Formula 1 World Championship Begins 2019 With Gripping Notes - Whiting & Mercedes

Paying our respects to Charlie Whiting this weekend on the #VF19. #AusGP #F1 #HaasF1 Image Credit: HAAS F1 via Twitter (2019)

Formula 1 World Championship Begins 2019 With Gripping Notes - Whiting & Mercedes

The 2019 Formula 1 World Championship season begins with the biggest drama in Melbourne, Australia being that 1) Longtime competitor as team mechanic becoming Chief Mechanic at Brabham, to staff then Race Director since 1997 at FIA Charlie Whiting passing away from Pulmonary Embolism ... & 2) Mercedes speed domination that continued in the race from nearly having a full second on the field at qualifications.

The sudden passing of Charlie Whiting shocked and gripped the paddocks of Formula 1 as they prepared the cars to compete in the first race of a twenty race season. The Pulmonary Embolism blood clot malady arrest occurred on the morning of Thursday, just three days ahead of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Sunday. Whiting held a key role in the running of Formula One race weekends as Race Director, overseeing the FIA's operation of all on-track sessions. In addition to his duties at grand prix weekends, he also had a wide-ranging position at the FIA overseeing safety and technical matters in the sport.

All at McLaren are shocked and deeply saddened at the news of Charlie Whiting's passing. Charlie will be remembered as one of the giants of our sport, as well as a great colleague. Our deepest sympathies and thoughts are with all of his loved ones. pic.twitter.com/DmrSZAT4Cc

— McLaren (@McLarenF1) March 14, 2019

This excerpted and edited from CNN -

Charlie Whiting: Formula One race director dies suddenly, aged 66

Leading motorsport figures have paid tribute to Formula One's race director Charlie Whiting following his sudden death after he suffered a pulmonary embolism in Australia.

The 66-year-old Whiting was in Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix, which kicks off the new Formula 1 season at the weekend.

He had begun his F1 career as part of the Hesketh team, before joining Bernie Ecclestone's Brabham outfit, where he served as the team's chief mechanic during a successful era that saw Nelson Piquet win the World Drivers' Championship (WDC) in both 1981 and 1983.

He had been the motorsport series' race director since 1997. FIA president Jean Todt described Whiting as "a central and inimitable figure in Formula One who embodied the ethics and spirit of this fantastic sport."

Prior to taking over as the competition's race director, which saw him serve as the official starter of each grand prix, as well as the overseer of F1's rules and regulations, Whiting had initially joined the FIA in 1988 as its technical director.

'Our sort of man'

Five-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was one of many current and former F1 stars to pay tribute to Whiting, who was seen as the go-to man for drivers on any race weekend.

"What he did for the sport, his commitment, he really was a pillar," Hamilton said. "Such an iconic figure within the sporting world, and he contributed so much to us. May he rest in peace."

Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel called him "our sort of man, our drivers' man". He said: "I spoke to him yesterday and walked the track for the first couple of corners together with him. It's difficult to grasp when somebody's just not there anymore.

"He was the middle man. He was someone you could ask anything, at any time. He was open to everyone, any time his door was always open. He was a racer, he was just a very nice guy."

Formula 1 managing director Ross Brawn recalled his own long-lasting friendship with Whiting, who also worked with triple world champion Niki Lauda during his time at Brabham.

"I have known Charlie for all of my racing life," he said. "We worked as mechanics together, became friends and spent so much time together at race tracks across the world.

"I was filled with immense sadness when I heard the tragic news. I'm devastated. It is a great loss not only for me personally but also the entire Formula 1 family, the FIA and motorsport as a whole."
[Reference Here]

VALTTERI BOTTAS WINS the 2019 F1 AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX for MERCEDES in a MASTERCLASS DOMINANT VICTORY from START to FINISH after a winless 2018! #F1 #F119MEL #MEL #AusGP #AustralianGP #MelbourneGP #Formula1 #points #VB77 #MercedesAMGF1 - Image & Caption Credit: @F1Racing via Twitter

ADDITIONAL TRIBUTE INFORMATION - SKY SPORTS >>>

With this backdrop of sadness and loss, the show began in earnest.

This excerpted and edited from ESPN -

Mercedes and the art of throwing pie in everyone's face
By: Nate Saunders - F1 Associate Editor

Oh dear. Mercedes has displayed some pretty ominous pace all weekend in Melbourne but no one was expecting such a comfortable pole position for Lewis Hamilton. Preseason suggested Ferrari would be in the mix but the Italian team has to go back to the drawing board ahead of tomorrow's Australian Grand Prix.
----
A few weeks ago, Hamilton claimed Ferrari was 0.5 seconds ahead of Mercedes -- a significant margin in F1 over one lap -- and the narrative which formed during the winter was that the Italian team had the edge. All the evidence from Barcelona suggested that was the case. Sebastian Vettel finished 0.7 down on Hamilton's eventual benchmark on Saturday. Mercedes seemed surprised by the gap and how comfortable things have been in Melbourne, while Ferrari expected it to be closer.
[Reference Here]

Motorsport Network's Julia Piquet gives her top five takeaways from the 2019 Australian Grand Prix, the opening round of the 2019 Formula 1 World Championship.

Valtteri Bottas dominated the season opener - captures fastest lap point against instruction - after getting ahead of poleman and Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton on the run to the first corner at the start - first point awarded for fastest lap since 1959.

