News for the Week of July 13, 2015 – July 19, 2015

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RHR takes first win of the season at Iowa – Ryan Hunter-Reay continued Andretti Autosport’s dominance at Iowa by winning the Indy Corn 300 for the second consecutive year. Josef Newgarden finished P2 for the second straight year. The rest of the Top 5 was Karam, Rahal, and Munoz. Montoya, Kanaan, and Dixon all suffered incidents placing them at the back of the field. Full results at the link. Relive the race with our live blog here. – INDYCAR – (7/18/2015)

Emotional Chilton grabs first Lights win at Iowa – Carlin’s Max Chilton won the Indy Lights Iowa 115 for his first win in the series on Saturday a day after his former F1 teammate Jules Bianchi passed away. Carlin teammate Ed Jones completed the team sweep in P2. Enerson, Kaiser, and Harvey completed the Top 5. Harvey extended his championship lead as Pigot finished in P8. Full results at the link. – Indy Lights – (7/18/2015)

Helio wins Verizon P1 award at Iowa – Team Penske’s Helio Castroneves won the pole for Saturday’s Iowa Corn 300. Tony Kanaan was fastest in each practice session on Friday but had to settle for P2 to start the race tonight. Milwaukee winner Sebastien Bourdais spun in qualifying and will start last on the grid. Full results at the link. – INDYCAR – (7/18/2015)

Former “Bachelor” star rides two-seater at Iowa – Former “The Bachelor” star Chris Soules rode the INDYCAR Experience two-seater at Iowa Speedway with Conor Daly at the controls on Saturday afternoon. “That was awesome,” Soules exclaimed after stepping out of the race car. “The G forces in those turns is intense. I’m hooked, I want to do it again. Maybe I’ve found a new hobby.” – INDYCAR – (7/18/2015)

Chilton wins the Lights pole at Iowa – Carlin’s Max Chilton won the pole for the Indy Lights race at Iowa Speedway on Saturday over his teammate Ed Jones with a 2 lap average speed of 162.293mph. The Schmidt Peterson Motorsports cars were heavy favorites after dominating practice on Friday but their lead driver Jack Harvey had to settle for P3. Ringel and Anderson complete the Top 5. Spencer Pigot will start in P9. Full results at the link. – Indy Lights – (7/18/2015)

Firestone announces new rain tire – Firestone unveiled and announced a new rain tire for the Verizon IndyCar Series on Saturday. The new tire features a softer compound, new construction, and a gray sidewall. It will be available for the first time at Mid-Ohio. – Firestone Racing – (7/18/2015)

TK and Dixon top the charts again in Practice 2 at Iowa – Tony Kanaan and Scott Dixon had the fastest laps of the session for the second time of the weekend during Practice 2 for the Iowa Corn 300 at Iowa Speedway. The rest of the Top 5 was Power, Pagenaud, and Montoya. Full results at the link. – INDYCAR – (7/17/2015)

TK leads the way in Practice 1 at Iowa – Tony Kanaan had the fastest lap of the first Verizon IndyCar Series practice at Iowa Speedway with a lap of 179.218mph. The rest of the Top 5 was Dixon, Hunter-Reay, Kimball, and Newgarden. Full results at the link. – INDYCAR – (7/17/2015)

Ringel tops the charts in Lights Iowa Practice 2 – Ethan Ringel led Schmidt Peterson Motorsports to another session P1 in Lights Practice 2 at Iowa. The rest of the Top 5 was Anderson, Chilton, Harvey, and Jones. Spencer Pigot was P8. Full results at the link. – Indy Lights – (7/17/2015)

MRTI off-season testing set to be held at COTA, Homestead, and Barber – The Mazda Road to Indy series will hold off-season testing at the Circuit of The Americas on November 21 & 22 as well as Homestead-Miami Speedway on January 25 & 27, and Barber Motorsports Park from March 5-8. “We are excited to announce that our fifth annual Chris Griffis test will take place at COTA and will give our current drivers and newcomers to our series the opportunity to drive this state-of-the-art circuit,” said Dan Andersen, Owner and CEO of Andersen Promotions. “Numerous teams and drivers have used this as a ‘try-out’ and we are pleased to continue to offer this now traditional test.” – Indy Lights – (7/17/2015)

Harvey leads the way in Lights Iowa Practice 1 – Jack Harvey led a Schmidt Peterson Motorsports sweep of the Top 4 in the first Indy Lights practice of the weekend at Iowa on Friday. Fellow championship contenders Spencer Pigot and Ed Jones were P7 and P8. – Indy Lights – (7/17/2015)

ESPNW profile on CGRT’s Kate Gundlach – ESPNW profiled two female engineers in INDYCAR and NASCAR including Chip Ganassi Racing Team’s Kate Gundlach. It’s a very interesting read. “Gundlach, 31, is the only female engineer in the IndyCar series who’s on the timing stand and in contact with the driver throughout a race.” – ESPNW – (7/17/2015)

INDYCAR Iowa preview – INDYCAR’s official preview of an action-packed weekend at Iowa Speedway is a great read as always. The link includes the weekend schedule, special rules fo this weekend, and much more. – INDYCAR – (7/17/2015)

Bourdais feeling great after Milwaukee win – After his win at Milwaukee, Sebastien Bourdais said he’d never been more confident in his abilities on an oval. “I’m 36 years old, and I don’t feel I’ve been any better than I am right now,” said Bourdais. “I’m just hoping it lasts as long as it can.” He’s once again someone to watch as the series heads to Iowa this weekend. – NBC Sports – (7/17/2015)

