IndyCars - St. Louis: Badda Bing, Badda BOOM! Two quick days in the shadow of the Arch

[MarkyS]

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This one is always a quick affair as the IndyCars come back to their oval roots once again, to do…

The Bommarito Automotive Group 500

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Officially, the venue is called, “World Wide Technology Raceway” but it’s popularly known by its former name - “Gateway.” So named because one can literally see the beautiful St.Louis, Missouri Gateway Arch from the top row of the westside grandstands, even though the track is across the Mississippi River, in Madison, Illinois. (See the Arch there, right behind the river in the upper right-hand corner above?)

The track is a unique oval in the United States, though it bears similarity with Twin Ring Motegi’s oval in Japan, with its egg shape created by the two different radius ends of the track. There are varying degrees of banking in each corner of the 1.25-mile circuit. Turns 1 & 2 are similar to New Hampshire Motor Speedway while Turns 3 & 4 are similar to ISM Raceway in Phoenix. Gateway is a challenge for drivers but an even bigger challenge for engineers, who try (and often fail) to set up a car that is good on both ends

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Race fans this weekend will get their money’s worth, with a kid’s zone on the midway, with a post-IndyCar race concert and with a great display of more than 35 vintage IndyCars from the 1930s to the 1990s at the Vintage Indy Registry’s exhibit near the main grandstand. The vintage IndyCars will also be on track for exhibition runs on Friday and on Saturday, supporting the 4 races that will be run. Those 4 races include:

• USAC Silver Crown Champ Cars, with 1 race on Friday
• Indy Pro 2000, with 1 race on Saturday
• Indy Lights, with 1 race on Saturday

And, of course, the IndyCars will do the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 on Saturday afternoon.

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Let’s look at that support racing:

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USAC SIlver Crown Champ Cars - Similar to USAC Sprint Cars, but bigger in size, these open-wheelers are part of the rich history of open-wheel racing that evolved into IndyCar racing. Loud and powerful, they are capable of thrilling an audience on the dirt as well as the pavement. As no IndyCar drivers will be racing with them, we will wish them safe and happy racing and concentrate elsewhere.

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continued…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Support racing…(continued)…

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The Road to Indy is the ladder system that trains drivers to be ready to drive IndyCars. It is made up of four series of increasing complexity and capability - USF Juniors, USF2000, Indy Pro 2000 and Indy Lights. Indy Lights and Indy Pro 2000 will be at Gateway, this weekend, for their 2nd oval race of the year.

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Indy Pro 2000 is the upper middle rung of the ladder. The car is the Tatuus IP-22 which is essentially a stouter version of the first-tier USF-22 from USF2000. The chassis is the same, so teams who compete in USF2000 can easily convert their car to run in Indy Pro 2000 without a huge upcharge for a new car. The MZR-PM18A engine is a 2.0 liter 4-cylinder that puts out 275 hp and almost 200 pounds of torque - and a wonderful noise. The wings and the tires are all bigger, so the downforce, braking and grip are all better than in the USF-22. The drivers in “IP2K” are usually experienced junior formula drivers from all over the world. As a result, the level of competition is very high, with many series drivers capable of podiums and WINS. It is harder for a driver to run away with the title. The fields are smaller than USF2000 but the team commitment is higher.

After 14 rounds of racing, the current points leader is rookie Louis Foster from Great Britain for Canadian team Exclusive Autosport. This year, Louis already has 10 podiums including 6 WINS. Louie’s closest pursuer, 71 points back, is sophomore Reece Gold for Juncos Hollinger Racing with 8 TOP FIVEs and 4 podiums including 2 WINS. With as much as 48 points on the line for this weekend, Gold could seriously eat into Foster’s lead, with a little luck.

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Louis Foster in his Tatuus IP-22 for Exclusive Autosport

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Indy Lights is the top rung of the ladder and a fitting series to prepare to drive an IndyCar in battle. The car is the all-carbon composite Dallara IL-15. Its 2.0 liter 4-cylinder engine, built by AER, is turbo-charged, like the big cars, and produces 450 hp with an additional 50 horsepower available with Push-to-Pass in certain situations, again, just like the big cars. (Push-to-Pass is not used on ovals, however). It has more wing and tires than all the other Road to Indy cars and so more downforce, braking and grip. It also has much more downloadable information available for engineers to use, and as such is an important training tool for them, too. The drivers come from all over the world to compete and are usually among the highest level of junior formula drivers anywhere. The value of Indy Lights is evident when looking at the roster in IndyCars, where so many of the drivers are former Lights pilots, including many former champions.

