Special Indianapolis 500 Bonus Edition – Kyle Larson, Josef Newgarden, Alex Palou and More from the Indy 500

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 Sports Ticker, Sports Illustrated, Auto Week and Speed Sport. 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, 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. It's the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and we are bringing you a special Pit Pass Indy Indianapolis 500 Bonus Edition. Earlier this week, we had our regular podcast, but today's episode has even more great content from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway entering this weekend's qualifications for the 108th Indianapolis 500. Today is Fast Friday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as each of the 34 drivers in the field get extra boost to create 100 extra horsepower around the 2.5 mile oval. That extra horsepower means extra speed as the cars are expected to flirt with 235 miles an hour in this weekend's qualifications. The first day of qualifications is Saturday, May 18, as all 34 entries in the Indy 500 field will attempt 4-lap qualification runs. The average speed of those 4-lap, 10-mile time trials will determine the Fast 12 drivers that advance into Sunday's poll day qualifications. Positions 11 to 30 will be locked into the starting lineup on Saturday. Sunday's schedule begins with the Fast 12 as the field is whittled down to the Fast Six that will battle it out for the prized pole position. Also, the four slowest entries in Saturday's qualifications will advance into Sunday's last chance qualifying as they fight it out for the final three starting positions in the last row. That will be followed by the Fast Six, culminating with the run for the pole. Rain plagued the first two days of practice at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Tuesday, May 14, was Indianapolis 500 opening day, but just 23 minutes of practice out of seven hours that were scheduled took place. Rain began the fall at 9.23 a.m., and five hours later, IndyCar officials canceled the remainder of the session. Wednesday, May 15, saw even more rain, but after a five-hour, five-minute delay, the track opened for practice. More rain followed in the final hour, and Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske was the fastest driver in the first day of full practice with a fast lap of 229.493 miles per hour in the number three Pennzoil Chevrolet. IndyCar officials extended Thursday's practice session by two extra hours with practice beginning at 10 a.m. Eastern Time instead of 12 noon. The track was open for practice under sunny skies and warmer conditions until 6 p.m. Eastern Time. The forecast for Fast Friday includes a 70% chance of rain, but the weekend forecast for qualifications calls for much warmer conditions with highs expected to be 86 degrees. Pit Pass Indy has 500 miles worth of content this month at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as we share exclusive interviews and behind the scenes insight into the month of May and the 108th Indianapolis 500. We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

WILL:

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

BRUCE:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. Kyle Larson has been a major focal point of attention this week at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion will compete in his first Indy 500 on May 26 in a combined effort with Errol McLaren and his NASCAR Cup Series team at Hendrick Motorsports. Larson will attempt to be the first driver since Kurt Busch in 2014 to race in both the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Cup Series race on the same day. It's being billed as the Hendrick 1100. Larson will be quite busy this weekend as he competes in the NASCAR All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Carolina on Sunday night, May 19. Earlier this week, Larson said if he is in contention for the Fast 12 or if he must qualify fast enough to avoid the last chance qualifying, he will put full focus on Indy 500 qualifying and skip the heat race for the All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro on Saturday night. Should he make the Fast 12, advance into the Fast Six, and potentially win the poll on Sunday, Larson's celebration will be brief, as he must be wheels up from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway by 6.20 p.m. to fly back and arrive at North Wilkesboro, North Carolina by 8 p.m. Pit Pass Indy has had tremendous access with Larson this week at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I caught up with the racing star for this interview on the pit wall during the rain delay on Tuesday, May 14, for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview.

BRUCE:

I'm sure that when you looked at putting this deal together, you thought, you know, man, I can't wait to get out there and really have a full day to go out there and run between the test and this. You have yet to have a full day to go out and run.

KYLE:

Yeah, no, this feels like a normal day for me here at Indy. So, yeah. tomorrow and the rest of the day. I think Friday doesn't look great, but so far the rest of it looks really good. I'm not too worried about it. Obviously, I would like to get a full day in today, but I know there's plenty of opportunity these next handful of days to get a lot of laps. Not too worried about it, but would love perfect weather every single day. But we aren't going to get that in Indiana.

BRUCE:

Well, I mean, it's just like the last few days here were beautiful. Yeah. Yeah. Schedule shows track activities.

KYLE:

Yeah. I would take rain every day except for qualifying day and then the 500. So I don't I don't really care.

BRUCE:

I don't want to say these cars, are these cars easy to learn or easier to learn than you've been led to believe?

KYLE:

Well I think by yourself they're easy to learn but I think in traffic conditions and pit stops and restarts and all the other details to like be competitive and win no I think they're probably very difficult to learn but if you're gonna go out there and make laps by yourself it's not it's not that hard but That's a small fraction of what it takes to be competitive in an IndyCar.

BRUCE:

I talked to a couple of people, Tony and I and a few other people about your chances to not only do well here but maybe even win. And the one thing they pointed out, there's only things that you can experience in the race from being in the race. You can practice all you want in groups and all that, but until you're in the race and you get pushed in areas of practice you don't want to be in. Is that really the one thing that's going to really determine how successful you can be on race day?

