The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Fast Facts
Race weekend: Friday, July 28 – Sunday, July 30
Track: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, a 13-turn, 2.258-mile road course in Lexington, Ohio
Race distance: 90 laps / 203.22 miles
Entry list: Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio (PDF)
Push-to-pass parameters: 200 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 20 seconds per activation.
Firestone tire allotment: Seven sets primary, four sets alternate. Teams must use one set of primary and one new set of alternate tires in the race.
Twitter: @Mid_Ohio @IndyCar, #Honda200, #IndyCar
Event website: http://www.midohio.com/
INDYCAR website: www.IndyCar.com
2016 race winner: Simon Pagenaud (No. 22 PPG Automotive Refinish Chevrolet)
2016 Verizon P1 Award winner: Simon Pagenaud (No. 22 PPG Automotive Refinish Chevrolet), 1:03.8700, 127.271 mph
Qualifying record: Simon Pagenaud, 1:03.8700, 127.271 mph, July 30, 2016
NBCSN television broadcasts: Qualifying, 2 p.m. ET Saturday, July 29 (live); Race, 3 p.m. ET Sunday, July 30, CNBC (live); 7 p.m. ET Sunday, July 30, NBCSN (re-air); Kevin Lee is the lead announcer for the NBCSN broadcasts this weekend alongside analysts Townsend Bell and Paul Tracy. Pit reporters are Jon Beekhuis, Katie Hargitt, Anders Krohn and Robin Miller.
Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the chief announcer alongside analyst Davey Hamilton. Jake Query and Nick Yeoman are the turn announcers with Dave Furst, Rob Howden and Michael Young reporting from the pits. All Verizon IndyCar Series races are broadcast live on network affiliates, Sirius 214, XM 209, IndyCar.com, indycarradio.com and the INDYCAR Mobile app. All Verizon IndyCar Series practice and qualifying sessions are available on IndyCar.com, indycarradio.com and the INDYCAR Mobile app.
Video streaming: All practice sessions for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio will stream live on RaceControl.IndyCar.com and on the INDYCAR YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/indycar)
INDYCAR Mobile app: Verizon’s INDYCAR Mobile app is available across all carriers. Exclusive features for Verizon Wireless customers will stream live through the app and include enhanced real-time leaderboard and car telemetry; live in-car camera video streaming for select drivers during Verizon IndyCar Series races; live driver and pit crew radio transmissions during races and live Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network audio streaming during all track activities.
At-track schedule (all times local):
Friday, July 28
10 – 10:45 a.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series practice #1, RaceControl.IndyCar.com (Live)
2:15 – 3 p.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series practice #2, RaceControl.IndyCar.com (Live)
3:05 – 3:20 p.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series pit stop practice, RaceControl.IndyCar.com(Live)
Saturday, July 29
9:55 – 10:40 a.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series practice #3, RaceControl.IndyCar.com (Live)
2:05 p.m. – Qualifying for the Verizon P1 Award (three rounds of knockout qualifying), NBCSN (Live)
Sunday, July 30
11:15 – 11:45 a.m. – Verizon IndyCar Series warmup, RaceControl.IndyCar.com (Live)
3 p.m. – Driver introductions
3:40 p.m. – Command to start engines
3:47 p.m. – The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio (90 laps/203.22 miles), CNBC (Live)
Race notes:
• There have been nine different winners in the 12 previous Verizon IndyCar Series races in 2017: Sebastien Bourdais (Streets of St. Petersburg), James Hinchcliffe (Streets of Long Beach), Josef Newgarden (Barber Motorsports Park and Streets of Toronto), Simon Pagenaud (Phoenix Raceway), Will Power (INDYCAR Grand Prix and Texas Motor Speedway), Takuma Sato (Indianapolis 500), Graham Rahal (Raceway at Belle Isle-1 and Raceway at Belle Isle-2), Scott Dixon (Road America) and Helio Castroneves (Iowa Speedway). Bourdais’ win at St. Pete on March 12 gave him sole possession of sixth on the all-time Indy car victory list. Power’s win at Texas on June 10 tied him with Dario Franchitti and Paul Tracy for ninth on the all-time list with 31 wins. Dixon’s win at Road America on June 25 was his 41st career victory and he will tie Michael Andretti for third all-time with his next win. Castroneves’ win at Iowa on July 9 ended a 54-race winless streak and gave him sole possession of 12th all-time with 30 wins.
• The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio will be the 33rd Indy car race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Simon Pagenaud won the race in 2016. Johnny Rutherford won the first Indy car race at Mid-Ohio in 1980.