After 10 rounds of racing, the current points leader is Swedish sophomore Linus Lundqvist for HMD Motorsports with 5 WINS from 7 podiums, including the last race at Nashville. Linus is on a roll and has an almost insurmountable points lead. Ninety-five points back in 2nd place is rookie Hunter McElrea for Andretti Autosport, due to getting 6 podiums, including 2 WINS.

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Linus Lundqvist in his Dallara IL-15 for HMD Motorsports

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Friday will be a day of testing for the Indy Pro 2000 cars and a day of practice and qualifying for both the Indy Lights and the IndyCars. Let’s get this thing ON THE BOIL!

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday morning at Gateway - Indy Pro 2000 holds testing…

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The only difference between “testing” and a race weekend practice session is who pays for the track time. The Road to Indy likes to provide the drivers in their series with as much track time as possible on a given weekend, so as to gain experience - the whole point of the exercise. Whenever possible, the series will buy additional track time from the venue for testing. This does two things: It gives the drivers useful experience on the track; it ultimately makes the show for fans all the better, as the kids look great out there, instead of hapless.

Indy Pro 2000 had two test sessions, this morning, and we have the results here, by COMBINING the two sessions

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Here is the order of speed for the Indy Pro 2000 test sessions COMBINED, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie; time is for 1 lap; driver’s best session is in ( )

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1 - Salvador de Alba [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 32.0297s for a speed of 140.495mph (1)

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2 - Braden Eves, Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 32.1227s for a speed of 140.088mph (1)

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3 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 32.1592s for a speed of 139.929mph (1)

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4 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - time of 32.2247s for a speed of 139.644mph (1)

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5 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 32.2402s for a speed of 139.577mph (1)

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6 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsports (1)
7 - Marcos Flack [R], Jay Howard Driver Development (1)
8 - Jordan Missig [R], Pabst Racing (2)
9 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing (1)
10 - Bijoy Garg [R], DEForce Racing (1)

11 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing (2)
12 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing (1)
13 - Trey Burke [R], Turn 3 Motorsports
14 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/ Exclusive Autosport (1)
15 - Lindsay Brewer [R], Exclusive Autosport (2)

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Notable:

• Salvador has the most oval experience, due to his time in tin-top stockers in Mexico, and though the vehicle dynamics are way different, all ovals still have a similarity that translates.

• The TOP FIVE guys here are also in the TOP EIGHT on points, so no surprises. Enaam Ahmed is 3rd in the points, but he’s a European road racer with very little oval experience.

• There are three new series rookies out there, this weekend. Jonathan Browne for Turn 3 Motorsports is in Ireland, taking his college final exams, so filling in for him is USF2000 driver Trey Burke. USF2000 driver Bijoy Garg is getting his first taste of IP2K cars thanks to his team, DEForce Racing. Finally, Aussie Marcos Flack is making his series debut, driving for Jay Howard Driver Development. Marcos is a race WINNER from GB3 - essentially, British Formula 3.

• Marcos is already impressing, as like Enaam Ahmed, he has European road racing experience only, but he’s already right in there with the big dogs on the oval.

• Jack William Miller’s team Miller Vinatieri Motorsports has a new partnership with Exclusive Autosport, likely to the end of the season.

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left to right, Trey Burke, Bijoy Garg and Marcos Flack - new rooks

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Salvador de Alba - TOPS in testing

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Indy Pro 2000 will be back on track Saturday morning for their official practice session, followed by qualifying and later in the day their race. Next up, the first IndyCar practice session…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Gateway - The IndyCars hold their first practice session…

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…of the weekend, and the only one before qualifying, later today.

