2014 Indy 500

After two days of entertaining but hectic qualifications, the 33 starters for the 98th Running of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race turned their attention to Race Day car set-up during a five-hour session on the 2.5-mile oval.

“I feel good about where our cars are in race trim, (but) you can always use one more solid day of practice just to tune on things, get a little better, make sure both myself and (teammate) JR (Hildebrand) are happy,” said Verizon P1 Award winner Ed Carpenter, who logged 49 laps with a fastest of 224.492 mph in the No. 20 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka car.

All 33 starters turned a cumulative total of 2,329. Josef Newgarden, who qualified eighth in the No. 67 Hartman Oil/Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing car, was fastest with a lap of 227.105 mph (39.6292 seconds). Juan Pablo Montoya, who qualified 10th, was second (226.532 mph) in the No. 2 Verizon Team Penske car. Drivers will have a 60-minute race tune-up May 23.

An incident involving Kurt Busch brought out a yellow flag 95 minutes into the session when the No. 26 Suretone car for Andretti Autosport made right-side contact with the Turn 2 SAFER Barrier. Busch was checked at the IU Health Infield Medical Center at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and cleared to drive.

“I was starting to feel comfortable,” said Busch, who had just completed a lap of 223.433 mph (his 56th). “That’s when I made the mistake of just letting my guard down or settling into that long run-type mentality whereas with an Indy car you have to be on edge. I was trying to find that rhythm and pace myself as I would on (Race Day, May 25) and I just got behind on the adjustments on the car.”

Busch, who qualified 12th, will be the fourth driver to attempt the feat of competing in the Indianapolis 500 and a NASCAR race in Concord, N.C., on the same day (and the first since Tony Stewart, who in 2001 completed all 1,100 miles).

SOURCE: Indianapolis Motor Speedway

One of the greatest achievements in the history of off-road racing will occur on Friday, May 23 when the Formula Off-Road Presented by TRAXXAS series competes on the world’s most famous race track – the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The Menards at the Brickyard Formula Off-Road by TRAXXAS race will take place on Coors Light Carb Day in conjunction with Indianapolis 500 Race Weekend. The Stadium Super Trucks will race on a modified course on the front straight of the famed 2.5-mile oval and a portion of the infield road course.

“Coors Light Carb Day is a fan favorite at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway because it combines racing and other entertainment in one afternoon and the addition of the TRAXXAS series to our schedule provides further excitement during the day,” said J. Douglas Boles, Indianapolis Motor Speedway president. “The Stadium Super Trucks race often with the Verizon IndyCar Series and produce an incredibly exciting style of racing everywhere they run and we look forward to seeing them put on a show at IMS.”

The Formula Off-Road Presented by Traxxas series features identically prepared trucks, which are made to resemble their scaled-down TRAXXAS radio-control-car counterparts. Like their TRAXXAS namesake, the trucks are designed to take flight and withstand aggressive driving, however, unlike RC trucks, they produce 600 horsepower generating speeds greater than 130 miles per hour.

The opportunity to race at the Brickyard will also mark the third time in 2014 the TRAXXAS series will race with the Verizon IndyCar Series, and marks the return of series-founder Robby Gordon to competition at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

“My first trip to Indy as a competitor was in 1993 driving for A.J. Foyt,” said Gordon, who is a ten-time Indianapolis 500 competitor and a 12-time Brickyard 400 driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Indianapolis. “I grew up watching Rick Mears, A.J. and others race at the Speedway and dreamed of driving there, but I never imagined we would race off-road trucks at Indy. I have a lot of great memories from Indianapolis and this will be another one added to the list.”

The Menards at the Brickyard Formula Off-Road by TRAXXAS race on Coors Light Carb Day will be broadcast on NBCSN June 13 at midnight EDT. The schedule for Coors Light Carb Day is:

Friday, May 23 – Coors Light Carb Day

• 11:00 a.m. Verizon IndyCar Series Practice
• 12:30 p.m. Indy Lights Freedom 100 Race
• 2:00 p.m. Tag Heuer Pit Stop Competition
• 3:15 p.m. Menards at the Brickyard Formula Off-Road by Traxxas Practice
• 3:30 p.m. Coors Light Carb Day Concert with Sammy Hagar and the Wabos and Sublime With Rome
• 4:40 p.m. Menards at the Brickyard Formula Off-Road by TRAXXAS Race

The Stadium Super Trucks that will race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will hit man-made ramps at more than 100 mph at multiple locations throughout the circuit hurling drivers nearly 20 feet in the air and 150 feet down course. The series was created to bring the excitement of Baja-style desert racing to large crowds of race fans.

The first rounds of the 2014 Formula Off-Road Presented by TRAXXAS series were held at the St. Petersburg Grand Prix and the Long Beach Grand Prix. Both events have produced incredible racing in front of nearly 100,000 fans at each venue.

The franchise format created for the Stadium Super Trucks makes business sense for drivers and marketers given that they don’t have to outspend other teams to be competitive. Each week the series builds, maintains and delivers race-ready trucks to competitors, which eliminates start-up costs and day-to-day overhead of running a team. A driver’s focus is on winning races and delivering for their sponsors. All of which is ultimately a benefit to fans.

SOURCE: Indianapolis Motor Speedway