• Marcus Ericsson makes his mark in NTT INDYCAR SERIES season opener, late-race pass seals victory at Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg
• Teammate Scott Dixon claims third for Honda and Chip Ganassi Racing
• Graham Rahal runs sixth in strong opening-race performance

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (March 5, 2023) – Taking advantage of a late-race opportunity, Marcus Ericsson moved past race leader Pato O’Ward to take the victory in Sunday’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

Moving into the lead with just four laps remaining in the 100-lap contest, Ericsson claimed his fourth career INDYCAR win and his first since winning last year’s Indianapolis 500.

The stage was set for an incident-filled race shortly after the green flag, when a multi-car pileup exiting Turn 3 led to a red flag. After approximately 19 minutes, the race resumed, but the caution flag would wave five more times for various incidents throughout the 100-lap contest.

Ericsson’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammate, six-time series champion Scott Dixon, rounded out the St. Petersburg podium with a well-judged run to third; while veteran Graham Rahal jumped from 20^th on the starting grid to sixth at the finish following an overnight brake change aboard his Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda.

Today’s win for Ericsson and Honda is also the first in a major racing series using 100% renewable fuel. The second-generation ethanol supplied to the full INDYCAR field by Shell provides a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and does not impact the food chain.

In addition to the Shell 100% renewable race fuel, the St. Petersburg race also featured the 2023 debut of Firestone Firehawk race tires made with natural guayule natural rubber grown and extracted at the company’s R&D facility in Arizona. Featuring a green sidewall, the guayule served as the softer “alternate” tire for this weekend’s INDYCAR race.

Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Honda Race Results

• 1^st Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 3^rd Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 6^th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 8^th Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 9^th Christian Lundgaard Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 10^th David Malukas Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda
• 11^th Marcus Armstrong-R Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 15^th Sting Ray Robb-R Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
• 16^th Kyle Kirkwood Andretti Autosport Honda
• 18^th Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda
• 19^th Colton Herta Andretti Autosport Honda
• 22^nd Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 23^rd Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 25^th Devlin DeFrancesco Andretti Autosport Honda
• 26^th Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda

R – Rookie

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturers’ Championship (unofficial, after 1 of 17 rounds)

Honda 91 points

Chevrolet 72 points

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Drivers’ Championship Standings (unofficial, after 1 of 17 rounds)

• 1. Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 51 points
• 2. Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren 41
• 3. Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 36
• 4. Alexander Rossi, Arrow McLaren 32

Quotes

Marcus Ericsson (#8 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) race winner: “We’ve had such a good weekend, the car has been fantastic all the way through, and the Honda was super strong all weekend. I’m really proud of the way Chip Ganassi Racing has started out this season. We’re here to win the championship. We won the 500 last year and we were leading the championship for a long time. So that’s our mission this year, and this is a good start.”

Scott Dixon (#9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished third: “It was a great day for all of us at Chip Ganassi Racing – and obviously tremendous for [race winner] Marcus [Ericsson]. We had a great car all weekend, all credit to our team. It was great today to get the driveability and tuneability out of the Honda, plus the fuel mileage was fantastic, so it was easy to get what we needed, which gave us all the pit strategy options we needed.”

Graham Rahal (#15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda) finished sixth: “Our guys did a tremendous job today, very proud of them. I thought the Honda engine was really strong for me. I know this weekend didn’t start the way we wanted [qualifying 20^th]. Literally, it was the brakes. Once we swapped the brakes out, our weekend got a heck of a lot better. This race was all about whoever was going to race the smartest. They’d find their way to the front and that’s pretty much how it played out.”

David Salters (President and Technical Director, Honda Performance Development) on today’s season-opening victory for Honda at Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg: “Pole on Saturday and race win on Sunday, that’s a pretty good weekend! Well done to the marvelous women and men at HPD for all their hard work, as well as everyone at Chip Ganassi Racing. The teamwork paid off. It been a busy off-season and it’s nice to see everyone’s efforts rewarded.

“I would also like to note the standout work from INDYCAR, Shell, Firestone and both engine manufacturers on sustainability – particularly with the renewable fuel and guayule tires. We really are leading the motorsports world in terms of sustainability.”

Fast Facts

With today’s win by Marcus Ericsson, Honda-powered drivers have now won 11 of the 19 NTT INDYCAR SERIES races at St. Petersburg since the event was revived for the 2005 season. The late Dan Wheldon led a Honda and Andretti Green Racing sweep of the top four positions in the inaugural 2005 event; while Colton Herta dominated in 2021 for Honda and Andretti Autosport.

