Author: John Sturbin

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio RIVER OAKS – The city where Johnny Rutherford grew up thinking he might want to become a race car driver officially honored him recently with a proclamation and a spirited round of “bench-racing.” Rutherford spent the Month of May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first of his three Indy 500 wins with McLaren Racing. River Oaks Mayor Darren Houk and the City Council responded by inviting “Lone Star J.R.” to its monthly meeting at City Hall. “I can’t tell you how much we appreciate what you mean to this…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Alex Palou remains almost untouchable at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, the picturesque Northern California road-course where the Spaniard scored his second victory in three years in Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey. Palou also assumed the championship point lead in his bid for a third NTT IndyCar Series title with his second victory of the season in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. The two-time/reigning series champ beat native Californian Colton Herta and his No. 26 Gainbridge Honda of Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian to the finish by 1.9780-seconds. “It was a…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Pole-sitter Alex Palou paced a parade of four Honda-powered drivers atop the speed chart Saturday during qualifying for this afternoon’s Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Palou secured his second NTT P1 Award of the season and fifth of his NTT IndyCar Series career via a best lap of 1-minute, 7.1465-seconds/119.988 mph in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. A two-time/reigning series champion, Palou is second in the point standings _ five (236-231) behind Will Power of Team Penske. Another two-time series champ, native Australian Power qualified…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin led Friday’s opening practice for the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey on a WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca layout that has lost seat-of-the-pants grip since a repave in 2023. A number of NTT IndyCar Series regulars either spun or ventured off-track while working to adjust to the track’s lower grip levels compared to last year, when fresh asphalt offered more traction. McLaughlin emerged as quickest via a lap at 1-minute, 7.6325-seconds/119.126 mph in the No. 3 Good Ranchers Team Penske Chevrolet on the undulating, 2.238-mile/11-turn circuit that includes the famous…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Ferrari and its faithful, red-clad “tifosi” celebrated a second consecutive victory Sunday in the world’s greatest automobile endurance race _ the 92nd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans _ following a closing laps battle with Toyota Gazoo Racing. Running low on fuel on a wet racetrack, Nicklas Nielsen of Denmark crossed the finish line first in the No. 50 Ferrari AF Corse Hypercar shared with Antonio Fuoco of Italy and Miguel Molina of Spain in the twice-around-the clock French classic. The winning Ferrari covered 311 laps around the 8.47-mile/13.629-kilometers Circuit De La…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Paced by an all-American front row, the world’s greatest sports car endurance race is underway in France. The pole-sitting No. 6 Porsche 963 Hypercar entered by Penske Motorsport and the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R fielded by Cadillac Racing took the green flag Saturday morning for the flying start of the 92nd annual 24 Hours of Le Mans. A field of 62 cars in three classes is competing at full-song in the FIA World Endurance Championship’s twice-around-the-clock marathon. Frenchman Kevin Estre wheeled Penske’s No. 6 Porsche 963 to P1 during Thursday’s 30-minute Hyperpole session…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio INDYCAR is moving to FOX Sports in 2025 with a 17-race schedule that, for the second consecutive season, does not include Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth. FOX Sports is poised to become the exclusive home of the NTT IndyCar Series, including the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. As announced Thursday, the new media rights deal will provide an unprecedented increase in exposure for North America’s premier open-wheel series, with every 2025 race airing on FOX and available on the FOX Sports app. Additionally, FOX Deportes will carry exclusive…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio INDYCAR will launch its long-awaited Hybrid Era at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course next month with a trio of familiar names squarely atop the speed chart during testing. Two days after sweeping the podium at Road America, Team Penske’s Will Power, Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin emerged as the three fastest drivers, respectively, in an NTT IndyCar Series Open Test at The Milwaukee Mile. INDYCAR, Chevrolet and Honda have collaborated to develop the series’ first-of-its-kind hybrid unit. Both manufacturer’s 2.2-liter, twin-turbocharged V-6 engines initially were paired and tested with hybrid power on Aug. 16,…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Team Penske ace Will Power says he and wife Liz have been through “a rough trot” _ Aussie-speak for an 18-month journey that took the family from a hospital emergency room in North Carolina to Victory Lane in Wisconsin. Power posted his first NTT IndyCar Series win since June 2022 in Detroit _ a drought of 34 races _ to lead a Team Penske podium sweep during Sunday’s XPEL Grand Prix of Road America presented by AMR. Power had won at least one race for 16 consecutive seasons from 2007-2022 before going winless…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio NTT IndyCar Series rookie Linus Lundqvist says qualifying in wet/dry conditions on a road-course re-defines the meaning of risk vs. reward. “Yeah, I mean, it’s so difficult because you still have to be committed,” Lundqvist said after a frantic, damp qualifying session Saturday afternoon at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis. “To be fast as well, you’re going to have to approach it almost like a dry lap or a dry session.” That mindset carried Lundqvist to a trio of “firsts” en route to the NTT P1 Award for today’s XPEL Grand Prix…