Paddock Buzz: Christian Rasmussen Rallies Twice for Career-Best Night
INDYCAR
If Kyle Kirkwood was the happiest driver Sunday night at World Wide Technology Raceway, he had company. Christian Rasmussen was wildly celebrating, too.
Rasmussen put on a show in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline, driving from the 25th starting position to finish a career-best third.
Actually, Rasmussen came from the back twice in the 260-lap affair, the second time the result of a penalty for taking service and fuel from his Ed Carpenter Racing crew in a closed pit. The driver of the No. 21 ECR Splenda Chevrolet didn't have a choice but to pit as he couldn't wait for the long caution period to end before running out of fuel.
But Rasmussen was a rocket in his car before and after that, passing a race-high 62 cars as he used a high line that seemed to offer the fastest way around the 1.25-mile oval.
'As soon as I found out that the high line was so effective, like my car was so good up there both in (Turns) 1 and 2 and 3 and 4,' he said. 'I just started running high, and I could just pass people.'
The only drivers finishing ahead of the 24-year-old Dane were Kirkwood, the driver of the No. 27 Siemens Honda of Andretti Global who scored his third win of the season, and seven-time race winner Pato O'Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet).
ECR owner Ed Carpenter was one of the first to congratulate Rasmussen, who stretched his string of races led to three.
'You did great,' Carpenter told him on pit road.
'Ah, it's huge, and especially with how this has gone for us,' 2023 INDY NXT by Firestone champion Rasmussen said. 'We were slow in (Saturday's first practice), we didn't get it done in (qualifications), we started 25th in the race. But we turned it around for ECR today. This is awesome.
'Definitely the best race of my life so far.'
Newgarden, Foster Escape Injury
Josef Newgarden's year to forget continued with a mid-race crash that will long be remembered.
Newgarden was leading en route to a fifth win in the past six races at this track when he prepared to lap series points leader Alex Palou coming off Turn 4. But what Newgarden couldn't see what the damaged car of series rookie Louis Foster sliding across the front straightaway after scraping the outside wall.
At the last second, Newgarden realized the oncoming danger. He seemed to pull his hands from the steering wheel as the No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet slammed into Foster's car and, at the same time, the inside wall.
The ferocious impact on the front straightaway vaulted Newgarden's car on its nose before landing upside down. Foster and his No. 45 Droplight/Desnuda Tequilla Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing similarly absorbed a massive impact. Fortunately, both drivers escaped injury.
Newgarden declined comment after walking from the infield care center.
The incident began due to Foster's car pushing to the outside wall in Turn 4. He was moments from pitting for new tires.
'One, two laps too long trying the high line,' he said. 'I got up behind (Santino Ferrucci), got a bit of a wiggle – it had wiggled all race there – but just got a bit too high onto the dark stuff. You see it there (on replay), a wiggle right there, then I just went to (the) marbles and was really a passenger.'
Remembering how Newgarden vaulted over the top of his car seemed to stop him.
'I couldn't stop the car,' he said. 'Obviously, (a) really scary impact. Josef, glad he's OK.'
Finishing 24th tumbled Newgarden to 16th in the standings as the season approaches its halfway point. The two-time series champion also had seat belt come loose in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and lost a fuel pump in the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.
Power Foresaw Strain on Tire
Will Power couldn't convert the 71st career pole into his first win of the season.
Power got jumped on the opening lap by David Malukas, and the driver of the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet saw the A.J. Foyt Enterprises driver stretch the lead to more than five seconds. On Lap 46, Power's race effectively came to an end when he slid into the Turn 4 wall after his right front tire failed.
'I felt last night when we were running (in the second practice) pretty much flat through (Turns) 3 and 4 every lap and I was like, 'Man, that's a lot of load (on the right front tire),'' Power said. 'When I had a failure at Iowa (Speedway) it felt the same. Yeah, that actually happened. Unfortunate for us.'
Power said he was saving fuel at the time of the incident, which explains why Malukas was pulling away from him.
Malukas later had trouble of his own. While trying to overtake Kirkwood, who had just pitted, his No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet drifted into the wall. After leading a race-high 67 laps, he finished 12th.
