News for the Week of July 16 – July 22, 2018

RLL announces No. 15 car to have Fifth Third Bank livery at Mid-Ohio – “Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) announced today that Fifth Third Bank will be the primary sponsor of Graham Rahal’s Verizon IndyCar Series entry at the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on July 29. It is the home race for Rahal, who grew up in nearby New Albany, Ohio as well as the home race for the team, who have a race shop in Hilliard, Ohio.” Full release at the link. See the livery on our No. 15 livery page here. – RLL – (7/19/2018)

Trackside podcast 7/18/18 – 1070 The Fan’s Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee radio show from 7/18/18 is a great listen as always. – 1070 The Fan – (7/19/2018)

Report: Wickens fastest in Mid-Ohio testing – RACER’s Marshall Pruett reports Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ Robert Wickens was fastest in Verizon IndyCar Series testing at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Tuesday. Full story and unofficial results at the link. – RACER – (7/18/2018)

Sonoma President has interesting quotes on INDYCAR departure – Sonoma Raceway President and General Manager Steve Page has some interesting quotes on INDYCAR’s deal with WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca and subsequent departure from Sonoma Raceway in an article by Lori Carter of The Press Democrat. “From a quarter-million-dollar loss to renting the track for six figures to someone, it will contribute to our bottom line in a positive way,” Page told The Press Democrat. “We love promoting races. We enjoy hosting an IndyCar race. It’s just not an economically viable business.” Full story and more quotes at the link. – The Press Democrat – (7/18/2018)

Miller’s Mailbag 7/18/18 – RACER’s Robin Miller’s weekly fan Q&A is a great read as always. – RACER – (7/18/2018)

INDYCAR officially announces Laguna Seca as venue for ’19 finale – “INDYCAR and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca announced that the historic Northern California road course with deep Indy car roots will return to the schedule in 2019. The three-year agreement, approved today by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors overseeing operation of the facility, calls for Laguna Seca to be the host site of the final race of the 2019 Verizon IndyCar Series season. Next year’s race weekend will be Sept. 20-22. The remainder of the series schedule will be announced later.” Full release at the link. – INDYCAR – (7/17/2018)

Fittipaldi back testing with Coyne at Mid-Ohio – Dale Coyne Racing has announced Pietro Fittipaldi is back testing with the team in a Verizon IndyCar Series test at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Tuesday. See the pictures from the team at the link. – Dale Coyne Racing – (7/17/2018)

Herta takes responsibility for Marco’s fuel shortage – Motorsport.com’s David Malsher reports Bryan Herta and his team have taken the responsibility for the fuel shortage that led to Marco Andretti pitting from P4 late at the Honda Indy Toronto over the weekend. “At the second stop [Lap 56 of the 85-lap race] we didn’t get the car full,” Herta told Motorsport.com. “We thought we had enough fuel but we didn’t fill it up and it was total a mistake from our side of the equation. We didn’t know we were going to run out of fuel until we ran out of fuel, when Marco got the light on the dash telling him he was on the collector tank.” Full story at the link. – Motorsport.com – (7/17/2018)

Toronto promoters expect three-day attendance over 125,000 – Honda Indy Toronto event president Jeff Atkinson told the Toronto Sun he expected three-day attendance for the event to be over 125,000 spectators. Full story at the link. – Toronto Sun – (7/16/2018)

Franzoni explains start and park on Sunday in Toronto – Victor Franzoni explained his shortened sessions in Indy Lights qualifying and Race 2 on Sunday in an Instagram post on Sunday night. Franzoni goes into detail to explain that he did not and does not have a crash budget and he wasn’t in the right frame of mind to risk further damage on Sunday on the narrow Streets of Toronto circuit. Full post at the link. – Victor Franzoni – (7/16/2018)

Dixon wins the Honda Indy Toronto – Chip Ganassi Racing Teams’ Scott Dixon won the Honda Indy Toronto on the Streets of Toronto on a day where his fellow championship contenders struggled to extend his championship lead to 62 points. The rest of the Top 5 was Pagenaud, Wickens, Hinchcliffe, and Kimball. Defending champion Newgarden crashed from the lead on a restart but recovered to finish P9. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (7/15/2018)

Urrutia dominates Lights Race 2 for win at Toronto – Belardi Auto Racing’s Santiago Urrutia led from start to finish to win Indy Lights Race 2 on the Streets of Toronto. The rest of the Top 5 was O’Ward, Telitz, Norman, and Kellett. Herta and Franzoni each retired early with issues. Full results here. – Indy Lights – (7/15/2018)

Newgarden takes the pole at Toronto – Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden won the pole for the Honda Indy Toronto on the Streets of Toronto with a lap of 59.4956. The rest of the Firestone Fast 6 was Dixon, Pagenaud, Power, Rossi, and Hunter-Reay. Full results here. – INDYCAR – (7/14/2018)

O’Ward wins Lights Race 1 at Toronto as Herta crashes out – Andretti Autosport’s Patricio O’Ward won Indy Lights Race 1 on the Streets of Toronto in dominant fashion leading every lap. The rest of the Top 5 was Urruita, Norman, Telitz, and Kellett. Former championship leader and pole sitter Colton Herta got off to a slow start and later crashed from P2 as his hand slipped off the wheel while nursing a hand injury suffered in qualifying. O’Ward now leads the championship. Full results here. – Indy Lights – (7/14/2018)

Detroit GP organizers issue statement on their future at Belle Isle – “This morning, the Detroit Grand Prix submitted a formal proposal to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to continue hosting the annual motorsports event at Belle Isle Park. The proposal includes a three-year agreement to continue the Grand Prix on Belle Isle, beginning in 2019, with an additional two-year extension option. Additional key elements of the proposal include a 50% increase in the annual fee to host the race on the island to $300,000, along with yearly contributions of $50,000 to the Michigan DNR for targeted island improvement initiatives and $35,000 for projects and programming in the paddock area on Belle Isle. The Grand Prix will also continue to minimize its overall time spent on Belle Isle.” Full release at the link. – Detroit Grand Prix – (7/13/2018)

INDYCAR on the verge of Laguna Seca return for ’19 – From WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca: “Stay tuned for a blockbuster announcement on Tuesday 7/17 (2pm) at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Following the anticipated approval of Monterey County Board of Supervisors, @IndyCar will return to Monterey in 2019!” UPDATE: Sonoma Raceway President and General Manager Steve Page has issued a statement indicating Sonoma Raceway would be off the calendar if Laguna Seca was on it. – WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca – (7/13/2018)

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