MAY 17, 2017
Sunday, May 14, 2017 at 09:23AM 
(Photo by Doug Mathews/INDYCAR)
Wednesday (May 17) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway: Strong winds with gusts reaching 40 mph limited running by teams on the third day of practice for the 101st Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil. Team owner/driver Ed Carpenter (No. 20 ECR Fuzzy's Vodka Chevrolet) posted the fastest of 408 total laps turned by 21 drivers in the six-hour session. Carpenter ran a lap of 222.894 mph at the beginning of the day's final hour that was unassisted by an aerodynamic tow from a car in front. Marco Andretti still has the fastest lap of the week, 226.338 mph, run on Monday. "I thought it was important to run on a day like today just because it is a challenge," said Carpenter, the two-time Indianapolis 500 pole sitter looking to make his 14th start in the race scheduled for May 28. "The wind was very, very gusty, variable. And to me, if you can go out and get comfortable in conditions like that, I think it bodes well for the race car and how comfortable you can be. And you never know, it could be this windy on race day." Scott Dixon (No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing NTT Data Honda) was next up with a lap of 222.599 mph. JR Hildebrand, Carpenter's teammate in the No. 21 ECR Preferred Freezer Services Chevrolet, was third quick with a lap of 220.553 mph. Hildebrand was the busiest driver of the day, completing 54 laps, with Carpenter turning the second most (52). "I felt pretty good about the amount of work we were able to get done today," Hildebrand said. "When we got going initially, we felt it was a little suspect how good of a read we could get on changes since the wind is blowing hard. I'm encouraged by our ability to go out and feel changes despite gusty winds. It was nice to go out there with not too many other people and just run through our own program."
(Photo by Matt Fraver/INDYCAR)
Tuesday (May 16) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway: A pair of Team Penske drivers - Will Power and Helio Castroneves - set the pace in warm and windy conditions at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the second day of practice. Power (No. 12 Team Penske Verizon Chevrolet) turned in a mid-afternoon lap of 224.656 mph on the 2.5-mile oval. The 36-year-old Australian is looking for his first win in the "500" on May 28, which would give team owner Roger Penske a record 17th Indianapolis 500 victory. "Roger definitely just puts everything into this race," said Power, the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series champion. "As a team, I think we did a lot of homework in the off season for this race and we tested here twice, so you know we're getting the most out of our package. I know Chevy is working really hard and obviously you can see that our speeds are pretty good right now." Castroneves (No. 3 Team Penske Shell Fuel Rewards Chevrolet) was next quick with a lap of 224.287 mph. Gabby Chaves (No. 88 Harding Racing Chevrolet) was impressive with a lap of 223.991 mph for third position. Team owner/driver Ed Carpenter (No. 20 ECR Fuzzy's Vodka Chevrolet) posted the fastest lap without an aerodynamic tow from a car in front of him at 222.842 mph. "I'm still happy with the car," said Carpenter. "Everyone probably got a little over-excited about the speed charts (Monday, when he was third), but I think we're better than what they showed today. We're just working through our program."
(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Monday (May 15) at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway: Marco Andretti (No. 27 Andretti Autosport United Fiber & Data Honda) was quickest on the opening day of practice for the 101st running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil, "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing." Andretti clocked a lap of 226.338 mph as 32 cars turned 1,306 laps on the classic 2.5-mile oval. "Speed is always good," said the 12th-year Verizon IndyCar Series driver, who finished second at the Indy 500 in his rookie year of 2006 and third three times since. "That's the first thing you always want here because then you can really put more focus on just getting a comfortable race car, which is obviously my plan the rest of the week. They give points for qualifying now, so we can't just totally ignore it, but my goal is to win the race. It's good to know that we're rolling off with some sort of speed. From there we just need some comfort." Scott Dixon (No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing NTT Data Honda) was next quick with a lap of 225.296 mph, and two-time Indy 500 pole sitter Ed Carpenter (No. 20 ECR Fuzzy's Vodka Chevrolet) was third with a lap of 224.969 mph.
(Photo by Dana Garrett/INDYCAR)
Will Power (No. 12 Team Penske Verizon Chevrolet) dominated Saturday's INDYCAR Grand Prix on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to collect win No. 30 in his 13-year Indy car career. The milestone victory pushed the 36-year-old Power ahead of current teammate Helio Castroneves and retired Team Penske legend Rick Mears for sole possession of 11th place on the all-time list. Making his 175th career start, Power led 61 of the 85 laps in the caution-free race, finishing 5.283 seconds ahead of Scott Dixon (No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing NTT Data Honda). Power has now won at least one race in 11 straight seasons and becomes the fifth different driver to win in as many Verizon IndyCar Series races this season. "It feels really good to finally have a good day," Power said. "Everyone on this team has been working really hard. We should have had a couple of wins by now. "I think that is (win) No. 30; that is a good number. I want to make it 31 by the end of this month." After his dominant performance, Power advanced two positions into fifth in the standings in his quest for a second series championship.