DeFrancesco's Double Trouble
Devlin DeFrancesco's race didn't last long. He lost control of his No. 30 Mi-Jack Honda of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing in Turn 1 on Lap 4.
The damaged car was removed from the track by a tow truck, and DeFrancesco was in the garage area when he started running back to pit road followed by a FOX cameraman. About the time the driver reached his pit box, he stopped, and the cameraman ran into him. The contact and the ensuing fall were caught on live television. Neither was injured.
Odds and Ends Palou still hasn't led a lap in seven races at World Wide Technology Raceway, and he finished 14.1018 seconds off the winner's pace in this race. But the series points leader managed to finish eighth to keep a strong hold on the championship. He leads O'Ward by 73 points and Kirkwood by 75 as the season approaches its halfway point with next week's XPEL Grand Prix at Road America (Sunday, 1:30 p.m. ET, FOX, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network). Palou (five wins) and Kirkwood (three) remain the only two drivers to win races this season, the first time that's happened in this sport since 1980 when Johnny Rutherford won five and Bobby Unser three. Unser won that season's ninth race to extend the two-driver dominance. Honda-powered cars have now won the first eight races of the season. O'Ward has finished second three times, pushing his career total to 30 top-three finishes. For the second oval race in a row, Scott McLaughlin had trouble before the race even began. In this case, the No. 3 DEX Imaging Team Penske Chevrolet wouldn't immediately start leaving the grid, but he got it going. At Indy, he crashed on the warmup laps while swerving to get heat in his tires. McLaughlin and Malukas each were forced to give back three positions for improper lane usage leaving their pit boxes. Both exited straight to the fast lane, which is not allowed as it impedes oncoming traffic. McLaughlin became the third Team Penske driver to retire from the race when he said something broke coming off Turn 2. Andretti Global's Lochie Hughes used a late charge to win Sunday's INDY NXT by Firestone race at the track. The win was his second of his rookie season. The Australian drove the No. 26 McGinley Clinic/USF Pro Championship car to a 4.3521-second victory over Myles Rowe, who earned a career-best second place in the No. 99 Abel/Force Indy entry.
recommended
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
6 hours ago
- Forbes
IndyCar's Nolan Siegel Looks To Improve With New Race Boss Kyle Moyer
Nolan Siegel at Road America. Young Arrow McLaren IndyCar driver Nolan Siegel admitted last weekend at Road America that he didn't really know much about his new race strategist Kyle Moyer. The 20-year-old from Palo Alto, California got to know his new boss during a busy test session at Iowa Speedway on June 25 that featured 21 cars and drivers in a test session that lasted until 9 p.m. Eastern Time. Siegel looks forward to working with a new voice on the radio calling his race strategy. As noted last week on Forbes Sports Money, former Team Penske INDYCAR General Manager Kyle Moyer has joined Arrow McLaren as the Director of Operations. He will also work with Siegel as his race strategist. 'I've never met Kyle (Moyer),' Siegel said after finishing eighth at Road America on June 22. 'I've heard of him, and I've known of him, and I'm very, very excited to get to work with him. 'I think that's a huge pleasure and a huge learning opportunity for me. I couldn't be more excited. So, we're going to have a really strong group of people on the stand with Scott Harner going to kind of an advisory role. We're going to have a lot more experience on the stand. And I think it's going to be great. 'And again, it's nice to kind of leave this weekend on a high with everyone in good spirits. Kyle's going to come and in and I think that this could be a turnaround for us for the rest of the year.' Arrow McLaren Team Principal Tony Kanaan. Reunited Again Digging deeper into Arrow McLaren team principal Tony Kanaan's decision to bring Moyer on board, it was an opportunity Kanaan had to take. It was also a chance for Moyer and Kanaan to be reunited. The two worked together at what was then known as Andretti Green Racing when Kanaan won the 2004 IndyCar Series title. Moyer was a key part of that team before he left for Team Penske in 2015. 'Talk about how our history together, it's unbelievable,' Kanaan told me at Road America. 'Everything that I won, that guy was in my car. So that wasn't something that I was expecting to have. 'And honestly, I'm pretty happy about it. It's pretty good to see. 