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Yahoo
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Detroit Grand Prix: Cooler temperatures could force IndyCar drivers to adjust
Fans during morning practice laps at the Detroit Grand Prix course in downtown Detroit on Saturday, May 31, were seen wearing jackets and keeping their hands in their pockets as drivers zoomed around the track. In short — it was cold. Not frigid, but certainly a lot colder than Detroiters are used to in late May. Advertisement By the time Indy NXT qualification kicked off, around 10:30 a.m., the outside temperature was in the mid-to-high 50s. But winds gusting over 20 miles per hour brought it to a 41-degree "feels like" temperature, which seemed to have a noticeable effect on the race. For the second consecutive year, Colton Herta snagged pole for IndyCar's Detroit Grand Prix, the Andretti Global driver's first IndyCar pole of 2025. THE FIELD: 2025 Detroit Grand Prix: Full list of drivers for IndyCar and Indy NXT races That's far from the typical temperature this time of year, which according to Weather Spark averages around 74 degrees. And as many regular drivers will tell you, the cold can have a big impact on how a car drives. The same goes for IndyCar vehicles — especially their tires. Advertisement "It seems like the tires are kind of slow to come in with how low of a temperature it is and how cold it is today," said Christian Rasmussen, who qualified 12th for Sunday's Detroit Grand Prix. When temperatures are low, it takes longer for tires to warm up, which makes for slower lap times and potential grip issues around the track. That sounds like bad news, but there is a flip side to low temps. If tires take longer to warm up, drivers can potentially drive on them for more laps, which in turn could lead to better overall times even if they're slower on each lap. "It's like, I could stay out for five more laps, but I might lose 6 or 7 seconds here," said Colton Herta, who won the Grand Prix's pole position for the second straight year. Advertisement "So with it being cooler, you could see, I mean, I don't want to put a number on it, but you could see a lot more laps than we have in the past." With cooler temperatures than expected during qualifying, Herta (and the rest of his Fast Six competitors racing in the final round of qualifying) used the new alternate softer tires to try to get a faster qualifying time. It worked out especially well for Herta, who set a track record with a 1:00.48 track time (beating his own record from 2024). Andretti Global/Curb-Agajanian's Colton Herta enters Turn 3 as NTT IndyCar Series drivers compete during Detroit Grand Prix in downtown Detroit on Sunday, June 2, 2024. REVVED AND READY: Detroit Grand Prix: 5 narratives to watch during 2025 race downtown "I think this is probably the most difficult street circuit, and maybe the most difficult circuit to create tire temp," Herta said. "Like I said, this race is crazy. Like, you just never know what's gonna happen." Advertisement Herta is looking to avoid a repeat of the 2024 Grand Prix — last year he also entered in the pole position but finished in the back half of the field during a caution-filled race. As for 2025 circuit leader Álex Palou, he seemed to take it easier during the practice rounds than the rest of his competitors, but turned it up to a sixth-place finish during a challenging qualifying round. "It was tough for everybody," he said after his morning practice laps. "The good thing is that hopefully it's going to make it a bit better tomorrow with the conditions we're going to have." The "conditions" he's referring to is the weather, currently forecasted at sunny and 62 degrees when the race starts. If the wind dies down, it should create a more optimal environment for racing (and for fans). Advertisement And for a race that for years had the reputation of being oppressively hot, cooler temps might create some more intrigue on Sunday. You can reach Christian at cromo@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Grand Prix: Strategies may get tweaks with cooler weather
Indianapolis Star
22-05-2025
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
Indianapolis 500 2025 rookies include one driver bumped from 2024 starting grid