Other Honda winners on the streets of St. Petersburg include local resident Sebastian Bourdais in 2017-18; Helio Castroneves in 2006 and ’07; Graham Rahal in 2008; Team Penske’s Ryan Briscoe and Will Power in 2009 and ’10, respectively; and Dario Franchitti in 2011.

Next

The NTT INDYCAR SERIES next heads to the high banks of Texas Motor Speedway for the first oval race of 2023, the PPG 375, on Sunday, April 2, in Fort Worth, Texas.

Honda Racing social media content and video links from St. Petersburg can be found on: Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd)

TikTok (www.tiktok.com/hondaracing_hpd)

Twitter (www.twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD)

Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD)

YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV)

Romain Grosjean scores his second career NTT INDYCAR SERIES pole in qualifying for Sunday’s season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

Colton Herta completes front row sweep for Honda and Andretti Autosport

Honda drivers claim four of the top-five qualifying positions

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (March 4, 2023) – Former Formula One driver Romain Grosjean claimed his second career NTT INDYCAR SERIES pole position, going P1 in the final round of “knockout” qualifying to open the season at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

The Swiss-born Florida resident put his #28 Andretti Autosport Honda first on the grid with a lap time of 59.5532 at his “home” race, lining up alongside teammate Colton Herta aboard the #26 Andretti Autosport Honda.

The pole for Grosjean and Honda was also the first for a major racing series using 100% renewable fuel. The second-generation ethanol supplied to the full INDYCAR field by Shell provides a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and does not impact the food chain.

Marcus Ericsson, driving the #8 Honda Indy Car, qualified fourth as the lone Chip Ganassi Racing entry in the Firestone Fast Six.  Grosjean and Herta’s Andretti stablemate, second-year driver Kyle Kirkwood, shone through practice and the first two qualifying rounds, making it through to the Firestone Fast Six before crashing on his first lap of the final segment of qualifying. He will start fifth in the #27 Andretti Autosport Dallara Honda.

Ganassi’s Alex Palou and Scott Dixon qualified seventh and ninth, respectively; and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Christian Lundgaard also advanced to second-round qualifying and will roll off eleventh at the start of Sunday’s 100-lap race.

Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Honda Qualifying Results

1^st Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda

2^nd Colton Herta Andretti Autosport Honda

4^th Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda

5^th Kyle Kirkwood Andretti Autosport Honda

7^th Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda

9^th Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda

11^th Christian Lundgaard Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda

13^th Marcus Armstrong-R Chip Ganassi Racing Honda

15^th Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda

16^th David Malukas Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda

18^th Devlin DeFrancesco Andretti Autosport Honda

19^th Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda

20^th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda

23^rd Sting Ray Robb-R Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda

25^th Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes

Romain Grosjean (#28 Andretti Autosport Honda) pole qualifier; second career INDYCAR pole: “We pulled it out. I knew last year something was just not coming my way. We worked hard [in the off-season], and we found something. We got here, and I said to the boys, ‘Yeah, we’ve got something.’ You know, St. Petersburg is kind of a home race. We’ve got 100 laps tomorrow to make [a victory] happen.”

Colton Herta (#26 Andretti Autosport Honda) will start on the outside front row, second: “My driving on that last lap could have been better. I was about as useful as gum on a boot heel. We’re still in a great spot, starting second, but it’s a pole we could’ve gotten, if I hadn’t made a mess of the last lap. Happy to be starting P2, it’s a great spot to start. Hopefully we can slot in behind [pole qualifier and teammate Romain] Grosjean and then go from there.

Marcus Ericsson (#8 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) will start on the second row fourth, defending Indianapolis 500 winner: “This is a very good start for us. We were talking about how we need to improve our qualifying, and we worked really hard on this in the off-season: how to better understand how the tires work, and working on myself to perform in qualifying. It really shows today. I’m extremely happy with P4, we definitely can win from here.”

Fast Facts

Honda-powered drivers have won 10 of the 18 NTT INDYCAR SERIES races at St. Petersburg since the event was revived for the 2005 season. The late Dan Wheldon led a Honda and Andretti Green Racing sweep of the top four positions in the inaugural 2005 event; while Colton Herta dominated in 2021 for Honda and Andretti Autosport.

Other Honda winners on the streets of St. Petersburg include local resident Sebastian Bourdais in 2017-18; Helio Castroneves in 2006 and ’07; Graham Rahal in 2008; Team Penske’s Ryan Briscoe and Will Power in 2009 and ’10, respectively; and Dario Franchitti in 2011.

Where to Watch

Television coverage of Sunday’s season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg starts at 12 p.m. ET with pre-race activities on NBC, followed by the race start at 12:30 p.m. Complete, flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on NBC Peacock, the INDYCAR Radio Network, and SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation (Channel 160).

Honda Racing social media content and video links from St. Petersburg can be found on:

Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd)

TikTok (www.tiktok.com/hondaracing_hpd)

Twitter (www.twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD)

Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD)

YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV)

Honda Performance Development Unveils CR-V Hybrid Racer:
“An INDYCAR Wolf in CR-V Clothing”

• Demonstration vehicle combines HPD INDYCAR drivetrain, racing suspension,
• Firestone high-performance tires and Honda CR-V Hybrid bodywork
• Features 2024 Honda INDYCAR hybrid power unit technology
• CR-V Hybrid Racer to debut at Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

TORRANCE, Calif., February 28, 2023 – While hybrid power units officially debut in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES in 2024, race fans and car enthusiasts alike will be treated to a “sneak preview” of the incoming technology with the debut of the Honda CR-V Hybrid Racer at next month’s season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

“This project vehicle is an INDYCAR ‘beast’ in Honda CR-V ‘sheep’s clothing’,” said David Salters, president and technical director for Honda Performance Development, the North American racing arm of American Honda and Acura. “The CR-V Hybrid Racer is our ‘rolling electrified laboratory’, to investigate where the talented men and women of HPD and Honda could go with electrification, hybrid technology and 100% renewable fuels.  It epitomizes Honda’s fun-to-drive ethos, showcases electrification and it just rocks our car culture roots and racing heritage!  We present the CR-V Hybrid Racer – aka ‘The HPD Beast’!”

Conceived and designed by the engineers at Honda Performance Development (HPD) in California and designers from the North America Auto Design Division (NAAD) of American Honda; then built at Honda Automotive Development Center (ADC) in Ohio by the Honda of America Racing Team (HART); the CR-V Hybrid Racer places a 2.2-liter twin-turbocharged, electrified Honda V6 INDYCAR power unit and transmission under 2023 Honda CR-V Hybrid bodywork to create the “rolling laboratory” for the continued development of electrified technology by Honda and HPD.  

The CR-V Hybrid Racer runs on Shell’s 100% renewable race fuel; and features world-leading Skeleton Supercapacitors and Empel MGU hybrid motor technology. 

The Chromoly steel tube chassis of the Honda CR-V Hybrid Racer is clothed in suitably “hybrid” bodywork designed by NAAD.  From the beltline up, the Hybrid Racer utilized a standard production sixth-generation CR-V steel body, including the glass windshield, windows and even the sunroof.  The lower half is of carbon-composite construction, incorporating a massive front splitter and louvered, flared fenders.  An equally large rear wing and butterfly half-cut doors on either side for the driver and passenger complete the bodywork. 

”When the Design Studio learned about this project, we had already established a great relationship with HPD through other projects, including the ACURA ARX-06,” said Dave Marek, executive creative director.  “So this was – pardon the pun – ‘Right in our wheelhouse’.  It became a ‘what if?’ of keep the CRV as is, but add some serious attitude with parts indicative of an Indy car. Then it was back to my childhood of never building model cars right out of the box, by manipulating areas with DTM or Japanese Super GT cars in mind. I basically mocked up the idea in 3D then our amazing Digital Modelers made it work.”

The finished Honda CR-V Hybrid Racer is clothed in a one-of-a-kind wrap, designed by Lili Melikian, senior exterior designer.  The eye-catching design contains a variety of “easter eggs” including ghosted images of the powertrain and INDYCAR SERIES circuits.

“The graphics were inspired by the hybrid powertrain, radiating from Honda Hybrid Blue to Honda Racing Red to symbolize the duality of the drivetrain,” Melikian explained. “While the ‘speed squirkles’ add a dynamic fun layer and showcase the playful side of Power of Dreams.  Throughout the wrap, we have also sprinkled easter eggs like ghosted outlines of Honda-sponsored tracks and an overhead view of the engine that powers the Honda CR-V Hybrid Racer.”

While under development, the project carried the appropriate code name “The Beast”, with looks reminiscent of the silhouette GT racing and Group B rally cars of the 1980s and ‘90s. But the technology under the skin is strictly 21^st century.  

The Honda CR-V Hybrid Racer strengthens the connections between HPD, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and Honda passenger vehicles; creates additional awareness around the new INDYCAR hybrid powertrain coming in 2024; showcases the fun and power available from Honda electrified powertrains; and spotlights the innovation, creativity and capabilities of both HPD and Honda Automotive Development Center.

