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Racing Notebook: Gravel Wins At Eldora; Mid-Ohio Gearing Up For IMSA; Briscoe On Xfinity Pole and more

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PITTSBURGH, PA (Pittsburgh Racing Now) – The latest edition of The Pittsburgh Racing Now Notebook recaps David Gravel’s win at Eldora, IMSA’s trip to Mid-Ohio this weekend, the NASCAR Xfinity Series starting lineup at Las Vegas, the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series lineup and pilot error cited in Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s 2019 plane crash.

Gravel Wins Governors Reign At Eldora:

  • David Gravel held off Kyle Larson to win The Ollies Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions Governors Reign at Eldora Speedway Wednesday night.  Gravel started on the pole position and led all 35-laps but not without a fight from Larson.  Larson started 10th and worked his way into the top 5 before the midway point and into second place after a restart following a lap 20 caution.  Gravel took off on that restart but Larson kept chiseling away at Gravel’s lead, trying a slide job on the last lap only to lose the drag race to the checkered flag.  Gravel took home $52,000 for the win.

Mid-Ohio Preparing For IMSA Weekend:

  • The Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is gearing up for a weekend of sports car racing as the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) brings four series to the 2.258-mile, 13-turn natural terrain road course.  The Acura Sports Car Challenge at Mid-Ohio showcases the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship is Sunday’s headliner.  The IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge races on both Saturday and Sunday.  The IMSA Prototype Challenge and Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge USA will hold a triple header while the Mazda MX-5 Cup will hold a doubleheader.  A limited amount of fans will be permitted to attend but must purchase tickets online at www.midohio.com because tickets will not be sold at the gate.
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Chase Briscoe Awarded Xfinity Series Las Vegas Pole:

  • Stewart Haas Racing’s Chase Briscoe has been awarded the pole position for Saturday night’s NASCAR Xfinity Series Alsco 300 Playoff opener at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  Team Penske’s Austin Cindric will start second.  JR Motorsports Justin Allgaier will lineup third with Kaulig Motorsports Ross Chastain starting fourth.  The lineup was set by NASCAR’s ‘performance matrix’.  Briscoe and Cindric both open the playoffs with 2050 points but Briscoe is first due to a series-high 7-wins.  The green flag flies Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. ET. Xfinity Las Vegas Starting Lineup

Brett Moffitt Awarded Las Vegas Truck Series Pole:

  • GMS Racing’s Brett Moffitt has been awarded the pole position for Friday night’s NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series World of Westgate 200 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.  The race is the second of the NASCAR Playoffs for the Truck Series.  Moffitt finished second in last weekend’s playoff opener at Bristol Motor Speedway.  Moffitt’s GMS Racing teammate Sam Mayer, who is running a part-time schedule won that race.  The green flag for the Westgate 200 drops at 9:00 p.m. ET. NASCAR Trucks Las Vegas Lineup

Pilot Error Cited In Dale Earnhardt Jr Plane Accident:

  • The National Transportation Safety Board is blaming the pilots for the crash August 2019 crash involving Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his family.  Investigators said the probable cause of the incident was decisions by the pilots, including approaching the runway too fast and a failed attempt to abort the landing.  The report says the plane bounced four times and “the airplane touched down hard and the right main landing gear then collapsed under the wing.”

IndyCar

Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Racing Notebook; Andretti to Penske – Sell; IndyCar & Indy NXT Qualifying; and more

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Penske Entertainment: Joe Skibinski

ST. PETERSBURG, FL (March 9, 2024) – The green flag hasn’t even dropped on the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season and negativity continues to plague the open-wheel series as Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden won the pole position for Sunday’s race; the INDY NXT starting lineup is set; IMSA hits the streets of St. Pete along with USF2000.

Andretti to Penske ‘Invest or sell’

  • Team owner Michael Andretti went public on Friday with growing frustration in the INDYCAR paddock about the direction of the series under Penske Entertainment.  Andretti told IndyStar.com that Penske should “sell the series” if he’s unwilling to make a sizable investment to propel the series to the next level.  Chip Ganassi had his poker face on Friday morning during a media session but later told reporters “Anybody that can run IMS with no fans in the stands? He’s got my vote. He coughed up the money to buy the place & he coughed it up during COVID & kept the series running.”

Newgarden Wins INDYCAR Pole

  • Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden is on the pole position for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding.  Newgarden’s fast lap of 59.5714 in the PPG Chevy came on his last lap as time was running out in the final round of knockout-style qualifying and edged Meyer Shank Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist by fifty-eight hundredths of a second. IndyCar St. Pete Starting Lineup

Siegel Claims First INDY NXT Pole

  • Nolan Siegel won his first career INDY NXT by Firestone pole position on Saturday in record fashion with a fast lap of 1 minute, 4.5759 seconds. Jacob Abel was quickest in Group 2, but he didn’t get a chance to finish his final lap due to the crash of series newcomer Callum Hedge in the final set of corners. Series rookie Myles Rowe (No. 99 HMD Motorsports with Force Indy) and Louis Foster of Andretti Global (No. 26 Copart/Novara Technologies) will start Sunday’s race from the second row.  The green flag drops shortly after 10 a.m.
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Jones and Lazare Sweep IMSA Races

  • Jagger Jones and Jesse Lazare completed the sweep of Rounds 3 and 4 in the Le Mans Prototype 3 (P3) and Grand Sport X (GSX) classes of the VP Racing SportsCar Challenge at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on Saturday. Rounds 5 and 6 of the VP Racing Challenge will take place at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, June 7-9.