Ferrari faltered, so Red Bull stepped into the breach - and on to the podium - in its first race with Honda.
(ht: Charles Bradley - Motorsport Report)

... notes from The EDJE




TAGS: Formula 1, Charlie Whiting, Australian Grand Prix, Melbourne, #F1 #F119MEL #MEL #AusGP #AustralianGP #MelbourneGP #Formula1 #points #VB77 #MercedesAMGF, HAAS F1, The EDJE

Auto Club 400 NASCAR Qualifications Format Renders A Stubbed Toe To Series

He was undefeated in each round of qualifying - @austindillon3 wins the #BuschPole! Image Credit: @ACSupdates (2019)

Auto Club 400 NASCAR Qualifications Format Renders A Stubbed Toe To Series

NASCAR fans who took Friday off from work were treated to a bone-headed display of over-reaching gamesmanship by all of the teams fielding the 38 cars (especially the top 12) set to participate in the Auto Club 400 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Southern California's only NASCAR race of the 2019 season.

NASCAR reset the template of what propels these custom made representations of stock cars that adhere to a formula designed to equalise the competition in the field and reduce the overall costs associated with the equipment needed to participate in a 41 race 2019 season. This 2019 reset effectively reduced the horsepower while increasing the downforce which has the effect of keeping the cars glued to the track at lower speeds. The other effect that, at some tracks has missed the prediction, effects competition is some felt this would increase "pack racing" where the lead car punches through the air having the cars behind the lead car work less hard to achieve full speed until a group of cars pull out and around the lead car, passing at a greater speed overall thus having an advantage of having ones car squarely in the pack for a higher average speed.

With this background knowledge, and having the qualifications for NASCAR be the fastest speed achieved by the top 12 previous fast times during the third qualification round/session shootout to set the field (as opposed to having each car take to the track for a singular three lap try at a top speed as how it is done in IndyCar at oval track races), all of the teams waited until the last minute or so to attempt to put in a lap to be scored.

Consequently, no team was able to actually register a lap time at a race speed before the time of Qualification 3 round ran out causing the race director staff at NASCAR to make the call that the order would be set from the fastest lap times set during Qualification 2 round.

Fans were never treated to the race off by the 38 drivers - and the top 12 who will compete in the Auto Club 400 to see who will start at the most coveted positions at the head of the "PACK" ... which is exactly why many who follow motorsports competition would never become an embedded fan of NASCAR, ever.

This type of tepid race management and competition thinking is a blight on what it means to actually be in competition as a professional pursuit. If this were the only time this type of strategy (lay in wait and reduce the damage) were employed, then Friday's odd call to use the times achieved in Qualification 2 round in order to fill the top 12 of the field would amount to a stubbed toe in the landscape of professional stock car racing ... but this points to a much larger problem - over regulated over management of a racing template placed on formula racing.

Here's what others are observing from this somewhat unusual NASCAR Race Control call to set the top 12 of the field on Qualification 2 round track times achieved.

STARTING ORDER FOR AUTO CLUB 400 >>>

Penske Racing #22 AAA Southern California Ford Mustang of Joey Logano being pushed from Tech with the snow-capped San Gabriel Mountains including Mt. Baldy in the background during Qualifications at Auto Club Speedway. Image Credit: Tom Stahler (2019)

This excerpted and edited from Crash.net -

Austin Dillon claims ACS pole after no one makes a time
By Josh Farmer

Austin Dillon takes pole in wacky qualifying session

Austin Dillon proved that you have to be lucky and good in qualifying for Sunday’s Auto Club 400 at the Auto Club Speedway.

The driver of the No. 3 Dow Chemical Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing led the first two 10-minute qualifying session on his way to his fourth career Busch Pole award. NASCAR reverted to the Q2 times when no driver posted an official time in the five-minute pole shootout.

With drafting key to a fast lap at the 2.0-mile superspeedway, drivers hesitated to make runs in all three sessions. The final group was the most extreme with no one taking off until less than a minute to go, which was too late for anyone to cross the start/finish line in time to turn a lap.

Every session featured a last-minute dash with nearly all drivers waiting until just over a minute to go to attempt their qualifying lap. Kurt Busch was the only driver to break the trend in Q2 and logged a lap of 40.644 seconds by himself.

The rest of the field took their laps with just over a minute and 15 seconds to go. When it was all said and done, Dillon was the man on top being the only driver in the 39-second bracket (39.982s).

Dillon, who also won the pole at ACS in 2016, noted that finding an open hole in the pack made all the difference in session two.

“That goes back to round two with Andy Houston (Dillon’s spotter), getting us a hole,” said Dillon. “Our Dow car has been good the whole day, I felt that it was the fastest car here. It feels good to get that pole.

The pole is Dillon's the fourth of his Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career.
[Reference Here]

As the Monster Energy Cup cars of NASCAR line up at the pit end line waiting for a good time to take the track and set a time for Qualifying, it looks like the traffic on the I-10 during rush hour. Image Credit: Image Credit: @ACSupdates (2019)

This excerpted and edited from Racer -

Boos send a message about the current state of NASCAR qualifying
By Kelly Crandall

NASCAR will look to have “something different in the queue” by the time Monster Energy Cup Series drivers show up to qualify at Texas Motor Speedway in two weeks.

After all 12 drivers advancing to the third and final round of qualifying at Auto Club Speedway on Friday failed to post even a single qualifying lap, Scott Miller, NASCAR’s senior vice president of competition, suggested tweaks would have to be made.

Ultimately, the top 12 for Sunday’s Auto Club 400 were determined based on second-round speeds, giving RCR’s Austin Dillon the pole.

“I saw obviously what our fans don’t want,” said Miller outside the NASCAR hauler after an all but silent final qualifying session. “Having the fastest 12 cars wait until they couldn’t get a time posted on the board, making kind of a mockery out of qualifying, is not what our fans expect.

“It’s a little bit on us in that we hoped things would go better than that. It’s an exciting show when they’re all out there on the race track, but obviously, there’s work to do [with the format] on our part so things like that don’t happen. We want to provide our fans with what they deserve, and we and the teams didn’t do a very good job of that today. We’re all really disappointed.”