Honda CR-V Hybrid Racer Public Appearances

The Honda CR-V Hybrid Racer will make its public debut March 3-5 at the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season-opening Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, Florida.  The unique vehicle will be on display and making on-track demonstrations at multiple INDYCAR events, including the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach (April 14-16); the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix (April 28-30); the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio (June 30- July 2); the Honda Indy Toronto (July 14-16); the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix in Nashville (August 4-6); the Grand Prix of Portland (September 1-3); and the season-concluding Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey (September 8-10).

In addition to INDYCAR race weekends, the CR-V Hybrid Racer will make additional appearances at select events throughout 2023.

Honda CR-V Hybrid Racer Specifications

Powertrain

• Honda HI23TT 2.2-liter, twin-turbocharged V6 engine
• Borg Warner EFR7163 turbochargers
• McLaren Applied Technologies Tag 400i Engine Control Unit
• Drive-by-wire controlled port throttle
• Shell 100% renewable race fuel
• Driver-activated Empel electric motor generator unit
• Skeleton super capacitor energy storage system
• XTRAC six-speed transmission; Mega-Line Assisted paddle-shift

Chassis and Bodywork 

• Chromoly tube frame chassis
• New, 6th generation Honda CR-V Hybrid bodywork from beltline up
• Standard Honda CR-V Hybrid windshield and greenhouse
• Custom carbon fiber lower bodywork incorporating flared fenders
• Butterfly half-cut doors provide access for driver and passenger
• Radiator adapted by HPD from the Dallara IR-18 Indy car
• Clamshell rear bodywork to display power unit and drivetrain
• Custom downforce-producing front splitter and rear wing

Suspension

• Front suspension from HPD-developed Acura NSX GT-3 Evo22
• Rear suspension adapted from Dallara IR-18 Indy car
• Brembo 380mm front brakes from Acura NSX GT-3 Evo22
• Brembo 355mm custom rear brakes adapted to Dallara IR-18 suspension
• Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 Ultra-High Performance Summer Tires
• Front tires 285/35-20; Rear tires a massive 305/35-20
• 2Elle Engineering 20×10.5 Front and 20×11 Rear two-piece alloy wheels

• Alex Palou dominates the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey to win for Honda and Chip Ganassi Racing
• NTT INDYCAR SERIES completed its 2022 season today at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca
• Christian Lundgaard finishes fifth to claim series Rookie of the Year honors

MONTEREY, Calif. (Sept. 11, 2022) – Alex Palou closed off the 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES in dominating style Sunday at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, with the Honda driver leading 67 laps to win the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey. The outgoing series champion started 11^th, but used a strong second stint work his way into the lead, then built that advantage throughout the second half of 95-lap contest, holding an impressive 30-second margin of victory at the finish.

Seeking his seventh INDYCAR drivers’ title, Scott Dixon was unable to make the progress he needed in heavy traffic to finish 12^th in today’s race, and third in the championship points standings.

In the tight battle for series Rookie of the Year honors between two Honda drivers, Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Christian Lundgaard recovered from a disappointing qualifying effort yesterday to finish fifth today to claim the title. Rival David Malukas finished 13^th in his Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda to complete an otherwise excellent debut season, highlighted by a second-place finish at World Wide Technology Raceway in August.

Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Honda Race Results

• 1^st Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 5^th Christian Lundgaard-R Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 7^th Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda
• 9^th Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 10^th Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda
• 11^th Colton Herta Andretti Autosport Honda
• 12^th Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 13^th David Malukas-R Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda
• 15^th Devlin DeFrancesco-R Andretti Autosport Honda
• 16^th Jimmie Johnson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 17^th Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 18^th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 19^th Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 20^th Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 23^rd Takuma Sato Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
• R – Rookie

Quotes

Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) race winner, outgoing series champion finished fifth in the final points standings: “It was an amazing day! Conditions were extremely tough, we knew they would be going into it, but we felt really good in warm up and were looking forward to the race. Everything went super smooth during the race, pit stops, strategy, tire, engine. We got some really good fuel milage out of our Honda engine that allowed us to do the race in three stops. That made our day a bit easier! I can’t wait to get the off-season ended and start again and hopefully start it like we finished this year.”

Christian Lundgaard (#30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda) finished fifth, won series Rookie of the Year honors: “The Rookie of the Year title is just a big reward for all the hard work we’ve done this year as a team. At this point, I’m just so happy we’ve managed to move up through the field. For much of this season, we’ve executed in qualifying, but then either stayed there or gone backwards during the race. This weekend, we really didn’t have a decent car, and qualified near the back. But this time we were able to gain positions in the race. It’s just rewarding to move forward – and to get the rookie championship done. And now there’s another championship to go win next year!”

