IndyCar GP at Indianapolis: How to watch, start times, TV, schedules, streaming

By Aug 13, 2021, 6:00 AM EDT
IndyCar Indianapolis GP start times
Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
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IndyCar Indianapolis GP start times: The NTT IndyCar Series will return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course for the second time this season but with an even larger field.

There are 28 cars entered (up one from last week at Nashville) in Saturday’s Big Machine Spiked Coolers Grand Prix, making it the largest field for a race outside the Indy 500 since Kentucky Speedway had 29 cars Oct. 2, 2011 (the 2011 season finale two weeks later at Las Vegas Motor Speedway drew 34 cars but was canceled).

RC Enerson will make his fifth career start in Saturday’s race, driving the No. 75 Dallara-Chevrolet that he failed to qualify for the 105th Indy 500. Christian Lundgaard, who drives in the Formula 2 Series and is under contract to the Alpine F1 team, will be making his IndyCar debut with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing in the No. 45 Dallara-Honda.

HAPPY TOGETHER: IndyCar, NASCAR enjoying crossover weekend at IMS

O’WARD ON POLE: Starting lineup for Saturday’s race

With five races remaining in the 2021 season, Alex Palou leads the championship standings by 42 points over Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Scott Dixon — the seventh-closest margin since 2008 (during that span, the average points lead with five races left was 43.9).

In the May 12 race at the IMS road course, Rinus VeeKay broke through for his first IndyCar victory.

Here are the details and IndyCar IMS GP start times for this weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course (all times are ET):

IndyCar at Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course start times

TV: 12:30 p.m. Saturday on NBCSN and streaming on the NBC Sports App and NBCSports.com. Leigh Diffey is the announcer with analysts Townsend Bell and Paul Tracy. Kevin Lee and Marty Snider are the pit reporters.

COMMAND TO START ENGINES: 12:55 p.m. ET

GREEN FLAG: 1 p.m. ET

DISTANCE: The race is 85 laps (207.3 miles) on a 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

PRACTICE: Friday, 3 p.m. (Peacock Premium); Saturday, 8:45 a.m. warmup (Peacock Premium).

QUALIFYING: Friday, 7 p.m. (Peacock Premium, NBCSN)

TIRE ALLOTMENT: Five sets primary, four sets alternate (Note: A sixth set of primary tires is available to any car fielding a rookie driver.)

PUSH TO PASS: 200 seconds of total time with a maximum time of 20 seconds per activation. 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 76 degrees with a 4% chance of rain at the green flag.

ENTRY LIST: Click here for the 28 cars entered in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway GP.

IndyCar weekend schedule for the Music City Grand Prix in Nashville

FRIDAY 

3 p.m.: IMS Grand Prix practice (Peacock Premium)

7 p.m.: IMS Grand Prix qualifying (Peaccock Premium)

SATURDAY

8:45 a.m.: IMS Grand Prix warmup (Peacock Premium)

1 p.m.: IMS Grand Prix (NBCSN)

COVERAGE ON NBCSPORTS.COM:

ROUND 1: Alex Palou breaks through with first victory in season opener

ROUND 2: Colton Herta puts on a sublime showing in St. Pete

ROUND 3: Scott Dixon maintains Texas dominance

ROUND 4: Pato O’Ward scores first IndyCar victory

ROUND 5: Rinus VeeKay dazzles to break through for first IndyCar triumph

ROUND 6: Helio Castroneves becomes fourth four-time Indy 500 winner

ROUND 7: Marcus Ericsson scores first IndyCar victory

ROUND 8: Pato O’Ward wins, takes points lead

ROUND 9: Alex Palou takes advantage of Josef Newgarden’s misfortune

ROUND 10: Josef Newgarden ends run of disappointments

ROUND 11: Marcus Ericsson flies from last to first in Nashville

JIMMIE INDYCAR WATCH, RACE 1: A 19th at Barber Motorsports Park

JIMMIE INDYCAR WATCH, RACE 2: Tough day for the No. 48

JIMMIE INDYCAR WATCH, RACE 3: Making progress in a 24th-place finish

JIMMIE INDYCAR WATCH, RACE 4-5: Challenging weekend in Detroit

JIMMIE INDYCAR WATCH, RACE 6: One mistake at Road America

JIMMIE INDYCAR WATCH, RACE 7: A fun day at Mid-Ohio

JIMMIE INDYCAR WATCH, RACE 8: A bump but still having a blast at Nashville

“He’s going to get there”: An inside look at Johnson’s rookie season in IndyCar

Jimmie Johnson takes a break from IndyCar but not from racing one of his daughters

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Ford unveils a new Mustang for 2024 Le Mans in motorsports ‘lifestyle brand’ retooling

Associated PressJun 9, 2023, 7:00 PM EDT
Ford Mustang Le Mans
Ford Performance
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LE MANS, France — Ford has planned a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans with its iconic Mustang muscle car next year under a massive rebranding of Ford Performance aimed at bringing the automotive manufacturer “into the racing business.”

