Exclusive interview with 2024 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach winner Scott Dixon. Also, Andretti Global drivers Kyle Kirkwood, Colton Herta and Marcus Ericsson plus Arrow McLaren’s Tony Kanaan

ROGER:

This is Roger Penske and you're listening to Pit Pass Indie, sponsored by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

IndyCar fans, it's time to start your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcast. 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 and insiders 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 SportsTicker, Sports Illustrated, AutoWeek and SpeedSport. So let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy. Welcome to this week's edition of Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental and Hy-Vee as we continue our fourth season of giving IndyCar fans a behind the scenes look at the NTT IndyCar Series and the drivers and teams that compete in the Indianapolis 500. We want to welcome back our friends from Hy-Vee who will be sharing the show with Penske Truck Rental this month and again in June in the big build-up to the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway July 12th through the 14th. This year's schedule includes a night race at Iowa Speedway on Saturday, July 13, with another full race scheduled for Sunday, July 14. Four of the biggest names in entertainment will perform before and after each race, including Luke Combs, Eric Church, Kelsey Ballerini, and Post Malone. For Malone, it will be the first time the famed entertainer has performed in central Iowa. This past Sunday on the streets of Long Beach was the 49th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, the premier street race in North America, and the second biggest race of the season in IndyCar. Only the Mammoth Indianapolis 500 is a bigger race on the NTT IndyCar Series schedule. The winning driver this year was the biggest name in the series and one of the greatest drivers in the history of IndyCar. It's Scott Dixon, who once again proved he is the master of going faster while saving fuel. Dixon gave a master class in showing how to win an 85 lap race on just two pit stops. Although the top nine drivers in the top 10 all pitted two times in the race, it was the timing of Dixon's pit stops and the speed that he could race with while saving fuel that allowed him to get into the lead after starting eighth. Dixon led 42 laps, the most of any driver in the 85 lap race, and defeated Andretti Global driver Colton Herta by 0.9798 of a second. It was Dixon's 57th career IndyCar win, 10 behind AJ Foyt's career victory record of 67. Also, Dixon won the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach for the second time in his career. He also drove to victory in the 2015 contest on the streets of Long Beach. Here is my exclusive interview with the race winner and IndyCar legend Scott Dixon for PitPass Indy. It's a real honor and a privilege to be talking to our next guest. It's the winner of the 49th Acura Grand Prix at Long Beach. It's Scott Dixon. 57th career IndyCar Series victory and only leaves you 10 wins behind AJ Foyt's all-time record of 67. I know earlier you said that still seems like a long way away, but you're getting closer. How does it feel?

SCOTT:

Yeah, today's win was huge. You know, I think just being in the moment is, you know, what it requires these days. And obviously, you know, to have a successful end of last season and a great start to this year. You know, obviously we left it pretty late last year to get some wins in, but it's always fun to win, man. And today was crazy high on the stress level and stress meter. So, you know, to get it the way that we did was huge. Yeah, 10 honestly still sounds like a lot, especially in IndyCar racing and how competitive it is these days.

BRUCE:

In addition to it being your 57th career victory, it extends a record of 20 consecutive seasons that you've won a race. That's pretty impressive in itself. Which impresses you more, the number of victories or the number of seasons in a row that you've been able to win?

SCOTT:

I think probably a number of victories, right? We're in the business of having to win races, so if you're not winning, you're going to be moved on pretty quickly, but there are circumstances where some years get pretty tight and you don't actually, you think with maybe three or four to go that that's not going to be a possibility. Again, it's just the craziness of how competitive this field is. If you make a mistake, there's somebody right chipping at your heels there to go past. Today was a hard-fought race and they definitely feel sweeter, I think, at this portion of my career.

BRUCE:

85-lap race, you do a two-stop strategy, you're the master of saving fuel while going fast. You were out front more laps than anybody else in the race, but not necessarily at full throttle. How hard is that to stay out front, maintain a gap while saving fuel?

SCOTT:

Yeah, it's tough. I think today was probably more of the extreme that we've seen in recent years. A lot of the times you can see a clear-cut strategy divide, but I think these are what make these races interesting. But without the caution, it wasn't going to be that. So I know at least for myself and Powell, we were the ones that went aggressive on it and obviously switched to pitting early and splitting the last two with pretty hefty, I don't know what we did, 34 laps on each thing or something like that, it was pretty high. So it's, again, was hard, stressful, but then you had the other two stoppers that used the four windows and were able to come hard on better tires and obviously a lot more fuel. When you're on the receiving end of the win, it feels a lot better and I'm sure the other guys that were on the more straightforward situation were probably a little bummed about that.

