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Power Takes Pole For Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

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Written by Indycar.com | 07 August 2010

Will Power overcame a crash in the morning practice session to earn the PEAK Performance Pole Award for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio.

Power, who has participated in all eight Firestone Fast Six sessions this season, claimed the top spot for the 85-lap race with a best lap of 1 minute, 7.1997 seconds (120.965 mph) in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske car during the 10-minute shootout. It is his seventh of the season, tying teammate Helio Castroneves' IZOD IndyCar Series record.

In the 60-minute practice session, Power's car clipped the curb at the apex of the corner, ran wide into the wet grass and spun trying to point it back onto the track. It backed hard into the tires at the end of the Turn 1 runoff.

"Bad mistake on my behalf this morning," said Power, who got out of the car without assistance, though the Indy Racing League medical staff reported he has a thigh bruise. "The guys had to put together the spare car in a two-hour space.  I can't thank them enough."

Four different teams entered the Firestone Fast Six, and seven different teams are represented on the first six rows. Dario Franchitti (1:07.2846), who advanced to the Firestone Fast Six the past four races (all with podium finishes), will start on the outside of the front row.

Also, Martin Plowman set a Firestone Indy Lights track record at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and earned his first Sunoco Pole Award in the process.

Plowman, driving the No. 27 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/KEP Printing car for AFS Racing Andretti Autosport, had a best lap of 1 minute, 12.8624 seconds during the 45-minute qualifying session for the Mid-Ohio 100.

James Hinchcliffe, who won at Edmonton two weeks ago, will start on the front row for the fourth consecutive race in the No. 2 TMR-Xtreme Coil Drilling car.

DAY 2 NOTEBOOK:

Honda Performance Development is the first engine manufacturer to commit to the next generation of IZOD IndyCar Series car.

HPD president Erik Berkman announced before qualifications at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course that the racing arm of American Honda Motor Company is extending participation beyond expiration of its current supply agreement at the conclusion of the 2011 season.

HPD will continue to provide the Honda Indy V-8 engine to all competitors during the 2011 season, after which a 2.4-liter, twin-turbocharged V-6 power plant, designed by HPD, will debut when new engine specifications take effect in the series in 2012.

The cost of a season-long lease for the 2012 Honda IndyCar engine will be reduced by up to 40 percent from current pricing. This follows a number of other significant cost reductions, which Honda has implemented since taking on the challenge of supplying the entire field of entrants in 2006. HPD has provided engines to the series since 2003.

"Through both robust and trying times, our commitment to open-wheel racing in America has never wavered," Berkman said. "With today's announcement, we are pleased to reaffirm that commitment, and extend it deep into the current decade.

"With a passionate and energetic new title sponsor in IZOD, dynamic new management at its helm, and plans to significantly reshape its on-track product in the near future, the IZOD IndyCar Series is poised for significant growth. We are delighted to take a role in that promising future."

On June 2, IZOD IndyCar Series officials announced that its 2012 engine platform will allow manufacturers to produce engines with a maximum of six cylinders as well as maximum displacement of 2.4 cubic liters. The ethanol-fueled engines will produce between 550 and 700 horsepower to suit the diverse set of tracks on which the IZOD IndyCar Series competes and will be turbocharged to allow for flexibility in power.

Other manufacturers are welcome to join Honda in supplying engines.

"The ICONIC Advisory Committee has researched future engine platforms with manufacturers, teams, drivers and fans, and they felt this strategy best highlights key attributes of the sport - speed, competition and diversity," IZOD IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard said. "We feel this open and all-inclusive platform will make our sport an attractive option to engine manufacturers, while allowing development of a relevant and innovative platform to the current and future automotive industry by highlighting efficiency, performance, durability, quality, environmental responsibility and safety."

Founded in 1993 and located in Santa Clarita, Calif., HPD is the technical operations center for American Honda high-performance racing cars and engines.

"By Honda extending its participation, I think it says a lot of what the IndyCar Series is now and where it's going," said Gil de Ferran, managing partner of de Ferran Dragon Racing and former sporting director for Honda's F1 program. "Manufacturers aren't forced to participate in motorsports, and they're not forced to participate in any one series per say. They do so because they choose to and because they can see the benefits that motorsports can bring to the business of selling road cars. Honda, as people like to say, is a racing company that happens to sell road cars."

