THE LINE - APRIL 30, 2014
Monday, April 28, 2014 at 09:03AM 
(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Scott Dixon (No. 9 Chip Ganassi Racing Target Chevrolet) turned the quickest lap in the IndyCar Open test on the new 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in preparation for the Grand Prix of Indianapolis coming up on May 10th. Dixon turned a 1.09.5969 at 126.161 mph to lead the field. "I've obviously got a big smile on my face," Dixon said. "The track was so much fun today. The thing they captured, it's a demanding circuit. The cars all seem very close which is going to create some fantastic racing. These big straights, I think Brazil is probably the only other time we've had a straight similar length like this. You're actually a lot lower here. The sections, especially (Turns) 7, 8, 9, 10 keeps you on your toes. I'm really impressed with how everything's gone. Even the curbing, they've done a fantastic job."
(Photo by Chris Jones/INDYCAR)
Ryan Briscoe (No. 8 Ganassi Racing NTT Data Chevrolet) was second quick overall with a 1.09.6558. "It's just a lot of fun to drive and fun to be learning a new track," Briscoe commented. "(Turns) 1 and 7 are the big pass zones. I think just huge improvements over what was the F1 track with extending the straight down the middle, slowing down Turn 7, then opening up the next set of S's in (Turns) 8, 9 and 10 where it used to be very slow and now it's really fast and challenging. Great track. Great job by everyone here that was a part of making it happen."
(Photo by Chris Jones/INDYCAR)
Simon Pagenaud was third quick (1:09.7544) in the No. 77 Schmidt Peterson Hamilton Motorsports Honda and posted the most laps (57) on Wednesday. "It's a beautiful layout," said Pagenaud. "They've done a really, really good job here. It suits the IndyCar really well, I think. It's very smooth. It's the smoothest track we go to. It's enjoyable. Quite a bit of high-speed corners, medium-speed corners, a lot of braking, which is going to be good for racing. I enjoyed it." Originally laid out for the Formula One race from 2000-07, the road course underwent a $5 million reconfiguration and infrastructure upgrade that includes new viewing mounds for spectators looking over the oval Turn 2. Hundreds utilized the vantage spots during the test day under mostly cloudy skies. The Grand Prix of Indianapolis practice sessions begin May 8. The three rounds of qualifications are May 9 and the standing start for the 82-lap race is at 3:43 p.m. (ET) May 10.
(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Kurt Busch, 35, will attempt to become the fourth driver to compete in the Indianapolis 500 and the evening NASCAR race in Concord, N.C., on the same day. John Andretti, Robby Gordon and Tony Stewart have each done it, with Stewart - co-owner of Busch's No. 41 Sprint Cup car at Stewart Haas Racing - becoming the first in 2001 to complete all 1,000 miles. "This attempt is something serious," said Busch, who ran an orientation session at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Tuesday, April 29th. He is also scheduled to join other Indy 500 rookies at the Speedway for additional laps on May 5th. "It's an amazing challenge," Busch commented. He recorded a best lap of 220.844 mph in the No. 26 Andretti Autosport Suretone Honda after 66 total laps, before rain brought an early end to the day. A stiff headwind entering Turn 1 during the session factored into the times. "It really makes you think," Busch said. "Overall, it was a good day just to settle in with the team and advance further than rookie orientation. It felt good to give feedback to the team from the car and have them explain things to me how we're going to move forward. They continued to change downforce combinations on the car and it was just neat to feel all that and check it off the list. The last run we made was just about where they would unload for race trim." Busch was required to complete the formal refresher program because he tested on the oval last May (2013) in an Andretti Autosport car. In addition to demonstrating car control, placement and consistent driving pattern, the program consists of 30 laps that constitute the second and third phases of the Rookie Orientation Program at speed intervals based on track and weather conditions.
(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
Jacques Villeneuve won the 79th Indianapolis 500 Mile Race in 1995, but the 2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval remains one of the ultimate challenges. Villeneuve recorded 83 laps in the No. 5 Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Dollar General Honda on Tuesday with a best of 217.742 mph as part of his refresher test. "It took a while to get there. The first few laps were surprising because it felt like I was going fast and I looked and it was 180 (mph)," Villeneuve said. "I thought, 'There's still a long way to go,' and then 190. And another 10 laps I started getting in the rhythm, and once you start going flat all around it becomes easy. I think your brain, your vision just needs to get used to driving at speed." The first practice session for "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" is May 11, with qualifications May 17-18.
(Photo by Chris Owens/INDYCAR)
(Photo by Chris Jones/INDYCAR)
Ryan Hunter-Reay (No. 28 Andretti Autosport DHL Honda) won the Verizon IndyCar Series Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama after driving a savvy race in at times challenging conditions on Sunday. Hunter-Reay took the lead from Will Power (No. 12 Team Penske Verizon Chevrolet) on lap 15 and kept the field at bay for the win. It was the first win for Andretti Autosport since switching to Honda power in the off-season.
(Audi/newspressUSA)
The opening round of the all-new FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy will kick off in Portugal this weekend (May 3-4). The Championship is made up of 12 rounds: Portugal, Great Britain, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Turkey and Argentina. World RX of Portugal will be based in Montalegre: a municipality in northern Portugal, located in the district of Vila Real on the border with Spain. There will be six World RX two-car teams present in Portugal, including the manufacturer-backed squads of Ford-OlsbergsMSE (Andreas Bakkerud and Reinis Nitiss), VW-Marklund (Topi Heikkinen and Anton Marklund) and Peugeot-Hansen (Timur Timerzyanov and Timmy Hansen). Also in Portugal and fighting for Supercar victory will be PSRX’s Petter Solberg with team-mate Alex Hvaal. The lineup will also include two former World Champions as former F1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve and former WRC Champion Petter Solberg will compete.
The Porsche factory race teams tested at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit for the Spa 6 Hours, round 2 of the Sports Car World Endurance Championship (WEC) on May 3. The six-hour race in Spa-Francorchamps is the last race before the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 14-15.