| February 2015 News |
Legends Day Concert Announced
Feb 9 - The speedway is holding a big
country music concert on Legends Day,
Saturday May 23rd, the day before the Indy
500.
2014 was the first time for this event.
Jason Aldean was the headliner.
This is also the only music concert held at
the Indy Speedway with a cover charge.
Warm-up acts this year include Thomas
Rhett and Frankie Ballard. The main act
is Florida Georgia Line.
Tickets are $40 ($35 for Indy 500 ticket
holders.) Access to the Firestone Concert
Pit near the front of the stage is available for
$75.
Feb 9 - The speedway is holding a big
country music concert on Legends Day,
Saturday May 23rd, the day before the Indy
500.
2014 was the first time for this event.
Jason Aldean was the headliner.
This is also the only music concert held at
the Indy Speedway with a cover charge.
Warm-up acts this year include Thomas
Rhett and Frankie Ballard. The main act
is Florida Georgia Line.
Tickets are $40 ($35 for Indy 500 ticket
holders.) Access to the Firestone Concert
Pit near the front of the stage is available for
$75.
| RACE NEWS & VIEWS |
| Most recent news is at bottom of page. |
NASCAR Changes
Feb 17 - Driver Carl Edwards is switching teams,
from Roush Fenway Racing to Joe Gibbs Racing. He
will be replaced at Roush by Trevor Bayne.
Marcos Ambrose has back to Australia to compete in
V8 Supercars. His drive at Richard Petty Motorsports
will be filled by 2006 Indy 500 winner Sam Hornish,
Jr.
NASCAR is installing cameras in the pit boxes and
moving the pitlane officials to a trailer where they will
monitor the video and make judgements from there.
This is likely to make their job more efficient, i.e.
more pitlane violations will be recognized.
Several changes have been made to the cars:
* Rear spoiler reduced from 8 to 6 inches in height
* Horsepower cut from 850 to 725 via reduced
airflow to intake.
* Drivers will be able to make chassis adjustments
from the cockpit.
Feb 17 - Driver Carl Edwards is switching teams,
from Roush Fenway Racing to Joe Gibbs Racing. He
will be replaced at Roush by Trevor Bayne.
Marcos Ambrose has back to Australia to compete in
V8 Supercars. His drive at Richard Petty Motorsports
will be filled by 2006 Indy 500 winner Sam Hornish,
Jr.
NASCAR is installing cameras in the pit boxes and
moving the pitlane officials to a trailer where they will
monitor the video and make judgements from there.
This is likely to make their job more efficient, i.e.
more pitlane violations will be recognized.
Several changes have been made to the cars:
* Rear spoiler reduced from 8 to 6 inches in height
* Horsepower cut from 850 to 725 via reduced
airflow to intake.
* Drivers will be able to make chassis adjustments
from the cockpit.
New Chevy Aero-kits for IndyCar
Feb 17 - Chevrolet-powered racecars in the 2015
Verizon IndyCar Series will feature Chevrolet-
developed aero packages.
Chevrolet introduced the road course/short oval body
design today at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is
distinguished from the previous racecar with new front
wing elements, sculpted side pods and a new rear wing.
A speedway configuration for the aero kit, designed for
high-speed ovals, will be introduced ahead of its
competitive debut at Indianapolis in May.
"This is an important milestone in Chevrolet's
involvement in IndyCar racing," said Jim Campbell,
General Motors U.S. vice president of Performance
Vehicles and Motorsports. "We focused on developing
an aerodynamic package that delivers an balanced
combination of downforce and drag, along with
integrated engine performance. It's a total performance
package."
The new Chevy road course aero configuration
delivers greater aerodynamic performance than the
previous design.
"This new aero kit provides Chevrolet drivers the
capability to enter and exit corners faster, while
maintaining high speeds on the straights," said Chris
Berube, Chevrolet IndyCar program manager.
