2023 NTT IndyCar Series Preview with Scott Dixon, Pato O’Ward, Alexander Rossi, Colton Herta, Graham Rahal, Kyle Kirkwood, and Sting Ray Robb

Speakers: Bruce Martin & Scott Dixon, Pato O’Ward, Alexander Rossi, Colton Herta, Graham Rahal, Kyle Kirkwood & Sting Ray Robb

[Music Playing]

Bruce Martin:

IndyCar fans, it's time to start your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcasts. I'm your host, Bruce Martin, a journalist who regularly covers the NTT IndyCar Series.

Our goal at Pit Pass Indy is to give racing fans an insider's view of the exciting world of the NTT IndyCar Series in a fast-paced podcast featuring interviews with the biggest names in the sport.

I bring nearly 40 years of experience covering IndyCar and NASCAR, working for such media brands as nbcsports.com, si.com, ESPN Sports Ticker, Sports Illustrated, Autoweek and Speed Sport.

So, let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy.

Another long off season is over and now, it's time to go racing. It's the start of the 2023 NTT IndyCar Series season this weekend on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.

It begins Friday with practice, continues Saturday with knockout qualifications, culminating with The Firestone Fast six and reaches its crescendo with Sunday's Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

It's IndyCar's version of spring break and can be seen Sunday at 12 noon eastern time on NBC.

Pit Pass Indy has an action-packed preview of the upcoming season, featuring some of the biggest names in the NTT IndyCar Series Paddock. Those include six-time IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon; Arrow McLaren's dynamic duo of Pato O’Ward of Mexico; and new to the team in 2023,Alexander Rossi, the winner of the 100th Indianapolis 500 at Andretti Autosport.

Also, joining us is 2021 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg winner and championship contender,Colton Herta of Andretti Autosport; 2008 St. Pete winner, Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing; Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Autosport; and IndyCar rookie driver, Sting Ray Robb of Dale Coyne Racing. So, many big names, so little time.

So, let's get right to it with my exclusive interview with IndyCar great Scott Dixon for Pit Pass Indy.

Joining us now, on Pit Pass Indy, is the six-time NTT IndyCar Series champion. It's Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing, getting ready to start another season of IndyCar. I believe it'll be your 21st or 22nd season since you've been driving Indy cars.

Scott Dixon:

Yeah, maybe a couple more. I think it's my 21st or 22nd with Chip, so I think I did well, at least one before that. But yeah, definitely looking forward to it. It's been a long off season, I think for a lot of us. Luckily, I've had the IMSA program to run with that and some endurance testing and races.

But yeah, I think everybody's looking forward to this timing and getting back in the IndyCar and looking forward to getting on track here in St. Pete soon.

Bruce Martin:

You were talking about your lengthy time driving for Chip Ganassi Racing last year at Portland. You got a chance to spend time with your first team owner, Bruce McCaw of PacWest.

You were just a kid when you joined that team. And when you think back to what Bruce McCaw meant to your career, how do you describe how important that was for this teenager, basically, from New Zealand to be able to get a chance to get his first ride and what was then the CART series?

Scott Dixon:

Yeah, it's good to see Bruce still coming to several other races. I think he always tries to make Indymaybe for qualifying or a little bit of practice, and then Portland's close to where he's based in Seattle.

So, yeah, it's always good to catch up with him and kind of reminisce a little bit and definitely, a turning point to my career, especially on the Indy Lights side. And then unfortunately, the PacWest portion of the team or IndyCar side kind of shut down a little bit early, I guess, in some ways of when I first joined that team.

So, yeah, it's been a lot of fun. A lot of things have happened since then, but definitely, a key person I think in the direction that I went.

Bruce Martin:

Once again, the season starts at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. This year it'll be March 5th. IndyCar tried something different at the beginning of this year by having their annual preseason open test, which many of us still call spring training. It was at The Thermal Club in Thermal, California, which is out in the Palm Springs area.

What did you think of the race course and what did you think of the entire facility at The Thermal Club and the prospects that maybe one day there'll be an IndyCar race there?

Scott Dixon:

Yeah, I think they talked about this place for quite some time and just trying to get something out here. And obviously, a huge thanks to everybody at Thermal for getting it going and obviously,having that preseason testing there.

Not super beneficial, I think as far as a testing facility for tracks that we go to, that's the hard part. It's quite unique and a lot of these circuits are like that. Very long, kind of happens a lot of slow distalradius corners that are good for road cars, but maybe not so similar to a lot of the tracks that we go to.

But still good to be out here. It's 50% of our road course testing or more for the year, which is definitely, a lot of it just because we don't test that much anymore. So, it's been I think a great introduction to Palm Springs and it's always fun to come to a new circuit.

Bruce Martin:

The course had an awful lot of Armco barrier which other people refer to as guardrail. There were some tire barriers. There's no safer barriers or concrete walls. Obviously, if any car was going to come back here and have an actual event that would need to be addressed, wouldn't it?

Scott Dixon:

I think there's always safety areas that you can make a little bit better. It does take I think to get cars on track and maybe some different eyes for reference to see where there may be an area that you can get to. Or even during the test there, seeing if cars can get off in areas that you maybe didn't think of.

So, yeah, I think the hardest part here would be just the straight time’s very long. So, I think as far as race ability would be quite tough, it's got long corners, so obviously, degradation would come into that factor and maybe would create some of that.

We had that at Barber when we first went there and thought it was going to be particularly bad race, but it actually worked out, it turned to be a really good one.

So, we’ll see where that goes, see what markets they're looking for. I don't think it'd be a market where you're looking for people to come and watch, there's no grandstand here. There's a lot of different things that you would potentially look at this event for something different.

Bruce Martin:

The homes around here are pretty expensive. They're $5 million homes, some of the places. This is really a private resort country club type thing for the automotive enthusiast, people that are into motorsports and are into the automotive industry. Have you had a chance to check out any of the homes around Thermal?

Scott Dixon:

Yeah, not during the test, but I was out in Palm Springs doing an event for PNC at one of the resorts here and stepped down in December to come and have a look at the circuits and the facility, and it is world class. It's beautiful out here with the restaurants. They've got the casitas kind of the hotel portion of the track. There's everything on site here that you would ever need.

So, it's definitely very special in that way. Obviously, the homes are a different thing over here whereyou've got I think $5 million will probably get you … I don't know if there's one that cheap, to be honest. I think an entry level you're talking north of $7 million.

So, definitely, a prime piece for a real estate and very cool that you can kind of wake up at the track and drive straight out and get on the track. At 7:00 in the morning, I think I heard people driving their cars around here.

So, yeah, it's a pretty, pretty special place and it's great to have the opportunity to go out there and drive on a track like that.

Bruce Martin:

IndyCar officials announced at the beginning of the season that they will do away with the double points that were paid at the Indianapolis 500. It's going to revert to a single points system, like all the other races. Do you like that?

Scott Dixon:

I don't think it changes too much. I think the ups and downs are kind of what everybody weathers throughout the season. I think it can favor you, you can make a massive jump at that point. I think it kind of canceled itself out when you had double points for the 500 then you had double for the finale. So, I guess this cancels all of it out.

So, I don't have a big concern either way of how it is obviously going into the season knowing what the point situation is, is same for everybody, and you got to end the season with the most points. So,yeah, not a big deal.

Bruce Martin:

A team owner was telling me it might be that since double points started in 2014, the winner of the Indianapolis 500 during that time never went on the win the IndyCar title. So, in a lot of ways, I guess that it really didn't have that dramatic of an impact.

Scott Dixon:

Yeah. But I think for a majority of that too, is also double points for the finale too. So, that I think enabled some people to come in. And I know during our period of time, we won a championship I think with the double points at the end there. So, I don't think it changes too much. I think it's fine.

Bruce Martin:

But it would really hurt a driver that's a points contender that would have a bad finish at Indy because the 33-car starting lineup, including some drivers that have taken positions ahead of them that aren't full-time IndyCar Series drivers for the season.

Scott Dixon:

Yeah, I think the last two years that we've had coming out of Indy with worse than 20th place really, really hurts. And I think I lost 72 points alone to Marcus maybe at that race, which is a race and a half of maximum points.

So, yeah, but you know that going into the season, all I care about is that you know what the rules are and you race the rules as they are, but I don't think it's going to be a defining factor.