• The Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio will be the ninth race on a road/street course in 2017. The first seven races were won by Sebastien Bourdais (Streets of St. Petersburg), James Hinchcliffe (Streets of Long Beach), Josef Newgarden (Barber Motorsports Park and Streets of Toronto), Will Power (INDYCAR Grand Prix), Graham Rahal (Raceway at Belle Isle-1 and Raceway at Belle Isle-2) and Scott Dixon (Road America).
• Scott Dixon is the winningest Indy car driver at Mid-Ohio with five victories (2007, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2014). Emerson Fittipaldi won at Mid-Ohio three times, while Michael Andretti, Helio Castroneves, Teo Fabi, Bobby Rahal, Al Unser Jr. and Alex Zanardi have all won at Mid-Ohio twice. Past winners Dixon, Castroneves (2000 and 2001), Charlie Kimball (2013), Graham Rahal (2015) and Simon Pagenaud (2016) are entered this year.
• There have been six different Mid-Ohio pole winners since Helio Castroneves won back-to-back poles in 2007-08. Other Mid-Ohio pole winners entered in this year’s race are: Will Power (2010 and 2012), Scott Dixon (2011 and 2015), Ryan Hunter-Reay (2013) and Simon Pagenaud (2016).
• Eleven drivers have won the race from the pole – Mario Andretti (1984), Bobby Rahal (1985), Roberto Guerrero (1987), Teo Fabi (1989), Michael Andretti (1990 and 1991), Al Unser Jr. (1994), Alex Zanardi (1996), Patrick Carpentier (2002), Paul Tracy (2003), Scott Dixon (2011) and Simon Pagenaud (2016).
• At least 19 drivers entered in the event have competed in past Indy car races at Mid-Ohio. Tony Kanaan (15) has the most starts at Mid-Ohio among the entered drivers. Twelve of those drivers have led laps at the track (Scott Dixon 223, Helio Castroneves 147, Will Power 90, Charlie Kimball 46, Simon Pagenaud 37, Mikhail Aleshin 33, Ryan Hunter-Reay 33, James Hinchcliffe 30, Graham Rahal 23, Conor Daly 22, Kanaan 13 and Josef Newgarden 5).
• Chip Ganassi Racing has won 10 times at Mid-Ohio, including seven of the last 10 races at the track. Ganassi’s winning drivers are: Alex Zanardi (1996 and 1997), Juan Pablo Montoya (1999), Scott Dixon (2007, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2014), Dario Franchitti (2010) and Charlie Kimball (2013).
• Team Penske has eight wins at the track: Emerson Fittipaldi (1992 and 1993), Al Unser Jr. (1994 and 1995), Helio Castroneves (2000 and 2001), Ryan Briscoe (2008) and Simon Pagenaud (2016).
• Scott Dixon has finished in the top five in nine of his 12 races at Mid-Ohio, including five wins between 2007 and 2014…James Hinchcliffe has three top-five finishes in five career starts at Mid-Ohio…Carlos Munoz has finished in the top five in two of his three Mid-Ohio starts…Will Power has finished in the top five in five of his eight starts at Mid-Ohio…Simon Pagenaud has finished on the podium four times in his previous six starts, including last year’s win.
• Two rookies – Esteban Gutierrez and Ed Jones – are expected to compete. Jones has raced at the circuit before in Indy Lights.
• Tony Kanaan seeks to start his 278th consecutive race this weekend, which would extend his Indy car record streak that began in June 2001 at Portland. Teammate Scott Dixon has made 219 consecutive starts heading into the weekend, which is the second-longest streak in Indy car racing. Andretti Autosport’s Marco Andretti has made 195 consecutive starts, which is the fourth-longest streak in Indy car racing.
• Helio Castroneves will attempt to make his 340th career Indy car start, which ranks third on the all-time list. Tony Kanaan is fourth all-time with 338 starts.
HONDA INDY 200 AT MID-OHIO PRE-EVENT QUOTES:
SIMON PAGENAUD (No. 1 Menards Team Penske Chevrolet): “I’m excited to head to Mid-Ohio with the No. 1 Menards Chevrolet. We won there last year and it helped impact our championship hunt in a big way. It’s a fun course with great fans who are always excited for INDYCAR racing. Our last race, Toronto, was a great event for us and we think the momentum we built there that can really help us as we look for another win to get more points towards the championship.”
JOSEF NEWGARDEN (No. 2 PPG Automotive Refinish Team Penske Chevrolet):“Road courses can be really fun to race at and Mid-Ohio is definitely a fun one. The last time we raced at a road course was at Road America, where we finished second, and we won earlier this season at Barber. The No. 2 PPG Chevrolet team has really come together this season especially with road courses, and with a fun crowd there, I’ll have everything I need to race for a win with a great team behind me.”