BRUCE:

You led 42 laps in the race more than anybody else in the race, but you were pursued much of that time by Joseph Newgarden, who was trimming the lead dramatically and he was within three tenths of a second of catching up to you. Did you notice when all of a sudden he's not behind you anymore after coming through the hairpin after Colton Herta ran into the back of him and got him out of line?

SCOTT:

Yeah, I did see that. I think we'd already held him at bay for probably three or four laps there, so I knew that the race was on for sure. He didn't trim at all, so I knew that he wasn't going to be that great on the straights. We had trimmed. I had over 100 seconds of OT left. He was down to 13 or something, so I knew that was going to be extremely tough. Once you clear the car in turn one and kind of six, there's really no other options for them to go anywhere. So I knew we could kind of control the pace there and that's definitely how it played out. Obviously Colton and the two car getting into it helped a little bit, but I think we would have been okay anyway.

BRUCE:

Was your first reaction like, wow, I'm glad New Garden's not there now, but all of a sudden you see Colton closing in on you?

SCOTT:

Yeah, it was kind of a hard buffer to be in, right? Because you were fending off the aggressive ones from behind that were coming fast, and then we had lap traffic too, obviously. you know, Kiffin and the 51 car, and once we cleared them, that gave a bit of buffer. So yeah, you know, it was mayhem, man. It was no straightforward race. It was not easy. It was probably one of the most difficult and high stress level races that I've had for many, many years.

BRUCE:

And in our final question with Scott Dixon, winner of the 49th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, Sir Colin Giltrap, a loyal supporter of yours, helped get your career started, passed away on April 17th, and you remembered him in victory lane. And if you could just explain briefly how important a role he played in your career.

SCOTT:

Yeah, Colin was huge, as I mentioned earlier. He, I think, helped so many young, talented racers. Obviously, he helped in many different levels in the automotive industry, but for me, he was direct contact with my investment group and got me to Australia, then to financing a lot of the racing in the early years with Stephanie Hansen's team in Indy Lights. Without him, and you could say that for Bamber, you could say that for Hartley, Evans, the list goes on, and the list is very deep of the amount of talent that he helped, and even people in the V8 supercars that have a lot more prominent Kiwi drivers down there. Without Colin, we wouldn't be doing what we're doing, so a huge loss. Obviously, a big love to his family and his wife.

BRUCE:

Scott Dixon, he's a true racing hero. Congratulations on IndyCar win number 57, your second Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach victory. Good luck the rest of the season, especially coming up at the Indianapolis 500. And thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy.

SCOTT:

Thanks, man. Appreciate it. Cheers.

BRUCE:

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

JOSEPH:

Hey, everybody, this is Joseph Newgarden, winner of the 107th Indianapolis 500. And you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

Welcome back to this week's edition of Pit Pass Indy. Prior to the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, Pit Pass Indy had a chance to speak to all three drivers from Andretti Global. First up is an interview with the 2023 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach winner Kyle Kirkwood. In addition to Kirkwood's outlook on a very busy portion of the 2024 IndyCar Series season, he is also an avid surfer. Here is my exclusive interview with Kirkwood for Pit Pass Indy. Joining us now on Pit Pass Indy is the reigning winner of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. It's Kyle Kirkwood of Andretti Global. Kyle, it's the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach media luncheon on Thursday, a little bit before the weekend's race. But how does it feel to walk in here as the last guy to conquer the beach?

KYLE:

Yeah, it's super cool, right? Like, last time we were here, I was walking out of here, first-time winner in IndyCar. So, a lot of excitement coming back here, a lot of excitement for the team in general. This has been a track that Andretti's been notoriously really, really good at. So, yeah, a lot of reasons to be excited to come back into this race and walk back across this track now.

BRUCE:

It's been kind of a weird season, a disjointed season for IndyCar. The series has not had a race. Since March 10th, there was a million-dollar all-star challenge that was held at the end of March, March 24th at the Thermal Club. That race didn't really count. Then we had what was supposed to be a two-day Indy 500 open test. They only got to run like... 3.2 hours, which the veterans probably only got to run 90 minutes of that. So now this is where the pace is going to really pick up, because after Long Beach, it's going to be off to the Barber Motorsports Park. After that, there may be a weekend off, and then it's going to be the Sancio Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, then the month of May for the Indianapolis 500, then Detroit, then Road America. So an IndyCar, it's kind of feast or famine when it comes to competition on the track.

KYLE:

Yeah, it really is. You know, last year we had Texas Motor Speedway on the schedule between St. Pete and Long Beach. Right. So with losing that race, it's created a huge break. Yes, we had the thermal race. Was that like a normal serious race? No. Was that kind of a throwaway for us in the 27 car? Yes. It was not a good weekend for us. So we're excited to kind of this is really the kickoff. of the season, right? Like this is the true season of IndyCar starts now because we have this race, we got, just like you talked about, we got races leading all the way through the middle of June with a week or two off and then we're right back into three races in a row in July. So it's gonna be nonstop from now through the end of the season.

