Monday
Apr222019
APRIL 24, 2019
Monday, April 22, 2019 at 08:52AM 
(Dreyer & Reinbold Racing)
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing has announced its second Indianapolis 500 entry with veteran driver J.R. Hildebrand driving the No. 48 DRR Salesforce Chevrolet Turbo V6 Dallara in the 103rd Indianapolis 500 set for May 26, 2019. Hildebrand, an eight-time Indy 500 starter, was the 2011 Indy 500 “Rookie of the Year” and has recorded four top-ten finishes at the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Last year, J.R. drove the DRR Salesforce Chevrolet from the 27th starting position to eleventh after 200 laps. The 31-year-old driver joins Dreyer & Reinbold Racing for a second consecutive year at the world’s biggest auto racing event and will drive the No. 48 car, a longtime racing number campaigned by legendary racer/car builder/team owner Dan Gurney. DRR will also field young Sage Karam in the No. 24 WIX Filters Chevrolet Turbo V6 Dallara during the month of May at IMS. Hildebrand, a California native now residing in Boulder, Colo., was the 2009 Indy Lights champion and also captured racing titles in the USF2000 (2006) and SCCA Formula Russell (2004) series. J.R. made his IndyCar Series debut with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing in 2010 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. He also drove the DRR IndyCar at Sonoma Raceway that year. “Last year, we had a great relationship with Dennis Reinbold’s DRR team in our initial Indy 500 effort,” said Hildebrand. “I started my IndyCar career with Dennis back in 2010 when he brought me up to the big leagues in IndyCar Racing. We have always had a great rapport over the years. I have always been impressed with the speed in the race of the DRR team. I’m thrilled to have Salesforce back on our race car, and also honoring the great Dan Gurney with the No. 48 this year. Dan was one of my racing heroes, by saluting him in this year’s Indy 500 and campaigning his famed No. 48. Dan’s No. 48 won the 1975 Indy 500 with Bobby Unser driving. Now, we’ll celebrate Dan’s great racing achievements with the No. 48 car.” “We are very much looking forward to another exciting Indy 500 in 2019,” said Alex Gurney, Dan Gurney’s son. “The number 48 is special to our family as my dad took that number to second place in both ’68 and ’69 as well as a win for AAR as a team and manufacturer in 1975. This is a great tribute to my dad. JR Hildebrand is a special person as well as a fantastic driver and he seems always to be in contention for the win at Indy. I hope he can put the 48 up front in the big race.” Indy 500 practice laps begin on Tuesday, May 14, on the historic two-and-a-half-mile oval. Qualifying for the 103rd running of the Indy 500 is set for Saturday, May 18, and Sunday, May 19. The start for this year’s Indianapolis 500-Mile Race is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. EDT on Sunday, May 26.
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing has announced its second Indianapolis 500 entry with veteran driver J.R. Hildebrand driving the No. 48 DRR Salesforce Chevrolet Turbo V6 Dallara in the 103rd Indianapolis 500 set for May 26, 2019. Hildebrand, an eight-time Indy 500 starter, was the 2011 Indy 500 “Rookie of the Year” and has recorded four top-ten finishes at the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Last year, J.R. drove the DRR Salesforce Chevrolet from the 27th starting position to eleventh after 200 laps. The 31-year-old driver joins Dreyer & Reinbold Racing for a second consecutive year at the world’s biggest auto racing event and will drive the No. 48 car, a longtime racing number campaigned by legendary racer/car builder/team owner Dan Gurney. DRR will also field young Sage Karam in the No. 24 WIX Filters Chevrolet Turbo V6 Dallara during the month of May at IMS. Hildebrand, a California native now residing in Boulder, Colo., was the 2009 Indy Lights champion and also captured racing titles in the USF2000 (2006) and SCCA Formula Russell (2004) series. J.R. made his IndyCar Series debut with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing in 2010 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. He also drove the DRR IndyCar at Sonoma Raceway that year. “Last year, we had a great relationship with Dennis Reinbold’s DRR team in our initial Indy 500 effort,” said Hildebrand. “I started my IndyCar career with Dennis back in 2010 when he brought me up to the big leagues in IndyCar Racing. We have always had a great rapport over the years. I have always been impressed with the speed in the race of the DRR team. I’m thrilled to have Salesforce back on our race car, and also honoring the great Dan Gurney with the No. 48 this year. Dan was one of my racing heroes, by saluting him in this year’s Indy 500 and campaigning his famed No. 48. Dan’s No. 48 won the 1975 Indy 500 with Bobby Unser driving. Now, we’ll celebrate Dan’s great racing achievements with the No. 48 car.” “We are very much looking forward to another exciting Indy 500 in 2019,” said Alex Gurney, Dan Gurney’s son. “The number 48 is special to our family as my dad took that number to second place in both ’68 and ’69 as well as a win for AAR as a team and manufacturer in 1975. This is a great tribute to my dad. JR Hildebrand is a special person as well as a fantastic driver and he seems always to be in contention for the win at Indy. I hope he can put the 48 up front in the big race.” Indy 500 practice laps begin on Tuesday, May 14, on the historic two-and-a-half-mile oval. Qualifying for the 103rd running of the Indy 500 is set for Saturday, May 18, and Sunday, May 19. The start for this year’s Indianapolis 500-Mile Race is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. EDT on Sunday, May 26.