KYLE:

Yeah, definitely. I think for sure. Obviously, I think you need to qualify good and then be up in the front 10 cars or so and then hopefully I can be aggressive enough to keep that track position in the beginning and then just get learning very, very fast. you know hopefully that's why I feel like you with my experience of dirt racing and having to learn very quickly um will hopefully benefit me a little bit but um yeah I think or I know that you know practicing like this or whatever like It's nothing like the real thing. There will be a lot to learn when the green flag drops on Sunday.

BRUCE:

How often have you done a three-wide start?

KYLE:

I ran the Hut 100 in USAC in 2011. That would be the only time I did a three-wide start. I don't remember anything about it. yeah it's um it's i'm sure it's nerve-wracking just under caution you know laps before the race like i'm sure you're way more aware of your surroundings and in the distance you're keeping between yourself and other people you know when you're three wide versus two wide so um yeah i'll i will be very alert trying not to f anything up before the race even starts

BRUCE:

Well, in NASCAR, a couple of weeks ago, you had more experience with a three-wide finish. Some ways, though, I said, hey, do what you gotta do. You know, looking back at that win, does it amaze you, just how close it was?

KYLE:

Yeah, I mean, I still just can't believe, like, it all... Like, even if I would've finished second, like, I still can't believe that I got to the point of being outside of him. So, just, you know, how it all worked out, and then to just edge him out by, you know, an inch or whatever was... incredible and just the confusion that happened after the race immediately after the checkered flag was like this kind of adds to the craziness of the finish so no it's just it's pretty neat to be a part of the closest finish in NASCAR history and then obviously you know it's it's extra special when you are the winner of it but no it was a good race great race from start to finish and then to cap it off with a close finish like that was pretty pretty awesome

BRUCE:

What about last night at Kokomo? I know that you flipped a couple of times in that crash. What are your recollections of it?

KYLE:

Yeah, just a bad night. Probably the worst night I think we've ever had of sprint car racing with Paul Silva. So yeah, that was disappointing. I didn't do a good job qualifying, I didn't execute good two laps, and made a bad decision, and then started seventh in the heat race, needed to get to fifth to transfer to the main, and was just desperate and overly aggressive, and yeah, just kind of slid across too slow, and kind of left him a decision to make, and I just ran each of us out of room, flip myself and then then yeah I had to run the C main and I thought four cars transferred only two cars did I finished third so I didn't transfer and uh yeah end of the night so is what it is but uh try to be better next time.

BRUCE:

How did you get Johnny Rutherford to go up there with you?

KYLE:

I don't know I I mentioned it to him that I was racing I didn't think that he would go but he must have caught up with Doug Bowles or something later in the day and I don't know if they rode up together or what the deal was there but that was really Awesome to see him there. I mean I feel bad because I was in a bad mood when I when I saw him because I just got literally just got done crashing and then you know they were there and I was just you know didn't really want to talk to anybody and was just yeah in a bad mood mad at myself, but Yeah, I wish I would have just had a better night so he could have I'm sure he had a good time, but I'm I know he would have rather seen me race than probably others What do you think of an NASCAR in-season tournament? I love it I don't really know a ton about it yet, but if it's anything like the Denny Hamlin bracket thing that he did last year, I think it'll be really fun. I mean, we had zero involvement in it last year, but it was still something that I paid attention to every week. So yeah, now next year having a million dollars on the line, that's for sure gonna be a goal before the season starts and something that you and your team strategize around and all that. It's going to be good. I look forward to it. The summer months, and I don't know if it's in the summer or not, but the summer months get stale. It gets just kind of, not boring, but it just gets repetitive, I feel like, and you lose some excitement. So I think this bracket, or this whatever you want to call it, It's going to add a lot of excitement and more storylines. So I love it.

BRUCE:

And last question, how important is it to have logistics, have a guy handling all the logistics? Because you're going to be doing a lot of bouncing back and forth.

KYLE:

Yeah, I mean, I guess I don't know. I don't think it's as crazy as what everybody thinks, but it's the best part is I've got a team owner that owns multiple aircrafts and multiple helicopters and and can make stuff happen so you know that that makes everything a little bit simpler for me and you know Hendrick Motorsports does everything above and beyond better than any other organization does so yeah that that makes things a lot you know more relaxing I think for me so a big thank you to Rick Hendrick and Hendrick Aviation and everybody a part of Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren for making things easy on me.

BRUCE:

During another rain delay on May 15, we had another chance to dive even deeper into Larson's Indy 500 experience in another exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy. Joining us now on Pit Pass Indy is Kyle Larson as he prepares for the Hendrick 1100 running both the Indianapolis 500, Coca-Cola 600 on the same day. Mario Andretti one time said he learned how to race with finesse in sprints and midgets and on the dirt tracks. You have an extensive background in that. Is that where you feel you have a little bit of an advantage adapting to the IndyCar because of the finesse that you've learned in those previous series?

KYLE:

I don't know. I'm not sure. I don't really know. I haven't gotten to experience a moment yet where you have to finesse an Indy car. So it's just been close to wide open every time I've been in it. So that's not a whole lot of finesse. But sure, I mean, I think just maybe my experience racing a lot of different types of cars on different types of racetracks can help. But I don't really feel like I have an advantage here at all.

BRUCE:

You run so many different races and so many different divisions, and you're going from one track to another. Is this an instance where you really want to savor the experience, enjoy every moment of being a rookie at the Indianapolis 500?

