IndyCar: GMR Grand Prix Preview
Last year, Andretti Autosport driver Colton Herta showed why he belongs in F1 by schooling all the other IndyCar drivers in dry, partially wet and full wet conditions to win the rain shortened GMR Grand Prix at IMS, his seventh career INDYCAR victory, and first of the 2022 season.
Leading 50 of 75 laps, Herta beat fellow Honda driver Simon Pagenaud by 3.098s and polesitter Will Power by 4.056s in a race that hit the 2-hour time limit and was shortened by 10 laps.
Marcus Ericsson and Conor Daly rounded out the top-5.
2023
Race weekend: Friday, May 12 – Saturday, May 13
Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course (clockwise)
Race distance: NTT INDYCAR SERIES 85 laps / 207.3 miles | INDY NXT by Firestone: 35 laps/55 minutes
Push-to-pass parameters: NTT INDYCAR SERIES: 200 seconds of total time, with a maximum time of 20 seconds per activation. | INDY NXT by Firestone: 150 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 15 seconds per activation
Firestone tire allotment (NTT INDYCAR SERIES): Six sets primary, four sets alternate. One additional set is available to rookie drivers for use in the Friday practice session.
Entry List
|
CAR |
DRIVER |
HOMETOWN |
CAR NAME |
TEAM |
ENGINE |
|
|
1 |
2 |
Josef Newgarden |
Nashville, Tennessee |
Snap-On Team Penske |
Team Penske |
Chevrolet |
|
2 |
3 |
Scott McLaughlin |
Christchurch, New Zealand |
Odyssey Battery Team Penske |
Team Penske |
Chevrolet |
|
3 |
5 |
Pato O’Ward |
Monterrey, Mexico |
Arrow McLaren |
Arrow McLaren |
Chevrolet |
|
4 |
06 |
Helio Castroneves |
Sao Paulo, Brazil |
AutoNation/SiriusXM |
Meyer Shank Racing |
Honda |
|
5 |
6 |
Felix Rosenqvist |
Värnamo, Sweden |
Arrow McLaren |
Arrow McLaren |
Chevrolet |
|
6 |
7 |
Alexander Rossi |
Nevada City, California |
Arrow McLaren |
Arrow McLaren |
Chevrolet |
|
7 |
8 |
Marcus Ericsson |
Kumla, Sweden |
Huski Chocolate Chip Ganassi Racing |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
Honda |
|
8 |
9 |
Scott Dixon |
Auckland, New Zealand |
PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
Honda |
|
9 |
10 |
Alex Palou |
Barcelona, Spain |
The American Legion |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
Honda |
|
10 |
11 |
Marcus Armstrong (R) |
Christchurch, New Zealand |
Ridgeline Lubricants |
Chip Ganassi Racing |
Honda |
|
11 |
12 |
Will Power |
Toowoomba, Australia |
Verizon Team Penske |
Team Penske |
Chevrolet |
|
12 |
14 |
Santino Ferrucci |
Woodbury, Connecticut |
AJ FOYT RACING / SEXTON PROPERTIES |
A.J. Foyt Enterprises |
Chevrolet |
|
13 |
15 |
Graham Rahal |
New Albany, Ohio |
Fifth Third Bank |
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing |
Honda |
|
14 |
18 |
David Malukas |
Chicago, Illinois |
HMD Trucking |
Dale Coyne Racing with HMD |
Honda |
|
15 |
20 |
Conor Daly |
Noblesville, Indiana |
Bitnile.com |
Ed Carpenter Racing |
Chevrolet |
|
16 |
21 |
Rinus VeeKay |
Hoofddorp, Netherlands |
Bitnile.com |
Ed Carpenter Racing |
Chevrolet |
|
17 |
26 |
Colton Herta |
Valencia, California |
Gainbridge |
Andretti Autosport w/ Curb-Agajanian |
Honda |
|
18 |
27 |
Kyle Kirkwood |
Jupiter, Florida |
AutoNation |
Andretti Autosport |
Honda |
|
19 |
28 |
Romain Grosjean |
Geneva, Switzerland |
DNSFilter / DHL |
Andretti Autosport |
Honda |
|
20 |
29 |
Devlin DeFrancesco |
Toronto, Canada |
Sodexo |
Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport |
Honda |
|
21 |
30 |
Jack Harvey |
Bassingham, England |
Kustom Entertainment |
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing |
Honda |
|
22 |
45 |
Christian Lundgaard |
Hedensted, Denmark |
Hy-Vee |
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing |
Honda |
|
23 |
51 |
Sting Ray Robb (R) |
Payette, Idaho |
biohaven |
Dale Coyne Racing with RWR |
Honda |
|
24 |
55 |
Benjamin Pedersen (R) |
Copenhagen, Denmark |
AJ FOYT RACING / SEXTON PROPERTIES |
A.J. Foyt Enterprises |
Chevrolet |
|
25 |
60 |
Simon Pagenaud |
Montmorillon, France |
AutoNation/SiriusXM |
Meyer Shank Racing |
Honda |
|
26 |
77 |
Callum Ilott |
