An interview with: MARCO ANDRETTI

Marco Andretti

THE MODERATOR: We’re pleased to be joined by Marco Andretti from Andretti Autosport. Marco has been gracious enough to join us after a snafu at the media dinner last night that didn't come off as scheduled. He's agreed to give us a few minutes to bring us up to speed, so to speak, as to what he's looking forward to this weekend.

Marco, your home track, great family history here. Your grandfather won here, your dad placed third here, all three generations of Andrettis have sat on the pole. Does this race bring a little extra excitement for you going into this race weekend?

MARCO ANDRETTI: Yeah, it always does. Selfishly because I can stay in my own bed, that's nice.

But honestly, I was saying this earlier, if this track was anywhere in the world, I would love to race here. I honestly think it's made for these race cars. It's such a challenge, it's so fun, presents good racing. Obviously it's tough to find a balance – I'm sure everybody has been saying this – between (Turns) 1 and 3, but that's definitely what makes it fun.

THE MODERATOR: Talking about the racetrack, a nuance this year is the aero kits. We’ve never run them here before. You were able to do some testing last week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Anything you can translate from what you did there to this weekend?

MARCO ANDRETTI: Not really. I mean, a couple little things that the engineers were able to try. But really last week was just for Firestone. We were just testing some tires for next year, for the hundredth running of the Indy 500.

It's always just fun to be in the car. You're always learning. Even if it's nothing that I can say right now, you're definitely always subconsciously learning. Seat time is always good.

THE MODERATOR: We'll open it up for questions now.

Q: Marco, I want you to talk about the last few races here. 2013 you ran the Chevy, last year you ran the Honda. Did you notice any difference between the two manufacturers that you've run here? Is the fuel mileage any different between the two years you've run here?

MARCO ANDRETTI: Quite honestly, I think Honda definitely had the better fuel mileage in '13. But that was with the single turbo. As soon as they went to the double, I think Chevy definitely caught up in that respect.

But '13 was too good to be true for a while, then we got a little mixed up with strategy. I don't remember exactly the scenario. We led a ton of laps (88). The car was so good.

Then last year was my fault. I had a pit-lane violation. Even with one short yellow we were able to keep it in the top 10, or come back to the top 10. We had a decent car.

You know, this is definitely one race that counts, especially this year. If I have any hope for the title, it's a must win for me. Even with a win, I need some misfortunes of a few other drivers. But we have to win this one for sure.

Q: Marco, can you explain how big this weekend is being so close to home, some of the advantages maybe, some disadvantages because there's more access to people that you normally wouldn't see traveling around the country?

[adinserter name="GOOGLE AD"]MARCO ANDRETTI: It's not really a disadvantage or an advantage, to be honest. The convenience of it is nice. I'm definitely choppering in on Sunday because of the traffic here. But tomorrow I'll be able to drive. It's really like 27 miles away, my house. It's definitely an easy trip.

Q: You talked about this a hundred times, driving for your father, his team. As you know, Bobby Rahal backed away from his team this year and Graham has really come on. Not suggesting Michael should back away, but what's it like driving for your father?

MARCO ANDRETTI: I don't really know anything otherwise. Graham was able to dance around with a couple different teams. We've just been making this deal work.

Quite honestly, it's been really good. I wouldn't change really anything on the 27 stand. Dad is extremely good at calling races. I don't know the Rahal dynamic, maybe they were fighting on the radio or something, but Dad and I, we've been getting along great.

There's been some breaks in that camp along the way. I mean, I think we've been stronger. A couple races that we didn't end up stronger at the end of the day. We let a few go, but I'm really happy with the 27 team in general across the board.

Q: Regarding the aero kits, is there some places which you can compare to other ovals in the calendar, how the car will behave with the aero package?

MARCO ANDRETTI: I think it's unknown because of how unique this place is. We're pretty similar to Indianapolis, I guess you could say, with just the configuration of the car, except for the rear wing, I believe.

I don't know. Every track we've gone to this year has seemed to present a unique challenge. It's different all the time. You can't just roll off with previous setups and be successful. We've been really working at it, just trying to stay with it.

All I can say is hopefully, like Fontana, we rolled off close for whatever reason, so hopefully we roll off close tomorrow.

Q: You've driven a lot of different cars in your career. Can you describe the uniqueness of driving the Formula E car that you did a bit ago?