BRUCE:

If you throw out the million dollar challenge, it was an out of the box concept to begin with. The value of the Thermal Club though was, Two full days of testing and how important was that for your team?

KYLE:

Yeah, I mean, it was actually really good in that sense, right? If you look at it as a test weekend, Thermal actually is a decent track for testing for road course purposes. So, you know, it was good in actually looking at it now, but as a race event, maybe not so much for us, but as a test event, yes, it was actually very, very positive. So a lot of takeaways from there that are going to roll into places like Barber, Indy Road Course, Portland, Laguna, tracks like that.

BRUCE:

So if you could take us for a lap around the streets of Long Beach, you were very successful here last year, winning the poll, winning the race. It was your first attempt with Andretti Autosport, the second time you'd driven an IndyCar race on the streets of Long Beach. How much of the confidence did you have last year that really you were able to display on the racetrack?

KYLE:

Yeah, I mean, we just, obviously, if you're in an Andretti car on a street course, you're going to have confidence in the car, and especially here. So everything just went really smoothly across the weekend. We learned a lot of things, like in the first practice, second practice, and we rocked into qualifying known. We were going to have a really, really good shot at it. And in qualifying, the last leg of qualifying in the Fast 6, we were the only ones that had a new set of tires. So it was kind of easygoing for us, and we easily put it on pole. Obviously, those were perfect circumstances for us. That's probably not going to be the case again this year. We're going to have to fight for it a little bit more. But consistency-wise and as history shows itself, I expect us to be really quick once again. And yeah, this track just suits our cars. And it suits me too, right? This was my best finish in my rookie year, was around this course with AJ Foyt Racing, where I finished 10th. And then rocked back up here and had the best race of my career.

BRUCE:

How many other divisions did you get a chance to run on the streets of Long Beach?

KYLE:

It was only IndyCar. It was only IndyCar. The first race I ever did was with AJ Foyt Racing in 22.

BRUCE:

So obviously you were a quick learner this course.

KYLE:

Yeah, I mean, street courses suit me. I was a quick learner at Detroit, Nashville, where I was running kind of almost in top five before I crashed. There's a lot of the street courses tend to suit me for whatever reason. I wish I could say that about every circuit, but it definitely suits me more than the most.

BRUCE:

You had a great season back in 2023 with two victories. A lot of people look at you as a championship contender in 2024. How do you see yourself in regards to the championship? Obviously, that's what you're out here to try to win.

KYLE:

I mean, we're only one race in, right? It's so hard to say at this moment. Hopefully, everything that we've done in the offseason is going to pay off. We were in a decent spot last year, right? We should have, I feel like, had a kind of top five championship car, and there was a lot of mishap that happened that held us back, which hopefully we can clean up this year, but also have some quicker cars and more consistent cars. That's the ultimate goal, and that will put us in contention.

BRUCE:

When you arrive in Long Beach, California, you know the history, you know the tradition of this race. It has a really big event feel that you may not feel anywhere else outside of the Indianapolis 500. For you as a driver, how important is that?

KYLE:

This is a huge race for us, right? Just the buzz around the circuit, the fans that show up, the media that shows up, being in downtown Long Beach, one of the bigger cities in the US, on a track that we've now raced 49 years at. I haven't, but people have. So there's a lot of history that's behind this circuit, and it is very, very important to the series. So to do well here and then kind of roll into Barber and then into the month of May, this is like the time that you want to kick off your run into the 500. So it is a very, very important race.

BRUCE:

After Long Beach, it's going to be off to the Barber Motorsports Park for the Alabama Children's Hospital Grand Prix of Alabama. That course has gained its own reputation of being a very great event on the schedule. How do you like that course? How do you like that event?

KYLE:

I do really like the course. I haven't had a ton of success there, but it's a really enjoyable place to drive with undulations and very unique corner types there. We had a good shot last year until I blew it in qualifying. I spun on an outlap. So that was less than ideal. But we think we'll be solid there again. It's a good track. It kind of creates some strategy differences, as you saw last year, where you can either do the two-stop or the three-stop. the only track that we go to that it's like a definite two or three stop, right? It's right in the middle on the line for that. So, yeah, excited to go back there once again, but we need to get through this weekend first and have a good one to hopefully roll some momentum into that one.

BRUCE:

But yet you have to look at the calendar and realize that May is coming, and that means the Indianapolis 500 gets everybody excited that's involved in IndyCar, and even people that aren't involved in IndyCar get excited about it. How excited are you to know it's not that far off?