'He was my strategist strategy and my team manager at the same time. I think that's something that what that race has given me for a lot of good friends. 'You know you've been around as long as I've been but also, He was part of the most successful part of my life, so it's hard not to go back and he's still involved. 'I'm still involved to say, 'Why not try to do it again?'' Kyle Moyer Moyer was one of three key Team Penske executives that was dismissed before the Indianapolis 500 because of a technical rules infraction during qualifications. Because it was the second penalty in as many years including the 'push to pass scandal' from 2024, team owner Roger Penske dismissed the team's IndyCar President Tim Cindric, Managing Director Ron Ruzewski and Moyer. 'I've never questioned anybody's integrity,' Kanaan said. 'We all know that at the end of the day it takes a team, and not once did it cross my mind because I know Kyle really well so that was never even a debate.' Kanaan has spent much of his time working with young Nolan Siegel at Arrow McLaren. He believes having a different voice to work with the young driver will help his overall development and that is why he thinks Moyer is the right guy for that role. 'One hundred percent and I think Kyle is a way more experienced than me in so many ways,' Kanaan said. 'I'm trying to give Nolan as big of a support as I can. 'Obviously, he came in the middle of the season, so it was kind of like a way to put him there to take a look where he didn't work with Scott Harner as well and give Nolan a little bit of a bump. But as young as this kid is any help he can get it would definitely make him better.' Arrow McLaren General Manager Brian Barnhart. Another key member of Arrow McLaren that strongly supports bringing Moyer to the team is General Manager Brian Barnhart. He has worked with Moyer in various capacities throughout his career and is impressed with Moyer's accomplishments and approach. 'Oh, that's a steal of the century mid-season, that's for sure, so we're really happy,' Barnhart told me. 'Clearly, we weren't planning on something like that in season, so you take advantage of that opportunity when it gets presented to you, but Kyle is an exceptional leader, he's a great delegator, a genuine good person, really good communicator, just got a lot of common sense, so he'll make this race team better for sure. 'I think if anything it gives TK the ability to focus more on the stuff that he's doing as team principal and out of the role on the timing stand a little bit, so I think that's why it'll probably be helpful.' The one area that Barnhart is uncertain about, however, is the chain of command at Arrow McLaren and how a newly created Director of Operations will line up with the current organizational structure. 'It's one of those things to be honest with you, we don't wholly know yet, because it's one of them that you weren't planning on,' Barnhart said. 'It's not like we had a position, so we're just going to kind of make it fit and go along as we see what the best fit's going to be once he gets here.' As for Siegel's week, he was reprimanded by the team for unleashing a tirade against Team Penske during a fit of rage at the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at Worldwide Technology Raceway, that got him a stern lecture from Kanaan and other members at Arrow McLaren. Siegel accepted the punishment and apologized to all involved last week. It culminated with a strong eighth-place effort at Road America in IndyCar's most recent race. 'Nice to move on from everything from last week ended on a high,' Siegel said. 'And this has been a much-needed weekend. 'You know, nothing's gone wrong this weekend. We've had a good smooth Saturday. We had a smooth Sunday. Eighth isn't ultimately, like the end goal, right? But it's something that we can build off of. And we've had a lot of bad weeks where everyone leaves upset, and it's just not a good feeling, and it's nice to kind of turn that around. And I think until you have a weekend like this, to turn it around, it's very hard to get out of that slump.' Siegel and Arrow McLaren move on to the next race on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule, the July 6 Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio in Steam Corners, Ohio. The second-year IndyCar driver is 20th in points with eight races remaining in the season. Nolan Siegel and Kyle Moyer are determined to make an improvement in the final half of the 2025 season. Nolan Siegel, Arrow McLaren
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Where does Santino Ferrucci see his first IndyCar win coming?