Regardless of what happens in the 2025 Indianapolis 500, the rookie class has made a surprisingly strong impression. Robert Shwartzman, driving for first-year IndyCar Series team Prema Racing, stunned the series by earning the pole position with a 232.790 mph run over four laps on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval in Fast Six qualifying. Louis Foster of Rahal Letterman Lanigan and Nolan Siegel of Arrow McLaren join Shwartzman on the 33-car starting grid. IndyCar rookie Jacob Abel was bumped from the field. The 2024 Indy NXT champion qualified 3rd and finished 11th in Indianapolis road course race on May 10. Shwartzman, who competed in the World Endurance Championship in 2024, has two 18th-place finishes this year. Siegel competed in 12 IndyCar Series races in 2024, and has a best finish of 9th this year.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Newgarden, Team Penske teammate Power fail Indy 500 qualifying inspection. What we know
Editor's note: Additional information became available late Sunday night. Here's a full story on what happened with Penske and unrest in the paddock. INDIANAPOLIS — As discontent continues to swirl throughout corners of the IndyCar paddock regarding Roger Penske's perceived conflict of interest in owning Team Penske, long the most dominant team in IndyCar and in the Indianapolis 500, as well as IndyCar, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Ilmor, which manufacturers engines for Chevrolet, his team was dealt a seismic blow Sunday moments before the kickoff to the Fast 12 for Indy 500 qualifying. Advertisement There remain pivotal questions unanswered and details that remain opaque, but what we do know is this: After 2024 Indy 500 polesitter Scott McLaughlin crashed during early afternoon practice for the Fast 12, rendering him and his team eliminated from the run for pole, both his sister entries at Team Penske, the No. 2 of Josef Newgarden and the No. 12 of Will Power, found themselves enveloped in a technical inspection snafu that led to at least one heated exchange on pit lane among a Penske Corp. executive and the owner of Team Penske's fiercest rivals. According to IndyCar's statements on the matter, both the Nos. 2 and 12 cars failed pre-qualifying technical inspection, forfeiting their guaranteed attempts for a shot at the Fast Six and ultimately the pole. The issue at hand: an unapproved body fit on the rear attenuator on both cars, where Team Penske employees filled two different pieces of the attenuator with something akin to glue or putty, which could potentially serve as an aerodynamic advantage. But ahead of the Fast 12, Power's passed inspection without issue, and it wasn't until Newgarden's car rolled through afterwards that IndyCar's tech inspection crew raised a red flag. Upon further review, Power's car had been prepared the same way as Newgarden's, leaving Team Penske IndyCar president Tim Cindric with a decision to make. Though IndyCar's verbiage is that Power passed inspection and could freely make his Fast 12 attempt, Cindric and Co. were of the belief that the violation on Power's car would be caught in post-qualifying inspection, and so they went to work on both cars on pit lane with a variety of tools — blow torches and grinders among them — to try and remedy the issue. Advertisement Sunday's eventful action: Rookie Robert Shwartzman wins pole for Prema Racing Fixing that issue is not permitted after tech inspection, as opposed to wing adjustments and tire pressure changes. How Newgarden's car made it to pit lane despite having failed inspection, and why IndyCar has referred to Power's car as having failed its tech inspection, despite Cindric saying it passed and rolled onto pitlane, is unclear. "At the end of the day, we didn't do it right," Cindric said. McLaughlin, who won the 2024 pole position, was second fastest in Saturday's qualifying; two-time defending race champ Newgarden was third, and Power 10th. Advertisement They will start the race on Row 4, lined up by Saturday's qualifying speeds. Josef Newgarden goes for a run Newgarden couldn't drive his car, but he kept moving. This story will be updated. Get IndyStar's motorsports coverage sent directly to your inbox with the Motorsports newsletter. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Why Will Power, Josef Newgarden failed Indy 500 qualifying tech inspection
Indianapolis Star
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
Unrest in paddock, fan mocks Penske, Boles speaks: What happened with Indy 500 tech inspections?
