Any race fan knows the significance of the calendar turning to May and the importance for the IndyCar Series. Yes, Indianapolis Motor Speedway will soon be open for business! The action begins with this weekend’s road course race, the GMR Grand Prix, which Colton Herta won for Andretti Autosport last year. Team Penske has been excellent in IMS road races over the years, so look for Will Power, Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin to be factors. Then, on May 16, practice begins for...
Marcus Ericsson is an Indianapolis 500 winner! The sensational Swede patiently waited for his moment at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, suffered through a rare red flag, then won a two-lap shootout over Pato O’Ward and Tony Kanaan to capture the 106th Running of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” Ericsson gave Chip Ganassi Racing its fifth Indy victory and the sixth overall for team owner Chip Ganassi. Ericsson became the second Swede to win the 500, following one of his mentors, Kenny Brack, the...
Indianapolis Motor Speedway president Doug Boles wanted something to represent track owner Roger Penske in the company’s administrative Zoom room, and Hall of Fame Collection delivered in a quick manner suited for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES that Penske also owns. Hall of Fame Collection found a 1960s-era Bell Toptex helmet like the ones Penske wore in his sports car driving days. Early on, Penske’s helmets donned an orange stripe across the top, and he later added a Road Racing Drivers Club...
The 105th Indianapolis 500 demonstrated the magical power of these races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the unique manner in which mere mortals become motorsports legends. Helio Castroneves’ introduction to U.S. open-wheel racing came in a four-man tryout for Tasman Motorsports’ 1996 Indy Lights team, and the young Brazilian almost didn’t get the gig due to being sick. But Castroneves impressed well enough to get the ride alongside boyhood friend Tony Kanaan, then finished second to Kanaan in the 1997 championship,...
For years, reknowned artist Ron Burton was one of the most connected individuals in motorsports, and during his 50-year heyday he created spectacular original artwork of IndyCar, NASCAR, NHRA and Formula 1 drivers, races and signature moments. Burton began painting in the 1960s, and he once wrote that he “loved, lived and painted auto racing and auto racing art in the shadows of the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway.” Many of Burton’s paintings and trophy designs are enshrined in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway...
Nicky Hayden will always be remembered as the MotoGP rider who dethroned the great Valentino Rossi. That monumental day occurred on Oct. 29, 2006 when Hayden capitalized on a Rossi mistake, ending Rossi’s five-year run as champion of motorcycle racing’s top division. Hayden finished third as Rossi valiantly tried to recover from an off to finish five points ahead of the Italian, giving the U.S. its first MotoGP champion since Kenny Roberts Jr. in 2000. No American has won MotoGP’s title...
The Indianapolis 500’s program is one of the most trusted and consistent pieces of the event’s history, with stories and photographs that hold the test of time. The publishing of a program dates to the first 500 in 1911, and it is not uncommon for collectors to possess all 104 of them. Although the race in 2020 was not held in its traditional month or even attended by fans, the program produced by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway staff is a 176-page...
Ron Burton and his art are synonymous with motorsports on canvas, particularly in the haunts around Indianapolis Motor Speedway. For years he painted or drew some of the most beautiful cars and scenes of the sport, and his story as an artist, mechanic and Indianapolis mainstay was told in this Carl Hungess writing in the 1981 Indianapolis 500 Yearbook. Burton’s original work can be found in many places, and Hall of Fame Collection has much of it to offer. Check this...
As Fernando Alonso recently made his third attempt to complete the Triple Crown of motorsports — victories in the Indianapolis 500, Monaco Grand Prix and 24 Hours of Le Mans — he realized it might be his last for quite a while now that he has signed with Renault for the next two Formula One seasons. That’s because conflicting series schedules will keep him from making another oval run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway at least until 2023, and it’s anyone’s guess...