In both the first and second rounds of qualifying, drivers sat at the end of pit road until late in the session. Then, charging onto the track, drivers tried to position themselves where they felt would be best in line to get a draft.

No one wanted to be the driver pulling the line and in the final round, no one was willing to leave the pits first.

Texas will be the next time the series qualifies at a track where a draft could come into play. Next weekend, the series visits the Martinsville short track.

“We will definitely make some tweaks to [qualifying], not quite sure what,” said Miller. “We don’t want to go back to single-car qualifying. There may not be another way, but we want to exhaust every possibility before we [go back] because that’s not as much fun, not as much of a show as the group situation.

“We’ll try to figure out a way to adjust the group qualifying thing and not go back to single car; but we got some work to do on that.”

Chase Elliott acknowledged no one wanted to be first out on the big Fontana track today. The Hendrick Motorsports driver doesn’t know what the fix should be, but said it was certainly entertaining to see drivers drafting and battling to set up the right gap to benefit from in the first two rounds.

Stewart-Haas Racing teammates Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer, who will start second and ninth respectively, said the fans in the grandstands clearly voiced their displeasure.

“We got booed,” said Bowyer. “It’s disappointing for everybody involved. I don’t know — I saw this coming three weeks ago. I think we all did. Unfortunately, we are going to have to be reactive instead of proactive.

“It’s a learning process, the whole package is. Everybody knew that going in, and everybody has been patient, but I am a little bit out of patience now with Fridays.

“There is so much hard work and dedication by so many teams to go out there and build the fastest car known to mankind inside the walls of their organization, and it just doesn’t matter. That is not racing.

“I feel like we are capable, as an industry, of putting on a better show than this. I know [NASCAR] will take the right [steps] to correct things, but unfortunately, it took something like today to [force] adjustment.”

“I think the crowd booing tells the story,” said Harvick, who deferred to NASCAR about whether a change in the format is necessary. “We do the best that we can, though, to try to put ourselves in the best position; and it was just a handful today.”

Fifth-place qualifier Joey Logano said his No. 22 Team Penske team blew it in the final round, but so did everyone else.

“That’s the game,” he said.

Ryan Newman qualified seventh but was another driver unhappy about how qualifying has played out recently.

“I don’t think that was a very successful use of TV time for our sponsors,” he said. “I told you all back in Vegas that I am still a big fan of single-car qualifying. That is all I need to say, really. That is the way qualifying should be.

“The gamesmanship that goes on now, the lack of giving it 100 percent — that’s not what qualifying is all about.

“But that is the program that NASCAR set forth, the rules they laid down and the box they put us in. Shame on us for not getting a lap in today.”
[Reference Here]

BOOS, Shame, and a less than satisfying Fan Experience was what NASCAR treated the crowd gathered for the only race scheduled for one of the largest concentration of humans a series could have and engage with - at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California.

Toe stubbed in exactly the wrong place at the wrong time - thanks for nuttin', NASCAR.

... notes from The EDJE




TAGS: Auto Club 400, Auto Club Speedway, Monster Energy Cup, NASCAR, Austin Dillon, No. 3 Dow Chemical Chevrolet, Richard Childress Racing, @ACSupdates, Tom Stahler, The EDJE

SAE SoCal Presents Engineering For The Blancpain GT World Challenge America

For those of you who watched yesterday’s video stream [from St. Petersburg], you saw what a hard hit the KTM took. The Marco Polo Motorsports crew had a long night but excited that Nicolai was fine and then had a spare chassis to build overnight and roll through tech this Morning! #spgp #srogt4 #sroamerica Image & Caption Credit: Jim Jordan SRO America via FB Timeline (2019)

SAE SoCal Presents Engineering For The Blancpain GT World Challenge America

A presentation by SRO Motorsports America hosted by SAE SoCal Section and Automobile Driving Museum through the support of the Motor Press Guild's Motorsports and Car Culture Committee.

Nicolai Elghanayan Steps Out Of Marco Polo Motorsports No. 71 KTM X-Bow after striking the wall in Turn 3. The accident was caused when a wheel on the left-side of the KTM X-Bow came off as driver Nicolai Elghanayan was traveling through the short chute between turns 2 & 3 at an estimated 85 mph. Track safety and SRO World-Challenge personnel helped Nicolai to the responding emergency vehicles for a physical assessment before transferring to the mandatory visit at the track's medical center. Nicolai was cleared to participate in Race 2 of the 2019 Pirelli GT4 America Sprint Series sanctioned by SRO Motorsports America. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks via CBS SRO Motorsports America Live Stream (2019)

The following video is the live stream posted at Facebook of the roughly 90 minute presentation put on by SRO Motorsports America (formally titled the Pirelli World Challenge) entering its 30th season of sanctioning sports car focused racing events.

The 2019 season represents a new era in GT and Touring Car racing for North America now with three distinct series – Blancpain GT World Challenge America, GT4 America, and TC America – SRO Motorsports America offers a wide-range of customer racing based series at top-tier circuits throughout the United States.

The SAE is the leader in connecting and educating mobility professionals to enable safe, clean, and accessible mobility solutions. We promote education in automotive and aerospace technologies for today’s and future engineers.

AUDIO Begins At The 8 Minute Point Of Presentation Video 
Blancpain Engineering Begins At The 24 Minute Point Of Presentation Video

Great to have Robbie Montinola and Honda talk racing with SAE SoCal. Thank you to the SRO for sharing with Jim Jordan and Greg Gill of SRO Motorsports America.