INDIANAPOLIS — As discontentment continues to swirl throughout corners of the IndyCar paddock regarding Roger Penske's perceived conflict of interest in owning Team Penske, long the most dominant team in IndyCar and in the Indianapolis 500, as well as IndyCar, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Ilmor, which manufacturers engines for one of the series' two engine manufacturers, Chevrolet, his team was dealt a seismic blow Sunday moments before the kickoff to the Fast 12 for Indy 500 qualifying. There remain pivotal questions unanswered and some details still opaque, but what we do know is this: After 2024 Indy 500 polesitter Scott McLaughlin crashed during early afternoon practice for the Fast 12 — rendering him and his team eliminated from the run for pole due to the tight timeframe, the slim margins and risks of rushing a car build — both his sister entries at Team Penske, the No. 2 of Josef Newgarden and the No. 12 of Will Power, found themselves enveloped in a technical inspection snafu that led to at least one heated exchange on pitlane among a Penske Corp. executive and the owner of Team Penske's fiercest rivals. According to IndyCar's statements on the matter, both the Nos. 2 and 12 cars failed pre-qualifying technical inspection, forfeiting their guaranteed attempts for a shot at the Fast Six and ultimately the pole. The issue at hand: an unapproved body fit on the rear attenuator on both cars, where Team Penske employees filled two different pieces of the attenuator with something akin to glue or putty, which could potentially serve as an aerodynamic advantage. 'It's an unfortunate day for us in a lot of ways,' Team Penske IndyCar president Tim Cindric told assembled media after the team's offending cars were rolled back to its garages in Gasoline Alley. The team's three entries that swept the front row of last year's Indy 500 will start 10th (McLaughlin), 11th (Newgarden) and 12th (Power) off of qualifying times from Saturday. 'Internally, we need to have a bit better process. 'You can win from the fourth row. It isn't the first row, but we'll give it a shot, and we're certainly confident in the cars that we have and the team we have. It's unfortunate that we didn't give our drivers a chance to do it or the fans a show, but we'll pick up and move forward.' A somewhat muddied timeline of events was largely cleared up Sunday evening when IndyCar president Doug Boles met with reporters for an eight-minute scrum outside IndyCar's admin truck near its technical inspection tent. Among the revelations from Boles: Doyel: Team Penske dumbest cheaters of all time or haplessly innocent? Before that decision was made, Team Penske mechanics and crew members thrashed around both cars, taking a variety of tools to the back ends of both the Nos. 2 and 12 cars in an apparent attempt to remove the filled-in seams in hope that doing so might allow them to be admitted to make a run, even as Cindric admitted knowing that IndyCar's rules plainly state that once cars pass through tech ahead of Indy 500 qualifying, they may only receive adjustments to tire pressures and wing angles. 'When we asked if we could modify or change that before we ran, it was understood at least initially that we might be able to do that,' Cindric said. 'We'd been told we could possibly change the attenuator or do something else, and we were willing to do whatever.' It was at this time that multiple sources say Chip Ganassi, longtime owner of his namesake team which has won four of the last five IndyCar titles as well as the 2022 Indy 500, engaged in a heated exchange on pit lane with Jonathan Gibson, Penske Corp. executive vice president of marketing and business development, where Ganassi was heard saying, 'Don't make me (expletive) say something. They think they can just go through tech and do whatever they want out there.' 'If I was one of the competitors, I'd have the same argument,' Cindric said. 'We were obviously willing to fix that and do something basically that conformed in the eyes of the officials. Internally, we need to have a bit better process, but yeah, if you don't pass inspection at that point in time, you don't get the chance to go. There was no use really in putting one or both of our cars out there and doing a qualifying run and putting our drivers at risk if we knew it essentially hadn't passed inspection on the way through. 'At the end of the day, we didn't do it right.' Cindric said he went into the team's garages to survey the mangled parts of the No. 3 and determined after inspecting the wreckage that McLaughlin's car had not been modified in the same manner. 'In our eyes, it's not a performance advantage, but at the end of the day, if they don't like the seam being filled, they don't like the seam being filled,' Cindric said. 