Archive for June 2012

Rookie Josef Newgarden finished 19th in the Iowa Corn Indy 250, but he picked up a valuable lesson in turning an ill-handling race car into a competitive one with the help of his team along the way.

At the start of the race Newgarden’s No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) Dallara/Honda/Firestone car suffered from understeer and adverse affects from tire wear.

Newgarden held on to the car however and made it to his first pit stop window, which allowed the SFHR crew to make helpful adjustments.

Once he was back out on the track for his second stint, Newgarden found that his car was vastly improved. Running in the top ten, he began picking off cars one by one with competitive lap times.

“We were letting the race come to us,” Newgarden said.

Unfortunately, on lap 178 he entered turn two to make a pass on then-leader Ryan Briscoe, and neither car made it out of the turn. The cars made contact and spun into the turn two wall.

“Ryan had been working the middle lane of the track for several laps,” Newgarden said. “That’s what you look at when you come up on someone to make a pass. When we entered the corner, he started coming lower and lower. I tried to go as low as I could to avoid contact. The last thing you want to do is ball up a car because there’s no reason to do that.”

Newgarden was especially disappointed with the incident because it stopped the momentum his car had been gaining as the race wore on.

“We struggled early from tire wear dropping off, but the car was really coming to us,” he said. “We were working on it and trying to maximize the car in longer stints. The car was just getting right where it needed to be when the incident happened.”

Despite his finish, Newgarden remains positive about Iowa Speedway and the many fans that came to watch the IZOD IndyCar Series put on a show.

“I like this place a lot and it has great fans,” he said. “It was just a shame not to finish the race.”

Ryan Hunter-Reay won the Iowa Corn Indy 250, giving him his second win on a short oval in as many weeks.

Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan, Scott Dixon and Simon Pagenaud nabbed the remaining spots in the top five.

The IZOD IndyCar Series returns to action on the streets of Toronto for the Honda Indy Toronto on July 8.

Rookie Josef Newgarden kept a cool head Friday as the IZOD IndyCar Series turned up the temperature at Iowa Speedway with a new qualifying format that featured heat races to decide starting positions instead of the typical two-lap average qualifying format.

Newgarden, in the No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) Dallara/Honda/Firestone car, drove safely through two practice sessions and a qualifying heat race to earn the 12th starting position in the Iowa Corn Indy 250. Tony Kanaan and Graham Rahal will serve 10-spot starting grid penalties for unapproved engine changes, moving Newgarden up to the 10th starting position.

It wasn't all smooth sailing, however.

Driving in the first of three heat races, Newgarden started second and fell back one position quickly before regaining his starting spot and challenging Graham Rahal for the lead.

"I got a good run on Graham (Rahal) early on," Newgarden said. "He wanted to go low when he saw I had a run on him. That was fine, so I chose the outside. The next thing I knew, when we got in the corner he was going straight up the race track in front of me."

Thanks to quick thinking and reaction, Newgarden made it out of the corner.

"I thought we were going to hit the wall, and I don’t know how we didn’t," Newgarden said. "Luckily we didn’t tear up any race cars."

Newgarden went on to finish the 30-lap heat race in second, learning a lesson along the way.

"You’re always learning new things about your competitors and how you can race people in instances like that," he said. "That will be valuable information for tomorrow during the race."

After his heat race, Newgarden identified that one of the most interesting story lines to follow during the Iowa Corn Indy 250 could be tire wear and management.

"This heat race was only half distance compared to a race stint for us on a set of tires," he said. "We need to figure out how the car and tires will handle on the next half of the stint tomorrow. The tires wore off pretty quickly today."

Dario Franchitti will start on pole for the Iowa Corn Indy 250. Franchitti won the third heat race which included eight drivers with the fastest lap times from the second practice session of the day.

Franchitti will lead Helio Castroneves, Marco Andretti, James Hinchcliffe and Ryan Briscoe to the green flag.

The Iowa Corn Indy 250 will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network, formerly known as Versus. The qualifying heat races will precede the race broadcast, starting at 8 p.m. ET. The green flag will drop on the race at 10 p.m. ET.

The most frequent question reporters ask IZOD IndyCar Series rookie driver Josef Newgarden is how a kid from Nashville ended up at the elite level of open wheel racing instead of in the fendered-world of NASCAR that dominates his home state of Tennessee.

Newgarden’s answer is typically very simple: he saw a challenge and he wanted to drive fast.

Twenty-one-year-old Newgarden and his Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) team head to Iowa Speedway this weekend for the Iowa Corn Indy 250, and the familiar melting pot of open wheel and NASCAR racing will be palpable.