... notes from The EDJE




TAGS: SRO Motorsports America, SAE SoCal Section, SAE, ADM, Automobile Driving Museum, Motor Press Guild, MPG, Motorsports And Car Culture Committee, Dean Case,Robbie Montinola, Jim Jordan, Greg Gill, The EDJE

Is NTT IndyCar Series Ready For A Six-Time Champion In Scott Dixon?

Race fans line the streets of Saint Petersburg, some wishing continued success to the reining 2018 NTT IndyCar Series Champion Scott Dixon. Image Credit: Chris Owens via NICS (2019)

Is NTT IndyCar Series Ready For A Six-Time Champion In Scott Dixon?

Last weekend was witness to the beginning of the 2019 NTT IndyCar Series season-opener through the municipal airport and streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.

The main characteristic that will have an overlay effect is that there is nothing new in terms of engine or aerodynamic body parts (other than the usual off-season tweaks to skirt the rules) from the configurations allowed last year. Every team is on the same page given the platform from last year so one would suspect that the strongest teams drivers will percolate to the top of the charts through Practice sessions, Knock-Out Qualifications, and the eventual race end assuming all other things are equal with accidents and track condition Flags (Yellow, Red, or Black).

The eventual race ending Podium reflects this exact predictable result with 2017 IndyCar Champion and Team Penske driver Josef Newgarden at P1, the reining 2018 IndyCar Champion and Chip Ganassi Racing driver Scott Dixon at P2, and 2019 Firestone Fast Six NTT P1 Pole Award winner 2018 INDY 500 winner 2014 IndyCar Champion and Team Penske driver Will Power at P3.

One would think that the past early successes that leads to the humming of "Old McDonald Had A Farm" ... as in Penake, Ganassi, Penake, Ganassi Ee - I - Ee - I - Oh ... would be a boring enterprize to turn their attention to and follow all weekend long, but it is anything but boring given the stories that come forward through the struggles of actual competition.

Ganassi Racing's Swedish Rookie driver Felix Rosenqvist fastest during Practice 1 at St. Petersburg. Andretti Autosport drivers outpace Team Penske drivers who are struggling for pace in Practice 1. Scott Dixon at P4 fastest. Image Credit: NTT IndyCar Race Control (2019)

Practice 2 had the cars prepared by, or associated with, Andretti Autosport begin to crowd the top 10 of the speedcharts. Scott Dixon at P13 with Team Penske drivers Newgarden and Power in at P9 and P10 respectively. Image Credit: NTT IndyCar Race Control (2019) 

Penske Racing places all three of their drivers in the top 5 in Practice 3 with Ganassi Racing placing their two drivers at P7 and P8 respectively. Image Credit: NTT IndyCar Race Control (2019)

While the three serious practice sessions give a clue to what may happen during the three round Knock-Out Qualifications format used for street and road courses, nothing is conclusive since there are always those nasty unpredictable factors as track condition Flags, tire wear, weather, and mechanical reliability.

Round 1 Group 1 featured two Red Flags - one for Andretti Autosport Honda No. 98 Marco Andretti who seemed stalled at pit in and one brought out by Dale Coyne Racing Honda No. 19 Santino Ferrucci when he went off course into the tires at Turn 13. The second Red Flag ended the session early and had the effect of knocking out 2016 IndyCar Champion Team Penske Chevrolet No. 22  Simon Pagenaud and 4-Time IndyCar Champion  Dale Coyne Racing Honda No. 18 Sébastien Bourdais.

Turn 4 spin by the Ganassi Racing driver Scott Dixon had him finish the Round 1 Group 2 Knock-Out Qualifying session at P7. Image Credit: Snipped from NTT IndyCar video (2019)

Round 1 Group 2 featured an on-track spin by Scott Dixon and had Dixon be able to post a lap time but at the end of this session due to his spin, did not post a time quick enough to advance. A penalty was called after the session was over on Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda No. 30 Takuma Sato for going off track, and impeding another driver upon re-entry, allowing the driver at P7 to advance to the next round. That was Scott Dixon. Without being able to move forward, Dixon would have had to grid up for the race at P14.

Round 2 Knock-Out Qualifications session ended with a PENALTY - Harding Steinbrenner Racing Honda No.88 Colton Herta has been penalized for qualifying interference. Loss of 2 Fast Laps and will not Advance,  (Rule 8.3.6.1). Advancing to Firestone Fast Six are: Team Penske Chevrolet No. 2 Josef Newgarden, Team Penske Chevrolet No. 12 Will Power, Andretti Autosport Honda No. 28 Ryan Hunter-Reay, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda No. 9 Scott Dixon, Andretti Autosport Honda No. 27 Alexander Rossi and Chip Ganassi Racing Honda No. 10 Felix Rosenqvist.

Firestone Fast Six finishes with 12-Power wining the NTT P1 Award for Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

Scott Dixon, five-time and 2018 NTT IndyCar Season Champion driving for Chip Ganassi Racing,  follows eventual 2019 season-opener Firestone Grand Prix Of Saint Petersburg race winner, Penske Racing's and 2017 NTT IndyCar Series Season Champion, Josef Newgarden through Turn 1 at the end of the Saint Petersburg Albert Whitted Municipal Airport. Image Credit: Chris Owens via NICS (2019)

This Excerpted and edited from Firestone Fast Six IndyCar Media Conference - Saturday March 9, 2019

THE MODERATOR: Now joined by the two Chip Ganassi Racing teammates, Scott Dixon, driving the No. 9 PNC Bank Honda, and Felix Rosenqvist, driving the No. 10 NTT Data Honda. Actually sharing the second row, but Scott, a fourth-place qualifying position for you in tomorrow's race. Your outlook on how qualifying went today? Obviously very action-packed for you but also just the strength of your team with such a strong start for tomorrow.