Feb 17 - Chevrolet-powered racecars in the 2015
Verizon IndyCar Series will feature Chevrolet-
developed aero packages.
Chevrolet introduced the road course/short oval body
design today at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is
distinguished from the previous racecar with new front
wing elements, sculpted side pods and a new rear wing.
A speedway configuration for the aero kit, designed for
high-speed ovals, will be introduced ahead of its
competitive debut at Indianapolis in May.
"This is an important milestone in Chevrolet's
involvement in IndyCar racing," said Jim Campbell,
General Motors U.S. vice president of Performance
Vehicles and Motorsports. "We focused on developing
an aerodynamic package that delivers an balanced
combination of downforce and drag, along with
integrated engine performance. It's a total performance
package."
The new Chevy road course aero configuration
delivers greater aerodynamic performance than the
previous design.
"This new aero kit provides Chevrolet drivers the
capability to enter and exit corners faster, while
maintaining high speeds on the straights," said Chris
Berube, Chevrolet IndyCar program manager.
In all, there are 100 different parts.
"We took a clean-sheet approach to the aero kit,
delivering an optimized and efficient design that should
really give our Chevrolet teams an edge," said Berube.
The road course configuration's changes over the 2014
DW12 aero package are easily identified by major
components, including:
- Front wing that features new pedestal-mounted "front
uppers" toward the outer edges
- New sculpted "wheel wedges" in front of the rear tires
- An engine cover and side pods that have more
compact shapes, achieved through a revised turbo
charger and exhaust system layout
- New larger rear bumper pods
- A multi-element upper rear wing, along with louvered
end plates.
Chevy plans to reveal a speedway configuration for the
aero kit - sidepods remain the same for all circuits -
before its competitive debut at IMS in May. For
short-oval races, teams will mix aero eleents from both
the road-course and speedway packages.
The all-new Chevrolet racecars will compete for the
first time on March 29 at the Firestone Grand Prix of
St. Petersburg, Fla.
Honda will also be introducing their own aero-package
soon.
"We took a clean-sheet approach to the aero kit,
delivering an optimized and efficient design that should
really give our Chevrolet teams an edge," said Berube.
The road course configuration's changes over the 2014
DW12 aero package are easily identified by major
components, including:
- Front wing that features new pedestal-mounted "front
uppers" toward the outer edges
- New sculpted "wheel wedges" in front of the rear tires
- An engine cover and side pods that have more
compact shapes, achieved through a revised turbo
charger and exhaust system layout
- New larger rear bumper pods
- A multi-element upper rear wing, along with louvered
end plates.
Chevy plans to reveal a speedway configuration for the
aero kit - sidepods remain the same for all circuits -
before its competitive debut at IMS in May. For
short-oval races, teams will mix aero eleents from both
the road-course and speedway packages.
The all-new Chevrolet racecars will compete for the
first time on March 29 at the Firestone Grand Prix of
St. Petersburg, Fla.
Honda will also be introducing their own aero-package
soon.
IndyCar Driver Changes
Feb 17 - James Hinchcliffe has left Andretti Autosport
and headed over to Sam Schmidt's team. Andretti has
not yet found a replacement.
James Jakes returns to the series, also joining Schmidt
Peterson Motorsports (SPM). He was let go from
RHL when they scaled down to one car in 2013.
During testing at Sebring last week, Conor Daly tested
for SPM, and it was thought that he would be SPM's
new driver.
Mikhail Aleshin, who drove for SPM last year, is
leaving IndyCar and going to the FIA World Endurance
Championship. He suffered a serious injury in a crash
before the season finale at Fontana .
SPM lost their star driver, Simon Pagenaud, to Penske
Racing, who apparently is adding a 4th car.
Not only has Ed Carpenter had to deal with the merger
of his team with Sarah Fisher Lanigan Racing, he had to
find a new road course specialist to replace Mike
Conway who left for the FIA World Endurance
Championship. Carpenter has chosen Luca Filippi.