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Here is the order of speed for the IndyCars P-1 practice, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie; times are for 1 lap

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1 - Will Power, Team Penske - time of 00:24.9254s for a speed of 180.539mph

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2 - Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 00:24.9712s for a speed of 180.208mph

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3 - Felix Rosenqvist, Arrow McLaren SP - time of 00:24.9910s for a speed of 180.065mph

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4 - Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske - time of 00:24.9935s for a speed of 180.047mph

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5 - Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 00:24.9942s for a speed of 180.042mph

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6 - Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren SP
7 - Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
8 - Josef Newgarden, Team Penske
9 - Takuma Sato, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Rick Ware Racing
10 - Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing

11 - Devlin DeFrancesco [R], Andretti Steinbrenner
12 - Colton Herta, Andretti Autosport
13 - David Malukas [R], Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports
14 - Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport
15 - Jack Harvey, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
16 - Kyle Kirkwood [R], AJ Foyt Enterprises
17 - Conor Daly, Ed Carpenter Racing
18 - Romain Grosjean, Andretti Autosport
19 - Christian Lundegaard [R], Rahal Letterman Lanigan
20 - Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing

21 - Simon Pagenaud, Meyer Shank Racing
22 - Callum Ilott [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing
23 - Rinus VeeKay, Ed Carpenter Racing
24 - Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing
25 - Dalton Kellett, AJ Foyt Enterprises
26 - Jimmie Johnson, Chip Ganassi Racing

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Notable:

• Five Hondas and five Chevys in the TOP TEN; 3 of 3 Team Penske guys, 2 of 2 Arrow McLaren SP guys, 3 of 4 Chip Ganassi Racing guys, Takuma Sato for Dale Coyne and Graham Rahal for RLL - none of this is a surprise as these are all fast short oval guys. Former WINNERS here are Sato with 1, Power with 1, Dixon with 1, Helio Castroneves with 1 and Josef Newgarden with 3.

• Best of the Andretti Autosport / Meyer Shank Racing guys was rookie Devlin DeFrancesco who ended in P11 but was TOP FIVE for much of the session. Dev was also the best rookie.

• Six cars TOPPED 180 miles per hour lap average - phenomenal speed and almost 2 miles per hour above the P-1 session times from 2021.

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Will Power - on tap for another pole?

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The IndyCars will go for pole starting at 4:15pm EASTERN time and will be on Peacock Premium. Next up, the Indy Lights come out for their own P-1 practice…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Gateway - The Indy Lights hold their first and only practice session…

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…of the weekend. This is their one chance to set up their cars for their race, so that will necessarily be a compromise for qualifying, later today.

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Here is the order of speed for the Indy Lights P-1 practice, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie; time is for 1 lap

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1 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports - time of 00:28.0091s for a speed of 160.662mph

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2 - Linus Lundqvist, HMD Motorsports - time of 00:28.0547s for a speed of 160.401mph

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3 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Steinbrenner Racing - time of 00:28.1246s for a speed of 160.002mph

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4 - James Roe [R], HMD Motorsports - time of 00:28.1964s for a speed of 159.595mph

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5 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports - time of 00:28.2374s for a speed of 159.363mph

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6 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport
7 - Matthew Brabham, Andretti Autosport
8 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports
9 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports
10 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport
11 - Kyffin Simpson [R], HMD Motorsports
12 - Ernie Francis, Jr. [R], Force Indy

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Notable:

• All 12 cars from the Lights held two test sessions at Gateway a week ago and Benjamin Pedersen TOPPED both of those sessions fairly easily.

• The outlier here is rookie James Roe in P4. This is likely the first time James has made a TOP FIVE in the 2022 season. Perhaps the Irishman has found his specialty, at last.

• No current Lights drivers have WON here before but David Malukas WON both races of a double header here in 2021, while he was battling Kyle Kirkwood for the Lights series championship, which Kyle eventually took.

• Current Lights drivers with previous experience at Gateway are Benjamin Pedersen, Danial Frost, Linus Lundqvist, Sting Ray Robb and Christian Bogle - all veterans of the 2021 double header.

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Benjamin Pedersen - TOPS in practice

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The Lights will qualify right after the IndyCars qualify, which is next…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Gateway - the IndyCars are qualified!..

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Qualifying on an oval is a simple and quick process: Each car goes out one at a time, throws down a warm-up lap and then posts two hot laps. Those two laps are added together and then averaged and the fastest guy is on the pole, with each car lining up according to diminishing average speed.

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Here is the way the IndyCars will grid for Season Round 15, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie; time is over two laps; speed is the average of those two laps.