Hughes Dominates Scrappy USF Pro 2000 Opener

  • Lochie Hughes of Australia took home the victory in the USF Pro 2000 series opener.   Hughes led throughout a crash-marred 24-lap opening leg of the Foundation Building Materials USF Pro 2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg race to take the checkered flag for Turn 3 Motorsport. Christian Brooks came home in second place with New Zealander Liam Sceats rounded out the podium for TJ Speed Motorsports. Race Two of the double-header opening round of the season will start tomorrow at 8:00 a.m. with Hughes once again set to start at the front of the field.  USF Pro 2000 Sat

Garcia Takes USF 2000 Victory

  • 14-year-old Max Garcia was victorious in the USF2000 The Andersen Companies Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Jay Howard Driver Development’s Evagoras Papasavvas finished second followed by Sam Corry in third. The green flag for the second round of the 18-race USF2000 season will fly at 4:45 p.m. Sunday.

Brett Michaels Honorary Starter; Jon Bon Jovi in 2-seater

  • Multi-platinum music icon Bret Michaels will wave the green flag over the 27-car NTT INDYCAR SERIES starting field tomorrow at approximately 12:30 p.m. ET as the honorary starter of the 20th Annual Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding. He joins the pre-race festivities which include St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch and three past mayors as grand marshals along with fellow rock legend Jon Bon Jovi who will ride in the “Fastest Seat in Sports.”

INDYCAR & Dirty Mo Media Partnership

  • INDYCAR and Dirty Mo Media, the multimedia content platform of NASCAR Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt Jr., announced March 7 that they have formed a partnership to promote INDYCAR content created by Dirty Mo, specifically the podcast “Speed Street,” hosted by INDYCAR SERIES driver Conor Daly and content creator Chase Holden. The weekly podcast, which began in 2021, will feature the winner of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES race each week in 2024.
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IndyCar

Racing Notebook: PA Motor Speedway cancels Test & Tune; INDYCAR at St. Pete; Kris Wright in Phoenix and more!

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Photo: Steve Skarupa

Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway cancels this weekend’s ‘test & tune’; The NTT INDYCAR SERIES gears up for the season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding; Kris Wright takes on Phoenix this Friday and more in the Pittsburgh Racing Now Notebook:

PPMS Cancels Test & Tune

  • Persistent rain on Tuesday and Wednesday have forced Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway to cancel this Saturday’s ‘Test & Tune’ one week before the season-opening ‘Pot of Gold 75’.  The Pits open at 9 a.m. and the Grandstands open at 11 a.m. with the Saturday program scheduled to start at Noon.  For more information visit PPMS.com.
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INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

  • The NTT INDYCAR SERIES kicks off the 2024 season on Friday with one practice session to get teams ready for Sunday’s season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding.  Mayor Ken Welch, PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon and other dignitaries raised the flag Thursday morning at 10 a.m. at City Hall to signify the official civic event kickoff to the race weekend.

Kris Wright Gets Ready for Phoenix

  • Wexford native Kris Wright and his Venturini Motorsports team descend on Phoenix Raceway for Friday’s ARCA Menards Series General Tire 150. This weekend marks Wright’s first start at Phoenix in the ARCA Series. Wright has previously competed in a NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) race in 2022 and a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) race in 2021 at the Avondale, Ariz., venue.  Wright has participated in two ARCA Menards Series West races, including one event with Venturini Motorsports. “I’m excited to return to Phoenix Raceway after having a fast car there in the fall. Our No. 15 Venturini Motorsports team has been working on it during the off-season, and we’re looking forward to heading back West for this race.”

Chip Ganassi Racing Unveils Season 2 Trading Cards

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IndyCar

Racing Notebook: DHL partners with Ganassi; Hunt Bros partners with Penske and more

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(Pittsburgh, PA) – 2024 partnership programs a coming together as two of the biggest names in racing, Ganassi and Penske, each announce new deals plus PPMS announces their plans for the new year and Henessey Performance packs some punch for GM fans in today’s Racing Notebook.

DHL Partners with Ganassi and Palou

  • DHL and Chip Ganassi Racing are teaming up for a new partnership.  DHL becomes the primary sponsor of the No. 10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda and two-time NTT IndyCar Champion Alex Palou.  DHL express also becomes the Official Logistics Partner of the 15-time Championship team. “I am extremely proud to welcome DHL to the Chip Ganassi Racing family,” said Chip Ganassi. “It is an honor to partner with an organization that shares our fundamental values of teamwork, growth, responsibility, and the pursuit of excellence.”
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Hunt Brothers Pizza Partners with Penske, Logano, Blaney

  • Team Penske and Hunt Brothers Pizza are teaming up in multi-year deal that will feature the convenience store pizza brand on the No. 22 Team Penske Ford Mustang driven by two-time NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Champion Joey Logano for select races beginning in 2024. Hunt Brothers Pizza will also be an associate sponsor on defending NASCAR Cup Series Champion Ryan Blaney’s No. 12 Ford Mustang for the 2024 season.

PPMS Announces 2024 Schedule

  • Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway is planning a 29-race schedule for 2024 with an opening day St. Patrick’s Day Weekend.  The highlight of the schedule is the expansion of the Pittsburgher weekend to a 2-day event for the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series battling for almost $200,000!
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