The Friday unveil of the new Mustang Dark Horse-based race car follows Ford’s announcement in February (and a ballyhooed test at Sebring in March) that it will return to Formula One in 2026 in partnership with reigning world champion Red Bull.

The Mustang will enter the GT3 category next year with at least two cars in both IMSA and the World Endurance Championship, and is hopeful to earn an invitation to next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. The IMSA entries will be a factory Ford Performance program run by Multimatic, and a customer program in WEC with Proton Competition.

Ford CEO Jim Farley, also an amateur sports car racer, told The Associated Press the Mustang will be available to compete in various GT3 series across the globe to customer teams. But more important, Farley said, is the overall rebranding of Ford Performance – done by renowned motorsports designer Troy Lee – that is aimed at making Ford a lifestyle brand with a sporting mindset.

“It’s kind of like the company finding its own, and rediscovering its icons, and doubling down on them,” Farley told the AP. “And then this motorsports activity is getting serious about connecting enthusiast customers with those rediscovered icons. It’s a big switch for the company – this is really about building strong, iconic vehicles with enthusiasts at the center of our marketing.”

Ford last competed in sports car racing in 2019 as part of a three-year program with Chip Ganassi Racing. The team scored the class win at Le Mans in 2016 in a targeted performance aimed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ford snapping Ferrari’s six-year winning streak.

Ford on Friday displayed a Mustang with a Lee-designed livery that showcased the cleaner, simplified look that will soon be featured on all its racing vehicles. The traditional blue oval with Ford Performance in white lettering underneath will now be branded simply FP.

The new mark will be used across car liveries, merchandise and apparel, display assets, parts and accessories and in advertising.

Farley cited Porsche as an automaker that has successfully figured out how to sell cars to consumers and race cars in various series around the world while creating a culture of brand enthusiasts. He believes Ford’s new direction will help the company sell street cars, race cars, boost interest in driving schools, and create a merchandise line that convinces consumers that a stalwart of American automakers is a hip, cool brand.

“We’re going to build a global motorsports business off road and on road,” Farley told the AP, adding that the design of the Mustang is “unapologetically American.”

He lauded the work of Lee, who is considered the top helmet designer among race car drivers.

“We’re in the first inning of a nine inning game, and going to Le Mans is really important,” Farley said. “But for customer cars, getting the graphics right, designing race cars that win at all different levels, and then designing a racing brand for Ford Performance that gets rebranded and elevated is super important.”

He said he’s kept a close eye on how Porsche and Aston Martin have built their motorsports businesses and said Ford will be better.

“We’re going in the exact same direction. We just want to be better than them, that’s all,” Farley said. “Second is the first loser.”

Farley, an avid amateur racer himself, did not travel to Le Mans for the announcement. The race that begins Saturday features an entry from NASCAR, and Ford is the reigning Cup Series champion with Joey Logano and Team Penske.

The NASCAR “Garage 56” entry is a collaboration between Hendrick Motorsports, Chevrolet and Goodyear, and is being widely celebrated throughout the industry. Farley did feel left out of the party in France – a sentiment NASCAR tried to avoid by inviting many of its partners to attend the race so that it wouldn’t seem like a Chevrolet-only celebration.

“They’re going right and I’m going left – that NASCAR thing is a one-year deal, right? It’s Garage 56 and they can have their NASCAR party, but that’s a one-year party,” Farley said. “We won Le Mans outright four times, we won in the GT class, and we’re coming back with Mustang and it’s not a one-year deal.

“So they can get all excited about Garage 56. I almost see that as a marketing exercise for NASCAR, but for me, that’s a science project,” Farley continued. “I don’t live in a world of science projects. I live in the world of building a vital company that everyone is excited about. To do that, we’re not going to do a Garage 56 – I’ve got to beat Porsche and Aston Martin and Ferrari year after year after year.”

Ford’s announcement comes on the heels of General Motors changing its GT3 strategy next season and ending its factory Corvette program. GM, which unlike Ford competes in the IMSA Grand Touring Prototype division (with its Cadillac brand), will shift fully to a customer model for Corvettes in 2024 (with some factory support in the IMSA GTD Pro category).