Iowa Speedway was designed by NASCAR star Rusty Wallace. The 7/8-mile paved tri-oval is a standout on the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule.

"Iowa’s great, and it's one of my favorite ovals,” Newgarden said. “It’s unique to a lot of other tracks, and it builds a lot of character with the bumps in turns one and two. The layout provides for really challenging driving.”

Last year’s IZOD IndyCar Series race at Iowa Speedway arguably provided the most exciting competition in recent INDYCAR history, and Newgarden is ready to try his hand at the track.

“It’s difficult to get the car around that place for a whole race because of the amount of banking and the size and shape of the track,” he said. “It’s a fun place to go and if you can master it it's pretty rewarding."

Newgarden has fond memories of racing at Iowa Speedway in 2011 in the Firestone Indy Lights Series. He won the Sukup 100 at Iowa Speedway on his way to winning the 2011 Firestone Indy Lights championship.

He has been back to Iowa a few times since racing last year and is looking forward to the hospitality and love of racing shown by Iowans.

"The race fans in Iowa are very passionate about all types of racing,” Newgarden said. “IndyCar is one of the best shows they bring to Iowa Speedway all year. The crowd is always huge and it’s a great event to race at because they make you feel so welcome."

IZOD IndyCar Series action at Iowa Speedway kicks off on Friday, June 22 with practice at 9 a.m. ET. The green flag drops on the Iowa Corn 250 on Saturday, June 23 at 10 p.m. ET.

Quotes

“JOSEF NEWGARDEN (Driver- Nashville, Tenn.)

What do you think about the heat races at Iowa? Have you ever participated in something like that?

“I’ve done something similar to the heat races in the Ford Festival in Europe where you run heat races before the final to determine your starting position. I think it’s pretty cool. It’s something new for IndyCar that will be cool to try out.”

Talk a little bit about the team’s test last week in Iowa. How was the car?

“I thought we had a really productive test, but you’ve got to keep focused on the big task at hand, which is the race. We really have to put our setups to good use this weekend. We’ve had good setups all year but unfortunately they haven’t translated into good results.”

Iowa is an even shorter track than your last race in Milwaukee. What is your main focus at a track like Iowa? 

“It’s all about keeping the car in one piece and not getting involved in an incident so you can make it to the finish. Being a short track, there are some good opportunities to pass. There’s also a chance to run away from the field if you catch a break.”

Of Note:

Josef Newgarden’s spotter on ovals this season is former Sam Schmidt Motorsports (SSM) driver Travis Gregg. Coincidentally, Newgarden drove for SSM in 2011 when he captured the Firestone Indy Lights championship. As a driver, Gregg collected three victories with SSM at Homestead, Kentucky and Texas in 2005. He also won seven Firestone Indy Lights poles with SSM. With a shared history, the two have formed a unique partnership.

Newgarden on having Travis Gregg as a spotter:

“Travis is really good. He’s a great spotter and he’s comforting in my ear. I worked with him last year in Lights so it’s great to have him on the IndyCar program. He says the right things and makes me feel comfortable in the car.”

Travis Gregg on spotting for Newgarden and transitioning from driving to spotting:

“I started helping Sam Schmidt with other Indy Lights drivers after I stopped driving. I kept connected with him over the years and last year at Las Vegas I spotted for Josef when he was driving in Firestone Indy Lights.

“You would always rather be driving the car yourself but spotting is probably the next best thing. It’s pretty exciting to watch the sport from a totally different perspective.

“It’s cool to see Josef where he is now because several drivers who spent time at Sam Schmidt Motorsports over the years moved up to the IZOD IndyCar Series. It’s good to see that Josef has made the system work for him and progressed to this level.”

After climbing out of his No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) Dallara/Honda/Firestone car at the Milwaukee IndyFest Josef Newgarden had one thing to say: “I’m ready to go to Iowa.”

Iowa is the next race on the IZOD IndyCar Series schedule, and Newgarden is ready to get there.

He had a strong start from 17th at the Milwaukee Mile and immediately began picking off several cars early in the race.

“It looked like Josef was really good there at the beginning,” Mike O’Gara, team manager for SFHR, said. “He picked up four or five spots and was gaining on the guys in front of him. Then we started having some fuel pressure problems.”

After only a handful of laps, Newgarden came on the radio and told his team that the fuel pressure alarm was going off in the car. SFHR refueled the car in hopes that it would help the issue, but Newgarden was forced to pull the car behind the wall for repair.

“Something was wrong inside the fuel cell,” O’Gara said. “We pride ourselves on the quality of race cars that we turn out, but something beyond our power failed today. We’ll take the car back to the shop, inspect everything and replace everything we can.”

