2013 Spanish Grand Prix Preview - MotorSportsTalk

The three week break between races is rarely a favorite among the fans, yet it does give teams the opportunity to work on upgrades for their 2013 cars which will debut at this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix. The opening European round of the season could be a good indicator of how the rest of the year will pan out, and every team will be keen on making big gains at the Circuit de Catalunya.

Spanish Grand Prix Talking Points

Red Bull look to bring the killer blow

It would be unfair to say that Red Bull could have the championship sewn up after round five of the championship, but if they do bring significant upgrades to the race and storm to a 1-2 victory, it would be hard to bet against the team for a fourth title. However, the team has struggled in Barcelona before, and if testing acts as a form guide, Mercedes and Ferrari will be the teams to beat.

Life after Allison begins at Lotus

James Allison’s departure may have come as a shock to many, but for Lotus it is a question of getting back to business. Nick Chester has a wealth of experience which should make his move into the technical director role seamless. The question will be whether Kimi Raikkonen is bothered by his absence in Barcelona, with the Finn trying to claim his third win at the circuit.

Spanish hopes rest firmly on Alonso’s shoulders

Fernando Alonso may have won just once at home in Spain, yet his record is an impressive one. Last year, he was edged out by Pastor Maldonado, and he has consistently challenged for the win in front of his fellow countrymen. A few Ferrari upgrades will be required if the Italian team is to bring its killer instinct to the Circuit de Catalunya.

McLaren, Williams with the most to gain

McLaren and Williams have both made dire starts to the season (by their own high standards), so the Spanish Grand Prix is a big turning point for the teams. Relying they bring the upgrades required, both teams could move up the grid. For McLaren, they have not built this up to be a ‘make or break’ weekend, yet it has that aura. The race could also cap off Williams’ fall from grace: Maldonado’s win here last year was dominant; in 2013, the target is to score a point. How things change.

Caterham and Marussia resume battle

Honors even so far in the battle of the backmarkers. Caterham and Marussia have both promised big upgrades, and the teams are also running a reserve driver in FP1 (Kovalainen and Gonzalez respectively). It will be fascinating to see how the tussle pans out, with this being a track that all of the drivers have experience on, although much of their success will rest on the upgrades.

Track: Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona (4.655km)
Laps: 66
Corners: 16
Lap Record: Kimi Raikkonen 1:21.670 (2008)
Tire Compounds: Medium (Option); Hard (Prime)
2012 Winner: Pastor Maldonado (Williams)
2012 Pole Position: Pastor Maldonado (Williams) 1:22.285
2012 Fastest Lap: Romain Grosjean (Lotus) 1:26.250
DRS Zones: Main straight (T16 to T1); T9 to T10

Friday – Free Practice 1: 10:00am local/04:00am ET
Friday – Free Practice 2: 14:00pm local/08:00am ET
Saturday – Free Practice 3: 11:00am local/05:00pm ET
Saturday – Qualifying: 14:00pm local/08:00am ET
Sunday – Race: 14:00pm local/08:00am ET

You can watch FP2, qualifying and the race on NBC this weekend via http://stream.nbcsports.com/liveextra/, or on their phone or tablet by downloading the apphttp://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/25481063/.

INDIANAPOLIS — The first Indy 500 victory for Josef Newgarden also was the richest in race history from a record 2023 purse of just more than $17 million.

The two-time NTT IndyCar Series champion, who continued his celebration Monday morning at Indianapolis Motor Speedway earned $3.666 million for winning the 107th running of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

The purse and winner’s share both are the largest in the history of the Indianapolis 500.

It’s the second consecutive year that the Indy 500 purse set a record after the 2022 Indy 500 became the first to crack the $16 million mark (nearly doubling the 2021 purse that offered a purse of $8,854,565 after a crowd limited to 135,000 because of the COVID-19 pandemic).

The average payout for IndyCar drivers was $500,600 (exceeding last year’s average of $485,000).

Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Roger Penske, whose team also fields Newgarden’s No. 2 Dallara-Chevrolet, had made raising purses a priority since buying the track in 2020. But Penske but was unable to post big money purses until the race returned to full capacity grandstands last year.

The largest Indy 500 purse before this year was $14.4 million for the 2008 Indy 500 won by Scott Dixon (whose share was $2,988,065). Ericsson’s haul made him the second Indy 500 winner to top $3 million (2009 winner Helio Castroneves won $3,048,005.

Runner-up Marcus Ericsson won $1.043 million after falling short by 0.0974 seconds in the fourth-closest finish in Indy 500 history.

The 107th Indy 500 drew a crowd of at least 330,000 that was the largest since the sellout for the 100th running in 2016, and the second-largest in more than two decades, according to track officials.

“This is the greatest race in the world, and it was an especially monumental Month of May featuring packed grandstands and intense on-track action,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said in a release. “Now, we have the best end card possible for the 107th Running of the Indianapolis 500: a record-breaking purse for the history books.”

Benjamin Pedersen was named the Indy 500 rookie of the year, earning a $50,000 bonus.

The race’s purse is determined through contingency and special awards from IMS and IndyCar. The awards were presented Monday night in the annual Indy 500 Victory Celebration at the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis.

The payouts for the 107th Indy 500:

1. Josef Newgarden, $3,666,000
2. Marcus Ericsson, $1,043,000
3. Santino Ferrucci, $481,800
4. Alex Palou, $801,500
5. Alexander Rossi, $574,000
6. Scott Dixon, $582,000
7. Takuma Sato, $217,300
8. Conor Daly, $512,000
9. Colton Herta, $506,500
10. Rinus VeeKay, $556,500
11. Ryan Hunter‐Reay, $145,500
12. Callum Ilott, $495,500
13. Devlin DeFrancesco, $482,000
14. Scott McLaughlin, $485,000
15. Helio Castroneves, $481,500
16. Tony Kanaan, $105,000
17. Marco Andretti, $102,000
18. Jack Harvey, $472,000
19. Christian Lundgaard, $467,500
20. Ed Carpenter, $102,000
21. Benjamin Pedersen (R), $215,300
22. Graham Rahal, $565,500*
23. Will Power, $488,000
24. Pato O’Ward, $516,500
25. Simon Pagenaud, $465,500
26. Agustín Canapino (R), $156,300
27. Felix Rosenqvist, $278,300
28. Kyle Kirkwood, $465,500
29. David Malukas, $462,000
30. Romain Grosjean, $462,000
31. Sting Ray Robb (R), $463,000
32. RC Enerson (R), $103,000
33. Katherine Legge, $102,000

*–Broken down between two teams, $460,000 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, $105,500 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports