Andretti Autosport

May 10th, 2013

5.9.13 (via INDYCAR Nation) – Matthew Brabham, or, as he’s often referred to, “Matty Brabs”, has a pretty interesting racing family tree. His father, Geoff Brabham, is a Le Mans and International Race of Champions winner who also made 10 Indy 500 starts. His uncle David has likewise won Le Mans, and his uncle Gary also raced extensively in open wheel and sports cars. His grandfather, Sir Jack Brabham, is a three-time Formula One champion, a key catalyst in the rear-engine revolution at Indianapolis, and an all-around racing legend.

That might sound like a pretty big legacy to live up to, but so far, Matthew is doing plenty to keep that excellent racing tradition alive. He won the USF2000 Championship as a rookie in 2012, and signed with Andretti Autosport for the 2013 Pro Mazda Series season. He’s won three of four races so far this year, and seems poised to continue his speedy climb up the Mazda Road to Indy.

Brabham called into INDYCAR Nation from Mid-Ohio Sports Car course, where he’s currently testing as part of his Pro Mazda season. For our Q&A, the 19 year-old racing scion covered his development on Mazda Road to Indy, life in the Andretti Autosport organization, and coming from a famous racing background.

Thanks for making time for INDYCAR Nation, Matt. Congrats on the great start to your Pro Mazda season. Obviously, it’s started off really well, but how’s that transition working from USF2000 to Pro Mazda?

Matthew Brabham: It’s been a quite reasonable transition—the biggest thing is just the change in power, and getting used to it. It’s definitely tough when you first get into it, and the power makes it more fun, but I guess it makes it more challenging as well. I’m sure it’s different for everybody as they transition between different cars, but for me it’s just power. I've been able to get over that hurdle, and obviously it’s been going great so far. I couldn't ask for more—it’s been a fantastic start to the season.

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Kurt Busch hits 218 mph in Andretti IndyCar test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway

May 9th, 2013

5.9.13 (via SBNation.com) – Wheeling one of Michael Andretti’s Indy cars, NASCAR driver Kurt Busch posted a top speed of 218 MPH and passed his rookie test to gain eligibility to compete in the Indianapolis 500.

In his first laps driving an Indy car at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Kurt Busch posted a top speed of 218 MPH Thursday.

In a car owned by Michael Andretti and normally occupied by reigning Izod IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay, Busch ran a total of 83 laps and completed all three phrases of the rookie orientation program.

If he so chooses, Busch is now eligible to compete in this year's Indianapolis 500.

However, never having competed in an IndyCar race and wanting more experience, he instead is eying a start in the 2014 edition of the Indy 500. The 2004 Sprint Cup champion would like to run the Indy 500/Coca-Cola 600 doubleheader and admitted that he needs to improve his stamina to accomplish such a feat.

"I wouldn't be able to do it this year because of stamina," Busch said. "Today, I was white knuckled and tense, and that was only after 10 laps. To crawl and then walk and the then walk and run, I think the next step is to go to another oval and another race and see how the car runs in traffic."

Busch's performance left Andretti, who has led more laps at Indy than any other driver without winning the 500, impressed.

"Kurt did everything I thought he would do," Andretti said. "He was on pace immediately and he worked his way through the day. It was a good day."

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Mayor of Hinchtown becomes Indy’s Director of Public Safety

May 9th, 2013

The Mayor of Hinchtown became the Director of Public Safety of Indianapolis on Tuesday. Kicking off the month of May celebrations surrounding the Indianapolis 500, James Hinchcliffe, who now resides in Indianapolis, got an inside glimpse of what current Director Troy Riggs experiences on a daily basis and the steps he goes through to prepare for the 500-mile event at the end of each May.

"We get to do a lot of cool things as IndyCar drivers, but today was one of the coolest things I've been able to do," the two-time IZOD IndyCar Series race winner said. "Getting an inside look at how the city keeps the public safe, all the assets they have at their disposal, the cooperation between all the different agencies, it really was eye opening. You could really see the passion that each person had for their job, and that's a good thing when we are talking about keeping a city safe! A huge thanks to Director Riggs and everyone who contributed to our day. I'll definitely sleep better knowing who is watching our backs!"

Hinchcliffe had the opportunity to visit city center where he sat in on a short meeting to kick off the day. The Toronto native received his very own nameplate (his first one!) and got to sit in Director Riggs’ chair. From there he traveled to Survive Alive – a firehouse built in 1871 that has since been converted into a building to bring school children and families to learn about fire safety. The program sees 12,000 to 15,000 children a year and has helped lower the rate of child deaths due to fire from four children to less than one child a year; the Survive Alive on Massachusetts Avenue in downtown Indy has been open since 1995.