HELIO CASTRONEVES (No. 3 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet): “We’re running second in point standings and now we’re headed to a race I’ve won at twice. Am I happy to head to Mid-Ohio? Of course. The No. 3 Hitachi Chevrolet crew has been building great cars for me all season and we keep having solid finishes. The last time we raced on a road course was at Road America, where we finished third. We had a strong car then and I know my team is preparing another fast car that we can race hard for another win with. The fans at Mid-Ohio are always a fun group, too, so I’m looking forward to getting back on track this weekend.”
CONOR DALY (No. 4 ABC Supply AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet): “It was nice to be able to test at Mid-Ohio last week as we haven’t had a test day in a while, it feels like. It was a really productive day for us. Every day with this car and aero package, we are learning more. I feel like I came quite close to winning the race last year so I’m hoping to have another strong result this year.”
MAX CHILTON (No. 8 Gallagher Honda): “I’m really looking forward to returning to Mid-Ohio for the second year. The track is a real thriller of a lap and suits my driving style very well. It’s fast, flowing and hilly and that’s the type of track I enjoy most. There is also a big turnout for fans and people camping which makes for a great atmosphere.”
SCOTT DIXON (No. 9 NTT Data Honda): “We’ve been fortunate to have a lot of success over the years at Mid-Ohio with I think five or so wins now. The team really has this place figured out too, as overall they have 10 wins, which is the most wins for a track by the team. The flow and rhythm of this track just really suits my driving style. It’s a big weekend for Honda and I hope we can put on a good show for the fans who always turn out in big numbers here.”
TONY KANAAN (No. 10 NTT Data Honda): “I love racing at Mid-Ohio with the massive, loyal fan base we’ve created there over the years. It’s just always so fun to come to this track and put on a good show for the fans, who have so much passion for what we do on the road course. I believe I have around 15 starts at Mid-Ohio, so I definitely have some history out there and would love to add a win this year. We had a rough race in Toronto, so I think it was a good thing for us to take the weekend and regroup before heading into Mid-Ohio this weekend. Obviously, Scott (Dixon) has proven how strong he is at Mid-Ohio, so we’ll just try to get as much data as we can from him and hopefully snag a much-needed podium-finish for the No. 10 NTT Data Honda.
WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet): “Toronto was a really rough weekend for the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet team. We had an awesome, strong car and got tangled up in a wreck. It was really frustrating to end our day that way but we are ready to give it another shot at Mid-Ohio. We won at the Indianapolis road course earlier this season with a really strong car. The team prepared a beast of a car which was all I needed to win that race. They’re taking a lot of what we learned there and are applying it to our car this weekend. It’s a fun track with a great crowd, and one of the tracks I have not won at yet. To get a win there would be great for our season to give us a boost in points that we need.”
CARLOS MUNOZ (No. 14 ABC Supply AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet): “Mid-Ohio is a track that everyone likes, it is for sure a tricky track, a really fast track and really physical with the g-force loads. It is one of the toughest ones we run but I enjoy it a lot. Last year I finished third and in my rookie year I finished fourth (2014). It is really hard to overtake so you have to do a good qualifying session or have a lucky yellow but there aren’t many yellows at this track. Looking forward to Mid-Ohio where we can show our performance gain.”
GRAHAM RAHAL (No. 15 Steak ‘n Shake Honda): “It’s always great to go back to Mid-Ohio. I have a lot of fond memories, and have had a lot of great days there. Obviously winning there in 2015 really highlighted my career thus far. I’m excited to get back and hopefully see a great crowd once again. I know we will have a lot of support and I’m very appreciative of that. Hopefully we can have a great run in the Steak ‘n Shake Honda because we definitely need it at this point in the championship. My hopes and expectations are high. We have struggled with our road course setup this year but at the same time I think we are capable of overcoming that. Our guys have put a lot of effort, a lot of time and mental energy into figuring out what we need going forward. Our pit position in Mid-Ohio, based on qualifying second in Toronto, is going to be great. It’s flat so that is going to help us a lot. Obviously you want to be pitted with the good guys. You want to be right down there where the fast guys and championship contenders are and we’re right there with them. It’s important to have a good result at Mid-Ohio. I’m frustrated after Toronto. We deserved better than that. Our car was better than that, our team was better than that so it was obviously disappointing to get the result that we did. Hopefully we can turn that around and have a really, really strong run at Mid-Ohio.”
