IndyCar 2015 team preview: KVSH Racing/KV Racing Technology - MotorSportsTalk

KVSH Racing and Sebastien Bourdais returned to victory lane in 2014 and made it into the top-10 in the points standings. He’ll have his third teammate in four seasons this year in the KV Racing Technology team’s second car.

Team: KVSH Racing (No. 11), KV Racing Technology (No. 4)
Engines/aero kits: Chevrolet
Sponsors: Hydroxycut/Mistic eCigarettes (No. 11), KV Racing Technology (No. 4)

2014 STATS

Races: 18
Wins: 1 (Bourdais)
Podiums: 2 (Bourdais)
Pole Positions: 2 (Bourdais 1, Saavedra 1)
Fastest Laps: 0
Points: 808 (Bourdais 461, Saavedra 291, Davison 34, Bell 22)
Laps Led: 112 (Bourdais 98, Saavedra 14)
Championship Position: 10^th (Bourdais), 21^st (Saavedra), 29^th (Davison), 32^nd (Bell)

2015 LINEUP (Engineers in parentheses)

4 Stefano Coletti (Matt Curry)
11 Sebastien Bourdais (Olivier Boisson)
82 Bryan Clauson (Byrd Racing entry; Indy only; engineer TBC)

2014 RECAP (Bourdais, Saavedra driver recaps)

Sebastien Bourdais finally looked the champion of old in a pretty solid season with KVSH Racing, particularly in Toronto and Mid-Ohio, as he ended back in the top-10 in points for the first time since his North American return. Teammate of KV/AFS Racing Sebastian Saavedra had all too few highlights of his own, other than a well judged pole for the Grand Prix of Indianapolis. James Davison and Townsend Bell impressed in their Indianapolis 500 one-offs, even if their results weren’t representative of their races.

2015 OUTLOOK

KVSH’s Bourdais will remain as team leader and will have another new teammate under the KVRT umbrella. Stefano Coletti and Ryan Phinny tested in the second car, with the Monegasque GP2 veteran race winner emerging ahead of the American to secure the second seat. Despite the lateness of Coletti’s program in particular, he should prove an amiable sidekick to Bourdais throughout the season. I’d expect Bourdais to win once again and Coletti to perhaps sneak a podium or two.

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The NTT IndyCar Series will return to the Motor City for the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix but with start times in a new location for 2023.

After a 30-year run on Belle Isle, the Detroit GP has moved a few miles south to the streets of downtown on a new nine-turn, 1.645-mile circuit that runs along the Detroit River.

It’s the first time single-seater open-cockpit cars have raced on the streets of Detroit since a CART event on a 2.5-mile downtown layout from 1989-91. Formula One also raced in Detroit from 1982-88.

The reimagined Detroit Grand Prix also will play host to nightly concerts and bring in venders from across the region. Roger Penske predicts the new downtown locale will be bigger for Detroit than when the city played host to the 2006 Super Bowl.

Here are the details and IndyCar start times for the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach race weekend (all times are ET):

CHEVROLET DETROIT GRAND PRIX INDYCAR START TIMES

TV: Sunday, 3 p.m. ET on NBC and streaming on Peacock, the NBC Sports App and NBCSports.com. Leigh Diffey is the announcer with analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Dave Burns, Marty Snider and Kevin Lee are the pit reporters. Click here for the full NBC Sports schedule for IndyCar in 2023.

Peacock also will be the streaming broadcast for both practices and qualifying.

POSTRACE SHOW ON PEACOCK: After the race’s conclusion, an exclusive postrace show will air on Peacock with driver interviews, postrace analysis and the podium presentation. To watch the extended postrace show, click over to the special stream on Peacock after Sunday’s race ends.

COMMAND TO START ENGINES: 3:23 p.m. ET

GREEN FLAG: 3:30 p.m. ET

PRACTICE: Friday, 3 p.m. (Peacock Premium); Saturday, 9:05 a.m. (Peacock Premium); Sunday, 10 a.m. (Peacock Premium)

PRACTICE RESULTS: Session I l Session II l Warmup l Combined

QUALIFYING: Saturday, 1:20 p.m. (Peacock Premium)

STARTING LINEUP: Alex Palou captured the first street course pole of his IndyCar career; click here for where everyone will begin Sunday’s race

RACE DISTANCE: The race is 100 laps (170 miles) on a nine-turn, 1.645-mile temporary street course in downtown Detroit.

TIRE ALLOTMENT: Seven sets primary, four sets alternate. Rookie drivers are allowed one extra primary set for the first practice.

PUSH TO PASS: 150 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 15 seconds per activation (Indy NXT: 150 seconds total, 15 seconds per). The push-to-pass is not available on the initial start or any restart unless it occurs in the final two laps or three minutes of a timed race. The feature increases the power of the engine by approximately 60 horsepower.

FORECAST: According to Wunderground.com, it’s expected to be 80 degrees with a 0% chance of rain.

ENTRY LIST: Click here to view the 27 drivers racing Sunday at Detroit

INDY NXT RACES: Saturday, 12:05 p.m. 45 laps/55 minutes (Peacock Premium); Sunday, 12:50 p.m. 45 laps/55 minutes (Peacock Premium)

INDY NXT ENTRY LIST: Click here to view the 19 drivers racing at Detroit