F1: Verstappen wins Mexican GP pole as Bottas crashes

By Oct 26, 2019, 3:58 PM EDT
Dan Istitene/Getty Images
1 Comment

Max Verstappen won the pole position for the Mexican Grand Prix Saturday afternoon, in a qualifying session that ended under the red flag when Valtteri Bottas crashed in his final lap.

Vestappen showed speed throughout Q3, already setting the fastest time early on in the session.

Despite already being on the provisional pole, the Dutch driver posted an even faster final lap, securing the top starting position for Sunday’s race by laying out a 1 minute, 14.758-second lap around the 2.674-mile, 17-Turn Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez circuit.

“To come out on top is incredible,” Verstappen said following his pole run.  “A huge thank you to the team, they worked very hard. We showed today that we are very quick”

Having won in Mexico City in 2017 and 2018, Verstappen now looks to make it a hat trick in Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc qualified second, just 0.266 seconds behind Verstappen, while fellow Ferrari competitor Sebastian Vettel laid down a 1 minute, 15.170-second lap to qualify third.

Lewis Hamilton and Alexander Albon qualified fourth and fifth, respectfully, while Bottas qualified sixth following his hard crash into the wall in the exit of the final corner.

Bottas walked away from the accident safely, though his car suffered significant damage.

Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris, Daniil Kvyat, and Pierre Gasly rounded out the top 10 qualifiers.

Full qualifying results and times are below:

Follow Michael Eubanks on Twitter

Ryan Hunter-Reay hired as replacement for Conor Daly at Ed Carpenter Racing

By Jun 8, 2023, 9:05 AM EDT
Ryan Hunter-Reay Carpenter
Michael Allio/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
0 Comments

Ryan Hunter-Reay was named to replace Conor Daly in Ed Carpenter Racing’s No. 20 Dallara-Chevrolet, starting in the NTT IndyCar Series event next week at Road America.

Hunter-Reay is the 2012 series champion and 2014 Indianapolis 500 winner. He finished 11th for Dreyer & Reinbold last month in the 107th Indy 500, his first start since the 2021 season finale. He drove full time for Andretti Autosport from 2010-21.

“We need to improve our competitiveness and I wanted to add a fresh perspective from a driver like Ryan who has a massive amount of experience and success as well as a reputation as a team leader. I am excited to welcome Ryan to the team,” team owner Ed Carpenter said in a team release. “We have worked together in the past as teammates and he tested for ECR at Barber Motorsports Park in October 2021, where he made an immediate impact as we were able to qualify one of our cars on the pole following that test. I am confident that his experience and technical abilities will be an asset to ECR as we move forward toward our goals as a team.”

Hunter-Reay has 18 IndyCar victories, most recently in 2018. He also is a winner in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, having been a part of winning entries in the 2020 Twelve Hours of Sebring and 2018 Petit Le Mans. Last year, he was an endurance driver for Cadillac Racing while being on standby for Chip Ganassi Racing.

He replaces Daly, whose departure was announced a day earlier in what the driver and team said was a mutual decision.

“I was surprised when I got the call from Ed,” Hunter-Reay said in a team release. “He described how frustrated he was that his team has not been able to realize its potential despite their efforts, investments, as well as technical and personnel changes over the past few years and asked for my help. Ed and I are very close friends and have been for a long time. I’ve worked with the team in the past and they are a very talented group with high expectations and a committed partner in BITNILE.COM.

“This will certainly be a challenge for me as well. It’s a tough situation jumping in a car in the middle of the season without any testing in what I believe to be the most competitive series in the world. Certainly, part of my motivation in saying ‘yes’ to Ed is the great challenge ahead. The last time I turned right driving an NTT IndyCar Series car was in October of 2021 with this team at Barber. However, I remain very confident in both my driving and technical abilities and believe by working with the talented people at ECR and Team Chevy, while representing BITNILE.COM, we will make progress. I am going to do everything I can do to help the team achieve its long-term objectives.”

Said Milton “Todd” Ault, the chairman of sponsor BitNile.com: “It is great for BitNile.com to be aligned with an Indy 500 Winner and an NTT IndyCar Series champion. I have followed Ryan’s career for years and I am confident he will challenge the entire ECR team to perform at higher levels. I wish everyone luck at Road America.”