INDYCAR announces post-Milwaukee infractions – “INDYCAR announced the following post-event infraction and manufacturer championship points updates from the ABC Supply Co. Inc. Wisconsin 250 at Milwaukee IndyFest, which was held July 12 at The Milwaukee Mile: The No. 11 KVSH Racing entry was fined $5,000 for violating Rule 14.3.1.1 of the Verizon IndyCar Series rulebook (Minimum Car Weight).” – INDYCAR – (7/15/2015)

NBCSN Milwaukee telecast most watched since 2011 – NBC racing reporter Nate Ryan reports that the average NBCSN viewership for the Milwaukee race was 532,000. That’s the most for an INDYCAR race on the network since Baltimore on 9/4/11. – Nate Ryan – (7/15/2015)

Cavin Q&A 7/15/15 – The Indianapolis Star’s Curt Cavin’s fan Q&A covers Milwaukee’s attendance and future, INDYCAR fines and penalties, and much more. – Indianapolis Star – (7/15/2015)

Miller’s Mailbag 7/15/15 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (7/15/2015)

Trackside podcast 7/14/15 – Indianapolis’ 1070 The Fan’s popular Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee show from Tuesday night is posted and a great listen as always. The pair recaps the races in Milwaukee, the latest INDYCAR news, and previews this weekend in Iowa. – 1070 The Fan – (7/15/2015)

Iowa entry list and spotter guide published – The official INDYCAR entry list and spotter guides are available for this weekend’s Verizon IndyCar Series Iowa Corn 300. The driver/car combinations will be the same as Milwaukee. New liveries this week for Kanaan (fusion) and Newgarden (Wichita State University). Check them out at the link. – Iowa Entry List / Iowa Spotter Guide – (7/15/2015)

Filippi becomes a father – Luca Filippi and his wife Elisa are new parents after the birth of their daughter Mia on Tuesday. Filippi will be back in the CFH Racing No. 20 when the Verizon IndyCar Series heads to Mid-Ohio in August. – NBC Sports – (7/14/2015)

Pippa posts emotional message after Milwaukee struggles – Pippa Mann posted an emotional message on Instagram after struggling mightily in all sessions this past weekend in Milwaukee. Mann was forced to end in her race early after just 27 laps due to “handling issues”. “It’s nearly 48 hours later, and I am still struggling to find the appropriate words. In the site update I had to write, I used the term “gutted”, but I’m not really sure that even begins to describe it…” Continued at the link. – Pippa Mann – (7/14/2015)

Helio uncertain of his climb until final caution – After not getting a chance to qualify Helio Castroneves put on a show at Milwaukee as he worked his way to the front of the field. After the race he admitted he wasn’t sure where he stood in the standings throughout his charge to the front. “I didn’t know what position I was until lap 220. 218 was the yellow. I glanced in the pagoda, I saw my name up there. Oh, I am doing well! At one point in the race I was by myself. Actually, there was one car. I didn’t know where was everybody. I look in the mirror. Nobody front, nobody. What happened? I must be doing really bad or really good.” – NBC Sports – (7/14/2015)

INDYCAR’s Milwaukee future still unknown – RACER’s Robin Miller reports on the status of INDYCAR returning to Milwaukee after seeing how the event went this past weekend. – RACER – (7/14/2015)

NBCSN gets a 0.42 TV rating for Milwaukee – The ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 drew a 0.42 TV rating on NBCSN on Sunday. – ShowBuzzDaily – (7/13/2015)

AutoZone to serve as associate sponsor for Montoya at Iowa – The No. 2 car of Team Penske will have AutoZone on board as an associate sponsor for the Iowa Corn 300. Championship leader Juan Pablo Montoya will drive the car as usual. – NBC Sports – (7/13/2015)

Milwaukee crowd gives the race a chance for ’16 return – MotorSportsTalk’s Tony DiZinno reports that the crowd in Milwaukee was likely good enough to allow the race to return in 2016. Michael Andretti thought the crowd was decent but expected more due to the weather and schedule. “OK, not great,” Andretti told MotorSportsTalk. “We’ll have to evaluate and make a decision…There’s no excuse there right? I don’t know why the fans don’t come out. I don’t think there’s anywhere you could have gone in town that you didn’t know the race was on. I don’t know.” Race winner Sebastien Bourdais is hoping the race returns: “I hope it keeps going. It’s the oval nobody likes except IndyCar. We don’t need the banking to make exciting racing, unlike other series.” – NBC Sports – (7/13/2015)

Bourdais dominates on the way to Milwaukee win – Sebastien Bourdais rode a dominant second half performance to a win at the ABC Supply Wisconsin 250. The rest of the Top 5 was Castroneves, Rahal, Montoya, and Newgarden. Full results at the link. – INDYCAR – (7/12/2015)

Serralles grabs first Lights win in exciting race at Milwaukee – Belardi Auto Racing’s Felix Serralles grabbed his first Indy Lights win after a late pass on RC Enerson at The Milwaukee Mile. He was joined in the Top 5 by Enerson, Piedrahita, Harvey, and Anderson. Full results here. – NBC Sports – (7/12/2015)

Newgarden wins first career pole at Milwaukee – Josef Newgarden was fastest once again this weekend at Milwaukee and won the pole for the ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 with a 2-lap average of 170.223mph. He was joined in the Top 5 by Briscoe, Karam, Kanaan, and Jakes. Helio Castroneves will start at the back of the field for failing to take his spot in the qualifying line at the proper time. Full results at the link. – INDYCAR – (7/12/2015)

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