PEAK PERFORMANCE POLE QUALIFYING NOTES:

· Four different teams are represented in the Firestone Fast Six - Team Penske, Target Chip Ganassi Racing, Andretti Autosport and KV Racing Technology. Seven different teams are represented in the top 12 qualifiers.

· Will Power won the PEAK Performance Pole Award, his seventh pole this season. Power has only qualified outside the top-five once this season (Kansas).

· Dario Franchitti will start second, his third front row start this season.

· Both Power and Franchitti extended their streaks of top-five starts this season to seven.

· Takuma Sato qualified third, his best starting position this season. His previous best start was fifth at Watkins Glen. This was Sato's third appearance this season in the Firestone Fast Six.

· Scott Dixon qualified fifth, extending his streak of top-10 starts to 43.

K-PAX Racing Volvos Finish 7th and 9th in first race at Mid-Ohio

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Written by K-PAX Racing | 07 August 2010

K-PAX Racing collected two top-ten finishes in the first of two races at Optima Batteries Mid-Ohio Grand Prix presented by Game Streamer, round 8 of the 2010 World Challenge Championships.

Randy Pobst started from the number 5 position on the grid in the number 6 K-PAX Racing Volvo S60 and moved up to fourth on the opening lap just before the race’s first caution, which lasted for four laps.

Randy would hold the fourth position until lap 6, when he was passed by Patrick Lindsey in a Porsche 911 GT3. Mid-Ohio’s long straights combined with the reduced horsepower and extra weight the K-PAX Volvos must compete with due to the S60’s all-wheel drive made it difficult for Randy to hold his position against lighter, more powerful competitors. As a result, he dropped back in the field to ninth, before recapturing two positions to finish seventh.

Mike Skeen collected his first win of the season in a Chevrolet Corvette. Porsche 911 GT3s completed the podium with James Sofronas finishing second and Patrick Lindsey third.

“As long as there are enough corners, it’s a good race and we can actually turn a good lap time here. I was only a tenth of a second off the pole, but in the race, horsepower is very easy to pass with. So the guy behind us passes us on the straight, and we get stuck behind him through all the corners. Then the next guy behind us passes us on the straight and then were stuck behind him in the corners and we knife our way rearward because of the straightaway situation,” Randy explained.

Randy’s teammate Andy Pilgrim, started third in the number 8 K-PAX Volvo S60 and moved up to second on lap 3 before being passed by Skeen going into the keyhole section on lap 5. Like his team mate, Andy was unable to hold off lighter competition and was shuffled further back in the running order. He finished ninth.

“We’ve just got to work on it. Hopefully it will be better for tomorrow, but even so I think it’s going to be very tough for us to get a really good result this weekend – either one of us. The [extra] weight really hurt us. If we were the weight of the other guys, we’d be able to compete [more effectively],” Andy said.

Randy’s lead in driver’s championship is 102 over second place Kuno Wittmer and he is 185 points ahead of third place Dino Crescentini.

Volvo’s lead in the manufacturer’s championship standings is 6 points over Porsche and 14 ahead of Dodge.

K-PAX Racing will be back in action for the second of two races at the Optima Batteries Mid-Ohio Grand Prix presented by Game Streamer on Sunday, August 8, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

All World Challenge practice sessions, qualifying and races can be followed live at www.world-challenge.com.  The K-PAX Racing team can be followed at www.kpaxracing.com or on Twitter @kpaxracing.

 

Skeen Scores Debut World Challenge Wins at Mid-Ohio

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Written by World Challenge | 07 August 2010

Mike Skeen, of Charlotte, N.C., scored a World Challenge GT Championship debut victory Saturday, winning the first half of the Optima Batteries Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Presented by GameStreamer at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. James Sofronas, of Newport Beach, Calif., and Patrick Lindsey, of Santa Barbara, Calif., completed the top three.

Skeen started second in his No. 2 Carlisle Companies/Cragar Chevrolet Corvette but fell back to third quickly behind polesitter James Sofronas’ No. 14 Global Motorsports Group Porsche 911 GT3 and Andy Pilgrim’s No. 8 K-PAX Racing Volvo S60.