Following the visit to Survive Alive, Hinch made his way to Firehouse 7 where he was able to meet some of Indy’s finest firefighters and EMS. The Police Academy came next where James was able to tour bomb squad trucks, meet with animal control and their K-9 unit, as well as engage in a shooting simulator and driving simulator (where the Sao Paulo Indy 300 race winner drove into a house while in pursuit of a suspect – oops!). A meeting with the directors of many of Indianapolis’ agencies (Homeland Security, EMS, Firefighter, Police, Animal Control amongst others) concluded the day. The 26-year-old learned much about how Indy is run – 300 firefighters are on duty at any point, response time for IFD is three minutes and two seconds, Indy’s EMS teaches CPR to approximately 1,200 children a year and Homeland Security is present at the Indy 500 each year although you may not see them.

Although James enjoyed his day learning about the ins and outs of how the city of Indy is run and protected on a daily basis, the IZOD IndyCar Series driver plans to stick to his day job and leave the protecting to the professionals while appreciating all the efforts they put in to keeping the great city of Indy safe.

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INDIANA UNIVERSITY HEALTH REACHES SPORTS MEDICINE DEAL WITH RACING CHAMPIONS

May 8th, 2013

IU Health and PitFit Training join Andretti Autosport to enhance on and off track performance

INDIANAPOLIS (May 8, 2013) - Indiana University Health is now the official sports medicine and sports performance provider for Indianapolis-based Andretti Autosport®, based on a newly formed partnership between the two organizations.

Through the multi-year agreement, IU Health will provide Andretti Autosport with sports performance coaches to train staff and pit crew on a weekly basis, in coordination with performance race partner PitFit Training, sports medicine specialists to perform in-season injury evaluations and certified athletic trainers who will travel with the championship racing team for select IZOD IndyCar Series events taking place throughout North America, including major racing events in Detroit, Houston and Toronto. IU Health will also provide on-site sports medicine services for Andretti Autosport drivers, including Marco Andretti, James Hinchcliffe, E.J. Viso and reigning IndyCar champion Ryan Hunter-Reay at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the month of May.

In addition, IU Health will provide Andretti Autosport's executives, employees and their spouses with access and discounts to all adult fitness programs hosted at its Carmel-based IU Health Sports Performance facility.

"This agreement brings our nationally ranked health system together with a nationally renowned champion racing organization to enhance performance, prevent and treat injuries, and improve safety," said Scott Handlon, business director of IU Health Orthopedics and Sports Medicine. "Now, Andretti Autosport athletes and staff have access to our Olympic-level training facility, expert training staff and our comprehensive, medically integrated training program here at IU Health Sports Performance."

At IU Health Sports Performance, nationally certified specialists customize sport-specific strength and conditioning programs that combine medically integrated sports performance training and sports science to help athletes and active individuals maximize their speed, agility and power while reducing their risk of injury.

"We are really excited about this partnership with IU Health Sports Performance," said said Doug Bresnahan, Vice President of Marketing Partnerships for Andretti Autosport. "So much effort goes into preparing our race cars for optimum on-track performance and we now have a partner that can bring that same level of focus and attention into maximizing our team's overall fitness level, health and wellbeing. As an organization, it's in our DNA to seek continual self-improvement and IU Health Sports Performance will help us accomplish this across every facet of our company."

For more information about IU Health Sports Performance or PitFit Training, please call: 317.848.JUMP (5867) or visit: www.iuhealth.org/sportsperformance.

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Veteran TZ Joins Andretti Autosport for 2013 Indy 500

May 7th, 2013

RACING VETERAN JOHN TZOUANAKIS JOINS ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT 2013 INDIANAPOLIS 500 EFFORT

INDIANAPOLIS (May 6, 2013) – Andretti Autosport is pleased to announce John "TZ" Tzouanakis will be joining the Indianapolis-based team for the 2013 Indianapolis 500. Tzouanakis will serve as the Pit Strategist for Andretti Autosport's fifth Indy 500 entry, the No. 26 Unistraw Chevrolet piloted by Indianapolis rookie Carlos Munoz.

"After spending my career working my way up the ranks with Newman/Haas, I'm looking forward to again working with Michael (Andretti) and taking my career to new levels," said Tzouanakis. "The Mazda Road to Indy program features drivers with great potential, and the opportunity to work with one of those drivers for his first Indy 500 will be a great new chapter to my career."

