IndyCar: Gallagher GP at Indy Preview

As in previous years, the IndyCar Series returns to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the third time this year for this weekend’s Gallagher GP.

The headline act for this weekend is of course the NASCAR Cup race on Sunday – the Verizon 200.

This weekend also marks the third year of the late July/early August tripleheader at IMS, with NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series action taking place Friday through Sunday. The Xfinity Series and IndyCar act as the support races on Saturday.

The two leading contenders for the season championship – Chip Ganassi Racing’s Alex Palou and Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden – were the winners of the May races at IMS.

Twenty-seven car-and-driver combinations are set for the Gallagher Grand Prix, which opens for practice Friday at 9 a.m. ET. Saturday’s 85-lap race airs at 2 p.m. on USA Network, Peacock and the INDYCAR Radio Network. NTT P1 Award qualifying is set for 12:30 p.m. Friday.

Palou won the GMR Grand Prix by 16.8 seconds, the first of his four series wins this season. He led a race-high 52 laps with three Arrow McLaren Racing drivers – Pato O’Ward, Alexander Rossi and Felix Rosenqvist – earning positions in the top five. Pole winner Christian Lundgaard of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing finished fourth, his second consecutive top-five finish. Eight drivers led the race that experienced just one caution period.

This will be the NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ 15th race on the IMS road course dating to 2014. Team Penske has won eight times, with reigning series champion Will Power capturing five wins and six poles. Simon Pagenaud (2016, 2019) and Newgarden (2020) are the other winners for Roger Penske, who has owned IMS since Jan. 6, 2020.

Newgarden returns to IMS for the first time since winning the 107th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on May 28. He is hoping to erase Palou’s 84-point series lead to win his third season championship, but only four races remain. Palou is aiming for his second series title in the past three years.

Power and Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon will be trying to extend two of the longest streaks in INDYCAR SERIES history. Dixon has won at least one race in 18 consecutive seasons – 20 overall – while Power’s run of seasons stands at 16. Neither has won a race this season. While Power has won five IMS road races, Dixon has won once, in the inaugural INDYCAR-NASCAR doubleheader in 2020.

Also, Dixon will break the series’ ironman record when he starts Saturday’s race. The six-time series champion is tied with Tony Kanaan with 318 consecutive series starts.

A year ago……

Andretti Autosport’s Alexander Rossi took the checkered flag for the 2022 Gallagher GP at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, after being winless for 49 races.  The last time he won was back in 2019.

Rossi, who started second, took the lead for good on Lap 42 when leader and teammate Colton Herta lost drive after navigating Turn 8 on the 11-turn, 2.439-mile road course in the No. 26 Gainbridge Honda. Herta was able to coast to the entry of the pit lane, but his race was over. He was credited with 24th place.

Rossi dominated the second half of today’s race, as the Andretti Autosport driver headed a 1-2 finish for Honda and completed a sweep of NTT INDYCAR SERIES races at the famed “Brickyard” in 2022.  Rossi led a race-high 44 laps in the 85-lap contest to record his first win of 2022, and his eighth career victory.

A Lap Around the Indianapolis Road Course

Built in 2000 to host Formula 1’s United States Grand Prix, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course measures just under 2.5 miles long. In addition to Formula 1, the road course has hosted MotoGP, IMSA, autonomous racing, and various other series over the years.

Fast Facts

Race weekend: Friday, Aug. 11-Saturday, Aug. 12

Track: Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course (clockwise)

Race distance: NTT INDYCAR SERIES 85 laps / 207.3 miles | INDYNXT by Firestone 35 laps / 85.365 miles / 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: Five sets primary, four sets alternate to be used during the event weekend. Teams fielding a rookie driver may use one additional set of primary tires. Teams must use one set of primary and one set of new (sticker) alternate tires for at least two laps in the race. INDY NXT by Firestone: Two new sets to be used during the one-day

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	Ryan Hunter-Reay	Ft. Lauderdale, FL	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	Linus Lindqvist	Stockholm, Sweden	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

 

X (formerly known as Twitter): @IMS, @IndyCar, #GallagherGP, #INDYCAR

Instagram: @indianapolismotorspeedway, @INDYCAR, #GallagherGP, #INDYCAR

Threads: @indianapolismotorspeedway, @INDYCAR, #GallagherGP, #INDYCAR

Facebook: @indianapolismotorspeedway, @INDYCAR, #INDYCAR

TikTok: @indianapolismotorspeedwy, @INDYCAR, #INDYCAR

YouTube: @IMS, @INDYCAR

Event website: www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/

INDYCAR website: www.IndyCar.com

2022 race winners:

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

Alexander Rossi (No. 27 NAPA AUTO PARTS/AutoNation Honda)

INDY NXT by Firestone (Race in May 2022)

Linus Lundqvist (No. 26 HMD Motorsports)

2022 NTT P1 Award winner (NTT INDYCAR SERIES): Felix Rosenqvist (No. 7 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet), 1 minute, 10.2265 seconds, 125.030 mph

2022 INDY NXT by Firestone pole winner: Linus Lundqvist (No. 26 HMD Motorsports) 1:16.4266, 114.887 mph.

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

Linus Lundqvist, 1:11:5149, 115.780 mph, April 16, 2021

USA Network race telecast: Gallagher Grand Prix, 2 p.m. ET Saturday, Aug. 12, USA Network (live). Leigh Diffey is the play-by-play announcer for USA’s coverage of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Kevin Lee and Dillon Welch are the pit reporters.

Peacock Live Streaming: All NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice sessions and qualifying will stream live on Peacock, NBC’s direct-to-consumer livestreaming product, while the USA Network’s race telecast of the Gallagher Grand Prix will be simulcast on the streaming service. The INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix will be streamed on Peacock, with practice and qualifying being shown on INDYCAR LIVE.

INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the anchor alongside analyst Davey Hamilton. Jake Query, Nick Yeoman and Michael Young are the turn announcers. Ryan Myrehn, Brad Gillie and Brett McMillian are the pit reporters. The Gallagher Grand Prix race (2 p.m. ET Saturday), the INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix (4:45 p.m. ET Friday) 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, AUG. 11

9-10:30 a.m.: NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice (75 minutes), Peacock

11-11:50 a.m.: INDY NXT by Firestone practice, INDYCAR LIVE

12:30 p.m.: Qualifying for the NTT P1 Award (three rounds of NTT INDYCAR SERIES knockout qualifications), Peacock

2:20-2:40 p.m.: INDY NXT by Firestone qualifying, INDYCAR LIVE

4-4:30 p.m.: NTT INDYCAR SERIES final practice (30 minutes), Peacock

4:55 p.m.: INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix “Drivers, start your engines”

5 p.m.: INDY NXT by Firestone Grand Prix (35 laps/55 minutes), Peacock

SATURDAY, AUG. 12

2 p.m.: USA Network on air

2:23 p.m.: “Drivers, start your engines”

2:30 p.m.: Gallagher Grand Prix (85 laps/207.3 miles), USA Network (Live)

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Championship facts:

· Alex Palou leads the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship with four races to go for the second time in his INDYCAR SERIES career. Palou also led the championship with four races to go in 2021 when he won the title. Palou has led the point standings after nine of the 13 races this season.

· There are eight drivers still mathematically eligible for the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship: Alex Palou, Josef Newgarden, Scott Dixon, Marcus Ericsson, Scott McLaughlin, Pato O’Ward, Will Power and Christian Lundgaard. Any driver who trails the points leader by 162 points or more following the race will be eliminated from contention.

· Since the first INDYCAR SERIES race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s road course, the winning driver has won the INDYCAR SERIES championship twice: Simon Pagenaud in 2016 and Scott Dixon in 2020-Race 1.

· Since 2008 when INDYCAR SERIES racing unified under the NTT INDYCAR SERIES banner, the eventual series champion has won the 14th race of the season four times. The most recent occurrence was in 2021 when Alex Palou won at Portland. Other drivers to win the 14th race of their championship season were Ryan Hunter-Reay (2012), Dario Franchitti (2009 and 2010) and Scott Dixon (2008).

Key championship point statistic: Since 2008, the largest deficit overcome by the eventual champion was 59 points by Dario Franchitti in 2010. Scott Dixon overcame Juan Pablo Montoya’s 54-point lead in 2015. The top two drivers in the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship standings are separated by 84 points.

Point differential: The 84 points that separate Alex Palou and Josef Newgarden is the largest point margin with four races to go since 2008. Before this season, the average lead with four races to go since 2008 was 35.7 points.