(VW images)
The heavily revised Volkswagen ID. R electric race car made its world debut today, having been in continuous development following last year’s success at setting the outright record at the 2018 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in Denver, Colorado. The new goal of Volkswagen’s electric racing flagship is to set a new electric vehicle lap record on the 12.9-mile-long Nürburgring-Nordschleife. In order for driver Romain Dumas to undercut the current best time of 6:45.90 minutes, Volkswagen Motorsport has completely redeveloped the ID. R and testing begins for the record attempt April 25 on the Nürburgring. The ID. R’s 670HP electric drivetrain has been adapted to the unique characteristics of the Nordschleife. Two lithium-ion battery blocks serve as energy storage on board the ID. R, and were constructed with expertise from Volkswagen’s product development team. The battery structure is comparable to the technology that will be used in the future production vehicles from the ID. family. The most striking feature of the revised ID. R is the aerodynamics, which are designed for a higher top speed. “Last year, the number of turns and the thin air at Pikes Peak demanded maximum downforce,” explains François-Xavier Demaison, Technical Director of Volkswagen Motorsport. “On the Nordschleife lap, the ID. R will reach an average speed of more than 112 mph—with a top speed on the straight of up to 168 mph. We have therefore developed a completely new aerodynamic package using DRS, the drag reduction system known from Formula 1, as well as optimizing the energy management, which controls the power output of the two electric motors and energy recovery under braking.” The DRS is essentially a hydraulically-adjustable element on the rear wing of the ID. R, through which driver Romain Dumas can reduce the air resistance of the vehicle by about 20 percent at the touch of a button. “In contrast to Formula 1, the DRS on the ID. R serves not to overtake, but to improve efficiency,” explains Demaison. “The ID. R has a very powerful drivetrain. The DRS helps to use this performance with lower energy consumption, so that it can continue being deployed for the entire lap of the Nordschleife.” Driver Romain Dumas has won the famous 24-hour Nürburgring-Nordschleife race four times. “I have already driven the Nordschleife with the ID. R on the simulator countless times. But you only get the true feeling from the incredibly high cornering speeds when you’re on the actual track. The extent to which the ID. R has been continuously developed compared to 2018 is impressive. I can’t wait to finally drive the ID. R on the Nordschleife,” says Dumas. But Dumas will not be the only one to have the opportunity to drive the ID. R on the Nordschleife. Volkswagen has launched an online racing simulation for the free-to-play racing simulator RaceRoom, in which the gamer can take the ID. R to the world-famous track and compete with Romain Dumas—with the option to use virtual reality glasses as well. The computer vehicle model was created based on original ID. R data, while the engineers from Volkswagen Motorsport have given the game developers deep insights into the driving dynamics of the car in order to make the driving experience as realistic as possible. Check it out here: www.raceroom.com/volkswagen
The heavily revised Volkswagen ID. R electric race car made its world debut today, having been in continuous development following last year’s success at setting the outright record at the 2018 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in Denver, Colorado. The new goal of Volkswagen’s electric racing flagship is to set a new electric vehicle lap record on the 12.9-mile-long Nürburgring-Nordschleife. In order for driver Romain Dumas to undercut the current best time of 6:45.90 minutes, Volkswagen Motorsport has completely redeveloped the ID. R and testing begins for the record attempt April 25 on the Nürburgring. The ID. R’s 670HP electric drivetrain has been adapted to the unique characteristics of the Nordschleife. Two lithium-ion battery blocks serve as energy storage on board the ID. R, and were constructed with expertise from Volkswagen’s product development team. The battery structure is comparable to the technology that will be used in the future production vehicles from the ID. family. The most striking feature of the revised ID. R is the aerodynamics, which are designed for a higher top speed. “Last year, the number of turns and the thin air at Pikes Peak demanded maximum downforce,” explains François-Xavier Demaison, Technical Director of Volkswagen Motorsport. “On the Nordschleife lap, the ID. R will reach an average speed of more than 112 mph—with a top speed on the straight of up to 168 mph. We have therefore developed