1 team prevailed to claim their first win of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season.  ·       The victory – Bowman’s eighth career victory in NASCAR’s top division and his first on a road course – delivered Hendrick Motorsports its eighth victory of the season, while also securing all four of the Chevrolet organization’s drivers into the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.  ·       Bowman’s victory – Chevrolet’s ninth victory in 20 points-paying NASCAR Cup Series races this season – keeps the Bowtie brand undefeated in the NASCAR Cup Series at the Chicago Street Course.  ·       Chevrolet swept the weekend in NASCAR’s second appearance at the Chicago Street Course, with Kaulig Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen scoring the victory in yesterday’s NASCAR Xfinity Series race.  ·       The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season continues at Pocono Raceway with the Great American Getaway 400 Presented by VisitPA.com on Sunday, July 14, at 2:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on the USA Network, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10:  POS.   DRIVER1st      Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL16th      Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Mariano’s / Colgate Optic White Camaro ZL18th      William Byron, No. 24 Relay Payments Camaro ZL19th      Kye Busch, No. 8 Zone Camaro ZL1

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE QUOTES:  Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL1Finished: 1stAlex, congratulations. You got the first win for your crew chief. How did you pull this win off today? “Oh gosh, Blake’s (Harris) call, I never would have thought rain tires in the dry like that would have worked. So, just so proud of this No. 48 Ally Chevy team. I mean I made a big mistake earlier and tore the whole left-front off the car and ruined other people’s day. Just unacceptable and a mistake on my end. I have had a lot of screw ups lately and just happy to be here and get another trophy for these guys.” Hendrick Motorsports now has all four teams in the Playoffs. What does it mean to lock yourselves in and focus going forward now? “Yeah, it’s been rough to be a part of this race team. We all see the things that get said, whether it’s media people second guessing or the internet second guessing us. I feel like between Blake and I, we have everybody covered at second guessing us. So, to win it on a call that was Blake’s call and to be able to go win it on wets, it means a lot. So thankful for this group and to continue to overcome stuff like that. It’s hard to go to work every day when you get talked about like that sometimes. So, I am proud of these guys for overcoming that.” What does it mean to conquer this racetrack and win here at Chicago? “Man, I don’t even know. I really don’t know what to say. I am just really proud of this team, and it means a lot to win here and finally get a win at a road course. To do something like this is really special.” Kyle Larson, No. 5 Valvoline Camaro ZL1Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage Two. Finished: 39thWhat happened behind the wheel.. did you have a warning? “I assume I just locked it up. As soon as I hit the brakes, it was not slowing down. I was just going to try and end up wherever I ended up. But yeah, it smashed the car up pretty good. It’s just unfortunate.. I’m bummed. It just caught me off guard. You push the brake zones a little bit more each lap as you’re getting more comfortable, but it just surprised me.” That seemed to be a treacherous place. SVG got stuck in the same place. How hard was it navigating that corner? “Yeah, I mean it’s a tricky corner. It’s fast to a heavy brake zone. But yeah, I could have just been more cautious probably.” How was your car before the rain? “Before the rain, I was lacking a little bit of lateral grip, but I feel like we would have gotten it better.” Was there a higher sense of urgency with the clock clicking down? “Maybe slightly, but yeah, I don’t know.. maybe that bit me. I’m not really sure. We were all just getting more comfortable each lap. As soon as I went to the brakes, it was just locked-up.” How slick was it out there when we restarted? “Yeah, I mean it was wet, so it was slick. It was hard to just get accelerated, really more than anything. Under braking, it felt fine until it didn’t.” Prior laps, was that an issue at all for you? “No, not at all. Typically, I feel like in the rain whenever I’ve run in wet conditions, we’re always really slow in braking. It always stops better than you think. So yeah, that time, I probably pushed it just barely further, and as soon as I hit the brakes, I knew I was in trouble.”  Shane van Gisbergen, No. 16 Wendy’s Saucy Nuggs Camaro ZL1Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage Two. Finished: 40th Walk us through the incident.“I don’t know, I just sort of turned in; it looked pretty good and then just got smacked by someone. It’s gutting. The No. 16 Wendy’s Saucy Nuggs Camaro was really good. We were in the lead for a lot of that race. I felt good taking off in the rain, so that sucks. It’s an unfortunate mistake by him. I’m sure he didn’t mean it. But yeah, when he just clipped me, there wasn’t anything I could do.” Is it disappointment, frustration, knowing you were the favorite, and now you’re out of the race; or was it just a racing incident? “Of course I’m disappointed. We had a really amazing Camaro there. Kaulig Racing and Trackhouse Racing, they gave us a great car. We were able to lead and I felt like I was driving well with it, so yeah, it’s a shame to be out so early. It’s a shame we couldn’t have a proper crack at it at the end.” How was the racing before the incident? “It was fun. On slicks, it got a bit dodgy. I hated being the leader. Whoever was the leader, you could see them slowing up, not knowing what the condition would be. As soon as you got to the front, you were unsure of what was happening and had to take it a bit easy. But yeah, I had a lot of fun until then.” Daniel Hemric, No. 31 Cirkul Camaro ZL1Finished: 12th “What a challenge. Incredible strategy once again by my crew chief, Trent Owens, to continue to run on rain tires. If the race ended about two laps earlier, we would have had a solid top 10, but we finally fell back to a couple guys with new tires. All in all, we maximized our day, and I appreciate the fight from our Kaulig Racing team.” Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Mariano’s / Colgate Optic White Camaro ZL1Finished: 6thA sixth-place finish, can you walk me through this day? “It was wild. I felt like our car was really good early on. We drove through the field; got to 15th or so and we kind of stayed there. Then when the rain came, the 11 missed his braking mark there into (turn) six, and I kind of thought we were done because I couldn’t get fired back up. But once we got it back going, we could run a lot better lap times and the strategy just worked out perfect there. I didn’t think it was quite ready to go to dry tires that early. Obviously it was there at the end, so my guys made a good call to keep us out on the wets and get Stage points. Then they told me, ‘hey, those guys are going to catch you with three or four laps to go, but that is the best shot at having a good finish’. So, all-in-all, it was really cool to come out of Chicago this year with a good finish. That is what our car was capable of, so that was fun.” Where did you feel those wet tires best served you?“I felt like the tires were good up until the last three laps. I think on the restart and kind of getting clear of the cars behind us, they were very important. There were a couple of braking zones that I felt like the dry tires were kind of sketchy on and you had to stay in line. They couldn’t really peek out a lot and that kind of saved us.” Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Jockey x Folds of Honor Camaro ZL1Finished: 12th Tell us about the comeback. “It was a good recovery, but I just wish we were going to run the whole race because the 48 won the race and I was right there with him when we lost all the track position. I feel like it was a shame for what it could have been, but all-in-all, we were able to rebound and that is all that matters. The No. 99 Jockey x Folds of Honor Chevy team did a good job at the end of the day.”

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July 7, 2024 — LEXINGTON, OH

• Alex Palou finishes a close second in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid as NTT INDYCAR SERIES hybrid power makes its competition debut
• Palou leads race-high 53 laps; build his championship lead to 48 points
• Andretti Global drivers Colton Herta, Marcus Ericsson run fourth and fifth for Honda

Although he came just short of scoring his third victory of 2024, Honda’s Alex Palou took another big step in defending his NTT INDYCAR SERIES Drivers’ Championship today, leading 53 laps before finishing a close second in today’s Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid.

This weekend’s race also marked the competition debut of INDYCAR’s new hybrid Energy Recovery System, fitted for the first time on a race weekend to the full 27-car field.

Starting from pole, Palou led all but two of the first 55 laps, but a brief delay in engaging first gear during his final pit stop saw him return to the track just behind Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward. The pair fought hard for the remainder of the 80-lap contest, and Palou took the checkers in second by the narrow margin of just 0.4993 seconds.

Behind Palou, Andretti Global’s Colton Herta and Marcus Ericsson finished fourth and fifth, respectively; with Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Christian Lundgaard seventh, and Kyle Kirkwood eighth in his Andretti Honda.

Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Honda Race Results

2nd Alex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
4th Colton Herta	Andretti Global Honda
5th Marcus Ericsson	Andretti Global Honda
7th Christian Lundgaard	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
8th Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Global Honda
12th David Malukas	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
13th Toby Sowery-R	Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
14th Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
15th Linus Lundqvist-R	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
17th Marcus Armstrong	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
18th Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
21st Kyffin Simpson-R	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
24th Pietro Fittipaldi	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
26th Jack Harvey	Dale Coyne Racing Honda
27th Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda

R – Rookie

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturers’ Championship (unofficial, after 9 of 17 rounds)
Chevrolet                      724 points
Honda                          720 points

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Drivers’ Championship Standings (unofficial, after 9 of 17 rounds)
1. Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing                            329 points (2 wins)
2. Will Power, Team Penske                                          -48 (1 win)
3. Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren                          -70 (2 wins)
4. Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing                -71 (2 wins)  
5. Colton Herta, Andretti Global                                  -80

Quotes
Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished 2nd, expanded championship lead to 48 points after 9 of 17 races: “That was very, very close! It’s a shame we couldn’t make the alternate tires work and be better. We knew that we were going to struggle a little bit, and that’s why we tried to go a little bit harder on the first primary stint. Almost made it work! I had a little bit of traffic on my in-lap, and then we had a slow stop. When I tried to engage first gear, I think I was too excited to get going fast and it was too soon. The [race winning] #5 team did a great job. I think we did almost everything we could have done to win today, but not every day is the best day. Racing with the hybrid was a ton of fun. There were a lot of times where I was getting closer or he was pulling away because of the hybrid system. It made things interesting! I think everybody had fun with it. It’s a new experiment for INDYCAR and I love it.”

Colton Herta (#26 Andretti Global Honda) finished 4th: “For our #26 team side of things, we just wanted to have a clean first race with the hybrid—no reliability problems, check all the boxes for what we wanted it to do. And it did that! I’m happy with how everything went today. For Honda’s first hybrid INDYCAR race, I think it performed incredibly well and I think it’s only up from here the more we learn about it for us.”

Marcus Ericsson (#28 Andretti Global Honda) finished 5th: “I think it was a good day! I think the whole team did a really good job. The hybrid power was fun to play with out there—using it strategically as well as we could. We played around with it a lot throughout the race. Changing the balance with it as well, that was fun. It was a good day and a solid weekend. Good qualifying yesterday, good race today, and we keep building!”

David Salters (President, Honda Racing Corporation USA) on today’s INDYCAR hybrid debut: “First thing, a massive shout out to our boys and girls for the huge effort that went into getting us here. It’s a completely new hybrid system. We conceptualized, designed and manufactured the ESS [Energy Storage System] and things seemed to go really well today. That was a huge result from technology that is very novel, and that new technology is really why we go racing. So that was great! It was not quite the result we were looking for, but it came down to the last corner of the last lap, that’s just good racing. We can be proud of coming within half a second of winning the first hybrid race, but it’s also motivation to go back and learn from this and figure out what we’re going to do to win the next one.”

Fast Facts

• This weekend’s Honda Indy 200 Presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid marked the start of the Hybrid era in NTT INDYCAR SERIES competition. The 27-car field features 2.2-liter twin-turbocharged V6 internal combustion engines – supplied by Honda and series rival Chevrolet – supplemented by a hybrid Energy Recovery System (ERS) including an electric Motor Generator Unit (MGU) and Honda Racing Corporation USA-developed Energy Storage System (ESS).
• Honda drivers have now won 12 of the 19 Indy car races run at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course since the series returned under the Honda Indy 200 banner in 2007. Last year, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda teammates Alex Palou and Scott Dixon finished 1-2 at Mid-Ohio, as Palou went on to win his second NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship in the last three years.

 
Next
The NTT INDYCAR SERIES continues its run of consecutive July events next weekend with the first short oval – and first doubleheader race weekend – of the 2024 season, July 12-14 at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Iowa. The Hy-Vee Homefront 250 runs Saturday night, with the companion Hy-Vee One Step 250 on Sunday.

