(Photo of Josef Newgarden - Bommarito Automotive Group 500 - by Paul Hurley)
Josef Newgarden spun, and he won. But that was far from the only dose of excitement the Indianapolis 500 winner experienced Saturday night in capturing the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline at World Wide Technology Raceway. While Newgarden’s half-spin in traffic without contact in Turn 2 will be one for the ages, a late restart likely will play a role in determining the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship, and Newgarden was figuratively in the middle of it.
Actually, the No. 2 Team Penske PPG Chevrolet driver was leading the pack coming to the green flag. The pace constant and steady before there was contact behind Newgarden and second-place Scott McLaughlin. Team Penske’s Will Power appeared to bump third-place Colton Herta, and then he checked up enough to have Arrow McLaren’s Alexander Rossi run into the back of him. Both cars smacked the inside wall, a crushing blow for Power, who entered the 260-lap race second in the standings with a shot as his third series title.
The benefactor was series leader Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing. At the sight of the green, the reigning series champion dove to the inside lane in a bid to advance from seventh place. That decision kept him out of the fray that became a four-car accident, and after the red flag period for cleanup, the Spaniard turned the opportunity into a championship moment. He finished fourth to add more points to his series lead.
The driver of the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Samaritan Purse Honda will take a 59-point lead into the season’s final four races.
“The worst part (of the victory) is (Power) not making it home,” Newgarden said. "I hate that that happened at the very end. I watched it on the TV and it kind of looked like the green went (on) before I went – just momentarily – and it caused a big accordion (effect).
“So, I hate that that happened. That’s the last thing you want to happen with 10 (laps) to go is to create a mess.”
Power wasn’t pleased, and it cost him more than a chance to win. He ended up losing 17 points to Palou and dropped to fourth in the standings behind Herta and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon. The driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Verizon Business Chevrolet led a race-high 117 laps.
“Where are you supposed to go?” said Power, who is now 66 points out of the series lead. “In between (Turns) 3 and 4 (the leader) he just waited, then he went. He went, he stopped. I knew that was going to happen. As soon as I checked up because (others) checked up, I knew I was going to get pounded (from behind).
Newgarden had a good car, too, as evident by his ability to recover from the spin while trying to pass Palou on the outside on Lap 196. But Newgarden’s pit crew also contributed mightily to his second win of the season. It changed four tires on the final stop in just over 5 seconds to get their driver out of the pits ahead of McLaughlin, who had been the leader.
“It was 1-on-1 with the teams on the pit stop,” said McLaughlin, who led 67 laps. “We lost track position.”
Newgarden had to hold off McLaughlin for one final restart, but this time he got away cleanly as McLaughlin said his No. 3 Team Penske DEX Imaging Chevrolet bogged down briefly.
Newgarden’s win wasn’t a surprise based on recent trips to this 1.25-mile oval. He won his first race in 2017 in his first season with Team Penske, and then he added three in succession in 2020, 2021 and 2022. Do the math: That’s five in nine tries (there were two races in 2020).
The win also became the 31st of his career, tying Paul Tracy, Dario Franchitti and Helio Castroneves for 10th place on the sport’s all-time list.
Watch the Extended Race Highlights from Motorsports on NBC here. (Thank you to INDYCAR Media for the report.)
Actually, the No. 2 Team Penske PPG Chevrolet driver was leading the pack coming to the green flag. The pace constant and steady before there was contact behind Newgarden and second-place Scott McLaughlin. Team Penske’s Will Power appeared to bump third-place Colton Herta, and then he checked up enough to have Arrow McLaren’s Alexander Rossi run into the back of him. Both cars smacked the inside wall, a crushing blow for Power, who entered the 260-lap race second in the standings with a shot as his third series title.
The benefactor was series leader Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing. At the sight of the green, the reigning series champion dove to the inside lane in a bid to advance from seventh place. That decision kept him out of the fray that became a four-car accident, and after the red flag period for cleanup, the Spaniard turned the opportunity into a championship moment. He finished fourth to add more points to his series lead.
The driver of the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Samaritan Purse Honda will take a 59-point lead into the season’s final four races.
“The worst part (of the victory) is (Power) not making it home,” Newgarden said. "I hate that that happened at the very end. I watched it on the TV and it kind of looked like the green went (on) before I went – just momentarily – and it caused a big accordion (effect).
“So, I hate that that happened. That’s the last thing you want to happen with 10 (laps) to go is to create a mess.”