Bruce Martin:

IndyCar’s making an investment on increased marketing. Some of that will be invested by some of the team owners. I've had some team owners tell me it's for a good reason, so they don't have a problem with it.

You've been a driver who's been a star all these years, and I'm sure that the one thing that you would've liked to have seen IndyCar do better is better job at marketing. So, how do you feel that now, that's a major part of their agenda?

Scott Dixon:

Yeah, I think it's great. It's great for building the series. I think IndyCar should have been up front in saying where the actual money was coming from the teams, not them themselves investing it.

But I think it's right, no matter which way you look at it. They needed to put the money in, they need to work hard on that. I think we saw that from kind of the spring training side, to what they've been telling us kind of behind doors, to what we're doing for advertising and all that kind of stuff.

So, kudos to everybody for pushing on that. I think it's going to help everybody in the long run, and it's definitely, going to help raise the game of IndyCar, which we all know it's a fantastic product. It's just getting it in front of people.

Bruce Martin:

You're at the stage of your career where the only man in front of you for the most victories, and the most championships is A. J. Foyt. So, how confident are you that you can tie him this year with seven IndyCar Series championships?

Scott Dixon:

It's always the goal, is to go after another championship. First up for us, we'll be trying to win another Indy 500. It was fantastic what the team did last year. Definitely had great cars and so happy for Marcus to capture his first. And for myself, I'll be trying as hard as possible to get a second.

But yeah, we'll get to that stage first and then of course, we'll be fighting as hard as possible to grab that seventh championship.

Bruce Martin:

Do you have 14 more wins left in you? Because if you get 14 more victories, then you'll tie him for most victories in an IndyCar career.

Scott Dixon:

Yeah, it's a lot. You definitely got to get on a roll. I would say these days getting two, three or four is a pretty great season and most likely you'd win a championship, I think being in that situation.

So, we'll see what comes. Obviously, we'll be fighting every race and going for the win. And maybe in a couple years, we'll be a little bit closer. We'll have to see.

Bruce Martin:

And how big a goal is it for you to get Indy 500 win number two?

Scott Dixon:

Yeah, it's at the top, it's where we want to be. We're in the business of winning races and that's the biggest race that we go to. And for sure, I know for myself and for the team, that's one that we'd love to get.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Scott Dixon from all of us at Pit Pass Indy, good luck in the 2023 NTT IndyCar Series season, and thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy.

Scott Dixon:

Thanks, mate. Cheers.

Bruce Martin:

Next up is Pato O’Ward of Monterey, Mexico. The Arrow McLaren driver is once again expected tobattle for the championship, and the Indianapolis 500 victory. O’Ward joins me on this Pit Pass Indyexclusive interview.

Joining us now, on Pit Pass Indy is one of the stars of IndyCars, Pato O’Ward of Arrow McLaren Racing. Pato, another big season is about the start in IndyCar. You're going to be one of the drivers fighting and out for the championship. So, what is your outlook and attitude heading into 2023?

Pato O’Ward:

Anxious to get started, man. We've had a really long off season. We're about to get our very little days of testing that we've got before the season and then straight into St. Pete.

I've always enjoyed going to St. Pete. I think it's a great place to start the season. And we've got ambitions, obviously, just like everyone else, but I think we'll just take it day by day. I think the year, the season will throw challenges at you that you don't expect. So, I think you need to be flexible, agile, adaptive to those, and just really take it day by day and optimize your opportunities.

Bruce Martin:

Do you believe that the key for you in 2023 is the ability to close more races and be more consistent? Because there were times where you'd be up there battling for a victory, and maybe toward the end somebody else might have a better pit stop or a different race strategy that that's really a key element for you in 2023.

Pato O’Ward:

I mean, I think those situations are racing. You won't always get it right on strategy. You won't always get it right in the pit stops. But ultimately, what we need to really minimize is the DNFs, which were a huge hit to our championship last year. So, I think taking those away, we're in the fight.

Bruce Martin:

There's going to be a new leader at Arrow McLaren this year. It's Gavin Ward, who joined the team toward the end of last season. Actually, was able to join the team earlier than that, but wasn't allowed to be on the pit stand until toward the end of the season. Taylor Kiel has moved on to Chip Ganassi racing.

What's it like working with Gavin?

Pato O’Ward:

Gavin, he's a great leader. I'm a big fan of Gavin because other than just having obviously, the hunger for performance into making the cars go quicker, he has a really good mindset and outlook on what you do outside of the car and the track in how to get that performance.

And I think that that plays a big part into the preparation of everybody, whether it's diet, mental physical, whatever it might be. He puts a lot of emphasis on that.

And I do as well. I mean, I do it from day to day on my activities, and you for sure see a difference in performance and just enjoyment whenever you're doing this. Cause at the end of the day, if you're not enjoying it, then why are you doing this?

Bruce Martin:

And how about personality-wise? Gavin seems to be a fairly easygoing guy, but when it's time to do business, he's all business.

Pato O’Ward:

Yeah, he gets along with everybody, everybody loves him. And I think everybody's really stoked to have him as part of the leadership team at Arrow McLaren. And we're all super excited to continue working with him.

Bruce Martin:

Three-car team this year. It's going to be yourself and you're back with Felix Rosenqvist. But new that the team as Alexander Rossi. Alexander Rossi has had a lot of great accomplishments in his career, including winning the 100th Indianapolis 500 2016.

Now, that Arrow McLaren is a three-car operation, how do you see the dynamic of all that working out and the ability to get more feedback?

Pato O’Ward:

We're growing and I think it's a good thing. There's so many — other than obviously, Alex joining us, we have mechanics, we have engineers, we have marketing department growing. So, the team is growing as a whole.

And I'm excited to see all this new talent in their groove, in their zone and doing their thing. I think we had already a great group of people and we just keep adding onto that. So, it's going to help the atmosphere and the workflow, I guess you can call it. So, yeah, I think we're all on the same page.

Bruce Martin:

Joining the team for the Indianapolis 500 will be Tony Kanaan, a driver that's had tremendous accomplishments. Former IndyCar Series Champion in 2004, won the Indianapolis 500 in 2013. Working with TK, how exciting is that for you?

Pato O’Ward:

Ah, he's great. Someone that I grew up watching. And he's been in the series longer than I've been alive, so I think that speaks for itself and he's a great guy to have around. So, I think we're all really excited to work with him.

Bruce Martin:

We're starting to see much more of a McLaren influence at Arrow McLaren Racing. It began as Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, but now, it's really mostly a McLaren operation.

To be able to have the synergy between the Formula One team and the IndyCar team with technology and engineering and things. How valuable is that?

Pato O’Ward:

It's very valuable. It's very different. Both series have very different ways of, I guess, approaching the engineering side, we can call it. In IndyCar, we don't have none of the arrow that's open, but we do have the suspension and a lot of work goes into the dampers.

So, there's a lot of more things that IndyCar really focuses on compared to Formula One. Formula One is very arrow oriented, so there are two very different ways of developing a race car. But obviously, all that resources it can just help us.

Bruce Martin:

Because Gavin Ward comes from a Formula One background, do you guys speak the same language in terms of technological setup and engineering, or does he bring different ways to look at things when it comes to engineering?

Pato O’Ward:

I think he brings creative ideas, and ultimately, that's what we need. Two pairs, or four pairs, or five pairs of eyes are better than just one pair. So, I think in a collective manner, everybody working together, it's just going to make us come up with those little things that we need to improve on and find the answers.

Bruce Martin:

How inspiring is it to have Zak Brown as your boss, because he seems to be a guy that if you hook up with Zak Brown, he can take you to some big places.

Pato O’Ward:

What's awesome about Zak is that other than he's a boss to many drivers, but he's a race fan and he understands what it's like to be in the race seat. He doesn't get in the way of you driving the car. He just worries about the other stuff.

And he's a fan of his own drivers, and I think that's very important. He genuinely just loves to race and to win, whether it's IndyCar, Formula One, Formula E, Extreme E. I mean, man, we can be racing bumper cars and the guy would love it.

He's just an absolute race fan, and I think that's what makes it so good to have a round, because you can't make someone have a passion for something, and he for sure is one of the most passionate.

