Race Weekend Central

Romain Grosjean Charges to 3rd at Laguna Seca

Romain Grosjean in the Corkscrew at Laguna Seca in 2021

(Photo by Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR)

Romain Grosjean‘s strategy nearly gave the Frenchman his first NTT IndyCar Series win, but the former Formula 1 driver would have to settle for third place in Sunday’s (September 19th) Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at Laguna Seca. Starting 13th, Grosjean got to 12th place at the Andretti Hairpin after passing Graham Rahal and then …

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Reconstructing the IndyCar Portland Start Calamity

Felix Rosenqvist, Scott Dixon and Alex Palou in front of the major calamity at Portland

(Photo: Matt Fraver/INDYCAR)

Sunday’s (Sept. 12th) Grand Prix of Portland started the way the last two NTT IndyCar Series races have started at Portland International Raceway: with an incident in the Festival Chicane. With numerous cars having damage from all of the incidents and others scattering all over the place, it’s worth looking at the sequence of events …

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A Deeper Dive Into Romain Grosjean’s Oval Debut

Romain Grosjean at Gateway Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR

(Photo by Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR Media)

Romain Grosjean’s goal of completing all 260 laps came up one lap short at the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at WWT Raceway at Gateway, but the NTT IndyCar Series rookie looked like a series veteran en route to a 14th place finish. Looking a little deeper, that result shouldn’t be surprising. The Formula 1 veteran …

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Frontstretch 5: IndyCar Drivers Who Could Make NASCAR Debut

James Hinchcliffe with sunglasses, smiling

(Photo: Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR Media)

For several decades, the relationship between NASCAR and the NTT Data IndyCar Series has been a mutualistic one for both fans and drivers alike. Even though the two series feature different cars, different race setups and different championship formats, the one thing that hasn’t changed is the occurrence of drivers exchanging starts in both series. …

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2021 IndyCar Summer Break Update: The Improvers

Conor Daly and Max Chilton at Carb Day in 2021

(Photo by Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR)

Sometimes preseason predictions can be a bit off for the NTT IndyCar Series, and in 2021 that was certainly the case with a couple of our Improvers. For example, an excerpt from the preseason preview about Alex Palou: “Expect Palou to get a couple of podiums in 2021 if the 2020 season was just a …

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Techbench Tuesday: IndyCar on the Streets of Nashville

Romain Grosjean speaking with engineer Olivier Boisson

(Photo by Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR)

When the NTT IndyCar Series visits a new track for the first time, teams are usually able to test at the track in order to help their race engineers gather data to create a setup for the race weekend. However, when that venue is a street circuit, then it’s not exactly an easy proposition to …

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Patricio O’Ward Wins in Detroit, Becoming 2021’s 1st Repeat Winner

Patricio O'Ward

(Photo: Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR Media)

Patricio O’Ward is now a two-time IndyCar Series winner after taking the checkered flag in the second of this weekend’s two races at the Raceway at Belle Isle in Detroit Sunday (June 13). Polesitter Josef Newgarden finished second, while Alex Palou took the final podium position. O’Ward shoved his way by Newgarden, who had led …

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What Mattered at the IndyCar GMR Grand Prix

Rinua VeeKay, Romain Grosjean and Alex Palou celebrate their podium finishes at Indianapolis

(Photo by Joe Skibinski/INDYCAR)

So much for respecting your elders, right? Don’t mention that in the 2021 NTT IndyCar Series. In five IndyCar races this year, two were won by 20-year-olds (Rinus VeeKay and Pato O’Ward), one by a 21-year-old (Colton Herta, who is now 22), one by a 24-year-old (Alex Palou) and Scott Dixon, who is 40. Dixon’s …

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5 Points to Ponder: The Road Ahead

Chase Elliott practices at COTA

March 2, 2021: Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex Jr at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, TX. ( +CMS-HHP-Harold Hinson)

1. The “Road” Ahead For the second half of the 2021 regular season, the Cup Series regulars face an eclectic mix of tracks, including a doubleheader at Pocono Raceway (the only two-fer of this year), a brand new circuit in Nashville, and, count ’em, five road courses. Of the quintet, three road courses are new …

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Romain Grosjean Dominates, But Rinus VeeKay Triumphs at Indianapolis

Rinus VeeKay celebrates his first IndyCar win

(Photo by Chris Jones/INDYCAR)

Rinus VeeKay scored his first IndyCar Series win in Saturday’s GMR Grand Prix, after overtaking Romain Grosjean via an undercut strategy. VeeKay became the series’ third first time winner in 2021, joining Alex Palou and Pato O’Ward. While Grosjean led from pole and maintained control over the majority of the race, pit strategy ultimately put …

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What Mattered Friday at the GMR Grand Prix

Friday Practice at the GMR Grand Prix

(Photo by Walter Kuhn/INDYCAR)

In his third NTT IndyCar Series race weekend, Romain Grosjean proved that there could indeed be redemption for the Frenchman. The No. 51 Dale Coyne Racing with Rick Ware Racing Honda will start Saturday’s (May 15) race from pole position ahead of Josef Newgarden’s No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet in a Firestone Fast Six made …

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Slipstream Saturday: Calendar Changes and Aerodynamic Controversy

2020 Belgian GP Formula 1

(Photo: ©Rolex/James Moy)

Millions of people have been vaccinated and businesses are reopening their doors, but the coronavirus still looms large, challenging Formula 1’s organizers as they plot a 23-race calendar for the globetrotting series. Just two weeks ago, the Canadian Grand Prix had to be cancelled for the second year in a row, with the event replaced …

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