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CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES HONDA INDY 200 AT MID-OHIO MID-OHIO SPORTS CAR COURSE LEXINGTON, OHIO TEAM CHEVY POST RACE RECAP JULY 7, 2024 SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN THIRD PLACE FINISH GIVES CHEVROLET TWO PODIUM SPOTS FOR DEBUT OF INDYCAR HYBRID POWER UNIT Pato O Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, won his second race of the 2024 NTT INDYCAR Series season with a hard-fought victory today at the debut of the INDYCAR Hybrid Power UnitScott McLaughlin, No. 3 Sonsio Team Penske Chevrolet, finished third to give Chevrolet two spots on the podium for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-OhioTeam Chevy drivers scored five of the top-10 drivers. In addition to O’Ward and McLaughlin, Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet – 7th; Christian Rassmussen, No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet – 9th and Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet – 10thIt is the 5th win of the season for Team Chevy and 116th win since the 2.2-liter V6 engine formula was introduced in 2012Up next for Chevrolet in the NTT INDYCAR Series will be the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway, July 12-14, 2024 LEXINGTON, Ohio – After missing the pole by just .0024 of a second, Pato O’Ward was a determined young man as he climbed in his No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet for the start of today’s Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. O’Ward stayed firmly in second, only giving up the spot during pit stop cycles during the 80-lap race that saw only one caution flag period for a car stopped on course before the race started. INDYCAR race control counted two caution laps before turning the 27-car field loose.  After the green flew on lap three, the race was uninterrupted until the checkered flag flew. O’Ward took the lead during the final pit stop cycle of the day on lap 57 executing the perfect undercut as the leader left pit lane one lap after O’Ward. It was the second win of the season for O’Ward and the sixth of his NTT INDYCAR Series career. Today’s third place finish was the third podium for McLaughlin this season including a win earlier in the season at Barber Motorsports Park.  Team Chevy and the INDYCAR Series travel next to Iowa Speedway for the Hy-Vee INDYCAR Race Weekend July 12-14, 2024          TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 RACE RESULTS:Pos. Driver1st     Pato O’Ward3rd     Scott McLaughlin6th    Alexander Rossi9th     Christian Rasmussen10th    Santino Ferrucci WHAT THEY’RE SAYING (QUOTES)Mark Stielow, Director Motorsports Competition Programs for General Motors:“What an exciting race today at Mid-Ohio! Congratulations to Pato O’Ward, Gavin Ward and the entire No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet team on their outstanding win. Pato drove a skilled, patient race while his crew executed flawlessly on pit lane. It was a true team win.   “There were great battles throughout the field. With Scott McLaughlin bringing the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet to the finish in third, it is very rewarding for everyone on the Chevrolet engineering side along with our teams who have all put in countless hours to reach today’s race to have two drivers on the podium for debut of the INDYCAR Hybrid Power Unit.” Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet, Finished : “A solid day for us here at AJ Foyt Racing. Honestly, the boys did a phenomenal job in pit lane, and I could not have done it without them doing that. We had the right strategy and great pit stops so all I did was drive the car. We had a great setup on the Sexton Properties Chevrolet and had pace and we were able to move it forward. Sting Ray had a solid race too so it’s all good stuff.” Sting Ray Robb, No. 41 AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet:  “Really happy with the result today. I think that, considering where we started the weekend, that was, that was really good. The team, honestly, it was all up to them. I didn’t pass hardly any cars on track. It was all in the pit cycle. So good in and out laps, good pit stops, great strategy. That’s how we moved the Goodheart/Pray.com Chevrolet forward today. Super proud of Santino as well. P 10– another top-10 result for him is really good. I pretty much just watched him the whole race. Tried to hook a tow rope up to the back of his car and let him pull me along. But I think that with a few more little changes here and there, we could be in the top 10 alongside him. So hopefully that’s coming soon.” Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, RACE WINNER:YOU HAVE MADE YOUR WAY TO VICTORY LANE AGAIN, WHAT ARE THE FEELINGS?“Yeah, that was a hard-fought race.  We were really, really strong on the reds.  Palou was really, really strong on the blacks.  So, all I needed to do was just kind of stay at bay in the first stint and then come into the pits and put those reds on and try and close the gap.  Then get him on the pit sequence or on track, but great job by the team.  Ahhh, it’s been a while.  I know we won St. Pete, but this is a proper win, and we earned this one this weekend.” IS THIS THE PRODUCT OF THE EFFORT AND HARD WORK BEING PUT IN BY THIS PROGRAM?“Yeah, I felt very comfortable with the car this weekend.  From the second practice going into qualifying, we executed, and they put a really strong car under me for the race. So, hats off to Arrow McLaren, they gave me a rocket.” Nolan Siegel, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet: “I’m a little disappointed with the result today. I think that the pace in our No. 6 NTT DATA Arrow McLaren Chevrolet was good and our execution was good. We were aggressive on strategy and it just didn’t work out. Looking back, there was no way to know how it was going to play out in the moment. I don’t think there were any mistakes that were made; it just didn’t work out. I’m happy with the pace and the progress that we’ve made. The results will come soon. Of course, congratulations to Pato and the team for a well-deserved win.” Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, Finished : “First of all, congrats to Pato and the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet crew. It’s been a long time coming for them, so that’s very cool. It was a bit of a boring day for us. I made a mistake on lap one, which put us a couple spots behind where we started. Then, we were just trying to recover the rest of the day. It was very difficult to pass. Overall, the No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet was pretty good and our pit stops were good, as usual. It was ultimately a good day for the team and good points for us. We’ll move on to Iowa.” Gavin Ward, Team Principal at Arrow McLaren:     “It’s nice to have a win this season that we can celebrate the day of. I was thinking in the closing laps how big this would be for the team. This team has worked so hard throughout the offseason on the hybrid program; drivers, engineers, mechanics, everybody. Every single person on this team has put in so much work. “It’s been the busiest year in the history of this team, and it’s been a heck of a slog these last few months. It’s great to show what the team is capable of. It was a beautifully executed drive by Pato, and a beautifully executed race from the stand and in pit lane.  “Alexander drove a good race. It was obviously very difficult to make much ground up around this place today, but he did make up some ground. I thought Nolan ran a really smart race, but ultimately the strategy didn’t really work. That car had plenty more pace, and I think our potential was quite a bit higher. “Every race is a chance for us to learn and overall I’m very happy. The team should be really, really, really proud of themselves.” Christian Rasmussen, No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet, Finished 9th :“That was great. I knew we had a good car after qualifying so I just wanted to execute today. Have a clean day and see what we could get out of it. P9 at the end of the day is good for us. It showed the development we have done this year especially with everything new this weekend with the hybrid unit. It’s been super super smooth with the transition. Just very happy with the result today.” Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:“We knew it was going to be a tough day starting so far back. We missed it on the strategy a bit as well, which makes it even harder here. Mid-Ohio is one of those tracks where it is tough to pass if there are no yellows and the field gets strung out, which is what happened today. Ready to get to an oval next weekend and see what we can do there!” Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet, Finished 22nd:“We finished the race P22. Unfortunately we had no luck with no yellows and the strategy. I think we had a decent race, but all green laps was a difficult. But we finished. We see the checkered flag. We are going to try our luck next weekend.” Romain Grojean, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet, Finished 23rd Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet, Finished 25th:REGARDING THE PIT ROAD SPEEDING PENALTY AND A SENSOR“Yeah, something changed, some sort of software issue.  We were plenty safe on our procedure, it just looks like it overshoots. I do not know what caused it, we don’t know what caused it. Some sort of software issue because the speed was identical on both speeding penalties. So, for some reason it changed from the first two and started overshooting. I am not sure what happened, but we will try and diagnose it and understand it for the future, so it doesn’t happen again.” HOW DID YOUR RACE GO BEFORE THAT SITUATION?“It was a good day for starting as far back (as we did).  We just got behind very early this weekend.  We started pretty far off and we were not happy where we came off the truck and then it just took too long to get where we needed it to be.  We sort of half got there by qualifying and we sort of fully got there by the race, but you certainly can’t start the weekend that far behind.  So, I was really proud of the guys. They did a great job, good pit stops, we were just too far behind this weekend to catch up.” ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO KNOCKING EVERYTHING OFF AND GOING TO IOWA?“Not really. Iowa is great but I am looking forward to everything else.  We have to be strong everywhere. We can’t pick and piece just tracks here and there, its got to be everywhere.” Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet, Finished 3rd:LONG GREEN FLAG RUNS TODAY, WHAT WERE CONDITIONS LIKE OUT THERE?“Yeah, it was hard.  We were in no man’s land there, so I had my own race and was just playing with the hybrid a bit and learning it as well. I am just really proud of everyone on this Sonsio Protection Chevy. We have been up and down all year and it’s nice to get a solid result.  Hopefully we can build on to this.  Now we go to two ovals, two ovals that I really enjoy and just keep building some momentum.” YOUR CREW CAME OVER THE RADIO AND SAID YOU WERE DOING A PERFECT JOB DURING THE RACE. HOW RELIEVING IS THAT AS A DRIVER? “Its nice. Your confidence gets knocked around when you make a couple of mistakes here and there.  You come in with a lot of expectation and you want to be good every weekend, but ultimately you are human, and everyone makes mistakes. But as I have said, I have a great team behind me, and we have to keep pushing on and keep working. There are plenty of races left in the season and we can keep on improving and see where we are at.” Will Power, No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet, Finished 11th:“Solid day for the Verizon Chevy team. After our issue in qualifying we needed to do something off-strategy, so we started on the alternate tires. And we were able to make them work better than most, it seemed. Just maximized our day as best we could by running on the primaries the rest of the way. Good day on pit lane too. On to Iowa.” PATO O’WARD, NO. 5 ARROW MCLAREN CHEVROLET AND SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN, NO. 3 SONSIO TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET – End of Day Press Conference:Pato O’WardPress Conference THE MODERATOR: We continue on with this year’s champion of the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid and Pato O’Ward, who led 24 of the 80 laps today, of course driver of the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, first win on the track in 31 races, obviously the second win in 2024, sixth career win, climb into third in the points standings, just 70 points back out of the championship. Congratulations. Yes, St. Pete happened, you got the win, but this maybe feels a little different. PATO O’WARD: No, this feels like the first win of the season. I know St. Pete we were P2 and ultimately ended up getting the win because Penske cheated, and yeah, the 500 was two corners short. But we really pushed it. I was pushing so hard. Watching Palou kind of trying to run away with it in the first stint, I said no way, no way. For some reason they are so quick on the primes, the Ganassi cars. They’re in a different stratosphere. But I knew as soon as we got the reds on, that was my chance to close the gap and ultimately beat him. I knew that was the objective and just tried to keep him at a somewhat manageable distance. I’m super stoked. I’m so proud of the team. All my 5 guys, they’ve been working so hard. It just feels like we’ve had heartbreak after heartbreak after heartbreak and we’ve obviously had a tough battle trying to figure out this new tire this year. Yeah, it feels so good to give this to them. I know they’re as happy as I am today, and we earned it. No one gave it to us. We had to earn it. Yeah, it feels really good. Q. Pato, that lap when Alex came into the pits, how hard were you pushing on that out lap? What was your mentality? You know full well that he might come out right ahead of you or right behind you. How hard was that out lap trying to get past Palou on the pit — PATO O’WARD: Yeah, if I had a chance to get by him, it was going to be either on the out lap of him with new tires or on the pit stop sequence. We ultimately ended up getting him kind of halfway between both. But yeah, it’s just so competitive. Obviously I haven’t watched the race. I don’t know how much battles there were in the back, but it’s become so tough to get by people, and when you’re up at the front and you don’t really have much of an advantage to another car, you can’t get by them. You saw ending the race that we were stuck behind Kyffin and I think it was Canapino. No matter if you catch them by a few tenths a lap, but once you get there, you can’t do anything. It definitely made me sweat a little bit more for sure, just because we were basically just stuck in line, and Palou was on my bumper, I was on Kyffin’s, and it was just all about not making mistakes and pedaling it there to the end. Q. Going into the last few laps when you’re behind Kyffin and Canapino, how difficult was it to keep your emotions in check knowing, hey, we need to get around these guys but you can’t take too much of a risk, yet Palou is right there and if something bad happens he gets by you? PATO O’WARD: Yeah, no, for sure. But I put myself in being behind the leader, and I would have picked my position every single time because it’s just more of a pain to actually get by somebody. For all I knew, I just had to minimize mistakes. This weekend really has been very smooth I would say. Like we executed in qualifying, but as soon as we were done in P2, I told the guys, this is the best car that you’ve given me all year. Like I have something to battle with. I have something to challenge with and to execute in qualifying without feeling like I have a knife up to my throat. We showed that. We were .0024 for pole, and then in the race we maximized where our car was stronger, and that’s how we got it done. Q. Pato, more to the point on going by Palou, are you sitting there thinking, yippee? You’re looking for him, I would think, out of the corner of your eye; where is he coming out of the pits. What is the emotion you’re feeling, like yippee or let’s get on it? Explain that. PATO O’WARD: I’ll tell you exactly what I was saying in my head. Coming out of 13, I saw him launching from the box, and then I said, I got his ass. Yeah. That was it. Q. What is that like, though, in a hard-fought race like that to go by him? You kind of touched on it, but you’ve been working for that moment. PATO O’WARD: The hard part is to get by the guy. After that, then it turns more into a battle within yourself I would say, just like really hitting your marks all the time, not making any mistakes. They were so strong on primes, I knew that he was going to be really putting on the pressure the last stint because it was a new tire race, it wasn’t a red race. Yeah, it was good. Q. You went to the Push-to-Pass ATM, as I call it, the last — PATO O’WARD: Oh, I was ripping through it. He was, too. Q. At the end of the race are you thinking more to use the Push-to-Pass or the regen? PATO O’WARD: Push-to-Pass is more powerful because it lasts longer, but I was using both. Q. You said out there at the start of the press conference that it was fun winning the way you did because in the first stint he was pulling away, and in the second stint getting back to him on alternates and no yellows in the race, to get by him must be fun for you to get it done this way? PATO O’WARD: Absolutely, it just feels really good. It feels like such a hard-fought race. I have to say, it’s the first race in my career where I didn’t really have a chance to kind of take a seat when I got out of the car, but when I was doing the NBC interview with Georgia, quickly after that I had to take a seat. I don’t use the cool suit. I know a lot of these guys do. It just gets so warm in there, so warm, and it’s so physical. It’s a lot more physical than I thought. We were fuel saving the whole race, but it felt like a full push. It really did, and every lap was just all about not making any mistakes because Palou wasn’t making any mistakes, either. I knew we had to be pretty much perfect to have an opportunity. Q. With the race being so close, which I’m sure they always are, is there a critical situation or critical decision that you can think of that you and your team made that really made the difference in you winning today? PATO O’WARD: I would say it’s just really pinpointing where we were stronger. Like I mentioned, they were stronger on the primes. They’ve always been stronger on the primes. We’ve never really had a chance against them on the primes. But when we were finishing out our red stint, I had really, I feel like — I wouldn’t say figured them out, but I definitely feel stronger on those usually more than on the prime, and that was where I said, hmm, let’s just see how it plays out. I saw him coming to me pretty aggressively at the end of the second stint, and I just saw the doors open to an opportunity, and I was like, we have to take it. I knew if I got in front of him, it was going to be a battle to the end, but it’s a lot better to battle to the end and you be in front than having to pass him because at that point you just can’t get by anybody. Q. Pato, if Palou didn’t have the issue exiting the pits, when do you think you would have passed him late in the race because you were catching him before the stop? PATO O’WARD: Yeah, but we also had an issue on the first stop not to launch and get into Malukas’s way. He had a bad stop on the second one but we had a bad stop on the first one. So it just played out. Q. The rest of the race going green after the first three laps, were you expecting it to go green all the way? How much more difficult did that make the race? PATO O’WARD: I was shocked that it was all green, no yellows, but it just makes it more physical for us, to be honest, and obviously in terms of strategy, it doesn’t turn as much into like a roll of the dice, which I feel like more times than not we’re on the bad end of that, so it was really nice to just, like — yeah, have a good one. Q. Pato, did you feel happy when you found Palou took the same tires throughout the second stint for reds? PATO O’WARD: Yeah, I think that’s probably what gave us the opportunity I would say. Who knows; it’s hard to say how much — how it would have played out in the other scenario. But yeah, we beat him on the same strategy, same everything, which makes it feel obviously that much sweeter because that 10 car has been the car to beat, and it still is the car to beat all year. They’ve been very, very strong, very strong driver with extremely strong team. That’s who we’re chasing at the moment. Q. I wonder if you could give us some insight or reflect on how the year has gone from your perspective a little bit from inside the team. It’s been obviously — I guess it was a difficult first half of the season for you, but you’ve had five top-10 finishes now and you’re the first driver to win on a street course and a road course this year. PATO O’WARD: Yeah, I would say it started well and then it quickly fell apart for not just one race but for a few. Then the 500 kind of gave us a breath of fresh air in a weird way. It was pretty devastating to just be two corners short, but ultimately gave us that boost that we’re — we were just a hair to win it. A testament to all the hard work that’s gone in the off-season, and a lot of it does go into the Indy 500, and it’s always really good to see that we’ve very strong there, and I would expect it to be the same next year. But this year it’s been more of a tough battle, I would say, in road courses, which usually have been our strong suit, so now with the hybrid, with the extra weight, I just think the way we work together and to kind of really extract the most out of this new package was very refreshing, and I think it’s a great boost for all of us to kind of drive us forward. Was this race No. 9? This is race No. 9, so we barely got over halfway. There’s still so much racing to go. I know I’m very strong in ovals, and there’s a lot of ovals left. I have a lot of faith in the team that they’re going to to give me a good car to battle it out in those, and yeah, I think the next one to really try and maximize a lot of points on the table is Iowa. It’s a repave, it’s different, and we need to stay on top of it. Q. How do you feel about the hybrid going into Iowa and how that might impact that race weekend and what that might look like for fans watching? PATO O’WARD: I would say the hybrid, it really doesn’t do anything on ovals. It does more on road courses and street courses. It obviously has added the weight; how is the deg going to be. I was surprised to see the deg, how good it was today. There was really no deg. You were as quick at the end of the stint with the first part of the stint, which I feel like has been very hit-or-miss all year. You don’t really know what to get. Yeah, that was very good to see for this weekend, and yeah, Iowa, I know we tested with I believe more downforce than what we’re actually going to race, if I’m not mistaken, so that’s going to be a new challenge even for everyone, just really seeing where everybody stacks up. Q. Pato, you said the degradation was less than you expected with the repave? PATO O’WARD: Yeah, no, the degradation was fantastic. The tire behaved really, really well, both prime and alternate. The track was very enjoyable to drive. Even from the first practice, it’s changed the balance a bit with the new hybrid, but once you get it into tune, those annoying bumps that we had just magically disappeared, obviously, with the new repave. It’s just a very beautiful track. It’s a very flowy and enjoyable place to come to. I was determined to have a good race here because I’ve had very strong qualifyings here. I’ve been very quick. But been out of the running for one thing or another. Yeah, this year I was determined to just get back to my normal form because it really hasn’t been there. Q. You touched on this, but can you speak a little bit more about is it more gratifying or more special to win in such a hard-fought manner against someone like Alex Palou, a two-time champion? PATO O’WARD: Yeah, no, that’s how you want to win. That’s how I want to win. In my career, I’ve had — I believe it’s six wins with this one. There’s been one of them that’s been ultimately handed to us, I would say, and that was Iowa when Josef had a failure because he’s truly been the king there. But all the other ones have been so — I’ve had to fight so freaking hard to win, and it feels so sweet because it wouldn’t have been the same, like Palou got an MGU fault or whatever and we just took the win. That is not the same. I was excited to have this challenge and like truly prove it to all of us and just do it. Q. The fan backing you’ve got is pretty astounding; what does that mean to you? PATO O’WARD: I always say Pato fans are the best. It’s very cool to see, and a very grateful, fulfilling feeling going to the different markets, and a lot of papaya walking around, a lot of No. 5 jerseys and people excited. That’s why we do this. At the end of the day, we’re in entertainment. My goals and ambitions are obviously always to strive forward in my career and just try and make — bring something to motorsports that maybe wasn’t there, I would say. I’ve tried to kind of dip my toes in different areas to enhance a fan’s experience at a weekend — I can’t do it everywhere because ultimately — it would be great to make it a business, but it’s not as easy as that, and ultimately I sometimes just end up spending my own money, and they’re chunks. There’s thousands and thousands of my own money that — I want people to see what INDYCAR is and what it can bring to them, just like some people follow soccer, some people follow basketball. Why not follow racing? But it’s definitely been frustrating lately because I haven’t given them that reason to, like, just go crazy. I think the 500 was obviously the closest that we’ve been, but it feels really special to see such a group of people that’s behind me, and whether it’s good or bad, good or bad weekends, a good chunk of them are always behind us, and that’s very special. Q. Two years ago when Gavin joined the team, and I don’t know if St. Pete would be considered a proper first win for him, but I was hoping to get your thoughts on what’s delivered him a proper first win now on the two-year anniversary of actually joining the team? PATO O’WARD: Yeah, this was the two-year. It was. Man, what can I tell you? Gavin has got a lot of passion. He’s got a lot of passion for what he does and for racing and just for building a very strong race team. I feel like athletes and maybe teams in general like around the world, whether it’s basketball, soccer or football, racing, whatever, you kind of build this skill to turn cold when things don’t really go your way. You always just move forward, move forward, move forward, move forward, turn the page, turn the page, turn the page. At some point it will weigh down on you because there is so much sacrifice and energy and money and a lot of stuff that goes into this. It made me so happy seeing their faces at the podium now. I could really tell that they know I drove my ass off because they can tell in the telemetry, and honestly, that’s what they should expect because that’s what I expect from myself, and ultimately there’s nothing like having a team of people behind you that truly trusts you 100 percent, and they know when you do have that chance, you will make it happen for them, and that’s always been what I strive for and what I want to give to them, but sometimes it just — we need to look at our realities, and sometimes kind of bring that bar down a little bit to get to that objective and then bring it back up. Q. But for Gavin specifically — PATO O’WARD: The guy has got to be ecstatic, I would say. I obviously haven’t had a chance to talk to him too much. But this probably feels as strong as it feels for me because really, our last — my last win, not counting St. Pete, really was Iowa. Gavin was present, but it was shortly after he joined the team. This is truly the first one that we’ve all been able to — well, to really live. I think Gavin has got a whole group of people behind him that also trust him, where he’s taking this team. He’s definitely brought a different view to how to approach certain things, but it’s not going to change in one day to another. It takes time. It takes money, just like everything. We can’t go play race cars without a chunk of money. But yeah, we’re here to win. THE MODERATOR: Wrapping up the 2024 version of the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid, joined by Scott McLaughlin, who led three laps today, driving the No. 3 SONSIO Team Penske Chevrolet, third podium of 2024, 15th career podium, and certainly a nice bounceback from the WeatherTech race at Laguna Seca a couple weeks ago.  THE MODERATOR: .4993 was the difference, the closest finish in five years. Scott, nice bounceback for you from Laguna Seca a couple weeks ago. You were staying up front all day long. SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, it’s been up and down for us, as everyone knows, the last few events. Nice to get another solid result and hopefully we can go into Iowa where we know we’ll probably be pretty quick. Just a matter of putting it together over this next little bit to the end of the championship. Yeah, look, I’ve really enjoyed the hybrid integration. I’ve really enjoyed working with that and learning it and I was learning even out there throughout the weekend and through the race. But we made a lot of ground in that first stint, overcut these guys. I’m sick of getting overcut myself, so I was like, stuff it, I’m going to be overcutting today. I think we were the last one to pit, and that’s probably where we led our laps.   Q. At the end of the race are you thinking more Push-to-Pass than the hybrid assist as you’re trying to track down and race somebody for position?  SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I was in no man’s land, so I turned everything off and just drove it home. Q. Six of the last eight races will be on ovals where the hybrid advantage is not as great as it is on a street or road course. Do you just go back to the mindset of regular oval racing? SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I think it’s going to differ to some ovals. I think there’s going to be parts where you can use it, and in Milwaukee and Gateway where there’s probably more decel, you’ll use it differently than Iowa where it’s really quick now and you really have to be off the gas. But yeah, ultimately when we were testing there, we were really focused on car balance and then sort of got into the hybrid in the afternoon. It’s boost. It’s going to help us at some point. You’ve just got to use it at the right moments.  Q. your general thoughts of the hybrid in the series? Essentially 27 cars started, 27 cars finished. Overall direction the series is going on with this hybrid and your thoughts of it in general?   SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, I concur. It’s a lot more fun because it’s in our hands, and that’s what I think is really cool about it. There’s no order to deploy, nothing like that. Literally we push a button for it to work, and you’ve got to think about it so much, and it changes whether you’re battling with someone or you’re by yourself just trying to get lap time. That’s what’s really cool. Then you’ve got Push-to-Pass on top of that. It’s busy, but I think that’s where you’re going to see the difference, and there’s going to be some mistakes creep in, especially on street circuits I’m sure. There’s a lot going on. But it’s fun.   Q. Scott, you hung out in no-man’s land, 10, 12 seconds off the lead for a long time. Was there just nothing else you could do? SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I just lost so much time in that first stint, but ultimately I was just trying to maximize my day in that first stint by saving as much fuel as I could, and I just jumped the guys in the overcut, but then these guys were all the way down the road. It was actually honestly a bit of a testing issue for me. I was trying different things with the hybrid, Push-to-Pass, all that stuff. It was actually really cool. Learned a lot of things, and hopefully we can — we got points, and hopefully we can use it later down the track, whether it’s next year or end of the year. Q. How much did you use manual regen in the race and how much did you use automatic and how did that play out in the race, if you can talk through a little bit of the reasons for doing either in the race? SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I’m not going to tell him. SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Exactly, so no. I used it in different places.  Q. Can you touch on this busy stretch of races? We had a week off but now it gets really busy here the next couple weeks before the Olympic break.  SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, this is awesome. I really enjoy this schedule. I think it is a squashed-up schedule, but this part of the season in the summer, beautiful weather, it’s a lot of fun. The amount of people that we had out here this weekend, I think it was the most I’ve ever seen out here in my time in INDYCAR. People love coming out here in the summer, and I’m glad we have races in the good weather. Q. I know you guys don’t really look at your competitors. One way or another you want to go out there and beat them. But does this kid O’Ward have the potential now that he’s gotten over the hurdle and gotten back in Victory Lane that he could win a lot?  SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: He’s like Taylor Swift out there. It was deafening on the podium. It was very impressive. I think every person in this category can win a race, and that’s a testament to INDYCAR. Yeah, Pato is one of those guys, and he’s always there. Alex is one of those guys, and I’m trying to be there, as well, with those guys. Yeah, it’s just the most competitive series in the world.