Newgarden was the first car to retire from the Milwaukee IndyFest race, and therefore finished in the 25th position after completing 48 of 225 laps.

SFHR and Newgarden will now focus on ridding themselves of the monkey that has been on their backs throughout the first half of the season.

“We’re just going to have to go to Iowa and kick everyone’s butt,” Newgarden said. “Seriously though, that’s what we need to do. We have to focus on the next race. We got unlucky again this weekend, which is what has happened all year. It’s got nothing to do with the team, we’re just not catching any breaks.”

Ryan Hunter-Reay drove to victory at the Milwaukee IndyFest. He was followed by Tony Kanaan, James Hinchcliffe, Oriol Servia and EJ Viso, who rounded out the top-five.

Hunter-Reay led 85 laps on his route to win. The race was slowed by five caution periods for a total of 51 laps.

IZOD IndyCar Series action resumes Saturday, June 23 at the Iowa Corn Indy 250 in Newton, Iowa.

Josef Newgarden showed the mark of a true competitor at the Milwaukee Mile on Friday. After two lightning-quick practice sessions and a solid qualifying effort he was left disappointed and wanting more because of what could have been, not just content with his more than respectable effort as a rookie driver.

Newgarden qualified his No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) Dallara/Honda/Firestone car in seventh position for tomorrow’s Milwaukee IndyFest race. His car was even more promising in the two practice sessions prior to qualifications when he finished first and second.

“I didn’t quite get enough out of the car today in qualifications,” Newgarden said. “I probably should have held it a little more flat than I did because SFHR gave me a really good car.”

Newgarden’s two-lap qualifying average of 166.699 mph was the third highest qualification effort out of all Honda-powered cars in the Milwaukee IndyFest field. He was also the fastest rookie qualifier.

However, the No. 67 car will serve a 10-spot starting grid penalty for tomorrow’s race because of an unapproved engine change made at Texas Motor Speedway before last weekend’s Firestone 550. After the penalty, Newgarden will start from the 17th position.

“Knowing we had the penalty coming here wasn’t too bad because it’s been a cycle this year,” he said. “Everyone’s had to go through it at some point and it’s just our turn.”

Newgarden relishes the rivalry brewing between Honda, Chevrolet and Lotus as a bonus for the sport.

“I think it’s great that we have that competition because that’s what racing is really about,” he said. “We want to see them duking it out with each other, and I’m really proud to be backed by Honda power.”

As SFHR makes the switch from qualification to race mode, Newgarden is focusing on a strong car and conserving tires.

“I’m concerned with tire wear being a big issue during the race,” he said. “We have a fast car though and we’ve got to make it last throughout the whole race tomorrow.”

Honda power claimed the top two starting positions on the Milwaukee IndyFest starting grid. Dario Franchitti will start on pole with an average lap speed of 168.737 mph. Justin Wilson qualified second with an average lap speed of 168.287 mph.

Ryan Hunter-Reay (167.911 mph), Will Power (167.361 mph) and Rubens Barrichello (166.899 mph) rounded out the top five in Milwaukee IndyFest qualifying.

The 225-lap Milwaukee IndyFest race will air live Saturday, June 17, at 1 p.m. ET on ABC. It can also be heard on the IMS Radio Network (check local listings) and XM94/Sirius 121.

Josef Newgarden is comfortable driving fast on four wheels in his Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) Indy car, but on a recent visit to Milwaukee he had a change of pace and cruised the downtown streets with the Milwaukee Police Department’s bicycle patrol.

Newgarden and SFHR return to Milwaukee this weekend for the Milwaukee IndyFest at the historic Milwaukee Mile, and Newgarden may have a few new fans in the stands who dress in blue and wear badges at their day jobs.

“Riding with the Milwaukee police’s bicycle unit was really fun,” Newgarden said. “They showed us all around their downtown areas and it was really cool to see what they do on a daily basis.”

The No. 67 SFHR/Dallara/Honda/Firestone car even sports the traditional police colors of blue, black and white. During his time with the bicycle unit, Newgarden found that he could get used to patrolling the streets.

“I think Ryan Hunter-Reay (fellow IZOD IndyCar Series driver), who also rode with the unit in Milwaukee, would agree that I have some good police officer skills,” he said. “If I wasn’t a race car driver it would definitely be something to think about.”

SFHR and Newgarden head to the Milwaukee Mile coming off of a 13th place finish at Texas Motor Speedway. Newgarden climbed 12 spots during the race after starting last.

The team tested at the Milwaukee Mile on May 29. The short, flat oval is a unique challenge for Newgarden.

