It's the 97th season of America's premier open-wheel racing championship and it returns with a new look car. The series will be returning to Portland Raceway for the first time since 2007. This season might just be the most competitive one yet, with the new aerokit promoting more overtaking and several new drivers entering the field hoping to challenge the old hands.
Race Replay:
Round 9 of 17:
Where to watch?
All races are available on demand on the official Youtube channel a few days after every event.
Practice and qualifying sessions are streamed for free at the live timing and scoring page:
http://racecontrol.indycar.com/
For live coverage:
USA - ABC, NBCSN
Canada - Sportsnet
UK - BT Sport
Radio - IMS Radio Network
The Race Calendar:
Championship Standings:
As of round 9 of 17:
The Car:
All teams and drivers drive the Dallara DW12 powered by either a Chevrolet or a Honda engine. The engines are twin turbo 2.2L V6 producing up to 675 horsepower, depending on the track. On road courses, drivers can use a push-to-pass button giving them a boost of 60 horsepower. The cars can be configured in an oval configuration or a road course configuration. All cars and teams use spec Firestone tires. On road courses, teams can use a primary tire compound and an alternate tire compound. The alternate red sidewalled tires provide better grip at the expense of tire life.
New for 2018 is the introduction of a universal aerokit, meant to evoke memories of the late90s/early 00s CART cars. The new aerokit produces most of the downforce in the undertray, resulting in slower cornering speeds but higher top end speed in comparison to last year. It also has an added effect of reducing dirty air, allowing a car to more easily follow and overtake another.
Oval configuration:
Road course configuration:
Full-Time Teams and Drivers:
A.J. Foyt Enterprises (Chevrolet)
Driver Power Ranking: Kanaan (B-), Leist (?)
Team Power Ranking: (D)
Owned by four-time Indy 500 winner, 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, Daytona 500 winner and the winningest IndyCar driver in history, A.J. Foyt. Foyt's team hasn't quite lived up to its namesake ever since his retirement from racing, frequently taking up the rear of the field. However, this year brings a new Brazilian driving duo of veteran Tony Kanaan and rookie Matheus Leist. Tony Kanaan is entering his 20th year of IndyCar racing. His best years are behind him, with one championship win back in 2004. However, he can be counted on to bring in consistent results and mentor his young compatriot. Matheus Leist won the British Formula 3 championship before moving state-side to compete in the Indy Lights championship last year. He managed 4th in the championship and feels ready to move up to the big cars this year.
Andretti Autosport (Honda)
Driver Power Ranking: Andretti (C-), Hunter-Reay (B), Rossi (B+), Veach (?)
Team Power Ranking: (B+)
Owned and managed by former IndyCar driver Michael Andretti. This team is just below the powerhouses of Penske and Ganassi, but are very strong at the Indy 500. The All-American lineup includes 3 returnees and a rookie in Zach Veach. Marco Andretti is the son of Michael Andretti and grandson of legend Mario Andretti. Unfortunately, Marco is not nearly as talented. Thanks to nepotism, he can look forward to keeping his job at Andretti Autosport for the rest of his mediocre career. However, Indy is the one track that he can perform well on. Alexander Rossi is the last American to drive in F1, he made the move state-side when he couldn't secure enough funding to retain his Manor F1 seat. He hasn't regretted that decision, as he won the 2016 Indy 500 in his first try, the first American rookie to do so since 1928. Ryan Hunter-Reay is the 2012 series champion and can be counted on to deliver consistent results.
Carlin Motorsport (Chevrolet)
Driver Power Ranking: Chilton (C-), Kimball (D)
Team Power Ranking: (?)
Successful European junior series team owner Trevor Carlin is making his first foray into a top level open-wheel series. Unable to draw away more talented European drivers away from their F1 aspirations, Carlin has to make due with not one, but two paydrivers. The pair of Chilton and Kimball represent possibly the worst driving duo seen in years. Former F1 racer Chilton can at least be counted on to bring the car back in one piece. Kimball has an unfortunate tendency to get in other drivers' way.
Chip Ganassi Racing (Honda)
Driver Power Ranking: Dixon (A), Jones (C+)
Team Power Ranking: (A)
One of the two top dogs in IndyCar, Chip Ganassi Racing along with rival Team Penske dominate the sport. Chip Ganassi has fielded many championship winning cars in his 20+ years in the sport. This year, with the loss of Max Chilton and Charlie Kimball to Carlin, Ganassi is only fielding two cars. Scott Dixon has 41 career race victories and four championships under his belt. "The Iceman" is one of IndyCar's best drivers of all time. Consistently battling for victory, watch for him to contend for a 5th championship. The first Emirati IndyCar driver, Ed Jones joins Ganassi after winning the 2017 Rookie of the Year award (being the only full-time rookie in the field). However, that isn't to say he is untalented. He won the 2016 Indy Lights championship, and came close to victory in the 2017 Indy 500.
Dale Coyne Racing (Honda)
Driver Power Ranking: Bourdais (B+), Claman DeMelo (?), Fittipaldi (?)
Team Rower Ranking: (C+)
Infamous for employing only ridebuyers in years past, Dale Coyne has started to hire drivers based on merit. As a result, his team has made quite the turnaround from being a backmarker team. Unfortunately this year, Dale Coyne returns to his paydriver employing ways with two of them sharing the same car throughout the season. Sebastien Bourdais won four straight championships in the former Champ Car series from 2004 to 2007. As a result, he signed on with Red Bull and Toro Rosso to race in F1. Unfortunately, he happened to be teammates with future four-time Formula 1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel. After being shown the door by Red Bull and competing at Le Mans with the factory Peugeot team, Bourdais returned to American open-wheel racing in 2011. No longer at a top team, Bourdais has nonetheless achieved several race victories since his return. Zachary Claman DeMelo and Pietro Fittipaldi has had uninspiring junior careers. However they both bring money to fund a drive for a season but apparently not enough for two separate cars. As a result, they will be splitting time in the same car throughout the season.
