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Fox Sports
9 hours ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Paddock Buzz: Marcus Armstrong Continues to Impress, Climb in Standings
INDYCAR Marcus Armstrong continued his strong run of form by qualifying third in the No. 66 SiriusXM/Root Insurance Honda for Sunday's Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto. 'It was a good day in the office,' Armstrong said. 'The lap felt pretty average if I'm brutally honest.' The result ties Armstrong's best career NTT INDYCAR SERIES start in his 42nd attempt. His best finish is third, most recently achieved last Sunday at Iowa Speedway. Armstrong has surged from 16th to seventh in points, powered by seven top-nine finishes in his last eight starts. 'We're on a bit of a roll right now, so (Sunday) could be a good one,' he said. Together with Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb-Agajanian teammates Felix Rosenqvist and Helio Castroneves (Indianapolis 500-only starter), MSR has tallied a team-record 17 top-10s in a single season, led laps in eight of 12 races and earned multiple podiums for the first time in team history. Armstrong finished fifth in Toronto last year, driving for Chip Ganassi Racing. MSR's best Toronto finish came last year with a sixth from David Malukas. 'Love the circuit from the first laps I drove around here in 2023,' Armstrong said. 'It's a track that I enjoy going to and a city that I really love and even go to in the offseason. Cool place and cool fans. Had some decent results here the last two years.' Sunday's race coverage begins at noon ET on FOX, FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio Network. Palou Makes Fast Six for First Time in Toronto Alex Palou earned his best career start at Toronto by qualifying second in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing. In his previous three Toronto starts, Palou was eliminated in the opening round of qualifying, starting 22nd, 15th and 18th, respectively. 'We've normally been struggling quite a lot here in Toronto,' Palou said. 'Honestly, our target was to try and start up front. It's a surprise that we're starting on the front row, honestly.' This marks Palou's sixth front-row start of the season. He said the car improved with each run on track this weekend, including qualifying, a promising sign for him but scary for the 26 other drivers who battle him in Sunday's 90-lap race. The three-time series champion has shown an ability to charge through the field in Toronto, finishing sixth, second and fourth in previous starts. With just one spot left to gain, he'll look to earn his eighth win of the season on Sunday. 'Super proud of everybody's work,' Palou said. 'Happy to be starting on the front row.' Kirkwood Believes He Threw Away a Pole Back on May 31 in Detroit, Kirkwood believed he had a car capable of winning the NTT P1 Award but made a mistake and settled for third on the grid for the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear. He ultimately rebounded to win the race. On Saturday in Toronto, a similar story played out. Kirkwood made another mistake during the Firestone Fast Six round. The No. 27 Silver Gold Bull Honda for Andretti Global was on a one-lap strategy to go for pole, but a near-crash just before crossing the timing line spoiled the effort, leaving him sixth on the starting grid. 'Definitely just gave away a pole, without a doubt,' Kirkwood said. 'Just started the lap — the first time all weekend that happened to me — got a huge snap, a bit of understeer. The one time I go through there when it matters for a pole, it bottoms out and I get a huge snap. 'Unfortunately, it just feels like I'm throwing away poles left and right on street courses. That one didn't feel very good, if I'm being honest. Very, very disappointed with that performance. I tried to come into pit lane because I knew the lap was already shot and wanted to get fuel to try another run, but they said no. In hindsight, that probably cost us a few positions because I didn't even complete a lap, So yeah, a lot of dumb things.' Despite the disappointment, Kirkwood has proven he can bounce back. He leads the series with a 2.33 average finish on street courses and finished second in Toronto last year, just behind teammate Colton Herta. He was quickest in Friday's practice session and second on Saturday morning. Herta Sweeps Street Course Qualifying Front Rows Herta earned NTT P1 Award honors at Toronto, completing a clean sweep of front row starts on street circuits this season. Along with his pole in Detroit, Herta also qualified second at both the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding and the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. 