Latest news with #Axalta
Fox Sports
15 hours ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Practice Shots: Drivers Start To Tame Beautiful Beast Road America
INDYCAR The NTT INDYCAR SERIES will reach its halfway point midway through Sunday's XPEL Grand Prix at Road America, and with that comes several aspects to assess. Like Alex Palou's pursuit of a third consecutive series championship and fourth title in the past five years. Like the challenges of Palou by Pato O'Ward, Kyle Kirkwood and others. Like how beginning Sunday there will be nine races staged held over the next 11 weekends. There's a lot to consume, for sure. Meantime, drivers and their teams warmed up at Road America with the first practice of the weekend. These three things stood out in the session: The Return to Road America Let's start with this middle-of-Wisconsin facility. You roll through the first half of the season with an assortment of racetracks – some located in prettier settings than others – and then you roll up to Road America, and you wonder why you haven't been camping with the family in years. If an artist were to create scenery around a motorsports venue, he'd proudly draw this place, then celebrate with a brat lathered with mustard. The track is 4.014 miles, with one breathtaking location after another. Canada Corner isn't just the best-named spot in INDYCAR, it's stuck deep in the woods with horsepower reverberating through the trees. Cars sprint to that spot before darting hard right up the hill to what seems like civilization. It's exhilarating. But be warned: Road America can bite like few other tracks in this country. Speeds are high; the trappings consequential. This is beauty and a beast. Turn 1 was the scene of the worst accident of A.J. Foyt's career in 1990. Parker Johnstone barrel-rolled through that corner in 1996. The bridge at Turn 4 is what Memo Gidley smashed in 2001. At the end of that long straight, Bryan Herta was facing backward after a spin in 1998 and watched Alex Barron's car squarely land on top of his. And then there was Katherine Legge's indescribable ride down the backstretch in 2006. View the replay at your discretion. Palou and Josef Newgarden both crashed at Road America last year. Scott Dixon and Will Power tangled in a big one a couple years back. At these speeds, high alert is advised. Team Penske Needs Bounce-Back The most successful organization in the history of this sport is coming off its worst weekend in more than three decades, and it was maybe worse than that when considering Team Penske drivers finished 24th, 25th and 27th in the 27-car field last weekend in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline at World Wide Technology Raceway. The cars driven by Newgarden, Scott McLaughlin and Power each failed to finish the race, something that hadn't happened to Roger Penske's team since 1994. But here's the difference between those years: When cars driven by Al Unser Jr., Emerson Fittipaldi and Paul Tracy failed to finish that day at Michigan International Speedway, they still finished eighth, 10th and 15th in that 28-car field, and they went on to finish 1-2-3 in the championship. Unser also won the Indianapolis 500 that year. Eight races into this season, Power ranks seventh, McLaughlin eighth and Newgarden 16th in the standings, and each is seeking his first race win of the year. Here's the good connection between those two seasons: The 1994 gang bounced back to finish 1-2-3 in the ensuing race, held at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. This Penske bunch stood together on last year's Road America podium with Power winning the race followed by Newgarden and McLaughlin, and they were three of the fastest six cars in Friday's practice. Power and Newgarden are each two-time series winners at Road America. Palou Ready for Road America Palou was the overlooked driver in last week's World Wide Technology Raceway incident that saw Newgarden smash into the wounded car of rookie Louis Foster on the frontstretch. Palou was first on the scene of Foster's lazy spin, but had the advantage of seeing what Newgarden couldn't. 'I was lucky there,' Palou said. 'I had to take a decision of going up (the track) or going low, and I went up because I saw that the car was potentially going to go down, and Josef unfortunately didn't have that option. Those moments sometimes you are lucky and you get it right, and sometimes you don't. I'm glad I was on the right side there.' Palou said the expansive Road America circuit and its numerous passing opportunities could offer a lot of incidents in a race or none at all. But he also has noticed that many of his fellow competitors have started 'playing a little bit more aggressive than probably at the beginning of the season' as goals haven't yet been achieved. Palou's goal is to win at Road America for the third time, and the fact he has won in recent odd years (2021 and 2023) has him optimistic about this visit in 2025. Palou had a pair of subpar results in this season's past two races – 25th after being punted into the tires in the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear and eighth at WWTR – but he still holds a sizable lead over second place O'Ward (73 points) and third place Kirkwood (75 points). Kirkwood has been the driver on the charge, winning each of those two races. Kirkwood also posted the fastest lap of Friday's practice (1 minute, 44.9881 seconds). Palou's best lap ranked ninth. Keep an eye on these two drivers and more this weekend. recommended