KYLE:

I'm extremely excited now just because After that two-day test that you mentioned, where we only had like an hour and a half, you do learn a lot in the first run that you get with your car. That is for sure. You're always struggling if you don't have the pace from the beginning of your very first run. And we had that pace. We had really, really good pace to start off the two-day test. And it was to the point that I just want to wrap up our car, put it inside the trailer and go home and pull it out later on in the month of May. So we're in a good spot. It makes me extremely excited for us. I think the team has put a lot of effort in the off season, specifically on the 500, based on our qualifying pace from last year. Our race cars were there last year. It just wasn't our, we weren't there for the qualifying pace. So they found some ways to get some drag off the car. So that's been really good. And hopefully that's going to pay off dividends once we get to later in the month of May.

BRUCE:

Last year was a four-car team at Andretti Global. This year it's a three-car team. What's some of the biggest differences you see between four cars and three cars?

KYLE:

I think everyone's just a little bit more relaxed, right? Like the engineers that were on the cars last year are now put into different situations and they're kind of in a helping format where We can rely on some of the engineers that were maybe a little spread thin last year to now this year where we've got an abundance of engineers. It's been positive in many different ways. The dynamic between Colton, myself, and Marcus is absolutely perfect. We all kind of want a similar car, and we obviously understand the same goals that the team needs, and that's to go out and win races. relatively longer-term contracts, right? It makes it easy for us to understand the goals of the team. So it's been really, really good so far. Yeah, so tons of positives.

BRUCE:

Marcus Ericcson is new to the team after racing for Chip Ganassi Racing. What have you learned about Marcus that you didn't know before this year?

KYLE:

One thing, I mean, I didn't know a whole lot about him, right? Like, I've learned a lot about Marcus in the past few months, and one thing that is very cool to see is how in-depth he is with engineering the car and understanding the car and changes. Like, he is super meticulous and, yeah, he gives amazing feedback. So, that's been really, really good to see. It not only helps him, it helps the team and it helps us drivers, Colton and I, to have somebody that has good feedback and understands the car as well as him.

BRUCE:

You're a surfer dude from Jupiter, Florida. You know the waves of the Atlantic Ocean. We're over here on the Pacific Ocean, where surfing is huge. Were you able to bring your surfboard with you this year?

KYLE:

I actually have a surfboard out here. I leave it out here for every time I come back. I don't think I'm going to be able to get into the water this week. It's been super busy, given that I won the race last year, and media has been dragging me every single direction all through the week. So I haven't had a chance to get in the water. But I did go and watch for about 15 minutes this morning. I had a notorious spot called the Wedge, where it was like double overhead. People were breaking boards left and right. It was actually pretty crazy. So it makes me want to get out there. But at the same time, this is my primary job. This is what I'm here to do. I'm not here to surf.

BRUCE:

Which is more hair racing, driving an IndyCar at top speed around the streets of Long Beach or riding the big waves on the Pacific Ocean on a surfboard?

KYLE:

Actually, surprisingly, I'm going to go with the waves because I'm a little better in an IndyCar than I am a surfer, so I'm going to go with that one.

BRUCE:

Kyle Kirkwood and Ready Global, congratulations on the start of the season so far. Good luck in 2024 in the battle for the Indianapolis 500 and the NTT IndyCar Series Championship. And thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you. Colton Herta went on to finish second in the 49th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach after he was involved in the bump and run with Team Penske's Joseph Newgarden in the hairpin final turn late in the race. The two were racing for second place, trying to catch the leader, Scott Dixon. Prior to hitting the track at Long Beach, I caught up with Herta for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview. Joining us now on Pit Pass Indies, one of the big stars of the NTT IndyCar Series is Colton Herta of Andretti Global. Colton, after what's been a pretty disjointed start to the season, where IndyCar had a championship race back on March 10th, then an exhibition race on March 24th, a two-day Indy 500 open test that only ran for three hours, now we're at Long Beach, which starts a very busy portion of the schedule. How excited are you to finally have it count again?

COLTON:

No, it's good. You know, obviously we wish we had more of a less of a lull period and more just kind of directly in. But yeah, no, it's good.

BRUCE:

So this is a big year for you. You've reached the point in IndyCar where you're a major contender for the championship. You're also a major contender for the Indianapolis 500. I don't want to use the word pressure, but do you feel like this year is the year that Colton Herta really needs to step up, put up the results?

COLTON:

No, I mean, I think I've been driving well the whole time. So, you know, I just got to keep doing what I'm doing and kind of hope that we can improve in some places and make everything better. But no, I think it's been OK. We just need to kind of put everything together.

BRUCE:

The other thing is the ability to get into victory lane. Isn't a lot of that have to do with the nature of how the race plays out?