KYLE:

Yeah, I think for sure. I think, you know, being, you know, the biggest race in the world and my first time doing it, yeah, I want to savor the experience and, you know, I've got a lot of friends coming, and obviously my kids are here, and Caitlyn, and my parents, her parents, all that. So I think everybody's probably taking this as savoring every moment of it. My parents are here the whole two weeks, her parents are here the whole two weeks. So yeah, I just think it's a big deal, so you want everybody to enjoy it.

BRUCE:

Your formative years in USAC, midgets and sprints, you lived in Indianapolis, so you have an idea how the community embraces this event. But now that you're part of that event, you could end up being the fastest rookie. You could end up being a rookie winner. Are these all goals that you're aware of? The fastest rookie is a time-honored tradition that they have here. Is that something you want to check off the box?

KYLE:

I honestly hadn't thought about that stuff yet. I just want to do a good job. And for sure, if you're doing a good job and you can be the fastest rookie or I think being the highest finishing rookie is something I've thought about. But as far as qualifying, I hadn't really thought about that yet. But sure, you want to be the highest. You want to be first every time you hit the track, whether it's rookies or veterans, so that would be pretty nice.

BRUCE:

Well, you could achieve that by winning the pole for the Indy 500, which would make you the fastest driver in the field. How big of a goal is that?

KYLE:

I haven't made a qualifying run yet, so I don't know where to set expectations. You know, I think, you know, at least in the past, however many, you know, handful years, your rookies haven't qualified like amazingly. So I would just like to make the fast 12 would be pretty cool.

BRUCE:

One of the cool things that I've noticed when we come into the track every day is the Aero McLaren souvenir trailer of which most of the apparel is Kyle Larson. How important is that from you to be able to see all the Kyle Larson fans wearing the Aero McLaren colors? We see a lot of them in your NASCAR colors, but now we'll see a lot of Kyle Larson fans in the IndyCar apparel.

KYLE:

Yeah, no, I think it's, I think it's just cool. I think fans are, they've been excited about me doing this for a while. They've wanted me to do this for a while. So, yeah, it's no surprise that they're buying the merchandise to, you know, hold onto it and remember it someday. And yeah, support me in the moment. So, no, I think it's really awesome and I just hope I can do, you know, a good job and make everybody proud and, you know, have everybody enjoy it as much as I am.

BRUCE:

How much has the conversation back in NASCAR at some of the NASCAR races been among your fellow competitors that are talking to you about running the Indy 500?

KYLE:

Yeah, just here and there, you know, they'll ask, you know, how I've like how the car feels or drives and stuff. So just kind of more picking my brain on the driving aspect of it. So, yeah, no, it's it's it's cool to hear People intrigued in it and I'm sure when I get to North Wilkesboro or I get to Charlotte or afterwards, they'll have lots of questions, which is pretty cool.

BRUCE:

You're one of the stars of NASCAR and you've spent a lot of time in Gasoline Alley at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during Indy 500s as you were coming up. But what's it like now to know when you walk through the gates of Gasoline Alley that you're one of the drivers in the Indianapolis 500?

KYLE:

Yeah, I mean, I don't know. I haven't, I don't know. I don't think about it a whole lot. I just go race. So, um, obviously I understand how big this is and how special this place is, but, um, I just don't get too overwhelmed with things or, or overly excited about things. So I think just cause I race a hundred times a year, I think cause I race a hundred times a year, everything, you know, I do a good job of just making every race feel just like a race.

BRUCE:

But is it still cool to walk in and see A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, and Rick Mears, and all these other legendary names? Yeah, for sure.

KYLE:

Like, I walked into the garage yesterday, and A.J. was getting out of his rental car, or his car, and I was like, man, that's pretty cool. Like, there's A.J. Foyt. So, yeah, and yeah, there's just a lot of, A lot of legends, you know, but also even the current competitors that I've looked up to and not ever thought that I'd be on a racetrack with them. You know, like Scott Dixon, I've known him for, you know, a long, ever since, you know, my early days at Ganassi. So, like, being on the racetrack with, in my opinion, of my era, the greatest IndyCar racer of all time is pretty cool.

BRUCE:

And how cool is it when you hear a little kid or a young fan say, hey, wow, that's Kyle Larson? How cool is it when you hear that?

KYLE:

Yeah, and I think it's definitely, as I've raced now and gotten older, It's cool, like, you know, I remember being that, you know, little kid, like, looking up to drivers and, you know, looking at them like they're superstars, and I don't feel like a superstar, but, you know, having, yeah, having kids, you'll want my autograph or take their picture and, you know, parents now naming their babies after me is weird, but also cool. So, yeah, it's just, you know, Yeah, it's just special. The whole thing's special.