The Italian raced in the Duals in Houston and Toronto
last year for RLL as well as four IndyCar races in 2013.
Jack Hawksworth is moving from Bryan Herta
Autosport to A.J. Foyt Enterprises. Replacing him at
BHA is Indy Lights champion Gabby Chaves.
2013 Indy Lights champion Sage Karam will return to
an Indy car at the season opener in St. Pete., driving for
Ganassi.
Feb 17 - James Hinchcliffe has left Andretti Autosport
and headed over to Sam Schmidt's team. Andretti has
not yet found a replacement.
James Jakes returns to the series, also joining Schmidt
Peterson Motorsports (SPM). He was let go from
RHL when they scaled down to one car in 2013.
During testing at Sebring last week, Conor Daly tested
for SPM, and it was thought that he would be SPM's
new driver.
Mikhail Aleshin, who drove for SPM last year, is
leaving IndyCar and going to the FIA World Endurance
Championship. He suffered a serious injury in a crash
before the season finale at Fontana .
SPM lost their star driver, Simon Pagenaud, to Penske
Racing, who apparently is adding a 4th car.
Not only has Ed Carpenter had to deal with the merger
of his team with Sarah Fisher Lanigan Racing, he had to
find a new road course specialist to replace Mike
Conway who left for the FIA World Endurance
Championship. Carpenter has chosen Luca Filippi.
The Italian raced in the Duals in Houston and Toronto
last year for RLL as well as four IndyCar races in 2013.
Jack Hawksworth is moving from Bryan Herta
Autosport to A.J. Foyt Enterprises. Replacing him at
BHA is Indy Lights champion Gabby Chaves.
2013 Indy Lights champion Sage Karam will return to
an Indy car at the season opener in St. Pete., driving for
Ganassi.
| James Jakes |
| James Hinchcliffe |
FIA's New Superlicense Rule
Feb 20 - Susie Wolff is unconcerned by the FIA’s new
criteria for acquiring a super licence required to race in
Formula 1 as she bids to become the first woman to
make a full F1 start since Lella Lombardi in 1976.
(She is also married to Toto Wolff, the Sporting
Director at the Mercedes F1 team.)
Photos of Susie Wolff
For 2015, she has been promoted to the role of test
driver for Williams, taking part in pre-season testing
yesterday in Barcelona for the British team.
Feb 20 - Susie Wolff is unconcerned by the FIA’s new
criteria for acquiring a super licence required to race in
Formula 1 as she bids to become the first woman to
make a full F1 start since Lella Lombardi in 1976.
(She is also married to Toto Wolff, the Sporting
Director at the Mercedes F1 team.)
Photos of Susie Wolff
For 2015, she has been promoted to the role of test
driver for Williams, taking part in pre-season testing
yesterday in Barcelona for the British team.
However, her hopes of making a full grand prix start in
the future appeared to be dashed when the FIA
announced in January that it was overhauling the
process for obtaining a super licence that is required to
race in F1.
Under the new system, drivers are awarded points
depending on their finishing position in other
championships. A score of 40 is required over three
years in established series such as GP2, GP3 and
IndyCar.
As a result, Wolff will be ineligible for a super licence
given that her most recent competitive season came in
2012 when she finished 22nd in the DTM champion-
ship, a series that does not score points under this
system.
the future appeared to be dashed when the FIA
announced in January that it was overhauling the
process for obtaining a super licence that is required to
race in F1.
Under the new system, drivers are awarded points
depending on their finishing position in other
championships. A score of 40 is required over three
years in established series such as GP2, GP3 and
IndyCar.
As a result, Wolff will be ineligible for a super licence
given that her most recent competitive season came in
2012 when she finished 22nd in the DTM champion-
ship, a series that does not score points under this
system.
Where Are These Drivers in 2015?
Oriol Servia, Ryan Briscoe, Sebastian Saavedra
Oriol Servia, Ryan Briscoe, Sebastian Saavedra
