By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Santino Ferrucci and his aggressive, on-track attitude will return to A.J. Foyt Racing and the NTT IndyCar Series in 2025 under terms of a “multi-year” contract to drive the No. 14 Sexton Properties Chevrolet. Ferrucci sits 10th in the point standings heading into this weekend’s season-ender at Nashville Superspeedway in Lebanon, Tenn. Ferrucci, 26, will be paired with 22-year-old native Chicagoan David Malukas in Foyt Racing’s second entry beginning next season. Malukas, currently of Meyer Shank Racing, signed with the Waller, Texas-based organization owned by open-wheel legend A.J. Foyt Jr. last month. “I’m…
Author: John Sturbin
John Sturbin
John Sturbin is a Fort Worth-based journalist specializing in motorsports. During a near 30-year career with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, he won the Bloys Britt Award for top motorsports story of the year (1991) as judged by The Associated Press; received the National Hot Rod Association’s Media Award (1995) and several in-house Star-Telegram honors. He also was inaugural recipient of the Texas Motor Speedway Excellence in Journalism Award (2009). Email John Sturbin at jsturbin@hotmail.com.
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Midwest weather permitting, NASCAR superstar Kyle Larson will get a second chance to contest and complete “The Double” on Sunday, May 25th, 2025. Larson’s bid for a pair of marquee Memorial Day Weekend victories again will involve a collaboration between Arrow McLaren IndyCar Team and Hendrick Motorsports. In what has been dubbed the #Hendrick1100, Larson will attempt to complete 1,100 miles of INDYCAR and NASCAR racing beginning with the 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge at Indianapolis Motor Speedway _ crown jewel of the NTT IndyCar Series season. Larson will then be flown…
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Native New Zealanders Scott McLaughlin and Scott Dixon spent Sunday afternoon interrupting an NTT IndyCar Series title chase between Alex Palou and Will Power that will be decided during the 2024 season-finale. McLaughlin held off six-time series champion Dixon to win Race 2 of the Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250s doubleheader in West Allis, Wis. McLaughlin earned his series high-tying third victory of the season in the No. 3 Gallagher Team Penske Chevrolet, finishing 0.4558-seconds ahead of fellow-Kiwi Dixon in the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. Colton Herta completed the podium…
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Englishman Louis Foster’s title-deciding drive in the INDY NXT by Firestone Milwaukee 100 was an absolute no-doubter. Foster went wire-to-wire for his series-leading seventh victory of the season Saturday afternoon, leading all 90-laps/91.35-miles around the historic 1.015-mile oval in West Allis, Wis. A 21-year-old native of Odiham, England, Foster secured the 2024 championship for Andretti Global in the series’ penultimate round. Foster’s seven wins (and counting) are the most by any INDY NXT driver since current NTT IndyCar Series regular Kyle Kirkwood won a series record-tying 10 races en route to the title…
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Pato O’Ward and his Arrow McLaren crew emerged from a three-race, summertime swoon Saturday afternoon with a victory in Race 1 of the Hyvee Milwaukee 250s in West Allis, Wis. O’Ward scored his third NTT IndyCar Series victory of the season on The Milwaukee Mile’s historic 1.015-mile oval, finishing 1.8215-seconds in front of championship contender Will Power of Team Penske. O’Ward’s seventh career victory and 25th-career podium finish put a definitive end to a frustrating stretch that had seen him finish 17th on the Streets of Toronto on July 21; second-to-last 26th on…
John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Same racetrack, different race car. While the NTT IndyCar Series hasn’t competed at The Milwaukee Mile since 2015, a recent trend on ovals continued during Friday’s opening practice for the Hy-Vee Milwaukee Mile 250s. Two-time series champion Josef Newgarden turned the top hot lap of 23.0156-seconds/158.762 mph around the 1.015-mile oval in West Allis, Wis. Team Penske has won all four previous oval races this season and Newgarden _ the two-time/reigning Indianapolis 500 champion _ has prevailed in 10 of the series’ last 15 circle-track events. “It feels similar. It’s different compared to 2015…
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio A.J. Foyt Racing’s relentless pursuit of NTT IndyCar Series relevance reached the sharp end of the grid Saturday at Portland International Raceway, where Santino Ferrucci said goodbye to a guy named “tail-end Charlie.” Ferrucci delivered the team founded by Houston native A.J. Foyt Jr. its first series pole since 2014 during Firestone Fast Six qualifying for Sunday’s BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland in Oregon. Ferrucci earned his first career series pole in his inaugural Fast Six appearance via a hot lap of 58.2046-seconds/121.475 mph in the No. 14 Phoenix Investors Chevrolet owned by…
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Bill York, the first “tradition” encountered by any rookie reporter covering the Indianapolis 500, died on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024 near Nashville, Tenn. Mr. York was 91. York worked in and managed the Media Center at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for more than 50 years. He was holding court in his small, glassed-in office in May 1980 when this reporter, representing the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, walked into the former gray, cinderblock building that housed the press corps. Stationed at the front of the room, York oversaw four long rows of crowded working space where…
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Alex Palou is leaning on recent personal history in the bid for his third NTT IndyCar Series championship. Palou, of Chip Ganassi Racing, leads the standings by 59 points with four races remaining _ including Sunday’s BITNILE.COM Grand Prix of Portland in Oregon. The 27-year-old Spaniard also paced the championship with four races to go in 2021 and 2023, when he won the title. Palou, who has led the standings after eight of 13 rounds this season, took the point lead at the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey in Northern California in June.…
By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden admitted his half-spin-and-win during Saturday night’s INDYCAR Bommarito Automotive Group 500 was “a little clumsy.” That was among the more polite-and-printable terms being uttered by his NTT IndyCar Series peers after a late-race crash during a restart paced by Newgarden proved pivotal to the outcome at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Ill. Newgarden and teammate Scott McLaughlin were running 1-2 in front of Colton Herta of Andretti Global and Penske’s Will Power coming to a restart with nine laps remaining in the scheduled 260-lapper. When Newgarden accelerated under…