(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Scott Dixon (No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing NTT Data Honda) made his 275th career start and extended his consecutive starts streak to 212 races, breaking a tie for the second-longest all-time run with Jimmy Vasser. Only Dixon's current teammate Tony Kanaan - who started his 270th straight race today - has run more Indy car races consecutively. "I think today we got the most out of it," said Dixon, the four-time Verizon IndyCar Series champion. "The car was pretty strong, we had good pace, but we just couldn't hold on to the rears. I think the Honda was just too much for the (Firestone alternate) red tires for the most part. "Good points for everybody on the NTT Data car, great day for Honda. Obviously not a win, but very close."
(Photo by Karl Zemlin/INDYCAR)
Ryan Hunter-Reay (No. 28 Andretti Autosport DHL Honda) moved from eighth on the starting grid to finish a season-best third. It marked the 100th top-10 finish of Hunter-Reay's career and gave the 36-year-old American a feeling of momentum heading into Indianapolis 500 practice that starts on Monday.
(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Graham Rahal (No. 15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing SoldierStrong/TurnsForTroops.com Honda) struggled in practice and qualifying but charged back from the 20th starting position to finish sixth. "It was a pretty good day. We were on attack mode on the first stint," Rahal said. "We had to pump out a whole bunch of qualifying laps and close the gaps. My United Rentals boys did a great job in the pits because we got by a lot of guys there and we were able to pass a lot of guys. Overall I'm pleased with the day that we had. We completed all 85 laps and raised $100 a lap for Soldier/Strong and Turns for Troops which means a lot to me. It's just a good way to start the month." Next up for the Verizon IndyCar Series is the 101st Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil. Practice for "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" begins Monday. Two days of qualifying are set for May 20-21, with the 200-lap race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval scheduled for May 28 (11 a.m. ET, ABC and Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network).
(Reuters)
Lewis Hamilton (No. 44 AMG Petronas F1 Team) won the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday, his 55th Grand Prix win, after a duel with Sebastian Vettel (No. 5 Scuderia Ferrari). Daniel Ricciardo (No. 3 Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer RB13) finished third. Hamilton's second win of the season cut his deficit to Vettel in the championship to six points after five of 20 races.
(Getty Images/NASCAR)
Martin Truex Jr. (No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Auto-Owners Insurance Toyota) broke away on the final restart with two laps left in Saturday night’s Go Bowling 400 to win his first Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway. Truex led a race-high 104 of 267 laps to win for the ninth time in his career and for the second time this season. Brad Keselowski (No. 2 Team Penske Elite Support Ford) rallied from two laps down to finish second, followed by Kevin Harvick (No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Busch Light Ford) and Ryan Blaney (No. 21 Wood Brothers Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford). “It feels great,” Truex said. “It’s definitely been a thorn in our side. That’s for sure. You know for years and years even, before I was with this (Furniture Row) team, for whatever reason we always ran good here and never could close the deal." The race was marred by a massive wreck involving Joey Logano, Danica Patrick and Aric Amirola, who was sent to the hospital for observation. It was announced that he has a compression fracture to his T5 vertebrae. Watch a video here.
(FIA Formula E)
Sébastien Buemi (No. 9 Renault e.Dams) won the Monaco ePrix on Saturday, his fourth win of the Formula E season. Buemi's main challenge came when he withstood late pressure from Brazilian Lucas di Grassi (No. 11 Abt Schaeffler Audi Sport), who finished second. Buemi extended his championship lead to 15 points. Nick Heidfeld (No. 23 Mahindra Racing) inherited third position after Nelson Piquet Jr. (No. 3 NextEV NIO) and Jean-Éric Vergne (No. 25 Techeetah) came together while fighting for the position.
(FIA World Rallycross Championship)
Johan Kristoffersson (No. 3 PSRX Volkswagen Sweden Volkswagen Polo) held off Timmy Hansen (No. 21 Team Peugeot-Hansen Peugeot 208 WRX) to win the FIA World Rallycross Championship event at the Circuit Jules Tacheny at Mettet, Belgium. Petter Solberg (No. 11 PSRX Volkswagen Sweden Volkswagen Polo) finished third. Championship leader Mattias Ekström (No. 1 Audi S1 EKS RS Quattro) was in it until the very last jump but suffered a tire puncture and ended up in fourth.
