80 Laps Of Green Flag Racing Yields A 10th Place For Josef Newgarden

(LONG BEACH, Calif.) April 17, 2016 – Race Notes

– A completely green race and tough passing conditions were the main storylines of  today’s Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, where Ed Carpenter Racing driver Josef Newgarden finished 10th in his No. 21 Fuzzy’s Ultra Premium Vodka Chevrolet.

– Newgarden started 9th in today’s 80-lap race. Within the first two laps, he was passed by Ryan Hunter-Reay and dropped to 10th. However, Newgarden was the only car in the Top 10 to start the race on the black primary Firestone Firehawks.

– He made his first pit stop on Lap 21, switching to alternate red Firehawks. After the entire field cycled through their first round of stops, Newgarden sat 9th and was the only car other than the leader to be on red tires.

– Charlie Kimball, who made his first stop long before the rest of the field, came into the pits for a second stop on Lap 30, moving Newgarden up to 8th.

– The second stop for the Fuzzy’s Vodka crew came on Lap 50. Newgarden switched to scuffed red tires, though an issue with the inside rear tire cost him precious seconds. Newgarden fell to 10th after the rest of the field made their stops.

– Sebastien Bourdais was able to pass Newgarden on Lap 63 to drop him down to 11th. However, Graham Rahal was forced to slow to conserve fuel and Newgarden was able to get by him to move back into the Top 10.Newgarden finished 10th in only the 4th caution-free race in the 40-year history on the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. He heads to next week’s race at Barber Motorsports Park at the defending race winner.

– The Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama is up next for the Verizon IndyCar Series, site of Newgarden’s first career win last year. The race will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network next Sunday, April 24 at 3 p.m. ET.

JOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 21 FUZZY’S ULTRA PREMIUM VODKA CHEVROLET, FINISHED 10TH: “Well, not the weekend we wanted! But, it’s always good if you get a Top 10, so points wise, not the worst weekend. Also, not the best weekend! With the way the race shook out, qualifying probably hurt us more than anything today. No yellows and tough to pass, but the race car was dynamite. The whole Fuzzy’s Vodka crew has been working their tails off and we had no real missteps this weekend. We had a little bobble there on the last pit stop, but we’ve got some of the best guys in the paddock. It’s going to come down to just qualifying better and running away with the thing, so next weekend that’s what we’ll try and do at Barber!”