“Milwaukee is a very difficult track physically because you’re constantly turning at a very short radius,” Newgarden said. “There’s a lot of load put on the driver because of how much downforce we run. There’s also no banking at Milwaukee so setting up the car will be difficult to master because it’s unlike any other oval we go to.”

The No. 67 car will serve a 10-spot starting grid penalty at the Milwaukee IndyFest race for an unapproved engine change at Texas Motor Speedway.

The 225-lap Milwaukee IndyFest race will air live Saturday, June 17, at 1 p.m. ET on ABC. It can also be heard on the IMS Radio Network (check local listing) and XM94/Sirius 121.

Texas Motor Speedway proved too tough to tame for many IZOD IndyCar Series veterans in the Firestone 550, but rookie driver Josef Newgarden kept his head above water and brought his car home to a 13th-place finish.

Newgarden’s No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Dallara/Honda/Firestone car started from the 25th position due to an engine swap that prohibited him from making a qualifying attempt.

With a quick jump on the green flag, Newgarden passed Katherine Legge and James Jakes on lap one. Unfortunately, stability issues became apparent shortly into the run.

On lap 62 Newgarden and SFHR went one lap down to then-leader Scott Dixon. However, a caution period caused by a single-car crash involving Charlie Kimball just two laps later enabled Newgarden to win his lap back.

Following more adjustments from his SFHR crew, Newgarden began reeling in cars in front of him. He was unable to hold off the hard-charging leader Dixon, however, and went one-lap down for a second time.

On lap 138 Newgarden entered pit lane with heavy traffic for service from the SFHR crew. He overshot his pit box, which prevented Helio Castroneves from entering his own pit. INDYCAR race control issued a drive through penalty for the No. 67 car, which he served on lap 140.

After the penalty Newgarden found himself two laps down, which he was unable to earn back.

Newgarden rallied with consistent laps and brought his car home in 13th.

“I think this was a very difficult track for all of us to race on tonight,” Newgarden said. “It was difficult for us to get a grasp on things tonight, but we finished the race, which was great.”

The Firestone 550 proved to be a long race that tested Newgarden’s patience as a rookie, but he is eager to press on with his team.

“The fact that we were able to finish the race shows how hard SFHR worked as a team,” he said. “We’re going to continue to work hard and our time will come eventually.”

Justin Wilson snuck by Graham Rahal, who tapped the wall while leading in the closing laps of the race, to win the Firestone 550. Rahal finished in second place, which made the Firestone 550 the third race in a row where Honda-powered cars finished first and second.

Ryan Briscoe, James Hinchcliffe and JR Hildebrand rounded out the top five finishers.

Scott Dixon led the most laps of the race (133). There were nine lead changes and the race was slowed by 32 caution laps.

The IZOD IndyCar Series returns to action June 16 for the Milwaukee IndyFest. The race will be broadcast live on ABC at 1 p.m. ET.

With the third-fastest time in the first practice session for the Firestone 550, Josef Newgarden was setting a blistering pace in his Honda-powered car. Unfortunately, an engine issue didn’t allow the rookie to qualify, and he will start 25th.

In the closing minutes of morning practice at Texas Motor Speedway, Newgarden’s No. 67 Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) Dallara/Honda/Firestone car lost power as it rolled into its pit box.

SFHR immediately began work to change engines but was unable to have the car ready for qualifying, which was scheduled only two hours and 15 minutes after the incident.

Per INDYCAR rules, Newgarden will incur a 10-spot grid penalty at the Firestone 550 because of the engine change. He will start from the 25th position.

“I think we’re in a bit of a hole from our starting position, but it’s nothing that we can’t hopefully overcome during the race,” Newgarden said. “One thing about SFHR is that they never give up.”

Newgarden rallied with a brand new Honda-powered engine under the cover of his No. 67 car during the final practice session of the day at Texas Motor Speedway to finish 10th on the time chart.

“The race is going to be very difficult tomorrow, so we’ll have to have a great set-up,” Newgarden said. “I have complete faith in the entire team behind me though.”

Honda-powered cars swept the top-four qualifying spots for the Firestone 550. Alex Tagliani of Bryan Herta Autosport claimed the pole with a two-lap average speed of 215.691 mph.

Dario Franchitti (215.646 mph), Graham Rahal (215.554 mph) and Scott Dixon (215.331 mph), all driving Honda-powered cars, will start in positions two through four. Will Power rounds out the top five with a qualifying average of 215.116 mph.

The green flag will drop on the Firestone 550 at Texas Motor Speedway on Saturday, June 9 at 8:45 p.m. ET.