Cambridge, England |
Juncos Hollinger Racing |
Juncos Hollinger Racing |
Chevrolet |
|
27 |
78 |
Agustín Canapino (R) |
Arrecifes, Argentina |
Juncos Hollinger Racing |
Juncos Hollinger Racing |
Chevrolet |
Twitter: @IMS @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT, #ThisIsMay, #INDYCAR
Instagram: @indianapolismotorspeedway, @indycar, @indynxt, #ThisIsMay, #INDYCAR
Facebook: @IndianapolisMotorSpeedway, @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT, #ThisIsMay, #INDYCAR
TikTok: @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT, #INDYCAR
YouTube: @INDYCAR, @INDYNXT
Event website: www.ims.com
NTT INDYCAR SERIES website: www.indycar.com | INDY NXT by Firestone website:www.indynxt.com
2022 race winners:
NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Colton Herta (No. 26 Gainbridge Honda)
INDY NXT by Firestone
Danial Frost (No. 68 HMD Motorsports), Linus Lundqvist (No. 26 HMD Motorsports)
2022 NTT P1 Award winner (NTT INDYCAR SERIES): Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet), 1 minute, 9.7664 seconds, 125.854 mph
2022 INDY NXT by Firestone pole winners: Linus Lundqvist (No. 26 HMD Motorsports) 1:16.3362, 115.023 mph (race one), Lundqvist 1:16.4266, 114.887 (race two)
Qualifying records:
NTT INDYCAR SERIES
Will Power, 1:07.7044, 129.687 mph, May 12, 2017 (Set in Round 3 of knockout qualifying)
INDY NXT by Firestone
Ed Jones, 1:14.6743, 117.583 mph, May 13, 2016
NBC Sports race telecast: 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday, May 13, NBC (live). Leigh Diffey is the play-by-play announcer for NBC’s coverage of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe.
Peacock live streaming: All NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice sessions and qualifying will stream live on Peacock, NBC’s direct-to-consumer livestreaming product. NBC’s GMR Grand Prix race telecast will be simulcast on the streaming service. The INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix will be streamed live on Peacock with practice and qualifying shown on INDYCAR LIVE.
INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the anchor alongside driver analyst Davey Hamilton. Jake Query, Nick Yeoman and Michael Young are the turn announcers. Ryan Myrehn and Rob Blackman are the pit reporters. The GMR Grand Prix race (3 p.m. ET), INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix (12:55 p.m. ET Saturday) and all NTT INDYCAR SERIES and INDY NXT by Firestone practices and qualifying sessions air live on network affiliates, SiriusXM 160, racecontrol.indycar.com and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA.
At-track schedule (all times local):
FRIDAY, MAY 12 (All times are local)
9:30-10:45 a.m. NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice (75 minutes), Peacock
11-11:50 a.m. INDY NXT by Firestone practice, INDYCAR LIVE
1-2 p.m. NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice (45 minutes), Peacock
2:20-2:40 p.m. INDY NXT by Firestone qualifying, INDYCAR LIVE
4 p.m. Qualifying for the NTT P1 Award (three rounds of NTT INDYCAR SERIES knockout qualifications), Peacock
SATURDAY, MAY 13
11:15-11:45 a.m. NTT INDYCAR SERIES warmup, Peacock
1:05 p.m. INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix “Drivers, start your engines”
1:10 p.m. INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix (35 laps/55 minutes), Peacock
3:30 p.m. NBC on air
3:39 p.m. “Drivers, start your engines”
3:45 p.m. GMR Grand Prix (85 laps/207.3 miles), NBC (Live)
NTT INDYCAR SERIES Notes:
- Scott McLaughlin became the fourth winner in as many NTT INDYCAR SERIES races this season as he outdueled Romain Grosjean to win the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix on April 30 at Barber Motorsports Park. 2022 Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Marcus Ericsson leads Pato O’Ward by three points heading into the critical Month of May, which has more than 100 points on offer over the next four three with races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.