BRUCE:

He may not feel like a superstar, but he certainly is. Kyle Larson, good luck in this year's 108th Indianapolis 500. Thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy. Yep, thank you. We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

JOSEF:

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

BRUCE:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The past month has been one of turmoil and triumph for Team Penske. The push to pass scandal has been well documented as Josef Newgarden was disqualified after winning the March 10 Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg six weeks after the race. Team Penske's Scott McLaughlin was also disqualified from his third-place finish in that race, and Will Power was penalized but not disqualified because he did not use the push-to-pass in violation of the regulations. All three drivers are ready to put that incident behind them as they prepare for the 108th Indianapolis 500. Let's catch up with Newgarden as he talks about his recent performances as the defending winner of the Indy 500 hopes to move forward at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

JOSEF:

Oh my gosh, we had a disastrous race. I think the biggest problem for us was we did not have any speed on race day in the two car. That was kind of the main culprit. That just kicked everything off. We were a little out of sync on everything. I think our strategy faltered for what we planned on doing. And so it was multiple things. And then I got kind of beat up on the last race. I mean, it was like anything that could have gone wrong and slid back is basically what happened. But I think from a lack of speed is probably the main culprit, yeah. I feel good now. I felt good last weekend. I wish we had a better result. I thought we qualified well, just didn't get the race results to back it up. But I think we're getting there. There's no doubt. It's been a tough couple of weeks for the two-car. It's been tough for me, but I'm here and ready to move forward. I feel that today. I wish I could have done some laps this morning. I got an install check. That's something. But I'm ready. I feel really good. We got a good group here. You know, it's hard to beat this race. If anything's going to jolt you, it's this one. What's the amount of what? Guilt? Oh, I don't know that I feel guilt. I mean, I'll leave the team decisions to Roger Penske. You guys have heard from him. And, you know, at this point, the nice thing for me is, look, when you speak the truth, you only got to speak it once. So after that, I'm ready to move forward now. Yeah, I mean I look it's a it's a complex situation right in a lot of ways But you know, this is Roger Penske's team and you know, I respect any decision He's gonna make and I think you guys have all heard from him and you know He's really the source for for any of that. It's felt really good to be honest. That's not been my experience so far. Uh, everything's felt pretty normal this month for me. So from that standpoint, I'm pretty happy. Can I clarify? I haven't seen Graham.

BRUCE:

So that's right behind you. He's the guy that's moving. I'll say this.

JOSEF:

I haven't talked to Graham. There's a lot of guys here, right? How many guys we got here? 34 guys. He's one person I haven't talked to. I can confirm that for sure. Yeah.

BRUCE:

Different race strategies, you had John Boslog for the Grand Prix, Jonathan Duguid for the 500. Good, bad, is it different to have, would you rather have had the same guy for both races?

JOSEF:

You know, I've said this in the past and I felt this last weekend, I would be happy to plug into any one of our cars at Team Penske, you know, whether it's the 3 or the 12. And I felt similar to plugging in a couple different people under the car such as Myron and certainly Raul. I think he does a fantastic job and it's going to be the same situation here coming into the 500. I'm not worried about that. We have really good depth on the team, and we know that. I know all these individuals really well. I've been here a long time with them, so I'm comfy from that standpoint.

BRUCE:

And they both have a lot of Indy 500 experience.

JOSEF:

Yes, yes, for sure. Look, as far as personnel that know how to get the job done and know the formula, we have it on the two-car right now. I've talked to Tim once, and that was when I was driving to Chicago this weekend after the race. Just got to say hi to him and told him how bad the race went, basically. I said I kind of missed him, actually, because it would have been fun to experience the misery together of that one in a joking way. But no, I mean, look, we're here. I'm working with the group I got here is our program right now. I think you do. I mean, I don't know how you win. Look, it took me 12 attempts, and you needed to have a perfect day to win it last year. And I think we finally got that formula right. So yeah, I do think in a lot of respects, you've got to have a perfect day. Yeah, I mean, that's a complex one, too. I remember the first one, it was, you know, a whirlwind, right? But for me, I was a true rookie in motorsports, so it's a little different than Larson's experience, I'm sure. I was still learning oval racing in a lot of respects then, and it was overwhelming, you know, to say the least. But it has taken, you know, Indianapolis requires a different feel than other oval tracks. You know, I love oval racing, and I think we've found good success, but this place requires something a little different, and you just, you do have to have a perfect day, as someone else asked about. So I think that's, you know, taken a long time to find that winning formula. It's no it's a similar workflow as far as you talking when we come off track Yeah, I mean look it's very much. You know a driver engineer combo, so I'm working with Raul right now Who I've worked with in the past. He's he's definitely very very capable at his job, and we have a good relationship so him and I tag team probably 90% of the on-track action and then You know, Jonathan is plugged right in there too, which is a good voice of reason. He's engineered cars here. He's really good at calling races. So he's, you know, he's sort of the backup component to us. I think from an actual engineer driver capacity, yes, but with him being in the engineering role, in the past, I've worked with him as sort of a floater where he's performance-based and he's just on the team. So you're interacting with him sporadically throughout weekends, but consistently throughout the year.

BRUCE:

Do you approach pole weekend here as if you would another race? Rick Mayer's always said he looked at the month of May as two separate races.

JOSEF:

I think it's his own event, yeah. Qualifying is its own thing, and then the race is another. So, from that respect, yeah, I would agree.

BRUCE:

There have been several drivers from NASCAR that have attempted to run the double. The Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR Cup Series race on the same day since John Andretti was the first in 1994 and Kurt Busch the last in 2014. This year, Kyle Larson is the latest to make that attempt. New Garden must ask if he would ever consider running the double in the other direction, as an IndyCar Series driver attempting to compete in the Coca-Cola 600 on the same day as the Indy 500.