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES

HONDA INDY 200 AT MID-OHIO

MID-OHIO SPORTS CAR COURSE

LEXINGTON, OHIO

TEAM CHEVY WINNER QUOTE          

JULY 7, 2024

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN GIVES CHEVROLET TWO PODIUM SPOTS IN INDYCAR HYBRID POWER UNIT DEBUT

• Pato O Ward, No 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, won his second race of the 2024 NTT INDYCAR Series season with a hard-fought victory today at the debut of the INDYCAR Hybrid Power Unit
• Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Sonsio Team Penske Chevrolet., finished third to give Chevrolet two spots on the podium for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio
• It is the 5th win of the season for Team Chevy

 Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet-RACE WINNER:

YOU HAVE MADE YOUR WAY TO VICTORY LANE AGAIN, WHAT ARE THE FEELINGS?

“Yeah, that was a hard-fought race.  We were really, really strong on the reds.  Palou was really, really strong on the blacks.  So, all I needed to do was just kind of stay at bay in the first stint and then come into the pits and put those reds on and try and close the gap.  Then get him on the pit sequence or on track, but great job by the team.  Ahhh, it’s been a while.  I know we won St. Pete, but this is a proper win, and we earned this one this weekend.”

IS THIS THE PRODUCT OF THE EFFORT AND HARD WORK BEING PUT IN BY THIS PROGRAM?

“Yeah, I felt very comfortable with the car this weekend.  From the second practice going into qualifying, we executed, and they put a really strong car under me for the race. So, hats off to Arrow/McLaren, they gave me a rocket.”

Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Sonsio Team Penske Chevrolet, FINISHED 3rd:

LONG GREEN FLAG RUNS TODAY, WHAT WERE CONDITIONS LIKE OUT THERE?

“Yeah, it was hard.  We were in no mans land there, so I had my own race and was just playing with the hybrid a bit and learning it as well. I am just really proud of everyone on this Sonsio Protection Chevy. We have been up and down all year and its nice to get a solid result.  Hopefully we can build on to this.  Now we go to two ovals, two ovals that I really enjoy and just keep building some momentum.”

YOUR CREW CAME OVER THE RADIO AND SAID YOU WERE DOING A PERFECT JOB DURING THE RACE. HOW RELIEVING IS THAT AS A DRIVER?

“Its nice. Your confidence gets knocked around when you make a couple of mistakes here and there.  You come in with a lot of expectation and you want to be good every weekend, but ultimately you are human, and everyone makes mistakes. But as I have said, I have a great team behind me, and we have to keep pushing on and keep working. There are plenty of races left in the season and we can keep on improving and see where we are at.”

Mark Stielow, Director of Motorsports Competition Programs for General Motors:

“What an exciting race today at Mid-Ohio! Congratulations to Pato O’Ward, Gavin Ward and the entire No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet team on their outstanding win. Pato drove a skilled, patient race while his crew executed flawlessly on pit lane. It was a true team win.  

“There were great battles throughout the field. With Scott McLaughlin bringing the No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet to the finish in third, it is very rewarding for everyone on the Chevrolet engineering side along with our teams who have all put in countless hours to reach today’s race to have two drivers on the podium for debut of the INDYCAR Hybrid Power Unit.”

ZANESVILLE, Ohio (July 6, 2024) – Hometown driver Devin Moran thrilled the capacity crowd on Saturday night at Muskingum County Speedway – leading all the way to win the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series-sanctioned Freedom 60 worth $20,000. Moran’s win was his fourth of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series season, but his first series win since 2013 at the track promoted by his father, Hall-of-Famer Donnie Moran and his family. Ricky Thornton Jr. came from fifth to finish second as he trailed Moran by 3.185 seconds at the finish. Max Blair was third followed by Jonathan Davenport and Matt Cosner. The stats will show that Moran led all 60 laps, but three different drivers took their best shot at him during the race with Tim McCreadie, Tyler Carpenter, and Thornton all holding the runner-up spot at some point. McCreadie, who started alongside on the front row held the second spot for the first nine laps of the race until Carpenter got going on the top and moved past McCreadie on lap ten. Carpenter was able to keep Moran in his sights until a lap 30 restart when McCreadie and Thornton got by him. McCreadie, looking for his first win in the Rocket1 House Car, yielded the second spot to Thornton on lap 41 as Blair joined the party and he began to put the pressure on Thornton for second. With no caution flags in the last 25 laps, Moran had to navigate heavy traffic that allowed Thornton and Blair to close briefly, but Moran would ultimately pull away. In Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the 12th time in his career, the racer who scored his first career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win at the same track 11 years ago, climbed from his #99 to the cheers from the massive crowd on hand to witness the event that carried an $80,000 feature purse. “Man, this is just awesome. All the glory to God and these great race fans. I love coming here! We only get to come here once or twice a year. It was an awesome night and I’m glad to be back in victory lane with the Lucas Oil guys. It took a while to get around those guys in the back. Our car was so good. I just want to give my car owner, Roger Sellers, a huge shoutout as he drove all the way up from Tennessee to be here tonight. Thanks to my dad, my mom and my whole family they put on a great event tonight.”  Thornton came home in second and will maintain the series points lead heading to Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri next week.  “I needed to win the heat race to be able to stand where Devin is tonight. I felt like I was pretty decent there. It’s tough to start fifth and pass here. It was so top dominant there forever. I just never got myself in a good enough position and then I got a couple of lucky restarts there and I thought I could run him [Moran] down and the lapped cars were racing harder than I was for the lead. It was one of those deals, we’ll take second and head on down the road.” For the second year in a row, at Muskingum County, Blair rounded out the Big River Steel Podium with his third-place finish. “This track races like Eriez, Pa and like a lot of tracks back home. I am much more familiar and comfortable with tracks like this. That was a lot of fun. I thought I was going to have Ricky there for a long time, I think we raced about 20 laps side-by-side and we never touched. This crowd was awesome tonight especially on the Fourth of July weekend, because it’s tough, there is so much racing going on everywhere so for the crowd to be this good that is pretty cool.”  The winner’s Roger Sellers-owned, Double Down Motorsports, Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and sponsored by Big River Steel, C&W Trucking, Lazydays RV, McHugh Chrysler Dodge Jeep and Ram, CarSourceAuto.com, Bilstein Shocks, Red Oak Pub, Smoky Mountain Speedway, Lincoln Smith Racing, Pee Wee’s Wrecker Service, and Haulin’ Haskell’s. Completing the top ten were Tim McCreadie, Tyler Carpenter, Spencer Hughes, Daulton Wilson, and Hudson O’Neal. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary Freedom 60Saturday, July 6, 2024Muskingum County Speedway – Zanesville, OH Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Devin Moran | 15.543 seconds (overall)Fast Time Group B: Jonathan Davenport | 15.887 seconds Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 99-Devin Moran[1]; 2. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[2]; 3. 156-James Dennis[5]; 4. 6-Clay Harris[4]; 5. 4T-Tripp Gerrald[3]; 6. 93J-Donovan Jackson[6]; 7. 20B-Todd Brennan[7]; 8. 144-Anthony Kinkade[8] Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 58-Garrett Alberson[1]; 2. 111-Max Blair[3]; 3. 53C-Colten Burdette[4]; 4. 19M-Spencer Hughes[2]; 5. 17SS-Brenden Smith[6]; 6. 128-Cory Workman[5]; 7. 93-Cory Lawler[7]; 8. 88-Dustin Smith[8] Earnhardt Technologies Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 1-Tim McCreadie[2]; 2. 49-Jonathan Davenport[1]; 3. 7T-Drake Troutman[4]; 4. 93F-Carson Ferguson[3]; 5. 20-Jimmy Owens[6]; 6. 10L-Nathon Loney[5]; 7. 0-Steve Prince[8]; 8. 25B-Mike Benedum[9]; 9. 17V-Tim Vance[7] Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 28C-Tyler Carpenter[1]; 2. 66C-Matt Cosner[2]; 3. 71-Hudson O’Neal[5]; 4. 7-Ross Robinson[4]; 5. 157-Mike Marlar[3]; 6. 18D-Daulton Wilson[6]; 7. 99B-Boom Briggs[7]; 8. 6C-Travis Carr[8]; 9. K11-George Klintworth[9] Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 4T-Tripp Gerrald[1]; 2. 17SS-Brenden Smith[2]; 3. 93-Cory Lawler[6]; 4. 144-Anthony Kinkade[7]; 5. 88-Dustin Smith[8]; 6. 93J-Donovan Jackson[3]; 7. 128-Cory Workman[4]; 8. (DNS) 20B-Todd Brennan UNOH B-Main Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 157-Mike Marlar[2]; 2. 20-Jimmy Owens[1]; 3. 18D-Daulton Wilson[4]; 4. 10L-Nathon Loney[3]; 5. 0-Steve Prince[5]; 6. 99B-Boom Briggs[6]; 7. 25B-Mike Benedum[7]; 8. 17V-Tim Vance[9]; 9. 6C-Travis Carr[8]; 10. K11-George Klintworth[10] Freedom 60 Feature Finish (60 Laps):

Race Statistics  Entrants: 36Victory Fuel Pole Sitter: Devin MoranLap Leaders: Devin Moran (Laps 1-60)Wieland Feature Winner: Devin MoranArizona Sport Shirts Crown Jewel Cup Feature Winner: n/aBrandon Ford TV Challenge Feature Winner: n/aMargin of Victory: 3.184 seconds Dave Warren Powersports Cautions: Clay Harris (Lap 6); Ross Robinson (Lap 28); Garrett Alberson (Lap 30); Garrett Alberson, Brenden Smith (Lap 35)Series Provisional: Boom BriggsFast Time Provisional: Nathon LoneySeries Emergency Provisionals: n/aTrack Provisionals: Todd Brennan; Anthony KinkadeBig River Steel Podium Top 3: Devin Moran, Ricky Thornton, Jr., Max BlairPenske Shocks Top 5: Devin Moran, Ricky Thornton, Jr., Max Blair, Jonathan Davenport, Matt CosnerTodd Steel Buildings Hard Charger of the Race: Daulton Wilson (Advanced 13 Positions) PEM 4th Place Feature: Jonathan DavenportWilwood Brakes Lucky 7th Place Feature: Tyler CarpenterDeatherage Opticians Lucky 13th Place Feature: Carson FergusonMD3 Most Laps Led: Devin Moran (60 Laps) Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Ricky Thornton, Jr.Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Ricky Thornton, Jr.O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: Carson FergusonColtman Farms Fastest Lap of the Race: Tyler Carpenter (Lap 11 – 16.285 seconds) Slicker Graphics Slickest Move of the Race: Max BlairMiller Welders Hard Luck Award: Drake TroutmanOuterwears Crew Chief of the Race: Chuck Kimble (Devin Moran)ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Cornett Racing EnginesMiller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn ChassisDirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Jonathan Davenport (15.1132 seconds)Time of Race: 29 minutes 32 seconds  Big River Steel Chase for the Championship Presented by ARP Point Standings:

The 2023 Series champion used a classic slide-job pass to capture his second crown jewel victory at the Spring Valley, MN track 

SPRING VALLEY, MN (July 6, 2024) – Bobby Pierce dug deep like a gopher to win his second consecutive NAPA Auto Parts Gopher 50 at Deer Creek Speedway. 