COLTON:

Yeah, I mean, there is some luck involved. Yeah, everything just needs to come together. That's how IndyCar is. It's just so competitive that it's tough when everything doesn't fix and mix.

BRUCE:

When you look back at your time at the Indianapolis 500, you've qualified very well. You've had some pretty good races there. What do you see as being some of the reasons why you haven't been able to get up there at the end of the race and be challenging for the victory?

COLTON:

I mean, it's been a bit unlucky in some instances. In other instances, we just haven't had the pace. So it's a mixture of both. And it's kind of always evolving from our side of things and always learning. So hopefully, we can kind of continue that trend. I think last year was the best year I had at Indy and the best chance I had at a win. I thought the car was fantastic. Everybody was doing great. But unfortunately, we got caught leaving the box when somebody else is coming in. So I got to drive through for that. I basically drove from 25th to 5th and then got sent back after that to like 29th or 30th and then we got to drive back again to I think finish 7th or 8th so we really had great speed in the car it just didn't really come together.

BRUCE:

That always seems to be a race where there's always a top driver or two that's having a really good race and then it can just be the slightest mistake like entering pit road too fast or some other infraction that may happen where a driver gets nailed. How frustrating is that? It seems to happen, does it happen more in the Indianapolis 500 or is it just magnified more?

COLTON:

I think you just have more opportunities because it's such a long, way longer race and way more cars involved. So there's a lot more opportunity to mess it up with six pit stops or whatever.

BRUCE:

This year, your teammates are Kyle Kirkwood, who you've competed with the last couple of years. New guy coming over, Marcus Ericcson. It's a three-car team instead of a four-car team. How does the dynamic change with it being three drivers instead of four?

COLTON:

Not much. I mean, I think it just gives maybe less of a headache for some of the engineers on some of their projects. We have a little bit more staff to work on things, opens up opportunities for guys to work on different things, and the workflow is a little bit decreased. So it makes it a little bit easier on them. But from our side of things, it's very similar. And two guys that I've enjoyed working with so far. Obviously Kyle for a little bit longer, but just getting to know Marcus and just barely kind of getting into the season with him. This is our third race together, but enjoyed it so far.

BRUCE:

Getting to know Marcus. What do you know about Marcus now that you didn't know when he was over at Chip Ganassi Racing?

COLTON:

I think just his driving style, what he excels at, what he kind of doesn't, isn't great with. And I kind of understand how he would like a race car compared to me and where the differences are. And that's the most important thing for us to understand is to know if he likes something that I generally don't like. It's probably not going to be great when he says it's amazing. For me, it might not be so amazing. So it takes a while to learn that sort of thing. But it's like that whenever you're working with new people to learn their tendencies and what they like, what they don't like.

BRUCE:

Although it hasn't been announced yet, it seems like the hybrid assist unit will come into competition beginning at mid-Ohio in July. And to be able to start the season with one package and then end the season with a different package, Is that difficult, or do you see where that's going to be a little tricky?

COLTON:

I'm not a fan of it. I think it could hurt you if you're in the championship fight, you know, and you introduce a lot of these new parts that are foreign that you've been excelling on the other stuff. But, you know, it could go the other way for me. We could be really a lot better on the hybrid stuff and go for it. I just don't like adding it midway through. I think it's a little strange for me.

BRUCE:

And in our final question with Colton Herta of Andretti Global, Colton, your father, Brian, is a two time winning team owner of the Indianapolis 500. How important is it for you to add your name to his as a winner of the Indianapolis 500? But you would be one up on him. You'd win it as a driver.

COLTON:

Right. I mean, that's that's the goal. You know, it's what he always wanted to do, but just never got the chance to, unfortunately. So if I could be able to do that and put the Hurdle last name in victory lane at Indy, it would be it'd be fantastic. So. Obviously that's the goal at the beginning of the year every year. It's what we work towards the most and what we put most of our effort in. So yeah, hopefully we can get that going.

BRUCE:

Colton Herta, good luck in your quest for an Indianapolis 500 victory. Good luck in your quest for a 2024 NTT IndyCar Series Championship. Thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you. Rounding out the Andretti Global Trio is the new guy on the team in 2024. It's racing star Marcus Ericcson, who joined the team after a successful term at Chip Ganassi Racing that included winning the 106th Indianapolis 500 in 2022. I caught up with Erickson for this exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy. Joining us now on Pit Pass Indy is the winning driver, the 106th Indianapolis 500. It's Marcus Ericcson, now with Andretti Global. Marcus, the month of May is getting closer. How excited does that make you?

MARCUS:

It makes me super excited. It's the highlight of the year. There's no doubt about it. I think for me, coming back again after last year being a great month of May, but a disappointing end to it, has made me work even harder to come back and be fighting for a win again.

BRUCE:

A disappointing month of May for you was finishing second in the Indianapolis 500.

MARCUS:

Disappointing end.

BRUCE:

Very disappointing end, especially when you finish second. It was the Joseph New Garden. It was a very unique set of circumstances that concluded that race. Is that the thing that was probably hardest for you to accept?

MARCUS:

Yeah, I think, you know, Joseph is a very worthy champion. There's no doubt about it. And he drove a hell of a race. So I think for me, what was hard to accept was just the way it ended, you know, and the way the decision making was very different or completely different to what we've done in that race. in the 100 plus years it's been running. So for me that was a tough part, but it's history now. Like I said, it's been motivation for me to come back even stronger this year. So it's, you know, water under the bridge, but it was definitely tough.

BRUCE:

But now you're with Andretti Global, a team that's had a very impressive history in the Indianapolis 500. You have to feel like your chances of getting to victory lane there again in 2024 have to be pretty good.

MARCUS:

Yeah, I think so. You know, the team, like I said, have a really good history at the Speedway. They are, you know, really strong there in general. I think they have put a lot of effort in to improve their Speedway package since last year. And I'm excited to go there with the Unready team and see what we can do, because I definitely think we should be right up there and fight for it.

BRUCE:

The 2024 IndyCar Series seasons had a disjointed start. The first race was back on March 10th. Then there was a two-day test followed by a $1 million All-Star Challenge at the Thermal Club on March 24th. Then there was what was supposed to be a two-day Indianapolis 500 Open Test. Unfortunately, because of rain, you only had about three total hours of track time over that situation. Now Long Beach starts a very busy part of the schedule. And in a lot of ways, when you look at the way IndyCar does business, it's either like on the gas all the way or you're parked.

MARCUS:

Yeah, it's been a bit of a strange start to the year for sure. But now, you know, it really starts from now, to be honest. From this weekend onwards, it's just full on with races. And that's, you know, what we've been working and waiting for for a long time. So I'm excited to get going now and really get into the season properly.

BRUCE:

And of course, as the month of May approaches, that means the Indianapolis 500 and anybody involved with IndyCar racing knows how big that is. And even people who aren't involved with IndyCar racing know how big of a race that is. How excited are you?

MARCUS:

I can't wait. It's like I said, it's the highlight of the year. It's what makes us work so hard is to get to that month of May and, you know, go out there for race day. So, yeah, I, you know, so our dreams are made of and I can't wait to get there.

BRUCE:

Speaking of dreams, when a driver pulls into Victory Lane at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway after winning the Indy 500, there's a lot of traditions, but the very first one is the winner's wreath that gets draped around your neck. I had a chance to meet Julie Harmon Vance, who makes the wreath. This will be her 33rd year making the wreath for the Indianapolis 500 winner. We all know how important the number 33 is at the Indy 500. Do you still have your wreath? And I know that you and her have traded communications after you won your wreath.

MARCUS:

No, I still have it for sure. It's in my house in Indianapolis. So it's for sure a very special and important piece of history. So yeah, it's one of many cool things with winning that race.

BRUCE:

And when you think a florist from Yorktown, Indiana is a key part of the Indianapolis 500 traditions, what do you think of that? And what do you think of her work?

MARCUS:

Oh, it's amazing. It's super talented and like I said, it's part of the history and part of what makes it so special, things like that.

BRUCE:

She called you the Swedish hockey player. So what were the communications like between you and her?

MARCUS:

Nah, no, but just casual, you know, casual stuff. But yeah, I love my hockey, so, you know, it's no secret about that. But no, it's very fun.

BRUCE:

When you have a living, breathing floral arrangement that needs to be taken care of, how do you preserve it?

MARCUS:

That's a good question. I need to maybe have some work on preserving it because it's hanging in my house, but I can't really touch it.

BRUCE:

And also, as we get back to racing, you're one of the leading contenders in the IndyCar Series for the championship. You're with a new team at Andretti Global. How do you feel your prospects are to be up there at the end of the season this year on the oval at Nashville to determine the championship in 2024?

MARCUS:

I think they're good. We had a strong start with 5-6 there in St. Pete. Unfortunately, a technical issue forced us out of the race, so we lost some important points there. But it's a long season, and I'm excited to get it started here in Long Beach. And there's no doubt that we aim to be up there and fight for it when we get to Nashville.

BRUCE:

And finally, what do you think of your growing relationship, the dynamic with your teammates at Andretti Global?

MARCUS:

It's been great so far. Kyle and Colton are both great guys and super fast drivers. It's been fun to work with them so far. I think with some time we're going to be an extremely strong trio.