MARCO ANDRETTI: It's definitely unique. The thing that stands out is just the sound. The drivers really feed off the sound. I didn't realize how much we do until there was none from the engine.

I needed more seat time. A lot of it is guessing where the rear slip is because you can't hear that, guessing where the gears are. It's a very, very heavy car because of the battery, I suppose. There's not a lot of grip, not a lot of power right now.

I'm not the hugest fan of driving it, but I think it's a great starting point. I'm sure they have a lot of development to go yet.

Q: You tested a Formula One car back in 2006 or 2007. What was the experience like of being behind the wheel of such a fast race car?

MARCO ANDRETTI: The biggest difference for me was the braking, how quick the car stopped. I mean, seven gears from the straightaway to a hairpin, you barely have time to downshift. As quick as you can click the paddle, the car stops from almost 200 miles an hour. That definitely took its toll on my neck.

Here, the brakes are good, but the cars are heavier. Those (Formula One cars) are definitely more agile and have a lot more grip. I ran a day in the wet, I think. The grip in the wet that those cars have was just so much fun. I actually had to train my brain that the thing would stick because of the amount of speed it lets you carry. It was so much fun.

But my heart right now lies over here. Those cars are definitely fun, but this is what I've grown up doing. Next year is my 11th year in the series. Really looking to capitalize on maybe some misfortune.

Q: You're seventh in the championship right now. You need a lot of things to happen right for you. Does that mean taking some risks, going off strategy to put yourself in a better position?

MARCO ANDRETTI: Honestly, our mentality is this is a must win for us. Maybe some of the guys at the front, they’re going to be conservative, just keep yourself in that position. Whereas me, I have a little bit less to lose.

I just have to worry about me and try to maximize what we can do, and the rest will hopefully take care of itself.

Q: Marco, back to Fontana for a minute. You were running third there, pitted late. What was your mindset there when the yellow came out?

MARCO ANDRETTI: I feel like we could have won that race a few different ways. I'm sure a lot of people were thinking the same thing. It was just a circumstantial deal. Not taking anything away from Graham (Rahal), but it would have been nice because I had the new tires to at least have a half more lap.

The other thing I think I could have done was gone high. I should have known that Graham was going to slice down to the bottom there. I think maybe if I went high, I would have been ahead of them when the yellow came out.

I don't know. That one, I didn't sleep good that night, for sure.

Q: Also, Sage Karam was right behind you there. What have you seen out of him here in the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season?

MARCO ANDRETTI: He's no holds barred, that's for sure. If he was sitting right here, I'd say he doesn't care about making friends, either. Some of that is just being a rookie. He'll realize he's going to need some friends at some point. I think he's a tremendous talent, for sure.

Q: Speaking of Sage, there seems to be a correlation that the American drivers, Rahal doing well, Sage coming on the scene, all these different guys, do you think that has contributed to a boost in ratings? Seems like there's a little bit more interest across the country.

MARCO ANDRETTI: All I can say is I hope so. I'm not a professional when it comes to that type of stuff. Yeah, I think it's a good thing, for sure.

Q: Marco, you said earlier that next year will be your 11th season in IndyCar. If the offer came at the right time to go to Formula One, you would accept it?

MARCO ANDRETTI: It depends on a lot of the logistics, for sure. I mean, Formula One is still the cream of the crop to me.

Having said that, it would be tough to leave because I feel like I'm just coming into my own as a driver. I think it took a little too long, but I feel I'm in a good place. I feel like we can compete anywhere we roll off. That's a good feeling.

Formula One would be like starting over. The expectations wouldn't be high maybe with that team. If you can go beat your teammate over there, that's what people look at. Yeah, I would definitely take a strong look at it.

[adinserter name="GOOGLE AD"]Q: Being seventh in the standings, you're the only driver currently to complete every lap. I don’t want to jinx you this weekend, but …

MARCO ANDRETTI: It's everything, it really is. It takes everything. It takes me staying out of trouble. It's definitely a credit to Honda as well, for the reliability. Yeah, it's attrition. We just stuck with it. Even when we're a lap down, we still managed to come back and keep it on the lead lap. There's only been a few races where we were out of the top 10. From that standpoint, I'm happy with my season. I wish the highs were a little bit higher, but we’re minimizing how bad the lows are. But we need to capitalize when we have cars to do it.

THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Marco. Good luck this weekend.

MARCO ANDRETTI: Thank you.