a completely new aerodynamic package using DRS, the drag reduction system known from Formula 1, as well as optimizing the energy management, which controls the power output of the two electric motors and energy recovery under braking.” The DRS is essentially a hydraulically-adjustable element on the rear wing of the ID. R, through which driver Romain Dumas can reduce the air resistance of the vehicle by about 20 percent at the touch of a button. “In contrast to Formula 1, the DRS on the ID. R serves not to overtake, but to improve efficiency,” explains Demaison. “The ID. R has a very powerful drivetrain. The DRS helps to use this performance with lower energy consumption, so that it can continue being deployed for the entire lap of the Nordschleife.” Driver Romain Dumas has won the famous 24-hour Nürburgring-Nordschleife race four times. “I have already driven the Nordschleife with the ID. R on the simulator countless times. But you only get the true feeling from the incredibly high cornering speeds when you’re on the actual track. The extent to which the ID. R has been continuously developed compared to 2018 is impressive. I can’t wait to finally drive the ID. R on the Nordschleife,” says Dumas. But Dumas will not be the only one to have the opportunity to drive the ID. R on the Nordschleife. Volkswagen has launched an online racing simulation for the free-to-play racing simulator RaceRoom, in which the gamer can take the ID. R to the world-famous track and compete with Romain Dumas—with the option to use virtual reality glasses as well. The computer vehicle model was created based on original ID. R data, while the engineers from Volkswagen Motorsport have given the game developers deep insights into the driving dynamics of the car in order to make the driving experience as realistic as possible. Check it out here: www.raceroom.com/volkswagen
(Photo by Albert Wong)
A capacity crowd filled the room at the April, 11, RRDC Evening with David Hobbs Presented by Firestone, which included auto racing dignitaries, corporate executives and champion race-car drivers. Hobbs, an accomplished driver and TV commentator, was honored by the Road Racing Drivers Club, prior to the running of the 45th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. It was the RRDC's 11th consecutive annual banquet honoring auto racing's most influential leaders. Previous honorees were Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones, Roger Penske, Jim Hall, Brian Redman, Mario Andretti, Bobby Unser, George Follmer, Emerson Fittipaldi and Johnny Rutherford. Andretti and Follmer were in the audience to help recognize the newest member of this elite group.
On behalf of Firestone Racing, which has been the presenting sponsor of the RRDC "Evenings" for 10 years, Lisa Boggs, Director, Bridgestone Americas Motorsports, said, "A couple of months ago we announced that we are committed to the NTT INDYCAR Series to at least 2025 . So many of you in this room are the reason we were able to make that announcement. So many of you have built the legacy that is IndyCar, the unparalleled legacy worldwide that our brand has been able to build on. Great stories, great moments, great on-track action; it's all that that allows us to do it," adding, "These evenings have always provided a lot of humor, so I have no doubt that with Mr. Rahal and Mr. Hobbs we'll see that in spades tonight." A short video written and voiced by Sam Posey, Hobbs' longtime friend and rival, captured his remarkable life as a driver in nearly every discipline of motorsports, as well as his stint as a television commentator.
RRDC President Bobby Rahal then "interrogated" Hobbs on his colorful career in the style of "Late Night with David Letterman." Rahal covered the gamut of Hobbs' 60 years in the sport, since Hobbs first raced his mum's Morris Oxford in 1959. They discussed his 20 starts at Le Mans without a victory, his brief Formula 1 career, and his time in the Formula 5000, Trans-Am, Can-Am and IMSA series. His "unfiltered" quips and honest comments about the team owners he's driven for and his rivals on the track throughout the years entertained the audience - not unexpected from the 1971 Formula 5000 and 1983 Trans-Am champion known for his "Hobbs-isms" on air and on the stage. "We're really pleased to be here tonight to honor a great driver, a great friend and a great spokesman for the sport we love so much," said Rahal. "Some people may think David is just a TV personality, but he actually did drive racing cars for a long time. He raced a huge array of cars on both sides of the Atlantic - all across the world, for that matter - with enviable success in Formula 5000 and Trans-Am, and then embarked on nearly 40 years on TV. He's probably one of our most popular and recognizable figures."