BRUCE:

Plus, Kyle really put a hurtin' on the field last year in the Acura Grand Prix at Long Beach. What was his secret?

MARCUS:

Yeah, that's what I'm going to have to try and find out this weekend. I was not far behind though, so I feel like we should be in the mix there. But for sure, yeah, Carl had an amazing weekend here last year. So we're going to try and be up there, all three of us, and hopefully fight for the win between us.

BRUCE:

Well, he'll definitely be fighting for victories throughout the 2024 season. Markus Eriksson of Vandredi Global. Good luck the rest of the season. Good luck in this year's 108th Indianapolis 500. And thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you. We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

SPEAKER_01:

This is Will Power of Team Penske and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

Welcome back to this episode of Pit Pass Indy. After parking his car for what was announced as the final time following last year's Indianapolis 500, popular Tony Kanaan is now the sporting director at Arrow McLaren. He works with the team's group of drivers, including Pato Award, Alexander Rossi, and the injured David Maloukas. Because Malukas fractured his left wrist before the start of the season, drivers Callum Eilat and Formula 2 champion Tao Porchère have filled in for the injured driver. Porchère was impressive in his IndyCar debut, starting 22nd and finishing 11th, advancing the most positions of any driver in the race. Canaan will also work with 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson, who will compete in his first Indianapolis 500 for Aero McLaren Racing in a combined effort with Hendrick Motorsports. Larson is attempting to become the next driver to compete in both the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Cup Series race on the same day on May 26th. Canaan was behind the wheel of a race car this past weekend at Long Beach as he drove the famed McLaren M16 that Johnny Rutherford drove to victory in the 1974 Indianapolis 500. Canaan was participating in the historic Motorsports Association contest as part of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. The always entertaining Canaan joins me in this exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy. Joining us now on Pit Pass Indy is a real IndyCar legend, Indianapolis 500 winner Tony Kanaan. Tony, this weekend at Long Beach, you're going to get a chance to do something cool. You get a chance to drive the M16 McLaren, three-time Indianapolis 500 winning car that Johnny Rutherford had a chance to drive. How cool is that?

TONY:

I mean, Bruce, honestly, it was something completely unexpected. We did a little bit of driving on the historic cars last year at Velocity, but this one is an honor. I mean, Johnny and the history of this car and IndyCar is something that I don't even know if I can express what's going to happen tomorrow, especially when I get in and think about how much this car was successful. So an honor. Hopefully we'll make Johnny proud. He's at home. But yeah, to me it feels like a real race weekend again. I'm running every day. Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

BRUCE:

Plus it's the 50th anniversary that Johnny Rutherford had his first Indianapolis 500 win in 1974. And to be able to do that 50 years later by driving in his car, that's going to be quite an honor for you.

TONY:

100%. That was the year that I was born. I was actually not born yet. I was born in December of 74, so it is. And, you know, this is the car that is part of the history of McLaren, the triple crown. So I couldn't be more proud. And it is a lot of pressure, man. I mean, Zach told me yesterday, you do not scratch that thing in any way, in shape or form. So pressure's on.

BRUCE:

When you look at a car like that from that era, of course, racing evolves, safety evolves. At that time, that car was the epitome of safety at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But when you look at it now, how dramatically different is it?

TONY:

I mean, I have to say, drivers complain that the cockpit nowadays is small. I don't know if you guys... I had a chance to look at that thing, but this is small. Obviously, we evolve a lot, but if you look at it, it still looks like a modern car. I mean, that's probably why it was so successful, right? You look at, you know, especially the wings and the suspension. The suspension has changed, but again, to me, It, you know, we came a long ways, but this is just the nature of the business. But it still looks pretty futuristic in my opinion.

BRUCE:

And this may come as a shock to some race fans, but that car actually does have a windscreen on it.

TONY:

Correct. So we are ahead of our time when Bruce built that car. But yeah, it does. And I'm actually concerned how low am I going to sit on that thing because the windscreen is pretty high.

BRUCE:

Hey, when we started talking here earlier, you were saying you have a real job now. You are the sporting director at Arrow McLaren and you work with the entire team to help build that into what eventually will be one of the top team in IndyCar. How do you like the job so far? How do you like the transition?

TONY:

It's been a good one, I would say. I'm enjoying it quite a bit. To be honest, I didn't think I was going to enjoy it as much as I am. I'm very intense. They say in the team that is the Tony Canaan speed and the team speed. There's a lot of things that I've learned in racing that I can apply to my current job. You know me for a long time, I don't know how to do things if I don't do it at 100%, so I'm dedicated 100%, I'm enjoying it a lot. Somebody asked me this morning if I missed being in the car, and I think I always will miss being in the car, but my goal right now is to make this team winning races. That is the only chance I have to win a race nowadays is if one of them wins. So it's been good, enjoying it a lot, learning a lot, trying to share my experiences with the drivers and the crew, but also learn from the top level, like guys like Zach, how to improve the business.