Bruce Martin:

You've been a strong proponent of increased marketing by IndyCar that are going to initiate this year, 100 Days to Indy, the docuseries that's going to be on The CW. How excited are you to see that project and also some of the other things that they tend to do marketing-wise to help the sport grow?

Pato O’Ward:

It's awesome to see we're taking the steps in the right direction, and I will certainly, do my best into helping that and into showing it off to the public that don't really know about IndyCar, because it's an amazing sport. It's an amazing series, and it's definitely worth finding out more of.

Bruce Martin:

I know that you're focused on IndyCar in 2023. You've also made it well known that you really want to a chance at Formula One. You're a Formula One test driver for McLaren F1. Do you feel a certain urgency to win the championship in 2023?

Pato O’Ward:

Ah, we'll take it day by day and we'll see how we start racking up the points.

Bruce Martin:

And last question, you came so close to winning the Indianapolis 500 last year, how often do you replay those last laps? And is there anything that you would've done differently?

Pato O’Ward:

Not much. I'm focused on how to put myself in that position again this year. And yeah, the elusive 500 win, that's what we're all going for.

Bruce Martin:

Pato O’Ward, he's one of the big stars of IndyCar at Arrow McLaren Racing. Good luck this season, and thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy.

Pato O’Ward:

Thank you very much.

Bruce Martin:

O’Ward has two teammates at Arrow McLaren in 2023, Felix Rosenqvist of Sweden is back for another season. The team expands to a three-car operation this year with former Andretti Autosport star, Alexander Rossi, joining the operation. A change of scenery may do Rossi some good, as he explains to me in this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview.

Joining us now, on Pit Pass Indy, is a longtime guest of the show, except this time will be the first time he joins the show as a member of Arrow McLaren Racing. It's Alexander Rossi, new team, new outlook, new season. It's 2023, how excited are you?

Alexander Rossi:

I'm excited we get to go racing soon. It's been a long off season, obviously, that's the same for everyone, but especially this year in terms of switching organizations. I've been itching to get in the car, so glad that we're finally at that point.

Bruce Martin:

The thing that strikes me about Arrow McLaren is, as far as you began your career, you were an American in Formula One for a while with Manor Racing, there's a little bit more of a McLaren influence now, with the IndyCar team. You've got Gavin Ward, who's going to be the race director.

So, in a lot of ways, does this fit your personality and style a little bit better from your early days in racing?

Alexander Rossi:

Yeah, that's an interesting way to look at it, probably. I think that certainly, there's kind of a European methodology and approach that does exist in the organization. But still very much being an IndyCar team, you don't run an IndyCar team like you would run an F1 team, but there is a certain amount of structure and detail orientation that they have that's very similar to what I had in Europe.

Bruce Martin:

When you were with the Manor F1 team, did you have much interaction with Zak Brown at that time, because he was involved in a lot of different Formula One projects before he became the CEO at McLaren F1?

Alexander Rossi:

I knew Zak from his time at his previous company JMI. So, that's where I knew him from. But no, I didn't really have any dealings with him in terms of anything to do with my race career or F1. He was just more also another American that was on that side of the pond trying to get stuff done.

Bruce Martin:

Zak Brown is a guy who's got big ideas. He wants to take the sport to even greater levels. Some people might use the term disruptor to describe a new breed of team owner. Do you see that with Zak?

Alexander Rossi:

I think Zak is just he's a racer at heart. He obviously, still competes in racing himself. He loves the sport. He has such an amazing passion for it, and obviously, his prior career in terms of who he is as a person and his ability to be a leader and a spokesperson and someone who kind of inspires progress.

I think he's a great guy for that and someone that we're very fortunate to have in charge of the organization.

Bruce Martin:

When you think of the great names that have driven for McLaren in Formula One and in the Indianapolis 500, now, Alexander Rossi is one of those names. How big of an honor do you feel?

Alexander Rossi:

No, it's a huge honor, one that I'm very grateful for. It's also a big responsibility. The McLaren brand precedes everything that I've done in my career and their brand is synonymous with performance.

And that's something that is going to require all of us to A, keep in mind, but continually evolve ourselves and push ourselves forward to reach new heights because we are representing one of the most iconic brands in all motorsports.

Bruce Martin:

How important was it for you to get a fresh start and a new opportunity?

Alexander Rossi:

It's great to have this new chapter in my career. And like I said, I'm very much looking forward to getting started. I'm very grateful for all of the time that I had at Andretti Autosport. And Michael, and Brian, and J.F., and a lot of those guys there are still people that I think very highly of and I'm close friends with.

So, it was at the point where it was time for a change. And again, I'm very grateful for the opportunity to be at Arrow McLaren.

Bruce Martin:

You've got two young drivers. You're also a young driver yourself, but very aggressive driver and Pato O’Ward, maybe more of a aggressive and cerebral type driver with Felix Rosenqvist. How do you see the three-driver lineup at Arrow McLaren? There could be a good chance that all three of you could achieve some pretty impressive results this year.

Alexander Rossi:

Yeah, I think that's the plan. We aren't really setting objectives other than trying to make sure every single weekend we're performing at our highest possibility. And if we can do that, week in and week out, then we want to have all three cars in the fight.

And obviously, we are three unique individuals, but I think certainly, we've already started to work very well together, and there's a good chemistry and dynamic that exists. And I think that'll carry throughout the entire season on and off the track.

Bruce Martin:

Although it's a new team, you're going to be reunited with Craig Hampson working on your particular car. Craig, of course, was an Andretti Autosport working on a lot of special projects, very well known, very bright, very innovative.

What's it like having Craig Hampson as your secret weapon?

Alexander Rossi:

Yeah, no, I mean, it's great to be able to work with Craig again. He's someone that I have an immense amount of respect for, someone that I got to work with for a short period of time when I first started my career.

And I think his track record speaks for itself in terms of what he's accomplished and who he's been able to work with and find success with.

So, that was a very important decision or a part of my decision when I made the move to this organization and thrilled to be able to finally get the chance to work one-on-one with him.

Bruce Martin:

At your stage of your career, there really isn't such a thing as a transition year, I'm sure you enter 2023 saying, “Challenge for the championship, win races, win the Indy 500.” Is that the attitude you're taking into 2023?

Alexander Rossi:

No, like I said, we're taking in the outlook of we just need to make sure that every single weekend we're doing what we need to do as a group, and if we do that, the rest will take care of itself.

Bruce Martin:

Indianapolis 500, you won it your first time out, you probably should've won it two or three to more times. You had a chance there and really put on a show those years. I know sometimes you say your best Indy 500s were the ones that you didn't win as far as racing. But how much does that race drive you?

Alexander Rossi:

Yeah, I mean, it's the big one. So, in terms of the emotional connection that we all have with that track and that event, it grows every single year. I think for all of us, every single time that we get the opportunity to compete in it it's also one, you're closer to not being able to do it anymore.

So, you take every one as its own event, and you try and always make sure that on that day you're performing at your highest level, not only for yourself, but the whole team and everyone makes and wants to have their best day on Memorial Day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, it's the big one for the partners, the manufacturers.

So, certainly it's one where we're counting down the days on the calendar, but at the same time, there are 16 other races in the championship you have to perform as well.

Bruce Martin:

Speaking of 16 other races on the championship, one of those is on March 5th, the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. It's earned its spot on the schedule as a very special race, a race everybody looks forward to. It's the start of the season. How excited do you get when you go to St. Pete?

Alexander Rossi:

Yeah, I mean, very excited. I think it's a fantastic event. The turnout and the energy is always fantastic. It's an amazing place to be able to kick off the calendar. It's a challenging track. It's a long race, there's always a lot of kind of variables that come into play there.

So, it's certainly one that we love going to, but we love it the most just because it is round one and we're finally getting the season underway.

Bruce Martin:

You're a driver who can benefit from increased marketing and exposure, and IndyCar seems to be taking those steps, especially with the docuseries, 100 Days to May, which will be on The CW. That's probably one of the greatest things of the docuseries. In fact, it's going to be on and over the air major network.

How big a role do you plan on being part of that, and how excited are you to see where it takes IndyCar?

Alexander Rossi:

Yeah, I think we were all incredibly excited when this was announced back in December. The partnership with VICE Media and obviously, CW. And 100 Days to Indy's going to be an amazing look into the sport from kind of the behind closed doors, if you will.