'It's not a safety issue whatsoever. You would argue whether it is or isn't (a performance advantage), but it's no different than what you see in NASCAR or whatever else. Everyone's trying to make the cars as sleek as you can. In house, we've got to look at ourselves and ask why we're doing certain things one way or another, but at the end of the day, I think they're just trying to make the cars look nice. 'But you've got to do what the inspection process is and conform to that, and we'll live with it and start on the fourth row. I guess I'd rather know it doesn't conform now rather than arguing about it after qualifying or during the race or whenever else. I'd rather just move on.' The paddock, on the other hand, isn't about to. He said it: Pato O'Ward doesn't mince words after Penske's mishap As some teams pour over photos and videos of the weekend in an attempt to uncover any evidence that the illegally filled in seams were present on the Team Penske cars for Saturday's qualifying action, there are other paddock members frankly disappointed for the series that these lightning rod issues continue to crop up that create doubt and dissension in the product and the process of American open-wheel racing. As IndyStar reported this spring, Penske Entertainment officials have held discussions regarding the possibility of adopting an independent race control arm — either via seeking out an already created racing governing body like USAC or the FIA to rule over it, or creating some wholly new organization that sits outside the purview of IndyCar, Penske Entertainment and Penske Corp.— as conflict of interest concerns, or rather the perception of such, seep into the series' negotiations with current and future manufacturers who aren't satisfied with the status quo. No one has come out and said they whole heartedly believe anyone within Penske Entertainment or IndyCar has made any attempts to favor Team Penske in any way, but on days like Sunday when some crucially important questions remain unanswered — namely, why were those parts tampered with; were the tampered attenuators on the Team Penske cars on Saturday; and if so, why weren't they discovered? — a dark cloud on the sport gains another dimension entirely. An Andretti Global car with a missing piece, or a Prema Racing car without its fire extinguishing system properly setup — both issues discovered at Thermal — become hours-long news cycles easily brushed off by varying levels of accident or ineptitude. Violations of the on-track product by the team whose ultimate boss also lords over those who run the sport will never be easy for many in the paddock to swallow. 'They weren't accidentally doing it, because they had a blowtorch right there in order to get it out,' front-row qualifier Pato O'Ward said. 'Honestly, I feel for (bumped 500 driver) Jacob Abel and for everybody that did the Last Chance Shootout. Because (the Team Penske cars) weren't in regulation. 'I'm not an engineer, so I can't tell you what they were doing or how much speed that's (worth) or if it is any speed. But obviously, it's not in regulations. The rule is pretty black and white.' Said team manager from a separate organization: '(Not) modifying a stock part is a golden rule in this sport. Certainly, McLaughlin was prepared the same way.' Said another: 'I don't believe a single bit that the No. 3 was unlike the other two.' Boles said he'd yet to speak with Cindric, and neither had he gotten his own eyes on the attenuator of the No. 3 car to confirm the Team Penske IndyCar president's assertions that McLaughlin's car had been in compliance before his crash. When he was prompted by the concerns of others in the paddock, his response was simply, 'All I can tell you ... it was found today.' Additionally, Boles said nothing in IndyCar's rulebook would allow the series to send cars that had theoretically qualified for the 500 via their Day 1 times — times that some will believe were set with with legally prepared cars — be erased and sent to Last Chance Qualifying. When asked by IndyStar whether he could confirm that the changes that ran afoul of IndyCar's rules were made in the time between Saturday's action and Sunday's, or if they'd been on the car all weekend, Cindric replied in a text message to IndyStar: 'I'm done responding to all of this.' Standing a few feet away from Cindric as he held his media availability outside the team's garages was a fan sporting a white T-shirt with a large logo mocked up in an identical style to that of Team Penske with the black, bold, all-caps, italic letters, two lines and a red line running horizontally through the two lines of text. That person's shirt read, "Team Cheaters," and immediately after Cindric's scrum interview was complete, the bystander could be heard saying loud enough for Cindric to hear, 'You're living up to your reputation.'