JOSEF:

Yeah, how could you not? I would love it. I mean, I think it's really difficult to do nowadays, as you guys know. It's why you don't see it a lot on the cup side either. There's other cup guys that I know want to come around this race, and it's just difficult to put the program together. Look, there's probably half the grid would love to go the other way, including myself. So, you know, I hope at some point we can get more of those efforts. It would be nice to see an IndyCar guy, you know, represent on the NASCAR side. And look, if it could be me, I would be the first person to raise my hand. Have you gotten down the road at all with Roger about a cup going off at any point in the future? Not yet, and until you see me in a cup car, that would not be yet.

BRUCE:

Are you not asking for things yet?

JOSEF:

Well, I've always asked for things, but you know, you don't always get what you wish for these days.

BRUCE:

I know you don't talk about your contract and your situation, but Roger did say he wants to keep playing in this whole thing. Were you concerned that he may not want you back?

JOSEF:

Um, no. There's probably not been a lot of room for those thoughts currently, but no.

BRUCE:

Okay. What thoughts are in your head taking up that space?

JOSEF:

Well, we've been preoccupied with the other elephant in the room, I would say, at this point, yeah.

JOURNALIST 2:

Have you gotten any clarity? I know they've put the white line in on the commitment area that's supposed to be pretty clear on where you guys can't go on the track, but have you gotten any clarity on, like, a limit on the number of moves that you guys will be able to make that would make defending for the win on that final straight look abnormally different than what you did or you noticed in the past?

JOSEF:

I think it should, it will look different knowing the rules that I believe are going to be clarified but there is further clarification that's needed both for the line and for operating procedure on the straights as far as moves. I think they're gonna I would assume they're going to clarify that as we get further into the week here, but it should be different than last year in some respects. Yeah. Yeah. Thanks.

BRUCE:

And now let's hear from Scott McLaughlin as the Team Penske driver will take the bright yellow Pennzoil Chevrolet into the 108th Indianapolis 500 for Team Penske in this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview. Well, you're back at Indy, and in a lot of ways, you can really help brighten up things by having a really good run here. How important is it to be here after some of the stuff you've had to go through the last couple of weeks?

SCOTT:

Yeah, I mean, we won in Barber, so we brought it up a little bit there. But, you know, at the end of the day, it's an important month for Roger. It always is. And we're just sort of pushing forward together. And, you know, I feel like it's, you know, we're just working as hard as we can. I feel like there's good camaraderie between all three of us. And yeah, we're working really hard together.

BRUCE:

How fortunate do you feel that your timing stand stayed unchanged?

SCOTT:

At the end of the day, the decisions were made by Roger and you respect them regardless of if something happened on my stand or if something happened on his stand or didn't happen or whatever. Ultimately, we respect Roger's decision. I drive for Roger Penske and it's his decision. Look, fortunately, I've still got my guys, yep, absolutely, but I think the team have done a fantastic job. We're very, I guess, talent heavy. We've got a lot of good people and I feel like they've done a really good job filling out the spaces for all three cars.

BRUCE:

How do you approach any 500 pole weekend? Rick Mears always said, he always approached it as two completely separate races. The first race was the race for the pole, the second was the race itself.

SCOTT:

Yeah, no, for sure. It's certainly interesting because this year we definitely want to improve in quality, just all together. I think we've got really fast race cars at the moment and we know that we're fast in the race, but it's a matter of just tuning those up for the fastest four laps. I've done enough now where I understand the cadence of both weeks. Hopefully, we put ourselves in position.

BRUCE:

How important is it when you're at the Indianapolis 500 with the history that you've got with your sponsor here, Pennzoil? Because some of the greatest cars in Indy 500 history and some of the greatest winners were with that brand.

SCOTT:

It's 40 years since Mears went to Victory Lane in this car, so maybe that's an omen, maybe it's not, but I take a lot of pride representing these colors with Pennzoil. I enjoy it. It's definitely my favorite scheme of the year. And that's no disrespect to my other partners, but it's just so cool putting on the yellow suit and definitely take a lot of pride in it, especially when the sun's out.

BRUCE:

McLaughlin explains how the recent bout of adversity has had some positive impact on his racing operation at Team Penske.

SCOTT:

I think, yeah, I think it genuinely has brought us closer together in some ways. I think we were always pretty tight, as you said, but I think, you know, you are leaders of the team and we have to be, you know, in sync and I think that's really been an enjoyable process trying to bring that back together and really just, you know, you know, bite the grip between our teeth and just get going, you know. And I'm really proud of how we're working. And I, yeah, couldn't ask for two better teammates. Nothing's changed. Nothing's changed. It's business as usual in some ways, yeah. That was nice. That definitely gave me a lot of confidence, especially after the start we had. Like, we were, like, last. So to come back through to be sixth at the end, I thought we had a... That was almost like a win for us on Saturday. But yeah, I'm ready. You know, you think you're ready every year, and I felt like I was really composed last year, but I think you've got to change your intensity level for this week and this month. You know, you can't just be blasé and go, oh, I know what to expect, because it changes all the time. This place is its own animal. So no, I'm very focused right now, and I'm ready to just get going.

BRUCE:

Speaking of the place changing all the time, this weekend's showing 80s. Yeah. How important is the qualifying draw on Friday night?