SCOTT DIXON: Yeah, that was like Christmas, I guess. I don't know. It was scrappy. I think we changed front springs three times, front rear toes, the front wing. It was a bit of a mess. We struggled to get the balance a little bit. Q1 I think we were knocked out until the infraction with Sato and had a spin in Q1, so it was almost like first day back at school and was just a mess.

But all in all, I think the car is pretty strong. It's just not real nice to try and piece together. So I think over the longer run, it seems pretty suitable. Guys in Q1 I think got a little bit lucky with some fresher tires later on with the crash sesh that happened in that one, as well.

But we made the most of it. We could have been 14th, but we're starting fourth. Good spot. Great to have Felix here. He did a hell of a job, and hopefully we can have a podium finish for both the 9 and the 10.

Pitstop and tire selection strategy played a very important role in in the final results. Further, an on-track pass of Will Poser for P2 through Turn 1, Turn 2, and ending before Turn 3 delivered the best points for a car that qualified at P4. It's performances like this that deliver championships at year's end. Image Credit: Chris Jones via NTT IndyCar (2019) 

This excerpted and edited from Post Race IndyCar Media Conference - Sunday March 10, 2019 - Scott Dixon

THE MODERATOR: We will get started with the NTT IndyCar Series post-race press conference for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, joined by our second-place finisher, Scott Dixon.

THE MODERATOR: Scott Dixon, driving the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Honda for the team, finishing second, the reigning series champion, matching his best finish here on the streets of St. Pete.

I know a second-place finish always feels a little bit bitter at the end, but are you happy with the way your team has started off the season?

SCOTT DIXON: We always come to these races to win. We came up a little bit short. It was an interesting race. I think between at least the Penske cars and Ganassi cars, it was a bit opposite.

I felt our cars were strong for the first 15, 20 laps, especially on restarts, as well, but the last sort of five to ten, it flipped the other way and they had some really good speed.

Had some great battles out there. Lap traffic was interesting, Will and I had a really tough fight in one, two, and then all the way to three I think it was, and then, you know, it worked out for us.

Scott Dixon hakes hands with his long-time race strategist Mike Hull. Is a sixth championship in the works ... along with a defence of an existing championship title? Only Mike Hull and the driving of Scott Dixon know for sure. Image Credit: Chris Jones via NTT INdyCar (2019)

But all in all, I think strategy-wise and pit stops, it was a clean day for us. I think any of us got out front, as Will [Power] said, had some really good pace, you would have been able to capitalize and Josef's [Car] did that in their strategy, they were able to run and start on new Reds and scuff Reds later. Their pace opened it up. Interesting day, and good points for us and hopefully we can keep maintaining that.

Q. Good racing today out there, a lot of good racing out there today. What is it that you like when you come here and about this course?

SCOTT DIXON: I think it's fun. It's technical. I think it's the atmosphere. The city, as they say, embraces the race and they do. Even walking around downtown, I think everybody, for me, at least living in Indianapolis, it's nice to get some warm weather, especially this week.

But I don't know, the traffic has passing opportunities, turn one, turn four you can maybe get sneaky occasionally, but a lot of circuits don't have that combination. You've got to give Kim (Green) and Kevin (Savoree) a lot of credit, obviously Firestone, too, for sponsoring this event but it just has a great feel about it,, kicking off the season, I think everybody is happy to start the season.

Q. Scott, you mentioned your drink bottle didn't work during the race. In this heat, do you think that had any sort of impact on your mind, body, 110 laps?

SCOTT DIXON: Kept pushing the button a lot thinking it was going to work at some point. It was kind of annoying. It was definitely a physical race, lots of green laps. It was pretty hot out there and the car is moving around a lot, especially on a slight downforce situation, and you have to push the whole time, right, to try to close these gaps. For me it was physical. I think I've had about six bottles of water, so nice to finally get some water.

But yeah, that happens occasionally. Hopefully doesn't happen again.

A Podium P2 finish for the first of 17 races this season which has a new venue in Circuit Of The Americas (COTA) purpose built Formula 1 race course near Austin, Texas as the next race with the season ending at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca being added this year after a 15 year absence. Image Credit: Chris Owens via NTT IndyCar (2019)

Q. I know you've got time to be satisfied, soak in today's race, but looking ahead, a racetrack unlike any other on the circuit, going to COTA, how big a race can that be, and what's your outlook toward that event?

SCOTT DIXON: Yeah, hopefully, we get some good traction there. First time I'd ever been there for the open test. It's definitely a fun city. I think the track itself should race really well for our cars just because the sheer size of it.

Yeah, we'll have to see how it goes, push on the marketing size and get bottoms in seats and keep pushing but I think the race itself should be really good.

Q. How is the dynamic with Felix?

SCOTT DIXON: That's a little hard to compare, to be honest. I think it's been a lot of fun. Felix has worked with the team for two or three years now with open tests we've done with him as a rookie. The guy has got a ton of experience in so many different cars, so it's been really refreshing, actually, to not be in the same ecosystem and thinking of the same things. It's kind of thinking outside the box which has been really refreshing.

But yeah, he's a strong guy, very committed and obviously very talented and he's going to be a hell of a fight for the whole year, and it's nice to be working with somebody really close as far as on the speed side.

Q. Regarding the scarcity of yellows that the NTT IndyCar Series might be heading towards.

SCOTT DIXON: I totally agree. You know, it's nice, if it's random and it falls your way, but the possibility of that is pretty slim. We'd seen that the last two years here with the result. It was just kind of random, flipped the field, and makes for an interesting race maybe.

But as Will kind of said, it's not completely fair, and the teams that are really fast, qualify up front, the ones that get hurt, the leaders always get hurt.

If there's consistency there, that's great. I think we've had a glimpse of that in the past and then kind of went haywire there for a little bit so hopefully, I think as a driver, all you want is it to be a consistent call the whole time.
ENDS

So, is the NTT IndyCar Series ready for a repeat and defense of the 5th Championship posted by New Zealander Scott Dixon which will result into a very rare 6th NTT IndyCar Series Championship? If the resilient and opportune performance put in by Chip Ganassi Racing's Mike Hull and Scott Dixon, combined with the childhood fan heart shown in the home-made sign trackside (image above) the answer almost looks like a simple ... YES.

... notes from The EDJE




TAGS: NTT IndyCar Series, Scott Dixon, Mike Hull, Chip Ganassi Racing, Team Penske, Will Power, Josef Newgarden, Tim Cindric, Takuma Sato, Colton Herta, Simon Pagenaud, Felix Rosenqvist, The EDJE

Auto Club 400 - NASCAR's Saint Patrick's Weekend With ACS President Dave Allen

Pitlane at Auto Club Speedway. Image Credit: ACS

Auto Club 400 - NASCAR's Saint Patrick's Weekend With ACS President Dave Allen 

Auto Club Speedway is celebrating 22 years of racing during St. Patrick's Day weekend at Southern California’s premier motorsports venue March 15-17, 2019 when NASCAR makes its only stop in Southern California for Auto Club 400 Weekend.

For the first time ever on the NASCAR circuit, Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers will line up five wide during the pace laps prior to the drop of the green flag for the Auto Club 400 on March 17, 2019. The “Five Wide Salute” not only pays homage to Saturday night short tracks, but will celebrate Auto Club Speedway’s signature racing style of flat out and five wide.

Welcome, DAVE ALLEN, President Auto Club Speedway ...

1) Auto Club Speedway is one of the fastest tracks on the NASCAR circuit - Everybody in NASCAR is talking about a new rules package that is expected to enhance the quality of competition, given the limited exposure shown so far during the race at Atlanta that had Brad Keselowski winning for Team Penske, what will you be looking for out of the new rules as they will be tested at Auto Club Speedway during the Auto Club 400 weekend and race on Sunday?

2) Since this track was originally a vision from the house of Roger Penske, and Brad Keselowski just became winningest Penske Racing driver of all time with 61 victories eclipsing Mark Donohue's multi-discipline mark of 60, does Auto Club Speedway plan to stage a recognition of this unique mark in motorsports history?


3) Event Weekend schedule - what do fans need to be looking for?

⦁ The NASCAR Auto Club 400 is scheduled for Sunday, March 17, 2019 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California.

Weekend Schedule:

Thursday, March 14: NASCAR Hauler Parade (Free community event)
⦁ Hauler Parade at 6:30 pm
Friday, March 15: NASCAR Qualifying Day
⦁ Gates open at 9:30 am
⦁ Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Qualifying at 2:40 p.m.
Saturday, March 16: NASCAR XFINITY Series NXS 300 Race
⦁ Gates open at 8:00 am
⦁ NXS 300 starts at 2:00 pm
Sunday, March 17:  Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Auto Club 400
⦁ Gates open at 7:00 am
⦁ Auto Club 400 starts at 12:30 pm

----

NEW

Five Wide Salute
⦁ For the first time ever on the NASCAR circuit, Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series drivers will line-up for a “Five Wide Salute” during the pace laps prior to the drop of the green flag for the Auto Club 400 on March 17, 2019.
⦁ The “Five Wide Salute” is a tribute to Saturday night short tracks, but also celebrates Auto Club Speedway’s signature racing style of flat-out and five wide.

Fan Favorites include:
⦁ Monster Energy athletes perform incredible motorcycle and truck stunts at their home track during their famous Monster Energy Smoke Show
⦁ Catch the famed high-flying maneuvers and acrobatic acts of lucha libre wrestling in the Viva La Fiesta Zone
⦁ Lefty’s Fun Zone for family-friendly games and motorsports fun designed all for kids!
⦁ Pre-Race Concert always rocks the fan zone.  Headliner will be announced soon. Past performers include Bush, Switchfoot, Smash Mouth and More!

Race Day Ticket Packages:
Whether it’s taking a behind the scenes tour of NASCAR garages, watching the Auto Club 400 race from an all-inclusive pit road Busch Lounge, or attending a NASCAR driver Q&A with Chase Elliott or Jimmie Johnson…there are a variety of unique race day experiences.  Ticket Packages are available with special pricing through March 2. 

 4) The Los Angeles basin has now experienced its coldest month of February, not one day reached 70 degrees since records have been taken starting in the late 1880's - what are the weather forecasts telling you as to what to expect for the St. Patrick's Day Auto Club 400 weekend of activities.
ENDS

March the Seventeenth ... Sleep the Eighteenth

... notes from The EDJE



TAGS: #autoclub400, #bradkeselowski, #daveallen, #edmundjenks, #fivewidesalute, #jimmiejohnson, #markdonohue, #monsrerenergycup, #motorsportsjournal, #nascar, #penskeracing, #performanceandracingtechtalk, #saintpatricksday, #theedje, #ticketpackages, #xfinity

As Official Artist, Randy Owens Named Poster Artist For 45th Acura Grand Prix Of Long Beach

As Official Artist, Randy Owens Named Poster Artist For 45th Acura Grand Prix Of Long Beach 

Prolific American racing artist Randy Owens has been named Official Race Artist for the 2019 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

As Official Race Artist, Owens has created the poster artwork for the 45th annual event, which will also grace the covers of the event program, Fan Guide, T-shirts and other race-related materials.

Owens has established himself in the American racing art scene, having produced over 300 handmade serigraph editions in his realistic style -- modern and evolutionary, with color and motion as the central theme.

He has created poster art for Long Beach races eight times, including the Grand Prix’s 40th anniversary edition in 2014, as well as posters for the Miami Grand Prix, US Grand Prix at Indianapolis, Road America Historic Races and the Bahrain International Circuit.  And, since 1991, he has also produced an annual motor racing calendar for Bridgestone. ​

Randy Owens poster of the 40th Toyota Grand Prix Of Long Beach. Image Credit: GPALB

Born in Baltimore, Md., Owens grew up in Virginia and majored in fine art at Northern Virginia Community College. He was drawn to the vibrant colors, clean form and crisp edges of serigraphy (silkscreen printmaking), and after being introduced to auto racing in 1978 began making serigraphs of motor racing subjects in his own unique style.

Over the years, Owens has staged over 200 exhibitions of his work in five countries, including the Axis Galleries in Tokyo and 10-year retrospective shows at the famous l’art et l’automobile Gallery in New York City and the National Automobile Museum in Reno, NV.

Owens will have a display booth at the 2019 Acura Grand Prix and will be available to sign posters for race fans throughout the weekend. Official posters will sell for $10 at the event, as well as in the weeks prior to the event at gplb.com.

The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach will be headlined by the fourth round of the 2019 NTT IndyCar Series, as well as the BUBBA burger Sports Car Grand Prix, featuring the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. In addition, the weekend will include the Motegi Racing Super Drift Challenge under the lights on Friday and Saturday nights; SPEED Energy Stadium Super Trucks, the powerful sports cars of the Pirelli GT4 America and the new-for-2019 Historic IMSA GTO Challenge. There will also be concerts, free to race ticket holders, on Friday and Saturday nights.

Fans can select and pay for their Grand Prix seats, parking and paddock passes online at gplb.com. Ticket orders can also be placed by calling the toll-free ticket hotline, (888) 827-7333.  Also featured on gplb.com is the latest Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach news and racetrack information, photos and ongoing announcements of special race week activities.

Ticket prices range from $33 for a Friday General Admission ticket to $147 for a three-day ticket that includes Sat./Sun. reserved seating in grandstand upper levels.  Pre-paid parking packages are also available, along with handicapped seating, NTT IndyCar Series Paddock passes, Super Photo tickets and a wide variety of hospitality packages.

Fans can also follow the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Facebook (GrandPrixLB), Twitter @GPLongBeach (#AGPLB) and Instagram @GPLongBeach.
[ht: AGPLB]

... notes from The EDJE



TAGS: Randy Owens, Acura Grand Prix Of Long Beach, 45th, AGPLB, Race Artist, Acura, The EDJE

COTA NTT IndyCar Series Spring Training Has Everyone Anxious For 2019 Season To Begin

Last year's NTT IndyCar Series champion, and now 5-time champion, Scott Dixon. gets ready to take to the track in testing for the 2019 IndyCar Series season. Image Credit: Edmund Jenks (2019)

COTA NTT IndyCar Series Spring Training Has Everyone Anxious For 2019 Season To Begin

If 11 hours and more than 8,000 miles of on-track testing over two days showed anything, it's that the NTT IndyCar Series fits in marvelously at the sparkling Circuit of The Americas and the competition will be deep and intense in the 2019 season.

Twenty-five drivers completed 2,367 laps at INDYCAR Spring Training, the only officially mandated testing prior to the NTT IndyCar Series season opener, the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 10. Rookie driver Colton Herta surprised many by turning the fastest lap on the 3.41-mile permanent road course and topping the timesheet in three of the four sessions in the No. 88 Harding Steinbrenner Racing Honda.

Savvy veterans were close on Herta's heels, however, with Alexander Rossi, who led Wednesday's final session, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Will Power and Simon Pagenaud rounding out the top five on the combined-session speed chart. It left drivers and fans alike itching for the season to begin and the return next month for the INDYCAR Classic on March 24, the first Indy car race hosted by COTA.

"The track is phenomenal," said Power, the 2014 series champion and reigning Indianapolis 500 winner driving the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. "I love it, love it, love it! Very technical, obviously a lot of complexes. ... Great facilities, all the drivers are stoked to be here."

Herta, the 2018 Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires runner-up who made his NTT IndyCar Series debut for Harding Steinbrenner Racing in last year's season finale at Sonoma Raceway, set the overall best lap of 1 minute, 46.6258 seconds (115.132 mph) in Tuesday's afternoon session. The 18-year-old Californian backed it up by leading Wednesday's practices and running second to Rossi in the afternoon session.

Runner-up in the 2018 Cooper Tires Indy Lights series championship Colton Herta confers with the Harding Steinbrenner Racing team between test sessions. Colton had to have made his father Bryan Herta very happy with his P1 showing overall. Image Credit: John Cote via NTT IndyCar (2019)

"This track just suits my driving style a lot," Herta said. "The team has been working really hard to get the car where it needs to be. Obviously, they've made really big gains in the winter time compared to last year, and we're kind of seeing that. Really stout job by the boys."

Herta and fellow NTT IndyCar Series rookies the likes of Felix Rosenqvist (sixth on the combined speed chart), Marcus Ericsson and Santino Ferrucci have only added depth to a full-season field of drivers already considered the deepest in motorsports.

"Every year it just gets better and better, which is a testament obviously to the series and the value that drivers are placing on it," said Rossi, the 2016 Indy 500 winner and 2018 NTT IndyCar Series championship runner-up. "We've seen guys come over from Europe, which is a super positive thing. I would completely agree that 2019 will be the most competitive season that I've been a part of.