Indianapolis Star
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
Indy 500 qualifying live results: Rookie Robert Shwartzman wins pole for Prema Racing
Rookie Robert Shwartzman wins pole position for the 2025 Indianapolis 500 for Prema Racing, which is in its first year of IndyCar Series racing. The 25-year-old Israeli drove his No. 83 Chevrolet to 232.790 mph over four laps on the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval during Fast Six qualifying. "Honestly, it feels like I'm dreaming," he said after climbing from his car in the Fast Six. "The car felt amazing, so fast." Shwartzman is the first rookie to qualify for the pole position since Teo Fabi in 1983. Tony Stewart started first in 1996 after pole-winning driver Scott Brayton died in post-qualifying practice. The Indy 500 will be Shwartzman's first career oval race. Two-time race winner Takuma Sato and two-time runner-up Pato O'Ward will start on the front row. Team Penske suffers several issues Sunday, and its drivers must settle for fourth-row starting spots. Here is the full 33-car starting grid for the 2025 Indianapolis 500. Nathan Brown is your best Indy 500 follow, and sign up for IndyStar's motorsports newsletter. Six drivers get one attempt each. The fastest earns pole position for the 2025 Indy 500. Takuma Sato goes first, and Felix Rosenqvist last. (60) Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank, Honda, 231.987 (5) Pato O'Ward, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet, 232.098 (83) Robert Shwartzman, Prema, Chevrolet, 232.790 (9) Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda, 232.052 (10) Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda, 231.378 (75) Takuma Sato, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, Honda, 232.478 Drivers are allowed multiple attempts in the 1-hour session, starting at 5:20 p.m. (51) Jacob Abel, 226.394 mph; he misses the 33-car starting grid (18) Rinus Veekay, 226.913, down about .8 mph from his withdrawn run. (18) Rinus Veekay, Dale Coyne Racing, Honda, 227.740; Jacob Abel is on the outside of the 33-car grid. (51) Jacob Abel, Dale Coyne Racing, Honda, 227.112 (98) Marco Andretti, Andretti Global, Honda, 229.741 (66) Marcus Armstrong, Meyer Shank, Honda, 229.091 Felix Rosenqvist, Pato O'Ward, Robert Shwartzman, Scott Dixon, Alex Palou and Takuma Sato advance to the Fast Six. David Malukas, Christian Lundgaard and Marcus Ericsson will make up Row 3. The Team Penske cars (Scott McLaughlin, Josef Newgarden, Will Power, based on Saturday's qualifying speeds) will be in Row 4. The top six from this session will battle for the pole position. With car number, driver, team, engine, and 4-lap speed average; all cars use Dallara chassis and Firestone tires: (10) Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda, 231.800 (5) Pato O'Ward, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet, 232.186 (9) Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda, 231.971 (83) Robert Shwartzman, Prema, Chevrolet, 232.008 (4) David Malukas, A.J. Foyt Racing, Chevrolet, 213.599 (60) Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank, Honda, 232.523 (75) Takuma Sato, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, Honda, 231.686 (28) Marcus Ericsson, Andretti Global, Honda, 231.014 (7) Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet, 231.360 (3) Scott McLaughlin, Penske, Chevrolet, no speed 3:05 p.m.: Scott McLaughlin confirms he won't try to qualify, leaving him with a starting spot of 12th. 3 p.m.: Rinus Veekay hits 228.800 mph. Jacob Abel is at 227.970 and tells the Fox broadcast he's flummoxed at his inability to find more speed. Marco Andretti (229.781) and Marcus Armstrong (229.776) appear to have a little breathing room. 2:30 p.m.: The bottom four from Saturday are seeking enough speed to make the race. Marco Andretti has the top lap at 229.781, followed by Marcus Armstrong, Jacob Abel and Rinus Veekay (225.414, 2.5 mph slower than Abel). 