(John Thawley ~ Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com ~ 248.227.0110)
Ernie Francis Jr. (No. 98 Breathless Pro Racing/Beta Tools Ford Mustang) won the top TA class in the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli races at Road Atlanta last weekend, Round 3 of the 2017 Trans Am Championship. Amy Ruman (No. 23 McNichols Company Chevrolet Corvette) finished second and David Pintaric (No. 57 Kryderacing Cadillac CTS-V) finished third to complete the TA podium. Check out John Thawley's scintillating images from the weekend here.
(John Thawley ~ Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com ~ 248.227.0110)
With back-to-back GTE Pro victories in 2015 and 2016 in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, IMSA WeatherTech Championship drivers are looking for another win this year. A total of eight WeatherTech Championship teams will compete in the endurance classic, as well as 19 full-time drivers in the series. Thirteen drivers in the Le Mans field have won at least once in the 2017 WeatherTech Championship season, and the field will include more than 40 drivers that have started two or more races in the series this year. Joey Hand, Dirk Mueller and Sebastien Bourdais (No. 68 Ford Chip Ganassi Team USA Ford GT) will return to defend their 2016 GTE Pro victory. They will be joined by Richard Westbrook, Ryan Briscoe and IndyCar star Scott Dixon in the No. 69 Ganassi team car. Jan Magnussen, Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor will be in the No. 63 Corvette Racing C7.R and Oliver Gavin, Tommy Milner and Marcel Fassler will be in the No. 64 Corvette Racing team car. After finishing on the Le Mans podium last year in GTE Pro, Risi Competizione aims for the top step with its No. 82 Ferrari 488 GTE and full-season WeatherTech Championship co-drivers Toni Vilander and Giancarlo Fisichella (who won Le Mans in GTE Pro in 2014) joined by Pierre Kaffer, who previously raced with the Risi team in 2015. Other notables? Ricky Taylor will be part of a three-driver lineup in the LM P2 class, sharing the Gibson-powered No. 43 Multimatic-Riley entry with current WeatherTech Championship GT Daytona (GTD) points co-leaders Ben Keating and Jeroen Bleekemolen, who are trading their regular Mercedes-AMG GT3 ride for a Prototype run at Le Mans. The 24 Hours of Le Mans takes place on June 17-18, practice and qualifying begins on June 14.
(PPG)
Editor-In-Chief's Note: Thanks to PPG for the following on the "Beast." -PMD
While the build of Beast IV took a quick three weeks, the restoration required fifteen months of intense research and meticulous craftsmanship. Much of the racer had deteriorated and few of its original parts remained. With museum curator Greg Sharp providing historical guidance on the project, the Webb and Hollenbeck crews worked primarily from vintage photographs and magazine articles to source rare parts, fabricate components and determine and reproduce the Beast’s exact colors. Craig Naff, of Woodstock, Va., blended the Beast’s remaining original sheet metal with new material to create a complete body; in effect, a canvas for Hollenbeck to paint. Consulting with PPG’s segment manager Steve Lehner and technical trainer Jim Kvatek, Hollenbeck and team members Darrell Schneider and Dennis Sayers selected several PPG automotive refinish products to replicate the car’s initial paint job. Eric Reyes’ steady hand provided the Beast’s elegant lettering and detailing.
“Color was a challenge,” said Hollenbeck. “There were color photos of the original Beast and we knew the car was blue and yellow, but the colors looked different in every photograph. So we compared the colors of other cars in photos with the Beast. We figured out the other cars’ colors and were able to come very close to equaling the Beast’s color. Then we generated dozens of blue and yellow samples and tweaked them to match the paint. The museum made the final decision and we gave the Beast its proper design and color scheme.”
According to Larry Fisher, the museum’s executive director, Beast IV was originally built in 1953 by Chet Herbert just in time to compete in that year’s Bonneville Speed Week and International Speed Trials. The aluminum-bodied, Chrysler Hemi-powered racer streaked across the Utah Salt Flats hitting a top speed of 246 mph and breaking eight long-standing performance records. Beast IV — the successor to Herbert’s original Beast (a motorcycle), Beast II and Beast III racers — ran until 1992 in a number of configurations with a variety of engines and reached speeds up to 289 mph. The racer then rested on its laurels; unused, it fell into disrepair and was acquired by David and Marianne Duthu. The couple donated Beast IV to the museum and agreed to fund the car’s badly needed restoration.
Beast IV is now on permanent display with Beast III at the NHRA Motorsports Museum.