SCOTT:

I think my wife's going to draw for me because I don't want to do it anymore. And she's pregnant, so we've got two chances, I guess, two minds. So we'll see. But no, I'll leave it up to her. And if it's bad, it doesn't matter. I've had basically four bad draws in four years, so it doesn't really matter. If it's good, it's good.

BRUCE:

McLaughlin believes he has an advantage on the field by having four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Rick Mears as one of his mentors at Team Penske.

SCOTT:

He's such a great core value to our team, just like an anchor in some ways. You'd be talking some things and just in random conversation and he'll put a little tidbit in there that's just so valuable and you just take that with you. Yeah, it's just nice to have that air around. There's a lot. It's hard to go into detail, but there's a lot of things that he's helped with that I've also learned along the way as well. Yeah, it's hard to put into detail, and I don't really want to give much away, but I'm definitely in a different range of my learning now, and it's more just like ironing out creases now.

BRUCE:

Next, I asked McLachlan his thoughts on Kyle Larson's Indy 500, Coke 600 attempt this year.

SCOTT:

I think with, it's hard to feel comfortable ever at this place. But I think you're probably second or third year, you understand the week. But I mean, Kyle's a world-class race driver. He's all across it, knows, been to a lot of big events. He'll be fine in that regard. It's probably just the race and how the race plays out itself will be a little bit different. I think he's one of the world's best racers, so I think he'll be just fine. Yeah, we've been texting a little bit, mainly about golf. He's a nice guy. It's so cool that he's doing this. It's great for IndyCar, it's great for NASCAR, it's great for the sport in general. I think he's a stud and I'm excited to race him. Thanks, no worries.

BRUCE:

Although he is from Christchurch, New Zealand, McLaughlin is a fan of New York sports. From the Mets to the Jets to the Rangers and New York Knicks, McLaughlin cheers for those teams with a passion. Ironically, the Knicks were paired against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the NBA Playoffs. despite being in Indianapolis, but Lachlan explains to me why he has been quite vocal in support of the Knicks against the hometown Pacers.

SCOTT:

Oh, it was weird, but it was it was one of the most amazing experiences, like such a cool ending. As much as I didn't like the ending, you know, it's it's big respect to the Pacers fans. It's that place is unreal. The Cambridge Fieldhouse, I went with Colton. We had a blast so loud. I've never experienced anything like it. No, absolutely, a lot, but not a playoff game. But yeah, I ruffled a lot of feathers talking about the paces, but I've been a Knicks fan since I was three years old, so I'm not just a fair-weather fan right now. My mum and dad, they went to New York when I was a kid. They brought me home a New York jumper, and NBA was one of the only American sports on the TV in New Zealand. So, I loved basketball since I was a kid, always have, and then I so happened to marry a New Yorker, and my first NBA game was at Madison Square Garden. So, I've got a huge affection with the Knicks.

BRUCE:

But you're wearing Pacer colors this month, that bright yellow Pennzoil.

SCOTT:

Yeah, but it doesn't have a Pacers logo on it, so it doesn't matter. We can fix that if you want. Yeah, no, I'm a Knicks fan, big Knicks fan. I've heard stories. I don't know. Obviously, I was young, but, you know, I was just a huge, like, Knicks fan. And obviously, when I was a kid, like, Knicks were pretty good in those days. But, you know, yeah, yeah, exactly. It's cool. Like, I mean, just what an awesome time to have all the bloody basketball players here and hanging out. But it was cool to catch that game the other day. thankful in the IndyCar timetable worked out because it was like a later warm up so I could stay the whole game. But it was awesome. Oh, yeah, I'll be in the bus yelling. So but we're like a six man team right now. It's I think I think, yeah, I think that I think we're pretty beat up and wish them all the best.

BRUCE:

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

SCOTT:

Hi, I'm Scott McLaughlin, driver of the number three team Penske Chevy, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Kiffin Simpson is a 19-year-old rookie from Barbados who is part of a five-driver effort at Chip Ganassi Racing. The young driver joins me in this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview as he prepares for his first experience as a rookie at the Indianapolis 500. Joining us now on Pit Pass Indy is a rookie in the 108th Indianapolis 500. It's Kiffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing. You're still a teenager. What's it like to know that you're going to get the race in the Indianapolis 500?

KIFFIN:

Yeah, it's incredible. I'm so excited for it. It's going to be a fun time if we can get out on track. But yeah, I'm just looking forward to turning some laps and getting some pack running in.

BRUCE:

There's a lot to learn, which is one reason why there's so much track time at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Also, with the weather in Indiana being the way it is, you have to have a lot of practice days in order to get a couple of full days of practice in. For a race driver, how much anxiety do you feel when some of the days get rained out like we pretty much had earlier in the week?

KIFFIN:

I think having all these extra days makes it a little bit less less nerve-wracking. I think missing a day yesterday, we still know we've got some days that we'll get some running in, so I'm not too worried yet. I think the weather looks like it'll be clear at least on some of the days that we've got running, so I know I'll get some running in and I'll just try to learn whatever I can.

BRUCE:

To be able to come to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with one of the most successful teams in Indy 500 history at Chip Ganassi Racing, gotta know that you've got all the resources and experience at your disposal to learn how to do this. How can you even describe how valuable that is?