When the IZOD IndyCar Series stables its high-powered horses in Texas this weekend for the Firestone 550, Josef Newgarden and Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing (SFHR) will be working to turn the tables on a string of unfortunate events that has kept the team from a high finish the past two weekends.

SFHR and Newgarden come to Texas after a 15th-place finish last weekend at the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix. After sustaining a punctured tire from the deteriorating track surface Newgarden was knocked off of his fuel strategy. Then the No. 67 SFHR Dallara/Honda/Firestone car was hit from behind and spun near the end of the race by Simona de Silvestro.

Two weeks ago at the famed Indianapolis 500 Newgarden qualified seventh, making him the highest qualifying rookie since 2005 when Danica Patrick qualified fourth for her debut at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Unfortunately the No. 67 car wouldn’t catch gear on its first pit stop and Newgarden fell a lap down early on.

After fighting back the entire afternoon Newgarden found himself back on the lead lap within the final half of the 500-mile race only to have his car role to a stop with no power on the backstretch on Lap 161.

Newgarden is not worried about the bad luck sticking around for long, however.

“I’m not superstitious, and I try really hard not to be,” he said. “I think luck in racing is all a cycle. You have to let it play out and it will turn around and come back to your favor. You just have to be patient.”

Looking to the Firestone 550 at TMS, Newgarden is eager to put the lessons he learned at his IZOD IndyCar Series oval test at TMS in early May to use in race conditions.

“I think it’s going to be difficult to run flat throughout the entire race because of the mandated wing settings from INDYCAR,” Newgarden said. “That will be a challenge for everybody, including the veterans, this weekend.”

In recent years IZOD IndyCar Series action at Texas Motor Speedway has been marked by nail-biting pack racing where a fraction of an error from any driver had magnified consequences.

The 2012 Firestone 550 presents a question mark however because teams and drivers are unsure of what to expect from the new cars during race conditions. Similar to every other track on the this year’s IZOD IndyCar Series schedule, Texas provides a whole new list of unknowns since having no data from the past forces guesswork from drivers and engineers.

“We’ll have to wait and see what the new car does to pack racing at Texas,” Newgarden said. “I think the cars will tow up really well so it will be interesting to see what happens to the racing product.”

SFHR and Newgarden take to the Texas Motor Speedway for the first IZOD IndyCar Series practice session on Friday, June 8 at 12:30 p.m. The Firestone 550 will be run on Saturday, June 9 at 7:45 p.m. CT.

Notes:

Every rookie IZOD IndyCar Series driver has to earn his racing stripes through hard work and patience, and Josef Newgarden received a lesson in the latter at the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix Sunday.

Newgarden started from the 13th position and immediately began saving fuel to work toward a race strategy that would put him near the front on a circuit that makes passing difficult.

Unfortunately, the streets of Belle Isle Park had different plans for Newgarden’s No. 67 SFHR Dallara/Honda/Firestone car.

Under the stress of 25 IndyCars pounding on its pavement, the Belle Isle streets began to deteriorate. Newgarden drove over a piece of loose track and sustained a tire puncture that forced him to pit on lap 27, earlier than his strategy called for.

Newgarden fared better than two other drivers however, who ran over loose pieces of asphalt and cement that caused them to lose control of their cars and crash.

The race was eventually red flagged on lap 45 to undergo track repairs.

“After you get into your race mode and have everything going, the last thing you want to do is stop, which was difficult,” Newgarden said.

Track officials poured new cement onto the circuit and after a nearly two-hour hiatus the green flag flew again.

Newgarden re-started the race in 13th, but before completing a lap he sustained contact from behind from the No. 78 car of Simona de Silvestro. He spun and was unable to re-start his car without assistance.

“I feel bad we got clipped from behind at the end, especially since we had already had bad luck during the race,” Newgarden said. “We had a great strategy going but it didn’t get a chance to play out as we had hoped.”

After the incident, Newgarden went a lap down, but rallied to tick off quick laps and make two solid passes before the checkered flag.

“All we can do is keep doing what we’ve been doing and things will turn around for us,” Newgarden said.

Newgarden and SFHR ended the day in 15th position. Due to the lengthy red flag, the race was shortened to 60 laps.

Scott Dixon, of Ganassi Racing, led every lap of the race to claim the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix victory. His teammate Dario Franchitti finished second.

Simon Pagenaud of Schmidt Hamilton Motorsports, Will Power of Team Penske, and Oriol Servia of Panther/Dreyer and Reinbold Racing rounded out the top five.

The IZOD IndyCar Series returns to action Saturday, June 9 at Texas Motor Speedway.