Scott Dixon (#9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished 12^th, six-time series champion finished the season third in the points standings: “We tried a bit of everything today. We ultimately just didn’t have the pace, to be honest. The tire deg [falloff in grip] was really high, especially in traffic. And we just kept coming out of the pits in a train of cars, and used the tires too much trying to move forward. After the last stop, we finally had a clear track and then our pace was good. Like a lot of us here, I’m looking forward to the track being repaved this winter. Currently, it doesn’t really suit my style very well. Everyone on the team did a hell of a job all season long. We made the most of what we had at every race, and finished every race lap this year, which is definitely a huge milestone in itself. With our partners Honda and HPD, the effort they make every race weekend is a feat in itself. We’ll keep after it, we know exactly what we need to do in the off-season, so hopefully we can make some gains in those areas. We’ll be fighting for [championship] number seven next year.”

David Salters (President and Technical Director, Honda Performance Development) on today’s race and the 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season: “I’d just like to thank and congratulate all the hard working, smart men and women of Honda Performance Development. It was nice to finish off the season with a victory today, especially such a dominant one from Alex Palou. That was a champion’s drive. I also would like to thank our great teams, but particularly Chip Ganassi Racing, who just consistently deliver race-in and race-out. So well done Alex, well done Chip Ganassi Racing, well done HPD. In some ways, this was another good year for us. We won the Indianapolis 500 for the third consecutive year, and set a new pole qualifying record. That does not suck. However, compared to the last couple of years, this season wasn’t quite up to our usual standards. We’ve got work to do during the off-season, so we’ll go away and do some work. That’s how racing operates. Racing also helps us develop our people and entertain our fans. Honda enables us to do this. So, finally, thank you to Honda for allowing us to participate in this great sport.”

Fast Fact

Today’s dominant win by Alex Palou is the third consecutive INDYCAR SERIES victory for a Honda driver at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Andrettti Autosport’s Colton Herta won in both 2019 and 2021. No race was held here in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Next

Today’s race concludes the 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES. The 2023 season gets underway March 5, with a return to the Florida Gulf Coast for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

• Alexander Rossi to start third, Romain Grosjean fourth in final NTT INDYCAR SERIES race of 2022
• Championship contenders Marcus Ericsson, Scott Dixon to start 10^th and 13^th
• Honda drivers Christian Lundgaard and David Malukas carry series Rookie of the Year battle into the final race

MONTEREY, Calif. (Sept. 10, 2022) – Andretti Autosport’s Alexander Rossi and Romain Grosjean topped Honda’s effort today in qualifying for Sunday’s season-ending Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey, while championship contenders Marcus Ericsson and Scott Dixon will start 10^th and 13^th, respectively.

Both Rossi and Grosjean advanced through the first two rounds of “knockout” qualifying; with Rossi claiming third in the “Fast Six” final round, while Grosjean will start alongside in fourth.

Dixon, 21 points away from scoring his seventh drivers’ title – with 53 points on offer tomorrow – will start 13^th after just missing advancing out of the first qualifying round. His Chip Ganassi teammate, Indianapolis 500 winner Marcus Ericsson, will start 10^th and is 40 points out of the lead.

In the tight battle for series Rookie of the Year honors between two Honda drivers, David Malukas will start seventh and his rookie rival Christian Lundgaard will line up 16^th. Lundgaard carries a five-point lead into tomorrow’ championship finale.

Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey Honda Qualifying Results

• 3^rd Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda
• 4^th Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda
• 5^th Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 7^th David Malukas-R Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda
• 10^th Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 11^th Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 12^th Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 13^th Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 16^th Christian Lundgaard-R Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 18^th Colton Herta Andretti Autosport Honda
• 19^th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 21^st Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 22^nd Takuma Sato Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
• 23^rd Jimmie Johnson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• R – Rookie

Quotes

Scott Dixon (#9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) tied for second in the championship going into tomorrow’s season finale; will start 13^th: “Because of the red flag [for Josef Newgarden’s spin], we only had a single lap at the end [to set a qualifying time] and unfortunately, some slower traffic kept me from getting my tires up to proper temperature. We missed [advancing to second-round qualifying] by less than a tenth of a second, which is always frustrating because we definitely had the speed in the car today, it felt really comfortable. For the race tomorrow, strategy is going to be the key, it’s going to be a struggle to complete a full fuel run without the tires going off on this slippery, very low-grip track. There may be more cautions as well. Everything’s to play for, so it may be even more exciting than usual here tomorrow.”

Alexander Rossi (#27 Andretti Autosport Honda) will start third: “Overall, a really good day for the whole Andretti Autosport Honda team. I’ve started, second, third and third here previously, so hopefully we can close out the year – and my time with Andretti, NAPA and Honda – on a high note and get a great result for them this weekend.”

Romain Grosjean (#28 Andretti Autosport Honda) will start fourth: “We’re starting nine places up from where we started last year (to finish third), so that should make my life a little bit easier in tomorrow’s race! Qualifying went well, the changes we made to the car [since practice] all seemed to work and I feel really positive about our weekend so far. I definitely want to have a good race tomorrow, so we can go into the winter break with a bit more confidence than we had in recent races.”

Fast Facts

Honda comes to this weekend’s 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season finale at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca with two of its drivers in contention for the series championship.

Scott Dixon, a two-time winner this year and six-time series champion, comes to the classic central California road course third in the drivers’ title standings, 20 points away from a record-tying seventh title. His Chip Ganassi Racing Honda teammate, Indianapolis 500 winner Marcus Ericsson, is fourth, 39 points out of the lead.

In the contest for series Rookie of the Year honors, the coveted award will go to one of two Honda drivers. Rahal Letterman Lanigan driver Christian Lundgaard leads with 293 points heading to Laguna Seca. But fellow Honda racer David Malukas is only five points back, driving for Dale Coyne Racing with HMD.

Where to Watch

Television coverage of Sunday’s season-ending Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey starts at 2:40 p.m. with pre-race activities on NBC, followed by the race start at 3 p.m. EDT. Complete, flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on NBC Peacock, the INDYCAR Radio Network, and SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation (Channel 160).

Honda Racing social media content and video links from Monterey can be found on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook

(www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD). Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV).

Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey

WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, CA

3 p.m. EDT Sunday, Sept. 11

NBC and NBC Peacock

IndyCar Radio Network and SiriusXM

Honda at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca

• Honda comes to this weekend’s 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season finale at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca with two of its drivers in contention for the series championship. 

• Scott Dixon, a two-time winner this year and six-time series champion, comes to the classic central California road course third in the drivers’ title standings, 20 points away from a record-tying seventh title.  His Chip Ganassi Racing Honda teammate, Indianapolis 500 winner Marcus Ericsson, is fourth, 39 points out of the lead.

• In the contest for series Rookie of the Year honors, the coveted award will go to one of two Honda drivers.  Rahal Letterman Lanigan driver Christian Lundgaard leads with 293 points heading to Laguna Seca.  But fellow Honda racer David Malukas is only five points back, driving for Dale Coyne Racing with HMD.

• Indy car racing returned to the Monterey Peninsula in 2019, in a race won by Honda-powered rookie Colton Herta.  Herta led 83 of 90 laps en route to his third win of the season and series Rookie of the Year honors.

• After a one-year absence in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Honda clinched its 10^th overall, and fourth consecutive, NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturers’ Championship at the 2021 Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey.

• The Honda one-two-three result was again led by Andretti Autosport’s Herta, winning from pole for the second consecutive time – just as he did in the series’ last visit to Laguna Seca in 2019. Herta would lead all but four laps in the 95-lap event. 

• Eventual series champion Alex Palou finished second with Romain Grosjean third.  Graham Rahal finished just off the podium in fourth position, completing a Honda sweep of the top-four positions of the day. 

• Honda teams and drivers also took part in nine Championship Auto Racing Teams [CART] events from 1994-2002, winning three times.

• Honda’s first win at Laguna Seca came in 1996 with the famous pass in the “Corkscrew” corner by Alex Zanardi on future Honda IndyCar driver/team owner Bryan Herta.  Zanardi’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Jimmy Vasser, claimed the win in 1997.  Helio Castroneves led a 1-2-3 Honda sweep at Laguna Seca in 2000, with his Penske Racing teammate Gil de Ferran, second, and Dario Franchitti rounding out the top three for Team Green.

Where to Watch

• Television coverage of Sunday’s Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey starts at 3 p.m. EDT on NBC.  Complete, flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on NBC Peacock, the INDYCAR Radio Network, and SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation (Channel 160).

Honda Racing social media content and video links from this weekend’s activities from Laguna Seca can be found on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD).  Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV)

Dixon Charges to a Podium Finish for Honda in Portland

• Scott Dixon finishes third today at Portland International Raceway
• Dixon goes to next weekend’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES season finale tied for second as the Chip Ganassi Racing driver seeks a record-tying seventh title
• Graham Rahal scores his second top-five finish of 2022

PORTLAND, Oregon (Sept. 4, 2022) – Scott Dixon charged forward 13 position Sunday at Portland International Raceway to finish third aboard his #9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, keeping him in the thick of the battle for the Drivers’ Championship as the 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES heads to next weekend’s season finale.