The Oakwood, IL driver had to creatively maneuver his way through the stout field of World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model competitors and pass four-time Series champion Brandon Sheppard for his second Gopher triumph. 

Beginning the Feature from the second row, Pierce squeezed his way to second place after a four-wide chase for the spot on the first lap of the 75-lap race. 

While in second, he had to juggle keeping Sheppard within reach while having to also worry about Friday winner Ryan Gustin behind him. The Marshalltown, IA driver was using every inch of the track to craft strong runs toward the front. 

Pierce needed traffic to hamper Sheppard’s lead, but an excess number of cautions helped keep the No. B5 Sheppard Riggs Racing Longhorn in clean air. 

But with 15 laps to go, Pierce found the opportunity to craft his move for the lead. Sliding low on Sheppard through Turn 3, the two drivers entered a dead heat for the top spot – set to award $50,000. 

On the next lap, Pierce got enough of a run around the high side of the track to clear Sheppard for the lead. 

His time out front nearly slipped away after he jumped the cushion in Turn 4 on Lap 65, but a caution on the same lap for Cody Overton flipping behind him gave Pierce the respite he needed to be ready for the final 10-lap dash. 

From there, the No. 32 Low Voltage Solutions Longhorn Chassis stayed on the rails toward victory as the “Smooth Operator” won his fifth Series Feature of 2024 and third consecutive win at Deer Creek Speedway with a national dirt Late Model tour. 

“First off, the track was great,” Pierce said. “It moved up towards the top, but that’s where you had to be. It was so technical out there, but it was an awesome race with me and Brandon. He was driving the wheels off that thing, and I had to do my best to keep up with him. The cautions kept coming out and I was getting irritated because I knew it had to take some lapped traffic to get the job done, eventually pulled the slider and got the job done. 

“This race is awesome, and the fans showed up, with Dylan Scott showing up and I’m a fan and we’ve been buddies for a little bit now. This is the third time we’ve shown up to this race, and we’ve always showed up for the big-money race. I wanted to win this race again badly, and this helps turn our year around. With the bad luck we’ve had, this helps get some momentum back. The nerves were pretty high, it was a hassle, but I was glad to see the checkered flag.” 

Sheppard finished second, disappointed not to win but proud of the effort made in the 75-lap endurance battle. 

“I’m a little bit disappointed in myself there,” Sheppard said. “I wasn’t aggressive enough in lap traffic and pretty much gave that one away there. Just put that in the memory bank to get up on the wheel a little bit more. To beat Bobby, he’s been good all year and will be tough the rest of the year, so we gotta do all we can to be more aggressive in lap traffic. It’s on me, my team has done a really good job, the car’s been great, it was just one of them days.” 

Capturing his second podium with the Series in 2024, New Waverly, TX driver Tyler Erb completed the night’s podium by completing a last-lap pass on Gustin. His seven-position climb through the 75 laps earned “Terbo” the Fox Factory Hard Charger Award. 

“The first 40 laps were pretty wide open,” Erb said. “Everyone was going about the same speed, and we haven’t been good in that condition the whole time we’ve been here. The track started to slow down and widen out and got to the fence. I could maneuver really good. I wasn’t making much hay on the restarts. It would take about five laps to get moving and make something happen. It was our best showing of the three races and progressively got better over the last 24 hours here. It feels good, our guys are working really hard, and keep trying to win some races.” 

Gustin finished fourth place, and Mooresville, NC driver Nick Hoffman completed the night’s top five finishers from the Gopher 50.

Sheppard enters the next race as the Series points leader with an 18-point lead over Hoffman. Pierce is third, 154 points behind Sheppard. 

RECAP NOTES: 

Dirt King Simulator Hottest Hot Lap: Tyler Bruening 

Dash Winners: Ryan Gustin, Tyler Stevens 

Last Chance Showdown Winner: Dustin Sorensen 

Fox Factory Hard Charger: Tyler Erb 

Up Next: The World of Outlaws CASE Late Models make their second trip to Pennsylvania and Ohio with Bedford Speedway on Thursday, July 11, and Sharon Speedway on July 12-13. For more information on the events and tickets, CLICK HERE. 

If you can’t make it to the tracks, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.  

CASE Late Model Feature (75 Laps): 1. 32-Bobby Pierce[3]; 2. B5-Brandon Sheppard[2]; 3. 1-Tyler Erb[10]; 4. 19R-Ryan Gustin[1]; 5. 9-Nick Hoffman[4]; 6. 25-Chad Simpson[11]; 7. 16-Tyler Bruening[7]; 8. 40B-Kyle Bronson[6]; 9. 3S-Brian Shirley[16]; 10. 97-Cade Dillard[12]; 11. 19-Dustin Sorensen[17]; 12. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[8]; 13. 18-Shannon Babb[5]; 14. 18C-Chase Junghans[15]; 15. 22*-Max McLaughlin[18]; 16. B1-Brent Larson[14]; 17. 76-Blair Nothdurft[20]; 18. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[23]; 19. 97JR-Cody Overton[21]; 20. 43-Derrick Stewart[22]; 21. 14W-Dustin Walker[24]; 22. 49-Jake Timm[13]; 23. 11H-Lance Hofer[19]; 24. 29-Tyler Stevens[9]

Midwest Tripleheader Upcoming for Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

BATAVIA, Ohio (July 8, 2024) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is returning to the Midwest this weekend for three showdowns at three unique venues across three different states. The weekend kicks off on Thursday, July 11, at 34 Raceway for the Slocum 50 presented by Roederer’s Pit Stop – a 50-lap, $15,555 to win feature event. Joining the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series at 34 Raceway are the Modifieds and Stock Cars. The pit gate will open at 2:00 PM with the general admission gate opening at 5:00 PM. On track action will begin at 6:30 PM. 34 Raceway, often referred to as Southeast Iowa’s Premier Place to Race, is located in West Burlington, Iowa and has hosted numerous prestigious national events since its inception in 1966. One of the most notable events still going to this day is the Slocum 50, in memory of the late, Brent Slocum. To learn more about 34 Raceway or to purchase Slocum 50 tickets in advance, visit www.34raceway.com.   From there, the Series moves to Tri-City Speedway for the 50-lap, $12,000 to win, NAPA Know How 50. The Modified and B-Mods are also on the racing card at Tri-City Speedway, each vying for a $1,000 top prize. At Tri-City Speedway, the pit gate will open at 2:00 PM with the general admission gate opening at 5:00 PM. On track action will begin at 6:30 PM. Tri-City Speedway is a 3/8-mile oval located just across the Mississippi River 8 miles from Downtown St. Louis, MO in Granite City, IL. For more information, please visit www.tricityspeedway.net. The 18th Annual CMH Diamond Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment will close out the weekend on Saturday, July 13. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series and Lucas Oil Midwest Latemodel Racing Association (MLRA) co-sanctioned event will see a significant purse increase in 2024 – now boasting $20,000 to the winner of the 50-lap main event. The USRA Modifieds will be in action gunning for a top prize of $1,000. The USRA Stock Cars will also be in action gunning for $750 to win. The pit gates at Lucas Oil Speedway will remain open all day, closed and cleared at 3:30 PM, and re-opened at 4:00 PM. The general admission gate will open at 5:00 PM. Hot Laps begin at 6:30 PM. Lucas Oil Speedway is located at the intersection of Highway 83 and Highway 54 in Wheatland Missouri, about an hour North of Springfield and only about an hour and a half from Kansas City. For advance ticket purchases or more information about Lucas Oil Speedway, visit www.lucasoilspeedway.com. The 18th Annual CMH Diamond Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment will be the next bonus round in the Big River Steel Chase for the Championship Presented by ARP. The Summit Racing Equipment Super Twelve will award each driver within the top twelve in the championship standings a share of a $16,000 payout. Summit Racing Equipment Super Twelve Payout: 1. $5,000, 2. $1,000, 3. $1,000, 4. $1,000, 5. $1,000, 6. $1,000, 7. $1,000, 8. $1,000, 9. $1,000, 10. $1,000, 11. $1,000, 12. $1,000 = Total $16,000 Ricky Thornton Jr. leads the Big River Steel Chase for the Championship presented by ARP. Jonathan Davenport is second, followed by Devin Moran, Tim McCreadie, and Mike Marlar rounding out the top five in the current championship standings. Clay Harris leads the O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year chase by 35 points over Drake Troutman. For the latest news, results, championship standings and more about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, please visit www.lucasdirt.com. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Purses:34 Raceway – July 11: 1. $15,555, 2. $7,000, 3. $5,000, 4. $4,000, 5. $3,000, 6. $2,500, 7. $2,400, 8. $2,300, 9. $2,200, 10. $2,100, 11. $2,000, 12. $1,800, 13. $1,600, 14. $1,500, 15. $1,400, 16. $1,300, 17. $1,200, 18. $1,100, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000, = Total $63,955 Tri-City Speedway – July 12: 1. $12,000, 2. $6,000, 3. $3,500, 4. $2,800, 5. $2,500, 6. $2,300, 7. $2,200, 8. $2,100, 9. $2,050, 10. $2,000, 11. $1,600, 12. $1,400, 13. $1,200, 14. $1,100, 15. $1,050, 16. $1,000, 17. $1,000, 18. $1,000, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000 = $52,800 Lucas Oil Speedway – July 13: 1. $20,000, 2. $10,000, 3. $6,500, 4. $5,000, 5. $4,000, 6. $3,500, 7. $3,000, 8. $2,500, 9. $2,400, 10. $2,300, 11. $2,200, 12. $2,000, 13. $1,900, 14. $1,800, 15. $1,700, 16. $1,500, 17. $1,300, 18. $1,200, 19. $1,200, 20. $1,200, 21. $1,200, 22. $1,200, 23. $1,200, 24. $1,200 = $80,000 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Tire Rule:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier (90) NLMT2, (90) NLMT3Right Rear – Hoosier (92) NLMT3, (92) NLMT4

About Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt SeriesFounded in 2005, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series showcases the talents of the top dirt late model drivers from across the country. In 2024, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will sanction 63 events across 16 states, including some of the biggest marquee events in the industry, providing dirt slinging, sideways, door-to-door racing action lap after lap.  The series receives national exposure through a television package streamed live via FloRacing, with select broadcasts on MAVTV Motorsports Network.   The in your face excitement of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is second to none in motorsports. For more information, including the latest news, tour schedule, driver information, and more, visit the official website at: www.LucasDirt.com.2024 Official Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Marketing Partners

Midwest Tripleheader Upcoming for Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series

BATAVIA, Ohio (July 8, 2024) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is returning to the Midwest this weekend for three showdowns at three unique venues across three different states. The weekend kicks off on Thursday, July 11, at 34 Raceway for the Slocum 50 presented by Roederer’s Pit Stop – a 50-lap, $15,555 to win feature event. Joining the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series at 34 Raceway are the Modifieds and Stock Cars. The pit gate will open at 2:00 PM with the general admission gate opening at 5:00 PM. On track action will begin at 6:30 PM. 34 Raceway, often referred to as Southeast Iowa’s Premier Place to Race, is located in West Burlington, Iowa and has hosted numerous prestigious national events since its inception in 1966. One of the most notable events still going to this day is the Slocum 50, in memory of the late, Brent Slocum. To learn more about 34 Raceway or to purchase Slocum 50 tickets in advance, visit www.34raceway.com.   From there, the Series moves to Tri-City Speedway for the 50-lap, $12,000 to win, NAPA Know How 50. The Modified and B-Mods are also on the racing card at Tri-City Speedway, each vying for a $1,000 top prize. At Tri-City Speedway, the pit gate will open at 2:00 PM with the general admission gate opening at 5:00 PM. On track action will begin at 6:30 PM. Tri-City Speedway is a 3/8-mile oval located just across the Mississippi River 8 miles from Downtown St. Louis, MO in Granite City, IL. For more information, please visit www.tricityspeedway.net. The 18th Annual CMH Diamond Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment will close out the weekend on Saturday, July 13. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series and Lucas Oil Midwest Latemodel Racing Association (MLRA) co-sanctioned event will see a significant purse increase in 2024 – now boasting $20,000 to the winner of the 50-lap main event. The USRA Modifieds will be in action gunning for a top prize of $1,000. The USRA Stock Cars will also be in action gunning for $750 to win. The pit gates at Lucas Oil Speedway will remain open all day, closed and cleared at 3:30 PM, and re-opened at 4:00 PM. The general admission gate will open at 5:00 PM. Hot Laps begin at 6:30 PM. Lucas Oil Speedway is located at the intersection of Highway 83 and Highway 54 in Wheatland Missouri, about an hour North of Springfield and only about an hour and a half from Kansas City. For advance ticket purchases or more information about Lucas Oil Speedway, visit www.lucasoilspeedway.com. The 18th Annual CMH Diamond Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment will be the next bonus round in the Big River Steel Chase for the Championship Presented by ARP. The Summit Racing Equipment Super Twelve will award each driver within the top twelve in the championship standings a share of a $16,000 payout. Summit Racing Equipment Super Twelve Payout: 1. $5,000, 2. $1,000, 3. $1,000, 4. $1,000, 5. $1,000, 6. $1,000, 7. $1,000, 8. $1,000, 9. $1,000, 10. $1,000, 11. $1,000, 12. $1,000 = Total $16,000 Ricky Thornton Jr. leads the Big River Steel Chase for the Championship presented by ARP. Jonathan Davenport is second, followed by Devin Moran, Tim McCreadie, and Mike Marlar rounding out the top five in the current championship standings. Clay Harris leads the O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year chase by 35 points over Drake Troutman. For the latest news, results, championship standings and more about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, please visit www.lucasdirt.com. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Purses:34 Raceway – July 11: 1. $15,555, 2. $7,000, 3. $5,000, 4. $4,000, 5. $3,000, 6. $2,500, 7. $2,400, 8. $2,300, 9. $2,200, 10. $2,100, 11. $2,000, 12. $1,800, 13. $1,600, 14. $1,500, 15. $1,400, 16. $1,300, 17. $1,200, 18. $1,100, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000, = Total $63,955 Tri-City Speedway – July 12: 1. $12,000, 2. $6,000, 3. $3,500, 4. $2,800, 5. $2,500, 6. $2,300, 7. $2,200, 8. $2,100, 9. $2,050, 10. $2,000, 11. $1,600, 12. $1,400, 13. $1,200, 14. $1,100, 15. $1,050, 16. $1,000, 17. $1,000, 18. $1,000, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000 = $52,800 Lucas Oil Speedway – July 13: 1. $20,000, 2. $10,000, 3. $6,500, 4. $5,000, 5. $4,000, 6. $3,500, 7. $3,000, 8. $2,500, 9. $2,400, 10. $2,300, 11. $2,200, 12. $2,000, 13. $1,900, 14. $1,800, 15. $1,700, 16. $1,500, 17. $1,300, 18. $1,200, 19. $1,200, 20. $1,200, 21. $1,200, 22. $1,200, 23. $1,200, 24. $1,200 = $80,000 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Tire Rule:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier (90) NLMT2, (90) NLMT3Right Rear – Hoosier (92) NLMT3, (92) NLMT4

by Colby Trotter

CLARKSVILLE, TN (July 6, 2024) – David Breazeale didn’t start racing until he was 22. He didn’t join a national Late Model tour until he was 42. And Saturday night at Clarksville Speedway, at the age of 48, Breazeale earned his first career DIRTcar Summer Nationals victory.

Breazeale, of Four Corners, MS, led all 40 laps of the Feature while persevering through several cautions at the beginning of the race. Brezeale was strong on each restart and drove away for one of the biggest wins of his career. 

“It means the world,” Breazeale said. “It’s been right at five years since I’ve won any kind of Late Model race and to come out here on the DIRTcar Summer Nationals who I don’t run with a bunch and a place I’ve never been.  

