1. Q and A with Takuma Sato
2. Target Chip Ganassi Racing wins first Firestone Pit Performance Award
1. Q and A with Takuma Sato: A.J. Foyt Racing's Takuma Sato returns to the site of his first Verizon IndyCar Series win this weekend when the series visits the streets of Long Beach, Calif., for the 40th Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.
The Japanese driver talked about the start of his season, which saw him win the Verizon P1 Award at St. Pete as well as returning to Long Beach as a defending winner.
Q. Takuma, you're off to another strong start to the 2014 season with the pole position and leading the first part of the race. Are your happy with the way the season began?
TAKUMA SATO: "Well, we had a slightly bitter race result at the season-opening race [starting on pole but finishing 7th], but overall, I think it's a very good start of the season. We had a fantastic performance throughout the weekend but especially in Qualifying; and we raced hard to get valuable good points. It is great to see the team's winter preparation showing so positively. We will continue to work hard."
Q. What will it be like to come back to Long Beach as the defending winner?
TAKUMA SATO: "It was a very special day for me, so going back there I feel good and confident. We should be able to show a strong performance again."
Q. How did winning at Long Beach last year change your outlook as a driver?
TAKUMA SATO: "It changed my environment nicely a bit, but the important point is that as we did it (as a team); (A.J. Foyt Racing) became a very strong group as a team. I always believed that we could do the job but until you've actually done it, it would be only a hope, a dream and an objective. You believe it, and keep challenging, then it happens."
Q. What's the key to running well at Long Beach?
TAKUMA SATO: "Long Beach is a typical street course, mostly 90 degree corners. So the car needs to react well from heavy braking to sharp turn-in and quick exit. Also the track has one of the tightest and slowest hairpins in the series (final corner) and so it requires very strong traction coming out corner."
Q. Long Beach will feature a standing start and it will be the first of the season. How do you feel about the standing starts?
TAKUMA SATO: "I like standing starts in general. Most of my racing career, I had (raced with standing starts) until I arrived in the Verizon IndyCar Series, but I don't mind the standing or rolling starts.
It's nice to show the fans and be a little different. We had only done standing starts twice in the last season and on both occasions it was pretty good, so I expect the Long Beach start will be spectacular.
On the technical side, the Honda engine configuration is different this year because it's a twin turbo so we need to adapt for the new torque curve. We didn't have much chance to practice at winter testing so we will see how we can catch up and improve our start performance in the practice sessions. Long Beach has done standing starts in its history so it should be fun."
Q. The last driver to repeat at Long Beach was Sebastien Bourdais, who won three in a row in 2005-07. How tough it would be to win back-to-back races?
TAKUMA SATO: "It will always be tough to win this race-- everything has to be perfect -- but why not? We will certainly try our best and aim to win."
2. Target Chip Ganassi Racing wins first Firestone Pit Performance Award: The Target Chip Ganassi Racing team of Scott Dixon claimed the first Firestone Pit Stop Performance Award of the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series season.
Dixon's No. 9 crew, led by chief mechanic Blair Julian, posted a cumulative pit time of 95.36 seconds during the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.
The top three teams in St. Petersburg registered total pit times less than two seconds off the winning time. Chip Ganassi Racing had a strong showing with three of its teams among the Top 10 pit times.
"Firestone's recognition of Target Chip Ganassi Racing with the St. Petersburg Grand Prix Pit Performance Award validates teamwork," said Mike Hull, Managing Director of Target Chip Ganassi Racing.
"The Verizon IndyCar Series' competitive pit lane requires over-the-wall excellence at the highest level. Winning on the track combines the statistically measured performance in the pit box to the track position gained at pit exit. Multiplied over a race distance, that's the difference between the steps on the podium."
At every race this season, with the exception of the Indianapolis 500-mile race, the Firestone Pit Stop Performance Award will recognize the team with the least amount of accumulated time in pit lane with a $10,000 award. INDYCAR will determine the recipient at the conclusion of each race. Teams must run at least 95 percent of the scheduled laps in order to be eligible.
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The next Verizon IndyCar Series race is the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach on April 13 on the Streets of Long Beach. The race will be televised live by NBCSN at 4 p.m. (ET) and broadcast by the IMS Radio Network, including Sirius and XM Channels 209 and the INDYCAR 14 app for most smartphones and tablets.
