INDYCAR Statement:
Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Fast Facts
Race weekend: Friday, Feb. 25 – Sunday, Feb. 27
Track: Streets of St. Petersburg, 1.8-mile, 14-turn temporary street circuit (clockwise) through downtown St. Petersburg, Florida, including a runway of Albert Whitted Airport
Race distance: 100 laps / 180 miles (NTT INDYCAR SERIES) | 60 minute timed race (Indy Lights)
Push-to-pass parameters (NTT INDYCAR SERIES): 150 seconds of total time with a maximum single duration of 15 seconds. 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
Firestone tire allotment (NTT INDYCAR SERIES): Six sets primary, four sets alternate. One additional set is available to rookie drivers for use in the Friday afternoon practice session
Twitter: @GPSTPETE, @INDYCAR, @IndyLights #FirestoneGP, #INDYCAR
Event website: http://www.gpstpete.com
INDYCAR website: http://www.indycar.com
2021 race winner: Colton Herta, 1:51:51.4115, 96.552 mph
2021 NTT P1 Award winner: Colton Herta, 1:00.3210, 107.425 mph
Qualifying lap record: Jordan King, 1:00.0476; 107.914 mph, March 10, 2018 (set in Round 1 of qualifying)
NBC Sports telecast: Race, noon ET Sunday, NBC (live). Leigh Diffey is the play-by-play announcer for NBC’s coverage of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, alongside analysts Townsend Bell and James Hinchcliffe. Marty Snider, Kevin Lee and Dave Burns are the pit reporters. Spanish-language telecast will be available on Telemundo.
Peacock Premium Live Streaming: All NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice sessions and qualifying and Indy Lights races will stream live on Peacock Premium, NBC’s direct-to-consumer livestreaming product.
INDYCAR Radio Network broadcasts: Mark Jaynes is the chief announcer alongside analyst Davey Hamilton. Nick Yeoman, Jake Query and Michael Young are the turn announcers. Ryan Myrehn and Alex Wollf are the pit reporters The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg race and all NTT INDYCAR SERIES practices and qualifying sessions air live on network affiliates, SiriusXM 160, racecontrol.indycar.com and the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA. All Indy Lights practice and qualifying sessions and races are available on racecontrol.indycar.com, the INDYCAR App and SiriusXM 160.
At-track schedule (All Times Local/Eastern Time):
Friday, Feb. 25
10:05-10:50 a.m. – Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires practice
3:40-4:25 p.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice, Peacock Premium
1:40-2:10 p.m. – Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires qualifying
5:40-6:10 p.m. – Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires practice
Saturday, Feb. 26
9-9:45 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice, Peacock Premium
12:30-1:45 p.m. – Qualifying for the NTT P1 Award (three rounds of knockout qualifying), Peacock Premium (Live)
Sunday, Feb. 27
8:45-9:15 a.m. – NTT INDYCAR SERIES warmup, Peacock Premium
9:30 a.m. – Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (60 minutes), Peacock Premium (Live)
Noon – NBC Sports on air
12:23 p.m. – “Drivers, start your engines”
12:30 p.m. – Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding (100 laps / 181 miles), NBC, Telemundo and Peacock Premium (Live)
NTT INDYCAR SERIES Notes:
The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg presented by RP Funding will be the 19th INDYCAR SERIES race on the streets of St. Petersburg, dating to 2003. Colton Herta won the 2021 race after starting from the pole position. Paul Tracy won the inaugural race on Feb. 23, 2003, under CART sanction, while Sebastien Bourdais started from the pole that year.
The St. Petersburg INDYCAR race has been run every year since 2003 except for 2004. No driver has competed in every St. Petersburg race, but Scott Dixon has started 17 consecutive races.
Herta can continue a streak of back-to-back race winners at St. Petersburg that began in 2015. Juan Pablo Montoya won back-to-back St. Petersburg races in 2015 and 2016, while Sebastien Bourdais won in 2017 and 2018. Josef Newgarden won back-to-back in 2019 and 2020.
Dixon seeks his first win on the streets of St. Petersburg. Dixon’s six NTT INDYCAR SERIES championships trail only the seven INDYCAR SERIES titles collected by A.J. Foyt. Dixon is third on the all-time INDYCAR SERIES victory list with 51 wins and can tie Mario Andretti for second with his next win, but has never won at St. Petersburg. He has four runner-up finishes at the circuit.
Helio Castroneves (2006, 2007 and 2012), Will Power (2010 and 2014) and Josef Newgarden (2019-2020) are the only entered drivers to win at St. Petersburg more than once. Five past winners are entered: Castroneves, Power, Newgarden, Graham Rahal (2008) and Herta.
Team Penske has won the pole position 10 of the past 15 St. Petersburg races, including nine of the last 12 poles by Power. Along with Power, previous pole winners Rahal (2009), Takuma Sato (2014) and Herta are entered this weekend.
Team Penske has won at St. Petersburg 10 times, including six of the last 10 races with Castroneves (2012), Power (2014), Montoya (2015-16) and Newgarden (2019-2020).
Three drivers have won the race from the pole – Castroneves (2007), Power (2010) and Herta (2021). The St. Petersburg winner has qualified fourth in four of the last nine seasons.
Dixon has made 288 consecutive starts heading into the weekend, which is the second-longest streak in INDYCAR SERIES history.
Jack Harvey will make his 50th INDYCAR SERIES start at St. Petersburg.
Rookies Tatiana Calderon, Devlin DeFrancesco, Kyle Kirkwood and David Malukas will make their NTT INDYCAR SERIES debut at St. Petersburg.
Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires Notes:
The 14-car field for the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is the largest Indy Lights field at St. Petersburg since 2017.
The 2021 season features a deep and talented field with race winners such as Linus Lundqvist and Matt Brabham joining a promising rookie class that includes Christian Rasmussen (Indy Pro 2000 champ), Hunter McElrea (Indy Pro 2000), Kyffin Simpson (Formula Regional Americas champion) and Ernie Francis Jr. (seven-time Trans Am champion/Formula Regional Americas). Other contenders include returning drivers Danial Frost, Sting Ray Robb and Benjamin Pedersen.
Three new teams have joined the series for 2022, TJ Speed Motorsports, led by Indy Lights championship-winning engineer Tim Neff, Road to Indy stalwart Abel Motorsports and African-American-led Force Indy.
Since 2005, the driver who won at least one of the races at St. Petersburg has gone on to win the Indy Lights title six times, including Kyle Kirkwood, who won the first race of the doubleheader in 2021.
INDYCAR Statement:
New Era for Indy Lights Begins on Streets of St. Petersburg
INDIANAPOLIS (Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022) – While anticipation for the 2022 Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires season continues to grow, the return to the Streets of St. Petersburg also marks a new era for Indy Lights as INDYCAR takes over operational control of its developmental series.
It comes as Andretti Autosport looks to add to its Indy Lights championship total of five after driver Kyle Kirkwood took the title in 2021. HMD Motorsports returns with five entries, including support from legendary NTT INDYCAR SERIES team Dale Coyne Racing and Global Racing Group. With the addition of Abel Motorsports, African American-led Force Indy and TJ Speed Motorsports, the 2022 entry list will include up to 15 full-time drivers – the most for Indy Lights in 13 years.
All 2022 Indy Lights races will be available on Peacock Premium in the United States, REV TV in Canada and ESPN – Star+ in Latin America and Brazil. For fans outside of those areas, Indy Lights races will be available on the INDYCAR App powered by NTT DATA. Additional race weekend viewing opportunities will be available at a later date. The award-winning INDYCAR Radio Network also will provide coverage of all Indy Lights sessions.
As previously announced, the new era for the developmental series provides an inclusive atmosphere with the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Integration will come in marketing, digital assets and race officiating. Additionally, the Indy Lights’ paddock will be located within the NTT INDYCAR SERIES paddock footprint, where available.
Indy Lights will soon use similar push-to-pass rules as the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, as increased power will be available to drivers for a predetermined amount of time during the race. Indy Lights also will follow the points championship structure of the INDYCAR SERIES.
“We are proud of the way things have come together as we approach the season opener,” said Levi Jones, director of Indy Lights. “This initial period of integration is only the start as we continue to evolve. Meanwhile, the competition on the track will be as thrilling as ever as the future look of the INDYCAR SERIES will take shape.”
A total of $700,000 in prize money will be divided among the 14 Indy Lights races. The 2022 series champion will receive a scholarship and additional benefits to use toward a 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES entry. As in 2021, the top three finishers in the Indy Lights championship will be eligible for a combine-style test with INDYCAR SERIES teams.
About Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires
Celebrating 35 years, Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires develops drivers and teams to compete in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. Past champions include INDYCAR SERIES champions Tony Kanaan, Scott Dixon, Josef Newgarden, Paul Tracy and Cristiano da Matta. In 2021, 20 drivers in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES were Indy Lights graduates, including rising stars and race winners Colton Herta, Pato O’Ward and Rinus VeeKay. The 2022 season consists of 14 races in the United States. The NTT INDYCAR SERIES, Indy Lights, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IMS Productions are owned by Penske Corporation, a global transportation, automotive and motorsports leader. For more information on Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires, please visit www.indylights.com. For more information on INDYCAR and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, please visit www.indycar.com.
About Cooper Tire
Cooper Tire, a subsidiary of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ: GT), specializes in the design, manufacture, marketing and sale of passenger car, light truck, medium truck, motorcycle and racing tires. Cooper is headquartered in Findlay, Ohio, with manufacturing, sales, distribution, technical and design operations located in more than one dozen countries around the world. For more information on Cooper, visit www.coopertire.com, www.facebook.com/coopertire or www.twitter.com/coopertire.
About Goodyear
Goodyear is one of the world’s largest tire companies. It employs about 72,000 people and manufactures its products in 55 facilities in 23 countries around the world. Its two Innovation Centers in Akron, Ohio, and Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg, strive to develop state-of-the-art products and services that set the technology and performance standard for the industry. For more information about Goodyear and its products, go to www.goodyear.com/corporate.
INDYCAR
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Photos & Graphics Courtesy of INDYCAR