'I think it just shows what this team is capable of on street courses,' Herta said. 'We continue to be, I feel, a dominant force in the league when it comes to that style of racing.' Though winless so far this season, Herta won last year's Toronto race from pole and has claimed three of his nine career victories on street circuits. He's also been consistently strong in Toronto, finishing second, third, and first in his last three starts. 'They keep impressing me every time we come here,' Herta said. 'The car's still that much faster than everybody else.' Changes To Turn 3 The city of Toronto laid new asphalt in the braking zone at Turn 3 on Friday night, following requests from drivers who noted a newly developed bump since the series last visited in July 2024. Harsh Canadian winters had worsened the surface, making cars unstable under heavy braking and potentially compromising overtaking opportunities in what is considered the best passing zone on the circuit. 'I think they need to grind it,' Will Power said after Friday's practice. 'It will hurt the racing. I'm very apprehensive about going up the inside. There's a massive new bump at the end of the straight, right in the braking zone.' Herta believed that spot was much better on Saturday. 'It was pretty brutal yesterday,' he said. 'I didn't really mind it because I think it adds character and whatnot. But it was on a limit. It was very aggressive. I think you saw quite a few guys have mistakes because of it. 'It's a very difficult part of the track to be standing on the brakes like that and have the bump there. 'I thought INDYCAR did a good job. I think there are no problems at all with it.' Odds And Ends · Arrow McLaren confirmed that both Pato O'Ward and Christian Lundgaard will have new Chevrolet engines installed for Sunday's race. According to team principal Tony Kanaan, the change was prompted by Chevrolet after detecting a potential issue. As this will be the fourth engine of the season for each driver – within the limit -- no grid penalties will be applied. O'Ward rolls off 10th. Lundgaard starts 19th. The 2023 race winner started 16th and climbed to seventh last year. · Scott McLaughlin admitted to making a driver error by missing the Turn 5 apex during his qualifying run and will start 15th in the No. 3 Gallagher Insurance Team Penske Chevrolet. He was second and fourth, respectively, in practice this weekend and had averaged a fifth-place starting position in three previous street course starts this season. This marks the first-time in four Toronto appearances that McLaughlin was eliminated in the opening round of qualifying, having previously started sixth, second and fourth, respectively. · Callum Ilott had 20.5 average starting spot through the opening eight races of the season. Ilott starts 12th in the No. 90 PREMA Racing Chevrolet and improved to 15th the last five races. · Kyffin Simpson will start 14th in the No. 8 Journie Rewards Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, marking his best street course start this season. He previously climbed from 17th to finish 10th at Long Beach and surged from 19th to finish fifth in Detroit. · Will Power will start fourth in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, the fourth time he has qualified in that position at Toronto. He previously won the race from fourth in 2016. · By qualifying fifth, Graham Rahal (No. 15 United Rentals Honda) earned his first Toronto top-five start since qualifying second in 2017. He finished ninth that year. Rahal also qualified fifth in Detroit but suffered a six-spot grid penalty for an engine change. · Honda has won 11 of the 12 races this season and 12 of the last 13 on street circuit events dating back to Toronto in 2022. The manufacturer also secured eight of the top nine starting positions for Sunday's race. · Andretti Global and Chip Ganassi Racing drivers combined for nine of the last 12 top-three finishes at Exhibition Place, including a podium sweep last year. Their drivers share the front row and have three of the top six starters. · Green Flag for Sunday's 90-lap race is 12:22 p.m. ET on FOX, FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio Network. recommended Item 1 of 1
Fox Sports
14 hours ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Colton Herta, Kyle Kirkwood 'Freaking Fast' in Toronto