Fox Sports
4 days ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Power Rankings: Marcus Armstrong, Christian Rasmussen Jump In
INDYCAR The recent stretch in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES showcased the full range of the sport's diversity with four races on four distinct track types. Each tested driver skills and team strategies, which led to some shake-ups in the Power Rankings since early May. The Sonsio Grand Prix on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway natural road course on May 10 kicked off the stretch on a track favoring technical road course specialists. The 109th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on May 25 on the 2.5-mile IMS superspeedway oval is the crown jewel of the series, demanding high-speed precision and pit strategy. Next was the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear, a tight, unforgiving street course with little margin for error June 1. Finally, last Sunday's Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline at World Wide Technology Raceway emphasized short-track handling with strategic adjustments on the 1.25-mile oval. Through it all, Alex Palou, Kyle Kirkwood and Pato O'Ward emerged as the consistent top three performers, anchoring Power Rankings amid the shake-ups beneath them. Their ability to perform across disciplines has been astiff test Palou, Kirkwood and O'Ward have passed, as they stayed in the top three spots in the Power Rankings this week ahead of the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America Presented by AMR on Sunday, June 22 (1:30 p.m. ET, FOX, FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio Network). But there are two new faces in the rankings based on their strong performances at WWTR: ↑10. Christian Rasmussen (No. 21 ECR Splenda Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR) Rasmussen came from the back to the front twice at WWTR after starting 25th, earning a career-best third-place finish. He has two top-six finishes in the last three races. ↑9. Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance Honda; Last Rank: NR) Armstrong catapulted to 10th in points following his third top-10 finish in the last four races by crossing the finish line ninth at WWTR. He was the top Honda-powered qualifier at WWTR by starting sixth. ↔8. David Malukas (No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet; Last Rank: 8) Malukas hasn't delivered headline results in the last two races, but a closer look reveals a driver performing at an elite level, just without the final box score to match. Malukas qualified second in Detroit and was positioned for a second straight top-five finish before an avoidable contact penalty left him 14th at the checkered flag. He qualified fourth at WWTR and led a race-high 67 laps. He was in serious contention for the win before brushing the Turn 4 SAFER Barrier on Lap 195, leaving him 12th. Still, the speed is undeniable, and a runner-up finish in the Indy 500, the biggest stage in the series, cemented Malukas' ability to perform up front. ↓7. Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet; Last Rank: 4) Power's season has been a roller coaster, flashing brilliance offset by costly setbacks. He was involved in a first-lap crash in the St. Petersburg season opener, finishing 26th. Power started 33rd in the '500' and managed to claw up to 16th, but still not the kind of result that matches Power's championship-winning pedigree. At WWTR, Power earned NTT P1 Award honors but crashed early in Turn 4, finishing last. Outside of those three trouble spots, Power has five top-six finishes, a clear indication that when things go right, he's still among the best in the series. ↑6. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 10) Dixon was on the verge of dropping out of the Power Rankings but finished fourth at WWTR for his third top-five finish of the season. The six-time series champion delivered another solid result, even when the raw speed isn't always there. He's fifth in points and remains a master in execution of various fuel-saving strategies. ↔5. Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 5) Lundgaard slipped at WWTR by finishing 14th, but his overall body of work keeps him firmly in the Power Rankings and championship conversation. The Dane is fourth in points and had six top-eight finishes in the seven races before WWTR, including three straight podiums at The Thermal Club INDYCAR Grand Prix, the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and a runner-up at Barber Motorsports Park. The bigger picture proves he's not just a sneaky talent but a legitimate threat for victory at each race. ↑4. Santino Ferrucci (No. 14 Bommarito Automotive Group; Last Rank: 7) Ferrucci is riding a wave of momentum that's making him one of the hottest NTT INDYCAR SERIES drivers. He's pieced together three consecutive top-five finishes that no one on the grid can match heading to Road America. A week after Ferrucci earned his best-career finish by crossing the finish line second in Detroit, he charged from 19th to finish fifth at WWTR. ↔3. Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 3) O'Ward is on a heater, and it's not just flashes of brilliance anymore. He's sustained high-level execution across all types of tracks. O'Ward finished runner-up to Kirkwood on Sunday night at WWTR, his second runner-up finish in the last four races and third of the season. He also finished second to Palou at The Thermal Club and the Sonsio Grand Prix. Since the Children's of Alabama Indy Grand Prix presented by AmFirst in early May at Barber Motorsports Park, O'Ward has a fourth-place average finish, with a worst result of seventh on the streets of Detroit. He has three top-three finishes in the last four races and is second in points, 73 behind Palou. ↔2. Kyle Kirkwood (No. 27 Siemens Honda; Last Rank: 2) Kirkwood proved he's not just a one-dimensional street course specialist by claiming his first oval win Sunday night at WWTR. His previous four victories each took place on street circuits. However, Kirkwood has achieved three of those five wins this season, including two straight. He has four top-five finishes this season and six top-10 results. The Andretti Global driver is third in points, trailing Palou by 75. Palou and Kirkwood have combined to win all eight races this season. ↔1. Alex Palou (No. 10 Ridgeline Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 1) Palou began 2025 with five wins and a runner-up finish in six races. However, he slipped the last two races, finishing 25th on the streets of Detroit and eighth at WWTR. Still, Palou has outperformed everyone this season, and barring a third straight finish outside the top five, his top spot isn't seriously threatened. recommended
Fox Sports
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Instant Recall: Bommarito Automotive Group 500
INDYCAR Sunday night's competitive and unpredictable NTT INDYCAR SERIES race at World Wide Technology Raceway featured nine different teams finishing in the top 10. And here's the kicker: Team Penske wasn't one of them. The Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline was one of those topsy-turvy races for which the series is known. If it seemed every driver in the paddock felt he had a chance to win the race, including all three representing Team Penske, believe them. More than half of the drivers led the 260-lap race. Five of the top-10 finishers were pursuing their first series victory, and that didn't include David Malukas, who led a race-high 67 laps, or Callum Ilott, who was leading with four-plus laps to go for a PREMA Racing team competing in just its second oval race. Christian Rasmussen used a car that had been spectacularly on fire to twice drive from the back of the field, pass a race-high 62 cars and finish a career-best third. He was elated. Conor Daly, who always seems to have a fast car at this track, stormed to the lead mid-race and led 36 laps. He saw the race as one that got away. The 27-car field was full of inspirational stories. One of those was Kyle Kirkwood scoring the first oval win of his still-young career. He led only eight laps, but the last five took him to victory lane. As for Team Penske, well, it was a night to forget as all three drivers had dramatic exits. Running second, Will Power had a rare tire failure that sent his car into the Turn 4 wall. Later, Josef Newgarden was leading and on his way to lapping series points leader Alex Palou when he found trouble on the front straightaway. Choosing to pass Palou on the left side turned out to be the wrong one as that's where Louis Foster's damaged car was sliding after wall contact off Turn 4. Their impact was ferocious, with Newgarden launched upside down. With Scott McLaughlin retiring from the race a half-hour later, the team with an event-record nine wins, including four of the past five by Newgarden, had an average finish of 25.3. There are so many other drivers left wondering how they weren't hoisting the big trophy atop the podium. Six-time series champion Scott Dixon – again – used crafty fuel strategy to get the lead on Lap 194, and for a time it looked like he might score the 59th victory of his career and third at this track. Malukas had jumped from fourth to first on the opening lap and led 67 laps, but in a late-race chance to overtake Kirkwood, his car drifted high into the Turn 4 wall. It might have been those two battling for the win if that wall slap was avoided. Kirkwood and second-place Pato O'Ward each led eight laps, the same number totaled by Santino Ferrucci, who seemed to be charging each time the television camera found him. Ilott and Felix Rosenqvist both pitted on Lap 204 in a bid to stretch their fuel to the end and steal a win. Both nearly pulled it off, but Rosenqvist aborted with seven laps left, three laps ahead of Ilott. Rinus VeeKay delivered a season-best seventh-place finish and led a lap. Rookie Robert Shwartzman, making just his second oval start after winning the pole for the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, finished 10th, the first time he saw the checkered flag on a circle track. Among drivers without a series win, five finished in the top 10. Rasmussen was third, Ferrucci fifth, Daly sixth, Marcus Armstrong ninth, Shwartzman 10th. Those who led the race: Malukas (67), McLaughlin (51), Dixon (43), Daly (36), Newgarden (25), Kirkwood (eight), O'Ward (eight), Ferrucci (eight), Ilott (five), Rosenqvist (three), Alexander Rossi (two), Marcus Ericsson (two), Rasmussen (one), VeeKay (one). The top seven finishers represented seven different teams: Andretti Global, Arrow McLaren, Ed Carpenter Racing, AJ Foyt Racing, Juncos Hollinger Racing and Dale Coyne Racing. Also with a top-10 driver at the end were Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb-Agajanian and PREMA Racing. All told, 254 passes for position, tying the series record at WWTR set last year. The moral of this story: Celebrate Kirkwood's masterful drive and the entertaining challenges by so many others. recommended