KIFFIN:

Yeah, I mean, it's incredible. I've spent the last two 500s with these guys just watching how they work and watching how they go out a 500 week, well, two weeks. And it's just incredible to watch. It's so cool to see how they work and how they always look to improve. And it shows on track.

BRUCE:

You're from the Cayman Islands. You also spent time in Barbados. Have you been able to help bring IndyCar coverage on TV to that area because of your participation?

KIFFIN:

I think so, at least a little bit. I know that I've got a lot of friends and family that watch me down in Cayman and in Barbados and it's great to know that at least IndyCar is getting a little bit more coverage down there. It wasn't a big thing when I was living down there but I hope that over the years it becomes more of a popular thing down there.

BRUCE:

You're part of a five-car operation. Has a Hall of Famer in Scott Dixon. You've got a driver at the top of his game in Alex Palou. You've got Linus Lundqvist. You've got all of these other great drivers that run for the team. Marcus Armstrong. How long are the debriefs and do you sit in those and just observe mostly?

KIFFIN:

Yeah, I try to just listen to what everyone's saying and listen to everyone's different experiences throughout the day because they've all, I mean, especially with the limited running yesterday, Scott was the only one that got to run, I think, so just listening to how he felt everything was and compared to other years, what he thinks about it. And yeah, it's really incredible to listen and just learn from all of them.

BRUCE:

A lot of people that come to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway talk about getting goosebumps when they drive through the tunnel. Did you experience that?

KIFFIN:

Yeah, for sure. Like the last couple of years that I've gotten to walk out through Gasoline Alley with the team, it's been incredible. And I can't wait to be one of the drivers going out through Gasoline Alley.

BRUCE:

When you first saw the stands, did you just sit there and go, wow, because there's no other sporting venue on earth that has it's this large.

KIFFIN:

Yeah, it's incredible. You really feel the magnitude of it when you're standing out there on the grid. You just everywhere you look, you see grandstands full of people, and it's incredible. And it's so awesome to see that everyone gets behind this event so much and supports us.

BRUCE:

Well, Kiffin Simpson, soak up the experience as much as you can because you're only a rookie once. Good luck in this year's 108th Indianapolis 500 and thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you. Alexander Rossi won the 100th Indianapolis 500 in 2016 as a rookie with what is now Andretti Global. Rossi is in his second year with Errol McLaren and eight years later, since that first victory in Indy, he is determined to win his second Indy 500 in 2024. Here is my exclusive interview with Rossi for Pit Pass Indy. Joining us now is the winner of the 100th Indianapolis 500. It's Alexander Rossi, Arrow McLaren Racing. Alex, the first couple of days here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway have been a little wet. So does that just add to the drama and the pressure to get more done in a shorter amount of time heading into poll day?

ALEXANDER:

I don't think so. There's so much practice here, honestly. It's almost too much practice. In a way, it's great to be able to get the reps in and just to be out there and experience as many different variables as you can. Ultimately, at this point, this car has been around for so long. They're all pretty sorted and pretty tuned in, so it's not that big a deal.

BRUCE:

So what really changes from year to year in terms of, is it teams, the crews, some of the Firestone tires, is that really what changes more year to year since the cars pretty much stayed the same for a while?

ALEXANDER:

It's certainly the tires, you know Firestone does a very good job here, so there's never a doubt in in the quality and durability, but they do have different performance characteristics sometimes, but I would say the biggest variable is truly conditions. It's easy to get lost around here based on the weather of the day. You can go to sleep happy on a Wednesday, not touch the car, come back Thursday, it's different conditions and the car's not as good. I think that's the biggest variable. Obviously, teams are finding improvements every off-season in terms of overall car speed and such. Yeah, I don't know that there's a whole lot of revolutionary things going on anymore.

BRUCE:

Rick Mears said one of the things that Kyle Larson's going to experience in the race are things that you cannot experience in practice because you'll get moved up into a part of the racetrack that you haven't run all week. You've pretty much have experienced that back in your days at Indy where you took lines brushing right up against the wall. Are those all things that a driver can only learn in the race itself?

ALEXANDER:

Yes, for sure. I think in the group running, as much as it gives you an indication of what your car is doing in traffic, guys drive differently because they're trying to give you space and they'll give you a lane at the bottom. Everyone's trying to look after each other to a certain extent, whereas in the race, obviously, that's not the case. overtakes become harder and it becomes the risk ramps up certainly in the race. It's just all part of the process. Fortunately, he's got a good piece of equipment under him, so it'll be a little bit more forgiving than potentially other guys that have come in for the first time.

BRUCE:

As Arrow McLaren has expanded, that now allows you to go out and do group running in practice. And just how valuable is that? Because your previous team with Andretti Global, that was one of the things that was one of their specialties, was to go out and practice and run pack groups all together.

ALEXANDER:

Yeah, I mean, when you have a third of the field, it's easy to do. Four cars still isn't quite enough for a group, but I think everyone now is caught on to the fact that like four o'clock is a time to go out and do group running. So whether you as a team do it or not, you can go out and still find plenty of cars to run with.

BRUCE:

You're one of the few drivers in the field that's won the Indianapolis 500. You picked a great year to win it when it was the 100th Indianapolis 500. Some past winners say that when they win the Indy 500, it's almost like an addictive feeling that they want to experience that again. Is that how you feel?