- The GMR Grand Prix will be the 14th INDYCAR SERIES event conducted on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s road course. Active race winners who are expected to compete are Alexander Rossi, Colton Herta, Rinus VeeKay, Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden, Simon Pagenaud and Will Power.
| ACTIVE RACE WINNER | WINS | SEASONS |
| Will Power | 5 | 2015, 2017, 2018 (GMR Grand Prix); 2020 (Harvest Grand Prix-2); 2021 (Gallagher Grand Prix) |
| Simon Pagenaud | 3 | 2014, 2016, 2019 (GMR Grand Prix) |
| Scott Dixon | 1 | 2020 (GMR Grand Prix) |
| Josef Newgarden | 1 | 2020 (Harvest Grand Prix-1) |
| Rinus VeeKay | 1 | 2021 (GMR Grand Prix) |
| Colton Herta | 1 | 2022 (GMR Grand Prix) |
| Alexander Rossi | 1 | 2022 (Gallagher Grand Prix) |
- Four NTT P1 Award winners have won the GMR Grand Prix from the pole: Will Power in 2015, 2017 and 2018 and Simon Pagenaud in 2016. Power also won the second Harvest GP race from the pole in 2020.
| ACTIVE POLE WINNER | POLES | SEASONS |
| Will Power | 6 | 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020 (GMR Grand Prix and Harvest Grand Prix-2) 2022 (GMR Grand Prix) |
| Felix Rosenqvist | 2 | 2019, 2022 (Gallagher Grand Prix) |
| Pato O’Ward | 1 | 2021 (Gallagher Grand Prix) |
| Romain Grosjean | 1 | 2021 (GMR Grand Prix) |
| Rinus VeeKay | 1 | 2020 (Harvest Grand Prix-1) |
| Simon Pagenaud | 1 | 2016 |
| Sebastian Saavedra | 1 | 2014 |
- Six drivers have competed in every INDYCAR SERIES race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course – Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden, Simon Pagenaud, Will Power, Graham Rahal and Takuma Sato. All but Sato are entered this year.
- Marcus Ericsson, Josef Newgarden or Kyle Kirkwood can solidify their chance at the PeopleReady Force For Good Challenge’s $1 million prize by winning at Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. Ericsson (Streets of St. Petersburg) and Kirkwood (Streets of Long Beach) have won on street circuits while Newgarden has a win on an oval (Texas Motor Speedway). A win on a road course would make one of them one step closer to earning a $500,000 bonus and a matching $500,000 donation for a chosen charity. Scott McLaughlin is also eligible for the bonus but already has a road course win at Barber Motorsports Park.
- Team Penske has eight wins on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020-Race 2, 2020-Race 3, 2021-Race 2). Andretti Autosport swept the races in 2022 while Ed Carpenter Racing, Chip Ganassi Racing and Arrow McLaren are the only other teams to win at the track. Ed Carpenter Racing won in 2021-Race 1 with Rinus VeeKay. Chip Ganassi Racing won with Scott Dixon in 2020-Race 1, and Arrow McLaren won the inaugural race in 2014 with Simon Pagenaud when it was known as Schmidt Peterson Motorsports.
- Four NTT INDYCAR SERIES Rookie of the Year contenders – Marcus Armstrong, Agustin Canapino, Benjamin Pedersen and Sting Ray Robb – are entered. All will race an NTT INDYCAR SERIES car at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the first time.
- Twenty-three of the drivers entered in the event have competed in INDYCAR SERIES races on the IMS road course. Fifteen entered drivers have led laps in the GMR Grand Prix: Will Power 210, Scott Dixon 69, Simon Pagenaud 68, Colton Herta 50, Romain Grosjean 44, Graham Rahal 36, Rinus VeeKay 33, Josef Newgarden 25, Felix Rosenqvist 19, Pato O’Ward 5, Alexander Rossi 2, Marcus Ericsson 11, Scott McLaughlin 5, Jack Harvey 1 and Alex Palou 1.
- Milestones: Scott Dixon will attempt to make his 310th consecutive start, the second-longest streak in INDYCAR SERIES history….Dixon will also attempt to make his 350th start with Chip Ganassi Racing.
