THE LINE - MAY 15, 2013

(Photo by Jim Haines/INDYCAR)
Rookie Carlos Munoz (No. 26 Andretti Autosport Unistraw Chevrolet) topped the speed chart for the second time during the month of May on Thursday, May 16, as teams geared up for "Fast Friday" at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Munoz, the Firestone Indy Lights point leader, set the fastest lap of the month, so far, with a lap of 225.163 mph (39.9711 seconds). The lap topped the previous best of the month by Andretti Autosport teammate Marco Andretti (225.100 mph).

(Photo by John Cote/INDYCAR)
Reigning IZOD IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay was second-quick with a lap of 225.006 (39.9990 seconds) in the No. 1 Andretti Autosport DHL Chevrolet.
(Photo by John Cote/INDYCAR)

Marco Andretti, driving the No. 25 RC Cola Chevrolet, was third quick on the day with a lap of 224.882 mph as Andretti Autosport swept the top three spots in practice on Thursday at The Speedway. Day 6 of on-track activity also featured 33 drivers for the first time as 1996 Indianapolis 500 champion Buddy Lazier made his maiden appearance in the No. 91 Lazier Partners Racing car. NBC Sports Network will televise qualifying live from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 4:30-6:30 p.m. Saturday and noon-6:30 p.m. Sunday.
(Photo by Mike Young/INDYCAR)
Rookie Conor Daly (No. 41 A.J. Foyt Racing ABC Supply Honda) brought out the yellow flag for the first incident of the month when he made contact with the SAFER Barrier exiting Turn 1 midway through the session. He was checked at the infield care center and cleared to drive. "We had just made a change on the springs in the rear," Daly said. "For me, I felt comfortable the whole time. It's all been reasonably good. I was just trying to experience a little bit more with the car, and there was a car in front and me. The wind, it feels like it's been gusting more, and the rear was leaning hard on the outside tire, and it just kind of folded over on itself. I just lost it. Just not good."

(John Thawley  ~  Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com  ~ 248.227.011)
Lucas Luhr (No. 6 Muscle Milk Honda Performance Development ARX-03a) took advantage of a late-race puncture for Neel Jani (No. 12 Rebellion Timepieces/Lemco Connectors/Speedy Garage Lola-Toyota, co-driven by Nick Heidfeld) to win the American Le Mans Monterey for the second straight year in the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón on Saturday. Luhr and co-driver Klaus Graf are the first drivers to repeat at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca since 2007. Luhr won by 6.352 seconds thanks to a late-race caution and a one-lap dash to the finish. Jani and Heidfeld had led most of the race’s first half, with Luhr’s aggressive move in the Corkscrew to get around Jani coming just past the two-hour mark. The two cars swapped the lead four times over the final 34 laps and made contact with 40 minutes left. “After contact, the car was trashed,” Luhr said. “Aerodynamically it was all messed up and mechanically I could feel the toe-link or something was broken. But I could fight it around. I knew the Rebellion car was much quicker on the straights so I knew (passing Jani in the Corkscrew) would be my only chance. The choice was good, but in the moment I thought maybe it wasn't such a good idea now that the rumble strips are throwing my car around.” With the win Luhr became the ALMS’ all-time leader in wins with 43. Katherine Legge and Andy Meyrick were third in class in DeltaWing Racing Cars’ No. 0 DeltaWing LM12 although they finished near the back of the field. Legge is the first woman driver to finish on the P1 podium in the ALMS. Check out John Thawley's smokin' hot images from Laguna Seca here.

(John Thawley  ~  Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com  ~ 248.227.011)
Jan Magnussen and Antonio Garcia  (No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R) won yet another knock-down, drag-out battle in the GT class, with the first five cars finishing within three seconds of each other. The duo led for the final three hours, 15 minutes but their lead was never more than five seconds the entire way. Garcia finished 0.982 seconds ahead of Bryan Sellers in the No. 17 Team Falken Tire Porsche 911 GT3 RSR (co-driven by Wolf Henzler). “I thought today, with as perfect as we've been driving, if we don't get this win, I wouldn’t know what else to do,” Garcia said. “Everything worked, right where it needed to be. I think last year we had something like five second-place finishes, so we really deserved a win or two.” The top eight cars in the class ran nose-to-tail and nine seconds covered the group well into the race’s second half. The GT battle ultimately came down to pit stops. The No. 3 Corvette Racing crew was four seconds quicker during its four stops than the Falken team during the GT class battle. “Today was one of the most perfect races we've had with Corvette Racing,” Magnussen said. “We were under pressure the whole way. We never had a big lead, we really had to work through traffic and not get stopped by the slower cars and lose too much time. It was a matter of being 100 percent precise the whole race.” Dirk Müller and John Edwards finished third in the No. 56 BMW North America, LLC/Crowne Plaza BMW Z4 GTE. (The No. 17 Porsche failed its stall test in post-race technical inspection however, stripping the team and drivers of all points and prize money. The No. 17 outfit does retain second in the final GT race standings.)

(John Thawley  ~  Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com  ~ 248.227.011)
Marino Franchitti and Scott Tucker led a 1-2 finish for Level 5 Motorsports, the team’s second such result of the season. Their No. 551 Siemens/Alpina Watches/Ohiya Casino Resort HPD ARX-03b was 5.578 seconds ahead of the No. 552  sister car, which Tucker drove with Ryan Briscoe. The No. 01 Extreme Speed Motorsports Tequila Patrón HPD ARX-03b of Guy Cosmo and Scott Sharp finished third after two early stops to change flat tires, the last of which occurred while the car was leading.

