IndyCar
Carvana Signs On To Sponsor Jimmie Johnson And Chip Ganassi Racing
ST. PETERSBURG, FL (Pittsburgh Racing Now) – Carvana, the pioneer of online car buying, is partnering with Jimmie Johnson and Chip Ganassi Racing for the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Season.
The “new way to buy a car” online retailer, famous for their car vending machine, will be the sponsor of the No. 48 Carvana Chip Ganassi Racing Honda for Johnson’s new racing challenge on INDYCAR’s road and street circuits.
“Obviously being a part of INDYCAR is extremely exciting and makes sense for our brand,” said Ernie Garcia III, Carvana CEO and co-founder. “I think joining a winning team like this is even more exciting. Everyone chases a dream. We’ve all got dreams and now we get to watch a legend chase his second dream and we could not be more excited to be a part of it.”
“Carvana is a young, tech-forward, smart and aggressive company and is the perfect partner for this next challenge in my career,” said Johnson. “To bring a new sponsor into motorsport and into the INDYCAR Series is something we’re very proud of. I’ve dreamed of racing in INDYCAR since I was a little kid. 2021 is going to be a lot of fun!”
“I’m really excited,” said team owner Chip Ganassi. “Anytime you can bring a Champion into your organization it’s a feather in your cap. To bring in a 7-time Champion is unheard of. To bring in a new company like Carvana, it’s an honor. I think this is a perfect fit for our organization It’s great to have an industry-leader as a sponsor and it’s great to have an industry leader as a driver.”
Johnson spent Saturday at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg watching and learning prior to participating in tests with CGR at Barber Motorsports Park and Laguna Seca in November.
“Being here at the track, personally I’m on a journey to learn as much as I can in a short period of time,” said Johnson. “To really start next year as swift as we can and to try to have as much success as we can on the track and represent Carvana and Ganassi racing all at the same time.”
Johnson’s new paint scheme will be unveiled prior to the start of the 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season.
Ganassi said the team does plan to field the No. 48 in the oval races that Johnson does not run but plans have not been finalized.
WASHINGTON D.C. (August 22, 2026) – Alex Palou’s blistering lap of 56.8993 seconds in the No. 10 OpenAI Chip Ganassi Racing Honda puts the four-time NTT IndyCar Series Champion on the pole position for Sunday’s Freedom 250 on the streets of Washington D.C.
“Incredible,” said Palou. “My car was on rails. Super-fun lap, super-fun car to drive. Couldn’t be happier. Looking forward to tomorrow. Tomorrow is going to be a long day, man, 250 miles.”
Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood lines up second after a lap of 57.4661 in the No. 27 Sam’s Club Honda.
“P1 both first and second group, and the last one Alex Palou is just a legend and goes faster on his one-lap dash than he did the whole rest of the run, I think,” Kirkwood said. “He made us look silly out there.”
Scott McLaughlin spoiled the Honda party up front, putting the No. 3 PPG Chevrolet third on the grid after a fast lap of 57.4200.
Palou’s CGR teammates Scott Dixon and Kyffin Simpson did not fare as well as their teammate.
Dixon was on a lap that would have allowed him to transfer into the next round of qualifying, when Simpson hit the wall, triggering a red flag which cancelled Dixon’s lap. The No. 9 PNC Bank Honda will start 14th.
Bringing out the red flag penalized Simpson of his two fastest laps so the No. 8 Sunoco Honda will start last in 25th.
Coverage of the Freedom 250 starts at 11:30 a.m. on Fox and IndyCar Radio with the green flag waving in our nation’s capital at 1 p.m.
MARKHAM, ONTARIO (August 15, 2026) – The NTT IndyCar Series is making it’s first visit to a new street circuit in Markham, Ontario but a familiar face topped the speed charts after the first practice.
Four-time Series Champion Alex Palou turned the fastest lap around the 12-turn, 2.19-mile temporary street course, a 1-minute, 14.9915-seconds (100.811 mph) lap in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
A.J. Foyt Racing rookie Caio Collett was second quick with a 1-minute, 15.0454-seconds (100.739) in the No. 4 Chevrolet.
Louis Foster was third quick in the No. 45 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda at 1:15.0278 (100.702) followed by Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin 1:15.2981 (100.401). Will Power rounded out the Top 5 at 1:15.3152 (100.378).
Palou’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammates were not as strong. Six-time Series Champion Scott Dixon was 20th at 1:16.4583 (98.877) in the No. 9 PNC Bank Honda. Kyffin Simpson was 24th at 1.17.3893 (97.688) in the No. 8 Sunoco Honda. Simpson made contact with the wall at Turn 6, causing damage to the rear suspension. Simpson limped to pits for repair and returned to action later in the session.
Practice 2 is set for 2:30 p.m. as delayed track construction forced officials to cancel Friday’s activities and condense Saturday’s schedule. NTT P1 Pole Qualifying is set for 6:30 p.m. ET
MARKHAM, ONTARIO (August 14, 2026) – Issues with the completion of the temporary street circuit in Markham Ontario has forced the NTT INDYCAR SERIES first practice to be moved to Saturday as all of Friday’s on-track activity had to be scrubbed from the schedule.
“INDYCAR is incredibly disappointed that our promoter was not able to complete the track build on time, despite significant support from our team on site,” INDYCAR President J. Douglas Boles said. “Ontario has always been a magnificent market for our sport and the number of spectators that attended today is a shining example of that. New events can always pose logistical challenges and we join in the frustration of our loyal fans and apologize.”
Green Savoree Promotions also issued a statement.
“Ensuring the safety of the drivers and the completion of the certification process of competing on a brand-new racetrack delayed all on-track activities today. Today’s sessions have been rescheduled to Saturday, August 15, to allow for further track preparations.”
“We greatly appreciate all the fans who made it out to the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham today and chose to spend the day with us. The attendance and support were overwhelming.”
The revamped schedule calls for the first practice to take place at 10:00 a.m. followed by a second practice at 2:30 p.m. and P1 Pole Qualifying at 6:30 p.m.
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