BRUCE:

A unique group of drivers on that team. You've got Pato Award of Mexico, very popular, big personality, a little bit like you when you were younger. Well, you still do have a big personality. Got Alexander Rossi, who I would guess would, it'd be fair to say he has a unique personality. Well, yes. We haven't really had a chance to see David Maloukis yet in the Arrow McLaren car because of his injured left wrist. You've worked with a variety of drivers including a guy from France. If you could tell us a little bit what it's going to be like working with Theo here at the Acura Grand Prix at Long Beach.

TONY:

Yeah I mean obviously we're waiting on David to get better and until then we're going to have to find a way. Callum was busy this weekend that's why he's not here so We looked who was the best, who was one of our best options and we found obviously Theo was available. We need to thank Sauber for letting us borrow him. His new nickname is Teddy. It's the American name for Theo, but we'll see. I mean, first race for him here. He's a very talented young kid. I mean, I'll try to help him as much as I can.

BRUCE:

But last week at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, you worked with Kyle Larson, one of the great all-around race drivers in America. He really talked a lot about how he enjoyed working with you. When you talk to Kyle Larson, he almost seems to be like the least pretentious racing star that you could find. He's just a kid that loves to go racing. What's your impression been so far working with Kyle Larson and the prospects of him having a really good Indianapolis 500?

TONY:

I think if you discount Kyle Larson in any race car, you'd be fooling yourself. He's a tremendous race car driver. I've known Kyle for a while. We won the 24 Hours of Daytona together back in 2015. It's no news to me. I think Kyle's been awesome to work with. People are going to give me a lot of credit, but I think the credit is on him. I have a very talented driver that I got the opportunity to help. I mean, I really believe he can win the Indy 500 and I will do everything I can to help him as far as my experience and things that I can help him with to do so.

BRUCE:

Even though the Indy 500 open test was shortened because of rain a little over three hours, what impressed you the most about what he learned that day?

TONY:

The thing is Kyle can drive anything and learn in like three laps. To me, that's what he hadn't run in a draft yet. He only had done his rookie orientation and you put him in a draft and he mastered it in five laps. So to me, his capability of adapting to a new situation quick is one of his strengths.

BRUCE:

One other thing I would like to ask you is this is the 33rd year that the lady who makes the BorgWarner winner's wreath is making the wreath. I know that is the very first tradition that a driver gets when he pulls into Victory Lane at the Indianapolis 500. The wreath goes around your neck before the bottle of milk is awarded to you, before the BorgWarner trophy arrives. Do you still have your wreath and what was it like to have that honor when you won the Indianapolis 500 in 2013?

TONY:

I mean, it's part of the tradition, right? I do have it, but it looks like, can I even say it, because it's 10 years old now, but yeah, man, this is like, it's basically, it's the wreath, you keep the bottle that you drink the milk and the trophy, so, and the Borg Warner, so I'm, still have it. It's not in a good shape. I might convince her to make me a new one, maybe.

BRUCE:

Julie Harmon Vance is the lady that makes the wreath. Did you ever have a chance to meet her afterwards?

TONY:

We did and I thank her for all her efforts and, you know, obviously she's part of the best day of my life.

BRUCE:

I know she's a big fan of yours, and of course, we're all big fans of yours. Tony Kanaan, 2013 Indianapolis 500 winning driver, 2004 IndyCar Series champion, and the sporting director at Arrow McLaren. Good luck the rest of the season, good luck working with all the drivers at the Indianapolis 500, and thank you for joining us on Pit Pass Indy.

TONY:

Thanks, Bruce. I missed you, actually. It's been a while. I've missed you, too. Now we need a 20-minute interview. We can take six months off. Thank you.

BRUCE:

And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy. We want to thank our guests, 2024 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach winner Scott Dixon, all three drivers from Andretti Global, including Kyle Kirkwood, Colton Herta and Marcus Ericcson, and Arrow McLaren sporting director and 2013 Indianapolis 500 winner Tony Kanaan for joining us on today's podcast. Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests help make Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental and Hy-Vee, your path to victory lane in IndyCar. On the highways, the raceways, and every pit stop in between, Penske Truck Rental keeps you moving forward. Gain ground with Penske. And for all your shopping needs, be sure to visit your local Hy-Vee, where there's a helpful smile in every aisle. For more IndyCar coverage, follow me at Twitter at BruceMartin, one word, uppercase B, uppercase M, underscore 500. This has been a production of Evergreen Podcast. A special thanks to our production team, executive producers are Bridget Poyn and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin, and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcast.com. Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.