Alexander Rossi on course during the Open Test at Circuit of The Americas. He was second fastest overall and about 14 seconds from the fastest laps set by Formula 1, 2 seconds slower than a fastest Porsche 919 lap, .and about 1.5 seconds slower than the 2013 Audi R18 lap time. Image By: John Cote via NTT IndyCar (2019)

"If you look at the top 15, top 20, in reality there are a lot of really good guys. That's pretty much unlike any other series when you look at it, and I fully expect there to be 10 to 12 guys every single weekend to beat in the race."

The 2019 NTT IndyCar Series calendar features 17 races, all airing live on NBC or NBCSN and the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network. Opening with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 10 (1 p.m. ET, NBCSN) and followed by the INDYCAR Classic at COTA on March 24 (1 p.m., NBCSN), the schedule is highlighted by the 103rd Indianapolis 500 on May 26 (11 a.m., NBC) and closes with the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey from WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca (2:30 p.m., NBC).

SPRING TRAINING DAY 2 QUOTES:

COLTON HERTA (No. 88 Harding Steinbrenner Racing Honda): "Another good day of testing at COTA. We were quickest this morning and P2 by a tenth (of a second) this afternoon. And there's still more to find. We are still working on getting the balance as it gets colder. When it was warmer, we were really good, so I think we'll be fine for the race as it should be warmer. Overall the team had a great test. I'm really happy with how everyone is working so hard and putting in so much effort to get everything done. I can't wait for next month when this No. 88 Honda-powered car hits the Streets of St. Pete."

RYAN HUNTER-REAY (No. 28 DHL Honda): "We made good strides today. Generally, the whole day we just kept chipping away at it, moving in the right direction. In the end, it went red (red flag condition] during our sticker tire run so we had to finish the day off on used Firestone tires and we did our fastest lap of the day. I think it's a good point to come back with - we're quick on used rubber. Hopefully, we can turn that into a good race weekend here in late March."

Swedish Rookie Felix Rosenqvist begins to debrief with his Chip Ganassi Racing team on pit lane during the Open Test (P6) at Circuit of The Americas. Image By: Shawn Gritzmacher via NTT IndyCar (2019)

FELIX ROSENQVIST (No. 10 NTT DATA Chip Ganassi Racing Honda): "It's been positive. Yesterday we had a big gap to the front guys, so I had to do a bit of homework last night. My NTT DATA car has seemed to be quick in every session this year. I think we can really fight in the top five, but there are still things we have to learn and work on. For me, I kind of learn every time I'm out. But after two days here, it feels like we're done and it's time to move on to Sebring."

GRAHAM RAHAL (No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda): "Two great days of testing here at COTA. We ended up fifth and there is a lot for us to be happy about. We found a lot over the past two days. Starting where we did yesterday morning, for us to be fifth is a great accomplishment. I think we learned a lot. When we go back to Laguna Seca, when we go to a lot of other tracks there is a lot that we can take from here. I'm really proud of my guys. They really worked hard. This United Rentals car looks awesome. I'm really happy with how things went and looking forward to coming back."

SCOTT DIXON (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda): "We had a big break before the last 45 minutes (of the afternoon test session). We tried a few different things, but I don't feel like we really got - it kind of just feels really disconnected for me in some portions of the track, quite good in others. I don't think I did a really good job in piecing together a lap either. It seems like there is something wrong with the suspensions too. That is what we were kind of chasing before. The steering wheel is kinked to the left and then also when it brakes, it brakes funny. We're trying to figure that as well."

JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 5 Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Honda): "Another productive day. Obviously, we closed the gap to the guys in front, and it's even closer than it looks on the timesheets because we kind of got hosed by that red flag at the end on our last set of tires when everyone was getting quicker and quicker. I'm really happy with the progress that we made, the direction that we found, and we'll keep chipping away at it. Hopefully, by qualifying day here on the race weekend, the Arrow Electronics cars will be right up there."

American Santino Ferrucci pulls into his pit stall during the Open Test at Circuit of The Americas (P10). Ferrucci drove in four races with Dale Coyne Racing last year and this will be his first full rookie year.
Image By: Chris Jones via NTT IndyCar (2019)

SANTINO FERRUCCI (No. 19 Dale Coyne Racing Honda): "It was another really good day for us at Circuit of The Americas. A lot of learning to be done. In the morning session, realistically we were P4, but a red flag came out right before we crossed the line. Luckily, we have the lap on data but it didn't show on the time sheets. At the end of the last session, right when we thought we were kind of getting lost a little, we went back in the right direction. It feels good to end up P9 and to have a good lap time to end the test before heading into the race weekend next month. It was a great job by all the guys, it was a busy two days and we're looking forward to the season opener in St. Petersburg."

TONY KANAAN (No. 14 ABC Supply AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet): "We had a productive day today. We made big changes and we tried to separate the changes between the cars so at least we are learning as a team now. Matheus (Leist) is helping quite a bit, so a happy day for us. We came here trying to learn what we did over the winter on the shaker and on the simulator and things were pretty close, so we'll take it from here and try to improve it until the first race. This is our first test and we have three more before St. Pete, so I'm excited."

MATHEUS "MATT" LEIST (No. 4 ABC Supply AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet): "We just finished here for the second day at COTA. We had a lot of fun at this beautiful track. A lot of progress made with the team. I think we still need to keep working hard, still need to figure out new stuff, but I'm pretty happy with these two days of testing here. I think we made some good progress compared to last year and now we're looking forward to the next test and also to the first race of the year."
[ht: NTT IndyCar Series]

... notes from The EDJE




TAGS: NTT IndyCar Series, COTA, Spring Training, Colton Herta, Alexander Rossi, Will Power, Circuit of The Americas, twenty-five drivers, 2,367 laps, over 8,000 miles, Anxious, The EDJE