Carpenter Races To Second Place Before Late-Race Accident in Firestone 600 Resumption

SPEEDWAY, Ind. (August 27, 2016) – Race Notes

– The night did not end as planned for Ed Carpenter Racing, but the only owner/driver in the Verizon IndyCar Series showed his oval prowess this evening at Texas Motor Speedway. After a 76 day delay, Ed Carpenter resumed the Firestone 600 and drove straight to the front of the field. Carpenter was running second in the closing laps of the race when his car broke loose in traffic and sent him into the wall. He was credited with an 18th place finishing position.

– When the Firestone 600 began on June 12, Ed Carpenter Racing also had Josef Newgarden in the race. Newgarden was not permitted to participate the remainder of the event after a Lap 42 crash caused extensive chassis and engine damage to the No. 21 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet. Newgarden sustained a broken right clavicle and a broken right hand but missed no races, returning to the car two weeks later in Road America. One month after the accident, Newgarden dominated at Iowa Speedway, earning his first Indy car win on an oval. He was at Texas Motor Speedway tonight to support Carpenter.

– The race resumed Lap 72 and went back green on Lap 74. Carpenter immediately engaged in the side-by-side racing that would become a theme of the night, working his way from 5th to 3rd in only five laps. After an adjustment to the car during the first round of pit stops, Carpenter raced his way up to the second position. When the No. 20 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka car hit clean air, Carpenter instantly began to cut into James Hinchcliffe’s 10 second lead.

– Carpenter continued to run in second place throughout the next two stints of the race, only relinquishing his position during pit stops. He made what was to be his final pit stop on Lap 204 and found himself less than a second and a half behind Hinchcliffe.

– On Lap 212, Scott Dixon, who was one lap down, ran side-by-side with Carpenter. The two made contact and Dixon went into the wall. Both Hinchcliffe and Carpenter elected not to pit under the yellow flag while the cars behind them came in for fresh tires. Only five cars remained on the lead lap.

– At the restart on Lap 220, Carpenter fell backwards but did not lose positions as the cars around him were not on the same lap. On Lap 224, Carpenter’s car broke loose in traffic, sending him into the wall. A suspected cut tire from the contact with Dixon was cited as a possible cause of the accident.

– The Firestone 600 was Carpenter’s final race of 2016. As a driver during only the oval events, Carpenter will hand the No. 20 over to Spencer Pigot for the last two races of the season.

– Because he was not allowed to participate in this evening’s event, Newgarden’s 22nd place finish dropped him from 3rd to 5th in the Verizon IndyCar Series point standings. After the standings were updated, Newgarden is still only 10 points out of the third position.

– Newgarden and Pigot will next hit the track at Watkins Glen International in upstate New York. Practice will begin this coming Friday, September 2nd. Qualifying will follow on Saturday, September 3rd before the race on Sunday, September 4th. A live broadcast of the INDYCAR Grand Prix at the Glen will begin at 2 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network.

ED CARPENTER, NO. 20 FUZZY’S ULTRA PREMIUM VODKA CHEVROLET, FINISHED 18TH: “The car was awesome. On long runs, I think we were for sure the best car out there. I’d cut into James’s lead every stint. He was a little quicker. We didn’t have the fastest car, but it was good on the long runs. I’m just bummed. It’s been such a rough year. We’ve had such better cars that what we had last year and really just can’t catch a break. Whatever happened with Scott and I there, when my left rear touched his front wing, it must have cut a tire and that led to the accident. I’m just really bummed. I thought tonight was a night that we could have gotten a good result. It’s going to be a long off-season before I can get back in the car, but we’ll come back strong next year.”