CHAMPIONSHIP WITH 4 TO GO

YEAR	LEADER	SECOND	LEAD	CHAMPION
2008	Scott Dixon	Helio Castroneves	65	Scott Dixon
2009	Scott Dixon	Ryan Briscoe	3	Dario Franchitti (-20)
2010	Will Power	Dario Franchitti	59	Dario Franchitti
2011	Dario Franchitti	Will Power	47	Dario Franchitti
2012	Ryan Hunter-Reay	Helio Castroneves	23	Ryan Hunter-Reay
2013	Helio Castroneves	Scott Dixon	39	Scott Dixon
2014	Helio Castroneves	Will Power	13	Will Power
2015	Juan Pablo Montoya	Scott Dixon	54	Scott Dixon
2016	Simon Pagenaud	Will Power	58	Simon Pagenaud
2017	Josef Newgarden	Helio Castroneves	7	Josef Newgarden
2018	Scott Dixon	Alexander Rossi	46	Scott Dixon
2019	Josef Newgarden	Alexander Rossi	16	Josef Newgarden
2020	Scott Dixon	Josef Newgarden	76	Scott Dixon
2021	Alex Palou	Pato O’Ward	21	Alex Palou
2022	Will Power	Marcus Ericsson	9	Will Power
2023	Alex Palou	Josef Newgarden	84	?

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Notes:

• The Gallagher Grand Prix will be the 15th INDYCAR SERIES event conducted on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. Active race winners expected to compete are Alex Palou, Alexander Rossi, Colton Herta, Rinus VeeKay, Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden 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)
Scott Dixon	1	2020 (GMR Grand Prix)
Colton Herta	1	2022 (GMR Grand Prix)
Josef Newgarden	1	2020 (Harvest Grand Prix-1)
Alex Palou	1	2023 (GMR Grand Prix)
Alexander Rossi	1	2022 (Gallagher Grand Prix)
Rinus VeeKay	1	2021 (GMR Grand Prix)

• Five NTT P1 Award winners have won on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course from the pole: Will Power won the 2015, 2017 and 2018 GMR Grand Prix and the second Harvest GP race in 2020 from the pole. Simon Pagenaud also won the GMR Grand Prix from the pole in 2016.

ACTIVE POLE WINNER	POLES	SEASONS
Will Power	5	2015, 2017, 2018, 2020 (GMR Grand Prix and Harvest Grand Prix-2)
Felix Rosenqvist	2	2019, 2022 (Gallagher Grand Prix)
Christian Lundgaard	1	2023 (GMR 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)
Felix Rosenqvist	2	2019, 2022 (Gallagher Grand Prix)

• Five drivers have competed in every INDYCAR SERIES race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course – Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden, Simon Pagenaud, Will Power, and Graham Rahal. All but Pagenaud are entered this weekend.
• 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). Chip Ganassi has two wins – with Scott Dixon in 2020-Race 1 and Alex Palou in 2023-Race 1. Andretti Autosport, Ed Carpenter Racing and Arrow McLaren SP are the only other teams to win at the track. Andretti Autosport won the GMR Grand Prix with Colton Herta in May, while Ed Carpenter Racing won in 2021-Race 1 with Rinus VeeKay and Arrow McLaren SP won the inaugural race in 2014 with Simon Pagenaud when it was known as Schmidt Peterson Motorsports.
• Five NTT INDYCAR SERIES Rookie of the Year contenders are entered – Marcus Armstrong, Agustin Canapino, Linus Lundqvist, Benjamin Pedersen and Sting Ray Robb. All but Lundqvist raced in the GMR Grand Prix in May.
• Milestones: Scott Dixon will attempt to make his 319th consecutive start, which would break a tie with Tony Kanaan for the INDYCAR SERIES record streak … With his next win, Dixon will extend his INDYCAR SERIES record for consecutive seasons with at least one win to 19 … With his next win, WillPower will tie Michael Andretti for fourth on the INDYCAR SERIES all-time victory list.

INDY NXT by Firestone Notes:

• HMD Motorsports’ Christian Rasmussen returns to Indianapolis looking to solidify his grip on the INDY NXT by Firestone championship. The 23-year-old Danish driver earned his third victory in 2023 by winning Aug. 6 on the streets of Nashville. Rasmussen leads rookie teammate Nolan Siegel by 45 points, with Hunter McElrea of Andretti Autosport 59 points behind the leader.
• Push-to-pass could play a key strategic role at Indianapolis as INDY NXT by Firestone drivers will have a bank of 150 seconds to use an added 50 horsepower to assist in overtaking, similar to the drivers in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. The maximum amount of time for each press of the overtake system is 15 seconds.

Matteo Nannini, Reece Gold, Nolan Siegel and Louis Foster became first-time winners earlier this season. Will another talented prospect like Jacob Abel, James Roe, Kyffin Simpson or Ernie Francis Jr. score a first INDY NXT win in 2023 in Indianapolis?