Author: John Sturbin

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Alex Palou continued his mastery of INDYCAR’s longest-and-winding road-course Friday, pacing opening practice for the XPEL Grand Prix at Road America presented by AMR. A two-time/reigning NTT IndyCar Series champion, Palou covered the 4.104-mile/14-turn layout in 1-minute, 43.1709-seconds/140.063 mph during a 75-minute session. Palou was the only driver in the 27-car field to crack the 140 mph barrier. Recall the Spaniard previously won on the permanent, natural-terrain layout in Elkhart Lake, Wis., en route to his series championships in 2021 and 2023. “It’s a really great start so far,” said Palou, driver of…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Indianapolis 500 champion Parnelli Jones, whose victory in 1963 occurred amid an era of open-wheel innovation at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, passed away peacefully with his family by his side on Tuesday, June 4, 2024 in Torrance, Calif. Mr. Jones was 90. The first driver to qualify for the Indy 500 faster than 150 mph in 1962, Jones won the 47th edition of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” from pole position on Thursday, May 30, 1963. The versatile Jones competed against the best domestic drivers of his era, as well as a handful of…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Chip Ganassi Racing ace Scott Dixon and race strategist Mike Hull schooled the field during Sunday’s caution-marred Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix, as corporate rival Honda played party spoiler in General Motors’ hometown and “Dixie” assumed the championship point lead. A six-time NTT IndyCar Series champion, Dixon collaborated with Hull on another master class in the art of saving fuel at-speed. Dixon outlasted fellow-Honda driver Marcus Ericsson of Andretti Global by 0.8567-seconds after 100 laps around the tight-and-bumpy 1.645-mile/nine-turn temporary circuit in Downtown Motown. “Yeah, I think for us as a team, we just…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Colton Herta began the “Month of June” with his first NTT IndyCar Series pole of the 2024 season, and 12th of his career, during qualifying Saturday for the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix. Herta toured the 1.645-mile/nine-turn temporary circuit in Downtown Motown in 1-minute, .5475-seconds/97.808 mph in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda fielded by Andretti Global with Curb-Agajanian. The native Californian secured the NTT P1 Award less than a week removed from a disappointing 23rd-place result in the 108th Indianapolis 500. “A complete 180 and just super-happy for the team,” Herta said. “They worked…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Helio Castroneves’ original “one-off” drive for Meyer Shank Racing at the 108th Indianapolis 500 has morphed into a three-race deal, beginning with this weekend’s Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix. A minority partner with MSR, Castroneves is replacing INDYCAR rookie Tom Blomqvist in the No. 66 AutoNation/SiriusXM Honda in the Motor City and in the Xpel Grand Prix at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wis., on June 9. The decision to park Blomqvist is a consequence of the Brit’s first-lap miscue during Sunday’s Indy 500. Blomqvist, who started 25th in the 33-car field, saw his…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Stewart Haas-Racing is planning a NASCAR-style estate sale. SHR, the Kannapolis, N.C.-based organization fronted by NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart, shocked the motorsports community earlier this week by confirming plans to shutter its Ford-backed NASCAR operation at the end of the 2024 season. A three-time Cup Series champion, Stewart and co-owner/entrepreneur Gene Haas said in a statement the decision was neither easy nor made quickly. “Racing is a labor-intensive, humbling sport,” the partners said. “It requires unwavering commitment and vast resources, with a 365-day mindset to be better than everyone else. It’s part…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio The nearly four-hour rain delay that pushed back the start time of the 108th Indianapolis 500 apparently served to whet the appetites of viewing audiences across NBC Sports’ various platforms. Josef Newgarden’s second consecutive victory in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” on Sunday averaged a preliminary Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 5.344-million viewers across NBC, Peacock and NBC Sports’ digital platforms. Those figures represent an increase of 8 percent vs. the 2023 race (4.927-million) and 10 percent vs. 2022 (4.837-million). Viewership figures are in the process of being finalized. Team Penske ace Newgarden,…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Penske Perfection was on full display during Sunday’s 108th running of the Indianapolis 500, as Josef Newgarden and his “backup brain trust” celebrated the team’s record-extending 20th victory at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Newgarden’s bold-and-brilliant, last-lap pass around Pato O’Ward through Turn 3 of the 2.5-mile oval allowed him to become the first repeat Indy 500 champion since Team Penske’s Helio Castroneves in 2001-2002. “Yeah, hard to know if it’s going to work,” Newgarden said of the dramatic winning moment, completed in twilight conditions after a midday rainstorm delayed the scheduled start by four…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Fort Worth’s Johnny Rutherford has been scooting around the massive grounds of Indianapolis Motor Speedway this Race Week in a golf cart. At age 86, it’s the perfect vehicle for transporting “Lone Star J.R.” down memory lane, 50 years after winning his first Indianapolis 500. “Who keeps count?” Rutherford joked during a phone interview leading into Sunday’s scheduled 108th running of the Indy 500. “Numerically, it was 50 years ago and when you think about all the things that have happened, I’m glad that some people remember, you know? I hope so.” Rutherford…

By John Sturbin, Raceday San Antonio Roger Penske hires drivers for his INDYCAR team with the unwritten understanding that victory in the Indianapolis 500 is at the very top of the to-do list. Actually, that expectation might be included in the fine print of every Team Penske contract. Josef Newgarden checked that box last May, when he delivered Penske his record-extending 19th victory in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Teammate Will Power won the 2018 Indy 500, thereby avoiding deportation to his native Australia. Rick Mears set the standard via his record-tying four Indy 500 victories, all with Team…