(John Thawley  ~  Motorsports Photography @ www.johnthawley.com  ~ 248.227.011)
Luis Diaz (No. 52 PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports Molecule ORECA FLM09, co-driven by Michael Guasch) got around CORE autosport’s Colin Braun (No. 05 Composite Resources ORECA co-drieven by Jonathan Bennett) on the final restart to win for the second time in three races in Prototype Challenge presented by Continental Tire. Tristan Nunez and Charlie Shears placed third in PC driving Performance Tech Motorsports’ No. 18 VisitFlorida.com/Ric Man/Signature MSAP entry.

(ALMS)
Nick Tandy (No. 30 NGT Motorsport MOMO Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, co-driven by Henrique Cisneros) got by Andy Lally (No. 27 Dempsey Del Piero Racing Tully’s Coffee Porsche, co-driven by Patrick Dempsey) near the halfway point of the final lap to win in GT Challenge. NGT won for the second race in a row. Alex Job Racing’s Cooper MacNeil and Jeroen Bleekemolen were third in the No. 22 WeatherTech Porsche. The next round (after the 24 Hours of Le Mans) of the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón is the American Le Mans Northeast Grand Prix. The race, from Lime Rock Park, is set for 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 6 with live coverage on ESPN2 and ESPN3.

(Photos by Bret Kelley for Chevrolet)
The all-new, seventh-generation 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray will serve as the Pace Car for the Indianapolis 500, leading the field for the 97th running of "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing," on Sunday, May 26, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Decked out in Laguna Blue Tintcoat with official Indianapolis 500 graphics on the doors, the Corvette Stingray Pace Car differs from production models by only track-mandated safety features and strobe lights. No powertrain upgrades will be required due to its all-new 6.2L LT1 V8, which features advanced direct fuel injection, continuously variable valve timing and Active Fuel Management (cylinder deactivation). That translates to an estimated 450 horsepower delivered more efficiently. The 2014 Corvette Stingray coupe goes on sale this fall, with a convertible model – featuring a fully electronic top that can be operated remotely with the key fob – coming a few months later.

Chevrolet has a long shared history with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the Indianapolis 500 and the IZOD IndyCar Series. Chevrolet was founded in 1911, the year of the inaugural 500-mile race, and the Chevrolet brothers – company co-founder Louis, Arthur and Gaston – all competed in early Indy 500 races. Arthur Chevrolet competed in the 1911 race and Gaston Chevrolet won it in 1920.

Chevrolet competed in Indy-type competition as an engine manufacturer in 1986-93 and 2002-05 with V8 engines, and returned in 2012 with the Chevrolet IndyCar twin-turbo V6 engine with direct injection. In that time, Chevrolet won 118 IndyCar races, powered seven driver series champions and scored seven Indianapolis 500 victories. 2013 marks the 24th time a Chevrolet has served as the official Pace Car of the Indianapolis 500, more than any other brand, dating to 1948 with a Chevrolet Fleetmaster. Camaro has served in the role seven times and, with this year’s running, Corvette has paced the field a record 12 times.

(Fuzzy's Premium Vodka)
Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka, the Official Vodka of INDYCAR, the 2013 Indianapolis 500 and primary sponsor for Ed Carpenter Racing, has unveiled the Checkered Flag Limited Edition bottle.  Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka - owned by former Masters and U.S. Open champion Fuzzy Zoeller - captured the prestigious Chairman’s Trophy at the 2012 Ultimate Spirits Challenge for the Best Unflavored Vodka, as well as a Great Value Award. Fuzzy’s has also received the coveted gold medal and 94 rating from the Beverage Testing Institute three times. Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka will also sponsor the Fuzzy’s Triple Crown for INDYCAR in 2013.

(Honda)
Ladies and gentlemen, Honda is back! Honda will participate in the Formula One World Championship beginning in the 2015 season under a joint project with McLaren, the UK-based F1 corporation. Honda will be in charge of the development, manufacture and supply of the power unit, including the engine and energy recovery system, while McLaren will be in charge of the development and manufacture of the chassis, as well as the management of the new team, McLaren Honda. Beginning in 2014, new F1 regulations require the introduction of a 1.6 litre direct injection turbocharged V6 engine with energy recovery systems. "The opportunity to further develop these powertrain technologies through the challenge of racing is central to Honda’s decision to participate in F1. Throughout its history, Honda has passionately pursued improvements in the efficiency of the internal combustion engine and in more recent years, the development of pioneering energy management technologies such as hybrid systems. Participation in Formula 1 under these new regulations will encourage even further technological progress in both these areas. Furthermore, a new generation of Honda engineers can experience the challenges and the thrills of operating at the pinnacle of motorsport," according to the press release. “Ever since its establishment, Honda has been a company which grows by taking on challenges in racing," Takanobu Ito, President and CEO of Honda Motor Co., Ltd. said. "Honda has a long history of advancing our technologies and nurturing our people by participating in the world’s most prestigious automobile racing series. The new F1 regulations with their significant environmental focus will inspire even greater development of our own advanced technologies and this is central to our participation in F1. We have the greatest respect for the FIA’s decision to introduce these new regulations that are both highly challenging but also attractive to manufacturers that pursue environmental technologies and to Formula One Group2, which has developed F1 into a high value, top car racing category supported by enthusiastic fans. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Mr. Jean Todt, the President of FIA1 and to Mr. Bernie Ecclestone, the CEO of Formula One Group2 who showed great understanding and cooperation to help realize our participation in F1 racing. The corporate slogan of Honda is 'The Power of Dreams.' This slogan represents our strong desire to pursue and realize our dreams together with our customers and fans. Together with McLaren, one of the most distinguished F1 constructors, Honda will mark a new beginning in our challenges in F1.”