NBCSN’S Townsend Bell’s 10th Indy 500 fun to watch, but ends P21

By May 31, 2016, 8:00 AM EDT
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INDIANAPOLIS – NBCSN Verizon IndyCar Series analyst Townsend Bell seemed poised to break through several times in Sunday’s 100th Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil, but a finish of 21st place wasn’t what the doctor ordered.

Driving the No. 29 California Pizza Kitchen/Robert Graham Honda for Andretti Autosport, Bell started fourth, then ran third for most of the opening stint before his first stop.

His car was even better after the first round of adjustments as he got into second immediately after and then into the lead on Lap 42. Bell for seven laps then and a further five laps (57, 113 to 116) while maintaining a top three position.

It marked the first laps Bell has led since the only prior lap led in his IndyCar career, one lap in the 2013 Indianapolis 500 then driving for Panther Racing.

Bell had several interesting moments during the race. At one point when defending against Josef Newgarden, Bell took a low line into Turn 1 and Newgarden drove well to avoid contact.

On Monday morning, Bell addressed a tweet from Ryan Briscoe, a veteran IndyCar and sports car competitor.

Then, on Lap 93, Sage Karam had gotten up to fourth in the No. 24 Gas Monkey Energy Chevrolet for Dreyer & Reinbold – Kingdom Racing with Bell back to fifth.

Bell got back by into Turn 1, while Karam ran high following minor contact and then crashed hard into the Turn 1 wall. The 21-year-old American had started 23rd and gained 19 spots in the car that Bell had driven last year.

Bell was still in win contention until the final death knell for his race occurred on Lap 117, when making another round of pit stops, and it came after he and teammate Ryan Hunter-Reay were running one-two.

Bell and Hunter-Reay launched at nearly the identical time, with Bell then trying to accelerate out into the fast lane in trying to avoid Hunter-Reay, but also hitting Helio Castroneves, who continued unscathed.

Meanwhile the two Andretti Autosport teammates two collided and spun in the pit lane. At that point, arguably two of the best cars in the race – went down a lap and fell to 25th and 26th, respectively.

For this incident, Bell was assessed a pit safety infraction penalty and issued a stop-and-go penalty.

“It was a pretty straightforward day,” Bell told NBC Sports on Monday. “We had a race-winning car, running at the front. We saved fuel early on while Hinch and RHR took chance to lead. We tried to get ourselves in position for end of race.

“I had control off the car throughout the entire stint. Then I came in for the pit stop from the lead. Came off the jacks, the crew sent me, then RHR, then I thought, ‘I don’t want to hit my teammate,’ and he was going aroud Newgarden. Then I had no idea Castroneves was there. It just ping-ponged at that point. I fought hard to get us back on the lead lap. But from there, our day was pretty much done.”

Here were Bell’s quotes via Sunday’s post-race release:  “He (Ryan Hunter-Reay) was pulling out and I’m not going to stop. What a shame. We had a great race car and we were saving fuel early on. The pit stops seemed pretty good.

“All of a sudden I’m leading, I think, when I come in. We pit, I get out before Ryan and he starts going. So I’m going around him outside and I didn’t know a car (Castroneves) was coming down. I guess the three of us were trying to occupy space for two cars. It took me and Ryan out. I’ll look at it but I don’t know what I could have done differently.”

Hunter-Reay’s post-race comments sung a similar tune: “Something out of our control happened. They said, ‘Go, go, go!’ It looked like Townsend (Bell) got into Helio (Castroneves) and bounced into me. At that point I would have just have waited until they got by. As a driver you can’t see anything (beside you in the pits). When you’re released, you go.

“The car was so strong. The only time we ever spent any time (slower) was because I was saving some fuel. Other than that, it was a rocket ship. Such a shame when you have a car like that. The car was great. We could have won this thing today.”

Bell briefly made it back to the lead lap despite a second penalty assessed for entering a closed pit on Lap 158. He was on the lead lap until his last stop and ultimately ended 21st; Hunter-Reay was 24th.

In the next couple weeks, Bell will resume his NBCSN broadcast booth responsibilities for the Verizon IndyCar Series’ Firestone 600 (June 11, 8 p.m. ET, NBCSN) at Texas Motor Speedway, and is also preparing for the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Scuderia Corsa. He has both the test day (June 5) and the race (June 18-19) scheduled.

He and his teammates, Sweedler and Jeff Segal, were all present together this month at IMS for qualifying.

Sunday’s result will likely be a tough one for Bell to swallow, because he had a fantastic month with Andretti Autosport, but ultimately too many incidents that reduced a potential winning run to a forgettable finish.