After consistently gaining positions through the first two-thirds of the 200-mile contest, the six-time INDYCAR champion took advantage of a late-race restart to move from sixth to fourth in one corner, then passed Pato O’Ward to put himself on the podium with a third-place finish. Dixon now sits just 20 points out of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship with one race remaining.

Scoring a fifth-place result for Honda was Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Graham Rahal, notching his second top five of the season, following a fourth-place result earlier this year in Toronto.

Andretti Autosport teammates Colton Herta and Alexander Rossi came home sixth and seventh, respectively, at the end of the 110-lap contest on the Portland International Raceway road course.

Portland Grand Prix 500 Honda Race Results

• 3^rd Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 5^th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 6^th Colton Herta Andretti Autosport Honda
• 7^th Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda
• 11^th Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 12^th Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 14^th David Malukas-R Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda
• 15^th Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 18^th Takuma Sato Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
• 16^th Devlin DeFrancesco-R Andretti Autosport Honda
• 17^th Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 19^th Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda
• 21^st Christian Lundgaard-R Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 23^rd Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 24^th Jimmie Johnson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda [Did not finish – contact]
• R – Rookie

Quotes

Scott Dixon (#9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished third, goes to next weekend’s season finale tied for second in the battle for the Drivers’ Championship: “Definitely a fun day for us, just have to stop qualifying at the back [of the field] and make all that work for us. We had pretty good pace throughout the race, and pretty good tire [wear] as well. Our fuel mileage was exceptionally easy to attain today, which was a huge positive, and the driveability was still fantastic, so kudos to Honda. It made my day a lot easier. We’re still in the hunt for the championship, 20 points back, so we definitely can still win it.”

Graham Rahal (#15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda) finished fifth: “I thought it was a great day for us. The car ran really well and Honda did a great job working with what we had to make the cars as competitive as we did. Then we made some really helpful [chassis] adjustments in the race that helped us move forward. The driveability of the Honda engine is always really strong, and I thought today that played a role in helping us. I’m super pleased for our entire team. A top five is obviously a good finish for us this year.”

David Salters (President and Technical Director, Honda Performance Development) on today’s race: “Firstly, thanks to all of our teams for a sterling effort today. And, as always, extremely inspiring to see the maestro who is Scott Dixon, at work in the ‘office’, doing what Scott Dixon does [moving from 16^th in the starting field to a third-place finish]. Now the fight for the Drivers’ Championship moves to Laguna Seca [next weekend] and we’ll see what happens. We at HPD have some work to do, and so we’ll do some work.”

Fast Facts

Honda’s first Portland win came in 1996, via a 1-2 finish for Alex Zanardi and Gil de Ferran. Zanardi won again with Chip Ganassi Racing in 1998. Honda drivers swept the 1999 podium in Portland, with de Ferran winning, followed by Juan Pablo Montoya in second and Dario Franchitti, third. De Ferran repeated as race winner in 2000.

Honda’s Indy car win total of 281 in 25 years of North American open-wheel racing – including 15 Indianapolis 500 victories since 2003 – is unmatched by any other manufacturer in the same period.

Next

The 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES concludes next Sunday, moving down the Pacific Coast for the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey season finale at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California.

Honda Racing social media content and video links from Portland can be found on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD). Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV).

Rookie Lundgaard leads the way for Honda in Portland Qualifying 

• Rahal Letterman Lanigan’s Christian Lundgaard will start third in Sunday’s Portland Grand Prix
• Championship contender Alex Palou will line up fourth for Honda
• Honda power makes up five of the top-10 starters as 2022 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season begins end-of-season run of consecutive races

PORTLAND, Oregon (Sept. 3, 2022) – Rookie Christian Lundgaard continued his late-season NTT INDYCAR SERIES strong show of form, setting the fourth fastest lap time in Portland Grand Prix qualifying aboard his #30 Honda-powered Rahal Letterman Lanigan Indy car. The Danish rookie will start third following a penalty for a car ahead. 

Lining up on the second row, alongside Lundgaard, is reigning NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion Alex Palou. Looking for his second consecutive title, Palou currently sits fifth in points in his #10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. 

Others qualifying in the top ten for Honda included Colton Herta, eighth fastest, who rebounded after making contact in the first round of knockout qualifying. Herta qualified just ahead of his Andretti Autosport teammate, Alexander Rossi. Rounding out the top 10 is rookie David Malukas for Dale Coyne Racing with HMD. Following a stellar first podium finish at World Wide Technology Raceway, Malukas sits just 11 points behind Lundgaard in the battle for series Rookie of the Year honors. 

Two other Honda-powered championship contenders, Scott Dixon and Marcus Ericsson, will line up 16th and 18th respectively.