Fox Sports
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Paddock Buzz: Christian Rasmussen Rallies Twice for Career-Best Night
INDYCAR If Kyle Kirkwood was the happiest driver Sunday night at World Wide Technology Raceway, he had company. Christian Rasmussen was wildly celebrating, too. Rasmussen put on a show in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline, driving from the 25th starting position to finish a career-best third. Actually, Rasmussen came from the back twice in the 260-lap affair, the second time the result of a penalty for taking service and fuel from his Ed Carpenter Racing crew in a closed pit. The driver of the No. 21 ECR Splenda Chevrolet didn't have a choice but to pit as he couldn't wait for the long caution period to end before running out of fuel. But Rasmussen was a rocket in his car before and after that, passing a race-high 62 cars as he used a high line that seemed to offer the fastest way around the 1.25-mile oval. 'As soon as I found out that the high line was so effective, like my car was so good up there both in (Turns) 1 and 2 and 3 and 4,' he said. 'I just started running high, and I could just pass people.' The only drivers finishing ahead of the 24-year-old Dane were Kirkwood, the driver of the No. 27 Siemens Honda of Andretti Global who scored his third win of the season, and seven-time race winner Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet). ECR owner Ed Carpenter was one of the first to congratulate Rasmussen, who stretched his string of races led to three. 'You did great,' Carpenter told him on pit road. 'Ah, it's huge, and especially with how this has gone for us,' 2023 INDY NXT by Firestone champion Rasmussen said. 'We were slow in (Saturday's first practice), we didn't get it done in (qualifications), we started 25th in the race. But we turned it around for ECR today. This is awesome. 'Definitely the best race of my life so far.' Newgarden, Foster Escape Injury Josef Newgarden's year to forget continued with a mid-race crash that will long be remembered. Newgarden was leading en route to a fifth win in the past six races at this track when he prepared to lap series points leader Alex Palou coming off Turn 4. But what Newgarden couldn't see what the damaged car of series rookie Louis Foster sliding across the front straightaway after scraping the outside wall. At the last second, Newgarden realized the oncoming danger. He seemed to pull his hands from the steering wheel as the No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet slammed into Foster's car and, at the same time, the inside wall. The ferocious impact on the front straightaway vaulted Newgarden's car on its nose before landing upside down. Foster and his No. 45 Droplight/Desnuda Tequilla Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing similarly absorbed a massive impact. Fortunately, both drivers escaped injury. Newgarden declined comment after walking from the infield care center. The incident began due to Foster's car pushing to the outside wall in Turn 4. He was moments from pitting for new tires. 'One, two laps too long trying the high line,' he said. 'I got up behind (Santino Ferrucci), got a bit of a wiggle – it had wiggled all race there – but just got a bit too high onto the dark stuff. You see it there (on replay), a wiggle right there, then I just went to (the) marbles and was really a passenger.' Remembering how Newgarden vaulted over the top of his car seemed to stop him. 'I couldn't stop the car,' he said. 'Obviously, (a) really scary impact. Josef, glad he's OK.' Finishing 24th tumbled Newgarden to 16th in the standings as the season approaches its halfway point. The two-time series champion also had seat belt come loose in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and lost a fuel pump in the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. Power Foresaw Strain on Tire Will Power couldn't convert the 71st career pole into his first win of the season. Power got jumped on the opening lap by David Malukas, and the driver of the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet saw the A.J. Foyt Enterprises driver stretch the lead to more than five seconds. On Lap 46, Power's race effectively came to an end when he slid into the Turn 4 wall after his right front tire failed. 'I felt last night when we were running (in the second practice) pretty much flat through (Turns) 3 and 4 every lap and I was like, 'Man, that's a lot of load (on the right front tire),'' Power said. 