Tag: tony kanaan

Indy 500 Trackside: Walk & Talk with Tony Kanaan

Ahead of his final Indy 500, Arrow McLaren’s Tony Kanaan takes a stroll down pit lane with RACER’s Marshall Pruett to discuss his amazing life and career. Presented by: RACER’s IndyCar Trackside Report is presented by Skip Barber Racing School. With …

Ahead of his final Indy 500, Arrow McLaren’s Tony Kanaan takes a stroll down pit lane with RACER’s Marshall Pruett to discuss his amazing life and career.

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Kanaan slips and slides to third row for final Indy 500 start

Tony Kanaan’s kinda-sorta-maybe-probably last run at the Indianapolis 500 will commence with his No. 66 Arrow McLaren positioned on the third row in P9. Although the 2013 race winner attacked the four laps and 10 miles with his customary aggression …

Tony Kanaan’s kinda-sorta-maybe-probably last run at the Indianapolis 500 will commence with his No. 66 Arrow McLaren positioned on the third row in P9.

Although the 2013 race winner attacked the four laps and 10 miles with his customary aggression and received the loudest cheers from the healthy crowd in attendance for Pole Day, the Brazilian dealt with a dancing car that lacked the last bit of stability to string together the kind of consistent speed required to transfer into the Fast Six.

“It’s hot, sticky, and very slippery,” he said after making his lone qualifying attempt in Sunday’s Fast 12 session. “We knew the track temp went up quite a bit.”

First to run among his four Arrow McLaren teammates, Kanaan was able to download what he learned to Pato O’Ward, Alexander Rossi, and Felix Rosenqvist, all of whom made the Fast Six and a chance to earn pole.

“We took a swing at it,” he said of qualifying for his 22nd Indy 500. “It didn’t work, so we had the time to tell our teammates what to do.”

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Kanaan fastest in Saturday morning Indy 500 practice

Five drivers ventured out for the first of two 30-minute practice sessions on Saturday morning at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in an effort to prepare for the first round of qualifying where the fastest 30 of the 34 cars entered will earn …

Five drivers ventured out for the first of two 30-minute practice sessions on Saturday morning at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in an effort to prepare for the first round of qualifying where the fastest 30 of the 34 cars entered will earn starting positions in the Indy 500.

Of the five, Chip Ganassi Racing’s Scott Dixon and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Jack Harvey were putting fresh engines to work after issues late in Friday’s practice session made motor changes necessary. Arrow McLaren’s Tony Kanaan was fastest of the five, posting a 233.026mph lap with the No. 66 Chevy in cool conditions which made for thicker air that added unwanted downforce to the cars.

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Teammate Alexander Rossi was close behind with a 232.904mph lap in the No. 7 Chevy, and Dixon, who made multiple qualifying simulation runs, was third at 232.470mph in the No. 9 Honda. Andretti Autosport’s Colton Herta was fourth in the No. 26 Honda with a 232.355mph lap and Harvey was well shy in the No. 30 Honda at 229.363mph.

Firing out for the second 30-minute session where the other half of the field was welcome to run, five more drivers took to the 2.5-mile oval led by CGR’s Alex Palou who posted the fastest lap of his group with a 232.823mph run. Andretti’s Kyle Kirkwood was next with a 232.615mph in his No. 27 Honda, followed by Ed Carpenter Racing’s Conor Daly who produced a 231.438mph lap in the No. 20 Chevy.

Andretti’s Devlin DeFrancesco was good for a 230.653mph lap in the No. 29 Honda and the beleaguered Juncos Hollinger Racing team got Callum Ilott out on a new No. 77 Chevy chassis and found some of their missing speed – worthy of a 230.126mph – to place ninth of the 10 drivers, just ahead of Harvey.

UP NEXT: Qualifying, 11am ET, on NBC and Peacock.

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McLaren reveals Kanaan’s Indy 500 livery

Ahead of this week’s Open Test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and in conjunction with the team’s “Triple Crown” livery series for the 107th Indianapolis 500, Arrow McLaren has revealed the livery for its fourth entry in this year’s race – the …

Ahead of this week’s Open Test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and in conjunction with the team’s “Triple Crown” livery series for the 107th Indianapolis 500, Arrow McLaren has revealed the livery for its fourth entry in this year’s race — the No. 66 SmartStop Arrow McLaren Chevrolet for driver Tony Kanaan.

The scheme features a papaya star surrounding the seat and three black stars along the left rear wing. These elements are a nod to McLaren Racing’s Triple Crown achievement of winning the three most prestigious races in motorsport: the Monaco Grand Prix, the Indy 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.   The livery series forms a part of McLaren’s 60th birthday celebrations through 2023, honoring iconic moments throughout its history and the legacy built by team founder Bruce McLaren.

Kanaan, winner of the 2013 Indy 500, announced in February that this year’s race will be his last in IndyCar, is set to make his 22nd career start at the Indy 500 with the support of SmartStop as his primary partner and long-time partner 7-Eleven.