Portland Honda Qualifying Results

• 3^rd Christian Lundgaard-R Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 4^th Alex Palou Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 7^th Colton Herta Andretti Autosport Honda
• 9^th Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda
• 10^th David Malukas-R Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda
• 11^th Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 15^th Romain Grosjean Andretti Autosport Honda*
• 16^th Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 17^th Jack Harvey Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
• 18^th Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 19^th Simon Pagenaud Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 21^st Helio Castroneves Meyer Shank Racing Honda
• 22^nd Takuma Sato Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
• 23^rd Jimmie Johnson Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
• 24^th Devlin DeFrancesco-R Andretti Autosport Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes

Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) will start fourth: “Yeah, it was good. We did a lot of work and yesterday and earlier today in practice, so was happy to make the ‘Fast Six’ [final qualifying round]. We’re really close, and hopefully we can make up the rest in the race tomorrow. We’re not really thinking about the championship [title hopes] right now, just taking everything one race at a time. But we won here last year, so we’ll try and do the same tomorrow.”

Christian Lundgaard (#30 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda) will start third, top rookie in field: “We qualified fourth, but will start third since Josef [Newgarden] got a grid penalty [for an unapproved engine change]. We‘re in a pretty good place. It’s good to be the best of the rest, I would say. The Penske cars have been strong all weekend; they’ve been setting the pace for sure. Being up there in the mix is good. I was looking at a 58.2 at the end there but ran wide at the exit of Turn 7 onto the back straight and kind of dipped the left side tires into the dirt and bottomed out so I lost some time there. I think the pace is the car but I didn’t quite execute. But still P3 on the grid is not a bad thing at all. We’ll go for it tomorrow.”

Fast Facts

Honda drivers have won two of the three NTT INDYCAR SERIES races at Portland International Raceway since the series returned to the Rose City in 2018 (there was no race in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic).

In 2018, Takuma Sato led a Honda sweep of the top three finishing positions, with Ryan Hunter-Reay and Sebastien Bourdais rounding out the victory podium for the manufacturer. Honda went on to win the first of four consecutive INDYCAR Manufacturers’ Championships in 2018.

Last year, eventual series champion Alex Palou led a Honda sweep of the first four finishing positions. Fellow Honda drivers Alexander Rossi, Scott Dixon and Jack Harvey completed the top four at the checkers.

Where to Watch

Television coverage of Sunday’s Grand Prix of Portland starts at 3 p.m. EDT on NBC. Complete, flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on NBC Peacock, the INDYCAR Radio Network, and SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation (Channel 160).

Honda Racing social media content and video links from Portland can be found on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD). Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV).

Grand Prix of Portland

Portland International Raceway, Portland, Oregon

3 p.m. EDT Sunday, Sept. 4

NBC and NBC Peacock

IndyCar Radio Network and SiriusXM

Honda at Portland International Raceway

• Honda drivers have won two of the three NTT INDYCAR SERIES races at Portland International Raceway since the series returned to the Rose City in 2018 (there was no race in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic).
• In 2018, Takuma Sato led a Honda sweep of the top three finishing positions, with Ryan Hunter-Reay and Sebastien Bourdais rounding out the victory podium for the manufacturer. Honda went on to win the first of four consecutive INDYCAR Manufacturers’ Championships in 2018.
• Last year, eventual series champion Alex Palou led a Honda sweep of the first four finishing positions. Fellow Honda drivers Alexander Rossi, Scott Dixon and Jack Harvey completed the top four at the checkers.
• Honda teams and drivers also took part in eight Championship Auto Racing Team [CART] events from 1995-2002, winning four.
• Honda’s first Portland win came in 1996, via a 1-2 finish for Alex Zanardi and Gil de Ferran. Zanardi won again with Chip Ganassi Racing in 1998. Honda drivers swept the 1999 podium in Portland, with de Ferran winning, followed by Juan Pablo Montoya in second and Dario Franchitti, third. De Ferran repeated as race winner in 2000.
• Honda’s Indy car win total of 281 in 25 years of North American open-wheel racing – including 15 Indianapolis 500 victories since 2003 – is unmatched by any other manufacturer in the same period.

Where to Watch

• Television coverage of Sunday’s Grand Prix of Portland starts at 3 p.m. EDT on NBC. Complete, flag-to-flag race coverage also will be available on NBC Peacock, the INDYCAR Radio Network, and SiriusXM INDYCAR Nation (Channel 160).
• Honda Racing social media content and video links from this weekend’s activities from Portland can be found on Instagram (www.instagram.com/hondaracing_hpd), Twitter (twitter.com/HondaRacing_HPD) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/HondaRacingHPD). Additional features and long-form videos can be found on the Honda Racing/HPD YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV).