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| October 2023 News |
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10/08 - The Indianapolis 8 Hour Race
10/25 - $2,000 IndyCar Tickets
10/25 - $2,000 IndyCar Tickets
10/5 - Drivers participating in the Indy 500 Rookie Orientation Program at IMS Oct 11th:
Kyle Larson (McLaren), Marcus Armstrong (Ganassi), Linus Lundqvist (Ganassi) and
Tom Blomqvist (MSR).
Kyle Larson (McLaren), Marcus Armstrong (Ganassi), Linus Lundqvist (Ganassi) and
Tom Blomqvist (MSR).
10/5 - Honda and Chevrolet will be testing the new-for-2024 IndyCar hybrid engine and
ERS system at IMS on Oct 12-13.
ERS system at IMS on Oct 12-13.
10/7 - Max Verstappen better watch out for rookie Oscar Piastri, who won the Sprint
race in Qatar today for McLaren! Verstappen finished 2nd and the 7 points he earned
was enough to clinch his 3rd F1 Drivers championship in a row. Verstappen has won
13 of 16 races so far this year, with 7 more races yet to run.
race in Qatar today for McLaren! Verstappen finished 2nd and the 7 points he earned
was enough to clinch his 3rd F1 Drivers championship in a row. Verstappen has won
13 of 16 races so far this year, with 7 more races yet to run.
-------------- THE MAIN EVENT ---------------
Team WRT’s BMW M4s only qualified fourth and
sixth, but any suggestion they might struggle in
race trim was dispelled by the end of the opening
lap as their No. 30 took the lead heading into Turn
1 and their No.31 moved up two spots.
They were running one-two by the end of the first
hour and pulling clear of the chasing factory
Mercedes-AMGs from Team Craft-Bamboo
(No. 77) and Team Gruppe M (No. 999). Those
teams would go on to finish 2-3 respectively.
The race’s only caution period occurred halfway
through the second hour when DXDT Racing’s
Pro-Am Mercedes-AMG No. 91 ground to a halt.
After the third hour, WRT’s leading entry collected
a drive-through penalty for exceeding its 65-minute
stint length by 11 seconds. The bright orange
BMW dropped to fourth overall.
That gifted the other WRT car the lead and it
enjoyed a 31-second lead over the No. 77 at half
distance.
The gap was exactly the same 97 minutes later
when the No. 31 BMW misjudged his entry into
Turn 1 and hit a Pro-Am Ferrari. The damage
wasn’t terminal but the No. 31 finished 4 laps
down.
By that stage, the No. 30 had made its way back
up to second and soon passed for the lead. From
there, its drivers reeled off the laps to score a
dominant win.
Wright Motorsport’s No 45 Porsche was excellent
throughout en route to fourth place overall and a
dominant Fanatec GT America victory. Even a
puncture in the final hour couldn’t deny the No. 45
a dominant domestic victory by one lap over the
event’s standout Pro-Am car: CrowdStrike by
Riley’s No. 6 Mercedes, which included Indy NXT
driver Nolan Siegel.
IndyCar driver Callum Illot also competed in the
race in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche.
The race set a new record for covering the most
distance in 8 hours for this event - 812.187 miles
(333 laps).
The 8-Hour race continues into the early night
time and is the only event at IMS that does so.
While some flood lights were set up in places
around the track, the cars also had to rely on
their headlights.
Team WRT’s BMW M4s only qualified fourth and
sixth, but any suggestion they might struggle in
race trim was dispelled by the end of the opening
lap as their No. 30 took the lead heading into Turn
1 and their No.31 moved up two spots.
They were running one-two by the end of the first
hour and pulling clear of the chasing factory
Mercedes-AMGs from Team Craft-Bamboo
(No. 77) and Team Gruppe M (No. 999). Those
teams would go on to finish 2-3 respectively.
The race’s only caution period occurred halfway
through the second hour when DXDT Racing’s
Pro-Am Mercedes-AMG No. 91 ground to a halt.
After the third hour, WRT’s leading entry collected
a drive-through penalty for exceeding its 65-minute
stint length by 11 seconds. The bright orange
BMW dropped to fourth overall.
That gifted the other WRT car the lead and it
enjoyed a 31-second lead over the No. 77 at half
distance.
The gap was exactly the same 97 minutes later
when the No. 31 BMW misjudged his entry into
Turn 1 and hit a Pro-Am Ferrari. The damage
wasn’t terminal but the No. 31 finished 4 laps
down.
By that stage, the No. 30 had made its way back
up to second and soon passed for the lead. From
there, its drivers reeled off the laps to score a
dominant win.
Wright Motorsport’s No 45 Porsche was excellent
throughout en route to fourth place overall and a
dominant Fanatec GT America victory. Even a
puncture in the final hour couldn’t deny the No. 45
a dominant domestic victory by one lap over the
event’s standout Pro-Am car: CrowdStrike by
Riley’s No. 6 Mercedes, which included Indy NXT
driver Nolan Siegel.
IndyCar driver Callum Illot also competed in the
race in the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche.
The race set a new record for covering the most
distance in 8 hours for this event - 812.187 miles
(333 laps).
The 8-Hour race continues into the early night
time and is the only event at IMS that does so.
While some flood lights were set up in places
around the track, the cars also had to rely on
their headlights.
The Indianapolis 8 Hour Race
Oct 8 - This was the 4th year for the Indianapolis 8 Hour racing weekend.
The main event is an 8-hour race on Saturday which includes two GT3 series.
There are 3 drivers per car and two classes: Pro and Pro-Am.
In addition, five other series held two races each over the weekend.
Oct 8 - This was the 4th year for the Indianapolis 8 Hour racing weekend.
The main event is an 8-hour race on Saturday which includes two GT3 series.
There are 3 drivers per car and two classes: Pro and Pro-Am.
In addition, five other series held two races each over the weekend.
The drivers piloting the winning Team WRT #30
BMW were Philipp Eng, Sheldon Van der Linde
and Dries Vanthoor
BMW were Philipp Eng, Sheldon Van der Linde
and Dries Vanthoor
$2000 IndyCar Tickets
Oct 25 - IndyCar held some practice sessions at
the Thermal Club, a private country club located in
the SoCal desert, back in February. See article
for more details about the facility.
IndyCar will hold a unique non-points all-star race
there next March, titled “$1 Million Challenge”.
The venue will erect some suites and grand stands
and are selling only 2000 VIP tickets to the 3-day
catered affair, priced at $2,000 per ticket.
Note: Two thousand tickets at $2,000 a piece is
$4 million.
The general manager of the club, Nicholas
Rhoades, said that if all goes well and the event
returns annually, perhaps more seating will be
installed and prices will come down. IndyCar
might even hold a race there one day.
Oct 25 - IndyCar held some practice sessions at
the Thermal Club, a private country club located in
the SoCal desert, back in February. See article
for more details about the facility.
IndyCar will hold a unique non-points all-star race
there next March, titled “$1 Million Challenge”.
The venue will erect some suites and grand stands
and are selling only 2000 VIP tickets to the 3-day
catered affair, priced at $2,000 per ticket.
Note: Two thousand tickets at $2,000 a piece is
$4 million.
The general manager of the club, Nicholas
Rhoades, said that if all goes well and the event
returns annually, perhaps more seating will be
installed and prices will come down. IndyCar
might even hold a race there one day.
10/29 - The Mexican Grand Prix was Max Verstappen's 17th win this year.
That tops his 2022 record for most wins in a season.
That tops his 2022 record for most wins in a season.