After New York whirlwind, Josef Newgarden makes special trip to simulator before Detroit

By Jun 2, 2023, 10:00 AM EDT
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DETROIT – There’s no rest for the weary as an Indy 500 winner, but Josef Newgarden discovered there are plenty of extra laps.

The reigning Indy 500 champion added an extra trip Wednesday night back to Concord, N.C., for one last session on the GM Racing simulator before Sunday’s Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix.

After a 30-year run on the Belle Isle course, the race has been moved to a nine-turn, 1.7-mile layout downtown, so two extra hours on the simulator were worth it for Newgarden.

INDYCAR IN DETROIT: Entry list, schedule, TV info for this weekend

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“I really wanted to do it,” he told NBC Sports at a Thursday media luncheon. “If there’s any time that the sim is most useful, it’s in this situation when no one has ever been on a track, and we’re able to simulate it as best as we can. We want to get some seat time.

“It’s extra important coming off the Indy 500 because you’ve been out of rhythm for a road or street course-type environment, so I really wanted some laps. I was really appreciative to Chevy. There was a few guys that just came in and stayed late for me so I could get those laps before coming up here. I don’t know if it’s going to make a difference, but I feel like it’s going to help for me.”

After a whirlwind tour of New York for two days, Newgarden arrived at the simulator (which is at the GM Racing Technical Center adjacent to Hendrick Motorsports) in time for a two hour session that started at 6 p.m. Wednesday. He stayed overnight in Charlotte and then was up for an early commercial flight to Detroit, where he had more media obligations.

Newgarden joked that if he had a jet, he would have made a quick stop in Nashville, Tennessee, but a few more days away from home (where he has yet to return in weeks) is a worthy tradeoff for winning the Greatest Spectacle in Racing – though the nonstop interviews can take a toll.

“It’s the hardest part of the gig for me is all this fanfare and celebration,” Newgarden said. “I love doing it because I’m so passionate about the Indy 500 and that racetrack and what that race represents. I feel honored to be able to speak about it. It’s been really natural and easy for me to enjoy it because I’ve been there for so many years.

“Speaking about this win has been almost the easiest job I’ve ever had for postrace celebrations. But it’s still for me a lot of work. I get worn out pretty easily. I’m very introverted. So to do this for three days straight, it’s been a lot.”

Though he is terrified of heights, touring the top of the Empire State Building for the first time was a major highlight (and produced the tour’s most viral moment).

“I was scared to get to the very top level,” Newgarden said. “That thing was swaying. No one else thought it was swaying. I’m pretty sure it was. I really impressed by the facility. I’d never seen it before. It’s one of those bucket list things. If you go to New York, it’s really special to do that. So to be there with the wreath and the whole setup, it just felt like an honor to be in that moment.”

Now the attention shifts to Detroit and an inaugural circuit that’s expected to be challenging. Along with a Jefferson Avenue straightaway that’s 0.9 miles long, the track has several low-speed corners and a “split” pit lane (teams will stop on both sides of a rectangular area) with a narrow exit that blends just before a 90-degree lefthand turn into Turn 1.

Newgarden thinks the track is most similar to the Music City Grand Prix in Nashville.

“It’s really hard to predict with this stuff until we actually run,” he said. “Maybe we go super smooth and have no issues. Typically when you have a new event, you’re going to have some teething issues. That’s understandable. We’ve always got to massage the event to get it where we want it, but this team has worked pretty hard. They’ve tried to get feedback constantly on what are we doing right, what do we need to look out for. They’ve done a ton of grinding to make sure this surface is in as good of shape as possible.

“There’s been no expense spared, but you can’t foresee everything. I have no idea how it’s going to race. I think typically when you look at a circuit that seems simple on paper, people tend to think it’s not going to be an exciting race, or challenging. I find the opposite always happens when we think that way. Watch it be the most exciting, chaotic, entertaining race.

Newgarden won the last two pole positions at Belle Isle’s 2.35-mile layout and hopes to continue the momentum while avoiding any post-Brickyard letdown.

“I love this is an opportunity for us to get something right quicker than anyone else,” he said. “A new track is always exciting from that standpoint. I feel I’m in a different spot. I’m pretty run down. I’m really trying to refocus and gain some energy back for tomorrow. Which I’ll have time to today, which is great.

“I don’t want that Indy 500 hangover. People always talk about it. They’ve always observed it. That doesn’t mean we have to win this weekend, but I’d like to leave here feeling like we had a really complete event, did a good job and had a solid finish leading into the summer. I want to win everywhere I go, but if we come out of here with a solid result and no mistakes, then probably everyone will be happy with it.”