News for the Week of March 14, 2016 – March 20, 2016

Foyt names Tagliani as third driver for both IMS races – “Alfe Heat Treating will sponsor the No. 35 Honda Dallara to be driven by Alex Tagliani in the Grand Prix of Indianapolis and the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500, a.k.a. the Indy Double. The number 35 was chosen to honor A.J. Foyt’s record 35 straight starts in the Indianapolis 500—from 1958 through 1992. The car’s livery will evoke memories of the black No. 14 Copenhagen cars that Foyt drove in the latter part of his legendary career.” “We chose the number 35 because it is the number of consecutive starts A.J. had at the Brickyard as well as being A.J.’s birth year, a lucky number,” said Kurt Westman, Founder and CEO of Alfe Heat Treating, Inc. See the livery here. – AJ Foyt Racing – (3/17/2016)

INDYCAR announces Power never had a concussion – “INDYCAR announced today that results of an extensive evaluation at the University of Miami Concussion Program revealed no definitive evidence of a recent concussion for Verizon Team Penske driver Will Power…Power has been cleared to return to Verizon IndyCar Series competition after sitting out race day on-track competition for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 13.” “The doctors at the University of Miami concluded Power’s symptoms were not the result of a concussion, and may have been related to a lingering inner-ear infection for which he was being treated,” said Dr. Terry Trammell, safety consultant to INDYCAR. – INDYCAR – (3/17/2016)

Miller Q&A 3/16/16 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (3/17/2016)

Local recap from Tuesday test at Barber – A Birmingham news station posted a quick update from the Verizon IndyCar Series test at Barber Motorsports Park on Tuesday. Hear from Newgarden, Kanaan, Kimball, and Hunter-Reay at the link. – WIAT – (3/16/2016)

Weekend schedule available for Phoenix – The schedule for each session the Verizon IndyCar Series and Indy Lights cars will be on track at Phoenix International Raceway has been posted on the PIR website. Check it out at the link. – PIR – (3/16/2016)

Tickets to public officially on sale for Boston – In another step towards absolute confirmation of the event, tickets went on sale to the general public for the INDYCAR Grand Prix of Boston race weekend on Tuesday. Check out the options at the link. – GP of Boston – (3/15/2016)

Boston inspector excited for INDYCAR – Boston Inspectional Services Commissioner William “Buddy” Christopher sounds excited about INDYCAR coming to Boston after an impromptu visit to the INDYCAR weekend at St. Pete. “I was very, very enlightened,” an enthusiastic Christopher told the Boston Herald. “I had never seen one of these races. I think we can handle this very, very easily — I shouldn’t say easily but it’s not as mysterious as it was.” In regards to the race in Boston: “I think it’s more of a positive thing than a negative thing,” the commissioner said. “It brings a lot of exposure to the city … I think this is the kind of thing that’s really good.” – Boston Herald – (3/15/2016)

Trackside podcast 3/14/16 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 3/14/16 is a great listen as always. The pair recaps all of the action from St. Pete and are joined by NBC Sports F1 Commentator Steve Matchett. – 1070 The Fan – (3/15/2016)

St. Pete organizers claim 160,000 in attendance – According to WTSP out of Tampa, the organizers of the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg believe they had 160,000 people in attendance over the course of the race weekend. – WTSP – (3/15/2016)

ABC’s St. Pete telecast gets a 1.09 rating – According to ShowBuzzDaily the ABC telecast of the Verizon IndyCar Series Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg earned a 1.09 TV rating. In comparison, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race from Phoenix on Sunday drew a 3.60 rating. According to Steve Wittich the St. Pete race had a 0.6 rating last year. – ShowBuzzDaily – (3/14/2016)

Military veterans to compete for Team Murray in TAG Heuer Pit Crew Challenge – “PIRTEK Team Murray and the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation have created a unique program that will see six military service veterans and first responders from across North America molded into a pit crew for this year’s 100th Indianapolis 500 celebrations in May…Training complete, they will then be the entry crewing the PIRTEK Team Murray #61 Chevrolet entry into the TAG Heuer Pit Crew Challenge on Coors Lite Carb Day, Friday May 27, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.” Full release at the link. – NBC Sports – (3/14/2016)

Dixon, Bourdais, and Briscoe named to Ford GT Le Mans lineup – Ford Chip Ganassi Racing named their drivers for their four Ford GT’s and there’s a heavy Verizon IndyCar Series influence. Sebastien Bourdais is part of the lineup for the No. 68 while Scott Dixon and Ryan Briscoe will be teammates in the No. 69 car. – CGRT – (3/14/2016)

Montoya wins opening race at St. Pete – Juan Pablo Montoya won the season opener at St. Pete for the second year in row as part of a dominant performance from Team Penske. The rest of the Top 5 was Pagenaud, Hunter-Reay, Castroneves, and Aleshin. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (3/13/2016)

INDYCAR announces Power diagnosed with mild concussion – During the race on Sunday, INDYCAR announced that Will Power was re-evaluated after being cleared following his incident on Friday and was diagnosed with a mild concussion. He will need to be cleared before he can return to driving. Oriol Servia subbed for Power on Sunday at the Firestone GP of St. Petersburg. See the official INDYCAR statement at the link. – INDYCAR – (3/13/2016)

Rosenqvist dominates in Lights Race 2 win at St. Pete – Belardi Auto Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist grabbed his first career win in Indy Lights in Race 2 at St. Pete in dominant fashion. Rosenqvist led from start to finish and had the fastest lap of 1:06.9544. The rest of the Top 5 was Kaiser, Veach, Serralles, and Negrao. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (3/13/2016)

Wheldon family announces Dan Wheldon book – From Dan Wheldon’s sister Holly: “We are thrilled to announce the Lionheart – Remembering Dan Wheldon book. Great stories about a great guy. #Lionheart” – Holly Wheldon – (3/13/2016)

Power wins the pole again at St. Pete – Will Power won the Verizon P1 award and the pole for the Firestone GP of St. Pete with a lap of 1:00.2450. Power set a new track record in Round 2 of qualifying with a lap of 1:00.0658. The rest of the Firestone Fast 6 finishing order was Pagenaud, Castroneves, Montoya, Dixon, and Hunter-Reay. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (3/12/2016)

Serralles wins Lights Race 1 at St. Pete – Carlin’s Felix Serralles won Indy Lights Race 1 at St. Pete after Zach Veach experienced a loss of power from the lead in the middle portion of the race. The rest of the Top 5 was Hargrove, Kaiser, Urrutia, and Enerson. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (3/12/2016)

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