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Row 1

Pole - Will Power, Team Penske - time of 00:49.2539s for a speed of 182.727mph

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P2 - Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 00:49.4316s for a speed of 182.070mph

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Row 2

P3 - Josef Newgarden, Team Penske - time of 00:49.5515s for a speed of 181.629mph

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P4 - Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske - time of 00:49.6126s for a speed of 181.406mph

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Row 3

P5 - Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 00:49.6446s for a speed of 181.289mph

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P6 - Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 00:49.7364s for a speed of 180.954mph

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Row 4

P7 - Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren SP
P8 - Takuma Sato, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Rick Ware Racing

Row 5

P9 - Devlin DeFrancesco [R], Andretti Steinbrenner
P10 - Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport

Row 6

P11 - Colton Herta, Andretti Autosport
P12 - David Malukas [R], Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports

Row 7

P13 - Simon Pagenaud, Meyer Shank Racing
P14 - Jack Harvey, Rahal Letterman Lanigan

Row 8

P15 - Conor Daly, Ed Carpenter Racing
P16 - Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan

Row 9

P17 - Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing
P18 - Romain Grosjean, Andretti Autosport

Row 10

P19 - Christian Lundegaard [R], Rahal Letterman Lanigan
P20 - Kyle Kirkwood [R], AJ Foyt Enterprises

Row 11

P21 - Jimmie Johnson, Chip Ganassi Racing
P22 - Callum Ilott [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing

Row 12

P23 - Rinus VeeKay, Ed Carpenter Racing
P24 - Dalton Kellett, AJ Foyt Enterprises

Row 13

P25 - Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing
P26 - Felix Rosenqvist, Arrow McLaren SP

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Notable:

• Power’s pole is the 67th in his stellar career and it ties Mario Andretti for the all-time highest career IndyCar poles. Can Will break Mario’s record? It’s really HOW MUCH he will break it. Mario Andretti and Will Power both won a pole in their 266th start. For Will it is pole # 67. For Mario it was pole # 55. Mario didn’t win pole # 67 until his 385th start.

• The order of attempts was the reverse of the series points, so the last 7 guys to qualify are the TOP SEVEN in points and they all benefitted from the track getting more and more rubber laid down with each attempt. Takuma Sato was one of the earlier to qualify, so he didn’t have that benefit. Nevertheless, he was the first to pass 180 miles per hour and he kept pole until finally usurped by Pato O’Ward. One wonders what he might have done if he had been a late qualifier.

• Also holding pole briefly were Scott McLaughlin, Josef Newgarden and Marcus Ericsson, only to see it lost to the next guy.

• Best rookie was Devlin DeFrancesco in P10.

• While Romain Grosjean qualified 9th, he will actually start 18th because of an unapproved engine change handing him a 9-spot grid penalty.

• Felix Rosenqvist was on a flier but lost it all when he spun in Turns 1 / 2. Luckily, he kept it off the outside wall and only lightly kissed the inside wall. He will have to start from the back, as a result.

Takuma Sato - one wonders…

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Felix Rosenqvist’s spin:

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

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Will Power’s record-tying pole run:

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

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…and his comments afterward:

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

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The IndyCars will hold a final practice session this afternoon, split into two groups. Next up, the Indy Lights go for qualifying…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Gateway - the Indy Lights are qualified!..

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…and the series points leader adds another point to his total, with a pole.

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Here is the way the Indy Lights will grid for Season Round 11, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie; time is over two laps; speed is the average of those two laps

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Row 1

Pole - Linus Lundqvist, HMD Motorsports - time of 00:56.1590s for a speed of 160.259mph

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P2 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports - time of 00:56.2066s for a speed of 160.124mph

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Row 2

P3 - Matthew Brabham, Andretti Autosport - time of 00:56.4008s for a speed of 159.572mph

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P4 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Steinbrenner Racing - time of 00:56.4353s for a speed of 159.475mph

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Row 3

P5 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 00:56.5089s for a speed of 159.267mph

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P6 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport - time of 00:56.5273s for a speed of 159.215mph

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Row 4

P7 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports
P8 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports

Row 5

P9 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports
P10 - James Roe [R], HMD Motorsports

Row 6

P11 - Kyffin Simpson [R], HMD Motorsports
P12 - Ernie Francis, Jr. [R], Force Indy

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Notable;

• This is Linus Lundqvist’s 7th pole of the season.

• Cars qualified in the reverse order of points, so just as with the IndyCars, the TOP guys in points benefitted from going out last, when the most rubber was on the track.

