Newgarden Competes In Firestone Fast 6 For Second Weekend In A Row

(LEEDS, Ala.) April 25, 2015 – Qualifying Notes

– The CFH Racing team placed both of its cars in the Top 10 during qualifications for tomorrow’s Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama. Luca Filippi will start 9th and Josef Newgarden will be two rows ahead, starting in 5th.

– Newgarden and Filippi were both in Round 1, Group 1 to begin qualifications. After both drivers came in for the alternate red Firestone Firehawks, they quickly moved to the top half of the speed chart. The 10-minute session ended with Newgarden in 3rd and Filippi in 4th.

– Round 2 saw Filippi set the 9th fastest lap, but Newgarden’s 6th-quick time advanced him to the Firestone Fast 6. In the Fast 6, Newgarden turned two laps and elected to pit, choosing to save the tires for tomorrow’s 90-lap event. His first lap was the 5th fastest of the session which would become his starting position for the race.

– Today was Newgarden’s seventh appearance in the Fast 6 and second appearance in as many weekends. The Nashville, Tenn.-native also competed in the Fast 6 during last weekend’s Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

– This is Filippi’s best qualifying effort in the 2015 Verizon IndyCar Series season to date. Tomorrow will be the Italian’s first career start on the 2.38-mile permanent road course.

– Newgarden has three previous starts at Barber Motorsports Park. 2014 was his best year at the track, located outside of Birmingham, when he started 4th and finished 8th.

– The 2015 Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network at 3 p.m. (ET) on Sunday, April 26. The green flag is scheduled for just after 3:30 p.m.

JOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 67 HARTMAN OIL CHEVROLET, QUALIFIED 5TH: “We’re getting there. We definitely didn’t have enough for Helio Castroneves, Will Power, or Scott Dixon. We aren’t right up there in pole territory, but at least we are consistently in Fast 6 territory. That’s a good improvement for us and I am excited about that. We have a little work to do on our race car to make it consistently faster over a stint. Our team is strong, the Hartman Oil crew is full of good guys and good resources. We need to put it together and have a good, solid result tomorrow.”