“I somehow have a weird record of winning at tracks for the first time I’ve ever seen them. To come out here with this field of cars and lead it flag-to-flag, it’s a good feeling.” 

Since his days as a national tour regular in 2018, the former World of Outlaws Rookie of the Year has switched to a part-time racing schedule that fits better with the full-time commitment to his self-owned logging company – a job that requires long hours before even thinking about racing. 

“It’s mentally tough because it requires my presence there at the logging to make it profitable enough that we can afford to do this,” Breazeale said. “When I’m not there it’s costing me money. It’s a mental challenge to keep my head in the game and do this because a lot of times we just need to stay home and work.” 

After winning his Heat Race, Breazeale redrew the pole for the Feature with Rodney Melvin lined up beside him. At the drop of the green flag, Breazeale won the mad dash to the first corner to take the lead. 

Once Breazeale took the lead, he started to set the pace around the 1/4-mile oval, jumping out a few car lengths ahead of second-place Jadon Frame when the first caution flag came out on Lap 6. 

The first yellow flag was a sign of things to come as four more cautions occurred before the race hit the midway point. Despite all the restarts, Breazeale stayed strong each time, holding off the rest of the field behind him. 

One more caution occurred on Lap 34, but once again, Breazeale got the advantage on the restart to finish over one second ahead of runner-up Jadon Frame. 

“It’s tough,” Breazeale said on the number of restarts he faced. “Knowing [Tanner English] is back there and [Dillon McCowan]. They’ve been at it every day so they obviously have way more laps, and I kept thinking somebody would try me on the outside because I felt like my pace was getting slower and slower. 

“It was really up to me, and to think about it at every caution was not good, especially since I’m not used to leading races.” 

UP NEXT 

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Models will crown a Week 4 champion at Tri-State Speedway Haubstadt, IN on Sunday July 7. 

Tickets will be available at the gate and if you can’t be there watch all the action on DIRTVision. 

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view results here)  

Feature (40 Laps): 1. 54-David Breazeale[1]; 2. 818-Jadon Frame[3]; 3. 8-Dillon McCowan[6]; 4. 29-Christian Hanger[11]; 5. C6-Oakley Johns[5]; 6. 15-Clayton Stuckey[18]; 7. 28B-Carson Brown[12]; 8. 30-Mark Voigt[19]; 9. 78-Matthew Brocato[8]; 10. 54JR-Larry Barber Jr[21]; 11. 18-David Seibers[14]; 12. 27M-Rodney Melvin[2]; 13. 75-Daniel Adam[22]; 14. 31AUS-Joe Chalmers[20]; 15. 127-Robert Ardry[15]; 16. 38T-Dillon Tidmore[9]; 17. 16L-Michael Luna[23]; 18. 83-Jensen Ford[16]; 19. 212-Josh Putnam[13]; 20. 96-Tanner English[4]; 21. 174-Ethan Dotson[7]; 22. 2-Charlie Cole[10]; 23. 14JR-Trey Mills[17] 

Lucas Lee Leads Flag-to-Flag at Clarksville for First Summit Modified Win of 2024 

Lucas Lee has topped the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals field seven times in his career – four of which have now come at Clarksville Speedway after a dominating performance Saturday night. 

Lee, of Paris, TN, led all 25 laps of the main event while holding off Friday night winner Trent Young and current Summit Modified points leader Trevor Neville. Lee said his comfortability with the track played a big role in his first Hell Tour victory since 2022. 

“When I was 15 years old this was the first place I ever came to race,” Lee said. “I’ve got a lot of laps around here and that matters a lot. We grew up with a lot of competition at this racetrack and that plays a big part of it because I know where to run and not to run and that’s a big advantage.” 

Lee started on the outside pole and ripped the high side around the 1/4-mile oval to take the lead on Lap 1. From there, Lee was forced to restart three times with both Young and Neville behind him, but Lee was able to get the jump he needed each time. 

Try as they may, neither Young nor Neville were able to catch Lee as the Tennessee racer sped off and collected his first Summit Modified win of the year. 

“This is my backyard they’re playing in,” Lee said. “It’s usually the man that starts on the pole here so I was glad I could run in there and get down. I wasn’t really in concern any.” 

UP NEXT 

The Summit Modifieds continue Week 4 action Sunday, July 7, at Tri-State Speedway in Haubstadt, IN. Tickets will be on sale at the gate. If you can’t be there to watch in person, stream every lap live on DIRTVision. 

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view full results) 

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 12L-Lucas Lee[2]; 2. 10Y-Trent Young[4]; 3. 777-Trevor Neville[7]; 4. 188-Jeremy Sneed[6]; 5. 54-Zachary Hawk[10]; 6. 9B-Cory Balkey[11]; 7. 94-Austin Rettig[9]; 8. 00-Troy Gay[5]; 9. 60-Jim Manka[17]; 10. 11-Brian Ashby[12]; 11. 55M-Blaze Melton[8]; 12. 66-Adam Wright[13]; 13. 86A-Kevin Burns[14]; 14. 182-Ryan Williams[19]; 15. 1-Colby Paris[18]; 16. 4-Brenden Heizer[16]; 17. 121-Caleb Slaughter[3]; 18. 8-Todd Riley[15]; 19. 14-Dalton Lane[1] 

Photo credit – Tyler Carr

(7/6/24 – Ben Deatherage) Petaluma, CA … Sean Becker hit NARC 410 Sprint Series paydirt by capturing the $5,200 to win the David Lindt Memorial at Petaluma Speedway. The pilot of the Bjork Construction #7B Maxim survived a late race skirmish with race leader Dylan Bloomfield and went on to score top honors in the 30-lap contest.  It was his 12th series victory.”This team has been so close for so long, and when you get a carrot in front of you, you go eat it,” said an overjoyed 2005 NARC champion, “I’m so happy for this team. We finally got a win with NARC, and we go to Watsonville next week, where I feel pretty confident there, too.”After an opening race red flag, Dylan Bloomfield charged to the point in the Starr Property Management #83V Maxim, beating out Justin Sanders to the line on the second attempt to complete a lap. A couple of cautions put the brakes on the green flag runs, but Bloomfield rose to the occasion on each restart.The Oakley teenager set a blistering pace but struggled with a lapped car in the final few laps. In the process, Bloomfield and Becker got together as they battled for the lead. Bloomfield came to a halt with two to go and Becker would hold on to win his third NARC career event at Petaluma.”It was getting harder and harder to run the bottom, and Dylan kept missing it, and it breaks my heart to win the race like that. I did not mean to make contact with him. I drove that car a couple of years ago, and I have nothing but respect for Dave and Debbie Vertullo as car owners and Dylan as a driver,” continued Becker.Sanders would settle in second in the Mittry Motorsports fielded Farmer’s Brewing Company #2X KPC. Tarlton Motorsports pilot Cole Macedo would rally to finish third and earned Williams Roofing Hardcharger honors after the Tarlton & Son #21 Maxim started 13th.The Gary Silva Ranches #10 KPC, driven by Dominic Gorden, was fourth at the line after a spirited battle for much of the race with Macedo. Justyn Cox, aboard the Lippert Construction #42X Maxim, wrapped up the top five.Caeden Steele recovered from the back to finish sixth over Nick Parker. Billy Aton recovered from the opening lap incident to place eighth. The rest of the top ten included 2017 NARC champion Bud Kaeding and Gauge Garcia.Heat winners were Bloomfield, Aton, and Chase Johnson earlier in the night.Johnson, Burt Foland Jr., Koen Shaw, and Jake Haulot were all involved in an opening lap red flag and walked away unharmed.HOOSIER RACING TIRES A-FEATURE (30 LAPS): 1. 7B-Sean Becker [4]; 2. 2X-Justin Sanders [3]; 3. 21-Cole Macedo [13]; 4. 10-Dominic Gorden [7]; 5. 42X-Justyn Cox [14]; 6. 121-Caeden Steele [1]; 7. 15-Nick Parker [15]; 8. 26-Billy Aton [6]; 9. 29-Bud Kaeding [9]; 10. 2K-Gauge Garcia [8]; 11. 12J-John Clark [17]; 12. 83V-Dylan Bloomfield [2]; 13. 52-David Lindt III [11]; 14. 76-Jennifer Osborne [19]; 15. 1-Chance Grasty [20]; 16. 75-Bill Smith [21]; 17. 24-Chase Johnson [5]; 18. 7H-Jake Haulot [10]; 19. 88-Koen Shaw [16]; 20. 4-Burt Foland Jr. [18]; 21. 12-Jarrett Soares [12]METTEC TITANIUM LAP LEADERS: Dylan Bloomfield 1-28; Sean Becker 29-30WILLIAMS ROOFING HARDCHARGER:  Cole Macedo +10 (13th to 3rd)BROWN AND MILLER RACING SOLUTIONS HEAT ONE (8 LAPS): 1. 83V-Dylan Bloomfield [1]; 2. 29-Bud Kaeding [3]; 3. 7H-Jake Haulot [2]; 4. 7B-Sean Becker [4]; 5. 21-Cole Macedo [5]; 6. 12J-John Clark [7]; 7. 76-Jennifer Osborne [6]KIMO’S TROPICAL CAR WASH HEAT TWO (8 LAPS): 1. 24-Chase Johnson [1]; 2. 10-Dominic Gorden [2]; 3. 2X-Justin Sanders [4]; 4. 12-Jarrett Soares [3]; 5. 42X-Justyn Cox [5]; 6. 4-Burt Foland Jr. [7]; 7. 1-Chance Grasty [6]WINTERS PERFORMANCE HEAT THREE (8 LAPS): 1. 26-Billy Aton [1]; 2. 2K-Gauge Garcia [2]; 3. 52-David Lindt III [3]; 4. 121-Caeden Steele [4]; 5. 15-Nick Parker [5]; 6. 88-Koen Shaw [6]; 7. 75-Bill Smith [7]BEACON WEALTH STRATEGIES TROPHY DASH (6 LAPS): 1. 121-Caeden Steele [2]; 2. 83V-Dylan Bloomfield [1]; 3. 2X-Justin Sanders [3]; 4. 7B-Sean Becker [4]; 5. 24-Chase Johnson [5]; 6. 26-Billy Aton [6]ARP FAST QUALIFIER: Sean Becker, 13.024 (21 Cars)

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (July 6, 2024) – Reigning Grand National Champion Jared Mees (No. 1 Rogers Racing/SDI Racing/Indian Motorcycle FTR750) demonstrated his Mile mastery yet again with a victory in Saturday night’s Memphis Shades DuQuoin Mile, Round 10 of the 2024 Progressive American Flat Track season, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing. The Mission AFT SuperTwins Main Event at the “Magic Mile” was a race-long struggle of nerves and consistency. Mees attempted throughout to shake loose at the front while a three-rider pack of pursuers consisting of Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT), Brandon Price(No. 92 Memphis Shades/Sody Ent/OTBR Yamaha MT-07), and Briar Bauman (No. 3 Rick Ware Racing/KTM/Parts Plus KTM 790 Duke) did everything in their collective power to prevent that eventuality from playing out. Daniels’ early strategy was to keep Mees corralled the best he could, continually running underneath him on corner entrance in hopes of limiting the Indian star’s opportunity to run with clear air in front of him. Ultimately, the Estenson Racing ace was riding a tightrope in those efforts, and once Mees finally managed to maintain the lead for a full lap, he stretched open those crucial couple of tenths he needed to grasp a firm grip on the race. While he was unable to make an escape, the trio of contenders behind were also unable to draw back near enough to make any further assaults from that point forward. That nearly changed when Dalton Gauthier’s (No. 79 Moto Anatomy X Powered by Royal Enfield 650) bike broke with less than a minute remaining, resulting in a thick cloud of smoke that settled in across the track. The lack of visibility forced Mees to check up ever so slightly, allowing Daniels to close from more than a half-second back to just 0.234 seconds with only two laps remaining to decide the winner. Mees stayed calm and regrouped to eked back out to a 0.389-second margin of victory at the flag. While unable to pull off the upset, Daniels did execute his secondary mission of minimizing any damage done to his championship hopes by holding on for second. The victory was the 75th of Mees’ record-breaking career, moving him to within three of second-placed Chris Carr. It also elevated his career Mile wins mark to 28, just one behind Carr for second in the discipline as well. “It felt really good, just to feel good again, honestly,” Mees said. “The bike worked really good from the start, and we knew coming in here we were going to be a big player. The Rogers Racing/SDI Insulation/Progressive Insurance Indian Motorcycle was really strong tonight. Big thanks to everyone… So many great people are big contributors to our success. I had a lot of fun tonight, for sure.” Price earned his second podium of the season in third, just 0.055 seconds back of Daniels, while Bauman finished fourth less than a quarter of a second further in arrears. Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing Indian FTR750) edged rookies Declan Bender (No. 70 GOMR/BriggsAuto.com/Martin Trucking Indian FTR750) and Trevor Brunner (No. 21 Mission Foods/Zanotti Racing Indian FTR750) for fifth in a fight that took place approximately six seconds behind the lead group. Meanwhile, Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) suffered a blow to his title efforts in eighth, with Cameron Smith (No. 34 RVR/KTM/Schaefer’s Motorsport KTM 790 Duke) and Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 JMC Motorsports/Fairway Ford Ohio Indian FTR750) rounding out the top ten. The race served as a fitting conclusion the week-long celebration of motorcycle dirt track racing at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds in DuQuoin, Illinois, that also saw the sport’s future stars crowned at the 2024 Mission Foods AMA Flat Track Grand Championship, sanctioned by the American Motorcyclist Association, before the greatest riders of today took centerstage to put on a show. 2018 Nicky Hayden AMA Flat Track Horizon Award winner Daniels now leads 2001 Nicky Hayden AMA Flat Track Horizon Award winner Mees 216 to 197 in the fight for the 2024 Grand National Championship. Robinson was relegated to third at 186. Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER Chase Saathoff (No. 88 JPG Motorsports Honda CRF450R) finally pulled it off. After finishing less than 0.1 seconds from victory in the most recent five Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER Mile Main Events, the JPG Motorsports pilot took Saturday’s win by an official 0.001 seconds following ten minutes and two laps of epic pack-war action. The high drama actually got underway even before the race itself did. Double defending champion Kody Kopp (No. 1 Rick Ware Racing/Parts Plus KTM 450 SX-F) lost his chain during the citing lap, threatening his participation in the race while promising to leave his hard-earned points lead in tatters. While Kopp’s Rick Ware Racing crew frantically worked to fit a new chain in the Turn 4 area, the field blasted off and worked its way around to complete the opening lap. Kopp was finally released into the fray one lap down, but his incredibly bad luck was swapped out for some incredibly good luck when a red flag was thrown as a result of debris on the racing line. That led to a complete restart, which put Kopp back in the fight and back on the lead lap, albeit forced to start from the back of the pack after failing to line up on the grid for the original start. At the restart, Saathoff resumed his battle for first with the likes of Tom Drane (No. 59 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F), James Ott (No. 19 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450), and Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R), among several others. However, Kopp made the most of his second opportunity, powering his way all the way up from 18th and into the lead in the span of seven laps. A 12-rider lead pack slowly whittled its way down to six by the time the clock hit zero. That was immediately reduced to five when race leader Lowe encountered a mechanical issue of his own moments after taking the two-to-go flags. On the decisive final circulation, Kopp blew up pre-race favorite Drane’s last-lap strategy, pushing him up the track ever so slightly where the Aussie lost his drive and drifted back to fourth. Kopp then zeroed in on Saathoff, and the KTM-mounted champ very nearly pulled off the last-to-first win, coming up mere millimeters short of edging ahead of his opponent’s Honda as they stormed over the line. While it was technically Saathoff’s second career victory, it was the first time he actually did so under live action with the checkered flag waving. Afterward, he said, “The main thing for me was to focus on my job, and I had to have a gameplan the whole day. But that entire Main Event, I didn’t know what the heck was going on. I didn’t know if I should try to lead or make a pass at the finish. Towards the end, I came around Turn 3 and I was leading, and I thought, ‘I’m just gonna do it!’ It was a crazy race. I can’t thank everyone enough… I’m so happy I got to take the victory lap with Bryan (Bigelow). That meant the world to me.” Third place went to Ott – his first podium of the season – just 0.044 seconds off the win and 0.044 seconds ahead of Drane. Fifth was taken by impressive rookie Evan Kelleher (No. 131 Schaefers Motorsports/South Shore Design KTM 450 SX-F), who slugged it out with the best riders in the class to finish just 0.204 seconds off the win. Kopp’s potential championship catastrophe was not only avoided, he actually maintained his pre-race advantage of 32 points, only now with Saathoff back in second (225-193) and Drane falling to third at 188. Next Up: Progressive American Flat Track will return to action on Sunday, July 28, with the World Famous SC2 Peoria TT presented by Backyards Saloon at the Peoria Motorcycle Club in Peoria, Illinois. Visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/peoriamotorcycleclub/events/peoria-tt-2024-80043 to secure your tickets today. For those who can’t catch the action from the circuit, FloRacing is the live streaming home of Progressive AFT. Sign up now and catch every second of the on-track action, from the first practice to the victory podium, at https://flosports.link/aft. FOX Sports coverage of the Memphis Shades DuQuoin Mile, featuring in-depth features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Sunday, July 14, at 12:00 p.m. ET (9:00 a.m. PT).