INDYCAR Colton Herta is back on top of the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto. After settling for the 10th spot in Friday's time chart, the veteran NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver who won last year's race at Exhibition Place from the pole paced the morning practice today. SEE: Practice 2 Results Last year in this event, the driver of Andretti Global w/ Curb-Agajanian's No. 26 Gainbridge Honda led a 1-2 team finish with Kyle Kirkwood second. Today, Kirkwood was also second in the No. 27 Silver Gold Bull Honda. Herta's best lap time was 1 minute, .0578 seconds. Kirkwood's best was 1:00.1578. The two drivers are about a half-second faster than the next-best driver. Herta has been the top qualifier two of the past three years at this track. "These Andretti guys are freaking fast," Arrow McLaren's Pato O'Ward said after the session. Next on the schedule is NTT P1 Award qualifying at 2:30 p.m. ET (FS1, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). The 90-lap race will be at noon ET (FOX, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). One of the session's objectives was to adjust to modifications to an area of the track approaching Turn 3. That's at the end of the long straight, and drivers reported a significant bump in the braking zone. There was work done overnight to improve the situation. Late in the session, Dale Coyne Racing rookie Jacob Abel hit the wall in Turn 6 and then crashed in Turn 7. Arrow McLaren team principal Tony Kanaan said the cars of O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) and Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) would undergo engine changes this evening in preparation for the race. Kanaan said Chevrolet had previously wanted to change the engines after the race but moved up its schedule. Chip Ganassi Racing's Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) leads active drivers with four victories at Exhibition Place. Team Penske's Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet) has three race wins here while teammate Josef Newgarden (No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet) has two. Lundgaard (2023) and Herta (2024) are the other previous Toronto race winners in this 27-car field. Last year's podium featured Herta, Kirkwood and Dixon. The winner has come from the pole each of the past two years and three times in the past four years. This is the fourth and final street race of the season. The last events on the calendar will be held on a pair of road courses (WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca and Portland International Raceway) followed by two oval tracks (The Milwaukee Mile and Nashville Superspeedway). recommended Item 1 of 1
Fox Sports
a day ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
Practice Shots: Lundgaard Gives Chevrolet a Strong Early Run
INDYCAR Honda has been nearly unstoppable in the 2025 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season, claiming 11 wins in 12 races, including a perfect 3-for-3 record on street circuits. Dating back to the 2022 Toronto race weekend, Honda has captured 13 of the last 14 street circuit victories. That stretch includes a podium sweep on the 1.786-mile Exhibition Place track last season. Heading into this weekend, Honda remains the heavy favorite to collect more hardware. But if Chevrolet is going to mount a challenge, keep an eye on Christian Lundgaard and his No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, a pairing that was ninth-fastest in Friday's practice with a lap of 1 minute, 1.1962 seconds. Lundgaard's lone career victory in 64 starts came in Toronto in 2023 — 37 races ago — where he won from pole position while driving a Honda for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. It remains his last NTT P1 Award. 'Coming to Toronto always brings back great memories,' Lundgaard said. 'I've had strong results here in the past, including my first win. I'm excited for the weekend ahead. We know what it takes to be quick here, so now it's all about putting it together and making it happen.' This season, Lundgaard has averaged an eighth-place finish on street circuits, including a podium at Long Beach. He has also never finished worse than eighth at Toronto, highlighted by a charge from 16th to seventh in last year's event. Here are three observations about the first practice in preparation for Sunday's Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto, plus other notes of interest: · The Turn 8 runoff proved to be a trouble spot during the session. At one point, Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 Gallagher Insurance Team Penske Chevrolet), Santino Ferrucci (No. 14 Sexton Properties/AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet) and Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) all ended up in the runoff simultaneously due to separate incidents. The flurry of mistakes wasn't surprising as Toronto's street circuit is notoriously bumpy and slick. Friday's session also featured both Firestone Firehawk primary and alternate tires, giving drivers a chance to push the limits ahead of qualifying. · Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) opted to use two sets of primary