ALEXANDER:

For sure. You know, I think there's there's two groups, right? You have the guys that have the motivation, desire to win because they want to taste the milk. And then you have the guys that know how how life-changing it can be. And I think the latter is even more inspiring, just because you know how special it is, and you don't want anyone else to experience it.

BRUCE:

Right now, you're the only driver on the team that's won the Indianapolis 500. So do you get your teammates to come up and ask you, wow, what's it like to win the Indy 500?

ALEXANDER:

No, no. We're all competitors, and it all resets every single weekend.

BRUCE:

Well, I'm sure you're going to be another leading contender for the victory again this year. Alexander Rossi, good luck in this year's 108th Indianapolis 500. Thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy. No worries, thank you. We wrap up today's show with an exclusive interview from two-time IndyCarSeries champion Alex Palou as he attempts to win the Indy 500 pole for the second year in a row for Chip Ganassi Racing. Here is my exclusive interview with Palou heading into qualification weekend for the 108th Indianapolis 500. Alex, you say it better than I do, so I'll let you lead us in.

ALEX:

Joining us today on Peep As Indy is Bruce Martin.

BRUCE:

Oh, well, no, actually, it's Alex Palou. Alex, we had you on a couple of days ago after winning the Sanzio Grand Prix of Indianapolis, but now we go around the other direction, around the oval, it's the Indianapolis 500, a race that many of us thought you should have won last year had you not gotten involved in the Pit Lane incident. But as you come back, For another Indianapolis 500, how confident are you that this could be the year that you do the mace sweep and win both races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?

ALEX:

Well, that would be very sweet to do, especially having the pull and the win at the GP, but it will be tough, man. Everybody things that they are in the position. I was looking, re-watching the race from last year and listening to the interviews from the top 10 drivers, everybody thought that they had the best car. I would say that we were in contention and we were going to look very strong last year and hopefully we can do the same this year. Unfortunately, I cannot tell you how The car feels yet due to the rain but I'm pretty confident that the team did the same work or even a little bit better than they did last year and hopefully we can have the same speed.

BRUCE:

Now, generally, you're not a driver that wins polls, but you do very well winning polls at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. What is the reason for that?

ALEX:

I don't know, and I like it, honestly. Yeah, I thought about the same the other day with my dad when we got poll at the GP. But I mean, it has nothing to do the GP to the oval. Probably it's just a place that it's just wants to keep us happy. But I would say that The poll here last year at the Indy 500 was one of the most special moments that I had in my career.

BRUCE:

The poll master at the Indianapolis 500 of this era, or maybe of all time, is Scott Dixon. He's won five Indy 500 polls. The record is Rick Mears with six. When you won the poll last year, was it almost as great an accomplishment that you beat out Scott Dixon as it was that you won the Indy 500 poll?

ALEX:

Yeah, I didn't know how many he had. Obviously, I knew that he started so many times at the front, but it was more just the feeling of... We didn't think we had everything to get the pole against some other cars out there. We just went aggressive, trimmed out a ton, and everything worked out perfectly. So it was more just the feeling of being in front of 32 other cars than just beating Scott, that at the end, Yes, he's my teammate and you want to be always in front of your teammates, but I wouldn't have been on the pole if he wasn't on the team. He's preparing our cars, he makes sure that the balance is good and he's always open to give us some advice.

BRUCE:

Rick Behrens always used to say the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the Indy 500 is really two races. You have the race for the pole, and then you have the race. Do you approach it that way?

ALEX:

Yeah, 100%. I think this weekend is one race, and it's a whole race weekend. with that tension, with not making mistakes, with that pressure of like, first we need to qualify for the show and then we need to go through steps to make it to the pole. And then we switch all over to the race. So yeah, I would say it's two different races.

BRUCE:

The fact that you're so cool when you're in the garage, when you're in the car, when you're in the race, do you see that coolness as one of your strongest assets?

ALEX:

Yeah, I would say in some areas, yes. In some moments of the races, like probably last year here when we got crashed out instead of probably going crazy and just giving up or just crashing because I was angry. We made a big points day. We finished fourth. We didn't fight for the win at the end, but we were able to make a lot of ground. So, yeah, hopefully it helps in some of our races when we are in trouble.

BRUCE:

You're a two-time NTT IndyCar Series champion. You have the points lead entering the Indianapolis 500. How much do you need or do you want to add an Indianapolis 500 victory to round out your career in terms of great achievements?

ALEX:

I want it really bad. I feel like I've been Fasting for a very long time and I want to eat now. So hopefully we can do that We it's gonna be tough. It's gonna be a really tough week and a half, but we need to work on it We need to stay cool Go one stop at a time and hopefully fight for the end We've been close we in 21 with Elio and hopefully we have that chance again. I

BRUCE:

Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, good luck in the Indianapolis 500, good luck in Poll Day, and thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy. Thank you. And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy. We want to thank our guests, Kyle Larson of Arrow McLaren Hendrick Motorsports, Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske, Tiffin Simpson of Chip Ganassi Racing, Alexander Rossi of Arrow McLaren, and two-time IndyCar Series champion Alex Blow of Chip Ganassi Racing for joining us on today's podcast. Along