July 6, 2024 — LEXINGTON, OH

• Alex Palou scored his second-straight pole of the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season; sixth career pole
• Honda drivers claim five of top-six starting positions at Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid
• Meyer Shank Racing’s David Malukas qualifies third in second race back from wrist injury 

Alex Palou is starting the new NTT INDYCAR SERIES hybrid era off exactly how he hoped, qualifying on pole for the first-ever hybrid race aboard his #10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.

Palou’s laptime of 1:05.3511 was just 0.0024 of a second ahead of second place—giving him his second-consecutive pole position of 2024 following the race two weeks ago at Laguna Seca. Palou would go on to win at Laguna Seca, his second victory of the year, bolstering his championship lead to 23 points at the mid-point of the season.

Honda powered five of the top-six qualifiers, with Meyer Shank Racing’s David Malukas rolling off third aboard his #66 Honda Indy car in only his second race back in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES following a wrist injury in the offseason. 

Last year’s Mid-Ohio pole sitter, Colton Herta, qualified fourth, with Andretti Global teammate Marcus Ericsson qualifying sixth. Meanwhile, Palou’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Marcus Armstrong qualified in the fifth position, but is facing a grid penalty for Sunday’s race. 

Christian Lundgaard and Linus Lundqvist also made it to the second round of INDYCAR knockout qualifying for Honda, qualifying 10th and 11th respectively. 

Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Honda Qualifying Results

•  1st Alex Palou
•  3rd David Malukas   
•  4th Colton Herta
•  5th Marcus Armstrong  
•  6th Marcus Ericsson
• 10th Christian Lundgaard        
• 11th Linus Lundqvist-R
• 13th Felix Rosenqvist 
• 14th Scott Dixon            
• 15th Kyle Kirkwood                
• 19th Graham Rahal                 
• 23rd Pietro Fittipaldi 
• 24th Kyffin Simpson-R   
• 25th Toby Sowrey-R    
• 27th Jack Harvey              

Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Meyer Shank Racing Honda
Andretti Global Honda
Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Andretti Global Honda
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda   
Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Meyer Shank Racing Honda
Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Andretti Global Honda
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda  
Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
Dale Coyne Racing Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes
Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) pole qualifier, 2nd consecutive pole and 3rd of the season, 6th career INDYCAR pole: “It’s busy [on track] with the hybrid, but I think it was busy for everybody. Qualifying was super close, even Q1 and the Fast 12 was super tight. But I knew we had a really fast car. The car, the team and everyone was great today. Kudos to HRC for placing five cars in the Fast Six, they did an amazing job. It was an awesome result for them. Now we’re looking forward to the first hybrid race tomorrow.”

David Malukas (#66 Meyer Shank Racing Honda) will start third in his second race back from injury: “Talk about a turn-around! This year has been an emotional roller coaster and honestly, just looking back at everything that’s happened I feel like I’m back at my maximum potential. We haven’t done much racing, but have done a lot of testing, and a lot of sim work. Also Josh [Pitts] from HRC helped a lot. I knew our car was there, the setup was there, so now we had to put it together. Man, it was a perfect situation for me and I couldn’t be happier.”

Pierre Descamps [Technical Director, Honda Racing Corporation USA] on INDYCAR’s first qualifying session with hybrid power: “I think this pole position is a great reward for all the hard work that everyone has put into this hybrid program—at the factory, at the track, the suppliers. Everyone has been working hard for months and months to build this hybrid system and we’re very happy to get the first pole of this new INDYCAR hybrid era. The hybrid system requires a driver to be smart and calm during their lap to use it to their advantage, and that’s exactly how Palou was in that final round of qualifying. This is really a reward for him too. We are very proud, especially since it was so tight at the top. The competition also has this hybrid system and is learning how to best use it, and it makes it even more rewarding to get this first pole.”

Fast Facts

• This weekend’s Honda Indy 200 Presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid marks the start of the Hybrid era in NTT INDYCAR SERIES competition. The 27-car field features 2.2-liter twin-turbocharged V6 internal combustion engines – supplied by Honda and series rival Chevrolet – supplemented by a hybrid Energy Recovery System (ERS) including an electric Motor Generator Unit (MGU) and Honda Racing Corporation USA-developed Energy Storage System (ESS).
• Honda drivers have won 12 of the 18 Indy car races run at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course since the series returned under the Honda Indy 200 banner in 2007. Last year, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda teammates Alex Palou and Scott Dixon finished 1-2 at Mid-Ohio, as Palou went on to win his second NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship in the last three years.

Where to Watch
Television coverage of Sunday’s Honda Indy 200 Presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid starts at 1:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Complete, flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on NBC Peacock, the INDYCAR Radio Network, and SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation (Channel 160).

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CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES

HONDA INDY 200 AT MID-HIO

MID-OHIO SPORTS CAR COURSE

LEXINGTON, OHIO

TEAM CHEVY QUALIFYING RECAP`            

JULY 6, 2024

ONLY TWO ONE THOUSANDTHS OF A SECOND SEPARATE FRONT ROW STARTERS FOR SUNDAY’S 80-LAP RACE

• Pato O Ward, No 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, got everything he could out of his very fast Chevy powered Arrow McLaren Indy Car in the Firestone Fast Six run for pole, but fell short in the closest front-row spread in the history of INDYCAR competition-.00024 seconds
• Team Chevy drivers claimed five of the top-12 fastest in qualifying for Sunday’s 80-lap race
• Every Chevy powered driver concluded all practice sessions and qualifying with flawless performance of the tried and true 2.2 liter V6 engine with the integrated INDYCAR Hybrid Power Unit
• Race day starts with warm up at 10:25 AM on Peacock and INDYCAR Radio with live race coverage schedule to to begin at 1:30 PM on NBC, Peacock and INDYCAR Radio

TEAM CHEVY TOP-12 QUALIFYING RESULT:

Pos. Driver

2^nd    Pato O’Ward 1:05.3535)

7th    Scott McLaughlin (1:05.6178)

8th    Alexander Rossi (1:05.6427)

9th    Christian Rasmussen (1:05.6011)

12^th    Romain Grojean (01:05.7822)

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING (QUOTES)

Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:

“There is always more, right? That was a really clean lap and I thought that we had it but when I came over the line, I heard he was a three-five and I saw three-six on the dash and I was like, ‘come on’.  But the car has been really, really strong from the start.  I told the guys that this is the strongest car that we have had all year in a race weekend, so I am really excited for tomorrow and obviously we are the ones chasing. Its always a good thing to have a carrot in front of you and we will see if we can get it tomorrow. I miss being at the front man.  I really do.”

Nolan Siegel, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet: 

It was super tight out there today. From watching the first qualifying group, it was as tight as you would imagine it being, to be honest. It’s annoying to miss pole by just that little bit, but I was really happy with the lap. Obviously, there’s always more pace to find, little bits and pieces here and there, but it’s a really strong starting position for the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet team. Tomorrow, we’ll be ready to race.”

Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet: 

“It’s disappointing to not make it to the Firestone Fast 6. The No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet was just a half of a tenth away, and we just weren’t able to get it all together. Pato was very close to pole, which just shows the strength of the whole team. We’ve got a really good car for tomorrow.”

Gavin Ward, Team Principal at Arrow McLaren:

“I’m just super proud of the whole team for getting that close to pole in the first qualifying session with the hybrid system. We were only beat by one car by four thousandths of a second, and it’s good to get a Chevrolet up in the front row. We thought we were going to get two cars in the Firestone Fast 6 with Alexander there, but just seemed to lose a little bit of rear grip on that last run. We had potential to be a little bit better. Nolan had a really strong run and was just a tenth off advancing to Round 2. We’re excited with how quickly he’s getting comfortable in the car.”

Romain Grosjean, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:

“Fast-12 in qualifying. I think we lacked a iittle bit of speed today. But we know where we are off and I think tomorrow we are going to have a really good car.”

Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:

“I qualified 22^nd, and unfortunately it was just really tight and really close to transfer. We haven’t had enough pace to battle for a better position. But we are close, and we are going recover in tomorrow’s race.”

Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet:

T’S SO TIGHT HERE, WHERE DO YOU THINK THAT EXTRA SPEED FOR THE PPG CAR IS?

 “Yeah, you just can’t be mediocre which is what that lap was.  It wasn’t a bad lap, but we arlike a session behind almost. The team did a great job and this car was pretty good, so proud of everybody with PPG here. Fun to have Travis (Law) pinch-hitting for the weekend and excited to have Chad (Gordon) back on Sunday. Congrats.  Chad has a new baby at home with his wife, which is great.  Yeah, I just think we were a little behind the eight-ball coming into it and its so tight, you have to be perfect and we weren’t perfect.”

ARE YOU GOING TO BE ABLE TO FIND THAT EXTRA SESSION BY TOMORROW?

“Oh yeah. Always, we will keep going.”

Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet:

“Just made a mistake on my first lap. Guys and girls on this car deserve better because the Sonsio Protection Chevrolet was better and we should have easily been in the Fast Six there.  On the first lap I got really loose, and we have been battling that all weekend. Yeah, probably should leave a little bit in the tank for the first corner of the fast lap, but you know you can’t give anything away and we will fly from seventh tomorrow.”

Christian Rasmussen, No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:

“This is great! We executed well. We made good changes from practice, we really absorbed what we learned and set ourselves up well for qualifying. I am very happy for everyone, not only myself for making my first Fast 12 but also for the team. It really shows that we are moving in the right direction. We have had great pace at multiple locations but haven’t had too much to show for it. It’s nice to get a good qualifying result! Now we just look forward to tomorrow and see what we can do in the race!”

Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet:

“I really struggled with the car balance out there during qualifying, which is disappointing because we know we have a car that is faster than 20th. I am very happy for my teammate Christian (Rasmussen) in making his first Fast 12. I am looking forward to racing my way up to join him near the front of the field tomorrow!”

Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Sexton Properties Chevrolet: ”Obviously we’re not a 21^st place car. It’s kind of unfortunate with the way that the groups work but we were just kind of a lap short with all the traffic in qualifying and needed one more to get the tires started and going so yeah, three-tenths is the difference in being well inside the Fast 12 and basically not great. We’re on par with our Penske teammates though and just tough to not have some outright pace this weekend in Q, but our race pace I think is really good.”

Sting Ray Robb, No. 41 Goodheart Vet / Pray.com Chevrolet: “Fairly happy with 26^th today. I know that’s a strange thing but the improvement that we made from the first two practices to qualifying was absolutely massive. I was very unhappy with the car this morning and going into to qualifying I thought that we were taking a knife to a gun fight but we actually put the car in a really good window with a good change from the crew, so super proud of them for that. Not having the deploy for the hybrid system in qualifying I think hurt us quite a bit, as well. Unfortunate that that was the case for the day but I think that were going to be really good in the race. I’m really happy with the car right now and I think we’re in a much better window. I think that we’ve got some consistency that we can pull from and race forward.”

PATO O’WARD, NO. 5 ARROW MCLAREN CHEVROLET – End of Day Press Conference:

Pato O’Ward

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Wrapping up qualifyiPato O’Ward, driver of the no. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. The difference, by the way, 24 ten thousandths of a second. That is the tightest front row in the history of the Firestone Fast Six qualifying format which goes back a few years. It was tight out there.

THE MODERATOR: Pato, your thoughts? So close today.

PATO O’WARD: Yeah, super, super tight. From watching group 1 in Q1, it was as tight as you would imagine it being, to be honest. But yeah, it’s irritating, annoying to miss it by just that little bit.

I was really happy with the lap, to be honest. Obviously there’s always more available, find little bits and pieces here. But it’s a really strong start for us tomorrow, and it’ll be a good race.

Q. How valuable was the Push-to-Pass during qualifying since we got a really good chance to see what it’s capable of doing?

PATO O’WARD: I mean, obviously whoever doesn’t use it was going to be a tenth or so slower. That’s the delta. So whatever you do without it, go down one and a half tenths, and that’s probably where you’ll do it with the boost.

I think tomorrow, it’ll be a challenge for everybody. It’ll be a challenge to see are you going to keep the same strategies, are you going to maybe change it up a little bit.

Ultimately it’s become a tool for obviously the drivers and the teams to make either your life easier or your life a lot harder. Yeah, I think it’ll be interesting.

Q. Pato, your team was pretty smart; they put a little series of lights in front of you so you can easily see the deploy and the regen and all that. How valuable is that as an asset for you to keep track of all that?

PATO O’WARD: It’s great. It’s just an extra kind of something to fall back on if you’re going through something — especially in a race scenario when you’ve got a lot more things going on. You can quickly kind of go to that and really see where you’re at in terms of levels, did you get out of sequence, can you get back into it.

Ultimately it’s kind of like a spotter, in a way. Like you’re obviously using your initial kind of judgment, but if you for some reason forget or whatever, it’s kind of there to bring you back.

Q. Do you think it won’t be long until every other car in the field has put that on their dash?

PATO O’WARD: I think every team is going to see — maybe some decides to do it, maybe some don’t, but each team will probably have their own kind of light system or whatever.

Q. For both of you guys, I know we talked 24 hours ago about all this, but after practices and qualifying, knowing how tight this gap was in qualifying today, how comfortable are both of you in feeling like you’re maximizing everything in this system when we’re talking about 24 ten thousandths of a second?

PATO O’WARD: Yeah, I would say more than obviously the free lap time that you get by using the system, I think it’s been more of a hitter into car balance. It’s hard to say with the repave with what we felt here last year, but like that extra weight does make a difference. If you choose to optimize the system rather than optimizing the balance of your car or trying to ignore it, you’re definitely going about it the wrong way because there’s just not enough to override that.

Q. You said on that Peacock broadcast, Pato, that you felt like this was the best car you had had, best qualifying run you’d had this year. What has been going so well this weekend and what do you feel like your outlook is for the race?

PATO O’WARD: Yeah, we didn’t roll off maybe perfect, but we rolled off somewhere where we were like, okay, this is exactly what I need. For some reason the last few road courses for us, which have been a very strong area, at least in 2023, this year has been the complete opposite. The tire has changed, and in some of them it’s definitely been a bit of a learning curve for us I would say. It’s taken a bit to kind of really — we’re talking about tenths. You miss it by one-tenth, and you’re out in Q1. You just need that little bit to really kind of make those steps forward.

I was really happy to see that we did that this weekend, and after every session, even with all the traffic, I knew exactly what I needed from the car. Even in qualifying, like Q1 for me was my hardest session. Like it was the hardest for me to actually transfer from Q1, but into Q2 and Q3, making the changes that we did, I got the car in the window where I needed it.

Q. The other road courses that we ran this year were with tires that were made meaning to have the hybrid in them. Now that the hybrid is in the car, is there something to that, where you guys last year when the tires weren’t perfect for the car, you guys were completely on rails and that change had something to do with the little drop in performance?

PATO O’WARD: Yeah, all it takes is a small change, and it’s what happened.

We’ve seen it in the past where in one year we go to Barber with a certain compound and then we go the next year with a different compound, and we’re at the other end of the grid. That’s the reality we live in, and you don’t really know what you’re going to get there with until obviously Firestone lets us know, and I think this year has been a little bit of a battle with that, just trying to understand what we need because we haven’t had that great performance until pretty much now that’s strong enough.

Q. Pato, have you ever been short anything by .0024 of a second? What does that .0024 of a second mean to you?

PATO O’WARD: It means he went to the bathroom before going to qualifying.

PATO O’WARD: We’re all out there pushing, pushing, pushing. That’s the beauty of it. That’s what makes it exciting and fun. Yeah, looking forward to tomorrow.