tires during Friday's practice session, leaving him with just three sets for the remainder of the weekend. With some drivers predicting Sunday's race could require a three-stop strategy, tire management may prove critical, especially if primary tires emerge as the preferred compound. That would leave Palou with only one fresh set for qualifying and two for Saturday's practice. Palou has yet to win at Toronto and struggled in qualifying. In three career starts, he's never advanced past the first round of qualifying, starting 22nd, 15th, and 18th. Despite those setbacks, the three-time series champion has consistently charged through the field, finishing sixth, second, and fourth. · Seven different teams were represented in the top eight of Friday's speed chart led by Andretti Global's Kirkwood. Team Penske was the only organization to place multiple drivers in the top eight, with McLaughlin in second and Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet) in fifth. Rounding out the top eight were Palou (Chip Ganassi Racing) in third, Marcus Armstrong (Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb-Agajanian) in fourth, Callum Ilott (PREMA Racing) in sixth, Pato O'Ward (Arrow McLaren) in seventh, and David Malukas (AJ Foyt Racing) in eighth. DeFrancesco Returns Home For Third Toronto Start Ontario native Devlin DeFrancesco is the lone Canadian in this weekend's 27-driver field. He was 25th-quickest in Friday's session. Making his third Toronto start, his best result came in 2022, qualifying 12th and finishing 18th. 'I love Toronto,' DeFrancesco said. 'I got my first Fast 12 here and always look forward to going home. A lot of my family will be at the race.' Born 15 weeks premature and given last rites multiple times at Toronto's Sunnybrook Hospital, DeFrancesco defied the odds. Now driving the No. 30 HUB International Honda for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, he's optimistic after a strong showing on Detroit's bumpy street circuit — a layout similar to Toronto — and is encouraged RLL's 2023 win with Lundgaard. 'We found a few things, performance-wise wise on the Detroit street course that has helped us quite a bit so that is an avenue we will follow. This team has been very strong in Toronto the last couple of years, so we should be fast.' ECR Brings Momentum Alexander Rossi returned to Toronto after being forced to sit out last year's event with a hand injury suffered in a crash in practice. This time around, he left Friday unscathed, turning the 17th quickest lap (1:02.2232). Rossi, in his first year driving the No. 20 ECR Java House Chevrolet, has three career top-10 finishes at the venue, including a runner-up in 2017 driving for Andretti Global. Half of his four top-10s this season have come on street courses. 'The Toronto circuit is one that is always a great mix of exciting and challenging,' Rossi said. 'I am looking forward to competing this weekend after missing last year's race.' Teammate Christian Rasmussen, fresh off two top-10s at Iowa, is also feeling confident. He's 15th in points, just ahead of Rossi in 16th and was 12th overall (1:02.0923) on Friday. 'There's definitely momentum on our side,' he said. 'Hopefully, we can build on that and have another strong result.' Rasmussen earned his first professional win at this track in 2019, competing in USF2000. He claimed his first INDYCAR SERIES podium at World Wide Technology Raceway on June 15 — the second of four top-10 finishes this season, all coming on oval tracks. Team owner Ed Carpenter knows Rasmussen's aggressive driving style isn't always popular with competitors, but he's not concerned. 'He's super aggressive,' Carpenter said. 'I don't know if everyone likes it, but from my perspective, I love it. If he's making people nervous out there, I don't see a problem with that. He's been aggressive long enough now and pulls off a lot of really slick moves. He's done it enough that it's clearly not a fluke.' Odds and Ends · Toronto is the second-shortest street circuit on the NTT INDYCAR SERIES calendar. At 1.786 miles, it's slightly longer than Detroit's 1.645-mile, 10-turn layout, the shortest street course in the series. By comparison, St. Petersburg measures 1.8 miles with 14 turns, and Long Beach is 1.968 miles with 11 turns. Despite their compact sizes, these circuits offer plenty of corners to challenge drivers and create separation in the field. Toronto has 11 turns, just one more than Detroit. Scott Dixon was 13th in Friday's session. The lack of overall speed in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda is somewhat concerning because he has a six-spot grid penalty in Sunday's race. Dixon suffered the same penalty at Detroit when he qualified 10th but rolled off 16th in the race. He climbed to finish 11th. Dixon is a four-time Toronto winner and has 12 career top-five finishes at the track. That's tied with Michael Andretti for most all-time. · The series returns to the track at 10:30 a.m. Saturday for the second practice session in advance of the three-round knockout NTT P1 Award qualifying session scheduled to begin at 2:35 p.m. Both Saturday sessions will air on FS1, FOX Sports app and INDYCAR Radio Network. recommended Item 1 of 1
Fox Sports
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
How to watch INDYCAR Toronto: Schedule, date, time, TV channels, streaming
The INDYCAR Series heads north to the streets of Toronto for the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto, a staple on the calendar and one of the most scenic and challenging temporary circuits. Keep reading for key details, including race dates, start times, TV channels, and streaming options. When is INDYCAR Toronto? What time do the races start? The Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto will start at 12 p.m. ET on Sunday, July 20th, 2025. Where is INDYCAR Toronto? The Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto will take place on the streets of downtown Toronto. The Exhibition Place circuit offers 11 turns over 1.786 miles, with great views of downtown Toronto. The race will consist of 90 laps over 161 miles. How can I watch INDYCAR Toronto? What channel will it be on? The 2025 INDYCAR Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto will be broadcast live on FOX. Check out the best highlights from the NTT INDYCAR SERIES: Farm to Finish 275 powered by Sukup at Iowa Speedway on FOX! How can I stream INDYCAR Toronto? The 2025 INDYCAR Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto will be available to be streamed live on the and the FOX Sports App . For those without cable, there are live-streaming services that carry FOX, including YouTube TV, Sling TV, Hulu + Live TV and fuboTV. If you have an antenna in a good reception area, you can also watch INDYCAR on your local FOX station. Check out the Federal Communications Commission TV reception maps to see which stations are available in your area. 2025 INDYCAR Toronto Schedule Friday, July 18 Saturday, July 19 Sunday, July 20 recommended Item 1 of 1 Get more from the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more in this topic
Fox Sports
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Fox Sports
2025 INDYCAR Odds: Alex Palou, Colton Herta Atop Board For Ontario
INDYCAR heads to Canada this weekend for the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto 2025 and fans can catch all the exciting action on FOX. Fans can also dive into the odds for this weekend's race and wager on which driver they think has what it takes to get into victory lane. Last week at Iowa's doubleheader, Pat O'Ward won the first race on Saturday, and Alex Palou won the second on Sunday. Which driver takes the checkered flag at Ontario? Let's take a look at the latest odds at DraftKings Sportsbook as of July 16. Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto 2025 Alex Palou: 23/10 (bet $10 to win $33 total) Colton Herta: 33/10 (bet $10 to win $43 total) Kyle Kirkwood: 7/2 (bet $10 to win $45 total) Scott McLaughlin: 7/1 (bet $10 to win $80 total) Josef Newgarden: 8/1 (bet $10 to win $90 total) Christian Lundgaard: 8/1 (bet $10 to win $90 total) Scott Dixon: 10/1 (bet $10 to win $110 total) Pato O'Ward: 10/1 (bet $10 to win $110 total) Will Power : 12/1 (bet $10 to win $130 total) Marcus Ericsson: 25/1 (bet $10 to win $260 total) Felix Rosenqvist: 25/1 (bet $10 to win $260 total) David Malukas: 25/1 (bet $10 to win $260 total) Santino Ferrucci: 25/1 (bet $10 to win $260 total) Marcus Armstrong: 50/1 (bet $10 to win $510 total) Alexander Rossi: 60/1 (bet $10 to win $610 total) Rinus Veekay: 80/1 (bet $10 to win $810 total) Graham Rahal: 80/1 (bet $10 to win $810 total) Nolan Siegel: 100/1 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total) Louis Foster: 100/1 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total) Kyffin Simpson: 100/1 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total) Devlin DeFrancesco: 100/1 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total) Conor Daly: 100/1 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total) Christian Rasmussen: 100/1 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total) Robert Shwartzman: 100/1 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total) Callum Ilott: 200/1 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total) Sting Ray Robb: 300/1 (bet $10 to win $3,010 total) Jacob Abel: 300/1 (bet $10 to win $3,010 total) recommended Item 1 of 1 Get more from the NTT INDYCAR SERIES Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
