Andretti Autosport, IZOD IndyCar Series Race Preview Notes and Quotes: Indy Grand Prix of Alabama

Andretti Autosport, IZOD IndyCar Series
dhl_sundrop_logos  Ryan Hunter-Reay, Team DHL/Sun Drop Citrus Soda Chevrolet, No. 28    Hunter-Reay sits third in the IZOD IndyCar point standings after the season-opening Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. “It was really important to start the season well and to log a good finish. It gives us momentum going toward the championship. But, comparing Barber (Motorsports Park) to St. Petersburg is apples and oranges. The tracks are completely different, so the set-ups we had in the first race don’t translate. 

“We tested in the off-season at Barber, but racing is the absolute best condition to learn about the new car and Chevrolet engine combination. We are learning something new every lap, and we’re only going to get the car better and better. We have to be smart and patient to apply what we can to improve our performance. We have been communicating very well between all of our (Andretti Autosport) teams and drivers. It was a tremendous reflection of that teamwork to see all three of our cars start the season with strong runs.”

Did You Know: Hunter-Reay’s podium finish at the season-opening race is the third time in the last four years he has started the IndyCar season with a podium finish… He continued a hot streak that began mid-season last year, and has now finished in the top-10 nine out of the last 10 races. 
GoDaddy.com    James Hinchcliffe, Team GoDaddy.com Chevrolet, No. 27After finishing fourth at last week’s season opener on the streets of St. Petersburg, this will be Hinch’s second start at Barber Motorsport Park. He is looking forward to the great racing created by the Barber track.

“Barber is one of the proper natural terrain road courses… and it’s one of those cool tracks that lets you really stretch the legs of these Indy cars. It been an exciting race there the last couple years and was my debut IndyCar race last year, so it will be nice to go back with Andretti Autosport and Go Daddy this year and see what we can do in round two.”

Andretti Autosport used Barber Motorsports Park as testing grounds during the off-season, but racing with the full IndyCar field will have a different feel.

“Obviously testing with four or five cars is a lot different than with 26, so I think the track is going to get a lot faster with all the rubber going down. And certainly it will be good to have the whole field there to really gauge where we are in road course trim. We know roughly were we sit in street course trim (after last week’s race in St. Pete) so we just have to see how it is on the faster tracks, but our test (at Barber) went well for us so I’m confident we can be in a strong positions this weekend.”

Did You Know: James Hinchcliffe’s personal website Hinchtown.com was born out of the collaboration of friends and designers after decide he wanted to create a virtual space where fans can connect and feel like fellow citizens.
RCcolaLogo   Marco Andretti, Team RC Cola Chevrolet, No. 26Andretti has a sparkling record at Barber Motorsports Park, recording top-five finishes in each of his starts there.

“I’m looking to get going on a track where we’ve really been competitive in the past. We were one of the cars to beat the last two years there, so you go into the race expecting to do the same this year.”

“You can’t take anything from our setups at St. Pete that will apply to Barber because the tracks are so different. But you take what we had there before and what we’ve learned so far with the new car, and I think we’ll be good.”

Did You Know: Andretti finished fourth at Barber Motorsports Park in 2011, after starting ninth. In the inaugural race there in 2010, Marco started fourth and finished fifth after leading 58 of the 90 laps. 

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