A capacity crowd filled the room at the April, 11, RRDC Evening with David Hobbs Presented by Firestone, which included auto racing dignitaries, corporate executives and champion race-car drivers. Hobbs, an accomplished driver and TV commentator, was honored by the Road Racing Drivers Club, prior to the running of the 45th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. It was the RRDC's 11th consecutive annual banquet honoring auto racing's most influential leaders. Previous honorees were Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones, Roger Penske, Jim Hall, Brian Redman, Mario Andretti, Bobby Unser, George Follmer, Emerson Fittipaldi and Johnny Rutherford. Andretti and Follmer were in the audience to help recognize the newest member of this elite group.
On behalf of Firestone Racing, which has been the presenting sponsor of the RRDC "Evenings" for 10 years, Lisa Boggs, Director, Bridgestone Americas Motorsports, said, "A couple of months ago we announced that we are committed to the NTT INDYCAR Series to at least 2025 . So many of you in this room are the reason we were able to make that announcement. So many of you have built the legacy that is IndyCar, the unparalleled legacy worldwide that our brand has been able to build on. Great stories, great moments, great on-track action; it's all that that allows us to do it," adding, "These evenings have always provided a lot of humor, so I have no doubt that with Mr. Rahal and Mr. Hobbs we'll see that in spades tonight." A short video written and voiced by Sam Posey, Hobbs' longtime friend and rival, captured his remarkable life as a driver in nearly every discipline of motorsports, as well as his stint as a television commentator.
RRDC President Bobby Rahal then "interrogated" Hobbs on his colorful career in the style of "Late Night with David Letterman." Rahal covered the gamut of Hobbs' 60 years in the sport, since Hobbs first raced his mum's Morris Oxford in 1959. They discussed his 20 starts at Le Mans without a victory, his brief Formula 1 career, and his time in the Formula 5000, Trans-Am, Can-Am and IMSA series. His "unfiltered" quips and honest comments about the team owners he's driven for and his rivals on the track throughout the years entertained the audience - not unexpected from the 1971 Formula 5000 and 1983 Trans-Am champion known for his "Hobbs-isms" on air and on the stage. "We're really pleased to be here tonight to honor a great driver, a great friend and a great spokesman for the sport we love so much," said Rahal. "Some people may think David is just a TV personality, but he actually did drive racing cars for a long time. He raced a huge array of cars on both sides of the Atlantic - all across the world, for that matter - with enviable success in Formula 5000 and Trans-Am, and then embarked on nearly 40 years on TV. He's probably one of our most popular and recognizable figures."
NBCSports TV commentator Leigh Diffey, with whom Hobbs shared the broadcast booth covering Formula 1 from 2013-2017, joined Hobbs and Rahal on stage. "He did 20 24 Hours of Le Mans, he did the Indy 500, he did the Daytona 500, he's the Formula 5000 champion," said Diffey. "He's done endless things around the world, but he never talks about himself. He's a jokester, he's a funny man, but he's very, very humble. He would've liked to have won bigger events, but I think maybe that's the person he is." On receiving this recognition, Hobbs said, "Being the honoree here tonight has been one of the biggest things that's happened to me in 60 years of racing and I still really do feel so honored to be with people like Bobby Unser, Dan Gurney, Parnelli Jones. To me, it all seems wrong. I shouldn't really be here, because those were true greats of racing. I feel so honored to be honored tonight, so thank you very much."
Featured on the patio during the cocktail reception sponsored by American Honda was the BMW 320i Turbo, run in conjunction with McLaren Engines, that Hobbs drove to four wins in the IMSA series in 1977, courtesy of BMW of North America. Also on display was the Bayside Disposal Racing Porsche 962 that Hobbs raced with Bruce Leven and Bob Wollek in IMSA in 1984-85. Rahal recognized event sponsors Firestone, American Honda, Porsche Cars North America, Doug Mockett & Company, Team Penske, TranSystems, Trefethen Family Vineyards and Jimmy Vasser's V12 Vineyards. The dinner's proceeds help support the RRDC's young driver initiatives, including its groundbreaking SAFEisFAST.com presented by Honda program, and the Team USA Scholarship, which the RRDC has backed since 1997. Team USA is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. (Thank you to Judy Stropus for the coverage.)