Q. Ever since Detroit a couple years ago, I’ve been waiting for this to be a common occurrence, you two guys on the front row, just the way you drive, your personalities, et cetera. What do you respect most about Alex, and Alex, what do you respect most about Pato, having competed now for a couple, three years together, et cetera?

PATO O’WARD: I mean, I’ve always said I have massive respect for him. He’s obviously got two championships now. It’s always been a pleasure racing against him, to be honest. You always know that you can race him really hard, but you know that you’re going to get the same in return, and I think that’s very valuable when you’re going 200 something miles an hour. He’s got a baby now, but great competitor. We’re obviously the ones chasing both Alex and Ganassi. Yeah, we’re pushing hard.

JULY 6, 2024 Larson Tops Final Round of Qualifying to Claim Pole Positionat Chicago

·       After turning the fastest lap overall in the NASCAR Cup Series’ practice session, Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson edged out Ty Gibbs on his final lap of qualifying to claim the pole position for tomorrow’s Grant Park 165 at the Chicago Street Course.  ·       Larson’s pole – his fifth this season and 21st all-time in NASCAR’s top division – came at a lap time of 87.836 seconds, at 90.168 mph, in his No. 5 Valvoline Camaro ZL1 to edge out second-place Gibbs by a mere 0.010 second margin.  ·       The pole win marks Chevrolet’s seventh pole of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season; and the manufacturer’s series-leading 750th all-time pole award in NASCAR’s premier series.  ·       Larson led Chevrolet to four top-10 qualifying efforts in advance of tomorrow’s 75-lap event including last year’s Chicago Street Race winner Shane van Gisbergen in fifth; Larson’s Hendrick Motorsports teammate Alex Bowman in eighth; and Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez in ninth.  ·       Pulling double-duty for the Chicago Street Race weekend, Larson also drove the No. 17 HendrickCars.com Camaro SS to a front-row starting spot for this afternoon’s NASCAR Xfinity Race at the 12-turn, 2.2-mile street course.  ·       NBC will broadcast the NASCAR Cup Series Grant Park 165 at the Chicago Street Course on Sunday, July 7, at 4:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can also be found on MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 STARTING LINEUP:  POS.   DRIVER1st      Kyle Larson, No. 5 Valvoline Camaro ZL15th      Shane van Gisbergen, No. 16 Wendy’s Saucy Nuggs Camaro ZL18th      Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally Camaro ZL19th      Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Jockey x Folds of Honor Camaro ZL1

Kyle Larson, No. 5 Valvoline Camaro ZL1 – Pole Win Media Availability Quotes Does it feel like you’re in as good of a rhythm as it looks like you are? “I feel more in rhythm in the Cup car, for sure. I think it just has a more equal balance throughout most of the corners. The Xfinity car, it just has smaller tires and stuff, so there’s just less grip. A little more on edge in that, but yeah, two good racecars, so far. Hopefully we’ll have a good race this afternoon. Obviously the main objective is just to learn more about the track; more about where you can pass and making moves that maybe I wasn’t able to make last year. Yeah, so far so good.. just still a lot left to do.”  Broadcast was talking a lot about the bumps. Is it bumpier than last year, or is it just standing out more for some reason? “No, it doesn’t feel any different to me than last year. It’s really rough when you’re coming around (turn) three; the break into four and kind of like between four and five and exiting five. Nowhere else, really, is that crazy bumpy.. maybe a little bit into 11. But my car seems to handle the bumps a little bit better this year than it did last year. Last year, I remember just being kind of like really, really bouncy. But this year, yeah – we seem to handle that a little bit better, which gives you some confidence to attack those areas.  I still feel like – and I’m sure a majority of us, maybe not SVG, but I feel like the majority of us have not quite found the max through four and five because it’s so bumpy and you feel like you’re hauling ass through there. By the time you get through the corner, you’re like – oh, I’m going too slow. It’s just a tough section.”  You mentioned finding the max; finding the different lines to run, the braking zones. Did you try to learn from anyone on-track, whether it be SVG, McDowell?“Not today. I mean we’ve all obviously studied SMT of SVG, but I didn’t spend like hours. No different, really, than normal.. just kind of briefly looked at SMT compared to myself. And usually it’s just whatever team Cliff has for me. So yeah, just kind of look at a little bit of that. It was harder to study last year’s stuff because the track wasn’t like this, as far as there were some damp spots and things like that last year in the race. Hard to fully study, but there were definitely some things worth looking at. Obviously today, I had time to look at some SMT after my runs and stuff. It helps running Xfinity, as well, because I get more time to compare lines and stuff.”   It’s your fifth NASCAR Cup Series pole this season. Is there something that you and Cliff (Daniels) do when you setup the car in qualifying trim that just makes you good, week in and week out, when you go out and lay down a fast lap?“I don’t know.. I think just probably the notebook. I think of now, we’re three years into this Next Gen car, so you hope to get better every time. I’m sure you’re getting every little detail more fine-tuned. Yeah, this year in qualifying – really racing too – has been a strong suit. But qualifying, we’ve been able to execute and get five poles to this point. That’s special. Hopefully we can keep that up and keep our speed up in races, as well.”  Given that it’s such tight corners, you’re on edge. Is there extra pride as a driver to perform well at tracks like this compared to the standard oval? “Any road course, I think you feel like the driver means a little bit more. But I don’t feel like I’m any better of a road racer one year later. I think my team is just, like I just mentioned, it’s their second year here. They studied their notes from last year and made our car a lot better in the areas that I needed help. So I think that’s what makes me really proud, too. We have a team that’s capable of doing that. I feel like last year, in qualifying especially, the Gibbs’ cars were – gosh, I was like a second off the pace. I mean I still made the final round, but I was like close to a second off the pace. This year, I know we barely beat Ty (Gibbs), but I feel like compared to Martin (Truex Jr.), Denny (Hamlin) and (Tyler) Reddick.. guys like that, I feel like we’re now not quite a bit better, but better than we were last year. I’m mostly, for this weekend, proud of that and our team.”  Some poles, you might say are more important than others. But on the street race, how big is that? Also, you’re starting two rows ahead of SVG..“Yeah, I mean sure, that helps. But he’ll (SVG) probably be up there right away. We keep talking about him a lot, but everyone in the Cup Series is really good, so you can’t focus too much on him.  Yeah, track position is really important, no doubt. It is at an oval, as well, that you run 30-second laps times on. Here, I think it’s important, but I think with stages and stuff like that, it honestly can mean a little bit less just because you’re always going to find yourself in traffic at some point, I feel like, with road course racing and stages. People flip the stages or whatever. Like Sonoma, for instance, like we had to restart towards the back. We just had a really good car and were able to drive to the front. We qualified good there, as well. So I mean, yes, it helps. But you also have to have a good racecar and execute good restarts to pickoff spots quickly.”

B-Shepp recovered from a flat tire from the Feature race earlier in the afternoon to win $7,000 at Deer Creek Speedway 

SPRING VALLEY, MN (July 5, 2024) – Brandon Sheppard didn’t miss a beat in the second NAPA Auto Parts Gopher 50 Feature on Friday at Deer Creek Speedway. 

Bouncing back from the Feature race earlier in the day that saw the New Berlin, IL driver finish 17th after suffering a flat right-rear tire, Sheppard led flag-to-flag to win his third World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models Feature race of the season at Deer Creek Speedway. 

Beginning the Feature from the front of the field after drawing the Bilstein Pole Award, Sheppard took command of the race from the drop of the Gorsuch Performance green flag. However, he couldn’t run away from the competition. 

Ryan Gustin, who won the first Feature of the night, hounded the No. B5 Dude Wipes Longhorn Factory Team Late Model throughout the duration of the 30-lap race. 

Once Sheppard caught the back of the field, the slower cars created a new obstacle for the leader every lap and opened the door for Gustin, and third-place Bobby Pierce, to pounce. 

Pierce ripped the high line with a clear lane in front of him while Sheppard and Gustin had to find creative ways to slide by the slower cars using both the high and low lanes. 

But once Sheppard cleared the minefield of traffic, he was able to run away and score the win while Gustin and Pierce were trapped in the pack. 

“It was definitely tricky,” Sheppard said. “We had to figure out how to maneuver through (the traffic). Sometimes, when you’re leading and you’re in a bad spot, you don’t know which line to take or what will be faster for you, what’s slower and where you can pass them at. I had to make my best guesses and keep the speed up. 

“I knew if I broke momentum, it was going to kill me, so I needed to keep momentum and keep rolling so they didn’t get a big run on me… This team has never given up on me and I’ve never given up on them, they never quit trying to be better, so we’ll keep plugging away and see what we can do.” 

Pierce finished his charge by throwing a haymaker at Gustin on the final lap and claiming second by the checkered flag. 

“We were terrible at the beginning and came up there at the end,” Pierce said. “Definitely wish we could have had more laps, but I’m pretty happy to come home with second. It gives us a good spot for tomorrow, we’ll have to see what they do to the track. The longer the race is, the better I’m getting to be.” 

Gustin took the final step on the podium after a day that saw him edge out Nick Hoffman by 0.009 seconds to win Thursday’s makeup Feature race. 

“This was a great day for us,” Gustin said. “I felt like we were in contention in that last (Feature), we weren’t as good as (Sheppard) was, he zigged and I zagged through the lapped traffic, and it all worked out for him. Then Bobby got us there at the end when we got held up behind a lapped car. That’s how it goes, though. Hopefully, we can take home $50,000 tomorrow night.” 

Finishing fourth was New Waverly, TX driver Tyler Erb, and Brandon, FL driver Kyle Bronson completed the top five finishers of the night. 

Here are the top-16 drivers locked into Saturday’s $50,000-to-win finale Feature: Ryan Gustin, Brandon Sheppard, Bobby Pierce, Nick Hoffman, Shannon Babb, Tyler Bruening, Dennis Erb Jr, Kyle Bronson, Tyler Erb, Tyler Stevens, Cade Dillard, Chad Simpson, Chase Junghans, Brian Shirley, Brent Larson and Jake Timm

RECAP NOTES: 

Dirt King Simulator Hottest Hot Lap: Kyle Bronson 

Simpson Quick Time Award: Ryan Gustin 

Heat Race Winners: Ryan Gustin, Brandon Sheppard, Tyler Bruening, Kyle Bronson 

Last Chance Showdown Winner: Blair Nothdurft 

Bilstein Pole Award: Brandon Sheppard 

Fox Factory Hard Charger Award: Nick Hoffman 

Up Next: The World of Outlaws CASE Late Models finish the NAPA Gopher 50 weekend at Deer Creek Speedway with Saturday’s $50,000 finale Feature on the line. The top-16 locked in through points will compete in two Dash races to set the starting lineup, while the rest of the field will battle in the Last Chance Showdown. Those that do not transfer will compete in a $3,000-to-win non-qualifiers Feature. 

For more information about Saturday night’s program and the full 2024 Series schedule, CLICK HERE. 

If you can’t make it to Deer Creek Speedway, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision. 

CASE Late Model Feature (30 Laps): 1. B5-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 32-Bobby Pierce[5]; 3. 19R-Ryan Gustin[3]; 4. 1-Tyler Erb[10]; 5. 40B-Kyle Bronson[4]; 6. 9-Nick Hoffman[13]; 7. 16-Tyler Bruening[2]; 8. 97-Cade Dillard[7]; 9. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[6]; 10. 18C-Chase Junghans[16]; 11. 3S-Brian Shirley[8]; 12. 19-Dustin Sorensen[19]; 13. 22*-Max McLaughlin[9]; 14. 76-Blair Nothdurft[17]; 15. 11H-Lance Hofer[12]; 16. 49-Jake Timm[14]; 17. 97JR-Cody Overton[11]; 18. B1-Brent Larson[18]; 19. 55C-Chad Mahder[22]; 20. 21-Billy Moyer Sr[15]; 21. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[23]; 22. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[21]; 23. 43-Derrick Stewart[20]; 24. 14W-Dustin Walker[24] 

by Colby Trotter

PADUCAH, KY (July 5, 2024) – Right when it appeared that all hope was lost for Tanner English, the Kentucky native gathered-in his concentration and refused to be denied in front of his home-state crowd Friday night at Paducah International Raceway. 

English, the former World of Outlaws Rookie of the Year from Benton, KY, led the opening 12 laps of the main event before a flat tire forced him to surrender the lead. When both Jason Feger and Tyler Clem suffered flat tires of their own while leading in the closing laps, English had driven all the way back from the tail of the field and was there to pick up the pieces for his first career DIRTcar Summer Nationals Feature win in Kentucky. 

“Luck kept rolling our way,” English said. “I hate it for Feger. He had a flat there but I think I probably would’ve won it if I hadn’t had a flat also.” 

In Victory Lane, English let the feeling of a win in front of his fans sink in and expressed his emotions in the moment. 

“It’s been a long time coming to win a big race here,” English said. “I’ve won some World 50s, some $10,000-to-win races, but like a Summer Nationals [race] – it’s something special. 

“It may not be the biggest win, may not be the most competition here, but it means a lot to me.” 

English started on the outside pole and took the lead on Lap 1 as he rolled around the high side of the 3/8-mile oval and zoomed past polesitter Jeff Herzog. Once he took the lead, English began to set the pace, gapping runner-up Feger by over a second when the yellow flag was thrown on Lap 12. 

Then, the caution flag flew again on Lap 13 and that’s when English discovered he had a flat right-rear tire. Once he found out his tire was flat, English knew he had to fix it no matter how tough the decision was. 

“I knew it was fixing to blow,” English said. “I knew it was almost gone so I didn’t have any other choice and had to do it.” 

Feger inherited the lead after English took his place at the back of the field and took off on the restart. Once Feger got the lead, it appeared as though nobody was going to catch him as he got out to over a four-second advantage with 10-to-go. 

English had not given up though; he was making a hard charge to the front of the field and was back up to fourth with five laps-to-go. Feger was still way ahead of the field but when the caution flag came out on Lap 38, he discovered he had a flat tire of his own and ducked into the work area. 

“I needed a caution bad,” English said. “I was sixth or seventh there and I just kind of rode forever waiting for a caution and finally it came out.” 

Tyler Clem then inherited the lead with English behind him. On the restart, Clem jumped the cushion in Turns 1 and 2 and slowed, bringing out the caution again and handing the lead back to English with three laps-to-go. 

“I knew something was bound to happen,” English said. “I just didn’t expect it to happen like that. Didn’t expect Feger to have a flat and then Tyler hopped the cushion there in the lead, so I just felt my way with my tires and just stayed up the rest of the race.” 

Now, English was back to where he was at the beginning of the race and got a great jump on the restart to take the checkered flag two seconds ahead of runner-up Joe Chalmers. 

While he collects the $10,000 grand prize, English said winning a Hell Tour race at his home track – where his father Terry English won five times – means far more than the winner’s check. 

“It’s big just to do it in front of my hometown crowd,” English said. “I live 15 miles down the road so it’s awesome because we get to sleep in our own bed tonight.” 

English also takes the Week 4 points lead going into the last two races of the week, now sitting 28 points ahead of Rodney Melvin. 

UP NEXT 

Week 4 of the 39th DIRTcar Summer Nationals continues Saturday, July 6, at Clarksville Speedway in Clarksville, TN. Tickets will be on sale at the gate on race day. If you can’t be there to watch in person, stream every lap live on DIRTVision. 

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view results here) 

Feature (40 Laps): 1. 96-Tanner English[2]; 2. 31AUS-Joe Chalmers[13]; 3. 15-Clayton Stuckey[20]; 4. 25F-Jason Feger[6]; 5. 8-Dillon McCowan[9]; 6. 75-Daniel Adam[8]; 7. 30-Mark Voigt[15]; 8. 31S-Paul Stubber[14]; 9. 58-Tyler Clem[16]; 10. 27M-Rodney Melvin[3]; 11. 11H-Jeff Herzog[1]; 12. 28B-Carson Brown[10]; 13. 29-Christian Hanger[7]; 14. 99-Dylan Thompson[4]; 15. 38-Thomas Hunziker[11]; 16. 10-Ronnie Cooper[17]; 17. 54-David Breazeale[12]; 18. 2-Charlie Cole[22]; 19. 174-Ethan Dotson[5]; 20. 7-Tony Cruse[21]; 21. 23C-Wyatt Cox[18]; 22. 12-Ashton Winger[19]; 23. 89-Jeremy Anderson[23] 

Trent Young Leads Every Lap at Paducah for Third Career Summit Modified Win 

Eight minutes and one second was all Trent Young needed to win the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals Feature Friday Night at Paducah International Raceway. 