During his 30-year tenure with Newman/Haas Racing, Tzouanakis has worked alongside drivers that include Mario and Michael Andretti, Sebastian Bourdais, Nigel Mansell and Cristiano da Matta. With eight open-wheel championships under his belt with Newman/Haas, and as a well-known figure in the racing community, the racing veteran offers a wealth of experience and competitive attitude that cemented his name at the top of the board for potential candidates. Prior to his Newman/Haas reign, Tzouanakis worked with Chaparral Cars during the 1980 Indy 500 and championship run of Johnny Rutherford.

"TZ is a great addition to our team," said team owner Michael Andretti. "I had the opportunity to work with him in the past and I think he brings a great deal of racing experience to the table. We look forward to having him on board to help Carlos (Munoz) through his first Indy 500."

Munoz, a Colombian native, is currently competing full-time on the Firestone Indy Lights circuit for Andretti Autosport. The May 18 Pole Day will mark his first Indy 500 qualifying attempt alongside Andretti teammates Marco Andretti (No. 25 RC Cola Chevrolet), James Hinchcliffe (No. 27 GoDaddy Chevrolet), E.J. Viso (No. 5 Team Venezuela Chevrolet) and reigning series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay (No. 1 DHL Chevrolet). Andretti, Hinchcliffe, Viso and Hunter-Reay are each running full-season efforts with Andretti Autosport for the 2013 IZOD IndyCar Series season.

The 97^th Running of the Indianapolis 500 will take place May 26 at the famed 2.5-mile oval in Speedway, Indiana. Qualifying will be broadcast by NBC Sports Network May 18 while race day coverage from Indianapolis Motor Speedway begins at 12:15 p.m. ET on May 26, live on ABC.

For more information, please visit www.AndrettiAutosport.com.

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Canadian James Hinchcliffe wins 2nd career IndyCar race

May 6th, 2013

5.6.13 (via CBC.ca) - On the final turn of the final lap, James Hinchcliffe finally saw an opening — and made sure he squeezed into it.

Hinchcliffe made a last-ditch move on Takuma Sato, going past the Japanese driver on the inside of the last bend to win IndyCar's Sao Paulo 300 on Sunday.

The Canadian was barely even sure that Sato was finally behind him by the time the checkered flag went down in front of him.

"I don't think I was sure until after we crossed the line," said Hinchcliffe, who earned his second victory of the season and his career. "I didn't think we had it. It wasn't really until I crossed the line that I realized, 'We got it!"'

The Canadian, also the winner in the opener in St. Petersburg, Fla., moved from third to second with three laps to go and then dueled with Sato before finally making the gutsy move as right before the finish at the Anhembi street track.

Sato, coming off his first career victory two weeks ago in Long Beach, drove in too hard for the hairpin at the end of the long back straight and gave just enough space for Hinchcliffe to get past.

"To win a race on the last corner of the last lap is one of the coolest feelings," Hinchcliffe said. "To make a last-corner pass, that's something I'll remember for a long time. Takuma was making that race car really wide and he was defending the inside pretty well. He just outbroke himself just a little bit and I was able to do a high-low [pass] and got the win."

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Trackside Update – Race Day in Sao Paulo, Brazil

May 6th, 2013

It was a successful day for Andretti Autosport on the streets of Sao Paulo, Brazil as GoDaddy driver James Hinchfcliffe captured his second career victory behind the wheel of the No. 27 Chevrolet.

Starting from the fifth grid position and enduring a series of restarts, the Canadian moved from third to second with just three laps to go and made the final move on the last turn to take the lead. Hinchcliffe now sits fourth in the championship points standings.

"There's no cooler way to win a race than the last corner of the last lap," said Hinch. "Heluva job that Takuma (Sato) did to be up there, and man, he was making his car really wide, he'd been defending the inside pretty well – almost too well a couple of times. He just out-broke himself a little bit. I know he was going to go deep, and we did the high-low and got the win. Awesome job for GoDaddy, Andretti (Autosport) and everybody."

GoDaddy CEO, Blake Irving commented on the Toronto native's second win of the season. "It's great to see such drive and determination even when the odds are against you. It's one reason why Hinch represents GoDaddy and our customers so well."

Teammate Marco Andretti had a productive day in the No. 25 RC Cola Chevrolet, capturing a third-place podium finish and his second podium of the 2013 season. Andretti started 10^th and stayed consistent throughout today's race.

"It was a lot of fun. It was dicey at some points. Really it was just about conserving the push-to-passes for when it counts," said Andretti. "At the end, I was kind of using it when people weren't expecting me to use it so I could kind of snooker them. Looking from practice one, I'm quite pleased with where we ended up today."

