Possible end of the road for Panther DRR? - MotorSportsTalk

The Panther DRR team may shut down after next month’s Indianapolis 500, according to a report from SPEED’s Robin Miller.

The singleton effort forged a technical partnership with Panther Racing just prior to last year’s Indianapolis 500, where it acquired Chevrolet engines after its four-race start to the 2012 season with the underpowered Lotus engines. Driver Oriol Servia made the most out of what he could with the Lotus equipment, and scored four top-five finishes with the Chevrolet, including fourth at last year’s 500.

Unless additional sponsorship can be found beyond Indy, Miller reports the team will close the rest of this year. Team co-owner Dennis Reinbold did say they already have backing for the 2014 Indianapolis 500. The team does not have one main sponsor but has had a rotating number of different primary sponsors and liveries.

Servia – whose whole career has been an exercise in tough luck as nearly every team he’s driven for has hit this crossroads – isn’t giving up hope yet.

“We’re not selling smoke here,” Servia told Miller. “This is a proper operation and we can win Indy so maybe somebody will see that and come along and save us. I’m not giving up and neither is Dennis.”

Reinbold co-owns the team with Robbie Buhl. It was founded in 2000, in the Indy Racing League years, and won its first race with Buhl driving at the Walt Disney World Speedway in Orlando.

Servia finished sixth in Long Beach last weekend despite two penalties that were both later rescinded.

The IndyCar Series has re-signed NTT as its title sponsor in a multiyear agreement starting in 2024.

NTT, a global information technology and communications company based in Japan, became the series’ title sponsor before the 2019 season after starting as a sponsor of the No. 10 Dallara-Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing.

NTT Data (a subsidiary of parent company Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp.) will remain the official technology partner of IndyCar, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the Indy 500 and the NASCAR Brickyard weekend.

With the extension, an IndyCar spokesman said NTT would become the second-longest title sponsor in series history. The longest title sponsor was PPG from 1980-97 (under the CART sanction of the Champ Car Series).

NTT replaced Verizon, which was IndyCar’s title sponsor from 2014-18 after IZOD from 2010-13.

“NTT is an excellent partner across our enterprise with strong expertise and a deep commitment to our sport,” Penske Corp. chairman and IndyCar owner Roger Penske said in a release. “From Smart Venue technology at the Racing Capital of the World to the reimagined Series mobile application, NTT is transforming the fan experience in new and innovative ways. We look forward to a bright future together.”

NTT has used artificial intelligence-enabled optical detection technology at IMS to provide information to the track’s operations and security teams, helping improve fan traffic flow and safety, the track said.

“IndyCar is a great partner for NTT Data because of our shared commitment to driving innovation, increasing sustainability and delivering amazing experiences,” NTT Data CEO Kaz Nishihata said in a release. “We also appreciate how IndyCar is so diverse, with drivers from 15 different countries, and races that range from short ovals and superspeedways to road and street courses. It’s both an incredible sport and a wonderful example for our world.”

NTT also has been instrumental in helping redesign the IndyCar app and providing more race and driver data for use in NBC Sports’ broadcasts by utilizing 140 data points from every car in the field.

“NTT is fully invested in the development and growth of our sport and has already established a terrific track record in our industry with problem-solving capabilities and access to top talent and tools,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said.

Said NTT Data Services CEO Bob Pryor: “We’re thrilled to continue our collaborations that enhance and expand the fan experience for motorsports and serve as proof points for data analytics, AI, and other innovative digital technologies. For more than a century, this racing series has pioneered innovations making driving safer for everyone, and by continuing this relationship, we will accelerate the pace of innovations and new technologies, particularly related to sustainability that ultimately can benefit organizations, communities and individuals around the world.”

Starting as a Japanese telephone company, NTT grew into a $100 billion-plus tech services giant with U.S. operations based in Plano, Texas.