ESTEBAN GUTIERREZ (No. 18 UNIFIN Honda): “It’s very exciting to get to know another track. I tested there last week with the team. I think it was a very productive test. It helped me, once again, to understand the car better. Every time that we try something new, it helps me learn more and that then allows me to be more effective on a race weekend as I’m able to understand what direction we need to take to make the No. 18 UNIFIN car quicker. The test helped me a lot with that, and obviously to learn the track. It’s a track with high speed corners, very short, but it’s a track that’s very fun to drive. I really enjoyed it and I’m now really looking forward to racing there. In terms of objectives for the weekend, I want to keep on learning and it would be nice to reach the top 10. We know that it’s been a pretty steep learning curve for me in IndyCar but we’ve made some progress and hopefully we can make our way into the top 10 pretty soon.”
ED JONES (No. 19 Boys Scouts of America Honda): “We had a really good test last week at Mid-Ohio. It was very positive and we worked on a lot of things. The car seemed pretty fast compared to others that were there. As we saw at Road America, it’s beneficial to be able to test somewhere before we race there. It can give you an advantage early on and hopefully we can produce another good result because of it. It’s a really difficult track, very technical, but it’s a lot of fun to drive. I think a lot of the race results will be decided by qualifying because it’s very difficult to overtake. That’s one area where we really need to work hard to get the Boy Scouts car right for.”
SPENCER PIGOT (No. 20 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet): I’ve always loved driving at Mid-Ohio since I first went there in 2010. It’s a very challenging track that takes a lot of commitment and precision to be fast in an Indy car. It’s one of those places that flows extremely well so when you get into a rhythm around there, the laps just fly by. We had a pretty good race there last year; the improvements we’ve made to the Fuzzy’s Vodka car this season should make us even more competitive. I can’t wait to see how we stack up!”
JR HILDEBRAND (No. 21 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet): “I actually made my Verizon IndyCar Series debut at Mid-Ohio! I’ve always really enjoyed it and I’m looking forward to getting back there. The track has an interesting mix of fast and slow corners, which, combined with its undulating terrain, give it a great and unique flow.”
TAKUMA SATO (No. 26 Andretti Autosport Honda): “Mid-Ohio is one most popular tracks among fans and it’s my favorite, too. I enjoy driving this twisted road course and it always reminds me of the UK’s national circuits where I was competing in British F3. In fact, some of the fans at Mid-Ohio have brought pictures of my F3 days, which shows how enthusiastic the fans are here. Also, we have a great support from the Honda employees and families so that is also very nice. Ruoff Home Mortgage has joined us for the weekend, and (Mid-Ohio) is very close to a new branch they just opened, so hopefully we will have a lot of their employees at the track to cheer us on. This track is famous for what is known as massive track evolution. The track usually has very little grip when it’s ‘green’ then by the end of the day or the session, it’s gripped up a lot and it affects the car balance and setups, so it’s tricky and challenging. I look forward to having a strong weekend.”
MARCO ANDRETTI (No. 27 Andretti Autosport Honda): “We left Toronto with a good result and it is important to carry that momentum to Mid-Ohio and build on it. I always love going to Mid-Ohio. I’ve been preparing physically for an all-green, physical race. Mid-Ohio would be a good place to get a podium or win for the UFD team.”
RYAN HUNTER-REAY (No. 28 DHL Honda): “I’ve always enjoyed going to Mid-Ohio and rate it as one of my favorite tracks to race on. I raced here in Skip Barber when I was a teenager and earned my first-ever INDYCAR podium at Mid-Ohio. It would be great to add a win for the the DHL team to those memories. We have some positive momentum coming off the last two races at Iowa and Toronto and hopefully we can roll that into another successful weekend at Mid-Ohio.”
CHARLIE KIMBALL (No. 83 Tresiba Honda): “I can’t wait to get back to Mid-Ohio for the Honda Indy 200. It’s such a staple on the Verizon IndyCar Series calendar for both drivers and fans. The atmosphere is more like a backyard barbecue or tailgate with so many people camping and having picnics on the hillsides while watching the race. As for the Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing team, we’ve had a few strong qualifying sessions at Mid-Ohio, making it into the Firestone Fast Six these past few years, so we’ll try to keep that going. It’s great to see the continued support from Honda at this event, too. With the right strategy, a fast car and maybe a bit of luck, hopefully we can see the No. 83 Tresiba Honda on the podium this weekend.”
ALEXANDER ROSSI (No. 98 Andretti Autosport/Curb Honda): “We are coming into this weekend with the excitement of finally returning to the podium this year. The motivation to fight for our first win of 2017 is as high as ever and, based on last year, I feel like we have a good platform to start from. I have a lot of team members from Ohio, so this is somewhat of a home race for the No. 98 car and I will be doing everything I can to get an awesome result for them.”
Sources: Curt Cavin/Verizon IndyCar Series PR