Santino Ferrucci is on a roll in the 2025 IndyCar season. The driver of the No. 14 A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet secured his second podium in three races and his fourth consecutive top-five finish last Sunday at Road America. It's the kind of run worth celebrating with a beer — as Ferrucci memorably did, catching a Miller Lite tossed by a fan from the grandstands at Turn 1. But, of course, he wants more. And not beers this time, but solid results in the IndyCar Series. Advertisement 'Oh, I'm still very thirsty to get more,' Ferrucci told 'It's really nice to have a string of top-fives like that: superspeedway, short oval, road course, street course. I think it just shows our overall strength and growth. So I'm definitely looking forward to the string of races in July.' 'This was definitely the goal from the beginning of the year. I think we just started off slower than we would have liked. But now that we've hit our stride, this is what I was expecting — especially based on how we finished the 2024 season.' Expectations were high heading into 2025, especially after Ferrucci finished ninth in last year's standings, closing the season with four straight top-10s, including two fourth-place finishes at Milwaukee and a sixth at Nashville Superspeedway. However, the start of this season was rough in terms of results, with an 11th at Long Beach being his best finish prior to the streak that began at the Indianapolis 500. Yet, according to the Connecticut native, the performance was there all along. Advertisement 'We were just a bit unlucky more than anything. The way the Indy GP went, and Barber — even Long Beach — we had pace at all three events. We just had a fuel issue at Barber, hit the wall at Long Beach, which wasn't great. And then at Indy GP, we didn't run any practice or warm-up. We literally just qualified and raced. We had a couple of mechanical issues that were completely out of our control.' Ferrucci confident that he will win Santino Ferrucci, A. J. Foyt Enterprises Santino Ferrucci, A. J. Foyt Enterprises Only two drivers have won races so far in the 2025 IndyCar season — Alex Palou with six wins for Chip Ganassi Racing and Kyle Kirkwood with three for Andretti Global. That makes it look tough for others to break through, but Ferrucci believes he's close. Advertisement 'Yes, for sure,' he said when asked if a win feels near. 'I actually thought it was going to happen at Road America with the pace we had. But with the big fuel number we had to hit at the end, it wasn't exactly ideal.' With eight races in two months coming up, Ferrucci has a clear idea of where he sees the best chances to break through. 'I think all the ovals for sure, and then Portland and Laguna Seca. I think Mid-Ohio and Toronto are going to be pretty tough — those are both survival races. But I do like my pace and what we've been learning over the last two years there, so I'll remain hopeful for those as well.' Qualifying pace still a challenge, but not a worry Santino Ferrucci, A. J. Foyt Enterprises, Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing Santino Ferrucci, A. J. Foyt Enterprises, Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing One might argue that Ferrucci needs to improve his qualifying performance to be a true contender. Every race winner in 2025 has started inside the top 10, and six of them from the top three. Ferrucci, however, doesn't seem too concerned about one-lap pace — and he may have a point. His recent hot streak includes starts from 15th, 21st, 19th, and 18th. Advertisement 'The funny thing is I'm not overly focused on it. I was really bummed with my performance at Road America — I drove really well, but we just missed something in the setup. Detroit was more on me, and same with Thermal.' 'Trying to find the limit over one lap is very difficult, as opposed to being perfectly consistent over a race distance, which I actually find easier. So, with the way the series is, I think the races have been really strong and we've been able to pass. So I've been more focused on getting the race cars right to win on Sunday.' Full focus on getting A.J. Foyt Racing back to Victory Lane Santino Ferrucci, A. J. Foyt Enterprises Santino Ferrucci, A. J. Foyt Enterprises Ferrucci signed a multi-year deal with A.J. Foyt Racing in September 2024 — just a month after his current teammate, David Malukas, joined the team following an opportunity at Arrow McLaren that didn't go as planned, and a partial season with Meyer Shank Racing. Advertisement Since Malukas signed with Foyt, rumors have swirled that the move could position him for a future seat at Team Penske if veteran Will Power, now in the final year of his contract, steps away. Malukas currently trails Ferrucci by ten points and three positions in the championship. When asked if he should also be considered for a top-tier ride, Ferrucci made it clear that his focus is solely on bringing success to A.J. Foyt Racing — which hasn't won a race in 12 years. 'I like to control what I can control. My focus is very much on what we're doing right now,' he said. 'What my teammate is up to is for him to answer — I don't really know how all of his stuff works. But you know, my goal at the end of the day is to deliver. I really want to bring A.J. and Larry their first win in a long time. I'm really happy where I'm at, and I'm very, very comfortable with my engineering lineup and everything else. So right now, my full focus is on my current program.' Advertisement Read Also: How a 'grumpy' Alex Palou ended up thankful for his winning strategy at Road America Winners and Losers from IndyCar's Road America weekend To read more articles visit our website.