And I think that certainly, it's going to be up to us as drivers and teams to be open and share as much as you're kind of allowed to share in terms of your preparation going into the 500 and what that race means. And every driver's is going to have a little bit different of an approach. So, I think it'll give fans a really unique perspective as to who we are as individuals and not just racing drivers.

Bruce Martin:

And as we get prepared for 2023, is this as rejuvenated as you've felt since joining IndyCar the first season?

Alexander Rossi:

No, I don't think that's fair to say. But certainly, very excited and it's going to be an amazing new chapter in the book. And like I said, thankful and very excited to get started.

Bruce Martin:

Alexander Rossi accomplished a lot of great things with Andretti Autosport. I'm sure you'll accomplish even more great things with Arrow McLaren. Good luck in 2023, and thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy.

Alexander Rossi:

No worries, thank you very much.

Bruce Martin:

Colton Herta of Andretti Autosport drove to victory on the streets of St. Petersburg in a dominating performance in 2021. He hopes to repeat that domination in 2023, as the son of former IndyCar driver, Bryan Herta is back for another Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg this weekend. ColtonHerta joins me for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview.

Joining us now, on Pit Pass Indy, is one of the real star drivers of the NTT IndyCar Series. It's Colton Herta of Andretti Autosport. Colton, kind of hard to believe you're starting your fifth year in IndyCar. Does it seem like it's been that long or has the time just flown right on by?

Colton Herta:

No, it does not seem like it's been that long. It's pretty crazy to think that I'm going into my fifth year. I feel like I'm going into my second year. But no, it's been great to be a part of the series for this long and have some success. It's been a lot of fun.

Bruce Martin:

You are the all-time youngest winning driver in IndyCar Series history. That victory of course, came in 2019 at COTA. And when you've reflect back on that day, at that time you were really still just a kid. Now, you're still a kid, but you're a little bit older, 22.

How much different are you as a person and as a driver from that day when you won at COTA?

Colton Herta:

Yeah, for sure, more experienced. I think that day could have gone a lot differently with what I know now and maybe been a little bit more competitive before Alex and Will dropped out. So, no, but it was an amazing day. I'll never forget it.

Bruce Martin:

At 22 years old, now, you are the elder statesman in terms of tenure at Andretti Autosport. Romain Grosjean is older, but you've been with the team longer. Do you see Andretti Autosport as having a youth movement this season?

Colton Herta:

I hope so, because if it isn't, then we're probably not doing a good job. We got a lot of young guys, so.No, I'm confident it's young team, but it's a lot of guys that have a lot of potential.

So, I'm hoping that I can do the best I can for the team and everybody can kind of follow in suit and do the best that they can also.

Bruce Martin:

Even though Devlin DeFrancesco goes back for a second year, and Kyle Kirkwood is back for his first year with Andretti Autosport, you're very familiar with them because they ran in what is now, known as the Indy NXT Series for Andretti Autosport.

What is the potential that you see those two drivers having and when you work with younger drivers, do you have a little bit more of a kinship with them?

Colton Herta:

Well, they're both older than me, so it's not like I'm working with younger drivers, but I guess younger in the series in that aspect. But-

Bruce Martin:

Younger in terms of experience for them.

Colton Herta:

Experience. But yeah, I mean, I think we're relatively all similar. We all grew up racing go-karts against each other. And Kyle and Devlin were more on the East Coast, but we still shared a few races in the middle that we got to race against each other. So, I've known them for a very long time, so very fortunate to have them as teammates and looking forward to it.

Bruce Martin:

Winner of seven IndyCar Series races in four seasons. What would you consider a successful year in year five?

Colton Herta:

It needs to be a championship, really. I've been here for a while and really need to be fighting for a championship in that last round. To go along with it, a couple wins would be great and always striving for a 500. But the focus has to be on winning the championship.

Bruce Martin:

And because of the dynamics of the team and the way drivers have shuffled in and shuffled out, how much more responsibility do you feel being the team leader?

Colton Herta:

I think it'll be similar. I think everybody brings their own thing to the team and obviously, I've been there for a little bit longer, so maybe I know the operation side a little bit better than some people.

But the team's very open and grateful for feedback and that's the most important thing. If they can set down fast laps that I can use and look at the data and also, give great feedback, then I don't see a problem with them coming in. It's going to be a great team dynamic.

Bruce Martin:

Of course, the biggest race of the year happens at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway every Memorial Day weekend. How much do you think about what it would mean to your career to win that, the Indianapolis 500?

Colton Herta:

It would be amazing. It's hard to think about what it would feel like without doing it, but it's the race that we all strive to win every year, and it's why we put in so much work. But yeah, so far we haven't had great success in the races, so really need to turn that around and hopefully, have a good one this year.

Bruce Martin:

The fact that your father, Bryan Herta, former IndyCar race winner himself calls your race strategy,are there moments on the radio where it's kind of like father and son talking more than race strategist and race driver?

Colton Herta:

Sometimes, but I think that's the same with everybody. It happens, people get heated. I guess for some reason just shows up when I do it more than when anybody else does it.

Bruce Martin:

Are there times where you wish you took something back on the radio that you may have radioed back to your father?

Colton Herta:

Maybe, but like it's hard to say. Yeah.

Bruce Martin:

Of course, there's a lot of speculation about your career. You want to run in Formula One, definitely want to get a ride there one day. Last year you told me you're focusing on IndyCar this year, whatever happens in Formula One will happen. You're still a very young driver.

But it seems like your team owner, Michael Andretti, is getting closer to clicking off all the boxes. He's introduced Cadillac as the partner for the program. How exciting would it be to take the starting grid of a Formula One race in a Cadillac, an American brand for the first time in Formula One?

Colton Herta:

It would be amazing. There's a lot of key people involved and obviously, having Mark Reuss involved from Chevrolet and Cadillac. And Michael has been on this for many, many years now, and it's gone unreported for many years, but he's been trying to do this for a long, long time.

And there's a lot of key players like Mark and Dan Towriss from Gainbridge that have helped propelled us forward. And I think that we're all grateful for the coverage that we've been gaining for it. But now, we need to see if it's feasible, if they'll let them in.

Bruce Martin:

You're a Honda driver. Honda's meant an awful lot to your career. If you go to Formula One, youwould be switching brands and running in the Cadillac. But just to think of the two auto manufacturers that you've been involved with, how much is it just so cool to think of what you've learned from Honda?

Colton Herta:

Yeah, it's been amazing. I've known a lot of the guys at HPD where they make the Indy car and IMSA engines for a long time, because I grew up in the town that they were built in. So, it's been amazing. I know a lot of guys at the factory. I spend some time there when I can. And yeah, they've done a lot for me in my short career. But yeah, it's been amazing.

Bruce Martin:

You're a former winner of the Firestone Grand Prix at St. Petersburg. You live in Florida now, that race kicks off the season on March the 5th. How excited and how anxious are you to see the start of the season?

Colton Herta:

I know it's about time. I feel like I've been sitting around for way too long not doing anything, so it's great that it's coming around and I'm happy that we have the chance to go back to St. Pete. It's an awesome kickoff event for IndyCar and it packs a lot of action.

Bruce Martin:

Colton Herta, one of the stars of the NTT IndyCar Series. Good luck this season and thank you for joining us today, on Pit Pass Indy.

Colton Herta:

Thank you.

Bruce Martin:

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

[Music Playing]

Graham Rahal has the rare distinction of driving the victory in his first ever IndyCar Series race in 2008. It came on the streets of St. Petersburg after the ChampCar Series was dissolved and its teams joined the old Indy Racing League to create today's IndyCar Series.

15 years later, Rahal's back for another try and he anchors Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Rahal joins me to discuss a variety of topics, including his thoughts on former Ohio State quarterback, Justin Fields of the Chicago Bears, and CJ Stroud who is preparing for the NFL draft this spring.

Here is another exclusive interview with Rahal on Pit Pass Indy.

Joining us now, on Pit Pass Indy, is Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. Graham, you've moved into a beautiful new shop up in Zionsville. It's really first class, really major league. Your father showed me around there at the end of October.

Do you think just being in that new shop will automatically elevate the performance level of the overall team? Because it really is first class.

Graham Rahal:

Well, I don't think just moving a shop necessarily will elevate you. You've got to utilize the assets and the tools that the shop has. Now, I do think that aspect of it, we have utilized really well in the two months that we've been there.

I think across the board, our guys are super motivated and I think being there motivates them because they see the facility, they see the commitment on behalf of the owners to make this thing even more successful. So, that certainly does help, for sure.

Bruce Martin:

But it certainly, has to be a pretty good feeling to go to work every day when you go into the shop. Your old chop in Brownsburg, there wasn't even a sign on the door that said it was Rahal Letterman Lanigan racing. You had to know which door to knock on enter the shop.

You can definitely tell the shop on this one, because it's a beautiful showpiece. So, you're not lacking for any resources.

Graham Rahal:

No, I think there's still things that we've got to get in the facility, but space-wise, no, we've got the space to do it all. Like I just said, I think frankly, we moved in end of October. I wouldn't say we were really settled until maybe this last little bit, last few weeks.

I think last time I went to the shop, it looked like everything was kind of put in the right places and stuff, but up until that point it was still pretty spread out.

So, to me, I think it's a beautiful facility, for sure. You who we are and you know where we're at. But it'll be a great asset for our program going forward and not only for IndyCar, but sports car and for a variety of other things that could come in the future.

Bruce Martin:

You could certainly, tell that it's your father's baby. He's really proud of that facility as his partner, Michael Lanigan.

Graham Rahal:

Well, I mean, you would be too. I think we all would be. And well, I am, I can tell you that. I mean, I don't have any involvement in it, but I certainly, look at it and it's beautiful. It's spectacular facility.

So, he, dad, does take a lot of pride in it. He's excited about it and hopefully, we can keep growing the team and give us some longevity.

Bruce Martin:

Now, looking ahead to the start of the season in just a few weeks, it'll be off to the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March the 5th. A race that you won when you at that time was the youngest winner in IndyCar history.

That race has become special on the calendar because everybody gets upbeat, excited. It's IndyCar's version of spring break, it's developed its own atmosphere and feel. How great of an event is that?

Graham Rahal:

Yeah, it's really cool. It's super cool. So, I love St. Pete. It's a great way to kick off the year every year. And for me, to get back there, I think I feel reinvigorated, like re-energized this year a little bit to get back out there and get going. So, I'm definitely excited for what we have ahead of us.

Graham Rahal:

And it all does start right there in St. Pete. So, one test in Thermal and then we're right there. Not a whole lot of time to figure things out this year, but we'll be alright.

Bruce Martin:

Speaking of Thermal, what did you think of having the test at a place that's basically a millionaire motorsports enthusiast housing development, country club, gated community, whatever, with a race course around it?

Graham Rahal:

Well, I was happy because frankly, I don't know how many more times I can go to Sebring. And it was a good change of pace, I think for a lot of us. We did it at COTA and we've been to a variety of different places, but first time in Thermal and southern California, Palm Springs weather is always very consistent, really good. So, I think in that regard, it's a good pick.

Bruce Martin:

Is that the type of place you may be interested in purchasing a lot one day?

Graham Rahal:

I can't afford Thermal. I can't afford Thermal, but no, I should never say no. But I've been out there, I've done a lot of development. We did some of the Acura NSX development out there and some other things, so I've certainly been around it. But it takes a big check to stroke to be at Thermal.

Bruce Martin:

I know you well enough to know that you will demand the most of yourself, of anybody. So, where do you see things entering 2023, what you believe you can accomplish? And how much you really feel that you need to get back to that performance level you had in 2015, 2016?

Graham Rahal:

Well, yeah, look, I feel really good this year. I think that on the team side, things are shaping up well.On personal life side, everything's been great. And so, for me, I feel like I'm in a good place, obviously, the years are rolling on for me in a big way. But I'm excited to get out there.

I don't think that we ever lost our form necessarily. I think we as a team, we've struggled through some things. I think as everybody else has evolved and gotten a little better over the last couple of years, we frankly haven't.

And I think there's been some things that have held us back a little bit, some distractions, focusing on the wrong things and stuff like that. And I feel like this off season, we've redirected a lot of that energy into a better place. And so, I'm happy and I'm excited to see what can happen.

Bruce Martin:

How much has the addition and Christian Lundgaard, last year's rookie of the year really helped push the team even further?

Graham Rahal:

Well, I mean, Christian's done a wonderful job, for sure. I think having youth in there kind of pushes the other drivers more than maybe it does the team necessarily. I think in year one, as a rookie, there's not a whole lot of expectation. So, it's kind of easy to meet that. Year two is going to be a challenge for everybody.

But I think on the engineering side, I think we just made some good moves in the off-season, got some good data, got some good information, and I think that's going to push us forward in a big way.

Bruce Martin:

And of course, you're a three-car team once again, and the third car last year maybe didn't perform as well as the team would've liked. What do you expect out of that ride this year?

Graham Rahal:

Well, it's a challenge, as I just said, for Christian, you go into last year and there's not a lot of expectation. There's not a lot of, “Hey, the car should feel like this or it should do this or do that.” Whereas for Jack, it was the opposite. Jack knew what a fast car should feel like and our car didn't.

And to get over that mental challenge is not easy for anybody. We weren't able to improve the car enough for him to his liking throughout the year. So, that was kind of a shame. But I expect a lot from Jack and Allen, and in their group this year.

Bruce Martin:

One of the big supporters of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing is Hy-Vee. Once again, they've announced a power pack lineup for the Hy-Vee IndyCar weekend at Iowa Speedway.

When you see the effort and the level of commitment that that company has shown for IndyCar, you guys really hit a home run bringing them into the sport.

Graham Rahal:

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, we did. We're very fortunate. Randy, and Matt and the entire group, Aaron, Jeremy, everybody, they've been awesome. Donna at marketing, she's the queen. She really makes things happen. And so, we're very appreciative of them.

Then you look at that list of individuals for the concerts, it's hard to believe that's on a race weekend in Newton, Iowa. But here we go.

So, I know that the pricing and stuff has been a topic of conversation, but the weekend overall entertainment, you're going to get out of the double-header weekend with four amazing concerts. I mean, Ed Sheeran, and Carrie Underwood. And obviously, I'm a big Zak Brown fan, so excited about that.

But I think that we knocked it out to the park with them as a partner, and we got to keep them for a long time.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Harry Styles performed in Palm Springs when IndyCar was out there for Content Days. The tickets for that were a lot more expensive than what they are at Iowa Speedway.

Graham Rahal:

Yeah, that's the thing. I think we're the traditional race fan, I get it. They're looking at it with just that. But this isn't a traditional race weekend. And I know if you go to a concert, many different concerts, you're going to pay a lot more than that. And yet, here you're getting four concerts plus, two races.

But look, at the end of the day, I think it feels a little bit organic in today's world to just find something to complain about. When people are doing amazing good things out there, there's a whole reason to come up with a couple of things that aren't great, and that seems to be the world that we live in.

Bruce Martin:

Does it amaze you that one day you've got on Twitter, IndyCar fans complaining that IndyCar doesn't market enough, and then the next day, here's a company like Hy-Vee that's coming in and aggressively marketing, and they complain about that it should be marketed for the race only in traditional race fans. It's almost like you can't win.

Graham Rahal:

Well, that's what I mean. That's how I was just saying, you're not going to win. So, what we're going to do is continue trying to move the needle. I think Hy-Vee's done a great job at that. Obviously, your big goal, your big mindset and everything else, is to grow the sport outside of a traditional race fan.

We want to harness traditional race fans. We want them to be around, we want to keep pleasing them, but we also need to bring in some youth.

I had a friend who lives out in the middle of nowhere in Nebraska, that's not a race fan, just known him since school, and texted me and said, “Hey, we're going to come to Iowa this year. We saw that concert line up. We're excited to see a couple races in all those concerts.”

That's the people that you're trying to tag into. You get them to the races, you get them hooked, and we can grow the sport for the future.

Bruce Martin:

As a father after a bad weekend, does that just kind of change the world when you get back to your daughter?

Graham Rahal:

Oh, yeah. Both of my little girls, but Harlan in particular, just because of her age, obviously, she's two, so she's got a lot of energy and a lot of character. Tinley, girl, she's only what, five months old, so kind of fresh.

But yeah, I mean, it makes things a lot a lot better. I think it just puts life in perspective too. They have no expectation, they don't know what's going on and they're just super excited when you're around.

Bruce Martin:

How much Ohio State clothing have you gotten for your two girls?

Graham Rahal:

Not much yet. Not much. I think only Harlan has like one little cheerleader outfit, and that's it. But I don't really want to talk Ohio State, Bruce. That still stings a little bit for me.

Bruce Martin:

I do have to ask you this, since a lot of the IndyCar fans are in Indianapolis, and they're Indianapolis Colts fans, do you believe that CJ Stroud will end up being the quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts in the NFL draft?

Graham Rahal:

I hope he is. With Paris, and yeah, obviously, I think they need to get some more weapons on the outside. I mean, you get Jonathan Taylor is as good as they get. Jelani, obviously, this year didn't play great, but the guy’s talent is there. You're going to need some receivers for him for sure.

But there's this young guy named Marvin Harrison Jr. The year after that, if the Colts can somehow put those two back together, I could tell you, that's a lethal combination.

And for me, living in Indy, but obviously, as a Buckeyes fan, I think CJ could do an amazing job. But how cool would it be to have Marvin Jr. there wearing the same number as his pops and everything. I don't even know if they retired the number, but I'm sure they could bring it back with an exception here. So, it'd be pretty awesome.

Bruce Martin:

Now, for the Chicago Bears fans who may be listening, Michael Lanigan, of course, is a huge Chicago Bear fan. Justin Fields, another former Buckeye. He's really proven to be one of the most electrifying players in the NFL.

Graham Rahal:

He's great, he's a hell of a player. I mean, that's why I laugh. Everybody said, “Oh, no guy can't throw the ball.” You couldn't throw the ball if you're on the run all the time too. If you're running for your life.

I mean, I watched one game, I think it was the Eagles, and I mean, they had like six sacks in the first half. I mean, I was joking with a buddy that some of the offensive linemen needed Flex Seal cause they were so leaky. And it's true. It's just crazy to watch that.

But yeah, he's a hell of a player. But again, same thing, you got to get the weapons around you to fulfill it.

I mean, if you look at guys like Brady and everybody, sure they make people better around them, but they also had the weapons. I mean, Brady with obviously, Edelman and Amendola for a while, and you had Randy Moss there, and the list kind of goes on of studs around you. Gronk, obviously. You got to build that up.

And the Bears, everybody's talked about the amount of salary cap space they have. I mean, they got to go do it. They got to go get the guys. But all this talk of trading Justin away. I mean, I just don't understand why the hell you would do that. I don't believe it to be true, but I don't even understand why the hell that'd be a consideration. So, we'll see.

Bruce Martin:

Always a pleasure to talk to you. Good luck in the 2023 NTT IndyCar Series season. And Graham Rahal, thank you for joining us today, on Pit Pass Indy.

Graham Rahal:

Absolutely. Thank you.

Bruce Martin:

Next up is Kyle Kirkwood, who was a rookie driver for A.J. Foyt Racing in 2022. After climbing the ranks with Andretti Autosport on the road Indy Ladder system, Kirkwood has moved back to Andretti Autosport only this time in IndyCar.

The young driver from Florida is prepared for a breakout season in 2023, and joins me for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview.

Joining us now, on Pit Pass Indy, is one of the young drivers of the NTT IndyCar series in his first season with Andretti Autosport, but his second season in IndyCar, it's Kyle Kirkwood, driver of the Number 27 Honda at Andretti Autosport.

Your career has been with Andretti and other formulas coming up through the ranks. You spent last season, your rookie year, with A.J. Foyt Racing, you're back to Andretti Autosport now, in the NTT IndyCar Series.

So, how would you describe your path to get to this ride? You knew it was going to happen, but it wasn't going to be your first ride in IndyCar.

Kyle Kirkwood:

Yeah, which was unexpected. Every turn that I've made, I feel like, in motor sports has been anunexpected turn. All through the formula categories, all the way up through Indy Lights with the hiatus and whatnot, and joining A.J. Foyt Racing for the 2022 season as well. All of it was kind of a surprise. And I've had to take it year by year.

But at the end of the day, we've come full circle and I'm back with Andretti Autosport, a team that I know so well. A lot of people look at it as my first year with them, but it's really not. I mean, I know the team, I know the mechanics, I know the engineers, and it's nothing new to me. So, it's made the transition very easy and I'm ready to kick it off with them.

Bruce Martin:

How valuable was your year with A.J. Foyt Racing, though? It's a team that may not have all the resources that Andretti Autosport has, but sometimes you learn more by starting off the team like that.

Kyle Kirkwood:

I mean, honestly, it was a fantastic thing for me and I hope they can say the same, to be honest, because I hope this has set them up for success here in the future with the 2022 season that we had. I know that there's been a lot of changes there and whatnot, so I hope I was part of that for better.

But yeah, it was super important. The stuff that I learned there between race strategy and pit stops, and understanding the dynamics of the car and what places to actually focus to work on the car, is all stuff you don't get to learn in the junior categories.

And it was a very, very important year for me, and I'll be able to take all the knowledge that I now have and to hopefully, translate it into some good finishes with Andretti Autosport.

Bruce Martin:

In the junior categories, driving for Andretti Autosport, you got to know Mario Andretti. Then last year with A.J. Foyt Racing, you got to know A.J. Foyt, the two biggest names in the history of IndyCar racing. What do you take away from each legend?

Kyle Kirkwood:

I mean, they're both legends in different ways. A.J. is just a baru, I would say. He is a strong guy, and he doesn't visualize pain and he doesn't visualize failure, I guess you could say.

And when you look at Mario, he's more of a precise person. And he's always looking for precision and excellence. When AJ is more a, “Just give me whatever car, and I'll go make sure it wins races.”

So, they're very different in that sense. And that translates to everything they do in life, I feel like.

Bruce Martin:

Do you learn as much from Mario Andretti and how you should represent the team in yourself out of the race car, as much as the way you represent it in the race car?

Kyle Kirkwood:

I feel like everything he does is something that I should look at and try and represent. Because he's still a guy that loves motorsports, comes to all these races. He's in his 80s now, and he still will sit there for two hours and talk with fans and sign autographs and take photos. It's incredible what the guy does. And I hope when I'm older, I can be just like him.

Bruce Martin:

Driving for team owner, Michael Andretti, the guy is in the middle of expanding his effort, even trying to get a Formula One team. And when you see the ambition that he has as a team owner and what he wants to do in auto racing, how inspired are you to be part of that?

Kyle Kirkwood:

Extremely. This is a big moment for Andretti Autosport with the Formula One efforts, the IndyCar efforts, new building going up. It probably might be the biggest motorsport facility, I think the world has.

So, it's a great time to be part of Andretti and Andretti Global because big things are happening and I can't wait to be a part of it.

Bruce Martin:

There's a youth movement going on at Andretti Autosport with the drivers. Romain Grosjean is the oldest driver on the team. This is his second season with Andretti Autosport. The longest tenured driver, I guess you would call him the team leader, is Colton Herta, he's 22.

Both you and Devlin DeFrancesco are older than the team leader. How unique is that?

Kyle Kirkwood:

No, you're right. I mean, Colton is the youngest driver, but he's the one with the most experience, and he's probably the most versed driver on the team. So, I'm looking forward to it, to be honest. Because I hate to say it, but age it really is just number when it comes to motorsports. I mean, it's what you know with the car and whatnot.

So, that's why ultimately he's the one that we're going to reference and we're going to baseline off him for the most part. So, it's good to have him.

Yeah, it's a youth movement. Yeah, most of us are young drivers except for Romain. But we all have an extreme wealth of knowledge and we've got a team that also has a wealth of knowledge to back us up.

Bruce Martin:

What's the dynamic like between the three young drivers?

Kyle Kirkwood:

It's fun. It's a fun atmosphere. We're very similar, the way we've grown up carting. I mean, I've known Colton and Devlin since carting. I was actually on a carting team with Devlin in 2008, 2009. So, we know each other really well. We've known each other since we were growing up, so we have very similar views on motorsports as a whole. So, it's fun.

Bruce Martin:

What's the dynamic like with you and Romain?

Kyle Kirkwood:

That's still yet to be to be established, I feel like. I think Romain is a person with tons of knowledge. He comes from many different forms of motorsports coming from F1. He's the one that is kind of I feel like his headlining development, because he's the one with all the knowledge.

