[IndyCar] #14 Bijna halverwege de 500

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Dario Franchitti has announced that as a result of his injuries suffered at Houston in October, he will be forced to stop his racing career.

Franchitti will leave IndyCar racing after four championships and three Indianapolis 500 victories.

Here’s his statement in full, released on the Target Chip Ganassi Racing website:

“Since my racing accident in Houston, I have been in the expert care of some of the leading doctors and nurses, all of whom have made my health, my safety and my recovery their top priority. I am eternally grateful for the medical care I have received over the last several weeks. I’d also like to thank my family and friends for their unbelievable support.

One month removed from the crash and based upon the expert advice of the doctors who have treated and assessed my head and spinal injuries post accident, it is their best medical opinion that I must stop racing. They have made it very clear that the risks involved in further racing are too great and could be detrimental to my long term well-being. Based on this medical advice, I have no choice but to stop.

Racing has been my life for over 30 years and it’s really tough to think that the driving side is now over. I was really looking forward to the 2014 season with Target Chip Ganassi Racing, with a goal of winning a fourth Indianapolis 500 and a fifth IndyCar Series championship.

I’d like to thank all my fellow competitors, teammates, crew and sponsors for their incredible support over the course of this amazing ride. I’d also like to thank Hogan Racing, Team KOOL Green and Andretti Green Racing for the opportunities to compete on the racetrack, and especially Target Chip Ganassi Racing, who have become like a family to me since I joined their team back in 2008. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank all my fans around the world. I can’t thank you enough for standing by my side for all these years.

I’ll forever look back on my time racing in CART and the IndyCar Series with fond memories and the relationships I’ve forged in the sport will last a lifetime.

Hopefully in time, I’ll be able to continue in some off-track capacity with the IndyCar Series. I love open-wheel racing and I want to see it succeed. I’ll be working with Chip to see how I can stay involved with the team, and with all the amazing friends I’ve made over the years at Target.

As my buddy Greg Moore would say, ‘See you up front’”

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Indianapolis 500 runner-up Carlos Munoz is ready for a full-time follow-up.

The 21-year-old Colombian has signed his IndyCar Series contract with Andretti Autosport, becoming its fourth car-and-driver combination. Munoz joins Marco Andretti, James Hinchcliffe and 2012 IndyCar Series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay.

Munoz led 12 laps in the 500, finishing second to Tony Kanaan. He also subbed for the injured Ryan Briscoe in the second Toronto race in July (for Panther Racing) and competed in the season-ending race at Auto Club Speedway.

Munoz won six races and six poles in two Indy Lights seasons.

“I don’t have the words to express right now how I feel,” Munoz said in a statement released by the team. “After so many years of racing and all the sacrifices — leaving my family in Colombia and going to Europe to race, then coming here to the U.S. — but finally I am a professional race car driver in the maximum category in America, IndyCar.”

Munoz’s car number and sponsorship will be announced at a later date, the team said.

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Schmidt Peterson Motorsports neemt deel aan het 2014 InydCar seizoen met Mikhail Aleshin. Na een succesvolle test op Sebring afgelopen maandag liet het team er geen gras over groeien en legde het de 26-jarige Rus vast. Aleshin wordt bij Schmidt Peterson de teamgenoot van Simon Pagenaud en vervangt daarmee Tristan Vautier, die nu zonder stoeltje achterblijft. Aleshin zal zijn debuut maken in de Verenigde Staten nadat hij voorheen in Europa actief was. Zijn grootste succes is het Formula Renault 3.5 kampioenschap in 2010.

Teameigenaar Sam Schmidt legde uit waarom hij voor de onbekende Rus gekozen heeft: "Wij zijn extreem tevreden om Mikhail (Aleshin) teamgenoot te laten worden van Simon (Pagenaud) voor het 2014 seizoen. Hij is ongelofelijk volwassen en getalenteerd, maar net als zoveel opkomende coureurs waren er niet genoeg kansen voor hem om naar de F1 door te groeien. We hebben al uitgevogeld dat zijn rijstijl erg vergelijkbaar is met die van Simon en geloven dat hij direct aan het programma bij kan dragen, zelfs als rookie."

Mikhail Aleshin had ook zijn redenen om in te gaan op het aanbod: "Ik heb voor Schmidt Peterson gekozen voor veel redenen, maar het belangrijkste was dat ik een team zag met veel potentie. Ik heb begrepen dat deze mensen echt voor de overwinning gaan. Soms kom je bij een groep met mensen en geloof je meteen dat zij professioneel zijn. Dat is hoe het is met SPM. Ik wil het team echt bedanken. Zij hebben me een geweldige kans gegeven."

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Op donderdag 12 december 2013 22:08 schreef Marks het volgende:

[..]

Di Resta dus toch niet?

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"I think IndyCar experience is at more of a premium today than it was several years ago," he said. "The schedule is very compact, you don't get very much testing now, and the thing that is really difficult to get right when you're learning to drive an IndyCar is an oval.

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Op vrijdag 13 december 2013 10:23 schreef Funzel het volgende:
Zie ik liever een echte topper bij Ganassi, niet Briscoe of Tagliani.