Hinchcliffe moves from IndyCar driver to NBC analyst
The media-savvy Canadian will replace countryman Paul Tracy in the booth and call next year’s 17-race schedule alongside Leigh Diffey and Townsend Bell.
The media-savvy Canadian will replace countryman Paul Tracy in the booth and call next year’s 17-race schedule alongside Leigh Diffey and Townsend Bell.
Unser won the Indy 500 in 1970, 1971, 1978 and 1987, and is the only driver in history to have both a sibling and a child also win one of the biggest races in the world.
The two-time Indianapolis 500 winner spent the last four years driving for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing but was not retained for next season.
Romain Grosjean did not commit to ovals when he left Formula One to drive for Dale Coyne Racing in IndyCar this season. But his results and comfort level have been so strong that he’s decided to run the full 2022 season with one of the top teams in the series.
Jenkins, a native of Liberty, Indiana, was heard over five decades on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network, including as chief announcer from 1990 through 1998.
Helio Castroneves, who won his record-tying fourth Indy 500 in May, will return to IndyCar full time next season at the age of 46.
Helio Castroneves this week got a chance to gather with A.J. Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears, the only other drivers to win the Indianapolis 500 four times, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Dr. Richard Bennett’s perfect-attendance mark for the race is a wonder to behold, a feat of devotion likely unmatched by any fan of any sport in any place.
The largest crowd in the world for a sports event showed up in joyous force on Sunday, 135,000 of them packing the stands at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The Brazilian joined A.J. Foyt, Al Unser Sr. and Rick Mears, his former mentor at Team Penske, as the only four-time winners of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Mears was the last driver to join the club in 1991.
Much like NASCAR dealt with its own racial reckoning last year, IndyCar is moving to create a more diverse workforce throughout all levels of a series that has had just two Black drivers race in the Indy 500, its showcase annual event that dates to 1911.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway worked with the Marion County Public Health Department to determine that 40% of venue capacity will be allowed.
The track said on Twitter it has sold 135,000 tickets, which is its capacity limit under COVID-19 restrictions.
IndyCar’s current deal with NBC Sports is in its final season and contract negotiations are unclear. There have been reports Penske will take a higher rights fee from a new partner and that NBC has fallen out of the running on a renewal.
There has been a seismic shift in IndyCar this season with an authoritative arrival of a brand new wave of drivers. They are kids in this series alongside six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon, considered the greatest driver of his generation.
Scott Dixon slammed the brakes on IndyCar’s current youth movement by winning his fourth Indianapolis 500 pole by a mere 0.03 seconds on Sunday.
Will Power, one of the greatest qualifiers in IndyCar history, failed to seal his spot in the 33-car field on Saturday’s first day of qualifications at the Indianapolis 500. Power’s misfortune was the worst of Team Penske’s struggles.
IndyCar at the end of the session announced Takuma Sato, Graham Rahal and Santino Ferrucci will all be parked for the first 30 minutes of Friday’s critical practice, when the engine power is boosted and teams get their first true look at their speeds ahead of qualifying.
Conor Daly and Ed Carpenter were among the fastest drivers Wednesday at Indianapolis 500 practice. Both are from Indianapolis with deep ties to Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The collaboration with Undefeated, a popular L.A.-based designer in sneaker and streetwear culture, aims for a younger, hotter demographic.