Coming into the Sao Paulo Indy 300 fourth in the championship points standings, the third-generation driver now sits second only 13 points behind Takuma Sato.

Earning his best career qualifying position of second place and his first appearance in the Firestone Fast Six this season, E.J. Viso started today's race on the front row next to teammate and pole winner Ryan Hunter-Reay. The Venezuelan native fought to the end of the 75-lap race to finish in sixth place.

"Finishing sixth is not really what we expected. It was a race full of surprises, and unfortunately that last stop was not for us. Luck was not on our side; we pitted right before the yellow came out and it didn't play in our favor," said Viso. "I'm very happy for James' second win and Marco's podium. It's something that only gives us confidence as a team to keep working hard for the next races."

Hunter-Reay started today's race on the streets of Sao Paulo, Brazil from the pole position, his second of the season. Hunter-Reay suffered from a flat tire and was forced to make an unscheduled pit stop costing him valuable track position.

"Extremely disappointing today. Absolutely had the car to win. Guys gave me a great, great car…the pit stops were awesome. Definitely needed to capitalize on this opportunity, but we got a flat tire about halfway through the race which pretty much sidelined us, " said Hunter-Reay. "We pit super early on the last stop, had to save fuel the remainder of the race. I was lifting halfway down the straightaway so… we were wounded and stayed that way. Happy for the teammates – James on the win and Marco on the third."

The 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series Champion came to the twin checkers in 11^th and currently sits sixth in the championship points standings.

The team's racing cargo will be packed up tonight and make the voyage back to Indianapolis, just in time for crews to load into the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway where we will spend the next two and a half weeks preparing for the 97th running of the Indianapolis 500.

Kicking off our month of May, will be a test at IMS with NASCAR champion Kurt Busch. Busch will take the wheel of the Andretti Autosport No. 1 DHL Chevy Thursday with Michael Andretti present to guide him through the day. Follow all the testing via Twitter using hashtag – #IndyOutlaw.

The Indy 500 gets into full swing with Opening Day on Saturday featuring both veteran practice and rookie orientation, track activity starts at noon. Practice continues through the week before Pole Day on May 18. Andretti Autosport had two cars start on the front row of the 2012 Indy 500 and will make qualifying attempts with a five-car effort this year as Carlos Munoz joins the IndyCar stable for the 500-mile race on May 26.

Keep up to date on all things Andretti Autosport by joining us on Twitter (@FollowAndretti) and don't forget to 'Like' us on Facebook where you can enter to be our featured Fan of the Week.

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Trackside Update – Qualifying from Sao Paulo, Brazil

May 4th, 2013

SPOLIER ALERT: This Trackside Update covers IZOD IndyCar Series Qualifying from the Sao Paulo Indy 300. While the qualifying session took place this afternoon, coverage will be broadcast by NBC Sports Network at 1 a.m. Eastern Sunday morning. If you are not yet prepared to discover the results of today’s qualifying, we recommend saving this Trackside Update for future reading.

Greetings from sunny Sao Paulo where the track activity today was plentiful. In our fourth round of IZOD IndyCar Series competition, the field took to the 11-turn street circuit for a day full of practice and qualifying. The Andretti Autosport cars started the day with a strong showing, placing all four drivers inside the top 10 during the afternoon’s practice session. Qualifying showed true to the strength of the Andretti Autosport quartet this weekend as all four cars will start tomorrow’s 75-lap race from 10th or higher on the grid.

Ryan Hunter-Reay secured his second pole position of the season today on his way to claiming a new track record in Brazil. He turned a fast lap time of 80.43 seconds in the DHL Chevrolet. "I gave it everything I had and it's great to get the DHL Chevrolet up front again and on pole,” said Hunter-Reay. “That's three of the four races this year that we've been on the front row and twice on pole. I'm so happy for the guys and everything they've done for me. Tomorrow's when the challenge is though.”

Also setting records today was teammate E.J. Viso as he recorded his best career qualifying effort of second place, as well as his first appearance in the Firestone Fast Six in 2013 for Team Venezuela. Said Viso, “To be starting on this track on the front row is great. I’m very grateful for the great car that team gave me today. It was good enough for the front row, and I have a lot of faith in them that tomorrow we are going to have a good car in the race that is going to stay and keep that pace. Congratulations to my teammate Ryan – he did a great job and I’m very happy for him to get the pole position.”

GoDaddy driver James Hinchcliffe joined Viso and Hunter-Reay in the Firestone Fast Six and will roll of from the fifth grid position tomorrow. “You like to be in the Firestone Fast Six, but obviously there was a bit more pace if you look at the teammates… I tapped the wall on my fast lap in Q3 – probably cost us little bit of time,” said Hinch. “Probably could have been an Andretti Autosport one-two-three, so I feel bad I let the team down in that respect. I think we’ve got a solid race car; we can definitely race from fifth tomorrow. We just need to keep our nose clean and finish. The last couple of evens have been hard and we’ve got to get the Go Daddy car Chevy back up front.”

Hinchcliffe went on to congratulate his teammates on their accomplishments, “Congrats to Ryan on the pole, great run. E.J. is really the star of the show, to me. He did a hell of a job on that second run.”

Continuing the strong showing for Andretti Autosport was Marco Andretti in the RC Cola Chevy. Andretti will start from 10th tomorrow. “We were kind of on our own, setup wise. We were way different than the teammates, and it ended up biting us a bit. But I still think we have a podium car that we can change to and a podium would be a great finish for the RC Cola crew tomorrow – we can do it from 10th.”

You can catch all the action from Brazil by tuning into NBC Sports Network (Verizon FiOS 90/590, DirecTV 220, DISH 159 and AT&T UVerse 640). Coverage will begin on Sunday with qualifying airing at 1 a.m. ET followed by live full race coverage at 11 a.m. ET. If you can't make it to the television, listen along with the broadcast by the IMS Radio Network, on SiriusXM (Channel 211) and IndyCar.com.

Be sure to follow the official Andretti Autosport Twitter feed (@FollowAndretti) for live twitter coverage and a behind-the-scenes look at race day from the Sao Paulo Indy 300. For a unique perspective on our racing life, check out the Twitter feed of team owner Michael Andretti’s K9 friend at @AndrettiK9.

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Fan of the Week – Scott Narvesen

May 3rd, 2013

Congratulations to Scott Narvesen, who is this week’s Andretti Autosport Fan of the Week! Scott lists IZOD IndyCar Series driver, Ryan Hunter-Reay, as his favorite Andretti Autosport driver because he is a hard charger on the track and a class act off of the track.

Narvesen has been an IndyCar fan since he was a young boy watching the Indianapolis 500. “I always rooted for Mario Andretti and then I started cheering on Michael when he started his career with the Kraco team,” said Narvesen. “I think IndyCar is the best racing in the world hands down, I cannot get enough of it!”

Narvesen has collected many racing memories throughout the years watching the Andrettis. “Andretti is the first name that I think of when I think of racing,” comments Narvesen. “My favorite memory was when Michael came back to IndyCar from Formula 1 and won his first race.”

As the Andretti team prepares for this weekend’s race in Brazil, Narvesen will be watching and cheering on Hunter-Reay. Please tune in to the Sao Paulo Indy 300 on NBC Sports Network this Sunday, May 5, at 11 a.m. ET. Thank you to everyone who submitted a form to become the Andretti Autosport Fan of the Week. Please check back next Friday as we select another winner!

As always, thanks for your amazing support.

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NASCAR Champ Busch To Test Andretti Autosport IZOD IndyCar Series Car At IMS

May 3rd, 2013

5.3.13 (via IndianapolisMotorSpeedway.com) After two days of testing the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet NASCAR Sprint Cup car this week at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Kurt Busch left the track knowing he was going to get more seat time at the famed oval before the Crown Royal presents the “Your Hero’s Name Here” 400 at the Brickyard in July. But this time, the additional seat time will be behind the wheel an IZOD IndyCar Series car.

2004 Sprint Cup Series champion Busch will test a Chevrolet-powered Andretti Autosport Indy car Thursday morning, May 9, just two days before IMS officially opens for practice for the 97th running of the Indianapolis 500. Andretti Autosport team owner and IMS legend Michael Andretti will be on hand to provide driver coaching and assist in getting Busch up to speed quickly.

“I have always enjoyed racing at Indianapolis, and when IMS and Michael presented me with the opportunity to test an Indy car prior to opening day of practice of the Indianapolis 500, I jumped at it,” Busch said. “The Indianapolis 500 is an iconic event and having an opportunity to go through the testing process with Michael and Andretti Autosport, the defending series champions and two-time winners of the race, is pretty cool.”

Said Andretti: “I had the chance to get to know Kurt last year when we were working on another racing project. I respect his talent and am happy to give him the opportunity to experience the raw speed of an Indy car. It’s a unique feel and perspective – it will be totally different than what he is used to driving each week on the Cup circuit.”

Busch left open the door to compete in “The Double” – racing in the Indianapolis 500 and Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on the same day – in the future.