Power wasn’t pleased, and it cost him more than a chance to win. He ended up losing 17 points to Palou and dropped to fourth in the standings behind Herta and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon. The driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Verizon Business Chevrolet led a race-high 117 laps.
“Where are you supposed to go?” said Power, who is now 66 points out of the series lead. “In between (Turns) 3 and 4 (the leader) he just waited, then he went. He went, he stopped. I knew that was going to happen. As soon as I checked up because (others) checked up, I knew I was going to get pounded (from behind).
Newgarden had a good car, too, as evident by his ability to recover from the spin while trying to pass Palou on the outside on Lap 196. But Newgarden’s pit crew also contributed mightily to his second win of the season. It changed four tires on the final stop in just over 5 seconds to get their driver out of the pits ahead of McLaughlin, who had been the leader.
“It was 1-on-1 with the teams on the pit stop,” said McLaughlin, who led 67 laps. “We lost track position.”
Newgarden had to hold off McLaughlin for one final restart, but this time he got away cleanly as McLaughlin said his No. 3 Team Penske DEX Imaging Chevrolet bogged down briefly.
Newgarden’s win wasn’t a surprise based on recent trips to this 1.25-mile oval. He won his first race in 2017 in his first season with Team Penske, and then he added three in succession in 2020, 2021 and 2022. Do the math: That’s five in nine tries (there were two races in 2020).
The win also became the 31st of his career, tying Paul Tracy, Dario Franchitti and Helio Castroneves for 10th place on the sport’s all-time list.
Watch the Extended Race Highlights from Motorsports on NBC here. (Thank you to INDYCAR Media for the report.)
(MotoGP)
After a fantastic Saturday, Francesco Bagnaia (No. 1 Ducati Lenovo Team) has secured his 25th premier class win. Bagnaia was unstoppable at the Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich and crossed the line to finish ahead of Jorge Martin (No. 89 Prima Pramac Racing) in second, who showed strong pace in the early stages of the Grand Prix, keeping Bagnaia honest throughout. It is a crucial weekend for the Championship, with Bagnaia leaving Austria with a five-point advantage after an impressive Sunday. Enea Bastianini (No. 23 Ducati Lenovo Team) took the final spot on the podium in third, continuing a great run of results after a great launch and good pace. The Beast remains third in the Championship standings after finishing ahead of Marc Marquez (No. 93 Gresini Racing MotoGP™), who took fourth after a dramatic Sunday. Watch the Race Highlights here. (Thank you to MotoGP Media.)
(WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca)
This year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion group photo encapsulates 50 years of historic racing in Monterey. The traditional photo is a compilation of the best of the best, representing past marques that have been honored at the event.
The assembled cars for the photo are:
- 1999 BMW V12 LMR
- 2023 Chevrolet Camaro
- 1990 Mercedes-Benz C11
- 1988 Nissan GTP ZX-T
- 1985 Porsche 962
- 1979 Porsche 935
- 1970 Ford Mustang Boss 302
- 1963 Corvette Grand Sport
- 1965 Cobra Daytona Coupe
- 1963 Aston Martin DP215
- 1962 Lesovsky IndyCar
- 1966 Gurney Eagle
- 1978 Lotus Type 79
- 1967 Alfa Romeo Floreon
- 1960 Cunningham Corvette
- 1962 Lotus 19
- 1955 Jaguar D-Type
- 1962 Cooper Monaco
- 1952 Cunningham C4R
- 1953 Allard
- 1953 Alfa Romeo 6C 3000
- 1956 Maserati 250F
- 1927 Bugatti Type 35
- 1935 MG PA/PB
- 1926 Miller Perfect Circle
- 1949 Ferrari 166 MM
- 2009 Audi R15
- 1924 Bentley
- 1964 Chaparral 2
(motorsportcollector.com)
Editor-in-Chief's Note: I wanted to take this opportunity to mention George Levy's fantastic new book, Texas Legend - Jim Hall and his Chaparrals. This Official Biography of Jim Hall is simply one of the finest biographies I have ever read, and it stands as the definitive work chronicling the life and achievements of Jim Hall. Full disclosure, Jim Hall is and has been one of my all-time favorites, and Levy's book does Jim justice like no book before it. It is filled with details and anecdotes never revealed until now. I highly recommend this book for enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike. It is a superb effort and well worth the read. -PMD
Editor's Note: This is our dearly departed billboard, which we had at Road America for several years. Peter gifted the phrase "America's National Park of Speed" to the track, which now uses it proudly in all of its communications. -WG
Editor's Note: Click on "Next 1 Entries" at the bottom of this page to see previous issues. - WG