• Benjamin Pedersen held pole once he qualified until the final qualifier, teammate Linus Lundqvist, came out and bested him. Lundqvist’s first lap almost saw him go into the wall but the frenetic pace also saw him turn in the best lap of the session, backed up by another good lap.

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The 75-lap Indy Lights race will be on Saturday, broadcast on Peacock Premium starting at 4:15pm EASTERN time. next up, the IndyCars hold their final practice…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday evening at Gateway - the IndyCars hold their final practice session…

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The P-2 practice session was split into two sessions - one for the track and one for the field - with a 15-minute break in between. The one for the track was the first half hour of the session, when 9 selected cars went out to try to rubber in a 2nd groove above the inside groove, as was done with some success at Texas Motor Speedway, earlier this year. They were:

• Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport
• Felix Rosenqvist, Arrow McLaren SP
• Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing
• Takuma Sato, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Rick Ware Racing
• Conor Daly, Ed Carpenter Racing
• Callum Ilott [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing
• Simon Pagenaud, Meyer Shank Racing
• Jack Harvey, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
• Will Power, Team Penske

The effort was not without peril, as the cars were risking getting into the walls. Following the Brave 9 was a regular 1-hour post-qualifying session with the entire field out there, in temperatures that will be a lot closer to race temps on Saturday evening, when the race will start in low light and end after sundown.

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Here was the order of speed for the IndyCars P-2 practice, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie; time is for 1 lap

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1 - Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan - time of 00:25.3196s for a speed of 177.728mph

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2 - Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 00:25.3580s for a speed of 177.459mph

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3 - David Malukas [R], Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports - time of 00:25.4634s for a speed of 176.724mph

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4 - Romain Grosjean, Andretti Autosport - time of 00:25.4891s for a speed of 176.546mph

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5 - Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 00:25.5080s for a speed of 176.415mph

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6 - Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of
7 - Takuma Sato, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Rick Ware Racing
8 - Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport
9 - Josef Newgarden, Team Penske
10 - Devlin DeFrancesco [R], Andretti Steinbrenner

11 - Colton Herta, Andretti Autosport
12 - Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren SP
13 - Callum Ilott [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing
14 - Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing
15 - Dalton Kellett, AJ Foyt Enterprises
16 - Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske
17 - Will Power, Team Penske
18 - Jack Harvey, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
19 - Simon Pagenaud, Meyer Shank Racing
20 - Christian Lundegaard [R], Rahal Letterman Lanigan

21 - Conor Daly, Ed Carpenter Racing
22 - Jimmie Johnson, Chip Ganassi Racing
23 - Kyle Kirkwood [R], AJ Foyt Enterprises
24 - Felix Rosenqvist, Arrow McLaren SP
25 - Rinus VeeKay, Ed Carpenter Racing
26 - Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing

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Notable:

• As with any post-qualifying session, this is hard to read, because we have no idea what each team was trying to accomplish in this session. All we know is that NO ONE was trying to find a qualifying set-up.

• The fast guys in this session will be fast guys in the race, for sure. We just know they won’t be the ONLY fast guys in the race.

• The general consensus of the “Brave 9” was that they were able to improve the 2nd lane. Unfortunately, there may be rain before the race on Saturday which would wash all the rubber they laid down off the track. Time will tell.

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Graham Rahal - TOPS for the P-2 session

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The IndyCar race will be broadcast on Saturday LIVE on the USA network, with concurrent broadcast on Peacock Premium, starting at 6:00pm EASTERN time. The race will likely finish after dusk. This was the last on-track activity of the day.

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UPDATE!!

Because of the possibility of rain, the start of the IndyCar race itself has been MOVED UP. It will now start just after 6:00pm EASTERN time, with broadcast starting as planned, but with no pre-race activities.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Saturday morning at Gateway - Indy Pro 2000 holds practice…

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The IP2K gang will have this one practice session before they qualify.

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Here is the order of speed for the Indy Pro 2000 P-1 practice, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie; time is for 1 lap

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1 - Braden Eves, Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 00:31.8159s for a speed of 141.439mph

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2 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - time of 00:31.8330s for a speed of 141.363mph

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3 - Salvador de Alba [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 00:31.8786s for a speed of 141.161mph

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4 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 00:31.8896s for a speed of 141.112mph

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5 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing - time of 00:32.0792s for a speed of 140.278mph

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6 - Bijoy Garg [R], DEForce Racing
7 - Jordan Missig [R], Pabst Racing
8 - Marcos Flack [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
9 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing
10 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsports

11 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing
12 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing
13 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/ Exclusive Autosport
14 - Trey Burke [R], Turn 3 Motorsports
15 - Lindsay Brewer [R], Exclusive Autosport

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Notable:

• Braden is the defending race champion from 2021. He, Nolan Siegel and Reece Gold are the only guys who have raced here before. We wonder what’s up with Reece, who is very good on ovals? He’s way off the pace.

• Salvador de Alba just completed a race at the Autodromo Potosino at San Luis Potosi in the NASCAR Mexico series about two weeks ago, where he pulled in P4. The track is a 1/2-mile version of Gateway - an egg-shaped oval with two different sized ends! What are the odds? Sal also drives a Mercedes in Gran Turismo Mexico - a well-rounded driver.

• This is a fast field. With the exception of Lindsay Brewer, who has never raced on an oval, the entire field was covered by 0.76 seconds! Even Lindsay is only 1.4 seconds off Braden.

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Sal de Alba and family at San Luis Potosi, two weeks ago

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Braden Eves - TOPS in practice

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Next up, the IP2K gang will qualify for this afternoon’s race…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Saturday midday at Gateway - Indy Pro 2000 is qualified!..

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…for their last oval race of the 2022 season, and we have a new pole sitter for 2022.

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Here is the way Indy Pro 2000 will grid for Season Round 15, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie; time is for 2 laps; speed is the average of those 2 laps.

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Row 1

Pole - Salvador de Alba [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 01:04.9537s for a speed of 138.560mph

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P2 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:05.0091s for a speed of 138.442mph

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Row 2

P3 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 01:05.0937s for a speed of 138.262mph

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P4 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - time of 01:05.3385s for a speed of 137.744mph

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Row 3

P5 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsports - time of 01:05.3800s for a speed of 137.657mph

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P6 - Braden Eves, Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 01:05.4217s for a speed of 137.569mph

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Row 4

P7 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing
P8 - Marcos Flack [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

Row 5

P9 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing
P10 - Bijoy Garg [R], DEForce Racing

Row 6

P11 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/ Exclusive Autosport
P12 - Trey Burke [R], Turn 3 Motorsports

Row 7

P13 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing
P14 - Lindsay Brewer [R], Exclusive Autosport

Row 8

P15 - Jordan Missig [R], Pabst Racing

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Notable:

• This is Salvador’s 1st Road to Indy pole. He has 3 podiums and a WIN this year at Indianapolis. De Alba has karting experience, but this is his first season of formula car racing.

• Jordan Missig spun out on his warm-up lap and hit the Turn 3 / 4 wall hard with the left rear, causing extensive damage. The crew will be hard pressed to repair him in time for the race.

• Jordan’s teammate Yuven Sundaramoorthy also had a very nervous car that was dancing around during his qually laps. Perhaps Pabst Racing had tried a last-minute gambit with their cars that bit both of them, with Jordan bit the hardest.

Jordan Missig

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The 55-lap race is scheduled for 3:15 pm EASTERN time.

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[MarkyS]

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Saturday at Gateway - The Indy Pro 2000 race…

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…was WON going away by pole-sitter Salvador de Alba for Jay Howard Driver Development. Taking P2 in a spirited fight was Nolan Siegel for DEForce Racing from his P4 start while P3 went to Braden Eves for JHDD from a P6 start.

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As Salvador led the field on the opening lap Nolan jumped well from P4 to P2 past Louis Foster for Exclusive Autosport and Reece Gold for Juncos Hollinger. Louie dropped from P3 to P5, but a few laps later recovered P4 from Reece, with Josh Green for Turn 3 Motorsports taking over P3. Braden Eves fell to P8 but recovered to P7 on lap 7, as Louie set Fastest Lap. On lap 8 Sal set Fastest Lap out front as he began to get away. On lap 10 Braden passed Enaam Ahmed for Juncos to take over P6. Eves then set his own Fastest Lap on lap 15, but three laps later Sal reclaimed it.

On lap 19 Braden took P5 from Reece Gold and then reset Fastest Lap on lap 21. By lap 28 Salvador was +3.9 on the field and getting away. A battled for P2, P3 and P4 developed as the three cars closed in on each other. For several laps they were running nose-to-tail and each looking for a way past. On lap 32 Josh Green was able to take P2 from Nolan, but a lap later Nolan took it back. Then, a lap later Josh took P2 AGAIN. Braden was now caught up with Josh, Nolan and Louie to make it a four-car battle. He set Fastest Lap on lap 38 and then did it again on lap 39.

On lap 46 Nolan reclaimed P2 from Josh and opened up a slight gap. Salvador set his own Fastest Lap on lap 47, gapping the field by 7.1 seconds. On lap 50 Josh went too high out of Turn 3 and Braden and Louie passed him for P3 and P4 respectively. For the rest of the race it was a matter of Nolan hanging on to P2. Salvador WON on lap 55 with a gap of 5.94 seconds on Nolan, who was only 0.37 seconds over Braden.

A great WIN out front with a great battle for the rest of the podium honors.

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Notable:

• Salvador’s other WIN at Indianapolis was a P2 that turned into a WIN when Braden Eve’s WINNING car failed post-race tech, so this is Sal’s first on-track WIN in the series and he clearly was the class of the field all weekend.

• Louis Foster came home 4th ahead of Reece Gold in P6, and so added to his points lead. He still hasn’t clinched the title, but he now has a 77-point lead, with 99 points up for grabs at the finales at Portland. There are only four guys left in the mathematical range for the title.

• The real battle now is for Vice-Champion and that one is between veteran Reece Gold and rookie Nolan Siegel, only 9 points away from each other, while Enaam Ahmed in with 22 points of Reece.

• Jordan Missig, who spun during qualifying, was too damaged to start the race.

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Your happy podium - That’s Nolan Siegel in P2 on the left, Salvador de Alba in P1 in the middle and Braden Eves in P3 on the right:

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With this result, here are the TOP FOUR in points leaving St. Louis:

1 - Louis Foster, 377
2 - Reece Gold, 300
3 - Nolan Siegel, 291
4 - Enaam Ahmed, 278

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The triple-header finale weekend for Indy Pro 2000 at Portland will be in support of the IndyCar race, September 1-4. next up, the Indy Lights race. The grid for this is in post # 7…

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[MarkyS]

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Saturday afternoon at Gateway - the Indy Lights race…

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…was WON in a late-race charge by Matthew Brabham for Andretti Autosports from his P3 start. P2 went to Linus Lundqvist for HMD Motorsports from his pole, while P3 went to GRG w/ HMD Motorsports’ Benjamin Pedersen from his P2 start.

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On the 2nd lap of the race Matty got by Benjamin to take over P2 and then glommed onto the tail of Linus Lundqvist, leading from pole. HMD Motorsports’ Danial Frost jumped from his P7 start to P4. On lap 4 Andretti’s Christian Rasmussen and Danail ran the whole lap side-by-side. On lap 5 Christian finally got his nose past Danial and eased into the P4 spot, sending Danial to P5. By lap 6 Linus was 1.2 seconds ahead of Matthew, but not getting any more away.

For many laps the field then stretched out with no passing for position going on. Finally, on lap 40 Rasmussen passed Benjamin to take over the P3 spot but on lap 52 Rasmussen came out of Turn 1 loose and lost the rear end, which slapped the Safer Barrier hard in Turn 2. Christian immediately motored to the pits with terminal damage, out of the race.

For the next 20 laps Matty Brabham inched closer and closer to Linus Lundqvist. By lap 72 Brabham was in position to make his move and he inched inside Lundqvist, taking away his preferred inside line. Brabham took the lead and immediately gapped the Swede by almost a second. Lundqvist tried to recover but ran out of laps as Brabham took the WIN by 0.68 seconds over Lundqvist, who was 10.9 seconds ahead of Pedersen at the line.

A great strategy pays off for a veteran racer.

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Notable:

• Matty and his guys felt they had been robbed of a sure WIN at Iowa Speedway when Linus hit Matty late in the race, allowing Hunter McElrea to motor to the lead and the WIN. This WIN was seen as a vindication, of sorts. This is the 2nd WIN of the year for Brabham.

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Your happy podium - That’s Linus Lundqvist in P2 on the left, matthew Brabham in P1 in the Middle and Bnjamin Pedersen in P3 on the right:

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Matty reacts to the WIN:

INDY NXT

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With this result, here are the TOP THREE in points leaving St. Louis:

1 - Linus Lundqvist, 480
2 - Matthew Brabham, 372
3 - Hunter McElrea, 371

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The next outing for the Indy Lights will be at Portland, September 1-4 in support of the IndyCars.
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UPDATE!!

Because of the possibility of rain, the start of the IndyCar race itself has been MOVED UP. It will now start just after 6:00pm EASTERN time, with broadcast starting as planned, but with no pre-race activities.

[MarkyS]

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Saturday at Gateway - The IndyCar race…WOW!!..WHAT…A…RACE!

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Today’s IndyCar race was another of those races that series fans will be referencing for years to come - Something we have come to expect from the egg-shaped 1.25-mile oval in Madison, Illinois, just across the Mississippi River from the St.Louis Gateway Arch.

Though it took a LOT longer to conclude than usual - made necessary by a rain delay 4/5ths of the way through - it was well worth the wait, as Josef Nicolai Newgarden WON his fifth race of the season and third race in a row at this track for Team Penske, from a P3 start. Coming in P2 in the drive of his career - possibly his WHOLE career - was rookie David Malukas for Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports, from a P12 start. P3 went to Josef’s fellow “Bus Boy” Scott McLaughlin for Team Penske from his P4 start.

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The race was very quick, at first, due to a noticeable absence of full-course cautions. There were but two for the entire race, including one for conditions. Teams were trying to run strategies that counted on the rain coming at one point or another and trying to correctly guess when that would happen. Then, on lap 217 of 260 the rains stopped the proceedings, with Scott McLaughlin leading Newgarden and Pato O’Ward for Arrow McLaren SP at the time. The race could have been called at that point, but IndyCar elected to red flag the race instead, let the rain pass, dry the track and end this monster under the lights for those fans willing to stick it out - and most did. The wait was just over two hours.

We are so glad IndyCar did what they did, as we were treated to a nail-biting, slam-bang finish that saw Newgarden take possession of P1 at the restart, and Pato O’Ward aggressively pass several backmarkers between himself and the two Penskes. But the real treat was watching Malukas take off from P5 and start passing cars to get to the leaders, eventually passing them all with daring moves except for Newgarden. The kid from Chicago was clearly coming on hard, passing McLaugfhlin on the outside on the final lap and heading for Newgarden. He simply ran out of laps.

Will Power ended the day in P6 and was able to keep his points lead - barely. Marcus Ericcson, Scott Dixon and Alex Palou ended their day in P7, P8 and P9 respectively, and stay in touch in the points chase, but all lost a bit to Newgarden who is now in 2nd place, 3 points out. Pato’s P4 finish keeps him static, in 7th place.

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Here are some of the race highlights:

2022 RACE HIGHLIGHTS // BOMMARITO AUTOMOTIVE GROUP 500

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First place Josef Newgarden on the WIN:

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

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Second place David Malukas on his podium

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

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Third place Scott McLaughlin on his podium:

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

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Notable:

• Newgarden has WON at WWTR a total of 4 times - the last three races in a row and his first WIN in 2017. With his 4 WINS at Iowa Raceway included, he is absolutely IndyCar’s best short oval driver in the modern era - the AJ Foyt of his time.

• This is David Malukas’ first IndyCar podium but we know it won’t be the last - maybe not even this season. The kid is strong and smart.

• Mathematically, there are at least 7 guys still in the championship hunt, though it is really down to the TOP FOUR listed below.
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Your happy podium - That’s David Malukas in P2 on the left, Josef Newgarden in P1 in the middle and Scott McLaughlin in P3 on the right:

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With this result, here are the TOP SEVEN in points leaving Gateway:

1 - Will Power, 482
2 - Josef Newgarden, 497 (-3)
3 - Scott Dixon, 468, (-14)
4 - Marcus Ericsson, 465 (-17)
5 - Alex Palou, 439 (-43)
6 - Scott McLaughlin, 428 (-54)
7 - Pato O’Ward, 424 (-58)

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The next outing for the IndyCars is the Grand Prix of Portland, September 1-4. This will also be the season finales event for USF2000 and Indy Pro 2000, as well as Round 12 for Indy Lights.

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Thanks, World Wide Technology Raceway - It was GRAND!

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