Ed Carpenter Racing (Chevrolet)
Driver Power Ranking: Carpenter (Ovals: B+, Road/Street Courses: F), King (?), Pigot (C+)
Team Power Ranking: (C)
Owned and managed by driver Ed Carpenter, this team particularly performs well on ovals. The stepson of Tony George (the man who nearly destroyed IndyCar racing), Ed Carpenter is a stereotypical American race car driver who literally can only turn left as he refuses to drive on road courses and street circuits. Carpenter however, is quite good at only turning left. Driving the road courses and street circuits in the #20 is Jordan King. A former F1 test driver, King spent the last few years in the midfield of the Formula 2/GP2 championship. Driving the road courses for Carpenter, King hopes to land a full-time ride in 2019. Spencer Pigot has a successful junior career in the States including winning the 2014 Pro Mazda championship and the 2015 Indy Lights title. However he hasn't been able to translate that into a full-time drive. This year is his first full season and he hopes to show the rest of the grid what he's capable of.
Harding Racing (Chevrolet)
Driver Power Ranking: Chaves (C)
Team Power Ranking: (?)
Harding Racing is an Indianapolis startup entering full-time motorsports for the first time. They have chosen 2014 Indy Lights Champion Gabby Chaves for their inaugural season. Chaves hasn't had a full-time ride since 2015, competing in one-off races for the past few years. However, he has shown that he is capable of achieving the pace to race up front.
Juncos Racing (Chevrolet)
Driver Power Ranking: Binder (?), Kaiser (?)
Team Power Ranking: (?)
Another new team entering the series full-time, Juncos Racing is a successful team in the Mazda Road to Indy junior ladder. The team captured championships in the Pro Mazda and Indy Lights Series and decided the next step is to take on the IndyCar Series. They are fielding a single car being shared by Rene Binder and Kyle Kaiser. Rene Binder is a recurring driver in the European junior scene. His career in Europe is in a rut due to lacklustre results. Kyle Kaiser is the 2017 Indy Lights champion and is stepping up to IndyCar in select races.
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (Honda)
Driver Power Ranking: Rahal (A-), Sato (B+)
Team Power Ranking: (B)
A team with a long history in IndyCar, but not quite as successful as the top dogs. RLL is co-owned by former driver Bobby Rahal, former Late Show host David Letterman and businessman Mike Lanigan. Graham Rahal is the son of three-time series champion Bobby Rahal. Unlike Marco Andretti, Graham Rahal actually has talent and wasn't given the race seat by his father. In 2007, Rahal at age 18 was the youngest driver to debut in American open-wheel racing. He raced for various teams while becoming the youngest race winner in IndyCar history at age 19 before being hired by his father in 2013. Frequently among the Honda frontrunners, Rahal is just on the cusp of a championship. Another former F1 driver, Takuma Sato has a reputation of being fast but sometimes pushing too hard and crashing. His motto best describes his driving style: "No attack, no chance". He hasn't changed his driving style much when he joined the IndyCar series resulting in a lot of work for mechanics and large bills from Dallara. However, he cemented himself in racing history after a thrilling victory in the 2017 Indy 500.
Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (Honda)
Driver Power Ranking: Hinchcliffe (B-), Wickens (?)
Team Power Ranking: (B-)
Managed by former IndyCar driver Sam Schmidt. After a testing crash in 2000 rendered him quadriplegic, Schmidt made the transition from driver to team owner competing in the Indy Lights series. His team moved up to the IndyCar series and achieved sporadic success. The self-proclaimed mayor of "Hinchtown", James Hinchcliffe is a fan-favourite with a large internet presence. He is the 2011 IndyCar rookie of the year and finished second in season 23 of "Dancing with the Stars". After nearly dying in a 2015 Indy 500 practice crash, Hinchcliffe made a triumphant return the next year to put the car on pole. He has a few race victories but never found enough consistency to ever seriously challenge for the championship. Robert Wickens had a promising junior career in Europe as a member of the Red Bull Junior team. However his F1 dreams ended when Red Bull let him go and since then made a career for himself in the German DTM series. He returns to North America and will race in an open-wheel car for the first time in years.
Team Penske (Chevrolet)
Driver Power Ranking: Newgarden (A), Pagenaud (A), Power (A-)
Team Power Ranking: (S)
Roger Penske is a veritable juggernaut in the racing world. His operations span the globe having competed in IndyCar, NASCAR, Le Mans, Formula 1 and V8 Supercars. To race for Team Penske is both an honour and a privilege, as his team's expertise have led to 13 IndyCar championships and 15 Indy 500 victories. Roger Penske does not mess around and only hires the best drivers available. Indeed, this years driver lineup consists entirely of IndyCar champions. Team Penske, along with rival Chip Ganassi Racing, are perennial contenders for the championship. The reigning IndyCar Series champion, Josef Newgarden is America's newest breakout star of IndyCar. He achieved a championship title in his first year racing for Roger Penske. Simon Pagenaud is the 2016 IndyCar champion and is an ace road course driver, however he can hold his own on the ovals as well. Another road course ace, Will Power is the 2014 IndyCar champion. Not quite as good on the ovals as his contemporaries, Power is nonetheless a very capable driver. Power is also well-known for his outbursts of emotion, some of which include: calling another driver a "wanker", flipping the double birds at the race director and shoving an attending medical worker.
Preseason Hype Video:
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