And it's going to be interesting. I mean, we got three really young drivers, and then we have Romain, who's an older driver. He is not super old, but he's close to four years old. He is right there with Will Power and Dixon and whatnot. He's that older generation in sports, so he's the only one that I guess might have the mentality of that versus us young drivers.

Bruce Martin:

You came from Indy Lights and drove the Indy car. What was the biggest transition?

Kyle Kirkwood:

The biggest transition is the tires. Going from the Cooper Tire, which it's now a Firestone Tire in Indy Lights, and moving up to the Firestone Indy car tire was a very different sensation.

So, I'm curious to see what happens with Indy Lights now, that they're running Firestone. I'm curious to see what happens with the drivers and how they translate both of them back and forth.

Bruce Martin:

You think that will help their transition?

Kyle Kirkwood:

I'm not sure. I couldn't tell you that because I feel like the Cooper Tire era made such good drivers, and it will be interesting to see what happens now, that they're back with Firestone.

Bruce Martin:

As far though, as you say, the tires were different, but in what ways? How do you describe to a race fan how they were different?

Kyle Kirkwood:

Yeah, they're different in the sense that they make grip. To not get too in depth with data and dynamics and physics. It just makes a ton of lateral and longitudinal grip, which both of those combined means it's a much different tire compared to the Cooper.

The Cooper is either you have lateral or you have longitudinal. As soon as you combine them both together, it doesn't like it.

Bruce Martin:

And then when you go to IndyCar, you then have the variable on Roden Street courses of red tires versus black tires. The red tire’s softer compound, built for speed, less durability. Black tire’s harder, tires last longer, but don't have the same grip.

So, how big a challenge is that as a race driver who's not used to that?

Kyle Kirkwood:

It is a challenge, but I'd say most of the challenge comes from not having a ton of experience on them. You go and run red tires for about three or four laps and then you go and run them again and they're like, “Oh, well, these aren't new tires.”

So, you don't get a lot of time to really hone in on exactly what the tire does on a specific weekend. So, you got to be quick with it.

And they change per weekend. Firestone changes the tires weekend by weekend, and sometimes they last longer, sometimes they don't. So, you got to be ready for any situation.

Bruce Martin:

Other than racing, what are some of the things that Kyle Kirkwood likes to do away from the track?

Kyle Kirkwood:

I'm a big surfer. I love surfing anytime there's waves in South Florida, which is not a super common occurrence. But at any time, I get a chance, I'm surfing, I'm in the water. And also fishing, diving, spear fishing, stuff like that is another big part of my life.

Bruce Martin:

And wrapping up here with Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Autosport. Season’s almost here, the March 5th Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, a racetrack you're very well familiar with. How do you describe the anticipation level of knowing that you're about to start the season with Andretti Autosport?

Kyle Kirkwood:

It's cool because St. Pete is actually kind of a home track to me. I'm from Jupiter, Florida, which is about two, three hours away car drive. So, I'll have a lot of friends and family. It's just on the other coast from St. Petersburg.

And to start off with a team that's had tons of success at St. Pete in the same era car that we're in right now, is going to be really nice. It kind of takes some weight off your shoulders because you're like you're going to show up to the track and be quick. Which is a cool sensation to get back into and I'm really looking forward to it.

Bruce Martin:

How often do you bump into Rick Mears, a friend of the show and a friend of IndyCar Racing who also lives in Jupiter?

Kyle Kirkwood:

Not as often as I wish. The first time I actually met Rick Mears is he took me for a ride around IMS this past year. He facilitated it, or I guess Scott Harner facilitated for me to get in the car with Rick Mears and fortunate enough to do some laps around there.

And I wish I bumped into him some more in Jupiter. He's got to be two miles away from me in a straight line, so.

Bruce Martin:

Kyle Kirkwood, driver of the Number 27 Honda at Andretti Autosport. Good luck this season and thank you for joining us today, on Pit Pass Indy.

Kyle Kirkwood:

Cool, thank you so much.

Bruce Martin:

Let's wrap things up with one of the rookie drivers in this year's NTT IndyCar Series. It's Sting Ray Robb, a 21-year-old from Payette, Idaho, who joins Dale Coyne Racing in 2023.

Robb was impressive climbing the ladder and is confident he deserves to be at the top rung in IndyCar. He joins me for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview.

Joining us now, on Pit Pass Indy, is our rookie in this year's IndyCar Series driving for Dale Coyne Racing, it's Sting Ray Robb. First of all, do I call you Sting or Mr. Robb?

Sting Ray Robb:

Sting Ray is my first name, so that's usually what I go by.

Bruce Martin:

But Sting Ray, you're getting a chance to achieve your goal driving in the NTT IndyCar Series. You're driving for one of the longest running teams with Dale Coyne Racing. What's the excitement level like for you?

Sting Ray Robb:

Through the roof. Like you said, I'm living a childhood dream, so to be able to do that with a team with so much history of developing young drivers, young talents, it's pretty special. And to learn from Dale is awesome as well. I mean, he's got a lot of experience behind the wheel as well as at the racetrack.

So, I think that David and I will be a good pairing this year. He just went through his rookie season last year so I can learn a thing or two ahead of time and not have to go through the motions like he did. So, it should be good.

Bruce Martin:

Do you find him to be one of the more interesting team owners in the series? Because like I said, he goes back a long way into the sport, but he's also a team owner that knows how to get the most out of his resources.

He doesn't have the budgets of a team Penske or Chip Ganassi Racing, but yet, if things are right, he has cars out there that can beat them.

Sting Ray Robb:

That's absolutely right. Well, I think that because Dale knows the sport so well, he's able to utilize his resources, like you said, and be flexible and adapt quickly and change directions quickly.

Whereas, some of the bigger teams, they're maybe oversized, they have the resources and they have the personnel, but maybe sometimes that can slow down a process and they can't adapt as quickly, they can't change directions like Dale can.

And so, I think having that ability to adapt and overcome, plays a big role in how he competes year to year.

Bruce Martin:

You were one of the late additions to the IndyCar lineup. You got your ride with Dale Coyne relatively just a little while ago. If you could maybe describe and walk us through the process of how you were able to get the ride.

Sting Ray Robb:

It was a long off season, I'll say that right now. During the off season, I was in Indianapolis training at PitFit and Linus Lundqvist is a driver that also trains there. And I thought that he was a shoe-in for that seat with Dale Coyne because he won the Indian NXT Series. And with the association between HMD and Dale Coyne, I figured that that would be a perfect seat for him.

But upon returning to PitFit, talking to Linus and finding out that he didn't have a ride this year, was still working on it, I immediately called my manager Peter Rossi. And Peter got on the phone to Dale, we talked about availability, and that's when the conversation started.

And then through the off season, a few other things occurred. There was a journalist who called me and then eventually converted to Dale that I was signing with another team potentially. And I think that lit a fire under both of our seats to get a deal done.

Then we had the test early January and that went really, really well at Sebring. And I think that that was the final nail in the coffin for signing this year.

Bruce Martin:

And as far as when you look at Linus, Linus had a great season last year, won the Indy Lights Championship, as the series was known, then the scholarship amount was half of what it normally was. And here he is trying to find a ride.

So, in any ways, you being able to get the ride, does it make your relationship with Linus uncomfortable or is it just a matter of racing, you got to go for an open seat?

Sting Ray Robb:

Linus and I are competitors and we're competing on and off the racetrack. I mean, we're fighting for the same seats, we're fighting for the same positions on the track. And so, as much as I respect Linus and as much as he deserves a seat, I wouldn't give it up for him.

I don't feel guilty about anything because I did my job, I did what I could and the people around me did their job. And that's what it takes. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication from anyone on the team to get a final deal done to go to IndyCar, let alone win an IndyCar. So, we're working on that next.

Bruce Martin:

Now, you've got the opportunity and your teammate is David Malukas, who had a great rookie season last year. Two young guys with Dale Coyne Racing. How excited and upbeat is the future to what you two can accomplish this year?

Sting Ray Robb:

I think it's going to be amazing. I think that we're both super ambitious. We have recent histories that are similar and so, it's going to allow us to work together really well. We're speaking the same language as some may say. So, when it comes to being in the engineering room together, we're going to be able to build a car around us that is similar.