A caution to remove Jeff Mosing’s No. 08 Frank’s International Mazda RX-8 regrouped the field and Skeen was able to move around the Volvo on the restart. Sofronas and Skeen ran nose-to-tail for the next seven laps, slicing through traffic before Skeen made his move for the lead in the Keyhole. The gap between the two remained fluid for the remainder of the 29-lap 65.481-mile contest, with Skeen taking the 1.453-second win.

Skeen became the first debut winner in the World Challenge GT class since Tony Rivera won in his debut at Sebring in 2009. He also turned the fastest race lap, a record-breaking 1:27.296 (93.117 mph).

“It’s been a great opportunity to come here,” Skeen said of running the car that scored its third win of the season (Ron Fellows won at Mosport and Watkins Glen). “I’ve got to thank Nick Short and CRP Racing for putting me in the Cragar Wheels Corvette. They told me at the start that the traction control wasn’t worth messing with, so I basically just revved it up and got too much wheel spin. I figured that was better than stalling it on the grid, but we lost a few positions on the start.

“I followed James [Sofronas] for several laps to get a feel for the race pace. When he got caught up in traffic I went by going into turn two with a pretty easy pass going into the keyhole. With traffic, the ebb-and-flow just went our way today.

Sofronas, who will start on the pole for Sunday’s second race of the doubleheader, captured his second-consecutive runner-up finish.

“We had a game plan, and it started with getting away at the start,” Sofronas said. “We messed with the launch control and it ended up backfiring, because I bogged down at the start. I looked in my mirrors and saw the back half of Pilgrim’s car going by me, and once the car got a little bit of a run I used as much room as I could to make sure I squeezed Andy all the way to the edge. Hopefully he feels like I gave him enough room, but I knew I had to get in front of him and set the pace.

“I was watching my mirrors and all of a sudden the Corvette was there. I got caught in traffic and had to get out of the throttle and Mike just blew by me. It was all horsepower and brakes – he would pull away down the straights and I would catch him in the brake zones. It was cat-and-mouse, and I thought I had something for him. But when the yellows came out, that was it. Hats off to Mike, he and the team did a great job today.”

The battle for third was fierce as well, with fourth-starting Patrick Lindsey eventually coming out on top of a battle with Pilgrim, point leader Randy Pobst’s No. 6 K-PAX Racing Volvo S60 and Dino Crescentini’s No. 4 Centric Parts/Stoptech/GMG Porsche 911 GT3.

“It took a few laps to get around the Volvos, they were quick at the start. But I caught that barn-door draft behind them to out-brake them into Madness,” Lindsey said. “Later in the race, traffic played a big part in the strategy for everyone. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it hurts. I was able to use it to close the gap on James and Mike, and then lose a little bit. They had a really good battle, and I think a few more laps and I would have been able to get in touch with them. The handling and tire management of that car is pretty fantastic.”

On the final lap, Kuno Wittmer, was able to work around Crescentini to finish fourth in his No. 13 Dodge Motorsports Dodge Viper. Crescentini held on to finish fifth.

Pobst, who finished seventh, maintains the Championship lead with 863 points—102 better than Wittmer’s 761. Crescentini is third, with 678, followed by Sofronas (664) and Lindsey (626).

Porsche cut into Volvo’s Manufacturers’ Championship lead, which now stands at six points (51 to 45). Dodge is third, with 37.

Sunday’s Round Nine race will make its standing start at 11 a.m. To follow live timing and lap notes, please visit www.world-challenge.com.

Great at the Glen: Pruett, Rojas Score Record-Tying Seventh Victory in Fastest Race in Daytona Prototype History

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Written by Grand-Am Communications | 07 August 2010

Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas scored a dominating victory in Saturday's Crown Royal 200 at Watkins Glen International, tying the single-season GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series victory record with their seventh triumph of 2010.

Pruett beat Max Angelelli to the checkered flag by 2.722 seconds, averaging a Daytona Prototype record 120.679 mph in the two-hour race slowed only by a pair of late-race cautions. Pruett managed to hold the lead on both restarts, leading the final 60 of the 99 circuits on the 2.45-mile Watkins Glen short course.

The victory extended Pruett and Rojas' lead to 26 points over Ryan Dalziel with only two races remaining in the Daytona Prototype championship (302-276). Dalziel finished fourth in the No. 8 Corsa Car Care BMW/Riley started by Mike Forest.