2 p.m.: Ten of the top 12 drivers practice. Scott McLaughlin had the top lap of 233.553 mph before his crash, followed Scott Dixon, Pato O'Ward, Felix Rosenqvist, Alex Palou, Christian Lundgaard, Josef Newgarden, Will Power, David Malukas and Takuma Sato. Marcus Ericsson and Robert Shwartzman will wait for 4:05 p.m. top 12 qualifying. McLaughlin's team will not prepare a car for qualifying, and the 2024 pole-sitter will start the race 12th. 1:18 p.m.: Scott McLaughlin crashes. He does a half-spin and crashes hard into the Turn 2 wall. He climbs from the car on his own and is quickly released after an examination at the infield care center. The Team Penske driver had the second-best qualifying effort Saturday (233.013 mph), setting him up to compete to repeat as pole winner. 1 p.m.: Practice begins. Marcus Armstrong, who is competing for Row 11 after a big crash before Saturday's qualifying session, tells the Fox broadcast that he feels like Ricky Bobby from "Talladega Nights," driving with a tiger in the car. 10 a.m.: Gates open 10:45 a.m.: Enlistment ceremony 1-2 p.m.: Top 12 practice 2-3 p.m.: Last Chance practice 4:05-5:05 p.m.: Top 12 qualifying 5:15-6:15 p.m.: Last Chance qualifying for Row 11 6:25-6:55 p.m.: Fast Six qualifying for pole position TV: 1-3 p.m., FS2, 4-7 p.m., Fox Top-12 qualifying, 4:05 p.m.: The top 12 from Saturday are guaranteed one qualifying attempt, starting with the slowest of that group and finishing with the fastest. The top 6 from this session advance to pole qualifying. Last chance qualifying, 5:15 p.m.: The four slowest drivers from Saturday have one hour to make qualifying attempts. The three fastest make up Row 11, and the slowest misses the race. Fast Six qualifying, 6:25 p.m.: The fastest six drivers from the top-12 session each make one attempt, starting with the slowest (sixth) and ending with the fastest. The fastest in this session wins the pole position. With car number, driver, team, engine, and 4-lap speed average; all cars use Dallara chassis and Firestone tires (W-race winner; R-race rookie) One round of qualifying will cut this group to the Fast Six, and a second round will determine the top six starters Three of these drivers will comprise Row 11, and one will not make the race (98) Marco Andretti, Andretti Global, Honda, 229.859 (18) Rinus Veekay, Dale Coyne Racing, Honda, 229.249 (51) Jacob Abel (R), Dale Coyne Racing, Honda, 226.483 (66) Marcus Armstrong, Meyer Shank, Honda, no 4-lap speed 13. (76) Conor Daly, Juncos Hollinger Racing, Chevrolet, 231.725 14. (20) Alexander Rossi (W), Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet, 231.701 15. (8) Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda, 231.641 16. (33) Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet, 231.633 17. (14) Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Racing, Chevrolet, 231.593 18. (30) Devlin DeFrancesco, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, Honda, 231.575 19. (77) Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Hollinger, Chevrolet, 231.461 20. (21) Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet, 231.438 21. (17) Kyle Larson, Arrow McLaren/Hendrick, Chevrolet, 231.326 22. (45) Louis Foster (R), Rahal Letterman Lanigan, Honda, 231.058 23. (90) Callum Ilott, Prema, Chevrolet, 230.993 24. (06) Helio Castroneves (W), Meyer Shank, Honda, 230.978 25. (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, Honda, 230.917 26. (6) Nolan Siegel (R), Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet, 230.571 27. (23) Ryan Hunter-Reay (W), Dreyer & Reinbold/Cusick, Chevrolet, 230.363 28. (24) Jack Harvey, Dreyer & Reinbold/Cusick, Chevrolet, 230.348 29. (26) Colton Herta, Andretti Global, Honda, 230.192 30. (15) Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, Honda, 229.863 Buy Indy 500 tickets on StubHub TV: Coverage will be on Fox, FS1 or FS2, depending on day and time. Will Buxton is the play-by-play voice, with analysts James Hinchcliffe and Townsend Bell. Fox Sports app.