“I’ve been eager to see this livery, and it does not disappoint. It’s one of the best-looking cars I’ve ever been in and representing the history of the Triple Crown makes it even more special,” Kanaan said. “I’m so grateful to have SmartStop and my long-time partners 7-Eleven and NTT DATA along for this ride, and I’m excited to finally take this car out on the track starting tomorrow at the Open Test.”

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H. Michael Schwartz, Chairman and CEO of, SmartStop, said: “We are thrilled to be a part of Arrow McLaren’s Triple Crown celebration and to sponsor the No. 6 SmartStop Arrow McLaren Chevrolet at the Indianapolis 500 with racing legend Tony Kanaan behind the wheel.

“SmartStop Self Storage is committed to supporting excellence, and Tony and the Arrow McLaren team exemplify the drive and determination needed to succeed at the highest level. We can’t wait to see what they will accomplish together on the track, and we are honored to be a part of this historic event.”

The No. 66 SmartStop Arrow McLaren Chevrolet will be on track for the first time at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Open Test on Thursday and Friday.

2022 Indianapolis 500: Scott Dixon, Alex Palou and Will Power among betting favorites at Indy

You don’t want to miss out on Memorial Day Weekend in Indianapolis.

The Greatest Spectacle in Racing returns on Monday, May 29 as Indianapolis Motor Speedway hosts its second IndyCar event of the month and the marquee race of the season: The Indianapolis 500.

One year after Hélio Castroneves captured a miraculous and record-tying fourth Borg-Warner Trophy, the 2022 field is wide open and features some no shortage of star names.

Takuma Sato, Will Power and, of course, Hélio have already qualified. But so has stock car legend Jimmie Johnson and IndyCar royalty Ed Carpenter and Marco Andretti.

Scott Dixon will start on the pole alongside Alex Palou and Rinus VeeKay.

Here’s a full look at each driver’s starting position and odds to win the race via Tipico Sportsbook.

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IndyCar drivers are discovering Uncrustables, and their delighted reactions are so pure

“The hype is real!” IndyCar’s Alex Palou said after trying Uncrustables.

NASCAR turned IndyCar driver Jimmie Johnson is an avid cyclist, and one time during a charity ride he was doing with IndyCar star Tony Kanaan, Johnson introduced his Chip Ganassi Racing teammate to Uncrustables — the Smucker’s peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with bread that famously lacks the crust.

“I’m starving in the middle of the ride, and Jimmie pulls out of his pocket an Uncrustable snack, which I never knew [of] — which, for people that don’t know — because I’m bloody Brazilian,” Kanaan explained in a video his team published in April. (Johnson and Kanaan are sharing the No. 48 Honda this season.)

“It was a peanut butter and jelly [sandwich] that he actually freezes in the freezer, puts it in his pocket, and during the ride, it unfreezes and you can just eat. And since then, I eat that thing — it’s so many calories, but anyway — every time I open that thing, it reminds me of Jimmie.”

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Well, Kanaan isn’t the only IndyCar driver discovering an unknown love for Uncrustables. Others are too, and their reactions are delightfully pure.

Take Scott McLaughlin, the 28-year-old Team Penske driver from Australia and New Zealand who’s become a rising star as an IndyCar rookie this year. And as he learns more and more about the U.S., he’s sharing his experiences and reactions with his fans with the hashtag #ScottLearnsAmerica.

McLaughlin’s latest checked-off to-do item was an Uncrustables sandwich, which he said was “unreal”. (Other things on his checklist include going to Walmart, Waffle House, an NFL tailgate and Yellowstone National Park.)

After noticing Kanaan’s and McLaughlin’s reactions to trying Uncrustables for the first time, Alex Palou decided to see what the big deal is.

Palou — Johnson and Kanaan’s 24-year-old Chip Ganassi Racing teammate from Barcelona who’s currently at the top of the IndyCar standings — was similarly “blown away.”

But no matter how much Kanaan, McLaughlin or Palou love Uncrustables, the sandwich’s biggest fan in motor sports has to be NASCAR driver Alex Bowman, Johnson’s former Hendrick Motorsports teammate in the Cup Series.

Bowman absolutely adores Uncrustables, and he eats and talks about them all the time. Hilariously, his crew chief, Greg Ives, once described him as his “uncrustable eating wheel man”.

And after winning his first race of the 2021 NASCAR season in April at Richmond Raceway, his sponsor, Ally Financial, helped him celebrate with boxes on boxes of Uncrustables.

So obviously, Bowman was pretty pumped to see IndyCar drivers jumping on the bandwagon.

Maybe more IndyCar drivers will discover Uncrustables and a new favorite snack.

“You should try it straight out of the freezer,” Johnson said to Kanaan in the Chip Ganassi Racing video. “It’s like a dessert then.”

“OK, here we go,” Kanaan replied, joking that his kids now love Uncrustables too and blaming Johnson.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWC7M1ap6jg

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