"Overall, the car was solid," said Pruett after scoring his sixth Glen victory. "We just seem to have a good setup for the Glen. The traffic was tough, and you could lose two seconds a lap, easily. We just tried to cut our way through traffic the best we could, run smart and run clean."

Rojas led twice for nine laps after starting on the pole. Ricky Taylor took over in the No. 10 SunTrust Ford/Dallara and led 29 laps before turning the car over to Angelelli. Pruett took over the lead on an exchange of pit stops. Two GT cars split the leaders after Angelelli exited the pits, and he was unable to make up the distance.

Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty finished third in the No. 99 GAINSCO Auto Insurance Chevrolet/Riley. The pair won seven races en route to capturing the 2007 DP title.

The first caution came on lap 85 when Robin Liddell's No. 57 Stevenson Motorsports Camaro came to a stop after experiencing mechanical problems. On the restart with 15 minutes remaining, Burt Frisselle's third-place No. 61 AIM Autosport Ford/Riley and the No. 59 Brumos Porsche/Riley David Donohue had contact entering Turn 1. Tracy Krohn was caught up in the incident in the No. 75 Krohn Racing Ford/Lola and came to a halt, bringing out a second caution.

Leh Keen passed Jonathan Bomarito for the GT lead following the final restart, and went on to score the first Rolex Series victory for Dempsey Racing in the No. 41 Dempsey Racing/Team Seattle Mazda RX-8 started by James Gue.

Bomarito finished second in the No. 70 Castrol Syntec Mazda RX-8 started from the pole by Sylvain Tremblay, while Paul Edwards passed Jeff Segal for third in the closing laps. Edwards and starting driver Scott Russell both had to pit with tire problems on the No. 07 Banner Racing Corvette, while Segal and starting driver Emil Assentato had to come from ninth starting position in the No. 69 FXDD Mazda RX-8.

Segal and Assentato continue to lead the GT championship, although Tremblay cut the margin to four points (290-286), with Bomarito third with 267 points. Tremblay and Bomarito dominated the race, leading all but 10 of their 92 laps.

Only two races remain in the 2010 Rolex Series season: the Montreal 200 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Aug. 28; and the season-ending Utah 250 at Miller Motorsports Park near Salt Lake City on Sept. 11.

Castroneves Fined $60,000, Placed on Probation For Edmonton Actions

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Written by IndyCar.com | 02 August 2010

IZOD IndyCar Series officials have fined driver Helio Castroneves $60,000 and placed him on probation for the remainder of the season for his actions during the July 25 race at Edmonton City Centre Airport.

Castroneves was penalized for refusing to follow the direction of officials as well as portraying unsportsmanlike conduct when he engaged in physical contact with two officials on pit lane after the conclusion of the race. IZOD IndyCar Series officials met with Castroneves at their headquarters in Indianapolis today.

"I fully support the decisions of chief steward Brian Barnhart and Race Control," said Randy Bernard, chief executive officer, IZOD IndyCar Series.  "The drivers have been aware of the blocking rule for quite some time. Brian reminded the drivers of the blocking rule in the Edmonton pre-race drivers' meeting, which serves as the first warning, and the rule was executed during the race just as it dictates."

"This rule is unique to IndyCar racing," said Barnhart. "It was put in place to protect our competitors, officials and fans, prevent unnecessary damage to these cars and allow for more passing opportunities. Bad things happen when these cars touch and there have been serious incidents with major consequences on temporary circuits throughout Indy car history. With the new wheel interlocking prevention technology that is coming in our 2012 car, we will be re-evaluating this rule in the future."

Castroneves was leading the race at Edmonton when he was issued a black flag for blocking Team Penske teammate Will Power on Lap 93 following a restart. But the driver of the No. 3 car failed to take the drive-through pit lane penalty.

Following the race, Castroneves was penalized 20 seconds and placed at the end of the lead lap (10th). After exiting his car, Castroneves engaged in altercations with two officials on pit lane.

"This sport is so close and competitive that emotions are always on display," Bernard said. "However, that does not justify the post-race conduct of Helio toward series officials. This is a very serious matter and we weighed all options, including suspension. But we felt suspension would hurt the fans more than anyone else. Fans have paid their hard-earned money to watch the best drivers in the world and many bought their tickets for upcoming events with the expectation of watching Helio. He is a great ambassador for this sport and we know his actions after the race in Edmonton are not indicative of his normal behavior."

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