But I think that having two young guns (as we've termed ourselves) is exciting and it allows us to draw attention to the team. And the results are going to come. I think that we're going to work well together.

Bruce Martin:

Driving the Indy NXT car as it's known this year and stepping up to the Indy car, it's going to be a heavier car, it's going to be a faster car. What are some of the things you need to prepare yourself for before we reconvene the start the season with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March the 5th?

Sting Ray Robb:

The driving style is fairly similar from car to car. The Indy NXT car, you have to wrestle it around the racetrack a bit more. And I'll tell you what, the first day that it got Indy car felt very natural, very comfortable because it felt like an Indy NXT car that went faster and did what you wanted it to do.

And so, that was very nice to have that and not have to overthink driving the car first time in it.

But on the things I need to work on, physical fitness is one that I've been trying to focus on during the off season because we don't have a lot of on track activity and the best way to prepare yourself is to drive the car. But we don't have that luxury.

So, I've been going to PitFit. Jim Leo there has created a great program for drivers to improve their physical fitness so that we can drive on a second nature, subconscious level inside the car as well as the strategy side. That's something that I want to work on.

But Dale Coyne, like you've said, has a lot of experience in the series and he's got a lot of knowledge on how to strategize and make calls quickly and how the timing of everything rolls together. So, pit stops and strategy are going to be a big role this year.

Bruce Martin:

You live in Indianapolis. Dale Coyne Racing is based in Plainfield, Illinois, which is off I-55, a southwest suburb of Chicago. So, how often are you driving up and down I-65 to go up to the shop. And what do you get done when you're up there with them?

Sting Ray Robb:

Most recently I've been there a few times in the last month just doing pit stop practices, signing with the team, et cetera. And we'll see if that continues. I'm sure I'll earn my own lane on that highway at some point during the year heading up and down.

But luckily, my engineer is based in Brownsburg, Indiana, which is close to Indianapolis, and so, we won't have to go too far to meet together, but should be good.

Bruce Martin:

Are there times you wish Dale was in Indianapolis?

Sting Ray Robb:

Absolutely. I mean, if Dale was at my back door per se in Indianapolis, it would be nice I could just run over there every day. But maybe he does that on purpose. He doesn't want to drive her in there every day bugging him too much, but I like to be able to go up there maybe once a week, twice a week, learn a thing or two and work on some pit stops.

Bruce Martin:

Well, I also think in a lot of ways, Dale Coyne benefits by being away from the noise of Indianapolis, where he's able to do his own thing up there in Chicago, in the southwest suburbs where everybody else in Indianapolis and the IndyCar community, it's hard to keep any secret secret.

Sting Ray Robb:

That's true. Well, and I think that allows him to keep his workers focused. There's not a lot of distractions going on there, so I think it does have its benefits and also, its curses. And I don't really know what all those are yet. I'll be learning those throughout the season.

Bruce Martin:

So, you're from Idaho and earlier today you revealed what you and Baseball Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew have in common. If you could recite that to our listeners.

Sting Ray Robb:

Yeah, so recently, I got on Wikipedia and obviously, looked up myself, wanted to see if there was any new news on there that I didn't know about myself already. And I noticed that I was a notable alum from Payette High School, which is also the high school that Harmon Killebrew is from.

So, if you go to the Payette High School Wikipedia, there's two notable alumni there, and it's me and Harmon Killebrew. So, that was pretty awesome to see.

Bruce Martin:

Of course, Harmon Killebrew played for the Washington Nationals at that time before they became the Minnesota Twins, one of the all-time leading home run hitters of his era, used to be known for parking him in the upper deck. You played baseball. How deep could you go?

Sting Ray Robb:

I was not a Harmon Killebrew. That's why I'm a race car driver. Well, let's just say that. But I did love playing the sport and it's a really cool sport to play in a town like that where you have a legend living there in a past life.

Bruce Martin:

You also came up through carting. And how valuable was that to get you to this point in your racing and career?

Sting Ray Robb:

Carting teaches you a lot in motorsports. It teaches you how to handle adversity, basic driving techniques, as well as how to tune a race car at a basic mechanical level. You're not dealing with dampers or anything like that. You're not dealing with aerodynamics, but you are dealing with how the car flexes, how that feels to a driver.

But it also teaches you race craft. I say that racing go-karts is probably one of the purest forms of motorsport because it's the ROS that you can get. There's not a lot of fluff around it.

And when you see drivers going wheel to wheel on a go-kart, that means that they're on a limit and they're less than an inch apart at times, banging wheels trying to figure out who's going to be in the lead.

Bruce Martin:

How many of the drivers in IndyCar right now, have you competed against in the Ladder Series, especially Indy Lights?

Sting Ray Robb:

Oh man, I've competed against David Malukas, my teammate. We grew up go-karting together. Colton Herta is another driver I go carting with. Pato O’Ward. Let's see, who else do we have? There's probably a few other guys I can't name off the top of my head, but I've definitely seen a few of them at the racetrack.

Bruce Martin:

In a lot of ways, is that proof that even though it may not give a direct starting point into IndyCar, but in many ways the Ladder Series does work?

Sting Ray Robb:

Absolutely. I think the Ladder Series is a great example of what could be done for a driver. And I mean, you see drivers year after year moving their way up, but it's not a straight shoe-in, as we've said.

You got to work your way up and earn it a little bit and even then it's not a perfect one-to-one ratio. So, it definitely takes a lot to get into IndyCar.

Bruce Martin:

And finally, a race course you're familiar with is going to kick off the season on March the 5th with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. What's that course like? How challenging is it for you as a race driver and how excited are you to know you're going to get to start an IndyCar Series race in just a few weeks?

Sting Ray Robb:

It's always interesting to start the year at a street course of all places, with concrete walls that are higher than the eye can see in an Indy car. But definitely, some of the things to think about there are the paint and changing surfaces and how that affects the car handling.

Because when you're crossing different aggregates of asphalt, et cetera, it changes how the car handles, where the grips at, front and rear, et cetera, how the brakes are going to lock or not lock. And so, you kind of have to figure out a way to manipulate the car at different times during a corner, whereas other tracks might be more consistent.

And I think that's what makes St. Pete so much fun because you have the crown of the road, the different surfaces, you have different weather conditions. I mean, St. Pete is definitely, a changing track.

We see every year where drivers are complaining about a loose car at the beginning of the race and then a tight car at the end of the race and there is no middle ground. So, it'll be interesting to see how that handles this year.

Bruce Martin:

And before I let you go, what are some of the things that race fans may want to know about Sting Ray Robb, what are some of the things you like to do other than race?

Sting Ray Robb:

Well, growing up in Idaho, we obviously, had our fair share of adventurous, but I played sports going up through high school and middle school. Basketball, baseball, I golfed a little bit. Snow skiing is definitely one of my favorite activities.

Lots of adventures in the mountains. Hunting, hiking, skiing, fishing. I like spending time outside. So, being in Indianapolis is not the best place to do that, but at least they have good race cars.

Bruce Martin:

So, how good of a fisherman were you?

Sting Ray Robb:

I won't claim too much greatness there, but I did like summer bass fishing and hopping into kayak and floating down the river sometimes.

Bruce Martin:

Well, Sting Ray Robb is going to be ready to catch a big catch this year in the NTT IndyCar Series. Good luck on your rookie season and thank you for joining us today, on Pit Pass Indy.

Sting Ray Robb:

Thank you.

[Music Playing]

Bruce Martin:

And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy.

We want to thank our guests, six-time NTT IndyCar Series champion, Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing; Pato O’Ward and Alexander Rossi of Arrow McLaren; Colton Herta of Andretti Autosport; Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing; Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Autosport; and rookie driver Sting Ray Robb of Dale Coyne Racing for joining us on today's podcast.

Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests help make Pit Pass Indy your path to victory lane for all things IndyCar. And because of our guest and listeners, Pit Pass Indy is proud to be the winner of The Best Podcast by the National Motorsports Press Association.

Be sure to tune in next week when we welcome in a new partner to create Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental. It's an exciting new partnership that will take the show to a new level.

For more IndyCar coverage, follow me at Twitter @BruceMartin (uppercase B, uppercase M) —_500.

This has been a production of Evergreen Podcasts. A special thanks to our production team. Executive producers are Brigid Coyne and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin, and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcasts.com.

Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.