'When I had a failure at Iowa (Speedway) it felt the same. Yeah, that actually happened. Unfortunate for us.' Power said he was saving fuel at the time of the incident, which explains why Malukas was pulling away from him. Malukas later had trouble of his own. While trying to overtake Kirkwood, who had just pitted, his No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet drifted into the wall. After leading a race-high 67 laps, he finished 12th. DeFrancesco's Double Trouble Devlin DeFrancesco's race didn't last long. He lost control of his No. 30 Mi-Jack Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing in Turn 1 on Lap 4. The damaged car was removed from the track by a tow truck, and DeFrancesco was in the garage area when he started running back to pit road followed by a FOX cameraman. About the time the driver reached his pit box, he stopped, and the cameraman ran into him. The contact and the ensuing fall were caught on live television. Neither was injured. Odds and Ends Palou still hasn't led a lap in seven races at World Wide Technology Raceway, and he finished 14.1018 seconds off the winner's pace in this race. But the series points leader managed to finish eighth to keep a strong hold on the championship. He leads O'Ward by 73 points and Kirkwood by 75 as the season approaches its halfway point with next week's XPEL Grand Prix at Road America (Sunday, 1:30 p.m. ET, FOX, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). Palou (five wins) and Kirkwood (three) remain the only two drivers to win races this season, the first time that's happened in this sport since 1980 when Johnny Rutherford won five and Bobby Unser three. Unser won that season's ninth race to extend the two-driver dominance. Honda-powered cars have now won the first eight races of the season. O'Ward has finished second three times, pushing his career total to 30 top-three finishes. For the second oval race in a row, Scott McLaughlin had trouble before the race even began. In this case, the No. 3 DEX Imaging Team Penske Chevrolet wouldn't immediately start leaving the grid, but he got it going. At Indy, he crashed on the warmup laps while swerving to get heat in his tires. McLaughlin and Malukas each were forced to give back three positions for improper lane usage leaving their pit boxes. Both exited straight to the fast lane, which is not allowed as it impedes oncoming traffic. McLaughlin became the third Team Penske driver to retire from the race when he said something broke coming off Turn 2. Andretti Global's Lochie Hughes used a late charge to win Sunday's INDY NXT by Firestone race at the track. The win was his second of his rookie season. The Australian drove the No. 26 McGinley Clinic/USF Pro Championship car to a 4.3521-second victory over Myles Rowe, who earned a career-best second place in the No. 99 Abel/Force Indy entry. recommended
Fox Sports
7 days ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Will Power Wins Milestone Pole, Penske Locks Front Row at WWTR
INDYCAR Will Power wrote another chapter in the storied history of Team Penske on Saturday during NTT P1 Award qualifying for the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline, earning the team's 700th pole across all racing series while leading a front-row lockout by the NTT INDYCAR SERIES powerhouse. Power drove to his first pole since July 2023 at Iowa Speedway and the series record-extending 71st of his career with a two-lap average speed of 180.329 mph in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet at World Wide Technology Raceway. Scott McLaughlin qualified second at 179.783 in the No. 3 DEX Imaging Team Penske Chevrolet. SEE: Qualifying Results It was the fifth pole on the 1.25-mile WWTR oval for Power, who won this race in 2018. 'I sent it a lot,' Power said. 'I knew you would have to. You'd have to drive it flat in (Turns) 3 and 4. I wasn't quite flat, but I was very, very close. 'Cool, man. It's been awhile since I've had a pole, so really, really excited. Hopefully we can execute in the race. Man, it would be awesome to get a win here.' The 260-lap race – the second oval event of the season – starts at 8 p.m. ET Sunday (FOX, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). A victory by Power, McLaughlin or teammate Josef Newgarden would provide a boost for Team Penske. The winningest team in INDYCAR SERIES history hasn't visited victory lane this season, with single third-place finishes by McLaughlin, Newgarden and Power the best results. Pato O'Ward qualified third at 179.190 in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet. Nearly all the drivers toward the end of the 27-car qualifying line benefited from improved conditions, as the arrival of light cloud cover helped drop the track temperature by nearly 10 degrees from the start of the session. Team Penske DNA strands were woven through most of the top five qualifiers, as David Malukas qualified fourth at 179.079 in the No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet of A.J. Foyt Enterprises, a team that has a technical alliance with Team Penske. Josef Newgarden, who has won this race a record five times, rounded out the top five at 178.910 in the No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet. Marcus Armstrong will join Newgarden in Row 3 after qualifying sixth at 178.754 in the No. 66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance Honda fielded by Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian. Armstrong was the fastest Honda-powered driver, as Chevy engines propelled the top five qualifiers. Championship leader Alex Palou, who has won five of seven races this season, qualified ninth at 178.381 in the No. 10 Ridgeline Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