Select Quotes
Colton Herta
“Last year’s GMR Grand Prix brought many challenges with the changing weather conditions. It was the hardest race I have ever done, but we were able to work through the difficult track conditions and take home a GMR Grand Prix victory. It’s a very big strategy race with the different lap times between the two tire compounds. I’m looking forward to coming back to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to kick off the Month of May in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda.”
Kyle Kirkwood
“Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a place that us drivers live for. I’m very excited to start the month of May at the GMR Grand Prix. The Andretti Autosport team tends to thrive at the GMR Grand Prix and the event itself always produces fantastic racing. It will be great to be back home in Indiana in the No. 27 AutoNation Honda!”
Romain Grosjean
“The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an extraordinary place. Its got a unique feeling when you get there, and I’ve always loved driving that track. The GMR Grand Prix has been very kind to me in the past and we have a good bit of momentum heading into this weekend after Barber, so I’m hopeful we can get our first win of the season in the No. 28 DNSFilter / DHL Honda.”
Devlin DeFrancesco
“The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is an extraordinary place. Its got a unique feeling when you get there, and I’ve always loved driving that track. The GMR Grand Prix has been very kind to me in the past and we have a good bit of momentum heading into this weekend after Barber, so I’m hopeful we can get our first win of the season in the No. 28 DNSFilter / DHL Honda.”
Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:
“Last year, the Indy GP was one of the craziest races that we’ve had in a couple years. I’m looking forward to starting the Month of May and trying to finish better here than we did last year.”
Felix Rosenqvist, No. 6 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:
”It’s good to be back at the GP. It’s probably one of my best qualifying tracks with two poles here, including one last year. I think the race has been a bit more difficult for us historically, especially when it’s warm. We race twice here every year, so it’s important for us to get all the data we can for when we come back later in the summer. I’m ready for the Month of May to get going.”
Gavin Ward, Race Director at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:
“For as often as we get to race at the Indy GP, it’s always surprising how different the track behaves each time we race here. And with mixed weather in the forecast, I’m sure we’ll get something different again. The team’s focus is unchanged; we’re happy to go racing again and we take each race as a chance for us to grow and get better as a team. If we keep that mindset, the results will take care of themselves in time.”
Conor Daly, No. 20 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:
“The GMR Grand Prix is one of my favorite events! The IMS Road Course has been a successful place for me in the past, both in qualifying and the race. Just need to get on the podium now! We hope that we have the same speed we had last year, if anything be faster! We will all work together and get a good result. We need the season to turn around now, it has been really difficult to handle so far. Hopefully, all smiles and happiness this month and starting off strong at the Indy GP always helps!”
Santino Ferrucci
“I’m looking forward to this weekend. I like the IMS road course because I feel it fits my driving style pretty well. The track is very flowey, very fast. It’s always been an enjoyable race for me, an enjoyable time to be inside IMS. So hoping that we can bring that spirit this weekend and carry on with our development of the Sexton Properties Chevy.”
Benjamin Pedersen
“Very excited for this weekend for the GMR Grand Prix. I’ve raced here in the past in INDY NXT, but obviously, not here in INDYCAR, so really looking forward to that. Have had really good success here in INDY NXT. There’s a chance of rain. Feeling very optimistic, and really looking forward to this weekend in the Sexton Properties Chevrolet.”
INDY NXT by Firestone Notes:
- INDY NXT by Firestone will conduct the first of two race events at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2023 with a 35-lap race on Saturday, May 13. Denmark’s Christian Rasmussen took the series points lead with his win April 30 at Barber Motorsports Park.
- The field for the INDY NXT Grand Prix will be the largest INDY NXT by Firestone field at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course since 25 cars started the Liberty Challenge in 2007. Danial Frost is the only driver in the current field who has won an INDY NXT by Firestone race at IMS. Four other drivers – Rasmus Lindh, Christian Rasmussen, Reece Gold and Louis Foster – have visited victory lane in ladder series.
- The 2023 season features a deep and talented field with INDY NXT race winners such as Frost, Hunter McElrea and Rasmussen joining a promising rookie class that includes Jamie Chadwick (three-time W Series champ), Foster (USF Pro 2000 champ), Jagger Jones (USF2000 Rookie of the Year) and rising stars Nolan Siegel and Gold (USF Pro 2000). Other contenders include returning drivers Jacob Abel, Kyffin Simpson and Ernie Francis Jr.
A new qualifying format will place a premium on banking a quick lap around the 2.439-mile road course. Teams will have a single 20-minute session with a limited guarantee of eight minutes of green flag running, depending on whichever comes first. If an entry does not set a time, their order will be based on entrant points.