Young, 39, of Crofton, KY, led all 25 laps and finished over five seconds ahead of runner-up Cole Falloway for his third career Hell Tour victory. Two of his three wins have now come at Paducah, and he said his familiarity with the track played to his advantage. 

“The speed I think,” Young said when asked why he’s had success at Paducah. “It’s fast. It’s usually a little rough. You just got to back up and drive it. A lot of guys are really good in the slick and the smooth, but you just got to get up on the wheel and go after it here and it suits me.” 

Young started on the pole after setting the Quick Time in his Qualifying group and winning his Heat Race. Once he got out to the lead on Lap 1, there was no catching him as he dominated for his first Summit Modified win of 2024. 

“It was huge,” Young said of starting on the pole. “The speed makes it hard to pass because you’re going so fast.” 

UP NEXT 

Week 4 of DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals competition continues Saturday, July 6, at Clarksville Speedway in Clarksville, TN. Tickets will be on sale at the gate on race day. If you can’t be there to watch in person, stream every lap live on DIRTVision. 

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view results here) 

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 10Y-Trent Young[1]; 2. 66-Cole Falloway[5]; 3. 12L-Lucas Lee[2]; 4. 12N-Tyler Nicely[3]; 5. 777-Trevor Neville[9]; 6. 188-Jeremy Sneed[11]; 7. 23Z-Austin Wayne Self[4]; 8. 27-Michael Turner[12]; 9. 14-Dalton Lane[20]; 10. 1L-Mike Lentz[10]; 11. 60-Jim Manka[18]; 12. 4-Brenden Heizer[19]; 13. 13-Charlie Mefford[6]; 14. 94-Austin Rettig[7]; 15. 2-Peyton Walker[15]; 16. 86A-Kevin Burns[16]; 17. 54-Zachary Hawk[14]; 18. 1-Colby Paris[21]; 19. 9B-Cory Balkey[13]; 20. 55M-Blaze Melton[17]; 21. 9D9-Cole Hilton[8]; 22. (DNS) 270-Cody Downs; 23. (DNS) 51-Timmy Hill

SPRING VALLEY, MN (July 5, 2024) – Nick Hoffman has made a habit of thrilling fans with last lap passes this season and on Friday evening at Deer Creek Speedway Ryan Gustin took a page from his playbook.

During the first race of the NAPA Auto Parts Gopher 50 with the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models – ran Friday evening after being postponed on Thursday – Gustin threw a “Hail Mary” slide job at Hoffman in the final corner and held a 0.009 second lead at the finish line to score his second win of the season.

The victory – the seventh of Gustin’s World of Outlaws career – came after a mixed bag of results since his first victory of the season in May.

“Anytime you’re standing up here in Victory Lane it makes you feel good,” Gustin said. “I love this place. It’s probably one of the places I have more laps than anyone. It feels good.”

Gustin started the 30-lap Feature fourth, with Shannon Babb next to him, 2022 Series champion Dennis Erb Jr. directly in front of him and Tyler Stevens, making his Series debut, on the pole.

When the race commenced, Stevens pulled away from the field while Babb moved up to second and Gustin fell to fifth. The field didn’t get much time to stretch their legs as a caution brought them back together on Lap 3.

All eyes turned to Nick Hoffman when the race restarted as the NOS Energy Drink No. 9 ripped around the top of Deer Creek Speedway, stealing third on Lap 5 and then second a lap later. Stevens’ healthy lead was spoiled in three laps with Hoffman on hyperdrive in the middle lane.

Knowing Hoffman had arrived, Stevens tried to make his car wide, switching lanes each corner. But when they got to Turn 3 on Lap 10, Hoffman dove under Stevens, propelling his car a few yards ahead of Stevens before sliding in front of him by the exit of the turn – a foreshadowing moment for the end of the race.

Once Hoffman finally found clean air, he gapped the field by over a second in less than two laps.

Behind him, a war was being waged for second through fifth. Gustin, Bobby Pierce and Shannon Babb looked like synchronized dancers running three-wide down the straights and sliding each other in the corners with precise rotations. 

Gustin emerged the victor, pulling ahead of the two and passing Stevens for second on Lap 25. Pierce followed him through, getting by Stevens for third on the same lap.

They appeared to be out of time to catch Hoffman until two late-race cautions. One on Lap 26 brought the field back together and the last on Lap 28 set the stage for a photo finish.

With two laps to settle the fight, Pierce tried to end it in the first corner on the restart, diving under the front two, pulling even with Hoffman. But Hoffman and Gustin had the better momentum up top and drove back by him.

“It was a good racetrack for being a day race,” Pierce said. “They gave us something to race on and move around on. It was a fun race. I got to third there, got us in good position. I couldn’t go any further than that. I kind of stalled out at the end of the race.”

Once Pierce was no longer a threat, Gustin was able to put all his focus on Hoffman. With two laps to go, he was 0.7 seconds back. With one to go, 0.3 seconds back. He closed to Hoffman’s bumper down the backstretch and plotted the same move Hoffman used to take the lead earlier in the race.

Gustin stayed in the throttle upon entry, steering to the bottom of the track, launching his car ahead of Hoffman’s and giving himself enough room to slid up the track in front of him. Predicting the move, Hoffman cut underneath the No. 19R in the middle of the corner, leading to their drag race to the line.

“He got that top line rolling pretty well there,” Hoffman said. “Woulda, coulda, shoulda, if there was no caution, we’d probably win the race. But he was just better than I was at the end. He was able to slide me in (Turns) three and four. I was actually surprised I got back to him at the line. I had a run and dipped back down the hill. I heard him coming. I expected a slider coming, so I kind of crossed up and made sure I had a run. But it wasn’t quite big enough.”

It wasn’t big enough by 0.09 seconds as that’s all Gustin needed to edge him for the win.

“It was a heck of a race,” Gustin said. “Anytime you get to race with them guys is really fun… All in all, it was really fun. Obviously, a good race with Nick. He’s a clean racer. When you’re out there throwing sliders and bouncing off the fence, it’s always entertaining. I’m sure the fans loved it.”

The victory also places Gustin as one of the top points earners for the event, which will lock the top-16 points earners between Friday’s two Features into Saturday’s $50,000-to-win finale.

And while Hoffman didn’t get the win, his second-place finish has him currently tied with Brandon Sheppard, who finished 17th, for the Series championship points lead.

RECAP NOTES:
Dirt King Simulator Hottest Hot Lap: Tyler Bruening
Simpson Quick Time Award: Ryan Gustin
Heat Race Winners: Ryan Gustin, Dennis Erb Jr., Shannon Babb, Tyler Stevens
Last Chance Showdown Winner: Billy Moyer Sr.
Bilstein Pole Award: Tyler Stevens
Fox Factory Hard Charger: Tyler Erb

UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models return to action on Friday, July 5, at Deer Creek Speedway for Friday’s originally scheduled portion of the NAPA Auto Parts Gopher 50. Tickets are available at the track.

If you can’t make it to Deer Creek Speedway, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.

RESULTS
CASE Late Mode Feature (30 Laps): 1. 19R-Ryan Gustin[4]; 2. 9-Nick Hoffman[6]; 3. 32-Bobby Pierce[5]; 4. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[2]; 5. 25-Chad Simpson[12]; 6. 18-Shannon Babb[3]; 7. 16-Tyler Bruening[8]; 8. 1-Tyler Erb[20]; 9. 2-Tyler Stevens[1]; 10. B1-Brent Larson[16]; 11. 49-Jake Timm[9]; 12. 97-Cade Dillard[11]; 13. 3S-Brian Shirley[18]; 14. 55C-Chad Mahder[13]; 15. 18C-Chase Junghans[10]; 16. 40B-Kyle Bronson[14]; 17. B5-Brandon Sheppard[7]; 18. 21-Billy Moyer Sr[17]; 19. 22*-Max McLaughlin[23]; 20. 76-Blair Nothdurft[19]; 21. 97JR-Cody Overton[21]; 22. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[24]; 23. 19-Dustin Sorensen[15]; 24. 29-Keith Hammett[22]

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES

HONDA INDY 200 AT MID-HIO

MID-OHIO SPORTS CAR COURSE

LEXINGTON, OHIO

TEAM CHEVY PRACTICE ONE

JULY 5, 2024

• Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, posted the second quickest time in the final order of practice one at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course to lead Team Chevy in the debut of the hybrid power unit
• Despite the session being slowed by rain, drivers got laps utilizing the hybrid system
• No issues were reported throughout the session
• Team Chevy finished the one hour, 15-minute practice session with Rossi, then Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Sonsio Team Penske Chevrolet, Pato O’Ward. No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet finishing fifth and seventh respectively, followed by Team Penske’s  No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet driven by Will Power in 10th. 
• The 80-lap, 180.64-mile Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio kicks off with first practice Friday, July 5 at 3:20 p.m. ET. Saturday sees second practice at 10:50 a.m., with qualifying and the Firestone Fast Six following at 3 p.m. ET. Race day starts with warm up at 10:25 a.m. ET, and the race takes the green flag at 1:30 p.m. ET on NBC. All practice and qualifying sessions broadcast with Peacock, INDYCAR Radio, and SiriusXM Channel 218. 

TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 PRACTICE RESULT:

Pos.  Driver

2^nd     Alexander Rossi (1:07.5093)

5th    Scott McLaughlin (1:07.6827

7th    Pato O’Ward (1:07.8407)

10th   Will Power (1:08.1458)

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING (QUOTES)

Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet:

“We didn’t turn a lot of laps today in Practice 1. I’m just glad we were able to get one solid lap in to analyze some data. We’ll work tonight to see what we need to improve on for tomorrow.”

Nolan Siegel, No. 6 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet: 

“We’re off to a solid start this weekend. The session got cut short because of the rain and we didn’t get all the running in that we wanted to, which was tough. I thought we rolled off pretty strong, though; that was the strongest session we’ve had together. The No. 6 NTT DATA Arrow McLaren Chevrolet team is making progress and getting more competitive, so we’re in a good spot moving forward.”

Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet: 

“We only got one run in because of the rain, but the car seems to be in a good window. The hybrid works as we expected, which is good. We even got a couple laps in the rainy conditions. It’s hard to really know where we’re at, but certainly the No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet is in a good place to start the weekend.”

Gavin Ward, Team Principal at Arrow McLaren:

“The weather didn’t cooperate today, but everyone had to deal with that. I think we got off to a pretty good start. We learned a few things in the dry conditions and learned a little bit in the rainy conditions. I’m hoping it stays dry for the rest of the weekend here so we can get more laps in.”

Romain Grosjean, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:

“We are here at Mid-Ohio, but the weather didn’t help us much today.But I think we have a decent baseline. I think that is as we could hope for so some work to be done on a car but looking positve for tomorrow.”

Agustin Canapino, No. 78 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet:

“Unfortunately we have a problem today but the good thing is raining after my problem, so we have some luck with that .Tomorrow is another day so we see what happened tomorrow.”

Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet:

“We just didn’t see a need to take the PPG Chevy out in the rain with the forecast being dry for the weekend. Definitely wanted to get it one more run but the spin I had flat spotted the tires. Thankfully we were able to learn a bit about how the hybrid system will affect the handling. It definitely changes the balance and braking quite a bit. Then, you throw in the new pavement on top of that. I think everyone wished we could’ve had a bit more dry weather to put it through its paces today but so far everything seems good.”

Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet:

“The Sonsio Chevy team had a great plan for the session to gradually work in the hybrid system. Unfortunately, the weather had other ideas for us. We got 14 laps in so that gave us something to build on for qualifying tomorrow. We have a lot of miles left to run this weekend, but everything worked great for us. No issues.”

Will Power, No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet:

“It was nice to get out there and work on the hybrid over a race weekend. Wish we could have had more time but there wasn’t any benefit for us to go out in the rain. The weekend looks to be very clear. Definitely deployed the hybrid on the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet and it worked pretty seamlessly. Tomorrow will be a big day.”

PATO O’WARD, NO. 5 ARROW MCLAREN CHEVROLET – End of Day Press Conference:

THE MODERATOR: Wrapping up the first day of the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2025 Civic Hybrid. We’ll be joined by P1 in that practice session, Alex Palou, but currently joined by Pato O’Ward, driver of the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, pole winner, NTT P1 award winner here in 2022, three top 10s here at Mid-Ohio.

Outside of the rain, which kind of put a damper on things, your thoughts on day one today?

PATO O’WARD: Yeah, obviously not ideal that it started raining there at the end. Would have liked to get a few more laps. We truly only kind of got one. Everything else was just always traffic, stack-ups, everybody trying to get clean gaps, but these tracks aren’t long enough for the 27 cars that we have. So that’s kind of been a little tough in these practice sessions.

But at least we got one in, a decent lap in, that we can kind of look over and really see what we need. I know what we need from the car, so that’s the most important thing.

THE MODERATOR: The weather looks decent the rest of the way, so practice 2 is going to be crucial it sounds like.

PATO O’WARD: Yeah, tomorrow I think practice 2 will be obviously the most important going into qualifying. I don’t expect this race to be any different to the last few years. It’s going to be a track position race, very sensitive to where you qualify, and yeah, that’s going to be the full focus tomorrow, just trying to get this car as close to the front row as we can.

Q. How does the hybrid — can you sense or feel the hybrid kicking in?

PATO O’WARD: You can feel it. You can definitely feel it when you engage the deploy. It’s obviously not as big as I think people are thinking in terms of lap time. It’s less than two tenths I would say with a perfectly optimized usage of deployment strategy.

I think the system is capable of so much more, so I would like to see that evolve into let’s really push this system and see how much it can actually give us in terms of lap time because if it gives us four, five, six tenths over the lap, I think that’s when we’ll really see it getting optimized by all the teams and just trying to perfect it as much as possible because now it won’t be as — it’ll usually overthrow a little balance difference in the car exactly.

Yeah, so far I think we’re just working through it. Obviously it’s brand new, and we just need to kind of go through the whole process, I’d say.

Q. It seems like it doesn’t even take half a lap in some cases to harvest or regenerate. Are you impressed by that, how quickly you can get back to 100 percent?

PATO O’WARD: Yeah, there’s different levels to that, and it’s very similar to — I wouldn’t say it’s similar to the Formula 1 car, but it’s the same kind of idea of, like, the braking generates the energy, it goes into the pack, and then you deploy it where you wish.

Different to us, we have to manually deploy. If you get out of sequence and you have to manually kind of regen, there’s limits to how much you can regen and limits to how much you can deploy, so there’s a lot of limits that we need to work through.

Q. Do you guys need better weathermen to try and get the red tire run in? I’m surprised nobody put the reds on earlier in the session to at least try that.

PATO O’WARD: My Arrow McLaren is base Arrow McLaren. I don’t have the radar in it, so I couldn’t tell you.

Q. I know it was only nine laps, a dozen laps or so. Was there anything that you learned about the hybrid system running out there today that was new or a surprise or anything like that, or just not enough laps to learn that much?

PATO O’WARD: Nothing we already know from the tests that we’ve done. The balance of the car has changed. I think it’s an accumulation of both the new tarmac and the 100 pounds at the rear of the car that have shuffled the mechanical balance of the car rearwards, but I think you’ll see teams and drivers get creative for the race. I think that’s where you’re going to see a massive shift in, like, effect on the tire or stuff like that.

Q. Pato, you mentioned if you time all of this perfectly, you’re maybe getting two tenths or so on your competitors, say if they weren’t using the hybrid system at all on a lap. With all the work you’re having to do in the cockpit, all the buttons, having to do everything perfect, is there a risk that by going for those two-tenths, if you don’t do it right, you could set yourself back by not doing other things on your lap as well as you might have been able to do otherwise if you weren’t messing with the hybrid?

PATO O’WARD: I’d say car balance is still a priority, but you can’t just ignore it because it’s to the point where, like, the series is so competitive in qualifying I’ve been left out of the Fast Six for half a tenth a couple times this year. If someone uses it that half a tenth better than you do, they’ll transfer and you won’t if you’re right on the throw-out line.

I think there’s a big emphasis on both ends. You’ve got to get it right if you really want to be one of the top performing cars. But I would say it definitely doesn’t outweigh trying to get a better balance for the car. I think that is definitely the priority, and this is just kind of free lap time that you can gain by optimizing it.