Team Penske is guaranteed to have the 2016 Verizon IndyCar Series champion driver. The powerhouse operation celebrating its 50th anniversary in racing is also looking to close the season in dominating fashion at the GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma.
Penske drivers Helio Castroneves, Will Power and Simon Pagenaud set the pace in the opening day of practice for Sunday's 85-lap race on the Sonoma Raceway 2.385-mile permanent road course. Castroneves posted today's quickest lap in the last of two practice sessions, at 1 minute, 16.6678 seconds (111.990 mph) in the No. 3 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet. It is less than a half-second off the track record set by Power a year ago.
"I love racing at Sonoma and the Hitachi Chevy was great today," said Castroneves, the 2008 Sonoma race winner. "We had a really good test here last week and that certainly helped today.
"Some things were different on the track and the wind had changed from the test, but the consistency we had in the car helped us get the most out of the practice," continued Castroneves, who hasn't celebrated a victory in more than two years - 43 starts ago at Belle Isle in 2014. "It's good to be on top, but you don't get any points for leading practice. We have to keep pushing to stay on top. It's going to be a great day on Sunday for Team Penske and we want to end the season right: with a win."
Power was second on the time sheet at 1:16.7072 (111.932 mph) in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet, with Pagenaud third at 1:16.9757 (111.542 mph) in the No. 22 Hewlett Packard Enterprise Chevrolet. Pagenaud and Power are the only drivers mathematically eligible for the 2016 championship, with Pagenaud holding a 43-point advantage. The Sonoma race pays double points, with a maximum of 104 available including bonus points.
"I think we're both experienced enough to realize that, at the end of the day, it's going to be what it's going to be out on the track," said Power, the 2014 series champion. "We have a realistic shot this weekend. Everything's got to fall into place."
Andretti Autosport showed impressive results with all four of its drivers finishing in the top 11. Ryan Hunter-Reay (No. 28 DHL Honda) was fourth at 1:17.0569 (111.424 mph) and Alexander Rossi (No. 98 Castrol Edge/Curb Honda) fifth at 1:17.0817 (111.388 mph).
"It was a positive day overall," Hunter-Reay said. "I think we left some time on the table. We know where we have some imbalances to sort out tonight to come back and start Practice 3 and carry on into a qualifying effort.
"It's a good platform to start from - we're P4 right now and it's encouraging for the DHL team. We've finished second here for the last two years in a row, so we're really hoping to climb one more step up that podium this weekend."
Practice resumes at 2 p.m. ET Saturday (streamed live on RaceControl.IndyCar.com), with a delayed NBCSN telecast at 5 p.m. Verizon P1 Award knockout qualifying airs live at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN and the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network. Coverage of the season-concluding GoPro Grand Prix of Sonoma starts at 6:30 p.m. ET Sunday on NBCSN and the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network.
Hinchcliffe takes 'Dancing with the Stars' partner for spin on his dance floor
James Hinchcliffe impressed the judges with his foxtrot on the "Dancing with the Stars" Season 23 premiere earlier this week. Today at Sonoma Raceway, the Schmidt Peterson Motorsports driver impressed Sharna Burgess, his professional dance partner, with a breathtaking ride around the road course in the INDYCAR Experience two-seat Indy car.
"I completely terrified myself going into this experience," Burgess said after exiting the two-seater with a wide grin. "I just didn't know what to expect - 165 mph is a lot faster than I've ever gone and probably ever will go.
"My legs felt like jelly, and I kind of felt like everything else was moving in slow motion after going that fast. It was an indescribable feeling. ... I knew I was in safe hands with James, but at the same time, you can't expect what that's going to feel like. But two turns in, I was thinking, 'This is amazing!'"
Hinchcliffe and Burgess tied for the highest combined judges' score during Monday's ABC broadcast. Burgess came to Sonoma with Hinchcliffe so the pair could get in more workouts in preparation for their second performance, a Latin dance, during the Sept. 19 live episode.
"I think it's amazing that James came into 'Dancing with the Stars,' as, A, someone not all of our fans knew about and, B, no one really expected anything from him. And he came in Week 1 and blew everyone away.
"Now a lot more people know his name and he has built a fan base already for himself and Indy. I think everyone is realizing, Helio (Castroneves) came on and won (in 2007) and James is already killing it in Week 2. There's something about these INDYCAR drivers."
Pagenaud, Power drive Indy cars on San Francisco's Embarcadero
Before they began their battle to decide the Verizon IndyCar Series championship at Sonoma Raceway, Will Power and Simon Pagenaud joined forces to bring excitement to nearby San Francisco.
The championship-contending duo drove their Team Penske Indy cars along the famous Embarcadero along the city waterfront Thursday to PIER 39, joined by an INDYCAR Experience two-seater carrying the Astor Cup and piloted by newly crowned Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires champion Ed Jones.
"INDYCAR really put the pedal to the metal with this awesome show," said Pagenaud, who leads the championship by 43 points over Power. "San Francisco is obviously a very touristic place and we reached nearly every market today on The Embarcadero."
The event was the highlight of an eventful championship week in Northern California that saw the two-seater traverse the Bay Area to give rides to the coaching staff of the NBA's Sacramento Kings and University of California-Berkeley football team, players from baseball's San Francisco Giants, the NBA's Golden State Warriors and Major League Soccer's San Jose Earthquakes.
"Anytime we can showcase our cars is special," said Power. "Just rolling them outside the track draws a bit of attention. Then you start them up and even more people come. You drive them along and you could see people on the sidewalk looking in amazement as these wicked machines went by."
Boudin Bakery, home of the original sourdough bread in San Francisco, also marked the occasion by baking a sourdough replica version of the Astor Cup with master baker Fernando Padilla offering Pagenaud and Power a bite of the "trophy" for luck.
Rossi, Herta help inspire next generation at Honda STEAM tour
Alexander Rossi became a star when he won the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil in May. The native Californian may have inspired future behind-the-scenes stars of the Verizon IndyCar Series when he participated Wednesday in the Honda STEAM Connections Tour stop at San Jose State University.
Rossi, the Andretti Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian driver from Nevada City, Calif., fielded questions from more than 200 aspiring middle- and high-school students at the event. STEAM is an acronym for "science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics" - all important educational components to be successful working in racing, whether it's designing and building engines, serving as a team engineer, marketing representative, team accountant or other occupations in the industry.
"I think it's fantastic," Rossi said. "A lot of people know there is some form of engineering and technology in race cars, but not many really know the extent of it, unless you are always around it. I had, growing up, some form of science and technology (education), along with the basics of vehicle dynamics and what makes a race car go quickly.
"So for anyone that's potentially looking to be involved in racing, I think it's a great thing."
The 24-year-old driver was joined by team co-owner Bryan Herta, who emphasized the importance of real-world knowledge that begins with the classroom curriculum. Herta said San Jose State was the right location for the event given the successful history of its Formula SAE program, which currently ranks third nationally.
"The history that San Jose State has with their Formula SAE program and the success they've had makes it a natural target for company like Honda," Herta said. "They are going to want to recruit kids out of the engineering programs of universities like this, so for us to be able to connect with them and also some of the younger kids that are probably a step or two away from moving into a university, we're able to interact with a lot of young people in a short amount of time in a really cool way."