Fox Sports
2 days ago
- Fox Sports
Improving Foyt Team Closing In on Elusive Win with Steady Speed
INDYCAR The race is on for a driver other than Alex Palou or Kyle Kirkwood to win an NTT INDYCAR SERIES race this season. AJ Foyt Racing has two of the top contenders. Santino Ferrucci and David Malukas have quietly put together some of the series' best results over the past month, each scoring 111 points over the past four races. Only Kirkwood (142 points), Palou (138) and Pato O'Ward (127) have scored more in that span. Remember, that stretch includes a superspeedway, a street circuit, a short oval and a road course. Ferrucci and Malukas each have a recent second-place finish, including Malukas in the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge, and they have combined to post six top-seven finishes in eight opportunities. They both placed in the top five at Indy, with Ferrucci in fifth as he extended his record streak of top-10 finishes in the event to seven. It had been 25 years since two Foyt drivers finished in the top five at Indy (Eliseo Salazar and Jeff Ward finished third and fourth, respectively, in 2000). In last weekend's XPEL Grand Prix at Road America Presented by AMR, Ferrucci also continued his season streak of top-five finishes by ending up third. He finished second in the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear and delivered fifth-place finishes not only at Indy but in the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 presented by Axalta and Valvoline at World Wide Technology Raceway, as well. Malukas' recent surge is evident in qualifying sessions. He has started in the top seven in each of the past four races, highlighted by a front-row roll-off in the Detroit street race. Malukas qualified fourth at WWTR and started seventh in the '500' and at Road America. The two drivers have combined to lead 87 laps over the past four races. The recent surge has Ferrucci ninth in the standings – that's where he finished last season, too – and Malukas 12th. A month ago, they were 15th and 19th, respectively. 'It's obviously going very well,' team president Larry Foyt said at Road America. 'The first half of (this) race looked like nothing was going our way with David starting up close to the front but having to go all the way to the back (due to contact) and Santino having a stall in the pits. It didn't look like it was going to be our day. 'But everybody (on the crew) just stayed in it, and the drivers did a great job. This was such a crazy (race). Everybody was trying to figure out what the (best) strategy was, and our guys nailed it.' Ferrucci has the same number of points as Colton Herta of Andretti Global w/Curb-Agajanian, and they are within striking distance of Team Penske's top two performers. Scott McLaughlin leads them by six points, Will Power by 13. Ferrucci joked it's his qualifying efforts that are slowing him down this season. His average starting position is 17.4, a stark contrast to his average finishing position (10.2). That's 7.2 positions gained per race . 'We're performing,' Ferrucci said on the FOX broadcast. 'We're back to where we were at the end of last year. I feel lit. I've just got to get my qualifying performance up. Until then, I like padding my passing stats.' Ferrucci ranks second to Christian Rasmussen in total passes for position this season. They also were the only drivers to accumulate 50-plus total passes in the past two races combined. 'Obviously, starting 18th (at Road America) is not ideal,' he said. While Malukas is 12th in the standings, he only trails Ferrucci and Herta by 10 points, which is remarkable given the slow start he had in his first season with this organization. His average finish in the first five races was 17.4. At Road America, Malukas' race became more challenging when he ran deep into Turn 3 and hit the Arrow McLaren car of Christian Lundgaard. The contact resulted in Malukas spinning off track, requiring the restart assistance of the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team. The combination of the quick service and long track distance kept him on the lead lap, and he rallied to finish seventh, his second-best result of the season. '(It was) a lot of fun, a lot of passing, and we finished right where we started,' the driver of the No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet said. 'So, good recovery (and) really good job from the team.' Larry Foyt said the competitiveness of the series makes it difficult to make gains, but there is plenty of evidence to show the team is doing just that. In the second half of the season, its goal is to earn the team's first victory since 2013, when Takuma Sato won at Long Beach. 'It's so tough right now, which makes even a (top-three finish) feel like a win,' Foyt said. 'It's still not (a win), and we still want to break through and get back in victory lane. That's still the goal, but what this team is doing right now, I couldn't be happier.'
